The room was quiet and fragrant, and the candlelight shimmered like a golden glow. The green orange eyebrows are pretty, the red lips are slightly curled, and the voice is light and happy. The emperor suddenly said, "Why do you have ink on your face?" Qingcheng glanced at him and said, "I won't be fooled." The emperor said seriously: "I didn't lie to you, I will let Hai'an see it, and I will definitely laugh behind my back." He walked up to her, and without waiting for Qingcheng to react, he reached out and wiped her face and laughed again.

Qingcheng looked into the Tang Dynasty rhombic luodian bronze mirror used for decoration on the wooden frame, and there were indeed a few ink marks on her cheeks, she stomped on her feet, her face sank, and she frowned and did not speak. The smile on the emperor's face had not faded, and he said, "Why are you angry when I tease you." As he spoke, he tried to coax her. I didn't want Qingcheng's hands to be fast, so I rushed to him in a blink of an eye, and my hand was full of ink on his face.

The emperor raised his eyebrows and smiled: "I'll guard against your trick!" He was tall with long arms, palms against her shoulders, and no matter how hard she struggled to tiptoe, she couldn't touch his face.

He threw his head back and laughed triumphantly.

But after a while, Qingcheng was exhausted from tossing and turning, rested, and said, "I won't play with you anymore." Then he turned around and walked out, shouting, "Hai'an, bring hot water." The emperor followed her and entered the side hall, he kicked his shoes, sat cross-legged on the kang, picked up the book casually, turned two or three pages, and heard Qingcheng calling: "Your Majesty." ”

The emperor followed the prestige, but before he could react, Qingcheng had already pounced on him, and his hands were full of ink on his face. She propped her elbows on her sides, looked at him carefully, and said with a smile: "You have also become a cat face." The emperor gritted his teeth and said, "You little thing...", he forcefully held her in his arms, making her unable to move, and said: "Look how I punish you..." ”

Hai'an led the palace maid into the palace to serve, thinking that the two were reading in the side hall, so he broke in, and was about to ask for peace, when the two of them were entangled together, and suddenly his cheeks were red with shame, and he quickly retreated to the bottom of the corridor.

After two or three days, Mo Shenyi from the Imperial Hospital came to ask for Ping'anmai, he was the person entrusted by Jian Yuheng when he left, and the third elder brother was in good health under his care, so Qingcheng also trusted him. Hai'an presented fragrant tea and said gently: "Lord Mo, please wait a while, let's drink a bowl of tea first." Mo Shenyi knew that Concubine Chun had won the Sacred Heart, and the rules of Yikun Palace were also great, so he didn't dare to slack off, got up and bowed, and said, "Aunt Hai'an is polite." ”

Haian nodded, not much to say.

But in a moment, Qingcheng came out of the back room, she was wearing a silver silk thin smoke jade-colored gauze gown, lined with a blue palace skirt, a little rouge on her face, holding a homely bun at will, and two gold inlaid dark red pearl jade hairpins in her ears, soft and quiet, and her demeanor was all directions. Mo Shenyi didn't dare to look at it, knelt on his knees, kowtowed, and said, "Pure master, Wanfu Jin'an." ”

Qingcheng gave a handful of hands and said, "Master Mo doesn't have to be polite. He said to Hai'an: "Is there any kumquat in Guangxi Gong?" Erqi replied: "There is also a small half basket." Qingcheng said: "Go and pack two plates, and let Master Mo take them home for his wife and children to taste." "Once the objects in the palace fall into the people's hands, the tide will rise, and the market will be priceless. Sometimes the words and paintings that the emperor and concubines threw in the paper basket can be smuggled out of the palace if they can be smuggled out of the palace, which is also a very profitable livelihood. Not to mention that the emperor and concubines rewarded things, and when they passed it on among relatives and friends, whoever met had to be polite.

Mo Shenyi raised his eyebrows with joy, and hurriedly knelt down and said, "Thank you for the reward." Qingcheng said: "The third elder brother served well, I should thank you." Mo Shenyi said: "The pure master is polite, and he is just dutiful." After Qingcheng sat down and checked the pulse, Mo Shenyi hesitated for a long time, and said: "There is one thing, I don't know whether to talk about it or not." ”

Qingcheng heard what he said, so he said, "Master Mo has something to say." Mo Shenyi said: "A few days ago, I vaguely heard from the head of the imperial hospital that Yuheng was injured in a fall on the border between Sichuan and Gansu, and he was lying on the bed and couldn't move. Qingcheng was shocked when he heard this, and wondered: "Didn't he go to Jiangsu?" How did you get to the Sichuan-Gansu border? ”

Mo Shenyi said: "The plague in Jiangsu has long been cured, in fact, the transfer of the imperial hospital is not very clear, I only know that the few imperial doctors who went out that time are all walking around, and when the matter here is over, they will be transferred to that side, and I don't know when I will be able to return to the palace." He looked at Qingcheng's face carefully, and hesitated: "This matter should not have been known to the master, but Yuheng was in danger, and he couldn't let it go, so he came to ask the master." ”

Hearing the words "in danger", it exploded in Qingcheng's brain like a firecracker, and she hurriedly said: "How could it be..."Mo Shenyi said: "I hope it is fake news, but I am always worried in my heart." Qingcheng got up suddenly, frightened, as if he had lost his soul, and said: "Hai'an, prepare a warm sedan chair, I'll go to the Heart Cultivation Palace." ”

Mo Shenyi saw Qingcheng anxious, and couldn't help but think of the gossip in the palace last year, and he actually believed it a little in his heart. But there were faint concerns, the pure master was so worried about Jian Yuheng, if the emperor was suspicious, wouldn't he have to take Yuheng's life! However, there is no way out, you can only risk your death, maybe there will be a turnaround, if you don't do anything, you really have no way to live.

When he arrived at the Yangxin Palace, the emperor was not there, and he went to the Qixiang Palace of the nobles. Qingcheng was too panicked, and he didn't care about the palace rules and etiquette, so he ordered the inner attendant in front of the palace to go to Qixiang Palace to ask for a driver, and he waited in the gatehouse of Xinuan Pavilion. Not long after Lianqing accepted the favor, she was tender, and she treated the emperor with all kinds of tenderness, and she was very popular. There are several pots of roses in her house, which should not bloom in autumn, because she likes it, the Queen Mother specially let the Imperial Garden specially cultivate them. She folded two flowers and pressed them on her sideburns, lining them with ice muscles and jade bones, and she looked like a moon.

The Emperor asked, "Do you like roses?" ”

Lian Qing lowered her eyebrows and smiled, and said: "The concubines not only like roses, like peonies, moons, orchids, and red plums, and the concubines like them." When he was young, whenever his father went out to run errands, no matter where he went, as long as he saw any strange flowers, he would find seeds and bring them back to Shangjing for his concubines to plant. The emperor said gently: "You will also grow your own flowers?" Lian Qing replied: "It's just a fool's errand." ”

The emperor snorted and said, "You have your own favorite things to do, and it's better to be in the palace." After a pause, he asked, "Did your father build you a flower house?" ”

Lian Qing smiled: "Yes, my father asked people to build a greenhouse in the back garden, and specially let the concubines plant flowers out of season. As he spoke, his face showed a sense of frustration, and he said, "I don't know if my father will ask someone to take care of those flowers after the concubine enters the palace." “

The emperor patted her hand and said thoughtfully, "Don't worry, it's not difficult. I ordered someone to build a flower house in your palace, and then move all the flowers and grass raised in your house into the palace. ”

Lian Qing said happily: "Really? The emperor said, "I will not only build you a flower house, but also use a whole piece of glass to build it." "Lian Qing was born in a rich and noble family, and the glass she has seen is only a small piece of glass on the window used to transmit light.

She said: "The emperor laughed, where is there such a big glass?" ”

The emperor said, "Since I promised you, I will naturally do it." While the two were talking, the attendant of the Heart Cultivation Hall leaned over to speak in Wu Shulai's ear, and said, "The pure master is waiting for the Long Live Lord in the Heart Cultivation Palace, and asked us to invite the Holy Driver back." ”

Wu Shulai has been on an errand for many years, and this is the first time I have seen such a thing. But he didn't dare to treat him lightly, so he dared to enter the house and said, "Long live the lord." The emperor turned his face and asked, "What's the matter?" Wu Shulai bowed forward and whispered. Lian Qing secretly coveted the emperor's face, and didn't dare to listen carefully to what Wu Shu said, so she pretended to play with the three or four white chrysanthemums in the red glazed long-necked vase.

The emperor asked, "What did she say?" ”

Wu Shu replied: "The pure master didn't say much, but he looked very anxious. The emperor bowed his head, got up and said, "I was busy with the previous court, and Ming'er will come to discuss with you about building a glass house." "Although Lian Qing is young, she is raised from a deep boudoir, knows the rules and obeys the etiquette, and is generous. She thanked her, sent the saint to Gong Street, and then turned around and went back to the house.

Back at the Palace of Heart Cultivation, the emperor saw Qingcheng pacing under the corridor from a distance, getting closer, and the first thing he said was: "If there is something to say slowly, don't be in a hurry." He took her hand again and went straight to the warm pavilion. There was already a chill in the autumn, and Xinuan Pavilion changed to a thick Fushou pattern blanket, the hair was ankle-deep, and people walked on it silently. Qingcheng couldn't wait to say, "Can you make an order to let Master Jian return to the palace?" I heard that he was seriously injured on the Sichuan-Gansu border, and I am afraid that he will be more than lucky. ”

When the emperor heard this, his face suddenly changed color, and he asked, "You are so anxious to invite me back to the palace, just for Jian Yuheng?" Qingcheng heard the meaning of his words, but the situation was urgent, so he said: "He is my brother, of course I am in a hurry." The emperor restrained his expression and said, "I know that you are in a hurry, and after a while, I will come and inquire personally about the head of the Imperial Hospital." Seeing that Qingcheng was still not at ease, he added another sentence and said, "If what you say is the truth, I will immediately ask someone to send him back to Beijing." ”

Qingcheng listened to the emperor's assurance, and breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, and said: "If he is not good, my grandmother's family will be the last, so there must be no trouble." The emperor patted her on the back and soothed: "Don't worry, I will definitely fill the house with the descendants of the Jian family." His words are the holy decree, that is, the will of heaven, Qingcheng has no unbelief, and there is a slight smile on his face.

The Emperor replied, "I will show you something good." He glanced at Wu Shulai and said, "Go, bring the drawings." Wu Shulai agreed, promised to go out, and for a while he entered the house with a roll of paper and presented it to the emperor. The emperor spread out the silk paper, and when he saw it, it was actually the map of Yikun Palace, with red and white lines on it, as well as the emperor's Zhu Batch.

Qingcheng was puzzled and looked at the emperor suspiciously.

The emperor smiled mysteriously and said, "I have been preparing for this since June and July, just to give you a surprise. ”

The silk paper is spread out and half a meter long, which is a slightly shrunken pattern of Yikun Palace, but Qingyunzhai is carefully outlined with a yellow pen, drawing complex graphics. Qingcheng asked, "Do you want to build fortifications?" It's really unnecessary, the former queen mother still intends to let Shun nobles live with me, just because the place is big. ”

The emperor clasped his fingers on the two red threads and said, "It's not as simple as building fortifications. I think—" He drew a circle in the courtyard behind Qingyunzhai, and said: "Dig nine wells here, build a reservoir, put flowers and potted plants around, use machinery to transport water to the roof, and then go down the eaves, just like the water curtain hole of Sun Wukong, cold fragrance and cool breeze, refreshing and natural, but it is much healthier than using ice cubes to cool down." You are afraid of cold and heat, even if you don't go to Chengde to escape the heat in the future, it will be the same to cool off in your Qingyunzhai. ”

It's nothing to repair the temple and build a building, but it's rare for him to have this thought. Qingcheng said: "This is bound to make a big move, and the six palaces are watching, I'm afraid it will be difficult to calm down." "I am worried on my mouth, but my heart is warm in the end, like a begonia in early summer, smiling and fragrant, and the pear vortex is shallow. The emperor grabbed her from behind, snuggled up to each other, and said, "Don't worry about that idleness, I will arrange it." His arms were wide and warm, and the elegant and familiar fragrance of the dragon birthday lingered on the tip of her nose, which could also make her calm and calm.

Seeing that it was about to enter winter, the palace actually built a large fortification to build a glass flower room for Qixiang Palace. The Ministry of Internal Affairs will lead craftsmen into the palace every day to repair, because there are outsiders walking around, the concubine Xian passed on the edict, ordering the palace concubines if there is no urgent matter, not to walk outside the palace. Concubine Shu has been doing some trivial things under Concubine Shun for some time now, and when there are disagreements, it is inevitable that there will be quarrels. Concubine Shu was resentful, and mocked in front of Concubine Xian: "I really can't guess the emperor's thoughts, there is obviously a concubine Shun in the palace, and she has also given a noble person." ”

Concubine Shun sat at the coffee table, took two sips of tea, and did not answer as if she hadn't heard.

When it was time to hold the lamp, Concubine Xian ordered Concubine Shu to go back to the palace first, and let Concubine Shun accompany her for a snack. The two are plain and humble and introverted, but after taking power, what they eat and use is extremely extravagant and profligate. Their daily meals are carefully arranged, and sometimes there are dozens of kinds of rice porridge prepared in the kitchen, not to mention ginseng soup and pastries.

Concubine Shun suddenly wanted to eat fresh bamboo shoot soup, don't look at her only a small half bowl, the effort is really amazing. The chef first selects the high-grade cloud leg in the northeast of Yunnan as the material, and then uses fresh black chicken, pork knuckle, and dried scallops as the auxiliary, and only boils one pound of soup for a pound of material, boils for more than half an hour, and waits mellow and fragrant, and the golden color wants to drip before stopping. At present, it is just winter, and there are no fresh bamboo shoots, so you can only choose the best dried bamboo shoots. Put the soaked dried bamboo shoots in the ham and chicken broth and cook until refreshing, and serve.

The two talked while eating, and Concubine Xian said: "Concubine Shu intends to ridicule, why don't you teach her some lessons." Concubine Shun took half a piece of magnolia slices and put them in a bowl, and said with a smile: "What is there to teach you a lesson?" With her temperament, I don't need to move my mouth, so naturally there will be a day when I will be taught a lesson by others. Concubine Xian looked at her stunned and said, "The emperor is ruthless, aren't you sad?" ”

Concubine Shun actually sneered and said, "Sad? What's there to be sad about? Except for the big celebration banquet, I can't even see the emperor's face. I am different from you, since I entered the hidden mansion, the emperor has never taken me to heart. I'm not a fool, so why should I be angry with myself for nothing for irrelevant people? Wouldn't I have lived well without his grace?! She took half a mouthful of rice porridge with magnolia slices, and said: "It's a noble person, don't look at the emperor who spent 100 gold to build a glass flower house for her, others don't know, don't you and I know that you and I are in charge of the palace accounts?" That's all to cover up for Concubine Chun. No matter how much she is favored, we don't need to worry about it. He sighed again: "It's just one more sad person." ”

Concubine Xian said: "The enlightened and transparent person in the palace is only you." ”

When the head of the imperial hospital heard that the emperor had summoned him, he hurriedly sorted out the crown and hat of the court clothes, and bowed down and walked into the palace of nourishing the heart. He snorted, knelt on his knees, and said, "The emperor is blessed." The emperor was approving, his hand did not stop, and he did not tell him to get up, and said, "Do the three imperial doctors who went to the border of Ganchuan have a letter?" The imperial doctor in charge wondered, obviously every half a month, he would write down the traces of the three imperial doctors in detail, and even Jian Yuheng was seriously injured, not to mention that he had already taken three excerpts, and he had been asked by the emperor to transfer Jian Yuheng back to Beijing to recuperate. But since the emperor didn't know, he couldn't refute anything, so he went through it again.

The emperor threw away the imperial pen in his hand and reprimanded: "Why didn't you tell me about such a big event earlier?" The imperial doctor in charge was completely confused, and the warmth in the Heart Cultivation Hall was like spring, and he was so nervous that he was sweating profusely, and even the clothes on his back were soaked. He kowtowed and said, "The slave is ineffective, please punish him." There was silence in the room for a while, and the emperor seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and said, "The matter has come to this point, and we can only make amends." You immediately ordered that the Ganchuan Mansion send someone to send Jian Yuheng back to Shangjing, and when he recovers from his injuries, he will return to the palace on an errand. ”

The imperial doctor in charge sighed and said, "Long live Lord Shengming, the slave is grateful to the lord Longen." ”

When the people in the palace saw craftsmen coming in and out, they only said that Qixiang Palace built a glass house, but they didn't know the fortifications of Yikun Palace. Qingcheng ordered Hai'an to take the curtain, separated Qingyunzhai from the main hall, and ordered the palace maids not to move around if they had nothing to do, and they all served in the house. Qingcheng sewed a bed coat for the emperor, stood in front of the big mirror and waited for him to try it on, with wide shoulders and long sleeves, one more point is bigger, one less point is smaller, just right. The emperor smiled and said: "With your needlework, you are better than the palace maids in the embroidery room." In the palace, you like to make needlework, and everyone else makes socks, purses, and so on. ”

Qingcheng took the light blue jacket and robe again, changed it for the emperor, and said: "Each has its own preferences, they make their socks and purses, and I make embroidered my clothes and robes." He smiled again: "Wait a while, you have dinner and then leave, I will ask Mama Jiaoyin to bring Yongzhang over, and the three of us will have a quiet dinner, okay?" ”

The last time the three of them had a meal, Yongzhang sat in Qingcheng's arms, not only did he not be able to say a few words to Qingcheng, but what was even worse was that where Yongzhang was eating, it was simply fatal! The crying and crying were endless, and Qingcheng refused to let go of the grandmothers, saying that it would be unfamiliar with the mother-child relationship, and he insisted on feeding it himself. Hey, sometimes the emperor has to take a hand, oh my God, Miao Jiang is in turmoil, punishes the ministers, and even excludes public opinion, and continues to "change the land and return to the stream", I don't think it's more difficult than coaxing a two-year-old child to eat!

The emperor's face changed greatly, and he said, "There have been a lot of things recently..."

Qingcheng knew his thoughts, and said with a smile: "The last time Yongzhang cried, it was because his body was not very good, and Su Ri was extremely obedient. The emperor was embarrassed and bargained: "Will I take him for a walk in the imperial garden in the afternoon?" Forget about eating, I'm afraid, it's even more difficult than revising a copy of the "Great Qing Huidian". Speaking of the word "afraid", Qingcheng couldn't help laughing and said, "It turns out that the emperor is also afraid." Okay, I'll just take a step back, don't forget, come and see Yongzhang after you speak. ”

The emperor pinched her cheek, "oops", and jokingly said, "I really wronged you." ”

Qingcheng said: "It's not that I have been wronged, but that I have wronged Yongzhang." She led the emperor out and said: "I remember when I was young, my father had to teach my brother every day, the second brother was scolded for not liking to read, the eldest brother was scolded for loving reading too much, and my father treated me best, and promised whatever I wanted." At that time, I was too young, and I always thought that my father didn't like the eldest brother and the second brother, and secretly hated my father. Now that I have become a mother, I don't know what it's like. After a pause, he said: "You are the lord of the Qing Dynasty, the royal family pays attention to the dragon heir, and there will be many children in the future, I am not asking you to be partial to Yongzhang, as long as you can take care of him and cherish him like an ordinary father, and do not ignore him because he is not a son-in-law, I will be satisfied." ”

The emperor was stunned, and said for a long time: "He is the bloodline of Aixin Jueluo, and no one in the entire Qing Dynasty dares to ignore him." I am his emperor, and I will naturally treat him well. It's just that you, saying this for no reason, make people not understand. Qingcheng shook his hand, wrinkled the tip of his nose and said coquettishly: "There are eldest elder brothers, Yongzhang, fourth elder brothers and fifth elder brothers in the palace, and there is also the eldest daughter of the emperor in the middle palace. I can't control others, so I have to help Yongzhang. ”

She confessed like this, in front of him, pure and translucent like a clear moon, so that he could not avoid it, and added pity, and said with a smile: "Okay, I know." I've written down your little selfishness. With that, he drove back to Xinuan Pavilion. Qingcheng sent the emperor to Gong Street, and did not return to the house, but went directly to the Daode Hall to visit Yongzhang. When Yongzhang first came out of his brother's office, his face was yellow and thin, and after living in Yikun Palace for a while, he had grown white and fat, and his arms and legs were section by section, like white and tender lotus roots.

Yongzhang shouted "Eniang" in his mouth, and threw himself into Qingcheng's arms, Qingcheng carried him to the courtyard to play and frolic, and carefully asked Mama Yongzhang's food and bedding, and gave instructions in detail, and then returned to the main hall to eat.

After noon, suddenly the eunuch on the porch room of Yikun replied, "Master, follow the master to ask to see." ”

Hai An reprimanded: "I don't explain what I said, which Shun master is it?" ”

The eunuch replied: "The slave is worried, please forgive the master." After a pause, he said: "It's the Shun master of Qixiang Palace." ”

Qingcheng has never had much contact with the palace concubines, so she asked first: "Did she say anything?" The eunuch said: "I didn't say much, but the servant saw that several palace people with her were holding several pots of jade sunflowers. ”

Hai An said: "Yes, the slave maid heard that this Shun noble person loves to raise flowers the most, not only did the Lord Long Live build a glass flower room for her, but even Lafayette rewarded her with several eunuchs who specialize in flowers and plants." Qingcheng nodded, after all, the Shun nobleman was in the eyes of the queen mother, and no one in the harem dared to slack off, so he said: "Please let her in." ”

The eunuch snorted, but walked away.