In the seventh year of Chongzhen, the back garden of the Tang Dynasty Mansion in Nanyang. Eleven-year-old Zhu Ping'an got out of class, holding a box of osmanthus cakes that Yao Shaoqin handed to him in private, and rushed to a small courtyard next to the back garden of the palace, which was the residence of his teacher Mu Yanzi.

Today, Zhu Ping'an knew that Mu Yanzi was going to have a party with some scholars at night, so he brought osmanthus cake and happily went to find Mu Yanzi's only daughter Mu Yuling. Behind him was the nine-year-old eunuch Cao Wuxian, who was also Zhu Ping'an's only friend in this huge palace besides Mu Yuling.

In the second year of Chongzhen, Zhu Shuoxi, the then king of the Tang Dynasty, ruthlessly poisoned his eldest son Zhu Qiqi, that is, Zhu Ping'an's grandfather, in order to let his beloved son inherit the throne. In the same year, the matter was learned by the imperial court, and Emperor Chongzhen was furious, issued an edict to apply for punishment, and established Zhu Ping'an's father Zhu Yujian as the grandson of the Tang Dynasty. Zhu Shuoxi died in fear. In the fifth year of Chongzhen, Zhu Yujian inherited the throne and became the new Tang king.

Zhu Ping'an grew up in this Tang Palace, and it was not until last year that the old eunuch Yao Shaoqin intermittently told him some of his life experience. It turned out that he was not the son of the Tang Palace, but the eldest son of His Royal Highness the Tang Dynasty, but because of his mother's low status, when he gave birth to Zhu Ping'an, Zhu Yujian was deliberately covered up by Zhu Yujian and others during his solitary confinement.

But for Zhu Ping'an, even if he knows such a life experience, his life has not changed at all. He is still the little domestic slave Zhu Ping'an in the palace who can be called and drunk by anyone.

Only in the old eunuchs in the palace, Yao Shaoqin, Mu Yuling and Cao Wuxian, can Zhu Ping'an feel the care and warmth like family.

Yao Shaoqin is a very strange person, and he is an extremely special person in the palace. Don't look at him as sloppy on weekdays, but from Zhu Yujian to ordinary people in the palace, they all seem to have a special respect for him. Later, Zhu Ping'an learned that during the period when his grandfather and father were imprisoned, it was Yao Shaoqin who saved their lives more than once. And Yao Shaoqin also seems to have special pity for Zhu Ping'an, if he hadn't been by his side on weekdays, I'm afraid Zhu Ping'an would not have survived to this day.

On weekdays, during the day, Zhu Ping'an followed Mu Yanzi to learn literature, and at night, Yao Shaoqin took Zhu Ping'an and Cao Wushu out of the palace and practiced martial arts in a secret place outside the palace. Whenever this time is also the happiest time of the day for Zhu Ping'an, Mu Yuling will sneak out from time to time, watching the two of them practice with curiosity.

And Yao Shaoqin is holding a rattan, and the other hand is holding his wine gourd that has been around all day, when he is satisfied, he takes a sip of wine, and when he is not satisfied, he rises up and greets Zhu Ping'an and Cao Wuxian with rattan, Zhu Ping'an and Cao Wuxian exaggerated ghost crying wolf howl, and Mu Yuling smiled and leaned back.

At the end of the practice, Yao Shaoqin would always get some delicious food and distribute it to the three people, watching the three of them gobble up, Zhu Ping'an always felt that Yao Shaoqin's eyes flashed something shiny from time to time.

is like the osmanthus cake in today, which was specially left by Yao Shaoqin for the two of them after practicing yesterday. There were two boxes, but Cao Wuxian's box had already been digested, but his eyes were still staring at the box in Zhu Ping'an's arms, but he didn't have the courage to ask for it, so he could only swallow his saliva.

Zhu Ping'an patted his head angrily, "This box is Yuling's, you don't have to worry about it!" ”

Hurriedly ran outside Mu Yanzi's residence, and after two similar cat meows, a gap opened in the door, and Mu Yuling ran out cautiously.

The three of them hid in the bushes in the back garden, and Zhu Ping'an stuffed the box of osmanthus cakes into Mu Yuling's arms. And Mu Yuling opened the box, and the first piece he picked up was stuffed into Zhu Ping'an's mouth, and for a moment Zhu Ping'an felt that his heart was about to be melted by that sweet taste.

Mu Yuling glanced at Cao Wuxian, who was watching with blank eyes next to him, and then picked a few pieces and stuffed them into his hands, but he didn't expect Cao Wuxian to be in a hurry and stuffed them all into his mouth at once, but he was choked coldly and coughed loudly. Mu Yuling and Zhu Ping'an were immediately amused by his appearance and laughed.

But a woman's scream suddenly sounded next to them, but the three of them were startled. Then a sharp voice sounded, "Who is hiding there, startling the princess, get out of here!" ”

There was no way to hide any longer, so the three of them had to walk out tremblingly. In front of her was a beautiful woman in palace costumes, all three of whom recognized it, it was the princess Zeng of the Tang Palace, and she was also Zhu Yujian's new wife.

The three of them knelt down neatly, "The little one is the princess!" ”

Zeng Shi was still touching the position of his heart, his chest kept rising and falling, obviously just frightened by the sudden laughter of the three people.

Zou Jing, the chief eunuch of the palace, who was standing on the side, couldn't help but say, stepped forward and kicked Cao Wuxian, and twisted Zhu Ping'an's ear, "It's you again!" Don't you know that this back garden is the princess's resting place, and idlers are not allowed to enter? ”

After speaking, he opened the bow left and right and gave Zhu Ping'an two slaps.

Zeng slowly calmed down, and his eyes when he looked at Zhu Ping'an were full of disgust and hatred that he couldn't hide. is this evil seed, since he married into the palace, the gossip in his ears never stopped, until Zou Jing, who had been following Zhu Yujian, explained to her that the Zhu Ping'an in front of her was the evil seed that her husband Zhu Yujian gave birth to with a female medical officer during his solitary confinement! Thinking that her husband had given birth to a child with a woman before her, Zeng's anger burned uncontrollably. It's just that this evil seed is still dangling in front of his eyes, isn't this deliberately blocking himself?

Zeng Shi looked at Zhu Ping'an coldly and said nothing. Zou Jing didn't get Zeng's order to stop, so he naturally fought more vigorously, and in a moment, Zhu Ping'an's cheeks were swollen high.

Mu Yuling cried and walked to Zeng's front with both knees, and kept kowtowing and pleading, but Zeng just asked the henchman female officer next to him to take Mu Yuling aside, but he still didn't mean to stop Zou Jing.

Cao Wuxian pounced on him like an enraged beast, and threw Zou Jing to the ground in an instant. Zou Jing screamed miserably, and several little eunuchs next to him rushed up in a hurry, punching and kicking Cao Wuxian and Zhu Ping'an in the middle.

Zhu Ping'an bit his lips tightly, and looked at Zeng with the anger in his eyes, but he refused to say a word of mercy, which made Zeng even more angry.

Cao Wuxian hugged Zhu Ping'an tightly and threw his body on him, and most of his fists and feet were borne by him. But after all, he was only nine years old, and after a while, his face turned pale, and the corners of his mouth were soaked with blood.

But Cao Wuxian was very tough, firmly hugged Zhu Ping'an's body, and was still muttering in his mouth: "Don't beat the prince, all of them are coming at me!" ”

"Lord Shizi!" When Zeng heard this, he was even more furious. Zou Jing slammed his foot on Cao Wuxian's back, "Cheap slave, the princess will be the son of the princess in the future, you are a lowly miscellaneous official, you dare to use such a name, are you impatient?" ”

Zou Jingwei made a gesture in front of Zeng's family, picked up a wooden stick, and made a gesture to hit Cao Wuxian's head.

At this moment, a black shadow floated silently, and before he could make a move, the wooden stick in Zou Jing's hand came out of his hand, and several little eunuchs who were beating Zhu Ping'an and Cao Wuxian also flew out upside down and fell heavily to the side.

Zeng and Zou Jing were stunned for a moment, and when they raised their eyes, they saw that it was an old eunuch dressed in a shabby red and sassy uniform, holding a wine gourd, drinking wine casually, but a pair of cold eyes glanced at Zeng and Zou Jing.

"It's just two children, the princess and Grandpa Zou are so heavy-handed, don't you think it's a bit of a fuss? Their sins, old slaves are not talented, and they are willing to bear them on one shoulder! ”

Although there are not many words, they are loud. Zeng looked at Yao Shaoqin fixedly for a moment, flicked the sleeves of his robe coldly, and turned to leave. Zou Jing and the others didn't dare to stay, so they had to leave with Zeng.

Mu Yuling cried and threw herself on Zhu Ping'an and Cao Wuxian's bodies, Cao Wuxian had already fainted, but Zhu Ping'an was still clenching his fists tightly, and his angry eyes were undisguised on the backs of Zeng and Zou Jing.

Yao Shaoqin didn't support the two of them, but just said coldly, "Right and wrong, no one can hide, only when you are strong, others will respect you!" ”

That sentence always lingered in Zhu Ping'an's ears.

After that, in the ninth year of Chongzhen, Zhu Yujian was diligent in Wang Jingshi without authorization, and was deposed as a concubine, and there was a mourning in the Tang Palace. Zhu Yujian and his wife were escorted to the high wall of Fengyang, the central capital, but Yao Shaoqin, who had always been guarding by Zhu Ping'an's side, came to the end of his life.

Just before he left, Yao Shaoqin grabbed Zhu Ping'an's hand tightly. At this moment, Zhu Ping'an clearly felt that the last life was flowing away from this strange old man who had been with him since he could remember.

Yao Shaoqin stuffed a warm jade plaque into Zhu Ping'an's hand, "Remember, your mother's name is Shen Qingxuan. She is the descendant of the Shen family, and you also have the blood of the Shen family flowing in you! This jade plaque is the certificate of the Shen family, and it will be handed over to your wife in the future, and I will be considered to have completed the important task entrusted by your mother! ”

This was the first time Zhu Ping'an knew the name of his biological mother, and he just wanted to ask more stories about his mother, but Yao Shaoqin had already fallen on the bed, and the look in his eyes gradually dissipated.

But his mouth was still muttering, "I'm late, I'm late!" The people of the Shen family are all fools, they are all fools, Shen Xiao is, Shen Qinghe is, and Shen Qingxuan is also ......! Hahahaha! ”

In this burst of laughter full of loneliness and regret, Yao Shaoqin swallowed his last breath.

And every word he said was firmly engraved in Zhu Ping'an's heart. R1152