Chapter 864: The True Reason

Inshou Palace East Warm Pavilion.

After serving the Empress Dowager Zhang and drinking the medicine, and waiting for someone to fall asleep, Zhu Ning did a while of needlework on the embroidery pier next to him, and saw the palace maid serving in front of the bed gestured to herself, which meant that the Queen Mother was already asleep, so she put down the bandage that had just raised her head, and signaled the four palace people in the room to be alert, and then tiptoed to the outside.

Although it was just a day and a night's work, she felt as if a long time had passed, her limbs were sore, her head ached, and the most difficult thing to resist was the fatigue in her bones. She sat down on the sour branch wood flower pattern rattan circle chair that the royal prison had just sent a few days ago, and let the well-curved backrest support her waist, and she supported her head with one hand, and her eyes were half-open and half-closed.

She is also a county lord from the royal family, and she is used to seeing those brothers fighting for power, so she is naturally very vigilant about the sudden arrival of King Zheng and King Yue and King Xiang today. However, the fact that three of them came together does not mean that all three of them have different intentions, not to mention that Zhu Zhanji's younger brother is more than three, and it is not easy to find out the person who provokes trouble. The family affection of the heavenly family is weak, even if they grew up together, they may not be able to understand each other's minds, even if the queen mother and the emperor are determined to investigate, how many people dare to really interrogate the relatives?

"County Lord, Father-in-law Fan is here, saying that there is something important."

Hearing that it was Fan Hong, Zhu Ning immediately opened his eyes, looked at the curtain above him and got up and went out. Due to the cold weather, and the queen mother was sick, the earth dragon brazier in the East Warm Pavilion burned extremely strongly, so as soon as she went out, she was only wearing a close-fitting jacket, and she suddenly felt a cold air coming, and then she remembered to leave in a hurry and forgot the fox fur cloak. Fortunately, a palace maid chased her out and served her in a big coat.

It was only a few steps from the hall, and when she arrived at the back hall of the main hall, she saw that Fan Hong was already waiting there, and her face was very ugly. Seeing that he was still going to salute, she waved her hand and asked, "What's the matter?" ”

Fan Hong glanced at the two palace people with his eyes, and waited until Zhu Ning waved his hand back to them, and then he whispered: "County Lord, when I sent Lord Zhang out yesterday, because I talked about the palace menu, I paid attention for a while, so I went to Shangshan Supervisor. Mr. Zhang said that eating more meat and fishy food is easy to get through, and after reading the meal list, the little one found that in the past few months, whether it is the queen mother or the emperor, the seasonal side dishes have been withdrawn, and in the past, there were fewer vegetables in the palace, plus in winter, there was more meat. The little one went to ask the imperial doctor last night, and the imperial doctor agreed with Lord Zhang's proposal, so the little one sent someone to the Pengcheng Marquis Mansion again, and took the opportunity to visit Mrs. Tai to inquire. Mrs. Peng Chenghou said that the late Peng Chenghou also died of a sudden heart attack. ”

"You mean, the Queen Mother's illness may not be accidental?"

Zhu Ning frowned for a while, thought for a moment and then said: "Renshou Palace has a small kitchen, I used to think that these meals were too greasy, because the Queen Mother liked it, and only occasionally took some medicinal food. You said that the seasonal side dishes were withdrawn, what does this mean? ”

"It is the queen mother's edict passed down by Lu Shang Palace, because she doesn't know what happened, the little one can only find a reason, and stumble Lu Shang Palace in the Shang Palace Bureau, and let people keep an eye on it. The Shang Shan supervisor also sent people over, and there will be no leakage for a while. ”

"It's getting weirder!"

Zhu Ning lived in the palace for twenty days a month, and when he heard this, his eyebrows rose upside down, and he was really angry. The sixth bureau of female officials is the old system of Hongwu, and even once overrode the eunuchs, but with the reuse of eunuchs during the Yongle period, the Shanggong Bureau and so on gradually declined, if it were not for the fact that the Empress Dowager Zhang has used a lot of female officials, these people are just slightly higher than ordinary palace maids, and they can't go out of the inner palace when they are idle. It's Lushang Palace, and in front of the Queen Mother, she is just a slave, how could she suddenly go to the outer palace to pass on the message?

"Go check it, you don't need Dongchang, you lead it yourself." Between the lightning and flint, Zhu Ning had already made a decision, and then ordered, "If she calls for hitting the sky, you will say that the Queen Mother already knows, if she doesn't tell the truth, she will be beaten to death immediately, and her family will not escape!" Also, the few people who had good dealings with Lushang Palace called Renshou Palace to inquire carefully, and don't go outside. ”

Now I know that the Queen Mother is sick, except for the people in Renshou Palace, it is Fan Hong, Jin Ying, Yang Shiqi, Zhang Yue, and the people who are full of slaps are less than a slap. Therefore, Zhu Ning was naturally reluctant to publicize this, but Fan Hong knew it in his heart, and hurriedly agreed, and when he was about to withdraw, he collided with Cao Jixiang who hurriedly ran in at the door. Cao Jixiang was younger after all, and when he saw Fan Hong falling back, he hurriedly helped him, but his eyes looked at Zhu Ning.

"County Lord! The county lord is not good, Sun Guifei is clamoring to see the prince! ”

It's only been a day and two nights, and it's finally going to be a commotion?

Zhu Ning had already calculated this, but he was not surprised when he heard this, and asked directly: "Where is Sun Guifei?" ”

Since the six palaces in the east and west were all sealed, Cao Jixiang naturally couldn't enter. Zhang Yue left the palace, and he had nothing to do, because of the timely report of the first person, and Fan Hong Jinying couldn't get out, he and Cheng Jiu listened to the support in Renshou Palace. One looked at the East Sixth House, and the other looked at the West Sixth House. At this moment, he swallowed hard, and his voice was lowered: "It's in Yongning Palace...... Concubine Sun Guifei knelt in the courtyard inside the Yongning Gate......"

One crying, two troubles, and three hangings, crying is naturally inferior to the royal family, and it is even worse to hang up, but Sun Guifei is so silent and kneeling, but it is very different. Even Zhu Ning, who had a lot of dealings with Sun Guifei, couldn't help frowning when he heard this. When Concubine Wu was pregnant, she heard a lot of rumors from Yongning Palace, but there was no movement, which shows that Concubine Sun Guifei is really smart this time. But this time, after all, it's his own son, how can he be patient all the time?

After looking inside, she nodded and said, "Gonggong Fan will go back to the celebrant first." auspicious and waiting here, I arranged to go to Yongning Palace. ”

Fan Hong was also startled, but since Zhu Ning was so calm, he naturally felt at ease, and after saluting again, he quietly left. Cao Jixiang naturally didn't say anything, seeing that Zhu Ning was leaving with the two maids, he quietly rubbed his hands and stomped his feet, and he was afraid and happy in his heart. I was afraid that I thought of everything, but I didn't expect the Queen Mother to be ill; I am glad that this time I finally entered the eyes of the nobles, and I will be able to stand on my feet in the future. After waiting for a while, he saw a fat eunuch nodding and following Zhu Ning out.

"You are the eunuch of the imperial pharmacy, and the three imperial doctors are so good that you must be careful in testing the medicine. If you can't do anything, let someone report it to me immediately. Zhu Ning glanced at Suo Lianzhou, saw that his head was glowing with oil, and his tone was a little more serious, "Do things carefully, don't be afraid." ”

Seeing that Zhu Ning was leaving with Cao Jixiang, Suo Lianzhou, who was full of courtesy, couldn't help but pinch the fat cheeks, which barely allowed the stiff muscles to recover. Not to mention him, even the three imperial doctors who are responsible for taking care of them here are not worried and fearful, worried about life and death? If only the Queen Mother's illness could be dragged steadily, if not...... I'm afraid that he, the eunuch of the imperial pharmacy, will become a dead fish in the imperial dining room...... I knew this was the case, why bother in the first place, he shouldn't have been transferred here for the sake of the errand of the War Bureau, no matter how difficult it is for Lord Xiao Zhang to fool, it is better than losing his head now!

Yongning Palace is in the west of the middle of the West Erchang Street, because the emperor often comes here on weekdays, the Changning Palace and Jingyang Palace near this are naturally close to the water and the tower is the first to get the moon, sometimes the emperor passes by here, he will always enter the inside to sit. Therefore, the two concubines who lived in these two palaces were respectful to Concubine Sun Guifei, and they had only been stained with a lot of rain and dew in a few years, but their stomachs did not move at all, so they could only watch that Concubine Wu became pregnant after only a few times, and when she had a child, she would have to be promoted again.

If that's all it takes, the news of the crown prince's sudden illness came at this moment. After Zhu Zhanji ascended the throne, in addition to the queen and Sun Guifei, the old people in the East Palace only canonized Concubine Liu Shufei and Concubine He Hui, but the two of them have long been unfavored, and they have always lived in the West Sixth Palace. But they all pointed to Sun Guifei, in the future, if they can avoid martyrdom, they are also good friends with the prince's mother, plus Sun Guifei has a treasure, and it may not be known that she will be abolished in the future.

So, this Sun Guifei knelt in the snow like this, and the two of them all hurried over, persuading one by one in the snow, and I don't know how much effort and how much sweat they wept, but Sun Guifei just didn't move, as if she gritted her teeth and planned to kneel here. Seeing this scene, Concubine Jiao couldn't help but sit on the ground, feeling sad.

"Niangniang, you just don't think about yourself, but also for the sake of His Royal Highness the Prince, on this cold day, if you kneel down and come out, what can you do with Your Highness!"

Now the snow has stopped, but because the East 1st Long Street, East 2nd Long Street, and West 1st Long Street and West 2nd Long Street, which enter and exit the East and West Sixth Palaces, are all closed, so the miscellaneous eunuchs and so on in the palaces have no time to take care of clearing the snow, Sun Guifei has only knelt for more than two quarters of an hour, and her initial knee like a needle prick has been completely unconscious. And the snow melted by the temperature of the human body also soaked her dress, and it was even more cold to the bone. At this moment, listening to Concubine Jiao's voice, she couldn't help but shake her body, but she really couldn't hold it anymore.

"Niangniang, Niangniang, the mantis gate is open, and the mantis gate on the West Erchang Street is open!"

The little eunuch who ran like a gust of wind knelt down in ecstasy, but because of the momentum, the person suddenly slipped far forward along the ground that had turned snow into ice, and only four or five steps in front of Sun Guifei could easily stop, almost hitting Concubine Jiao. He didn't have time to confess, so he hurriedly said: "It's the county lord who came, it's the county lord Chen Liu!" ”

Hearing this, Sun Guifei finally felt that the strength in her body was drained all of a sudden. After King Zheng came to visit Concubine Li Xian, he revealed that he had been punished by the Queen Mother, and she also confirmed that the crown prince was seriously ill. If there was only the queen in the palace, she would naturally dare to make trouble, but when she entered the palace, she was raised in the palace of the Empress Dowager Zhang, and she knew that this mother-in-law was stern and cold, and she could only use this masochistic way to alarm the other party. It is naturally impossible for the Queen Mother to come in person, but as long as Zhu Ning comes, she can at least know how the prince's illness is, and at least she can stab one or two heavy words to investigate.

Fortunately, there was a Cao concubine next to her, and Sun Guifei barely straightened her waist: "Besides the county lord, who else?" ”

"Hui Niangniang, there is no one else, just a few little eunuchs to follow."

As he spoke, there was already a commotion outside. As soon as Sun Guifei raised her head, she saw that Zhu Ning had already stepped past the Yongning Gate in front of her. She used to have a good relationship with Zhu Ning, although they were of the same age, they always followed Zhu Zhanji to call Aunt Ning, however, now that her only son is so sick that she doesn't know the situation, and it is Zhu Ning who takes care of her, she inevitably resents in her heart, and her face is involuntarily exposed, but she just stares at the delicate and even face without making a sound.

Seeing that Sun Guifei was kneeling in the open air without anything, Zhu Ning sighed in her heart, and couldn't help but speed up two steps, and when she got to him, she didn't care about the two concubines next to her, and grabbed Sun Guifei's arm with one hand. One was stiff on his knees, the other was tired from staying up all night, so no one's strength could carry anyone, and Zhu Ning almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, Concubine Jiao and Concubine Cao had already tasted the taste, and hurriedly picked them up one by one.

"Get up, the crown prince's illness hasn't reached that point yet, do you want to give him a blessing?"

Sun Guifei looked forward to the stars and the moon to have such a son, at this time, Zhu Ning said that nothing was as important as this son, so after she was stunned for a while, she was finally helped up, but her legs couldn't stand up. Zhu Ning couldn't care about that much, and hurriedly ordered someone to put Sun Guifei into the main hall.

From the main hall of "Gongsu Deyi" inscribed by Zhu Zhanji himself, Zhu Ning withdrew the eunuchs, commanding the palace people to bring warm water and hot water, and asking other people to undress Sun Guifei. When the warm water and hot water were brought up, seeing that Sun Guifei's calves, knees, and thighs were already blue and purple from the cold, several elderly palace maids first scrubbed them with warm water over and over again, and then replaced them with hot water. After such a toss, Sun Guifei just bit her lip and held the brocade quilt silently, but her eyes were always staring at Zhu Ning. It wasn't until after some busy work that the person was lying on the big black sour branch wood bed and covered with a brocade quilt, and her eyes never moved off the nest.

Ordered someone to go to the imperial pharmacy to call the imperial doctor, Zhu Ning retreated from everyone again, and then sat down on the edge of the bed, and then sighed and said, "Guifei Niangniang, why are you doing this!" ”

"If my child dies, Concubine Wu's child will be raised under the queen's knees, and she will be the natural prince in the future, don't others think so?" Sun Guifei spit out such a sentence with all her strength, then gasped heavily, and sneered again, "Don't think I don't know, I will know when the news from Concubine Wu's side is revealed yet...... I grew up next to the Queen Mother, and she didn't like me so much, she hated me so much, and she ...... her grandchildren."

"Concubine Niangniang!" Zhu Ning couldn't help it, and stopped her in one gulp, seeing that Sun Guifei's face was sad, confused, and frightened, so she shook her head and said, "I might as well tell you the truth, the prince is fine." Even if you are temporarily sick, who dares not to be unsatisfied? Who doesn't know that it is the emperor's most beloved son? ”

The prince is fine!

Sun Guifei froze suddenly, thinking of her heart-wrenching pain after learning the news, thinking of the curse she secretly went crazy, and thinking of the few things she had done quietly, she simply didn't know what to say or what expression to show at the moment. After a while, she only felt that her eyes were dark, and finally she couldn't stand the stimulation and fainted all of a sudden.

Zhu Ning was about to call someone, but Cao Jixiang's voice suddenly came from outside the door: "County Lord, King Zheng sent someone, saying that there are 100,000 urgent matters to ask to see the county lord, and it can't be delayed!" ”