Promotion Letter for the Chief Executive

Why did the emperor pay attention to him?Even sometimes he is extra tolerant to himself, now Ping An knows it.Nothing more than for Xu Wenmei.

The more he knew this, the angrier he felt.Because he didn't want Xu Wenmei to have anything to do with the emperor.

Not to mention that I got extra care because of this relationship?

"The emperor likes you, and it has nothing to do with me." Xu Wenmei said, "You are better than I imagined at the beginning. Now it's me, the master, who is here to hold you back. You deserve his attention."

Ping An shook his head.The emperor valued himself, although it might be because he did a good job, but it is impossible to say that he has nothing to do with Xu Wenmei.

At least initially, Xu Wenmei must have been the reason why the emperor noticed him and gave him a chance to develop.So he went from the Bell and Drum Division to the inner study, and then went to the Supervisor of Ceremony, the Imperial City Division... each of them is an important place, he is young, and there are many people in the palace who are more capable and experienced than him. Well, why is it him?

Pingan thought for a while, but still couldn't help asking the doubts in his heart, "Why didn't Master leave the palace?" He always felt that with Xu Wenmei's ability, if she really wanted to leave, no one would be able to keep her, even the emperor.

But Xu Wenmei just shook her head slightly, "Where can I go after leaving? In the whole world, could it be the king's land. He is the emperor after all."

"But is Master willing to be imprisoned here for the rest of his life?" Ping An was full of resentment.He didn't know what happened to the emperor and Xu Wenmei.But not to mention that he may still have a true love living in Yuehua Palace, just the countless princes in the palace, who landed one after another, no matter who the emperor likes, they are all scumbags.

If Xu Wenmei has feelings for the emperor, as far as Ping An is concerned, even if his master wants to fall in love with the emperor, he will not support it at all.But now, clearly not.

So Ping An gritted his teeth and continued his words, "Master, I don't look down on such a relationship. But...does he really love you? If so, I have nothing to say. But I heard... "

"Ping An." Xu Wenmei interrupted Ping An's words, and asked a little funny, "What are you talking about?"

Ping An glared.

Xu Wenmei had no choice but to stop pretending to be stupid, "Well, me and the emperor...you probably misunderstood, I don't have that kind of relationship with him...do you understand?"

"No?" Ping An was surprised.

No matter how you look at it horizontally or vertically, you feel sure, right?Otherwise, why did the emperor keep him in the palace, protecting him everywhere, and now he is still getting him to live in Tiangan Palace.You must know that this is a place where even the queen may not be qualified to live!

Xu Wenmei was probably very uncomfortable talking about this kind of thing with her apprentice, so his words became very vague, "It's really not. You are still young, this is not what you should ask. You will naturally understand in the future."

"Such words can't fool me." Pingan stared into Xu Wenmei's eyes, "If not...what's going on with you?"

Xu Wenmei's expression was very reluctant and difficult, and she was silent for a moment and said, "Actually, I don't know... how can we guess the emperor's mind? I have never understood what he is thinking. The reason why I said no... …Because of……"

Having said that, Xu Wenmei gritted her teeth hard before saying the last sentence, "He never touched me."

After saying this, he turned his head away, his face was as red as clouds.He really didn't expect that when he reunited after parting, the first thing he discussed with his apprentice would be such an embarrassing topic.

But he also relaxed a lot when the words came out.

Even though many people misunderstood him, Xu Wenmei didn't want Ping An to do the same.Besides, in this matter, he really has a clear conscience.Although I don't know what the emperor is thinking, it is true.

Ping An didn't pay attention to Xu Wenmei's expression, his hand on the side suddenly clenched into a fist, and then slowly let go.

The situation is better than I thought.

Pingan felt that it was impossible for the emperor to have no feelings for his master, otherwise it would not be the way it is now, but for some reason the two still maintain a pure relationship.Maybe it was because of concerns that Xu Wenmei had served the late emperor?Or maybe his feelings are not the one he thought, and he still likes Concubine Yang from Yuehua Palace?

But in any case, Ping An felt relieved.

Xu Wenmei's situation was not as dire as she thought. His previous righteous indignation seemed to have turned into a house without foundation, which collapsed in an instant.The emperor may be a scumbag, but maybe there is no such thing as a scumbag after all.

"Since that's the case." He said softly, "Why didn't Master leave? Don't say that there is no king in the world. If you want to leave, you can definitely do it. Even if you can't leave by yourself, I will help you."

This time Xu Wenmei thought for a while before saying, "Where can I go if I leave here?"

"It's fine to go anywhere." Ping An said, "Has Master seen the outside world? Even if he hasn't, it has been written in the poems and dramas. The mountains and rivers are magnificent and beautiful. There are always places you can go and things you can do. No matter what, it is better than burying your life in this deep palace."

"Really?" Following his words, Xu Wenmei's eyes moved a little bit.

He entered the palace when he was three or four years old, and he has almost no impression of the outside of the palace.But perhaps because of her precocious intelligence, Xu Wenmei can occasionally recall one or two episodes before entering the palace.

The first one is sitting on a boat by myself, and I don’t know which river I’m sailing on. nice.The boatmen sang ancient tunes, and birds flew across the river, and then flew to the distant sky.

Xu Wenmei can even hum a sentence or two of that tune.He has always suspected that it is his hometown, perhaps his good voice is because he was born in such a magnificent place.

The second picture is the city, surrounded by bustling people, wearing all kinds of clothes, some people are singing and dancing, and there are stalls selling things on both sides of the street, with a wide variety of goods.But Xu Wenmei was impressed by a kite with a golden dragon tied on it. In his little impression, there was almost a building as high as it was raised with a bamboo pole, and it could be seen from a long distance away. .

That was probably when he got lost with his family, right?At a certain extremely lively temple fair, because he was greedy to see the kite tied into the shape of a dragon.

After that, it's a matter of the palace.The complicated, boring and even painful courses were repeated day after day, until one day, they were finally allowed by the masters to take the stage, and then - they became famous.When Xu Wenmei was brought in front of the late emperor to admire, she stared again at the five-clawed golden dragon surrounded by white clouds on his dragon robe.

later……

Xu Wenmei closed her eyes and sighed softly, "Is it really that good outside the palace?"

"Of course." Ping An also whispered, "Freedom is the most wonderful thing in this world. Once you have it, you never want to lose it again. Master, your life shouldn't just be buried like this."

"You're right." The dazed look on Xu Wenmei's face gradually receded, and what appeared instead was an unprecedented firmness.

In fact, it's not that he never thought about leaving, but he was so indifferent to the impression outside the palace, and he was already used to the life in the palace, so he comforted himself: Forget it, what can I do if I go out?So day after day, opportunity after opportunity, wasted until today.

Until someone firmly told him: You should go, it is better to go outside the palace than inside the palace.

then let's go!If he could, he would like to see his hometown, which still has a fleeting impression, the world outside the palace, and the great Chu Jiangshan controlled by the emperor who can control his life, ups and downs, and even life and death.

Hearing the words, Ping An immediately became happy, walked over and grabbed Xu Wenmei's hand, "Master, have you made up your mind? I will help you."

"No." Xu Wenmei immediately refused, "Don't meddle in this matter."

Ping An was also very firm, "How could I stand idly by about Master's affairs? Besides, since I have decided to leave, wouldn't I be more confident with my help?"

"Are you going with me?" Xu Wenmei asked.

Ping An was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head. "No," he said, "I can't go yet, I have unfinished business."

"Then why did you persuade me to go?"

"Master is different from me." Ping An looked at him, "You should have left long ago. But I still want to stay."

At the same time, he also understood Xu Wenmei's intention not to intervene.Not long after he met Xu Wenmei, he disappeared. Whether he had something to do with him or not, the emperor would inevitably take his anger out on him.If it is found out that it really has something to do with him, it will not be as simple as venting anger.

When the emperor was angry, he buried a million corpses.

Although this was not the case during the Taiping period, not many people would care about the life of an eunuch.No matter how capable and outstanding Ping An is.Even if it is the limit that the eunuchs can work hard——the chief of ceremonies is in charge of the eunuch, if the emperor dislikes it, it is only a word to kill him.

After thinking for a while, he said, "Stop arguing for the time being. Anyway, even if Master wants to leave, it's not a matter of three to five days. You have to make a long-term plan and plan carefully. Master won't let me intervene. You can always come up with an idea." of."

There is no need to compete with Xu Wenmei at this moment. Anyway, as long as you know his plan, you will naturally be able to help him when the time comes.

"That's right." Xu Wenmei also came back to her senses, "We just met, don't talk about these disappointing topics. Come and tell me, what have you done in the past few years? Although I have heard a little, but after all It's from someone else's mouth."

The two put aside the previous topic for the time being, and began to talk about their love after parting.

Xu Wenmei knew that Ping An had done many things in the past few years, but she still found it incredible to hear one after another from him.It's not that he favors his apprentices, but even looking at the entire palace, there is probably no one who can be as safe as he is.

Maybe those people know better than him how to survive in the palace, how to flatter the nobles, and how to climb to the top step by step... They are capable, sophisticated, and cunning like foxes, but due to their limited background, they may never Can't do something as big as peace.

He is different from everyone in the palace.Even those princes may be worse than him.

Xu Wenmei suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

When he was young, when he was in the limelight, he didn't take anyone seriously.At that time, he used to hate: he is smart, capable, and can play with most people in applause, but so what?After all, he was just a eunuch, just a plaything in the eyes of the emperor, so he had to submit.

As time went by, that hatred didn't fade away, but gradually became numb.He began to recognize the reality, he is such an identity, so he only deserves such a fate, even if he is not reconciled, it is useless.

He resigned to his fate, so he lived on like this until today.

When he first saw Ping An, he felt that the other party was very similar to him, especially in his cleverness.If you can have a good background, it may not be impossible to be a general and a good person, and you will definitely not be worse than most self-righteous people in the world.

His own path has been cut off, but Xu Wenmei hopes that Ping An can work hard.He really wanted to know how far Ping An could go.

So he accepted Ping An as an apprentice, and took the trouble to pave the way for him. —— Seeing Ping'an's current capabilities, Xu Wenmei was too embarrassed to mention that the reason why he suddenly moved to Tiangan Palace was because he made an exchange with the emperor.

Of course, saying it sounds much better than exchanging two words, and it took a lot of thought to go back and forth.But to sum it up, it was still an exchange: he moved here, and the emperor would keep him safe.

If I knew that Ping An was so capable, why did I bother so much?

So as a master, Xu Wenmei will never let Ping An know that she has done this.Although he said that he might be holding Ping An back, he didn't want Ping An to really look at him in this way.

Knowing that Ping An is so good at this moment, the long-lost unwillingness reappeared in Xu Wenmei's heart.

If Ping An didn't have such an identity, if he hadn't entered the palace—how much could he have done?There are too many roads for him to walk, all of which are brilliant and radiant, spread out in front of him, just waiting for him to step on them.

But why did he enter the palace?

This feeling is deeper and heavier than Xu Wenmei's own unwillingness at the beginning.It was because no matter how high he thought of himself at that time, he was still an actor, and he knew nothing but singing, except for a few tricks and tricks from the deep palace.But Ping An is different.

Destiny... what is it?

"Master, what are you thinking?" Probably because he was too preoccupied, he couldn't even hear what Ping'an was saying, and was only left with resentment.

Xu Wenmei came back to her senses and looked at Ping An with a puzzled expression.At that moment, he really had an impulse to ask Ping An: Are you willing?

Fortunately he didn't ask.Because this problem is unsolvable.Not reconciled, maybe many people are not reconciled, but then what?Even if you are not reconciled, time will not turn back, and your fate will not be changed. In this case, what is the use of asking?

He cleared his throat and said, "I'm just looking forward to hearing you talk about Jiangnan."

"Master, you will find out by yourself someday." Ping An said with a smile, "I have read many poems and songs describing the grand scenery in the south of the Yangtze River, but I still have to say that words can't describe her beauty perfectly. One or two."

"You just said that you still have things to do when you stay?" Xu Wenmei asked suddenly, "What are you going to do?"

He could tell that Ping An really liked the outside world.Compared with this, power, glory and anything else should be incomparable.So he was a little curious, what kind of thing could make Ping An give up leaving and choose to stay here?

Hearing his question, Ping An felt a little embarrassed, "It's hard to say this question, maybe if I really say it, Master will think I'm talking nonsense."

"Not necessarily." Xu Wenmei said, "Others want to do it, maybe it's a fool's dream, but Ping An will definitely make it."

His tone was very serious, and Ping An couldn't help but blush slightly.Although he has always been very confident in himself, he still feels different when he is affirmed and praised by others.

He bowed his head and thought for a while before saying, "There are many things I want to do, but in a nutshell, there is only one sentence: let people in the world know who they are, what they want, and how to get them. Instead of being muddled, what others say What is what."

Xu Wenmei didn't expect his ideal to be such a vague and generalized thing, so she couldn't help asking, "How to do this?"

"Master, let me ask you, do you think you are the same as other eunuchs?" Ping An asked.

A look of disdain appeared on Xu Wenmei's face. Ping An already knew what he meant without answering.

He thought for a while, and cited the example in "The Scream", "I heard such a story before. It said that there was an iron room with no doors and windows, which was completely closed and difficult to destroy. There were many sleeping people in it, and it was very difficult to destroy it. They will be suffocated to death soon. If they are suffocated and suffocated, they may not feel the pain at all. If it was you, Master, would you choose to let them just fall asleep and die, or wake them up?"

Xu Wenmei was taken aback for a moment, apparently not expecting why Ping An suddenly changed the subject, but he did not answer immediately, but lowered his head and pondered slowly.

After all, he is a smart person, and he is so smart that he is already sober compared to most people in this world.So he thought for a while, then raised his head and looked at Ping An with a bit of shock on his face.

He was quiet for a while, then stretched out his hand to gesture, and asked Ping An, "So this iron house refers to this world?"

"You can think so too," Ping An said.

Xu Wenmei was speechless for a while.After a while, he asked hesitantly, "Ping An, what exactly do you want to do?"

"Huh?" Ping An was a little puzzled.

Xu Wenmei frowned tightly, and lowered her voice, "Even if you overthrow the world—"

"Master!" Ping An interrupted him amusedly, "I don't have such delusions." Xu Wenmei probably thought he was going to rebel, but Ping An really didn't have such ambitions.

Seeing that Xu Wenmei still didn't believe it, he continued, "Let's not talk about whether I have this idea myself, does Master think I can do it? Even if I can do it, if this one is overthrown, there will be new ones, are you Does that mean right?"

Xu Wenmei nodded.

He felt that there seemed to be some kind of magical power in Ping An's words, which made him scared and excited, as if he was opening a brand new door that he had never seen before.Outside the door, there will be another completely different world.

Xu Wenmei didn't know whether it was good to open this door, but at this moment he couldn't help holding his breath, staring at Ping An, wanting to hear his next explanation.

Ping An said with a smile, "Don't doubt it, I don't have that ability. So what I can do is to wake up some of them who are more awake, let them wake up, and then see... What is this iron house like?" Isn’t it really unbreakable? Maybe everyone can work together to break it?”

"Master thinks, am I just dreaming like this? If the house can't be broken, will I harm those few people who are awake instead?"

"No." Xu Wenmei said almost immediately, "Even without you, maybe they will wake up sooner or later before they suffocate to death. At least you organize people to maximize the possibility of breaking the house. Otherwise, they will be suffocated sooner or later." Wake up at this time, even if you want to break the house, it is impossible, only to die in pain. Isn't that even worse?"

Ping An stared at him for a while, then smiled, "Master is really amazing." He sometimes asked himself this question, but he didn't find the answer.

And Xu Wenmei is obviously a staunch reformer.

Maybe all he wanted was someone who could be so sure of himself.As for whether it can be done or not, and which step can be achieved, who can know now?

Xu Wenmei didn't smile, he thought for a while, and then asked very seriously, "Ping'an, I don't know where you come from so many wonderful ideas. But—you tell me, the world outside the iron house is What's it like?"

This time, Ping An really smiled in relief.

"The outside world...it's actually the same world, but you will feel that the sky is bluer, the water is clearer, and even breathing is more pleasant. If you want me to say it, it's...the taste of freedom .Maybe the vast majority of people in this world may not even notice the difference between the two, they are all the same. But I still want to do it, just for..."

"Just for the few people who might be awake." Xu Wenmei said.

"Yes." Ping An laughed, "For those who are sober."

"I thank you on their behalf." Xu Wenmei asked, "Ping An, do you need help?"