Gongshang Confidante

Su Fu

"Grandfather, father, mother, the child is back." Su Muxue knelt straight in front of Su Muhan and mother, "It's good to be back, the war in Mobei, is there any injury?" Su Muhan asked worriedly, "No, How can the Su family's marksmanship allow people to get close?" Su Muxue blinked playfully.

"Your grandfather has been thinking about you all day long, and so are you, without even a letter." Su Muhan peeked at the old man, winked at Su Muxue, and said,

"Mu Xue brought my grandfather's favorite mung bean cake from Liuzhou, and I'll bring it here," Su Muxue said obediently, and Su Zhinian said with a sullen face, "You are a girl, first there was chaos in Fengzhou, and then went to the Mobei military camp , don’t you think it’s not big enough?!”,

Su Muxue knelt down and kowtowed her head respectfully, "Muxue is not only the daughter of the Su family, but also the Zuo Sijian of the Zhou Dynasty. The rebellion in Fengzhou and the mutiny in Mobei, Mu Xue cannot sit idly by."

Su Zhinian put down his teacup heavily, and snorted, "You are so eloquent, I can't argue with you, Mu Han, you too, you train all day long, and you don't know how to discipline your daughter, you are already so old, and the beginning of spring is already twenty , the marriage has been delayed again and again!",

"What the father said is that the son will start making arrangements now." When the city gate caught fire and affected the fish pond, Su Muhan responded repeatedly, and Su Zhinian waved his hand and said, "No need, depending on your temperament, I don't know how long it will take. The first son of the Lin family, Lin Wenxuan, is the champion of the new division this year. He is outstanding in appearance and talented. Originally, the emperor intended to ration Princess Zhiling, but this old man had the audacity to ask for this marriage. At the end of the year, this marriage will be done."

Su Muxue turned pale with shock, kowtowed heavily, and said, "Grandfather! I have never met Mr. Lin, so how can we do things casually?!" Su Zhinian said, "I met Lin Wenxuan at the Xinke Banquet, and he was indeed very handsome. , talk politely", "Mu Xue will not marry!", Su Muxue knelt down on the ground.

"Marriage matters are beyond your control," Su Zhinian said in a strong tone, "Your father didn't want to do that back then, but after marrying your mother, life is peaceful now." "Father, let's not talk about the past," Su Muhan There was a hint of embarrassment on his face, and he smoothed things over, "In a few days, let Mu Xue and Wen Xuan meet, and if they are interested in each other, we can talk about marriage." Su Zhinian reluctantly agreed.

With the sons and daughters around his knees, the emperor's illness has improved a bit. A family banquet was held that night, and the concubines, princes and princesses were invited. There was no fanfare, just a light meal, and chatted with each other about homework.

"Father, I have good news." Zhou Yue stood up, puffed out his chest, and said loudly, "Before my son came to Beijing, he led the Southwest Army to defeat the strongest Gui army of the barbarians. His vitality is fading, and I believe that in the near future, he will surrender to the Zhou Dynasty."

"Good! Yue'er fought for several years and guarded the southwest border. I am very relieved." Emperor Jing Hong praised, and ordered people to reward Zhou Yue,

"I respect my father and emperor!", Zhou Yue's body was like a green hill, he raised his wine glass high, and drank it with his head up, with a heroic air, "Okay!", Emperor Jing Hong seemed to be infected with the military spirit, and said with a smile, "I will drink with you!" After all, order Li Chengqian to serve wine,

"Father's dragon body hasn't recovered yet, I'm afraid I can't drink this wine. For the sake of the Great Zhou Dynasty, please take care of my father." Zhou Ren got up and said in a warm voice,

"This..." Emperor Jing Hong was a little hesitant. How could the king speak back when he said something?

Zhou Chiyu stood up and said, "For this banquet, my son specially prepared pine, bamboo, plum and white biscuit wine. It is warm and light in nature. The father should drink less, so as not to hurt the dragon's body."

"Good! Great good!" Emperor Jing Hong laughed, "Zhao Ning has a delicate mind" and ordered Li Chengqian to come forward to fetch the wine,

"The concubine pours wine for the emperor", Empress Su smiled softly beside her, she rolled up her sleeves to pour wine for Emperor Jing Hong, and said casually, "Your majesty, in the spring of this year, Ren'er has won too much attention for the editor-in-chief of "On National Policies". Fu's approval, the concubine will be handed over to the emperor another day, and I will give Ren'er a few pointers."

"Oh? It's true. I have heard about this book for a long time. It's just that I'm tired these days, so I can't read it. It's so good. I can read Ren'er's compilation first." Emperor Jing Hong likes writing and loves books. Crazy, he immediately chatted with Zhou Ren about national policy, Zhou Yue saw that Emperor Jing Hong's attention had been removed, sat down in embarrassment, with a stern expression on his face.

Empress Su poured wine for Emperor Jing Hong, and echoed it, so that the rest of the people could see clearly that the second prince was the one who valued him the most. With the empress beside him blowing the wind on his pillow, who else could be the prince.

Emperor Jing Hong started to talk. Looking at the seats, the second prince Zhou Ren was wearing a crimson python robe, which was as warm and stable as Lanzhi Yushu. The seventh prince Zhou Yue didn't wear a python robe, but a black soft armor cloak. He looked majestic and imposing like a rainbow. .Look at Zhou Chiyu again, dressed in plain orchid brocade clothes, sitting in an inconspicuous seat in a calm and breezy manner, easily submerged in the crowd of colorful clothes.

"Chi Yu, sit next to me." Emperor Jing Hong waved his hand and said, his soft voice stopped suddenly, his eyes were focused on Zhou Chiyu, full of various emotions.

"Yes, Royal Father", Zhou Chiyu nodded, growing lotuses step by step, sat down beside Emperor Jing Hong, put his hands on his knees, lowered his head and lowered his eyes, "I heard that Zhao Ning fought the enemy bravely in Mobei, but it is too late to go back to the palace." "Spirituality", Emperor Jing Hong said with a smile, Zhou Chiyu raised his eyes, shining like stars, and said with a smile, "Outside, the son is Princess Zhaoning, and when he returns to the palace, he will naturally be the father's Yu'er. Kill, kill." After finishing speaking, Fengyan glanced lightly at Zhou Yue, who was sitting below in soft armor.

Emperor Jing Hong shook his head, "I don't think that now, the Guhe clan is ambitious and conspires against the great Zhou, I would like to hear what you think of it",

Zhou Ren bowed and said, "The Empress Dowager rejuvenated the people for ten years, reduced taxes, and supported the people's livelihood, so that the people of the Zhou Dynasty could live and work in peace and contentment. The sons and ministers knew the war, and the bones were exposed in the wild. All surnames died, displaced, and increased the people's endowments. The army was forced to conquer, the people were in dire straits, mourning was everywhere, and the people were peaceful for ten years, and they were destroyed once." "In the barren land, the Guhe clan killed horses and cattle to survive the cold winter. My ministers think that it is better to reduce the worship of Guhe. In winter, Wouldn’t it be a good thing to send cotton-padded clothes, food and grass, and maybe turn a war into a treasure? War will hurt you! Peace will make you whole!”,

"Brother Huang stays in the capital all day, but he can stand and talk without pain in his back." Zhou Yue couldn't help but choked, "Ximan and Mobei are both borders of the Great Zhou, and there are foreign thieves trying to catch them from time to time. How can a wolf's ambition be a small favor? Can you satisfy me?”,

Emperor Jing Hong looked at Zhou Yue, "Yueer, what do you think?" Zhou Yue said loudly, "Kill! !",

Zhou Yue glanced at Zhou Ren, and said, "Brother Huang knew that the Empress Dowager had rejuvenated the people for ten years, but he didn't know that the Black Tiger Army had completely defeated Gu Heqi and dared not raise troops for ten years. Now, Gu He must be severely punished." Lessons learned, so I dare not commit the same crime again.”

"Imperial brother, you are not a brave and bloodthirsty generation. Why do you want to wash your bones with blood? Even if it is a foreign enemy, there are also old and weak women and children. This will only make people say that the Zhou Dynasty is bullying the weak and the weak, which will damage the face." Zhou Ren disapproved said,

Zhou Yue snorted coldly, "In the battle of life and death, forgiving the enemy is to put life and death in the opponent's hands. Brother Huang has never been to a battlefield, and he has never seen a scene of blood flowing all over the ground. There is no word of kindness there." ,

"Zhou Yue! You!", Zhou Ren blushed. He had a gentle temperament, could not see killing, and was not proficient in riding and archery. Even if he compiled a discussion on national policy, he still lacked a little praise when he mentioned it.

Emperor Jing Hong waved his hand and rubbed his forehead, "Stop arguing, I have heard enough in the court." The two factions in the court, who were also divided into war and peace, had quarreled all day. The emperor wanted to hear the opinions of his ministers. As a result, They still quarreled.

"Zhaoning, tell me," Emperor Jing Hong couldn't help laughing when he saw Zhou Chiyu propped on his chin in a daze,

Zhou Chiyu stroked the edge of the wine cup with his fingers, pondered for a while, and said, "The bones are brutal, and the Zhou Dynasty was severely damaged in the war. Seeking peace is tantamount to seeking skin with a tiger." Hongdi nodded,

"However, there must be a reason for what happened. Gu He attacked the Zhou Dynasty. It was Gu He Shanyu Yiqian who was unwilling to be humiliated ten years ago. This man is narrow-minded and will take revenge. He is obsessed with defeat, so he instigated the tribe and bought neighboring tribes. Together against the Zhou Dynasty",

"Yu'er, go ahead," Emperor Jing Hong responded, "Yiqianxie was reckless and impulsive, and actually led the army to fight in person. If he can be taken down, he will be in chaos."

"Guhe Shanyu, how can he easily take off his head?" Zhou Yue snorted,

Zhou Chiyu smiled, "When did I say that I want to take down Yiqianxie's head, what's more, the one who took down Yiqianxie was not from the outside, but from the inside."

"Little princess, don't be a fool, I will reward you for your good words!", Emperor Jing Hong saw that Zhou Chiyu seemed to have a plan in mind, and said with a smile,

"Yiqianxie has two grown-up princes. The second prince, Yi Muyu, has a temperament similar to him and is fierce and cruel. However, he was seriously injured when he raided me back to the city. It is said that he only has half his life left. He has been lying in bed to recuperate. The prince is not valued because his temperament is not like his father's and he is not a warlike person. If the great prince Yimuhe can replace Yiqianxie's Shanyu, then we can work together with the Zhou Dynasty to achieve peace on the border."

"But Yi Muhe, how can he replace Yiqianxie? Does he have such ambition? Does he have such strength?" Emperor Jing Hong asked,

"A few days ago, Yi Muyu was half dead and sick in bed, and Yi Muhe accompanied Yiqianxie to the battlefield to kill the enemy, and won Yiqianxie's trust and respect, so he didn't want to destroy this seemingly stable The situation", Zhou Chiyu said slowly, the cloud was calm and the wind was light,

"But what if Yi Muyu's illness improves?" Zhou Chiyu said, "A person who has never owned will not be afraid of losing it. Once he has something he has dreamed of, it will be worse than death if he loses it."

Zhou Chiyu lowered her head, fiddled with the wine cup at hand, tapped her fingers lightly, and made a crisp sound. Her voice also changed from low and hoarse to bright and clear, "As long as Zhou Chao sends someone Write a letter to Yi Muhe, saying that he will form an alliance with him, whether he is willing or not, Yiqianxie will be suspicious of him, once there is a gap, and Yi Muhe recovers from illness, Yi Muhe has to make a choice ",

"A clever plan!" Emperor Jing Hong said, "It's just that Chi Yu knows more about the inside story than others." Zhou Chiyu said modestly, "I will reward Princess Zhaoning!", "Immediately send someone to Mobei, secretly It is my decree that if Imuhe is willing to surrender to the Zhou Dynasty, I will support him

Climb to the position of Guhe Shanyu."

"Father is wise," Zhou Chiyu knelt down and said, "Your Majesty is wise!", "Father is wise!" There was a lot of praise from the audience, Emperor Jing Hong's face was rosy, and he looked at Zhou Chiyu, very pleased.

Empress Su's complexion was ugly, and her hands were tightly tugging at her sleeves.