Hypocrites

"It's always like this in the world," Duan Boyu sighed endlessly, "Extreme things will be reversed, and extreme joy begets sorrow. The festive feast is also the time of desperation. Life is impermanent, can it be predicted in advance?"

After Duan Xiang and his son left, the two walked to the garden pond and took a rest in the pavilion with double eaves.

"Is it cold?" Shen Yu shook Liang Heng's hand, curtains were drawn on all sides of the pavilion, and the cold lake wind still seeped in.

"Go to the Imperial Medical Office and call a medical officer over," Shen Yu instructed Siji, and then asked Liang Heng, "Which one is the medical officer who often takes care of you? Is your surname Mai?"

Liang Heng didn't take it seriously: "It's not too cold, you'll feel warmer when you sit here. Why call the medical officer."

The old medical officer with a white beard followed Siji and rushed to the small pavilion step by step.Liang Heng just caught a cold a while ago, and the medical officer also paid attention to it. After checking and asking, he didn't find any problem, so he still wrote a prescription for herbal diet and asked Si Ji to take it to the dining room.

Siji walked away, and Shen Yu asked: "Master Mai, when I was in my hometown, I heard people say that Sichuan peppers are brewed in wine. It seems that experience is needed. When choosing peppercorns, you can only choose the open ones, not the silent ones?"

Liang Heng thought he was interested in pepper wine on a whim, so he smiled listlessly: "Do you want to drink pepper wine? Mr. Mai, bring him some to try."

However, Shen Yu asked: "Is the pepper wine dedicated to His Majesty at the end of each year prepared by the court officials or the Imperial Medical Office?"

The nature of this question was different from a trance. Liang Heng was thoughtful, seeing the hand of the old medical officer stroking his beard slightly trembling.

Shen Yudao: "There is no one else here, only Your Majesty, please tell the truth."

The medical officer had no choice but to answer honestly: "It is true that pepper wine is good wine if you talk... poisonous wine if you keep your mouth shut!"

"..."

The doctor said: "Pepper wine is purchased by the imperial medical office every year and sealed in the medicine storehouse. Fine wine is drunk at palace banquets every year. Shutting up wine can paralyze people's throats and make them vomit blood and suffocate to death. Because of its strong toxicity, life and death are the only In an instant, the medical officials call it instant wine. This is also a lot of demand in the palace. It is used for, this, death row or sinners, and sometimes some palace people who have committed crimes are executed."

"Who can withdraw the poisoned wine?" Shen Yu asked.

"Beisi prison is often used, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs," the medical officer replied cautiously, "The Ministry of Internal Affairs executes the servants, so they come to the Imperial Medical Office to ask for pepper wine. But there is a quota every time, and you can't take more. It must also be supervised by officials from the Imperial Medical Office.”

"last question."

Liang Heng had already started to feel sick to his stomach, scratched his fingernails while clutching the pan.

Shen Yudao: "A year ago, the winter feast of the twelfth lunar month..."

Before the words were finished, the old medical officer knelt down and threw himself to the ground: "Your Majesty, forgive me for concealing and failing to report the crime! It is true, it is true, when the Imperial Medical Office found that the silent wine was unexplainably reduced, the late Emperor had already drank a drop of that glass of pepper wine. Left, even Da Luo Jinxian has no way to find out!"

It is meaningless to investigate whether what the old medical officer said is completely true. Even if he can find out the cause of the late emperor's death, how dare he speak out to offend the powerful when the emperor is still struggling to be self-sufficient.

Liang Heng coughed violently.Siji was busy showing his hospitality, and sent someone to fetch a charcoal basin and set it up in the pavilion. The animal gold charcoal exuded the fragrance of pine branches, and the heat was blowing on the face.

Liang Heng stared blankly at the charcoal basin, while Shen Yu half-knelt beside his knees, covering the back of his hands.Liang Heng drew his hand, stroked his side of his face with his wet palm, and murmured: "You are so smart...how could you think of such a thing..."

Shen Yu looked at him with calm eyes, which could be called sympathy: "I'm not sure either. There was a man in Ruyang who ate Sichuan dishes and was poisoned to death when he ate Shukou pepper."

"You also let Song Jun take advantage of the waterlogging to go to Shuzuotai to investigate. Isn't it a foresight?"

"It was Jie Lao who reminded me," Shen Yu said, "He was originally the prime minister of the Department of Agriculture, and he knew the key point, otherwise he would not have been targeted by the eunuchs, and he had to be kicked out of the Department of Agriculture."

The coolness of the floor tiles crawled from feet to hair.Liang Heng closed his eyes, and felt Shen Yu rubbing the back of his palm, trying to give him some warmth.

Once the crime of murdering the first emperor is confirmed, the three eunuchs will not be able to escape.Even without any other evidence, it is the fate of Zhu Jiu Clan.But this is not what Shen Yu wants, Liang Heng knows, what he wants is for the three eunuchs to pay for his relatives' lives.

"Where's Wang Jianzhi?" Liang Heng called out.

Lifting the curtain, a person came in, dressed in air-conditioning, and didn't say hello when he came, just sat down and warmed himself by the fire.This person's agility is really amazing, Siji was guarding outside, and he was never seen, and every time Liang Heng gave orders, he would appear like a ghost again.

Liang Heng sneered and said: "Qing You is good at sneaking, how about sneaking into Qiu Zhiyuan's mansion for me to get something?"

"Emperor Wu's bone ring?" Wang Jianzhi actually knew, "Shen Yu asked me to check it a long time ago, and sent someone disguised as a vegetable farmer to go in, but he couldn't find it. If he went deeper, he would definitely be alerted. How could the bone ring be in Qiu Zhiyuan's hands? What's the hurry? Looking for it? Wait for Qiu Zhiyuan to subdue the law and demolish his house, then it will be there naturally, and it won't be at this moment."

Liang Heng waved his hand to signal him to go, but this person didn't move at all, drinking tea while relying on warmth, he usually didn't take Liang Heng seriously.

"Siji." Liang Heng said.

When the curtain moved, Wang Jianzhi threw away his teacup and jumped out of the pavilion.

When Siji came in, the teacup rolled on the ground twice.

"Go back to the Yangshi Hall." Liang Heng ordered wearily.

At night, Liang Heng was wearing a fox fur, sitting on a soft mat in the hall, with a bamboo tube in his hand, and an almanac in front of him.

Siji came over and said, "Your Majesty, are you still resting?"

"Who is on watch outside?"

"It's Duan Zuodu, you want to call him in?"

Liang Heng shook his head, glanced at him, he was a little nice, and handed the bamboo tube to Siji, motioning him to ask for a lottery.Siji didn't know, so according to his intention, he held the bamboo tube together and shook it lightly, and a piece of the end of the stick fell out.

unitary.

Wuyou Day.Liang Heng counted the calendar and circled a day.The comment "Full of mourning gates" is an ominous day for the underworld.

Siji was taken aback and almost begged for mercy: "This, this... Your Majesty, you should beg yourself..."

Liang Heng smiled abruptly.Recently, he has always looked tense, full of thoughts, and smiles, not very happy, which is a bit sad.

"Isn't this very good?" Liang Heng said lightly.Wuyou Day is just three days later.

In less than three days, two days later, Pei Hui's three thousand soldiers arrived at Fengyangmen in the eastern suburbs.

Wang Ling did not retreat, looking at the capital city as if facing a big enemy, the city gates were closed tightly, and the city walls were filled with well-equipped southern army soldiers and giant crossbows overnight.

At the court meeting, several ministers who thought Yang Xi was making a big deal out of a molehill at first became anxious and asked Liang Heng to mobilize the surrounding garrison as soon as possible, and to find someone to go out of the city to negotiate.Liang Heng has a panoramic view of all living beings, those who sit firmly on Mount Tai, such as Duan Boyu, Yang Xi, Xu Zhuan, have already discussed it, and others such as Qiu Zhiyuan, Niu Shida, Tong Fang, do not know what they are planning.

After the court was over, Siji led Liang Heng to Fengque Terrace.Liang Heng knew that someone was waiting for him on the stage, and Duan Yanling was by his side today, so he asked him to stay below and not follow.

Fengque Terrace is 360 levels high, pointing directly at Bixiao.The bronze phoenix on the ridge spreads its wings and relaxes its neck. Whenever there is prosperity and peace, its clear song will resound throughout Zhangyi Palace.

Liang Heng had only climbed this ladder to the sky once before on foot. That time when he monopolized the high platform, what appeared in his sight was a pair of embroidered gold soap shoes. This time it was still the same.

Qiu Zhiyuan waited for the little emperor to step on the stage, the light hidden under his eyelids seemed to be scratching his skin.

"Your Majesty, why don't you ask someone to carry you up, the former emperor would never climb a building on foot."

Liang Heng was tired from walking, and sat down on the steps, nonchalantly said: "The first emperor is the first emperor, and I am I."

"Is this His Majesty's answer?" Qiu Zhiyuan said, "The late Emperor walked every step of his life like walking on thin ice, and never took risks that would endanger himself. From this point of view, His Majesty's temperament is really different from that of the late Emperor, and he dared to fight with his life."

Liang Heng said: "Chang Shi said this, but I don't understand."

Qiu Zhiyuan smiled and said, "Your Majesty, there is no need to play charades anymore. Please look inside and outside the palace, inside and outside the city."

Looking down from the high platform, you can see the triple gate of the Forbidden Palace, guarded by the gate guards, and the patrols of the Southern Army armed with knives, guns, halberds and axe, passing by. The momentum of the array is solemn and awe-inspiring.

Needless to say, under the threat of Pei Hui, Wangdu is now under the strict control of the Southern Army inside and outside Wangdu.

"The world knows that those who steal the hook will be punished, and those who steal the country will be punished," Qiu Zhiyuan sighed, "This is really a wrong perception. Anyone who has the surname of Liang and is the king of the world, everyone will punish him. After a while, he should be killed." Make a warning to others, so as to warn others."

Liang Heng remained silent except for being silent.

"Your Majesty can be regarded as watching His Majesty grow up. I really can't bear His Majesty to be shown to the public on the execution ground. Finally, I will give His Majesty another chance. Fengque Terrace is a cage that imprisoned the late emperor all his life. If Your Majesty is willing to follow the example of his father, the Southern Army and Shixing withdrew his troops and continued to defend the royal city."

After Qiu Zhiyuan finished speaking, he lifted a canopy beside him to drive him away, and grandiosely set Qiu Gong down the steps.

Winter is like a red copper mirror, hanging coldly in the east.Liang Heng sat on the high platform, the wind blew his forehead and hair randomly.He felt the temperature leaking from his body. On the eve of freezing to death, he stood up and walked down Fengque Terrace step by step.

On the eve of Wuyou Day, Yangshi Hall.

Liang Heng called Lai Siji and asked, "Do you have that thing?"

Siji was inexplicable: "Which thing?"

"The one your eunuchs usually use."

The emperor pulled his valet and whispered in a low voice.Siji's face became hotter the more he heard it, and he faltered: "Hmm... ah... yes, yes, your majesty?"

Liang Heng pushed him: "I want it now, then go and call You Duhou."

When Shen Yu arrived at the palace, the moon was like frost.

Liang Heng was eating supper, so he invited him to sit down. There were stewed mutton in red, quail in honey wine, deer tendon in chicken sauce, etc., and some wine was also served.Shen Yu was stunned and said, "What are you doing all this for?"

"What do you do?" Liang Heng said, "I'm hungry and want to eat. Sit down, do you want to eat something?"

Shen Yu didn't know which play he was singing again, sitting with him, Liang Heng must share the food with him, Shen Yu was kind, took a chopstick to taste a little, and said: "Actually, I have something to do in the second half of the night..."

"The only thing to do at night is to sleep." Liang Heng stuffed the wine cup for him, "Drink?"

Shen Yu felt more and more baffled, but still drank it.Why didn't he say what he said.The wine tasted rather strange, and Shen Yu's eyebrows were knotted.