Chapter 40

Li Yuangui walked to the Huayang Gate and saw an old woman in full attire standing outside the palace gate. The palace lantern dragged a quiet figure on the ground, stepped forward, stepped over the high threshold, and said with a smile: "Let me The old lady has been waiting for a long time, it's my fault! The old lady, please come in."

While he was talking, the two little eunuchs had already lifted a chariot, quickly followed, and lowered their bodies.

"Old madam, the emperor is still in Xiyuan these days, there is some way to go, the old madam please get on the carriage and let the younger ones take you."

The old lady nodded to Li Yuangui and said with a smile, "Eunuch Li worked hard. Thank you for your thoughtfulness. It's just that the old man's legs and feet are fine, and he is in the palace, so how dare he overstep it? Please ask Mr. Li to lead the way.

Li Yuangui persuaded two more words. Seeing that she was determined not to go to the chariot, he had to ask the little eunuch to carry the lantern and follow him. He personally carried the lantern, and led Mrs. Pei all the way into the Xiyuan Gate, through the banana garden, and finally came to Chengguang temple.

Xiao Lie had been waiting in the outer hall for a long time. When he heard a call from outside, he turned around to meet him. He saw an old woman Yihuafa leaning on crutches and was walked over by Li Yuangui. Although he had not seen each other for many years, he looked older than he had imagined. There are many, but I still recognize it at a glance. It is Mrs. Pei. She stepped down the steps in a few steps and said to Li Yuangui: "Didn't you tell me, do you want to invite the old lady to sit in?"

Before Li Yuangui could speak, Mrs. Pei said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for being sympathetic. Your Majesty, don't blame Eunuch Li, it's your old man's rudeness." After speaking, she bowed to Xiao Lie, and Xiao Lie stepped up to hold it and said. Saying "No ceremony", he personally helped him up the steps of the hall and led him into the inner hall.

Without waiting for orders, Li Yuangui had already moved an embroidered chair, and Mrs. Pei gave it repeatedly. Xiao Lie said sincerely: "I still remember when I was young, my biological mother passed away early, and the old lady treated me as close to me as herself. Suddenly, decades have passed, and there are people and people around me. Now I am fortunate to be able to return to Beijing again. I wanted to see the old lady, but I was entangled in all kinds of things and could not get away for a while, so I wanted to wait for You An to come back first. Immediately." After speaking, he ordered Li Yuangui to remove his seat.

Madam Pei just sat down.

Xiao Lie asked her about her body and the situation in the mansion. Mrs. Pei said: "Cheng the emperor's concern, the old body is fine, it is my children and grandchildren. Before, I did not distinguish right from wrong. I followed others and caused a lot of trouble to the emperor. The emperor is lenient and doesn't care, and the old man is grateful."

Xiao Lie invaded the capital, and after being promoted to the top position, he implemented a policy of leniency. The former officials of the previous dynasty, except for the confidants of King Shun'an, the rest, as long as they presented a congratulatory form, no matter how old they were. Exoneration. For example, Zhou Xing, Pei Quan and others, at the beginning of Wuding’s uprising, in order to distance themselves from Xiao Lie and avoid being implicated, they once scolded him as a chaotic minister and thief. , saying that he was under coercion before, and that's why he said something against his heart.

Pei Xiuzhi even more so. Previously, in order to earn merit, without the knowledge of Mrs. Pei, asked to lead the ar to fight against Wu Ding's ar. It can be said that they tried their best. After Xiao was listed in Beijing, Xiao Yintang handed over the repentance letter written by Pei Xiuzhi, saying that he was deeply remorseful, willing to be loyal to the new emperor, and asked for a lighter sentence.

In fact, even without Xiao Yintang interceding, Xiao Lie didn't intend to embarrass the children of the Pei family, so he quickly pardoned him and let him go home, only to take his title of prince, which had not been obtained long ago, as an example.

As Mrs. Pei said, she got up again and wanted to thank Xiao Lie. Xiao Lie helped her to sit again and sighed: "Old Mrs. don't need to mind. I am not an unreasonable person. At that time, no one was forced. I feel ashamed of the old lady. As soon as I entered the capital, I received the title of Second Young Master. It is also difficult for me to do it. After all, Second Young Master has hurt my subordinates. The title of Duke is still reserved for meritorious deeds."

Mrs. Pei hurriedly said: "The emperor's words are serious! He is now thinking about it in the face of the wall at home. It is a great kindness for the emperor to save his life for making such a big mistake. How can there be any other thoughts? "

"The old lady has always been sensible. I don't blame me, I feel relieved. Tell him to calm down first, and then there will be more opportunities to serve the court."

Mrs. Pei thanked him, and Xiao Lie said a few more words, observing the words and expressions, and said, "Is there something wrong with the old lady? If there is, just say it, as long as I can do it, I will definitely do anything."

Mrs. Pei smiled and said, "Since the emperor saw it, Lao Shen said it. To be honest, Lao Shen came for the marriage of the eldest grandson You'an."

Xiao Lie was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed: "Good thing! You'an was sent by Zhen a few days ago to go to Wusi Zang to settle the chaos, and he should be returning soon. But I don't know which daughter the old lady chose for him? Quickly. Hurry up, I am willing to come forward and make arrangements!"

The old lady said: "Thank you for your kindness. It's not another family, it's the daughter of the Zhen family in Quanzhou, whose name is Jiafu. She is not an outsider, but the niece of the old daughter-in-law. In terms of relatives, she is also You'an's cousin."

Xiao Lie hesitated: "This Zhen family, but the Zhen family who just entered Beijing with Gao Huaiyuan, governor of Fujian, two days ago?"

The old lady smiled and said, "Exactly."

Xiao Lie was stunned.

The old lady looked calm and said: "The emperor doesn't know anything. Since the daughter of the Zhen family was young, she often came to Lao Shen to walk around. You An has known her since she was a child, but Lao Shen has never known You An's intentions for her. Until last year, the emperor was forced to At the time of the uprising, Lao Shen received a letter from You'an, and only then did he know that he was actually in love with the daughter of the Zhen family, but at that time, he was very dazed and had no time to take care of his children. Take care of him, and when the right time comes, I will propose marriage to the Zhen family on his behalf. Now that the event has finally settled, I have heard that the Zhen family has followed the Fujian governor into Beijing these two days, and there is a daughter of the Zhen family, who seems to be the emperor's. Meaning. I don't know why the emperor called her to Beijing. I wanted to ask the Zhen family, but I was afraid that the Zhen family would be inconvenienced. The emperor also knew that You'an was a governor since he was a child. What he has done is the only thing, so Lao Shen remembers that he entrusted him that day, relying on the old face he got in front of the emperor in the past, rushing to the palace to ask for an interview."

"I don't know why the emperor called the daughter of the Zhen family to the capital? If there is no conflict with the marriage with You An, then the old man should be relieved and go to the Zhen family to propose marriage for You An as soon as possible. Hope he can get married soon and settle down."

After the old lady finished speaking, she looked at Xiao Lie with a smile.

Xiao Lie settled for a moment, Fang Rumeng woke up, suddenly stood up: "I didn't know that You'an and the daughter of the Zhen family had such a relationship before! Don't worry, the old lady. I called the Zhen family to Beijing this time, there is nothing else, it's just the past The Zhen family has been kind to Yintang, I just rewarded the Zhen family, and the marriage with You'an is no inconvenience!"

Mrs. Pei thanked him, Xiao Lie hesitated, looked at the old lady, and said, "Don't lie to the old lady, I used to ask Youan about marriage several times when I was still in Wuding, hoping that he could get married soon, but he kept repeating. There is nothing I can do to shirk it. You An has been with me for many years and has made great contributions to me. Now that I am happy with a big wedding, how can I not reward him?

After he finished speaking, he stared at the old woman opposite.

Madam Pei looked at him for a moment, then nodded and said, "Everything is up to the emperor's arrangement."

Xiao Lie seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, with a happy look in his eyes, and said, "I will definitely arrange it properly. The old lady has ten thousand hearts."

Mrs. Pei smiled slightly, stopped talking, and just got up and left. Xiao Lie personally escorted her out of Xiyuan. When she came back, she still sat behind the desk, but gradually became fascinated. Then she called in Li Yuangui and asked about Zhen's daughter. .

Li Yuangui said: "The girl was born quite Zhou Zheng, and she behaved in a down-to-earth manner. What she said, the servant has already transferred to the emperor, and the emperor can decide for himself. If you are still not at ease, the servant can call her into the palace, the emperor will see You'll know."

Xiao Lie nodded at first, thought for a while, and then shook his head: "You'an is in love with her, so how can you go wrong, calling around, afraid of scaring her, that's all."

Li Yuangui said solemnly, "Don't worry, Your Majesty, if the servants are half-truths, then the Emperor will chop off the servants' heads."

Xiao Lie laughed. haven't been as happy as this moment for a long time, and heart is like putting down a stone, but have some regrets.

At the age of Pei You'an, for ordinary men, he has already married, but he has always been alone, and he does not want women to stay by his side to take care of his daily life. Now that he has finally settled down, isn't Xiao Lie relieved? I was just relieved to think that he didn't mention a word in front of him, and it was only today that Mrs. Pei came to find out that if the daughter of the Zhen family refused to marry at first, she almost made a mistake, and she felt regretful in her heart.

After Xiao Lie laughed, he gradually regained his senses and suddenly said, "Go and call the prince."

Li Yuangui went out, while a cup of tea was spent, there was a sound of footsteps outside the hall, Xiao Yintang entered, knelt down to Xiao Lie, and called him father and emperor.

Xiao Lie ordered him to get up. Xiao Yintang said: "Father, my son is about to come to see my father. These days, my son has been instructed and has been busy rectifying the affairs of the Five Armies. Fang today raised his eyebrows and sent the officers and flag soldiers of the five houses to the chiefs and the guards. After the statistics of the amount have been completed, the roster has a total of 3,256,373 names, which is actually only half of them. For the specific reasons, this servant will write down the compromise as soon as possible for the royal inspection."

Xiao Lie nodded: "It can be seen that this dynasty has many drawbacks in the past, and there is a long way to go in the future. You have worked hard."

Xiao Yintang said: "It is the responsibility of the sons and ministers to share the worries for the father and the emperor. Besides, the sons did not do anything, so why did they have to work hard? It's the father, tomorrow will be the enthronement ceremony. There are thousands of opportunities in the day, so it’s better to rest early tonight to keep your spirits up.”

Xiao Lie smiled and said, "I know. Yintang, I called you here because there is something related to you. Let me tell you. A few days ago, Fengtong came to see me and said that you had been favored by the Zhen family in Quanzhou before. , she wanted to make the daughter of the Zhen family as a side concubine, in return for it. I didn't know the inside information before, so I agreed, but today I realized the inconvenience. The Zhen family was originally a cousin of the Pei family.

childhood sweetheart

Friendship, and there was an oral marriage contract before, but it was delayed because of the war. I didn't know it before, but now that I know it, how can I get married by mistake? So I changed my mind. The Zhen family is kind to you, and you should repay it. I will give you another reward. What Feng Tong said, let it go, and I will not discuss it in the future. "

Xiao Yintang looked slightly stiff.

Xiao Lie stared at him without moving his eyes. After a while, he said, "What, do you have anything else to say about this matter?"

Xiao Yintang and his father looked at each other, and when they saw him looking at him with two eyes that seemed to be thoughtful, he immediately lowered his eyes and respectfully said: "I have nothing to say. What the father said was to the Zhen family. , it will be another reward.”

Xiao Lie concentrated for a moment, then said slowly: "Excellent. After the enthronement ceremony is over tomorrow, I will set you up as the crown prince, and let the Ministry of Rites arrange your wedding with Fengtong. As for the concubine, if there is a suitable person, I will also replace it. You pay attention."

...

The next day is the day of the new emperor's enthronement ceremony.

The new dynasty's era name Zhaoping will start on the first day of the following year, and that year will follow the era name of the Shaodi reign, which is June 26, the seventh year of Chengning.

On this day, officials from the Ministry of Rites and Taichang Temple arrived at Huanqiu at the third watch. At the fifth watch, officials from Jiuqing, the seventh rank in the capital, and the fourth rank and above officials from other provinces also arrived. They were solemnly listed on both sides of Huanqiu. Lishi, walk along the palace to the north gate of the imperial city, three steps and one post, five steps and one post, and open the road leading to Huanqiu. The people kneel on both sides of the road, just waiting for the auspicious moment to welcome the new emperor. Palace, held a sacrificial ceremony.

According to Qin Tianjian's order, the new emperor should leave the palace at Si Shi, arrive at Huanqiu three quarters after Shi Shi, and then call for the sacrificial ceremony.

At this moment, there are only two quarters of an hour left. Xiao Lie was dressed in imperial robes, with a dragon's mighty yan chin, and the Son of Heaven's mighty fanaticism, which made people dare not look directly. Zhang Shiyong, the Minister of Rites, and Lu Qi, the minister of the Taichang Temple, who stayed in Chengguang Hall, saw him sitting in the seat. Concentrated, as if waiting for someone, they looked at each other with doubts in their hearts.

At the end of another half-hour, Zhang Shiyongzheng wanted to speak to remind the time, when there was a rush of footsteps outside the hall, and Cui Yinshui ran in with a whimper, and with a whimper, his knees slid on the ground of the gold brick, and he was delighted: "Qi, Your Majesty , Master Pei has returned to Beijing! People are waiting outside the hall!"

The emperor stood up immediately, his brows stretched, his eyes showed a slight joy, and he said, "Quickly pass on it!"

Cui Yinshui let out a "hey" and went out quickly. After a while, with the sound of steady footsteps, Zhang Shiyong and Lu Qi turned their heads and saw a young man who stepped through the morning sun that slanted into the gate of Chengguang Hall and stepped into the hall threshold.

He seems to have just returned from a long journey, the wind and dust are in the dust, and his eyebrows are also faintly tired, but his eyes are bright and spirited, as bright as the bright moon, as soft as the breeze, and strode here, such a demeanor, the whole big Wei Chaotang, in ten years, besides Pei You'an, the young minister who used to be famous in Beijing, who else would there be?

Although they hadn't seen each other for many years, the handsome young man at the time was now a young man, but Zhang Shiyong and Lu Qi recognized it at a glance.

The person that the new emperor has been waiting for has finally arrived.

...

Pei You'an followed Xiao Lie into the apse, and immediately bowed to him, bowed three times and knelt down nine times, and got flat, saying: "I went to Gyeonggi yesterday, and I heard that today is the emperor's enthronement ceremony, so I hurried all night, only this morning. Entering the city gate, the captain of the school told him that the emperor's orders could be met. If he saw the minister, he ordered to enter the palace immediately. The minister was afraid that the emperor's auspicious time would be delayed, and the clothes would not be ready in time. Forgive me."

Xiao Lie grabbed his shoulders and said happily, "I know that you will be there in time! How's the road going?"

"Fortunately, I didn't lose my life, and the way back went smoothly. Thank you, Your Majesty, for remembering. Please let your Majesty Rongchen stay overnight and submit a memorial tomorrow morning, detailing the journey of this trip."

"Hello, rest, you don't have to be in such a hurry, it's fine for a few days later!" Xiao Lie soothed.

There was a faint sound of bells outside the hall, and it was a moment closer to the time when the emperor left the palace to pay tribute to Huanqiu.

"You're safe!"

Pei You'an was about to speak to remind him, when Xiao Lie suddenly called him with a solemn expression.

"If the emperor has something to say, please speak." Pei Youan said.

Xiao Lie walked slowly in the hall for a few steps, then stopped and said, "You'an, this throne, I originally wanted to leave it blank. If there is news of the young emperor in the future, it will be owned by him. It's hard for me to shirk. You don't hold any disagreement with me, do you?"

After Xiao Lie finished speaking, he looked closely at Pei You'an.

Pei You'an smiled and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, although the minister is on the road, he has also read the petition of the people posted in front of the city gate. There is a sentence on it, 'On the road, the world is public', and the minister praised it. The sages and sages know that the world does not belong to one person, but to the support of all the people. The emperor now obeys the will of God and ascends the throne. "

Xiao Lie's eyes were bright, and he laughed: "I know, You An is my humerus! I have prepared a dress for you, you go and put it on, and accompany me to Huanqiu to witness my grand ceremony of enthronement today!"

Pei Youan thanked him, but when he was about to quit, he was stopped again.

Xiao Lie smiled and said: "There is one more thing for you to know. The daughter of Zhen's family in Quanzhou is in Beijing at the moment. Your grandmother saw me last night and asked to marry her on your behalf. already?"

Pei You'an's eyes moved slightly, he paused, and said, "I am satisfied. I thank the emperor for his love."

His tone was respectful.

...

The dress that Xiao Lie gave to Pei You'an was a jade crown with eight beams, a red robe with a green edge, a leather belt and a ribbon, and white socks and black shoes.

This is the highest princely-level dress of the Wei Dynasty.

On the same day, Pei Youan appeared at the Huanqiu ceremony with the new emperor, and witnessed the beginning of a new dynasty in the Great Wei Dynasty. In this unusual way, after many years, he returned to his vision and appeared again in the dynasty. above the hall.

When Huanqiu returned from the sacrificial ceremony, the officials of Tongzan cited the civil and military officials to enter Danqi, separated to the north, and bowed three times to Xiao Lie on the throne. Xiao Yintang is the crown prince.

At this point, the Ascension Ceremony is complete.

The next day, the Ministry of Rites issued two edicts at the same time.

The first one is about the marriage edict of the prince and Zhang Fengtong.

The second is an edict for the marriage of Pei You'an, the eldest son of the Duke of Wei, and Zhen Jiafu, the daughter of the Zhen family in Quanzhou.

The news spread quickly. The Duke of Wei's mansion, which had been neglected in the past few years, was greeted by an endless stream of people from morning to night, and the threshold was about to be broken. And the Zhen family's original inconspicuous mansion in the capital has become the focus of attention in a blink of an eye.

The wedding date of the two imperial edicts was set on the same day, on the 16th of the following month, and the Ministry of Rites and Guanglu Temple jointly organized.