The white Taiping City is calm as usual, and the plain-clothed man who is no longer a teenager in Jiming Lane is wrapped in a quilt and holds a book in his hand. The brazier on the floor had not lit a fire for a long time, and there was still some firewood in the kitchen. Nowadays, firewood is as expensive as oil, and young people who have been preparing for exams have no regular income. After the year, he put down all the work at hand and waited for the scientific examination with all his heart. Unexpectedly, and reasonably, the expedition was postponed to Mayday. The scholars who were waiting for the examination in Beijing were miserable, waiting for the most painful thing to do.

Zhang Bai took a bite of the dry and hard flatbread, swallowed it along the cold water, and shivered all over. After swallowing a few bites of bread, I picked up the book and read carefully, although the life was a little harder, I was able to persevere, at least there was a place to shelter from the wind. Every time I hear that there is heavy snow in the further north of Taiping City, I am already very good. The only thing I'm worried about is my old father in my hometown, and I don't know if Xiao Wu can take care of his elderly father. After receiving a letter from home a few years ago, there was no news, and I don't know if there is any food for the winter at home.

Hearing the shouts outside the window, Zhang Bai put on his shoes and walked out, and the first to push the door in was a young boy. Wearing a thick cotton coat, I don't know how many big patches there are for many years, I'm afraid the cotton clothes are much older than the child. Five or six-year-old children are still naughty after all, and the little uncle screams.

As soon as Zhang Bai opened the door, the child pounced and picked the child up. Reaching out to wipe the snot off the child's face, he said, "The puppy has been heavy for a few days." ”

The child smiled, and liked the smell of the little uncle the most, and the mother said that it was the fragrance of reading books. If you read with her husband well, you can have this good smell, and the woman walked unfast, holding a large bowl of hot noodles in her hand.

hugged the puppy and said, "Sister-in-law doesn't need to send food, I can get by here." ”

The woman complained that the child didn't know how to be polite, but she still smiled at Zhang Bai. Jiming Lane is no better than other alleys, and the life of people living in Jiming Lane is not easy. After Zhang Bai bought this courtyard, he often taught the children for free, and often went to the only private school in the alley to take classes. The old gentleman who is in his fifties is also a talent, but it is a pity that he has never been able to pass the examination at such an age.

Walking into the house with the child in one hand and noodles in the other, Zhang Bai had no choice but to follow behind. It's really hard to refuse kindness, since he bought this courtyard with the last money, Zhang Bai didn't expect to know this group of enthusiastic people. The woman put down the note and said, "Brother Zhang, eat it quickly, it won't taste good if it's cold." ”

Zhang Bai closed the door and sat down to eat noodles, and said to the woman, "It's delicious." ”

The woman who was cleaning up the children's clothes on the side said, "Eat slowly, it's not enough for my sister-in-law to have it at home." Your eldest brother will get a little charcoal fire, and he will go over and get a little bit later, and you can see that there is no heat in this house. ”

Swallowed a large bowl of noodles in a few bites, not even a little soup left, reached out and wiped his mouth and said, "Sister-in-law, I don't need it, my brother can still bear it." The puppy is still young, and it is better to be warm at home than anything else. ”

Seeing Zhang Bai finish eating noodles, the woman cleaned up the dishes and chopsticks, took out some firewood from the kitchen, and forced out the cold in the room little by little. Zhang Bai only watched from the sidelines, and the couple Zhang Bai was sincerely moved. In this helpless Taiping City, you can only feel warm when you sit with your eldest brother and sister-in-law.

The brazier was already burning with firewood and a few pieces of red carbon, and the woman had taken the child away, telling her to pass it. Zhang Bai, who was standing in front of the door, couldn't help but think of her, who hadn't been here for a long time. My sister-in-law often said that there could be no woman in the family, and I couldn't read a daughter-in-law when I read, so I had to go to see which good girl was not an ordinary lady at first glance. Zhang Bai has said many times that they are childhood sweethearts, but no one believes them.

Close the door and smoke your hands. He took the scroll from the bed and sat in front of the brazier, and the words on it seemed to be the same. Helplessly, Zhang Bai put down the book and thought again: Yulian.

The woman left the courtyard, and a girl in red accompanied the man surnamed Liu to carry a cart of coal, and the little girl said, "Sister-in-law Zhang Gongzi, where is this?" ”

Although this car does not have much carbon, it is a better thing than gold in winter, and said: "Brother Zhang is such a rigid individual, it is strange that he can come and take it, let your brother Liu send a bag in a while, and the scholar is delicate and can't freeze." Sister in red, don't worry, Brother Zhang still listens to your brother Liu. ”

The man finished moving a little carbon and said: "I really don't know how to thank my sister, I don't have to worry about spring with these carbons." How much money is needed, Brother Liu will not lose a penny. ”

Hongyi instructed the coachman to wait outside, and said, "Brother Liu doesn't need it, these are all given to you by my sister." It's just that my sister has been in poor health recently, and I can't go out, so I ask my sister-in-law to take care of Zhang Gongzi more, and if you encounter problems, you can go to Luguo Mansion to find me at any time. "Don't give the man and the woman a chance to speak, and the red clothes leave quickly.

For the first time, I knew which girl was what identity, and the owner of the Guogong Mansion must be a big official. Brother Zhang is really a blessing.

Outside the palace, a white-haired old man walked slowly in a carriage, and the old man who was a first-class military general had only left the border army for more than a year, as if he was more than ten years old. The carriage walked outside the palace gate, and the old man looked at the familiar palace gate for a long time and did not leave his gaze, and remembered that he left Shu for the first time and came to this city. met His Majesty today, and the youngest Liu Ce.

Decades have passed, why is the little sister willing to follow the down-and-out prince, and once fought with Liu Ce because of that incident. Even His Majesty did not please the old man today, when the little sister was pregnant with a child and lived a life of exile in the city. The father was angry and refused to recognize the daughter who corrupted the family, which prince never gave any name.

Approaching the inconspicuous palace, Lin Xie vaguely remembered where the little sister was waiting for her beloved man to pick her up when she was holding a child who was no more than a teenager. It took a long time to see that man in the palace, and the man who was already the king of a country was also canonized as a concubine.

The footsteps are very slow, and the red walls and green tiles are full of prosperity in the world. This most noble palace in the world is not the biggest cage in the world. The woman entered the palace that everyone envied, but who knew that the palace of Nuoda was a prison that the world did not dare to imagine. Who on the clean bluestone still remembers being stained red with blood twenty years ago, and the old man remembers it very well. At that time, the young sister still needed someone to support her on this road, but she never took a step when she entered the palace.

It was so quiet all the way to the Qinglin Palace, and I hadn't been here for more than ten years. The old man remembered very well that the little sister did not have the joy of becoming a concubine on her face, Lin Xie walked to the little sister from that moment, and what Lin Xin was trapped in was not a layer of palace walls, but a heart.

The palace maid was particularly surprised to see the man who made a living, the snow-white beard was not a eunuch. A eunuch in his fifties bowed down and said, "General Lin." ”

Who doesn't know a general, but now there is anyone else who can be called a general. There were many civil and military generals in the Manchu Dynasty, most of them were called official positions, but there was only one person, and everyone preferred to call them a general.

Lin Xie didn't bow his head and said directly: "Concubine Xin is fine." ”

The old eunuch shook his head slowly and didn't speak, just led Lin Xie into the unfamiliar palace. Qinglin Hall didn't come many times, and it wasn't even as long as Lin Zhong had been there. The appearance of the palace has not changed in the slightest, and it is not much different from more than a decade ago. There is still an inconspicuous xylophone in the center, Lin Xie vaguely remembers that this piano was made by his mother, and he can't imagine that it is still the same as it was at the beginning.

Guarding the empty palace, the old man said secretly with a confused look in his eyes: "Time flies so fast, twenty years. ”

A woman in palace clothes was supported by the little palace maid, and her pair of red eyes and phoenix eyes have not changed, but she is more weak. Lin Xie stepped forward and bowed and said, "Weichen meets Concubine Xin." ”

Seeing his brother Concubine Xin clenching his fists tightly, he never thought that the once majestic man was now a gray-haired old man. The noble son who was majestic and heroic back then is now rickety. Swinging the palace maid's arm, she stepped forward and held her brother's arm tightly, not knowing what to say, she had been stationed in Nanjing, and she had never looked at her little sister when she went home many times. After returning to Beijing to take up her post, she has never visited her once, and Concubine Xin, who has become a noble concubine, knows that the most sorry thing is the eldest brother in front of her.

I fell in love with the emperor without hesitation, but the eldest brother was pregnant when he learned about it, and he almost turned against the emperor. I just want to fight for the fame of my little sister, why can the daughter of the Li family be the supreme queen, and the daughter of the Lin family is just a concubine. The Li family helped you ascend the throne as the emperor, and I, Lin Xie, did more. personally led the queen into the palace, Lin Xie didn't want to behead the mother and son under the knife, but in the end he still didn't do it.

Lin Xie looked up at Concubine Xin, who specialized in light makeup, and slowly straightened her waist. Concubine Xin was very happy to see her eldest brother again, so she didn't speak but pulled Lin Xie to sit on the bunk. I walked to the xylophone and sat down peacefully, and said, "Big brother, do you still have to play "Ming Ting" that my mother often plays? ”

Remembering the light and elegant sound of the piano with his fingers playing, Lin Xie closed his eyes and listened. I can't remember how long I haven't heard this song, but when I was a child, my little sister's favorite was the piano. In order to learn the piano, a pair of delicate palms were scarred, and when he saw his eldest brother, he would always ask stupidly: "Does it sound good?" ”

The little girl put her hand behind her back again and again, but in fact, the sound of the piano was chaotic, and she could only find a little rhythm. As the eldest brother listened quietly, encouraged the pink little girl to learn the piano hard, and when she grew up, she went to Taiping City together, and heard that where to gather the pianists used in the world, using sound can depict a world, and there is nothing in the world that cannot be depicted with sound.

Lin Xie slowly opened his eyes, as if the luxurious woman in front of him was still the little girl back then. Although the sound of the piano is not flawed, how can you not hear that the little sister sitting in front of you is terminally ill. said: "Little sister." ”

It's been so many years since I heard it, so many that I can't remember how many years of the title. At that time, no one could match the skill of supporting the dragon, and it was summarized that the young generals of Daliang could be compared with Lin Xie except for Liu Ce. The queen was undecided, and Lin Xie personally led the army to southern Xinjiang to resist the powerful Southern Chu, and when he returned to Beijing, he learned that the queen had been decided, and the little sister was just a concubine. Lin Xie was furious and almost made a big attack on His Majesty Xiao Pingyin, who was already the emperor, only to learn that it was Concubine Xin who personally brought the phoenix crown to the woman's head.

The world doesn't know that the person who wants King Qi to canonize the crown prince is none other than Lin Xie, and since then he has been getting farther and farther away from the harem. After staying in Nanjing for thirteen years, the emperor reused King Qi without the reason of the Lin family. Regardless of whether the King of Qi and the Lin family in Shuzhong are close to each other, after all, they are the family of Concubine Xin.

Concubine Xin heard a title that she hadn't heard for a long time and said, "Big brother, do you remember a small river in your hometown before you first came to Taiping City?" ”

Lin Xie said: "I remember, that day the sun was shining, my little sister stroked the piano for me, and I practiced the sword. I remember that it was the last time I played the piano for my brother. ”

Concubine Xin smiled slightly, and couldn't help coughing heavily. Lin Xieli immediately stepped forward and helped Concubine Xin as she did back then. Concubine Xin looked at her brother and said, "I remember that day the eldest brother said that he must choose the biggest hero in the world as his brother-in-law, otherwise who is worthy of marrying the younger sister." ”

Helped Concubine Xin sit down and said: "You are the husband, you are indeed the biggest hero in the world, and now Daliang is no longer a small country in the north, and has the tendency to calm the world." Not for the eldest brother, but also for the husband you have chosen, look at Your Majesty's posture of calming the world. ”

The eldest brother is still like that, and there is always only one thing in his heart. I have never stopped for this matter all my life, and there is no unprecedented prosperity without Lin Xie's thirteen years on the border.

Concubine Xin did not hesitate to clench the back of the eldest brother's old hand and said, "Big brother, do you still blame the little sister now, don't fight." ”

"Never, maybe the eldest brother was in a hurry. It's also good now, Kun'er can get the favor of His Majesty, although you are not the queen, you get the most favor. Your Majesty didn't disappoint me as an elder brother, it's good, it's good, it's good, as long as you're good. ”

is still the eldest brother who loves his sister the most, although he hasn't seen him for many years. Concubine Xin knew that Lin Xie, as the head of the Lin family, had kept the mansion in Taiping City, so why not for the sake of her little sister. It's just that one person doesn't say it, and one person pretends not to understand.