Survival countdown

The sky changed suddenly, the wind and rain came suddenly, the green leaves and red flowers in the courtyard were knocked down, the bluestone bricks changed from off-white to dark black, insects and borers curled up under the roots of trees or in the gaps of the window lattices, waiting for this scene of occupation. Nearly half of their lifetimes of downpours can end as quickly as possible.

The sky was gloomy, dark clouds hung low, and there was a vast mist between the sky and the earth.

Nanny and two little maids ran quickly from the veranda on the other side with their skirts in hand, one rushed into the side room to close the window, and nanny and another little maid moved a few pots of Zhao powder from the yard into the veranda first. .

Fortunately, they arrived in time, and the rainstorm did not damage the peony worth hundreds of gold.

"Be careful, it's all planted by the master himself, and you must take care of it carefully. We can hold a peony banquet in March and invite Goro to the house to watch it." The nanny took out a handkerchief to wipe off the soil on the peony leaves, quite Wei babbled distressedly: "...it's all painstaking effort, poured into it for six years."

"Watering for six years, holding a banquet every year, inviting every year, not coming every year..." the little maid muttered, but she didn't dare to be too presumptuous. "Have you ever thought about it, maybe Goro doesn't like Peony?"

Mammy: "As a master, have you ever tried plum and chrysanthemum feasts? No matter how big our Zhao manor is, we can't expand a plum garden, but we can set up one outside. The problem is that we can't keep it alive. The same is true for chrysanthemum feasts. .However, the master does not rely on manpower, insists on planting by himself, and when the flowers are in bloom, who can not give Zai Zhi some face?"

The little maid didn't expect such a scheming to raise a flower, "But Goro still didn't come."

Mammy: "Where did Wulang compromise based on the power of others?" He hummed, a little dissatisfied: "Master's ingenuity is always missing when it comes to things related to me."

The little maid stared wide-eyed in surprise. Is Mammy arranging for the prime minister?

The rain outside the house wet the soil, and the flowers and leaves fell all over the place. The inner room was very quiet against the background of the noisy rain outside the house. The green smoke on the incense table curled up and drifted distortedly towards the incense tower on the roof.

The wooden fish tapped, the rhythmic sound and the chanting sound lingered in the ears, the flames of the blessing offering lamps flickered, and the abbot in the temple accompanied the prime minister's wife, first saying a word of blessing, and then saying "Amitabha".

The prime minister's wife, who was graceful and gentle, asked about the fate of her little son Lang.

Everyone in the capital knows that the youngest son of the prime minister's family is rich in gold and jade, even more precious than the princes and grandchildren. The emperor and empress dowager favor him, and even the princes pamper him. It can be said that he has the best fate in the world.

The abbot told the truth, he picked good words and words and piled them on, which naturally made the prime minister's wife feel happy.

With a 'crack' sound, when the prime minister's wife stepped out of the threshold of the main hall, the prayer beads in her hand broke unexpectedly, which was an ominous sign in the eyes of Buddhist believers anyway.

The abbot quickly said: "The Bodhi Buddha beads are enshrined with incense and fire day and night, and they have spirituality. It is a good thing to prevent disasters for their masters when they break suddenly."

The prime minister's wife breathed a sigh of relief, her heart suddenly felt like a heavy weight, and when she got out of Xiangguo Temple and was about to get on the carriage, she caught a glimpse of a dispute in front of a tea stall not far away. , insisting on fortune-telling to repay the debt, it is not a good fortune, and angered the owner of the tea stall, regardless of the dissuasion of others, he insisted on teaching the beggar.

"Let's talk less about the Buddhist sect, don't disturb the tranquility of the Buddhist sect, go get some money to the tea stall owner."

After saying that, she got into the carriage, closed her eyes and meditated, the prime minister's wife still felt inexplicable uneasiness in her heart, suddenly the carriage stopped, the groom reprimanded her, and listened carefully to the whole story, it turned out that the beggar who was rescued just now was blocking the way and said that he was going to settle for the nobleman. One hexagram, Tao is to repay kindness.

How could her life be calculated by others?

The prime minister's wife was sent away, but Huazi stalked her so hard, she had no choice but to come forward and say patiently: "I have no intention of telling fortunes, sir, please make way."

The dilapidated beggar-like fortune teller was stunned when he saw the face of the Prime Minister's wife, and shouted: "The old man counted your fate."

The prime minister's wife, who was about to go back to the carriage, said, "I have never seen you before."

Fortune teller: "To be precise, 26 years ago, I counted the fate of the fetus in your womb."

Xiao Erlang?The prime minister's wife was moved and asked curiously: "Don't you fortune tellers judge your fate by looking at people's facial features, palm lines and birthdays? How can you count the fate of an unborn fetus?"

"The fate of the baby is closely related to the fate of the parents. I count the fate of the baby as well as your fate."

The prime minister's wife became interested, with a smile on her lips: "What is the fate of my little son?"

"Short ties, many disasters, many fates, no good end."

The prime minister's wife turned cold and said angrily, "Boom him away!"

Before the groom got out of the car, the old fortune-teller had already swayed away, back and forth in just an instant, like a fairy shrunk to an inch. The groom rubbed his eyes in horror, and the panic deep in the prime minister's wife spread uncontrollably.

She thought, how could the relationship be so shallow?

Doted on by parents, loved by brothers, who doesn't know that the youngest son of the Zhao family is doted on thousands of times?

Growing up in the brocade heap, why so many disasters and fate?

My body, which has been paid attention to in every possible way, has grown from a lively and healthy young man to a prudent and dignified gentleman. Why can't it end well?

The prime minister's wife held the prayer beads she had asked for again, ignored the panic in her heart, and returned to Zhao's mansion. The nuns in the mansion came to report to the mansion, and at the end of the day, they suddenly said: "Wulang is dead."

"Who?" The prime minister's wife reacted greatly.

The nanny was stunned for a moment, and then said that Wulang, who married into the county prince's mansion, died.

he?The prime minister's wife was stunned for a while before asking, "Why is it gone?"

"Today, I made a sudden attack on the downtown street, intending to murder Shiro with a poisonous needle, but a master intercepted the poisonous needle and reflected it back, hitting the throat, dying of breath, and ruining my reputation."

"You are to blame." The prime minister's wife only said this, looking at the bright spring outside the mansion, her heart suddenly felt empty.

It's a pity that he died quietly in the radiant spring, and it was too late for a spring outing and drinking wine with others.

Only 26, too young.

After a while, she asked again: "Who is the master who saved Shiro?"

Mammy looked perplexed, hesitated and whispered, "It's Li Deshou."

"!" The prime minister's wife's pupils constricted, and the embarrassing and ugly past surged, overwhelming her in an instant, suffocating and painful, "Is she back?"

Mammy nodded.

The prime minister's wife walked forward in a daze, and suddenly came to her senses after walking ten feet away: "Does she know Shiro's identity?"

Mammy: "I should have known it. At that time, Donggong accompanied Shiro, recognized the carriage that Princess Changping was riding in, and said hello."

The prime minister's wife held the hand of the nanny tightly: "How did she react when she faced Shiro?"

Mammy recalled the scene at that time: "The reaction was calm, and compared with Changping in the past... By the way, I said one more sentence, 'But Zhao Zaizhi's beloved little boy?" .”

The prime minister's wife murmured: "She has been in Liangjiang for 26 years, how can she know Shiro's identity just by meeting her face? People around him call him Shiro, but he used to be a five-year-old, and it has only been a few years since he was transferred to Liangjiang. How can the people who were demoted to Liangjiang know so well?" Clear? Does she always pay attention to the movement of the Zhao Mansion in the capital? But where does she come from?"

Hurriedly on the road, when she stepped into the main courtyard, the Prime Minister's wife was shocked, staring blankly at the road, her eyes revealing a trace of broken despair and pain, as well as an unacceptable escape.

"Wulang died on the street, his reputation was ruined, his relatives abandoned him, no one was willing to collect his body."

The old fortune-teller said that the wife's youngest son, Lang, had a shallow relationship and suffered many disasters, so he did not end well.

"Now that he knows his identity, facing the tragic death of his own son, or the death of the son born to the woman she hates the most, why is Changping indifferent? Her confidant, for the sake of her rival's son, killed her own son, why! Indifferent!!"

The prime minister's wife's expression gradually became ferocious, her eyeballs were bloodshot, and the veins on her forehead and neck burst out. Fear made her turn a blind eye, and anger forced her to move forward, even if the road ahead was beyond redemption.

***

Lightning and thunder pierced the gloomy sky, instantly illuminating all the people in the hall.

The faces of the prime minister's wife, Zai Zhi and their three sons were pale, and the candlelight was flickering, dancing in their eyes, igniting the poisonous fire of hatred in their hearts.

Zhao Erlang put on the table the criminal evidence of Princess Changping that he had investigated from Liangjiang over the years. One of the criminal evidences spanned 26 years and finally came to light. He died of injustice amidst the disgust of his relatives and the spurning of all the people.

Mrs. Xie heard Zhao Erlang say: "At least ten years ago, Zhao Yuzheng knew his real life experience. He has always been protected by the dead soldiers sent by Princess Changping. Wulang can't hurt him at all. Wulang wanted to do scientific research, but he was caught by someone who wanted to please Zhao Yuzheng." Deliberately brushing off the rankings, and being deliberately stimulated, he will act in the busy market on impulse, the original intention is to startle the horse, and teach Zhao Yuzheng a small lesson. Unexpected, lost his life."

The truth about the exchange of sons was revealed to the Zhao family. The real little boy had good luck in his life and never ended well. On the other hand, the mother and son who occupied the magpie's nest were greedy, femme fatale, but full of glory.

If the real Xiaoerlang hadn't been miserable all his life, if Zhao Yuzheng hadn't known about it without reporting it, enjoyed everything that didn't belong to him with peace of mind, and even persecuted Wulang, if he hadn't known so many small details and truths buried in the past in advance, maybe they would have Confined to get along with each other for the past 26 years, they may feel heartbroken because of the 26 years of unreserved love and are in a dilemma, but the truth is that their sincerity and fate have been trampled by the pair of evil mother and son, and the truth is that the most innocent Xiao Erlang replaced them Zhao Yuzheng endured their disgust and harsh treatment, and finally died tragically on the street.

"What did my little boy do wrong?" Xie was puzzled, "How can a human heart be so cruel?"

At that time, tears were streaming down my face, but I didn't realize it.

***

The Prince's Mansion of Lin'an County collected Wulang's body and chose a good place with beautiful mountains and clear waters for him. No one would have expected that the person who picked up his bones in the end would be the rumored brutal Prince of Lin'an County.

Not long after Wulang was buried, the king of Lin'an County also disappeared.

The army in the Northwest was defeated, the great scene was negotiated, and the envoy from Daxia wanted compensation. On the day of the palace banquet, a circus troupe infiltrated the rebellious party from Liangjianglai, intending to assassinate him. The envoy from Daxia was almost killed.

Changping lost his composure on the spot and told the truth.

Others knew about the exchange, and they all wondered how the Zhao family would react.

Not surprisingly, the Zhao family was naturally furious and refused to see Zhao Yuzheng, but the Queen Mother and His Majesty were in the middle of it, and Zhao Yuzheng could not afford to kneel, and he was in shambles. In the end, family affection prevailed over the years, and the Zhao family accepted Zhao Yuzheng again, as before. For this reason, I forgive Changping for what he did in the past.

The relationship is not harmonious, but it is also settled.

There are many onlookers in the capital, and now Zhao Yuzheng is favored by His Majesty, the Empress Dowager and the Eastern Palace in front of him, and later by the whole family of the prime minister, and now there is Princess Changping, who is even more popular, how dare he offend?

Congratulations on the face, but I feel a little pity for Zhao Jiawulang who no one cares about.

***

The East Palace and Changping teamed up, and with the great help of the Zhao family, they easily defeated the sixth prince who was backed by Zheng Guogong's mansion, and firmly sat on the position of the Crown Prince of the East Palace.

In the spring of the following year, Emperor Yuan Shou's wind and evil entered his body, and his physical condition took a turn for the worse, and he died within two months.

The East Palace was enthroned as emperor, and the concubine was six months pregnant at that time, so she postponed the conferment ceremony on the grounds that it was not easy to work. As a result, the concubine died of dystocia, but luckily the prince was born smoothly.

At the end of the next year, before the bones of the first concubine were still cold, the new emperor joined forces with Changping and Zhao Zaizhi's family to fight against all opinions and named Zhao Yuzheng the first male empress of Dajing.

In the spring of the third year, the post-conferment ceremony was carried out as usual. The envoys were sent to confer the conferment first, and then the treasures were received, and then all the officials presented their congratulations, and finally went to the Taimiao to meet with the ancestors. After such a process, a more grand conferment ceremony .

The most honorable position of women in the whole world was given to a man, no one dared to comment on its absurdity, and all opponents were found to find excuses to kill. The most powerful men and women in this dynasty created a paradise for Zhao Yuzheng, as if unlimited , madly in love with him.

I don't know how many people envy and hate Zhao Yuzheng, and they are full of incomprehension behind their backs, Donggong and Changping are fine, why the Zhao family also loves the false civet cat wholeheartedly like a madman?

It didn't take long to get the answer at the canonization ceremony after being puzzled.

The missing king of Lin'an County suddenly raised his troops to rebel. He brought the brave Tanghe cavalry with him, and appeared at the canonization ceremony to force the new emperor to abdicate.

The emperor was panicked, and Changping ordered Lu Zhiyuan and Zhao Jiadalang, who were in control of the imperial army, to take down the Lin'an County King. He was shocked to find that all the ministers of the Zhao family, including Lu Zhiyuan, were standing on the side of the Lin'an County King, looking at him coldly. them.

The new emperor was furious, and shouted: "You dare to rebel? Disloyal, filial, benevolent, and unrighteous, how could my Dajing courtier be such a spineless young man like you!"

The King of Lin'an fiddled with his Buddhist beads, looked at them with a smile that was not a smile, and said nothing, and the courtiers who had been patient for a long time stepped forward to peel off their fake faces.

With murderous intent on his face, Lu Zhiyuan exposed that Donggong and Changping had conspired to kill his daughter, the first concubine, in order to make room for Zhao Yuzheng, but Zhao Yuzheng did not report it!

"With deceit, violence and hatred, and a ghostly heart, how can you be the king of a country? Helping the tyrant to abuse, clever talk, pretending to be deaf and dumb, flashy, how can you be the mother of a country? A minister is loyal to the king, and the loyal one is also a benevolent and righteous king!"

Zhao Boyong's expression is calm, but if you look closely at his eyes, you can see the madness of burning jade and stone inside. This kind of madness permeates the hearts of every son of the Zhao family, making them not afraid of leaving the infamy of seeking to usurp the throne, let alone being infamous for thousands of years In order to quell the inextinguishable poisonous fire in his heart, he must kill Goro's ghost by a thousand swords.

He brought a group of witnesses and material evidence and accused the new emperor of collaborating with Changping to murder the late emperor. The evidence of the crime was conclusive and undeniable.

"Even if you are mediocre and incompetent, whoever has a trace of kindness and engraved loyalty and patriotism into their bones will not support you?"

Zhao Boyong disdained Changping, approached him step by step, pinched Zhao Yuzheng's bright and innocent face, and refrained from strangling him directly, and his veins burst out: "Zhao Yuzheng, what can my Zhao family feel sorry for you? , you can’t get what you want? The whole family holds you in the palm of their hands and dotes on you. If you don’t ask you to return the same love, at least leave us a little kindness! At least you can treat Goro better, just a little bit... But What have you done? You intensified your persecution of him, and twice Li Daitao succumbed to the catastrophe of extinction. That's it, you still refuse to let him go, you let him, let him die so desperately and painfully How can you? We owe you something, and you insist on taking revenge on the most innocent person? You have already taken everything from him, why do you want to take away even his life?"

Zhao Yuzheng's expression changed from pain and grief to sarcasm, and he struggled to squeeze out the words: "I... I knew that once my life experience was revealed, you, you wouldn't love me anymore... I knew it! I blame you for loving me too much in the past, I'm afraid...I'm afraid of losing."

Zhao Boyong's heart ached like it was being pulled, and he was at a loss for a moment. It turned out that he favored Zhao Yuzheng too much in the past that caused him to attack Wulang?Those preferences that hurt Goro are the root cause of death?

What on earth did they do, so that every time they think about the details, they find that they are all proofs that killed Goro?

Changping and Zhao Yuzheng were not the only ones who killed Goro, but they also claimed to be their relatives!

Zhao Boyong's hair turned gray in an instant, he lost his spirit, and was forever ashamed.

***

Regardless of persuasion, Xie dug up Wulang's grave, and even though Lin'an County King ridiculed her belated love for hurting the Zhao family's young son Lang, she refused to return her to peace after death. She really owed them both before and after her death.

——No, it's not Goro who owes them, it's they who owe Goro!

Mrs. Xie took Wulang's body back to the mansion, and asked eminent monks and Taoists to cultivate a perfect afterlife for him, and he did not hesitate to offer his blessings for ten lives, but those eminent monks and Taoists could only chant sutras.

"I can only chant scriptures!" Mrs. Xie worked day and night, haggard, copying scriptures, and burning pot after pot. "Why can I only chant scriptures! I just want to atone for my sins, and I just want my little son to be consummated in the next life without hurting other people. Why can't I even do this little thing?"

The Zhao family wanted to persuade her to calm down, but they were overwhelmed by the overwhelming guilt. They searched for more than 20 years of memories, and the memories related to Goro were all chilling. They looked at the pale face in the coffin, lifeless , Poor and lonely, how can I feel at ease?

Feeling uneasy, he actually found someone who accompanied Xie to find the Tao like a demon, and wanted to offer his blessings to seek a happy afterlife for Wu Lang.

They brought Zhao Yuzheng's tragic end to Mrs. Xie's ears. At that time, Mrs. Xie was stroking Wulang's hair on the temples. After hearing this, she was silent for a long time, and then asked the heartbreaking words: "But my little son Lang died."

"Zhao Yuzheng can still be punished for his debts. How should I repay what I owe?"

Zhao Boyong tried his best to find the old fortune teller whom he only met once, and finally saw the old fortune teller when his hair was gray.

He begged the old fortune teller, willing to exchange his merits and blessings for Xiao Erlang's success in the next life.

The old fortune-teller sighed: "If there is no fate, you will not get together, if you have no debts, you will not come, if the fate gathers and the fate disappears, it starts with a thought. Fate saves fate, fate is like this, forcing is useless, it is better to let go."

No matter how much he begged, the old fortune-teller was unwilling to change his life, and he disappeared not long after.

As for the Zhao family, they felt ashamed and remembered it, and they couldn't let it go for the rest of their lives.

On that spring day, the torrential rain knocked down flowers and leaves all over the ground, the sound of wooden fish chanting scriptures in a corner of the prime minister’s mansion was incessant all day long, the fragrance of Buddha wafted in, and the green lamps were always burning. The flowers in the corridor wake up suddenly with a pillow of yellow beams.

The bead broke suddenly, and the bodhi seed fell to the ground, and the person on the couch opened his eyes and burst into tears.

"...Is it a dream?"

How can it be so real?

Is it the past life or the present life?

In which dream is she in?Which world is Huangliang Yimeng?

If you have to choose which world to regard as a dream from which you cannot wake up, I hope to stay in this world for a long time.

Even if they don't know each other for a hundred years, at least her little son Lang is alive and vigorous, and no matter the joys and sorrows, he is always accompanied by someone, unlike the previous life where he was alone in a barren grave.

***

Lin'an Palace.

After Huo Jingtang resumed his status as First Prince, his rank has been promoted from County King to Prince, and still King of Lin'an.

The rain in this spring is always continuous, everything in the world does not like to move, and people are naturally lazy. It happened to take a rest, so Zhao Baiyu simply stayed in the mansion to work, and after lunch, he stayed on the couch by the window in the side hall While reading the storybook for a while, I fell asleep listening to the rhythmic sound of rain.

A stick of incense was burning on the table, and sticks of incense ash were piled up next to the incense burner. The maid came in and exchanged four sticks of incense.A stick of incense burns for half an hour, and now two hours have passed, the sky has darkened, the rain has stopped, the sky is completely new, the air is filled with the fragrance of soil and flowers and leaves, insects and borers crawl out one after another to catch their breath.

The servant outside whispered, "How long have you slept?"

"It's been two hours, it's never been like this, it must be exhausted. Tell people to relax their hands and feet, and the clams outside have all rushed to the pond, and they croaked non-stop when the rain stopped."

"It's already been watched."

"Move all the flowers on the veranda back to the courtyard... the stars will come out one after another, and it will stop raining at night."

At this moment, there was the sound of hurried footsteps, and he said in a low voice: "The prime minister's wife is here, and Director Hai is greeting you kindly in the front hall."

"Which slaughter—Madam Zhao? Got it, I'll go into the room and wake up Mrs. Zhao."

But after a while, there was a creaking sound, and a ray of light leaked into the hall. He walked lightly, and came to the bed by the window. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Zhao Baiyu's eyes were open, his eyes were clear, and he was not sleepy at all.

"When did your lord wake up?"

"I haven't woken up for long." Zhao Baiyu got up and put on a crane cloak, and asked while putting on his shoes, "Madam Zhao, can you tell me why you came to visit?"

Boy: "I just said I wanted to visit you."

When Zhao Baiyu went out, he suddenly turned his head to look at the brightly lit bed in the room. There was a wisp of smoke left by the incense burner next to it. It seemed that the absurd dream was hidden in the smoke.

A trance flashed across his face, and Zhao Baiyu turned around: "Let's go."

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

The author has something to say:

"Zhao Baiyu" and Xiaoyu in the original book are both the same character with the same fate but different fate lines. It can be considered that the original book is fake, or that "Zhao Baiyu" in the original book is a character in a parallel world and has been reincarnated up.

In fact, the Zhao family in the original book offered good luck in exchange for the "Zhao Baiyu" in that world to have a happy afterlife in the end.

And the Zhao family and Xiaoyu in this world have another fate line.

Ask for nutrient solution~~~

I don’t know if you listen to Hokkien songs, but I recommend two.

There is a song "The Chaos in the Court", I have been listening to this song in the early stage of writing Survival, and it feels very good.

The other song "The Sorrow of a Loving Mother with Thousands of Flowers" is a bit creepy and very artistic, and the line "Nanwu Guanyin Bodhisattva" is super emotional.