The Royal Merchant of the Red Chamber

After not coming back for a while, Lin Mozhi found that although the house of Prince Zhongshun had not changed, the spirit of the mansion was not as good as before.The bright and bright vermilion gate in the past looks a bit dim, even the plaque under the eaves has a sense of dilapidation and withering, and the two rows of heavily guarded soldiers add two points to the atmosphere of early autumn. It seems that even the gates on both sides All the stone lions looked sad.

Lin Mozhi and Prince Zhongdun went up the stairs side by side. The guards guarding the gate had already received the Holy Majesty's order and did not stop them.Lin Mozhi nodded and smiled at the guard, and entered the palace in silence.

After entering the inner courtyard, Lin Mozhi felt more and more the depression and failure of the whole mansion.In the past, when Prince Zhongshun was proud, it was the best time to have a grand occasion. Every time Lin Mozhi came here before, he could see the mighty maids, women, stewards, and servants in the mansion performing their duties. The palace costumes are more and more bright and radiant. Now, after only two years, the inner courtyard of this resplendent and resplendent palace seems empty, and no one can be seen after walking a hundred or so steps. The flowers, plants and trees in the garden have not been pruned for a long time. The look of him is lazy and depressed, which makes people feel sad when they look at it.

Along the Chaoshou veranda to the inner study in the backyard, Lin Mozhi noticed with sharp eyes that Prince Zhongshun was lying on the rocking chair under the corridor of the inner study, covered with a half-worn and stale sky-blue brocade quilt, and the heavy quilt set off even more The people below were weak and thin, and Lin Mozhi keenly noticed that Prince Zhongshun, who was only in his 20s, had a little gray hair on his temples.

Hearing the footsteps behind him, Prince Zhongshun turned his head to look at the person coming. A flash of surprise flashed in his eyes when he saw Lin Mozhi, but later his eyes fell on Prince Zhongshun who was walking with him. As if being stretched to the top of his head by the sea, he was so stuffy that he almost lost his breath.

Lin Mozhi walked up to Prince Zhongshun and stood still, he couldn't help but carefully sized up the people on the couch.In Lin Mozhi's memory, Prince Zhongshun has always been high-spirited, scolding Fang Qiu, and competing with the Holy One all the time.Because he was very fond of the emperor when he was young, in order to contain the power of the emperor after the emperor ascended the throne, the emperor favored Zhongshun, who had a special status and delusions, in every possible way, and made Zhongshun a arrogant character who was not afraid of anything and everything.Therefore, whenever Lin Mozhi saw Zhongshun, he would raise his head proudly, stubbornly walking on the path he chose, never listening to persuasion, and never looking up at the surrounding scenery.

He always disregarded other people's wishes, and even used his status as a lover to criticize Lin Mozhi again and again. In the end, Lin Mozhi became discouraged and had no more thoughts, so he gradually moved away from this person, and even developed to the point where Later, I avoided it for fear.

After being involved for more than ten years and going around for many years, no one would have thought that this would be the case in the end.Zhongshun was defeated and imprisoned, but he remarried to the royal family as Prince Zhongdun.

For a moment, Lin Mozhi's expression became dazed.

On the other side, Prince Zhongshun was also quietly looking at his ex-lover who had been reunited after a long absence.Still as quiet and indifferent as before, with exquisite eyebrows and eyes, and a calm expression with a little bit of trance and bleakness, he is still high-spirited, dignified, and a gentleman like jade.But now the deep melancholy and uneasiness emanating from him was gradually replaced by tranquility and comfort.This feeling of peace and tranquility has never been felt when I am with myself.Presumably, after being with Prince Zhongdun, his wandering and fearful heart finally calmed down, which slowly changed the temperament around him.

Prince Zhongshun looked at Prince Zhongdun beside Lin Mozhi, his seventh brother, in a complicated manner.Although they belonged to the party of the Five Sage Kings at the beginning, but because of the great age difference, and Prince Zhongdun never liked to get involved in the affairs of the royal family, he did not have a deep friendship with this so-called seventh brother.It's ridiculous to say that the high-profile rumors in the court almost monopolize half of the five sage kings' party, and the number of times the two most important princes meet and talk can almost be counted on their fingers.Even Prince Zhongshun looked down on this seventh brother at the beginning of seizing the throne—his mother family is powerful, but his seventh brother is actually a worthless vassal after the fifth brother. Honghu's loyalty scoffed.But it wasn't until Prince Zhongshun was able to calm down and think carefully about what he had experienced after he failed in his attempt to win the dynasty and was trapped, that he faintly realized that his seventh brother was actually the most shrewd person.

Because his mother's family is too powerful, his father, who has always been afraid of his relatives taking power, would never consider letting Seventh Brother ascend the throne, because his father would never be willing to hand over this beautiful country to others, even if there was only half a chance, his father would not Never take Guozuo risk.Therefore, from the very beginning, Seventh Brother had already lost his status as the heir.

So while he stood by Fifth Brother's side on the grounds of brotherhood, thinking about it carefully, it was just because Fifth Brother's mother clan was too humble, so humble that there was almost no one in the court. Under such an embarrassing situation, Seventh Brother led With the influence of his mother's family to support the fifth brother, and the fifth brother is kind-hearted, affectionate and righteous.After the Fifth Brother came to the throne, the Seventh Brother, who has the merits of being a dragon and has an irreversible relationship, will naturally not act like a dog.At the same time, Seventh Brother maintains a relatively neutral position on the grounds that he does not like to meddle in the government, and stays out of the matter and watches from the sidelines.In this way, even if the fifth brother fails to inherit the great power in the future, the other brothers will definitely not be too embarrassing because they are thinking about their previous love and the rich mother's family of the seventh brother.

Therefore, after the fourth brother ascended the throne, the rest of the brothers were either imprisoned in Beijing or exiled outside. Only the seventh brother can wander around in the name of Prince Zhongdun, which can be said to be unrestrained.

Now, the Seventh Brother handed over the power of his mother's family to the Fourth Brother on the grounds of currying favor with his lover, so the Five Kings Rebellious Party, who had been somewhat dishonorable, became His Majesty's new favorite minister. Still, the glory is still there.I heard that the Holy Majesty even allowed Prince Zhongdun and Prince Zhongchun to crusade against Xihai Qianxiang Kingdom as an army supervisor in order to put aside past suspicions.Now Seventh Brother is about to marry Lin Mozhi, the confidant of the Holy Majesty, as his concubine. Compared with his own failure and being circled, it is really...

Prince Zhongshun laughed lightly at himself, and said provocatively: "Seventh brother is very scheming, beauties, fame and fortune, this time I have everything I need. In terms of scheming, my brother is far inferior."

Prince Zhongdun frowned helplessly when he heard Prince Zhongshun's harsh words.Wanting to say something, he glanced at Prince Zhongshun's thin and gray face, and couldn't bear it.After hesitating for a while, he shook his head and sighed lightly: "If I argue that it is no, you probably won't believe it. But you know what you said, where will you put Ziyu? Even if he doesn't like you anymore, you The friendship between the two for so many years is not worthy of your slander. You know that the reason why you lost so badly is because you are too left-handed, too serious, and too indifferent to others. In fact, in the final analysis of worldly affairs, It's just letting nature take its course. Why do you pursue it so hard that you embarrass others and hurt yourself. "

When Prince Zhongshun heard the words, he was like five thunderbolts.After pondering silently for a while, he shook his head and sighed bitterly: "What you said is true. It's a pity that I have such a temper in my life, and I can't change it."

Prince Zhongdun looked at his younger brother who was always high-spirited and hopeless, and he couldn't help sighing with emotion, then he heard Prince Zhongshun say: "I have something to say to Ziyu, can Seventh Brother stay away for a while."

Prince Zhongdun looked at Lin Mozhi hesitantly, and seeing Lin Mozhi nodding slowly, he just smiled and said, "Okay, I'll sit in the front hall."

With that said, he turned and left.

After the figure of Prince Zhongdun completely disappeared on the corridor, Prince Zhongshun breathed out and asked slowly, "Are you... all right?"

Lin Mozhi hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Very good."

When Prince Zhongshun heard the words, he couldn't tell what he was thinking and replied: "Yes, now Brother Seven is willing to marry you as a concubine in a bright and righteous way, and even the Holy Majesty has restored your position. You are the most proud of yourself at the moment, Naturally, it was very good."

Lin Mozhi remained silent.Just a trace of sadness flashed across the wooden face.

When Zhongshun saw this, there was a flash of pain in his eyes. He immediately regretted his slip of the tongue and explained: "I called you here to talk to you. It's not to humiliate you. It's just that I'm used to being left-handed now. Don't worry about it."

Lin Mozhi pondered for a while, then Fang shook his head indifferently and said with a light smile: "How sociable you and I are, I've long been used to you holding a gun and a stick when you talk. If I'm always angry with you, wouldn't I be so angry now. "

Zhongshun nodded sadly and laughed at himself.

Yes, I was angry before because there was still such a person in my heart, and I still cared about such a person's every move, every frown and smile.Now I don't care, even if this person speaks bad words, with Zi Yu's temperament, he wouldn't care.

Thinking of this, Prince Zhongshun couldn't help feeling sad.

One of the two was silent, the other was recalling, the atmosphere in the hall gradually became dignified again.After an unknown amount of time, Prince Zhongshun suddenly came back to his senses, only to realize that the two hadn't spoken for a long time.I think that in the past, we talked with each other and met our bosom friends in wine, but now the words are not speculative, and even the reluctant communication has become silent and far-fetched.

It used to be such a blend and fit, but now it is so natural that you have to think twice and think carefully even when you say a word.

For lovers so far, seeing each other again is nothing but embarrassment, which is better than nothing.

Prince Zhongshun sneered twice, and said: "You know, when I was imprisoned in the palace by the Holy Lord, and for a period of time, I hated you very much. I hate you for saying that you like me, but you refuse to betray the fourth brother for me. , and even hurt me several times, making me farther and farther away from the throne. Until you imprisoned the emperor together with the emperor and pulled down several important officials who were close to the emperor one after another, I knew that you were absolutely unwilling to help me deal with it. The fourth child. At that time, I hated him so much. So when my concubine asked me to marry the concubine, when she said that the concubine's mother clan could help me conquer the world, I agreed without even thinking about it."

Lin Mozhi quietly listened to Prince Zhongshun complaining while lying on the couch.Back then, every time he thought about it, his heart ached like a knife, but now he heard Zhongshun say how he hated himself, and Lin Mozhi felt extremely calm.In just two years, those throbbing and hysterical heartbreaks disappeared.

Lin Mozhi sat quietly on the porch, lowered his eyes, and secretly mocked - he, Lin Mozhi, was nothing more than that.It's only two years of hard work to talk about vows of eternal love.

Prince Zhongshun on the side didn't notice Lin Mozhi's emotions, and Tu Zheng, who had fallen into his own memories, said to himself: "In the half a year when I was imprisoned, I complained about you every day and every night, thinking about you. If you were willing to help me at the beginning, would it be me who is enthroned as the emperor today, and I am the one who is proud of myself... But as time goes by, I gradually don't think so."

Prince Zhongshun said this, sat up and smiled at Lin Mozhi's gentle face: "There is a poem in the ancients that if you are ruthless, I will quit. I am sorry for you first, so how can I complain about whether you are loyal to me? What's more, the fourth son I have the grace of supporting and rebuilding with you, if you betrayed the master's family for the sake of these children's love, what kind of person would you be? What have I been thinking about for so many years and never want to forget... what would become of it?"

Lin Mozhi's heart skipped a beat, and he looked up at Prince Zhongshun.

For the first time, Prince Zhongshun removed the grudges and resentment on his face, and his expression became as gentle and comfortable as before. He slightly hooked the corners of his mouth, nodded at Lin Mozhi and said with a smile: "This time, let Xiao Lizi pass me a request. The fourth brother asked you to come here, I know he has no good intentions, and he will definitely make some troubles, but I don't care. Because I just want to say sorry to you, I betrayed you, I let you go first. I didn't keep the promise I made to protect you, and hurt you so deeply, I'm sorry."

Lin Mozhi's eyes became hot, and he turned his head away silently.

Prince Zhongshun sighed softly, and continued: "I heard from the guards outside that you will soon marry Seventh Brother as a concubine, and I will be imprisoned at home, and I will definitely not be able to go out at that time. Therefore, I thought of giving you a gift first, It’s just a little bit of my heart.”

Saying that, he waved his hand to Xiao Lizi who was guarding the door, Xiao Lizi bowed to leave, and Prince Zhongshun smiled again: "I think that although you and I are nothing now, we have been involved for so many years. If I am sincere Bless you and Seventh Brother, you will be happy too."

Lin Mozhi turned his head and looked at Zhongshun silently.A pair of eyes as clear as autumn water stared at Tu Zheng quietly, and Tu Zheng had the illusion of returning to the past in a trance.At that time, he fell in love with the clear and pure eyes of the ancient well with only one glance. Not as good as before.

While pondering, Little Lizi had already walked in with a black lacquered sandalwood box inlaid with gold.Prince Zhongshun took the box and handed it to Lin Mozhi, and said with a soft smile, "Do you want to open it and have a look?"

Lin Mozhi hesitated for a long time, took the box under Prince Zhongshun's expectant eyes and opened it, only to see a black jade ring quietly inside, with patterns of ink bamboo carefully carved on it, and on the north side it was written in small seal characters, "A gentleman is like a jade" "The words.

Lin Mozhi was silent for a while, and then looked at Prince Zhongshun with complicated eyes.However, Prince Zhongshun waved his hands wearily, and said in a low voice: "It's been a long time since I said so much, and I'm a little tired all of a sudden. Seventh brother is waiting for you in the front hall, I'm afraid I'll be impatient, so go find him!"

Lin Mozhi hesitated for a moment, got up and walked out slowly.

Prince Zhongshun watched Lin Mozhi's figure go farther and farther, almost out of his sight, panic rose from the bottom of his heart for no reason, and blurted out: "Ziyu."

Lin Mozhi's figure paused, and after a while, he resolutely walked forward, from the beginning to the end, without looking back.

Behind him, Prince Zhongshun looked at his empty hands, and closed his eyes bitterly.

Now that the matter has come to this point, he will never say that the piece of black jade he has been looking for for so long was originally intended to win Ziyu's favor and continue his relationship.But now...

Tu Zheng stared blankly at the square sky above his head——

I have regretted it, but you are gone.all my life...