The matter of the minister's request for the emperor to canonize the concubines also spread to the Hanzhang Palace, and with it, there was also Concubine Jing, a lobbyist invited by the Queen Mother. [Full text reading. 】

Sizhen stood in front of the window and stared at the sky, the dark clouds were dense in the sky, heavy as if they were about to fall, and the whole world was so depressed that the whole world was dim, only the sound of the wind was circling and shuttling, and the rainstorm was coming.

"Concubine Jing, the courtiers remember that their father once said that when they encounter difficulties, they don't need to seek a way out of the predicament, as long as they move forward bravely, they can get out of the predicament and gradually get better. But in today's situation, how can the courtiers move forward bravely? In the past, the queen mother wanted me to stay away from the emperor, and I did it, and now, she wants me to agree to enter the palace, just to stop the emperor's absurdity. ”

"If there is no marriage contract between the father and the king, the courtiers are no longer willing to enter the palace, after all, the emperor is a good one, but now, the courtiers have a marriage contract, this is the marriage set by the father and the mother for me, how can the courtiers violate it? Since I was a child, my father taught his courtiers and daughters, and my mother also taught me that from the beginning to the end, if I enter the palace as a concubine, where will I put my parents? Where is the Sun family? ”

Concubine Jing sighed lightly: "Ah Zhen, this palace knows that you are wronged and helpless, and I also know that you are in a dilemma, but no matter what, this matter is the meaning of the queen mother, and you must not resist it!" Didn't you also say to this palace before, those who know the practice are handsome, don't blindly stubborn and confrontational with the emperor, how can it be your turn, you are confused? He is the Son of Heaven and the Ninety-Five, how can you refuse! ”

Sizhen's heart trembled: "But Niangniang, the courtiers are unwilling to let their fate be arranged by others, and it is only today that the courtiers realize how powerless this struggle is." The women in the palace are very tired, and the mother has more experience than the courtiers, so if the queen mother insists on this, the courtiers can really only die! ”

Concubine Jing was silent for a long time, speechless for a long time, and only after a while did she speak: "Ah Zhen, you also know that the palace came to visit today on the order of the queen mother. Since that night, except in public, in private, you have refused to see the emperor again, and the queen mother is actually very difficult, in fact, from another point of view, if the emperor is not more important than you, how can you be so presumptuous? ”

"In April, I heard that there was no such thing as your name, so the emperor directly reprimanded the courtiers for arguing in vain, and this time, it was the ministers who took care of their lives to discuss with the Ministry of Rites, and they didn't even want to meet the queen mother. If you don't want to, the emperor wants the dark cloud bead to enter the palace, the emperor is concerned, you just don't miss others, you should also be grateful for the emperor's infatuation, you, got the heart we can't look forward to! ”

Sizhen shook her head and smiled awe-inspiringly: "If this happened a year ago, when Sizhen didn't have a marriage contract, I was afraid that even if the courtiers were worried, they would be happy, but now, the courtiers have promised Sun Gongzi that they will not leave and will not abandon each other, and life and death depend on each other......" She remembered the oath she made with Sun Yanling when she left Guilin, and her expression became more and more resolute: "My heart is a stone, and I can't turn it." If the queen mother and the emperor insist on this, Sizhen can only die to thank him! ”

"Sizhen, this palace has never seen the emperor so desperate, the emperor can't extricate himself, even the queen mother doesn't want to pull him back this time. If it weren't for the emperor's obsession with you, how could he provoke the joke of the dark clouds? Concubine Jing's heart was also full of bitterness, persuading another woman to marry her beloved, such a thing is unspeakably miserable for any woman.

It's just that she loves the emperor deeply, and she really doesn't want to see the emperor trapped by love, and Concubine Jing also understands that if she doesn't persuade Sizhen too much for the queen mother, someone else will come, and it is difficult to say whether others will really force Sizhen to death.

Therefore, she suppressed the sourness in her heart and walked away.

"The queen mother originally thought that if she married the queen, the emperor would be relieved, but in the past two years, the emperor has become more and more absurd, and his joy and anger have changed more than before, and it has become more and more unpredictable. But that's it, he can't bear to touch you at all, and even when he knew that Talma had privately sent someone to investigate that Sun Shenling, he was furious. Sizhen, are you angry with the emperor because of the matter of Wuyunzhu? ”

"Actually, the emperor is on her, and it is also because of his affection for you. Sizhen, the emperor has already moved his heart, are you really indifferent? What do you say about death, have you ever thought about what you will do if you die, what will happen to the Ding Domain, what will happen to the Kong family, what will happen to your brother? ”

Sizhen clenched her fists tightly, her nails were almost embedded in the flesh, she turned to look at Concubine Jing, and the corners of her mouth hooked up a sneer: "Concubine Jing, do you have little sincerity for the emperor?" Did he care a little bit about your haggard face and helpless look? In this world, only his sincerity is sincere, is it sincere, and other people's are all donkey liver and lungs? ”

"Yes, he is the emperor, the king wants the minister to die, and the minister can't not die, but if you want to ask the courtier's heart, the courtier is unwilling, and she is not willing to die! Please Concubine Jing go back and tell her mother, if she doesn't care about the life or death of her courtiers, make an order. ”

After Concubine Jing left, Sizhen felt depressed, changed her clothes, and called the thrush to go out for horseback riding.

It wasn't until it was time to ride a horse that Thrush took Sizhen's horse out of the hands of the palace people, and the sleeves of her coat fell, revealing an arm, that Sizhen saw the bruises on her right wrist.

"What's wrong with your hand? Who made you like this? Sizhen frowned and asked repeatedly.

The thrush scrambled to hide her wrist back in her sleeve.

"No, it's nothing, the slave maid accidentally injured herself."

The bruised fingerprints are still there, obviously pinched out.

How could a thrush pinch itself and pinch it so deeply?

I must have been bullied.

Even if it is a slave and a maid, it is divided into three, six, nine and so on, and it is common for the slaves and maids above to bully the lower ones to be angry and arrogant.

But Sizhen can't get used to those things that bully the weak, no matter who the minions in the house are, they bully the people under them, and if they meet her, they will be beaten, so the maids in front of her are very rare.

What's more, Thrush is still the big palace maid in front of her, who dares to bully her like this? Especially, in the past few years after entering the palace, with the support of the queen mother, the emperor values it, even the ladies in the palace will give her a little thin face, how can she bully her?

Obviously not an ordinary person, so the thrush will cover up, afraid of causing trouble for himself.

"Don't lie to me, can you make that injury on your hand yourself? Tell me, who bullied you? Ben Gege is going to settle accounts with them! Sizhen said angrily.

"There's really no one to bully the slave maid, don't ask Gege." The thrush did not dare to talk much, for fear of causing trouble, so he denied it.

Sizhen saw that she was scared, so she didn't ask any further, but comforted her: "Go back, I'll let Bailing take Ziyun Paste and wipe it on you, and if someone bullies you in the future, you have to tell me on the spot, I will help you get justice, but you can't let others bully you in vain." My mother once told me that this person is good at being bullied, and Ma is good at being ridden, and his temperament is too weak, and he will only be bullied! ”

Speaking of his own mother, Sizhen was silent for a while.

The thrush hurriedly opened the topic: "The slave knows, thank you Gege!" Although the princess's words make sense, after all, we are guests here, and if something happens, it will not look good, so the slave and maid thought, the emperor is actually angry, you just let him order, this matter is over, his temperament is calm, and it will be fine. ”

Hearing this, Sizhen pouted her ruddy little mouth.

Gripping the reins, she whispered to the thrush, "Do you remember what my mother said when I was learning to ride and shoot? ”

The thrush couldn't help but redden.

How could you not remember, the prince let Gege start practicing on horseback at the age of four, and once he fell, and he didn't wake up in the middle of the night, the princess shouted to the prince with tears: "Is riding and shooting something that girls should work on?" Do you want her to be a female general in the future? Don't let her ride a horse in the future, I can save my worries and live a few more years! ”

If it weren't for Gege's insistence on learning, saying that she likes to ride a horse, and likes the feeling of being extraordinarily free on horseback, the prince also said that riding and shooting is conducive to strengthening the body, but I'm afraid that at this moment, Gege doesn't even know what's going on on the horse!

After all, for the women in the boudoir, the most important thing is the elegant hobbies such as needlework, etiquette, music, and books, but Gege doesn't like those.

Instead, he was interested in cavalry archery, swords, and military books.

The princess quarreled with the prince for this reason, saying that she was a good daughter, and she was taken by the prince to become a barbarian.

Fortunately, Gege has always been like a Ling Xiaohua, although proud, but not rough, but between his eyebrows, he is a little more heroic than other girls.

And the prince and princess, although one is a strict father and the other is a loving mother, their love for Gege hurts to the bone.

Although several years have passed, to this day, Gege still remembers them with a casual sentence and a single thing.

Thrush held back her tears and said with a smile: "If the princess sees that Gege is so good at riding and shooting now, she will definitely be very happy." ”

Sizhen nodded and smiled: "You stand aside and give me the reins." ”

In the Forbidden City, it is strictly forbidden to ride a horse, if you want to ride a horse, you can get the shooting hall on an open flat ground outside the Jingyun Gate and the south of the Fengxian Palace, the shooting hall was built in Shunzhi four years, its face is wide and five rooms, three rooms are deep, the top of the Yellow Glazed Tile Mountain, and the corridor is out on all sides. There are 20 vermilion lacquer pillars in the hall that directly support the beam frame, which reduces the layering of the bucket arch and appears very open.

The gables on the east and west sides of the temple grind bricks to the joints, do not open the windows, the north and south sides each open the rhombic flower door, the south five north three total eight doors.

This is the place where the princes and grandchildren specially practiced archery on horseback.

If it weren't for the fact that Sizhen was young when she first entered the palace, Fu Lin took pity on her for losing her father and mother, and gave her a token, she would not have been qualified to come here to ride a horse and shoot arrows.

This is also the reason why Jianning didn't like Sizhen at the beginning.

felt that Sizhen had robbed the queen mother and the emperor's brother of her favor.

Riding on the horse, thinking of the ruthless fighting spirit with Jianning back then, and then not knowing each other, the two became friends, and the depression in Sizhen's heart dissipated a lot.