Shen Zhu looked towards the main entrance, and the housekeeper whispered, "The Son of Heaven is here in person."

Rao Tu was startled, and Lu Zhiming stepped forward and said, "Master Shen please go to welcome the guests first, and I will retire with Mrs. Rao first."

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard a majestic voice saying: "There is no need to retreat. I also want to see the eccentric masters that Shen Qing usually associates with."

Two men walked out of the darkness, their actions were airy, and they were extraordinary, especially the elderly. Although the temples were white and faltering, they had the majesty of ruling the world.

Prince Yu and the Emperor.

Shen Zhu hurriedly stepped forward a few steps, and raised his sleeves to give a big salute, the old emperor supported his arms and sighed: "During dinner, I heard someone report that Shen Qing was white-headed, and fell on horseback in front of the mansion gate and fell to the ground not awake. I didn't believe it at the time, but when I see it now, my head is really white, why is that?"

Shen Zhu whispered: "Wei Chen is fine."

The old emperor's eyes were bright, he glanced at Raotu, and asked Shen Zhu, "This is your newly married lady? Sure enough, even my harem is not so stunning. No wonder Shen Qing would rather leave it behind. Even if you have an official hat, you have to marry into the house."

Rao Tu has never seen the emperor before, let alone how to bow. Shen Zhu said lightly: "The concubine doesn't understand the rules, please don't blame the emperor."

A word reminded Ratu, she hurriedly knelt down and said, "The people's daughter pays tribute to His Majesty the Emperor."

Lao Huangdi waved his hand, "Get up, I came here in a low profile, so I don't have to be so restrained."

Lu Zhiming bowed with one hand, "Lu Zhiming, a cultivator, has seen His Majesty."

Prince Yu next to him hurriedly said: "It must be Mr. Lu, who is rumored to be able to ask Changsheng, Mr. Jiuyang's name."

The emperor looked him up and down and asked with a smile, "Such a young living fairy?"

Lu Zhi ordered Qianhe to reply: "Your Majesty's words are serious, and you are a human being, and you can't be a god."

Shen Zhu invited the emperor and Prince Yu into the house, and the two dignitaries were not polite and took their seats at will. Prince Yu said: "Today, Xiao Wang hunted a deer in the mountains, and he was going to hold a family banquet in the palace to enjoy the snow, but when the royal father heard that Lord Shen was injured, he said that he wanted to visit the Lord, and shyly brought a few pieces of venison. "

The emperor laughed and said, "Lie'er thinks that it can't be put on the table, but I think that gold and silver silk and satin are not what Shen Qing loves. It's better to bring some venison for the benefit. Quickly, I ordered the venison to be roasted."

Prince Yu smiled and said, "Father, you are so impatient, and you still care about the venison you sent out. No wonder the minister feels stingy."

Rao Tu listened to the tone of Prince Yu's speech, and was shocked beyond measure. She knew that Prince Yu was highly valued by the old emperor, but she did not expect that the dialogue between the father and son would be so warm and casual.

Comparing the miserable situation of the five kings Xiao Yanning, it is simply the difference between clouds and mud.

Prince Yu personally presented the rustic wooden box with venison to Rao Tu, "I'm sorry ma'am."

Rao Tu regained his senses, stood up abruptly and looked at Shen Zhu, he nodded slightly, and said to the emperor, "Where did the emperor come to visit Wei Chen, it is clearly lonely on the snowy day, and he came to Wei Chen's house to drink with the stove and wine."

The emperor laughed, "I also need to borrow your splendid poems so that I can drink."

Rao Tu took the venison box from Prince Yu and withdrew to the courtyard to instruct the cook.

The venison was sent to the stove to be smoked and roasted. She did not return to the house immediately, but stood under the porch and listened to the conversations of the people in the house. The emperor had a lot of conversations with Prince Yu, and Shen Zhu only answered when he asked. And Lu Zhiming closed his eyes, didn't listen, didn't hear, didn't ask.

In her impression, the emperor was majestic and solemn, but she did not expect to be so peaceful and approachable. She could perceive that the old emperor's peace concealed a deep and distinguished elder, Ci Yan; while Prince Yu's gags were completely revealed by the younger generation to the elder.

Rao Tu sighed secretly, she knew that the five kings Xiao Yanning and the old emperor might not have the harmony that is one tenth of the current one.

She suddenly felt pity for him.

From time to time, the venison is roasted, and the fruit wood is roasted, showing a golden brown color and a faint fruit wood fragrance. She brought the venison into the house, and Prince Yu smiled casually, seemingly unintentionally: "Mrs. Rao is quiet and graceful in her actions, and Lord Shen is so beautiful, what more can you ask for?"

Rao Tu responded with a gentle smile, "Prince Yu has praised me wrongly. Lord Shen has caused me a lot of trouble because of me. Now all the Confucian students in Guozijian, I'm afraid they still hate me to the bone!"

The emperor shook his head and said, "A pedantic scholar's opinion! It's like a monarch who loses his country, but puts the blame on a woman and brings disaster to the country and the people. What is it to do with a foolish monarch, and a woman who has no power? That? The group of sour scholars can't turn around, so I will personally give you a decent honor."

Rao Tu lowered her head and said nothing, only to hear the emperor smile: "Let's not talk about this for the time being, let's try this venison first."

Shen Zhu personally picked up a piece of venison for the emperor with his chopsticks. The emperor took it and chewed it carefully.

Shen Zhu and Prince Yu each took a piece. The emperor looked at Lu Zhiming and poured a glass of green ant wine himself, "Mr. Lu doesn't eat meat, how about drinking?"

Lu Zhiming got up and took the wine glass, without any fear, he accepted it safely.

The emperor smiled at Ratu again and said, "You also eat venison."

Rao Tu bowed her head and said, "The people don't dare."

He chuckled, "You don't have to be cautious today, Shen Qing and I are called monarchs and ministers, and we are really good friends. Today, I am just an old friend who comes to the door."

Rao Tu heard him calling himself "I" instead of "Zhen", he hesitated for a while, then raised his chopsticks and took a piece of venison.

Shen Zhu's expression was indifferent, unable to see what was in his heart.

The emperor sighed: "The deer is an animal, in a sense, a symbol of power. Back then, Qin lost its deer, and the world chased it away. What a chaotic world when a group of heroes rises up together. Now, although I have no inner worries, I have Foreign aggression, the northern border is about to move, the Eastern Wu and the southern border are colluding, and the western Shu land is restless. My Daliang lives in it, maybe one day, it will be regarded as a piece of venison."

Shen Zhu didn't argue, Lu Zhi ordered to drink quietly, Prince Yu heard the word "right" and seemed a little taboo, so he didn't say much. Rao Tu was even more silent.

The emperor looked around, hehe smiled: "Look, I'm talking about serious things again, don't talk about these, don't talk about these. What do you think of the taste of this venison?"

Prince Yu was shocked, the meat on the chopsticks fell into the bowl, how does the venison taste? He thought to himself how to answer, but the emperor just compared the beam to venison.

"Huh? Why didn't you speak? Shen Qing, you speak first."

Hearing this, Shen Zhu put down his chopsticks and said calmly: "Although venison is beautiful, Wei Chen prefers the aroma of fruit wood that achieves this taste. This minister thinks that it is wonderful to smoke and roast with fruit wood."

The emperor nodded and looked at Rao Tu again. Rao Tu felt a little panic in her heart. It was the first time in her life that she saw the Sage. It was like sitting on pins and needles. How could she describe the taste of venison in detail?

The emperor smiled slightly, and Prince Chaoyu asked, "Lie Er, what do you think?"

"Back to the father, my son has tasted nothing in his mouth these days, and he hasn't tasted it yet."

The emperor nodded and suddenly sighed, "I just asked such a simple question, why are you all so nervous?"

"Father..."

The emperor waved his hand and sighed: "You and Shen Zhu are both acquainted with me, but no one is willing to tell me the answer, I just simply want to know what this venison tastes like. You two, still Better than a woman."

Rao Tu's heart trembled, and she was silent and did not dare to speak.

Shen Zhu remained silent.

Prince Yu asked anxiously, "Father, is there anything wrong with this venison?"

"No problem." The emperor waved his hand, and his demeanor suddenly became very desolate, reminding Rao Tu of the dead leaves blown by the wind at dusk in autumn.

"It's because I'm old, and my tongue is useless."

Lu Zhiming finally looked at the old emperor. He squinted his eyes and listened to the old emperor's breath, as if he had made a surprising discovery, and clenched the wine glass in his hand slightly.

"When I was young, I was also high-spirited. The horse stepped on the five kingdoms and won the grand territory of today's Daliang. After fighting for a lifetime, in the end, it was the things that I cared about the most that left me first, and my tongue was broken. The legs are not very good, and recently I have always dreamed of the scene of the battlefield, and I dreamed that the souls who died under my sword came to ask for their lives. In a few days, I should go to see them. "

"Father, these are all common minor ailments, you must not be so depressed!" Prince Yu bowed his head to the ground, unable to kneel.

"Lie'er, when you get up, do you think I don't know about the cares in your heart?"

Prince Yu's shoulders trembled slightly, and he got up and sat down, his face as pale as earth.

The emperor looked at Shen Zhu and smiled slightly: "I have six sons, but Lie'er is the most similar to me. Although he has never experienced fighting in battles, he has forbearance and scheming. I will need such a monarch in the future."

Shen Zhu finally said, "Weichen, I understand."

"I will discuss this matter with the old ministers of the palace hall, but I will give you the bottom line before you. I have made up my mind. After the spring, I will hold the grand ceremony of the crown prince, and then you will still handle it."

"The minister advises that the remaining five princes, after the ceremony of the prince, should immediately go to the fiefdom to become a vassal."

"Shen Qing thinks, how to arrange it?"

"The eldest prince went to the north and was named King of Rejection; the second prince went to the east and was named the king of Guangling; the fourth prince went to the south and was named the king of Linjiang; the sixth prince went to the west and was named the king of Liang of Shu."

Rao Tu's heart was pounding, she didn't expect Shen Zhu to be so conceited on the emperor's face. The four important wills are only briefly summed up in four sentences, and they are said so decisively that they lack even a hint of negotiation.

She didn't know how much energy and layout these four sentences actually took.

The emperor was silent for a while, then said: "King Beibei, King Guangling, and King Linjiang are all things that come naturally. It seems inappropriate to go to the important land of Xishu just after the sixth child year. What do you think...the five kings? ?"

"The five kings are lazy and arrogant, and it is even more inappropriate to succeed than to fail."

Rao Tu frowned slightly.

The emperor said slowly: "Then it is appropriate to leave the five kings in the capital?"

"The emperor has his own decision on this matter, and the minister does not dare to speak falsely."

The emperor waved his hand and said, "What a good Shen Yanbing, I know. Since I'm not in good health, I don't need to give it away."

Prince Yu stepped forward to support the old emperor, and the two walked out of the house.

Shen Zhu followed behind, and he took the snow to the door of the mansion. He watched the quaint carriage parked in front of the mansion slowly drive away. The scholar who was destined to become a powerful and powerful man in the temple sighed softly. He murmured: "Forbearance and scheming? The three kings are not as good as the five kings."

When Rao Tu heard his words behind him, he couldn't help but say, "Since I understand it in my heart, why do you want to harm the five kings so much?"

He turned to look at her, "Trick?"

"The rest of the four kings are all divided into vassals, but Master Shen bluntly said before the saint that the five kings were lazy and debauched, and that success was not enough and failure was more than failure. Could it be that they remembered old hatred and deliberately took revenge?"

He smiled indifferently, "So, I am such a sinister villain in your heart?"

"If it is bright and magnanimous, why bother me, a woman, everywhere?"

He held Rao Tu's hand, "Yes, I'm a sinister villain, I'm going to be in trouble everywhere, you can't escape."

Rao Tu looked at his clear eyes and suddenly felt a little sad. Those eyes were empty, but they reminded her of their first meeting.

She calmed her mind and asked, "How will the emperor place the fifth prince?"

"Relocation? Where is the resettlement? Not killing is an amnesty."

Lu Zhiming, who had been silent for a long time, opened his mouth and said, "What Lord Shen said today is to save the five kings."

Rao Tu's heart moved, and she suddenly realized that Xiao Yanning was deeply disgusted by the emperor, and living is already a kind of forgiveness. If Shen Zhu advised Xiao Yanning to become the king of Shu Liang today, the emperor would doubt that Xiao Yanning was always hiding, and then he would really move. Murder.

Rao Tu took her hand out of Shen Zhu's hands, "You want to help the Fifth Prince?"

"I just don't want the emperor to suspect that I have colluded with the five kings. Instead of worrying about the five kings, you might as well worry about yourself."

"Me, how am I?"

"Mr. Lu snapped his fingers and asked Changsheng's Xuantong, and received the glass of wine; what kind of virtue are you, how dare you pick up chopsticks in front of the Holy Spirit?"

Rao Tu bit her lip and felt that something was wrong, so she had to defend herself: "The emperor already said that, how can I not accept it? Maybe the emperor didn't think about anything, but you have more thoughts..." She said at the end, even herself I don't really believe it.

Shen Zhu coughed a few times, leaned on the door frame and panted, "Wait for the holy edict tomorrow."

Lu Zhiming said goodbye and returned to the guest house. Rao Tu was leaving, so Shen Zhu said, "Stop."

"Is there any other order, sir?"

"Where?"

"Naturally, it's back to Meihuawu."

"Help me back to the library first."

Rao Tu looked at Yang Qian next to her, "My lord is too heavy, and I don't have the strength. You help your lord to rest in the academy."

Shen Zhu frowned, "Go to the academy, I have something to say." He coughed and walked straight back.

Rao Tu looked at his slightly hunched back from coughing, hesitated for a moment, stepped up to his side and supported him, "For the sake of your kindness to save the Fifth Prince today, I will help you."

He reached out and held her hand tightly, "You are my woman, help me for the sake of other men?"

Rao Tu bit her lip and sent him back to the dormitory of Shuyuan. He looked at her frosty profile, holding her hand for a long time and never put it down.

Rao Tu said: "I'll go first, sir, rest in peace."

"Aheng, what do you want from me?"

"I wish you were dead."

"For...why?"

"No reason, I'm not used to it."

He was silent for a moment, suddenly laughed at himself, and said slowly: "For someone like me, it's not a pity to die. Since you want me to die, after half a year... my life, you take it."

Rao Tu stared into his eyes, which was an indescribable desolation and relief. She unconsciously covered the position of her heart, and she hadn't let it go yet, how could he be relieved?

"Half a year? Since you are not afraid of death, why do you have to live for half a year?" She sneered.

He stretched out his hand and brushed the snow off her shoulders, "As soon as I come to the capital, the owner will change hands, so I can't die immediately; moreover... I want to find out where is Aheng's corpse. I am not afraid of death, but I am afraid of death. I couldn't find her afterwards."

There was a momentary blank in Rao Tu's mind. She walked out of the room, and the strong wind blew through, dragging her into a violent storm.

Shen Zhu stood quietly in the house, watching her erratic shadow disappear into the long snowstorm. He coughed a few times, and the fingers on his lips were stained with bright red blood.

He didn't care, just murmured and repeated: "Aheng draws bamboo, five sections and nineteen branches, five sections and nineteen branches..."

Yang Qian really couldn't see that his lord was standing at the door in a green shirt and thin clothes. He stepped forward and persuaded: "Sir, take a rest first."

"Yang Qian, do you think there is a resurrection from the dead in this world?"

"My subordinates never believe it."

He smiled, nodded and said, "Yeah, I don't believe it either. Send someone to Qingzhou to check someone."

Rao Tu rocked the boat back to Plum Blossom Dock by herself, but she encountered a bamboo raft on the waterway. A person on the raft lay flat on his back, letting the wind blow and the water flow, and he drifted with the waves.

Rao Tu didn't say anything, just paddled around the raft. He didn't get up, there was no breath at all, like a dead man. After Rao Tu crossed more than ten feet, she suddenly turned to look at the raft.

After struggling for a long time, she called out, "Five princes?"

He didn't respond. Rao Tu was secretly startled, turned around and rowed to the side of the raft, and saw that he was lying stiffly, as if he was already dead. Rao Tu was shocked. The first reaction was that Lu Zhiming's treatment of the poison was ineffective, and Xiao Yanning died of the poison. He hurriedly pushed on him with the oars, and was even more frightened. His body was really stiff.

She hurriedly found the anchor from the boat and threw it on the bamboo raft to hook it, and rowed hard towards the shore of Plum Blossom Dock. When he got to the shore, he dragged him off the raft with all his might, and felt the pulse between his neck with trembling hands.

No pulse at all!

The mountain ghost who had been waiting on the dock for a long time hurried over after hearing the movement and said in surprise, "Miss, is this the Fifth Prince?"

"He... he seems to be dead." Rao Tu was a little incoherent, she couldn't help shaking the shoulders of the five kings, for some reason, she felt that he couldn't die.

If he is dead, who will she ask about the many mysteries?

The mountain ghost hurriedly knelt down to feel Xiao Yanning's pulse, the little girl gave a "huh" and looked strange, "This...how is this possible?"

"What should I do? Can I save him?" Rao Tu was in a hurry.

The mountain ghost shook his head and said, "The fifth prince is not dead, this is the sleep of the turtle's rest. It's really strange, how could the fifth prince know the unique method of suppressing poison in our department? Could it be... Is he also a dead man?"

When Rao Tu heard that he was not dead, she breathed a sigh of relief and said hurriedly, "Don't worry about this for now, what should I do now?"

The mountain ghost took out an elixir from his arms and stuffed it into Xiao Yanning's mouth, "I should wake up after a while." Rao Tu waited for a while, and sure enough, he coughed softly and opened his eyes.

"What do you think, Your Majesty?"

Xiao Yanning was a little helpless, "No, I'm lying on the lake, why did you drag me up?"

Rao Tu was sullen, she held back for a while, and said with a sneer, "Next time I see the Fifth Prince lying dead on the lake, it won't be too much trouble."

Xiao Yanning sat up, took a few breaths, and then asked Ratu, "Today, has the emperor come?"

Rao Tu gave a "hmm" and said lightly, "The emperor will hold a grand ceremony for the crown prince in the spring."

He smiled slightly: "It seems that the third brother will get his wish."

Seeing his casual smile, Rao Tu couldn't help but feel a little bit pitiful in her heart, and asked, "Where is the lord going?"

"I don't know." He stood up, and only then did Rao Tu realize that the back of his clothes was soaked, and there was blood on the back of his heart.

He turned his head to look at her in a daze, and said with a smile, "Just now, this king was treating poison and blood stasis in the water. The girl took the liberty to block the flow of my breath, and now the poison has accumulated in my heart."

Rao Tu realized that she had done something wrong for a while, and said a little ashamed: "Then...then I will send you back to the raft."

He shook his head, "How can it be that simple?" He took a lantern from the mountain ghost, grabbed Rao Tu's wrist suddenly, and carried her onto the bamboo raft. The raft burst out of the water like an arrow and quickly plunged into the thick fog.

The raft slowly stopped, he took out a knife from his arms, stuffed it into Rao Tu's hands, and then sat cross-legged, "Please let the girl bleed for me."

The lantern lay quietly on the raft, and he unbuttoned his shirt to reveal his strong back.

Rao Tu's hand holding the knife trembled slightly. She saw that there was a big wound on the back of his heart, new wounds and old wounds, which seemed to be terrifying scars accumulated over the years by constantly digging flesh.

Xiao Yanning sneered: "This king once told you that when I was eight years old, my food was poisoned, and I ate it in vain for three years, which damaged more than one eye?"

Rao Tu bit her lip and looked at the wound, this handsome and demonic man, who is now, now, and in the future, is going through purgatory-like torture.

"My life, even if I don't live long, will be buried with the entire royal family!" His voice was different from the frivolousness of the past. with hatred.

"Why, tell me?" Rao Tu asked softly.

He looked back at her, and after a long time, he slowly said: "Because to a certain extent, you are the same person as this king. Ratu, it doesn't matter who your person and body belong to, but your life ,its mine."

Rao Tu smiled miserably: "What's the use of Wang Ye wanting my life?"

"Seeing that you are still alive, I feel that there is still hope. A person who has returned from the dead is struggling. I am not dead, why should I admit defeat?"

Rao Tu lowered her head and said, "I don't want to get involved in these things."

"Your surname is Xu, you are destined to escape."

"Why... why? The Xu Clan in Qingzhou has never had anything to do with the imperial power."

He closed his eyes and didn't answer. After a long time, he said lightly, "Bleed for me."

Rao Tu stared at the wound at the back of his heart, shook his head and said, "I can't..."

"Do you know how these wounds came from?" He said slowly, "I cut it out with a knife on my back over the years."

Rao Tu covered her mouth, and the dagger in her hand fell onto the raft.

He chuckled, picked up the dagger, and slashed the backhand on the back where there were nowhere wounds.

The blood flowed out immediately, along his back, onto the raft, and scattered into the water.

"Rao Tu, this king wants to tell you that in the land of right and wrong, in the end, only those who are ruthless can live for a long time."