I am neither beautiful nor crazy

Not long after, the two of them drove to the place described by the woman.

Unexpectedly, here is a desolation visible to the naked eye. The [-]-acre field halfway up the mountain is almost barren. The emerald green wheat seedlings have withered and yellowed, and the land has been so dry that it has cracked shallow holes.

"There is clearly a river below the mountain, how can the mountain be so dry?" Jiang Yu looked around, turned over and dismounted, "No wonder young and middle-aged people have to go out."

"Maybe it's not because of the weather." Xiao Xiangling followed behind Jiang Yu, tied up the horse, and took off the bundle tied around the horse's neck.

"It's the bad feng shui here."

Jiang Yu didn't seem to believe it, and said with a smile, "I didn't expect the general who is galloping in northern Xinjiang to believe in Feng Shui."

Xiao Xiangling hadn't worn a mask since he came out of the cave, which made his face much clearer.

He opened his mouth, but didn't say anything after all.

Occasionally, passersby pass by on the road, and their eyes light up when they see these two people.

It's not that the clothes are so glamorous, but the expressions and aura between the two people's brows are not like this mountain farmer.Quite a few people looked over curiously, especially the girls who hadn't left the cabinet, who stole a glance and then smiled prettily.

It's just that maybe the expressions of both of them were too serious, and no one took a step closer.

"They are going in the same direction." Jiang Yu reminded.

The two were among the crowd, and within a few minutes, an old ancestral hall appeared in front of them.

"The statue they are worshiping is..." Jiang Yu turned his head, but Xiao Xiangling didn't seem to listen to what he said.

"General Xiao?"

"Well, you can put it this way." Xiao Xiangling replied perfunctorily, but his eyes never left the statue.

"Are the two young masters coming to worship the statue too?" Finally a girl approached them and asked.

Hearing this, Jiang Yu turned his head and turned away from his serious expression. He smiled back and said, "What is the origin of this statue?"

When the well-shaped eyes are bent, it is like a soft sword picking up a pool of peach blossoms, which are still sparkling.

The girl started talking eagerly, "Actually, it's not just a drought, people will come here to pay respects to big and small things and even peace and harmony. It is said that the prototype of this statue is also a very handsome young man."

Jiang Yu just smiled and motioned for the other party to continue talking.

"It is said that a long time ago, the gate of ghosts opened wide, and the streets were full of ghosts. The warlocks had no choice but to tie them up and try to burn them all."

Jiang Yu frowned, and couldn't help thinking of a line that he saw in the drawing book that Gu Yuan brought back: 300 years ago, a hundred ghosts appeared, and the warlock burned them with fire.

"and then?"

"Then there was a young man who was very powerful. He had the magic power to reach heaven and earth. He not only saved fools, eliminated drought, but also saved people from fire and water."

"What happened next?" Xiao Xiangling, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke from the side.

"Later... it was said that he retired to the mountains and forests, and there has been no record of him since that time."

Xiao Xiangling lowered her eyes, as if she was not surprised.

The two thanked the girl and walked into the ancestral hall.

Although the ancestral hall is old, it is clean and tidy inside, and the incense is constantly burning. It can be seen that it is a statue that people have been worshiping and offering.

Jiang Yu picked up a few sticks of incense, and went to the village to pay respects as the Romans did.

The statue is different from ordinary statues.

Most of the statues have hideous and ugly faces in order to ward off evil spirits; or they have a strange sense of sacredness that makes people dare not lower their eyes.

But the statue in front of him is extremely humane.

The face was no different from ordinary people, with a calm demeanor, slightly tilted his head and chuckled, as if he was about to bow his head and say something to someone.

And it's not like facing ordinary people.

Like facing a loved one.

Xiao Xiangling only went in to look around, then backed out.

At the gate of the ancestral hall sat an old man shaking a cattail fan, with a few strings of wooden beads in his hand, like a Feng Shui master.

"Young master, you have come here for a gathering from a thousand miles away. How could you have a quick glance and leave without saying goodbye?" Yi Shun passed by, and the man suddenly opened his mouth.

Xiao Xiangling stopped abruptly and looked back hastily.

The old man just smiled and shook his head, "I only see that you have a deep obsession, and after a long time, something is wrong, young man."

"What's wrong?" Xiao Xiangling asked.

"I can only click as far as I can." The old man pressed the wooden bead with his hand, and glanced into the ancestral hall. "The young man who walked with you has a very deep fate with you."

"As for the fate and the result." The old man nodded in the air, "It depends on you."

in the capital.

Under the calm appearance, there is a dark tide hidden.

The emperor was obviously very angry at Jiang Chibin's sin. He was originally in poor health and old, and he could barely get out of bed after he coughed up blood in the palace last time.

Someone revealed that when the emperor was unconscious, the word "Ruoyang" was all over his mouth.

As soon as this remark came out, the whole court was shocked.

If Yang was extremely favored during his lifetime, it was a matter of tacit understanding, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that he almost became a queen.

At the time when the emperor was seriously ill, if Ruoyang's case was retried and overturned, it would be a small matter to have a title, but a major matter to be a crown prince.

According to the emperor's delirious appearance, it is not impossible for His Highness Jiang Yu to inherit the throne due to guilt.

Civil and military officials knelt outside for several days and nights, but the door of the emperor's bedroom was tightly closed, except for the imperial physician and eunuch who came in and out to serve, not even a fly could fly in.

It's not that the emperor doesn't want to see it, but that he can't see it at all.

The crown prince took over some important domestic affairs for the time being. Although he is docile and kind-hearted in normal times, and has no reputation for alarming the capital, he is very down-to-earth and diligent.Conscientious and conscientious, no matter how big or small, he relied on his own strength to stabilize the hearts of the officials, and even concealed the fact that the emperor was critically ill.

The Jiang Chibin case has also been temporarily shelved.

In the prince's bedroom.

After the bath, the long hair had not had time to tie it up, and it hung wetly on the white clothes.

The prince was at his desk writing the document, pressing his temples on both sides from time to time.

"Pay attention to rest, and let others do some things." A voice behind him said, "Don't become emperor before your body collapses first."

"Shen Chen? When did you come here?" The prince smiled, and put the brush on the inkstone, "Don't worry, it won't break."

The man called Shen Chen was dressed in black, his face was covered by a black veil, and his right hand was always subconsciously resting on the heavy sword at his waist.

There is a very obvious scar on the back of his right hand.

"You want to reverse the case for Ruoyang?" Shen Chen said coldly.

"I……"

"Have you thought about the consequences of this incident?" Shen Chen took a step forward, "Now the Seventh Prince and Xiao Xiangling are outside Beijing, Jiang Chibin is waiting for you to drop the last knife in prison, and the stupid old emperor It's just a few days of dying. No one can stop your way to the throne now."

The prince's hands hidden in the dark unconsciously clenched into fists.

"And the risk of overturning the case." Shen Chen lowered his tone, "If things were revealed back then, would you be able to bear the consequences?"

The prince closed his eyes tightly, trembling slightly due to the pain and struggle.

But he shook his head after all.

"Don't try to persuade me about this matter." He said, "If Yang's case is wronged, if I don't reverse the case for her, I will never forgive myself."

After a long time, he added, "Ayu, if he knew...he would never forgive me."

Due to an accident with the horse in the middle, the two came back a day later than expected.

And Gu Yuan was waiting at the gate of the city early, when he saw two people riding on the same horse one after the other, his eyes widened instantly.Then, as if he suddenly thought of something, his face began to turn red visibly.

Jiang Yu dismounted without explaining too much, but just said "Some accidents happened on the road".

"Just come back safely!" Gu Yuan put on a coat for Jiang Yu, and bowed to Xiao Xiangling to express his thanks.

After the two separated, Gu Yuan lowered his voice and said to Jiang Yu, "Your Highness, you are back. Your Majesty has been summoning you for the past few days."

"Why?" Jiang Yu asked while speeding up his pace.

Gu Yuan told Jiang Yu about the current situation in the court, the emperor was critically ill, the crown prince was in power, a new prime minister had not been established, and important cases were delayed.It couldn't be more chaotic.

On the way back, Jiang Yu didn't pass by his own mansion to rest, but went straight to the emperor's bedroom.

On the way, Gu Yuan told him two more important things.

"Ever since the emperor saw the case file, there was no plum blossom that Princess Ruoyang often drew on it, and he has always felt guilty. And a few days ago, the prince proposed to retry the old case in front of the civil and military officials of the Manchu court."

Jiang Yu paused, "My elder brother mentioned it?"

Gu Yuan nodded, "One more thing is to listen to people's opinions, and the accuracy needs to be verified." He lowered his voice, "There is chaos within the court, and the remnant party in Northern Xinjiang is waiting for an opportunity. Several waves of powerful party members have formed , and the people are so angry that they have the potential to start a prairie fire."

"How did my brother handle it?"

"His Royal Highness suppressed this matter, and just sent troops to suppress it. But the wild wolves in the northern border are not easy to deal with. After so many years, there is only Xiao Xiangling, a victorious general. Without General Xiao, the army has no backbone. For a moment, I didn’t know what to do.”

Jiang Yu nodded in understanding.

It was already midnight when Jiang Yu arrived at the emperor's bedroom, and he wanted to wait until dawn before entering, but he didn't want the eunuchs to greet him right away.

"Your Highness Seventh, Your Majesty has been waiting for you for a long time."

Jiang Yu walked straight forward, but felt that the little eunuch had something to say.

"What else?" he asked.

"Back to Your Highness...Your Majesty, he..."

"I know." Jiang Yu instantly understood what he had said, "I will follow his will."

Push the door in.

The threshold is like a magical barrier, blocking the wind and snow outside the window, and the stove inside the house is hot, but there is only a sense of lifeless depression.

The emperor was lying on the couch, his face was ashen, but his lips were trembling and pale.

Seeing Jiang Yu coming in, the person who was motionless on the bed slightly opened his eyes.

The moment Jiang Yu knelt on the edge of the collapse, he couldn't help feeling a little absurdly desolate.

This is his father, and also a generation of kings.

But facing his dying body, he had no emotion at all, and he couldn't even shed a drop of perfunctory tears.

As a king, it doesn't matter if you are enlightened or stupid.As a child, he was familiar with poetry, books and etiquette. Before ascending the throne, brothers fought for internal struggles.

But when he was dying, what he cared about was a concubine who was once gifted to death by him.

"You're here...Xiaoyu." The voice was as breathless as a thread.

Jiang Yu bowed his head.

The emperor's cloudy eyes stared out of the window, as if recalling a very distant past.

"Actually, the day Ruoyang was bestowed to die was also autumn..." he said, the corners of his mouth slightly curled up, "She likes plum blossoms, but she couldn't take a last look at the snow before she died..."