On that day, Huo Chengjun occasionally felt cold, and his throat was sore and dry, so he thought of going to Chun Yuyan to ask for some licorice to moisten his throat.

Unexpectedly, after arriving in Chun Yuyan's small courtyard, he heard Huo Xian and Chun Yuyan seem to be talking inside.

If it was before, Huo Chengjun, who had a pure heart, would not have thought much about it.

But at that moment, Huo Chengjun was hiding by the window and eavesdropping.

Because he rarely does these "despicable and despicable" things, Huo Chengjun is not proficient, and just squatted down in the corner of the wall, he accidentally knocked down a crockpot.

alarmed Huo Xian and Chun Yuyan, who were talking secretly in the room.

She had no choice but to flee in a hurry.

However, in this short period of time, Huo Chengjun still faintly heard a few words.

She didn't expect that her mother, Huo Xian, the general's wife, seemed to be unfavorable to the Zhang family's sister An Jun and the Cai family's sister Wen Yan.

After that day, Huo Chengjun found an excuse to look for Chun Yuyan a few times, wanting to find out a little bit of news from her mouth.

However, how could she, a girl who was ignorant of the world, be an opponent who had been weathered and weathered, so she didn't find any news at all.

Although she didn't find out why, Huo Xian's image in her heart completely collapsed.

In the past, Huo Chengjun only felt that his mother had too much restraint on him, but after that, Huo Chengjun found that his mother was not only too restrained on himself.

He was ruthless to the slaves and maids, commanding outsiders, and had no respect for the general's subordinate officers - Huo Chengjun saw with his own eyes that day, Huo Xian insinuated and scolded the subordinate officials to the point of paleness.

Gradually, Huo Chengjun also realized something that made her heart even colder - in the eyes of her mother Huo Xian, there were only her father and brother.

The rest of them are just stepping stones.

Especially himself, he will become the biggest stepping stone of the Huo family.

In this short period of one month, Huo Chengjun's mind suddenly grew rapidly.

Many things that were not clear in the past can now be seen clearly at a glance.

There was less clear and simple smile on Huo Chengjun's face, and there was more time to think about it in reverie at the window.

She felt that this huge general's mansion suddenly became very cold, every pillar, every tile, every window lattice...... All exude a suffocating aura.

Huo Chengjun desperately wants to escape from here, no matter where she goes, she can go, but as a daughter's family, where can she go?

Don't say that it is Chang'an City, it is the courtyard gate of this middle mansion, and she can't get out.

This confusion made Huo Chengjun silent a lot, but no one noticed it, or if he found it, no one would pay attention to it.

Father, I can only see it when I ask for peace every day, from birth to the present, Huo Chengjun has not dared to get close to this great general.

Mother, however, saw that she was silent a lot, but she didn't worry at all, but felt that this temperament was more in line with the queen's identity, and it was too late to be happy.

Brother, who just sees her as a stepping stone and a stepping stone, who will say a word more to a brick and stone?

Sisters, although they are very kind, they are poor people who are used by their parents, how can they help Huo Chengjun?

Handmaids, no matter how friendly Huo Chengjun is on weekdays, there is an invisible wall between them after all, and now no handmaiden dares to play with her.

……

Such a melancholy has often surfaced in Huo Chengjun's heart in recent days, and when he thinks about it again at this moment, he still feels suffocated.

Huo Chengjun closed the "Analects" on the case, and casually hid the book under the case.

She came to the window, opened the lattice, and a harsh wind squeezed in, making her somewhat hot face much cooler.

Breathing is also more relaxed.

Through the gap between the window lattices, Huo Chengjun saw that the slaves and maids were cleaning and scrubbing in the courtyard, preparing for Huo Xian's birthday.

Actually, there is nothing to prepare, it's just that the married sisters have to bring their families to have a light meal, and they have to clean up in advance.

Looking at the swaying figures outside, Huo Chengjun thought of one thing, the only person who could save her from this cage might be the Son of Heaven.

However, there has been a lot of rumors circulating lately.

The Son of Heaven seems to have some jealousy of her father.

In that case, will you be able to enter the palace smoothly?

Even if he enters the palace, will the Son of Heaven regard himself as a "good match"?

If the Son of Heaven doesn't regard her as a good match, then it seems that there is no difference whether he enters the palace or not.

Thinking of this, Huo Chengjun's mood suddenly fell to the bottom.

It was cloudy outside, and it looked like it was about to rain.

Suddenly, a shrill curse came from the courtyard outside.

Huo Chengjun looked carefully and found that those slaves and maids had fallen to their knees for some reason.

Listening carefully, it was the mother who was reprimanding the slave again.

Huo Chengjun didn't want to listen, so she stretched out her hand and was about to close the window lattice, but before she could touch the window lattice, she stopped.

She is waiting for the Son of Heaven to save her, so should she also help others as much as possible?

Huo Chengjun frowned lightly and made a decision, she had to take care of today's affairs.

……

In the courtyard, five or six slaves and maids were kneeling on the ground, trembling.

Huo Xian held his hands in his hands, his head held high, his eyes half-closed, and he was extremely indifferent.

In front of her, kneeling was a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy, who was not a slave in the house, but a hired servant recommended by others.

On the ground in front of the boy was a shiny bronze mirror.

Slaves and maids are cattle and horses that the master's family disposes of at will, but hired servants are free—at least not to be beaten and scolded excessively at will.

However, this distinction does not exist here in Huo Xian, even if it is a hired person, it will not hinder if he is killed directly.

"What's your name?" Huo Xian asked coldly.

"The little man is Lin Fu."

"How much do you get a month now?"

"Mrs. Hui, the villain's monthly money and food is eight hundred yuan."

Lin Fu's voice trembled involuntarily, he knew that he had fallen into a catastrophe, so he lowered his body very low.

The slaves who were also kneeling around him were also silent, and none of them dared to intercede for him.

In the back house of the Huo family, everyone is in danger, who can help who intercede?

Who let this kid be unlucky, and he happened to be caught by his wife when he was in trouble?

"Then do you know how much this bronze mirror costs?" Huo Xian asked.

"The villain is stupid, the villain doesn't know."

"This bronze mirror is worth at least 10,000 dollars, so you can calculate it again, how long will it take to pay for it?"

"The villain can't be counted...... Lin Fu has lived for more than ten years, I'm afraid he hasn't seen 10,000 yuan."

"Then let me tell you, if you don't eat or drink, you will have to pay it back for a total of twelve and a half months......"

"Add this year's interest, and you'll have to pay back at least two years......"

"But can you not eat or drink?"

Huo Xian's words were full of ridicule and ridicule, and he couldn't see the slightest soft-heartedness.

After such calculations, in order to repay the money for this bronze mirror, this young man may have to work as a coolie for the General's Mansion for seven or eight years.

But the most important thing is that this bronze mirror only bumped into a small pit, which did not affect Huo Xian's delicate face that he used to decorate.

Huo Xian's move was not to blackmail the young man for a mere 10,000 yuan, she just wanted to kill chickens and make an example of monkeys.

"Killing chickens and setting an example for monkeys", this is the most used means by Huo Xianzhi.

"I'll show you two ways, either sell yourself as a slave to come to my Huo family, or hurry up to raise money to pay it back, otherwise...... Tomorrow, let the court captain send you to the edict prison! Huo Xian frightened.

How did the young man know that the "Imperial Prison" would not care about such trivial matters at all, and he was too frightened, and he prostrated vigorously and begged for mercy.

Huo Xian looked at the other party's embarrassed appearance, smiled cruelly, and was very happy.

Just as she was about to show off her power again, a crisp voice interrupted her.

"I'll pay it back for me."

Huo Xian was stunned at first, and then angry, who was so bold that he dared to disobey himself.

However, when she looked up and followed the sound, what she saw was no one else, it was her daughter Huo Chengjun!

"What are you doing here?!" Huo Xian asked.

"Mother, he also made an unintentional mistake, this bronze mirror can still be used, just let him go, you can replace the bronze mirror in my house with my mother."

"Leave him alone? If you do something wrong in this world, can you just kowtow and escape? Huo Xian sneered.

"Then as my daughter said just now, my daughter will pay him back for this 10,000 yuan." Huo Chengjun held on and didn't take his eyes off it.

"What do you mean by that?!" Huo Xian's face was gloomy.

Even if it was his own daughter, Huo Xian would not allow her to disobey herself in public like she is now.

Huo Chengjun didn't answer, she took off a piece of jade pendant from her waist and held it in her hand - this jade pendant was given to her by the Son of Heaven a few months ago.

"This is a jade pendant rewarded by the county official, if the mother thinks it can be worth 10,000 yuan, it will be good to take it, and the daughter only begs the mother to let this boy go."

Huo Chengjun said that, he knelt down, still holding the jade pendant in his hand.

Huo Xianxing's eyes widened, and she looked at Huo Chengjun angrily, as if she found that her daughter was a little different today.

In the past, although Huo Chengjun was a little ignorant of the world, he was always obedient.

Why do you disobey yourself today? This made Huo Xian very unhappy in his heart

If it was placed on other days, Huo Xian would definitely leave Huo Chengjun behind and reprimand him well.

But tomorrow is the day of the birthday feast.

It's a joy to be big or small. Huo Xian didn't want to make trouble on such a day.

In addition, Huo Xian looked at the jade pendant and had some unspeakable jealousy towards Huo Chengjun.

After all, Huo Chengjun is already a queen, although he has not yet entered the palace, he is a queen after all.

If today's son is jealous of the Huo family, then Huo Chengjun's entry into the palace is even more important.

No matter what, Huo Xian couldn't pull his head to reprimand Huo Chengjun.

Huo Xian sneered, no longer looking at Huo Chengjun, but looking at the young man kneeling in front of him again.

"Did you hear, it was the little lady who interceded for you today, then I will spare you this time."

"Xie, Mrs. Xie......" the young man hurriedly kowtowed and thanked him.

"Don't thank me, just go to thank Xiaoniang, no......" Huo Xian smiled deliberately and said, "You are going to thank the future queen." ”

The young man hurriedly bowed to Huo Chengjun......

"You don't have to deal with it now, let's all go out!" Huo Xian ordered.

"No!"

Soon, all the slaves and maids left, leaving only Huo Xian and Huo Chengjun's mother and daughter to confront each other in the courtyard.

"No one looks at your pretending kindness anymore, why don't you stand up quickly and ask me to invite you when you get it?" Huo Xian teased.

Huo Chengjun stood up, this was the first time she had opposed her mother, and she was very nervous, so after standing up, she didn't dare to face her mother.

Huo Xian walked in front of Huo Chengjun, he looked at his daughter's face without a trace of wrinkles and blemishes, and couldn't help but feel a little jealous.

This appearance is almost no different from what he looked like more than 20 years ago. No matter how carefully I take care of myself now, I can't hide crow's feet in the corners of my eyes.

Huo Xian gave birth to four daughters and a son for the Huo family, which can be called a great contribution.

And she found the best way out for these daughters.

I don't know why, her son Huo Yu seems to be her character, but none of the daughters have learned his skills.

Without a strong hand, how can you gain a firm foothold in the backhouses of those high-ranking families?

Especially Huo Chengjun, who will enter the palace next year, is still ignorant of the world.

"Look up at me." Huo Xian said coldly.

Huo Chengjun raised his head and looked at his mother calmly and a little fearfully.

The appearance of the two is indeed seven or eight points similar.

"Did you know that little slave before?"

"I don't know."

"Then why did you intercede for him today?" Huo Xian asked sharply.

"That bronze mirror is a drop in the bucket for my Huo family, but if I want him to sell himself into slavery, I ......"

"Hmph, it's a woman's kindness!" Huo Xian screamed, she seemed to have forgotten that she was also a "woman".

Huo Chengjun was frightened, she couldn't help but want to step back, but Huo Xian suddenly pinched her hand.

Huo Chengjun wanted to break free, but the strength in Huo Xian's hand was terrifying, and she couldn't break free at all.

"In the coming year, you are going to enter the palace, so soft-hearted, how can you be favored in the palace......"

"Now, the county officials have a lot of suspicion and jealousy against my Huo family, if you can't be favored in the palace, then what's the use of my Huo family?"

Huo Xian looked at Huo Chengjun's hand, which was red because of the struggle, as if he was laughing at her for being cowardly, and snorted coldly before letting go of Huo Chengjun's hand.

"You look like this, you are not qualified to be soft-hearted and do good deeds, blame me for spoiling you too much on weekdays, and actually let you be so unsuccessful!"

Huo Chengjun was rarely reprimanded so bluntly by Huo Xian, and his eyes were already red at this moment.

Huo Xian was right, Huo Chengjun had never seen how cruel Chang'an City was outside the house, and today she could say a "no" to her domineering mother, and she had already exhausted all her courage.

Maybe it was because he saw Huo Chengjun's eyes with tears in his eyes, and Huo Xian's tone finally eased a little.

As a mother, how could she not have a little pity for her daughter?

However, Huo Xian's way of expressing his pity is to let his daughter become the winner in those deceitful deceptions - and by the way, become the Huo family's bargaining chip.

"You have to remember that no matter what time it is, you can't have the slightest soft-heartedness......"

"Do you understand?" Huo Xian asked sharply.

"Understood...... Huo Chengjun could only nod, but he only felt more sad in his heart.

"Tomorrow, your sister and brother-in-law will come to the mansion to get together, and when the time comes, you have to be calmer, don't be crazy like before, and have to look like some queens."

"No." Huo Chengjun said expressionlessly.

Those who will come tomorrow are the closest relatives of the Huo family, and only by stabilizing the hearts of these close relatives can it be possible to stabilize the hearts of outsiders.

"Go back to your room, and think about what I just said."

"No." Huo Chengjun bowed solemnly and walked towards the side courtyard where he lived.

When she was about to walk into the courtyard, she stopped again and turned to look at Huo Xian, who was still standing in place.

"Mother, when you gave birth to me, did you already think of a way out for me, knowing that one day, you were going to send me to the palace."

"This is natural, I changed from a small slave to the mother of the Huo family, and you changed from the daughter of the Huo family to the queen of the Han Dynasty, shouldn't it be?"

"Then whether I am your daughter or a stepping stone for the Huo family to gain glory and wealth." Huo Chengjun's face was full of sadness.

"Hmph, if you can be a queen under one person and above ten thousand people, wouldn't it be better to be a stepping stone than to be my daughter?" Huo Xian was dismissive of Huo Chengjun's sorrow.

"Mother, I know, I will definitely be a stepping stone for the Huo family."

After Huo Chengjun finished speaking, he didn't look at his mother again, walked into his side courtyard lonely, and came all the way to the outside of the bedroom.

Standing here, Huo Chengjun looked back at the not too high but suffocating courtyard wall around him, and sighed softly.

At this moment, she grew up a little more, and she also understood that the so-called dearest relatives may not be real dearest.

The Great General's Mansion, controlled by Huo Guang and Huo Xian, is more of a cold cage than a home.

As long as you can escape from here, don't say that you go to Weiyang Palace, it doesn't hurt to go to those grass houses outside Beicheng Guo.

Huo Chengjun pushed the door in, and his figure disappeared into the thick darkness of the room.

On the other side, Huo Xian was also a little surprised, she was still a little confused by what Huo Chengjun said just now, and she couldn't figure out why her daughter would ask such a naïve question.

What's wrong with being a queen, if it weren't for the fact that he was no longer there, he would have to find a way to climb onto the dragon couch of the Son of Heaven.

For a higher status, in order not to be oppressed by others, in order to be able to stand in a high place - all ruthlessness is nothing.

"One day, you will understand what your mother meant."

……

This is the end of this turmoil in the middle mansion, and at night, the entire back house of the Great General's Mansion is cleaned up, and there is a jubilant atmosphere everywhere.

The big slaves, who have been a little overwhelmed by the gossip for several days, walk with their chests puffed up.

Since the birthday of the general's wife can be held as in previous years, the glory and wealth of the Huo family will not fall.

These parasites under this big tree are naturally unharmed.

Then the music, then the dance—isn't that something to be happy about?

……

In a side courtyard, two teenagers are hiding in a corner and whispering under the cover of night.

One of them was the young Lin Fu who was almost punished by Huo Xian in the afternoon, and the other was his companion Lu Ping.

They are all from Changyi.

"It's so dangerous today, you almost became the slave of the Huo family." Lu Ping said, without a trace of worry on his face, but with some playful laughter.

"Ahh

"You are a fugitive slave, and if you are caught, you will be beheaded." Lupin was frightened.

"I'm afraid of an egg, it's a big deal for me to flee to the Western Regions, see who can catch me? Besides, Dai Yuanjun won't care. Lin Fu said angrily.

"That's right."

"Don't say it, it's inconvenient to go out late at night, early tomorrow morning, you have to find a reason to get out of the house, hurry up and tell Dai Yuanjun about tomorrow's family banquet, don't delay it any longer."

"I don't need you to say it, I know the severity, and I've already made up my mind."

The two teenagers conspired again, and after a few moments they separated without anyone noticing.

The back house of the General's Mansion is bound to stage a good show tomorrow.

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(End of chapter)