After that, the emperor and the palace relatives over the Qionglin Garden to enjoy the autumn flowers of the season, and at dusk ascended to the Jinming Pond Baojin Building for a banquet.

For this kind of private banquet in the palace, the concubine will prepare a few dishes for the official family to taste as usual. The main dish offered today is 28 pieces of new crabs that were newly transported to the capital from Jiangnan, a large paste fat, steamed to golden red, placed in a white porcelain plate, very beautiful.

Unexpectedly, when he saw it today, he frowned, called Ren Shouzhong, and asked: "At this time, there is such a thing in Beijing?" What is its price? ”

Ren Shouzhong bowed down and said, "A thousand coins each...... This is a little bit of the ladies' heart, before the festival specially instructed the Imperial Diet Bureau to find and present to the official family. ”

Jinshang was unhappy, looked around at the concubines, and asked, "This time it costs twenty-eight thousand?" ”

The concubines were speechless. Today, I don't eat crabs. Seeing this, the queen ordered the attendants to remove the crabs, and the officials were willing to eat.

The emperor and queen sit on the throne in the palace, and the concubines on both sides are arranged in turn, and the princess's seat is on the side of the present, although it is closest to him, but it is not connected, and there is a distance of about five or six feet in the middle. While the ladies were watching the singing and dancing at the banquet, the princess bent down and bowed her head, leaned over to her father, and lowered her voice and called softly: "Daddy......"

Seeing her doing this mysterious act, I couldn't help but smile, and I also turned to her sideways and asked in a low voice, "What's the matter?" ”

The princess continued in her whispered voice, "I know why you don't eat crabs. ”

"Oh?" Imakami deliberately raised his eyebrows and asked, "Why?" ”

"I'll tell you later." The princess pursed her lips and smiled, sat up straight, and then turned to me who was standing behind her, and said, "Huaiji, peel me a water chestnut." ”

After the dinner, an attendant reported that the Qiqiao Cailou in front of the Water Palace had been tied, so he took the princess and took the adopted daughters of the queens and Zhang Niangzi to go.

When I went downstairs, I mentioned what the princess said at the banquet, and the princess said: "Daddy doesn't eat crabs, not because crabs are not delicious, but because he thinks they are too expensive." If you eat it and spread it outside the palace, the crabs will be more expensive this year. It's like Daddy said that Mrs. Zhang's crown is not good, but it's not that the crown is not good-looking, but that the beads on it are too expensive......"

"Okay...... Imagami interrupted her with a smile, "It's good to know in your heart, you don't have to say it." ”

The princess smiled and nodded, and said, "My daughter has something she wants to ask her father, and I hope that her father will answer truthfully." ”

She said today, and the princess asked, "Today, Cai'er, Jingnu and Qiuhe, who combs the lady's hair well?" ”

Jinshang was about to speak, but the princess stopped him again, and added seriously: "Daddy must tell the truth." ”

Jinshang smiled, looked back behind him, and saw that only Wang Zhaoming and I were following closely, and the rest of the people were still far away, so he bent down and whispered to the princess the truth: "Qiuhe." ”

The princess pouted and said dissatisfiedly: "Then why doesn't Daddy let Qiuhe be the secretary?" My sister, my sister and I all like Qiuhe, doesn't my father like her? ”

"Hmm...... Like. Jinshang smiled, still holding the princess's hand and walking slowly, his tone was gentle and calm, "But, Huirou, the more we like someone, the more we can't let others see that we like her." Turning your love for her into color is equivalent to putting her on the cusp of the storm, making her the target of everyone, and open guns and dark arrows will follow one after another, which will eventually harm her. ”

The princess frowned and pondered, and then asked, "Daddy is afraid that the insiders of the Shangfu Bureau will be jealous of Qiuhe?" ”

"Hehe," Imasai stroked her hair, "maybe." After a pause, he said, "Remember this." If you really like someone, don't be too nice to him, don't let others find out, and don't even let him realize how much you like him......"

"Oh......" The princess seemed to understand, thought about it, and asked, "Why can't you let him know?" ”

Imagami smiled and shook his head, secretive: "I'll tell you later." ”

On the night of Qixi Festival, the noble family in Beijing mostly carved wood and colored satin to form a colorful building to stand in the courtyard, named "Qiqiao Building". On it, it spreads the flower melon, wine burning, pen inkstone, needle and thread, and the mud children in colorful clothes "grind and drink music", the boy cuts poems and sings at night, the girl wears the needle skillfully, burns incense and worships, and calls it "begging skill".

Today, the order of the color building is in front of the water hall. The palace lamp under the eaves hangs high, the stars in the sky are bright, the autumn water in the pool is sparkling, and there are palace people who cast the wild goose, mandarin duck, turtle fish, lotus and the like with yellow wax, all color painting golden threads, light the top wick and then place it in the pool water to let it float away, it is called "floating on the water", and the stars and moon are full of contrast.

The princess first ordered a few floats, and then picked up the mill and drank to play, and thought that the girls in it were not good-looking, so she said to the female companions, "Let's change a few dresses for the mill and drink, and see who makes the best." ”

The female companions agreed, and each took a grinding and drinking music, and took out pieces of cloth such as ropa and silk flowers to decorate the clay puppet. The princess ordered a lotus flower to be plucked from the pool, and she removed a few petals herself, and wrapped it around the girl's waist, tied it with a ribbon, and raised her hand to show it to everyone. The queen and several concubines were on her side, and they all praised her for her ingenuity.

When the time came, the princess picked up the seven-hole needle, and in a short time threaded it. The ladies praised her again, but she waved her hand and said bluntly: "This hole is almost as big as a copper coin eye, and it is more difficult to pass through the thread than to pass it." ”

Everyone who heard it laughed. The needles used for begging are specially made, not the usual sewing needles. The needle is flat and has seven holes, but the eye of the needle is very large, and although it is necessary to pass the lead through the seven holes in order, it is quite easy for a girl of eight or nine years old.

After the girls were all wearing needles, the princess led the crowd to burn incense and worship in front of the colorful building. At the end of the ceremony, she was still unsatisfied and asked the queen: "Widow, is this all right?" ”

The queen said with a smile: "In the past, when I was at my mother's house, I also played a game. Make a wish, then take a copper coin and stand on its side, flick it with your finger and make it turn. When it pounces, if it faces the sky, this wish will be granted. ”

When the princess heard this, she immediately said that she would try it, and the queen asked her to give some copper coins to the princess and the girls. Unexpectedly, the princess got a negative one for the first time. She said repeatedly: "This time it doesn't count! Then I tried again, but none of the three times in a row came straight up.

The onlookers felt ominous, and although they still had a smile on their faces, they were all a little embarrassed. But the princess was not displeased, but suddenly stood up, ran to the side of the thousand lamps, took down a palace candle, dropped a few drops of wax oil on the back of a copper coin, and then pasted it opposite the back of the other, so that the two were glued, and the left and right sides were positive.

She proudly tried again with the money. With a flick of his fingers, the thick copper coin spun awkwardly, and finally remained on its side after standing still, and did not fall to the ground.

Seeing this, Miao Zhaorong smiled and said, "What should this be? ”

When the queen saw it, she smiled and said, "What a coincidence." When I was eighteen years old, I had this kind of play...... But it's just one penny. ”

Everyone asked curiously, "What kind of wish did the queen make?" Is it achievable? ”

The queen refused to say more, and bowed her head silently, but the corners of her lips were slightly raised.

Miao Zhaorong had an epiphany: "What can an eighteen-year-old girl wish? Of course, I hope to marry a wishful man. ”

The ladies immediately understood, and they all looked at the queen with a smile, but the princess was stunned and asked, "Then what?" ”

"And then......" Jin Shang suddenly spoke, his soft gaze touched the queen, and he smiled slightly, "It didn't take long for me to issue an order to summon you to the palace." ”

"I see." The princess clapped her hands and laughed: "That's a good sign!" ”

The ladies also laughed and applauded. The queen smiled lightly, but her head was lowered more and more, and she didn't dare to look at the official family again.

She is twenty-nine years old, but this Feixia face is like a girl in the boudoir, so gentle, very different from the calm and calm image of the middle palace that I saw in the past.

"Hui Rou," said Imajo, calling the princess at this time, drawing everyone's attention back to the princess, "since there is a good sign, and tell me what you have wished." ”

"Yikes!" The princess opened her eyes and exclaimed, then pouted again, very annoyed: "I completely forgot to make a wish just now." ”

Today, I asked the princess to make a wish to try again, but Miao Zhaorong said: "She is so confused and reckless, if she tries again, she may not have any tricks, so it is better to play something else." ”

Zhaorong was probably worried that the princess would detect another bad omen. When Imajo heard her head agree, the princess was worried again: "But everything that can be played has already been played, what else can I do?" ”

I looked at the pair of copper coins that were still in her hand, and suddenly remembered Ouyang Xiu's sentence "Go down the hall with money", and a vague thought flashed in my heart.

"Princess," I suggested to her, "you might as well summon the people of Dong Nei and make a play with the money." ”

The princess's eyes were shining, and she smiled: "Okay, she has been preparing to comb her hair recently, and she hasn't spent money with me for a long time...... Call her over. ”

I promised to go to Qiuhe in person.

Qiu He stood alone by the railing on the side of the water hall at that time, staring at the lotus buds closed in the water, his eyes were veined, and he smiled slightly.

I don't know what kind of pleasure the flowing water outside the threshold carries, her mind wandered away from the surrounding palace scenery, I called her three times in a row, and she was shocked to look back. As if I had discovered some secret, she lowered her eyebrows in shame, and hurried to the princess after hearing what I had told her.

At that time, it was even more profound, and now he ordered all the ladies to go back to the garden to rest first, and then brought the queen, Miao Zhaorong, the princess and several girls into the palace, and ordered to set up a Yao seat under the throne to prepare for the girls to pay money.

This time, the princess asked to play in groups, she and Qiu He were in one group, and the other group was Fan and Zhou, and the results of two people in each group were the final result. The two girls did not follow, saying that Qiuhe had the best skills, and whoever was in the same group with her would definitely win. The princess also admitted calmly, "I just want to win." On weekdays, you win, and today is the holiday, so you can let me go, and let me happily pull back a game! ”

When the girls saw her say this, they laughed and agreed, and the four girls began to throw money on their own.

The sound of dustpan money is as pleasant as a bell, and the girls laugh and laugh in it. The best dance of money is naturally Qiuhe. Every toss and catch is like a smooth flow, and even her opponents applaud her. I knew she was the absolute protagonist in this game and was bound to win the attention of onlookers.

I quietly watched Jinshang and saw that he did pay more attention to Qiu He, even if the money was not in her hands, she only sat quietly, and his eyes did not look away.

I'm not alone in noticing this detail.

The musician of the teaching workshop hid behind the curtain in the hall to play music to help the fun, and at the end of the song, an attendant came to ask the queen what song should be played next, but listened to the queen's instructions: "Wangjiangnan". ”

I couldn't help but raise my eyes to look at her, I didn't want her to look at me, my eyes met, she smiled calmly, I bowed my head, but I felt that my heart had been seen through by her.

Jinshang has always looked at Qiuhe, and it seems that he didn't care about the name of the track that Queen Shicai said, until the music sounded, he gradually realized, sat up slightly straight, and his idle smile faded, he should have remembered Ouyang Xiu's matter.

The sound of the song is clear and graceful, and it is played endlessly, until the second stack. I followed this music, whispered Ouyang Xiu in my heart, and when I chanted to the last sentence "Not to mention now", I suddenly heard Jin Shang speak: "Zhaoming." ”

Wang Zhaoming immediately agreed and obeyed the order.

"Ouyang Xiu's case, you go to supervise the investigation." Now on the road. Sighing, he added: "But you have to investigate carefully, don't wronged anyone." ”

Wang Zhaoming was stunned, he should have understood the meaning of today, and hurriedly knelt down to receive the order, and said solemnly: "The ministers must carefully supervise the investigation, and dare not insult the king's life." ”

This night's dustpan money, naturally, the princess and Qiu He won a big victory. Miss Fan and Miss Zhou asked her to count the chips, but she didn't accept it, and said, "Daddy will give me the lottery, you don't have to come out." ”

Hearing this, he smiled and said, "I won't give it to you." Although you won this time, it was not your credit. ”

The princess took advantage of the situation to ask for credit for Qiu He: "That's right, it's all up to Qiu and me to win." Then Daddy will give her more things. ”

Bowing his head today, Wen Yan asked Qiuhe: "Qiuhe, what do you want?" ”

Qiuhe just bowed his head and said, "The princess is willing to deign to play with the slave and maid, Yu Qiuhe is already a great blessing, how dare she ask for merit and reward again." ”

"When you play with her, it's tantamount to being her master, you're teaching her skills, and you can't be punished if you have merit." Now on the road, he no longer listened to Qiu He's excuses, turned to the queen, and asked with a smile: "What should we reward her?" ”

The queen also smiled and said: "Her master has always done her best to the princess, and the concubine can't think of anything good for a while, so I'm afraid that she won't like what she gives." Why don't the officials let her say what she wants, and if the officials can do it, they will help her realize it, so good? ”

Jinshang said yes again and again, and asked Qiuhe what his wishes were, Qiuhe hesitated, and finally said softly: "The slave family hasn't thought of ...... for the time being."

"Then I will give you this promise today," said the official, "and tell me when you are ready, and if I can do it, I will help you achieve your wish." ”

Qiuhe raised his hand to increase his forehead and solemnly bowed to thank him. When he got up again, there was a glimmer of light in his eyes, and his quiet expression revealed a bit of unassuming joy.

I guess she must have a wish. Because of the emperor's promise, her future began to shine.

I'd love to see the results. A life of hope is always happy, and she should be happier in the future.

In August, Ouyang Xiu's case finally came to an end. After checking the conclusion of the trial between Su Anshi and Wang Zhaoming, and then discussing with Zai Zhi, he ordered Ouyang Xiu to be the knowledge of the system and Chuzhou. At the same time, Su Anshi was also reduced to the palace Cheng, supervised the salt tax in Taizhou, drove Wang Zhaoming out of Beijing, and supervised the wine tax in Shouchun County.

Soon after, the trial was passed to the forbidden middle school: Wang Zhaoming went to Kaifeng Mansion Prison and saw that Su Anshi's investigation of the case all pointed to Ouyang Xiu's ** thief and nephew, so he was shocked and said: "Zhaoming is around the official family, but when I see that the official family does not talk about Ouyang Xiu for three days." Now the provincial judgment is to cater to the will of the prime minister, and if the official family is not pleased, it will be difficult to protect the life of Zhaoming. ”

Since Su Anshi said that this matter was true, he should not be blamed today, and Wang Zhaoming asked him if Ouyang Xiu had pleaded guilty. Su Anshi replied: "He refuses to admit his guilt, it is better to exercise." ”

The so-called "training" refers to torture and torture to force people to confess their guilt. Wang Zhaoming shook his head again and again, and said solemnly: "The official family ordered me to supervise the investigation because I wanted me to deal with it impartially and do my best. 'Exercise'? What a word! ”

Su An was so frightened that he didn't dare to talk about the "stolen nephew" anymore, but he impeached Ouyang Xiu for using Zhang's funds to buy land and establish a household. Jinshang immediately closed the case with Ouyang Xiu as a crime. Jia Changchao and others were naturally dissatisfied, but they had no choice but to make up their minds and could not change it, so they insisted on punishing these two people today on the grounds that Su Anshi and Wang Zhaoming were ineffective in trying the case. In the end, the above decision was made in a compromise.

On the day Wang Zhaoming left the palace, I stood in the Xihua Gate to see him.

After standing bent over the years, his back could no longer straighten up, so he bowed slowly outward, he turned back after a few steps, and raised his sleeves from time to time to wipe his tears, which was extremely sad.

As soon as he walked out of the door, the heavy palace door slowly closed, and I remembered that it was time for the forbidden door to close again. Raise your head to look at the sky, see the clouds chasing the clouds overhead, and the crows flying by. After such a long time, the mood sank little by little with the dark red remnant sun.