==Chapter 109==

East Palace

The prince was half-leaning back on the chaise longue with a thin layer of mattress over his knees.

It's obviously the height of summer, and he's not like the others, only wearing a thin summer shirt and still wearing a jacket.

There is an ice kettle in the hall, but it is placed in the corner, only to ensure that the temperature in the hall will not be too high, but it is not cool at all.

A round-faced waiter served beside the chaise longue, picking up some witty words to make the prince happy, not only telling some interesting things that happened in the palace, but also many things in the folk market and countryside. Sometimes dancing, sometimes sighing, funny expressions, rich body language, making the prince smile from time to time.

This is the only way for the prince to pass the time now, his body is not hot or cold, he is not sad or tired, he can still read books to pass the time in his early years, his father will also show him some of the folding mansions, and the subordinate officials of the East Palace will occasionally discuss with him about the affairs of the court. Now all of these are forbidden, just because the imperial doctor said that he can't hurt his gods, so now he can only listen to some trivial things from the mouths of the attendants around him and talk about comfort.

This little chamberlain is called Wang Xu, he is not very old, he is only fourteen or fifteen years old, he has a pleasant face, he talks and smiles, and his personality is cheerful and lively. This kid is also a good person, seeing that the prince likes to listen to him, he tries his best to find many interesting things to tell the prince, and he is also quite dignified in the East Palace.

At this time, he was talking about an incident that happened in the Weiguo Mansion a while ago, which was also widely circulated in Chang'an City recently, causing countless people to laugh and talk, so many people in the Weiguo Mansion were embarrassed.

“…… The big steward Liu was startled, and said in his heart that it was too bad for the mother-in-law to come back, so he hurriedly lifted his pants and let the widow hide from the king. Who would have thought that his Hun family came prepared, not only by himself, but also by his three elder brothers. When Steward Liu opened the door, these people swarmed in and searched the room. Steward Liu didn't take precautions that several uncles would also come, and the widow Wang was found on the spot......"

“…… The Hun family of Liu Da was so angry that he fought with the widow of the king in public. The widow is not a good stubble, and the two fight against each other...... This widow Wang is taller and stronger than Steward Liu's Hun family, and Steward Liu's Hun family is not her opponent at all. The two fought all the way from the house to the courtyard, attracting countless onlookers...... On the other side, Liu Da Steward was not good, his three uncles were tall and strong, and they took him to the courtyard and beat him in public......"

“…… Steward Liu has never been so embarrassed, and he will leave his Hun family after he goes back. His Hun family is not followed, and the two families have a lot of trouble, but it is a pity that Liu Da is a steward in the Weiguo Mansion, which is comparable to the kind of broken household of his Hun family, and in the end, his Hun family was still divorced and sent back to his parents' house. After his Hun family was dismissed, the more he thought about it when he went back, the more he hated it, so he always went to the door of the Weiguo Mansion to make a fuss, and was kicked out once, and once he was beaten, so she was angry and stabbed out the matter of Liu Da Steward's embezzlement of money in the Mo Mansion......"

This Wang Xu is very good at storytelling, and his voice is full of emotion, and he talks about the situation of Liu Da Steward stealing widows and the endless quarrels between the two families. The prince chuckled when he heard this, and Futai laughed and kicked him on the side, "You dead rabbit cub, where did you hear so many pickled things, and use them to pollute your highness's ears!" ”

Wang Xu followed his not light or heavy kick, and rolled out, then got up, touched his head and smiled: "The slave maid also heard what the servants who bought it from the palace, if His Royal Highness doesn't like it, the slave and maid won't say it in the future." ”

The prince smiled and waved his hand, "Okay, it's Gu who asked him to speak, so don't blame him, just have fun." ”

Seeing this, Wang Xu hurriedly crawled back to the prince's leg and continued to beat the prince's leg.

"If Your Highness doesn't like to hear this, there is one more thing to talk about here, and this matter has been spreading in Chang'an City recently."

"Oh? Let's listen to Lonely. ”

It is said that the old lady of the Wang family celebrated her birthday, and many nobles with status in Chang'an City came to congratulate her on her birthday. It was a grand scene, and the ladies and ladies of all the families were at a ......."

As Wang Xu spoke, the prince's face gradually became gloomy. Futai glanced at the prince's face, and hatefully stepped forward and kicked Wang Xu into the air, this kick was different from Fang Cai's playful kick, it used strength.

"Xiao Xuzi, you kid is so bold, do you know who that Mrs. Wang is? That's our princess's mother-in-law, how dare you arrange these rights and wrongs in front of Your Highness! ”

Wang Xu's face was pale, he was in a cold sweat, and he didn't know whether it was pain or fright. He was so frightened that he fell to the ground, knocking head after head, as if it were not his own.

"I beg Your Highness to spare your life, please ask Your Highness to spare your life, the slave maid should die, the slave maid really didn't expect that the Wang family was the maiden family, and the slave and maid also slipped their mouths for a while, forgot about it, and begged His Highness to spare his life......"

"Okay, okay, he's young, and he didn't mean to. It's just that I have a lonely heart that wants to please, where will I understand the twists and turns here. Arise and go on, and do not hide anything. ”

Wang Xu trembled and got up, peeked at the prince's face, and didn't dare to speak. It wasn't until Futai reprimanded 'not yet to talk about it' that he continued to talk tremblingly, but the words were completely playful and funny.

Even so, it also made the prince understand the ins and outs of the whole thing.

In fact, in the past, things like this were used as fun to talk about by the chamberlain, and the prince could know. Because Emperor Chengyuan has not let go of the idea of wanting the crown prince to take over the unification, some large and small affairs in Chang'an City have been reported in the day, these things may be very complicated, but as a superior person, he can pick out some movements about the ministers and nobles, which is convenient for rule. This is what every emperor does, and so does the crown prince as a prince.

It's just that now that the prince's health is getting worse and worse, Emperor Chengyuan no longer let these things disturb the prince, so as not to make him tired. It's just that in this way, the news of the East Palace will inevitably block a little. If it is said that the prince used to sit in the East Palace, and he knew all the affairs of the court and Chang'an City, now he seems to have broken off his only wings and can only be trapped in this high square palace wall.

But he couldn't refuse, he couldn't refuse Emperor Chengyuan's fatherly heart.

After listening, the prince waved his hand to let Wang Xu go down, his face was stunned, and there was a hint of condensation.

Futai peeked at the prince's face, snorted, and said nothing.

"You already know about this?"

Fu Tai pounced, knelt down, and said with a trembling voice: "The slave and maid did know it for a long time, but this, this is just a trivial matter, and His Majesty has explained that it will not let you bother to bother, so the slave and maid did not dare to say it in your ear." ”

The prince showed a wry smile and muttered: "This Wang family is so capable, he actually attacked innocent people for a little unwarranted thing that has not yet been decided, and he lost ......" It is a loss that he has changed his previous casual appearance since Wang Yan'er hung the beam, and he is particularly attentive to her.

If there is no role for Wang Yan'er here, the prince will never believe it, maybe Wang Yan'er didn't do anything, but the fact that her father wanted to take a concubine for herself was definitely passed back to the Wang family by her. Originally, he still had some pity for Wang Yan'er, but at this time, he was completely diluted by this incident, because the prince suddenly realized that maybe Wang Yan'er was hanging from the beam, and it may have been done on purpose.

In fact, he had this kind of speculation before, but he couldn't bear to question her after all.

It's really good, these scheming methods are endless, and even his wife doesn't forget to calculate himself.

"This Xiao Jiuniang is not a good ......stubble," the prince muttered, and suddenly chuckled: "Also, if it is a good stubble, this time it is not a miserable situation, their minds are dirty, and it seems that they are a little sorry for themselves if they don't retaliate back." By the way, I'm afraid this matter is not over yet, my aunt is not a character who can swallow her anger. ”

Futai pondered for a moment, bowed his head and said: "A while ago, Xiao Jiuniang was ambushed on the street, and it is said that the injury is very serious, but few people know about it, and now she is recuperating in the palace of the king of Chu." ”

Ambush?

If you can't make a plan, you have another plan, and this time you want to put the other party directly to death, it's really amazing!

The prince didn't want to drag others down, but Emperor Chengyuan had a heart of love for his son, so he couldn't bear to refuse in person, and he did appreciate Xiao Jiuniang a lot, so he hesitated, but he was interrupted by Wang Yan'er fainting at that time. Immediately after Wang Yan'er was sad, she didn't mention this matter again, who would have thought that she would actually harm the girl.

The prince was a little stunned for a while, and after a long time, he sighed and said, "You pick some things to go to the Chu Palace, the etiquette doesn't have to be heavy, just be ordinary, instead of going to visit Xiao Jiuniang." ”

Presumably, my father would have understood what he meant.

"Yes."

*

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince seems to know about that." Ruan Ronghai hesitated for a long time before he whispered.

"Oh?" Emperor Chengyuan put down the pen in his hand and glanced at Ruan Ronghai.

Ruan Ronghai lowered his head, hugged the floating dust and said: "It's the incident that happened in the Wang family, it seems that next to His Royal Highness the Prince, a little chamberlain who often tells him some interesting stories and amuses, and he leaked his mouth for a while." His Royal Highness the Crown Prince didn't say anything after he found out, but just asked Futai to send some things to the Chu Palace, and visited Xiao Jiuniang on his behalf. ”

Emperor Chengyuan breathed a sigh of relief, "My son is kind. ”

"Yes, His Highness is generous, and everyone in the palace knows it."

Emperor Chengyuan's face was stunned, and he said slowly: "I still remember that the prince said that the prince was generous and had a good character. It's a pity ......"

The next words, Emperor Chengyuan did not say, and Ruan Ronghai also lowered his head and did not dare to interject.

It's a pity that everyone knows the meaning after that, but the destiny is hard to violate, the world cannot be both, the prince is full of economy, benevolent, and helpless fate to play tricks......

"I originally wanted to pick a good one for the prince, who would have thought that this Xiao Jiuniang would not be blessed. Having a hard time? I'm afraid she won't have a chance to sit on this prince's side concubine. That's it, since my son has no intention, I don't want to force him. ”

The words fell, and Emperor Chengyuan, who was sitting behind the dragon case, had a cloudy and uncertain face for a while, as if he was thinking.

After a long time, he said again: "Order, let the Ministry of Rites start preparing for the selection of concubines for several princes, and if it drags on, my sons should secretly curse me to death." ”

The tone of this last sentence is a little weird, and it shouldn't have come out of Emperor Chengyuan's mouth. Ruan Ronghai seemed to be used to it, as if he hadn't heard it, he didn't blink his eyelids, and bowed down.

*

The prince ordered his attendants to come to visit him, which really surprised Jiu Niang.

Jiu Niang is Futai who was seen on the couch, she was seriously injured and had not recovered, so it was unreasonable to find fault with her.

Futai didn't say anything, but routinely inquired about Jiu Niang's condition, and greeted His Royal Highness the Crown Prince on behalf of him, and then put down the things sent by the East Palace and left.

Jiu Niang asked people to bring up the things sent by the prince to take a look, the gift was not heavy, just some ordinary medicinal materials, only one old ginseng was still valuable, so she was relieved.

Thinking about what King Chu said before, it seems that she no longer has to worry about accepting her as the crown princess again, and she can be regarded as getting rid of this hidden danger.

As soon as Futai left, the king of Chu came.

He glanced at the things that the maidservant was about to pack, and the corners of his mouth hooked.

Jiu Niang raised her eyes and saw the small arc, and she couldn't help but have a little joy between her eyebrows.

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is a good man."

King Chu's face was stunned, and he raised his eyebrows and glanced at Jiu Niang.

Jiuniang hurriedly smiled and said: "It's still my cousin who is the most powerful, just a little trick, and all the problems will be solved." ”

This sycophant was a little too obvious, but the King of Chu obviously ate this set, and the corners of his lips hooked up an arc.

The whole thing seems simple, but it is not so simple on the inside. The crown prince stayed in the East Palace and closed his door, and if he wanted to spread any news inside and avoid the ears and eyes of Emperor Chengyuan, and not arouse the suspicion of the two, it was actually not as easy as anyone imagined. It was also the king of Chu who pondered the prince's heart too thoroughly, and just made a little use of it, and Emperor Chengyuan passed the pass through the prince's hand.

"Does the wound still hurt today?" King Chu asked.

Jiu Niang blushed.

In fact, the injury on her shoulder had already scabbed, but she stayed with the King of Chu the day before yesterday, and the two of them were originally irrelevant to each other and read books separately, who would have thought that the King of Chu would suddenly be 'ferocious' and unruly for a while. During this period, it seemed that the movement was too big, and she accidentally tore Jiuniang's wound, causing her to cry out in pain on the spot, and her face was pale.

hurriedly called Imperial Physician Liu, who didn't know the inside story and reprimanded Jiuniang. Jiu Niang's embarrassed mood couldn't be mentioned, and the King of Chu also had a cold face, as if others owed him a lot of money.

Yesterday, the king of Chu didn't show up for a whole day, and when he came to talk about the wound today, it's no wonder that Jiu Niang was red-eared when he met, it was really embarrassing.

"It doesn't hurt anymore, it's much better." Jiuniang said with a hanging face.

King Chu looked at her embarrassed little face, a touch of embarrassment flashed in his eyes, he cleared his throat before he said: "My father plans to give King Cheng and King Zhao a few concubines, and this king is going to take the opportunity to do our business." ”

Jiu Niang raised her head in surprise and looked at King Chu.

What about the two of us? Could it be that the king of Chu has not given up his plan to marry her as a concubine?

"Cousin, I ......"

"What's wrong?"

Jiuniang blushed, and it took a long time before she spoke, "I am in the way of the heirs, and I am not suitable for marriage." ”

King Chu frowned, "What?" You don't want to marry this king? ”

Isn't that Wang Shilang doing something in the middle again? A look of cruelty flashed in his eyes.

"It's not, it's ......"

"It's okay, as for the thing you said...... King Chu glanced at her, "It's okay." ”

It's okay, it's okay! How can this kind of thing be okay!

How important the heir is to a place like the royal family, Jiu Niang doesn't understand. In her previous life, she was just in the Wang family, and because she couldn't give birth, all kinds of troubles came frequently. Now if she marries the King of Chu, it's okay if she can't give birth in a year or two, but if she can't give birth all the time, how should she deal with herself?

"Don't you believe what this king says?"

"Nope."

"Then you dislike this king as a cripple?"

Jiuniang smiled bitterly, how could this be possible, she knew that King Chu would definitely be able to stand up in the future.

The king of Chu pulled her over and hugged her in his arms, "In this case, this king does not dislike your heirs, and you don't dislike this king for not doing well, just right." And didn't Imperial Doctor Liu say that your body only needs to be carefully recuperated, and it is not that it can't be good. ”

"Really?"

Jiuniang was very worried in her heart.

may be due to the shadow of her previous life, after listening to Doctor Liu's words, she has never made any hope, she always feels that others are just comforting her. Because when she asked for medical advice in her previous life, those doctors would always comfort her and tell her that if she took the medicine on time and recuperated carefully, maybe the good news would come unexpectedly. But in the end, all she was disappointed was disappointment, and after a long time, she stopped believing such words.

"Really."

King Chu nodded solemnly, it seems that she cares more about this matter than she imagined, what happened after that? The King of Chu frowned again, his eyes deep in thought.

***

Jiu Niang took a moment to visit Da Kui and Xiao Cui who were recuperating from their injuries.

Da Kui and Xiao Cui's injuries are very serious, it is not an exaggeration to say that they are in danger of surviving, if it weren't for the excellent medical skills of Imperial Physician Liu, and the strong financial resources of the Chu Palace, some rare medicinal materials are not stingy to smash on the two of them, I am afraid that both of them will lose their lives this time.

Even so, the two of them lay on the couch for nearly half a month before they woke up, and they were afraid that they would have to recuperate for more than half a year if they wanted to heal from their injuries. Especially Da Kui, who was stabbed in the face, and a huge scar slashed from the left side of his face to the right side of his face, but he was undoubtedly disfigured.

Jiu Niang's heart was gloomy, but she was still a little happy in the end, at that time she thought that the two of them would die, but now it can be regarded as a blessing in misfortune. The words of comfort, Jiu Niang couldn't speak, but just asked the king of Chu for a promise, promising that when the two of them recovered from their injuries, if they wanted to leave, the king of Chu would let the two leave, and if they didn't want to leave, they could still go back to her to wait.

This promise is undoubtedly a blessing for Da Kui and Xiao Cui, who are dead soldiers, to know that since they are dead soldiers, they will not be able to leave their masters until they die.

Don't mention these, as time passes, Jiu Niang's injuries have gradually improved, but the knife wound in the right shoulder blade has not healed, but it does not affect the movement.

It should be time for Jiuniang to go back to the Anguo Mansion, after all, she can't live in the Chu Wangfu all the time and not return.

Bidding farewell to the King of Chu, the King of Chu's face was not very good at that time, but the next day he approved what Jiuniang requested.

Back at the Anguo Mansion, Jiu Niang first went to An Rong Yuan to ask the Duchess of An Guo and several elders of the Cui Zheng family to ask for peace, and several people treated Jiu Niang very warmly, and they did not uninterestingly investigate the root cause of Jiu Niang's injury. Xiao Sanniang and others were also there, and they all cared about Jiuniang, but the county lord of Chaoxia did not appear, and Xiao Liuniang also did not appear.

After that, Jiu Niang returned to Cuiyun Pavilion, and Cuiyun Pavilion was still the same as before, as if Jiu Niang had never left.

Lianzhi's maidservants were very happy to see Jiu Niang come back, Lianzhi stayed to accompany Jiu Niang to change the clothes she wore at home, and the others went to place the cage that Jiu Niang brought back.

This time, Jiu Niang brought back a lot of things, half of them were brought back from Cuiyun Pavilion, and half of them were used in the Chu Palace, and when Jiu Niang left, these things were all brought back.

Lianzhi served Jiu Niang to change her clothes, and told her what happened in the house during this time. Although Jiu Niang left, she didn't pull down any of the things that Lianzhi should do.

“…… Chongyue Pavilion has been very quiet recently, and the six ladies made trouble for a few days at first, and then it stopped, but they never went out...... Yuechenju has been in the limelight in the house recently, but Ru Niangzi is extremely low-key...... The eldest lady privately arranged for someone to keep an eye on the Chongyue Pavilion, but that person is also our ......"

Jiuniang quietly listened to what Lianzhi said, and learned some useful things from it, for other places, she didn't pay too much attention, but Chongyue Pavilion and Linlangju She would never relax, she hadn't forgotten that she almost died this time, and the revenge of Da Kui and Xiao Cui had not yet been avenged.

"Find someone to keep an eye on Chongyue Pavilion and Linlangju, and don't miss the slightest bit of news."

Princess Changping's mother and daughter were so cruel to her, and Jiuniang was not ready to let them go.

"Yes."

*

After staying in the Anguo Mansion for two days, Jiuniang proposed to continue to go back to school, and the Duchess of Anguo cared about her injury and knew that it would not affect her, so she agreed.

When she returned to Guozijian again, there was a feeling of being separated from the world, and Jiu Niang also saw Cheng Wenjing and Ruan Ling'er again.

It turned out that not long after Jiuniang was injured, Cheng Wenjing returned to school, maybe she wanted to open it, anyway, Jiuniang saw that she seemed to have returned to her usual appearance, but she was much calmer than before, and it seemed that she had grown up overnight.

Seeing Jiuniang in the future school for a long time, not only Ruan Ling'er was very happy, but Cheng Wenjing was even more excited, pulling her to ask for a long time, Jiuniang was so noisy by her twittering that her head hurt, but she was smiling.

It's so nice to be back again.

The incident that happened to Jiu Niang in the Wang family before couldn't be hidden, but Jiu Niang didn't tell the two of them about her injury. During the days when she was recuperating from her injuries in the Chu Palace, the Anguo Mansion also sent someone to the Guozi Prison to help her ask for leave, under the pretext of returning to her ancestral hometown of Lanling.

Jiu Niang plausibly talked about Lanling, which can be regarded as a round of Lanling, and after a conversation, Jiu Niang also has an understanding of what has happened recently in the school.

In the days since Jiu Niang left, nothing major happened in the Guozi Prison, except for what happened to her in the Wang family, which was spread in school for a while, there was nothing new.

Xiao Liuniang has disappeared, Xiao Qiniang, Xiao Shiniang and Xiao Ruju are still there. Xiao Qiniang somehow seemed to be in line with Meng Changxi, and the two came and went very frequently. As for Xiao Ru, she is now in the limelight in the Guozi Prison, and there is no other reason why she has a lot of contacts with Wang Shilang.

These are all told by Ruan Linger and Cheng Wenjing.

Speaking of Xiao Ru, Cheng Wenjing's face was a little dark, and there was a hint of disdain: "Xiao Ru is very capable, and now she can enter the palace in the Wang family." ”