Heartburn - Chapter 69
On the second day, news came that King Duan led his troops to leave Guanlan.
When she came, she was aggressive, and the emperor personally led hundreds of officials out of the city to greet her.
I stroked Yu Jue in my sleeve pocket and sighed faintly.
Along with the news of her departure, the imperial decree sent to the palace was the emperor’s permission to suspend me for a ten-year period. After that, it was my sacred ceremony.
According to Dawu’s customs, women who have reached the age of eighteen must hold the Shao Li; the Shao Li of ordinary people is second only to the wedding. I am a prince, and the ceremony of Shao Li is naturally a waste of time and carelessness.
I heard that the Ministry of Rites had started preparations as early as six months ago, and even Zongzheng Temple was very busy. It was the time of the big wedding soon after Gein’s ceremony.
Thinking of this, I couldn’t help feeling melancholy.
“His Royal Highness, the emperor’s move is not good intentions,” Yan Ke’s polite admonition suddenly sounded in her ears, shocking me almost accidentally knocking over the tea cup at hand-taking my attention back, I turned my face seriously Looking at her, she nodded and said that she was listening carefully, “She made an order to stop your court meeting for nearly ten days. This is to cut off your contact with courtiers, weaken your influence in political affairs, and preempt you to complete the ceremony. To vacate your power…”
“Aunt Ke is reasonable.” I didn’t refute her, but followed her words, and patted the table with the same enemy, expressing my indignation and disappointment with Kuang Xiqing, fully taking care of Yan Ke’s emotions and coaxing her. I was so relieved that I went to the front yard to deal with affairs after only nagging for half an hour.
I smiled and watched her leave. When there was no one around, I was relieved and poured a large cup of tea to relieve my depression.
——What does Kwong Xiqing’s intentions have to do with me?
Since she is guarding me, let her go…Anyway, I didn’t want that position.
On the tenth day of the unitary month of the first year of the Yanxi calendar, it is good luck, suitable for marriage, sacrifice, praying for blessings, and without restriction.
My Shao Li ceremony is scheduled for this day.
The first time in the morning before the **** crowed, I was dug out from the bed by the palace attendant specially sent by Kuang Xiqing. After washing and combing, I put on the formal prince’s dress on the inner and outer three floors, and then put on the silk. Putting on the crown, he didn’t even care for breakfast, so he hurriedly got on the carriage and went to the palace, and went straight to Deqing Palace, where the emperors and kings of the past dynasties were enshrined.
This palace is in the most remote corner of the palace, and outsiders are never allowed to approach it. Even Kuang Xihan remembers that when he arrived here, it was one of the few.
The first step in performing Shao Li is to be led by the mother to make sacrifices to the ancestors and inform the seniors. It’s a pity that the first emperor has long been dead, and the eldest sister is like a mother. It is supposed to be temporarily replaced by King Kuang Xizhao, but as a prostitute, she is not in Guanlan at this time, so in the end Kuang Xiqing took over this position.
A black emperor’s attire, warm and moist as jade, but don’t have an aura of no anger and prestige-when I arrived at the gate of Deqing Palace, Kuang Xiqing had already led the clan and dignitaries waiting there.
Seeing that I was a little nervous, she smiled at me, her close and gentle smile, which taught me that my nervous heart suddenly calmed down.
Following her, walked calmly into the main hall of Deqing Palace, took the jade silk and coins from the palace attendant, raised her head high, and respectfully saluted the memorial tablet enshrined in the temple—knee knocked on the cold marble floor , There was a chill, but the most disturbing thing was the rows of tablets facing me.
If there is nothing weird and chaotic in this world, how can I explain that I have become the Ling Wang that everyone hates? Could it be that everything in the past was just my Nanke Yimeng?
But if it is true, what will happen to everyone in this class knowing that I am a counterfeit and not a descendant of the Kwong clan? Did the ancestors appear to have beaten me so hard, expelled me, and even ended up in a frightened way?
Thinking like this, it feels guilty.
When the offerings were presented, it was inevitable that he glanced suspiciously at the altar-about a hundred tablets, from far to near, in descending order, to the nearest place, there are only three tablets left, namely Yuanning. Emperor Kuang Xinyan, Madam Kuang Xinzhuo of Chenghui and Kuang Xinqi, daughter of King Xi.
The first emperor was named Yuanning, and Emperor Kuang Xinyan of Yuanning was also Kuang Xihan’s mother; and the prince Kwong Xinjue, the first daughter of Chenghui next to her, was the emperor who disappeared strangely. But who is this king’s daughter? I don’t know.
Look further back-Wang Xi Kuang Yunfei.
King Xi, King Xi…Kuang Xihan doesn’t seem to have this person in his memory, but looking at her placement, it’s clear that she is the previous generation, and there are only two tablets in that row—that can be enshrined in Deqing The tablets of the palace, only the clan and the heirs of the lineages above the princes of the past dynasties, are so close in generations, there is no reason to not know them.
However, in the impression, the Emperor Xian never mentioned this King Xi, and even punished her for copying ten pages of scriptures because of the innocent Kuang Xihan asking casually.
King Xi is a taboo; in that case, it is better not to touch it.
Many thoughts flashed through my mind, but in fact it was just a dazzling effort. When I pulled back my thoughts, Zongzheng Temple, who presided over the ceremony, just finished reciting the long congratulatory speech and shouted.
I knelt on the ground again, bowed a big gift, and then slowly stood up on my sore knees. As soon as I raised my head, I faced Shang Kuang Xiqing’s worried eyes and clenched fists and retracted the hands behind them—I couldn’t help but guess. : Did she help me just now?
When she met my eyes, her expression narrowed, and she returned to a gentle and elegant state of emperor, she seemed indifferent and alienated while calming down.
After offering sacrifices to the ancestors, it was the crowning ceremony. Lingwang’s Mansion had already set up the auditorium, and all the guests arrived at the palace—before leaving the palace, Kuang Xiqing personally sent me to the gate of the palace, looking at the way I was still talking. As soon as he raised his hand, it fell a few inches away from my temple, and then he smiled faintly: “Han’er has grown up.” The voice was low, as if he was talking to himself.
“Emperor Sister…” I was a little at a loss to meet her complicated gaze.
In the end, she said nothing, shook her head mockingly, and turned around first.
After sighing, I also walked outside the palace. I just walked a few steps. I couldn’t help but look back, only to see that the black suit did not go far, but stopped silently and stared deeply. Looking at my back, when he saw me turning his head, he blinked in surprise, and then showed a gentle smile.
The smile was beautiful, but I felt like a punch in my heart, and my eyes were hot.
I closed my eyes abruptly, turned around and jumped into the carriage quickly, never daring to look back again.
The carriage drove to the palace quickly, and my ups and downs gradually calmed down amidst the bumps.
Entering the door, accompanied by Yan Ke, I met the guests at first sight. Because of Kuang Xihan’s noble status and notoriously arrogant temperament, I only need to hold a face and nod in no way. , I didn’t even need to say a word, and there was nothing wrong with it.
I looked around. On such an important day, but Jiang Zhuo didn’t see Jiang Zhuo, my heart was down, and the expression on my face became a little bit colder, so that Yan Ke also persuaded a few words while there was no one around:” Even if your Royal Highness is impatient, you can bear it. Shao Li is a major event in life. Only once in a lifetime, you can’t get tempered.”
I couldn’t laugh or cry and nodded, so I had to bend the corner of my mouth reluctantly and agreed.
When all the guests arrive, the ceremony begins.
I put on another dress in the room, and put on a red and black mysterious crown, returned to the meeting hall, kneeled and sat in the middle, and Zongzheng Temple gave a speech: “The etiquette is ready, so The month is auspicious day. The word “er” is announced, and the word “Kong Jia” is “Yuan”.
I had passed the anger with Zongzheng Temple in advance, and my word was “Jianxin”. Although they had euphemistically expressed that they had a better choice, they were all rejected by me. Even Yan Ke expressed surprise at my firmness. Kuang Xiqing gave a few praises with a chuckle.
The name Jian Xin is the past that I can’t let go of, and it is also the bottom line for me to keep alert to myself.
Maybe I can’t let people separate me from the maniac Kuang Xihan in the past, but I still have a delusion — at least when people close to me call me, they use my real name; it’s as if they were in front of her. People, it’s me…and just me.
The ceremony came to an end after the crowning, followed by a toast to the guests in turn.
Although the gate of the Ling Palace is not easy to enter, only a small number of clan families and dignitaries come to observe the ceremony, but there are also a dozen tables and seats waiting for me to greet me, even if each table only has a small cup of perfunctory drink, it will be a little bit. There was no support; when it was the last table, my cheeks were already hot, and I even staggered when I walked.
Unexpectedly, the main seat of the last table was the person I most didn’t want to see at the moment-Emperor Master Jun Chong.
Fu Gongzi, who was married by the imperial edict, is her eldest son.
“His Royal Highness is weak, it’s better to drink less.” When I picked up the glass, she stretched out her hand to block it slightly, and said with a smile.
“This…” After I had a meal, the wine in the glass almost turned out.
Her voice was not loud and her expression was polite, but the table full of drunk guests suddenly became silent, and then she waved her hands to persuade me to drink less.
“Thank you.” I grinned, I don’t know where I am, but I raised my neck in front of her and drank a clean drink, and gestured with the bottom of the cup facing down.
After being slapped by me in public like this, Fu Yunchong didn’t change his face, but sighed indifferently: “Your Highness is huge, but don’t be greedy.”
“Haha, the emperor’s kindness, this king has taken it with you, you are free, don’t accompany…” It’s not easy to tear my face, I suppressed my dissatisfaction and nodded to her, turned and left the coveted banquet hall.
After the task is completed, Yan Ke has to worry about the rest.
The uproar continued until thousands of lights in the city were lit up, and the guests continued to leave.
After listening to it finally calmed down outside, I was relieved.
I have not seen Jiang Zhuo in the past few days. It seems that she avoided me intentionally or unconsciously. When asked about Bing San, what she got was that Jiang Wei stayed by my side in the backyard and never left—then the only explanation is that She deliberately hid her figure without teaching me to find out.
After unloading the crown and garb, and not interested in counting the congratulations sent by the guests, Yan Ke and I finished the supper and listened to her chattering and thinking about that year.
Be patient and listen to her reminiscing about the past that even Kuang Xihan hadn’t remembered. She drank one cup after another until she was drunk, and then ordered the attendant to serve her back to the room to rest.
I think she is the happiest person today.
Carrying the most of the hip flask left on the table, and waved back the attendants who were about to follow, I walked down the corridor alone, staring at the dark night-the moon tonight was covered by the dark clouds, and it was as dim as my mood at the moment.
There is no moon or star, no scenery to appreciate, and the saddest thing is that there is no one around to accompany you?
How can the word “cold” be described.
“…Huh.” He laughed at himself, holding the hip flask about to put his neck back into his throat, but he taught someone to grab his wrist, “Who?”
I turned my head in astonishment, but I faced a pair of eyes that were as bright as stars-it was Jiang Zhuo.