Linzhi

Wen Jiang is a maid in Prince An's mansion, not a concubine or side concubine, and she does not have any official status, but her status is very subtle. Everyone knows that she is highly valued by King An. She occasionally goes to and from the court, and the empress also regards her as amiable and amiable as a junior. .

There is no concubine in Prince An's Mansion, and the Chief Shi of the Prince's Mansion cannot enter the harem, so Wen Jiang is the only one who can ask to see Empress Pei.

"Your Highness and Fifth Highness brought back some Lingnan earthen rituals, which are not worth much, just to show filial piety, and specially let the maid into the palace to present to His Majesty and you." Wen Jiang saluted, his tone unhurried.

I don't know since when, every word and deed of her has the shadow of He Rong.

Empress Pei looked at her, as if she saw another He Rong, and couldn't help laughing.

Wen Jiang didn't know why she was laughing, a little strange, but didn't ask a question.

Empress Pei waved her hand: "Sanlang Wulang has a heart, it's hard for them to go through life and death on the front line, and still think about your majesty and me. I also heard from your majesty that the situation in Lingnan is very good, and I think they will be able to return to the court soon."

She knew very well that Wen Jiang's entry into the palace was by no means a gift of special local rituals.

After exchanging pleasantries, Empress Pei waved away the maids, leaving only Sushuang by her side.

"San Lang let you enter the palace, presumably he has something to tell me?"

Wen Jiang didn't go around in circles: "Yes, His Highness was very concerned when he heard that Fu Nian Khan had sent someone to propose marriage to His Majesty. He specially sent me into the palace to ask Your Majesty what he wants."

Empress Pei smiled: "I know what Saburo wants to ask, I'm afraid it's not just for the marriage, but also who does His Majesty want to send to guard Ganzhou after Zhang Tao?"

Wen Jiang bowed: "Your Majesty is wise, nothing can be hidden from your eyes."

Xue Tan and He Rong also exchanged letters in private, but after all, they are far apart, and many things should not be stated too directly in the letter. In addition, Xue Tan is the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, so he can't control the personnel turnover of the Ministry of Officials, and he can't do anything about it. Participate in the deployment of the Ministry of War.

Empress Pei: "Your Highness is far away in the south. There is something that he may not have heard of yet."

Wen Jiang: "Please tell me clearly."

Empress Pei: "Prime Minister Zhou is seriously ill, and the imperial doctor said that this time may not be very good. Your Highness, rather than worrying about Hengguo Guild being sent to guard Ganzhou, you should worry about Hengguo Guild taking over as prime minister."

Wen Jiang was astonished: "How could this be?"

Empress Pei sighed lightly: "Your Majesty intends to allow Duke Heng to succeed him as prime minister. If the holy will is determined, I can't influence it."

Wen Jiang frowned, she was supposed to ask Empress Pei for help to persuade Emperor Jiayou not to appoint Li Kuan on behalf of He Rongfu, but she was caught off guard by such an unexpected situation.

Empress Pei saw that she was worried, and said: "In all fairness, Duke Heng is good at military affairs, and also has meritorious service in rescue. He is especially humble in front of His Majesty. He has resigned from office several times, and never takes credit for himself. If it were me, I would not treat such a People are disgusted. It's not that I don't believe in Saburo, but doubts are just suspicions after all, without evidence, it is impossible for His Majesty to abandon capable ministers."

Having said that, if you are blindly innocent and have no stains, such a courtier will easily arouse the suspicion of the emperor, but Li Kuan is not such a person. He lives in a simple way, but it is not difficult to have fun. The literati recite poems and write poems, and even invited Emperor Jiayou to visit him in person. Emperor Jiayou loved beauties, and Li Kuan also loved beauties. He was especially good at painting pictures of beauties. The emperor has a good impression of Li Kuan, and it makes sense.

Empress Pei didn't say these words clearly. She believed that He Rong knew very well that without Zhang Tao, the court would not let Li Kuan, a man who knows how to fight, be ignored. Besides, the emperor also had his own considerations. Now that the old and the new are changing, the emperor naturally wants to find a new prime minister who is not from a family, but like Liu Zhong proposed by the prince, officials from poor families can't control the situation at all. After weighing it all, Li Kuan is actually the last the right person.

After Wen Jiang resigned, Su Shuang saw that Empress Pei couldn't hide her exhaustion, so she couldn't help but said distressedly: "You should go and rest first."

Empress Pei shook her head: "It's not that I'm tired of talking, it's just that this little guy in my stomach is restless."

Su Shuang pursed her lips and smiled: "That must be a young gentleman."

Empress Pei said: "Everyone in the world favors men, and I only love women. With my current status, not only can I make my daughter rich and safe, but at least I can also prevent her from doing things she doesn't want to do, so I hope that this belly The one in it is a little lady. If it was a boy, he would inevitably be involved in various whirlpools."

"But..." Sushuang still couldn't get rid of her inherent thoughts. The queen's son, what a noble status, there is nothing more legitimate than this in the world. Now the mother is more valuable than the mother, and in the future, the mother is more valuable than the son, even the current crown prince. ...

She was startled and realized that she had forgotten the existence of the prince for a moment.

Now that the name of the crown prince has been determined, the empress will be born a prince, so is it possible to compete with the prince? There is such a big difference in age between the two, can the prince born by the empress compete with others?

Seeing the change in Sushuang's expression, Empress Pei laughed and said, "Now you know why I said I hope to have a daughter?"

Su Shuang said in shame: "Your Majesty is far-sighted, and my maidservant is far behind."

Empress Pei: "It's human nature for you to think this way, but it's not up to you or me to decide whether to have a boy or a girl. I'm afraid this little guy will have a great fortune."

At this moment, the little maid hurried in from outside.

Seeing this, Su Shuang frowned: "I'm in a panic, what's going on?"

The little palace maid hesitated to speak: "Just now there is news from the Xuanzheng Hall, and the servant girl wondered if she should report it to the empress as well."

Su Shuang: "If it's not important, then don't disturb the empress to rest."

Empress Pei: "It's okay, let's talk, what's the matter?"

The little maid saluted, and hurriedly said: "It's the military situation, hurry up for eight hundred miles, the Turkic people attacked Zhangye, Ganzhou at night!"

Empress Pei showed surprise on her usually calm face, she couldn't help pressing down on the edge of the table and leaning slightly.

"So what's going on now?"

The little palace lady tremblingly said: "It is said that the Turkic people broke into the city, and the officers and soldiers of the city and the Turkic people were killed and injured."

Empress Pei frowned slightly, so the battle was defeated?

"Where are King Ji and Governor Liang Yu of Ganzhou?"

The little maid: "King Ji fought bloody battle with the Turkic leader, and took off the opponent's head on the spot. Later, his identity was confirmed. It is said that the man was Fu Nian Khan's younger brother, Xu Dai. The Turkic people were demoralized and quickly retreated from the city."

Empress Pei's complexion relaxed again, she breathed a sigh of relief, and slowly sat down with her waist supported.

"It's not bad news at all."

Su Shuang also said with a smile: "Our imperial court has not had such a record in fighting the Turks for a long time. This time the arrogance of the Turks has been greatly suppressed, and they dare not attack easily again."

Empress Pei: "Don't be overly optimistic. I heard from Your Majesty that this Fu Nian is like a wolf and a lion. This battle is by no means the first battle between the Central Plains and them, let alone the last. But this time, King Ji has indeed made a great contribution."

Once Zhang Tao died, Chang'an was ready to let He Xiu and the others come back. Empress Pei knew about this.

Even though the crown prince might have selfish intentions, because He Xiu had never been on the battlefield and could not take on the heavy responsibility of guarding one side, the opinions of most people in the court were also inclined to recall him to the capital.

Being forced to return to the capital without making an inch of merit, from He Xiu's standpoint, he would naturally be unhappy.

But now that he personally killed Fu Nian's younger brother, expelled the Turkic people, and won a small victory, he will be rewarded with great rewards when he returns.

Empress Pei thought of the turbulent undercurrent between the prince and Ji Wang brothers, and the joy had gradually faded just now.

Seeing her being happy at one moment, Sushuang's face sank like water at another, she was a little puzzled, but seeing Empress Pei's expression change, she suddenly covered her abdomen and bent down.

"Hurry up and get the doctor girl, my stomach hurts..."

……

Sang Yun followed behind his father and brother, playing with his fingers with little interest, listening to them talk about the future direction of the Six Divisions of Nanyi, going in one ear and out the other.

Sang Lin turned around and saw that she was bored, so she couldn't help scolding her: "Sister, we Nanyi people have no difference between men and women. A heroine like grandma can also become the leader of Nanyi. You are my father's daughter. Don't be idle all day long, if I go out with His Highness, can I still count on your help?"

Sang Yun pouted: "Not everyone in Nanyi can become a grandma. If you compare me with grandma, you are too flattering me!"

Sang Lin and his father looked at each other, and both shook their heads helplessly and smiled.

Sang Yun blinked: "Brother, do you want to go out with His Highness?"

Sang Lin: "It's none of your business."

Sang Yun: "Why is it none of my business, then I will go out with you too, okay?"

The voices of the brothers and sisters gradually became weaker after entering the Governor's Mansion, which was temporarily requisitioned as the foothold of He Zhan and others.

The atmosphere here is too solemn. When you look around, the soldiers are holding weapons and standing upright. At first glance, they have been baptized by the battlefield, and there are traces of murderous intent on their bodies.

Those who came with Sanza were the leaders who had not rebelled with Li Zhan before, and they all stepped lightly when they saw this.

This place was originally occupied by Li Zhan and others. They packed the gold and silver treasures looted from the city and put them here. After entering this place, he ordered that all the property looted by Li Zhan be sorted and let the sufferer come to claim it, so now at a glance, there is nothing but tables and chairs.

Of course, there were still a few people sitting in the hall. His Highness Wang An was naturally an old acquaintance, and the others must also be ministers of the court.

Sanza was naturally ready to go forward to greet him, but he was stunned when he saw that the person sitting next to He Rong looked very familiar.

Seeing their hesitation, He Rong took the initiative to introduce: "This is the commander of the crusade against the bandit leader Li Zhan, King Xing, and these two are Tan Jin and Zhou Yi. Tan Jin is temporarily serving as the governor of Guangzhou. After coming down, I should deal with you often in the future, so it’s good to get to know each other now.”

Sanza collected himself and hurriedly saluted one by one.

He Zhan said with a smile: "I have spent several days with Village Master Sang, I am not an outsider, so there is no need to be polite."

Sanza hurriedly said: "I didn't know the identity of His Royal Highness King Xing before, so I was negligent, and I ask His Highness to forgive me!"

He Zhan smiled heartily, stood up and helped him up with his own hands: "Master Sangzhai understands the righteousness and will not join hands with thieves and bandits, and after I left, he helped me take care of my third brother. I should thank you, what crime?" Is there?"

Behind Sanzha, Sang Yun looked at He Zhan in a daze. After being shocked and stunned, he was about to cry, tears streaming down his face.

He Zhan's face remained unchanged, he nodded slightly at her, smiled, and quickly turned his gaze to other people.