Five days later, on July 25, Zhu Yunwen finally announced that he would send troops to crusade against the rebellious King Yan; First held a ceremony to worship the generals in the Fengtian Palace, personally awarded the Changxing Marquis Geng Bingwen to capture the general's seal, and sacrificed the heaven and earth shrine and the temple, in front of the ancestors and ancestors in the temple, announced to cut off the seal of Zhu Di, the king of Yan, and removed Zhu Di from the clan genealogy and abolished the Yanshu people.

Just as Zhu Yunwen was holding a ceremony to tell the temple in the Taimiao, suddenly a young man in civilian clothes ran in and ran straight towards Zhu Yunwen, which frightened Shen Ruoxiao a lot, and stopped him and was about to arrest him, but the man shouted loudly:

"Imperial nephew save me!"

All the guards were stunned when they heard this; Shen Ruoyu had already grabbed the man's collar, but the man's legs suddenly weakened, and he knelt down towards the ground, still shouting:

"Your Majesty save the King of the Valley!"

Zhu Yunwen was stunned for a moment, stepped forward, and saw that it was indeed Zhu Lu, the king of the Nineteenth Emperor Uncle, and shouted:

"Nineteen Emperor Uncle! What are you doing here? ”

Only then did Shen Ruoyu dare to let go. Gu Wang Zhu Lu is very young, but he is in his early twenties, and he is enough to be the son of his fourth brother, Yan Wang Zhu Di. He lay down in front of the Son of Heaven and complained:

"The fourth brother of King Yan broke through Huailai, and the minister's days in Xuanfu couldn't be lived, so he couldn't stay, so he had to sneak back to Jingshi, and he was afraid that he would be discovered by the fourth brother on the road. The emperor must help the ministers. ”

Zhu Yunwen saw that the king of the valley was desperate and ran to beg him, but there was a hint of joy in his heart. At least, this shows that there are still some princes who are loyal to the Son of Heaven and oppose King Yan's army. He said kindly:

"Uncle Nineteen, please get up! I didn't take good care of it and indulged the Yanshu people too much, which led to today's disaster and caused the Nineteen Emperor Uncle to suffer. If Uncle Nineteen Emperors doesn't mind, please live in Jingshi in the future and fight against the Yanshu rebels with me. ”

The shrewd Zhu Lu immediately changed his words and said, "Your Majesty rest assured! The minister's liver and brain are smeared, and he swears to die to repay the emperor's legacy, His Majesty's grace will spare no effort to fight the Yanshu people! ”

After the temple ceremony, under the banner, the celebrant eunuch read aloud the edict of rebellion drafted by Fang Xiaoru in the face of all the imperial relatives and relatives present, in the face of all the civil and military ministers present, in the face of all the feudal kings and clansmen who were not present, in the face of all the court officials who were not present, and in the face of the people of the world:

"The Bang family does not make it, and the flesh and blood relatives have repeatedly conspired against each other. Last year, Zhou Shu was wrongdoered and resigned from the three kings of Yan, Qi and Xiang. I will stop the crime with my relatives. This year, Qi Wang Rong conspired against him, and conspired with Di and Bai, Bai Fu died of crime, and Lu has been abolished as a concubine. I was close to my relatives and couldn't bear to deal with it. Today, it is called a rebellion, trying to endanger the sect, and offending the ancestors of heaven and earth, which is incumbent. It is to use the simple hair of the soldiers, and to punish them. The soldiers of the Chinese and foreign subjects of the advisory are loyal and righteous, and they are united with the country, sweeping the atmosphere against the tide, and maintaining peace and order. ”[1]

The edict was announced, and the emperor sacrificed wine, sacrificed animals, and then swore an oath to go on the march.

However, in fact, this whole process is just a ceremonial face-saving work, just to please the sympathy and support of the heavens and the common people. The army did not set off immediately, but continued to move slowly in the tense stage of preparing various military supplies.

Soon into August, Geng Bingwen, the general of the conquest, finally left the capital Yingtian with a central army of 30,000 people and rushed to the northern battlefield. On 12 August, the general Geng Bingwen gathered 130,000 troops and stationed them in Zhending, commanding Xu Kaize's troops of 30,000 in Hejian, Pan Zhong and Yang Song's troops of 20,000 in Juzhou, and another 10,000 elite cavalry as the vanguard of the army, stationed in Xiongxian. At this time, Wu Gao, Marquis of Jiangyin, Geng Bingwen's second son, Geng Xuan, Ping'an, and Sheng Yong, the commanders of these troops, had not yet arrived.

For several days, the clouds were thickening and thickening, spreading from the Central Plains to the Gyeonggi region, with thunder and autumn rain coming down. When Shen Ruoliao was in Beiping, he had never seen the autumn rain fall so heavily; The autumn rain in the capital in front of me is like a sudden rainstorm in Beiping in summer, but it continues for days, as if the rain in Beiping for a year is shining. He really didn't know where so much water came from in the southern sky.

Nangong Qiu's mood was as gloomy and depressed as the weather; She looked forward to the Mid-Autumn Festival every day, and looked forward to it for a month, seeing that August 15 was coming soon, but Tiangong was against her at this time. She dreamed of taking a boat with Shen Ruoliao to the Qinhuai River to see the moon, and now that the weather is bad like this, she sees that this dream is in the soup. Shen Ruoyu comforted her and said that no matter what the weather was, he would definitely stay at home with her all day.

However, maybe Cang Tian really saw that she had waited too long alone, prayed for too long, and was sincere, on the morning of August 15, Nangong Qiu opened her eyes and saw a ray of pure autumn sunlight shining in through the window, and the whole room was warm and bright. She shouted happily and rushed outside, Shen Ruoliao was practicing her sword, and the blue crystal light of the autumn wind was swaying like lightning in the entire courtyard; There were still broken clouds one by one overhead, but the clouds were pure and white like jade, and the sky had cleared, and the blue sky was so high and high, and for a moment she seemed to be back in the Valley of Freedom, where it often rained, but she really didn't remember that there had ever been a cloudy day.

Shen Ruoyu stopped her sword, looked at her face as clear and bright as the sky, smiled with satisfaction, and said casually:

"The Xuanwu storm is in full swing, and the tears of the gods are the bells of the rain.

"Cinnamon is not sad and bitter, and the clouds are open and the moon is bright."

Nangong Qiu hugged him and smiled sweetly: "I'm Yugui." ”

"You're my little moon."

Nangong Qiu said meekly: "Ruoxiao, I understand." Today is finally after the rain and the sky is clear, and there will always be an end to the war, you are not a ruthless person, you are not ruthless. ”

Shen Ruoyu retracted the autumn wind, circled her and smiled:

"Baby, how about we make mooncakes together? I've been thinking about it for a long time. At noon, I'll take you out to eat, let's go to Kaiyuan Restaurant and try the steamed mandarin fish recommended by Jing Yuluo. In the evening, take the mooncakes we made and go to the Confucius Temple. ”

"When will you be back?"

Shen Ruoyu thought about it. "When you fall asleep in my arms, I'll bring you back."

Soon it was evening. The sky was dark, the night sky was clear, and the cool breeze was blowing. Shen Ruoyu brought the baked fragrant moon cakes, brought Nangong Qiu, rode unhurriedly through the rich streets and alleys of the capital, and walked leisurely and comfortably to the Confucius Temple.

The traffic is busy, the fire trees are silver, and the voices are boiling. Such a bustling and lively scene seems to be the description in the poem completely jumping out of the page, becoming tangible and colorful, vivid and tangible. The moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival has risen, the huge disc hangs in the sky, the pure and flawless light shines on the jubilant capital, it seems that it is still the appearance of the full moon seen in the valley, quiet, deserted, tranquil, looking down on a festive festival smoke cloud below, a little indifferent.

Shen Ruoyu took Nangong Qiu into a small boat and drifted casually along the Qinhuai River. There are many boats on the river, the big boats of officials and wealthy families, the small boats of ordinary people, and countless flower boats of Qinglou, all of which are rocking on the river regardless of dignity and inferiority. The lanterns on both sides of the strait are clustered, Ambilight, charming and fluttering. The restaurant, teahouse, green building, and pavilion near the river have hung out a large number of red lanterns, singing and laughing all the way, as well as the sound of jade pipes and bamboos constantly coming from the shore and in the flower boat, and the entire Qinhuai River is shrouded in a perfect Mid-Autumn Festival atmosphere.

Nangong Qiu's eyes widened obsessively, deeply intoxicated by the bustling night scene he saw in front of him. Shen Ruoyu saw the admiration and melancholy in her eyes, her heart moved slightly, and she said softly:

"Qiu'er, I'll sing you a song."

Nangong Qiu was stunned for a moment. "You can sing too?"

Shen Ruoyu smiled: "Where in this world are there people who can't sing?" ”

"But you've never sung ......"

"A man's family can't sing casually on any occasion." "But now, though, I suddenly want to sing." I'll sing it to you alone. ”

Nangong Qiu smiled slyly: "What about the boatman? ”

Shen Ruoyu smiled: "Kick him down." ”

Nangong Qiu said: "It's a pity that there is no piano; Otherwise I can sing with you. ”

Shen Ruoxiao smiled lightly: "I don't need the piano, I can sing to your heart." ”

It was rare for him to be so confident; When Nangong Qiu heard his words, she smiled shyly, lowered her head, and said shyly:

"Xianggong ......"

Shen Ruoyu sat beside her, took Nangong Qiu into his arms, and sang softly in her ear:

"Hurry up to the west building, I'm afraid that the sky will release and the clouds will cover the moon. But the summoning, jade fiber horizontal flute, a blow cracked. Whoever does curling floats in the world, the most pitiful jade axe repair season. Ask Chang'e, if you are lonely and cold, you should be Huafa. The jade liquid is full, and the cup is slippery. Long sleeves up, clear singing. Sigh ten often eight * nine, want to grind is still lacking. If you have a long round night, people may not see goodbye. Turn the past and away from hatred into joy, and say when you return. ”

His voice is very low, because he is proficient in the rhythm, he sings the tune accurately, and some improvised embellishments are just right, Nangong Qiu looked at Mingyue and listened to him sing in a low voice, only feeling that he was about to cry. She muttered:

"This is Xin Jiaxuan's "Man Jianghong? Mid-Autumn Festival. Why did you choose such a bleak one? ”

Shen Ruoxiao smiled lightly: "Then, change the most famous song, 'There should be no hatred, what is biased towards other times?' ’”

Nangong Qiu sighed: "The Mid-Autumn Festival should have been happy, why is there so much sorrow, so much love and hatred?" Even bold lyricists like Dongpo and Jiaxuan became so sad on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. ”

Shen Ruoyu said: "Jiaxuan has a poem, which is not to describe tonight, but to describe tonight." Look at the Qinhuai River all the way down, the sound of oars, lights and shadows, and the flowers on both sides of the river; Can you remember that poem? ”

Nangong Qiu groaned softly:

"The east wind blooms thousands of trees at night, and the stars are like rain. BMW carved cars are full of fragrance. The sound of the phoenix flute moves, the light of the jade pot turns, and the fish and dragon dance all night. ”

"I like his downfall," Shen Ruoyu said softly in her ear. He chanted out the familiar words softly, just in a plain tone, but like a quiet cappella:

"The moth snow willow is golden, and the laughter is full of dark fragrance. The crowd is looking for him thousands of times. Suddenly I looked back, but the man was there, and the lights were dim. ”

At this time, the ship sailed right under the Suzaku Bridge. The surroundings went dark, blocking the brilliant lights out of the bridge. Shen Ruoyu took the opportunity to lean down and kiss deeply on Nangong Qiu's clear moon-like eyes.

The lights came on again. Shen Ruoyu let go of the kiss and couldn't help but look at Nangong Qiu. Her face was flushed and shy, and she was even more delicate and lovely under the light; The bright eyes are moist and affectionate, and the slender eyelashes are constantly trembling. He couldn't help but say:

"Little Moon, I'll take another leave tomorrow morning, I won't go to the morning court, and I'll play with you all night tonight."

Nangong Qiu snuggled sweetly in his arms, his eyes kept wandering between heaven and earth, and he suddenly became sad, and said softly:

"The confinement bends to Kyushu, how many families are happy and how many are worried? How many husbands and wives have the same tent, and how many are floating outside? ”

Shen Ruoyu smiled: "Why did you suddenly remember this?" Silly girl, the moon is so perfect, so perfect, perfect. ”

Nangong Qiu blurted out:

"Ten rounds of frost shadows turn to the court, and this night is a lonely corner.

"It may not be that Su'e has no hatred, the jade toad is cold and the osmanthus is lonely."

Shen Ruoxiao smiled, as if answering her, and groaned:

"Jade Shanshan went down to the moon wheel, and found Revsin in front of the palace.

"So far, it won't be in the sky, it should be Chang'e throwing it to people."

Nangong Qiu meekly leaned on his chest and sighed.

"My father-in-law is a great talent, a great talent who is both civil and military." She muttered like a dream, "You know so many poems and texts, I have never been able to test you." You can write poetry, you can do it. No one can beat yours. You can also sing, sing so beautifully. ”

Shen Ruoyu said with a smile: "Silly girl, at this time, you should really call Mr. Fang,—— right, the most important thing to call is that Master Xie." If I want to compare with them, I should immediately jump into the Qinhuai River and commit suicide. ”

"Maybe we can run into it," Nangong Qiu exclaimed excitedly, "They should also come out to admire the moon, right?" ”

She hesitated suddenly, then lay back into his arms, and said softly:

"I don't want to; I just want to be alone with you all night, and I don't want anyone to disturb us. I have never had a better Mid-Autumn Festival than this, and I have never had a sweeter birthday than this. It would be great if we could do this every day. ”

She began to grieve again. Shen Ruoyu comforted:

"Yes, there will be a day when everything will work out and we will be able to live this kind of free life without worry. It's not possible now, but I can at least promise you that every birthday of yours in the future, I will make it like today. ”

Nangong Qiu sadly chanted her last poem tonight:

"The moon is born on the sea, and the end of the world is at this time.

"The lover complains about the night, and he is lovesick at night.

"The candle is full of mercy, and the clothes are dewed.

"It's unbearable to give away, and it's a good time to sleep."

Shen Ruoyu lowered his head, pressed his cheek with great pity, leaned into her ear, and said softly:

"I hope that people will last a long time, and they will be together for thousands of miles."

****

[1] History of the Ming Dynasty? The Fourth of the Chronicles》

Poetry Quotes:

Xin Qiji's "Man Jianghong? Mid-Autumn Festival

Xin Qiji's "Qingyu Case? Yuan Xi

Southern Song Dynasty Folk Song "The Moon Bends to Shine on Kyushu"

Yan Shu "Mid-Autumn Moon"

Pi Rixiu "Tianzhu Temple August 15th Night Guizi"

Zhang Jiuling "Looking at the Moon and Huaiyuan"

Su Shi's "Water Tune Song Head? When is the bright moon?