Started as a mute girl? I prospered in the lean years

Shen Huaixu learned from the shopkeeper that the newly appointed Emperor of Southern Xia was only fourteen years old, and the court was controlled by Prime Minister Qin Xiao.

Before the death of the late emperor, Qin Xiao was the teacher of the young emperor. He taught him the truth and solved his doubts ever since the young emperor could remember. The young emperor relied on his prime minister very much. When he first ascended the throne, he overcame all objections and made the three-year-old emperor the emperor. At the age of sixteen, Qin Xiao was promoted to the position of prime minister and given the title of Taifu. For a time, Qin Xiao became extremely powerful and became a veritable regent.

However, in the past year or two, such unbreakable trust seems to be showing signs of collapse.

Everything starts when the young emperor's sister Wei Nishang was brought back to the palace from the royal courtyard.

Wei Nishang is the sister of the current emperor, but she has been told since she was a child that she would not live to be eighteen years old. Not only that, she was born with a hard life, and if she is placed around her, it will hinder the luck and lifespan of those around her.

The late emperor could not do anything to his own child who was just born, but he did not want to keep such a disaster around him for a long time, so he sent Wei Nishang, who was not yet one month old, to another courtyard and ordered the people around her to Take good care of.

For a young child, such an arrangement is tantamount to letting her fend for herself. With such a prophecy on her body, the palace maids serving Wei Nishang dare not get too close to her and take care of her as if she were an accidental stranger on the roadside. Like a kitten or a puppy, he could only let her live.

After sixteen years of this, Wei Nishang somehow caught up with Qin Xiao, returned to the palace from the royal courtyard, and became a serious eldest princess.

Wei Nishang is about to turn eighteen this year. There is no news in the palace that her life is in danger. Because she acts in a low-key and mysterious manner, the only two people in the court who are close to her are the witch Li and the prime minister Qin Xiao. This is what the people want, Qin Xiao controls the court, and for a while, speculation about Wei Nishang's ambitions becomes a question in everyone's mind.

In the past two years, there have been many speculations about the relationship between the eldest princess and Qin Xiao, and all kinds of romantic rumors have spread.

The young emperor has a childish nature and has been taught since childhood that he should not have too much contact with his biological sister. The early deaths of his mother and concubine and his father made him believe that it was his sister. In addition, the palace people around him made slanderous remarks, and he had no idea about returning to the palace. My sister hated it.

Qin Xiao and Wei Nishang were too close to each other for him to accept, so the teacher and student gradually distanced themselves.

"Your Majesty, your young Majesty, is not yet full-fledged, so alienating the regent will do you no good. Now the entire Southern Xia court has almost become Qin Xiao's monologue." The shopkeeper's surname was Yuan. He touched the goatee on his chin and said with a sigh, "Qin Xiao's age Although he is light, he is decisive in killing and knows how to use people well. There is no telling which day the Nanxia Kingdom will change its owner!"

Shen Huaixu, however, had a smile on his face and looked thoughtful.

"I wonder what this eldest princess looks like?"

The shopkeeper thought for a while and said, "Yuan has never seen it with his own eyes. He heard that the eldest princess is as cold and pure as a fairy, untainted by dust."

Shen Huaixu raised his eyebrows, "How about compared with the witch Li?"

"If Wu Li is compared to a peony, the eldest princess is like a snow lotus in the sky. People often compare the two together, but in the end they are just flowers in their own eyes." The shopkeeper said this, but felt strange in his heart.

The person in front of me is clearly a young lady, why do you care so much about the appearance of the eldest princess and the witch?

He didn't know that Shen Huaixu was choosing between the eldest princess and the witch. After hearing these words, he almost had a preference in his heart.

"By the way, there is one more thing I want to ask the shopkeeper."

The shopkeeper said hurriedly: "Don't dare, just speak."

Shen Huaixu took out a jade pendant and stepped forward so that the shopkeeper could see it more clearly, "Does the shopkeeper know the origin of this jade pendant?"

The shopkeeper looked up at the jade pendant, then at Shen Huaixu, and asked, "Miss, can I allow Yuan to take a closer look?"

"of course."

After taking the jade pendant, the shopkeeper looked at it carefully for a moment and said, "You might as well tell the girl about it. Yuan knows who made this jade pendant and what its meaning is, but..."

The shopkeeper stroked his goatee, his eyes flashed with the gleam that a businessman should have, and he said with a meaningful smile: "This is another business."

Shen Huaixu said without hesitation, "The shopkeeper, please give me a price."

After once again feeling the generosity of the young lady in front of him, the shopkeeper immediately reported the number. When Xiaoman presented the money, the smile on his face became brighter, "If Yuan is not mistaken, this jade pendant should be It comes from the hands of the enemy’s head, Qiu Ye, and it’s really not easy for a girl to get his personal accessories from him.”

Shen Huaixu ignored his temptation and just looked at him quietly to indicate for him to continue.

The shopkeeper clicked his tongue in his heart and said again: "I wonder if you have ever heard of how the Nanxia Kingdom was established?"

"I don't know much." All Shen Huaixu knew was what Shen Su told her.

The shopkeeper nodded to express his understanding, "Everyone knows that the Wei family broke up with the former royal family Shen family and established themselves as king, but they don't know the inside story. Yuan has been searching for many years and finally can only confirm that such a secret from the former dynasty can only be found in the Nanxia Palace. I guess... I'm going too far, the girl should know that the former emperor respected cranes, right?"

Shen Huaixu nodded, "I know."

"At that time, there were three major families that followed the Wei family and took root in Southern Xia, namely the Qiu family, the He family, and the Yan family. Among them, the Qiu family and the He family retained this belief and passed it down to this day. This form of crane body belongs to the Qiu family. That's right. . Today, the He family still plays a very important role in the court, while the Qiu family's children are more active among the people when they become officials in the court. "

"What about the Wei family? Does the Wei family believe in the Crane God?" Shen Huaixu asked.

The shopkeeper shook his head, "There are many crane-patterned totems in the Southern Xia Palace. It's just that when the Southern Xia was first established, the local people believed in wizards. The reason why witches are so important is that the royal family wants to win over people. After the little emperor separated from Qin Xiao, he and Qin Xiao The Wu family is no longer close to them, but they are attracted by the He family. No one can predict the future. "

He thought of something again, squinted his eyes and said, "It seems that the Jin Dynasty has caused troubles in the past two years because of the remnants of the previous dynasty. I remember that some officials from the Jin Dynasty found out about Nan Xia and came to Yuan's territory to ask a lot about crane patterns. . If the girl wants to know more..."

He lifted his lips and rubbed his fingers together.

Shen Huaixu knew that this was done by her father, and also knew that that group of people had nothing to do with the Southern Xia royal family, so she was not very enthusiastic about it. So far, she had received a lot of news and needed to digest it, so she served tea to see off the guests.

The shopkeeper saw what Shen Huaixu meant, looked regretful, and left.

After the shopkeeper left, Shen Huaixu called Xiaoman and Shuangjiang to give some instructions, then closed her eyes and rested for an hour or two. When she opened her eyes again, she left from the basement of the restaurant.

There is no moon tonight, and the entire Xiangyi City is not as vivid as usual. The dark night makes the surrounding areas silent.

Shen Huaixu sat on the roof of the restaurant, took out a jug of wine, and placed two small plates of side dishes to go with the wine, eating and drinking, enjoying himself endlessly.

"Waiting for me?"

Fu Yin sat next to Shen Huaixu. He smelled the smell of wine and frowned slightly, "Why are you drinking?"

After last night's hangover, he silently listed wine as something untouchable in his heart.

"Waiting for you." Shen Huaixu has a good drinking capacity and is comfortable drinking from a jar, so he is not worried about getting drunk. "It's boring to wait."

She turned to look at Fuyin and smiled brightly, "Fuyin, I want to do something and I need your cooperation."

Fuyin looked at her smile for a moment, and it took him a while to react. He looked forward again and nodded expressionlessly, "Oh."