After wearing the book, the regent quit.

"What are you doing."

Before the words finished, a tall figure stood in front of Shen Mu, Xiao Fan looked at Xiao Huan with a serious expression, and in Xiao Huan's bewildered expression, he said coldly again, "Answer Gu."

The air froze for a moment, and the two brothers looked at Xiao Xiang without a word. Xiao Huan's eyes changed from bewilderment to sudden understanding, and finally turned into panic and astonishment under the heavy gaze of his imperial brother.

"Brother Huang, you are..."

Shen Mu sighed silently, looking at Xiao Huan's cracked expression, he felt a tinge of pity in his heart, and was about to step forward to admit it, so that the young man could fully understand "the dangers of the world", when Xiao Fan grabbed his wrist , was dragged back again.

"Brother Emperor," Xiao Huan's Adam's apple rolled, his gaze moved away from the tightly grasped wrists of the two, he raised his eyes to look at Xiao Fan, and said jerkyly, "My mother caught the wind and cold a few days ago, and my brother came here today. I want to pray for her; as for why the regent is here, I don't know."

Xiao Fan didn't believe it, and stared at Xiao Huan suspiciously with his dark eyes.

"As the Ninth Prince said, we just met by chance."

Relying on the long and wide sleeves, Shen Mu raised his hand under the long sleeves and gently scratched Xiao Fan's palm; seeing that the person's affection softened slightly, he was about to ask why he came, when he heard footsteps in the distance.

A few palace maids followed, and the closest confidant of the Empress Dowager Qiu walked quickly with her head slightly lowered. When she looked up and saw Xiao Fan, there was a slight difference in her eyes, and she immediately calmed down. After saluting the three of them respectfully, He bowed his body and said directly to Shen Mu,

"Your Majesty Regent, the Empress Dowager has been very interested in the tea ceremony these days, and I heard that you like tea on weekdays, so she sent a servant to come here to ask, if you have time to go to the Purple Pavilion Palace to teach me someday?"

Then he turned around and said to Xiao Huan, "Lord Nine, the Empress Dowager misses you very much, and hopes that you can go back to have dinner with her at noon today."

Shen Mu narrowed his eyes calmly, and smiled at Mother Qiu, "It's my honor to be appreciated by the Queen Mother."

Shen Mu doesn't know if there is any Empress Dowager in Wanji Temple, but what is certain is that the Empress Dowager Chu should have found out that Xiao Huan and him are both here. In short, it should be because he wanted to invite the two of them to Zige Palace at the same time, so he sent Mother Qiu here.

It's just that it never occurred to her that Xiao Fan should also come here, so Mother Qiu had to temporarily change her rhetoric.

Seeing Nanny Qiu looking at him sincerely, Shen Mu understood that Xiao Fan's treatment of the Chu family made the Queen Mother Chu a little flustered, and it was not long before she came to him.

Since the play is going to be complete, it is not good for him to say directly in front of Xiao Fan that he is going to Zige Palace today.

Just as he was about to find an excuse, Xiao Fan, who was two steps away, said calmly, "I haven't visited the Empress Dowager for some time. I heard that the Empress Dowager had a cold a few days ago, so I just plan to visit her."

"..."

Turning his gaze, Shen Mu looked at Xiao Fan in bewilderment, not knowing what was the reason for his request that sounded almost "too difficult for others".

He turned around, looked at Shen Mu with a smile that was not a smile, and said Shen Shen, "It happens that Yafu hasn't eaten with Gu for a while, why don't we go together."

Naturally, the emperor's order could not be refused at present, Shen Mu had no choice but to accept it, watching Xiao Huan and Qiu Nai showing the same puzzled expressions as him, and got on the carriage alone.

——After all, at this time, you can't face the monarch's car in front of Mother Qiu and Xiao Huan.

Several carriages drove forward slowly towards the imperial palace. Mother Qiu thought that she had sent someone back to Zige Palace to report in advance. When the Empress Dowager Chu saw the three of them coming in together, she did not show any surprise on her face. He greeted the servants in the palace to bring up the prepared dishes.

Shen Mu turned his head and glanced at Xiao Fan, and found that the man's eyes were not on him at all. He greeted the Empress Dowager Chu expressionlessly, then sat down at the head of the round table very naturally, and glanced at the vacant seat on the right. , and then looked up at Shen Mu.

According to the rules of etiquette, the regent and the queen mother should sit on the left and right sides of the monarch, so Shen Mu waited for the queen mother of Chu to take her seat, then set off and sat down on Xiao Fan's right hand, and then watched Xiao Huan's realization that it was undoubtedly the right place beside him and the queen mother of Chu. Glanced.

As a result, Xiao Fan made a cold eye shot, and the teacup in his hand fell to the table with a "ding".

Shen Mu didn't know what to say: "..."

Xiao Huan's face turned pale: "..."

Xiao Fan withdrew his knife-like eyes, glanced at Xiao Huan lightly, picked up the chopsticks and said in a deep voice, "Let's eat."

Among the four people in the audience, only the Empress Dowager Chu didn't realize it. She was still a little uncomfortable facing Xiao Fan, but she still had a polite and alienated smile on her face. When everyone started to eat, she pondered for a moment, and seemed to speak casually. ,

"A few days ago, I heard that Prince Xi had a son, and it was born in the royal family."

The woman took a mouthful of food unhurriedly, then wiped the corners of her mouth with a handkerchief, and with a smile on her lips, she glanced at the two brothers of the Xiao family respectively, and said, "Your Majesty and Huan'er are also at the time of getting married and having children. Regardless of age, I don't know if there is a woman I like."

Xiao Fan lowered his long eyelashes and didn't answer, so Xiao Huan took the lead and said, "Huan'er doesn't have a woman he likes, this matter is all arranged by the queen mother."

The Empress Dowager Chu looked at her obedient son and nodded in satisfaction, then turned her head to look at Xiao Fan, and asked her Majesty softly what she was thinking.

Alert in his heart, Shen Mu never thought that the Empress Dowager Chu would not give up. Seeing Xiao Fan's resolute refusal to choose a concubine, she actually wanted to completely control the harem by personally arranging; It's more joy than joy.

Shen Mu wasn't worried that Xiao Fan would obediently obey the Queen Mother's arrangements. In the previous life, the young man used Chu Pingting to silence everyone. With him in this life, Xiao Fan would not compromise even more.

There was a suffocating silence in the room immediately, Xiao Fan put down the silver chopsticks in his hands unhurriedly, raised his eyes and glanced at the Empress Dowager Chu, and said coldly,

"The empress dowager is troublesome, she already has someone she likes."

Shen Mu's hand holding the chopsticks paused suddenly, his face became inexplicably hot.

Everyone in Daqi knew that the monarch was devoted to his career. Hearing Xiao Fan's words, the Empress Dowager Chu was also very surprised, and asked further curiously, "Ai family, may I ask who is that woman? What is her family background and temperament? Fortunate to be favored by His Majesty?"

"I just fell in love," Xiao Fan raised his eyes, and glanced at Shen Mu who was still buried in his food without showing any trace, "Of course everything is fine."

The Empress Dowager Chu was even more puzzled, "If that's the case, why didn't Your Majesty marry her into the palace?"

"I want to be lonely, but the person I like has been slow to agree."

The corners of Xiao Fan's lips curled up, and a faint smile appeared in Xiao Fan's eyes. This time, he looked straight at Shen Mu, put one hand on the round table, raised his eyebrows and said without hesitation, "It just so happens that Ya Fu and Gu's favorite person also Very familiar, I wonder if Yafu knows the reason?"

The corners of his eyes twitched, Shen Mu was naturally unable to answer, and laughed dryly in embarrassment.

Then he saw Xiao Fan staring at him, smiled coolly and continued, "Could it be... that person doesn't want to be responsible for Gu?"

"Cough, cough, cough... cough cough!"

When the two confronted each other, they only heard a violent cough coming from Xiao Huan's direction. Shen Mu saw that the two people on the left turned their eyes at the same time, and heaved a sigh of relief. Looking sideways, he saw Xiao Huan's handsome face flushed, as if He choked on the food and coughed non-stop.

The Empress Dowager Chu hurriedly asked Xiao Huan if he was okay.

"Chen, brother, I'm rude," Xiao Huan swallowed with difficulty after drinking a whole cup of tea, his eyes filled with unbelievable emotions, so that there was even a trace of confusion and bewilderment on his face, "It's just what I heard just now. It was really unexpected, that's why..."

"It's okay, the ninth brother is still young," Xiao Fan leaned his back on the back of the wooden chair lazily, and said coldly, "This kind of love affair should not be thought about."

Then he turned his head and glanced at Shen Mu, the displeasure in his eyes was extremely obvious, "Yafu thinks what Gu said is right?"

For some reason, Shen Mu always felt a faint smell of sour vinegar in the air.

"Your Majesty's words are reasonable." With a slight smile, Shen Mu knew that he should also stroke the bristles that stood up all over Xiao Fan's body, so he spoke to comfort him, "I also believe that your majesty's favorite person also admires you, maybe it's just The time has not come."

The two talked to each other, and the Empress Dowager Chu was obviously listening in the mist, her eyes repeatedly looked at the other three people on the round table, always feeling that she had missed something important.

Sure enough, as Shen Mu thought, Xiao Fan's complexion improved a lot after hearing the words, suppressed the slightly raised smile at the corners of his mouth, nodded in satisfaction, and replied, "That's natural."

The meal ended hastily amidst Shen Mu and Xiao Fan's "eyes and eyebrows", Xiao Huan's shocked face, and Empress Dowager Chu's confusion. Jing Fan rushed to report that there were several ministers waiting in front of the imperial study.

It was rare for the Empress Dowager Chu to take the initiative to find him. Shen Mu followed up with the excuse of "asking for tea ceremony" and did not leave with Xiao Fan, but stayed in Zige Palace.

It is worth mentioning that before Xiao Fan left, he also took Xiao Huan away with him.

The young man squinted his eyes and looked at Xiao Huan coolly, "Ninth brother still want to stay here?"

"Ah?" Xiao Huan, who wanted to stay with his mother and queen for a while, was stunned for a while, looking at the "very kind" gaze of his own royal brother, finally gave a wry smile, and stood up as if resigned to his fate, "I tell you, brother, brother It happens to be leaving the palace too, why don't you leave Zige Palace with the emperor."

"I don't know why the Empress Dowager Chu specially called this king here?"

After watching the two brothers leave helplessly, Shen Mu sat down in front of the tea table in the hall with the Queen Mother Chu under the guidance of Mother Qiu; After pouring a pot of tea, he raised his hand and handed one of the cups to the Empress Dowager Chu.

Holding the wall of the cup and taking a sip, Shen Mu savored the taste carefully on the tip of his tongue, looked up at Empress Dowager Chu with a smile, "It shouldn't be just for this cup of tea, right?"

"Of course not." The Empress Dowager Chu took the teacup and tasted it carefully, her delicate brows were tightly frowned, and she frowned after a long time before she spoke, "The Regent Prince has really seen the person your majesty just mentioned?"

Smiling slightly, Shen Mu asked instead of answering, "Dare to ask the Queen Mother, with His Majesty's character, if you really have someone you like, will you not disclose it to the public?"

The woman did not give up, and her eyes were full of suspicion, "What I said to the regent just now—"

"Your Majesty has only severely dealt with the Chu family. In the final analysis, the purpose is to weaken the relatives."

Shen Mu interrupted, facing the vigilant and sharp scrutiny of the Empress Dowager Chu, he looked straight at the woman's eyes with a calm expression, and his clear voice rang out in the empty golden hall, "I want to say that the Empress Dowager is so impatient If you really want to regain power, if you directly show your friendship to me in front of His Majesty, aren't you afraid that Your Majesty will be suspicious?"

Squinting his eyes slightly, Shen Mu took in every moment of emotional fluctuations on the woman's face; caught the flash of remorse in the woman's eyes, and he felt relieved.

Their eyes met, and the woman in fancy dress and heavy makeup finally let out a long sigh, as if she had finally let go of her defenses, and talked with Shen Mu about the blows that the Chu family had received with some melancholy.

What Xiao Fan said in the court hall was only a few simple sentences, but after Chu An was demoted and Chu Puyu was dismissed, Xiao Fan quickly ordered that the deputy of the anti-Japanese general Yang Che go to Nanhuang to replace Chu Puyu's original position , which is equivalent to cutting off the Chu family's military power from the root.

This was almost a devastating blow to the Chu family.

Coupled with Xiao Huan's non-competition, Xiao Fan had an absolute advantage almost instantly. It was no wonder that the Empress Dowager Chu was so anxious, and even went to Shen Mu directly despite the limelight.

"The real purpose of the Ai family's visit to Lord Regent today is already well known to the Lord."

With a sneer in his heart, Shen Mu listened to the speed of the woman's speech speeding up unconsciously. He thought that he didn't speak clearly at this time, so he folded his hands on his chest in a very leisurely manner, leaned back lazily on the wooden chair, and picked up the words directly without rushing. bright,

"If the Empress Dowager Chu is talking about cooperation, shouldn't she show some sincerity first?"

The woman frowned, and after dismissing the servants around her, she asked him in a low voice, "What sincerity does the Regent want?"

With a smile on his lips, Shen Mu moved his body closer to the person, with a smile in his eyes and a chill in his eyes, he paused each word, "For example...how much does the Empress Dowager know about Your Majesty?"