snowstorm

"Snapped"

Lu Zhao stared straight at the young man, his eyes opened like copper bells, filled with shock, and finally took a few steps back and fell to the ground, the sound broke the silence.

The young man squinted his eyes with his hands behind his back and glanced around, his eyes finally stopped at Xie Qiao.He looked straight into Xie Qiao's almost blank eyes, and a malicious and joking smile appeared on his face: "It seems that the most beautiful expression in this hall is the one on your Excellency's face." Paused Next, he paused word by word: "If I'm not mistaken, Your Excellency is His Royal Highness King Ming of Dasheng."

Xie Qiao swayed while standing, and he stared at him blankly, as if he was looking in a mirror.He looked at the malicious ridicule on the face of "myself" in the mirror, and suddenly felt creepy, and something that weighed on his heart for a moment made him almost out of breath.

Xie Qiao suddenly felt dizzy. He bit the tip of his tongue until it bleeds, before he stood firmly.He forced himself to look carefully at the face opposite him, his eyes flicked across the ends of the young man's eyes, and the pupils shrank: Although there was some hair there, the tattoos on the ends of the eyes were still clearly reflected in his eyes .It looked like a string of characters. Although Xie Qiao didn't know what it meant, he could recognize that it was Beiliang's characters.

Then, Xie Qiao's hands began to tremble.Lu Jue on the side gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. He recognized the word. The young man's eye was tattooed with a name. Even if he didn't say the young man's identity, even if he just saw the tattoo on the face that was too similar to Xie Qiao. With that name, he almost had the urge to kill someone.

The name 'Jinque' was engraved on the young man's face, and this name belonged to the King of Beiliang.

He could recognize Beiliang's writing, but Xie Qiao didn't, but Xie Zheng did.Lu Jue couldn't imagine the emperor's mood when the young man took off his mask.He also couldn't imagine how Xie Qiao would feel when he knew those two words in the future when he was faced with such a situation.

Now, looking at Xie Qiao's appearance, he just wanted to protect him behind him, but only this matter, he couldn't.Xie Qiao could only face this matter by himself.This made him a little bit unwilling, but there was nothing he could do.

The emperor clenched his fists tightly, but finally sat back in his seat.After all, he is the emperor, and the other party is the envoy of Beiliang, so all the things that should be done must continue.

"Dan, Qi," Xie Zheng stared at the young man closely, gritted his teeth and said the name: "Since you are an envoy of Beiliang, you have already met Gu, can the king of Beiliang want you to tell me something?"

The young man paused when he heard the words, and finally gave Xie Qiao a meaningful and deep smile, then turned around slowly, knelt down to the emperor, and said: "My king sent me this time as an envoy. I would like to offer my best wishes to you, to express the friendship between Beiliang and Dasheng; secondly, because of a little misunderstanding, my prince of Beiliang, Juquhun, is still visiting Dasheng, and my king wants me to take him back. I hope His Majesty will allow you."

The fist clenched in Xie Zheng's sleeve twitched slightly. He looked at the young man in silence for a moment, and then said word by word: "King of Beiliang's kindness, I have received it. Ju Quhun led troops to harass me Dasheng People, alone, cannot let go."

The young man finally raised his head and met the emperor's eyes. A smile appeared on his face: "Your Majesty really doesn't want to let go?"

Looking at that face, Xie Zheng's eyes turned red, but in the end he forced himself to say: "Don't let go." Juqu's gangsters disturb the peace of the people in Dasheng, this is one of them; Beiliang and Dasheng sooner or later If they want to fight, Ju Quhun is in Dasheng as a hostage. Even if it has no effect on Beiliang, he can be killed to boost the morale of Dasheng's army, so he can't let go.

The young man suddenly giggled and laughed, and what was contained in that brief laughter made Xie Zheng feel like a knife was twisting his heart.The young man didn't seem to be surprised by this, and he said again: "Then I won't redeem it. I have one last request left. Can I just let me meet him for my king? Your Majesty can ask someone to accompany you when we meet."

This request was reasonable, Xie Zheng finally nodded and said: "Okay." After a pause, he looked at the other party and said: "Since the business is over, the envoys can take their seats."

"Yes." The young man bowed his body towards the emperor, and slowly took his seat.

"Have a banquet." Xie Zheng ordered.But there was no joy on the face.

A group of singing girls filed in, dancing gracefully, and the music in the hall was melodious.

The officials above the main hall all looked at each other in blank dismay, full of hesitation to speak.The young man's face just now was too shocking, and now they naturally can't stand singing and dancing.

The maid had silently tidied up Xie Qiao's seat just now. Xie Qiao sat on the seat, recalling the tattoos on the young man's face just now, and felt chills all over his body, as if immersed in icy cold water.In fact, he had guessed something a long time ago. After all, Li Mingbei and Lu Jue had both found out that Danqi was the male favorite of King Beiliang. The unstoppable speculation after the tattoo on the aspect is still so heart-wrenching and tormenting.

Lu Jue stretched out her hand quietly, and put it on the back of Xie Qiao's.Feeling the warmth, Xie Qiao seemed to be holding on to some life-saving straw. He held Lu Jue's hand tightly, but the back of his hand was trembling with blue veins protruding.The melodious music naturally didn't hit my ears.

A banquet that was difficult for the monarch and his ministers finally came to an end. Although the ministers were all shocked and had their own speculations in their hearts, as long as the emperor would not ignore the interests of Dasheng for personal reasons, as ministers, they would not, I can't bear to add any more obstacles to the emperor's writing.

It was already night when the banquet ended, and the ministers scattered out of the palace. They only exchanged glances in the palace, and did not talk about it until outside the palace.

Xie Qiao stopped the person at the entrance of the main hall, with a complex expression, and said: "If I remember correctly, you lived in the palace during your stay in Dasheng, so it is convenient for you to invite me to your residence for a while. After a pause, he added: "Thank you for helping."

Hearing this, the young man narrowed his eyes and looked at Xie Qiao's face, as if he wanted to see through Xie Qiao's heart.For a moment, a smile appeared on his face, but he didn't thank Qiao for his words. He just said, "I have never been to Jinling before, so I don't know that the osmanthus in Jinling is so beautiful and smells so good."

Xie Qiao was taken aback, and his brows were slightly frowned. Just as he was about to say something, the young man took off his smile as if removing a mask. His face was expressionless, his eyes were dark and without any light, and he said: "He is Your elder brother is not mine." After he paused, a smile appeared on his face again, and he said: "Your Highness, I saw that the osmanthus in the palace is blooming better than the one outside, and I was about to appreciate it. Once rewarded, I will not accompany you, and I will leave." After saying that, he turned and left.

Xie Qiao looked at his thin back, but couldn't stop him.Lu Jue came out from behind the pillar, looked at Xie Qiao's appearance, and rubbed his hair vigorously, Xie Qiao buried his face on the side of Lu Jue's neck, closed his eyes, and said, "Brother Huaiyu, this time, I don't know what to do."

Lu Jue put her hands on the back of his head and said softly, "Qiao Er, I will always be by your side." No matter what happens, it will not change.

"Your Highness, Lord Lu." Yang Su's voice sounded.Xie Qiao got up and looked over.Yang Su bowed to them, with a serious face, and said: "Since last year, I have been ordered by His Majesty to investigate the affairs of Concubine Shu, and now I finally have some clues, please Your Highness and Your Excellency to go to the Imperial Study Room , Your Majesty is waiting for the two of you there."

Xie Qiao's pupils shrank: just after the banquet, the emperor left in a hurry after hearing what Yang Su had said in his ear. Before leaving, he only had time to take a deep look at the young man.He guessed that there was something urgent, but he didn't expect it to be this matter.

He looked at Yang Su and said, "Brother, did you tell me to invite him to go with you?"

Yang Su naturally knew who this "he" was, he sighed, and said: "Your Majesty said, whether to come or not depends entirely on his personal wish."

Xie Qiao was taken aback for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay."

Yang Su looked at the backs of Xie Qiao and Lu Jue, and thought of the young man he was going to find next, and finally couldn't help but sighed deeply.

Royal study.

Xie Qiao and Lu Jue stepped into the threshold, and saw a person sitting on a cushioned chair. That person was a woman with wrinkled face and white hair.Seeing the woman move, Xie Qiao paused, Xie Zheng looked at him and said, "Wait. Wait, him."

Xie Qiao nodded.

Yang Su came back after less than a stick of incense. He shook his head at the emperor, with a look of unbearable expression on his face, but he still said, "He said, it's unnecessary and meaningless."

Xie Zheng closed his eyes and said in a hoarse voice, "Okay."

After finishing speaking, he walked up to the old man and said to Xie Qiao: "Almost all the people back then were killed by Qian Chuqiao, only a maid beside Concubine Shu survived after being hacked because she had a good relationship with a guard. She was rescued by the guard, and then escaped from the palace to live in Lingnan. Yang Su struggled to find her."

As he spoke, he looked at the old man and slowed down his voice: "Old man, tell me what you know."

The old man paused, she kept her head down, then raised her head dully, first looked at Xie Zheng, then at Xie Qiao, when she looked at Xie Qiao, she was startled, her eyes turned red, and slowly Said: "His Highness's eyes are the eyes of the royal family, but the nose is like the empress..."

The dusty past is slowly revealed from these words...

"Back then, the empress gave birth to two children. She named her elder brother Qiao and the younger brother Fu—His Majesty didn't care about these things at that time. The empress was so weak that she was sweating coldly, but she still couldn't bear to let go of the two children... "Because she knew that if she let go, there would be no chance to hug her again.

"If you want these two children to survive, you have to send them out of the palace, and you have to send them to the north, because the Qian family is based in the south... The empress found two old people around her, handed over the two children to them, and told them She wanted to run away separately, and told them that all she wanted was for the two children to be safe... At that time, time was running short, and each of them only had time to bring 200 taels of gold and some scraps of silver, and they didn't even have time to tidy up the soft things..."

"Send off the person, the empress said again—" Tears rolled down the old man's face: "Say, say..."

The frail woman looked at her empty arms. She was stunned for a moment, then looked slowly and laboriously at the narrow corner of the sky outside the hall, and murmured: "Qiao Er is an elder brother. When he grows up, he will grow up to be a tall pine tree on the mountain. You should stand upright and protect your younger brother..." She ordered: "Anyone who asks, just say, I only gave birth to Qiaoer... I beg you..." As long as you keep your mouth shut, outsiders will never think that there will be two A child, if you come here to ask, you will only find a nanny. In the future, the pursuers will naturally only follow the clues of this nanny and focus on a child.

That way, the other child has a better chance of surviving.

"Qiaoer, Fuer." Two lines of tears finally flowed on the woman's face: "Mother is sorry for you...it is because mother is incompetent..." Her mother's house is almost deserted, and there are a few ghosts of children floating in the palace. Even the empress had to risk her life to protect her child. She wanted her child to survive, and after thinking about it, she could only think of this road...

"Later...later..." The old man choked up, and finally couldn't continue...

Later, Qian Chuqiao came to Concubine Shu's bedroom in person. Dressed up, the concubine's hand was still dyed with red cardamom, and she sat down gracefully on a stool. Looking at the weak woman on the bed: "My palace usually sees you pleasing to the eye, so I will give you a chance to exchange that child's life for yours. Can you do this business?" But she must not keep her children. They were so cute when they were young, but when they grow up, they are one after another stumbling stones that hinder her.

The seemingly weak woman slowly wiped away her tears. She looked at her, and there was calm but firm hatred in her always gentle and bright eyes. She paused word by word: "The sky has no eyes and people have eyes. report."

"You are so stupid. You are so stupid." Qian Chuqiao reached out and stroked her golden hairpin, and seemed to sigh: "You are always willing to die for meaningless things. Haha, retribution, Ben Gong, wait .” After saying that, he got up and stepped out of the door.

As soon as the servants in Concubine Shu's palace were arrested and interrogated, until the last person lost his life, someone finally couldn't stand the torture and revealed Xie Qiao's nanny.It's just that, from the beginning to the end, no one took the initiative to mention that there was another child.

There is no attendant in the palace, no one will take care of the woman, and no one will prepare food and drink for the woman.The woman got up, got out of bed, staggered to the door, leaned against the doorway and looked at the drowsy sky in the winter evening, and a illusory smile appeared on her pale face. It's like spring blossoms.

"There are Fusu in the mountains, lotus flowers in Xi...there are pine trees in the mountains, and youlong in Xi..."

She hummed the song of her hometown softly, and walked towards destruction without complaint or regret.

The last illusion is her hometown. On the mountain there are plum blossoms blooming bustlingly, and a straight and straight green pine stands beside the plum blossoms, sheltering the tree from the wind and rain.

She finally smiled and closed her eyes.

……

The room was silent.

Xie Qiao shook his body, he stumbled back a few steps, his eye sockets were already red, but he clenched his teeth tightly, not letting the tears really flow down.

Lu Jue didn't care that the emperor was still there, so he stepped forward and pressed Xie Qiao into his arms. After a while, he felt his clothes were wet.His pupils shrank, and he stretched out his hand, gently placing it behind his head.

The old man wiped away his tears and said: "Those two plaques are used by the empress to make the two children recognize each other, she said—"

"My children, of course we need to recognize each other in the future. Naturally, we don't want to be powerful and rich, but only hope that this life will be safe and happy." Buried on Lu Jue's warm neck, Xie Qiao's eyes seemed to be foggy. In the fog, a The woman's eyebrows are bright and gentle, she said to him with a smile.

But at this time, his heart is as twisted as a knife.

……

Danqi walked in the palace with his hands behind his back, and after asking several palace attendants, he finally found the piece of Dangui Lin that bloomed the best.

On August [-]th, the bright moon hangs high, and the white moonlight pours into Guilin. Osmanthus osmanthus shines like gold in the silver moonlight.There are so many osmanthus here, the fragrance is a bit sweet, but the young man likes it very much.He reached out and stroked a small cluster of sweet-scented osmanthus, and a deep smile appeared on his face: Jinling has such beautiful flowers, it really is a good place.

"Uncle!"

A child ran towards this side, but there was a stone lying on the ground. As expected, the child tripped over the stone and was about to fall face-to-face. It was even better that there was a sharp branch lying on the ground.Dan Qi let the child trip over and saw that the child was about to fall, but he stretched out his hand to stop it, and the child finally stabilized himself.

"Uncle—uncle?" The child saw that his face was full of childish excitement, but now he saw the young man's face clearly under the moonlight, and a trace of mature suspicion flashed across his face. After hesitating, he smiled and called out to the young man seriously: "Little uncle."

Dan Qi looked at the child and said with a smile, "Is that what you call him too?"

Xie Zhao blinked his black grape-like eyes, showing a precociousness that never appeared in front of Xie Qiao, he said: "If I can get along with my little uncle for a long time, it will naturally be the same as when I was with my little uncle." gone."

The words were convoluted, but the young man finally understood. He rubbed the child's hair, but there was no emotion in the words: "You are a smart child, so don't misunderstand the person in the future, your little uncle." There is someone else, not my subordinates. The kid should go back to the palace and go to bed early."

After finishing speaking, he turned around and entered Guilin, never looking back.

Xie Zhao stared blankly at the disappearance of the figure, he curled his lips, turned around and walked in the direction of his own palace.