Clear and Muddy Loss of Love

Chapter 228

Empress Qiankunding ascends the throne

Qi Yan and Nangong Jingnv have their own ideas on why Concubine Li came here.

Waking up early in the morning, with too many people and busy schedules, Nangong Jingnu and Qi Yan didn't have time to communicate with each other.

When the two came to the main hall, Nangong Jingnv saw where Concubine Li was sitting and said, "Concubine Li, please take your seat."

Concubine Li smiled faintly, Time seemed to be particularly fond of this woman, and did not leave too many marks on her almost innocent face, this smile was not pretentious, but it was indeed extremely beautiful.

Concubine Li: "His Highness Zhen Zhen is too polite, please take your seat."

It stands to reason that Concubine Li should take the lead, especially in the current situation, Nangong Jingnv's support as a princess has passed away, and with Nangongda's death, Concubine Li is more precious than her mother.

Qi Yan sneered in her heart: There is nothing to show courteousness to, either adultery or robbery.

Qi Yan chose the last seat and took a seat. Concubine Li glanced at Qi Yan indifferently, then turned to Nangong Jingnv and asked: "I heard that His Highness was injured yesterday, and I am here to visit today."

Nangong Jingnv subconsciously raised her hand and touched the back of her head that was still in pain, her eyes darkened, and she said sadly: "Thank you, Empress Li, for your concern, I am fine, it will probably be fine after a few days of pain." The injury was done by Lu Zhongxing, and the wound was still hurting, but Lu Zhongxing was no longer there.

Concubine Li: "That's good. I don't want such a thing to happen. As a woman, I shouldn't talk too much. It's just that too many things have happened in the inner court in the past few years, and I'm also panicked." Anxiety, there is nowhere to relieve the depression in my heart, and I am grateful to Her Royal Highness for not despising it."

Nangong Jingnv also had some pity for the woman in front of her, she let go of her guard for the time being, and asked in a slow tone: "Baby...did you sleep well last night?"

It was only when the words were on the verge of her mouth that Nangong Jingnv remembered that Nangong Bao and Nangongli should leave Beijing today, so she abruptly changed her words.

Qi Yan cast a helpless glance at Nangong Jingnv, and looked away, but the corners of her mouth curved slightly.

As if going back to many years ago, Nangong Jingnv has become that ignorant girl who is not familiar with the world.

It's been a long time since Nangong Jingnv made this kind of low-level mistake, and Qi Yan misses it a little.

The unnatural look on Concubine Li's face flashed away, she turned her gaze back to Qi Yan, and said in a discussing tone: "I would like to have a few words of kindness with Your Highness the Princess, may it be convenient? "

Qi Yan smiled gently, got up and said: "Of course. Your Highness, I will wait outside the hall."

Nangong Jingnv was a little bit dissatisfied, she really didn't like Li Concubine being treated differently and being polite to herself, but Qi Yan held it with a superior attitude.

In Nangong Jingnv's heart, Qi Yan is more important than herself, even if Concubine Li treats her like this, she can accept Qi Yan's courtesy.

Nangong Jingnv can understand Li Fei's intentions, but emotionally she can't accept that Li Fei treats her beloved as an outsider.

After Qi Yan left, Concubine Li took out her handkerchief and wiped away her tears. If it were said that this beauty was raining with pear blossoms, it would take a blink of an eye.

Nangong Jingnv was a little surprised, she didn't understand why this nice person would change at will?

Nangong Jingnu: "Ma'am, what are you?"

Concubine Li: "Your Highness, can you please say a few words in front of Eunuch Sijiu so that Lao Ba can stay in the capital?"

Before Nangong Jingnv could speak, Concubine Li said again: "Your Highness is the only heir of His Majesty, so the weight is naturally not comparable to that of other heirs. If His Highness was born as a man, how can there be so many twists and turns in this palace? Now the heir Withering, Lao Ba was raised in the deep palace since he was a child and has never been to the people, and this is the first time he has gone out so far, I, a mother, really don't feel relieved!"

After finishing speaking, Concubine Li burst into tears: "I heard from the servants in the palace that a letter from their hometown said that now there are bandits running around outside, and there are disaster victims everywhere. I only have one child, Lao Ba, for the rest of my life. Please think about it for our mother and son, princess."

Nan Gongbao was born in Jingjia's second year, and he just turned 14 this year. This incident was indeed a bit early for him.

Nangong Jingnv looked at Concubine Li and couldn't bear it.

Xiao Jiu's tragic death flashed in his mind again, he only had these two younger brothers left, and Lao Ba was only 14 years old this year, so it would be fine even if he stayed in the capital.

But Nangong Jingnu still said: "Madam, why don't I understand your feelings? It's just that I can't do anything about this matter. Who would dare to disobey the last emperor's edict? Fifth brother is an example."

Concubine Li cried even more sadly, and blurted out: "But if there is something wrong with Lao Ba, the last emperor's last edict will be settled without looking at it, right?"

Nangong Jingnv suddenly realized: It turns out that the concubine Li is here to spy on her!

Nangong Jingnv remained calm, and continued following Concubine Li's words: "The prince's edict was written by the emperor himself, and no one knows who it is written in."

Concubine Li took off her handkerchief and asked, "What if Nan Gongda is written in His Majesty's last edict?"

Nangong Jingnu secretly smiled: So, she was waiting for her here.

Nangong Jingnu: "I'm just a princess, how can I know what my father thinks? If it's really what the concubine Li said... that's also a matter for the ministers of the court, and I don't have a place to speak."

Concubine Li pinched the silk handkerchief, and scrutinized Nangong Jingnv's expression unobtrusively. Seeing that she was calm, she said tentatively: "But I heard that His Majesty's decree ordered all the heirs to go to the ancestral mausoleum. Why? Won't the second and fourth child go? Also... It is said that Taiwei Lu Lord died in battle, how can the military officers be leaderless?"

Nangong Jingnu sneered in her heart: Concubine Li really thinks of herself as an ignorant girl. She dare not ask so many people in the palace. It seems that my disguise these years has not been in vain. In Concubine Li's heart, I am afraid that she is still the unruly and willful one. Princess, one by one seems to be anxiously asking questions like a loving mother, but in fact they are intertwined, and each question hits the key question. It seems that this Concubine Li is not so peaceful on the surface.

Nangong Jingnu said with a smile: "Your Majesty, you made me ask this question. I only wander around the harem and the mansion on weekdays. How can I know these things? Maybe Eldest Sister knows something, why don't you ask her?"

Concubine Li sneered: "No need, I just don't want to part with Lao Ba. If Your Highness has a chance, please persuade me. Thank you for success or failure."

Nangong Jingnu: "Okay."

Concubine Li left, Nangong Jingnv was a little disappointed.

Sure enough, I was wrong, but after thinking about it, it makes sense.Absolute power seems to be close at hand, who would not be tempted?

Nangong Jingnv found Qi Yan, and the two looked side by side at Concubine Li's back, Qi Yan: "How is it?"

Nangong Jingnu: "Sure enough, the visitor was not kind, so he just cared about me. Where is the visit?"

Qi Yan frowned, took Nangong Jingnv's hand, squeezed it twice, and then let go: "Your Highness has never been old with this empress, it is really not easy for her to go through this journey in the name of visiting."

Nangong Jingnu: "Let's go, let's go to Ganquan Palace."

When they came to the mourning hall, Nangong Jingnv and Qi Yan were silent, the two abolished princes and the old seven and eight were all kneeling in the mourning hall, Sijiu stood aside with ugly expressions.

Nangong Jingnv and Qi Yan looked at each other: if there is no skin, there will be no hair. Sure enough, once Nangong Rang died, no one in the inner court would listen to him anymore.

Sijiu looked at Nangong Jingnu guiltily, and the latter gave him a relieved look. Sijiu turned his head to look at Nangongrang's golden nanmu coffin, which stood like a statue.

No matter how great Sijiu's contribution is, in the eyes of these imperial heirs, he is just a slave after all. If the princes really resist to the end, Sijiu will have no choice. Are they all cut?

Nangong Bao did not go as expected by Nangong Jingnu, and Nangongli also stayed in the capital, which is a bit intriguing.

But Nangong Jingnu is not in a hurry, she still has the last hole card in her hand, and she has always been confident that as long as Qi Yan is by her side, there will be no failure.

Qi Yan is a person who does not promise easily, but her promise is more important than a thousand catties.

Qi Yan stayed with Nangong Jingnv in the mourning hall for half a day, and found an excuse to retreat...

Early the next morning, that is, on the third day after Nangong Rang died, General Zhenbei led 8 soldiers from Youzhou Prefecture into Beijing. Behind him, all the remaining 15 people were brought out. He set up camp outside the city and entered the capital with only [-] people.

After the troops were stationed, the scene outside the city gate became more and more strange.

After Nangong Rang came to power, he implemented a national policy of cutting leeks - exchanging banknotes for salt.Although it solved the problem of the empty treasury in the early days of the founding of the country, it left a bigger long-term hidden danger.

This policy has been implemented for more than ten years, and most of the people in Wei State have suffered greatly from it. In addition, natural disasters and man-made disasters have continued in recent years, and various forces such as: Qi Yan’s Sifang Bank secretly annexed farmers’ land, causing a large number of farmers to lose their money. Basically, many peasant households who have survived a cold winter have also come to the end. Although they still have some money left over from selling their land, for some reason, the price of food is almost one price a day, which has reached an unacceptable level. To such a degree, they had no choice but to ruthlessly start to eat their own grain, and ate all the seeds of the spring plowing in the coming year, looking forward to the return of grain prices to normal, but it was a pity that they were doomed to be disappointed.

Not to mention that after several years of accumulation, under the management of Qian Yuan and Gu Feng, the wealth of Sifang Bank has accumulated to a terrible level, and there is an unfathomable masked man secretly fueling the flames.

And some profiteers who are rich and unkind, are making money for the country.

A few years ago, the victims of disasters were only found in remote state capitals, and Gyeonggi was considered a wealthy place, but... In just a few years, refugees from Gyeonggi have flocked to the feet of the Son of Heaven.

Outside the capital, the tents of the [-] Youzhou troops were in order, and the air was filled with the smell of rice.

On the other side were countless refugees. They were sallow and emaciated, huddled under the chilly spring cold, looking at the smoke in the barracks with despair and sadness.

The nobles living in the palace cannot see it here.

The rich wine and meat smell bad, and there are frozen bones on the road, but that's it.

General Zhenbei came here with the army without even raising his eyelids. In the eyes of General Shiqing Shilu, these refugees are nothing but ants, and it is a grace not to expel them.

An army of [-] was finalized.

When Shangguan Wu arrived at Ganquan Palace, he first greeted all the military officers familiarly, and then went to the mourning hall, kowtowed three times and kowtowed nine times, calling out to his father.

As a son-in-law, Shangguan Wu did not go beyond the rules when he went to Beijing for the funeral, but... Shangguan Wu came too soon, right?

All the officials were still guessing that the report of the patrol battalion had just been delivered to the palace. After Xing Jingfu read it, his face sank: tens of thousands of Youzhou soldiers were stationed outside the city!

He thought about it, and came to Shangguan Wu with the report: "General Shangguan, did he bring a sergeant with him when he came to Beijing this time?"

Shangguan Wu: "Eighty thousand."

A stone stirred up a thousand waves, and everyone in the field changed expression. Could it be that just after Nan Gongda was calmed down, another Shangguan Wu came?

Xing Jingfu: "What is the meaning of this, Lord Shangguan?"

Shangguan Wu Dayi said awe-inspiringly: "It is ordered to urge all princes to abide by the late emperor's last edict!"

Xing Jing Fu: "Where is the imperial decree?"

Shangguan Wu: "It's the sage Shang's mouth!"

Xing Jingfu: "Who will testify?"

Nangong Sunu: "I can testify that as early as when my father was in critical condition, I received a spoken word from my father to send soldiers from Youzhou to Beijing to defend the dignity of the Tian family!"

……

That night, Nangong Wei and Nangong Zhen were imprisoned in Dali Temple again. Five thousand elite soldiers from Youzhou entered the palace to take over the duties of guarding the palace from the Imperial Forest Army. In addition, another ten thousand elite soldiers were sent to garrison the mansion of the court minister.

The sky of the imperial city changed overnight, and the common people all guessed that Shangguan Wu came to force the palace. Some even said that the heirs of the emperor had been killed, and Shangguan Wu was about to ascend the throne.

Nangongbao and Nangongli returned to their respective palaces to pack up their luggage, and in the morning under the guard of the Imperial Guard, they went to the ancestral mausoleum to pick up the coffin of the Empress Yuan.

Nangong Jingnv had just finished washing, but a servant girl came to report: "The Eighth Prince has come down."

Nangong Jingnv put on an outer shirt and asked Nangongbao to come in. The 14-year-old Nangongbao was still a half-grown child, but a layer of beard appeared on her lips, which was green.

Nangong Jingnu: "Why don't you take a good rest at this late hour, you will be leaving early tomorrow morning."

Nan Gongbao sat across from Nangong Jingnu, and glanced at Qiu Ju.

Nangong Jingnu: "Go down first."

Qiu Ju: "Yes."

Nangong Bao called out: "Sister San." Then he looked straight at Nangong Jingnv, as if hesitating to speak.

Nangong Jingnv sighed lightly: "If you have anything to say, just say it, there are only us two siblings here."

Nan Gongbao: "Third sister, will the throne be mine?"

Nangong Jingnu: "Old Ba?!"

Nangongbao showed a stubborn face, and continued: "Third sister, my brothers are gone. Although Seventh brother is a few years older than me, he is not as good as me in terms of background, and I am confident that he is worse than him in terms of ability. Father I loved you the most before, didn't I tell you who the crown prince would be?"

Nangong Jingnv was a little stunned. She looked at the 14-year-old younger brother in front of her. She was still childish, but her desire for power was no less than that of any royal brother.

Nangong Jingnv was silent for a long time. In her memory, Lao Ba was still that soft little dumpling, always followed by Xiao Jiu. Xiao Jiu was timid and afraid of others, and Lao Ba always stood in front of him.

In my memory, Lao Ba was also very timid. He was afraid of the sixth brother, and he was not close to the other older brothers. Ba Ye just blushed and called her sister, and then dragged Xiao Jiu away amidst Nangong Jingnv's hearty laughter.

Nangong Jingnv carefully looked at her younger brother in front of her. Nangong Bao seemed to have lost some weight. The baby fat from before had disappeared, and she had inherited Concubine Li's good looks and her father's determination and heroism.

There was an indescribable feeling lingering in Nangong Jingnv's heart, at this moment she suddenly felt very lonely.

Nan Gongbao: "Second and fourth are not qualified to inherit the throne, now only me, seventh brother, and third sister are left... I want to ask you a question, who do you support?"

Nangong Jingnv's lips moved, and said quietly: "You and Xiao Qi are both my younger brothers, I..."

Unexpectedly, Nan Gongbao's face showed disdain. He was too young to hide his emotions, and he seemed more and more disobedient and glaring.

Nan Gongbao snapped and said: "Forget it, third sister, with Seventh brother's withdrawn temperament, you are not afraid that he will squeeze us out after he ascends the throne? What can he give you? If third sister supports me with all her strength, I will agree to whatever third sister wants!" "

Nangong Jingnu: "...Old Ba, who taught you these words?"

Nan Gongbao: "No one taught me, I thought of it myself."

Yes, as a prince, there are some things that flow in your bones...

After sending Nangongbao away, Nangong Jingnv only felt exhausted physically and mentally. She lay on the bed tossing and turning, touching the empty half of the bed, and wanted to cry, but she didn't shed a single tear.

……

The next day, the two princes left Beijing.

Half a month later, Sijiu led all the officials to take out the imperial decree of the former emperor and read it out in public on the grounds that the oil was exhausted and the lamp was dry, fearing that time would not be long and it would be difficult to complete the emperor's order.

For the past half month, the courtiers have been living in dire straits. Even when they return home and enter the palace, they are "escorted" by Youzhou soldiers along the way. They are even ready for the Shangguan Military Association to force the palace to stand on their own. Some spineless civil servants even hanged themselves The white silk is all ready.

When Sijiu proposed this matter, no one objected, the emperor is fine, as long as he doesn’t torture them anymore, it’s just that this other kind of imperial decree, like a runaway carriage, made these ministers’ hearts flutter up and down...

"Fengtian Chengyun Emperor, the imperial edict said: In my life, I had nine sons. It is my fault that the eldest son was born in a humble background; the second and fourth sons do not respect filial piety, have no eyes on the king, and privately practice the art of disgusting victory. I am heartbroken and heartbroken. The position of authority is no longer considered; the third son has more than enough strategy and lack of mind, so he is not a good candidate; although the fifth son is congenitally deficient, I want to entrust him with a heavy responsibility, but the continuous natural disasters and man-made disasters during his rule of the country are signs of his ancestors' spirits and heaven's warnings; the sixth son is stubborn; The seven sons are withdrawn, the eight sons and the nine sons are young and ignorant, and they may be in danger from their relatives..."

After reading this in Sijiu, all the ministers were dumbfounded. Generally speaking, the will is not too long. At most, they will talk about their own achievements, and then explain the candidate for the crown prince. Rejected one by one later, what's going on?

Nangong Rang's imperial decree was so special that the courtiers ignored many loopholes, for example: when writing this imperial edict, several princes had already died, but in Nangongrang's writing, it seems that they are still alive?If Nangong Rang didn't know about it, then who gave you the seals of the princes?

Is this a false edict?Shangguan Wu had already stolen the real imperial decree and passed it on to himself?

Forty-nine: "It is difficult for many princes to inherit the great rule. I am ashamed of my ancestors. However, a country cannot be without a king for a day, and the Great Wei cannot last for two generations. My beloved daughter Nangong Jing is intelligent, generous, and virtuous. Zhuang Xian, respect filial piety, respect brothers and sisters, until this critical moment of life and death, I will pass on the throne to Jingnv of Nangong, and hope to be listed as a minister to help me with all my strength, to protect me from generation to generation, and I will die with peace in my eyes. this!"