==Chapter 56==

When the King of Chu arrived, he saw that the face of the crown prince Qingjun was full of thick smiles, and he couldn't help asking, "Brother Huang seems to be in a good mood?" ”

The prince glanced at him, did not answer, but asked with a smile: "Chang Xi just left, why, you haven't met?" ”

King Chu was silent for a moment, and replied: "My younger brother didn't meet Sister Changxi, maybe he went wrong." ”

This Lingbo Pavilion is located very high, it is a small hillside, and there is only one road from the East Palace to here, but it is all steps. As the prince's body became weaker and weaker, Emperor Chengyuan ordered another ramp to be rebuilt from the side and rear, so since then it has not only been convenient for the prince to come up, but also convenient for the king of Chu, who is not good at walking. This ramp is usually only walked by the crown prince and the king of Chu, so it is not impossible for the king of Chu to say this.

"This little cousin of Lone has grown up." The prince seemed to have a feeling, but his eyes went straight to the face of the king of Chu.

It's a pity that the king of Chu has always been bland, and his description is not good, but the prince can't see what he wants to see.

"Today, Chang Xi mentioned the two puppies back then, saying that she saw one in Xiao's house that looked exactly like Xiaoyudian but was snow-white, and she was still strange, and Lone told her what was inside." The prince seemed to say unintentionally.

The king of Chu picked up the tea cup on the table and did not speak.

Whenever he has free time, he will come to the East Palace to visit the prince, although there is nothing important to come here, just to talk or listen to people, but the king of Chu will never pull down. However, with the growth of the king of Chu and the increasing importance of Emperor Chengyuan, the king of Chu is not as much as in the past, and even so, he is the first among the princes.

The crown prince is not too close to his several imperial brothers, maybe because of the relationship between Emperor Chengyuan, or because he has been high in front of the princes since he was a child, and the other princes never dared to take the initiative to get close to the prince, and the prince was also indifferent to those few. However, for the fifth brother of King Chu, he has a feeling of looking at each other differently, which may be due to the grace of saving his life, or it may be due to sympathy for the same disease.

"By the way, Lone has always been curious about your little cousin, I remember that she was a few years younger than you back then, why did she rescue you?" The prince has always been very surprised and puzzled by this matter.

The incident that happened back then was a secret to outsiders, but it was not for Emperor Chengyuan and the crown prince, as early as when the king of Chu returned to Chang'an, he said it according to the truth, this kind of thing can't be hidden, the prince knows how Jiuniang rescued the king of Chu back then, of course, some details the king of Chu did not say.

Because of Emperor Chengyuan's attention and momentum, the prince has always felt high and very difficult to get close to outsiders, but in fact, the people who served him personally in the East Palace knew that His Royal Highness the prince was the most considerate palace servant. Even if he is riddled with illness, even if he is constantly taking medicine every day, even if there are some simple things that ordinary people can do, it is a luxury for him, even if the prince's illness is getting worse and worse, he will never be angry with his subordinates, nor will he complain, and even always smile.

Of course, because the prince has never experienced some happiness that ordinary people have, and he has never experienced it, he is particularly curious about some things that he has never seen.

The king of Chu understood this disposition of the prince, so he took the trouble to tell the prince about the situation at that time.

Speaking of which, it was a miracle that Jiu Niang was able to drag King Chu, a person who was older than her and weighed more than her, to the shore safely, of course, thanks to that case. If it weren't for the wooden surface of the case, with the case table as the support point of buoyancy, Jiu Niang would have dragged the King of Chu to the shore with buoyancy. Even so, it is extremely difficult.

At that time, the king of Chu was still young, although he was scheming, but after all, what he thought was not thoughtful enough. That night the incident happened suddenly, and he was carried away for a while, and jumped into the river with Xiao Jiuniang. If this situation is encountered again today, the King of Chu will never even be able to see such a simple game, so it is really fateful.

But it was also a rare experience.

In the eyes of the crown prince, the king of Chu actually saw such a feeling, and he seemed to have some admiration.

Seeing this, he didn't make a sound, but just touched the tip of his nose abruptly.

The king of Chu didn't understand the prince's mood, for a person who had been well protected since he was a child, even if he drank a sip of tea, the heat and cold were moderate, and he would never feel uncomfortable. Don't eat any foods that you can't eat, such as things that are too spicy. He had never run by himself, let alone gone into the water, had never ridden a horse, had never shot an arrow, and all actions that were not conducive to his body were not allowed.

They were all teenagers, and naturally there were times when they were impulsive and hot-blooded, but the prince never seemed to have been, he always sat there with a faint expression, looking at the past from a distance like a god who was not stained with dust.

When I was young, I was afraid that my father would worry, and no one could understand what it was like to be always the person closest to me, and it was a great feeling to look at it with panic in my eyes, which was a kind of emotion and a great psychological burden. When he grew up, everyone in the East Palace treated him carefully, because if he had any bad intentions, the people below would suffer. And this kind of suffering means disappearing.

So the prince has always been quiet, quiet, he already has too much, he doesn't want to burden anyone anymore.

"It is said that your little cousin has returned to Chang'an, so bring it over to Gu another day." The prince said suddenly.

Although the King of Chu was stunned, he still nodded.

The two talked for a while, most of them were said by the prince, and the king of Chu listened. After almost half an hour, the king of Chu took his leave.

As he grew older, the king of Chu was not without his own affairs, and the prince did not keep him, but just repeated what Fang Cai said, so that the king of Chu would have time to take Xiao Jiuniang into the palace to show him another day, and the king of Chu promised.

It wasn't until he got into the carriage that King Chu's eyebrows frowned.

He was thinking about the meaning behind the prince's desire to see Xiao Jiuniang, the whirlpool of this power center is no better than elsewhere, every word and everything everyone says and does has a certain meaning.

He remembered that the prince mentioned that Meng Changxi mentioned Xiao Jiu'er again, this Meng Changxi is now a fragrant sweetheart, and he knows that he has also had the same idea as King Zhao Cheng, after all, the meaning represented by Meng Changxi is huge, and it may make him twice the result with half the effort. But this thought is only fleeting, and no one understands the sense of crisis on the cusp of the limelight better than the King of Chu. And getting Meng Changxi, not only will he not get any benefits, but it will make his father more wary of him, he has not forgotten what he is relying on now.

However, the King of Chu also has his own plans, King Zhao and King Cheng have the same idea, and the more Meng Changxi looks at himself differently, the more they will make them hostile to him. And the king of Chu is precisely this kind of hostility, he is not suitable to be involved with any party now, and as long as people are in a hurry, he will show his flaws, and he only needs to watch the play.

In such a two-pronged matter, the King of Chu naturally would not reject it.

However, the previous experience in the Xiao family's garden made the King of Chu have a doubt, so he knew that Meng Changxi was in the East Palace today, but he subconsciously avoided her, otherwise he would not have done this in the past. And today's prince's words made this doubt even worse, and the king of Chu was even wondering if he was going to give up his previous plan.

Before you know it, the carriage drove out of the palace and walked on the wide Suzaku Street. Seeing the house of the Anguo Mansion from a distance, King Chu's eyes darkened.

*

Although the days of recuperation were boring, they went extremely smoothly.

Jiu Niang's status in the Anguo Mansion is now well known to everyone, eating and drinking well every day, and there are a number of subordinates waiting, and everywhere below is close to Cuiyun Pavilion.

It's like this hot weather, there is ice supply everywhere in the mansion to cool off, except for the courtyards of a few big masters, the first to send it is probably this Cuiyun Pavilion, and even Xiao Sanniang and the others have to take a step back.

Jiuniang has always been the character of striking while the iron is hot, and with the momentum, she proposed the idea of changing the maid in the courtyard with Cui's family. On that day, it was obvious that it was framed, and it would be impossible to say that there were no spies in this Cuiyun Pavilion.

Cui's was not embarrassed, and the next day he asked the housekeeper to lead a group of new maids to Cuiyun Pavilion, Jiu Niang picked and chose with the help of Lotus Branch, and replaced all the maids who were not brought back from Lanling, Xiao Cui and Xiao Can also brought up, and Lotus Branch and Lianfang waited beside Jiu Niang.

This time it is a big change of blood in the entire Cuiyun Pavilion, Lianzhi is a servant of the Xiao family, and he is also relatively clear about the foundation of some people in the house, so most of the newly replaced maids are people who have nothing to do with the various rooms, and they can be used with confidence. Now Jiu Niang doesn't expect these people to be loyal to herself, loyalty takes time to cultivate, but these people are waiting outside, as long as they pay a little attention on weekdays, nothing should happen.

As time passed, Jiu Niang's injuries gradually improved, and the red mark on her head had long since disappeared. At this time, a major event suddenly happened, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince actually summoned Jiuniang into the palace to meet him.

This news caused an uproar in the Anguo Mansion, you must know that Xiao Jiuniang has nothing to do with the prince, and she doesn't even know each other and hasn't even met in person, what did His Royal Highness the prince do when he summoned Jiuniang?

I'm afraid everyone in the Xiao family thinks so now, including Jiu Niang.

Doubts are doubts, this matter is undoubtedly a big deal for the Xiao family now, so the Duchess of An Guo specially recruited Jiuniang to go over, and asked the Cui family to test Jiuniang's etiquette, I am afraid that it will be wrong and ugly. Fortunately, Jiu Niang has good etiquette, and she has the memory of her previous life, and she was not a vacation during that time in Lanling, but she didn't let Cui's pick out any flaws.

Then it is for Jiuniang to prepare the clothes to wear into the palace, for which the Duchess of An Guo is very troubled, it is too gorgeous, it will attract people's attention, and when the time comes, the people in the palace will look like the Xiao family is extravagant. And it is too simple, Duchess Anguo has some other ideas, after all, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has never summoned courtiers into the palace, you must know that the prince has not married a concubine because of physical reasons. Emperor Chengyuan offered yì to the prince to marry a concubine several times, but was rejected by the prince.

These are not allowed to be considered by Duchess An Guo, and even Duke An Guo rarely began to pay attention to this matter, not to mention several Lang Jun and the main mother in the second room of the big house.

However, this qiē has nothing to do with Jiu Niang, anyway, no one will listen to her opinions, she only uses An An to listen to the arrangements at home, and it is good to act when she sees the opportunity after entering the palace.

It's just that Jiu Niang was very puzzled, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince called her to do something, but she soon knew the answer.

*

On the same day, there was a frame sent by the palace to pick up Jiuniang.

This kind of thing is not without precedent, and the Xiao family is not surprised. They didn't know that someone had done anything during this time, including Xiao Jiuniang.

It wasn't until Jiu Niang got into the carriage and walked for a while that the carriage suddenly stopped, and then a person came in the carriage.

Looking at the King of Chu with a condensed face and unhurried behavior, Jiuniang was really taken aback, so that she looked at the King of Chu blankly and didn't close her mouth for a long time.

It's not that Jiuniang doesn't have concentration, but the King of Chu clearly said that the two should not have contact, and the relationship is not suitable for exposure, so she has always been in front of this person during this time, and she has never even used Xiaocui and the two to contact the King of Chu.

And this gift is obviously the prince who summoned her to the palace to meet her, why did the king of Chu come here at this time?

Since that day, the prince said this, and the king of Chu has taken this matter to heart.

It seems that the prince is just casually talking, but if it is really operated, the king of Chu has his own concerns. In order not to add to the right and wrong, he instructed the matter to the woman in charge of the Inner Servant Province to meet the Inner Counselor, and the result of the prince's request was to see Xiao Jiuniang, as for whether the King of Chu 'brought' into the palace to see it, or whether it was arranged by the Inner Servant Province, it didn't matter. As a superior person, you don't care about this, but the meaning of the two is different.

Seeing Jiu Niang's doubtful eyes, the King of Chu did not solve his doubts, but sat opposite Jiu Niang without being shocked.

Three years apart, although they only met once a few days ago, but the two did not speak to each other, and for a while, Jiuniang didn't know what to say.

"Cousin, how have you been doing for the past few years?" After holding back for a while, Jiu Niang held back this sentence.

To be honest, the realm of doglegs is not something that can be entered casually, especially Jiuniang has no psychological preparation at this time.

King Chu nodded, looking at the girl opposite who seemed to have grown up a lot.

It seems to be different from the memory, the thin and weak girl is not only much taller now, but also looks exquisite, like a willow that has just sprouted in early spring, delicate and revealing a fresh fragrance. The face is more delicate, the outline used to be a little indistinct, but now the eyebrows are lightly swept, the beautiful eyes are rippling, the nose is slightly upturned, and the pointed chin matches the shape of the lips, I am afraid that no one can deny that the girl in front of him is beautiful.

If it weren't for the familiar little white dog that day, King Chu probably wouldn't have recognized Jiuniang for a while, because Jiuniang had changed a lot.

"Cousin, your leg has been fine for the past two years, have you found a good doctor who can heal it?"

King Chu glanced at Jiu Niang with a strange look in his eyes, "It's still the same." ”

Jiu Niang let out an 'oh'.

Then there was silence in the carriage, Jiu Niang was looking for something to say, and the magnetic bass of the king of Chu suddenly sounded. began to talk to Jiu Niang about why the prince summoned her to the palace, and Jiu Niang realized that it was related to Meng Changxi.

In view of King Zhao's experience, Jiu Niang couldn't help but tense her nerves, not that she was timid, but that for the high-ranking prince, she was almost a little ant at his feet, and she stepped on it to death when she raised her foot.

In her previous life, Jiuniang had no experience in dealing with other princes, and the only one was the King of Chu. Just this one is enough for her to be miserable, fortunately, the King of Chu may have a dark heart, but it is normal. And when she saw King Zhao that day, Jiu Niang's only feeling was that she still looked like a person, but she was not a thing.

She was really afraid that the prince was not a thing compared to King Zhao, and it was not as simple as being injured a little, and it was likely that his life would be over. You must know that it is the prince, born to be the prince above ten thousand people under one person.

Meng Changxi, Meng Changxi, whether I dug your ancestral grave or cut off your incense in my last life, you never gave up and blocked me in your two lives. Don't let me seize the opportunity, or I won't be able to kill you and me with your surname!

Jiu Niang was angry and panicked in her heart, but she was still calm in the end, so she opened her pitiful eyes to look at King Chu.

"Cousin, Jiu Niang is afraid." As she spoke, Jiu Niang also stretched out her little hand and timidly tugged at the sleeve of the King of Chu.

It seems that there is a threat to life, and what face, what kind of separation, is suddenly gone. It's still important to live a little, although this 'cousin' is a little heartless, but Jiu Niang doesn't believe that he can watch himself die, after all, there is still a life-saving grace there, he can really see it, and he shouldn't be here at this time.

King Chu looked at the pair of crystal pink hands, a strange light flashed in his eyes, and then he looked up at Jiu Niang, "It's okay, this king will enter the palace with you." ”

"Is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince easy to talk to? Will it be as casual as King Zhao? Before going out, my grandmother told Jiu Niang to be cautious in her words and deeds, don't get into trouble, Jiu Niang is so nervous at this time. ”

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is very approachable."

Although the King of Chu has not yet figured out why the prince summoned Jiuniang to meet him, he probably won't embarrass Xiao Jiuniang with the prince's temperament. It's just that everything related to the prince is in the spotlight, otherwise King Chu wouldn't have acted so complicated this time, I didn't want to implicate her in, I'm afraid it won't work this time. But in the end, it can still reduce some of the impact, and now it can only be mitigated a little.

Thinking of this, King Chu sighed slightly. This sigh was very small, but it made Jiu Niang take it into her eyes, and then she thought of the strange things she saw about the king of Chu after returning to Chang'an.

According to some memories of her previous life, Jiu Niang can probably guess the current situation of King Chu. It seems that the king of Chu is now powerful, but in fact, it is just cooking oil with fire, and the honor guard is still related to the prince in the final analysis.

Therefore, it is also the temperament of Emperor Chengyuan, obviously there are so many sons, but only one is rare, and the others are regarded as a piece of, but who would have thought that this person in front of him would stand firm in the future with a difficult situation, and even sweep away a qiē obstacle, when Jiuniang first met the king of Chu in the previous life, except for the only two people, there are few people who can make the king of Chu in his eyes.

Thinking of her previous ambition, Jiu Niang tugged at King Chu's sleeve again, "Cousin, do you need Jiu Niang's help to do anything?" ”

Looking at the other party's crystal pupils, King Chu was in a trance for a moment, then looked at her again, and slowly shook his head, "No." ”

After a pause, he raised his hand and rubbed the other party's hair, just like when Jiu Niang was a child before.

Because of this kneading, it seems that the separation of the previous time suddenly disappeared. Jiu Niang had a strange thought at this moment-

Usually she kneades wine like this.

Thinking of wine, Jiuniang thought of the name of wine, and even more thought of her previous oath.

Just thinking about it, the king of Chu suddenly said, "You seem to have changed the name of that dog?" "It looks like it's unintentional.

"Is there one? Nope! Jiuniang reacted immediately, and said with a smile: "What's the difference between wine and Xiao Jiu'er?" The wine is slightly smoother. ”

The king of Chu looked at her silently and did not speak.

*

The carriage soon entered the palace.

On weekdays, there are not many kings of Chu who enter and leave the palace, and Emperor Chengyuan is allowed to take a car, so when he saw this very familiar frame, no one stopped him, but drove directly to the inner court in one go.

When he arrived at the inner court, the carriage could not enter, Jiuniang got out of the car and was led by a chamberlain to go inside, while the king of Chu sat in the car and did not move.

Seeing this, Jiu Niang could only follow the waiter.

The scenery of this palace is naturally not comparable to other places, the scenery is beautiful, the birds are singing and the flowers are fragrant, and it is extremely secluded. The people who came and went to the palace were cautious in their words and deeds, and when they saw Jiu Niang and the two of them coming, they all stood with their heads bowed, and after people walked by, they would look at them curiously.

And the chamberlain who led the way all the way, except for talking to Jiu Niang about some taboos in the East Palace, he didn't say a word anymore. Jiu Niang's mind is churning in all kinds of ways, but her appearance has always adhered to the proper etiquette, neither humble nor arrogant, and she keeps a respectful attitude and moves forward slowly.

When he arrived at the East Palace, the attendant who led the way stepped forward to negotiate, and the attendant of the East Palace led Jiuniang in.

The East Palace is very quiet, so quiet that Jiu Niang feels weird, the scenery is picturesque, there are carved beams and paintings everywhere, all of them are luxurious, and there are many palace attendants, but Jiu Niang does not feel popular.

I don't know how long I walked, I looked at a watery lake from a distance, bypassed a rockery and flowers, and Jiu Niang saw a leafy banyan tree not far away, the recliner with its back to this side, and a few waiters standing solemnly on the side.

Jiu Niang stood in the distance for a while, and when she saw the attendant leading her to come forward and whisper a few words, a chamberlain stepped forward and whispered something in the ear of the person lying on the chaise longue, and then the attendant came to her and asked her to come forward.

Jiuniang took a deep breath, walked slowly, walked to the side of the recliner, and bowed.

I felt that there was a look above me looking at me, because I didn't hear the call, Jiu Niang didn't dare to move. I don't know how long it has been, but a voice from above has heard, "Get up." ”

Only then did Jiu Niang slowly stand up, her head half hanging and her eyelids half closed.

"Look up."

As Jiu Niang's gaze moved upward, the legendary Prince Yuanzhang officially entered her eyes.

The person in front of him was extremely thin, only a little better than skin and bones, and his face was clear, if he wasn't so thin, he would probably be a handsome young man, but because he was too thin, he looked sickly, and his eyes were big, which looked a little scary at first glance.

He was dressed in a jade-white brocade robe, his hair bun was only tied up with a wooden flute, in such a hot weather, his body was covered with a thin blanket, and his hands resting on the armrests of the chaise longue were as white as jade, but they were full of green muscles.

"You are the Jiu Niang of the Xiao family? The little lady who saved the fifth brother back then? ”

Jiuniang didn't expect the prince to start with this kind of opening remarks, she was stunned for a moment, and replied respectfully: "Back to His Royal Highness the Prince, the courtiers are none other than Jiuniang of the Xiao family." ”

"Okay, you are also the cousin of the fifth brother, and naturally you are also the sister of Lone. Come, give a seat. ”

Soon, an attendant brought a crescent stool, and Jiu Niang stroked the hem of her skirt and sat down on the stool.

"Lone has always been curious about how you saved the fifth brother that day, you tell Lone."

Jiuniang finally understood why the King of Chu said that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was approachable, it was indeed approachable, and it was a little weird to be approachable.

However, the prince's attitude also made Jiu Niang's tense nerves involuntarily relax. Since I want to hear the story, let's talk about it, the king of Chu has also told Jiuniang about the specific inside, and Jiuniang knows what to say and what not to say.

Thinking about how he should behave at this moment, Jiu Niang's crisp voice sounded in the shade of the tree near the Taiye Pool.

A fresh breeze blew through the scent of flowers and grass, and the occasional laughter of the prince.