September has entered, and all the noble families in Yanjing City are very busy preparing for the Double Ninth Festival.

Your Majesty is fond of extravagance and enjoyment. Every Double Ninth Festival since he came to the throne, your Majesty has taken all the civil and military officials to the mountains to enjoy the distant views. In the first few years, he even talked about building a high platform on the mountain, but he gave up after the war in the northwest.

However, compared to the later war-like king who loved chariots and conquests and chased foreigners for three thousand miles, the civil and military officials thought of the playful monarch who just wanted to spend manpower and material resources to build a high platform on the mountain.

I felt a sincerity that I never cherished when I was young. I dreamed about it at midnight and couldn't help but tossing and turning, almost to the point of illness.

It's a pity that even if they build countless high platforms around the huge Yanjing City, they can no longer contain Emperor Zhaode who tasted the enemy's blood in the northwest wind and sand.

Things are different and people are not the same. Everything stops. If you want to speak, you will shed tears first.

Perhaps out of the good hope that His Majesty the Emperor will change his mind, there have been more and more ways to celebrate the Double Ninth Festival in Yanjing City in recent years. The noble ministers have to wear python robes with chrysanthemums and patches, and the ladies have

All kinds of chrysanthemum hairpins are also worn on the head. Not only are the colorful chrysanthemums placed everywhere in the palace, creating a gorgeous "Chrysanthemum Mountain", but the mansions of the ministers are also filled with famous chrysanthemum products, and various chrysanthemum appreciation banquets are held there.

Posts can be packed into the cracks of the door. The banquet also includes chrysanthemum wine, chrysanthemum drink, chrysanthemum cake, chrysanthemum porridge, and yellow chrysanthemum fried. Even the most self-restrained literati on weekdays will go to the banquet to write a few lines about Chongyang and Autumn.

Seasonal poems like chrysanthemum.

The hustle and bustle elsewhere accentuated the deserted Ning'an residence.

The little maid wore plain blue cloth shoes and walked quickly along the stone path. The stone path was built beside the pond. The lotus flowers in the pond had faded, leaving only the withered lotus leaves in most of the pond. They became more and more beautiful under the light mist in autumn.

It looked a bit desolate.

Since the master was arrested, there have been fewer people in the house. Rumors have spread among the servants that there is something evil going on in the house.

Once this kind of thing is talked about, there is no end to it. In this old mansion that has been rumored for decades, how many people have not died?

The little maid thought of Sister Hongfu who drowned in this pool the year before last, and her steps became a little faster.

After bypassing the pond and arriving at a secluded courtyard, the little maid breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said to the gatekeeper:

"The chief minister of Princess Yueqing's residence came again and asked when he could see the second young lady. The prince was greeting her and asked me to come and ask the lady for advice."

The woman who was guarding the door nodded and asked her to wait outside. She entered the courtyard and passed the message to the second-class maid wearing a blue silk armor with copper buttons, and waited for the maid to come back with the message.

The little maid waited outside for a full moment. The courtyard door suddenly opened. Mrs. Sun, Ning'an's uncle, was wearing a silver-brown long-sleeved shirt, eight-treasure patterned cloud shoulders, and a two-inch high bun on her head.

She walked out slowly, and as she moved, the tortoise pattern on her skirt was faintly visible.

Crossing the edge of the pond, Mrs. Sun took a look and said slowly and softly:

"It's not very peaceful at home these days. Even the servants are slacking off. Who is in charge of this pond? Bring them in and ask them carefully."

The maid behind her was wearing a dark green quilted coat, with a gold hairpin in the bun on her head, and a lantern pendant in her ear. She looked wealthier than an ordinary rich lady. When she heard Sun's words, she smiled.

Said:

"Now I have to beg for mercy. Mrs. Cai, who was looking at the pond, had her daughter give birth to a grandson a few days ago. She took leave for a while and thought she would be back in a day or two. Madam has always been lenient, so she asked for mercy.

This time!"

Mrs. Sun nodded, but her heart moved.

It was a lie that Mrs. Cai's daughter had given birth to a child. Half a month ago, she sent her confidants and several servants to Zhuangzi, more than 20 miles away from Yanjing City, and asked them to force Shen to invite herself to the court.

For a long time, no news came back.

Could it be that something went wrong?

Yesterday morning, when the head of Princess Yueqing's family came to invite Mrs. Shen to visit, Mrs. Sun felt very uneasy.

She had left a message when she sent her confidants there. As long as Shen produced the document asking for resignation, she would not pursue it even if she resorted to various means.

She tossed and turned in bed for the middle of the night, not because she was worried about her son's title, but because she was afraid that those women would be careless and force Ms. Shen to death.

Normally, I would just report Mr. Shen's death from a sudden illness and spend some money to cover it up. But this time is different from the past. My uncle is in prison and is not allowed to visit. There are still some Jin Yiwei and people from Dongchang in the house. It is said that

The steward said that there were people outside the house who were specially watching the entrance of the uncle's house. In such a situation, they were always trembling for fear of being found out. If Shen really died outside the house... As the autumn wind blew, Sun had a cold war.

, the steps under my feet also became hasty.

Leaving aside the rest of the troubles, although Princess Yueqing has always only cared about gold and stones without caring about worldly matters, she is something that the Xie family cannot afford to offend now.

The lady walking in front walked in a hurry, and the maids following behind almost ran all the way. Taking a glance at the residual lotus standing quietly in the pool, they became more and more convinced that there was something evil in the house.

In the flower hall of Ning'an's residence, Shi Wenxiao, the head of Princess Yueqing's residence, slowly put down the tea cup in his hand:

"Thank you, Your Majesty, the princess is not thinking about food and tea because of the newly acquired gold and stone rubbings. She heard that Madam Shen is very knowledgeable in this way, so she specially sent me to invite her again and again. You said yesterday that she had a cold, and the princess was afraid that your house would be disturbed, so she specially ordered her to be born today.

The official and Ms. Ye came with the female doctor, but you said that she does not need diagnosis and treatment, so can the official take Mrs. Shen back to the princess's residence immediately?"

Xie Lin'an, the prince son of Ning'an, is twenty-two years old this year. When he was just in his early twenties, his father Xie Wenyuan was stripped of his actual position. When he entered the official position, he only had a virtual title of seventh rank. It has been more than ten years now, and he is still no more than

He is the commanding officer of the Yulin Zuowei, and he looks like a fourth-rank official. However, the current Yulinwei is only responsible for co-administering the ban, guarding Yanjing, various commanders, and commanding colleagues. Commanding the officers has long been an idle job.

The place where the noble royal relatives reside.

Let's put it this way, Xie Lin'an's immediate boss was the Queen Mother's brother. In the past few years, Xie Lin'an only met him seven times, five of which were in Zhaoxiang Pavilion.

The reason why the official career is so unsatisfactory is partly because the Ning'an family members are no longer in prestige, and partly... Xie Lin'an thinks it is because of his biological father Xie Wenyuan.

Xie Wenyuan is forty-nine this year. He has more grandchildren than he can count on two hands, but he has a big dream that he can still achieve his ambitions. All the family's money and relationships are spent on himself. At least he, Xie Lin'an, will have a title in the future.

The second brother, Xie Fengan, is already twenty-six years old this year and does not even have an official status. He goes south every year, saying he is studying in an academy. When he goes there, there are half a car full of scholars and three cars full of red sleeves when he comes back. His father doesn't care.

Before his father was imprisoned, he wanted to get in touch with the Feng family and let his second brother marry a cousin of the Feng family. When he found out about this, he couldn't help laughing. His father was selling them back and forth, so he wanted to sell all his sons to himself.

When it comes to his future, he doesn't want to think about his second brother's lustful and lustful temper. Only a person like Shen can endure it. If it were the Feng family's cousins ​​who saw him taking them home one by one, they would become enemies within two years of getting married.

.

After scolding his own father for harming his own brother, Xie Lin'an smiled very humbly:

"Wen Changshi, please be patient. I have already sent someone to the back house to inquire. To be honest, I only found out yesterday that my sister-in-law was ill. I sent someone to visit me last night. I have reported this to me."

My sister-in-law is exhausted due to overwork. It was also my negligence. These days, my father has been ordered by His Majesty, and my second brother is studying abroad. There are many things at home. All the affairs of the second wife are on my sister-in-law. I should have let my humble wife do it.

You should take better care of her."

Wen Xiaozhun only had a slight smile on his face.

Xie Lin'an felt a little guilty and only hoped that the steward could bring Ms. Shen back as soon as possible.

In the small hall in the back hall, Lady Ning'an's wife, Mrs. Sun, also met the female officials and medical ladies at the princess's residence, and there was no doubt that they were delaying and prevaricating.

After a few people left, Xie Lin'an quickly ordered people to ride horses to the village outside the city to check and urge them:

"Second Young Madam, you can slowly move back your soft clothes, but be sure to bring people back first. Bring more people."

The manager thought he understood, and said quickly: "Don't worry, Sir, I will definitely bring the second young lady back."

"I asked you to take people there, not to force you to bring my sister-in-law back!" Xie Lin'an laughed angrily, "I heard that my mother sent some despicable women to Zhuangzi before. I'm afraid they have given me a lot these days.

My sister-in-law is aggrieved. I asked you to bring more people to vent my anger! Those women, the maids in charge of the village, whoever neglects my sister-in-law will be beaten or killed at her pleasure. Just let her go.

She came back to the uncle's house happily. Do you understand?"

Just as Mrs. Sun was about to lift the curtain and enter the Nuan Pavilion, she heard her son's murderous words. She couldn't help but tighten the sapphire beads in her hand.

"Lin'er, even if the princess wants to see Mr. Shen, why would you do this?"

After being together for seven years, Sun thought she knew Shen's nature. She was kind and gentle, almost a temperless clay figurine, so there was no need to make her happy.

Xie Lin'an sent the servants out with a blue face, and looked at his mother:

"Mom, these days are different from the past. Your majesty has suppressed all those pleas for my father. If you can make Shen please the princess and make the princess willing to say one word for our family, it will be better than ten thousand words from those people.

.”

Princess Yueqing is the late emperor's biological sister and His Majesty's biological aunt. Although she has been a widow for many years and has not been involved in worldly affairs, two generations of emperors have treated her extremely favorably. His Majesty now conferred the title of Eldest Princess on her the day after he ascended the throne, and designated her as the eldest princess in Shuntian Mansion.

Thousands of hectares of farmland is the princess's farm, and all kinds of rewards have been sent to the princess's house like a stream of water over the years. It is absolutely correct to say that Princess Yueqing is the richest woman in the world.

Xie Lin'an looked at his mother and said softly: "Mom, please send someone to bring the second brother back from Jinyang and let him coax the Shen family. As for cousin Feng..."

"Do you think your uncle Feng Youqi is easy to mess with?"

Twisting the Buddhist beads in her hand, Mrs. Sun frowned, her usually kind face showing a rare look of anger.

She knew what her son was thinking, but Shen probably hated the whole Xie family now... Alas, if Shen had been appreciated by the princess earlier, she wouldn't have been so cruel.

A spark exploded in the charcoal basin, and on the wall of the Nuan Pavilion hung a picture of "Autumn Scenery of Rivers and Mountains". The painting style was elegant and graceful, which was incompatible with the gold and jade glitz of the Nuan Pavilion.

Mother and son sat facing each other, both sighing after all.

"That Mr. Shen, when did the princess know about it?"

Suddenly, there was a slight noise outside the Nuan Pavilion, and then a servant from the second door hurried in:

"Madam, Your Majesty, there is a letter from the Second Young Master. It was sent by a merchant from the north!"

Xie Lin'an quickly took the letter and opened it. He only glanced at it twice before looking at his mother worriedly.

"Lin'er? How about it? Feng'er has already arrived in Jinyang? Or has he persuaded your cousin to come back?"

"Mom, Feng'an was intercepted by bandits on the road. The bandits asked us to give him five thousand taels of silver to redeem him."

"This is really—Buddha is going to drive me to hell!" Chang cried, and Mrs. Sun took a breath and fell backwards.

Suddenly, people in the Nuan Pavilion were on their backs. Some of the slaves were supporting their heads and some were hugging their legs to carry people to the couch. Xie Lin'an thought they were useless, so he picked up his mother and called for the doctor over and over again.

Before the doctor came, someone else arrived at Xie's house with a letter.
To be continued...