Two, three, six: under the middle palace

Hearing this, Zhang Yan frowned slightly, looked at Chu Fumu in front of him, thoughtful

She once vaguely revealed Liu Ying's promise to herself to the three personal maids around her, which was not only out of the joy of getting what she wanted, but for some reasons, it was not good to tell her mother, she could only hope that the few close palace people around her would be happy for their happiness, and it was also a kind of vigilance born after Muxi

Speaking of which, Mu Xi dared to propose to serve Liu Ying in front of him, not only because he had wrongly given a wisp of girl's thoughts to the gentle and benevolent emperor in the Xuanshu Palace in the time he had spent several years together, but also because he looked down on the relationship between Liu Ying and himself, thinking that he could put a foot in it, relying on the power of the queen, and at the same time getting the favor of the emperor

After the Muxi incident, she learned from the pain, she really didn't want to face the betrayal of her personal person again, so before everything had time to happen, she first revealed Liu Ying's deep affection for herself and her own requirements for this relationship, blocking the luck that these maids may have in their hearts, although it seems that it is not bright enough, but at least it preserves the friendship between each other's master and servant, and it is also her own kindness to them

And she really hopes that she can live with them for the rest of her life

Such a promise seems to be a bit shocking nowadays, and it is not a thing that can be announced to the population at will, and Tu Fu and the others have not said it to anyone, including Chu Fumu, so Chu Fumu does not know Liu Ying's promise

"Ah Fu," Zhang Yan said slowly, "I know your good intentions, but my majesty and I are different from others......

"Niangniang," Chu Fumu stomped his foot and said eagerly, "things are not as simple as you think—"

"I know, Niangniang is still young, and everyone is in love, naturally I don't want to think about some discouraged things, but, the queen mother, the slave maid has been in the palace for too long, and has seen too many ups and downs of court women. In the end, he was decrepit and relaxed because of his old age, and his son Fusu also killed himself; Don't say it far away, just say that the first emperor's Mrs. Qi, Niangniang has seen it with her own eyes, the first emperor once wanted to be easy to store, and handed over the imperial throne to the hidden king Ruyi in the end, so he also gave up Mrs. Qi Niangniang is now young and delicate, and naturally has to be favored......"

Chu Fumu was still earnestly persuading, but Zhang Yan's mind had already opened slightly, her eyes were depressed, and she didn't speak

She knew that, in a way, Chu Fumu's words were right

The palace is such a place that swallows up a woman's youth, countless originally delicate and beautiful women are trapped in this palace, in order to get ahead, in order to live a good life, and they are pouring into each other, fighting each other, which can be called a bloodless battlefield Even though she loves Liu Ying deeply, and the relationship with Liu Ying is extremely sweet at this time, but there is still no way to say with a clear conscience that when there are some other women in the name of the husband between the two people, such a marriage is also perfect

But what can be done?

She stared at the golden silk nanmu table in front of her, and a hint of warmth flashed in her apricot kernel-like eyes

The desk is paved with a dark vermilion palace silk, on which is placed a lotus-shaped fruit plate and the fruit plate is carved with water jade, that is, crystal, transparent and crystalline, like a white lotus, which holds a string of bright lychees

During the period of the first emperor, Zhao Tuo, the king of Nanyue, offered a different fruit lychee, since then, the lychee has entered the sight of the upper class of the Han Dynasty Lychee is hot, the peel is bright red, there are scale protrusions, the flesh is translucent and creamy when it is fresh, the taste is extremely sweet, it is an extremely precious and rare fruit nowadays, and pregnant women eat it, which is beneficial to the body

Some time ago, she had a heavy reaction during pregnancy, she couldn't eat anything, and she was very emaciated Liu Ying looked worried, and heard that the lychee was delicious and beneficial to pregnant women, so she sent someone to Nanjiang to ask the king of Nanyue for Zhao Tuo found the earliest lychee in the territory, sent it to Chang'an, cleaned it, peeled half of the peel, and revealed the crystal flesh, which was the plate of lychees in front of her

She also saw Liu Ying's deep affection for herself

Because Fu Mu has been in the palace for many years, he has never left, and he has experienced too many things, so he can be more far-reaching than others, but in the same way, it is precisely because he has seen too much that Chu Fu Mu's heart has been covered by the ups and downs of those schemes, and he does not believe that hidden under the ups and downs of the plots, the bright color of life, the sincere love and warmth in those human natures

It is true that she does not like Weiyang Palace, but she loves the owner of this palace, and the man with warm eyes accepts everything in this palace because of this

Although, she still couldn't hold back on the dark place inherent in this palace

But the man she loves is in this palace

The man in the world is fortunate that she has always known that so, in both lives, she is cautious and refuses to give her feelings easily, but there are always some people who can easily break your barriers, and their feelings for Liu Ying are gradually generated in the long time of getting along, but the trust in Liu Ying is the first time they met under the steps of Changle Palace, and it is gradually because of Liu Ying's existence that she can firmly believe that there are always some men in this world, who are different

“…… You have to know," Chu Fumu's face was solemn, "Over the years, although you have been the queen, but in this Weiyang Palace, except for the Jiaofang Palace, there is no trace of your own power at all, which is fundamentally undesirable and very unfavorable to you, and, Niangniang, you should know that as a queen, and as everyone's niece, it is not the same, if you will always only be everyone's niece, then even if you have anything wrong, everyone, as an elder, must tolerate you, but since you have decided to be everyone's queen, You should bear everyone's strict requirements for you in the future, although the past is good, but it may not be able to withstand the wear and tear of the years, we have to take advantage of everyone's heart is still in your heart, first in Weiyang Palace to do more"

"Ah Fu," Zhang Yan stood up solemnly, got up and bowed, "What you said, you have a reason."

Chu Fumu looked relieved

After saying so much, Empress Zhang finally got her senses

"However, I have my own thoughts"

It is precisely because of Liu Ying's affection for herself that she also hopes that she can be a person worthy of his favor, instead of falling into the harem battle, losing herself day by day In the end, even if she defeated all the enemies in the palace, she turned around, but she didn't even know herself

Thinking of Liu Ying, the corners of her lips couldn't help but curl up slightly, ignoring Chu Fumu's slightly stiff face, stretched out two white and slender fingers, and took a lychee from the fruit bowl in front of her.

The feeling of being in love that she is now immersed in

She fell in love with this man for four years, he couldn't respond to her after all, after she was disappointed and left, he chased after her, although the reason for this, she is not very clear, but she cherishes this relationship very much

Because of this, she wants to be a woman worthy of Liu Ying's love all along

"Actually, I don't like Gong Dou"

Chu Fumu was stunned, although the word "Gong Dou" is a bit vulgar, it is very vivid on the women in the court, "But Niangniang,"

She smiled bitterly,

"Will the slave be willing to break your dreams? It's just that the palace is such a place, sometimes, it's not that you don't want to fight, otherwise, if you fall into a trough in the future, you will be trampled on your head, and you will regret it."

Zhang Yan stretched out her hand and waved to stop Chu Fumu's words

"That's not what I meant"

"Ah Fu, in the Weiyang Palace, Your Majesty's concubines are not very many, but they are by no means less I am the queen, and now I have Your Majesty to support me, I have already taken the advantage, if I still press Your Majesty step by step, it is a poor and weak character, although I will not say anything more in my mouth, but my heart will be biased towards them If Your Majesty is separated from me, no matter how much I do, he can always find a person, and so on, it really makes no sense and,"

She raised her delicate chin, her eyes were proud, and with a hint of reserve, "I don't like to find their faults one by one, or to envelop the people around them to control their movements, if that's the case, even if these concubines are trampled under their feet one by one, and finally get the victory, I don't see where I usually like to do once and for all, if I have to do something, I'd rather solve the problem at once."

"Once and for all?" Chu Fu's eyes widened in astonishment

"Yes" Zhang Yan bowed her head, wiped her hands stained with lychee juice with a hand towel, and thought thoughtfully, "Ah Fu, do you know why these concubines dared to despise my majesty as a queen in the past?" ”

"This ......", Chu Fumu said vaguely, "It's just because Niangniang is young...... and although the emperor maintains it, she has never been favored

It's just that this can be easily thought, but it is not easy to say

"Ah Fu doesn't have to cover it up for me," Zhang Yan came to the south window of the hall, pushed the window off, and looked at the south of the Jiaofang Hall from afar

In the south of the courtyard where she lives daily, the main hall of the Jiaofang Hall is rarely used on weekdays, and is only used for ceremonial purposes during the big New Year's Festival

Jiaofang Hall to the south, walk a hundred and ten steps along the palace road, out of the Yongxiang Lane Gate, then arrive at the front hall The front hall is located on the highest platform of Weiyang Palace, there are three halls of Xuan, greenhouse, and Qingliang, which is the place where Liu Ying, the son of heaven, goes to court on weekdays and deals with political affairs

"I think at the beginning, I was in the Weiyang Palace, although I didn't really accept the favor, but after all, I am the daughter of the eldest princess, and I have a love affair with Your Majesty for many years, even if Your Majesty can't spoil me, but also protect me very Which of those concubines is not from a low background, and the position is far away from me, why dare not take me in your eyes? In addition to the fact that I can't see the hope of inheriting the favor and the lack of succession, it is also because although I am a queen, I don't have much ability to control the concubines."

"The inner palace system of the Han Palace was inherited from the Qin Dynasty, below the queen, and the middle palace system was set up, like the queen mother's palace, with Zhan Shi, generals and other officials, quite large, but in fact, the Yongxiang concubines who were nominally under the rule of the queen were supported by the Shaofu directly belonging to the Son of Heaven

In other words, Empress Zhang actually has no right to directly control the utensils, money, food, and cloth supply of these concubines, or even the exemption of serving her subordinates

Zhang Yan sneered slightly, "In vain, she is the queen of the middle palace, the mother of the world, but she doesn't even have a way to control the concubine."

How can it be strange that when Wang Long was pregnant with the imperial heir, he dared to despise Jiaofang Hall arrogantly and not put himself as the queen in his eyes?

Chu Fumu was stunned

The palace system of the Qin and Han dynasties is in the same vein, she thinks that she has been immersed in the court for many years, and she has seen too much of the scheming methods of court women, and she has already been transparent, but now she finds that she is addicted to these scheming methods and entangled in the interests of the people, but she is not as young as Queen Zhang, but she is strategic, and her skills are obviously more than one

"These things, when I first entered the palace, I actually thought about it a long time ago."

Zhang Yan said softly, "In the past four years, I have done little in this palace because I know that I don't have enough money, and I can't do anything with half the effort, even if it involves a person, if he thinks in his heart, anyway, I have no favor and no children, and in the future, the throne of the Han Dynasty will eventually be handed over to other people, and the successor is weak, and I can't be very attentive, so I simply don't do anything."

"It's just,"

She lowered her beautiful apricot eyes and looked at her belly, which was already visibly bulging, and now she was about to be seven months pregnant

Zhang Yan put her hand on her abdomen lovingly, stroking the child inside, and her voice was very soft, "I used to think that I would not be able to use it in this life but I didn't expect that I would return to this place and start again."

"Now, even if it's not for myself, in order to earn a safe and worry-free environment for this child, I should do something"

She made up her mind, so she turned back with the light of the sky, her face was solemn At this time, the tenderness of Liu Ying's side faded, showing the majesty and wisdom of a country,

"Ah Fu, if you want to hit one interest class, you have to help another class up to be effective At this time, the internal servant system in the Weiyang Palace is mature enough, and it involves the previous dynasty, it is not something I can easily change, I want to grasp it in my hands, it is the palace maid of the entire Weiyang Palace"

"Palace maid?"

"Yes," Zhang Yan bowed

"Since Qin, the palace maid has been subordinate to the inner servant, except for the personal maid of the master in the palace has another grade, the rest of the palace maids, has always been a neglected crowd, at the bottom of the two palaces, while being driven by the master, but also by the inner attendant management and exploitation, and there is almost no expectation of promotion, however, although the palace maid is not as good as the inner attendant, stay in the palace for life, but also occupy a large share in the palace, if used well, can play a big role I intend to persuade Your Majesty, by me to establish a set of female official system with the inner servant, so, the palace maids in the Weiyang Palace have the hope of climbing up, and at the same time, the jurisdiction of the palace maids will be taken over from the Shaofu to the Middle Palace in disguise."

Chu Fumu's eyes suddenly brightened

Such a proposal is quite bold

However, it has quite strong maneuverability

If Empress Zhang can succeed, then Weiyang Palace will present a different scene

Think about it, if those concubines want to gain a foothold in Weiyang Palace, they must rely on the attendants and palace maids around them, but the promotion of these palace maids is in the hands of the middle palace, and their hearts are unpredictable for a while, and for a while, do they dare to use these palace maids sincerely?

Zhang Yan's eyes were extremely bright, "I can use this trick to draw salaries from the bottom of the kettle and tie these concubines from now on, isn't it much more upright and effective than me to entrap some servants from behind?" Fu Mu has been in the palace for many years and is familiar with the harem rules and regulations, instead of persuading me to deal with those concubines, it is better to help me order a female official grade system, wouldn't it be good? ”

Since then, Chu Fumu was finally convinced and bowed down

"A-Niang," on this day, Liu Hong, the king of Huaiyang, returned to Hanguang Pavilion, ran into Yuan Meiren's arms, and raised a red little face, "Today, Yang Wang Fu praised me for being smart and studious."

"Really? My family is really a good boy" Yuan Luo smiled reluctantly, touched Liu Hong's head, and praised

These days, Yuan Luo faintly feels bad

Since the Son of Heaven "recovered" from illness and began to deal with state affairs again, in the Weiyang Palace, the status of their mother and son has become a little embarrassing, even if it is Liu Hong, the king of Huaiyang, although he is still young, he also feels a trace of strangeness in the eyes of the palace people who serve him

That feeling, there is pity, there is sighing, and there is also a small schadenfreude

He couldn't fully describe it, but he began to put up armor all over his body, and only in the world that their mother and son were familiar with, the prince who had just turned six years old could relax his spirit

"But, Auntie," Liu Hong frowned a little in annoyance, full of puzzlement, "Did I do something wrong and make my father dislike?" ”

"How?"

"In the past, when I got out of school, I went to see my father, and my father could always see me occasionally, and he would smile at me and ask me about my homework, but since more than a month ago, I rarely saw my father."

"They always say, my father went to see my mother, but A-Niang, my mother is not you, why do you have a queen mother?"

Yuan Luo clenched her fingertips, and her face was slightly favored

"Those people are not wrong," she hugged Liu Hong, and said in a soft and slightly weird tone, "You do have a queen mother, her surname is Zhang, she is your father's queen, and she is also your father's niece, if she doesn't marry your father, you still have to call her a cousin - I don't know what those people think, they let her enter the palace to be the queen"

A hint of resentment flashed in her eyes, "...... At the beginning, it was clear that your father had just recovered from his illness, so she dared to hook your father, and she didn't care about your father's body at all, your father wanted to come and see you, but Empress Zhang didn't want her father to meet you, she was afraid that after her father saw you, he wouldn't like her, your father has always followed her wishes, and he didn't come to see our mother and son all these years, and now, your father, he probably forgot our mother and son a long time ago."

Liu Hong was stunned and said, "Auntie, you mean that it was Empress Zhang who didn't let us reunite with our father."

"Exactly"

After being disappointed for many years, it was easy to find a target to vent, and Liu Hong threw his anger at Zhang Yan in the Jiaofang Palace, his eyes lit up angrily, and he asked, "Why?" ”

Note: This paragraph does not count as a word count:

1: Female official system

The female official system in the Qin and Han dynasties has indeed not yet taken shape, and it was not until later generations that it was gradually established in the impression that the more mature female official system was put forward by Ah Yan in the Sui and Tang dynasties in advance, and it is also of certain progressive significance to standardize the harem of the Han Dynasty

2: Lychee, the earliest record is that during the period of Emperor Gao of the Han Dynasty, the king of Nanyue went to the Central Plains to offer lychee Therefore, at that time, lychee was a very precious and rare fruit, special, and it was also very suitable for pregnant women to eat

However, I am more confused about the fruiting period of lychees

Because the time set for this chapter is the third month of the lunar calendar, it is about the end of April when converted into the solar calendar, according to my check, now in April, Hainan has early lychees on the market, plus the Qin and Han dynasties, it is said that the average temperature is higher than now, and the lychees are slightly early, it seems, there is still a little possibility

You don't have to worry too much

The article sets that Liu Ying is because Ah Yan is pregnant and can't eat, so she finds some exotic fruit delicacies to appetize Ah Yan, which is not the same as Tang Xuanzong's loser