Chapter 408
The first snow of winter has just fallen, but the Cui Mansion has left a bright spring and summer. In a flower house, the flowers are blooming and the warm wind is blowing. It turned out that there were half-burning charcoal all around, preventing the cold air from entering. More than a dozen servants are on duty day and night to take care of this room and provide flowers to the house.
When the emperor arrived, most of the servants were moved outside the mansion, leaving only one person to look after the charcoal basin. He was taken away by the guards ahead of time, and he was released after the emperor walked around inside.
The emperor praised a few words, and Cui Teng became more and more proud, "The royal family also has a conservatory, which is much bigger than the one in my house, but it mainly supplies vegetables. This house in my house just raises a few flowers for the female family members of the family to enjoy, but it is not a big one. Use, if any of your majesty's concubine needs flowers, I will send someone to bring a car into the palace every day."
Han Ruzi smiled and shook his head, "Don't bother. The royal conservatory stopped a few years ago, and I can't eat fresh vegetables now."
Supporting a conservatory is an extremely extravagant act. When the imperial court advocates thrift, it is usually canceled by the first batch, and will be restored after a period of time. Da Chu has not recovered its vitality in recent years, and the conservatory has naturally been in a state of being abandoned. .
Cui Teng's eyes lit up, "Tomorrow I will shovel all the flowers here and grow vegetables for Your Majesty."
"Don't, I can't do something so unsightly."
"Oh." Cui Teng was a little disappointed, but then became excited again, "Your Majesty, let's go shopping in the back garden. I have a rockery at home, which is very famous in the capital."
Cui Teng is like a child who has just made friends. Worried that the friendship is not strong enough, he tries his best to please and flatter him. He can't wait to show all the good things at home and impress his new friends.
If the emperor spoke at this time, Cui Teng would not hesitate to offer the entire Cui Mansion.
Han Ruzi didn't like extravagance. When he saw the flower house, the first thing he thought about was how much manpower and financial resources it would cost. Converted into silver taels, it would be enough for a middle-class family, but he remained polite, and he wanted to wait for the matter to pass. After that, have a good talk with Cui Teng, or wake up the Cui family through the queen.
The rockery in the back garden is not big, no more than two feet high and less than ten feet wide. When you look closely, it looks like Cui Wei. Other than that, there is no difference.
Han Ruzi still nodded politely, but Cui Teng showed a sly smile, "Please come with me, Your Majesty, I can't see the beauty of the rockery here."
The accompanying guards and eunuchs disliked people like Cui Teng the most.
Fortunately, there are not many people left in the Cui Mansion, and the garden is even more empty, which reduces the difficulty of guarding.
Cui Teng led the way, went down a few steps, turned a corner and came to a pavilion. There was nothing special about the pavilion, but he prepared a pot of wine and several kinds of candied fruit. The wine was still hot, and it was just right to drink. Where are you hiding?
The guards were nervous for a while, and after searching for a long time, they found two maids and an old servant hiding in a small house nearby. The house was hidden behind a dead wood and was very hidden. The three inside saw the guards. Open the door, immediately kneel down and kowtow.
The guards surrounded the house and did not allow the servants to come out. The other guards continued to check, and they were very angry.
The emotions of the guards did not affect the pavilion. Cui Teng toasted the emperor, but he knew the rules. He drank a drink first, and asked the eunuch to try a drink before pouring the wine for the emperor.
Han Ruzi took a sip and praised a few words. Cui Teng was enthusiastic and pointed to the rockery: "Your Majesty, please take a look."
The pavilion is usually built at a high place, which is convenient for viewing the scenery, but this one is built at a low place. After sitting down, I just saw the bottom of the rockery. Han Ruzi had been puzzled for a long time, and then he looked carefully, and then he understood the reason. What is Cui Teng's so-called beauty.
The rockery is not firmly embedded on the ground, but is placed on a stone pillar that can be enclosed by both arms. The bottom of the mountain is about two or three feet off the ground. Lie down on the ground to see clearly.
Although the rockery is not tall, it always weighs thousands of pounds, and it can stand stably. It is really strange, and the gap is spotless. Obviously, someone cleans it often, but I don't know how difficult it must be for the servant to get into the bottom of the mountain. How scared.
Han Ruzi watched it for a while, and couldn't help but tsk tsk admiration. Cui Teng was waiting for this moment, and explained with a smile: "Actually, it's not difficult, it was built against the ground, and the soil can be removed after the construction is complete. It's hard to stand upright for so many years, it's called 'a pillar supporting the mountain'."
Zhang Youcai, who was following the emperor, clicked his tongue, and couldn't help but say, "It's hard to guarantee that you won't fall today if you don't fall for many years. This is a dangerous place. Your Majesty's best not to stay for a long time."
"Zhang Youcai, what nonsense are you talking about, in a hundred or thousand years, this rockery will not collapse, you don't understand, it just looks dangerous, in fact, the stone in the middle and the supporting stone pillar are one, and the outside is wrapped with a There are so many mountains and rocks, other stones are easy to find, but the one in the middle is the hardest to find.”
Zhang Youcai didn't want to argue with Cui Teng, so he shook his head and stepped back, thinking that if the rockery falls, the pavilion can block it, and if he jumps himself, he can block it, but it doesn't seem to be of much use, the people in the pavilion still have to be crushed. Meatloaf... He shuddered, forcing himself not to think about it any longer.
Han Ruzi didn't care, and didn't want to leave anymore. He stayed in the pavilion to drink, eat candied fruit, and chat with Cui Teng.
Cui Teng prepared a lot of delicious snacks, which should have been brought round by round for the emperor to have an appetizer before lunch, but the wine was cold, but the subsequent food never arrived. He couldn't sit still, and looked out several times. , motioning the entourage around him to see what was going on.
The entourage was stopped by the guards as soon as he left the pavilion, and he was taken to the side. Wang He personally checked and questioned him. After confirming that there was nothing wrong, he was allowed to leave. Then he searched the three imprisoned servants in detail, and finally allowed them to come out. Continue delivering food to the kiosk.
But the time has passed, a rockery is nothing to watch, and it is enough to admire it. Han Ruzi got up and prepared to hang out in the garden for a while.
Cui Teng followed, turned his head and glared at the servants who had just come over, motioning them to step back, and then smiled at the emperor: "There is a person in the mansion who really wants to see His Majesty. I wonder if His Majesty can move to take a look."
Zhang Youcai couldn't help but snorted when he wanted to see that the emperor didn't come by himself, but Han Ruzi was very easy-going, "Is he from your family?"
"It's the son of the eldest brother Cui Sheng. He is four years old this year. The little guy is very cute. He heard that His Majesty is coming, and he kept shouting to see him, but he was too young. The family was afraid that he would not understand the rules, so they did not let him come out to pick him up. But I promised him that I would let him see His Majesty, so..." Cui Teng smiled wryly, "Please, Your Majesty, give me a little face, from now on, I will be able to establish the authority of my uncle in front of the little guy. already."
Han Ruzi also smiled, "Okay, let's go meet this little guy."
Cui Sheng died in the military chaos, leaving only one son, the grandson of the Cui family, Han Ruzi really wanted to see.
Wang He immediately called Cui Teng's entourage and asked about the residence of Cui Sheng's son, and found that it was in the area that had been checked beforehand.
Cui Sheng's son was still young and lived in the inner house. Because the queen returned home, most of the female relatives went to accompany him. There was no one in the inner house, and the emperor did not need to be too cautious.
On the way, Han Ruzi heard a faint sound of the piano, so he stopped to listen, and Cui Teng also stopped. He usually does not know the rhythm, but at this time, he knew people's hearts and waved his hands solemnly, signaling everyone around him not to make a sound. , let the emperor concentrate on listening to the piano.
"Zhang Qinyan is still in your house?" Han Ruzi knew who was playing the piano as soon as he heard it.
Cui Teng said sternly: "I will always end her with her."
Han Ruzi shook his head with a smile, and continued to walk forward. Everyone below Cui Teng walked on tiptoe to avoid disturbing the sound of the piano.
Several palace maids have been following in the team, Meng E is one of them, others followed the emperor, but she stopped, and when Wang He came to her side, she made a few simple gestures, indicating that she was going Check out the violinist.
Wang He nodded, he still had some distrust of Meng E, he waved to another guard, ordered him to go with Meng E, and asked Cui Teng's entourage to guide the way.
Meng E did not object, and followed the sound with the guards and entourage to find someone.
The sound of the piano was intermittent, the guards couldn't tell where it came from, and Cui Teng's entourage didn't know where the "young grandmother" was hiding, but Meng E seemed to be pulled by a thin visible thread. The closer he got, he stopped for a while when he encountered an obstacle or a fork in the road, and waited for Cui Teng's entourage to indicate the passage.
The path was tortuous, the three did not go far, but when they turned around, there was no trace of the emperor and his party.
In front of a small building, Meng E stopped. The sound of the piano came from upstairs. Looking up, the window of the building was open, and the sound of the piano was very clear.
Meng E motioned for the guards and entourage to wait outside. She entered the building alone, walked upstairs, and came upstairs without encountering any obstacles.
Zhang Qinyan was the only one in the room upstairs, kneeling on the soft mat and concentrating on playing the piano, wearing a gorgeous fur coat to keep out the wind and cold.
Meng E walked around the room without saying a word and found nothing unusual.
Zhang Qinyan didn't seem to see anyone coming in, and was still playing the piano. After a while, before the song was finished, he suddenly stopped and looked up at the guests.
The two had met each other, and they were hostile to each other. Since Zhang Qinyan was given to Cui Teng, they had no contact with each other. This was the first time they met in a few months.
"If you are helping Cui Teng to please the emperor, it is unnecessary. Your Majesty trusts Cui Teng to have nothing to do with these tricks. If you have other intentions, I advise you to give up early. Your Majesty is not that kind of foolish ruler."
Meng E thought that Zhang Qinyan still wanted to kill the emperor.
Zhang Qinyan shook his head and opened his mouth a few times.
"Han Chou dedicated your father and daughter to the emperor. Are you worried that you will be retaliated against for not completing the task? Don't worry, Han Chou does not dare to provoke the Cui family."
Zhang Qinyan still shook his head, again and again.
Meng E walked up to her, lowered her head to observe carefully, her expression suddenly changed.
Zhang Qinyan's lips were slightly purple, and his cheeks were flushed, which seemed to be poisoned.
Meng E turned her head and looked out the window. The emperor should be visiting the child at this time, and there must be someone to take care of the child.