"Second brother, do you know that the Heavenly Master is now in Chongyang Palace, or is it in Jiafu Temple in our capital?" Luo Yan slowly plucked a cup of tea in her hand and finally opened her mouth.

"It should be in Jiafu Temple right now, after all, there are not many days left before the winter solstice. It stands to reason that the Heavenly Master must be preparing for the Great Sacrifice. Murong Qian sat opposite her, looking out of the window on his right, he could see the trees in the Changchun Palace withering in the cold wind, and the scenery did not match the word "Changchun" in any way.

Xiao Jixiang'er had already gone to the study to take classes, and Emperor Yongnian went to the Qianqing Palace, but before leaving, he said to Murong Qian: "You can talk to Ping'an!" Indeed, he had a lot to tell Luo Yan, Murong Qian sent Tianzhu to guard outside the study, and let Qingqing watch outside. But when I really sat down opposite Luo Yan, I didn't know where to start - those words were too cruel. Luo Yan didn't seem to know what to say, and the two of them had already sat in the east pavilion of the Xishi Hall for a tea time. As a result, as soon as she opened her mouth, it was the Heavenly Master who asked.

"Father said that I will take it with his eight characters for the Heavenly Master to see, can I go to the Heavenly Master once before? Since I have returned, I may be the one who made the great sacrifice, and I should go to the Celestial Master once. Luo Yan lowered her eyelids, trying to hide the eager sparkle in her eyes.

The annual winter solstice sacrifice is the most important ceremony of the six parts of Dayan Xianbei, it has always been the emperor's dedication, the emperor's eldest son sacrifice, the most noble virgin in the royal family, since the age of eight Luo Yan is the princess of the silk, she only felt that this errand was too boring, but now it is an opportunity!

Murong Qian couldn't help but laugh, what does this girl want to do? Collusion with the Celestial Master? It's just that others need to prepare for the silk, how many times has she done it, and she still needs to go to Jiafu Temple more than ten days in advance? Would her father let her play such a little trick?

didn't wait for an answer for a long time, but when she looked up, she saw the ridicule in Murong Qian's eyes, Luo Yan lowered her head in frustration: "I'm just unwilling, since I was a child, the Heavenly Master said that I was blessed, and this time he said that I was full of calamities, but why do I think my calamity has just begun?" Second brother, you know that I don't want to marry anyone, let alone marry him, but I really can't do it, even if the second brother casually helps me point out a colt and has a name in my princess's mansion, won't the prince rest assured? Couldn't the Heavenly Master fulfill such a small request of mine? ”

Murong Qian couldn't help but sigh, how could his sister go back more and more! couldn't help but say, "Luo Yan, are you confused?" Who is the Celestial Master, and why does He want to fulfill you? Take a step back and say, even if the Heavenly Master says that you and Yang Fei don't agree, then what? You still have to open a mansion, although Princess Dayan can choose her own son-in-law, but she has always chosen a noble family or a noble, do you really think that there is still a big family willing to stand opposite the prince and let his children be your concubines? Are you really not afraid that your father will randomly point out a person, and then he will turn around and sell you to the crown prince? Taking a step back, if you don't open a mansion this year, what about next year, and what about the future? Can you live in the palace for the rest of your life? ”

Luo Yan stared blankly at the cup of tea in front of her, and couldn't help but smile bitterly: "I don't understand, I really don't understand, what's going on with my father, what's going on with the prince, but second brother, since that's the case, what if I marry him?" The crown prince is the future emperor! Even if I can keep peace at this time, won't I hurt him and King An's Mansion in the future? ”

Murong Qian smiled faintly: "You also underestimate King An and him, since the founding of the country, the military and the government have been divided, the army does not lead the government, and the government does not interfere with the army, so the nobles in the army have nothing to do with the government." For more than 100 years in Dayan, if the nobles in the army are not defeated or rebel, it is impossible for the emperor to add crimes at will, because it is easy to kill one, but it is too difficult for An Bai. Even if the crown prince ascends the throne in the future, he can't just kill you, the princess of King An, right? Besides, even if he is not the prince of King An, with his current prestige in the army, it is enough to protect you. ”

Luo Yan was a little confused, isn't he a five-grade thousand-horse general? And the newspaper she saw mentioned that he had killed the enemy chieftain and captured the puppet king in the northwest war, is this remarkable?

Murong Qian was also strange in his heart - Yao Chufan hadn't told her? I had to explain: "Yang Fei was in the northwest, and he was sealed twice, once to chase and kill the Khitan king with thousands of horses, but he only lost more than 200 people, but he killed 3,000 enemies and killed two princes; Once he attacked the main Khitan force with the army, his left army annihilated 50,000 enemies, and he captured the Khitan emperor alive in the chaos...... My father called him the champion of our dynasty. If it weren't for the prince of King An, he would have been knighted a long time ago. Today, he is the general of the Thousand Cavalry of the Imperial Forest Guard, and the military rank is only five ranks, but this position has always been the most prestigious in the army, and he is the youngest general of the Thousand Cavalry since the founding of the Great Yan Dynasty. ”

Champion Hou? Luo Yan couldn't help but be shocked, no wonder those guards looked at him like they saw a god! He turned out to have made such an immortal feat in the northwest and became a hero like Huo Quai! Luo Yan sighed, for the first time, she felt how sad the era without news was, would she die if she wrote a few more words? "Kill the enemy chieftain" and "capture the puppet king", the ghost can see the earth-shattering military exploits behind it from these words! Perhaps, she should seriously consider starting a newspaper?

"It's just ......" Luo Yan was still a little unwilling, "In this case, other nobles in the army, like the Dugu family of the king of Pingbei County, and the Shangguan family of the king of Pingnan County, don't they have unmarried children?" ”

Murong Qian looked out the window: "It's one thing to be able to protect you, and it's another thing to be willing to protect you." ”

Luo Yan lowered her head bitterly: I'm so stupid, not only stupid, but also arrogant! Really think that she is a peerless beauty, and a wind flies by, and all men in the world rush to die for themselves? If you are willing to offend the future emperor for him, in addition to the two brothers and him, where else in the world can you find another one! It turns out that he is willing to ask me, just to give me face, he is willing to marry me, I should be grateful! But why does such a marriage make me feel so sad and afraid?

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Luo Yan raised her head and smiled as calmly as possible: "Second brother, I understand, I won't be delusional anymore." I was just...... I don't understand how this can be. ”

Murong Qian's heart was uncomfortable: his words were too cruel, right? However, after Xue Qing's incident, he thought about it for a long time, only to realize that he was wrong: he was too confident to protect Luo Yan, too much to protect her, but it turned out to make her become emotional, weak and sluggish...... He closed his eyes slightly: Father is right, you can't spoil her!

When he opened his eyes again, Murong Qian's eyes were already calm: "I think that instead of thinking about whether you are willing to open a mansion, whether you are willing to marry, and whether you like the choice of a concubine, you should think about whether you and the people around you can live safely until the time when the mansion is opened!" ”

Luo Yan was stunned for a moment, and her heart was cold: That's right, now, she not only has no right to choose, but also has no right to be sad and sad, because living is the most important thing, not only do she have to live, but also these nurses and girls around her......

"More than two years ago, when I came back from Tibet, I always asked myself, why is this happening? Can I get out of the way? Later, I found out that I had no choice, as a royal person, there are some things that you can't let go of if you give up others, as an official, you can retreat, lead the troops, you can retreat, but we, once we are involved in that kind of dispute, there is no way out, only a dead end. I only know that if I fight, although I may not be able to win in the future, if I retreat, I will only die, not only will I die, but the people around me will also die. Murong Qian looked at Luo Yan quietly;" You should know that you are the same nowadays. ”

Murong Qian unfolded his white and slender hands: "As for the so-called friends, I have the blood of my friends back then. Luo Yan, you remember one thing, for people like us, as long as a person stands opposite you, he will never cease to be your friend. ”

"Actually, you should be glad that you still have such a way out as King An's Mansion, and I, have you ever thought about what will happen to him as a new emperor ascends the throne, an intelligence chief and the leader of the secret guard who is hated by the emperor?"

Luo Yan looked up at him in shock, yes, what is the current position of the second brother...... But doesn't my father know? Why didn't the second brother choose to go back to his fiefdom?

"You must think, why don't I simply return to the fief like Ah Jun, because I am not as good as him, Ah Jun is naturally smart and resolute, he can gain a great reputation in the army at a young age, and he can manage his fief flawlessly. For the first 20 years, I spent more than 20 years talking about poetry and essays, traveling around. Useless is a scholar! Even if he started to operate a fiefdom at that time, he was afraid that he would not be able to save the fire from far away. Besides, I have people who must be protected. The shortcut that Elder Yan gave me was already the best path I could choose. So, Luo Luo, you have to be sensible, you have to learn to protect yourself, don't let the second brother worry about you every day, okay? Maybe one day, the second brother will have to rely on you to save his life! ”

Luo Yan looked at Murong Qian, her face wiped all her expressions like white paper, and only after half a sound did she suddenly smile: "I understand second brother, don't worry." ”

Lowering her head, Luo Yan slowly took a sip of tea, the tea was already cold, the temperature was just right, just right, enough to extinguish all the self-deceptive fantasies and luck in her heart, all irresponsible dependence and evasion, and the shameful moral cleanliness of naivety.

She couldn't go back. Whether it is the 21st century journalist career who got up every day and owed a manuscript to the newspaper first, or the life of Princess Dayan, who whipped up her horse and acted recklessly three years ago, she can't go back. She is no longer qualified to be a modern girl with a sense of justice, or a pure and innocent goddess. For people who have only two choices - try to live, or hurry to die - to want to keep a clean and pure soft little heart in the bloodiest and darkest place like the court, this is not noble, this is naked stupidity. Such a life may not be worth living, but she doesn't even have the right to die.

Swallowing the last sip of herbal tea in the cup, Luo Yan raised her head: "Second brother, there is one thing I need your help with, there are too few people I can use at hand." ”

Murong Qian's eyes showed a hint of amazement and a hint of relief, and he nodded and said, "I've prepared it for you." ”