Chapter 20： Return North

Shen Wen smiled, climbed out of the window and went to the room. Carefully slipped out of his courtyard by the shadow. She didn't want to be caught, how could she give up the disguise she worked so hard to maintain, not to mention that there were too many people in the house. Both the old lady and the Yang family were not easy to fake, and it was easy to reveal themselves in their daily behavior.

Shen Wen guessed that if his father had anything to say, it should be with the old lady, so he carefully touched it to the small courtyard where the old lady lived at the back of the Hou Mansion.

When she approached the backyard, Shen Wen found that there were sergeants walking around. Now, she was happy instead. If the place they secretly talked about was Yang's main house, she might not be able to get close, but if it was really the place where the old lady lived, she had her own secret passage: a dog hole filled by someone.

Shen Wen knew that the old lady had raised a dog a long time ago, but after Yang gave birth to a child, the old lady was afraid that the dog would startle the child, so she sent the dog to Zhuangzi. The dog hole in the courtyard where the old lady lived was originally blocked, because the old lady always wanted to bring the dog back when the child was older. Who knew that Yang gave birth one by one, and the dogs were old and dead and didn't come back. Because the dog hole on the false block is small, adults can't get through it, so he hasn't filled it seriously.

Shen Wen chose a gap in the patrolling sergeant and approached the courtyard wall. When he reached the dog hole filled with bricks and weeds, he gently took out a few stones, and a hole appeared in the shadow. Fortunately, she was still an eight-year-old child. Although she was a little fatter, she had practiced light exercises for many years, and her body was soft. She held her breath and went through.

She turned around and covered the hole with weeds to prevent the light from showing through. There was no one in the small yard, so what Zhenbeihou said did not want the sergeants to hear.

Shen Wen knew that Zhenbei Hou was practising hard work, but he was also very clever, so he was extra careful and approached the old lady's main house gently in the shadow like a cat.

When he reached a place where he could hear their conversation, Shen Wen stopped, slowed his breathing, and closed his eyes to listen to the conversation in the room.

Zhenbeihou’s voice: "...The auspicious beast gave birth to a freak, and the prince said that it was a warning sign in the sky, indicating that some people have unruly hearts, and have the heart of chaos and thieves. The emperor said that if there are really people with unpredictable intentions, then there will be generations to come. They will be infamy on their backs, and they will suffer eternal torment in the eighteenth **** if they die." Zhenbeihou sighed and said: "After the emperor said, he stared at me for a long time, and all the courtiers looked at me. I am. I told the emperor that I, Shen Jiazhong, served the country and thought it was proud of the country to die on the battlefield for the people. The emperor smiled and said, "I know that Zhenbeihou must not be a minister of two hearts." There is a lot of contempt in the words. "

The old lady gave a "bah" and said, "It's just because Lord Hou said that..." She sighed deeply.

The room was quiet for a while, Yang's choked up and asked, "Master Hou, what should we do?"

Zhenbeihou sighed again and slowly said, "As I said in the temple, my Shen family can fight to death for the country and the people. Whatever the emperor thinks, what the prince thinks, nothing can change the heart of my Shen family. ."

The Yang stammered, "But, if the emperor..."

Zhenbeihou said: "Then the emperor, no matter what, can't kill me. Bei Rong has never died since ancient times when he violated my heart. Now that Tugu Khan has a sturdy nature and ambition to dominate. Because he and a few brothers and uncles are vying for the supremacy of Northern Xinjiang, there is no time to go south, and they are just a test every year. If the emperor gets rid of me and someone else comes to lead the army, even if Shen Jiajun takes care of the overall situation and obeys the new commander, it will definitely be given to Bei Rong. A good opportunity. I can only hold on to the northern borders now and not allow the Beirong to cross the border, so as to protect my people from the war. If one day, I will not be able to..." He stopped.

The old lady said slowly: "My son is right. There will be a day, but I will go to see Lord Hou. My Shen family does not owe the people of Jun'en, so I don't have to fear anywhere."

Yang cried in a low voice: "I would like to go with my husband..."

Zhenbeihou said: "By then, if there are descendants in my Shen family, you must take good care of you and don't be confused."

Young's just cried. The old lady sighed and said, "What are you crying for? It's not so good now. The two hundred thousand Shen Jiajun is the strongest army in my country. If the emperor doesn't want to dig his own grave, he shouldn't be foolish."

Zhenbeihou said: "In the capital, let the children communicate with the royal family as little as possible."

Yang asked hesitantly: "Three princes, is it possible..."

Zhenbeihou immediately said: "The prince is the protagonist, and has never done anything wrong in recent years. If the direction of the officials is changed, the court will be chaotic. The ceremony of this canonization is very grand, and the emperor seems to be very sure about the prince."

Yang sighed: "I think the three princes are quite hearty..."

Zhenbeihou interrupted: "Don't mention this matter again. I know that Dalang had a close relationship with the third prince. After we marry him next year, he will let him go to the border with me as soon as he has children. The same goes for Erlang. Leave the capital as soon as possible after getting married, and give less money to people."

Probably reluctant to leave the two sons, Yang responded with sobbing, completely out of the usual ruggedness.

Shen Wen felt deeply angry.

She originally thought that the Hou Mansion had stepped into the prince's trap in ignorance, but now she realized that Zhenbei Hou might have known that the emperor and the prince had a desire to exclude dissidents, but they could not do anything. Because if there is any change in Zhenbeihou, it will not only cause instability, war and common people in the north, but will also be permanently nailed to the pillar of shame in history and be criticized by future generations. In this era of honor, this kind of shame is more terrible than death.

Zhenbeihou could only continue to guard northern Xinjiang for the people and those who wanted to put him to death, waiting for the day when the butcher knife fell, unable to evade, unable to fight back, and greet death with his eyes open. Perhaps "begging for mercy and obedience" would be able to survive, but Zhenbeihou never thought of it, nor did the old lady and the Yang give this suggestion.

Shen Wen slowly retreated to the courtyard wall, crawled out of the hole, filled stones and weeds back into the hole, passed the sergeant's inspection, but did not return to the courtyard, and went straight to the outside of the courtyard.

There was too strong emotions in her heart, she had to vent it, and she ran all the way to the Grand Prince's Mansion.

After the death of the previous life, she once hated the prince very much. She thought that the prince was taboo for making contact with the three princes, and she was not at ease, so she wanted to kill the hidden dangers that she didn't like. Now she could see clearly that the emperor had silently agreed to the prince's malice before the last assassin. Perhaps, this was originally the emperor's selfish intentions. He tightly bound Zhenbeihou with the so-called "loyalty to the emperor", "the heart of the second minister" and other moral concepts, but he did not discern the behavior of him and his son. This double standard hypocrisy completely revealed the imperial power. Of viciousness.

Only now did Shen Wen understand the strong attacks on the thousand-year-old emperor system from later generations, and only then understood the practical meaning of what later generations said "despicable is the pass of the despicable, and the noble is the epitaph of the noble".

Zhenbeihou's loyalty is his death sentence, and the prince's sinfulness is the reason for his victory.

Shen Wen crossed the high wall from the shadows and entered the Grand Prince's Mansion.

The grand prince's mansion was filled with joyous noise.

After the crown prince canonized, he officially entered the Eastern Palace. Tomorrow will begin to move, and guests will have a big banquet in the mansion tonight. Shen Wen walked to the small courtyard where the prince she had visited last time was close to the small courtyard where she had a close conversation with his staff. Today, it was brightly lit.

In the shadows, Shen Wen looked at the door leading to the small courtyard, wondering if he should set a fire and burn it to relieve his qi. But she has learned in the millennia that after death, people will experience everything she gave to others when she was alive, and let her calm down slowly.

Seeing the time is almost up, Shen Wen just wanted to leave, and a group of people in the distance came around the prince. The prince was obviously drunk, and said with a smile: "...The father is brilliant... You didn't see Zhenbeihou's face... It's funny..."

Everyone agreed, and some people said: "His Royal Highness will go into the room and talk about it."

Shen Wen finally couldn't hold back, closed his eyes and flicked the Yangling point on the prince's right leg in his mind. When one of the prince's legs was soft, he knelt on the ground. Just as the person next to him was about to help, Shen Wen touched the other side of the prince again. Weizhong point on the knee.

The prince felt that one knee suddenly became numb, and the center of gravity naturally shifted to the other side. Then he felt a soreness on the back of the knee, and the tingling sensation spread to the calf, even if someone was pulling it, he fell heavily on the ground and the knee hit the ground, like Kneeling, his sleeves pierced, and a slit was torn at the seam.

Everyone was startled at first, but then said with a smile: "His Royal Highness is drunk!" Helped the prince up, one of them said: "Let's go to rest!"

The prince yelled anxiously: "No! Go...to the study! Otherwise I...can't sleep..."

Several people helped him into the yard.

Shen Wenyao watched the prince kneel down, and said to his heart, this is a sober for you. From now on, you will make more mistakes, and your crime will be punished! Your herd and protection will be removed with you, even if your father, respected as the emperor, is also not immune. You must continue the journey of destruction that has already begun, and don't let me down.

Thinking of this, Shen Wen took a long breath before turning around and ran to the high wall. Just on the wall, a figure lying on the wall early said in a low voice: "You...really come! You...wait..."

As soon as Shen Wen stopped, she was a little familiar with the voice, and she didn't even dare to speak. She jumped off the wall and ran without looking back. The person on the wall let out a dissatisfied "Hey".

When he was almost running to the Hou Mansion, Shen Wen faintly felt that the voice was a bit like Zhang Yunming's. This person was obviously waiting for her there, but the other party was definitely not the prince's person, but was probably a very curious guy. Shen Wen knew that the other party would never catch up to her, and that the other party would not know who she was. She didn't want to hurt the other party, so she had to ignore it again and again, otherwise she would go back to pursue the other party, and it would be easier to expose herself.

The prince sitting drunk in the study has become his habit. If he doesn't sit here every day, talk to his staff, and talk about miscellaneous things, he feels that this day is not safe. No matter how important the day, whether the wedding or the canonization ceremony, in the end, he still has to go to the study to talk to these confidants.

The prince fell to the ground just now, and he felt unlucky: Kneeling on the ground is surrender, symbolizing the position of the owner; the sleeves are torn at the shoulders, which symbolizes the loss of the wings. Coupled with the pain of the knee falling, he suddenly fell into a depression, and his smile turned into a gloomy face.

Seeing the prince's unhappiness, one of his staff hurriedly said: "His Royal Highness is just to worry about the troubles. Your Royal Highness has to squat down before spreading his wings, so that he can go straight to the Nine Heavens. Your Royal Highness is the Roc, so naturally you have to suppress it first. Yang, there will be great things in the future. The sleeves are torn apart, indicating that the old has gone and the new has come. It shows that His Royal Highness is definitely going to recruit staff and subordinates to help him."

The prince relieved his brows and nodded: "It makes sense." Then he asked: "Recently, what happened to the Zhenbei Hou Mansion..." He snorted disdainfully.

One person replied: "Our people have been bought into the mansion by Zhenbeihou. It was the second lady who asked for her, just like the Su Wanniang. When she heard of her bleak life experience, she relented. It can be seen that Su Wanniang That time was absolutely coincidental. Our people said that the second lady was dismissed by the brothers and sisters in the mansion and blamed her for being ignorant. She knew she was crying. In the yard, everything listened to Su Wanniang, and her own nanny was in Su Wanniang. Under the control of her, she was raised for nothing, and she was completely an idiot."

The prince sneered, and the staff continued: "Zhenbeihou still kept the children studying martial arts as they did before. He didn't contact the military attaché in Beijing. He refused to see the people who went to him. His wife. I started packing up these days and never walked with relatives of other families."

The prince nodded: "He is more honest, so he will be less troublesome."

Everyone agreed, although they were not sure that the prince could give Zhenbeihou any trouble.

The day after the ceremony, the old Taoist priest sat cross-legged on a tree stump in the woods. He raised his hand and counted repeatedly. Not far away, a little child was running and jumping back and forth in the forest. The old Taoist frowned unhappily at the child: "It was because of your fever last night that I could not see the astronomical phenomenon. Now I have calculated it and I can't believe it."

The child didn't hear it at all, and continued to play by himself. The veteran sighed: "You were considered a psychic at the beginning, but I have adopted you until now, I haven't seen it!"

The child ran over and said with a smile: "Master, look, this beetle!"

The old Dao looked at the child's eyes intently: "Do you feel anything. The new crown prince has a weak dragon spirit, a fuzzy fate, and the chaos of the country's fortunes. There is a power against the sky..."

The child was surprised: "This beetle has so many uses"

The old Tao waved his hand: "Go and play! I will count..."

In the same morning, the sky in the capital was clear and cloudless. The three princes entered the gate of Chen Guifei's palace. Chen Guifei smiled softly as before, and spoke softly and slowly: "The emperor is here, it's good these days."

The three princes stepped forward and said to Concubine Chen Gui after the salute: "The sun is good today, and the child will accompany her mother to walk in the garden.

Concubine Chen nodded with a smile, and the three princes immediately emptied one of the arms of Concubine Chen and walked out of the door slowly with her in his arms. He led Concubine Chen to walk among the lonely flowers after autumn, a little further away from the palace men and eunuchs, and then asked in a low voice with a smile on his face and anxiously: "Mother concubine, the last note, you Looked, you said let me go back first, you have to think about it, what do you plan to do if you have any ideas."

Looking at the withering branches, Chen Guifei sighed slightly and said softly: "Actually, it doesn't matter if I go, I'm really bored..." The faint smile on her face remained unchanged, but her voice looked tired and her tone was cold.

The third prince was startled and stopped to look at Concubine Chen. In his eyes, his mother's delicate face was always smiling like a spring breeze, and the words often contained warmth. But now, Concubine Chen seemed to have nothing in his eyes. A lifeless woman who is less than thirty years old, she looks like a forty or fifty-year-old woman.

Concubine Chen Gui still looked into the distance and said dreamily: "Seventeen years, this day, day after day, endless... I'm so tired..."

The third prince suddenly wanted to cry, as if he was still a five or six-year-old child. He took Concubine Chen's arm with both hands and said, "Mother! What are you talking about! What happened to you, what should I do with my sister!" I usually call Concubine Chen the "Mother Concubine", but now I am anxious, and even called "Mother Queen" like a child.

Concubine Chen Gui slowly closed her eyes and opened them again. It was the woman with a soft smile. She raised her hand and patted the back of the third prince's hand, nodded and said, "Yes, I still have you and your sister. Naturally, I can’t go, at least, there is no reason to go without you being arranged."

The third prince heard that something was wrong, but he didn’t know how to persuade him. A palace man over there came closer, and the third prince smiled and asked: “What kind of son does the mother and concubine like to go outside recently and bring them to the mother? come back."

Concubine Chen Gui smiled and said in a low voice: "When I was young, I always wanted to visit the mountains and play in the water. In spring, I would see what people say about peach blossoms blooming. In summer, I can go boating on the Qianqin Lake, and under the autumn moon, I would blow in the bamboo forests in the mountains. Xiao, make tea or something in the Dongxue Pavilion. These, I have grown so old, I haven't done it yet..."

The third prince really had tears in his eyes, and he choked with a sob and said: "Mother concubine, if the child has a fief in the future, I beg the father to let the child take the mother and concubine out of here, and let the mother and concubine go to the fief for fun. "

Concubine Chen nodded with a smile, and said softly: "Okay, I will wait for you to make arrangements for my mother."

The third prince bid farewell to Concubine Chen and came out, feeling heavy in his heart. In the end, Chen Guifei did not tell him how she would prevent others from poisoning her. Perhaps, Concubine Chen didn't know how to prevent it or couldn't prevent it. The third prince broke out in a cold sweat, wishing to find his father to make a fief right away. But he was fifteen years old this year, and his eldest brother was only canonized as a prince when he was eighteen. He also had to wait until he was eighteen before he could be crowned a king. Can Concubine Chen Gui wait these three years?

The third prince felt uncomfortable and wanted to find Shen Yi and the others for a fight. But Zhenbeihou hadn't left Beijing yet, and he knew that he couldn't go to Zhenbeihou's mansion now, so he went back to his palace boringly. I wanted to find Grandpa Gu to practice hand skills, but Grandpa Gu was not there, so he went to the empty field behind the palace and repeatedly kicked and beat a few punches until he was sweating profusely.

Gu Gongzheng is with the emperor.

The day after the third prince received the note in Wanhualou, he told the emperor about it. But for so long, the prince's canonization ceremony has passed, and the emperor has not given any instructions on this matter. Suddenly calling him today, Grandpa Gu thought that the emperor would tell him how to protect Concubine Chen Gui.

The emperor said to Grandpa Gu: "It's been a long time since you left me. It's time to come back."

Gu Gonggong was startled, but he already lowered his body and said, "Just listen to your majesty's instructions, and the servants and maids will move over today." The emperor was about to abandon Chen Guifei.

The emperor smiled: "You are loyal. You don't need to be so anxious. You know in your heart that you come back at the end of the year, and everyone doesn't need to know about this."

Father Gu lowered his body again: "Listen to your Majesty."

The emperor sighed: "Concubine Chen is indeed understanding, but I can be considered worthy of her."

He made a gesture, and Father Gu bowed and resigned.

Grandpa Gu did not ask any questions, because he thought he knew the emperor quite well: the emperor canonized the grand prince as the prince, and became the person who would assist him in governing the country in the future. Some small things fulfilled the prince's wish, so that the prince can be on one mind with himself, and there will be no gaps. After all, Concubine Chen Gui was an "old man" for more than ten years. Even if the Saint Chong died for so many years, the emperor felt "worthy of her". As for the third prince, the eldest prince has become a prince and is unbreakable. There is no need to trouble this younger brother. Concubine Chen is no longer in danger, unlike before.

Zhenbeihou departed back to the north five days after the crowning ceremony of the prince.

Before dawn, the old lady and Yang took their five children to bid farewell to Zhen Beihou at the gate. Zhenbeihou was dressed in a military uniform with light armor and a black cloak. Twenty horses were waiting outside the gate of the mansion, and the sergeant was awe-inspiring.

Zhenbeihou said goodbye to the old lady. The old lady held back her tears and said in a low voice, "My son, take care."

Zhenbeihou nodded and said, "Mother, don't worry about it." He said to Yang, who was crying and crying, "I will be back when Da Lang gets married next year. I will not leave this time soon."

Yang's salute, crying and said: "How can it be regarded as having no conscience soon..." She has been tantrums since yesterday, and she has to quarrel about everything.

Zhenbeihou looked at the children standing next to him, and whispered helplessly, "In front of the children..."

Yang's hands covered his face: "I don't care!" He cried.

The old lady frowned and whispered: "How old are you and you are so petty!"

Yang cried harder. The older children were a little embarrassed to see their mother crying so bitterly. Only Shen Wen went over to pull Yang's sleeve and cried, "Mother don't cry..."

Yang is thirty-three years old this year, and as the mistress of the house, everyone here thinks that she should be very mature and stable. Shen Wen's previous life also thought that the Yang family was sometimes too easy to get excited, but now it seems that Yang is still a young woman. At this age in future generations, the women are still young, and it is the time to be in harmony with her husband. Shi wants to bid farewell to her husband who has only been in business for half a month. How diligently she cleaned and prepared at the beginning, how distressed she is now.

Zhenbeihou told some old children with tears in their eyes not to cause trouble, and picked up Shen Wen. Yang put down his hands and cried and said, "Why are you holding her! Forgot...you Aren't you tired! Wen'er, come down to me quickly!"

After Shen Wen hit several acupuncture points on Zhenbeihou's shoulder with consciousness, he cried and twisted his body to come down. Zhenbei Hou smiled and said: "Wen'er is not serious at all. Every time I hug Wen'er, I feel more comfortable."

Yang cried: "Don't talk nonsense!"

The old lady coughed dissatisfiedly, and Yang raised his hand to cover his face and cried again. The old lady said to the children: "You all bid farewell to your father, don't miss the hour." This is urging the Yang family.

Zhenbeihou saluted the old lady again, the old lady nodded, and the five children said goodbye to Zhenbeihou. Then the old lady greeted Shen Xiang and Shen Wen to come and support her, then gestured to Shen Yi, Shen Jian and Shen Zhuo to follow him, and took the lead to walk to the mansion.

When she turned the corner, Shen Wen looked back and saw that Zhenbeihou's cloak was blocking Yang's figure. Her parents were cuddling with each other in the gray darkness of the morning.

Shen Wen burst into tears. At this time, she was very fortunate that she had wandered for a thousand years and did not give up this life. If her perseverance can exchange the well-being of these people in this life, she will have to wait for thousands of years in loneliness, and she will never regret it!