As the first lunar month approaches, another heavy snowfall has fallen in Xanadu, adding a touch of warmth to the already strong festive atmosphere.
It's early days after snow, and there's a coolness in the air.
Xia Yunhe was dressed in a plain cotton-waisted robe with green branches and green branches. He was holding a volume of miscellaneous books and leaning on a rattan chair under the eaves.
Watching the snow falling in the courtyard.
There is a red clay stove on the left hand side, and a small clay pot sits on the stove, making a hissing sound of steam.
She sat up straight, picked up the small pot, and refilled herself with a cup of hot tea.
Gently blow the foam on the tea and sip slowly.
Today is a day off for bathing, and Zhenniang went to the Western Market to buy goods. Xia Yunhe had no time to stay in the courtyard, pouring himself a drink.
Look up at the sky and look down at the miscellaneous books. This book was left to her by Mr. Fu. It was about the commonly used code words at night. A gust of cold wind penetrated the branches. She covered her lips and coughed twice. She tightened her tight clothes and did not go back to the house. Being colder could calm her mind. More awake.
Since her rebirth, she has wanted to change, but she has to keep a low profile first. The situation in Beijing is not good for her.
There is no apparent action from all parties, but from the hints of the fourth prince, we can see the intense party struggle.
Originally, there was only one force in the court, namely the guests from the East Palace headed by the prince. With the support of Duke Dingguo, the prince had a solid foundation in the court.
In his previous life, Xia Yunhe was the prince's tutor, and he was in the same boat as them. They were both decent people and were polite to each other.
Now, I have chosen the seventh prince, a seventh-grade petty official, who dares to refute the crown prince, and there will be people rushing to vent his anger on his master's behalf, without the need for Duke Ding to take action.
The current situation can best be described in twelve words.
Fighting with fear, as if facing an abyss, as if walking on thin ice.
She held the book tightly, stood up and walked around the courtyard. From time to time, I fold my arms and think.
Everyone believed that the prince was the natural heir, and everything had to revolve around the prince, making suggestions for the prince and eradicating dissidents. No one knew that the Chu Kingdom had perished at the hands of the prince, and she had seen it with her own eyes.
The miserable state of the world cannot bear to be contemplated.
Xia Yunhe raised his head, exhaled, and shook his head to drive these tragic memories out of his mind.
But she couldn't stand the book in her hand anymore, so she settled into the wicker chair, leaned on the armrest, and raised her chin.
Mr. Fu has been gone for more than a month. I wonder what the specific situation is like in the border area?
He raised his hand and rubbed his eyebrows, got up and went to the hut to change the pot of water. He grabbed a handful of millet and sprinkled it randomly under the eaves. Before long, there were more than a dozen plump sparrows flying to the eaves and huddled together. , lowered his head to peck at food, and occasionally jumped on the snow, leaving shallow paw prints.
Xia Yunhe stretched out his waist, settled into the wicker chair again, covered his face with a book, closed his eyes, let's fight, the soldiers will stop him, and the water will come to the soil.
In recent years, all the princes have grown up, and Wan Jing, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, and his family, headed by Concubine Wan Guifei's mother-in-law, support the fifth prince. This is obvious.
The fourth prince, his mother, and his concubine were of low birth. They focused on eating fast and chanting Buddha in the palace, and did not care about worldly affairs. The fourth prince is like a wealthy idler, eating, drinking and having fun all day long. Born in the royal family, there is no real rich and idle person. What happened in Yuanri showed that his scheming was much deeper than that of the prince and the fifth prince.
Now, Xia Yunhe supports the Seventh Prince. The Seventh Prince, who has been a hostage for a long time and has not attracted much attention, is regarded as the fourth force and joins this chaotic struggle. For those people, the seventh prince whose foundation is not stable is the best to deal with.
She suddenly felt a sense of apology. If the seventh prince had not been chosen that day, that boy would have had his own low-key way of survival. Wait until you are seventeen before going to the border town to show off your skills.
In the current situation, I wonder how long the Seventh Prince can last? She has to...
The book on his face was taken away, and Zhen Niang's carefree voice penetrated into Xia Yunhe's ears.
"Sir, it's freezing outside. If you don't put on a cloak, why are you sitting outside? The wind and cold just subsided some time ago. Why are you so careless?"
Xia Yunhe felt a little guilty. He sat up, drank the tea in one gulp, covered his cheeks and said, "I won't be out for a while."
Zhenniang touched her back, her eyes darkened, her eyebrows knitted together, she looked at her and sighed, "You're kidding me, my clothes are all frozen like this."
Seeing that Zhenniang was angry, Xia Yunhe shrank his neck, stood up, wanted to get the book back, and then entered the house.
How could Zhenniang let her go so easily? She hid behind her, took the distant book, and continued, "Sir, you know you are not in good health, yet you dare to sit outside like this. The old lady should be sad if she knows."
Xia Yunhe had a headache and couldn't care less about making tea and enjoying the snow. He just hoped that Zhenniang would stop talking about it. She glanced at the woman a few times and found that the basket on Zhenniang's shoulders was empty, so she asked, "Why didn't you buy food today?"
As expected, Zhen Niang was led to a different topic, and she said as if she was pouring beans from a bamboo tube, "Humph, you don't know, the prices in the West Market have doubled, and the vendors are even more arrogant, saying, 'Just buy what you want, don't pick and choose.' It's really irritating, how can I do that?" Why can’t you be selective when buying vegetables? There was also a child who bumped into my waist and knocked over a vegetable stall. The stall owner refused, so I paid all the money for the vegetables to that person."
"I didn't buy the food, so I'm in trouble." Zhen Niang lowered her face angrily, and was silent for a while. Then she patted her head, remembered something, and shouted, "By the way, Master, that child gave me a A letter to give to you."
As he said that, he took out the envelope from his arms and continued to ramble, "I saw that the young master's name was written on it, so I brought it back. The child gave the letter and disappeared after a while. Young Master, do you think it's strange?"
Xia Yunhe nodded, feeling that what she said made sense. He reached out and took the envelope. The envelope was written "Xia Gongyi's Honor". When he opened it, he found a gold leaf and a bunch of hair tied with a red rope. The letter read, "I have heard of Gongyi's name for a long time, and I miss him so much. I hope that the moment of application will come today." A brief introduction to Wuweilou. Sanniang bows to you."
Wuweilou is a famous restaurant in Shangdu. It attracts guests from all over the world and brings together all kinds of flavors from Huguang. Xia Yunhe’s brows twitched slightly, Sanniang?
This tone is not like what Sanniang would say.
She turned out the front of the envelope, stared at the words carefully, and suddenly had an idea.
Xia Gongyi's respect...Yizhi...
She had never spoken her words to Sanniang. This letter... someone came to ask her through Sanniang's mouth.
Xia Yunhe sat back in the wicker chair again, tapped his knees, and thought in his mind that the person behind the scenes might be the prince, the fourth prince, or the concubine Wan Guifei.
The fourth prince's words echoed in her ears, "If you don't make a choice, someone will make the choice for you." Xia Yunhe chuckled, her choice had been made long ago.
While she was thinking, Zhenniang covered her legs with a small blanket.
The woman tied up her clothes and prepared to cook. She looked at her fondly and said, "Young master, if you want to watch the snow, you should also keep warm."
Xia Yunhe chuckled, stroking the gold leaf in his hand, and the red string on his fingertips held the green silk and swayed gently. He frowned and took a closer look at the words on the envelope. He saw that the handwriting was vigorous and powerful, like a man writing. The man behind the scenes...
She had never seen the word "Fourth Prince" before, but the word "Prince" was quite powerful.
If the prince invites the invitation, Duke Ding must be involved behind the scenes.
Xia Yunhe looked up at the sky, knowing that if Duke Ding was involved, it would be difficult for him to compete with him now.
If she didn't go, these people would at most say that she was ignorant, but there was nothing they could do about it. Thinking of this, Xia Yunhe smiled and decided not to go.
She leaned back in the wicker chair, feeling comfortable, and followed Zhenniang's words and let them play with her.
Zhenniang came over and said, "Master, the child said something when he left."
"What are you talking about?" Xia Yunhe asked lightly, not caring at all.
Zhenniang frowned and said, "The child said, 'If you don't come, the girl's hand will be sent over'."
Xia Yunhe sat up in surprise, "Zhenniang, did you hear that correctly?"
"How can I? My ears are sharp."
Xia Yunhe lowered his head and thought. In her previous life, she was the prince's tutor. Although the prince was narrow-minded and received royal education, he would never say such explicit and violent words.
This man is not a prince, nor is he Duke Dingguo.
If you don't go, Sanniang's life may be in danger. If you go, you may fall into this person's trap.
Xia Yunhe frowned again when he thought of Sanniang's light and energetic smile. Zhenniang said from the side, "Young master, go ahead. I'll accompany you. I'm strong. If there's a fight, I'll protect you."
Xia Yunhe's eyes were filled with coldness, and a figure appeared in his mind. If she doesn't go, she won't lose anything. If it's really that crazy guy, Sanniang's life may be in danger. As the old saying goes, "If I don't kill Boren, Boren will die because of me." If Sanniang was really killed, and it fell into the ears of important officials in the court, they would definitely accuse her of being ungrateful and unrighteous.
She slumped in the wicker chair, stamping her feet, feeling a little angry. Speaking of which, we really need to get to know the person behind the scenes who held Sanniang hostage.
…
The moment of application. Wuweilou.
Xia Yunhe attended the banquet alone, wearing a white fox cloak, and followed the waiter to the private room on the second floor.
The wing room is magnificent, with gold powder-coated walls and hidden four-way Ruyi dark patterns. The floor is covered with a deep red peony brocade blanket. Rosewood tables and chairs are equipped with carved silk flowers. Sanniang is sitting at the table, and a beautiful painting screen separates the indoor space. , there is a couch behind the screen, and there is a vague figure.
On the table are gold cups and flower cups, gold and jade delicacies on the plate, whitebait and green bamboo shoots, assorted rice balls, Huguang white shrimps, red goose feet... Various fruits and cakes are spread all over the table, leaving no gaps.
Sanniang had whip wounds on her face, and her eyes lit up when she saw her. Make a slight mouth shape, "Chen - Hai - Zhou."
Xia Yunhe's eyebrows moved slightly, and he secretly thought, sure enough. I calmed down again, took off my fox fur, and sat on the round stool at the entrance without showing any signs of expression.
He turned to look at the figure behind the screen and asked slowly: "Why don't you show up?"
Chen Haizhou's voice came from inside, "Master Xia, you really value love and justice."
"What does Master Chen mean by this move?"
Chen Haizhou walked out from behind the screen, wearing a gilt crown, crow-green lake silk, and a sachet hanging loosely around his waist. He looked like a romantic dandy, but the sinister look between his eyebrows revealed that he was not an easy person to get along with.
He dismissed the envoy, strolled around the courtyard, poured wine for Xia Yunhe, raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, "Master Xia, I miss you so much after not seeing each other for so many days."
The Mid-Autumn Festival dew is white in the cup, and the taste is mellow and fragrant.
Chen Haizhou sat back on the main seat and said again: "The autumn dew is thick and the water is thick. I am a rough man and don't understand what is special about the contents of this cup. Please give it a try, Mr. Xia."
Xia Yunhe looked at Chen Haizhou with a smile, raised his glass, turned sideways, covered his mouth with his sleeve, raised his head slightly, quietly poured the drink onto the handkerchief, and stuffed it back into his sleeve. She wiped her mouth and said slowly, "Your Majesty gave Mr. Chen a fine wine, but I don't dare to drink it anymore."
Chen Haizhou sat up straight, poured himself a glass of wine, drank it all, and said with a smile, "It's not as fun as burning a knife. Mr. Xia is not happy either."
Xia Yunhe chuckled lightly, his eyebrows bright, "A certain person is a civil servant, so naturally he is not as generous as Mr. Chen."
Chen Haizhou laughed loudly, looked at Sanniang, then looked at Xia Yunhe, looked her up and down, and stared at Xia Yunhe with sharp eyes.
He meant something, with a strong sense of oppression, "I once heard a sentence."
Xia Yunhe remained calm, with a smile on his lips, and listened quietly to what he said.
I saw Chen Haizhou filling up the wine glass again, drinking it all in one gulp, and snorted coldly, "Two rabbits walking next to each other, how can they tell whether I am male or female?"
