Chapter 463 Feng Chan (5k)
As the emperor, every word, every action, every move will release various signals.
But at this moment, the empress's behavior of deliberately ignoring the Shen family became particularly dazzling in the eyes of the guests in the garden.
There is no need to explain the reasons for each, everyone knows it.
The mighty contest between the Shen family and Zhao Duan during these days has long been a "secret" that needs no words. But at this moment, the empress came in person, as if to save the face of the "imperial husband".
Zhao Duan knew this very well, but he did not deliberately target it. Instead, he tried hard to reduce his presence at this dinner.
A minister should know how to restrain his temper when the king is present.
Under his gaze, Prince Jing sat down and chatted with the empress with a smile, reminiscing about old times and chatting about home affairs. They just asked each other about their current situation.
However, the uncle and nephew, who had not seen each other for several years, had limited common topics to talk about, especially the coup initiated by "Xu Jianwen".
Therefore, after talking for a while, the two sides dropped the topic. As for the quarrels and overt and covert fights between the empress and Prince Jing that Zhao Duan imagined, the drama did not happen.
The hostile relationship between the two sides is already well known to everyone. As the saying goes, there is no need to speculate. What's more, there are many outsiders present tonight, and neither the empress nor Prince Jing has the idea of fighting the royal family to watch others.
Therefore, the entire banquet was unexpectedly dull, and today's attack outside the city was tacitly not mentioned again.
When the prepared songs and dances were over, the empress expressed that she was tired, and Prince Jing stood up and left.
She just remembered something, and finally glanced at the Shen family who had been kneeling on the ground for the first time, almost in admiration, and said lightly:
"The Shen family has been a little too noisy these days."
The old lady who was lying on the ground lowered her eyebrows and said:
"I know my mistake, and the Shen family will fully cooperate with the court's new policies."
So obedient? obedience?
No...you make it look like all my previous thoughts were wasted...Zhao Duan's heart is full of flaws.
Of course he knew that the main reason why the Shen family was nodding to surrender at this moment was that the Shen family had already lost in its own war.
"In that case, retreat."
Xu Zhenguan's tone was neither happy nor sad, and he said calmly.
He immediately stood up and walked towards the room prepared for the empress in the garden, and Zhao Duan followed him like a dog.
Wait for the empress and her entourage to leave.
Waiting further away, the Shen family including "Red Girl" and "Shen Wuji" hurriedly swarmed up to help the old lady and the middle-aged family head who had been kneeling on the ground for an hour or two.
Fortunately, the head of the family is young and strong, and has some foundation in martial arts, so he can handle it.
But the silver-haired old lady was on the verge of exhaustion, and her legs were so painful that she couldn't stand up. She was rubbed painfully by the maid for a while, and then she reluctantly stood up with the help of her family.
He was carried by Shen Wuji again, and he fled the garden like a bereaved dog under the gaze of many strange eyes.
Under night.
The Shen family's carriage was driving along the cold street, and suddenly stopped at a corner. The old lady in the carriage opened her eyelids and heard Shen Wuji driving the car say:
"Prince Jing's car is waiting at the front."
Then, Xu Jinglong got off the carriage of Prince Jing’s Mansion, walked straight to the old lady’s carriage, cupped his hands and said:
"Thank you for your hard work, old lady."
The silver-haired old woman stared at Prince Pianran through the opened car curtain and said:
"What do you want your prince to say?"
Xu Jinglong said calmly: "Wait."
"Wait?" The old lady repeated the word.
Xu Jinglong nodded.
All human wisdom is contained in these five words-wait and hope.
……
……
Landscape garden.
The crowd dispersed, and the lively riverside garden became quiet.
The room where the empress stayed was still the most noble room in the garden.
After Xu Zhenguan stepped into the threshold, he turned to look at Zhao who was following behind, and raised his eyebrows: "What are you doing with me?"
Zhao Duan remained calm:
"Your Majesty comes alone, with no one to serve you. I think of your Majesty's needs, so just give me your orders."
Xu Zhenguan curled her lips imperceptibly, stepped on the gorgeous carpet in the spacious and bright room with her lotus feet, pinched the beautifully trimmed flower branches in a vase on the round table with her slender hands, and said unexpectedly:
"The last time you stayed at Jingyuan, did you stay in this room? Were you assassinated by the oiran?"
? ?
Zhao Duan broke into a cold sweat, his mind was buzzing, and he wondered who had leaked the news?
Could it be Lao Hai?
Yes, it must be that guy Lao Hai...
He took a deep breath, raised his right hand, and swore to the sky with the middle, index, and ring fingers:
"I was pure and innocent that day, and I definitely did not sleep on flowers or willows. Eunuch Hai knows that."
"Pfft..."
Xu Zhenguan was actually amused and said playfully: "I didn't say anything about you. I see you are nervous."
At this moment, the empress switched from being majestic and dignified in front of her foreign ministers to being a little charming and lazy, and the process was extremely smooth.
And as she removed the imperial demeanor that she had deliberately maintained in front of outsiders, the whole room seemed to become brighter.
Zhao Duan was stunned, and suddenly said out of nowhere: "Your Majesty, this will look better."
Xu Zhenguan pursed his lips, thinking that he had relapsed into his old habit of deliberately talking sweetly, so he didn't pay much attention to it. With a wave of his sleeves, two bottles of wine appeared on the table out of thin air: "Drink some with me?"
Just drink whatever you want... Zhao Duan strode forward and picked up a bottle. He didn't forget the fact that the empress was a drunkard in private... and her little habit of hiding and drinking every time she was happy... …
However, since last year's drinking session in the Yuanzu Temple in the Imperial Palace, the monarch and his ministers rarely drank in private again.
"Your Majesty is very happy tonight? Is it because the Shen family has softened?"
Zhao Duan was carrying a silver wine flask with complicated and exquisite patterns. He was looking for a wine cup when he saw that the empress had picked up another jug and walked to the railing of the door in a carefree manner.
The door was open, and the light in the room spread along the threshold, illuminating a small area of the doorway.
Outside the railing, there is a river, and there is no one around. All the waiters have been deliberately driven away by Grandpa Hai and other high-ranking officials.
The empress pulled off the pot lid with a "pop" sound, raised her slender white goose neck, pointed the spout of the silver wine pot at the sandalwood mouth, and drank wantonly.
The clear wine flowed down her fair chin and along her graceful jawline, and she wiped it with her sleeve boldly. The empress looked at the river with hazy eyes, and said, smelling of wine:
"I am taking courage."
Zhao Duan, who followed him out, was stunned.
Xu Zhenguan turned his head and smiled slightly: "Don't they all say that drunkenness makes people cowardly?"
Zhao Duan held the silver wine bottle in both hands, took a sip solemnly, and then said:
"Your Majesty is so brave that you dare to make men in the world lower their eyebrows. Why use wine?"
Xu Zhenguan laughed at himself and said: "When my ancestors were young and conquered the world, they would drink alcohol to strengthen their courage in battles involving life and death. My ancestors were like this, so why don't I dare to speak out?"
Zhao Duan was silent for a moment and said: "Your Majesty is worried about Feng Chan?"
"Yeah."
"How sure is your Majesty?"
"Sixty...seventy percent."
"Not so young anymore."
"But it's not enough," Xu Zhenguan leaned on the railing, looked at the river, and murmured:
"Believe it or not, there are countless people in the world looking here at this moment, looking forward to the result of the Feng Chan. If I succeed, although I dare not say that it will be peaceful, the Eight Kings may not dare to have their thoughts wrong, but if it doesn't succeed."
Zhao Duan took a sip of wine: "So what if it doesn't work? Your Majesty is still Your Majesty?"
Xu Zhenguan said softly:
"If it fails, it will be tantamount to proving to the world that I have not been recognized by the Yu Kingdom's national destiny. By then, the eight kings will only take the opportunity to cause chaos."
Zhao Duan suddenly realized.
Zhenbao is a woman after all, and a woman's claim to be emperor is inherently questioned by the people of the world, and the fate of the country is also related to the people's thoughts. If it fails, the Eight Kings will be equivalent to gaining the "legal principles" to cause chaos:
Since the destiny does not belong to the empress, it is natural for several princes to inherit the throne.
This is a big gamble. If you win, the flowers will bloom. If you lose, the oil will be cooked by fire.
"Your Majesty is so lucky that he can win the battle with a start. Even if he retreats 10,000 steps, he still has the important insurance of me." Zhao Duan said seriously.
"Insurance?" Xu Zhen glanced at him.
Zhao Duan recommended himself as a pillow: "Double cultivation has broken through."
"..." Xu Zhenguan rolled her beautiful eyes and joked: "You are more concerned about this unfair thing, ha, let's wait until you step into the world to talk about it."
There was a feeling of looking down on "childish little boys" in his tone.
Zhao Duan was not convinced, but he was too lazy to argue. He just drank with the empress. After the two jugs of wine were finished, the empress threw the silver jug into the river, turned around and stretched lazily:
"Okay, I'm going to sleep. In the past two days, you should step up your preparations for the Zen ceremony. When the dragon boat arrives in the next two days, you will rush to Luoshan to save you from long nights and dreams."
"Your Majesty?"
Suddenly there was a voice from behind, and the empress looked back in confusion, then froze. Zhao Duan said seriously: "I will protect your majesty."
Xu Zhenguan was inexplicably touched, but he just smiled and turned towards the room:
"Just protect yourself."
The double wooden doors closed.
Zhao Duan pursed his lips, raised his hand, and the silver wine bottle dropped in the water was gently lifted up by a stream of water.
He put away the pair of small white fungus pots and turned towards the room reserved for him next door.
After closing the door, Zhao Duan sat cross-legged and meditated, practicing as usual.
Along with the visualization, he came to the ancient and dilapidated Buddhist temple in the "Six Chapters Sutra" again in a trance.
Zhao Duan pushed open the temple door along the mountain road. The "skull-lifting" attack from Pei Niannu did not appear as promised.
"Senior Pei?"
Zhao Duan looked suspiciously at the armored wedding sorceress sitting alone on the collapsed alchemy furnace in the center of the ruined temple with all the weeds.
Pei Niannu, who has a mysterious temperament and most of his face is covered by a golden mask, stares at the sky in a daze.
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When she heard the shouting, she looked at him and said:
"I... sensed your... call before."
Yes, I asked you to come out to deal with the "God of Law", but you were isolated and couldn't appear... Zhao Duan was not surprised, and nodded and roughly explained.
Pei Niannu said: "That person's power... I am familiar with it... but I can't remember..."
That person? Refers to "Dharma God"? Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment, surprised by the reaction of this old man who was in a strange state and seemed to be in a state of weapon spirit.
"Senior, do you know the origin of the 'Dharma God'?" Zhao Duan asked curiously.
"Can't remember...it's been too long...can't remember..."
Pei Niannu held his head and said, no longer paying attention to him, as if he was talking in his sleep.
……
……
Southeast of Jianning Prefecture, there is a mountain named "Luo".
The mountains are majestic and connected to three mountainous terrains, so they are known as the "roots of the terrain".
There is a royal garden at the foot of the mountain. The land within a radius of five miles is covered by the royal family and ordinary people are not allowed to approach it.
Ever since the news spread that the empress was about to be enthroned, the foothills of Luoshan Mountain had become lively.
In order to please the merchants who were willing to give money to the imperial court, they hired a large number of civilian men and began to rest and reorganize the area around Luoshan two months in advance.
The restricted area has been expanded to a radius of ten miles.
And when the dragon boat team stationed in Jianning Mansion, joined the empress, and a large number of people arrived to stay in the garden at the foot of Luoshan Mountain, the preparations for the Zen Ceremony were in full swing.
Foreign craftsmen and common people crowded into several big towns near Luoshan. At the same time, many people came after hearing the news and gathered around, hoping to witness the emperor's enthronement, which was rare in a century.
On this day, a group of people quietly came to a town near Luoshan and found a desolate mountaintop in the wild.
The mountain wind howls.
On a remote mountaintop, the second prince "Xu Jianwen", who was draped in black robes and had died in a coup three years ago, stood with his hands behind his hands. He looked at the towering and majestic main peak of Luoshan Mountain in the distance and said with a smile:
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"This is a good place to watch the ceremony."
Behind him were three people.
They are:
Qi Yuchun was dressed as a Jianghu man and carried a spear wrapped in cloth behind him.
Wearing a khaki robe, with eyebrows the same color as his clothes, Ren Kun crossed his arms and looked frivolous.
And the "national master" who wears robes, has more three-dimensional facial features than the Yu people, and dresses as a Taoist, bewitches real people.
"Your Highness, although this place is still far from the main peak of Luoshan Mountain, the puppet emperor is powerful, and on the day of the enshrinement of Zen, a large number of troops surrounded the area under martial law. We just came here to watch the excitement, so the risk is too great." Qi Yuchun couldn't bear it. Zhu said.
Ren Kun, who had the opposite personality to him, rarely disagreed and nodded in agreement:
"It is indeed not very safe. Especially if the false emperor advances to the real realm of heaven and humanity, it will be even more dangerous."
Only the perverse character, the bewitched master who was resurrected for the second time, said "hey" and said with a strange smile:
"Perhaps His Highness also wants to contribute to the corruption of the false emperor Feng Chan."
Qi Yuchun glanced at him coldly and said nothing.
After Zhuang Xiaocheng's death, Kuangfu Society almost fell apart. That day, he and Ren Kun were shocked when they found Xu Jianwen. After confirming that His Highness Jianwen was not dead, they understood why Master Zhuang dared to sacrifice himself.
Then, Qi Yuchun became the new leader of Kuangfu Society on the surface, and ordered each branch to enter a "hibernation" state, each dormant, waiting for opportunities.
In fact, it was the resurrected Xu Jianwen who was giving the orders.
Soon after, the real person who had been killed by Zhao Duan appeared and gathered around Xu Jianwen again with the help of the "Master of the Underworld" who had been killed by Zhao Duan.
This time, Xu Jianwen led three core generals of Kuangfu Society to Luoshan alone.
"No," Xu Jianwen shook his head in the mountain breeze, denying the speculation of Master Bewitching. He looked at the majestic Luoshan calmly and said:
"The snipe and the clam fight, and the fisherman wins. This time, we are just watching the ceremony. We don't have to show up. The eight kings will take action on their own. I can just wait here and watch the excitement."
Qi Yuchun couldn't help but said:
"If Your Highness wants to watch the fun, why should you put yourself in danger?"
Xu Jianwen slowly turned around. Under the black hood, there was a slightly pale, wealthy face:
"The third sister is about to die. As the second brother, how can I not see her off?"
……
……
In the third year of Tianfeng, it is the fifteenth day of the fifth month, Jiazi day.
It is appropriate to pray for blessings, fast, and offer sacrifices to heaven and earth.
The day of the Zen Ceremony has finally arrived. Zhao Duan followed the empress and arrived at the royal manor near Luoshan a few days ago.
Also living in the manor were the fleet palace officials headed by Mo Chou and Sun Lianying, and a group of civil servants headed by the Minister of Rites.
As well as a group of imperial guards led by Eunuch Hai.
In addition, local officials headed by Governor Ning and Magistrate Jianning, as well as three elite troops from Jiancheng Road, Huaishuidao and Binhai Road have also been stationed in advance.
In order to successfully hold the Zen ceremony, on this day, with Luoshan as the center, no pedestrians are allowed on the roads within a radius of 20 miles, and households are closed and are not allowed to go to the streets.
The army and officials inspected Luoshan as a whole three times to ensure that no idlers were staying.
The accompanying star officials of Qin Tianjian repeatedly divined and confirmed that this day was an auspicious day for Zen. At dawn in the early morning, Zhao Duan saw that the sky was cloudless and the sun was shining brightly. It was an excellent weather.
Zhao Duan put on a brand new official robe, and together with Eunuch Hai and others, arrived at the foot of Luoshan Mountain in advance to take charge of security patrols.
The main peak of Luoshan Mountain is so tall that if you stand at the foot of the mountain and look up, you will see that the whole mountain is lush and green, and the scenery is unparalleled. With the main peak as the center, starting from the mountainside, there are faint silk ribbons of clouds and mist flowing and coiling.
"It's weird. It's clear that there are no clouds in the sky, but why are there clouds and mist on this mountain?" Zhao Duan stood in the crowd and asked curiously.
The old eunuch in python robe stood beside him. Hai Chunlin was also dressed up today and said calmly:
"Luoshan is hollow, and there are springs in the ground below, and water vapor gushes out to form clouds and mist."
This is so unscientific... Zhao Duan looked at the old man in surprise and didn't believe a word of it.
But when I think about the existence of strange natural phenomena that are difficult to understand in some scenic spots in my previous life, I am still doubtful.
"Is it true that Prince Jing didn't come to the Zen ceremony today?"
Zhao Duan looked around, and as far as he could see, in addition to a large group of officials from the Ministry of Rites and local officials gathered around the altar at the foot of the mountain, there were also a large number of elite soldiers who had sealed off the area around the foot of the mountain.
There are flags with the word "Yu" erected every ten feet.
At this time in the morning, the sky was already bright, but there was still a bit of coolness, and the empress's dragon chariot had not yet arrived.
Eunuch Hai rolled up his sleeves and said calmly:
"The Shadow Guards sent news that Prince Jing and his family are all in Prince Jianning's Mansion and cannot come out because they are sick."
Zhao Duan rubbed his chin:
"You must be holding back your misfortune. Where are the escaped warlocks from the Dharma God Sect? Have you found any traces?"
Eunuch Hai shook his head:
"There is no trace, but with the power of the 'Dharma God', he will definitely appear today. Although the core of Fengchan is the five-color altar on the top of the mountain, the altar of gods at the foot of the mountain still has a lot to do with Fengchan.
If some people headed by King Jing want to destroy Fengchan, the most likely way is to send experts to attack the foot of the mountain and destroy the altar... Today, we are going to protect the foot of the mountain. ”
So...the group of magicians from the Dharma God Sect, Duan Shui Shui, as well as Prince Jing's private soldiers, spies and a series of other experts, as well as the other princes and the powerful men who may have been sent secretly, will all ambush them. Attack the altar today?
Zhao Duan swallowed and murmured: "Father, can you withstand it?"
Eunuch Hai glanced at him lightly: "What are you afraid of?"
Zhao Duan also laughed, showing his white teeth: "Don't be afraid of whoever comes."
Suddenly, the sound of heavy bells and drums came from a distance, echoing in the ears of everyone at the foot of the mountain, and a sense of solemnity arose spontaneously.
The strong men in the army, who had been chatting with Ouchi in a relaxed manner before, all kept silent and showed serious expressions.
Amidst the music of the sacrificial ceremony played by the Ministry of Rites, a group of people left the Royal Villa in a mighty manner and headed towards Luoshan.
The Empress has arrived.
(End of chapter)