Old things in the Red Chamber

The palace was completely quiet. The empress' tricks were not useless. After all, they worked a little bit, but she didn't know that the couple from the past could be regarded as strangers, no matter how loving they were in the early days. , If you encounter the life and death of a son lying in the middle, then the feelings are no longer feelings.

The Supreme Emperor was not untouched, he went back to his bedroom, tossed and turned all night, wrote a letter the next day, sealed it, and handed it over to his confidant eunuch, who asked him to catch up with the emperor quickly and send The letter was presented to the emperor.

The Supreme Emperor repeatedly instructed, "Do not use other people's hands in the middle, you must look at this letter with both eyes, and hand it directly to the emperor. After the emperor reads the letter, you are not allowed to ask if there is any reply, let alone rush him. "

The old eunuch agreed, put the letter in his arms, and set off with a few guards.

The emperor's driving had just arrived in the south of the Yangtze River and stopped in Yangzhou. Yangzhou has been prosperous since ancient times. It is necessary to stop here for a few days. He received Jiangnan officials here, and his arrival made the muddy water in Jiangnan even more muddy.

When the messenger of the Supreme Emperor arrived in Yangzhou, he had no time to rest and asked to meet the emperor directly.

After submitting the letter, the old eunuch watched the emperor read the letter, lit it on a candle, and fell silent.

"Go down. You are an old man who has been with the emperor for many years. You have been walking around in Yangzhou. If you find something you like, you can buy some and go back to honor the emperor. This is also my heart."

After everyone left him, he asked the people around him, "Where are the two princes?"

The people on the left and right replied, "Speak with the son of the local official in the front hall."

The emperor nodded, and then asked the people on the left and right, "Which of these two sons of mine has a better reputation?"

The people around him thought about it, "Recently, I often hear people praise the Seventh Prince as a virtuous corporal."

The emperor nodded, "What do others say about the Ninth Prince?"

"There are a few people who say that the Ninth Prince is very dignified, but there are relatively few people who say it, and no one agrees."

"What prestige does he have at such a young age? It's exaggerated. When everyone has left, pass the two of them to me, and say that I want to test their knowledge."

The two princes came very quickly, almost someone sent a message, and they came immediately.

The emperor looked at the two young boys in front of him, all of them were full of vigor, and the same two were also immature.But the old foxes behind them couldn't help it anymore, the emperor smiled indifferently, "What book have you been reading recently?"

The seventh prince is the elder brother, so he answered first, "Returning to the father, the son and the ninth brother are studying Tang history recently."

"When did you read it?"

"I read that in the tenth year of Zhenguan, Empress Wende passed away."

After hearing this, the emperor asked them, "What do you think?"

Every time the emperor asked questions, the seventh prince answered first. As the elder brother, he naturally had to answer his father first.The Ninth Prince could only speak after he finished answering, so at this time he looked at his eloquent brother.

"In the tenth year of Zhenguan, three major events occurred in the Tang Dynasty. First, the chaos in Tugu, second, the reorganization of the government soldiers, and third, the death of Empress Wende. Of these three events, the first is diplomacy and the second is internal governance. , the third is a big event for Taizong. After the death of Empress Wende, Taizong built a large-scale construction project in the palace and built a layered view, just to see Zhaoling from a distance in the palace. Speaking of it, it was widely discussed and many people participated, so this is the biggest event in the ten years of Zhenguan."

The emperor listened and agreed, "There are too many involved in this matter. After the death of Empress Wende, the prince rebelled against him. This can only be considered a major event for the Tang Dynasty. What does Lao Jiu think?"

"I feel that the matter of Empress Wende was not a major event in the tenth year of Zhenguan. The other two matters are serious matters. Whether the prince rebelled or not later has nothing to do with Empress Wende. The prince's rebellion was not caused by Empress Wende's death. The reason is caused, after all, it is the ethos of their Li family."

"Old Qi, your brother refuted your words, do you have something to say?"

"I still feel that if Queen Wende is still here, the prince will not rebel."

"My son feels that no matter whether Empress Wende is there or not, the prince will definitely rebel."

"Lao Jiu, tell me why?"

"The prince rebelled because his younger brother Li Tai was also a legitimate son, and he was smart. Emperor Taizong and Empress Wende loved him so much that they responded to every request. It made him have an unreasonable desire for the throne, so Li Tai Tai forced Li Chengqian to rebel, and at that time, there was a valuable Li Ke staring at their brothers, so Li Chengqian had to rebel."

"Ninth brother, this is wrong. If Empress Wende is still alive, the consequences of Emperor Taizong's feelings for her and her influence on his son will definitely not be as tragic as later."

"What Seventh Brother said is that my younger brother thinks that what you said is right. Mother will mediate and things will never happen like what happened later." There was disapproval on his face.

"Okay, let me ask here first. You have been wandering in Yangzhou for a few days. How is this place? Compared with the capital, is it prosperous?"

"Guangling has been prosperous for a long time. This place is a bit more gentle than the capital city. It is indeed a gentle and rich town, ten feet soft and mortal."

After the seventh prince finished speaking, the emperor laughed out loud. "Extremely extreme. My son is right. This place is really a world of mortals. After being here for a few days, I feel like I don't want to go home. You said that if you build a separate palace here, we will be here every year." How do you feel about staying for a few days?"

The Seventh Prince quickly persuaded him, "Father, this is a waste of time and money. If Father likes the landscape and countryside here, why don't we renovate the imperial garden so that we can see the garden every day."

"It's not good, it's not good, it's not good, it's not good, it's not good, it's not good at all, besides, how can you feel comfortable here in the palace, the old nine you are talking about?"

"I think it's enough to come here once or twice, and I don't necessarily like it as much as I do now after seeing too much."

"I don't think I can get enough of this kind of scenery in my whole life. It's bustling and lively, full of vitality everywhere. After watching it, I feel very relieved."

The Ninth Prince said dryly, "Father, think twice."

"Your brother just persuaded the emperor, saying that this is a waste of people and money, what do you think?"

The Ninth Prince didn't speak, just smiled, but the expression of "I'm not in charge, I don't care" was very real.

"Okay, okay, I know you, but I still like to play with people of similar age. Get out, don't stick around here."

"Father, about the other palace..." The Seventh Prince asked worriedly.

"Let's discuss it later." The emperor seemed unwilling to let go of the idea of ​​building another palace.

The Seventh Prince came out worried, said a few words to the Ninth Prince, then turned and went forward. The Ninth Prince looked at his disappearing back and asked the eunuch beside him, "Where did Brother Seven go?"

"Looking at the direction, it seems to be talking to the elders."

The Ninth Prince smiled, father wouldn't really build another palace here, he felt that he was going to die of poverty, wasting money and wasting his own money, he would never do that.

The Ninth Prince smiled silently.

After the two sons withdrew, the emperor let out a long sigh.He did not disagree with what the Supreme Emperor said in the letter.But what others ask to do and what you want to do are really two different things.

He walked around the room with his hands behind his back.Someone outside came in and passed on, "Jiangnan Road Chief Jia Xun is here to see you."

"Let him in."

Jia Xun came in to greet him first, and then handed a booklet to the emperor.The emperor suppressed the booklet, "Don't worry about business matters. After talking about it, you also called me uncle, and I was talking to you. How is Jiangnan? Is it more prosperous and prosperous than Beidi?"

"Prosperity is prosperity, and richness is also rich, but let me choose, I still like the Northland."

"Why is this?"

"Chen's relatives are still in Beidi. After living here for a few months, I always feel that my heart is floating and can't fall on the ground, and I don't fit in with the people here. People here like to sit on small boats and drink rice wine. Just serve small dishes. I like to drink in big bowls and eat meat in large pieces, and the wine must be strong wine. I also miss my old parents at home, this bustling place is not a place for me to stay for a long time."

"You can be regarded as successful and famous now, why are you still looking forward to seeing your parents like a child?"

"When I was young, maybe it was just because I had a minister, so I was pampered and raised by my parents when I was young. In the cold weather, cotton clothes can't keep out the cold. The father of the minister hugged the minister in his arms and used his own Wrapped in clothes, use the heat from his body to warm the minister, and take it with him wherever he goes, for fear that the minister will freeze. Thinking back to this day, it is like yesterday. Repay the kindness of parents."

"That's the truth. It's hard to repay the kindness of parents, but you have also raised children, and you know that parents don't expect their children to return anything."

"However, the minister is a child in front of his parents, how can he think about things with the mentality of his parents?"

"You are very right. It can be seen that your father did not spoil you to such an extent. I will allow you to visit your parents when you come to Beijing next year."

When Jia Xun got up to express his gratitude, the emperor flipped through the notes. "As I expected, the remnants of the loyal lineage are still accumulating wealth in the south of the Yangtze River, and the Zhen family can't keep it."

In the eyes of the emperor, the grievances and grievances of his own generation cannot be left to his son to resolve. He wants to completely eliminate the power of his rival before his son ascends the throne.

"The purpose of my coming here must be clear to the Zhen family and the people behind them. You are in charge of Jiangnan affairs, do you know how they plan to deal with me?"

"The minister really knows a little bit about this, but it's really hard to say."

"Is there anything hard to say? Why, it's hard to tell the emperor, and it's hard to talk to uncle?"

"It's hard to talk to the emperor, but it's even harder to talk to uncle?"

"Oh," the emperor became curious, "What kind of trick did they use? It made you feel speechless? But judging by your expression, it's not a vicious method, could it be...?"

The emperor turned around and looked at Jia Xuan, "Could it be as I thought in my heart?"

"Exactly what you have in mind."

The two looked at each other, and Jia Huan felt very embarrassed.