To The Land of Nevernight

The night is getting darker, only the calyx is playing shadows, and the moonlight is fascinated.

Yanchun Pavilion is located on the west side of the imperial garden, surrounded by green trees.The windows are specially made crystal glass windows of Zhenbao Pavilion. The palace is brightly lit, shining on the crystal clear windows, it looks even more radiant.The ministers wore official uniforms and entered their seats one by one.Sitting on the left side of the emperor are the second prince Zhao Shang and the fourth prince Zhao Jing, and the fifth prince Zhao Ji is sitting on his right hand.

The officials sat down one by one according to their grades.

Tang Shen was sitting not too close or far away. On his left was the Guozijian sacrificial wine, and on his right was a Hanlin scholar.

The banquet at Yanchun Pavilion is not a family banquet, but it is not far from it.

After the emperor entered the table, he talked with several princes for a while, and then talked with several princes.They were talking privately, and they couldn't hear a word at all because they were far away.This is the emperor's favor.

Tang Shen "has just recovered from a serious illness" and can't drink alcohol. While drinking tea, he quietly looks at the emperor's side.

The emperor's face was slightly pale, and he never drank alcohol, but drank a bowl of brown medicinal soup from time to time.He sometimes talked with Ji Wengji, the left minister, and Wang Quan, the right minister.The three princes tried their best to intervene in their topic, but they were always unable to speak. They were so suppressed that their faces turned red, and there was nothing they could do.

However, there was still a person standing behind the emperor, not the eunuch Ji Fu, but a round-faced monk in plain monk robes.

He was holding a string of Buddhist beads in his hand and fiddled with them lightly, with a spring-like smile on his face.Suddenly, he raised his head and looked at Tang Shen.Tang Shen's heart tightened, and he immediately looked away.

Shan Ting smiled slightly, and after a while, he leaned down and whispered something in Zhao Fu's ear, and Zhao Fu also laughed.

In the middle of the dinner, a prince finally couldn't hold back.

The fourth prince Zhao Jing came to the seat: "Since I went to Jizhou, I got a flying stone from the sky. This stone has a unique shape. After seeing it, I was very happy and wanted to present it to my father."

Zhao Fu showed a surprised expression: "Flying rocks from the sky? Take it up and have a look."

Zhao Jing's men immediately moved a stone half a person's height into the hall.The full house of ministers were amazed when they saw the condition of the stone clearly.

"The flying stones outside the sky look like what you want, which is really a good omen of wealth and auspiciousness!"

Zhao Fu also liked it very much, he smiled and said, "You have a heart."

Zhao Jing was overjoyed.

The fourth prince is in the limelight, how can the other two princes fall behind?

Zhao Shang and Zhao Ji presented the gifts they found one after another, hoping to please the emperor.However, treasures are easy to find, but meaningful gifts are very difficult to find.The gifts they were looking for were more than precious, but they were far inferior to Zhao Jing's wishful-shaped flying stone in terms of auspicious signs.

At Xu time, the banquet ended and the officials left the palace.

When Tang Shen left the Yanchun Pavilion, he looked back, and saw the monk Shan Ting following closely behind Zhao Fu, leaving quietly.

The next day is New Year's Eve.

The officials had already been on vacation to take a bath. Tang Shen helped Aunt Yao and Feng Bi to decorate the house, and the family happily made dumplings.On New Year's Eve, when everyone was having dinner, an official knocked on the gate of Tanhua Mansion.Yao San went to open the door and brought back a letter, saying it was from Youzhou.

Tang Shen immediately opened the letter and read it, only to see that there was only one line of short poem on it.

It was also written by a certain poet in the previous dynasty, but this poem was changed a little, and changed to: "If the two feelings last for a long time, they will also think about the day and night."

The change was not very good, but Tang Shen felt hot when he saw it.He took the letter to his study and put it carefully in the bookcase.Out of the door, Yao San was about to set off firecrackers, when he saw Tang Shen, he said, "Young Master, do you want to come and light this firecracker yourself?"

Tang Shen rolled up his sleeves, walked forward with a smile, "Leave it to me."

The firecrackers went up to the sky with a bang, and it was another new year.

However, no one knew that at the same time, there was a dead silence in the Great Song Palace.

On New Year's Eve, ordinary people have a reunion dinner, and the royal family is no exception.The sixth prince, Zhao Ao, entered the palace in the afternoon. This year was the first time that there was no family banquet for the queen mother, and he needed to accompany the emperor.

Not every royal family can attend the banquet. Only Zhao Ao, his concubine, and Prince Jing's son Zhao Qiong participated in the family banquet tonight.There are also three princes, and the mother and concubine of the three princes.

There are not many people, probably about ten people.

At the beginning of the family banquet, it was quite enjoyable.After half an hour, the second prince Zhao Shang toasted his father and said a few words in order to flatter the emperor.Suddenly, Zhao Fu's long face was furious, and he slapped the table: "Your imperial grandmother has only been away for less than a year, and you have forgotten her? Is this my filial and good son?"

Zhao Shang opened his eyes wide in horror.

The rest of the people were also shocked, and no one even remembered what Zhao Shang said just now, which made Zhao Fu suddenly angry.

Concubine Zhen, Zhao Shang's mother, immediately stepped forward to intercede for her son.She thought it was a trivial matter, Zhao Fu just missed the Queen Mother.Unexpectedly, after she spoke, Zhao Fu laughed back angrily, the emperor stared at the mother and son ruthlessly, and said, "Did you wait for me to die?"

Zhao Shang sat down on the ground, Concubine Zhen was dumbfounded, she was so panicked that she lost her mind.

A family banquet ended like this.

Concubine Zhen was imprisoned in the palace to reflect on her past, and the second prince, Zhao Shang, was also imprisoned by the emperor in a small Buddhist hall in the palace.He had to recite scriptures 99 times for the Queen Mother and copy [-] volumes of "Guanyin Heart Sutra" before she could come out.

When Zhao Ao left the palace, he was still in a daze.He pulled his son and said: "What's the matter, didn't you have a good meal before, why did you talk about the Queen Mother?"

Where did Zhao Qiong know.

Zhao Ao said: "I'd better go find the emperor first. He was really heartbroken when his mother died. Now that Zhao Shang is wrong, he is wrong. Brother emperor, don't get angry, it's not worth it."

Princess Jing grabbed him: "Don't go. This is a matter of the royal family. Even if you are the sixth prince, can you still meddle in the affairs of the royal family?"

Zhao Ao thought for a while, followed Wang Hao's words, and left the palace directly.

Two days later, word spread that the second prince Zhao Shang was imprisoned in the palace.Tang Shen's official position is not high, he learned the news a day later than others, but he also heard a rumor at the same time: Zhao Fu was ill with anger!

Tang Shen and Zhao Qiong made an appointment to meet at the Qianli Tower, Zhao Qiong briefly described what happened that night at the family banquet, and he said: "I don't know what happened, the Holy Majesty was very happy a moment ago, and told my father the king He just said a few words, and he suddenly became angry." Zhao Qiong smiled bitterly and said, "The Holy Majesty is also really ill. This morning my father went to the palace to serve the sick."

Since the death of the Empress Dowager, Zhao Fu fell ill every three days and seemed to be very old.

Every time the disease occurs, it is fierce, and it is not easy to turn the danger into a bargain.

Tang Shen said goodbye to Zhao Qiong and returned home.In the evening of that day, an unexpected visitor came to visit him.Fengbi boy led him to the flower hall, Tang Shen saw him, immediately bowed and said, "My lord, Tang Shen, I have met Lord Jianzheng."

The person who came was Li Xiaoren, the supervisor of Qintian Supervisor.

In just a few months of not seeing each other, Li Xiaoren became as thin as a skeleton.His cheeks were sunken, his eyes were dull, his lips were blue and purple, and he looked like he was just recovering from a serious illness.Tang Shen thought of the night at the Yanchun Pavilion, Monk Shan Ting was with Zhao Fu, but Li Xiaoren was not there.He tentatively asked: "Master Li is sick?"

Sure enough, as expected by Tang Shen, Li Xiaoren said: "I caught a cold last month, and I just got out of bed a few days ago."

Tang Shen: "My lord, please take care of yourself."

Li Xiaoren looked at Tang Shen, hesitant to speak.He hesitated left and right for a long time before he said with difficulty: "Master Wang is still in Youzhou?"

Tang Shen understood: I came to find Wang Zifeng.

"Senior brother is still in Youzhou and has not come back. Yin Yinsi is too busy with errands, I am afraid it will take a few months before he can return to Beijing."

Li Xiaoren showed a painful expression, and he coughed heavily: "Oh, what should I do."

Tang Shen looked at him, and said calmly: "If you have something to do, you can write to Youzhou. It's just that senior brother will definitely not come back." The implication was that he didn't mean to interfere, and he didn't want to ask Li Xiaoren about his trip at all. intention of.

Where did Li Xiaoren think that Tang Shen would be so hands-off? His expression froze for a while, and finally he couldn't help saying: "Master Tang doesn't know, but there is really something wrong with being good at listening. Since he came, His Majesty's health has not been better. To be honest, although I am sick now and have not entered the palace for a long time, my two little disciples have been serving in the palace. Do you know what my little disciple saw yesterday? Contact the second prince who is imprisoned in the Buddhist hall in private, and the two behave intimately!"

Tang Shen's heart was shocked, but on the surface he only showed a trace of surprise: "There is such a thing?"

Li Xiaoren: "There can still be fakes!"

"Has your lord ever told His Majesty about this?"

"This……"

Tang Shen said in a hurried tone: "This... I don't know what is going on and what to do. Why is senior brother still not returning to Beijing? Why don't you ask Mr. Li to write a letter to Youzhou immediately and ask senior brother what to do?" Is it better to do it?"

Li Xiaoren said a few more words, Tang Shen was at a loss and just wanted to ask Wang Qin quickly.Li Xiaoren was greatly disappointed. He didn't have any hope for Tang Shen, so he left.

On the seventh day of the first lunar month, Zhao Fu's illness still did not improve, and the sixth prince, Zhao Ao, was serving the sick in the palace.

In the evening, Tang Shen was reading at home when someone knocked on the door suddenly.Yao San opened the door and saw that he was a middle-aged man who looked like a housekeeper.Seeing Yao San, the man smiled and saluted first.Yao San had never been saluted like this before, so he quickly imitated and returned the salute.

The man said: "But Tang Shen, the admonishing doctor, is in Mr. Tang's residence?"

Yao San led him into the house, and when the other party saw Tang Shen, he bowed and said, "I've met Mr. Tang."

Tang Shen glanced at him up and down, and asked strangely, "Who are you?"

The middle-aged man smiled and said: "The young one is the steward of the Right Prime Minister's mansion. My husband-in-law invited the adults to come to the mansion to have a talk. It's New Years, and I haven't met Mr. Tang yet. The young one is here to pick up Mr. Tang."

Tang Shen felt a little strange, but he cupped his hands and said, "It's actually the steward of Wang Xianggong's mansion. Then respect is worse than obedience, please."

Soon, Tang Shen got into the carriage and arrived at Wang Quan's mansion.

Along the way, Tang Shen thought hard, he didn't think Wang Quan would suddenly invite him to his house for dinner.Wang Quan also came from the Wang family of Langya, a wealthy and well-mannered family.If it was the relationship between Wang Qin and Tang Shen, the two of them could indeed go to each other's house at any time, without having to hand over greeting cards or letters of invitation in advance.But Wang Quan is different.Even if Wang Quan knew about his relationship with Wang Zifeng, he shouldn't invite him to visit so hastily.

Tang Shen entered the right minister's mansion with doubts.

Seeing Wang Quan, before he could open his mouth, Wang Quan smiled slightly, pointed at the dishes on the table with chopsticks, and said, "Eat the vegetables."