After the meal, Zhu Ji bowed to Empress Lu and withdrew from Changle Palace. The night is very dark like a pool of ink splashing the night sky, the road leading to the palaces of Changle Palace is hung with pale yellow lanterns to show illumination, and there are night guards patrolling back and forth not far from the palace gate. After descending the steps, Zhu Ji laughed together and talked about how the food tasted tonight, and whether it was delicious or not. Mrs. Guan walked alone behind, walking and thinking, a trace of happiness occasionally flashed on her face, but it quickly disappeared, and she always looked at the two or three people talking in front of her. As soon as Zhu Ji went up to a deep pavilion road, Mrs. Guan walked quickly in front of them with a gust of wind, and said mysteriously in the middle of the pavilion road: "You don't want to know where the queen will go? ”

After saying this, Zhu Ji looked at each other for a long time, and Zhao Zi'er, Shi Meiren, and Bo Ji all looked at Mrs. Guan in surprise. Zhao Zi'er said with a smile, "The queen has lived in Changxin Palace for a long time, if not, where will she go?" Mrs. Guan smiled disdainfully and put her hand on her shoulder: "Innocent son!" The queen's anger during the meal, do you think the cause is me? Shi Meiren and Bo Ji glanced at each other and came forward to ask, "Madame's nonsense touched the queen's heart, right?" Mrs. Guan smiled and leaned closer to answer, but Bo Ji took the first step and said indifferently: "You are free, Liu Heng is still young, and the concubine will leave." After saying that, Bo Ji was supported by Fu Er, a personal palace person, and the master and servant gradually disappeared into everyone's surprised eyes.

Guan, Zhao, and Shi looked at each other. I have heard that Bo Ji's life in recent years is as indifferent as water, there is no half of the waves, Jinhua Palace is simple and simple, only a few vegetarian dishes for three meals a day, except for the fact that Empress Lu often calls her to go to Changle Palace to accompany her, everyone does not go to Jinhua Palace much, thinking that Bo Ji has no quarrel with the world, she has no opinion on what she says, neither does she do evil to others nor pleases anyone, it is very uninteresting, and gradually she does not see her out of Jinhua Palace for a few months, but she is more and more pure and unconventional because no one talks about it. As if the things in the harem have nothing to do with her, Bo Ji often stays in Jinhua Palace, raises flowers and fish by herself, mows grass and plants, and relies on Liu Heng to be a companion, but on a full moon night, she will stand alone in the courtyard and look up at the starry sky, and there is a kind of longing and confusion in her eyes.

"Sister Bo doesn't like to be lively as before." Shi Meiren looked at Bo Ji, who was gradually moving away, and sighed with emotion. After hearing this, Mrs. Guan was disdainful, looked at Bo Ji who was far away and complained, "If the Bo family changes in the clouds, neither my son nor I know this person." She complained that when we forgot the Wei Kingdom, "if it is expensive, don't forget it". Who knows who should be resentful? The Bo family already has the fourth son of the emperor, Liu Heng, and I have no other one, and I also complain. Hum! is not satisfied, and he often reads Huang Lao's theory. Mrs. Guan always felt that Mrs. Bo did not talk to herself like this, because she was in Chenggao Lingtai during the Chu-Han War, and she was not recommended to the emperor, and the emperor only favored herself and Zi'er, and she and Zi'er laughed at Bo Ji's inability. Now that a few years have passed, Bo Ji has already had a son, but she does not spare Mrs. Guan. Mrs. Guan herself also has grievances, and now she encounters Bo Ji's indifferent attitude, so Mrs. Guan also complains, thinking about it in her heart but not knowing who to blame. Looking at Bo Ji's distant back, it seemed familiar, but Mrs. Guan couldn't tell what it felt, and the sisterhood of the past was gone. Zhao Zi'er was deeply touched by Mrs. Guan's words, and at that time she only cared about her own fun and forgot about Bo Ji, but now she still has a little apology in her heart, after all, they once swore together: If it is expensive, do not forget each other. This matter has long since passed in time, and it is an old thing that I don't want to mention, so I didn't continue to talk about it at the beginning, and Zhu Ji turned back to the topic. Shi Meiren asked Mrs. Guan what she meant when she said that Empress Lu would move elsewhere. Mrs. Guan drew her attention from Bo Ji's matter, and immediately said proudly: "You think about it, when the emperor and queen went to Liyang Palace to worship the emperor today, the emperor specially persuaded the emperor not to snub his wife during the festival in front of the queen, and the emperor made a perfunctory promise at that time, but he left the other concubines at night and went to the Yuzao Palace, did you say that the queen could bear this anger?" Zhao and Shi stared at Mrs. Guan suspiciously for a long time. Mrs. Guan sat down on a stone pier on the pavilion road, and seeing that Shi and Zhao could listen energetically, Mrs. Guan was also very happy, and continued to say: "Since Empress Lu was welcomed back to Chang'an from Xiang Yu's military camp, how many times has the emperor stayed in Changxin Palace? His Majesty has taken Mrs. Qi with him several times when he went out of the customs, and let Empress Lu stay behind, why not? Empress Lu is old, rarely sees His Majesty, and her feelings become more and more sparse. The rise of the Qi family has cried to Your Majesty many times, hoping to rely on Your Majesty to remove the crown prince and support Ruyi to inherit the unification. Don't you complain? Now that the Double Ninth Festival, she wanted to treat His Majesty, how could Her Majesty go to Yuzao Palace, Empress Lu must be angry for a while, you say she can even bear it? If so, it is better to call Qi Ji the queen. ”

Zhao Zi'er nodded suddenly, "The queen made a big fuss in the Yuzao Palace tonight and invited Her Majesty back to the Changxin Palace?" "Yes." Mrs. Guan is categorical. Shi Meiren frowned and said, "Mrs. Qi's illness is unknown, Your Majesty will not obey the queen's wishes." Mrs. Guan said proudly, "Everyone knows that the queen is a courageous woman, and Your Majesty will not be able to resist her." You don't know that although the emperor is wise in politics, he is weak in harem affairs. Mrs. Guan looked at her face, if this matter was in her hands. Zhao and Shi were a little convinced, and they both wanted to see how Empress Lu invited the emperor back to the palace late at night. Zi'er took Mrs. Guan's arm and sat with her on the stone pier of the pavilion, but Shi Meiren glanced at Mrs. Guan with a mysterious and wicked smile in her eyes, and then sat down and waited for everything.

Let's say that Mrs. Bo is about to return to her Jinhua Palace, along the way, Fu Er frowned for a long time, and was puzzled by Mrs. Bo's not chatting with other concubines just now, so she asked her why she didn't chat with Guan, Zhao, and Shi? Bo Ji took a deep breath and said abruptly: "Time has changed, and everything has changed. Guan Zhao once had a sisterly relationship with me, and as soon as he stepped into the deep palace, he drowned any friendship in the palace. Mrs. Guan wants to make waves, but she will eventually be suppressed by the waves. Fu Er was puzzled, frowned and asked, "Since Mrs. and Guan and Zhao are sisters, why don't you persuade her?" Do you resent it? Without hesitation, Bo Ji said, "I've never held a grudge. Bo Ji continued to walk with deep eyes, and said helplessly, "People must be in a hurry." "Guan Niangniang is in a hurry?" "She still has no heirs, so she has to hurry." Bo Ji sighed, every time she said this, she was always a little sad and helpless, for Mrs. Guan's move, Bo Ji couldn't stop it, Mrs. Guan had no heirs, so she acted by no means, wanting to sublimate the contradiction between Qi Ji and Empress Lu again, and she benefited alone. Aren't the people in the harem looking forward to having a son and becoming a king? Bo Ji felt that Mrs. Guan was a bit of a risky move, and if Empress Lu or Qi Ji knew about it in the future, she might not be able to escape.

The small moon hangs high. Guan, Zhao, and Shi waited on the pavilion road for almost an hour, but they didn't see any movement on the queen's side, and the cold wind invaded in the cold night, making them shiver from the cold. And half of the palace lights outside Changle Palace have been extinguished. The three of them sat or leaned against the wall of the pavilion and stared closely at the main hall of Empress Lu, or closed their eyes and rested against the pillar. I haven't seen anyone enter or leave the palace for a long time, and there is silence around the hall. Zhao Zi'er yawned and said to Mrs. Guan: "Madame miscalculated. It's been an hour and I haven't seen the queen come out, so I'm waiting for the wind and the cold, so I might as well go back to sleep. It's too late, Liu Hui doesn't see me, and he won't sleep. Zhao Zi'er didn't have much interest in watching this play, if it weren't for Mrs. Guan saying some tempting words, I'm afraid she would have gone back to warm up at this time. And after a long night, I remembered that my son Liu Hui might be crying, so I hurriedly got up and wanted to rush back. Shi Meiren can't wait, the wind is so strong at night, she is thin, and she also has a son Liu You at home. Seeing that Zhao Zi'er was leaving, Shi Meiren also muttered that she wanted to leave. Mrs. Guan hurriedly grabbed them and asked them to wait a while, her two bodies were already shivering and shrunk their heads, exhaling white air in their mouths, rubbing their arms around them to keep warm, and persuaded Mrs. Guan to go back too, Mrs. Guan did not stop, and the words of complaint muttering in the mouths of Shi and Zhao were long gone.

"You ...... Hum! Mrs. Guan looked at her angrily and the two of them left, and in a blink of an eye, there was only no one around the pavilion, and there were many hollow holes in the pavilion wall, which looked extremely gloomy from the inside. Mrs. Guan's heart was already terrified, and her mouth was broken, "If it weren't for the cold night, I would have waited until dawn." Mrs. Guan didn't give up and looked at the palace gate of Changxin Palace again, but it was still quiet, and when she saw that the sky was approaching, she finally couldn't wait to go back alone.

Choshin Palace.

Empress Lu sat silently in front of the dresser, waving a slender palace maid to remove her hair, the female palace people were just about to come over to help her, but Empress Lu waved her away, and dismantled her own hair, and when she was stroking her back, she happened to see herself in the bronze mirror more tired, woody and lost, and Lu Hou Mu Ran stroked her hair and looked at the bronze mirror in a daze. The mind has long returned to the good old days, the husband is busy, he and the children plough the field, twilight stepping on the moon and returning, making fragrant meals and waiting for the husband's return, every now and then the door always thinks of the husband's footsteps, first the children ran out coquettishly to the husband's arms to ask him to hold, he always smiled and picked up the two children, together in the arms of the intimacy. She also walked out of the house happily, and saw that her husband was holding a bundle of cowhide wrapped things in his hand, she knew that her husband and his buddies did not know where to get the merlot, and he always went home to bring meat to himself and the children to eat, and when he saw the meat in his husband's hands, the husband and wife looked at each other and smiled, let go of the lovely pair of children, and the husband hugged her into his arms. Even if the husband is more than 20 years older than himself, but he doesn't care about it after he is in love, but within a few years the world is in turmoil, the people are displaced, the husband raised troops to respond to the call of the world's heroes to fight in the east and west, after experiencing life and death, he was named the king of Han, and defeated him in the east, seven years later called the emperor, but she was even more depressed, the woman around her husband is not only her, the son is more than Liu Ying, the beauties are all jade and bright, and the sons are all extremely cute.

Everything in the past now flashes clearly in her mind, that is, this 'once' has resided in her heart for a long time, good and disgusting, she can't forget, these are her strength to survive. Empress Lu thought gloomily, Dai Qing came in from outside with hot tea in his hand, and saw the queen sitting quietly in front of the banquet, Dai Qing handed the tea to Empress Lu. Lu Hou came back to his senses, took a sip of tea, and then put it on a few cases. "Niangniang, what's on your mind?" "Am I no longer in calyx? Is it already like a sixtieth birthday? Am I old? Lu Hou turned to Dai Qing with his hands on his face and asked. Dai Qing sighed and said with a smile: "Niangniang is the phoenix among people, how can she be old?" Dai Qing picked up the wooden comb on the makeup table of Empress Lu to comb her hair, and comforted, "Niangniang's two curved eyebrows are like distant green mountains, a pair of eyes are as warm and moist as autumn water, and her cheeks are like lotus calyxes, and cardamom women are incomparable." ”

Lu Hou smiled lightly: "You are smart and clever after all, I like to listen." People, kings and people are mortals, how can they not grow old? The First Emperor still wanted to live forever, but didn't he also die? The queen is nothing but an empty crown, with it, I won't grow old? "Mother is right." Dai Qing replied with a smile and continued to comb his hair. "Alas!" Empress Lu sighed again, Mu didn't speak on the mat, and flicked the hair in front of him in a distracted manner. Seeing this, Dai Qing made a plan in his abdomen, and carefully probed, "Niangniang is thinking about what Mrs. Guan said just now, right?" Empress Lu nodded and asked Dai Qing what he thought. In fact, you don't need to be angry at all just now, you are angry and you are falling for someone else's trick. Dai Qing said as he helped Lu and sat down on the edge of the bed. Empress Lu leaned on the couch and nodded admittedly, "Yes, I know what Wen means." "But Mrs. Guan has a saying that is right: if you are respectful and orderly, you will be in harmony with the upper and lower. When he visited the Emperor Taishang today, the Emperor Taishang had already hinted that His Majesty should not snub his wife, and His Majesty would know what this meant, but he ran to Qi Ji Palace at night. All things must be done according to propriety, and rudeness will be disorder. Dai Qing said word by word, "Dai Qing didn't tell Niangniang to make a big fuss in the Yuzao Palace, but told Niangniang that things in principle and etiquette should not behave indiscriminately, and if you trespass, there will be chaos." ”

Empress Lu pondered for a long time, and her eyes were swaying and self-comforting, "Only once on the Double Ninth Night, do you value it so much?" This is also a struggle, and it is inevitable that the heart of this palace is narrow. Dai Qing became anxious, forgetting the rules of the master and servant, and shook Empress Lu's hands tightly, and solemnly persuaded her with four eyes, "Blindly forbearance helps others to increase their momentum, and loses the dignity of the queen, I am afraid that Your Majesty will not let you see it, if this is the case for a long time, the prince will be in danger!" Lu hesitated, squinted his eyes and pondered for a long time. Dai Qing took advantage of the situation and said, "Don't let Qi Ji Hu come, today's festive year, His Royal Highness wants to tell her to see jokes?" ”

Empress Lu shook her head slightly, stayed in the house again, paced and thought for a long time, then instructed Dai Qing to prepare Chongyang cake and dogwood grass, and also instructed the palace people to go to Xuanqin Imperial Doctor. After Dai Qing made some preparations, he listened to Lu Houdao, "I heard that Luan Mao Dunshan sent an envoy to Chang'an in November to ask His Majesty to send his daughter to Hu to marry, and these few days the palace is trying to talk to His Majesty about this matter, but there are many things in Chongyang, so I don't have to mention it." ”

Dai Qing was suspicious and a little worried, when Liu Jingfeng persuaded the emperor to send his daughter into Hu, the matter of Lu Hou was hearted, Liu Jing went to the Huns when he concluded a wedding date, the date was early October, and soon after Liu Jing returned to Chang'an, Mao Dun sent someone to Chang'an to say that the date was changed to May, and the Huns in October were slightly cold and inconvenient, Liu Bang agreed angrily. Half a month later, he received a messenger from Maudun to the court, saying that the date was changed to July, and May was the grazing period, and it was also very inconvenient to welcome relatives, so Liu Bang agreed again angrily. Mao Dun's breach of the covenant made the Han family dare not believe it easily, so Empress Lu sent people on the border to find out the exact date of Mao Dun's envoy to the court, and kept an eye on the emperor's attitude towards this matter. Not long ago, someone returned to the court to send someone to welcome the relatives of Mao Dun back to Lu Hou, in view of the previous few things, Lu Hou asked him to make sure, people said that Mao Dun said that although it was cold in November, it was a happy and leisurely time for the whole family, there was no busy in the past, and the marriage was even more lively. Empress Lu planned to talk to the emperor about this matter in the past few days, but she didn't expect to be busy with the Double Ninth Festival. Dai Qing couldn't help but be a little worried about her approach, afraid that the emperor would fix Empress Lu's behavior on this matter on participating in politics. Dai Qing said worriedly, "The two countries are married, and the slaves and maids are worried about ......"

Empress Lu waved her hand to stop her words, and said leisurely, "This matter is a half-national and half-family matter. I'm the princess's mother, can't I care about this? Because I want the emperor to return, that's all I have to do. The main palace is measured, don't worry. When Empress Lu said this, Dai Qing was a little nervous and worried. At this time, Imperial Physician Qin also hurried over from the Imperial Physician Pavilion.

"Swing the Yuzao Palace-" A long cry came out of the Changxin Palace, and everyone hugged Lu Hou and came out.