The general went out again at night

In the last few days at the end of the year, after a joint trial by the Ministry of Criminal Justice, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and the Judiciary of Dali Temple, all the crimes on Zhao Yanyuan's body were cleared up.He Ao and Lu Kongyue of Fuyun Mountain Villa turned themselves in and accused Xia Qingshu of being framed. Zhao Yanyuan's crime was aggravated, and Emperor Hongsu ordered to punish his nine clans and confiscate his family property.

After three days, a total of 2705 million taels of silver, 360 taels of gold, and 80 mu of land were illegally seized. As for rare antiques, famous calligraphy and painting books, there are countless.

Zhao Yanyuan's greed for decades as an official is jaw-dropping, but also embarrassing.

In less than half a day, this matter had already been widely circulated, and the officials and common people were all discussing it hotly. Xia Qingshu didn't have any special feeling about it. Rise and fall, honor and disgrace are all other people's affairs, so she has nothing to do with it.As for adding insult to injury or something, she didn't have the time to spare.

In the new year and new weather, the lively firecrackers and fireworks brought the melancholy in Xia Qingshu's heart to the sky.The mansion was filled with joy and laughter, and everyone's faces were full of joy. She was infected and her mood improved.

The new year has come, Ji Qianyao stayed in the palace to reunite with the royal family, and she also stayed in the mansion and never went out.

One day, the Jiangnan Weaving Bureau sent [-] pieces of high-quality silk to the palace. Emperor Hongsu sent some to the harem, and the rest were rewarded to princes and ministers. Xia Qingshu also got some for his military exploits.

During the last few days of the new year, relatives and friends reunite, festive and lively. The pirates in the southeast area are all extremely vicious people, so they are not used to such lively activities.After a small fight, they retreated, disturbing the peace of the frontier defenders.

Xia Yan knew that this was the tactic of the Japanese pirates. When the Yan army was harassed by them and relaxed their guard, they would take the opportunity to break through and go ashore, burn, kill, loot and torture them. At that time, it would be the people who suffered.

If the general is there, the soldiers will definitely be ready to fight, and they will not dare to relax, and the Japanese pirates will not dare to go ashore rashly, and the people behind will also be able to live a good year happily.

Xia Yan wanted to stay in Fujian for defense, so he submitted an application and got the quasi-play.Since he couldn't go home and needed to be informed of the situation, he sent a letter home to Nanjing City, expressing his concerns, and bought some silk and dried fruits.

Combining two copies of silk in one place is too much, Xia Qingshu only changes one or two new clothes a year, so there is no way he will run out of them.She doesn't like to waste, so she wants to give a piece of silk as a New Year's gift to her relatives and neighbors.

Naturally, gifts from the imperial court cannot be transferred at will. Xia Qingshu put these silks in the treasury for a safe place, and if he was short of clothes to change, he would take them from inside.The one sent by Yongding Hou will be used as a gift.

"Liuyan, Master Hou sent a lot of silk, you pick a few and send them to Dr. Shen."

"General, Dr. Shen returned to Yaowang Valley at the end of the year, and he is no longer in the medical clinic." Liu Yan only found out when he returned from Fu'an Temple to search for someone.

"Why did you leave in such a hurry?" Xia Qingshu asked with concern.

"I heard from the servants in the medical center that the old valley owner is ill, so Anyi went back to Yaowang Valley to visit him."

"So that's how it is. Dr. Shen is benevolent and filial. It doesn't matter if she's not here. You pick up a few horses and keep them. I'll be with her when she comes back."

"Okay, Liu Yan thanked the general on behalf of Anyi." Liu Yan bowed and bowed, not in a hurry to pick up the silk, she thought of something, and said: "General, you haven't left the mansion for a long time, go out for a walk , There is a lion dance in front of Zuixiang Building today, it is very lively, shall we go and see it?"

At the beginning of the year, every household went to visit relatives and friends, and all the servants in the mansion were released. These days are not as lively as usual, and it is boring to stay in the mansion all the time, so it is good to go out for a walk.

"Then go." Xia Qingshu agreed.

An hour later, Xia Qingshu took Liu Yan and a few followers into Zuixiang Tower.

The Xiao Er who greeted her recognized her and Liu Yan at a glance, stepped forward to greet her warmly, with a smile on her face: "General Xia, what brought you here today? Come in and sit down."

"Are there any free wine tables upstairs?" Xia Qingshu asked with a smile.

"The general is lucky. There was none in the first place. Before a stick of incense, Master Chu of the Hanlin Academy sent a servant to send a message, saying that something urgent happened at home and he couldn't come. He was going to return the reserved seat, which happened to be vacant." one."

"Then hurry up and arrange it for us."

"Okay, general, you go upstairs first, I'll ask the cook to prepare some snacks, and send them up quickly."

"It's work."

"Don't dare to dare, the general is really small."

Xia Qingshu and his party were taken to the second floor, where they sat down at an Eight Immortals table on the right.The table is placed by the low window, and when you look out, you can see the scenery below.

There is still an incense stick before the start of the lion dance, and the lion dancers below have already started to warm up and prepare.The Zuixiang Building on this side and the Yuxiang Building on the opposite side were full of people.Downstairs, beside the lion dance stage, the common people were also surrounded.

"Sit, you all sit and watch, don't hold back." Seeing that there were vacant seats, Xia Qingshu asked the people who came with him to sit down and watch together, without pretensions: "If the food and drinks are served later, you should eat what you should eat and drink what you should drink .”

"Thank you, General." The servants said in unison.

Not long after, a long string of firecrackers was lit on the tall bamboo poles, crackling and deafening, and the people who were close covered their ears, their eyebrows and eyes were curved, and they were happy.

Amidst the sound of firecrackers, gongs and drums sounded together, the people outside began to applaud, and the lion dance began.

Among the people sitting on the second floor of Zuixiang Building, most of them are literati and refined guests, they are not as loud as those people in the street below, the atmosphere is very good.Xia Qingshu was originally looking at it with relish, but inadvertently, from the corner of her eye, she glanced at Yuxiang upstairs opposite, and suddenly saw an unappetizing figure.

Wei Linsong sat in the middle of the second floor on the opposite side, and together with several colleagues, they drank and applauded loudly.As soon as Xia Qingshu saw him, she remembered the injury of Princess Erqiye, and her heart was blocked again.

Unlucky, his good mood ruined him, Xia Qingshu held up his wine glass and drank dull wine.

"Look carefully, the one sitting opposite is Lord Wei Linsongwei?"

"It's him, you can't be wrong. You can see that sitting next to him is Mr. Liu from the Ministry of War. Mr. Liu is not good-looking and short in stature, which is in stark contrast to Mr. Wei, who is dignified. If the two of them are together If they appear, they will definitely be compared. However, it’s just that people in the market gossip. In private, Lord Wei and Lord Liu have a very good friendship. Look, he even pours wine for Lord Liu.”

"Master Wei looks like a modest gentleman."

Xia Qingshu turned his ear, and heard people dressed as businessmen chatting at the table in the back. Coincidentally, they were also talking about Wei Linsong.

"I think this Lord Wei is very likely to be the son-in-law of His Royal Highness the Eldest Princess." There was a lot of noise from the lion dance downstairs, and the attention of the people around them was focused on the bottom. The four businessmen chatted freely without any scruples.

As soon as this person finished speaking, the person sitting next to him immediately agreed: "Brother Li, I also think so, this Lord Wei is really suitable for His Royal Highness the Eldest Princess."

"The eldest princess didn't want to recruit a son-in-law before because she didn't meet anyone she likes, and she treated these things indifferently. This time is different. Master Wei saved her in Fu'an Temple regardless of safety. Since then, Her Royal Highness the eldest princess treats Lord Wei differently, I think it is intentional."

"Hey, I also heard that His Majesty the Emperor and the Empress Dowager are also very satisfied with Lord Wei. In recent days, they have called His Excellency into the palace every now and then, as if to match him with His Royal Highness the Eldest Princess."

"A good thing is a good thing. If these two get married, it will really be the biggest happy event this year."

The words "intentional", "matching", and "marriage" drifted into Xia Qingshu's ears, and they turned into sharp swords and pierced her heart.

These days, she confines herself in the mansion, forcing herself not to listen to the outsiders and the servants in the mansion. She thinks that if she doesn't listen, she won't think too much, and if she doesn't listen, she won't care.

Facts have proved that she thinks of the word "love" too simply.No matter how well she hides her appearance, she is always concerned and sad in her heart.

Her love for His Royal Highness is no longer as simple and pure as it was at the beginning. At that time, she was happy and satisfied when she saw His Highness. Being able to have a tryst with her at night was a gift from heaven.

And as time went by, the feelings she buried deep in her heart became deeper and more complicated, and some desires became bigger and bigger.She cared about His Highness's indifference during the day, and cared about her favor for other people.She hoped that the person next to His Highness would be herself.

Is it difficult?difficult.

She has courage, fearless of life and death, she wants to be a warrior, but the sword in her hand that splits the world exists with the eldest princess, and she hasn't given it to her yet.

Will she give her the sword?Xia Qingshu didn't know.

Can she take the initiative to ask her?Xia Qingshu didn't dare.

She is afraid.One misstep will cause eternal hatred, Xia Qingshu is a fighter and knows this truth well.One wrong step will bring unpredictable consequences, she dare not try rashly.

This is the helplessness mixed with melancholy in her heart, and there is also pure hope there.She believes that love grows with time, even though His Royal Highness the Eldest Princess didn't like her before, but after a long time of intimacy, there will always be some different emotions.

But now, even if Xia Qingshu wanted to wait, he probably couldn't.Wei Linsong really became a son-in-law, everything is over.

As soon as Liu Yan, who was watching the lion dance performance, looked back, he saw Xia Qingshu clutching his heart, his pale face, he was startled, and hurriedly asked, "General, what's wrong with you?"

Xia Qingshu lowered her head, closed her eyes, and frowned: "It's too noisy here, it's uncomfortable everywhere, let's go back."

"Okay." Liu Yan called the servant, and the group left in a hurry.

"Hurry up and ask for a doctor." Back at the General's Mansion, Liu Yan said the same way.

"No, I'll just take a break." Xia Qingshu waved her hand and refused. She knew that this was a heart disease that doctors couldn't cure.

"General, why do you look so bad, you should call the doctor." Liu Qi also stepped forward to persuade him.

"If I say no, I don't need it!" Xia Qingshu was furious for the first time and yelled at the servants. She let go of Liu Yan's support, and staggered back to the room.

"Lord Liuyan, what's wrong with the general?" Liu Qi's cloudy old eyes were full of worry.

Liu Yan concealed a smile, patted him on the shoulder and comforted him: "Butler Liu, it's okay. That's how it is. Just now we were watching the lion dance in Zuixiang Tower, and sitting next to it was too noisy, which defeated the general's interest and annoyed her. For the doctor's matter, she will not bark if she says so, we should stop buzzing in her ears, let her be quiet these few days."

"Okay, okay, I'll let those serving servants go far away now, and never disturb the general's rest."

Liu Qi left, the smile on Liu Yan's face gradually faded, replaced by deep worry.