The Zhang family is a famous family in Shu.
It lasted for more than hundreds of years.
The reason why the Zhang family has stood firm despite the ups and downs is not only the painstaking efforts of successive clan leaders, but also related to the ancestral precepts of the Zhang family.
What ancestral teaching?
He respected and obeyed the powerful and never disobeyed the emperor's will.
At critical moments, one can sacrifice some members of the tribe, or even the family's interests, to help the emperor tide over difficulties, thereby gaining the emperor's trust and care.
Of course, the best way to maintain a relationship is still marriage.
Zhang Meiniang was originally the legitimate daughter of the Zhang clan leader. When she was sixteen years old, she was personally sent to the Shu Palace by the Zhang clan leader and became the noble concubine of the Shu Emperor.
Zhang Meiniang did not disappoint the Zhang family. From the day she entered the palace, she won the exclusive favor of Emperor Shu with her unparalleled beauty, breathtaking dancing, and thoughtfulness.
The status of the Zhang family in Shu has become increasingly stable.
However, just a few months ago, Zhang Meiniang contracted a strange disease. In order not to infect others, she took the initiative to isolate herself and not see anyone, including Emperor Shu.
Gradually, Emperor Shu's favor with Zhang Meiniang declined.
The attitude towards the Zhang family is also slightly relaxed.
The patriarch of the Zhang family is very keen on this. Every night in the dead of night, he thinks about the thousands of people in the Zhang family. He has always been unable to fall asleep, and his hair is almost turning gray with worry...
The sky gradually darkened.
As usual, the head of the Zhang family came to the ancestral hall to offer incense to his ancestors.
During the incense burning process, he was most afraid of being disturbed. In addition, the recent unpredictability of Emperor Shu's kindness made him very nervous, so he was even more afraid of being disturbed during the incense burning process.
However, whatever you are afraid of comes, just as the incense in your hand was lit on the candle, there were messy footsteps outside the ancestral hall, and someone gasped and shouted:
"The patriarch... has a guest... to visit. It's Nan Chen's... envoy..."
The patriarch paused for a moment while lighting the incense, ignored it, and continued to light the incense. When all the incense in his hand was lit, he waved it gently to extinguish the sparks, and white smoke rose into the sky.
Then, divide the incense sticks in your hands into groups of three and insert them into the incense burners in front of the ancestors' memorial tablets.
Meticulous throughout.
Ignore the words of the man outside the house.
Finally, all the incense has been placed.
The head of the Zhang family knelt down, knelt three times and kowtowed nine times to the tablets of his ancestors, and murmured to himself:
"Please bless my ancestors and ancestors, and may Mei Niang recover from her illness soon. Please bless my ancestors and ancestors, so that our Zhang family can last for thousands of years, and the incense of our ancestors will never end..."
After a short time of worshiping, the clan leader slowly stood up and turned to look outside the ancestral hall.
When he saw the man just now, his face had become extremely ugly. He suppressed the anger in his heart and scolded: "If you come, you will be treated according to the family law!"
The person who just sent the message was the servant in the mansion. This servant actually forgot the rules in the mansion. He must punish him. Without rules, there would be no success!
"Patriarch, spare your life!"
The young boy was so frightened that he reported in a flurry: "The envoy Nanchen who came to visit said that they have a way to cure the eldest lady's disease!"
At this time, two young men had already walked towards the man with hemp ropes in hand, intending to tie him up and then enforce the family law.
When the head of the Zhang family heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up and he waved his hand: "Wait a minute."
The two boys holding hemp ropes immediately stopped where they were.
The head of the Zhang family approached, his eyes widened, and asked in a trembling voice: "What did you just say? Does the envoy Nanchen have a way to cure Mei Niang's disease?"
"Reporting to the clan leader, it's absolutely true!"
"Quickly, take me to meet the distinguished guests from Nanchen!"
"..."
A quarter of an hour later.
The head of the Zhang family changed into court clothes and went to the palace overnight to see Emperor Shu.
He learned through the Nanchen envoy that Princess Wu of Nanchen had found a way to treat Zhang Meiniang, but Zhang Meiniang had to go to Nanchen in person.
The problem lies here. Emperor Shu refused to let Zhang Meiniang go.
The clan leader entered the palace this time to find a way to persuade Emperor Shu to let him go.
Only by curing Zhang Meiniang's illness can Zhang Meiniang be favored again. Only if Zhang Meiniang is favored again can the status of the Zhang family in Shu be more stable!
The sleeping palace of Emperor Shu.
Emperor Shu met with the head of the Zhang family here.
After hearing the purpose of the visit of the head of the Zhang family, Emperor Shu smiled bitterly, shook his head and said, "It's not that I don't want to let him go. If I can really cure my concubine's illness, what's the harm in sending someone to take her to Nanchen?"
"But your Majesty..." The head of the Zhang family was a little dumbfounded. This was different from what he heard from the envoy Nan Chen.
"This is what Concubine Ai means." Emperor Shu shook his head, "Just now I sent someone to see Concubine Ai to tell her the truth, and then I sent someone to ask Concubine Ai what she meant."
"Your Majesty, what you mean is that Meiniang doesn't want to go to Nanchen?" The head of the Zhang family looked stunned again. If he hadn't taken Zhang Meiniang's current status into consideration, he would have scolded Zhang Meiniang for being stupid!
"You are here just in time. You can drop by to persuade my concubine. If my concubine nods her head, I will send someone to take her to Nanchen immediately!" Emperor Shu finally said.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
After bidding farewell to Emperor Shu, the head of the Zhang family came to Zhang Meiniang's palace.
Although he is a man, he is Zhang Meiniang's biological father after all, and with the permission of Emperor Shu, he can appear in the harem area openly.
Of course, many palace maids and eunuchs were staring at him, and he did not dare to mess around.
"Dad, please forgive me for my daughter being ill and unable to attend the ceremony." Zhang Meiniang did not dare to open the door and only talked to her father through the door, because she guessed his purpose of coming here.
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter."
The head of the Zhang family heard his daughter's voice and felt a different kind of emotion in his heart.
I recall that it was he who personally sent Zhang Meiniang to the palace to be the concubine of Emperor Shu. But how can a parent not love his children?
He also often talks about this beloved daughter who sacrificed for the family.
But in the blink of an eye, he put all these feelings behind him. He was the patriarch of the Zhang family, and he had thousands of members of the Zhang family on his shoulders. How could he lose the big for the small?
He calmed down and hurriedly asked the doubts in his heart, why didn't he go to Nanchen for treatment?
"Dad doesn't know something. My daughter has been weak recently. Even if she just takes two steps in the house, she will be so tired that her whole body aches... The mountains in Nanchen are high and the water is far away. My daughter cannot bear the pain of bumps."
After Zhang Meiniang finished answering, she started "coughing" violently, and it stopped after a long time, giving people a feeling of weakness.
"Beauty, you..."
The head of the Zhang family suddenly felt very embarrassed. He was worried about Zhang Meiniang's health, and he was also afraid that Zhang Meiniang would completely fall out of favor, causing the entire Zhang family to be implicated. He was as anxious as an ant on a hot pot.
"Dad, please go back first. My daughter is seriously ill. It would be bad if she infects her father." Zhang Meiniang urged.
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"Then take care of yourself, I will retire first."
The Zhang family sighed and finally turned and left.
Back at Zhang Mansion, envoy Nan Chen, who had not yet left, hurriedly greeted him and asked eagerly: "What's the result? Has Your Majesty agreed to release him?"
"Your Majesty did not stop it." The head of the Zhang family looked silent.
"That's great, hahahaha, it's finally worth the trip." Envoy Nan Chen was overjoyed.
"But... Meiniang herself doesn't want to go. She excuses herself by saying that her body is weak and can't withstand the bumps... eh!" The clan leader shook his head repeatedly.
"The imperial concubine herself doesn't want to go?" The smile on Envoy Nan Chen's face suddenly froze. He couldn't understand. This was to treat her illness, but she didn't want to go!
"I am very pleased with the good news that your envoy has brought, but..." The head of the Zhang family shook his head, showing his loneliness: "It's better that your envoy please come back, I won't send it away."
Envoy Nan Chen's expression suddenly turned ugly.
If he fails and returns, it will definitely ruin the princess's plan!
no!
We must find a way to remedy it...
Suddenly, a flash of lightning flashed in Envoy Nan Chen's mind, and he suddenly remembered a letter that the princess had personally handed to him before leaving, and said that it must be handed over to Concubine Zhang personally at a critical moment.
If this letter is seen by outsiders, it may lead to death! Don't let it out!
The envoy didn't want to get too involved with such a scary letter, so he forgot about it. Now it seems that it is impossible not to invite the letter!
Having made up his mind, he resolutely raised his head and looked at the head of the Zhang family: "Don't worry, head, I have one last solution. If this method doesn't work, I promise not to bother you again!"
"oh?"
The Zhang family elder's eyes lit up and he stared at the envoy: "What else can you do, envoy? Please feel free to ask, as long as I can do it, I will not refuse!"
"I want to enter the palace and meet the imperial concubine in person!" Envoy Nan Chen said seriously.
After hearing this, the head of the Zhang family suddenly lost the expectant smile on his face, and his eyes showed confusion and vigilance: "What did you say? Enter the palace to meet the beautiful mother in person? Just you?"
He looked up and down, left and right, carefully looking at the Nanchen envoy, his eyes were self-evident, as if he was saying: "Son of a prodigal, I think you are greedy for the beauty of the beautiful mother!"
"The patriarch misunderstood."
Nan Chen's envoy suddenly felt his head pounding and explained with a wry smile:
"I don't mean to be disrespectful to the imperial concubine, but before I set off, the princess said a few words and ordered me to relay them to the imperial concubine."
"The princess and the imperial concubine have a very close personal relationship. What if the imperial concubine changes her mind after listening to the princess's words? Clan leader Wanwang Chengquan is trying to get a chance to meet the imperial concubine!"
"That's it."
The Zhang family members understood, and after thinking about it carefully, it seemed reasonable, so the vigilance in their eyes slowly disappeared, and then they frowned again, unable to make up their minds for a moment.
Envoy Nan Chen saw that he could not make a decision for a long time and thought that he had no choice. Therefore, he was extremely disappointed and finally bowed and said: "Since the patriarch feels embarrassed, I will not disturb you and take my leave!"
After finishing speaking, the envoy turned and left.
"Your Majesty, please wait!"
But the head of the Zhang family stopped him, gritted his teeth, and finally made a decision: "Okay, I will find a way for you to enter the palace and meet your beautiful mother!"
"That's great." Envoy Nanchen was overjoyed.
"However, this matter still requires your Majesty's consent. It is too late today. I will go to the palace early tomorrow morning. Your envoy, please go back to the posthouse to wait for my good news."
"So good!"
"..."
Envoy Nan Chen bid farewell to the head of the Zhang family, returned to the post house to wash up, and then began to rest in preparation for entering the palace tomorrow.
A night of silence.
Early the next morning, the head of the Zhang family entered the palace and asked to see Emperor Shu and explain his intention.
Emperor Shu refused at first. After all, it was his harem. How could he allow other men to get involved? Impossible, Emperor Shu firmly disagreed.
Naturally, the head of the Zhang family will not give up easily, as this is related to the rise and fall of the entire Zhang family.
In the end, the two sides reached an agreement that Zhang Meiniang could meet the envoy Nanchen, but the location could not be the harem. Zhang Meiniang had to be asked to move to a palace outside the harem.
The clan was overjoyed and went to see Zhang Meiniang in person and asked Zhang Meiniang to move her nest.
He originally thought that this matter still needed some twists and turns, but when Zhang Meiniang heard that Chen Keyan had brought her a message, she nodded and agreed on the spot...
Half an hour later.
All preparations have been made.
In a palace near the harem, Zhang Meiniang has moved here.
The envoy Nanchen had also been waiting outside the palace.
Because Zhang Meiniang was suffering from a "serious illness", the protective measures were extremely strict. Except for a few palace maids who were close to her, no outsiders were allowed to approach her. They met the envoy from Nanchen in succession, separated by a thick curtain.
"The foreign minister pays homage to the imperial concubine."
The envoy of Nanchen bowed in obeisance. After the obeisance, he did not dare to straighten up and kept his bowing posture.
Although this place is not the harem, the person opposite is Zhang Meiniang, the noble concubine of Emperor Shu! Even though the two were separated by a thick curtain and couldn't see each other at all, he still didn't dare to look up.
It's important to avoid suspicion.
"Ahem!" Zhang Meiniang coughed lightly twice and said nothing. The maid next to her said on her behalf: "My Majesty said that your envoy will be exempted from the courtesy."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." The envoy still maintained his bowing posture.
"The empress asked, why did your envoy insist on seeing me?"
"Your Majesty, your Majesty is kind. Before I set off, Her Royal Highness the Princess gave me a letter. Qian Ding Lingwan told me that it must be delivered to the Empress with her own hands."
After saying this, there was no sound behind the heavy curtain.
Nanchen envoy suddenly felt like he was sitting on his knees, and it was neither right nor wrong to ask, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
Fortunately, the voice of the palace maid finally came from behind the curtain: "The queen asked, does the princess mentioned by your envoy refer to the princess of Nanchen Wu Kingdom?"
"Reporting to your Majesty, it is Her Royal Highness Princess Wu." The envoy breathed a sigh of relief.
"In that case, then submit the letter."
"yes."
The envoy quickly took out an envelope from his clothes and raised his hands above his head.
A palace maid walked out from behind the curtain, took the envelope, turned around and left, blending into the curtain and disappearing.
After closing the curtains, Zhang Meiniang coughed lightly and took the envelope. Seeing that the paint was intact, she opened it herself. Unexpectedly, there was an envelope inside, with a few beautiful words written on the cover: "Burn after reading."
"Burn after reading?"
Zhang Meiniang felt that the envelope was a little hot to the touch.
She hesitated for a moment, glanced sideways at the brazier not far away, calmed down, and finally opened the envelope and took out a page of paper.
She calmed down again and looked at the letter resolutely. There were only a few words on the letter, also in Juanxiu small regular script: "The disease my sister is suffering from is lovesickness!"
this……
Zhang Meiniang's breathing suddenly stopped!
His eyes widened, and the little hand holding the letter almost lost control, pinching the edge of the letter into irreversible wrinkles, and his knuckles like onions turned white.
"Empress?"
The nearby palace maid was startled and stepped closer to check Zhang Meiniang's condition.
Before Zhang Meiniang read the letter, she waved them away.
"I'm fine."
Zhang Meiniang took a deep breath, quickly folded the damn letter, then asked the palace maid to bring the brazier, and resolutely threw the letter into it, turning it into ashes.
She picked up the two envelopes again and prepared to burn them together.
It turned out that there was a smaller envelope inside the second envelope!
Zhang Meiniang said softly, "Eh", and quickly took out the small envelope, opened it, and saw that there was also a beautiful sentence in regular script on it: "Sister, come quickly, Mr. Su is greedy for your body!"
