Between the vast sea of ​​clouds

Chapter 179 Mid-Autumn Festival

The summer in Chang'an is so short, but the summer heat subsides after half a month. With the new moon, the night dew gradually cools down, and after a light rain, it gradually enters the golden autumn. Chrysanthemum is a good time.

But when the city is full of golden armor, Zhongming Mountain is still green.The pines and cypresses cover the Taimiao Temple, with stretched wing corners, gentle roofs, glazed tile double eaves on the top of the hall, and triple white jade platforms surrounded, which looks very solemn.

After Chu Jun changed his clothes and cleaned his hands in the side hall, the ceremonial officer led the way to the main hall. Because the emperor came here to worship the ancestors today, the order of the Taimiao moved the tablet from the sleeping hall and the temple to the sacred seat of this hall.In the hall of enjoyment are the tablets of the emperors of the past dynasties. The tablets made of agarwood are dyed into a dark and thick ink color by the incense, and they are as majestic and majestic as a mountain in the dim candlelight.

The bell rang, Chu Jun held incense and worshiped, another ceremony official led Gong Wang Chu Yang out of the side hall, and then Liu Zhen led the palace officials and temple officials out of the hall.

Chu Yang held incense and worshiped beside her, and Chu Jun inserted the incense｜into the incense stand and said, "I don't know if the emperor still remembers this time the year before last, when the mother emperor brought a group of sisters to the Taimiao to worship the ancestors."

Chu Yang's figure froze slightly, and then he returned to normal. He attached himself and said: "Return to Your Majesty, I remember."

Chu Jun smiled slightly, as if he didn't see it, and continued: "Every Mid-Autumn Festival, the Queen Mother doesn't even close the door, she doesn't practice, and she still holds a banquet in Qingliang Hall...At that time, the eldest sister and the second sister were all there, and they were considered family members. The reunion is the scene of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Sister Huang, don’t you think so?”

The knuckles of Chu Yang's clasped hands were faintly white, as if she was trying to endure something, she lowered her head and said in a low voice, "Yes."

Chu Jun looked down at the person in front of her, so she naturally said that on purpose.

As we all know, Chu Yang's biological father was only a palace attendant, with a low status, and he was the descendant of a criminal official.It happened to coincide with the first emperor's banquet and the ministers came back drunk. They were favored by chance and married a phoenix descendant secretly, and gave birth to the emperor's third daughter.It was the time when Lord Wei Gui came into the palace, and he was the most favored in the harem.The first emperor hated this monarch very much. He said that a lowly villain sought favor with the descendant of a phoenix. He was not worthy of the imperial family's jade certificate, and he was not even rewarded with the position of the harem.The emperor's third daughter, Chu Yang, was also rejected by the late emperor, and when she became an adult, she left the palace to open a mansion, and only got the title of county king.

Chu Jun looked at her for a while, then turned and knelt down on the futon, closed his eyes and said, "Thinking about the close view, and now it's the Mid-Autumn Festival, but there are only two people left. Everyone has their own destiny, and you can't force it, that's why there is a distinction between high and low, and now that I think about it, it's not unreasonable."

The cold and bland fragrance gradually enveloped the palace. The incense burned in the Taimiao is made of cold sandalwood, which has the effect of repelling snakes and insects.This precious spice is hard to come by, and Minzhou pays tribute, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs deducts some of it for other purposes, and the rest is used exclusively for the Taimiao.

For some reason, Chu Yang felt that the fragrance was too strong, his chest felt tight, he seemed to be trapped in a cloud of white mist, and his head was very dizzy.She raised her head slightly, and it seemed that the tablet on the throne was about to fall towards her, the candle flame flickered in front of her eyes, pulling out a long strip of light, everything seemed to be spinning...

The candle flames flickered, snow-white smoke overflowed from the alchemy furnace, and it sank down from the midair very slowly, not allowing her to carefully distinguish where it was, her body knelt down on the ground as if consciously, her forehead was heavily in contact with the cold floor tiles For a moment, he collided with the eyes full of hatred on the floor tiles.

Ah, it turned out to be... that day.

She was the last princess to leave the palace to open a mansion. Before leaving, she had to go to Yuxiao Palace to say goodbye to her mother according to the etiquette. At that time, the empress was practicing in seclusion, so she knelt outside the palace gate for a day.It wasn't until late at night that a maid came to invite her in, saying that His Majesty was willing to see her.

The ice-covered court life will finally come to an end. She knelt in the smoky hall, listening to the person on the throne say quietly: "The mansion is about to be opened, and the outside is no better than the palace. Do it spontaneously."

She answered respectfully, and the empress seemed to be relieved, probably meaning that she didn't want to say anything more.It's just that she was a little naive at the moment, so she plucked up the courage to ask the empress whether she could take her biological father out of the palace to serve when she opened the mansion.

What was waiting for her was Lei Ting furious, and the empress roared: "This treacherous and shameless villain, you still care about it so much! He is lowly, waiting for an opportunity to seduce me, and trying to kidnap the princess for favor. If you regard him as your biological father, then you have lost your head, and you must have been bewitched by this lowly maid!"

She was immediately stunned by the stormy cursing, and then heard the empress say coldly and hoarsely: "Come here! Pass down the decree, and the servants of the district palace actually intervene in the matter of educating the emperor's daughter. I will be punished... Eighty percent!"

So her father was still immersed in the joy that his daughter was about to leave the palace and start a mansion. Unexpectedly, he took his life in the harem that night.

That night was obviously a summer night, but it was better than the coldest cold in the deep winter for several years.

The cold air penetrated deep into the bones, freezing every inch of her body, and also freezing the blush from the past.The face of the biological father was already somewhat blurred, but the hatred, which never stopped for a day, became clearer gradually.

Chu Yang fell heavily to the ground, his thoughts cleared up a little, and before she realized that something was wrong, her body was uncontrollably tilted to one side.

How could this be, no, it shouldn't be like this!

There was a storm in her heart, but no matter what, she couldn't say a word.

The red robe flitted in front of her, and the gold threads floated and flowed, vaguely in the shape of a phoenix bird, which was a color she was unable to achieve, and which she had feared and hated so much.But now, still have to prostrate on the ground.She began to gradually lose consciousness, and the last thing she saw was the blurred figure of Chu Jun.

Even at this moment, Chu Yang could still feel an indifferent gaze lingering on his face.The man stood beside her, stepped on her robe with a lofty attitude, and slowly crushed her self-esteem.

"Shangyang Porcelain, Cold Sandalwood." Chu Jun's eyes reflected the candlelight, dark and deep, she whispered: "Sister Huang, I have been waiting for you for a long time."

Chu Yang opened her eyes and didn't know where she was for a moment. She wanted to get up, but found that her hands and feet were bound and she couldn't even move.

Suddenly someone said: "Second sister stayed here for half a year, on the bed you are lying on now, and then she went crazy, completely crazy."

Chu Yang struggled hard, and then looked sideways. Chu Jun was sitting at the round table, and he actually smiled at her.

Chu Yang said hoarsely: "He Ruo is here, if you want to kill, kill it." After saying that, he closed his eyes tightly, looking generous to die.

Chu Jun raised his eyelids and said: "Sister Huang is a loner, she has no burden from her family, and no relatives to disturb her, so she is indeed relaxed."

Chu Yang smiled disdainfully, and turned his face away.

Chu Jun sighed: "It's just that have you ever thought that when you die, you just seized the title and confiscated your home. But how can your father's tablet continue to be respected and incensed in the palace?"

Chu Yang suddenly turned his head, stared at her closely and said, "If you dare to touch my biological father's tablet, I will fight you forever!"

Chu Jun glanced at her in surprise, and she said that this incident was intended to provoke Chu Yang, but she didn't expect it to be right in her arms, so she continued: "What are you and I doing forever, according to your plan, I will sacrifice you at Taimiao Zu Shi suddenly fainted, and the news spread throughout the court, just in response to the rumors that have been rampant in the past few months-'the virtue is not worthy, the killing of relatives and massacres is not the destiny of heaven'."

Chu Yang said slowly: "Since you already know everything, what do you want me to do?"

Chu Jun said: "I don't know who came up with this plan. This person must be very conceited and very smart, so he thought of poisoning the batch of Shangyang porcelain. The porcelain seemed to be nothing at first, but after being used many times, the poison is gone." It gradually penetrated into the body, and combined with the cold sandalwood, it happened to create the illusion that I was punished and fainted by my ancestors when I worshiped my ancestors in the Taimiao."

Chu Yang frowned when he heard the words, and was about to speak, but he heard Chu Jun slowly say: "But then again, sister Huang must not know about this matter, otherwise how could this batch of Shangyang porcelain pass through your hands?"

Although Chu Yang was blinded by hatred for a while, at least he was still smart, and immediately figured out the key point.

Seeing her changing expression, Chu Jun nodded and said, "That's right, if something happens to me, I must thoroughly investigate inside and outside the palace, and the porcelain sent by the emperor's sister will naturally be found to be faulty. Sister should understand this truth."

"At this time, Miss Huang is charged with the crime of conspiracy and poisoning, and it won't be long before she becomes a victim of the sword. If this crime continues, your biological father's tablet will naturally be removed and destroyed. This is an inevitable thing."

Chu Yang raised his eyes and said: "Your Majesty has said so much, I already understand what you mean. This crime is still there, and I dare not try to avoid it. I just ask that after the matter is over, Your Majesty will kill you or steal your house. Please allow The guilty minister moved the tomb of his biological father out, and crossed his name from the list of first emperors and later emperors, that's all."

Chu Jun had some understanding, then nodded and said, "Why did you cover up the death of Gu Li Guoshi during the pilgrimage? This is what they asked you to do?"

Chu Yang was stunned, and laughed at himself: "Your Majesty already noticed it at that time? Yes, someone did ask me to delay for some time, but I don't know why, so I just did it."

It was her actions that caught Yuan Sui's attention, which made Chu Jun gradually suspicious. Chu Jun called the palace servants to untie her, and said: "So, let's put this aside for now, and trouble Huang Jie to continue the scene." Sing on."

"when--"

The long and deep bell rang, rippling like water waves, breaking the peaceful night of Chang'an.

At this time, the lights in the Qingliang Hall were brightly lit, and the Gu Ming ministers who were urgently called were waiting anxiously outside the hall.

It has been four days since the emperor suddenly fell ill and fainted when he went to the Taimiao to worship the ancestors. No matter how the imperial doctor diagnosed and treated her, she still showed no sign of waking up.The palace wanted to hide it, but it couldn't hide the fact that the emperor lacked an early court.Now that I can't hide it anymore, I can only call the ministers according to the previous rules and plan for the worst.

"...Yes, Liu Shangnv, on the day Your Majesty left the palace, the servants saw that the fish in the tank was not as lively as before, so they thought about changing the water... But they never thought that the fish died for some reason, even the fish in the tank The lotus leaves in the garden are also withered, and the slaves really don’t know anything!"

Liu Zhen looked at the court lady who kowtowed in front of her and said, "Then why is this vat cracked?"

The maid cried and said: "The slaves didn't touch the white vat! No one knows why it suddenly... suddenly cracked!"

Liu Zhen exhaled slowly, and with a random glance, she could see the dodging eyes of the palace people.

In fact, it wasn't just the jar that was cracked, the batch of Shangyang porcelain that was newly brought into the palace all cracked overnight.

Gray cracks appeared on the new porcelain, which was as white as the first snow, and even split in half, as if it had been split by something invisible.The bright and brand-new glaze reflects the lights of the hall, forming a light arc at the crack.

The palace walls can no longer stop the rumors that have been circulating in Chang'an for several months. With these broken Shangyang porcelains, they linger in the horrified eyes of the palace people, spit out slightly with trembling tongues, and come from a person's ear. into another person's mouth.

Liu Zhen clenched her fingertips fiercely, and shouted in a low voice: "Take care of all the palace servants who were on duty in the palace that day, and the rest of them keep their mouths in check. Be careful not to let misfortune come out of your mouth, and you will lose your life in vain!"

There is a light gauze in the water pavilion, and the actor on the stage flicks his sleeves, opens his mouth slightly, and sings: "The river is flowing away, don't wait for this spring|The good times are about to fade away, and the worries are empty talk..."

Sitting under the stage was a middle-aged woman in brocade clothes, humming softly to the beat, and next to her sat Shen Mingshan, the second assistant to the cabinet, drinking tea slowly.

The steward passed through the servants and knelt down in front of her, presenting a letter: "My lord, a letter has arrived."

He squinted his eyes and didn't even look at it, just said: "Oh, here's the letter, where is it from?"

The steward replied, "It's a letter sent by His Highness Prince Gong."

She stood up from the rocking chair, looked at Shen Mingshan and asked, "How is the situation in the palace now?"

"It seems... not very clear, but His Highness Prince Gong sent a message, saying that it has been..."

The steward's voice became quieter, and Shen Mingshan said gently: "If that's the case, then go back to the residence first."

The woman cupped her hands and said: "Yes, the teacher will go back to the mansion first and wait for the news. It will not be too late to come out when the situation is clearer."

She turned to the steward and said, "Send the teacher back."

The steward bowed his head to answer, the actors on the stage turned around, and the water sleeves swayed away from the stage. The music was coming to an end, and the gongs and drums were clanging, and suddenly stopped.I saw the woman flicking her sleeves, humming with a choked voice: "...things in the world are beyond the reach of the world."

On the first day of September, only half a month has passed since the Mid-Autumn Festival. At this time, the autumn atmosphere is strong, and the moon has become a hook, hanging in the dark blue night sky, no longer as complete as before.

The emperor had been vacant for more than half a month in the early court, which made the courtiers feel a little uneasy. Although there was news from the palace, the emperor was just busy with government affairs, which hindered the Eucharist and required him to rest in bed for a while.But this kind of excuse can't comfort the courtiers very well. After all, the emperor has made great efforts to rule since he took the throne, which has greatly improved many unhealthy customs in the court, and gradually occupied an important position in the hearts of the courtiers. Now that she is not here, the court suddenly seems to have lost its backbone. Although there are six ministers who are discussing matters ahead, but after all, the six departments have temporarily escaped from the cabinet, they really lack confidence.

And at this time, it was only natural for the scripture to invite the cabinet to return to the court.However, the six ministries were at a loss, and the emperor was still "cultivating" in the palace. According to the usual practice, the cabinet should indeed temporarily take over the government affairs.Due to the previous unhappiness between the emperor and the cabinet, the cabinet ministers were forced to take a long vacation. Could it be possible to show shame and report to the Ministry of Officials?

Zhao Lingping, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, looked at the documents on the case and was a little lost. This pile of bright yellow satin-covered documents is something that can only be used by the cabinet, and its content is self-evident. He earnestly asked to return to the court and serve him.

Is it approved or not?Zhao Shangshu thought so hard that his hair was about to fall out.

If you approve, isn’t it against His Majesty; if you don’t approve, you are against the cabinet. Now the return of the cabinet is a certainty, but your majesty doesn’t know when it will wake up. These days, she has heard some officials privately discussing the appointment of a prince thing.

Thinking of this, her heart skipped a beat. The emperor has only one daughter, who is not even one year old. Can she really be made a princess?And the minister is strong and the master is weak, isn't this... a sign of chaos in the court?

She didn't dare to think about it.The emperor was in the prime of his life, why did he fall ill, what disease could make the imperial hospital helpless, would she still wake up?Zhao Lingping put his hands on those papers, thought for a long time, and finally summoned the competent subordinate officials to order: "Give these papers back."

"My lord? This..."

Zhao Lingping leaned on the chair and said in a low voice: "It's okay to delay some time, just go and return it."

"But this is a book from the cabinet. If the elders of the cabinet find out, what should you do, my lord?"

Zhao Lingping thought for a while, took off his official hat and put it on the table and said, "Then just wait and see, at worst, I won't be an official, go home and farm!"

Shao Ming left the next day, leaving behind a marriage letter and an extremely heavy box.

Qingping opened the box, which was covered with red coral and conch pearls, and a boat made of sea willows was placed in the middle.This boat is exquisitely crafted, as if the size of the big boat has been reduced by dozens of times, even the mast and the ropes on the boat are clearly visible.And every part can be removed, which shows the care.

Qingping was very interested in the boat, but he didn't dare to dismantle it at will, for fear that it would not be able to put it back together.The entourage around her are all inland people, and they have never seen the sea, let alone the merchant ships on the sea. Only the official said with a smile on his face: "I don't know, the Shao family made a fortune in shipbuilding in the early years. This ship model is so detailed. , it must have been made by the craftsmen of the Shao family. Not to mention that Jin Hailiu is hard to find," she said with envy in her eyes, "this is really a real treasure."

Qingping smiled and did not speak.

I don't know what Shao Ming is up to, Pan Xiuwei knows that she is going to marry the Shao family, and even sent someone to congratulate her, insinuating that she is gaining power.The reputation of the Shao family in Minzhou is too famous. Who doesn't know that the fourth son of the Shao family has been in charge of Zhenhai Pavilion for many years, and marrying him is like marrying a treasury.So much so that when Huan Xingyuanfang came to the county city today, she even heard a rumor, and congratulated her after entering the hotel.

Qing Ping took out the boat and showed it to her. As a servant of the Ministry of Industry, Jin Huan was most interested in strange skills and obscene tricks. After receiving the things, she went into the house and came out after a day and a night. Hugging the boat, Qingping sighed, "The Shao family is indeed a shipbuilding family, and even made a ship model so carefully. But this ship model seems a bit strange."

After hearing this, Qingping asked calmly: "Please tell me, sir, what's so strange?"

Jin Huan suddenly remembered that this was a token of marriage between her and the Shao family. She hesitated at the moment, but after pondering for a moment, she still said truthfully: "After I took it apart, I found that according to the structure of this ship, I am afraid it will sink within a day after sailing on the sea." gone."

Seeing Qingping's delicate expression, she hurriedly remedied: "Of course, maybe it's because I don't know much, I'm not good at it, and my knowledge is shallow. Don't take it to heart, Mr. Li. After all, things are dead things, and talents are the most important thing."

Qingping's frown gradually eased: "It's okay, but please keep it a secret, just pretend that you have never seen this boat before."

Although Jin Huan didn't understand what she meant, she complied, and told her about what she had seen along the way: "...the fields were flooded, and it seemed that someone was taking advantage of the opportunity to buy up fields. I don't know if the state shepherd of Chenzhou knew about it. What's more, the affected counties have started to sell their fields, so why didn't the state government report to the imperial court for such a big battle?"

Qingping lowered his eyes and said: "I'm afraid that something happened in the court, so it's hard to take care of Chenzhou."

Jin Huan wondered: "What changes can happen in the court?"

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