==Chapter 138==

Emperor Chengyuan stayed in the East Palace for a long time before leaving.

After he left, the prince smiled bitterly and said, "Father, this is in a hurry." ”

Only Futai stayed aside to serve, in fact, not only the prince saw it, but Futai also saw it, although Emperor Chengyuan didn't say anything in front of the prince, and he didn't even mention that Princess Zhao was pregnant.

Fu Tai knew that His Royal Highness was in a complicated mood, and he was complicated to change anyone, and he was expected to be so high, but he was repeatedly disappointed. And the meaning of His Majesty's abnormal behavior today is obvious, he has already made up his mind to do something.

With the prince, the prince is the prince of the dynasty and the brother of King Zhao, although many people know that the prince and the brothers of King Zhao are not close, but Futai has served the prince for so long, understands the heart of his Royal Highness, and thinks that a small life will disappear because of himself, and the prince can't feel comfortable.

With selfishness, the most beloved son of the crown prince Emperor Chengyuan, Emperor Chengyuan gave him too many things and too heavy, so after such a year of accumulation, those words who wanted to dissuade him could not be said at all.

How could he say it? He couldn't disobey Emperor Chengyuan's 'kindness' to him!

Is just 'good intentions' really good intentions?

Maybe it was a long time ago, but after so many years, all of this qiē was like a mountain weighing heavily on the prince's shoulders, making him breathless every time he thought about it.

In the Dongnuan Pavilion, the prince's voice coughing lightly sounded again, and one after another made people's hearts tremble.

Fu Tai hurriedly ordered someone to bring pear water and went to the prince's side to serve him to drink. Futai's voice trembled slightly, and there was a hint of begging: "Your Highness, you shouldn't think too much, those, those things are none of our business, don't think too much." ”

The prince swallowed a mouthful of pear water, waved his hand and leaned back on the chaise longue, his eyes half-closed tiredly.

In the East Warm Pavilion, the faint yellow glow emitted by the hexagonal palace lamp that burned day and night shone on the prince's face, making his face a little less cyan, adding a touch of crystal transparency, faintly looking as if a person was about to disappear.

*

In the blink of an eye, it's the annual 'Shangyuan Festival'.

This has always been the most lively celebration festival of the Great Qi Dynasty, even if there is a turmoil in Chang'an City now, it has been temporarily diluted by this festival craze.

Lamp markets have been opened in various streets, among which the lamp markets in the east and west cities are the most prosperous and lively. In Chang'an City, several lanterns are hung in front of every house, and the slightly richer people also set up lamp trees of varying heights in front of the door, and the richer ones will set up lantern sheds and lantern towers at the intersection or the door.

As for the princes, nobles, nobles and ministers, they set up a lantern shed on Suzaku Street every year, and on the square in front of the Suzaku Gate, Emperor Chengyuan also ordered someone to set up a high lamp on Aoshan Mountain.

This year's Emperor Chengyuan seems to be particularly concerned about the Shangyuan Festival, from the beginning of the new year, there are people in the square in front of the Suzaku Gate to set up the Ao lantern, until the 14th day of the Ao Mountain high lantern with the golden dragon as the main body is finished. When night falls, the craftsman who tries the lantern lights up the entire Aoshan high lamp, and standing at the other end of Suzaku Street, you can see the five-clawed golden dragon with teeth and claws ready to fly.

When Emperor Chengyuan saw this, he was overjoyed, so he ordered people to stay all night so that he could come to meet the grand ceremony of the next two days.

On the fifteenth day, Emperor Chengyuan held a banquet in the palace, at which there were not only all the concubines and princesses, but also some high-ranking ministers.

After the banquet, Emperor Chengyuan and everyone went out of the palace to watch the lanterns.

The palace of the king of Chu also set up a lantern shed on Suzaku Street this year, the lantern shed on Suzaku Street is not a random one, not only the location of the lantern shed is extremely exquisite, but the lanterns displayed by each house also have another mystery. All in all, it is necessary to uphold a truth, you can be in the limelight, but you can't be in the limelight, how to be in the limelight, how can you be in the limelight, and not cross the people who should not be crossed, there is a lot of knowledge in it.

As the prince, the king of Chu naturally has no such scruples, but the king of Chu and his wife don't need to use this method to invite favor, so they are not very attentive, and just order the people below to do it. Generally speaking, the lantern shed of the Chu Wangfu is in line with the regulations, and the lanterns displayed are not too conspicuous, but they will not lose the face of the King of Chu and maintain a moderation.

Several other princes almost did the same, but the lanterns displayed in front of the lantern sheds of the various houses in the back were much more attentive, either exquisite and gorgeous, or ingenious, which was very eye-catching.

Of course, the most dazzling thing is the five-clawed golden dragon's Aoshan high lamp that Emperor Chengyuan ordered people to erect, and no one can take away the limelight.

On the square in front of Suzaku Street, there are several high platforms next to the high lamp of Aoshan Mountain, one of which is dotted with bright yellow curtains, and the others are also hung with red knots.

After Emperor Chengyuan cooperated with the queen's concubines and princesses and princesses, all the noble ministers bowed down and shouted a few long live, and Emperor Chengyuan waved his hand and said, today is a festival celebrated by the whole country, no need to be polite.

After that, it was time to sit down and watch the play, Emperor Chengyuan took the queen and the concubines to sit on the high platform in the center, accompanied by the princes and several high-ranking and powerful ministers. There are two stands on the left and right, and one of them is full of female dependents, led by several princesses and princesses, and some are female dependents of the families of various noble ministers. In the other stand, there are many noble ministers. As for the status of the people sitting in the two stands below, it is a little worse, but they can sit here and watch the play with the lanterns today, they are not ordinary people, and they can be regarded as the top position of the Great Qi Dynasty.

The atmosphere on the stage was very lively, and the performances on the stage were also very exciting. What kind of fire-swallowing, sword-swallowing, and trick-making, one after another, made all the ladies look discolored, and felt very novel.

As for the men present, they didn't pay attention to these little tricks, and their attention was all focused on Emperor Chengyuan and making friends with various families.

There are lanterns and fireworks in the Shangyuan Festival, and naturally poetry is indispensable. Not only did the prince chant two poems, but even King Qi, who has always liked martial arts and did not like literature, also chanted two sour poems that fit the occasion.

Yes, the crown prince also came today, and took the crown princess and the prince's side concubine to accompany Emperor Chengyuan. It was the first month, the weather was still relatively cold, and the prince was holding a thick fox fur, with colorful lights shining, but it did not show his sickly face.

Jiu Niang sat below, accompanied by a group of ladies and wives, from time to time someone looked for her to laugh and talk, Jiu Niang coped with it, but her eyes kept looking around.

"Fifth brother and sister, why are you so focused?" Princess Qi, who was sitting next to Jiu Niang, suddenly asked.

"It's a wonderful trick." Jiuniang replied.

"It seems that the fifth brother and sister rarely go out on weekdays, but in fact, these tricks are all tricks, how can people swallow such a sharp sword into their stomachs, they are all deceitful. If you visit the night market over there, you will know that there are more strange tricks than this, these are just to make us happy. Princess Qi Wu Qian covered her mouth with a handkerchief and smiled.

She has a small round face and big eyes, and at first glance she looks a little immature and innocent, but Jiu Niang has also observed her secretly, and this is just an appearance. However, she has never had any relationship with this person, and she only maintains a little face, and what kind of person she is has nothing to do with her.

Princess Qi saw that Jiu Niang didn't want to have a deep relationship with herself, and the corners of her mouth covered under the veil skimmed, and she turned her face to watch the trick on the stage.

The people who talked to Jiuniang were the two of Cui's Zheng family, and the female dependents of the Anguo Mansion family also arrived today, but they sat a little back, Xiao Ru was also there, and looked at Jiuniang several times with that kind of eyes that wanted to talk and stopped, Jiuniang was too lazy to take care of her, so she made a look of not seeing.

"Grandmother didn't come today?"

"Ah Jia, her old man is old, and she doesn't want to join in the fun, so today the two concubines and concubines came with the juniors in the family, and the father-in-law and his old man accompanied him beside His Majesty, and the uncles of Niangniang were in the stands opposite."

After all, this is in public, although the Cui Zheng family is the elder of Jiu Niang, and it is also necessary to uphold the courtesy of the monarch and the minister. As for An Guogong accompanying Emperor Chengyuan, Jiuniang had already seen that on the stand where Emperor Chengyuan was, in addition to the queen Liu Guifei's high-ranking concubines, as well as several princes and princes, there were only a few high-ranking nobles and ministers.

Duke An Guo is not only the father-in-law of Emperor Chengyuan, but also the head of the Duke of Anguo's mansion, so naturally his seat is indispensable.

Jiuniang nodded, exchanged a few more words with the two, and the two returned to their positions.

Jiu Niang felt that a gaze was looking at her, and when she looked sideways, it was Princess Changping.

In this stand, Princess Changping is the highest-ranking female dependent, and she is surrounded by a group of women who want to flatter her. However, Jiu Niang saw that Princess Changping's face was not good, and she was a lot older than the last time she saw her, but it is also understandable, Princess Changping's age is here, and the years are not forgiving.

But Jiuniang knew that not only that, the King of Chu had told her that Princess Changping's life was not very good now, and anyone with a discerning eye could see that Emperor Chengyuan was not as good as Princess Changping was treating Princess Changping as before, in other words, Princess Changping had fallen out of favor. It's just that this matter is, after all, an internal matter of the royal family, and not many people know about it, otherwise there would not be so many women who come forward to flatter her today.

As a princess, it may seem like she is indeed on the top, but the princess cannot hold power, and she has lost her grace, leaving behind nothing more than a glossy shell.

Although Jiu Niang had an enmity with her, but in front of everyone's eyes, the surface work was also to be done, so she smiled back respectfully.

When Princess Changping received this smile, she couldn't help but caress her heart angrily, in the end, her brain is still clear, knowing that this Xiao Jiuniang's identity is different from the past, and she can't find the other party's fork for no reason in the public.

Jiuniang was turning her face to watch the performance on the stage, but she was a little uneasy in her heart.

An indescribable sense of unease, but she trusts her instincts, and every time she feels this way, something dangerous happens.

Something dangerous?

Jiuniang raised her eyes to look at the grandstand opposite, the people on the stage were very happy to drink, and she went to see the stand headed by her, Emperor Chengyuan was full of smiles, and was talking to the prince next to him, King Zhao Chengwang and others were around, and King Chu was also there. And around him, there are also some female dependents, and there doesn't seem to be anything abnormal.

But she still felt very uneasy.

"Sister-"

It was when her mind was in turmoil that Xiao Ru didn't know when she came to her side.