Huaibi

Li Qingjue kept his promise and did not mention Li Hou half word to Ping Huaizhen.

The courtiers in the court still refused to let go, but the emperor refused to enter, and the way of remonstrance was completely cut off.Ping Huaizhen arbitrarily arrested a person in order to be clean, and punished him with a grandiose half-year salary, and finally made all the officials shut up and never talk about the emperor's private affairs.

Everyone's thoughts stopped for a while, but there was still one among them who refused to give up, and thought over the farce from beginning to end several times. It's hard to know whether Li Qingjue couldn't persuade the emperor, or whether he didn't try his best to persuade the emperor because of his personal interests.

But right and wrong are no longer important.

In fact, Zhao Keyang was not so cruel. He could not see the hardships Li Qingjue had suffered for many years. If he was not worried about the suffering of the emperor's heirs, why would he do such indifferent actions.Right now Li Qingjue is unwilling to persuade him anymore, he felt that he could not force him to do so, so he had to try his best and went to the palace to have a heart-to-heart talk with Ping Huaizhen.

As the summer turns into a pure moon, the palace maid takes down the silver water curtain in the royal study, and hangs a crystal-clear beaded curtain, and the heavy sandalwood in the furnace turns into a refreshing scent of flowers and trees, refreshing and suitable for the room.

Ping Huaizhen took a nap after noon, and when he woke up, he felt as if he was in a quiet forest. The jasmine, gardenia and bamboo leaves filled the lungs with passion, which made the mind clear.

Jiang Chang picked up the bead curtain and walked in, and when he bumped against each other, there was a light ding-dong sound, Ping Huai's eyes narrowed and he heard it comfortably, and asked: "This fragrance is quite new, who thought it so strange?"

"Your majesty, you might as well guess who would be so attentive." Jiang Chang smiled when he heard the words, but he didn't wait for him to think about it, and immediately answered, "Who else can think so much about the emperor, besides Master Li? The imperial study room is too stuffy, so I specially explained to the servants that there is no need to use those expensive incense, just pick some flowers and leaves and grind it, the emperor will definitely like it."

Ping Huai's eyes are full of joy, how could he not be unhappy.

Jiang Chang observed the words and expressions, and said at the right time: "The emperor's likes and dislikes, Mr. Li knows best."

"So it's enough for me to let him alone in my heart." Ping Huaizhen was very happy, so he thought of something else, "I ordered you to go to the people to find someone, did you hear anything?"

"The slave is reporting this matter, the person the emperor is looking for has disappeared, but..." Jiang Chang bowed and approached, whispering the rest of the words in his ear.

After Ping Huaizhen listened intently, he meditated for a while, Jiang Chang beside him waited silently, before he could make up his mind, he suddenly heard a voice from outside: "Your Majesty, Mr. Zhao from the Household Department is asking to see you."

"pass."

Ping Huaizhen was slightly surprised, and seemed to be able to vaguely sense Zhao Keyang's intentions, so he waved Jiang Chang to retreat first.

Jiang Chang understood, bowed his head and retreated. When passing the bead curtain, Zhao Keyang came into the room.

The light fragrance of flowers and leaves in the room lingered around the beams, the visitor frowned and then relaxed a few inches, Ping Huaizhen pretended not to notice his heavy heart, and after the ceremony, he gave him a seat and said with a smile: "Uncle and I don't need to be too polite."

Zhao Keyang boldly responded: "The emperor is the king, and I am the minister. I should abide by the way of the emperor and ministers in front of others. But at this moment, if I am not in front of people, I will accept the emperor's wholehearted tolerance and will not meet each other as a minister."

After speaking, he sat down at the table and looked at him solemnly.

Ping Huaizhen couldn't help sighing secretly, knowing that he could hide, he couldn't hide, so he continued to pretend to be confused, let him sit on the bed, and poured two cups of cloud tea without saying a word first.

After a while, Zhao Keyang still couldn't bear it, and the words started from the old things, and he said with emotion and reason: "This minister came here to say a few heartfelt words to my nephew as an uncle... I think the emperor still When he was the prince, he privately sought out Zheng Wen Zhiyuan, the supervisor of the Qintian Supervisor, and ordered him to lie about the destiny and hide it from the sky. The love of children is small, and the family, country and society are big."

"'Concealing the world and crossing the sea'," Ping Huaizhen shook his head and laughed, extremely helpless, "Uncle is very talkative. I never hide everything I do from the world. On the contrary, the world refuses to let me go. Besides, there is also the word 'impulse' No, I made a decision when I was young, and I have not changed my mind so far, how can I be impulsive?"

Zhao Keyang was speechless for a moment when he refuted every sentence.

Seeing his silence, Ping Huaizhen added another sentence very firmly: "If you were impulsive, you would have taken your heart back."

This remark made Zhao Keyang unable to suppress his suffocated anger, and directly pointed to Li Qingjue's name and asked: "The minister also said back then that it doesn't matter if anyone is in the emperor's heart, but the matter of the dragon's heir should not be careless. Li Qingjue does have a sincere relationship with the emperor, but After all, he is a man, so is it possible that he can replace the women in the harem and continue to be the heir of the emperor?"

Ping Huaizhen suddenly changed his face.

"Qingjue has done her best for me, she doesn't need to replace anyone, and no one can replace him. I respect my uncle, but even so, I don't allow my uncle to humiliate him."

Zhao Keyang was very angry and laughed back, Ping Huaizhen blamed him for his serious words, but in fact the words he sent were more serious than his words.He has already seen clearly how important Li Qingjue is in the eyes of the emperor, but this person is more important than him, the former emperor and queen mother, and even the emperor himself, so is it possible that he is more important than mountains, rivers, thousands of miles, and the whole country?

Thinking about asking seriously: "Is the emperor going to use the whole country to pay for this true love?"

"If it has to be like this, then it's okay." Ping Huaizhen looked into his eyes firmly, with no intention of joking, "Uncle Xu has never understood that I want this country, never because of greed and love." , all because I had to. In the past, in order to avoid being controlled by others, I fought for power and exercise power; now the power is in my hands, no one can do anything."

As he spoke, he stood up, walked slowly to the smoker with thin smoke curling up, lifted the lid lightly, and a large cloud of smoke and dust immediately flowed out: "I will be a wise king, and I will never destroy the mountains, rivers and people's livelihood, but I will not exhaust my flesh and blood for this territory, like that Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is willing to fall into purgatory. What kind of real dragon emperor, nine-five-year-old, is it not a mortal? I am selfish and narrow-minded, and all I want is this incense stick .”

Zhao Keyang's ears were ringing, Ping Huaizhen spoke the truth lightly, but every word entered his ears like thunder.He had already lost his momentum during this conversation, and argued again because of unwillingness and anxiety: "When the Empress Dowager Zhaoxian was here, it can be said that she has gone through a lot of hardships for the emperor..."

"I didn't disappoint the Queen Mother," Ping Huaizhen interrupted him with a frown, he really didn't want him to move out of the Queen Mother to put pressure on him, and said resolutely, "The Queen Mother has worked hard for me. I am ashamed to be a son of man, but worthy of being a prince. The only regret, but It's because she couldn't let her see with her own eyes that I ascended the throne and proclaimed myself emperor, and ruled the world."

Zhao Keyang closed his eyes, and there was a pungent smell in his chest.

"Uncle," Ping Huaizhen softened his words, "I will not let the world be destroyed by my hands, nor will it be destroyed by human hands, unless after a hundred years, I will turn into dust and never see the whereabouts of the sun and the moon. I promise this to my uncle." .”

Zhao Keyang shook his head slowly, he didn't open his eyes for a long time, his lips were tightly pressed, and after a while he said the word "That's all" in a very low voice.

At that moment, my heart was full of mixed feelings, I don't know whether I felt suddenly relaxed or feeling more and more lost, I watched him salute and leave silently, but I didn't see him walking out of the imperial study with depression, and suddenly spit out the muddy blood in his throat at the bottom of the steps.

Jiang Chang was so surprised that he stepped forward to help, Zhao Keyang raised his hand to block it, wiped it with his sleeve, and went forward without looking back.

Behind him, Jiang Chang watched from afar until he could no longer see him. He shook his head and turned back into the room with a sigh, without telling the emperor about the scene.

The new incense is still burning by itself, rubbing his forehead and sniffing deeply, finally relieved a little, listening to the approaching footsteps, looking sideways, and suddenly asked: "Is there really a happy event in this palace?"

Jiang Chang didn't answer in silence, and approached with his eyebrows to set the incense.

"Yesterday, when An Jing got married, it was rare and lively, but it was the time when Feiqing was about to go to war, and the late emperor was sick. The people in the palace were not at ease. Things are different now, and we should be more happy. I will announce it to Yu Xuefeng a few days ago. In order to respect the princess, when she is at the right age, I can find a good husband for her."

Jiang Chang paused slightly, and almost slipped the furnace cover between his fingers.

"Be more careful." Ping Huaizhen glanced at him, not delving into the responsibility of his lack of consciousness, and then went back to the previous matter, "Tell me in detail, what is the child's current condition?"

"Whoo."

Jiang Chang carefully closed the furnace lid, and told him in detail what he knew in a soft voice.

At Xu Shiping, Huai Zhende went out of the palace and went to Li's mansion to find Li Qingjue.

The cool moon is above the branches, the twilight recedes and the heat of the day disappears, when Ping Huaizhen enters the courtyard, he sees a bamboo couch placed by the tree, and Li Qingjue is lying on his side on it, asleep.He couldn't bear to be disturbed, so he sat lightly on the side of the couch and accompanied him quietly, waiting for him to wake up leisurely after a long while.

Li Qingjue was still in a daze, he touched half of his cheek that was warm in sleep with his hand, rubbed his eyes lightly, and asked, "What time is it?"

Ping Huaizhen smiled and replied, "It's half past Xu."

Li Qingjue propped himself up and sat up, belatedly raised his eyes to look at the moon: "I slept for a long time." Then he said, "I just had a long dream."

"Dream what?"

"Prosperity and peace."

"That's all?"

"'Just that'?" Li Qingjue shook his head, "Your Majesty thinks it's easy to keep peace forever?"

"It's not easy," Ping Huaizhen promised with a smile, "but it will definitely come true."

Li Qingjue smiled slightly after hearing this, and his eyes were serious: "Chen Xin, what I want is for the king to be safe and peaceful, and the mountains and rivers will last forever."

Ping Huaizhen's heart was moved, and he came to find him tonight because he had something important to do, so he took this opportunity to ask: "What I want is not only the eternal existence of mountains and rivers, but also your long-term companion... Qingjue, if one day I'm dead, dare to let go of this country and people, are you willing to go to ordinary people's homes with me and spend the rest of your life?"

Li Qingjue pursed his lips tightly, his eyes were as dark as the night lake, almost thinking that the person in front of him had seen through his dream just now.

He talked about prosperity and peace, but it was nothing more than his high-sounding good words. What he dreamed of was nothing grand and magnificent, only two or three rooms in the courtyard, the lungs filled with coarse tea, and a pair of people.

But it's not easy to get pregnant in this world, and there is no child or daughter under her knees, so who can she let go of with peace of mind?

Li Qingjue didn't dare to answer.

Ping Huaizhen did not lose her patience, she seemed to be able to guess the worries in his heart, took his hand to comfort him and said: "Don't think too much."

Li Qingjue heard the three characters of gentleness, so he said with all his heart, "How could I not want to?"

"Okay," Ping Huaizhen smiled lightly, put his hand between his eyebrows, "I'm here today to tell you something."

Li Qingjue guessed that what he said must be extraordinary, so he leaned over, and immediately there were whispers.

"A few days ago, I ordered Jiang Chang to look for the son of an old man, and now he has found his trace."

Li Qingjue didn't ask why he was looking for someone, but asked who the old man was: "Whose son?"

Then Luojue's hands became tighter, Ping Huaizhen looked at him with deep eyes, he did not want to let go of his hand, his voice was soft but as heavy as a mountain.

"The sixth orphan."