Changle Floating Life

Chapter 15

Pei Zhaoye chased the Buddha and jumped off the building, but Ye Jianqing was nowhere to be seen.Following the direction that the man left, he walked through several streets and alleys, past pawnshops, gambling shops, and clothing stores. He looked around in a vast expanse, but he couldn't find the person he was looking for.At first he thought that he was delusional, that person was not Ye Jianqing, but finally he refused to give up and hurried back to Duanwang Mansion.

He sent someone to keep an eye on Princess Zhenguo's Mansion and Anninghou's Mansion in the middle of the capital, and notify them immediately if there is any movement.He was fidgeting in the palace, and when it was noon, he suddenly remembered an omission, and ordered people to rush to the Yangzhou guild hall where Zhao Nanxing was imprisoned.Not long after the servant left, there was an ear report, but Ye Jianqing was not at the above places, but kneeling outside the palace gate to beg.

Pei Zhaoye felt a little restless in his heart, and immediately ordered his horses to go to Miyagi.From a distance, I saw a thin figure kneeling under the huge stone city gate.He didn't have time to get off the horse, and he was afraid of overtaking, so he walked up to him, and then flew up from the saddle and landed beside the man.

Ye Jianqing's arm was pulled up, only to hear a familiar voice say: "What are you doing, get up quickly." He looked up at King Duan in a little surprise, and then took the goldfish amulet held in both hands Raising it a little higher, without squinting, he said loudly: "The guilty minister Ye Jianqing has expressed his grievances, please see His Majesty's golden face."

His crisp voice echoed in the open space, but the imperial guards guarding the palace city were all watching him, no one paid any attention to him.He said it again, but the cold wind elongated the final words, which sounded ridiculous.

Pei Zhaoye looked at him condescendingly, his hair was only tied up with a wooden hairpin, his clothes were neat, but they didn't fit well.His attire is much more decent than that in Nanshan back then, but in the eyes of Duan Wang, he still couldn't help feeling sad.

"Jianqing, there are too many people here. You go back with me first, and talk about it after I enter the palace to meet the saint."

Ye Jianqing was unmoved.Pei Zhaoye didn't expect that such a scene would turn out to be such a stubborn person, who was usually gentle and gentle, and felt very troublesome for a while.He simply lifted his robe and knelt down beside him.Ye Jianqing was startled, and turned her head to look at him.

In early spring and February, it was cold and windy.Suddenly a gust of wind lifted the crane cloak on Pei Zhaoye's body. With a move in his heart, he took off his coat and put it on Ye Jianqing with his backhand.The wind in Ganjing is still too gentle. If it is in Yunzhou, the wind and sand at this time can blow the general's battle flag into a fluttering sound, cover the mouth and nose of pedestrians, cover the sky and the sun, and can do anything.How much he wanted to take Ye Jianqing to see the mountains and rivers of Yunzhou.

The two of them knelt like this for an hour, and when the sun was fading to the west and the white light above their heads finally lost its temperature, the palace gate rumbled open.The two looked together, and two people who looked like palace guards came out, one old and one young, and the older one was Eunuch Gao who was beside the emperor.Those two people walked up to Ye Jianqing, and Eunuch Gao said, "Your Majesty has ordered that the case of Princess Zhenguo's Mansion has been handed over to Dali Temple for review, and the facts of the case have not yet been clarified. The Marquis of An Ning treats his crimes with a closed door and thinks about his mistakes. He has no will and cannot come out." Enter the palace."

As soon as these words came out, Ye Jianqing's little hope was dashed, and she slumped on the ground.Pei Zhaoye was both surprised and delighted, it seemed that his father had no intention of angering Marquis An Ning, and thinking about his mistakes behind closed doors could be regarded as temporarily avoiding the disaster of prison.

At this time, Eunuch Gao turned to Pei Zhaoye and said, "Your Highness, when this old slave was about to leave, His Majesty ordered that the Marquis of Anning be taken care of by King Duan. If there is anything wrong, only King Duan will ask."

Pei Zhaoye suppressed his surging heart, and quickly kowtowed to accept the order.He didn't get up until the palace gate was closed again after the two left, and then he got up to help Ye Jianqing, saying: "Jianqing, let's go back and make a long-term plan."

There was such a commotion in front of the palace gate that before nightfall, all the honorable ministers in Beijing got an ear report.Hearing that the Marquis of Anning had left and returned, calling for grievances in front of the palace gate, many people lamented that the case of the Princess Mansion might cause further disturbances, so they kept their eyes on Dali Temple.Only King Ning heard about this at home, he just pursed his lips and smiled, picked up a pen and wrote a line on the paper: Although Qingqing loves Qingqing, one mistake can't be tolerated again.

Xiao Huangmen, who delivered the letter in the East Palace, looked puzzled.King Ning tore off the line of writing, rolled it up into a ball, and handed it to him: "Tell the prince, it will be a matter of course."

Spring is cold in the capital, and the south is not much better.The plum blossoms are like snow, and the snow is like plum blossoms, chasing the breeze around the royal road.Zuo Fengmian rushed to Xuzhou without stopping.At this time, the magistrate of Xuzhou was temporarily replaced by Xue Renzu, governor of Dongping County.Zuo Fengmian was welcomed into the Zhizhou Mansion by a plump and round middle-aged man.In May of last year, this place was searched again, and it was a piece of chicken feathers at that time.After a lapse of less than a year, he was rearranged by the new magistrate.Cigarettes are lingering, eaves and horses are jingling, papaya and bergamot are piled up like mountains, plum blossoms and pearl orchids are fragrant like snow, ten feet soft red, just like in the past.

After the revelations last year, one corrupt official fell and another corrupt official came in. What is the difference between this official and that official!

Xue Renzu ordered people to bring fragrant tea, and his round belly stretched out the folds of the brocade robe.Zuo Fengmian knew that he was the Crown Prince's man, so he just made false claims with him, and never talked about his intentions: "There is an old saying in Xuzhou: This town is full of precious jade, be careful not to be tired of poverty. My lord's leapfrog promotion, I am envious of everyone. "Xue Renzu smiled flatteringly: "It's all about His Majesty's deep kindness and love, and I can't repay the official if I die. This official is only a temporary substitute for the post of Zhizhou. When the case is concluded, there will be someone to replace the official. Where did you come from and where do you go back." Zuo Fengmian flicked his fingers on the table a few times, and said with a smile, "If my lord is so humble, Zuo won't even know what to say."

The two exchanged a few more pleasantries, Xue Renzu seemed not curious about his coming, arranged a yard for him in Zhizhou Mansion, and assigned a team of soldiers to serve him.That courtyard is exactly the elegant small building where King Duan lived last year.After taking a bath at night, Zuo Fengmian sat at the table, grinding and laying paper, preparing to write a letter to Pei Zhaoye.

He sorted out the case over and over again. The case started with the marriage of the God of Wealth that day, so he had to go back to the scene and dig three feet to find clues.He was thinking about the case at first, but his eyes accidentally glanced at the light gauze curtains and brocade bed in the room, recalling the scene when King Duan invited him to share the same night, his face suddenly flushed red, and his heart trembled.After a while, the candlelight flickered, and his face turned pale again.Since that day, until the year when he returned to Ganjing, Prince Duan never had any skin-to-skin relationship with him.

On his side, he was distracted, and he didn't notice that the lake pen on the table rolled down to the ground.Zuo Fengmian took the candlestick, bent down to pick it up, but Hubi rolled straight to the bottom of the bookcase.He was lying on the ground, and inadvertently saw a suspicious writing paper in the dust pile in the corner under the bookcase.Zuo Fengmian reached out and hooked the thing out, blowing off the floating ash on it.It was a triangular piece of paper half the size of a palm, with scorched marks on one side and sharp paper edges on the other two sides, which looked like something left over from burning.There is not a single word on the half-worn paper, only a vermilion private seal and two small seal characters "Changle".

It's like someone's signature on the letterhead, and it's like an auspicious and pleasing thing on the Qingci gift.He felt very weird for a moment, so he put the piece of paper into his purse.

The next day, Zuo Fengmian didn't report to Xue Zhizhou, but brought the soldiers and came to Ning's house on Shengping Street.People come and go on Shengping Street, and the guests come like clouds, just like in the past.At the end of Ning's house, one can only see scorched earth on the hill, with ruins and ruins, which is horrible.On top of the ruins, soldiers from Zhizhou Prefecture stood guard there, preventing ordinary people from approaching.

Zuo Fengmian walked around the ruins to have a look, and ordered someone to dig up any suspicious places.At noon, there was nothing to gain, so he walked down the hill, and saw that the government soldiers had stopped some small people who were watching the excitement.Among them, a middle-aged couple saw his gaze and turned their heads away.

"You two, come out!"

The government soldiers pulled the two men out of the crowd and pushed them to the ground.Both of them were ordinary servants and servants, their faces were pale with fright, they were trembling all over, and they shouted for mercy.Zuo Fengmian felt that they looked familiar, and a local soldier from Xuzhou came up to him and said, "Master Zuo, these two are the uncle and aunt of Zhao Guanren, the son-in-law of Ning Caishen."

Zuo Fengmian had a thought, stepped forward to help the two of them up, first calmed down with nice words, and then said that he wanted to visit their home.The Zhao couple were so frightened that they couldn't keep their wits about them, how could they dare to say no.

There is a courtyard in the west of the city, with white walls and black tiles, and brick carvings of hundreds of sons and thousands of grandchildren on the gate tower, but the house is old, and the walls are full of deep and shallow leak marks, as if stained with ink.The Zhao family did not separate during their lifetime.Zhao Yi is Zhao Nanxing's second uncle. After Zhao Nanxing's parents passed away, he was brought up by his uncle and aunt.After entering the room, Zuo Fengmian asked, "It is rumored that the mansion is the descendant of Zhao Yan, the imperial envoy of Emperor Taizong's dynasty. Is this true?"

Zhao Yi's shock was over at this time, and he became snobby again, and immediately said with a smile: "Yes, yes, my lord, I am the fifth grandson of Marquis Jian, and I will ask Jiannei to get the family tree."

Zuo Fengmian made a stop motion and asked, "Where did Officer Zhao live and study?"

The Zhao couple took him to the small attic where Zhao Nanxing lived.The outside of the small building is used as a study, and the inside is a bed. It is shabby and simple, and I can't bear to look at it.Zuo Fengmian vaguely saw the figure of a young man, sitting upstairs all day long, reading at sunrise and sleeping at sunset.He asked, "Has Officer Zhao lived here all this time?"

Zhao Yi thought for a while and said: "In the first year of Taiping, when my sister-in-law brought him back from Ganjing, he was still young and lived in the backyard. Later, my sister-in-law passed away. The backyard and the backyard were leased to outsiders, so he moved to this attic Come up. Do you want to take a look at the backyard?"

A flash of lightning flashed in Zuo Fengmian's mind, and he blurted out: "He came back in the first year of Taiping, do you remember clearly?"

Zhao Yi was taken aback for a moment and said, "That's right, it was May of the first year of Taiping. He was in Ganjing with his mother until he was four years old." Zhao Nanxing's father was a minor official in the Ministry of Officials, and died before Zhao Nanxing was born. , so Zhao Nanxing is a posthumous child.Mrs. Zhao lived with him in Ganjing until he was almost four years old, and then she carried the coffin back to her hometown.

Zuo Fengmian's mind flashed through the people and things in the early years of Taiping like a horse on a horse, and a terrible idea was forming: "Mrs. Zhao, where is your mother's family?"

Zhao Yi and his wife looked at each other, wondering why he asked a dead woman, but he still said honestly: "I heard that she is the concubine of an official family in Ganjing, she knows a little about poetry and calligraphy, and she looks good." According to legend, the senior officials of the Zhao family married her because of her generous dowry.

Zuo Fengmian's wrist trembled slightly, he took out a piece of torn writing paper from his close-fitting purse, and showed it to the two of them: "Have you seen these two characters?" The word "Changle", then shook his head and said: "My lord, I have never seen it before." Zuo Fengmian breathed a sigh of relief, waved his hand and said, "You guys go down first, I will take a look before going downstairs."

The Zhao couple hurriedly went downstairs, when Zuo Fengmian suddenly stopped them and said, "Wait a minute. After Mr. Zhao left here last year, did anyone else visit?"

Zhao Yi thought for a while and said: "After Ning Caishen's house had an accident, Nan Xing was detained in the Zhizhou Mansion. There was a military master who said that the Lord ordered him to fetch some clothes that Nan Xing usually wears. I let him go upstairs. He stayed After a stick of incense, I took some clothes and shoes and left."

According to the severe situation last year, neither Zuo Fengmian nor Pei Zhaoye could go to fetch Zhao Nanxing's clothes with good intentions. That person must have passed on a false order, but I don't know what he took with him.

Zuo Fengmian felt weak for a while, and sat down on the stool where Zhao Nanxing used to study.The tables in front of him were already covered with dust, and he, who was known as a clean freak, wiped the table vigorously with his sleeve in a daze.Lines of text are displayed on the old wooden table, including "The Analects of Confucius", "University", poetry and entertainment, superimposed new and old, mottled and vigorous, which is written by the young man studying with all his life's painstaking efforts and full of resentment. cry of the soul.

The words "Changle" engraved on it are printed in the depths of Zuo Fengmian's constricted pupils.

After the Flower Festival on February [-]th, Gan Jing gradually recovered.People took off their heavy cotton-padded jackets and put on light jackets.Duan Wang Pei Zhaoye has been busy these few days with the opening of Jinming Pond Qionglin Garden on March [-]st, teaching Yifan of the pool on the frame every day.

That night after he was busy with his general affairs, he was really too lazy to ride a horse and a sedan chair, so he walked along the street to Anninghou's Mansion.Talking a few words with Ye Jianqing is his daily homework.When he was about to reach Anninghou's mansion, his whole body tensed up suddenly, and he stretched out a hand from the dark alley, and grabbed his sleeve.

Pei Zhaoye was about to raise his palm to pat him, but he heard the man whisper: "Your Highness, it's me." Pei Zhaoye let go of his strength and turned into the alley.Standing in front of him was indeed Zuo Fengmian who had just left Beijing ten days ago, he was travel-stained, his eyes were covered with bruises.Pei Zhaoye was surprised and distressed, and said, "Why did you come back? This is a few days and nights without sleep?"

Zuo Fengmian was even hoarse, so he just said: "Is there anything convenient for your Highness to talk?" Pei Zhaoye knew that there must be adventures when he went and returned, so he thought for a while, and said: "Follow me."

The two of them shuttled back and forth in the alleys, and they arrived in front of a small courtyard in Tianshui Hutong not long after.Pei Zhaoye pushed open the whiteboard door, and there was an old woman and a little girl washing clothes by the well water in the yard.When the two of them saw Pei Zhaoye, they were tacitly aware of it, and they lowered their heads and focused on their work.The big hermit hides in the city, Zuo Fengmian sees that the place is not big, but it is very quiet, and it is hidden deep in the city, it is a good place to live in seclusion.

Pei Zhaoye took him into the wing room and sat down, the little girl came in to serve tea, and closed the door carefully after she went out.Zuo Fengmian drank several sips of tea, only to hear Pei Zhaoye say: "If you don't want to be known by others, you can rest here for a few days. No one has been here except me." Zuo Fengmian shook his head, Said: "I had a few words with His Highness, and then I hurried back to Jiangnan. When I came, I lied to Xue Renzu that I went to Jinling to investigate the case."

Pei Zhaoye frowned and said, "What's the matter?"

But Zuo Fengmian didn't answer the question, and said, "Your Highness, is Sheng Gong safe?"

"Holy bow and peace."

"Is your empress healthy and healthy?"

Pei Zhaoye was taken aback for a moment, and said, "I've been sick since last spring, and now I'm still sick in the palace."

Zuo Fengmian nodded and said, "Your Highness, do you still remember how you went to Jiangnan last year?"

Pei Zhaoye thought for a while, and said: "It was originally the crown prince who patrolled the sky on behalf of the East Palace, but the crown prince fell ill after the Lantern Festival last year, and King Ning was young, so this job fell on me." With a look of hesitation, he almost wanted to shout: Zuo Shaoqing, what on earth do you mean!

At this time, Zuo Fengmian did not continue to ask, he took out a gold silk purse from his sleeve, untied the silk sash with trembling fingers, and poured out a scrap of paper from it: "His Royal Highness is in Zhenguo. Princess Mansion, have you seen this thing before?"

There was a scarlet mark on the old piece of paper, Pei Zhaoye glanced at it, and his face sank.How could he not remember the piece of Changle Jade that Gu Tingrang took from the secret room at the bottom of Xiaojing Lake.At that time, he thought it was the order of his father, so he didn't ask.As soon as Gu Tingrang returned to Gan Jing, he disappeared without a trace, so he had no chance to ask questions.

Zuo Fengmian carefully observed Pei Zhaoye's face, he hoped that Pei Zhaoye could shake his head and say he didn't know, but the world is destined not to go as one wishes.His face was as white as paper, and he said in a miserable voice: "Your Highness, Gu Tingrang belongs to His Majesty, I am afraid that Jiang Xilie belongs to the crown prince and King Ning. They have dug a hole together. You must never protect Princess Zhenguo's mansion and the Marquis of Anning again." gone."

Pei Zhaoye sat still and said nothing.

This is what he looks like when he is angry.Zuo Fengmian got up and knelt down, looked up at him and begged: "Your Highness, I found this piece of paper under the bookcase in the guest room of Xuzhou Zhizhou Mansion. These two words are also engraved on the desk in Zhao Nanxing's home. I According to Zhao Nanxing's uncle and aunt, Zhao Nanxing's mother and son returned to Xuzhou from Ganjing in May of the first year of Taiping. It was also the time when Princess Zhen Guo returned to Jinling. Zhao Nanxing's mother is said to be from Ganjing Official family. Does Your Highness still remember what happened in the last years of Shaokang? Why did Queen Zhongzong Xuanyi turn against Princess Zhenguo?"

Pei Zhaoye said: "There are rumors in the market that a maidservant in Princess Zhenguo's mansion seduced Emperor Zhongzong. The former empress and Princess Zhenguo were at odds because of this. But until the end of Shaokang, the emperor and empress had a deep relationship between husband and wife, so some people said It's a rumour."

Zuo Fengmian chuckled lightly, and said slightly sarcastically, "What if Emperor Zhongzong really had an affair with that woman, or even a secret knot?"

Pei Zhaoye's eyes were so dark that he could not see the bottom: "If Zhongzong had a descendant, then my father would never be able to succeed to the throne, and Pei Yongzhen kept Zhongzong's blood in the folk, so he is suspected of committing a disturbance."

Zuo Fengmian sighed: "So this time Your Majesty raided the Princess Zhenguo's mansion, and Gu Tingrang forced Pei Yongzhen to death as soon as he made a move, it was by no means 'self-destruction of the Great Wall' or 'self-moxibustion without disease' as the government and the opposition said, but a profound meaning. .We fall behind others everywhere, all because 'I don't know Zhao Lang is Zhao Lang'!"

The author has something to say: In the next chapter, Taiye Bo turns over the double mandarin ducks

Although the writing style is poor, writing about Gongdou is like having chicken blood. Is this still farming writing?

Pei Zhaoye, are you going to turn into scum?