In the east banquet hall, the musicians played music, the servants sang songs, and when the guests and hosts were happy, Li Yu came to Pei Xiaoyuan, saluted, and invited him to watch his archery skills.

"When Cangshan came back, I kept in mind the teachings of my master, and I practiced diligently at home these days. Some time ago, the master was busy, and the apprentice didn't dare to disturb, but today I want to ask the master to move and give me some guidance to see if I have made progress. ”

When his voice fell, several subordinate officials of the royal palace who were usually familiar with each other shook their heads and persuaded him to give up with a smile, "I know that King Xin'an, you are really doing things, but you don't have to be so diligent!" Let your master sit down and enjoy this feast, and see it another day! ”

Even King Ning laughed at his grandson for being ignorant, but Li Yu still didn't leave. Pei Xiaoyuan got up with a smile and told everyone about his crimes, but was finally asked to leave by Li Xu. Out of the banquet hall, the master and apprentice walked to the end along the east corridor and turned to the target courtyard where Li Yu usually shoots arrows. When he arrived, Guo Guoer and his two relatives were guarding the door, and they were vigilantly looking around, and when they saw the two of them arriving, they hurriedly came to greet them.

Li Yu knew that there was no one nearby, and said in a low voice: "Master, my eldest uncle entered the house last night, and no one in the house knows except for Ah Gong and Ah Niang and me. He was in the bow room at the moment, waiting for his master. ”

Pei Xiaoyuan bowed his head and stepped inside. Li Yu and Guo Guo'er □□ arrows in the target courtyard, and from time to time there was a crackling sound of arrows hitting the target.

Xue Mian, the governor of Liangzhou, entered Beijing last month to report on his work, because the two places are not far apart, and Liangzhou is in the southwest of Gyeonggi, so he asked to stay in Beijing temporarily on the grounds of recuperation, and get the permission of the sage. Recently, he has been recuperating at home, and yesterday he received a secret agreement from his sister Xue Niangzi, so he disguised himself into King Ning's mansion, and at this moment, Pei Xiaoyuan finally appeared, he came up to salute, and called him a horse.

In terms of the relationship between relatives and marriages in the royal family, although Xue Mian and Pei Xiaoyuan are of the same generation and are brothers-in-law, but the other party is a cut older than him, nearly forty, although he has no name for great merit, but he was born in a family whose ancestors had the merit of founding the country from the dragon, and he has served as an official abroad for many years, holding a team of soldiers and horses, and he is also a very senior member of the court. Although Pei Xiao Yuancha looked respectful to him, his eyes were actually blazing, and he was obviously looking at the reality and reality, so he immediately walked up quickly, held up his arms, and then bowed, and returned the salute: "King Xin'an said that Xue Dudu came last night, and he was tired of waiting for a long time, which really made me feel guilty." ”

Xue Mian smiled and waved his hand and shook his head: "I have heard of the name of the colt a long time ago, and I have been looking forward to the opportunity to meet." This time is like a good opportunity from God, I can't ask for it, and I am willing to eat it. Regardless of our in-laws, the colt is still my nephew's mentor, it can be said that the colt is close to each other, and the colt does not have to be polite to me. ”

However, in just a few words, the two parties have a rough understanding of each other. Xue Mian felt that the young man on the opposite side, who had just become a princess, was humble, gentlemanly, and detached. Pei Xiaoyuan also saw that the head of the Xue family was obviously deliberately showing his intimacy with him.

He knew it in his heart, so he didn't take a detour, invited Xue Mian to take a seat, and then went straight to the point: "Pei Mou invited Xue Dudu to meet him like this, with the wisdom of the governor, once I come, I won't talk to the governor about dumb riddles." Can the Governor tell me if he noticed anything unusual when he was dealing with Liu Ceye recently? ”

When Xue Mian heard this, his expression changed slightly, and the smile on Fang Cai's face disappeared, and he hesitated for a while, and asked, "Can Pei Fuma tell me that you made an appointment to meet on the orders of the saint, or did the donkey do it himself?" ”

"Does it make a difference?" Pei Xiaoyuan asked rhetorically.

Xue Mian was stunned.

"The saint has a lot of opportunities, and he has no time to personally ask about such a trivial matter as our in-laws meeting. However, it was the princess's proposal to meet the governor here today. Pei Xiaoyuan looked at him and said word by word.

Xue Mian was stunned, but he still gritted his teeth and hesitated to say more.

Pei Xiaoyuan smiled, "Xue Dudu's family background is rich, Zude Fengze, it has been passed to Dudu, and now there is a good opportunity, you can be called Dudu to make you famous Taishan, and you can protect the prosperity of the Xue family." The governor is a wise man, and he hopes that he will make a decision at the right time, and he must not make a mistake at both ends, let alone make a mistake, and be used by people with ill intentions to make a big mistake. ”

Xue Mian reluctantly smiled: "Forgive my brother for being stupid, what Pei Juma said, I don't understand it." ”

"Since the Jingsheng Rebellion, the Holy Dynasty has been in an embarrassing situation for a while, and it is restless inside and outside. Fortunately, thanks to the governance of the saints, after these 20 years, the sea has been peaceful, the four sides are peaceful, and today's situation can be described as hard-won. However, no matter how wise the saint is, the so-called weight of the world is not a sole rule, and he also needs the assistance of the humerus and virtuous ability. Looking at the imperial court, how many people can be called virtuous ministers and capable ministers now? ”

"The princess ordered me to tell you that she read the book of the two dynasties a few days ago, and said, the court has no virtuous ability, and the wings of the Honghu are also featherless, even if there is a thousand miles of hope, she still can't do what she wants! She thought so. ”

His expression had changed to solemnity at this time, and he looked at Xue Mian: "Advance with loyalty, and keep your position with faith." The princess asked me to ask you, would you like to be the wings of the bird in the future? ”

Xue Mian was stunned, came to his senses, hurriedly got up from his seat, bowed to the north a few times, and then looked evasive, and said: "Thank you princess for paying so much attention." When the minister returns, he must dissuade those who don't know the times, if it is peaceful today, why bother to follow in the footsteps of Chen Sida......"

Pei Xiaoyuan smiled slightly: "Xue Dudu, are you afraid that if King Kang gains power in the future, you will suffer?" ”

Xue Mian's heart was poked by him, and the smirk on his face couldn't be hung up, wiped the hot sweat from his forehead, and was silent.

"Xue Dudu, I won't tell you, I don't know what the future will be, but King Kang, I'm afraid it's not His Majesty's wish, I can assure you of this."

"Why don't you put yourself in your shoes, if you were in the position of the princess today, would you be willing to make King Kang gain power?" In the end, Pei Xiaoyuan said leisurely.

Although Xue Mian is also a military general, he does not have the same ambition as Liu Ceye, and his greatest wish in life is to keep his current wealth and family business.

In the eyes of outsiders, the Xue family, the Liu and Wei families share glory and loss, and they are closely related, which is really inseparable. Over the years, he naturally hoped that the crown prince would succeed to the throne smoothly, so that everyone would be safe and sound, and he could continue to maintain his wealth. However, in the past few years, the more I look at it, the more I feel that the prince is unstable, especially this time when the princess returns to the court, the prince and the Liu family are afraid that they will not succeed, this is almost a very obvious trend, it just depends on when the saint speaks.

For such a situation, his heart is full of contradictions. Liu Ceye has frequently sent him letters in private recently, and although he has not stated the purpose, he feels that there must be something big. Help Liu Ce Ye, in case of failure, it will be a mortal crime that will plague the whole clan. If you don't help, if the crown prince really falls, and the emperor's other son, King Kang, is left on the throne, then he will have no good end.

Although his sister Xue Niangzi married into King Ning's Mansion, and his nephew is the eldest grandson of King Ning's Mansion, King Ning Qinggui is noble and has never really been in charge of things, and if it really comes to that point in the future, the help will be limited.

In this way, Xue Mian fell into a great dilemma. I wanted to avoid going back to Liangzhou, but I was afraid that if I left, something big would happen in Chang'an, and I wouldn't have time to react. What's more, if Liu Ceye really does it, he will return to Liangzhou, and he will not be able to escape. Therefore, I found an excuse to stay for the time being, and planned to wait and see.

At this moment, when he heard Pei Xiaoyuan say this, Deng Shi quickly turned his thoughts in his heart.

King Kang and the princess themselves may have no grievances, but with the concubine Pei Xiaoyuan, because of the incident in Beiyuan back then, it is obviously impossible to really be at peace. Since the princess chose Pei Xiaoyuan as her concubine, she is one with him.

Could it be that the princess wants to take advantage of the favor of the saint to conspire with the empress to ascend the throne, or to ascend the throne and completely change the dynasty?

Xue Mian was taken aback by this thought, but immediately after, he became excited.

If this plan is true, the horses and princesses may be able to leverage the following people:

The eldest princess and the eldest princess are from the Lu family, and their families have a lot of influence on the Beifu Forbidden Army.

As for the side of the Sixteen Guards of the Southern Ya, Han Kerang, Fan Ximing and other most powerful generals should also stand up.

Chang'an's military strength is there, needless to say, the Cui family, known as the world's first scholar clan, Cui Daohei, is the uncle of the horse, and it is easy to mobilize the people of the world to increase the momentum at that time.

More than that, there is one more point that is extremely important. That is Pei Ji's prestige, the name of Pei Xiaoyuan's father, the Divine Tiger General, and Pei Xiaoyuan's appeal to the old departments of the Divine Tiger Army that are now scattered all over the country.

Above, if there is a real incident, it should not be a big problem to firmly control the imperial court in Chang'an and the Eastern Capital.

Later, if the local government takes the opportunity to cause rebellion in the name of opposition, it is enough to send troops and horses to quell the rebellion.

With the strength of the horse army, this is not impossible, it just depends on how long this battle will be fought.

If the crown prince and the Liu family will undoubtedly fall, compared to King Kang's own neck and death when he ascends the throne, the so-called wealth and danger Zhongbo, it is better to take this opportunity to follow the princess and the concubine and do a fight.

Xue Mian stopped thinking about it, didn't hesitate anymore, and immediately bowed to Pei Xiaoyuan: "Thank you for mentioning the horse and the princess today!" Let me open my mouth suddenly, like an initiation! I, Xue Mian, swear here, that I am willing to serve the spirit of heaven and earth, and to the power of the temple, and to be loyal to the saint and the court! ”

A moment later, Pei Xiaoyuan walked out of the bow knife room. Li Xuzheng and Guo Guoer were guarding from afar, and when they saw this, they hurriedly caught up.

Why the master made an appointment with his uncle in such a way, Li Yu didn't know very well, but he knew that it must be an important thing. There are many people in King Ning's mansion, and it is difficult to guarantee that there will not be one or two pairs of eyes watching in the dark. He wouldn't have asked much.

At this moment, when the master came out, he immediately accompanied him back again, so as not to arouse suspicion.

Pei Xiaoyuan went back to the banquet hall and sat down for a while, when there was a word from the West Flower Hall, the princess had finished the banquet and wanted to stay. The busyness here has also dispersed. Pei Xiaoyuan personally went to the West Flower Hall to pick up people.

The two looked at each other, and amid the noise of the women around him, he looked at her and nodded.

Su Yu knew that Xue Mian had been persuaded by him, and finally breathed a deep sigh of relief and smiled at him.

Pei Xiaoyuan took Su Yu's cloak from the handmaid who came with him, and was about to put it on for her, when he saw Li Wanwan pulling Li Yu, and the sister and brother came up from behind the crowd, stood side by side, and made a gesture towards Pei Xiaoyuan and Su Yu, and said in unison: "Congratulations to my aunt and uncle!" ”

Then, Li Wanwan said: "Bead curtain embroidered curtain!" ”

Li Yu didn't look as generous as Sister A, thinking that she was forcibly dragged here, a little shy, but he also said loudly: "Hejia League!" ”

"Huawu Immortal!" A double track.

"A perfect match!" The other followed.

"Newlywed Yan'er, Guizi Lan Ya!"

The sister and brother recited again, and when it was over, Li Wanwan smiled and took out a pre-prepared branch of cinnamon tied with red silk from her sleeve, and Li Yu was an orchid, and the sister and brother both offered it.

"Auntie, uncle, the two of you are getting married, and my brother and I have nothing to give, so I read these words to you. Also, I hope you will spread the good news soon, so that I can be a sister again! ”

Dangui means "noble son", and orchid bud means "daughter".

Mo said that Pei Xiaoyuan and Su Yu were defenseless, even Xue Niangzi and the ladies in the palace didn't expect it, and after being stunned, they reacted, and everyone pointed to their brothers and sisters, and they all laughed.

Pei Xiaoyuan was embarrassed, but he forcibly endured it on his face, and he didn't dare to take it rashly, only glancing at the person beside him. I saw that she took both Dangui and Lanzhi with a smile, and did not transfer them to the maid on the side, took them in her hands, thanked her, and then left Pei Xiaoyuan, turned around and went outside.

Pei Xiaoyuan reacted, hurriedly walked forward, and followed.

Chapter 102

King Ning led the crowd to send the distinguished guests outside the gate. Qingtou placed a pestle on the side of the carriage. Su Yu lifted her skirt a little and stepped on it. Pei Xiaoyuan helped her by the side and wanted to send her to the car, but saw her suddenly stop on the pestle, as if she smelled something, turned her face, swept his eyes over his injured shoulder, understood, and immediately explained in a low voice: "I haven't drunk a sip of wine." It's just that someone nearby accidentally sprinkled some on my sleeve, which was not very conspicuous, so I didn't change it. He raised his sleeves lightly to prove this.

After all, he could not hide the fact that he was injured in the assassination. Since yesterday, somehow, it has spread in a small area in the south of the palace, and so far this morning, more people know about it. Suspicions have surfaced. It's just that everyone is very secretive about this, and they don't dare to talk about it in public. No one mentioned it at the banquet, and when he entered the wine, Pei Xiaoyuan said that because of his body, he replaced the wine with tea, and no one forced him, so he really never drank a drop.

Qingtou was still waiting to take back the pestle, Lang Jun's explanation, the voice was very low, and the rest of the people who saw him off couldn't hear it, but it didn't escape his ears. The others stood still, but they couldn't help but squint, and saw the princess glance at the pony's sleeve, which was really slightly wet, and then took a faint look, and sat down. Lang Jun seemed to be slightly relieved.

Qingtou took this scene into his eyes, and became more and more determined to serve the princess in the future.

The group left in the sound of congratulations, and then went to Cui's house according to the original plan.

Like Ning Wangfu, the Cui family was already prepared. The Wang family was even more courteous, after a greeting and politeness, the male and female guests were seated, and she led many female relatives in the Cui clan to surround the rain, flattering in every way, and sent her own hands to pour wine for the princess.

Su Yu knew that Pei Xiaoyuan was snubbed by Cui Mansion when he was a child and then went out of Beijing to join Pei Ji, especially this Wang uncle, who was extremely snobbish, she naturally didn't like it, and she didn't want to have any deep friendship with the other party. Today's visit is just because many of the men's family matters involved in this wedding are handled by the Cui Mansion, and they have contributed a lot, and the Cui family is the uncle's house.

She didn't show anything on her face, she still smiled and socialized with the Wang family and others, and only after a while did she get up on the grounds that she was too strong to drink, and she planned to be clean, and when Pei Xiaoyuan's side was finished, she could leave and go back.

The Wang family sent her to a pre-prepared exquisite courtyard house, sent all kinds of snacks, asked her to rest in peace, came out, and carefully instructed the maids in the house to serve carefully outside, and never disturb the princess, so she withdrew.

On the other hand, Pei Xiaoyuan finished the entertainment, and his uncle Cui Daosi also said something in private, because he knew that his aunt was a person, he had always remembered in his heart, worried that Su Yu would be impatient, and he hurriedly went to this side after the matter, and wanted to pick her up in person. Pei Xiaoyuan asked what it was, and the lady in charge said that she didn't know, but said that people were waiting.

Pei Xiaoyuan had no choice but to change his course with the lady, passed through a deep corridor, and walked to a courtyard that looked quite secluded.

Pei Xiaoyuan followed and walked a few steps inside, only to feel that there was a huge courtyard, but it was silent, and near the porch, there was not even the shadow of half a servant.

This is an anomaly. He had some doubts in his heart, looked around, slowly stopped on the road, and did not continue to walk inside. was hesitating, and suddenly saw the figure of a girl slowly walking out of the opposite door, it was Wang Zhenfeng.

Pei Xiaoyuan didn't expect her to be in the Cui family today, let alone see her here at this moment, surprised, he didn't have time to think about it for a while, and after nodding at Wang Zhenfeng, he immediately asked: "I just said that my aunt is looking for me?" Is she available? ”

Wang Zhenfeng was silent, and did not immediately respond to his words, at this time, the lady in charge said with a smile: "The concubine is helping the world, not the lady, but someone else, who wants to personally thank the concubine for saving his life!" ”

Pei Xiaoyuan was confused, and when he asked again, the lady said again: "That's it, I won't say it, let's ask the horse and the lady Zhenfeng to talk slowly." I'll quit first. After that, he saluted Pei Xiaoyuan, and then went, and when he withdrew, he even deliberately brought the courtyard door with him.

Pei Xiaoyuan only felt inexplicable, seeing this situation, he didn't like it in his heart, and his brows wrinkled slightly imperceptibly. At this moment, if it weren't for Wang Zhenfeng, the person opposite would need to save some face for her, but I was afraid that she would leave on the spot. Seeing that Wang Zhenfeng saluted him and invited him to speak in a low voice, he suppressed the unhappiness in his heart and said with a smile: "If Wang Niangzi has something, even if it is." It's also convenient here. ”

Wang Zhenfeng seemed to be in a trance and did not respond immediately. He then said: "Fang Cai said that my aunt was looking for me, so I came here." Since there was nothing to do, I went too. Wang Niangzi is at her own convenience. ”

He waved at Wang Zhenfeng from a distance, did not wait for her to return the salute, turned around and walked away, at this time, he heard Wang Zhenfeng say: "Pei Langjun stays!" ”

Pei Xiaoyuan looked back and saw Wang Zhenfeng walking out from behind the door.

"The grace of saving lives cannot be repaid. Please accept my worship! ”

She stopped at the foot of the porch in front of the door, saluted Pei Xiaoyuan, knelt on her knees, and bowed deeply.

Pei Xiaoyuan couldn't help but be confused again, so he had to call her up.

"What do you mean, Mrs. Wang? What life-saving grace? You're thanking the wrong person! ”

Wang Zhenfeng slowly got up from the ground, hesitated, and asked in a trembling voice: "Pei Langjun, don't you know about my marriage?" ”

Pei Xiaoyuan hadn't met her for a while, and when she came to the front, standing in the courtyard in the sunlight, she felt that her face was haggard, and she looked as if she was sick. Hearing her talk about marriage again, I couldn't help but be surprised, and after a pause, I said apologetically: "I have been busy with something some time ago, but I didn't know that Wang Niangzi also proposed marriage." But I don't know who the man is, if the happy event is decided, remember to send someone to say, and then I will prepare a congratulatory gift with the princess. ”

Wang Zhenfeng looked at him for a moment, suddenly his eyes turned red, and tears fell: "It turns out that Pei Langjun, you really don't know?" ”

Pei Xiaoyuan was in a hurry to leave, seeing her in such a situation, thinking of Wang Zhenfeng's father, it was impossible to turn around and go.

He paused, his tone turned softened, and said, "Lady Wang, have you been feeling unwell lately?" What the hell is going on? ”

"I don't know if Pei Langjun has heard of King Qing?" Wang Zhenfeng didn't answer, he was stunned for a moment, and muttered to ask.

King Qing is the king of the clan, because his father has been meritorious in quelling the rebellion with the sage, so as long as he does not plot rebellion like the old king Chen Wang who once lived in Yongning Mansion, even if he commits it, it is not a big problem. In a wine banquet before, Pei Xiaoyuan also met once, he was over forty years old and was a widower. At that time, I heard Chengping as if he was having fun, and I also mentioned it, saying that this person has a special habit of sexual affairs, cruel and cruel. A few years ago, Fang Zhong said that a concubine died of a violent illness, but in fact, he should have tortured him.

He bowed slightly: "What's wrong with King Qing?" ”

Wang Zhenfeng's tears were like rain for a while, and after wiping away his tears, he finally spoke again and told the truth of the matter.

It turned out that Wang Zhenfeng some time ago, has been waiting to be officially ordained to be a female crown, but ten days ago, the long history of Qingwangfu suddenly came to the Wang's house, saw Wang Zhenfeng's widowed mother, opened his mouth is to congratulate, Daoqing Wang passed by the women's gate the day before yesterday, met Wang Zhenfeng, very admired, and learned that she was born in the scholar family, for the Wang family, so he wanted to welcome the princess, in order to show solemnity, sent the chief Shi Dengmen to say kiss.