Just after walking out of Wende Hall, I looked at the snowflakes that had started to dance in the sky at some point, and listened to the faint sound of firecrackers coming from far outside the palace. Thinking of her eldest sister who was quarreling with her again and again today, Huang Qiong could only pinch her nose and smile bitterly, sighing slightly in her heart: "This eldest sister of mine is not the ordinary one who holds grudges."
Turning his head and looking at the Wende Hall where the candlelight was still swaying, Huang Qiong shook his head. Today, Princess Jincheng seems to be tactful, but in fact, she is obviously not interested in seeing her. It is not impossible to tell from the old man's personality. At this time, Princess Jincheng was left to help persuade him. Compared to other brothers, the old man obviously hopes that this eldest sister can put aside the past feud with him.
It's just that the old man has a good idea. With the character of the eldest sister, I'm afraid that the old man's hard work will be in vain. It might even be counterproductive if it doesn't work well. If I, the eldest sister, were really such an easy-to-get-together person, she would have spoken so smoothly when she was in Guangshou Hall today, but in fact, she didn't even give herself any face.
Huang Qiong knew in his heart that compared with the prince, who was imprisoned in the cold palace, and the three kings Jing, Duan and Shu. During that period, among the princes and princesses, the one who had the most difficult time was actually Princess Jincheng. The princes, at least, have their biological mothers by their side, and the old man is trying his best to help. Even his mother, hasn't she been taking care of her secretly?
Although his life was in danger, at least he died earlier than his mother. His father was busy regaining the imperial power and had little time to care about him. Not only was there no one to accompany her, she wasn't even treated as a princess should be. She also has to take care of several younger brothers. It can be said that the eldest sister, who has taken on too many things that she shouldn't have at a young age, is too strong.
The same goes for loving a house and a bird, and hating a bird. Back then, my grandfather's family had left a profound impression on the eldest daughter of the emperor. Even now, I haven't forgotten it. The hatred in my heart disappeared with the Huaiyang County Prince's Mansion, and may have been gradually forgotten. But it's obvious that he doesn't like himself.
Huang Qiong didn't know when the knot in her eldest sister's heart would be resolved. I really don’t want to have any conflict with this eldest sister. He now only hopes that through the old man's persuasion tonight, his eldest sister can continue to stay out of the matter even if she can't even be neutral. She must not interfere with this future. Who knows how many people will be involved in it. in the vortex.
Because in fact, regardless of this eldest sister and her dislike of her, Huang Qiong still admired this Princess Jincheng in her heart. Being able to take such a huge risk and save several younger brothers was something that no ordinary person could do. How old was she back then? Twelve or thirteen? It takes a lot of courage for such a young woman to do something like that.
But Huang Qiong also knew that these were just wishful thinking. As for where things will go in the future, they are not within their control. He just hoped that things wouldn't end up hurting both sides. Looking back again at the brightly lit Wende Hall behind him, Huang Qiong sighed softly and left.
After Huang Qiong left, the only two people left in the Wende Hall, father and daughter, experienced a brief silence. After a long time, the emperor finally said: "Jincheng, you are a little abnormal today. You speak and act a little different from you before. I also know that you have suffered a lot in those years, and you are the most bitter among all brothers and sisters." At most one."
"You are angry in your heart, so you don't like Ah Jiu. I know this. And it's not just because of what happened back then. In the past few days, someone has said a lot of bad things about Ah Jiu in your ears. But I leave you with this. I just want to ask you what you think of Ah Jiu. Now we are just two people, father and daughter, and you can say whatever you want. No matter what you say is right or wrong, I will not blame you."
He also knew that, let alone the fact that he had repeatedly confronted the ninth brother just now. Just his actions in the Guangshou Palace, which seemed to be persuading Prince Teng and Huang Qiong, but in fact were obviously trying to distract each other, were enough for the emperor to understand his thoughts. So when faced with the emperor's inquiry, Princess Jincheng didn't have much to hide.
"Father, the first time the daughter and the ninth brother met was at the funeral of Queen Daxing. Then the ninth brother was sent by the father to go to Zhengzhou to defeat King Jing who had caused rebellion. There was no relationship between the daughter and the ninth brother. We are not familiar with each other, so we can’t say whether we like him or not. Most of what my daughter knew about Ninth Brother before was from the mouth of King Yong.”
"The reason why my daughter doesn't like Ninth Brother, my father has just said. However, the reason why my daughter doesn't like Ninth Brother is because his palace is too deep, and she can't see through it at all. In the past, it was said that King Shu's palace was too deep. , but my daughter just discovered today that compared with this ninth brother, the fifth brother is still far behind at least in terms of city power. You know, my daughter doesn’t like people who are too rich. "
"Now there are rumors outside that the prince was knocked down by his own hands. The death of King Jing was not a suicide by taking poison at all, but was caused by him. Even the death of King Shu had a lot to do with him. Relationship. Although those rumors may not be true, even if they are true even if they are 10% true, it is really scary. After all, what were his grandfather and mother back then? "
When it came to Huang Qiong's mother, Princess Jincheng suddenly remembered that during these days, there were rumors that her father stayed in Tingxuexuan almost every day, and that he and Concubine Jing were rekindling their old relationship. They said too much. He was about to talk about his father, so he quickly stopped the topic. What's more, just saying enough is enough. Any more would probably cause the emperor's displeasure.
It's just that although Princess Jincheng did what she said, she didn't say what she meant. How could the emperor not be clear about it? Standing up and walking down the imperial desk, the emperor looked at his eldest daughter and sighed for a long time before saying: "I never thought that you would misunderstand her so much. Jincheng, you were responsible for all the younger brothers back then. Preserved.”
"But have you ever thought about it, when I couldn't save myself, did you really save your brothers by yourself? The wet nurse of Prince Teng and Prince Yong was really you The one who got her into the palace? You shouldn't be so naive as a person. Let me tell you the truth today. It's okay for you to hate the Huaiyang County Prince back then, but when you hate Concubine Jing, you really hate the wrong person."
"Without her full strength, how can you think of us as father and daughter and still talk to each other here? Back then, the Huaiyang County Prince even dared to kill Emperor Liezong, let alone several of my young princes? Do you really think that I am this , the prince who is not favored by Emperor Sejong at all, and his power in the court and palace, can he really make the Huaiyang County King throw a rat weapon into a trap and not dare to get rid of our family openly?"
"Back then, in the eyes of the Prince of Huaiyang County, I was just a puppet who could be easily manipulated and destroyed at any time because I had no foundation in the court. Not to mention killing several of my princes, even if the knife fell directly on On my head, I'm afraid he won't have a single hesitation. If there wasn't someone secretly helping us in those years, our family would have been reduced to a pile of ashes."
Hearing the emperor mention the past, Princess Jincheng couldn't help but think of some strange things in the past: "Father, what you said is correct. Back then, my daughter always had a feeling that someone was secretly helping her. My daughter picked up several younger brothers. When I was around, even the people sent to the palace by the Duke of Huaiyang, everyone knew what they were doing and they didn't stop them."
"When King Yong was born, Concubine Zhuang was too worried and had no milk. After her daughter asked someone to secretly find the wet nurse, she has been worrying about how to get the wet nurse into the palace. But she didn't expect that some god had spoken, and she was so light. He brought people into the palace easily. There was even one more person in the palace, and no one even asked. The meals sent to my daughter every day have also increased a lot."
"My daughter took King Yong to visit Concubine Zhuang every day, and no one stopped her. What puzzled her the most was that the wet nurse never asked her for wages. Our family was in a difficult situation at that time. Although my daughter was The princesses of Daqi have never received even a penny of monthly salary like the princesses of the previous dynasties."
"At that time, the only money my daughter had saved from the past dozen or so coins was not enough to pay her wages. In order to raise money, her daughter had planned to take out all the hostas left by her mother and use them to pay her wages. . But I didn’t expect that when I gave it to the wet nurse, the wet nurse said she didn’t want anything. When I asked her why, she couldn’t tell anything.”
"If I asked again in a hurry, I would say that someone had already given her a sum of money, which was enough for their family to have enough food and clothing, and asked her not to think about anything in the palace and to raise the little prince in a down-to-earth manner. My daughter always thought that it was that person The knowledgeable people who are loyal to the imperial court secretly arranged this in order to preserve the bloodline of the Tian family. Listening to your words today, is there any hidden secret in it? "
Speaking of this, Princess Jincheng suddenly remembered the emperor's words before, that if you hate Concubine Jing, you really hate the wrong person. She couldn't help but said in surprise: "Could it be that she was the one who had been secretly helping me all those years ago? This is impossible. She is the daughter of the Huaiyang County Prince. There is no reason why she should not help her father eliminate the roots, but instead she came to help. we."
Seeing the unbelievable expression on his daughter's face, the emperor nodded slightly and said: "Yes, it was her who helped you back then. And it was not only King Shen, King Teng, and King Yong, but also Daxing. She had worked so hard to protect the queen and those traitorous sons. If she hadn't worked so hard to protect them, the bones of our whole family would have been cold."
"She is too smart, too calm, and too rational. She can see through everything, but she suppresses everything in her heart and never talks about it to outsiders. With her intelligence and ability, the then King of Huaiyang County After she died and came to take charge of the overall situation, I am afraid that the country has changed hands long ago. Her intelligence is rare in the world, and I am far behind."
"Although my layout was secretive back then, it was not hidden from her eyes. Although she did not help me deal with her father, she helped me hide her discovery. In addition to the fact that she knew that Huaiyang back then The body of the county prince has long been hollowed out by his beauty, and he will never be able to hold on to usurping the throne. None of the sons he gave birth to can take over the overall situation, and the more important thing is his deep love for me."
"I have known her for many years, as early as when I first came out of the palace. At that time, I was still an unpopular prince. Let alone the prince, any one of the other brothers You can bully me and call me a bitch, just like some of your brothers now call Ah Jiu in private."
"It's just that my sons still know how to be secretive. Except for today's King Teng, the rest of them also know how to restrain themselves. No one dares to shout in front of them. But my brothers back then, let alone in front of all the civil and military officials, Even in front of Emperor Sejong, he still insulted me like this. At that time, I really felt worse than death."
