Hibiscus Tent: The Prime Minister’s palm is reborn

Zhao Heng was tall and thin, with a light green color under his slender eyebrows. When he sat quietly in a corner, he was respectful and silent, and it was easy for people to ignore his existence.

Ever since he saw Liang Qian at the city gate, his lowered eyes were filled with gloom.

If Liang Qian had not caused Wang Su's downfall in the past, he would not have lost his backer, not to mention almost losing his life.

Since then, not to mention that his career was hopeless, he would have to hide from place to place even if he was alive. If it weren't for the rebellion of King Pengcheng, he wouldn't have been able to regain his chance...

He dared not forget every single one of these at any time.

She, Liang Qian, used to be a favorite concubine, queen, and empress dowager... He was powerless and could only swallow his hatred. But now she has fallen to this place and came to Pingwu just for the sake of luck. How could this not be an opportunity bestowed upon her by God?

As long as I can get her, what revenge can't be avenged, what anger can't be vented?

The moment he raised his eyes, there was only a gentle smile in Zhao Heng's eyes.

"Although Liang has some skills, she is just a weak woman who can't even tie a chicken. Not only does she have no one to rely on, she also has only a maidservant by her side. Even if she stays, she is under the control of Your Highness. What can she do? Maybe if we keep her like this, she can really be of some use."

The governor of Pingwu frowned and disagreed. "What use can she be as a deposed queen mother who has lost her power?"

After saying that, he smacked his lips and stared at Zhao Heng thoughtfully: "Master Zhao, is it possible that he has some feelings for her?"

Zhao Heng smiled and did not deny: "It is not important whether I have any thoughts or not. What is important is whether Your Highness will be willing to help me when Liang is no longer useful."

The governor of Pingwu curled his lips and shook his head.

King Pengcheng and King Langya did not think that Zhao Heng was driven by lust. On the contrary, they were well aware of the old grudge between Zhao Heng and Liang.

King Pengcheng smiled nonchalantly: "You are just a woman, why wouldn't you agree? As long as you work hard for me, how can I treat you unfairly?"

The concubine of King Pengcheng was from the family of Zhaoheng's maternal uncle. Although the two were distant relatives, their relationship was somewhat closer than that of outsiders. Now was the time when King Pengcheng needed people. With the introduction of the concubine and Zhaoheng's great ability to please others, he was able to get a place.

Hearing this, Zhao Heng stood up and bowed: "Zhao Heng would like to thank Your Highness first."

King Pengcheng waved his hand and smiled, not caring at all.

Prince Langya was not in the mood to joke around like them, and he did not dare to take it lightly. "I always feel that this Liang family is not simple."

King Pengcheng stopped smiling and nodded slightly, his eyes looking deep.

"It doesn't matter, the visitor is a guest."

*

Liang Qian had been living in the palace for three days. The person she saw most often was Princess Fan of Pengcheng, and the place she went to most often was the courtyard.

As for Pengcheng King Gao Lan, he had only seen him once in front of the city gate on the day he first arrived in Pingwu.

Liang Qian couldn't help but admire Gao Lan's calmness.

However, she took the initiative to ask Princess Pengcheng for a meeting and talk several times, but Gao Lan refused every time on the grounds that she was busy.

That day, after lunch, Fan sat with her in the courtyard, drinking tea and chatting, but she didn't expect Gao Lan to come.

Fan greeted her softly, and Liang Qian just stood up.

After Gao Lan approached, he bowed symbolically to Liang Qian.

Liang Qian was flattered. "Why does King Pengcheng have to do this? I am now... ..."

She lowered her eyes and sighed heavily, feeling resentful and sad.

Gao Lan said slowly: "No matter what, this etiquette cannot be abolished."

He sat down confidently, and Liang Qian followed suit. However, Fan was busy ordering people to add tea and water.

After a few greetings, Gao Lan still only said some irrelevant words.

Liang Qian smiled inwardly and decided to make it clear first.

"I have been bothering you for a few days now. I have always wanted to talk to King Pengcheng alone, but King Pengcheng is busy with many things and has no time."

Gao Lan was stunned for a moment, then laughed: "They are just trivial matters."

Liang Qian watched him pretending with a smile on her face.

Gao Lan glanced at Fan, who understood and left with her maid.

The courtyard became quiet, with only the rustling of branches and leaves and the crisp chirping of birds.

Gao Lan smiled faintly: "Queen, if you have anything to say, just say it directly."

Liang Qian raised her eyebrows and looked over: "To be honest, I escaped from the palace."

Gao Lan suddenly laughed: "Escape?"

Liang Qian nodded: "Yes, the fire in Merlin was actually set by me."

Gao Lan took a breath and asked, "Why?"

"Why?" Liang Qian put down the cup in her hand and sat up straight. "Gao Hao was ungrateful and betrayed me first. He even left a will after his death, wanting me to be buried with him. How can I do what he wants?"

Gao Lan frowned and just looked at Liang Qian without saying anything.

Liang Qian did not hide it and took out a letter from her sleeve and handed it over. "If King Pengcheng doesn't believe it, you can take a closer look..."

Gao Lan took it doubtfully, opened the letter and saw that his face changed drastically. "This——"

Liang Qian gritted her teeth, full of hatred: "Gao Hao was originally a traitor. He rebelled against the emperor and killed Prince Yong'an. He also forced me to write an edict to depose the emperor and abdicate to him. Later, he even forced..."

As he spoke, he lifted his sleeves to cover his face and sobbed softly.

Gao Lan frowned. "If that's the case, why weren't you in the court that day—"

Liang Qian smiled bitterly: "It's not that I haven't thought about exposing him, but you also know that he has many supporters. Even Prince Yong'an is not his opponent. What can I, a woman, do?"

She wiped away her tears gently and continued, "Besides, the lives of the deposed emperor and I are in his hands, how can I not agree? Later, he was afraid that I would cause trouble, so he coaxed me and said that when he ascended the throne, he would make me the queen. Now that things have come to this, I have to believe it even if I don't want to, so I just accepted my fate. Who would have thought... Who would have thought that he would turn his face and not recognize me, not only did he not fulfill my position as queen, but also abolished my position as queen mother. He imprisoned me when I was alive, and even in death, he would not let me go. Oh, even the deposed emperor was assassinated by someone he sent..."

After saying that, she started crying again.

Liang Qian squeezed out some tears, wiped them, and glanced over there secretly out of the corner of her eye.

Gao Lan frowned, looked at the person who was crying with his face covered, then looked at the letter in his hand, as if he was wondering whether these words were true or not.

In the past, the rumors about Queen Mother Liang and Prince Changguang were quite exciting.

He pondered for a moment, and decided that the rumor was fine, but he could use this letter...

Gao Lan slammed the letter down, furious: "I never thought that Gao Hao would do such a treasonous thing. I thought he was just deceived by treacherous officials, but who would have thought - alas, poor Prince Guangning died like this."

Liang Qian put down her sleeves, her eyes moist: "Now, I am willing to do my best to help King Pengcheng start an uprising, not only to restore order and avenge myself, but also to have a permanent place to stay. In troubled times, everything is false. The only real thing is to find a reliable man to entrust the rest of my life to..."

After a pause, he added: "I am very sincere."

As she spoke, tears hung on her eyelashes, looking very charming.

Gao Lan was distracted for a moment.

Liang Qian ignored the gazes on her and said, "Prince Pengcheng, please wait a moment."

After that, he stood up.

Gao Lan came back to his senses and looked at the gentle figure carefully. Suddenly, he remembered that he seemed to have promised Zhao Heng -

He frowned.

While thinking, Liang Qian returned carrying the small wooden box.

"Sorry to have kept King Pengcheng waiting for so long."

Gao Lan smiled. "No problem."

Well, when I get tired of it one day, I will give it to Zhao Heng.

"This is……"

"The Queen Mother's Seal."

Liang Qian opened the small box and looked up at him: "Now you should believe that I escaped, right?"

Gao Lan glanced at Liang Qian with a serious expression.

Liang Qian also looked at him: "By the way, I have something else to tell you." "What is it?"

Liang Qian put down the small box, sat down again, and lowered her voice: "There have been continuous heavy rains in the Yanzhou area, and the Zhou army has stopped fighting. But in Yuezhou - as far as I know, Zhou Jun's return to Luoan to quell the rebellion is just an external excuse, but in fact he is seriously injured and cannot go to the battlefield. Right now he is too busy to deal with us, how can he have the energy to deal with us?"

Gao Lan was surprised: "How did you get this information?"

Liang Qian said calmly, "Tell me first, is this information useful to you or Ping Wu?"

Gao Lan didn't say anything.

Naturally it is extremely useful.

He had heard about the situation in the Yanzhou area a long time ago. The Zhou army had indeed suspended the war and was busy with disaster relief.

As for Emperor Zhou, whether he returned to Luo'an to quell the rebellion or quietly recuperate, there was no way to know. It's not that he didn't send people to inquire, but this new emperor was really mysterious.

Gao Lan pondered secretly, however, having heard that Mr. Zhou had been in poor health since childhood, perhaps this recuperation was true.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Liang Qian said, "King Pengcheng should take this opportunity to show goodwill to Lord Zhou and reach an agreement so that he can free up his hands to focus on dealing with Jin Ye."

Gao Lan pursed his lips tightly and stared at Liang Qian without blinking: "How can I believe that this news is true?"

Liang Qian shook her head: "To be honest, I'm not sure whether this news is true or not."

Gao Lan was displeased: "Not sure? You are clearly kidding me——"

Liang Qian smiled: "Don't worry, I can't confirm the authenticity of this news, but you can give it a try."

Gao Lan frowned: "What do you mean? How to test it?"

Liang Qian thought for a moment and said, "I heard from the princess that you captured a dozen Zhou soldiers when you were hunting a few days ago. I think you might as well send an envoy with a peace letter to Yuezhou City and take these ten people with you to show your sincerity. If they refuse, you won't lose anything. If they accept, then it's done, right?"

Gao Lan took a deep breath, feeling incredible. "So easy?"

Liang Qian laughed: "I'm not trying to trick you into fighting them. I'm just suggesting that you seek peace. Whether it works or not, just give it a try. You have nothing to lose, so what are you afraid of? Besides, why would I lie to you?"

Gao Lan calmed down, his eyes lingered on the Queen Mother's seal for a moment, and then looked back at Liang Qian. "I feel like today is the first time I've really gotten to know the Queen."

Liang Qian was slightly stunned, then shook her head and smiled: "Does King Pengcheng think that the struggle in the harem of the previous dynasty is not as cruel as the war on the front line? Yes, when two countries are at war, human lives are as cheap as grass, but what about Jinye? You should know that it is not only real swords and guns that are dangerous. Besides, do you think it is possible to survive in the imperial city without a heart that can adapt to the changing times?"

Gao Hao frowned but did not refute.

Liang Qian no longer looked at the frowning man, but just glanced at the tea in the cup, which had already cooled down.

……

Gao Lan left. Liang Qian clenched the seal in her hand and smiled faintly.

*

After coming out of the inner courtyard, Gao Lan walked silently with a lot of thoughts in his mind.

As soon as I stepped out of the inner courtyard, someone came to meet me.

They are the Prince of Langya and his confidants.

Prince Langya wanted to speak, but seeing that Gao Lan's brows were frowning, he swallowed his words and followed him to the study.

Several people sat down in the study.

After Gao Lan dismissed his attendants, he roughly recounted the content of his conversation with Liang Qian to the others.

Of course, he selectively omitted some content.

After he finished speaking, several people fell silent at the same time.

Prince Langya even stroked his chin and remained silent for a long time.

Gao Lan frowned and looked over at them one by one, waiting for them to express their opinions: "What do you think?"

Zhao Heng looked at him and spoke first: "No matter whether the news of Zhou Jun's serious injury is true or false, we are really afraid of being attacked from both sides. Why don't we try it according to what Liang said? Anyway, there are only a dozen captives. Whether they are dead or alive has no effect on us. Besides, even if she really has means, what can she do? A woman in the deep palace can't be in collusion with the Northern Zhou Dynasty, right?"

After he finished speaking, Gao Lan looked at the others and they all nodded in agreement.

Gao Lan said: "Actually, I agree with Lord Zhao. Although I don't completely believe her, it won't hurt to give it a try."

After that, they simply discussed peace talks.

Who to send as the envoy became the primary issue.

Only Prince Langya sat quietly in one place.

The crowd dispersed, but he was still frowning.

It is hard to say whether Liang had any collusion with the Northern Zhou, but they all seemed to have forgotten one thing. When Liang was promoted to Shufei, the Northern Zhou sent her a gift.

Going back further, during the peace talks in Pingzhou, I also heard a few words...

Prince Langya left the palace with something on his mind and returned to his residence.

As soon as he stepped one foot into the door, the concubine came to greet him and bowed politely.

"Your Highness."

"Yeah." Prince Langya responded lightly.

Seeing that the man looked unhappy, the concubine hesitated for a moment, but still dismissed the people on both sides.

Prince Langya then slightly side-glanced at her and asked, "What's the matter?"

The concubine came forward, lowered her eyebrows and said in a pleasing manner, "Didn't you ask me to write a letter back to Jinye a few days ago?"

Hearing this, Prince Langya became alert and opened his eyes wide: "How is it?"

The concubine took out a letter from her sleeve and said, "This was sent by my cousin from the same clan. Oh, and she also sent someone to me who might be able to help Your Highness."

Langya King raised his eyebrows: "Where are the people?"

The concubine said respectfully: "She lives in the east wing. I'll bring her to you to see."

The frown on Prince Langya's face finally relaxed.

He shook his head, his eyes unclear: "Just order someone to watch over it, and then find another opportunity to bring it to them."

The concubine nodded: "Yes."

*

The streets and alleys of Pingwu City have been very lively in the past two days, and groups of people can be seen everywhere gathering together to discuss things.

It's no wonder that everyone is talking about it, there have been a lot of strange things happening in the city recently.

I heard that Empress Wenxuan, who escaped from the fire several times, not only did not practice in Yuetai Temple as rumored, but instead came to Pingwu City and lived in the prince's palace.

Within two days, King Pengcheng sent people to negotiate peace with Lord Zhou, and unexpectedly Lord Zhou agreed.

Neiyuan Yajuli.

Liang Qian got up after taking a nap.

Qingzhu helps Liang Qian comb her hair.

The maid knelt beside him, selecting the jewellery in the box.

With a bitter face, she turned the box upside down, but still nothing she found was satisfactory.

Liang Qian glanced at it lazily and said, "Forget it, let's just take it."

Qingzhu sighed: "Your Majesty, just wear it. After all, it is not as good as it used to be."

Liang Qian's face suddenly changed: "Okay, now even you dare to ridicule me!"

Qingzhu bowed her head and knelt down: "My lady, please calm down. I dare not."

Liang Qian had just stood up when someone walked in.

"What's the matter? Why are you so angry?"