The white wind and snow froze Li Pingyuan and also froze the armies of Chengguo and King Donghua. During the temporary rest, Chengguo's army began to withdraw to Chengguo.
Because he had received some rumors, he could not stay in the Yu Kingdom for long.
Zhuang Xun has contradictions to face, and similarly, Li Pingyuan also has contradictions to face, and his contradictions are greater than Zhuang Xun.
Because Zhuang Xun's domestic side dealt with those aristocratic families in a big versus small way, while Li Pingyuan could only barely have the upper hand against King Qinghe.
He was always out looking for an opportunity for King Qinghe, so since it was snowing heavily and unable to attack, Li Pingyuan simply took King Henan back to Jidu.
News of his return was also delivered to Li Shaoyun of the Jidu Palace. The noble and dignified concubine looked at the letter that was delivered.
She no longer needs to wear plain robes like before. The gorgeous feather coat and exquisite pearls and emeralds highlight her status as a noble concubine. Every move she makes has a kind of static grace.
Seeing this news, the imperial concubine couldn't be happy. Although she was a little unfilial, she did not want Li Pingyuan to come back.
How should I put it, Li Ping was far away, she was like the queen of the imperial court, and she said exactly what she said, because Li Chengzhi, the cavalry general, basically listened to her.
But when Li Pingyuan comes back, it will be different. After all, she is not the center of power. These people will consciously move closer to the center of power and abandon the substitute Li Shaoyun.
There is no way around this. She has no so-called position, and she has no ability. There is no one to support her in establishing a bureaucracy that belongs to her. Because without soldiers and horses, it can only be a tree without roots and no dependence. soil.
Li Pingyuan's return also means that the process of changing dynasties in Chengdu is about to start, and Li Pingyuan has gained enough prestige.
This time, a large amount of land was obtained for Chengguo, and it has already reached the stage it should be. To usurp the throne and seize power, of course, it is most likely to imitate Zhuang Xun of Xiaguo and give in.
But no matter what, for Li Shaoyun, it was her fate to finally leave the harem and become a Taoist nun with no power or even mention.
"Why didn't dad start a fight with Zhuang Xun?" Li Shaoyun said regretfully. She hoped that her dad would be defeated and continue to maintain her current status.
But it's not a disastrous defeat, because a disastrous defeat can't maintain her current status. She neither wants Li Pingyuan to be better nor wants Li Pingyuan to be bad. This is the best for her.
These are some of the little thoughts of a married daughter. She is now in the center of the whirlpool and can best understand her own situation.
The Li family is the foundation of her life, and her status as a noble concubine is the way for her to gain power. Only by maintaining the status quo can she be respected by all officials. If she loses one of these two things, she will not be able to gain the respect of all officials.
So she felt upset when she saw the letter, because the time given to her was getting less and less, and her opportunities to sit in this position were getting less and less, and she could only maintain support for Li Pingyuan.
He put the letter on the table and picked up another letter. This letter had beautiful handwriting. Li Shaoyun could tell whose handwriting it was at a glance.
Her dear sister, Li Rusi's handwriting, asked about Zhuang Xun's situation and asked him to take good care of him. The date was not known to be written when Zhuang Xun left Chengguo. From the letter, it can be seen how much Li Rusi loved her. 's husband.
This made Li Shaoyun even more irritable. What could be more uncomfortable than her own place going downhill and her sister soaring into the sky due to luck.
Not only was she afraid that her sister would be poor, but she was also afraid that her sister would get a good husband. Zhuang Xun, whom she looked down upon, had indeed given Li Rusi too much, much to the envy of Li Shaoyun.
Li Rusi is not as good as Li Shaoyun, at least in the public opinion field of Chengguo. After all, not every husband can accept that he is weaker than his wife.
Now that the outstanding Li Shaoyun was being compared to her younger sister, she naturally felt sad and felt unwilling to do so from the bottom of her heart. She was lagging behind emotionally and career-wise. She had already given up on it, but the letter came into her hands again.
He became more and more irritated and didn't want to read the memorial anymore. Li Shaoyun picked up the teacup and fell into a sluggish state without drinking the tea for a long time.
Her eyes were blank, thinking about the letter Li Rusi sent her for a while, and the impact her father's letters had on her. She had no idea and was just thinking wildly.
"Your Majesty, Concubine Lin wishes to see you." The maid Yang Mei sent a message to her, and Li Shaoyun woke up from her wild thoughts.
"What can she do? Just let her in." After adjusting her appearance, Li Shaoyun was a little confused, but still asked Yang Mei to invite Concubine Lin in.
Concubine Lin belongs to King Qinghe's faction. Last time they drove King Qinghe's forces out of Jidu, Concubine Lin and Concubine Lin have no performance. After all, there is no backstage. She and Shao Shao hang around in front of Li Shaoyun. Afraid that something might happen if I wander around.
Just like the old Li Shaoyun who lived in seclusion and didn't pay much attention to government affairs, the politics of the palace are like this. When it's time to hide one's strength and bide one's time, one should hide one's strength and bide one's time. Don't push forward. Who knows how many grudges there will be.
So Concubine Lin took the initiative to come to her. Li Shaoyun didn't understand and was a little curious.
Yang Mei led Concubine Lin in, who was wearing simple clothes. It could be seen that she was a little more cautious at this moment than before.
"Sister, I have met Concubine Li." Concubine Lin looked respectful, well-mannered, and her situation was stronger than others. In Concubine Lin's eyes, Concubine Li Shaoyun was the uncrowned queen.
"Is there anything important, Concubine Lin?" Li Shaoyun took the initiative to stand up and greet her, her expression gentle and enthusiastic, but also confused.
"I haven't seen my sister for a long time. I came here specifically to see how she is doing." Lin Guifei came to greet and praise her in a roundabout way.
"I haven't seen Concubine Lin for a long time. The monthly money is not lacking." The generous gesture and calm handling of Concubine Lin have elevated her status invisibly, because it is the queen's power to control the monthly money.
"No, no, I want to thank Concubine Li for her tolerance and generosity. Today I also came to thank Concubine Li for her big belly. I didn't care about our previous relationship."
Concubine Lin apologized and said that before it was still a three-person discussion and there were many conflicts between the two parties, but Concubine Lin later relented and now Li Shaoyun didn't know why she brought it up again.
"It's in the past, don't mention it anymore, we should focus on the future." She still had to say what she said on the scene. She had no grudge against Concubine Lin, and she would not reach out to hit the smiling person.
"Thank you Concubine Li for your forgiveness. Of course I want to focus on the future. I just need to ask for Concubine Li's help so that I can have a future."
With a smile, Concubine Lin expressed hope and her attitude was extremely humble, just to beg Li Shaoyun to agree to him.
"Isn't the monthly money enough? You can pay more next month." Li Shaoyun thought of asking for help, and she said naturally, thinking that Concubine Lin was short of money.
"It's not monthly money. Can the noble concubine step aside?" Lin Guifei looked at the attendants around Li Shaoyun and said.
"You guys go down, it's not about monthly money, what else is there?" It's impossible for you to still want to interfere in government affairs, right? I'm giving you face?
Li Shaoyun thought in her heart, but on the surface she was smiling, showing no emotion or anger. She actually wanted to hear what Concubine Lin wanted to say.
"Monthly money? It's hard to say whether it will be paid next month. Concubine Li, please stop trying to make me happy. It's hard to say whether Cheng Guo will still be here when Grand Master Li comes back."
Concubine Lin saw clearly that what Li Pingyuan wanted to do now was to usurp the throne. As a concubine of the previous dynasty, she would not receive any monthly payment without becoming a country.
"You can count it as a month, otherwise what do you want to do." Even Concubine Lin noticed it, and Li Shaoyun didn't want to explain more.
"So please, my dear concubine, please let me live. If Grand Master Li succeeds in changing the government, I don't want to die." Lin Guifei knelt down without hesitation and repeated the operation she did during the previous coup, hoping to save herself of a life.
"I have to step down from the position of imperial concubine, so how can I take care of you." Li Shaoyun said helplessly. There are still a few people in Chengguo who don't know that Li Pingyuan wants to usurp the throne.
"If you beg for mercy, just beg for mercy. No matter whether it is useful or not, if King Qinghe wins, I will also beg for mercy for you. How about we help each other." Concubine Lin also clearly said the taboo words.
"King Qinghe can't win." Li Shaoyun defended his own interests and said that it would be better if Li Pingyuan won, no matter how powerless he was, than if he lost.
"Just in case, King Qinghe is also active. Please, Concubine Li, this is a matter of mutual benefit. Hello, I am good, everyone." Kneeling in front of Li Shaoyun, Concubine Lin begged.
"How can we ensure that you keep your word?" Li Shaoyun thought for a moment and realized that this was indeed a possibility.
"I can't guarantee it, and I can't guarantee that, Concubine Li, you will plead for me, but if I don't come to plead for mercy, it will be too late to get to the execution ground. I just want peace of mind."
Concubine Lin smiled bitterly. In the face of such a major national event, her existence seemed extremely insignificant and she could hardly play a dominant role. She just tried her best to find a glimmer of hope.
"Okay, I understand, and I agreed. Has it spread throughout the palace now? Daddy covets the throne."
Waving her hand for Concubine Lin to stand up, Li Shaoyun's mood became more and more complicated. She felt uncomfortable in every way. Did everyone on the street know this?
"The Holy Master escaped and was caught and talked about it. Everyone knows it. Doesn't Grand Master Li have the will to do this?"
Concubine Lin said with some confusion that there was a lot of noise about the last escape. Although King Cheng did not escape, the news had already escaped and was flying all over the sky.
Li Shaoyun, on the other hand, didn't know how to answer. It was not good to admit her objection. No matter how she said it, she felt sad that her own father would usurp the throne of her nominal husband.
"I don't know. Is there anything else? If nothing else, I still have to correct the memorial..." Li Shaoyun issued an eviction order.
"It's okay. Thank you for your kindness, the concubine. I also have internal matters in the palace, so I'm going to leave." Seeing that Shaoyun didn't want to talk, Lin Guifei didn't want to touch Li Shaoyun's brows. Anyway, she got the promise, and she felt relieved.
"..." Seeing Concubine Lin's tender and compassionate figure leaving, Li Shaoyun's inner irritability had reached its peak.
I read the letter again, squeezed it tightly, and tore it into pieces.
There was silence for a while, and I felt a little cold while sitting in the chair, because no one added any charcoal to the fire after letting the attendants go out.
She took the cloak and hung it on her body. She was no longer interested in the memorial and walked towards the Taoist temple where King Cheng was under house arrest.
The attendants followed Li Shaoyun, holding umbrellas for her to shield her from the flying snow in the sky. It was not until she arrived at the monastery that she asked them to wait for her outside and walked into the strictly guarded courtyard alone.
"Concubine Li is here? Isn't this the time when the officials hand over the papers? Have they been corrected?"
There was only King Cheng in the room. King Cheng was looking at the scriptures. He was wearing a Taoist robe and sitting cross-legged. He looked leisurely and at ease, and he had a bit of Taoist immortality.
Zhuang Xun already knew from Zhuang Xun's words that it was impossible for him to practice Taoism. Because of his status as a monarch and his magical powers, natural cultivation was nonsense.
However, he has nothing to do now, so he might as well do what he usually does, which is to practice Taoism. Before, he practiced Taoism for immortality, but now he practices Taoism to kill time.
"No, I just have some little questions that need to be answered by Your Majesty." He sat on the seat without saluting, and King Cheng didn't care about her rudeness.
Cheng Wang's mentality is now like a dead tree. He realizes that he has taken a dead end and can't turn back. Thinking about it, you know how desperate he is.
"Doubts? Do you need me to solve it? I won't say anything." King Cheng still had his own insistence. He thought that Li Shaoyun wanted to find out the news about King Qinghe and handed over the country to the Li family, but he was not willing to do so.
"It's the underworld thing that the Holy One and Zhuang Xun talked about. Does the underworld really exist in this world? Is there really a fight for dragons?"
Li Shaoyun said directly that regardless of Cheng Wang's refusal to ask directly, this question has been bothering her for several months and has been difficult to ask, but if she doesn't ask it today, she thinks she might go crazy.
"You...it's you!" The escape failed and the reason has never been found. Now the culprit is here.
"Your Majesty, do gods and underworld really exist in this world?" Although Li Shaoyun grew up listening to the story of Li Pingyuan's encounter with the monks from Qinghu Mountain, she had never believed much in gods and ghosts until Zhuang Xun got drunk. That night.
"You can investigate for yourself. I have no comment." King Cheng turned coldly and did not want to pay attention to Li Shaoyun, and his eyes became not very friendly.
"Is it true that the Holy One gave the concubine to Zhuang Xun in the underworld? Will the concubine become Zhuang Xun's property after her death?"
Li Shaoyun continued to ask. She had too many doubts, especially at the moment when she was about to leave the center.
Concubine Lin knew enough to ask her questions and ask for her own protection. There was no need for Li Shaoyun to take into account issues such as face and not figure out things about herself.
No matter who wins the fight between Li Pingyuan and King Qinghe, she has to leave. She has to ask clearly about her future, the future that was given to Zhuang Xun.
"..." King Cheng looked at Li Shaoyun angrily. Li Shaoyun's eyes were clear and determined, and a little scary.
This proud noblewoman developed the aura of a superior person while presiding over the government. She said softly: "I also have to think about myself, not just for the Li family."
King Cheng savored these words, his angry expression slowly relieved.
"I actually died once..."
(End of chapter)
