Chapter 94

Three days later, the emperor met Xiao Yu.

No one knew how this meeting went, not even Li Yuangui. After the meeting, the emperor was alone all night, and the lights in the hall continued all night.

On the fourth day of the first lunar month, the imperial court's annual leave was over, and the early imperial court resumed this morning. The five drums were approaching, Li Yuangui entered and waited. Seeing that the emperor was still in the attire of last night, he was sitting on a screen couch, his face was dark, his eyes were bloodshot, and he seemed to have no sleep all night.

"Long live, can we postpone this morning, or just wait until tomorrow?"

Li Yuangui asked carefully.

The emperor turned his neck slowly, looked at Li Yuangui, stared at him for a long time, his eyes darkened, just when Li Yuangui gradually felt uneasy, he suddenly heard the emperor ask: "Li Yuangui, you think I am wrong, right? "The voice was hoarse, extremely unpleasant.

Li Yuangui was startled, and hurriedly knelt to the ground and kowtowed: "Long live, why did you say this? There is no such thing as a king in the world. What's more, since Long Live has ascended to the top of the world, he has been ruthless and diligent in government and love the people. Long live, you can go to the Tongle Building at the South Gate to see, These few days, from morning to night, all the people scramble to worship in front of the tower, and spontaneously pray to the sky for the long live.

The emperor sneered: "If you say it nicely, I am afraid that you are also slandering me in your heart! Yes, they are all loyal ministers! They are all righteous! Only I am the unrighteous!"

Li Yuangui lay on the ground and kept kowtowing: "Long live calm down, slaves dare not!"

The emperor rolled over from the couch, put one hand on his hips, and walked up and down the ground, his expression gradually getting excited.

"Forget it, so why not! Let them be loyal ministers! Be righteous! Let me be this unjust person! I am not afraid!"

After almost roaring and saying this, the emperor stopped in front of Li Yuangui, lost his mind for a moment, and then sneered: "Even God is on my side! You'an thought he won this time, but he didn't expect, In the end, he lost!"

"My son, who doesn't know my painstaking efforts, refuses to recognize me, and opposes me. He doesn't want my things!"

"What I don't give, no one in this world can take away. What I want to give, no one in this world can refuse! Does he think he can win me?"

"Li Yuangui, look, I put my words here, one day, I want him to come back by himself and bow his head to me willingly!"

"He can't win against me." The emperor said word by word.

Li Yuangui lay on the ground, looked up at the emperor in surprise, and did not dare to speak for a while.

The emperor closed his eyes and let out a long breath, his expression finally returning to calm.

"The court will not change today. Let's change!" The emperor said solemnly.

Li Yuangui responded, hurriedly got up from the ground, and called the palace servants.

"Is the King of Liuyang here?"

When changing clothes, the emperor suddenly asked.

The king of Liuyang was enfeoffed in the remote western Hunan. He belonged to the close branch of the clan. In terms of seniority, he belonged to Xiao Lie's nephew, but he was older than Xiao Lie. For many years, he honestly worked in the small Xiangxi fief The vassal king, however, was unlucky. He is now in his fifties and has not given birth to a successor. He has no children, and he is gradually despairing. After his own death, the prince will also be removed. Among them, it is not conspicuous. At the end of each year, the emperor would normally call some vassal kings into Beijing to participate in the congratulations to show the grace of his clan. The king of Liuyang had not been allowed to enter Beijing for more than ten years. I was very pleasantly surprised when I entered Beijing to participate in the congratulations. At that time, I was ready to pay tribute. I brought the old princess with me, and immediately set off to enter the capital. I was unlucky and the road was not smooth.

"Long live, the king of Liuyang and his wife just arrived in the capital yesterday. They were in a panic because they missed the Chao He, and begged long live for their sins."

Xiao Lie smiled: "It's fine when you arrive, what's the point of it. I'm going to summon the Liuyang King and his wife today, you can arrange it."

Li Yuangui should be.

On the fourth day of the first lunar month in the second year of Zhaoping year, after the morning meeting, the emperor summoned the Liuyang king and his wife in the palace, saying that the Liuyang king loves the people with festivals, and his reputation spreads far and wide. Therefore, this year, the two of them are specially allowed to go to Beijing to congratulate them and give them a generous reward. Wang and his wife were so grateful that they spent half a month in the capital, and after the Lantern Festival, they said goodbye and left the capital and returned to Xiangxi.

This King of Liuyang, with a small and poor fief, is already old, and the king will be removed as soon as he is dead. It is too inconspicuous, so even the emperor's extra kindness to him did not attract much attention, and the courtiers only thought that The emperor's move was to set an example for the many kings of the Great Wei Dynasty, so no one cared about it. After a few days, no one would talk about it again.

Fate is like that, often caught off guard. Including today's Liuyang King and his wife, no one would have thought that today's small episode would become a prelude to affect the situation of the Great Wei Dynasty in the future.

Even though Pei You'an is talented, at this moment, how could he, who is far away from the Great Wall, imagine that an undercurrent has arisen since then?

When he decided to turn around and head south, he thought he had already calculated everything, but he forgot to consider one thing.

That was the heart of the young man he wanted to fulfill.

"I heard that Long Live was looking for me, and I came. Everything started because of me. From today onwards, I will bear all the sins, and I will live and die without complaint."

This was the first sentence the boy said when he saw the emperor that day.

From this point of view, he really did not win the emperor.

In this game, the ruler, the minister, the father and the son, both lost, and there was no winner.

...

In the blink of an eye, the Lantern Festival has passed, and Jiafu has been here for more than half a month. Food, clothing, housing, and transportation are difficult compared to the past. The vegetables that I can eat every day are limited to cabbage and radishes. There are no fresh fruits, and the frostbite on my feet has never been healed. When I go out, I wrap it like a fat dumpling. On a whim, I asked Pei Youan to take her out for a walk. Accidentally sank one leg into the snow, unable to move, and it was fixed there like a green onion in the snow, and was finally pulled out by Pei Youan, and he laughed a while later, but he was very satisfied. What's even happier is that these few days, Pei You'an has been busy connecting the house where he lives with the adjacent one, and has transformed into a special bathroom.

It's too cold here, and some of the local residents only take a bath once or twice a winter. Jiafu has always liked cleanliness. In the past, in her parents' home or the capital, she took a bath every day in summer and at least once every two days in winter. But here, taking a bath has become a problem. Although there is a bathtub, it takes up a lot of space, making the house that is not very big seem more and more narrow, and it has to be bumped when turning around, and the kitchen is far away from the house where I live, burning out the heat that fills most of the bathtub. It is inconvenient to bring water into the house, and there is no way to add hot water. In such weather, it is often poured in, and it will be cold in a short time. Everyone who comes out is shivering, and they only have to wipe their bodies in a hurry. They always feel that they are not clean. The winter here is very long. It will not be until March and April that the weather will gradually warm up, and there will be several months of severe cold. If you can comfortably soak in a hot bath, it really becomes a luxury.

In the first month, the stockyard was also idle, so Pei Youan hired a plasterer from the city, opened up two rooms, and divided the room next door into two, with a stove at the front and a bath room at the back. He called the blacksmith again, gave him more wages, and asked him to speed up the burning of iron pipes according to the drawings he had drawn. The craftsman had never burned the pipe before, so I don’t know what it was for, but the owner ordered it, and he was not afraid of the cost, so he did not hesitate to make a mold. The pipes that Pei You'an wanted were sent. Pei You'an used the pipes to connect the water outlet of the stove, and the other end was introduced into the bath room. Every time he took a bath, as long as the stove was set on fire to make hot water, and the wooden plug was opened at the end of the bath room, the hot water would flow. There is a steady stream of inflows, and what is more convenient is that there is a pipe running through the cold water on the side.

With this new bathroom, it not only completely solved the problem of Jiafu taking a bath, but also made it easier for the two girls living next to the house to get hot water, not to mention the need to carry water to and fro. On the day the bathroom was completed, three Everyone is happy. Only Ding Ma from the old Ding family saw that Pei Youan was busy and paid a lot of money to hire people to make those things, thinking it was going to be used for a big purpose, but finally found out that it was just a place for his wife to take a bath, look. stunned, speechless.

That night, there was heavy snow outside, but the house was full of spring. Jiafu used the new bath room for the first time, and it was very smooth. After taking a hot bath, she came out, her pores were dilated, and her skin was a pale pink color. She lay down, and Pei Youan sat at the end of the bed and helped her rub the skin. Frostbite instep.

Jiafu praised him: "I didn't expect Master Pei to be able to do this. He's so capable."

Pei You'an smiled: "After the beauty's new bath, the fufu is crisp and fragrant. As long as my Fuer is satisfied, I will give everything I can."

Jiafu knew that he was making fun of herself, and "did everything", it always sounded like she couldn't help but wonder, her face was hot, and her chest jumped lightly, biting her lip: "You are getting more and more serious. It's not serious, I didn't know it before."

Pei You'an stared at her delicate face, which was irritated and shy, and suddenly felt an urge that she hadn't had for a long time, and asked softly, "Are your feet still itchy?"

Jiafu shook her head: "Much better."

Pei You'an ordered her to lie on her side, slumped down, and bent her legs slightly.

Jia Fu saw him staring at her with sparkling eyes, and fiddled with her body position herself, thinking that he was suddenly interested and wanted to change positions with her. , but he hummed obediently, glanced in the direction of the door quietly, poked him, and reminded in a low voice, "Big cousin, the door is not locked yet..."

Pei You'an was startled.

When Jiafu came back to look for him, she didn't have much luggage with her, but one of the boxes was filled with his books and good stationery that even money couldn't buy. Chengni inkstone, pine smoke ink, Babao stationery box, and many fine rice paper and flower rafts.

She knew that he never read books before, because he was afraid that he would have nothing to rely on here, so she specially brought out such a heavy box and traveled through mountains and rivers, with painstaking heart and deep affection, making Pei Youan feel like a fan. It is also difficult to answer in case. At first, I just saw her after she was out of the bath. She was so charming and provocative. Suddenly, I had an interest that I hadn't had in many years. I wanted to paint a beautiful couch for her. She reminded her to lock the door, but she didn't respond. Come over, see her shyly and drooping her eyes again, even the tips of her ears have a shy pink color, she suddenly understands, restrains her smile, coughs lightly, and whispers in her ear, "Does Fuer want to treat you like that for her husband? I just wanted to draw a portrait of you for my husband."

Jiafu was stunned for a moment, raised her eyes, and saw him looking at her, trying to hold back a smile, only then did she realize that she wanted to go wrong. Hold your face.

Pei You'an couldn't bear it any longer, he laughed, he just felt in love with the girl in front of him.

With her arrival that night, this old dark and cold house became so warm and bright.

He pressed it up, hugged her shoulders, kissed the back of her neck and back, moved his lips to her ears, held her hot and tender earlobes, and whispered, "Fur wants me to treat you tonight?"

Jiafu twisted her body to prevent him from kissing her, and Pei You'an was quickly set on fire by her. How could she have any thoughts to paint, and she was tickled by her whimsy just now, so she ordered her to order her. Lie down like you did just now, and you have to try it yourself.

Jiafu is still willing to be obedient this time, her face is red, and she shakes her head in refusal.

Pei You'an feigned a sullen face: "You said it yourself before, be nice to me."

Jiafu closed her eyes aggrievedly and said angrily, "It's up to you, come on your own! You just bully me!"

Pei You'an was fascinated by her small appearance of refusing and welcoming her. He lay down with her in his arms and wanted to play with her, but heard a voice from outside: "Master Pei, the jujube horse is about to give birth!"

Gave opened her eyes immediately.

"Go and see!"

She showed a surprised smile, pushed him away, climbed off the bed, and quickly dressed. Turning his head, he saw that Pei You'an was still lying still, looking lazily.

"Quick!"

This mare will not give birth sooner or later, and she chooses to give birth at this time, which is really...

Pei You'an sighed secretly and had to get out of bed.

Jiafu was very afraid of the cold, but after arriving here, she went to see the mare every day. Now that she heard that she was about to give birth, she became anxious, dressed in a hurry, turned around, opened the door, and left Pei You'an behind. run outside. Pei You'an hurriedly chased after her, grabbed her back, covered her with a thick cloak, tied her neckline, and put on a hat and gloves for her, wrapping her tightly. Snow, the two headed for the stables.

The weather was frigid, and although the stables had blocked all the air vents, the mare was pregnant with a foal, and Jiafu was always afraid of the cold. At night, she burned a horse manure stove outside her stables. After entering, it was also warm inside. , there were torches for lighting in the wall, and the mare lay on the hay by herself, trying to give birth.

Hearing that the mare was about to give birth, Lao Ding, his wife, Yang Yun and the others all came to watch. Sandalwood and Muxiang were shy at first and didn't dare to come to see it. Later, when they saw Jiafu also gone, they hurried to see it.

Jiafu stood outside the stable door, nervously and expectantly waiting for the birth of the foal. Finally, she saw a pony's leg pushed out from behind the rump, and she was very surprised. She opened her eyes and waited for the birth of the foal. But the pony's leg was stuck there and couldn't come out. The mare seemed to be gradually losing strength, and lay there, her stomach rising and falling, panting.

Jiafu grabbed Pei You'an's arm and muttered, "What should I do? What should I do? It seems to have no strength!"

Pei You'an comforted her a few words, took off his coat and told her to hold it. He went into the stable by himself, fed the mare two handfuls of wheat, rubbed her belly for a while, then washed her hands, and came to the back of the horse's hip, tentatively, slowly. Slowly reaching in, groping for a moment, he finally pulled out the other leg that was stuck in the hole, then grabbed the foal's two hooves, and slowly, inch by inch, helped the mare to drag it out. Pulling, finally, a mass of things with a white afterbirth came out of the mouth, and the head of the foal came out.

The mare seemed to be inspired, and then the whole foal was successfully produced.

Jiafu breathed a sigh of relief, and along with Sandalwood Xiang who was beside him, let out a cheer.

This is a black little foal, very beautiful, lying in a thick haystack, soaking wet, but soon opened a pair of round eyes, shaking a small head, looking curiously at this new world.

The mare quickly stood up from the ground and came to the foal's side, sticking out her tongue, licking her newborn child gently, holding its neck, and helping it lift its neck to stand.

Slowly, the foal's neck straightened, the two front legs knelt on the ground, the mare continued to lick it, and slowly the foal's hind hooves also knelt up, and finally, staggered. Standing up, rubbing against the neck and belly of the mare, mother and son made out.

Jiafu was moved to tears by this scene, and she was reluctant to leave. Pei You'an called her several times. Seeing that she would not leave, she lay in front of the fence and looked at the mother and son in the stable, as if she wished to stay here at night. , said with a smile: "Zao Ma knows how to take care of the foal, so don't worry. It's getting late, you might as well go back and sleep!"

Jiafu left the stable reluctantly, the two returned to the house, Pei Youan went to take a bath, and Jiafu sat on the bed with her cheeks raised.

Pei You'an came out of the bathroom, got on the bed, and the two lay side by side.

"Big cousin, I want to have a baby for you, do you like it?"

Gave murmured.

Pei You'an closed her eyes and did not respond, but the corners of her lips slowly turned up, her palms rubbed her soft waist, which was smooth as silk, and gradually descended.

"Big cousin, do you like boys or girls?"

Jia Fu breathed softly, her hands tightly clinging to his rock-like shoulders, but still asked with a trembling voice.

"As long as Fuer gave birth to me, I like it..."

He whispered and kissed her lips.

Everything was silent, and the snow that night fell on the roof, making a thin rustling sound, and there was peace between heaven and earth.