Chapter 15
The carriage drove on the wide street, heading towards the core of Chang'an City. Before it reached the palace gate, it looked at the majestic and tall palace walls and majestic buildings in front of it from a distance.
When they arrived at Guangshun Gate, the carriage was stopped by the imperial guards at the palace gate.
When the other party asked to show his waist card, He Lanfang, who was accompanying him on horseback, immediately took out his waist card and said: "On the carriage is His Royal Highness King Yongning."
As soon as the imperial guards took over his belt, they all immediately knelt down.
"Your Highness King Yongning, please give me your best regards."
But when everyone knelt down and saluted, they couldn't help but wonder why His Highness suddenly returned to Chang'an when he had been living in seclusion in the palace outside Chang'an City.
However, no matter how much I murmur in my heart, I still have to let those who should be let go.
"Why did His Highness enter the palace this time?" The Imperial Guard still asked bravely.
He just took the opportunity to check He Lanfang's waist badge, and it was indeed the Yongning Prince's Palace.
The curtain on the carriage was opened, and Xie Lingyu looked at the other party: "I would like to pay my respects to the saint and the Queen Mother."
Although no one dared to raise his head and look directly at His Highness King Yongning, hearing this voice as clear and clear as a spring, with the aura of a nobleman, was really too pleasant.
Because the royal carriage was not allowed inside, Xie Lingyu got out of the carriage and was led by the chamberlain to the Queen Mother's palace.
Fortunately, Xie Lingyu has a distinguished status and can ride a chariot even in the palace.
The chamberlain wanted to ask someone to prepare a chariot for her, but Xie Lingyu refused.
She had entered the inner palace for the first time in so long, so she should keep a low profile.
"I haven't been in the palace for a long time, why don't you take me to appreciate the scenery of the inner garden now," Xie Lingyu looked indifferent.
Of course, the young chamberlain did not dare to neglect His Highness, and led Xie Lingyu to the Xingqing Palace where the Queen Mother lived. On the way, they happened to pass by the Taiye Pool, where living water was introduced into the palace to form a lake.
In the deep palace gardens, there are pavilions and pavilions, and huge palaces line up row upon row, making it look particularly majestic.
Although Xie Lingyu has lived in Shangyang Palace for a long time, compared with Daming Palace, he is like a child facing a nine-foot strong man.
Besides, this is the place where the saint lives, so it is naturally even more solemn and solemn.
Walking all the way to Xingqing Hall, wherever Xie Lingyu saw, there were shadows of the past.
When Aye was still alive, it was common for her to enter the palace. The Queen Mother liked her even more and often kept her in the palace for a few days. At that time, she was a noble and favored little lady, the future little princess.
When she reaches the age, Aye will ask the saint for her title.
But who could have imagined that an assassination would completely change her fate.
She went from a future little princess to the queen she had never been before.
But before she could secure her position as Queen, she was persuaded by her mother-in-law to go to Shangyang Palace to take refuge.
This journey lasted for several years. Fortunately, there was no major construction work in the Daming Palace, so she still knew the road she had walked.
Arriving at the entrance of Xingqing Hall, the chamberlain immediately went in and asked for help.
Naturally, when the person who passed the news heard that it was King Yongning who was asking for an audience, he was stunned for a moment and thought about who King Yongning was.
But fortunately, Xie Lingyu didn't wait long outside the palace before she saw hurried footsteps inside. When she looked up, she saw a woman who looked like a grandma arriving here.
"Your Highness," when the other party saw Xie Lingyu, he was so excited that tears filled his eyes.
Xie Lingyu chuckled and shouted: "Mother Gao, I haven't seen you for a long time."
Looking at the little highness whom she once took care of, looking at her with such a smile, Aunt Gao really wanted to shed tears.
No wonder she was excited. When Xie Lingyu was a child, she was often kept in the palace by the Queen Mother. At that time, she was taken care of by Aunt Gao. Even when she grew up, every time she came to the Queen Mother's Palace, she would take care of her diligently. she.
"Your Highness, please come in quickly. When the Queen Mother heard that it was you who was asking for an audience outside the palace, she was so excited that she dropped a glass cup." Aunt Gao earnestly described the situation in the palace.
But that's it, the chamberlain came in and announced that it was Prince Yongning who wanted to see him.
The Queen Mother was not excited at first, and she thought it was Princess Yongning who came into the palace again to pay her respects.
After she regained her composure, before the Queen Mother could ask any questions, the glass cup she was holding fell from her hand and shattered into pieces. She stood up even more excitedly and almost stepped on the broken glass pieces on the ground.
Just as Aunt Gao was accompanying Xie Lingyu to the main hall, one after another the sound of calling was heard.
Xie Lingyu had just walked to the entrance of the main hall, and before she could cross the ground, she looked up and saw several palace maids surrounding a man in luxurious clothes approaching. When he took a closer look, he turned out to be the Queen Mother.
"Granddaughter pays homage to the Queen Mother," Xie Lingyu stepped forward and knelt down directly on the ground.
When the Queen Mother saw her giving such a big gift when they met, her heart felt as if it had been rubbed hard. She couldn't wait to ask the palace attendants next to her to help Xie Lingyu up. She rushed over and actually stepped forward to lift her up in person. Helped him up.
"My son," the Queen Mother felt really distressed and looked at Xie Lingyu up and down.
When she left Chang'an in the past, she was still an immature little girl, but now she has grown into such a graceful and noble girl. Looking at this strange yet familiar face, the Queen Mother couldn't bear to move her eyes away.
Xie Lingyu reached out and held the Queen Mother's palm: "My granddaughter is unfilial and makes my grandmother worried."
Tears welled up in the corners of the Queen Mother's eyes, and she kept saying: "It will be good to come back, it will be good to come back."
The completely different attitude from Concubine Han made Xie Lingyu feel touched and a little ridiculous.
She knew that the Queen Mother had always loved her. When the Queen Mother was still alive in her previous life, she had planned everything for her.
Her marriage to Pei Jingan was carefully chosen by the Queen Mother, but no matter how much she chose, it would not be able to withstand the fickleness of people's hearts.
Before the new emperor ascended the throne, the Queen Mother had passed away.
Otherwise, Xie Lingyu would not have been imprisoned so easily.
"Grandma, let me help you over there and sit down first," Xie Lingyu looked at the Queen Mother who seemed to be a little excited, fearing that she would suffer physical discomfort if she suddenly encountered something surprising as she got older.
The Queen Mother took Xie Lingyu and sat together on the imperial concubine's couch by the window in the palace. The maids quickly brought tea.
However, Xie Lingyu was so busy replying to the Queen Mother that she didn't even bother to drink for the moment.
"You were seriously ill earlier. When Doctor Cao came back, he said that you were in good health." The Queen Mother seemed to be uneasy. Now that she saw her in person, of course she would not miss the opportunity to ask.
Xie Lingyu blinked her eyelashes lightly, and looked at the Queen Mother with a pair of rippling black eyes.
"Don't worry, grandma, I've already recovered, otherwise I wouldn't have come back to Chang'an."
The Queen Mother seemed to be dazzled by her smile just now. The girl with outstanding appearance had a romantic charm in her eyes, and there was also a little childishness that had not completely faded away, just like the flowers that were about to bloom in the spring. , indescribably delicate and beautiful.
I have to say that older women really like such brightly colored little ladies.
Not to mention that this little lady is from my own family.
"When you come back this time, you are not allowed to go back to Lao Shizi's Shangyang Palace again," the Queen Mother said seriously.
Xie Lingyu was amused by the Queen Mother's tone.
But the Queen Mother sighed quietly: "Your mother-in-law is timid at best and afraid of causing trouble, and stupid at worst. There is no reason to leave such a small child like you so far away. If you didn't want to Looking after you Aye..."
When mentioning King Xian Yongning, the Queen Mother stopped abruptly, obviously knowing that she had made a mistake.
Xie Lingyu couldn't remember the scene when she first returned to Chang'an in her previous life. At that time, she should have been about to get her haircut, but she couldn't delay it any longer, otherwise her ceremony would be delayed, so A Niang allowed her to return. Chang'an.
At that time, it was A Niang who took her into the palace.
After notifying the Queen Mother early, the old man was waiting early in the morning. He was also very close, but not like he is now.
Now that I think about it, the Queen Mother was also worried about Concubine Han at that time.
Although as the Queen Mother, she did not need to look at Concubine Han's face, but since King Yongning first blocked the fatal sword to save the saint, this life-saving grace was naturally remembered in the hearts of the saint and the Queen Mother.
Xie Lingyu and Concubine Han, an orphan and widowed mother, are naturally favored in every possible way.
Over the years, the gifts given to Prince Yongning's Mansion alone were more generous than the saint's own son.
Naturally, the Queen Mother did not want to blame Concubine Han, for fear of getting a reputation for being harsh.
And she also understood that Concubine Han didn't want Xie Lingyu's tree to cause trouble, and felt that she only wanted to protect Xie Lingyu.
Then he reluctantly agreed to let Xie Lingyu stay in Shangyang Palace.
As for the excuse that Concubine Han made, it was just to silence outsiders.
"Grandma, since I'm back, naturally I won't leave." Xie Lingyu held the Queen Mother's arm: "I will come into the palace from time to time to bother you."
After hearing what Xie Lingyu said, there was no reason for the Queen Mother to be unhappy.
As they were talking, Aunt Gao led the palace servants over. It turned out that she had just gone to prepare tea for Xie Lingyu, but when she brought it over, it really made people look at her.
"I don't know that His Highness's taste has changed now, but I still prepared some of His Highness's original favorites," Aunt Gao said to Xie Lingyu while instructing the palace maid to place the refreshments on the long table.
Xie Lingyu glanced at the nearly full table of pastries and was really surprised.
And they are indeed what she originally loved to eat.
For some reason, she suddenly thought of Concubine Han. From the time she returned to the palace last night to this morning, she hadn't taken a bite of the food in her grandma's house.
This morning when she went to Concubine Han's courtyard to learn about Bingming's entry into the palace, her mother-in-law didn't even think of asking, so she could have breakfast.
These thoughts just flashed through Xie Lingyu's mind. She had calmed down and responded softly: "Mom, thank you for your trouble. You still know my taste so accurately."
Aunt Gao smiled so hard that the wrinkles on her face deepened.
Although Xie Lingyu had eaten some breakfast, but now that he saw the Queen Mother looking at him with a smile, he naturally wanted to give her face and ate several pieces of cakes in one go.
Most elders like juniors with a good appetite, and the Queen Mother is used to seeing those noble ladies eating like little birds. Seeing Xie Lingyu eating like this, she was filled with love.
At this moment, another palace official came in and reported: "To the Queen Mother, Princess Zhaoyang asks to see you."
Xie Lingyu was holding a snack, and her smiling black eyes instantly froze.
"Your Highness," Aunt Gao, who was standing beside him, called softly.
Xie Lingyu came back to her senses, only to see that the pastry she had held in her hand was crushed to pieces.
The crumbs of the pastry fell on the table and got on her hand.
Xie Lingyu chuckled as usual: "I was so excited that I crushed the cake."
Aunt Gao's face was full of understanding: "Your Highness has not seen the fourth princess for some years."
After Xie Lingyu wiped her fingers clean, she saw a figure appear at the door of the palace, wearing a yellow narrow-sleeved short jacket, a green floor-length skirt, and a very bright red half-arm. The rich and strong color is the most popular little lady's wear nowadays. take.
Princess Zhaoyang came in happily to greet the Queen Mother, but she didn't want to catch a glimpse of the little lady sitting next to the Queen Mother.
How should I put it, even though she was conceited about her beauty, she was still stunned when she saw him.
The other party was just sitting there quietly, with a smile in her eyes, which made people feel that her beautiful and stunning appearance only made the room full of light.
"Greetings to grandma," Princess Zhaoyang bowed Yingying.
After the Queen Mother asked her to stand up, she pointed at Xie Lingyu with a smile: "Do you think this little lady looks familiar?"
Princess Zhaoyang had been secretly glancing at Xie Lingyu from the corner of her eye. Seeing what the Queen Mother said, her eyes fell on her face. After looking at her face for a long time, she felt that she looked familiar, but she couldn't remember who it was.
"Grandma, please stop trying to show off to me and tell me who this beautiful and fragrant young lady is."
Princess Zhaoyang said coquettishly.
The Queen Mother then smiled and said, "This is your sister Lingyu. You used to play together."
There are four princesses under the saint's knees. The two princesses in front are older, and the fourth princess is too young. Only the third princess, Xie Wan, is similar in age to Xie Lingyu. Xie Lingyu used to often go to the palace, and it was with Princess Zhaoyang.
Although she is the daughter of a prince, Princess Zhaoyang's biological mother has a low status and is not from a noble family, so she is not as favored as Xie Lingyu.
Later, when Xie Lingyu succeeded to the throne of the prince, he directly surpassed the princess in terms of position and was on an equal footing with the sons of the saint.
After hearing what the Queen Mother said, Princess Zhaoyang looked at Xie Lingyu with a shocked expression.
Although she didn't speak, Xie Lingyu saw the meaning in her eyes.
——You are back.
This reaction was exactly the same as that of Concubine Han.
Xie Lingyu looked at her cousin with calm eyes without sadness or joy.
Time seemed to stand still at this moment.
Until Xie Lingyu's face showed a light and gentle smile, and she looked directly at Princess Zhaoyang: "Long time no see, Princess Zhaoyang."
The person who killed me in my previous life.
My enemy.
