Concubine Tian didn't need the support of the palace maid, stepped on the horse machine, jumped on the horse with a light body, and galloped towards Xihuamen with a whip. Running and running, she whipped Taiping's buttocks, causing Taiping's four hooves to take off and run. The wind whistled in her ears, and she complained in her heart that her father said, "Alas! You only know that you are a relative of the emperor and the country, and you are doing mischief in the capital, how do you know that I am living under the tip of a knife in the palace! ”

After passing the Xihua Gate, the horse's hooves gradually slowed down, she gently pulled the yellow silk reins on the left, and the whip in her right hand was raised, and the Taiping lost immediately turned back and ran smoothly again. Returning to the bottom of the Tuancheng, she helped the palace maid to dismount, boarded the Tuancheng, bowed to Chongzhen and Queen Zhou, and said: "The concubine has not come to Xiyuan to ride a horse for two years, and the control is not effective, so I beg the emperor to forgive your majesty Niangniang." ”

Chongzhen said with admiration: "After Qing entered the palace, he learned to ride a horse, and he was so skilled, although he was not as good as an old man!" It should be rewarded! ”

Empress Zhou continued: "Today's emperor is riding a Jiliang ride, it is rare that you choose to lose in Taiping again, it is very auspicious, and it looks like it will really come to good news." Your Majesty, huh? ”

Chongzhen nodded, as if something in his heart had been stirred up, and said with hope: "Maybe there will be a shortcut from Shaanxi to Beijing today." ”

Because there were some auspicious signs in front of him, he just wanted to see the good news as soon as possible, and the excitement suddenly became very thick, and without waiting for Concubine Tian to sit down and rest, he said to the eunuchs on the left and right: "Get up and go to Yingtai!" ”

Four dragon and phoenix chariot and a large group of eunuchs, palace maids crossed the Xihua Gate, and then turned to the west, walked two or three hundred steps, the Xiyuan Gate "crossed a Zhulan board bridge" walked not far and crossed a bridge, then boarded the Yingtai. There are three sides here, and there are some small Zhulu harbors. The lotus leaves have begun to wither, "and the west wind is shivering, and the sycamore trees on the island are constantly having their dry leaves falling to the ground and the water."

This kind of depressed autumn mood is not visible in the distance. Chongzhen and the concubines went to the Hanyuan Hall to eat tea and rest, and then ordered the palace ladies to put the chessboard on the Chengyuan Pavilion in front of the Showa Palace, and wanted to play chess with Concubine Tian.

Although Queen Zhou didn't like him to be too fond of Concubine Tian, it was rare to see him come out to play and relax, for fear that he would be stuffy and unable to take care of the fire "Today, I hope he will have a good time with Concubine Tian alone." She explained to Chongzhen that she was going to the Great Gao Xuan Hall to drop incense, so she pulled Concubine Yuan to get up and leave.

Empress Zhou and Concubine Yuan took a few personal palace maids and small promises, and walked in front of the crested and phoenix-tailed imperial boat with a yellow satin awning, while the rest of the palace maids and eunuchs sat on the two boats behind. There were four little eunuchs with painted oars on the boat, rowing on both sides of the bow, and the older one was at the helm behind the boat. They are all well-trained and specially served on the Taiye Pool in the West Garden.

For more than two years, Chongzhen "never came" because of state affairs, and the queen and several concubines naturally did not come. The little eunuch who drove the boat had nothing to do every day, and found other eunuchs to gamble together: the eunuch at the helm had a "vegetable household" who was also in a certain palace in Xiyuan, and every day in addition to gambling, he ate and played with his "vegetable household".

They are very impatient on weekdays, and now they see the emperor and the queen come to Xiyuan with Tian and Yuan, as if they have encountered a great happy event, and they serve them attentively, rowing the royal boat fast and steadily. A female official of Kunning Palace saw that Queen Zhou was in a depressed mood, and knelt on the bow of the boat and played: "Your Majesty the Queen Mother, it is rare for Your Majesty and Yuan Niangniang to take a boat to the lake, and the sky is clear and clear." The people on the boat have a few colored musical instruments, do you want to order them to play music to cheer up? ”

Queen Zhou was thinking about the poems she signed, how could she have the leisure to listen to the palace maid's music? But for the sake of good luck," he nodded slightly. The female officer immediately went to the stern of the boat and looked at a boat behind her. After kneeling down to receive the order, the female musician "immediately ordered the female musician to play music."

The lady in charge of the music rolled her eyes to the palace maids, picked up the drumstick on the drum stand, tapped it three times, and played a fine music. Empress Zhou smiled at Concubine Yuan and said meaningfully: "Isn't this the one who saw the Shengge people painting boats again?" ”

Concubine Yuan smiled and said, "The concubine is also thinking about it, and she really answered the words she signed." ”

Empress Zhou sighed and said euphemistically: "I hope that Concubine Tian Guifei has guessed well, and the national fortune has taken a turn for the better since then, as if spring has returned to the earth and died." ”

Yuan Guifei smiled and said, "According to the concubine, Tian Niangniang's guess will not be wrong. Please let your Majesty relax and don't have to be sincere for state affairs."

Queen Zhou said helplessly: "Alas, I don't know what the trouble outside has become all these years, I see that the emperor is always anxious, restless sleeping, and my heart can't be stretched for a day!" ”

The royal boat docked near the Jinao archway. The eunuchs put the two phoenixes of different sizes carried by an empty boat on the bow of the queen's imperial boat, and carried the queen and Concubine Yuan to the Great Gao Xuan Palace. This temple is also the place where Emperor Jiajing often came to practice, and the building is also very magnificent.

Because it is in the middle of the coal mountain and the regimental city, not far from the Xuanwu Gate, Chongzhen often brings the queen and concubines to pray. Last year, Empress Zhou issued a special decree and ordered the palace maids who studied the Dharma in the Taoist Scripture Factory to build a disaster here.

These dozens of palace maids are all wearing cranes and chanting Taoist mantras with female Taoist priests for a long time. On the first or fifteenth day of the new year, if the wind is smooth, the sky will be bright, and the leakage will not stop, the inner silence, the bell and the sound of burning will fly over the head of the Forbidden City, faintly passing the Kunning Palace.

In order to show her pious respect, Empress Zhou ordered Feng Yuan to stop outside the gate of the Great Gao Xuan Palace. Here, there is an archway facing the moat, and there is also an east and west one. She raised her head and looked at the "Kong Sui Huang Di" written on the east archway and the "Hongxin Tianmin" written on the west archway. The big character written by the treacherous minister Yan Song during the Jiajing period has undergone some painting and has taken on a new look. In the past, Queen Zhou came here to offer incense, and she only glanced at this word in general, and did not pay much attention to it, but today she gave her some special feelings, as if this was really an auspicious prophecy for the fortune of the country. The female Taoist priests and the palace maids dressed in cranes all knelt outside the gate to receive the car, and the mountain shouted long live. Empress Zhou and Concubine Yuan walked into the mountain gate slowly, stood in the temple courtyard for a while, admired the tall pines and cypresses and the two very delicate and exquisite, commonly known as the nine sorghum and ten pillars in the palace, and looked at the left and right bell and drum towers and the east and west side halls. After being at the gate of Kunning Palace for a long time, coming to this temple also made her feel fresh.

After the female Taoist priests and the palace maids who learned the Tao returned to the main hall and knelt down, "she continued to walk with Concubine Yuan", stepped on the white jade steps, entered the main hall, and burned incense in front of the Sanqing statue in turn, "I wish the country and the people peace, and the emperor will live long in Yuanjiang." There is another courtyard behind the main hall, and in the middle is five thunder altar halls, and there is a side hall in the east and west.

Further back is another courtyard, the temple is a two-story building, the upper circle and the lower circle, symbolizing the "heaven and the round place" imagined by the ancients. The upper round hall hangs a plaque, the title "Qianyuan Pavilion": the lower square hall hangs a plaque, the title Kun Zhenyu...... There is a round high platform in the N round hall, there is a vermilion lacquer shrine, the statue of the Jade Emperor sits in the middle, the long beard hangs down the chest, solemn and solemn, this is the place to pray for the emperor and the empress for rain.

Empress Zhou often heard that Henan, Shaanxi, Shandong and Kifu have been in drought for many years, but the disaster is so serious, she doesn't know, she only knows that this thing is terrible, in ancient times, there were many dynasties in the end of the year were natural disasters and **, and finally fell apart out of control. Now she deliberately came to this last courtyard with Concubine Yuan, and worshiped the god of the earth in the square hall with Concubine Yuan, and wanted to ascend the round hall.

Although the eunuchs and palace maids thought that the stairs were narrow and high, and advised her not to go up, the queen had the sincerity to pray for the blessing of the country and must go up to worship the Jade Emperor. There was not a single window in the round hall from the back of the square hall, and it was very dark in the stairway.

The palace maids played the sheep's horn palace lamp before and after, Queen Zhou and Concubine Yuan supported the red lacquer handrails that had been wiped clean in advance, and the palace maids supported them back and forth, turned around and panted slightly to climb the Qianyuan Pavilion, lit the watch in the sound of the bell, knelt down and kowtowed to the emperor, and prayed for sweetness. After the ceremony, he walked out of the round hall, stood silently for a moment by relying on the railing, and did not know if his sincerity could move the heavens.

When they returned to Yingtai in the imperial boat, Chongzhen and Concubine Tian had just finished playing a game of chess. Empress Zhou saw that his face was happy, and asked in a low voice, "The emperor won?" Chongzhen smiled and said: "I am a saddle of state affairs, and my chess skills are unfamiliar, and I barely won the chess of Concubine Tian, and it was not easy." ”

Concubine Tian hurriedly said modestly and flatteringly: "The emperor is rich in strategy, far-reaching, and has a law every step of the way, and the concubines are beyond the reach of the dust. ”

Empress Zhou smiled at Concubine Tian knowingly, and said gently: "Although your chess skills are very outstanding in the palace, how can you be better than the emperor?" ”

Chongzhen, because of his status as emperor, was never able to play chess with the masters in the city of Beijing. Even if there are a few ministers who can play chess, the boundaries between the monarch and the minister are strict, and he can't summon anyone into the palace to play. He didn't even think about such a thing. Occasionally, the only people who were called to play against him were the queen, the concubines, and one or two big eunuchs like Wang Chengen.

The eunuch could only kneel when he played chess. From the queen to the eunuch, everyone wanted to make him happy, and who would dare to make him lose? Chongzhen is a very subjective and confident person, and he never thought that others would lose chess on purpose in front of him, but thought that he was naturally smart, and although he didn't play chess often, his chess skills were extraordinary.

He also often compares playing chess to using soldiers, thinking that he has a strategic mind, so his chess skills are invincible. Sometimes he also sighed in his heart: If the generals were as obedient as chess pieces, according to his strategy, "suppressing thieves" Zhang Xianji and Li Zicheng would have been swept away a long time ago.

At this time, his chess interest was not finished, and he ordered Concubine Yuan to play a game of chess with him. The palace ladies immediately removed the Go board and replaced it with an agarwood chessboard inlaid with gold threads and a pair of ivory chess pieces. When he played chess with Concubine Tian just now, he never forgot the military against Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng, and now he asked the eunuch to light a piece of incense, saying that he would kill and defeat Concubine Yuan after the incense was burned. Before raising the chess pieces, he secretly wished to the gods: if he could win Concubine Yuan's chess before the incense burned, Shaanxi and Huguang would have good news.

Concubine Yuan knelt down first to thank her, and then asked Chongzhen to take the first step. Whether in Go or chess, she is far worse than Concubine Tian, but she is still better than Chongzhen, who does not often have time to play chess. At the beginning, she deliberately let Chongzhen eat a cannon, and then played chess seriously, not giving a step, and after a while, Chongzhen was forced to turn from offensive to defensive, and gradually could not support.

Queen Zhou was a little anxious, and blamed Concubine Yuan for being too honest in her heart, and frequently gave Concubine Yuan a look, but Concubine Yuan ignored it. The palace maids on the left and right also sweated, just afraid that the emperor's loss would affect today's enjoyable play.

If the queen played chess with Concubine Yuan, Concubine Tian saw that the queen couldn't resist, and often made a few fresh moves on behalf of the queen, turning danger into safety and defeat into victory. But Chongzhen plays chess just like he deals with military affairs, he is arbitrary, rigid and self-serving, and he is most afraid of others putting forward smart opinions that are different from his, so Concubine Tian stood aside and did not dare to make a sound. They didn't know what Chongzhen had silently said before he started to play chess, and if they knew, they would be terrified.

The short incense is only two fingers long. Chongzhen's chess momentum is still not improving. He himself was very anxious, his brow furrowed and his face was ugly. Not only could he not allow others to win his chess, but he was also afraid that if he lost, he would really not get good news from Huguang and Shaanxi. Empress Zhou was angry with Concubine Yuan, and she was afraid that she would cause a big disaster, but she couldn't think of a way to make Concubine Yuan smart.

There happened to be a kitten coming, and she hurriedly glanced at Concubine Tian. Concubine Tian understood, and quickly hugged the kitten to her lap, preparing to release the kitten out of the chessboard once she arrived at the emperor. But she and Empress Zhou were worried that doing so might also make the emperor even more angry.

They were at a loss to think about it, and suddenly saw Concubine Yuan negligent and gave the emperor one of the most powerful rib cars to eat, and the whole game of chess changed abruptly, which was very unfavorable to Concubine Yuan. After another moment, Concubine Yuan was negligent again, and threw away a sinking cannon, and then a river crossing pawn was also eaten. Concubine Yuan barely supported for a while, and finally lost in the hands of Chongjiao.

Empress Zhou's heart suddenly lightened, and she secretly shouted: "Concubine Yuan is also smart enough!" She wiped the beads of sweat from the tip of her nose and exchanged a subtle smile with Concubine Tian. Concubine Tian let go of the kitten on her lap, and the kitten jumped lightly to the ground and ran.

After a hard battle, Chongzhen was very happy to turn defeat into victory, not to mention that he thought that he would soon receive a good news of the war! This double joy made people like Chongjiao, who are often depressed, suddenly laugh out loud, looked at Queen Zhou Hetian and Yuan Erfei and said: "Concubine Yuan's chess skills have made great progress, but under my hands it can't be after all!" ”

Concubine Tian said with a smile: "Your Majesty is the Holy Lord of Zhongxing, rare in ancient times, and it is not difficult to save the fortune of the country by being born heroic, besides, this chess skill trail is not enough to worry about!" ”

Chongzhen was even happier and ordered to pass the meal immediately. The eunuchs of Shangshan Jian had already prepared the banquet, and as soon as they paging, the eunuchs and palace maids set it up on the Chengyuan Pavilion. There is a man-made nature here: there is a bamboo fence nearby. huts, a few paddy fields; On the shore of the lake there are orange trees and fishing nets to dry. Coincidentally, at this time, there was a pair of mandarin ducks lying by the water, and a white crane in the shallow water stood quietly on one leg, motionless.

From his birth to the present, Chongzhen has only been to the Changping Imperial Mausoleum from afar, and has never seen the scenery of the southern countryside, and the queen and concubines have not been out of the Forbidden City since they entered the palace. They all felt very fresh and interesting. In order not to alarm the waterfowl and disturb the tranquility of the "countryside", he passed on the usual music before eating.

After lunch, after a short rest, Chongzhen took the concubines to leave Jinhai and took the chariot to Yuxi Palace to watch the play. He usually likes to watch the brocade opera the most. Each of these plays is very short, and there are about more than 100 plays, both elegant and vulgar. Ya is from the academy, and he doesn't talk about it. The vulgar drama is based on market life, playing how a liar cheats and laughs at the clumsy Zi Niang. A demented husband, or a cunning businessman, a tricky prank, folk lawsuits and bribery, and all kinds of juggling. Compared with elegance and vulgarity, there are more vulgar drama programs and more interesting.

There were originally three intentions for playing this kind of vulgar drama in the palace: the first was to let the emperor and the princes know some folk customs and so-called "folk suffering" after watching the play, the second was to entertain the emperor and the concubines, and the third was to make the emperor and the concubines laugh happily. Because of these three purposes, the eunuchs of the Bell and Drum Division and the artists of the Jiaofang sometimes made short plays about themes or themes related to real politics.

On this day, the artists first performed two more elegant theater scripts, and then performed a "Double Deception Case", which caused Chongzhen and Queen Zhou to smile. Then he staged a newly written play, "It was a fabrication of the great victory of the Huguang official army out of thin air, capturing Zhang Xianzhong, and destroying the peasant army." This play was choreographed overnight, hoping to win Chongzhen's pleasure. Chongzhen was very happy when he saw the consequences, and immediately ordered a reward of ten taels of silver. Although an emperor said that such a reward was too little, all the artists still knelt down and kowtowed to thank him, shouting long live.

There are often coincidences in the world, and inevitable events are manifested in the form of chance. More than half a year ago, when Chongzhen was taking Empress Hetian and Concubine Yuan to drop incense in Nangong, Zhang Xianzhong's Gucheng uprising and Li Zicheng's alarm flew into the palace.

Today, when he had just won a game of chess with Concubine Yuan in Xiyuan, more than a dozen urgent military intelligence reports were sent to the duty room set up by the celebrant in the Yangxin Palace. Among them, Wang Chengen and Wang Chengen and several other Bingbi eunuchs on duty were shocked that Xiong Wencan and the governor of Diyang respectively reported that the official army had failed to march on Luo Monkey Mountain west of Fang County, with one or two thousand dead and wounded, and many military supplies were abandoned. Another important military situation is that Zheng Chongjian and Ding Qirui respectively reported the defeat of the Shangluoshan attack.

However, "because the official army did not lose a general in Shangluo Mountain, and Li Zicheng's righteous army was unable to break through for a while, the actual situation of the defeat was greatly concealed." Other MI reports are about the grass eye. The activities of King Zuo Jin and Lao Huihui in western Anhui, eastern Hubei and southern Henan" and the "swarming of local bandits" in eastern Henan, northern Anhui and Huguang attacked cities everywhere.

Wang Chengen did not dare to go to Xiyuan immediately, until he found out that the emperor and the concubines had finished lunch, so he only came to Yuxi Palace with Xiong Wencan's urgent music, and ordered Wang Chengen to put the rest of the urgent music and Tang Bao on the imperial case of Qianqing Palace.

Chongzhen was happy, and when he turned around, he saw Wang Chengen standing behind him with an uneasy expression, he immediately subconsciously felt that it was not a good thing, and he couldn't help but be surprised in his heart, hurriedly calmed down, and asked slowly: "What is the emergency military situation?" ”

Wang Chengen walked up to him, bowed, and presented his folded hands.

Chongzhen took a look at it, and his face turned pale, "Get up and walk inside." Queen Zhou was shocked, and hurriedly left her seat with Concubine Tian and Concubine Yuan, and followed in. Of course, they sensed that there must be some bad news coming. However, what is the terrible news that makes Chongzhen so angry?

The play stopped. Everyone looked at each other. There was a deathly silence in the Yuzhao Palace. After a while, from the inner hall of Yuxi Palace, a message from Chongzhen came out: immediately drive back to the palace. Later, news came out that the good news was indeed coming, but it was not from the Central Plains front" but from Liaodong. The Tiger Ben army recovered Yizhou Wei, and Zhang Zhun sent a good news to Chongzhen.

In fact, Zhang Zhun is purely kind-hearted, "I think such a good news should make Chongzhen happy." However, "it was this good news that destroyed all Chongzhen's moods. Yes, his prayers did work, and the good news did come. However, this good news is definitely not what Chongzhen wants.

The Ming army spent more than ten years, spent a lot of manpower, material and financial resources, and could not recover Yizhou Wei, now, the Tiger Ben army arrived in Liaodong, less than three months, it sent the good news of recovering Yizhou Wei, this is called Chongzhen love how embarrassing? The hundreds of thousands of troops of the Ming army in Liaodong are all waste? Millions of dollars of money and grain are eaten by pigs every year?

"Zhang Zhun!"

"Why don't you die?"

Chongzhen yelled viciously in his heart.

"Smack!"

"Whoa!"

Chongzhen stretched out his hand and swept all the pen, ink, paper and inkstone on the table to the ground.

The surrounding eunuchs and palace maids were all silent, kneeling on the ground, no one dared to move, and they didn't even dare to come out. At this time, anyone who makes a little noise may die. At this time, someone suddenly poofed and let out a fart.

In normal times, this fart is indeed not very loud, and ordinary people will not notice it much. However, at this time, it was indeed too quiet, so quiet that the sound of the heart beating could be heard, let alone a fart.

Chongzhen's face changed suddenly. He was angry, and someone farted in front of the palace, so disrespectful. Just as he was about to find out who was farting, he scolded him fiercely, when suddenly, there was another pop sound from the crowd, followed by a foul smell.

The surrounding eunuchs and palace maids suddenly shouted that they were finished. Obviously, it was the eunuch or palace maid who farted, maybe she was too nervous, and she accidentally let out a fart, and then she was even more afraid and nervous, and as a result, she was incontinent and everything came out.

"Alas!"

"You ......"

Chongzhen's anger suddenly came to naught.

"Imperial Tea ......,..."

Wang Chengen hurried in.

"I'm scared of them, let them all go down!"

"Don't be embarrassed by the scared"

Chongzhen said slowly.

"The slave obeys."

Wang Chengen had already mentioned in his throat with a heart, and he was waiting for Chongzhen to deal with the unlucky eunuch or palace maid, but he didn't expect that Chongzhen actually let go of these people lightly under his anger, and the eunuch or palace maid who caused trouble was really lucky.

Actually, having said that, Chongzhen is indeed not bad for the eunuchs and palace maids around him. It's just that he was mean to those ministers......... Seriously speaking, in fact, there are not many ministers who are good birds, and Wang Chengen knows all the things behind their backs, so he is naturally qualified to despise them.

"Let's go!"

Wang Chengen waved his hand at the eunuchs and palace maids.

Those eunuchs and palace maids hurriedly crawled away.

"Otomo, herald!"

Chongzhen said angrily.

"The slave is here!"

Wang Chengen hurriedly said.

"Arrest Gao Qiqian and Wu Aheng and put them in prison! A bunch of rubbish! ”

Chongzhen Tie blushed and shouted coldly.