Chapter 1: Prayer for Rebirth

The winter of the fifteenth year of Longqing was exceptionally cold. However, as soon as the winter moon was on, the snow outside was already like goose feathers, and it fell to the ground one after another, a foot high. The people in the palace are the most expensive, and they put together hot charcoal basins early, even if the snow outside is heavy, the people in the palace don't have to be afraid.

But this is just the warmth of the body, but it has nothing to do with the atmosphere, because of a major event in the past few months, the entire imperial city has been shrouded in an inexplicable atmosphere.

In the Yanqing Palace, the emperor stood with his hands in his hands, and behind him knelt the thin Ye Hibiscus, her two hands were tightly tied behind her, and a few feet away stood a few guards, but only Ye Hibiscus was left nearby. Ye Jin took a deep breath, and knew in his heart that this time, he was only afraid that he would be more auspicious.

Looking at the furnishings of the Yan Qing Palace, the tables and chairs, and even the screen embroidered with the thousands of miles of rivers and mountains of the Great Xuanguo on the west side have not changed, and I can't help but secretly think, if it wasn't for him who saved his life, he would have reached this point today?

Or maybe they have all died a long time ago, so it is because he saved himself, his life, this life, is his.

When the emperor turned around, his brows were furrowed: "Ye Hibiscus, when you served tea by my side in the early years, I thought you were a smart girl, unlike many people, you are the kind of person who makes the wise and sees the wind and rudder. So when the prince came over and asked me to go over to serve the tea from the East Palace, I didn't hesitate to let you go, but I didn't think that I was wrong. ”

Ye Jian was uncomfortable because of being bound, but he still stiffened his neck and met the emperor's gaze, and after a while, he spoke: "The slave maid deserves to be praised by His Majesty, but the prince forced the slave and maid's body on Empress Herui's death, but the slave still wants to seek justice for herself." ”

Her lower abdomen was already slightly raised, and a discerning person could see at a glance that the child in her belly was at least four months old.

And one day four months ago, it was the death anniversary of the biological mother of the emperor's first wife, the crown prince and the Empress Rui, and the crown prince and the palace maid Ye Hibiscus were bumped into in the imperial garden.

If it is ordinary, it is not a big deal for the prince to favor a palace maid in the East Palace, but I am afraid that everyone will envy the palace maid's good life, and she jumped on the branch, and since then she has become the daughter of the prince's mansion.

It's just that everything is different because this day is the death anniversary of Empress Herui.

On the second day, the court was boiling over things, and a number of old ministers jointly signed a letter, and the crown prince openly favored the palace maid of the East Palace on the death of his mother, which was really disloyal and unfilial, and it was difficult to be the prince, and asked the emperor to change the national capital.

The emperor was furious and ordered a strict investigation of the matter, but after more than four months of investigation, he could not find any satisfactory answers.

The emperor's brows did not stretch in the slightest: "Empress Herui passed away when she gave birth to the eldest princess, and the prince lost his mother early, so I attach great importance to the prince." The nature of the prince, I also know, is not the kind of casual and frivolous nature. ”

Ye Hibiscus bit her lip and didn't say anything, but she also admitted that Prince Lu Cheng was a very self-disciplined person, and if she hadn't used medicine this time, the prince would not have been so easy to do. But in her opinion, compared with the eldest prince Lu Yuan, the crown prince Lu Cheng has a fatal weakness, that is, he is ruthless.

A humble gentleman, gentle as jade, is the prince in Ye Jin's eyes, but it is this gentle as jade that gives her the opportunity to harm him, and also gives his brother the ambition to covet the crown prince.

Seeing her stubbornness, the anger in the emperor's chest couldn't help but worse: "Ye Hibiscus, do you really think that I dare not touch you? I am the emperor, and it is not easy to take your life? Come on, reward Ye Hibiscus with ten whips!"

The whip was merciless, and it struck her one at a time, and the pain of the fire burned on her back, but she was powerless to take care of it. She hunched over, trying to curl up her body, desperately protecting her slightly bulging lower abdomen, which was her child.

On the sixth hit, the emperor shouted to stop and sighed.

"There are many people who covet the position of the crown prince, and I know who these people are. Today, I asked the guards to retreat far away in order to leave you a room to come out, and also to save a little face for your master. If you say it, I may be able to keep the baby in your belly. ”

Ye Hibiscus's lips bit even tighter, and she could almost taste a hint of fishy sweetness, but the reason still swirling in her mind told her that no matter what, even if she lost her life and the child's life, she couldn't say his name.

"Well, I won't force you. I'll put you in prison first, so that you can think clearly, think clearly, and then tell me, it's not too late. The Prince's side...... I will depose him as crown prince first. Perhaps, he is really not so suitable to be a prince. ”

Ye Jin was stubborn, neither thankful nor verbal, even her neck kept stalking, enduring the pain in her back, and the two guards escorted her to turn around.

When I turned around, on the other side of the screen, a bright yellow robe was faintly revealed, and the python pattern could be faintly seen in the lower corner of the robe.

The emperor's hand slammed heavily on the table, and he said after a while: "Cheng'er, come out." ”

The person behind the screen stood up, his face was thin, the bridge of his nose was high, he couldn't see anything in his eyes, but his brows were tightly twisted together, as if it was Prince Lu Cheng.

Straightened up and knelt on the ground: "Erchen has seen his father." It was the son's unfilial piety that made his father embarrassed. In fact, Erchen also knew about the events of that day, but Erchen really liked Ye Hibiscus, although he didn't know what she wanted to do, he was happy to go downhill. It's just that I never thought that Ye Hibiscus would be ......"

Halfway through the conversation, he stopped.

The emperor pulled up Lu Cheng, who was kneeling on the ground: "You get up, since you were born, I have made you the crown prince, although you are not bad in civil and military affairs, but there is one thing, but you are cool to your mother, that is, your heart is too kind." You must know that kindness is what a monarch should have, but a monarch cannot be merciful all the time. When the enemy is directed at you, you are merciful, and you die, and your country and your people are hopeless. ”

Lu Cheng lowered his head: "It's Erchen who is not good, Erchen...... Don't trust people too much. ”

"You're sixteen, and you'll be seventeen years old in the next year. I always thought you were too young to send you out for training, but now it seems that it is indeed time to send you out. In a few days, I will issue a holy decree, and on the side of Tanzhou, Nan'an has been eyeing each other, and from time to time it will provoke disputes. Han Gong is also old, and he has been guarding Tanzhou for so many years, although he has Gong Changbo as his deputy, but Tanzhou is bitterly cold, and his morale has not been high. ”

Lu Cheng nodded: "In the bitter cold land, Erchen is not afraid. Erchen wanted to go out and have a look for a long time, to see those good sons and daughters who guarded the Great Xuan River, and to share weal and sorrow with them. As a prince, if Erchen can work hard together in Tanzhou, presumably Daxuan's morale will also rise. It's just that...... Erchen also had a reluctant request. ”

As he spoke, he knelt down again.

The emperor seemed to have a premonition that Lu Cheng was going to say something, so he smiled dejectedly, but still motioned for him to continue.

"The son asked his father to depose his son as the crown prince. In doing so, firstly, it can calm down the boiling discussions in the court, and secondly, the sons want to ...... Give him another chance. Even Ye Jin, I also asked my father to forgive her once, if she gave birth to a child, she would declare to the outside world that it was the child of her son, left and right, the royal bloodline, and it would not be confused. ”

"Okay, I promise you, it's just you, when you get to that place in Tanzhou, you still have to take care. No matter how powerful the emperor is, he can't change that he is a father, and when he looks at the prince who looks a little like the Bai family, he still can't help but feel sour.

Lu Cheng walked out of Yan Qing Palace, squinted his eyes at the dazzling sunlight after the snow, a shallow smile bloomed at the corner of his mouth, and he muttered, "Don't say I didn't give you a chance." ”

Seeing that the crown prince nodded, the emperor waved his hand and motioned for him to go back, while he turned around, bypassed the screen, and turned to an inconspicuous end of Yanqing Palace.

The lock has been lost all the year round, and the key to the lock is only owned by the emperor alone. The Emperor trembled and took out the key from the old purse containing the small seal, and opened the door of the end with a trembling voice.

The lights at the end were very dim, and the emperor came to add lamp oil every three or five times, so naturally it couldn't be lit up. And the whole decoration is just a portrait, an incense case.

"Qianyun ......" The emperor looked at the portrait, and as soon as he spoke, he choked up and couldn't speak.

After calming down for a while, he said: "Qianyun, you have been gone for ten years, Brother Cheng, you have also grown up." The kid ...... Always like you, always ruthless to people. I have already decided to send him to Tanzhou for a few years of training. Always in the palace, the city will never grow up, and the boss ......"

The prison was built under the palace, the lights were dim, and it was tightly guarded, and on weekdays, moths never wanted to fly out easily.

An inner prisoner who was not short in stature carried a food box in his right hand and a palace lamp in his left hand, came to the door of the prison, and waved his waist card to the guard.

The inner prison turned around and came to the outside of Ye Hibiscus's cell, because the cell was cold, Ye Hibiscus kept curling up on the haystack, and the palace lamp carried by the inner prison was so bright that Ye Hibiscus couldn't open his eyes all of a sudden.

Finally getting used to the light brought by the palace lamp, Ye Hibiscus finally saw the person clearly, although she put on makeup and changed her appearance, she knew that he was him.

He staggered to the door of the cell, and his voice was weak: "Your Highness, save me." ”

The person who came was the eldest prince Lu Yuan.

Ye Jin couldn't see Lu Yuan's expression clearly, so he only heard him ask: "Ah Jin, how many years have you been picked up by this palace?"

"When Hibiscus was six years old, he was picked up by His Royal Highness and brought to the palace, and it has been almost ten years now. ”

Lu Yuan sighed, and there was a bit of gloom in his tone: "Yes, it's been ten years, and you've done a lot of things for this palace, but this time, you've done a little better, it's been four months, four months have passed, and you still haven't been able to let the prince fall from that position, and let your father lock you here, you say, how can this palace save you?"

Hearing Lu Yuan's tone, with his understanding of him, Ye Jin already had a trace of despair in his heart: "Your Highness, Ah Jin's belly, and your child, Your Highness, even if you are cruel to Ah Jin, don't be so cruel to your own flesh and blood." ”

Ye Jin's temperament is stubborn, with tears in the corners of his eyes, but he tried not to let the tears slip down, stretched out his hand, and tried hard to reach Lu Yuan's robe, but because of the whiplash, no matter how he struggled, it was to no avail.

Hearing Ye Hibiscus say this, and seeing Ye Hibiscus struggling again, Lu Yuan sneered, with a little disdain written on his face, but he was not moved at all: "This palace is now eighteen years old, but it has not yet been crowned a king to marry a concubine, if this palace wants to achieve great things in the future, it will inevitably need the help of the Yue family, so how can you have a concubine and a concubine before marrying a concubine?" Ye Jin, are you fake stupid, or are you really stupid......

Ye Jin's heart froze little by little, yes, Lu Yuan she knew was such a person, in order to achieve the goal, she could do whatever it took to achieve her goals, even if she was related by blood, she would not hesitate to do it.

She shook her head, even if she knew, she didn't want to admit that he was her master, but he was also the person she had loved for eight years.

Lu Yuan came back with a smile that became more and more light, as if this unwilling woman shaking her head had nothing to do with her.

"If you still remember who saved you back then, just listen to the words of this palace and drink this bowl of wine, and you and the child will not have any pain. Your life, nine years ago, should have been gone. Today, if you don't drink, this palace naturally has other ways, and this palace is still willing to come today, because it is because of your loyalty for seven years. ”

Ye Jin looked at Lu Yuan coldly, it turned out that from nine years ago to now, what she has done, in her eyes, is nothing more than the word loyalty.

"Lu Yuan, if there is an afterlife, I, Ye Jin, would rather never be saved by you, no matter how many yang shou I have, I must live for myself and live a long life!" Ye Jin touched his lower abdomen with one hand and picked up the bowl of poisonous wine with the other......

The person in front of him, with such eyebrows and eyes, was vaguely with a cold smile, so familiar, as if it had never changed in nine years. Everything became blurry, darkened, the crisp wine, the spicy and scorching little penetration, as if everything in this life had never been clear.

Although my eyes were closed, I could feel the light coming in, it was pouring rain outside the window, the whole sky was black and inky, and the oil window paper was hit by the raindrops the size of beans, and the sound was surprisingly loud, which made people upset when they heard it.

The room is furnished with fine yellow rosewood official hat chairs, the east window edge below, between the two official hat chairs is carved with a rich peony pattern of a large table, the table on the carved peacock white jade interstitial screen is not a vulgar thing, at first glance is the regulation of a large family, but the people in the house are not like a large family of servants and maids.

An old lady with gray hair in a round bun at the back of her head, holding a white handkerchief with a slight yellowing in her hand, wiped the forehead of the girl who was only eleven or twelve years old on the bed, and prayed with words: "God bless, God bless let the eldest sister wake up quickly, Madame is not in good health, and the master is fighting outside, if the young lady can't wake up, how should the slave explain to the master and the lady......"

Ye Hibiscus gradually woke up from the sound of raindrops outside the window and the old mother's chatter, and slowly opened her eyes, only to find that everything around her, from the bed to the table in the distance, and the old woman guarding beside her, were not familiar to her. Look at her hands again, because she has been serving people all year round, she originally had a thin cocoon on her hands, but now it is smooth, and it is completely like ten fingers not touching the spring water, and she can't help but feel shocked.

Isn't she supposed to be dead? how could she be in such an unfamiliar place, and ...... Could it be that the poisonous wine is not capable of killing people at all, but will change people's faces and drink poisonous wine, which is just a way for Lu Yuan to steal beams and change pillars?

Thinking about it, I feel that I am really delusional, Lu Yuan has done it so decisively, but she is still an idiot.

Moreover, where in the world is there such a miraculous poisonous wine?

She remembered that before drinking the cup of poisoned wine, she had sworn that if there was an afterlife, she would rather never be rescued by him, and no matter how long she lived, she would live for herself.

It seems that God heard her wish and gave her such a wish to borrow the corpse to return her soul. Reborn as such a noble lady, then you don't have to be brought down by Lu Yuan when she was dying, right?

In her last life, she was rescued by Lu Yuan when she was six years old, and she has never been stable in her life.

Let's continue to sleep, as soon as she wakes up, she will no longer be Ye Hibiscus, although she is not very clear about the condition of this body now, but she just wants to live peacefully, thinking about it, it should not be difficult