Chapter 125: The Cicadas in Kyoto

At the end of the summer of the seventh year of Qingli, it was hotter than usual. The first autumn rain has not yet arrived, and the heat of March has accumulated in the streets of the houses, and the wind does not disperse, making the city of Kyoto feel like a quilt on the kang.

When the residents of Kyoto wake up in the morning, they feel that their bodies are covered in sweat residue, and after a little freshening, they go out with a burst of sweat.

The cicadas were happy, and they were desperately screaming loudly, but they did not have the hoarseness and the sadness of the last life in the late summer and early autumn of previous years, but a kind of high-pitched voice that had spare strength and ease. The voices of knowing and knowing rose and fell among the green trees in and around Kyoto City, disturbing people's sleepiness and laughing at people's embarrassment.

A green bamboo pole suddenly parted the leaves. Accurately stab the trunk of a tree somewhere on the ground. The cicada brother who was singing only felt that his eyes were white, and he felt that his face was covered with a layer of paste, and he could no longer open his mouth, and he wanted to use his tentacles to pull it in a hurry, but even the tentacles were pasted and he could no longer break free. It had to sigh inwardly, thinking that it really couldn't be too early.

A little eunuch looked at the tree proudly, and put back the gentle bamboo pole with his hand. Picked off the cicada bound by gluten, threw it into the big cloth bag next to him, and was about to continue to shoot, but in the afterglow, he caught a glimpse of the one sitting on a bamboo chair next to the courtyard wall to enjoy the shade, and quickly ran over, leaned into the ear and said a few words, and tore open the cloth bag like a meritorious service to the other party.

The eunuch on the reclining bamboo chair was Hong Zhu, and he looked at it obliquely. After thinking about it, he frowned and said in a low voice, "How many times have you said it? Stick to the head that knows...... How many have you glued in the past half a day? Wait a while, the Queen Mother was woken up, and you will take the board yourself?"

The little eunuch hurriedly pleaded guilty, and the dozen or so eunuchs who were in a daze under the green tree hurriedly continued to stick to Zhi.

Hong Zhu half-leaned on the bamboo chair and squinted at the figure of the little eunuch. Somehow, I remembered the situation when I first entered the palace - there are a lot of trees in the palace, and there are naturally more cicadas, especially this summer is too hot, which lasts until this month, and the nobles in the palace are already annoyed by these known chirps, and it is also thanks to Hong Zhu who came up with such an idea and sent a few little eunuchs to the palaces to stick the cicadas.

No wonder emperors and empresses liked him. Such a careful and considerate minion is really rare.

Hong Zhu smiled bitterly, thinking that this method was taught to him by Lord Xiao Fan, who should be in Dadong Mountain now, and I don't know how His Majesty's sacrifice to heaven is going.

Emperor Qingguo left Beijing to worship the sky, and did not supervise the country by the crown prince according to the ancestral rules, but invited the queen mother to hang the curtain, which contained a very obvious political atmosphere. The people in the palace are carefully waiting for the day when His Majesty will return to Beijing. People panicked. All sorts of gossip came and went. The Queen Mother hung the curtain, and the East Palace had already lost ground at this time. There was no nobleman in the entire harem who came out to take the lead, and the calm in the palace walls couldn't help but show a kind of panic.

And Hong Zhu is an alternative in this panic, he originally wanted to stay in the East Palace to wait for the queen and His Royal Highness the Prince, but I don't know why, the Queen Mother transferred him to Hanguang Palace. Half a year ago, there was a fire in the East Palace, and the people in the entire palace knew that the eunuchs and palace maids in the East Palace and Guangxin Palace all died mysteriously.

Everyone is dead, but Xiao Hong's father-in-law is still alive, and this incident itself is terrifying.

Hong Zhu stood up, feeling a little gloomy in his heart, yes, he is a slave, but he is a slave with affection and righteousness, so at this time in the palace, he actually didn't know how to deal with himself, looking at the desolation of the East Palace, he was a little sad.

He walked towards the Hanguang Palace, leaning slightly, but he was young, but he began to have the smell of the dead man of the old eunuch Hong.

The officers and men of the 13 City Gate Divisions were fighting their spirits in the heat and carefully checking the customs and defense documents of the people entering Beijing. The troops of the Kyoto garrison raised their vigilance at the Yuantai camp, and the thousands of forbidden troops guarding the imperial palace stood on the high palace walls, looking at everything under their feet with suspicious eyes.

The defense forces of the whole of Kyoto are controlled by these three parts of the army, and in such a quiet and strange situation, the slightest carelessness is afraid that it will lead to great chaos.

The three parties did not dare to relax in the slightest, led by the eldest prince, and forcefully suppressed everyone's dissent and movement.

The people of Kyoto are not as nervous as the officials and the army, and in such a hot weather, the people of the wealthy Qingguo are not willing to stay at home to resist the stuffy heat, but are accustomed to hiding in the shaded teahouse, drinking inexpensive herbal tea, enjoying the drawstring and large leaf fan of the inner library, talking about what has happened in the court recently, and talking about the shortcomings of the neighbors' parents.

For the people of Kyoto, the Imperial Palace does not seem to be much different from their neighbors.

The cicadas were screaming loudly in the trees outside the teahouse, and a few of them even stopped blindly on the green flags of the teahouse, painting the big tea character into the character "荼". And these hissing chirps just covered up the discussions of the good deeds in the teahouse.

Of course, the discussion is about His Majesty's trip to worship the heavens, and the rumors have been spread for several months, and everyone in the world knows that His Majesty has made up his mind to abolish the reserve this time. It's just that the prince has been benevolent and stable in the past two years, which is very different from the appearance of previous years. Therefore, including the officials and the people, they are muttering in their hearts, why does Your Majesty want to abolish the reserve?

Few people dared to ask these questions in person, but there were always people who dared to talk about something behind their backs, and in general, the people of Kyoto had enough sympathy and comfort for the prince of the East Palace, perhaps because people had the spiritual needs of sympathizing with the weak, or perhaps because they were dead people, they always hoped that the world would be peaceful. I don't want to have too much turmoil because of the waste storage.

Of course, at this time, the people of Kyoto, including the civil officials of the central government, did not expect that the turmoil at the turn of the summer and autumn of the seventh year of Qingli would rumble like thunder in a way that no one expected, and involve all the people. All the land in Kyoto.

Suddenly, without warning, a gale rose and passed through the wide streets and dense houses of Kyoto! Blow off the cool hats of those street vendors with fruit stalls on the street with low heads and sleepy feet, revealing those muddy eyes, blowing the peels of the fruit all over the street, and the cicadas on the green flags outside the teahouse can no longer be attached. It fell to the ground with a thud.

The word 荼 has become the word tea again.

The tea guests sitting on the railing of the teahouse looked out curiously, and their hearts were depressed, this has been stuffy for three months, is it finally going to fall a timely autumn rain?

Then they saw that what had been a blue sky was suddenly covered with cumulonimbus clouds from the southeast, and that a great lid had been added over the whole of Kyoto, and the shade enveloped the castle and its people.

The clouds twisted and tumbled. It looks like countless dragons are lining up in formation, and from time to time there are clouds pulling out, which looks very terrifying. Such a thick cloud naturally heralds the rainstorm that will follow, and looking at this cloud, I am afraid that this heavy rain will be extremely fierce.

And those tea guests were not surprised, thinking that God was finally willing to make this world clearer.

There was a thunderous click, and the rain finally came down with a clatter. Pedestrians on the streets have fled one after another. The tea guests upstairs squinted, admiring the rain that had not been seen for a long time and the beauty of the house after being wet.

It didn't rain particularly heavily. But it was very cold, and after a while, the tea guests began to feel the slightest chill, and they couldn't help but be a little surprised, thinking that the autumn rain in previous years was just falling, and there must be three to get rid of the heat, why is this rain so cold this year.

With the knowledge of people in this era, they naturally do not know that ten days ago, the sea surface of the East China Sea rose the largest hurricane of this summer, and this wind disaster rushed straight to Dadong Mountain, and countless rains fell on the ground of more than 50 miles on the seaside, and then the momentum was unabated, and it continued to carry the water vapor and humidity of the sea transpiration land, and went straight into the hinterland of Qingguo.

The hurricane was very interesting, it did not cause much damage along the road, but it brought immediate cooling and rain to the territory of Gyeongguk, which had been scorching for a long time.

The tea guests rubbed their hands, drank hot tea, and secretly scolded this god for being too weird, and everyone went out without an umbrella, let alone a single coat, so they had to resist the slightest coldness in this building.

"What's wrong?" said a man curiously, looking in the direction of the city gate.

Hearing this, the lively people all gathered to the railing of the teahouse, and looked in the direction of the city gate, through the layers of rain and fog in the distance, they couldn't see what was going on there, and only vaguely felt a noise and the panic of those sergeants. The four gates of Kyoto are guarded by the soldiers and horses of the thirteen city divisions, and the military ban has always been strict, and it is very rare to have this situation at present, and all the tea guests are a little curious.

Naturally, there will not be an army to attack the city, first of all, no matter how ridiculous this imagination itself is, even if an army really attacks the city of Kyoto, the garrison division on the periphery will be the first to meet the enemy, and the lookout guards set up in the corner tower of the city gate division will also sound the alarm in the first time.

The sound of horses' hooves and the rain breaking through the long street were hurried.

The tea guests looked intently, only to see a horse at the city gate hurrying forward, only this one, everyone understood that there must be urgent news into the city, and they were relieved.

But looking at the white foam on the horse's mouth, and the haggard appearance of the knight's dusty face, everyone's hearts were tight, and they all secretly thought, could it be that there was something wrong with the border pass?

The rain kept falling, and the horses, which were extremely tired, rose up their last strength to face the wind and rain. Running desperately. The knight, who was in tattered clothes and had a serious expression, did not care about the life and death of his mount, waved the whip in his hand fiercely, urged the horse on his body, maintained the fastest speed, stepped through the long street under the teahouse, splashed all the way to the rain, and sprinted in the direction of the palace!

Luckily, it rained first. Drive the pedestrians and vendors on the road to the side of the street, otherwise the knight will run wildly, and I don't know how many people will be killed.

The tea guests watched the man disappear into the rain and disappear at the end of the long street, and involuntarily exhaled, digesting the tension that had been quiet before, and looked at each other, not knowing what was going on in the imperial court.

"Wearing a white scarf,......" said an older tea guest in a trembling voice.

The teahouse was quieter. Although the people of Kyoto, who were born in the late years, did not experience the great war season when Qingguo expanded the border, they had also heard that the worst time in the three Northern Expeditions that year, the Qing ** team killed and injured 10,000 people, and the knights who flew for thousands of miles to report the news...... It is also a white scarf!

"The knight who reported the news is ......" someone asked suspiciously, "Yan ...... Grand Governor. Didn't you win?"

"It's a fast horse in the army. The old tea guest was obviously also in the army back then, his voice was still trembling, and the informant was wearing a white scarf, something big must have happened!

The chatter in the teahouse suddenly stopped. Everyone, even the shopkeeper and the shopkeeper, fell silent, and everyone stood quietly by the railing, looking at the streets in the heavy rain, secretly praying that nothing would happen to their kingdom.

"Here we go again!"

In the teahouse, a young man shouted in panic and helplessness. At this time, there was no restlessness at the city gate, and some were just solemn and vigilant, but the second rider came faster than the first. Like a smoke, it quickly sped under the teahouse.

The knight was unarmoured, but a dark black ground robe, with the reins in one hand, kicking sharply with both feet, and his face was covered with black stains of water from the rain.

He also had a white scarf tied around his left arm, while his right hand held a token-like object aloft and rushed directly through the city gate. Walk through the long streets. He also galloped in the direction of the palace land.

The people in the teahouse looked at the tea guest who knew the rules of the imperial court before. Hope to hear some good news from his mouth.

The old tea guest's face turned pale and he muttered, "Yes...... It's the Supervisory Yuan. ”

After a while, the fast rider of the third Qianli messenger once again forcibly broke through the gate guarded by the Thirteen City Gate Divisions, and stepped on the rainy street under the teahouse.

Then immediately the knight didn't feel hard, he only knew that if he couldn't report this shocking news to the palace as quickly as possible, Qingguo was only afraid of ...... There will be big problems.

The rain washed the knight's sun-scorched face, and struck his blood-red eyes, but it could not stop him, and the horses galloped across the long street in the direction of the palace.

He still has a white scarf on his left arm.

At this time, the tea guests in the building had been numbed by the shock that had come repeatedly, and they opened their mouths one after another, but they couldn't say anything. Although they don't know which side of the court the third horse represents, they know that the news that these three horses brought to Kyoto must be the same, and they have been confirmed by these three parties, so ...... There must be a disaster in Qingguo.

The teahouse was deadly silent, and everyone bowed their heads. The old tea guest, with a pale face and trembling, sat down, but his eyes were dark and he fainted to the ground.

Everyone hurriedly stepped forward to help, but no one noticed that the rain outside the building was a little lighter. Although the rain is light, the coolness has arrived, and those cicadas who were still showing off their might a moment ago finally began to feel the irreversibility of the destiny of heaven, began to feel the impermanence of life, began to feel the sadness of autumn, began to burn their lives, and kept chanting the last words in the streets and alleys of Kyoto.

"Shhhh......h Sizzle...... Dead...... Dead......"

The whole of Kyoto began to fall into a sense of unknown fear and confusion, and people did not know what was happening, except that in the evening, they heard the chiming of the bell in the corner tower of the Imperial City, and in the background of the red twilight after the rain, slowly and shockingly.

Knock! Knock!

In the layers of deep palaces, there were many people in the vast Taiji Hall. But it was silent. The Empress Dowager, who temporarily presided over the state administration, had already walked out of the beaded curtain at this time, wearing a phoenix robe and being majestic.

The Queen Mother stood indifferently in front of the dragon chair, her right hand was supported by Father-in-law Hou, Hong Zhu waited beside her with pen and ink, but she saw the Queen Mother's hand clearly, and she kept trembling in Father-in-law Hou's hand.

His Highness knelt down three informers, whose sumptuous blankets were wet with rain. However, they still bowed their heads and knelt, not daring to make a sound, for fear that their unlucky crow would eventually destroy the blessings of this palace that had stood proudly in the world for thirty years.

The Queen Mother glanced at the three of them coldly, gritted her teeth, and scolded coldly: "What are you crying about?"

As soon as these words came out, the concubines in the hall who were constantly crying and grieving forcibly stopped their tears, but they couldn't erase the horror and fear on their faces.

The Queen Mother sat on the chair next to the dragon chair with the support of Father-in-law Hou. said: "Immediately close the palace, and the prince presides over the imperial city guards, and those who violate the order will be beheaded." ”

"Yes. ”

His Royal Highness responded, and the eldest prince with tears in his eyes looked up at his grandmother with some surprise, feeling the burden on his body. It's just that his mood at this time is extremely agitated, and there is no way to distinguish what the Queen Mother's will means.

The Queen Mother continued: "Xuanhu and Su two scholars entered the palace. ”

"Yes. ”

"Xuancheng Gate Division led Zhang Fang into the palace. ”

"Yes. ”

"From now on, the gates of the city are closed, not the will of the mourning family. Do not open without permission. ”

"Yes. ”

"After the Dingzhou army sacrificed prisoners, Ye Chong returned within two days, and the frontier was struggling, so he should focus on state affairs. ”

"Yes. ”

The Queen Mother's brows suddenly wrinkled, although the old man had been calm at this time, she finally felt that her head began to buzz, she gently rubbed her temples, and said after thinking for a while: "King Xuanjing." Hubu Shangshu Fan Jian, Qin ...... Constant, enter the palace. ”

"Yes. ”

The Queen Mother finally said indifferently: "Let the Queen and Her Royal Highness the Crown Prince move to the Hanguang Palace...... Ning Cairen and Yi Guifei also came over, and the third child also brought it. ”

The eldest prince lowered his head, his heart tightened, knowing that his grandmother was still not at ease with him, but in the sadness at this time, he didn't want to care about these things at all.

It's getting dark. The bell outside has gone down. The candles in the Tai Chi Hall were flickering, and it looked so bleak and uneasy. At this time, Kyungkook was the de facto controller. The Empress Dowager, who was already dying, suddenly coughed twice, a complex emotion flashed in her eyes, and she said lightly: "The inner court...... Please invite Her Royal Highness the eldest princess and Lord Chen to enter the palace for a temporary stay, Fan Xian...... The concubine who was pregnant with the child also entered the palace. ”

"Yes......"

The Empress Dowager ignored things for a long time, but at this time, every decree was so clear and direct to the hearts of the people, she tried to isolate the whole of Kyoto from the outside world as soon as possible, and control those who might cause turmoil in the imperial city.

Suddenly, a childless concubine screamed frantically: "Fan Xian stabbed him! The Queen Mother wants to copy his nine clans, how can he let his family enter the palace!"

As soon as these words came out, the palace was quiet, and the Queen Mother looked at the concubine coldly, like looking at a dead person, and said slowly: "Drag it down, bury it." ”

Several guards and eunuchs stepped forward and dragged the concubine, who had fallen into a state of madness, not knowing that they would bury the poor man in the dirt under the flower tree in the palace.

The Queen Mother glanced coldly at everyone in the palace, and said in a cold voice: "Take care of your mouth and brain, don't forget...... There are still a lot of open spaces in this palace. ”

Everyone in the hall was sad, but they didn't dare to say anything, the sadness and doubts in their hearts were the same as this concubine, but they were not crazy, so they didn't speak.

"What about Chen Pingping, why didn't she enter the palace?" asked the Queen Mother with a cold face.

Hong Zhu stopped the brush in his hand, met the inquiring gaze of the Queen Mother, and said in a trembling voice: "After Dean Chen was poisoned, he went back to Chen Yuan to be treated by the imperial doctor, but I am afraid that ...... I don't know ...... yet."

The queen mother's eyes were cold, and she gritted her teeth and said angrily: "Send a decree to this old dog, saying that if he doesn't enter Beijing again, his mother and son will die!"

People go to Gongjing. Suppressing the sadness and horror in her heart, after making the safest arrangements in the shortest possible time, the queen mother of Qingguo suddenly seemed to be drained of all her strength, leaned on the back of the chair weakly, slowly closed her eyes, and a cloudy tear wet the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.