Fake concubine, real queen

He Gu was speechless for a moment, and said, "Why are you really screaming?"

Ning Silang turned red with a face that was originally ferocious and full of stubble, looking a little funny, and said: "I would like to gamble and admit defeat, what Young Master said just now is right, since I told you to lose and call me a good brother, Then I will call you good brother if I lose."

After a pause, he sneaked another glance at He Gu, and whispered a little embarrassedly: "Besides... besides, Lord Hou is so skilled in martial arts, Shiro is also willing to call him."

He Gudeng got goosebumps all over his body because of his disgust, quickly put away the big knife in his hand, kicked his boots on Ning Silang's back, and said with gritted teeth: "Okay, okay, go down quickly."

Ning Silang stood up from the ground, patted the dust on his hands, raised his eyes to see that He Gu was still unwilling to leave, and said with lighted eyes: "Sure enough, it is Bianjing Junjie No. 1. Ning is convinced. In the future Lord Hou is promoted to Chenghe, please do me a favor, I will go to Chenghe to find Lord Hou for a drink!"

Although it is said that in the army, whoever's fist is always overpowering, men are all face-saving animals after all, and it is really rare that Ning Shilang is so unscrupulous, and he doesn't mind being booed and laughed at by others, even though it is just a short exchange However, he seemed to be really convinced, and he was still a little bit reluctant when he left the court, and he seemed to look back at every step.

The arena where He Gu and Ning Silang competed was Beiertai, Zhang Xiaoan was placed under the stage, an internal official was sitting in front of the case, seeing that Ning Silang was defeated, and recorded the victory, he reported loudly: "Beiertai, originally The master, Ning Lang is defeated—the new master, He Gu—”

"Is there anyone who wants to challenge me?"

He Gu came here by coincidence. The three arenas in the north are all the generals who went to the Chenghe camp, and the guards in the more desolate and bitter cold places to the north of the Chenghe river. They are willing to go there to suffer In fact, there are not too many honorable children, but the family of military officers who have been guarding the northern border for generations and have taken root there will have children who come to compete in the military and select officials, in order to find a well-known family background hand-picked by the emperor. It is also good to attract the emperor's attention if he has made military achievements, and he can go a step further, such as that of the Ning family's Shilang Ninglang just now.

It's just that Ning Silang is so brave, he has already dealt with all the challengers in Beiertai just now, now that He Gu has dealt with him again, those who want to challenge him will inevitably have to weigh up how good he is Whether the ability can match it.

It can be said that Master He Xiaohou defeated Ning Silang once and for all, and saved a lot of trouble, but he is still an eye-catching and eye-catching existence in the capital now. People rushed to tell each other to see the excitement, and at this moment, many people who didn't want to fight in the three arenas of Beisan also gathered here. Seeing him and Ning Shiro competing, they inevitably felt a little itchy.

Sure enough, not long after the inner officer's voice fell, there was a young man in green shirt who jumped onto the stage with lightness kung fu. He Gu took a closer look, but it turned out that he was in his early 20s, so good-looking that he hardly lost to a woman, more or less so. He Gu naturally recognized this man with a soft smile, a smile on his lips, and a sword hanging from his waist, but he just didn't want him to appear here and challenge him.

This is Liu Jianshan, the eldest son of the Korean Gongliu family.

The Liu family of South Korea, in the reign of Taizu Gaozu, followed the country and made great contributions, so the Liu family won the hereditary title of Duke of the country, but in recent years, the descendants have not been good, not to mention nothing, and they are all spent money A profligate prodigal, the family fortune accumulated in the early years was also wasted. By Liu Jianshan, his father, the current generation of Korean Gong Liu Yu, had no choice but to marry a lady from a wealthy businessman of the Jiangluo generation. , relying on the generous dowry brought by others to maintain the daily expenses of the family.

It's just that Liu Jianshan's father, Liu Yu, even though he married the daughter of a merchant, still looked down on her in his heart, so Mrs. Guogong received a lot of cold treatment when she married into the Korean government. But Yu really didn't give her any good looks. The husband and wife were as polite and distant as strangers. They had few intercourse, so naturally it was difficult to have children. The concubines under Liu Yuna were quite doted on, and they gave birth to cubs one after another. It was just strange to say that the concubines gave birth to five, six, seven or eight children, but none of them could live beyond the age of three, and all of them died young. Well, the Liu family has no heir for a long time, and as time goes by, there will be gossip, saying that the Duke is ungrateful, took money from the Duke's wife's natal family, but did not treat his daughter kindly, and this will be retribution without heirs.

Liu Yu couldn't bear the pressure of gossip, and later, the Duke's wife became pregnant with the eldest son Liu Jianshan at the age of more than 30.

The reason why He Gu knew so clearly about his family's affairs was also because he had dealt with Liu Jianshan in his previous life, and both of them had a wicked father, so naturally they felt sorry for each other.

As for Liu Jianshan in his previous life, he was really a ruthless person, his father was worthless, his family's connections in the army had already been scattered, and he had no way to rely on him. When the Liu family was in decline, Liu Jianshan usually looked at him She is weak in writing and weak in appearance, feminine and beautiful like a woman, but she is already a blockbuster if she doesn't sing. She went to participate in the bow and horse competition by herself and won a ranking. Later, she went to Guangyue in the south, started from nothing, and cured the Japanese plague for the emperor. , put down the rebellion of the barbarians, and the Liu family also got better again by virtue of his achievements, but...

It's just a pity that in the fight for the heir apparent, he was on the wrong team and supported the second prince, Pei Zhaolin. Later, because of protecting Pei Zhaolin, he was killed with a knife. Although He Gu didn't do it himself, the two of them can be regarded as young friends. , Later, they were masters and turned against each other.

Now that He Gu saw his old man, he couldn't help feeling a little emotional, but this life is still because of his rebirth, everything is different from the previous life, now Liu Jianshan came to Beiertai to fight with him, how could the emperor assign him to fight? Guangyue?How will the Liu family make a comeback and make a fortune again?

...However, this may be a good thing for Liu Jianshan. If he doesn't go to the south, he won't be hooked up by the Wen family and get involved in the muddy waters of Zuoyi, and he won't end up half his life as a soldier. It's over.

Seeing He Gu staring at him, Liu Jianshan didn't know what he was thinking, but thought that he was just like those bums with dirty mouths, seeing that he was born with a good-looking girl, he would make fun of him, contempt and He, Liu Jianshan hated this the most in his heart, so he snorted coldly and said: "Liu is not talented, but I want to ask Master Hou for advice."

After finishing speaking, without waiting for He Gu's reaction, a thin and soft sword made of unknown material was unsheathed in his hand, and with a soft "Zheng", he raised his hand and stabbed towards He Gu's face.

He Gu didn't panic, he just quickly raised his knife and swung the soft sword away, and he started to fight with him.

After fighting for a while, Liu Jianshan was a little bit suspicious. He naturally found out that he was not He Gu's opponent, but the two of them had gone through thirty or fifty moves, but they still couldn't decide the winner. Of course, it's not that He Gu can't win him, it's just that when they were fighting, He Gu's big sword with a curved golden ring blade, whether it was chopping, slashing, slicing, or picking at him, the blade was always slightly wrong, and sometimes even only They fought back and forth, they fought with swords and swords, dazzled everyone in the audience, then Young Master He had reservations, but it wasn't obvious, other people couldn't see any tricks, but Liu Jianshan could feel it.

He didn't know why this Marquis gave in so much, and he had some doubts in his heart, but even though he only fought these thirty or fifty moves, even though He Gu had reservations, he could still feel that he was not an opponent, and if he dragged on, he would beat him a hundred and eighty times After going back and forth, he could only be led by the nose by He Gu, so he frowned and said: "Master Hou, please stop, I admit defeat!"

He Gu let him, of course not without reason.

Because Liu Jianshan grew up in such a mansion and had such a biological father, he had such an appearance, and his temperament was sullen and suspicious since he was a child. It's not that he is bad, it's just that he is used to using the worst If it wasn't for a coincidence in the previous life, He Gu wouldn't be able to get acquainted with him. Liu Jianshan was suspicious, but he couldn't get close to him in ordinary conversations, and would make him suspicious. In this life, He Gu has intentions Winning him over, knowing that Liu Jianshan wants to be like this, if he can't figure it out, can't figure out his motives, and can't help but come to him by himself, that's the best choice.

So He Gu didn't explain, and didn't show anything on the surface, he just smiled very honestly, and said: "Oh, let me, let me go."

As expected, Liu Jianshan's Adam's apple rolled away, but he didn't realize it when he saw He Gu, and he didn't intend to explain why he had reserved and deliberately gave in just now, and he couldn't speak, his eyes were deep and hesitant to speak. He took a quick look at him, put away his sword, and jumped off the stage.

The people below didn't understand, they were all whispering and discussing, some people said: "Why don't you fight anymore? At least Liu Shizi can fight He Houye evenly, and I haven't watched it enough, why did you admit defeat?"

Another person said: "You can understand what a fart, what a match, everyone can smell it, He Hou Ye is really slutty, he deliberately hangs people to play, and chops people with the back of a knife, what do you think this can do? If he is like this, Liu Shizi will not be able to win, so naturally he knows that he is invincible, and he doesn't want to waste any more effort."

A discerning person made a point, and everyone suddenly realized.

The internal official remembered the outcome, and shouted again that the winner was still He Gu, and asked who would choose again.

After the encounter of Ning Silang and Liu Jianshan, the sons of the nobles and generals in Bianjing Chengzhong knew that He Gu was not easy to mess with, and they didn't think about gnawing on this hard bone. It was also seen that this young master was indeed worthy of the name, not a soft persimmon that was easy to pinch, so he hesitated for a while.

The internal officials even asked several times, but no one answered, so they had to say: "Think about it, everyone, the competition in the arena lasts for five days, and the champions determined in each stage every day can be selected. If there is no one to fight again, until today It's ten minutes after sunset, so Lord Hehou is sure to be the champion of Beiertai!"

As soon as the internal officer said this, the crowd began to whisper to each other. After a long while, someone came up to challenge again, but they all hesitated, gritted their teeth and stomped their feet. He Xiaohou, please rub them. Packed up and kicked off the stage, but didn't waste much effort.

Naturally, there are also monkey spirits who plan to waste He Gu's physical strength by fighting with wheels, and finally go to the fisherman to make a profit, but they never expected that the young master He on the stage is really like a cow, and he seems to be able to fight no matter how hard he is. He didn't feel tired, but as time passed, he became more and more courageous as he fought more and more. A thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead, which made his wheat-colored skin healthy and transparent, his sword eyebrows and star eyes became more handsome and vigorous.

After fighting for a day, except for the two capable ones who came up at the end, and Ning Silang and Liu Jianshan who were challenged at the beginning, I can only say that the others are just that, and it is okay to practice for He Gu. , if it is an opponent, it is far from enough.

Naturally, Master He Xiaohou did his part and became the champion of the North Second Stage on the first day of the competition.

When the sun was setting, He Gu jumped off the stage, and He Cheng rushed up, handed him a handkerchief to wipe his sweat, and handed him a water bag. After a day of competition, he didn't even eat lunch. His elder brother must be tired Thirsty again, He Cheng saw his elder brother wiped his sweat and gulped water again, hurriedly said: "Drink slowly."

After a pause, he praised sincerely: "Brother is really powerful, the eligibility for selection is determined on the first day of the competition, and there is no need to compete with bows and horses anymore. Let's just watch the fun and return to Beijing when His Majesty decides where to go. gone."

After He Gu finished drinking the water, he said "Mmm", glanced around, and said, "Where is the third prince, I just saw him in the audience."

He Cheng said: "More than an hour ago, I was called away by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

He Gu was startled, and said, "His Royal Highness?"

He Chengying said, "It seems that His Royal Highness is going to recommend someone for the prince to meet."

The crown prince...to introduce someone to His Highness the Third Highness?

This is strange.

He Gu squeezed the water sac, tried his best to use his not-so-intelligent head, thought hard for a while, and for some reason, a somewhat outrageous thought popped up in his mind——

The prince... Could it be that he has let go of his guard against the Third Highness and intends to win His Highness over to be used by him?

But the good deeds he did in Zongshan before, and back then... Da Chen poisoned the eldest princess, all kinds of things, as long as the crown prince knows, how can he feel at ease with Pei Zhaoheng?

Could it be... He didn't know that the real eldest princess was killed by his mother?

-------------------

However, Empress Chen sent away He Gu, King Ke, King Kupeng Khan, etc., and had a gentle relationship with the emperor in the imperial tent, and had a private talk with the emperor, and then sent away the satisfied emperor. Only she, Nanny Li and a few accompanying palace people were left.

Seeing Empress Chen leaning on the imperial concubine's couch rubbing her temples, she seemed a little disturbed, Madam Li guessed that the empress had something on her mind, so she sent the palace people out of the tent, and then asked: "Your Majesty seems to be a little disturbed, But because the water and soil are not acclimatized to the grassland these few days, are you not used to eating or sleeping well?"

Empress Chen sighed, and said: "Doctor Yan is good at medicine. My body has already been recuperated without any problems. The grassland is vast, the scenery is pleasant, and the food is good. I don't worry about being uncomfortable."

Nanny Li was puzzled and said, "That lady is..."

Empress Chen was silent for a while, and said in a low voice: "All these years, I've lived in a muddle, and I didn't take good care of Heng'er. On the contrary, Heng'er...a little older child, has been protecting me...now Although I woke up, Heng'er had almost suffered a lot. Now that he's grown up, he has his own thoughts, but I... I'm a useless person, and I can't help him. I can do whatever I want. There is no way to start."

Hearing this, Nanny Li comforted her and said: "Your Majesty is overwhelmed. You can wake up and figure it out. It is the best thing for His Highness to be safe and healthy. Besides, how can you help your Highness?" Is it too busy? The servant girl should say a few more words, and please don’t blame the lady.”

Empress Chen said: "Sister, tell me, you have taken care of me for so many years, why do you still have to be so alien? I know that Mother is doing it for me and Heng'er, so how can I blame you."

Li Nanny then said: "Your Majesty, after all, you are still the mother of a country. Now that you think about it, you know who is harming Your Majesty and her children these years. Your Majesty should have a steelyard in her heart and can no longer be him." He's a child, he can't do anything evil..."

She approached the imperial concubine's couch, knelt down in front of Empress Chen, and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, this servant knows that you grew up beside the old lady, and you have never seen the dirty things in the back house. If the wind is going smoothly, it is inevitable to think about people for the better, but you are merciful, but others are not merciful to you, the princess, and the third highness. It is also because the slaves were confused back then, and they have never been able to bear it, and dare not speak out to the empress. If you take care of her, it will lead to disasters and lead to today's situation, but now, the empress should also be sober. In this palace, how can there be any tenderness for the father and son brothers of the Tian family? Now the prince just wants to understand this One point, I don’t want to continue to waste, give up everything to the enemy, don’t want to stop fighting for anything, if I don’t fight... then I can’t live, empress.”

Madam Li spoke in a very low voice, except for Empress Chen on the imperial concubine's couch, she would not be able to hear it even if she walked two steps away. Nanny Li watched Empress Chen come over all these years, and she also watched the eldest princess die young , the queen was ill, how did the Third Highness support her mother in the palace, she felt sorry for the Queen, and even more so for the Third Highness, so she said it sincerely, and almost burst into tears in the end.

Empress Chen's lips trembled, her eyes were a little lost in thought, and after a while she said: "The enemy...the enemy..."

"...was a close relative of flesh and blood, but now... has become an enemy too?"

However, Nanny Li suddenly held her hand, and said with firm eyes: "Yes, she killed the eldest princess. It doesn't matter if she died, but now his son is coming to harm you again, His Royal Highness King Ke. Do you still think that such a person can be regarded as a close relative?"

Empress Chen's face trembled violently, and her face turned pale. After a long time, she let out a long sigh, and said: "You are right, it is... I have always been too benevolent of a woman, and I just want to Trying to be a shrinking turtle, but harming the child..."

Mother Li's voice was three minutes lower, and she approached and said: "Your Majesty, don't blame yourself, it's not too late. Now Your Majesty's meaning is not clear, and it's not impossible for His Highness to fight if you want to. That's why I told your Majesty a few days ago, Even if you remember everything, whether you feel bored or impatient in your heart, you still have to grasp His Majesty's heart well. As long as you, the empress of the palace, have a good relationship with His Majesty, you will be the most secure backer for His Majesty the Third Highness. Your Majesty has a concubine in his heart, and no one can shake it."

Empress Chen was silent for a while, and said: "I... I can save myself, the mother has taken care of me."

At this moment, a little maid's voice came from far outside the tent: "Is the Empress here?"

When Nanny Li heard the movement, she quickly wiped away her tears, and quickly recovered her usual solemn and unsmiling demeanor, and stood back on Empress Chen's imperial concubine bed, saying, "Come in."

Hearing this, the little palace maid opened the curtain and went into the tent and knelt down. After kowtowing, she raised her head and said joyfully, "Your Majesty asked the servant to watch today's martial arts contest with the son-in-law. The servant has already watched it, and the competition has just ended."

Empress Chen said, "Oh? How is the son-in-law doing?"

The little palace lady said: "If you go back to the empress, the son-in-law won the champion of the North Second Stage on the first day! There is no need to compete in the future, the qualification for selection has already been determined!"

When Empress Chen heard the words, she was overjoyed immediately, and asked, "Really?"

After a pause, he remembered something again, his joy faded, and he frowned slightly and said, "North Second Taiwan... Gu'er is really going out of Beijing?"

The little maid said: "Yes, the son-in-law did not go to Xisan."

Empress Chen said: "Forget it, this child is stubborn, let him go, but since Gu'er won today, it is also a happy event, you go and find Heng'er and Gu'er, and ask them to prepare meals in the evening. Son, congratulate him."

The little palace maid agreed, and then went down.

Seeing that the little maid had left, Nanny Li looked down at Empress Chen and said with a smile, "Lang's ambitions are everywhere. It is also a good thing for the young master to be able to go out and work hard for the future."

Empress Chen let out an "ah" and said, "Of course I know, it's just Gu'er... After all, it's because of me that his marriage has been delayed all his life. This child has a straight heart and a temper, and I don't know why. I also told him that Heng'er is a man, but he still has to go out of his way to tell His Majesty that he will not marry in this lifetime, so why bother?"

Mother Li didn't know what to think of, she was silent for a while, and said: "Your Majesty, you don't have to think too much, children and grandchildren have their own blessings, and now they are in a dead end, and maybe they will figure it out in the future, as long as you are good, in the future Protecting His Highness the Third Highness and the Prince Consort, are you afraid that you won't see them safe and sound, full of children and grandchildren?"

Only then did Empress Chen nodded, and said, "What Mammy said is true."

--------

But he said that He Gu went to the moon god stone to wait for Pei Zhaoheng again in the evening, but for some reason, Pei Zhaoheng always came earlier than him in the past, but today there was no one there. After a small piece of grass, I waited for the familiar footsteps.

He stood up, turned around and looked at the person for a while, and then said: "What did the prince want you to do?"

Pei Zhaoheng said: "Brother introduced a few people, all of whom are talented people in Beijing, and this time most of them will go to Luoling Camp."

He Gu frowned and said, "This is a weasel giving a New Year's greeting to a chicken. He must have no good intentions. He will go to the Three Treasure Hall for nothing. He doesn't mean to..."

He Gu remembered that the second elder brother Wang came to tell him about the upcoming changes in Jiangluo's officialdom, he pulled Pei Zhaoheng to sit down, and relayed Wang Muchuan's words yesterday to Pei Zhaoheng, and finally said: "He didn't mean to Ask the lord about the matter of the lord going to Jiangluo to cure the disaster a few years ago?"

Pei Zhaoheng said: "Brother didn't mention this matter, it seems that he didn't realize that Father has the intention to clean up Jiangluo's officialdom."

He Gu heard the words, heaved a sigh of relief, and thought that it would be good, as long as His Majesty can clean up those dog officials in Jiangluo, the crown prince will be like a wolf dog whose teeth have been pulled out, cut off the source of income and money, If you want to do many things again, it will be several times more difficult.

At this moment, Pei Zhaoheng said again: "I already know about the purging of the Jiangluo officialdom by the emperor."

He Gu was startled, and turned to look at him: "Your Highness knows?"

Pei Zhaoheng said: "When I went to deal with the disaster a few years ago, I got a secret letter from Mr. Wang. In the first part of the letter, Mr. Wang found many inconsistencies in money and silver when he was dealing with the disaster. According to this secret letter, I carefully asked Chengwei to send someone to check them one by one after the disaster was dealt with. In the end, I found out that there were many collusion between government and businessmen, collusion between officials and officials, cheating, filling private pockets, and exploiting the common people. It's just that I was alone in Jiangluo at that time, so it was inconvenient to deal with it, and I couldn't shake the root of it, and I didn't startle the snake, I only left the evidence and the list, and secretly presented it to the father when I came back."

He Gu was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and then he realized that there were so many things that the Third Highness went to Jiang Luo and his party. When he came back to his senses, he looked at this man's sharp and perfect side face, and felt relieved for a moment, thinking that he really He was right, and he sincerely admired him for a while. In just a few months, His Highness the Third Highness was able to find out the tricks by himself.

It's just that He Gu is still a little worried. If something happens after returning to Beijing, and the crown prince finds out that it has something to do with him, will he...

Pei Zhaoheng saw his thoughts and said, "Don't worry, even if the eldest brother really notices something, he can't do anything to me."

He Gu sighed: "I'm going out of Beijing, I'm afraid he will jump over the wall in a hurry and use some insidious means. My father used to have some old departments outside Beijing, and they are still loyal. Although there are not many people, they are all elites. , the nursing home is always enough, if there is any change later, the prince can also be more secure, or I will call them back to Beijing later?"

Pei Zhaoheng's eyes softened a little, and suddenly he raised his hand to rub He Gu's head, and said: "Zihuan is too worried, at the feet of the emperor, in front of the father, how can I be in any danger? What's more, it's your old family. Even if the number of people transferred to the capital is small, the emperor will definitely notice that it would be bad to provoke him to be paranoid."

He Gu sighed, and said: "That's right, how about I let them stay in the village in the suburbs of Beijing?"

He said again: "I will write a handwriting to the lord later. If you need it, ask someone to bring this handwriting to them. The leader is Wu Zecheng. Brother Ang knows my handwriting. After reading the handwriting, he will listen to the lord." Dispatch."

Pei Zhaoheng nodded and said, "Okay."

He Guchang sighed, lay down on the grass, looked at the bright stars in the sky, and said melancholy: "We have only been tired of it for two or three days, and we don't want to be separated so soon. When the time comes, my younger brother and sister will stay in Beijing. I have to entrust the prince to take care of him."

Pei Zhaoheng said: "Don't worry, I will take care of myself."

He looked down at He Gu, just as He Gu was also looking at him, their eyes met, they looked at each other and smiled, the night was gentle, and they naturally became tired again.

It’s just that this time it’s so hard to die, Pei and He had just pecked on the grass, when they suddenly heard a woman’s dumbfounded voice from behind——

"My son-in-law, three...three three princes?"

Pei Zhaoheng and He Gu stiffened their backs almost at the same time, He Gu sat up from the grass, and saw a little maid standing not far behind, this girl looked familiar to him, and he remembered that she was the person next to the empress, It seems to be Qingzhu.

Qingzhu's expression was dull, as if she was really shocked by the scene she witnessed just now, and she didn't say another word for a long while.