On the wedding day, my wife was abnormal

After dinner, Murong Yan took Sima Chunlei back to the palace, and everyone returned to their respective courtyards to rest.

The next day.

The early summer morning sunlight slanted into the Songhe Hall through the carved window lattices of the palace. Tiny dust particles floated in the air, and the light was cut into hazy beams.

The furnishings in the hall are simple and elegant, the rosewood tables and chairs have a dark luster, and several ancient landscape paintings with profound artistic conception are hung on the walls.

However, at this moment, the atmosphere in the hall was incompatible with this quiet and elegant environment. It was filled with some indescribable depression, restraint and a hint of absurdity.

Li Yuangui, the director of the Imperial Observatory, was an old man wearing a dark blue sixth-rank egret robe with slightly frosted temples. He was accompanied by two deputies who also looked nervous and were wearing seventh-rank official uniforms. They stood solemnly on the carpet in the middle of the hall with their hands hanging down like quails.

Fine beads of sweat oozed from their foreheads, sparkling in the sunlight. Their fingers unconsciously clutched the hem of their slightly worn official robes, and they even breathed lightly for fear of making any sound.

The prince who suddenly summoned them to the Zhenbei Palace was the nightmare of the entire Imperial Observatory.

At least it used to be.

Time seemed to have stood still for a long time.

Finally, a series of steady footsteps approached from afar, breaking the silence.

Lin Zhen walked in.

He was wearing a moon-white linen suit today, with a black silk ribbon loosely tied around his waist, and he looked relaxed and at ease.

Cheng Xuan followed closely behind. She was not wearing the orange-yellow long dress today, but a light green maid's outfit. She followed Lin Zhen obediently, but her bright eyes curiously swept over the frightened officials of the Imperial Observatory in the hall.

Seeing Lin Zhen appear, Li Yuangui and the others felt as if they were pricked by a needle. They hurriedly bowed deeply, their voices trembling uncontrollably: "I, Li Yuangui, the Director of the Imperial Observatory, and I, along with my deputies, pay my respects to His Highness the Crown Prince! May His Highness live a thousand years!"

Lin Zhen casually walked to the main seat and sat down, and Cheng Xuan immediately served him a cup of tea.

He did not drink the tea immediately, but his eyes fell calmly on Li Yuangui. His eyes were not sharp, but they carried a penetrating power that made Li Yuangui feel as if his internal organs were almost seen through.

"Get up." Lin Zhen's voice was flat and calm.

"Thank... thank you for your grace, Your Highness." Li Yuangui stood up tremblingly, his heart beating even more nervously.

Abnormal.

It's so abnormal.

This anomaly made him even more uneasy.

The last time, the people from the Imperial Astronomical Observatory had the courage to come to the palace to survey the feng shui, or to pray and perform rituals during major festivals in the palace, as soon as they started, they were ruthlessly denounced by Lin Zhen as playing tricks, wasting money and misleading the people. He scolded them and drove them out of the palace.

Since then, everyone in the Imperial Observatory completely gave up the idea of ​​currying favor with the Prince of Zhenbei's Palace, and even kept their distance from the word "Prince's Palace" for fear of getting into trouble.

But they never expected that this prince, who extremely hated astrology, divination and the concept of ghosts and gods, would actually take the initiative to summon them into the palace today!

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

Li Yuangui felt a chill running from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, and his calves were cramping. Could it be that there was going to be some earth-shattering change in the palace?

I am just a small official in the Imperial Observatory, and I am afraid that I will be implicated?

"Li Jianzheng," Lin Zhen's voice pulled Li Yuangui back from his chaotic thoughts, "The prince invited you here today to do something for you."

Li Yuangui's heart was in his throat, and he quickly bowed and replied, "Your Highness, please give your orders! I will go through fire and water and will not refuse even if it means death."

He almost bit his tongue. Why did it sound so strange to go through fire and water for a fortune teller?

"It's not that serious." Lin Zhen picked up the teacup and gently blew away the foam. "This prince will leave Beijing and head south to Hu County soon. Please calculate an auspicious day for me to leave. Quickly."

"Ah?!" Li Yuangui suddenly raised his head, his cloudy old eyes widened, and his mouth opened subconsciously, as if he had heard the most incredible thing in the world.

The two deputies behind him gasped and exchanged incredulous looks with each other.

The entire Songhe Hall fell into an eerie silence, and even the air seemed to be frozen.

Li Yuangui's head was buzzing and in chaos.

An auspicious day?

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince took the initiative to request to choose an auspicious day?

This... is the sun rising from the west?

Or... is it that... His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, who has all the power in the world and can make things happen with a wave of his hand, has finally begun to respect the will of heaven and the gods?

Or is there some earth-shattering danger in Hu County that even the prince has to rely on the power of astrology to avoid it?

Intense surprise and extreme curiosity overwhelmed fear.

Li Yuangui no longer cared about losing his manners and blurted out, his voice rising a little due to excitement and confusion: "Your Highness, please forgive me for being so bold, but you haven't always..."

He was on the verge of saying he didn't believe these tricks or accuse us of playing tricks. He choked and asked cautiously, "Don't you always advocate practical work? Why is it this time..."

He couldn't follow up the sentence with "How could it be" and was so anxious that veins on his forehead bulged.

Lin Zhen's gaze finally turned over, still calm, but the pressure hidden under that calmness suddenly increased.

He did not scold or explain, but just kept his gaze on Li Yuangui's face for a moment, which made the cold sweat instantly soak the back of the official robe.

"One time, another time." Lin Zhen's voice was devoid of any emotion. These five simple words struck like a hammer, completely shutting down any possibility of Li Yuangui's inquiry. "I told you to settle, so settle it. Don't be so talkative."

He put down the teacup, and the bottom of the cup hit the rosewood table, making a crisp sound.

The sound exploded in Li Yuangui's ears like thunder.

He woke up instantly and wanted to slap himself twice!

Curiosity killed the cat!

How could a small official like them guess what His Royal Highness the Crown Prince does?

He quickly lowered his head deeply, his voice filled with extreme panic: "I obey your orders. I have said too much! I will investigate right away! That's it! Your Highness, please wait a moment! Wait a moment!"

After saying this, Li Jianzheng fled from danger almost at the speed of a man, accompanied by two equally frightened deputies, and hurriedly took out the astrolabe compass and the thick yellowed almanac that he never left behind, and without caring about his appearance, he knelt down on the carpet with a thud.

The three of them huddled together, frantically flipping through books, fiddling with the copper symbols on the astrolabe, counting with their fingers, muttering to themselves, and sweat streaming down their foreheads like streams.

At this moment, in their eyes, the constellations, five elements, solar terms, and taboos that they were familiar with all became extremely strange and confusing.

Time passed minute by minute, and Lin Zhen was still leisurely sipping tea. Cheng Xuan stood beside him, her eyes sweeping over the official who was calculating awkwardly on the ground, and the corners of her mouth seemed to curl up in an imperceptible arc.

Finally, after an extremely agonizing time of about a cup of tea, Li Yuangui seemed to have found the answer. He drew a few symbols on the carpet with trembling hands, and nervously checked them over and over again. Only then did he struggle to get up and report to Lin Zhen in a nearly exhausted voice:

"Your Highness! I've calculated over and over again, and seven days from now, on the eighth day of the fifth month of the Yi Si year, the auspicious Azure Dragon will be in your life palace, indicating favorable conditions for all journeys, especially in the southeast! At that time, Venus will be in its prime, purple air will be coming from the east, and at noon, the sun and fire will complement each other, making it the perfect time for Your Highness to depart! This is a once-in-a-lifetime auspicious day!"

He finished speaking in one breath, almost fainting, not daring to breathe, and lowered his head waiting for Lin Zhen's judgment.

He deliberately emphasized the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, hoping to make it more persuasive.

After listening to this, Lin Zhen's face showed no joy or dissatisfaction, as if he had only heard "the weather is nice today."

He put down his teacup and stood up.

"Okay." He just responded lightly, without even looking at Li Yuangui and others, and walked out of the hall.

"Chengxuan, prepare the horse and follow me out."

Cheng Xuan immediately responded crisply: "Yes, Your Highness!"

Then he followed like a light swallow.

The three officials from the Imperial Observatory were left standing there as if nailed to the spot, staring blankly at the prince's back as he disappeared into the brilliant morning light outside the hall, looking at each other in bewilderment.

In the huge and luxurious hall, the only sounds were their heavy breathing and the almanac and compass on the ground that were wrinkled and dirty with sweat and panic.

There was a dead silence in Songhe Hall. They were enveloped by a mixture of extreme fatigue after completing the mission, fear of the prince, and strong and indissoluble doubts.

What on earth is the prince acting like?

......