There was a sudden warmth in my heart.

I don't know when, Hou Ye and I will no longer use the word "Ben Hou" in his own identity, and he is more and more like a distant elder who has never met before. Although he is not the same age as me, or even belongs to the same time and space, he can always find out my likes and dislikes, and detect the most obscure concerns in my heart in time.

In just five days together, I have completely let go of my inhibitions and anxieties, and I can live here with peace of mind and focus on taking care of my body. Among them, there is naturally no lack of visits and relief from Hou Ye every morning and dusk.

And he and I, strange to say, are like old friends, always like-minded, chatting happily. I knew in my heart that his kindness to me was not motivated by any ill intentions. However, the only concern in my heart that he could not eliminate for me was precisely his unconditional giving and care for me.

"It's worthy of your personal selection, and even Turbidity Moon is full of praise." I sandwiched some dishes to our plates and said sincerely, "It's just that Master Hou really doesn't have to do this for me." I have long understood your intentions, and I have never shirked them, but now there are rumors. I don't care about a civilian, you are in an important position in the imperial court, but you don't want to be heard by someone with a heart and ruin your reputation. ”

"It's okay. I have known the emperor for more than ten years, and he does not know my virtues. Hou Ye smiled indifferently, the faint lines at the corners of his eyes wrinkled deeper and deeper, "People live to this age and have no desires, as long as the emperor doesn't believe it, there will be villains who chew their tongues, but let them too." ”

I wanted to say anything more, but seeing that the Hou Ye was indifferent, and the various dishes seemed to be extremely fragrant, it was difficult to go on further, so as not to spoil his interest.

Listening to Xunyue, although Master Hou will come to this small courtyard every morning and evening to gossip with me for a while, he is not just as quiet and comfortable as I have seen. Often, after seeing me in the morning, I hurriedly dressed and went to the court, and after saying hello in the evening, I had to go back to the study to deal with countless tricky government affairs.

And so it must be, I thought to myself. As the first minister of the Great Heart Country, Hou Ye must have a huge pressure on his shoulders that ordinary people can't imagine, and he is a very heavy responsibility, and he refuses to sit and eat empty temperament, just afraid that this moment of gossiping with me every day is the only comfort and relaxation for him.

I watched him gradually ease his chopsticks, as if he was in a hurry. Although the corners of his eyes still have smile lines, there is still a shadow of joy in his eyes. Then he asked Xunyue to fetch the wine and poured him a glass with his own hands.

"Master Hou has a sad face, do you think something happened to the previous dynasty today?" I picked up the cup and handed it to him and said, "In front of Gui Ying, you can shake your stomach and intestines and vomit happily." ”

Hou Ye put down his chopsticks, smiled slightly bitterly for a long time, took the wine glass and drank it all, "In front of you, there are naturally no taboos." It's just about the previous dynasty, and talking to you about it will only increase your worries, and it won't help you in things......"

"Since it is a matter of the past, what do I have to worry about? Even if it can't help, at least it's good to let Hou Ye relax quickly. I smiled smirkedly, "Otherwise, it's a matter of confidentiality, and you can't talk to outsiders, and if so, that's fine." ”

"Ghost girl, am I afraid that you won't leak out, it's not a big deal......" Hou Ye smiled, and then changed his bleak face, "It's the crown prince's business." Today, the heirs of the saint are thin, and there are only five sons. The second emperor died in his early years, and the five emperors who came out of his mother were stubborn, and among the five sons, they went out of the palace to open the palace and married as adults, and only three sons could share the worries of the saints. ”

"Master Hou... Is it a pity for the emperor that the heirs are withering, and no one is worthy of inheriting the responsibility of unification? ”

"These words are presumptuous..."Hou Ye panicked for a moment, then squinted his eyes slightly and shook his head at me, "The Holy Lord has long established the emperor as the prince, how can there be no one to inherit the unification......"

"Oh..."I nodded awkwardly, and said, "Otherwise, the emperor remembers the second prince, or does he hate his youngest son?" ”

"The boy in the palace is indeed talented, but his body is too weak, and Dingguo died soon after. As for his younger brother..."Hou Ye was speechless for a moment, and then sighed and said, "Xu is the concubine Niangniang is sad that she lost her son, and she neglected to discipline the five princes, so that the child became what he is now...... It's just that his temperament has long been well known, and he once took it with him to teach in his early years. However, the rotten wood is difficult to carve, and the person has grown to such an age now, so he can only be an idle prince and live his rich life in the future. ”

"It's not these two," I muttered, "and you said it was about the crown prince, could it be the other three?" ”

"Hey......" Hou Ye sighed again, obviously talking about the key, poured himself a cup and said, "An An, who has no ability, is just divided, I'm afraid that this capable restlessness - the Three Emperors ** Wei Wen Tao Wu Strategy, has always been able to share worries for the saint." In the past few years, he has made great achievements in the affairs of the desert country, and his edge has been fully revealed. He also made friends, half of the civil and military ministers of the Manchu Dynasty were good friends with him, and even the four emperors who had never been very attentive to the government had the heart to follow and follow. The momentum is big, and it really can't help but be feared. ”

"I see, is the Hou Ye afraid that the three princes are too sharp, which will attract the support of the government and the opposition and shake the crown prince's position as the national capital?"

"The palace curtain is powerful, but the crown prince has always been respected by the emperor, and he himself does not let people find mistakes, who can shake his position?"

"What do you mean by this...?"

"The child in the palace is just mediocre in qualifications, and his partiality is becoming more and more frolicking." Hou Ye shook his head heavily, and said worriedly, "I entered the palace last month to ask for peace, and I insisted on asking the emperor to register a favorite concubine in the palace as the crown princess." willful and reckless, words and deeds are formless, and it is really not an individual! ”

"It's... The prince is a lover of personality. I blushed and said embarrassedly, "Then the emperor, do you agree?" ”

"The emperor is naturally displeased! You said that the prince is too, I don't want to think about how noble his identity is, in the future, the emperor will marry, what powerful ministers and nobles and foreign princesses can't get, so I have to promote a concubine who has no family background......" The Hou Ye paused again and again, and said bitterly, "The emperor didn't allow it, and he was so coquettish and stupid in front of everyone, without any prestige as a prince." The emperor couldn't bear to see him lose face, and he was afraid that he would be told a joke by the palace people, so he suppressed his anger and reluctantly agreed. ”

"The emperor agreed!" I was stunned, sat down slightly, and said, "Prince... To get such a favor from the emperor, what more can a husband ask for......"

"You are willing to be satisfied for him, but he is getting worse and worse!" Hou Ye was so anxious that he coughed again and again, and his originally ruddy face was also pale and a little old. He rinsed down a sip of soup, pushed away the hand that was smooth his heart and continued, "Yesterday was an auspicious day for the emperor to marry, I thought that our prince would finally get his wish and live in peace for a few days, but I didn't want to enter the palace early this morning and kneel in front of the palace, saying that I was happy to drink too much wine last night, and when I woke up, I found that the new princess was gone!" In the early morning, I searched all over the prince's mansion, and I came to ask the emperor to send my Lihou Mansion Praetorian Guards to look for people in the whole city! ”

"What!" I was so shocked that I almost dropped my jaw and said, "The bride ran away?" This... How could this be, isn't she the prince's concubine, how could she leave this glory and wealth behind in her good life and run away? Will... Could it be that someone kidnapped and wanted to blackmail the prince? ”

"The crown prince also made a statement to the emperor like this, but the matter is too absurd, who will believe it?" Hou Ye said with a sad face, "Just imagine, who would have thought that the prince of Tang Tang would be so fascinated by a woman, and he would not be embarrassed to come to such a field." Even if the hijacking is true, why didn't the thief show up at this moment and propose a replacement condition to the prince? ”

"Could it be that that person has no conditions at all, but is just familiar with the prince's temperament, and wants him to make a fool of himself in front of the emperor and lose the emperor's favor?"

"Your claim is not entirely impossible. It's just that the most suspicious person has already dealt with it in order not to let himself bear the brunt. Hou Ye let out a long sigh, drank a glass of wine and said, "When the third prince heard about this, he came to me early in the morning and asked to check the mansion. Even the courtiers who were close to him jointly sent people to the government camp to ask for troops to search their homes. The stakes are high, and I am afraid that the Sacred Heart will be more disturbed by reporting the matter. I have to be this wicked person myself, and I have offended half of the ministers in this court......"

"What—did you really send troops?" I said uneasily, "But the emperor doesn't know yet, and did he accept the prince's request?" ”

"My Praetorian Guards have completed the inventory on the front foot, and the third prince has entered the palace to show his innocence. The suspicion of the saint is not elsewhere, and since his Lihou has made a decision for him, naturally there is no need to let the royal face lose again. So he appeased the prince and rebuked me for the crime of acting without a will, and that was it. ”

"How can this be..."I said indignantly, "The emperor knows the thoughts of the third prince, but doesn't he know your hard work?" In the end, they have to blame an outsider for their own scandalous affairs, how can there be such a truth in the world-"

"—Gui Hotaru, stop talking." Hou Ye closed his eyes lightly and said with a wry smile, "As the saying goes, a companion is like a tiger, and our saint is already a very wise monarch." He was bent on saving his son's face, so even if he knew that this matter had nothing to do with me, he would have to take me with this knife. After all, it is only a reprimand, not a punishment. It's already taking care of me, an old man. ”