Chapter 88
PS. Here is today's update, and by the way, I will get tickets for the "Starting Point" 515 Fan Festival. Everyone has 8 tickets, and the voting will also send starting coins. I beg everyone for your support and appreciation!
Before Han Ruzi could say goodbye to his wife, he was taken into a carriage outside the mansion, and escorted by a team of eunuchs and Su Wei to the palace.
When he got out of the car, he found that the destination was not the Cishun Palace where the Queen Mother lived, but a narrow and dilapidated alley, vaguely familiar, and suddenly remembered that this was the place where his mother had been imprisoned, and his heart sank, thinking that You will also be imprisoned.
Several eunuchs couldn't help but escorted the emperor into a small courtyard, then pushed him into a small room, and closed the door from the outside without explaining a word.
Under such circumstances, no one can be calm and fearless. The most fearful thing is not the imminent danger, but the ignorance. The house is dark and cramped, and the smell of decay is floating. Han Ruzi is like being thrown into a place. In an unfamiliar crypt, there may be beasts rushing in from any direction.
He stood at the door for a while, really wanted to turn around and smash the door, begging the eunuch outside to let him out, but he knew it was useless.
"Your Majesty?" a weak voice asked.
Han Ruzi was horrified. He looked closely and found a low bed in the corner against the wall. The voice came from above, "Imperial concubine?"
"Hey, am I still?"
Han Ruzi walked slowly to the bed and saw that haggard face, which had not been seen for half a year. It had lost all its luster, but it definitely belonged to the imperial concubine.
Han Ruzi was puzzled that he was called into the palace to meet the imperial concubine, "I thought..."
"I thought I was dead." The Crown Princess continued on for him, took a rest for a while and continued: "Why is the Queen Mother willing to let me die happily? She wants to torture me a little bit..."
"You asked me to come?" Han Ruzi had some sympathy for the imperial concubine, but he really didn't want to hear her talk about the grievances between the sisters.
"Really? Oh, yes, I want to see His Majesty, but I didn't expect her to agree."
Han Ruzi was also surprised, and took another step forward, "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"You are the emperor..."
"No, I'm not the emperor, I've abdicated for a month."
"The queen mother didn't kill you?"
"It doesn't seem to be. I was named Marquis of Tiredness, I have my own mansion, I am free, and I have a good life."
"Freedom?" The imperial concubine sneered, her breathing suddenly became heavier, and she coughed violently for a while. Han Ruzi wanted to help her up, but the imperial concubine raised her hand and refused. After a while, she calmed down, "How could there be freedom? ? You thought you were flying into the sky, but you were actually still wearing a rope, and if she pulled it lightly, you would fall to the ground."
"That's better than staying on the ground all the time." Han Ruzi said, even if it wasn't the palace, he wouldn't be open and honest with the imperial concubine.
"It's useless to say this. I came to you to ask you to do me a favor."
"I have already abdicated." Han Ruzi reminded.
"A little favor, you're not the emperor, but it's easier."
"Why are you looking for me?" Han Ruzi didn't remember that he owed the imperial concubine's favor. On the contrary, the imperial concubine had deceived and used him.
The imperial concubine seemed to have forgotten those things, raised her arms weakly, motioned Han Ruzi to come closer, and suddenly coughed violently.
The patient's request was difficult to refuse. Han Ruzi hesitated and sat down on the edge of the bed. There was a hard board under his butt, and there was only a very thin layer of mattress.
"I'm going to die, and I don't have to be tortured by the queen mother again."
Han Ruzi could not see any scars on the face or hands of the empress dowager. Her so-called "torture" was obviously just a rhetoric. Failing to see the empress dowager punished was probably a kind of torture to her.
"It is impossible for my corpse to enter the imperial mausoleum, and it is my greatest regret that I cannot accompany Si Di after death." The imperial concubine had to stop and rest for a while, "There is a Baoen Temple in the west of the city, and there is a piece of Si Di. The surrogate tablet, for him to become a monk and to eliminate disasters, was when he was a child... In any case, that tablet must be connected to the soul of Emperor Si."
The imperial concubine lifted the hand in the bed and put something into Han Ruzi's hand, "Here is my soul, help me hang it on the tablet, only you can do this, you have been emperor, The ghosts and gods also have to give you three points."
Han Ruzi looked down, and in the palm of his hand was a small white fish made of jade, but his eyes were red, there were holes in his tail, and he was wearing a brocade rope.
"Do you really have a soul after death?" asked the imperial concubine.
"Yes." Han Ruzi closed his palms, "I can't guarantee anything, but as long as there is a chance, I will go to Baoen Temple and hang it on the tablet."
"That's enough, your words are more trustworthy than anyone in the palace."
Han Ruzi had also lied, but it was really inappropriate to mention it at this moment. He asked, "Is this the case?"
"Well, I'm sorry, I hurt you, but asked for your help."
"The eunuchs may leave the jade ornaments."
"If that's the case, I'll accept my fate." The Crown Princess sighed.
She seemed to have nothing to say. Han Ruzi stood up without saying goodbye, walked to the door gently, knocked twice, and someone outside opened the door. He walked out of the dark and depressing hut, breathed the outside air again, and felt a burst of relief.
A eunuch came over and stared at Han Ruzi's palm. Han Ruzi didn't explain, and handed over the jade ornament in his hand.
The eunuch left in a hurry, presumably holding a jade ornament to see the queen mother.
Han Ruzi didn't want to go back to the house to see the imperial concubine, so he paced back and forth in the small courtyard. Seeing that the eunuchs were not strict, he came outside the courtyard again and stood in the alley to watch. Several eunuchs looked at each other. He didn't interfere, but followed him out, standing on both sides, silently setting a range of activities for Hou Wan.
Han Ruzi had no intention of running around, he just wanted to take a breath in a spacious place, but he couldn't get rid of a thought: this place once belonged to him, even if it was just a nominal emperor, he could mobilize the poor people and Gongmen Lang to do things for him, Now he is standing here like a prisoner, and his words will no longer have the slightest power on the eunuchs.
A eunuch walked out of the yard next door, in ragged clothes, holding a few pieces of firewood in his arms, when he suddenly saw the carriages and the crowd in the alley, he was obviously startled, and it was too late to go back. On the ground, hair down and trembling.
Just a face to face, Han Ruzi recognized that the person was actually Jing Yao, the former supervisor of the Central Division.
The queen mother slaughtered the traitors who had never met, and seemed more willing to open up to the unfaithful people around her, watching them fall from a height and struggle in the mud.
The two eunuchs walked over and scolded and kicked their former boss. Jing Yao climbed back to the courtyard, but did not come out again, and several pieces of firewood were scattered outside.
After waiting for nearly an hour, the eunuch who asked for instructions hurried back, "Please get in the car."
Han Ruzi sat in the car, lifted the curtain several times and peeked out to confirm that the carriage was really heading for the outside of the palace. It was not until he left the palace gate that he sat down peacefully, only to feel that his whole body felt weak.
At the entrance of Marquis Mansion, the eunuch asked Marquis Marquis to get out of the car, and by the way, returned the jade ornaments, still not saying a word.
The House of Marquis Tien was already in chaos, and they kept sending people to the palace to inquire about the news, but they stomped their feet in a hurry except for guarding the palace gate, and they couldn't inquire a word.
Zhang Youcai stayed outside the whole time, only one step ahead of Juan Hou, and almost all the people in the whole house greeted him, and Cui Xiaojun's eyes were swollen from crying.
Han Ruzi got out of the car, ordered the palace chief to reward the eunuch who saw him off, smiled at everyone, and then took his wife by the hand and walked back to the back house.
"I thought... I thought..." Cui Xiaojun couldn't hold back his tears, but this time he was crying with joy, "I beg Laojun, but she..."
"It's okay, it's the empress who wants to see me."
"Imperial concubine?" Cui Xiaojun was taken aback and finally stopped his tears.
Han Ruzi took out the jade ornament and briefly explained the matter.
"The queen mother actually allows you to see her, and also allows you to bring out the jade ornaments!" Cui Xiaojun was even more surprised, "Are you really going to Baoen Temple?"
"Since I agreed, I'll go there when I get a chance."
"I want to go with you. Baoen Temple is very famous. They say that the Bodhisattva there is the most spiritual. I want to burn a few more incense sticks for you."
"Give it to us." Han Ruzi smiled.
"You won't... go to the palace again, will you?"
"It's hard to say, I have to attend the imperial ceremony, and the Queen Mother can't help but to summon me..."
"No no, I mean do you want to 'return' to the palace?" Cui Xiaojun raised this question to her husband for the first time.
Han Ruzi shook his head, "It's a prison, where the imperial concubine and Jing Yao are imprisoned, so why not the queen mother? I don't want to go back, I just want to be able to pick up my mother one day."
Cui Xiaojun leaned on his chest and said softly, "That's good, I know how hard it feels to be despised by others, but I also know how hard it is to fight for power. The Cui family is in danger without knowing it. I'm terrified that you'll fall in too."
"I'm a real 'loner' now, and I can't fight if I want to. Don't worry, I won't be that stupid."
Cui Xiaojun smiled. She likes the current life. The more ordinary she is, the happier she is. She moved her husband's chest away. She said, "When the weather is warmer, I will clean up the back garden. It's a big place, and it's a pity to waste it."
"Okay, let's clean up the garden together."
Shortly after nightfall, Han Ruzi went to see Yang Feng, but the manager did not go to the door to greet Marquis Juan during the day.
Han Ruzi didn't care, told the matter again, and finally asked, "What did the queen mother think?"
Yang Feng shook his head, "Don't ask my woman's mind, I don't understand."
In Yang Feng's opinion, Hou Juan's entry into the palace this time has nothing to do with the court struggle, "Are you afraid?" he asked.
Han Ruzi stared at Yang Feng and said after a while: "To be honest, I was frightened, the winners and losers, but the failures of the losers are much worse than the 'bandits', in contrast, beheading is more difficult Be kind."
"Very good." Yang Feng nodded.
"very good?"
"If a person doesn't understand what the danger is, then he is just reckless, not brave. The fear of failure shows that you can make the right choice. Remember, no one is forcing you, even if only Being a tired man is also much better than your previous life."
"Can the life of the tired Hou be stable?"
Yang Feng was speechless.
Han Ruzi had already made a choice, "The Crown Princess is right, I still have a rope tied to my body, not just the Queen Mother, no matter who pulls at the other end, I will fall to the ground."
He paused, "Yang Gong can't bear to be played in the palm of his hand, and neither can I."
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[515 is coming soon, I hope to continue to hit the 515 red envelope list, and by May 15th, the red envelope rain can give back to readers and publicity works. A piece is also love, it must be better! 】