On this day, half a month after the loss of the daughter of the Mei nobles, Ruyi accompanied the emperor to gossip in the warm pavilion of the Heart Raising Palace. The emperor's expression was always a little depressed, facing the rain and snow outside the window, he was immersed in silent sorrow, and copied the "Curse of Death" over and over again. The dusk of the rainy and snowy weather also looked particularly dark, such as Yi saw that there was still a pot of residual wine on the several cases in front of the emperor, a lonely cup, and several white candles burning a few clusters of dim cold flames, and every time they jumped, they splashed with convulsions. The emperor was wearing a white fox skin dragon robe, which was originally a silver-white background color, with snow-white fox skin piping, and even the gold embroidered dragon pattern looked a lot colder. The royal family has always paid attention to the elegance and wealth of the colors, and the emperor rarely wears such plain colors. Dressed like this now, it's just because of the mood.

There was still the aftertaste of cold wine in the air, Ruyi rolled up her sleeves, gently grinded the ink for the emperor, and said softly: "If the emperor wants to drink wine, let people warm it first, cold wine is too hurtful to the stomach." Or, it's good to talk to people. ”

The emperor did not look up, and there was a sad meaning in his faint tone: "Drink yourself, cold wine will taste." What's more, the hall is so warm that if you drink hot wine, you will lose your interest. ”

Ruyi quietly finished grinding the ink, smelling the ambergris in the hall a little light, so he asked Li Yu to take someone to hold the incense burner, and used a copper pick to open a corner of the hollow crane pattern copper furnace, and added a handful of rosewood Suhe incense.

The emperor only bowed his head and concentrated on copying, and asked, "Why don't you use ambergris?" ”

Ruyi said: "Su Hexiang can clear the trick and clear the phlegm, and it is best to use it in winter." ”

The emperor put down his pen and sighed, and said with a wry smile: "Clearing the tricks and opening up the depression and phlegm? I know that you are kind, but I am depressed, how can I solve it with Su Hexiang? ”

Ruyi sorted out the "Mantra of Death" copied by the emperor one by one, and said gently: "The emperor copied so many "Mantras of Death" for Baohua Hall to use in chanting sutras, and the concubines knew that the emperor still cared about the child in his heart. She looked at the emperor's expression carefully: "The emperor often goes to Yanxi Palace to visit his concubines, Yonghe Palace and Yanxi Palace are only a few steps away, why don't the emperor go and see the Mei nobles and comfort them a little?" ”

The sadness of the emperor's eyebrows is like a cloudy sky, condensed: "The hometown is more timid, and I don't know how to comfort each other?" On the contrary, it was sad twice. He was quiet: "Fortunately, Noble Mei doesn't know what the child looks like......"

Ruyi hurriedly said: "The queen mother has instructed that no leakage of news is allowed." The imperial doctor and the grandmother who delivered the baby that day had already been dispatched. Anyone who has ever seen a small ...... The palace people in the princess's body have also been transferred to the Rehe Palace, and they are no longer allowed to serve in the palace. ”

The emperor bowed slightly: "The queen has thought very thoroughly. This matter is ominous, and I don't even dare to tell the Queen Mother. ”

Ruyi nodded and said, "Now the only people who have seen that child in the palace are the emperor, the queen, the concubines and Wang Qin. There is no more fifth. ”

The emperor exhaled silently, and was about to pick up the pen to write again, only to hear two knocks on the door outside, but it was Wang Qin who said outside: "Your Majesty, the nobles of Yonghe Palace have sent something to invite the saint to take a look, do you want to take a look?" ”

The emperor hesitated for a moment, then put down his pen and said, "Take it and take a look." ”

Wang Qin agreed to push the door in, but there was a stack of baby clothes in the red lacquer tray of Huang Li's Mingzhi and many sons and blessings. The emperor was puzzled for a moment, and then asked, "What is this?" ”

Wang Qin said respectfully: "Noble Mei said that I heard that the emperor worked hard to copy the "Curse of Death" and the little princess, so he wanted to incinerate the clothes he had made for the little princess to wear together, even if the little princess could not wear it in the world, she would not be cold and cold when she arrived in Elysium. ”

A trace of sadness flashed in the emperor's expression, and Ruyi said: "Your Majesty, the noble lady Mei remembers her heart, you still fulfill her." ”

The emperor nodded: "I'm right, you tell her, stay in your palace and incinerate." ”

Wang Qin said again: "Noble Mei said that tonight is the hour when the little princess was born half a month ago, and I hope that the emperor can come to Yonghe Palace in person and accompany Noble Mei to burn these clothes to mourn." He took a few steps forward and turned over the clothes on the plate: "These clothes are all made by the noble people themselves, and the emperor must have spent a lot of work to see this needlework." The motherly heart of the noble people is admirable! He flipped it up casually, revealing a picture of a baby playing with many sons and many blessings on the bottom of the plate. The emperor's eyes moved, and his heart was already soft, but when his eyes touched the cute baby pattern at the bottom of the plate, a layer of tears flashed unconsciously, and the tears seemed to have a thin layer of broken ice, condensing layers of cold.

The emperor asked, "Where did this tray come from?" ”

Wang Qin smiled and said, "Where else can it come from?" It was sent by Yonghe Palace with clothes. If the emperor doesn't believe it, the little noble son who gave the clothes is still waiting outside the palace. ”

The emperor's eyes were slightly cold, and he didn't look at those clothes anymore: "Go and tell Mei Guiren that she is still in the middle of the month, and it is not appropriate for me to visit, and she can complete these things with her own strength." ”

Wang Qin immediately retreated. Ruyi saw that the emperor's face was not good, and asked with a smile: "The palace people who serve the Mei nobles are really not careful, the Mei nobles can't give birth to the emperor's heirs safely, and they still use such a baby frolicking pattern, wouldn't the Mei nobles be stinging when they see it?" ”

The Emperor sat down on his chair and sighed, "As soon as I see those able-bodied children, I will think of the children born to the noble people, so deformed and terrifying, as the Empress said, they are evil demon fetus. But Noble Mei herself didn't know that she didn't choose it intentionally, but it made me think of that terrible child. He held Ruyi's hand, looking like a frightened and helpless child: "Ruyi, you tell me, is it because I am not blessed and immoral, so I will have such a child with Meigui?" Isn't it? ”

Ruyi's heart twitched, and she hurriedly comforted: "How come? The emperor's first ascension to the throne was blessed by the destiny of heaven. This kid was just an accident. ”

The emperor's face was pressed against Ruyi's warm palm: "It's because I first ascended to the great treasure that I am even more uneasy." The child of the noble lady is the first child after I ascended the throne......"

Before the emperor could finish speaking, he heard the sound of the wind rushing in with the long creaking sound of the palace door. Ruyi raised her head, but saw the queen standing alone in the palace gate, her clothes fluttering, quite a righteous and immortal appearance.

She stepped forward calmly, one step at a time, and said steadily: "The emperor is at ease." This child's accident was entirely due to the shallowness of Mei Guiren's virtue and his unbearable ability to bear the emperor's grace. She walked to the emperor's side, leaned over and put the emperor's hand in her palm, and said in a calm and unquestioning tone: "The emperor has several princes and princesses, all of whom are smart and healthy, only the birth of the noble Mei is different from the others, which can prove that the source of all evil lies in the noble Mei and not the emperor." The emperor doesn't have to worry about it. ”

The emperor's expression softened slightly: "What the queen said, isn't it a relief?" ”

The smile on the queen's lips made people feel at ease: "Whether it is a word of relief or not, the emperor only needs to go to the elder brother's office to see the elder brother and the princess, and he will know." ”

Ruyi knew that the queen wanted to use a few young brothers and princesses to explain the emperor's loss and comfort him with the pain of losing his daughter, but she couldn't tell the horror in her mouth, maybe right now, this is also the best way to let the emperor get out of the depression as soon as possible. She bowed silently and slowly withdrew. Beside the queen, who had a gentle and quiet complexion, even the emperor showed a rare look of relief. She covered the door of the temple, and also covered her loss and melancholy at the moment.

Perhaps, the queen is the queen after all, he can pour out his heart to himself, but in the end he is comforted by the queen. Ruyi looked at the cold rain outside, mixed with broken snow, and the Forbidden City in the rain, snow and cold wave also lost its color like herself.

Sitting in the warm sedan chair for a long time, Ruyi's heart is still overturned, not stable, only feel that the warm sedan chair has turned again and again, as if his own uncertain heart, the mountains and rivers are restored, thousands of turns. When he was depressed, he suddenly heard a faint sound of crying, Ruyi lifted the curtain and called: "Heart, go and see who is crying?" ”

He promised to turn around and take a look, and quickly came over and said, "If you go back to the little master, it is the little nobleman of Yonghe Palace who is hiding under the corner gate and crying." ”

Ruyi nodded, motioned for Xin Xin to raise the umbrella, and ordered: "Ah Zhen, you take them back to the palace first, and I will walk back by myself." ”

Ah Ji hurriedly said: "Then let them go back, and the slave and maid will stay and serve the little master." ”

Ruyi said: "No need. You go and collect the scriptures copied on the case for me, and send them to Yonghe Palace to be incinerated later, which is a little bit of my heart for the noble Mei and the child. ”

Ah Ji turned and went. Ruyi held her hand and slowly turned the road, and sure enough, outside a remote palace, Xiao Guizi was hiding by the corner gate and wiping her tears with the bag of baby clothes just now.

Ruyi said: "Your little master is still in confinement, and you cry like this, if she knows, won't it make her sad?" ”

Seeing that it was Ruyi, the little nobleman hurriedly kowtowed and asked for peace: "Concubine Xian Niang Wan'an, the slave is not hearted." ”

Ruyi nodded slightly and said, "You are also a good person." If you cry in your own palace, it will really make Mei Guiren sad. ”

Xiao Guizi wiped his tears and whimpered: "Our little master has no children for half a month, but the emperor has never come to visit once. Everyone said that the emperor disliked the little master for giving birth to a stillborn child, so he would not spoil her anymore. ”

Ruyi felt pity in her heart: "Even so, Mei Guiren will not sit still, right?" ”

Xiao Guizi hurriedly said: "The little master is afraid that the emperor will never come again, so today he specially ordered the servants to send these baby clothes, hoping that the emperor can remember the old days." ”

Ruyi flipped through those clothes, shook her head and said, "Mei Guiren's mind is good, but is this tray of clothes chosen by Mei Guiren herself?" ”

Xiao Guizi said strangely: "No. The slave came with this bag of clothes, and the prince said that it didn't look good to hold it empty-handed, so he gave the slave this tray to put it, and said that there was a picture of a baby playing, and the emperor would also think of the noble Mei when he saw it. ”

"Wang Qin?" Ruyi immediately understood, and Zhengse said, "Since it won't work out this time, forget it." You hurry back, remember to send things to the emperor for your little lord in the future, and there will be no more such patterns. ”

The little nobleman hadn't understood yet, but seeing Ruyi's solemn tone, he also knew that it was an important order, so he hurriedly thanked him and hurried away.

He held an umbrella for Ruyi to shield himself from the rain and snow, and asked in a low voice: "Wang Qin is trying so hard to get rid of the favor of the Mei nobles!" He is a eunuch, and he actually has such a vicious mind. ”

Ruyi held his hand and walked forward slowly: "As you said, he is a eunuch, what is there to be so vicious for himself?" It's just working for others. ”

Xin Xin quietly looked around, and said in a low voice: "The little master is talking about ......"

Ruyi shook her head slowly: "This compartment has not been able to free up his hand, it seems that Wang Qin can't stay anymore." ”

Yi Xin responded with a low "yes", and firmly held Ruyi's arm: "The road is slippery in snow, the little master is careful of his feet." ”

Ruyi calmed down and said slowly: "I will naturally watch my feet." Otherwise, now you will watch others fall, and you will not be able to get up by yourself in the future. ”