A cold and cold west wind swept by, with a bone-soaked coldness, swept away the last trace of warmth in the autumn day, and in the blink of an eye, time was like a thin water in the palm of the hand, flowing out of the fingers little by little, disappearing without a trace.

The Jingling in December is cold, the wind under the corridor of the hall is whistling, the first snow of the Jingling is blown down, only to see the night ink like brocade, shrouded in a heavy light, the palace lights hanging everywhere in the imperial city, will be lit up one after another dark corners, the goose feather-like snowflakes fall thinly, from the corridor to see, almost fill the eyes of people. The moment it fell to the ground, it disappeared suddenly, leaving only a slightly damp mark.

Walking in the corridor, the palace people who shuttled through the verandah have all changed into thin jackets, the pace under their feet is getting faster and faster, between breaths, the white breath is like smoke in the air, looking up, as if even under the eaves, there are shining ice crystals, cold water droplets slide down from above, and fall under the court, gradually condensing into frost.

In such a dripping night, it seems that it is extremely suitable to sit in the house where the earth dragon rises, roasting chestnuts and sipping hot tea, but at this moment, the Huanyi Bureau west of Desheng Gate is extremely busy.

In the gloomy night, the faint and dim silk lamp hung under the corridor, and a halo of light fell on the ground, and at a glance, about dozens of palace maids were wearing the lowest gray and blue coarse cloth jackets, and the coiled hair buns were at most dotted with one or two silk flowers that had long been in fashion, as if because they had been worn for a long time, even the original bright color had faded a little, looking shabby and pitiful.

The sound of pulp washing comes and goes, the palace maids here are not as delicate as the palace next to them, and they are not covered with better incense powder, just like sluggish puppets, Mu Ran sits on a small stool, silently burying his body, as if he will never be tired of scrubbing the mountains of splendid clothes in front of him. Obviously, those hands had already cracked countless crimson ice mouths, but they still immersed their hands in the cold water in front of them countless times, and their eyes were as numb as those dark faces, without a trace of emotion.

In this boredom, a footstep approached, only to see two little palace maids respectfully turning from the corner of the corridor with silk lanterns, and after that, a well-dressed elderly lady walked over, standing on the stone steps in front of the corridor, the palace maids who were originally immersed in the work in their hands seemed to come to life in an instant, quickly and quickly got up, quickly and quickly bowed down, pale face floating undisguised fear and flattery.

I saw that the grandmother glanced condescendingly, and finally fell on an inconspicuous palace maid in the corner.

"Apricot blossoms. ”

As soon as the words fell, everyone's eyes couldn't help but look over, only to see that the palace maid standing in it stiffened slightly, and then slowly walked out, looking down, he could still see that his face was lifeless.

"The slave is here. ”

The woman's voice was hoarse and numb, without the slightest fluctuation.

I saw that the grandmother glanced at the woman slightly from top to bottom, and then said, "Follow me." ”

Seeing that the grandmother was lazy and talking, she turned around and was about to leave, but a palace maid who stood at the front couldn't help but say: "Aunt Cao, the apricot blossoms are lazy, and there are still four or five pots of clothes that have not been washed." ”

When he turned around, he could see that the appearance of the woman who spoke was one of the outstanding, and her eyebrows flashed with schadenfreude, and then she stepped forward and respectfully flattered: "The slave and maid have been completed, if my aunt has any orders, it is better to let the slave and maid do it for you." ”

The people around fell silent, lowered their heads, and quietly raised their eyes to look at the porch, only to see that under the dim light, the grandmother who was called "Aunt Cao" had a cold smile in her eyes, and casually looked at the mountains of clothes in the corner, and her heart was already clear.

"Since you are so diligent, then wash the four or five basins by the way. ”

As soon as these words came out, the palace maid's face froze, and she looked at her in disbelief.

On weekdays, she likes Aunt Cao the most, what's wrong today?

At this moment, even the palace maid named Xinghua and the people below couldn't hide their shock, and looked at it in a daze.

"When did any of you wash as many clothes, my heart is like a mirror—"

I saw that Aunt Cao swept her eyes coldly and warningly, and said unhurriedly: "I have memorized it, those who come here are all lowly lives, so don't think about being the master, I will do all the work within my own work, if you steal and play tricks again, raise your own hands, and let others help you do it, then I will waste that pair of useless hands, and don't even want to stay in this Huanyi Bureau." ”

When the words fell, the chill did not decrease, and I saw that many people present shrank in fear, and the next moment, Aunt Cao took the lead without looking back, and the palace maid who called the apricot blossom followed.

When Aunt Cao turned around seven times and eight times, she finally came to a house, compared to Fang Cai's place, this place was quiet and comfortable.

"Go down, all of you. ”

Hearing this command, the palace maids carrying the lanterns all retreated, and only when the two disappeared into the night, then Aunt Cao pushed open the door, raised her steps, and said slightly: "Come in with me." ”

I only heard the door "squeak-" was closed again, and the cold wind and snow were thrown outside, and the two walked quietly inside, until they reached the back room, they saw that Aunt Cao cautiously stroked her sideburns, and quietly dusted off her skirt, and when she put on a very flattering smile, she bowed down slightly and opened the soft curtain.

and the appearance of being high, judging like two people.

"The slave maid greets the eldest grandson. ”

As soon as she heard Aunt Cao's flattering laughter, the palace maid who followed her was obviously stunned and became stiff and different.

"Xinghua, don't you come to salute?"

Suddenly, I heard the reminder, and saw that the palace maid paused for a moment, and when she stepped forward to salute, she had already regained her calm.

"With the moon, don't come unharmed. ”

The woman's plain and slightly cold voice had a little more intimidating momentum in this silent room, and when she heard this long-lost title, the person in front of her finally trembled and moved, but she felt like a world away.

When she raised her head, although the woman's face was dark, it was difficult to hide the appearance of her former beauty.

"Slave maid - greetings to the eldest grandson. ”

A simple sentence, but almost squeezed out from between the teeth of Suiyue, stiff and full of fear of the unknown.

Gu Yanling, who was wearing a pipa placket embroidered gold and silver jacket skirt, was sitting high at the moment, with a dignified figure without losing his bearing, and the meaning of the stars on his lips with a smile was terrifying.

Who would have thought that people who were once as beautiful as Changchun Palace would also fall to such a point.

Now that I think about it, the word Changchun is also ironic.

Thinking of this, Gu Yanling's lips were cold, and his well-maintained right hand hung down, just over the undoubtedly prominent lower abdomen.

"Let's get up. ”