incomprehensible

At the imperial banquet in the evening, not only all the officials were present, but also the leaders of the defeated countries brought back from the southwest were also present.

The central government has the demeanor of a big country and will not kill prisoners of war, but these former heads of small countries will almost spend their lives under house arrest in the future.Ye Xueyuan had already chosen the address of the so-called embassy for them, it was near the royal hunting ground, the security was heavy, and there were few people in the surrounding area.

The embassy is already under construction, and it is extremely luxurious just by looking at the drawings, but it is just a cage after all. They are expected to live under the fence of others, be looked down upon by others, and be imprisoned in a small world for a miserable life.

Ye Xueyuan also gave them a bit of dignity, and was detained without handcuffs and shackles, but the seats were all arranged behind the officials, and everyone was downcast, no different from prisoners.Especially in Yi Kingdom, the biggest defeated country, the Yun clan was down and down, but no one was willing to travel thousands of miles to accept the surrender. They only pushed Yi Wang's four-year-old son out, and let a few loyal veterans take him with him, crying all the way stop.Sitting in the banquet at this time, he probably had been carefully instructed. Although he was sobbing, he didn't dare to cry. He shrank his head and was watched like a monkey by the officials from the central government who came to the table one after another.

Although he was not at fault, but when the national war was defeated, his surname became the original sin.Yun's crimes can only be repaid by him.

The officials were seated one by one, and the three princes were also present.Prince Ning has a prince from the Beifu, Prince Rong is accompanied by his little boy favourite, and Prince Su is ascetic and ascetic; Worried about the future of the royal family.

What made these old officials even more embarrassing was that the emperor himself was an hour late for such an important occasion. There was "reliable news" that he favored a maid who came from nowhere in the bath and carried him back to the bedroom. , didn't even let anyone see his face, and didn't let the servants take him away, and hid himself on the dragon couch, as if he would fight another battle after the imperial banquet.

Tomorrow, this servant girl will be "accidentally" discovered to be the Empress Empress. Because she couldn't bear lovesickness, she secretly ran to the palace to have a private meeting with the emperor; A bunch of innocuous and funny talk.

Of course Ye Xueyuan at this time didn't know that his queen had arranged for him clearly, so he didn't know that many old officials off the court were calling him immoral, extravagant and lustful in their hearts, and he didn't know that Ye Xuehuan and Ye Xuexun had already whispered to each other After discussing for a long time, he accurately came to the conclusion that "this maid is probably the emperor's wife herself"; when he hurried to the front hall, he looked refreshed, and everyone could see that he was in a good mood, so he didn't He may show some strange and subtle expressions to annoy him, and everyone knows it.

After the toast and banquet, there was naturally another bunch of routine praises.All Ye Xueyuan's soldiers came to block him, he didn't look bored, and he didn't show any color, he was not surprised by favor or disgrace, and his imperial demeanor was fully revealed.

The king who hastily ascended to the throne has grown too much in this year, and everyone has seen his nature that belongs to the Yexue clan hidden deep in his blood; especially after years of repression, he even behaved better than any of his Brothers must be aggressive, courageous, decisive and calm, and no one can say that he is insufficiently capable and difficult to take over.

During the meeting, many people tried to test the specific disposal of the Southwest after the war, and Ye Xueyuan talked about him without revealing anything.The courtiers below couldn't speak, so they could only toast to cover up their embarrassment, but they didn't dare to forcefully drink the emperor's wine, so Chu Changyue beside him suffered a disaster.General Zhengxi, who made the first contribution in this battle, was seated closest to the emperor, and the emperor had no intention of toasting, so they naturally paid respects to him; poor Chu Changyue only had a small amount of alcohol, and he staggered drunk not long after the banquet started .

Fortunately, Ye Xueyuan still has a bit of conscience, so he was helped back to rest early, and he "casually" chatted with Ye Xuehuan about Jinlin.

"Back when Zhao Ying was involved in the case, you reported that the blood of the royal family was involved, but the government didn't take it seriously. I didn't expect it to be true."

He played with the wine cup in his hand and sighed softly: "My Chongyang's child is so spoiled."

Everything in the arena was silent.

To be honest, the root cause of the First World War in the Southwest lies in the case of Zhao Ying; however, the truth of the case and the true face of Skylark did not surface until Yi Guoguo was broken.

After Hongling was arrested, the Yu family actually had the intention to retire. Mingli was still colluding with the Liu family, doing various struggles and covering up, but secretly a large number of core members moved to the Western Regions and overseas. The Qingming butterfly sent was just a cover to divert attention.

Yu Tian later carefully studied the corpses of those blue butterflies and found that they were all false alarms. Even if Lan Qi was not present that day, these incomplete Qingming butterflies would only have an hour's lifespan at most, and they couldn't even fly out of the Eastern Palace. The effect is greater than the actual damage.Xie Zifang is a complete lunatic. Knowing that his future is ruined, he wished to drag the whole world to be buried with him; The method of family blood is the same.

Yu Tian looked back and thought about it, and felt that he lost his composure at that time; not to mention that the method of refining the sacrificial gu has long been lost, even if there is a god in the Yu family who can reproduce the sacrificial gu and release this cruel and uncontrollable thing It is not beneficial to the Yu family to cause harm to the world.

To put it bluntly, those old things knew that she was betrayed, so they would play tricks, and even she used it together.

The Feng family's thousand years of experience in the previous dynasty is definitely not just a hiding place in Yiguo, the possibility of killing them all is extremely slim, and Ye Xueyuan does not want to waste time and resources on people who will not pose any threat in the short term.He first announced the evidence of the collusion between the Liu family and the Skylark found in the cabinet of the Ministry of Heart, and then publicized the tragic situation in the Skylark side courtyard. This can be regarded as a complete settlement of the two cases of Zhao Ying's smuggling of people and the Liu family's collusion with foreign thieves Shocking case.

As soon as the news came out, the world was in an uproar.

Originally, for most people in the DPRK, this was just an excuse for Zhongyang to attack Yiguo. It didn't matter whether these children were dead or alive, but no one thought that the truth would be so cruel.When that piece of hell on earth is truly displayed before the eyes of the world, no one can remain calm and sigh; Lark's "top" reputation is actually made of countless blood and bones, and the people behind the scenes are naturally sinful and countless, but What a child.

Ye Xueyuan personally sentenced Zhao Ying to Ling Chi's sentence, and commented: "Children are the future of the country, so killing the children of our central government is tantamount to bringing chaos to the country, and ten thousand deaths cannot be redeemed."

After autumn, Zhao Ying will be escorted to the southwest, where in the side courtyard where countless children's lives were taken away, he will be cut off with a thousand and eight hundred knives, and he will be released only after suffering and bleeding. Allow to die.

It is true that Zhao Ying is only an inexorable link in this chain of crimes, but the whole chain was pulled out from him, and he naturally bears the brunt.

Although the punishment of Ling Chi has always existed in the laws of the central government, it is the first time that it has been truly implemented since the opening of the dynasty.This sentence is extremely cruel and poisonous, but it can also be regarded as a little consolation to those children who died in vain.

And the only one who survived in that Asura Field was Prince Rong's son who had not yet been officially naturalized.

——I have had this kind of experience since I was a child. In the future, if I am not a general, I will be a ghost.

Prince Rong is already a well-deserved god of war. If he is really allowed to raise this adopted son, the royal family's prestige will surely usher in another peak, and the court will have to be terrified.What's even more frightening is the trend of "adoption". One Beifu and one Rongfu chose to adopt, and the emperor gave his full support, and then contacted the queen for a long time without a pregnancy letter. It's hard to say whether he is paving the way for himself.

The courtiers of this generation are also really painstaking. They are afraid of the excessive expansion of the imperial power and the decline of the royal family's blood. They have endless worries every day.

"If you don't die in a catastrophe, you must have a future blessing." Ye Xuehuan smiled lightly, "Your brother will cultivate Jinlin into a talent, and guard my Chongyang Mountains and Rivers in the future."

"The name is well obtained." Ye Xueyuan nodded, "Take him to Taichang Temple on a certain day, learn the etiquette process, go to the ancestral temple to worship, and then bring him into the palace to be granted naturalization. It will be done as soon as possible. It’s better to send it to Taixue Academy as soon as possible, so don’t delay your studies.”

Ye Xuehuan agreed, and the two raised their glasses from a distance, and each drank it all.

Halfway through the banquet, there will be some singing and dancing performances to add to the fun.It's just that the performers are not ordinary kabuki and dancers, but some famous daughters of various families; the performances are not singing songs and dancing dances, but poems, songs, zithers and flutes.For a moment, the banquet hall was full of sunshine and snow, so elegant.

This is a deliberate arrangement by the Ministry of Rites, and its intentions are obvious.Ye Xueyuan had just embraced her own queen, and she was satisfied physically and mentally, but her heart was as still as water, and her face was calm.Seeing that the emperor didn't respond, the officials in the audience felt cold, and it was hard to stop; the poor group of pampered daughters, who ended up in a row without embarrassment, might be no different from street performers in the eyes of the emperor.

Ye Xuexun was really bored, and had no interest in these performances called performances that were actually flattery, so she stood up and said with a smile: "The emperor's triumphant return to the court, it's not appropriate to listen to these melodramatic sounds, why don't you let the younger brother give it to the emperor's brother?" Give me a song."

Ye Xueyuan understood and nodded happily.

The ministers wanted to cry but had no tears, they all scolded Ye Xuexun in their hearts, disregarding the dignity of the royal family, hanging out with the Prince of Bian all day long, and hindering the emperor's good deeds.But the emperor nodded, and no one dared to object, they could only watch helplessly as he stole the limelight.

Ye Xuexun came to Xianning to greet him, so it was naturally impossible to bring his own piano, so he borrowed one from the previous performer and gave it to him on the seat.

The strings of the piano at the girl's house were all loosely tuned, so he specially asked someone to bring tools to tighten the strings, and carefully tested the sound of each one. Then he smiled at Ye Xueyuan: "Your brother is making a fool of yourself!" gone."

The song he played is called "Farewell", an ancient war song, the score is extremely complicated, and it is difficult for ordinary people to play it smoothly, so it is not widely spread, but those who know the piano will naturally know the beauty of this song .

Although it is a war song, it takes love as the main theme, with a melodious and soothing tone. It is the lovers wishing each other peace before the battle, with deep determination in their nostalgia.It soon sank down again, and some subtle chords were mixed into the main melody, which sounded a bit subtly dissonant, as if the battlefield was treacherous.Afterwards, the tune changed from high to high, and gradually became more and more exciting. Every sound became sonorous and powerful, rampaging through the entire dome banquet hall.

Ye Xuexun's ten fingers fluttered, and a piano with seven strings played the majestic momentum of a golden iron horse. The air of iron and blood rushed towards his face, making him almost breathless, and his internal organs were trembling. It seems that they all show a magnificent scene of soldiers and horses interlacing and killing sounds shaking the sky.

The sound of the piano stopped abruptly at the most tense place, and after a short pause, it slowed down, and the sense of chilling gradually disappeared, just like after a shower, the sky suddenly released, and the clouds were calm and the wind was light.After the war, a pair of lovers embraced each other in the desolate ruins, telling each other the exhaustion and joy of the rest of their lives after the catastrophe.The most wonderful thing is the ending, which repeats the melody at the beginning, and goes to the battlefield after a short break; the love in troubled times is not so lingering and sentimental, but more indifferent and free and easy outside of life and death.The last long ending sound disappeared after a long while, talking and laughing and parting, without promise of an afterlife.

No matter how much Ye Xuexun has a more beautiful appearance than a woman, he is still a real man. The strength of his fingers is by no means comparable to that of a woman. After playing, all previous performances were eclipsed.

His music theory was taught by the most famous violinist in the northern region, and he has profound attainments, but he is a direct descendant of the royal family, so he will not give it away easily.The last time he played in front of people was during the First Battle of Mobei, when Mo Ran led his troops into battle. He played a farewell song on the top of Xuehu Pass, and he also played this song "Farewell".

Mo Ran's expression was calm, and he tapped lightly on the desk with one hand, looking down at Ye Xuexun's knuckle-boned fingers, his dark blue eyes were full of rare tenderness.Ye Xuexun played the war song in her hand, but her expression was extremely charming. From time to time, she glanced at Mo Ran with a half-smile, and the eyes of the two met viscously, wishing they could kiss together in public.

The officials under the seat couldn't see the eyebrows and eyes of the two people clearly, but Ye Xueyuan on the main seat and Ye Xuehuan on the side could see clearly, and only at this time would they envy Ye Xuequan for being blind.

Ye Xuehuan is purely laughing at fifty steps. At least half of the people in Qianming City have seen him holding Lan Qi and kissing in the street. In this respect, Ye Xueyuan has heard some subtle things. Come with emotion.

Although the battle in the Southwest was fought vigorously, in terms of the degree of danger, it was not the same as the battle in Mobei back then.The people didn't know the real reason for that battle, but at that time there were almost all opposition voices in the court; no one was optimistic about that battle, but Mo Ran gritted his teeth and broke into the depths of the grassland, successively capturing the three most powerful people in Beihu. The fighting power of the Golden Tent Tribe changed the direction of the court, praising the noble son of Beifu for his bravery, but did not give a reason for the war.

——When they were fighting alone in the grassland, did the two of them, as depicted in this song, forget about life and death, and love each other right now?

After experiencing these together, naturally they will no longer care about the eyes of others.

If we really want to talk about it, the cause of the battle in the Southwest may not be as high-sounding as it is on the surface, and it is mixed with countless selfishness; Ye Xuehuan wants to clear Lan Qi's skylark background, Mo Ran wants to take two formations, Even Ye Xueyuan wanted to cover up Yutian's previous background.When Mo Ran insisted on sending troops back then, he also scoffed at it, but now he can understand the impulse and determination brought about by this kind of selfishness.

No one can completely get rid of selfishness, and even the emperor cannot bear the so-called "righteousness of family and country" alone.If judged by this standard, then the first emperor was indeed the most competent emperor since the founding of the dynasty. Whether he wanted it or not, he always regarded personal relationships as worthless.But it was also because of this that he stepped on the bottom line of his queen and prince one by one indifferently, but in the end he couldn't win their madness after being hurt by Nilin.

The human race has always been peculiar, obviously weak and selfish, and will be indecisive and careless because of some inseparable feelings, but at certain times, it will be fearless and desperate for these personal feelings.There are very few noble people in this world. If you talk too much about righteousness, you will not be tired or annoying; what can really make people feel stable, grow, and gentle is not always those empty "" righteousness", but something within reach that exists around us.

It sounds narrow, but Ye Xueyuan understands it more deeply than anyone else.That seemingly radiant chair did not give him a real sense of stability. Standing on the commanding heights of the world and looking down at all living beings, everything became extremely small, as if he could grasp everything with his hands, but it was as if separated by a layer of veil, so far away. And illusory.

During this year, the only thing that made him feel that he was still alive was the blood shed on the battlefield, and the warm and soft Yu Tian in his arms just now.

Before he went to the banquet, Yu Tian still hooked his neck and whispered in his ear: "Husband, come back earlier."

He still can't see through this woman's thoughts, but Yu Tian knows better than anyone else what he wants in his heart, which is enough to give him the illusion of being loved, so he becomes more and more addicted to it.Whether it's the skylark golden feather, or the remnants of the previous dynasty; whether it's for treating each other sincerely, or for the sake of settling down, he just wants her to stay by his side.

When he was young and ignorant, Liu Ting always talked with him about the common people in the world. He once had high ambitions and really took the people as his own responsibility, but later found out that it was all fart.Compared with the mission of the royal family and the legacy of the ancestors, Yutian can give him a greater and more practical motivation to be a good emperor.Compared with the admiration of all people and the praise of later generations, hearing Yutian call "Husband" after hard work can give him a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.

It's a pity that not everyone can understand the power brought by these small wishes, so they can only hide under high-sounding excuses.

At the end of the song, Ye Xueyuan raised his head and drank the wine in the cup, praising: "Nuan heard this song is wonderful."

Ye Xuexun smiled and replied, "Brother, I'm sorry."

His face was as if nothing had happened, but under the case he stuffed both hands into Mo Ran's palm.Mo Ran secretly rolled her eyes, but still held them consciously, and rubbed his fingertips that were hurt by the strings one by one.

The rhythm of "Farewell" was extremely fast, and the strings were tight. After one song, all ten fingertips were red and swollen. For some reason, he had a sudden whim to join in the fun.

All the ministers followed suit and said nonsense like "Prince Ning's piano skills are so good that he is lucky to hear a song for three years" against his will.Ye Xuexun had already burst into laughter in his heart, and after a few words of hypocrisy and modesty, he secretly gave Ye Xuehuan a smug look.

Ye Xuehuan pretended not to see him, raised his glass to his lips to cover up his smile, and waited for the show.

Ye Xueyuan's cold eyes swept around the audience, and suddenly shouted: "Wu Qing."

The newly appointed Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites was suddenly named, and his heart skipped a beat. He bravely left the table and said, "The minister is here."

Ye Xueyuan asked casually: "Come and tell me, what is so wonderful about Nuan Wen's song?"

Wu Shangshu was sweating coldly behind his back. The pair of lovers depicted in "Farewell" can go to battle independently, but they are both men. No matter how you avoid the important and lightly praise, you can't escape this point. If you are not careful, you will be caught.

There are so many courtiers under the seat, but they want to arrest him, the intention could not be more obvious.

Ye Xueyuan saw that he couldn't answer, so he didn't ask any more questions, but instead asked a question that he couldn't answer: "Wu Qing thinks, what exactly does my Ye Xue family rely on to defend and rule the world?"

Now not only Wu Shangshu, but all the courtiers secretly thought something was wrong.It's just an insignificant romance arranged, even if she has no intention of choosing a concubine, there is no need to rise to such a height, it is obviously to take the opportunity to make trouble and gain prestige.

Sure enough, Ye Xueyuan didn't ask Wu Shangshu to answer, and said calmly: "After Liu Ni forced the palace, I ascended the throne in a hurry, and I know how dissatisfied Zhu Qing is."

The officials were terrified, and they all left their seats and knelt down, saying that they dare not.

Ye Xueyuan didn't pay any attention to it, and continued on her own: "The essay discusses martial arts, and I'm not outstanding among my brothers. This throne is a fluke, and I know it."

This is not self-effacing, not to mention that the princes involved are all there, no matter what they say, the flattery can only be slapped on the horse's legs, and both ends will be offended, so no one will say anything.

"I know I'm not talented, so I've been working hard for more than a year, implementing the New Deal, conquering the Southwest, and striving for both civil and military governance. Dare I ask you, can I still be worthy of this throne?"

The officials were silent, and finally found that the emperor seemed to be really angry, and they couldn't help but feel a little baffled while being terrified.Left Prime Minister Feng Yizheng had a delicate mind, guessed roughly, and gave Lu Qiuyan, the right chancellor next to him, a wink. The two of them came out together, and said in unison: "Your Majesty, I am going to cultivate martial arts and work hard to govern. It is really a blessing from the center."

The two ministers took the lead, and the officials followed suit, singing praises for a while.However, Ye Xueyuan seemed determined to fight to the end, and slapped the wine cup on the food table again, and said with a sneer: "Since we all know that hard work is the key to a stable country, why are you in a hurry when I come back from the battle?" What you are showing me is not the achievements of the past year, but these sensual things?"

"Or……"

He squinted his eyes and looked at the dark and kneeling crowd under his seat, "In Zhu Qing's mind, no matter how much I have achieved, it is not as meaningful as being a boar with branches and leaves in the palace?"

A group of Qianjin ladies who were arranged to perform in the audience were all paled by what he said, the more tempered ones were full of shame and anger, and the timid ones even cried.At any rate, they were all elegant songs and dances, which he called sensuality; at any rate, they were all elegant and intelligent ladies, but he said they were sows giving birth, which is really too ugly. The daughter has been offended all over the place.Judging from this posture, it is not only that she has chosen a concubine unintentionally, but she clearly hates this matter.

Wu Shangshu lost his mind and finally understood where he offended Tianyan.Ye Xueyuan was about to reach his thirties, he had no children, and he had only one empress in the harem. It was reasonable and reasonable for the officials below to test whether he had the intention of choosing a concubine, but the bad thing was that this situation was not caused by him.Back then when he was the crown prince, he refused to accept concubines and leave no heirs because he was controlled by Liu Ting.

This is the sore spot in his heart, and it is the greatest shame in his life; now that he is the emperor, these ailments are taboos that cannot be mentioned, and Wu Shangshu's arrangement at the imperial banquet not only poked his sore spot, but also He was questioning his ability and dignity as a man, and he slapped the queen on the face.

"minister……"

Wu Shangshu originally wanted to say "knowledge", but if he confessed to the crime, he would open the scar in the emperor's heart in public, and it would be even more fatal, so he could only swallow it abruptly, almost biting his own tongue.

Lu Qiuyan and Feng Yizheng looked at each other, knowing that there was no way they could save this situation.But since the emperor turned his anger on the bright side, it was mostly thunderous and rainy, with the aim of beating the officials not to choose a concubine with him again. It's bone-chilling, so I don't worry too much.Ye Xuexun's rush to present the song actually saw through the emperor's mind and secretly helped Wu Shangshu. Otherwise, if the emperor really watched the end in such a calm manner, he might have to settle accounts after returning to the court.

"Brother, calm down."

In the silence, Ye Xuequan spoke leisurely, and the elegant and warm voice eased the atmosphere a lot, "Since ancient times, Mingjun should work hard to govern, but you don't have to be too demanding on yourself. How can a person take care of it? In the end, it depends on the unity of the court. Wenxiuwude is second, and being able to know people and accept others is the weapon of the emperor."

What he meant was obvious. To be an emperor doesn't need to be both civil and military. His ministers will do all the big and small things for him.

Ye Xuehuan also smiled and said: "After all, I haven't had a feat of imperial conquest in 30 years, and Mr. Wu has been in office for less than a year. It's normal not to know how to arrange the imperial banquet for celebration. It's just that others can see it." It's a joke, but it has to be punished."

It sounded like he was making trouble, but he made Wu Shangshu a crime of ill-prepared, vaguely reminded Ye Xueyuan that there were still envoys from other countries in the field, and by the way, he did not forget to mock the late emperor again, and went around for a few minutes. Turns out, he was also pleading for Wu Shangshu.

No matter how it is in private, in public, they always have such a respectful appearance as brothers and sisters, and they spare no effort to assist Ye Xueyuan to be a good emperor who is a virtuous corporal and a big belly.

Ye Xueyuan glanced at the envoys from various countries who were watching the theater at the last table, and finally picked up the step with half-push and half-push, and said coldly: "You will be fined for half a year, go home and think about it for three days, and then come and tell me what is wrong with you."

Wu Shangshu heaved a sigh of relief, and replied tremblingly, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness."

Ye Xueyuan waved him to retreat, and said to the officials: "I understand the intentions of all the gentlemen. But the concubine is not only my wife and concubine, but also the mother of the world. What I want to raise is the future master of the world. It’s not enough to know some poems, songs, piano, chess, calligraphy and painting. At the beginning...if my mother and concubine could have some opinions, I wouldn’t be ruled by Liu Ni for many years. And the queen accompanied me for six years, resisting Liu Ni , internally stabilizing the Eastern Palace, without her management, I don’t know if I would be able to live until now. Wouldn’t it be more helpful than being able to give birth and support?”

"If Zhuqing really intends to send someone to the harem, then you should weigh it carefully first. Whether the person you want to send should be the mother of the world, and whether you can teach it to be the master of the world."

The civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty were all gasping for air, the standard for concubine selection was too high; when the empress was still a concubine, it could be said that the situation was special, but now if she wants to help the emperor in this way, it must be done in politics Aren't you afraid of repeating the mistakes of the first Chu and the second?

Immediately there were a few old censors who couldn't listen anymore and were about to step forward to give advice, but Ye Xueyuan stood up first, sighed softly and said, "I'm tired too, we can leave everything to the court for discussion." Rong Cai, you will host this session for me."

Ye Xuehuan understood, stood up and responded, "My brother understands."