As the New Year approaches, there is another heavy snowfall in Yongjing. The hustle and bustle inside and outside the imperial city is extinguished. The palace roads are completely white, and the green tiles and red walls are pale.
In the Kunming Palace where Empress Xiangyi lived, the servants continued to add golden charcoal to the furnace, making the palace as warm as spring. Snowflakes fell on the eaves, immediately melted into water, and dripped into the spring mud in the corridor.
Tick, tick.
Jin Chun, a female official from Zhaowei Jing, led him into Kunming Palace, put away the paper umbrella in the corridor, and raised his hand to brush off the falling snow on his clothes. Under the umbrella, a hibiscus face with red lips and white teeth was exposed. It was warmed by the warm fragrance spreading in the room, and it was like a dewy camellia on an embroidered screen, vividly unfolding its colors.
Jinchun asked her to warm up in the Duo Palace for a while, "The Queen is taking exams for Her Highness the Prince, so please warm yourself up here first and don't bring the air-conditioning in."
Zhaowei nodded.
In fact, she didn't feel cold at all. After living in seclusion in Huilong Temple in the mountains for four years, she was used to the biting cold winter. Now the earth dragon and the charcoal stove were almost roasting her bones.
Zhaowei stood at the door of Duodian, looking at the wind and snow in the courtyard. It was not so much about getting rid of the cold as it was about meditating.
Kunming Palace lived in the Queen of Zhou Dynasty, the legitimate daughter of the Yongping Marquis Mansion, and her sister Qi Yaoning.
Although they are sisters, we haven’t seen each other for four years.
Zhaowei lived in a mountain temple and often heard pilgrims talking about the deep love between the emperor and the empress. They said that Emperor Changning painted the empress' makeup and eyebrows every day, and made her bed and warmed her feet every night. People often lament the beauty's poor life, saying that Queen Xiangyi's body was weak since she was a child, and after giving birth to the crown prince, her health deteriorated and she gradually became seriously ill.
The spring water on the eaves dripped on her palm, Zhao turned her head slightly, and Jinchun told her to come to see her: "My lady, please come, my empress is waiting."
The Duo Hall is only a few steps away from the main hall, connected by a gallery. Passing through the main hall is the sleeping hall, and the tea room is separated from the living room by a blue gauze cabinet.
Queen Xiangyi was leaning on the tea couch, teaching the young prince how to read "Shang Shu". She was born with good looks, but her appearance was diminished by illness, her dark hair was disheveled, and she was so thin that she could not hold back the smile on her face.
There was a bit of joy on her face and she said, "Zhaowei, you're here."
Zhaowei stared at her for a while, as if he didn't dare to recognize her. The anxiety and fear all along the way came to my heart, turning into two lines of clear tears, and fell down.
"My appearance makes you laugh..."
"elder sister!"
Zhaowei stepped forward, took Qi Yaoning's hand, and looked at her carefully, her tears becoming increasingly unstoppable.
She heard that the queen was ill, but she didn't expect it to be so serious. In the past, when she was in the Yongping Marquis Mansion, Sister Yaoning was also weak and had to take medicine every three days. But at that time, she looked good and could even play shuttlecock with her and stay up late to sew sachets and purses for her.
They all said that Emperor Changning treated her well, and it was easy to come and go, but she ended up like this.
Yao Ning picked up the handkerchief and wiped Zhaowei's tears. The silk handkerchief fell gently on her face, like a soft spring breeze blowing by.
The little prince looked at Zhaowei in surprise, and Yao Ning said to him: "This is your aunt. She is a little sad. Go and comfort her."
The little prince stretched out his hand like a kitten, took a selfie, and said, "Auntie, don't cry. You don't have to endorse it. Don't cry. I'll have someone reward you with sweets."
Zhaowei wiped away her tears and took a deep breath. She lowered her head to look at the little prince. The three-year-old baby was carved from pink and jade, and his features resembled those of Yao Ning when she was young.
The little prince was very happy, "Mother, she stopped crying."
Yao Ning touched his head and said, "It's because my aunt likes you."
The little prince asked: "You are talking to your aunt, then can I go and play with Concubine Yao?"
Yao Ning sighed, winked at the female official Jinchun, and said to the young prince: "Go, remember to read Wen Shu when you get back."
Jinchun left with the little prince, Zhaowei looked at their backs and turned around the screen, asking Qi Yaoning: "Is Concubine Yao the daughter that Prime Minister Yao sent to the palace?"
Qi Yaoning nodded, "It's her."
"Is this how Your Majesty treats you?"
"Zizhi is in trouble, Awei," Yao Ning explained. "Prime Minister Yao is very powerful in the court, not to mention that Concubine Yao was personally hired by the Empress Dowager to enter the palace, so he always has to treat her a little less favorably. You are not the first one either. One day I met Zizhi, and he was actually the same as before."
Once upon a time, I was talking about six or seven years ago.
At that time, Li Jiyin was still the fourth prince who was not taken seriously, and Prince Yongpinghou was his close friend. Later, he got married to Qi Yaoning, and they often came and went with Yongpinghou Mansion.
At that time, Li Jiyin really treated Yaoning very well, and he wished he could move to the Yongping Marquis Mansion. He is a kind and honest man, and his only plan is to bribe Zhaowei with a tiger-head golden slingshot so that she can go away and not interrupt his discussion of poetry with Qi Yaoning.
Zhaowei said: "Don't lie to me."
Qi Yaoning smiled and said, "You are not a child. Why should I lie to you? If I were really wronged in the palace, my brother would not just watch."
She mentioned it casually, but Zhaowei's heart tightened for no reason. A pair of cold eyes passed through her mind, as if they were looking at her coldly and reproachfully.
Seeing her sluggish expression, Yao Ning asked tentatively, "Don't you think you've met your brother yet?"
Zhao Wei shook his head, his long eyelashes drooping.
Yao Ning advised her: "Awei, you should go home and take a look. Brother, he must be thinking about you."
Zhao Wei wanted to say that not everyone was as tolerant and careless as she was. Maybe Qi Lingzhan still hated her in his heart. If she called him brother to his face, it would take away half of his life.
But when the words came to her lips, Zhao Wei couldn't bear to make her sad anymore when she met Yao Ning's concerned and expectant eyes.
"My business is not urgent. Let's talk about you, sister," Zhaowei changed the subject, "Even if Li Jiyin is right, you should not let Concubine Yao get close to the young prince. That is the prince you spent half your life to give birth to."
Yao Ning smiled bitterly, "You are right, but when I am so sick, someone must take care of Sui."
"With so many female officials and chamberlains in Kunming Palace, can't they still take care of one child?"
Qi Yaoning said: "The female officials and chamberlains are all slaves, unlike my mother. For example, in Kunming Palace, no one dared to feed Ah Sui a mouthful of food without my permission and His Majesty's permission. They had to kneel down and worship Ah Sui when they saw him, and they had no guts to tease him. . But Concubine Yao is different. She can take Ah Sui to fly a kite, peel lotus seeds for him, embroider sachets for him, laugh with him, and vent his anger... Ah Sui likes her."
Qi Yaoning said these words without any trouble, which made people feel even sadder.
Qi Yaoning held Zhao Wei's hand and sighed: "A Sui is too young and doesn't know what's going on. I can only blame myself for not living up to expectations and being seriously ill. I really don't have the energy to take care of him. I'm afraid that Concubine Yao doesn't really treat A Sui. If she has a child of her own in the future..."
"How can you expect Concubine Yao?" Zhaowei frowned, "That's Prime Minister Yao's daughter."
"Then who can I count on? The Queen Mother has already gone. There are only two of us in this huge harem."
Qi Yaoning looked at Zhaowei, with a slightly sad look in her eyes. Her eyes were sunken and her lips were pale. She had to pause to take a breath every time she spoke, and it took a long time for her sadness to subside.
When she asked Zhaowei who else she could count on, her eyes were fixed on her.
Zhaowei seemed to realize something, but couldn't believe it. She pointed back at herself: "Do you expect... me? Sister, you summoned me to the palace for the sake of the prince?"
"I...I really want to see you, Awei. I haven't seen you in six years."
Zhaowei remained silent and stared at her silently. Yao Ning felt embarrassed because her thoughts were revealed, and her face burned with blood.
She is not a person who knows how to make plans. She doesn't start planning until she is desperate.
She knew that she was at the end of her rope and couldn't survive much longer. The only thing she couldn't worry about was Ah Sui, fearing that he would fall into the hands of Concubine Yao and be either raised to death or crippled.
Zhaowei is different. She is his sister, the daughter of Yongping Houfu. She must be of the same mind as Yongping Houfu and is incompatible with Yao Cheng. If she is willing to enter the palace as her queen and raise Ah Sui after her death, everything will turn around.
Besides, this is also a good thing for Wei Wei.
Yaoning Wanzhuan persuaded her: "Awei, you can't live in Huilong Temple for the rest of your life. You want to find a place for protection. The palace is more suitable for you than the mountain temple."
Zhaowei said: "Sister knows that I am engaged to Han Feng and will go to Xizhou with him after the marriage."
Yao Ning said: "Then Han Feng is not worthy of you, nor is he worthy of the lintel of Yongping Marquis Mansion."
Of course she knew that Zhaowei was engaged, but she never saw it as an obstacle. Han Feng is just a seventh-grade military attache who will go to the northwest to guard the border. Qi Yaoning has seen him before. He has an ordinary appearance, is dull and talks little, and is really not a good match for Zhaowei.
She advised Zhaowei: "Marrying is a big deal for a woman. Instead of marrying Han Feng and working hard all her life, how about entering the middle palace and enjoying fine clothes and food? Awei, I know you have always had big ideas. A small family will trap you. What's more?" You are also familiar with Zi Zhi, even for my sake, he will definitely respect you."
One is the wife of a border garrison, and the other is the Queen of Zhou Dynasty. In the eyes of others, there is no need to make a choice at all. What's more, her engagement to Han Feng was originally a temporary measure, and Zhao Wei must have felt the same...
"I want to marry Han Feng, not to avoid disaster, but out of my own free will. In the future, I will go to Xizhou with him."
Zhaowei's attitude was firm, and Qi Yaoning was stunned.
"Did you know that the northwest is bitterly cold, that Jin people often go south to plunder, that there are constant natural disasters, and that water and food are often cut off?"
Zhaowei's voice was calm: "I know."
She looked at Yao Ning calmly, her eyes were black and white, very clear. She leaned forward and held Yao Ning's hand. Her palm was warm and strong, and she slowly rubbed the back of her hand.
Zhaowei said: "Even if I am not engaged, I will not accept this request. Li Jiyin is your husband and Li Sui is your son. If you are cruel enough to leave them behind, why bother planning for your death? If you If you really can’t bear it, you should take good care of your health. Your husband and your son should be taken care of by yourself rather than entrusted to anyone else.”
Yao Ning choked up after hearing this, "But my illness..."
"My sister has been sick three times a year. She has been like this since she was a child. I know," Zhaowei held her in his arms and sighed softly. "I know, my sister is a fairy in the sky. She came to the human world to suffer and be punished. God asked you to be here. The Yongping Marquis Mansion has been collecting debts for a lifetime, so why would it call you back so early? It must be trying to torment you and scare you... This is fate, but we do not accept it. You must take good care of your health and live happily. "
Yaoning leaned into Zhaowei's arms and listened to her whisper. The unwillingness and pain that had been suppressed in her heart suddenly surged into her heart. Tears were like broken beads, crackling on the back of her hand, and then she sobbed silently.
The palace was deep, and there were countless pairs of eyes staring at her, waiting for her to make a mistake in her errand, hoping that she would die in peace. She knew that there were particularly intensive weddings among the people this year. She was sure that the queen would not live long, and was afraid that her youth would be delayed by being in state mourning after her death, so everyone rushed to get married.
Even she herself has accepted this ending, just thinking that she is about to die, and begins to arrange her posthumous affairs in advance.
It's not that she doesn't want to live, it's just that everyone thinks she is going to die and deserves to die.
Zhaowei's voice fell steadily into her ears: "It will be fine, it will definitely get better. You will be with His Majesty for a long time, and the little prince will not change his mind to someone else as his mother... Don't be afraid, sister."
Tears soaked through Zhao Wei's shirt, and her eyes were red with distress. She said many comforting words to Yao Ning, and coaxed her into promising to take good care of her health and go see her play polo next spring.
I entered the palace at dawn, and when Yao Ning was tired from crying and went to bed, it was already the end of Si Shi.
The flying snow stopped for a moment outside Kunming Palace. There were tassel palace lanterns hanging from the four corners of the gallery. When the wind shook them, a layer of snow trembled and fell, like white dust flying. Under the golden light between the clouds, it shone into tiny rays.
Zhaowei followed Jinxia out of Kunming Palace and said to Jinxia: "It's important to take care of the empress. Auntie, please go back. I know the way out of the palace."
Jin Xia let her go, and after Zhao Wei left the Xuanyou Gate, she did not leave the palace directly, but slowly wandered along the palace road.
To the south of Xuanyou Gate is the Outer Dynasty, and to the north is the Inner Dynasty. This palace road is called "Lian'an Road" and is the only way to connect the inner and outer Dynasties. Zhaowei had beaten a fierce horse here before, so he remembered it very clearly.
After lingering for about half an hour, it started to snow again. This time it was not snow sleet, but heavy snow like goose feathers and catkins, pressing down silently from the endless sky outside the road.
In the snow, sedan carriages were approaching, getting closer and closer. The guard who opened the way drew his sword and scolded her, but Zhaowei slowly walked to the middle of the palace road, knelt down and worshiped in the snow.
"Qi Zhaowei of the Marquis of Yongping, please see your Majesty!"
