The next day, the sky was dark, and the lead clouds were black and oppressive, as if they were about to destroy the city. There were two porcelain jars of ice bricks in the house, and the cold mist was curling and dissipating, but it was still stuffy. Qingcheng had no appetite, drank two spoonfuls of soup indiscriminately, and then withdrew. Within a moment, the sky seemed to be torn apart, lightning and thunder roared, and the wind raged. The branches of the trees in the courtyard shook and fell, and the rain curtain broke down, dense and urgent, crackling.

Hai'an first went to the queen's palace in the morning, and then went to the imperial hospital to deliver the message, and when he came back at this time, he was already drenched.

He changed his clothes in the room, dried his hair, and went into the house to say goodbye. Qingcheng leaned on the window sill, looking at the ripples of the rain curtain, stunned. Hai An called lightly and said, "Master." ”

Qingcheng turned to look at her and asked, "Is it done?" ”

Hai An nodded and said, "The Imperial Hospital has a matter today, and Master Jian said that he will come over immediately after he finishes his work." He added: "Do you want to freshen up, after all, you want to meet guests." ”

Qingcheng snorted, then got up and changed into a scarlet peony auspicious pattern Su satin palace dress, and said, "Did the queen reward us with a jar of Biluochun before?" ”

Hai An said: "Yes. ”

Qingcheng bowed his head and said, "Lord Jane loves tea, you can use a lotus package to put half a can." ”

Hai'an has been wondering since yesterday, why did he choose Master Jane, but now that he saw that Qingcheng still knew his habits, he was stunned again, and thought about it for a while, thinking that they should be familiar with each other, and they didn't dare to ask more, so they only went as ordered.

The emperor dispersed the dynasty, and it happened that the jade of the territory and the trace capital of Stantegong came in, and there were all kinds of furnishings, ornaments, cultural toys, and inlays, all of which were meticulously polished, and the carvings and paintings were lifelike, reflecting the brilliance of the room. The emperor saw that the jade was warm and crystalline, slightly better than in previous years, so he couldn't help but play with it, and picked out a few more and distributed them to the queen mother, the queen and the lords of each palace.

Wu Shulai carefully packed the jade with a sandalwood incense box, let the little eunuch hold it, and was about to send it to the palaces, but the emperor said abruptly: "Where is this box sent?" Wu Shulai glanced at it and said, "Your Majesty, this is sent to Changchun Palace." ”

The emperor reached out and picked it up, picked out an object, Wu Shulai didn't see it clearly, the emperor stuffed it into his sleeve, turned around and took a white jade Buddha from the table, put it back, smiled in his eyes, and said, "Go ahead." ”

The crowd listened to the decree and withdrew with blinked voices.

Wu Shulai saw the eunuch in the dining room standing at the bottom of the steps, and knew that he was here to urge the meal, so he respectfully asked, "The master wants to eat?" ”

The emperor smiled and said, "No need, I will go to Yikun Palace for dinner." ”

Wu Shulai said: "The wind and rain are strong, and the road is not easy to walk, so it is better for the master to visit Master Su after the lunch break." ”

The emperor glanced at him indifferently and said, "I am sitting in a sedan chair, what is it difficult to walk." Dog minion, I'm used to spoiling you. Could it be that when it rains, you have to stop me from going out? ”

Wu Shulai was so frightened that he hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, and said, "It's the slave who is hot and confused, please forgive the master." ”

The emperor didn't bother to talk to him, and said, "Let's drive." ”

Because of the raging wind and rain, the people who served on the guard of honor did not dare to slack off, not only prepared many shirts and robes, but also wore boots, shoes and socks, as well as ginger tea and decoction that they usually ate to ward off the cold. The sedan chair was carried directly to the gate of Qingyunzhai Palace, and Wu Shulai held an umbrella early to welcome the emperor inside.

The emperor's face was dark, and when he saw Qingcheng and a man in court clothes standing under the porch to pick up the driver, he smiled and asked, "What's the matter, I'm sick?" ”

Qingcheng said: "No, Master Jian came over and asked for peace." ”

Jian Yuheng flicked his sleeves and knelt down, kowtowed, and said, "The slave asks the emperor for peace." ”

The emperor said, "How is the body of Su Gui?" ”

Jian Yuheng lowered his eyebrows and lowered his eyes, and said respectfully: "Su Guiren has a slight body cold, and he needs to be slowly adjusted. ”

The emperor said, "Then you have more snacks." ”

Jian Yuheng said: "The minister obeys the order." Seeing that the emperor had stopped talking and entered the hall, he kowtowed and slowly got up and left.

The heavy rain was pure, the heat was unbearable, and although half a bucket of ice cubes was hidden under the stool of the imperial sedan chair, the emperor was still so hot that he was covered in sweat. Qingcheng ordered someone to fetch hot water, waited for the emperor to bathe, changed into a clean ice silk robe, and ordered a meal.

After eating, the rain gradually subsided, and a cool smell slowly rose between the heavens and the earth, which was refreshing. The emperor sat cross-legged in front of the kang, and Wu Shulai placed the folds on the kang table in a uniform manner, and slowly retreated.

Qingcheng smiled: "The emperor really has nothing to do, either to speak, or to read the excerpts, otherwise he will summon the ministers to discuss the matter." After a pause, he sighed and said, "I still have to take care of a large group of people in the three palaces and six courtyards." ”

The emperor took the imperial pen and added cinnabar to the inkstone, and said with a smile: "Oh, it's so sour that I have a toothache." ”

Qingcheng glanced at him, looked forward to it, and said, "The Internal Affairs Office has brought two new cantaloupes from the territory tribute, do you want to eat them?" ”

The emperor wrote horizontally and vertically, without raising his head, and said: "Don't worry about me, you can eat if you like." If you finish eating, divide two more from the Heart Cultivation Temple. Qingcheng answered, ordered, and said: "I have never eaten this before, but I really owe it to the emperor." ”

The emperor was writing, listening to her, his hand felt heavy, and he stroked it away, and he blurred the fold that he didn't know where. The emperor sighed twice and said, "Look at your ignorance, you amused me." ”

Qingcheng was so anxious that he stomped his foot and said, "What should I do?" Can I wipe it off? ”

The emperor raised his eyes to look at her, smiled imperceptibly at the corner of his lips, and said solemnly: "It was originally a fold of the Jiangnan drought requesting the imperial court to allocate funds, but it was actually drawn, and it was not clear to see, so forget it." As he spoke, he threw the fold into the "not allowed" pile.

Qingcheng was shocked and hurriedly said: "How can it be done, but I can't just wait and see if I delay the business." She frowned slightly, gritted her teeth, and pleaded with him as hard as she could.

The emperor couldn't help but smile and said, "I am teasing you, it is the Governor of Huguang, it doesn't matter." ”

Qingcheng patted his chest, let go of his heart, and said with a smile: "But it scared me to death..." ”

Seeing that she was looking forward to the streamer, her eyes were as tender as water, his heart suddenly moved, and he slowly stretched out his left hand and said, "Come here." ”

Somehow, Qingcheng asked, "What's wrong?" ”

The emperor said, "There is a leaf in your hair, I will help you brush it off." ”

Qingcheng thought that he had lost his honor in front of the emperor, blushed slightly, walked to the emperor's side, and slowly bent his knees. The Emperor turned around, but put one hand around her neck and kissed her on the lips. With his other hand, he was still holding the imperial pen and resting it on the kang table, and the cinnabar ink on the tip of the pen was dripping little by little, decorated with folds.

At the second quarter of the Shen hour, Wu Shulai came into the house and asked to drive to the Hongde Hall to speak, only to see Su Guiren sitting cross-legged opposite the emperor, lying on the kang table and falling asleep through the half-high folds. The emperor knew that he was coming in, so he made a look, and Fang gently stretched out his legs to get off the kang. Wu Shulai quietly knelt on the ground and put on the emperor's shoes, and was about to speak, but when he heard the emperor's "shhhh

The emperor lightly hugged Qingcheng into his arms and whispered: "Just sleep, I will carry you to the couch, and come to see you at night." ”

Qingcheng has always been greedy for a nap, opened his eyes in a daze, closed them again, and muttered something, but no one heard clearly. Starting from Beizi, Wu Shulai has served the emperor for more than ten years, but it is the first time that he has seen the emperor so warm. He trembled in his heart and secretly thought: This Su Guiren has an unlimited future.

When Qingcheng woke up, it was almost dusk, the heavy rain stopped, and I looked out the window, my eyes were full of verdant, and the birds were singing and the frogs were chirping.

Hai'an listened to the movement inside, lifted the curtain into the house, bent his knees, and said with a smile: "The master is awake, just now the slave maid was still thinking, long live the master who will stay for a while, and you haven't woken up, but what should I do." ”

Qingcheng said worriedly: "What time is it?" ”

Hai An knelt on the ground and put on Qingcheng's shoes, and said, "It's past the unitary time." ”

Qingcheng was still a little tired, I don't know what was wrong with my hand, I looked blankly, only to see two pieces of mutton fat white jade carved jade pendant next to the pillow, the flower branches are entwined, and the lotus is born in the middle, elegant and noble. Without waiting for her to ask, Hai An smiled and said, "I heard that it is a jade from Xingong in the territory, and each of them is worth hundreds of taels of silver." Wu Shulai secretly told the slave maid that this was picked up from the objects in Changchun Palace, and we are always thinking about the master. ”

Qingcheng thought of the emperor's affection for him, his heart throbbed, and he couldn't wait to run to the Heart Cultivation Palace to see him immediately. She took the jade pendant in her hand and rubbed it carefully, as if infinite joy slowly overflowed from the deepest part of her chest.

When it was time to wipe the dark, Qingcheng ordered someone to boil red beans and rice porridge to prepare, and helped Hai'an to Yikun Gate to greet him. Waited left and right, but never saw the holy driver. Hai An said: "Master, let's go back first, the emperor's affairs are cumbersome, and it is normal to be stumped by something for a while." "The deep corridor is dim and yellow, the blue sky is like washing, the bright moon is in the sky, and the light is like mist and gauze shrouded in people.

Qingcheng shook the fan in his hand, stretched his neck to look at the end of the road, and said half-loudly: "Go back, I'm hungry." He waved his hand to let the little eunuch guarding the door step forward and said, "You go to the Heart Cultivation Hall and ask when the emperor will come." ”

The little eunuch agreed, but after half a pillar of incense, he turned around and said under the corridor: "The servant asked the people in front of the emperor, and they said that the queen mother suddenly had a severe stomach pain, and the emperor was worried, so he went to Changchun Palace to guard. Qingcheng snorted, seeing that the porridge on the table was cold, it was not hot, and he drank most of the bowl, and let Hai'an take the rest to reward people.

The lanterns in the Changchun Palace are hung high, the palace people come and go in an orderly manner, the emperor sits on the throne, and the bottom of the house is full of imperial doctors, Shanrou kneels at the front, and the voice is mourning. The emperor asked sharply, "When did it happen?" Why don't you tell me? ”

Shanrou replied with a crying voice: "At that time, the emperor was still in the palace for summer vacation, and the Xian master had just lost his child, and the queen was afraid of resentment, so she wanted to keep the fetus, and no one said anything, and after three months, the dust would settle and then report to the queen mother and the emperor." ”

The green tendons on the emperor's forehead jumped high, his snort swelled, his fists clenched and smashed on the desk, the bottles and saucers clanged, and the palace people inside and outside felt more and more afraid of breathing.

The emperor was silent, his eyes were as cold and cold, as if he was about to devour people, and after half a sound, he asked in a low voice: "How is the queen?" ”

Lord Wang knelt forward, kowtowed, and said, "Your Majesty, the queen's body is badly damaged, and if she wants to get pregnant again, she is afraid that she will have to give birth and recuperate for two years." ”

The emperor's face was as usual, and he asked, "Can you find out the reason?" ”

Lord Wang said: "The ministers thought that the queen phoenix was thin and timid, and she had already suffered from blood deficiency, and she had a lot of thoughts, which led to a slippery tire. ”

The emperor looked at the stacked flower stands for a long time, and said lightly: "The queen has always asked you for the pulse, but she can't keep the prince, and it's useless to keep you." "Lord Wang is an old lady doctor, who has mediated in officialdom for many years, and thinks that he is like a fish in water. He didn't dare to argue, and forced himself to calm down: "The slave deserves death, please forgive the emperor, please forgive the emperor!" He kowtowed deeply, and his figure became more and more desolate under the lamp.

Wu Shulai waved his hand to let the eunuch enter the palace to tie up people, and several accompanying imperial doctors next to him all lowered their heads and eyes, silent. When Lord Wang saw that the situation was not good, he was like a blow to the head, and he almost wanted to stand uncertainty. Wu Shulai said respectfully: "Your Majesty, is it to be imprisoned or..."

The emperor got up and said, "Hold it up first, and then convict Ming'er." He said sharply: "The palace people who are not powerful in Changchun Palace have all gone to the Internal Affairs Office to get the top ten boards!" Shanrou's expression was grim, knowing that the emperor was angry, he didn't dare to complain at all, and led a few people in charge of the palace to kowtow and said, "Thank you for sparing your life." The emperor flicked his sleeves tiredly, and Wu Shulai led everyone to retreat, and for a while, the room was silent.

Changchun Palace was short of manpower, and Wang Jinbao, the eunuch in charge of the Internal Affairs Office, hurriedly transferred several palace people from the side to serve. The emperor was pacing outside the brocade curtain, and a palace maid came out of it, he looked familiar, and he didn't care, but he thought he had seen it in Changchun Palace before, and asked, "How is the queen?" ”

The palace maid's eyes were blazing, and she said smartly: "Your Majesty, the queen mother has eaten the prescription prescribed by the imperial doctor, and she has already gotten much better." She poured water under the porch, turned back to the bedroom, wrung a warm towel to wipe the sweat beads on the queen's forehead, and said softly: "The house is filthy, according to the ancestral system, Long Live Lord can't come in - the master is at ease, Long Live Lord is guarding the outer hall." ”

The queen was cut by a knife, her body and mind were in pain, and when she heard that the emperor was guarding outside, her eyes were warm, and tears the size of beans appeared. She said hoarsely: "You go and tell the emperor, it's getting late, Ming'er has to go to the morning court, go back to the Heart Cultivation Palace to rest early." When the palace maid turned around to go, she shouted again: "Wan'er, wait a minute." ”

Wei Wan'er hurriedly turned around, knelt beside the queen's step, and asked, "What else does the master have to say?" ”

The queen smiled vainly and said slowly: "You tell the emperor that the palace is very good, don't worry." Seeing the queen like this, Wan'er felt sour in her heart, and said with tears: "The slave knows how to say, the master can rest assured." After saying that, he went out with the curtain and carefully passed on the words.

When the emperor heard this, he was shocked and unbearable, and when the queen became more and more pityful, he said through the curtain: "Empress, don't be too sad, take good care of your body, you will have children in the future." After a pause, he crossed a trace of pathos, and said: "No matter how bad it is, you still have Yonglian, don't let him worry about you in vain in Brother's house." The queen had already endured her tears, but when she heard the emperor's relief, tears couldn't help but gush out, soaking into her sideburns, and even her hair was wet.

The hot mist is rising, and the candlelight reflects a hazy brilliance in the water vapor. Qingcheng leaned on the vat and bathed, the sound of water was dripping, Hai'an turned the screen and said inward, "Master, the emperor is here." ”

Qingcheng was surprised and asked, "Didn't you go to Changchun Palace?" Why did you come here? ”

Hai'an's expression was unusual, and he muttered a few words in Qingcheng's ear, and said: "The emperor is in a bad mood, the master should be careful, don't annoy the emperor." Hearing that the queen slipped the tire, Qingcheng couldn't tell whether she was happy or uncomfortable, so she put on her clothes and walked to the east. There were only two clear oil lamps lit in the room, and the flaming light was reflected on the emperor's face, which was dim. There was no one around, and the emperor sat cross-legged on the kang alone, looking down at the ground, stunned, and silent.

Qingcheng stood quietly at the window for a while, and when he saw that the lights were about to go out, he entered lightly, picked up the silver chopsticks next to him and dialed them. The emperor seemed to have seen no one, and still sat motionless. Qingcheng looked at him fixedly for a while, slowly moved to his side, and sat down.

The emperor gently rested his head on her shoulder, the corners of his lips moved, as if there was infinite sadness, and said: "I have lost two sons in a row..."

Qingcheng stroked his face with his backhand, as if coaxing a child, rubbed his cheeks softly, and said: "There is a fate, it is the catastrophe of the queen's mother, it will be good if it is over." The emperor is a holy monarch, and his heirs will inevitably prosper in the future. ”

The emperor grabbed her hand resting on his knee, looked at the light of the fire under the window, and said, "If you are pregnant, you must not hide it from me." Tell me that I will bless our children. ”

Qingcheng said respectfully: "Okay, when I have a child, I will be the first to tell the emperor." ”

Because the weather was too hot, at night, Concubine Lu was still sitting under the porch and shaking a fan to watch the stars. The palace man on his side had sharp eyes, and when he saw a black shadow flashing in the woods in front of him, he shouted: "Who is sneaking out there!" When the attendants on duty heard the movement, they hurriedly ran over, and shouted to the darkness, "Who is it, come out quickly, or you will go and call the guards." After a while, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl poked her head out of the tree shrub, knelt down in front of Concubine Lu, and said, "Master Lu, please save my uncle and grandfather." ”

Concubine Lu squinted and asked, "Who are you?" ”

The little girl gasped and said: "The slave maid is the nephew and granddaughter of the king of the imperial hospital, and she only entered the palace this year, and she works as an errand in the kitchen. Just now I heard that the queen mother slipped the fetus, and the emperor wanted to cure the slave and maid uncle and grandfather for capital crimes, and the slave and maid did not have any way, so I came to beg Master Lu. ”

Concubine Lu looked at the little girl with contempt, shook her fan and said, "It's not that I don't help you, it's just that your uncle has committed a big crime, even if I want to help, I can't help it." ”

The little girl said, "The slave has a way." ”

Concubine Lu was a little strange and asked, "What method do you have?" ”

The little girl took out something from her sleeve, knelt down in front of Concubine Lu, and said, "This is the red date cake that the master brought back from Changchun Palace, threw it in the snack casually, and withdrew to the kitchen to enjoy it." The slave's family is a family of traditional Chinese medicine, and she has been exposed to it since she was a child, and she also knows some herbal medicines. The slave maid dared to swear that there was saffron in this red date cake. Ordinary people may have the effect of invigorating blood and removing blood stasis, but if a pregnant person eats it, it will not be good for a while, but after a long time, it will lead to miscarriage, slaves..."

Concubine Lu didn't want to have such a show, she was too lazy to cause trouble, and said angrily: "Hugh is talking nonsense!" ”

The little girl was bold and said firmly: "The slave maid is not wrong, the queen's miscarriage is not the fault of the slave's uncle and grandfather, but someone has drugged and framed the queen." She paused, and then said: "If Master Lu can help the slave and maid this time, the slave and maid can offer you a good prescription for conception, which is handed down by the slave and maid ancestors, and even the slave and the maid's uncle and grandfather don't know." ”

Hearing this, Concubine Lu was moved, she had been favored for a long time, but her stomach had never moved. After thinking about it carefully, he remembered that Concubine Xian did have a slightly strange look when she ate the red date cake that day, so she raised her face and said: "No one is allowed to talk about today's events, if I hear any rumors outside, when the time comes, I will have to take out the mouthy person and chop it up and feed it to the dogs!" ”

There were not many palace people on duty at night, so they were so loud and violent, how dare they disobey their orders, and they hurriedly said in unison: "Yes." ”

The next day, the queen woke up quietly, Wei Wan'er didn't sleep all night, at this time Fang showed a smile and asked, "Master, do you want to eat some gruel?" ”

The queen nodded, and Wan'er hurriedly brought it in person, and said, "This is the gruel that the kitchen has cooked for two hours with thick black chicken soup, and the master has made up for his body." ”

The queen had a little appetite, ate most of the bowl, waited for her mind to be clearer, looked around left and right, and asked, "What about Shanrou?" ”

Wan'er twisted the towel to wipe the queen's face and hands, and said, "Yesterday, Long live the lord was angry and asked the aunts in charge to go to the Internal Affairs Office to get the board. He smiled again and said, "Don't worry, master, the slave and maid went to see it just now, and after taking the medicine, they can go to the ground in two or three days." ”

The queen saw that she was neither humble nor arrogant, and she was organized, so she said: "Yesterday, the chickens flew and the dogs jumped, and I didn't care to ask you, where were you on an errand before?" Why did you get to Changchun Palace again? ”

Wan'er hurriedly straightened her clothes, kowtowed to the queen, and said respectfully: "The slave maid only entered the palace this year, and she has been doing needlework in the Huanyi room before, and she was transferred to Changchun Palace by Wang Chenda yesterday to fill the previous vacancy." ”

The queen said: "Yes, after Dongling left, she never sent anyone." He added, "From now on, you will stay in front of the palace and serve." ”

Wan'er hurriedly bent her knees and said, "Thank you for the grace of Queen Mother." ”

The sun is shining, obliquely shining on the low-hanging Hunan bamboo curtain under the corridor, and the fine and fragmented carved shadows ripple slightly with the wind. Qingcheng sat under the window doing needlework, and the emperor's bed clothes were half done, and he only needed to embroider a few wisps of moire on the cuffs, and it was done. When she saw Hai'an coming over with tea, her face was gloomy, so she asked, "What's wrong?" ”

Hai An replied: "Just now I went to the Internal Affairs Office to receive the moon and listen to the palace people in front of the palace..."

When Qingcheng heard the word "Imperial Front", he panicked and asked, "What are you talking about?" ”

Hai'an said: "They said that the emperor threw out the heat and was in the heat, and the queen mother ordered Master Shu to go to the Heart Cultivation Hall to serve." ”

Qingcheng didn't care who was going to serve, but asked anxiously, "What did the imperial doctor say?" Is it serious? ”