Hello Chang’an

Cui Wei looked at the sudden appearance of Shuzi, frowned and asked, "Why are you coming back now?"

Cui Lang could only smile obediently: "My son heard the letter from my elder brother..."

Cui Wei glanced at his wife, Lu, and said with a sneer: "You are always thinking about that traitor."

As he spoke, his expression became darker: "But he is safe and sound, yet he has just received a letter today, allowing everyone in the family to worry about his safety. This move has never put this family in the slightest regard."

After saying that, he stood up and walked away with a cold face.

"Father..." Cui Lang hurriedly followed him a few steps away, pretending to persuade him to stay.

Cui Wei waved his sleeves to stop him and strode away.

Cui Lang called out "Father" a few more times until Cui Ai's back was completely gone, then turned around and returned to the hall, sighing helplessly: "Why is Father so crazy?"

After finally waiting for the news that my eldest brother was safe and sound, before I could be happy, my father blamed his eldest brother for not sending the letter in time. This kind of criticism was really strange.

Cui Lang couldn't help but complain on behalf of his eldest brother: "The eldest brother was acting under a secret order and was being chased by assassins. It is said that it is not appropriate to expose his whereabouts at will, and the eldest brother must have his own plans and arrangements... He is on the march, It’s not like I’m running errands for my father, so why do I have to convey my whereabouts to him all the time?”

"What do you know?" Mrs. Lu sighed: "Every mistake is Dalang's fault. Even if he just climbed out of the icy lake, he should not think about escaping or treating his injuries. He should overcome all difficulties. , write a letter to your father first... Isn't this an excuse? Just tear off your shirt. Still lack of pen and ink? It's not that difficult. If he really has the intention, cut his finger to bleed it. Is it difficult to write a letter in blood to tell your father at home that he is safe? "

Cui Lang sighed: "...You really understand my father best."

In short, no matter what the eldest brother does or doesn't do, his father will not be satisfied.

Lu concluded: "In the final analysis, your father's biggest disadvantage is that he has not yet learned to accept that Dalang is not his and Cui's puppet, but an independent person."

In his eyes, Dalang's existence is a symbol of betraying his father's authority and challenging the clan rules. With this premise, everything he does is naturally wrong.

Including Dalang's biological mother Zheng... the reason why he still regards her as a thorn in his heart is similar. In his eyes, Zheng's temperament is too stubborn and sharp, she doesn't know how to adapt, and she is not submissive enough in front of him. And he dared to commit suicide by throwing himself into a lake, which was a disgrace to him as a husband. His wife, without his permission, dared to die on her own initiative. What about the woman who had promised to regard her husband as her heaven?

In his opinion, Zheng's death was a slap in the face because of anger, and it was an extreme act of a bad woman who risked her life to refute and deny her husband.

Over the years, when the husband looked at Dalang, didn't he transfer his dissatisfaction with his deceased wife to Dalang?

However, Dalang is so outstanding. Even though his actions are contrary to the clan, he is still valued by the family head and clan members.

As a father, he cannot compare to his son, so he can only use his identity as "father" to show off his power.

All in all, her husband is really unlucky to have a father like this.

Thinking of this, Lu felt even more pity for Dalang, who was far away in Bianzhou.

Putting aside her desire to enjoy the shade under Dalang's big tree, if Dalang was really willing to give her a chance, she would sincerely want to try her best to make up for her husband's debts and debts to Dalang, even the harm done in the name of his father.

Cui Lang put his hands on his hips and sighed, feeling very worried: "When will father grow up?"

"He just thinks too much of himself." Mrs. Lu was too lazy to mention her husband anymore, and raised her hand to click on the letter on the coffee table.

Cui Lang stepped forward to pick up the letter and read it.

This made me realize that my father was being unreasonable - the eldest brother had clearly explained the reason for the late letter in the letter!

Cui Lang read the letter and asked casually: "Grandpa, have you finished reading the letter?"

During these days, he could see that his grandfather was very concerned about his elder brother.

"Of course I have read it. This letter was sent from your grandfather."

The Cui family was well-informed. In fact, a few days before Dalang's letter was sent back to the capital, the head of the family had heard the news about Dalang's appearance near Bianzhou. However, the situation in Bianzhou was turbulent due to the initial decision of the war. It's too complicated, and it's hard to determine whether it's true or false.

It wasn't until Dalang's personal letter came back today that people finally felt at ease.

"...The eldest brother said in the letter that he is now near Bianzhou. Doesn't that mean that the eldest brother is with my master?" Cui Lang's eyes suddenly lit up.

After he reminded her, Lu's eyes brightened slightly: "It should be so."

The mother and son whispered about the matter for a while, and then decided to write a letter to Bianzhou and inquire about it with the help of a reply.

"But...who is the person who assassinated my eldest brother?" Cui Lang changed his tone when he mentioned this: "The imperial court must also know about this matter. What is the attitude of the saint?"

"How do I know this? If you are interested, go back to your grandfather and learn more about it."

There was some unspeakable worry in Mrs. Lu's eyes. It was rare to speak to her son in such a tone: "Today's situation is different from before... It's not easy for your eldest brother to be outside, and things are not calm in the Cui clan. Lang'er, you can't be single-minded anymore. Just pretending to be having fun.”

Cui Lang was silent for a moment, nodded and said "yes", silently clenching his fingers.

Then I heard my mother say in a teaching tone: "Although mother never expected you to become a great person, even if we can't be the pillar, we still have to be a fire stick... No matter what, we can't become the person who is a hindrance and everyone hates it. A **** stirrer, right?"

Faced with this simple expectation, Cui Lang's eyes twitched slightly and he said numbly: "...You really know your son."

Hey, then he should try to make a fire stick. The fire stick can also shine.

It was getting dark, and the first thing to shine was the lights that were lit one after another in various places in the huge Cui residence.

In the darkness, Cui Wei stood on the corridor of the outer study room, his shadow stretched behind him.

He has been standing here for a long time.

The lanterns hanging on the corridor swayed gently in the wind, and the lights swayed brightly and darkly. Accompanied by the clear moonlight, they cast a silvery white in the courtyard. In a trance, Cui Hao seemed to see a boy with half-tied hair through the silvery white. Kneeling in the snow.

Pictures from the past emerged in his mind, and Cui Hao's palms behind his back slowly tightened.

After a while, an attendant came over and saluted him, saying that his father was looking for him to discuss matters.

Cui Er came to his senses and quickly went to his father's meeting hall.

Cui Ju sat at the top, and those sitting on the left and right were senior and prestigious Cui clan members.

After Cui Ai saluted, he also sat down.

Cui Ju first told everyone, "Da Lang is fine."

Most of the clansmen breathed a sigh of relief.

"Bianzhou and Luoyang are also safe and sound." Cui Ju's voice, increasingly hoarse due to his old age, reached their ears: "So, something will happen to those in Luoyang soon."

The tribesmen could tell that the people he was referring to were the Luoyang nobles who colluded with Xu Zhengye.

"But it must be more than just people from Luoyang..." Cui Ju looked at the bronze bird candlestick in the hall and said, "I have a hunch that I will not miss this opportunity tomorrow."

Cui Ai's face condensed: "Father is saying...she is going to attack the four of us? In such a situation, and her own throne is not stable, how can she dare to attack the four families again? Is she going to kill the fish and break the net? "

In the past, he did not believe that Ming Hou would dare to attack the nobles, but first it was the Pei family, and then the Changsun family...

The Demon Queen was so strong and ruthless that she didn't care how much she would suffer in order to hurt the enemy.

Precisely because she wanted to eradicate dissidents from the noble clan regardless of her, what a mess everything is now!

"It's because her throne is unstable." An old Cui clan member frowned and said, "The more critical this situation is, the less likely she is to let down her guard."

A slightly younger tribesman said with sharp eyes: "This is her opportunity, but it is also the opportunity I have been waiting for."

They have never stopped playing games with Ming Hou, but it is all a secret and bloodless confrontation.

Next, it is finally time to finally decide the critical moment of life and death.

The young tribesman stood up and bowed his hands deeply to Cui Ju: "The head of the family made plans early in the morning!"

They are unwilling to retreat and cannot retreat. The remaining tribesmen, including Cui Wei, also looked at Cui Ju.

Cui Ju looked at these people who represented the entire Qinghe Cui clan.

In the eyes of these tribesmen, there is a determination not to give in or compromise, and there is also a sense of arrogance and ambition that has not faded even after hundreds of years of inheritance.

They each expressed their opinions.

They also quickly mentioned Cui Jing, the man who was not recognized by them in the past.

"...Although Da Lang is rebellious, if the head of the family comes forward to persuade him and explain the key interests to him, he may not be able to wake up."

"Da Lang has been willful and reckless for many years. At this critical moment, it's time to make some plans for the clan!"

"The head of the family..."

Cui Ju raised his hand and interrupted their words, with no emotion on his face: "I have my own plans for this matter."

As the head of the family, he should make plans early, and he has been preparing for this day.

Furthermore, he not only had to prepare for Cui's success, he also had to prepare for Cui's failure.

Dalang is in Bianzhou at this time, so he is also in the middle of the game. Every step must not be taken carelessly.

After a moment, Cui Ju spoke and took over the words of the young clansman just now: "The prince is incompetent and cannot support his great responsibility... The Cui family must not make the same mistake as the Changsun family."

After speaking, he took out a secret letter from his sleeve and placed it on the sandalwood coffee table beside him. His old and wrinkled fingers slowly pushed the letter to the edge of the coffee table.

"A few days ago, I received this secret message. Please take a look at it first."

The young tribesman said "yes" seriously and respectfully stepped forward to take the letter.

On the candlestick, the candle flame flickered.

In the Manna Hall, behind the screen with hundreds of birds facing the phoenix, the Holy Emperor was leaning on the couch, his eyes closed, and he did not know when he fell into a dream.

The dream was damp and dim, with a pungent smell, which came from the Elephant Garden. It was like an invisible net, trapping the three of them, mother and son, in those difficult and cold years.

When Axiao's hands were covered with chilblains and she had a high fever and couldn't find an imperial doctor, she also tried to beg everyone she could. When she couldn't see the emperor, she went to beg a higher-ranking concubine, but she was extremely unhappy. Desserts that are easy to make will only be knocked over with contempt by the concubines in front of them.

Those arrogant palace concubines would cover their noses with handkerchiefs, mocking her for smelling like an elephant or a bad luck star.

A noble concubine who liked to wear purple was wronged by the queen, so she turned around to vent her anger on her. She made up a random name for her fault, made her kneel down to apologize, but it was not enough, and ordered the palace maid to slap her mouth.

Even in her dream, that helpless feeling of humiliation still enveloped her once again.

The corners of her mouth were bloodshot, but she didn't want to beg for mercy anymore.

The more this happened, the more displeased the imperial concubine became.

Just when the other party came up, pulled out the silver hairpin from her hair with her fingers coated with khaodan, and made interesting gestures on her face, asking her if she was afraid of ruining her face, a small figure rushed towards her and pulled out the hairpin. The other party was knocked to the ground and bit **** the arm of the palace lady who was restraining her.

The little girl's palms were all sweaty, and she was about to run away as soon as she was pulled up.

But how could he run away?

Someone from the palace stopped them.

Fortunately, the commotion was too loud and attracted other concubines, so the noble concubine gave up for the time being.

But it's only temporary.

Late at night, the little girl was kneeling on the porch. She asked - Do you know that you are wrong?

The little girl knelt straight, as if a little aggrieved, and actually answered her - Ah Shang doesn't know.

She then asked the little girl to stretch out her hand and asked her grandma to hit it with a ruler before asking again.

The little girl trembled in pain, but still answered - A Shang still doesn't know.

She asked her grandma to hit her again.

She didn't want to "beat him until he knew it", she just needed Ashang to remember the pain at this moment and make it a long memory.

Finally, she told Ah Shang that you were wrong because you had no power to deal with the aftermath, but you still had to stand out. It seemed like you were helping your mother and concubine, but you were actually harming others and yourself.

But she couldn't remember Ashan's reaction at that time.

She couldn't remember many things. It was already very difficult to survive during those days, and she didn't have much thought to pay attention to the healthy child.

But there was one scene that she remembered very clearly and would always appear in her dreams.

In the dim corridor, a thin little boy secretly gave a broken lychee to the little girl, while she watched from a distance.

At that time, she was thinking that she must leave here, and then she did.

After that, she thought that if she wanted to stand higher, she actually got her wish.

She became a queen, and her child became a prince. It seemed that this was the only high place that the world could think of. For a time, she began to feel satisfied, and even felt guilty and uneasy, thinking about whether to confess everything.

But she accidentally learned that everything was not as simple as it seemed. The seemingly just and majestic emperor was actually just using her and her children.

He knows everything, he's in control, and he doesn't need her "confession" at all.

She felt angry and scared, but more importantly, she felt ironic and sad.

So, all this will disappear.

But she couldn't let it go away.

Not only that, she would never allow others to control her destiny, even the so-called emperor.

So she began to win over the ministers secretly, and she began to plan everything by hook or by crook. She even did something so bold that it could annihilate the nine tribes...

But she has no regrets.

Every move she made was on the right path. She felt guilty, but she never regretted it.

Yeah, she felt guilty...especially as a mother.

The Holy Book Emperor slowly opened his eyes, feeling lost for a moment.

"This time, I blamed you wrongly...you didn't mean to go against me."

She whispered to herself in a very low voice, sighing vaguely.

"But why, you just refuse to acknowledge me and sit down and talk to me."

She had to have a long conversation so that she could know what her Ah Shang was thinking now, so that she would not be forced to doubt her only blood relative.

"Your Majesty, you are awake..."

The palace maid who was guarding the screen heard the sound and stepped forward to serve her. A handsome man with half-haired hair also quickly took the bright yellow robe and stepped forward to put it on the empress.

I spent four hours today sorting out the details for the next step, and found that there are still lines about the Cui family and the Empress to be written, so I still haven't been able to cut back to Ning Ning. I will definitely do it tomorrow! (auspicious crawl)