Ci Jinzhi Chapter 204

  Mistress of the Valley...is Xinxin!

  Then her son—

  Emperor Xing Yuan heard his heartbeat like a drum.

  From the troubled times to the present, he has experienced so many things, and his heart has already hardened. But when he thought about Xinxin's accident, and thought that he and Xinxin might have another son, he couldn't maintain the emperor's calmness.

   "How can you be sure that the boy survived?" Emperor Xing Yuan raised his heart.

  At this moment, he realized what it means to worry about gains and losses.

   "No conforming remains in the valley..."

  Emperor Xingyuan's eyes flashed with pain, and he stared at He Qingxiao closely: "You mean, some local people have seen that boy?"

   "Yes." He Qingxiao said calmly, "Weichen brought a few mountain people who had seen the young man to Beijing—"

  Emperor Xing Yuan said excitedly, "Bring them to see me!"

  After the words fell, Emperor Xing Yuan changed his mind: "It's better for me to meet them, and don't let them know my identity."

  After some arrangements, Emperor Xing Yuan met four villagers.

   These four people are not from the same place, and they don't know each other. There are three men and one woman, some are old and some are young.

   "I have seen the Grand Master."

  As soon as he opened his mouth, Emperor Xing Yuan frowned slightly.

   is the accent of Wanyang area. It is a little difficult for him to listen, but he can still understand.

  Emperor Xing Yuan inevitably thought of Empress Xin again.

  At the beginning of the founding of Daxia, Empress Xin suggested that Mongolian children from all over the country should learn Mandarin as soon as they entered school, but it was not implemented.

  Mandarin has always existed, that is, Beijing dialect. Children from rich and noble families in other places will ask teachers to teach them from the beginning, and some children from poor families will start learning Mandarin after they are admitted to the scholar, and those who want to go further. Officials who can appear in front of the emperor will not trouble the emperor with his accent.

  However, starting from ordinary Mongolian children, the promotion of Mandarin requires too much manpower and financial resources.

  But I have to say that if many of Xinxin's proposals were carried out despite various obstacles, there would be many benefits.

  Emperor Xingyuan walked away for a while, and looked at the four people who saluted him tremblingly.

   "No need to be too polite. Listen to my nephew, you have seen my long-lost nephew, can you tell me more about it?" Emperor Xing Yuan also used his accent.

   It was the only woman among the four who spoke first.

   "The little lady met the young master three times. Once, the young lady lost a hairpin and was running around in a hurry. The young lady saw it and helped the young lady find it..."

  The woman clasped her hands together: "What a benefactor, the hairpin was bought for the old lady at home, if you can't find it, the little lady will be in trouble..."

  Seeing that the woman's topic flew out of the sky, and she seemed to be able to talk for half an hour, He Qingxiao coughed lightly.

The woman paused abruptly and started talking about business: "The second time I met on the road, the little lady greeted the young master. The last time was in March last year, when the young lady saw the young gentleman riding a horse from afar. Yes, it's really pretty..."

  The second person who spoke was an old man: "That young master also helped the old man..."

  The four of them had all received help, whether the help was big or small, they kept it in their hearts, and they also deeply remembered the appearance of the young man.

  Emperor Xingyuan listened quietly, but he felt that he couldn't hear enough, and the outline of the boy gradually appeared in his mind.

  He is an enthusiastic, free and easy, happy boy.

  Emperor Xing Yuan saw Chang Liang through the hole again through a wall.

Chang Liang was bound hands and feet, and when he saw Yan Chao walking in with the iron whip, he was terrified: "Didn't you say that if you recruit, you will not be punished? Please let me go, I don't know who is going to kill, is it?" My uncle took me there! Go find my uncle, find uncle..."

  Under the heavy punishment, this young man who had never suffered much since childhood was on the verge of collapse.

  Emperor Xingyuan couldn't listen anymore.

  Back to the palace, the first thing Emperor Xingyuan did was to quietly send out the painter who was the best at drawing figures in the palace, according to the oral portraits of the four mountain people.

  Before the palace gate was locked, Emperor Xing Yuan saw the young man in the portrait.

  The boy is very handsome, slender and thin, with a shallow scar on his forehead.

  Emperor Xingyuan looked and looked again and again, trying to find his shadow on the boy's face.

   It doesn't look like him at all—no, the eyes are still somewhat similar.

  The following night was very long for Emperor Xing Yuan. He tossed and turned, thinking about the queen's death, thinking about the identity and whereabouts of the young man, thinking about how to deal with Guchangbo Mansion...

  The next day, the diligent emperor was absent from the early court.

   The courtiers made many guesses, but fortunately, when Emperor Xing Yuan appeared on the second day, it seemed that everything was as usual, and the guesses disappeared.

  On this day, Gu Changbo suddenly received a verbal order telling him to enter the palace.

  Before leaving, Gu Changbo held Dai Ze's ear and asked, "You won't cause me trouble again, will you?"

   He was called into the palace several times because of this bastard.

   "No!" Daize shouted aggrievedly.

   "If you don't have it, you don't have it, what are you calling for!" After slapping his son, Gu Changbo didn't dare to delay entering the palace.

   "I have seen His Majesty."

  Gu Changbo met Emperor Xingyuan in Xiyuan.

  March has come, the spring is getting stronger in Xiyuan, and the trees are blooming.

  Emperor Xingyuan had a case in front of him, with delicious food and wine on it. The sound of silk and bamboo drifting from nowhere passed through the rockery, flowers and trees, and lingered in the pavilion with gauze curtains hanging on all sides.

   "Si Shi, sit here."

   Gu Changbo was taken aback for a moment.

   Four Stones is his name.

  He has three elder brothers in front of him, and he is called Si Shi. At that time, the people around him were full of such crude names, and later he became rich and powerful, so he was impatient to choose a polite word, and the name Si Shi was rarely called by anyone.

  People call him Uncle, but the emperor calls him Uncle Guchang.

   Hearing the emperor call his name today, Gu Changbo was a little bit at a loss.

  At that time, the emperor had not proclaimed himself emperor. They drank together, fought together, and had disputes because of differences of opinion. That's what the emperor called him.

   Four stones, four stone brothers.

   Gu Changbo sat down opposite Emperor Xing Yuan.

   "I remember, it will be your birthday in a few days."

"yes."

   "Time is so fast..."

   It has been a long time since such monarchs and ministers sat and drank wine together.

  Gu Changbo was very restrained at first, especially when he was summoned alone several times before because his son was scolded.

   But wine is strong wine, and people are old friends. After a few cups, they gradually let go.

   Monarchs and ministers talk about the past, some are difficult, some are dangerous, and some are full of joy after victory.

   Gu Changbo was slightly drunk, with a relaxed smile on his face, when he suddenly heard a sound.

  He regained his composure, and found that the wine glass in Emperor Xing Yuan's hand fell off and smashed to pieces on the white marble floor.

   "Your Majesty—" before he spoke, there was a piercing sound outside the pavilion, and Gu Changbo's face suddenly changed.

   That was the familiar sound of a sword unsheathing.

  The people outside the pavilion flooded in like a tide, and the light in the pavilion suddenly became dim.

   Gu Changbo felt that he must have drunk too much and had hallucinations.

   "Your Majesty—"

  He opened his mouth again, and the person opposite suddenly grabbed his skirt with one hand, and a dagger lay across his neck.

Chapter end