After a long time, the eunuch's careful and soft voice suddenly came from the south outhouse: "Is your highness awake?"
Then came the voice of Mrs. Zhen: "His Highness said earlier that he was a little tired and was still taking a nap."
Queen Mother Guo remained motionless. She opened her eyes and immediately saw the beams above her. She closed her open mouth and almost held her breath, listening to the voices across the door. At this time, the eunuch's voice spoke again.
: "Lieutenant Sun is back and has arrived in the courtyard. The servant came to inform His Highness."
Mrs. Zhen said: "Please ask him to rest in Shangshu Province and come back later."
The eunuch said: "I will go and tell them now."
At this moment, the couch surrounded by the screen suddenly heard two "creaks", the sound was heavy and clear. Empress Dowager Guo's hand firmly supported the wooden board on the couch. Her hand was a bit big, her fingers were very slender, and the back of her hand
The tendons on her upper body were obviously bulging. No footsteps were heard outside the door. Apparently, the eunuch and Mrs. Zhen heard the movement inside and found that Queen Mother Guo had woken up.
Queen Mother Guo looked at the people in front of her and shook her head hurriedly. The people outside were silent for a moment, and Mrs. Zhen took the initiative to ask: "Not only Taiwei Sun is here?"
The eunuch said: "There are also Taichang Yangdan, Guang Luxun and Zheng Chong."
Mrs. Zhen then said: "Your Highness seems to be awake. Let me ask Your Highness."
Queen Mother Guo took a deep breath and said slowly: "I will sort it out for a while and then summon the ministers."
The eunuch said: "Here."
Queen Mother Guo sat up from the couch with difficulty. At this time, the wooden door was slightly pushed open. Mrs. Zhen came in sideways. When she looked in through the curtain, she was stunned for a moment. She had just taken a nap and her clothes were a bit messy. Queen Mother Guo had just taken a nap and her clothes were a little messy.
stand
Immediately he began to adjust his clothes, pulled up the outer robe of blue silkworm clothes, then reached into the silkworm clothes and pulled down the lining.
She then turned her head and glanced at the screen behind her. There was a wall behind the screen, and the light came from the front, so the screen was not transparent. She approached Qin Liang and whispered in his ear: "Zhong Ming, go behind the screen first, wait a moment."
I will ask Mrs. Zhen to go to the back of the attic and take a look, and if anyone is there, I will leave first."
Qin Liang nodded, stood up and walked around behind the screen.
After a while, Queen Mother Guo sat down on the couch and asked Mrs. Zhen to invite someone to see her.
It was approaching noon and the sun was still leaning south. The door was open, and bright light filtered in from the doors and windows of the outer room, making the room bright. When the door was dark, it seemed as if a group of people suddenly broke in! At least four or five people, some of whom had just returned to Luoyang.
Sun Li, Yang Dan, and Zheng Chong were all ministers, upright old men! In addition, there were two eunuchs.
But all this was an illusion. It was not someone else who had barged in, but Queen Mother Guo who had just allowed the audience to meet her. Queen Mother Guo's mind went blank for a short time, and her reaction seemed to be slow due to fatigue. However, in a flash, Queen Mother Guo thought
Qin Liang hid behind the screen, feeling inexplicably panicked, but seemed to feel relieved.
Several people knelt down in the outer room outside the curtain, bowed respectfully, and said together: "I pay my respects to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager. May Her Majesty's happiness and longevity be boundless."
In fact, the main people who came to the audience were Sun Li, who had been ordered to be Taiwei, Taichang. Guang Luxun was nominally an official under the Taiwei's jurisdiction and only accompanied Sun Li. At this time, the imperial guard was vacant, otherwise there would still be
There will be more people.
However, they came at the wrong time, and now Queen Mother Guo felt that
I feel very uncomfortable. It's like I fell down on a rainy day and my whole body is covered in mud. I just want to go home to shower and change clothes. It's also like I just finished cutting raw fish and other ingredients, and I don't want to do anything else without washing my hands. , it is difficult to concentrate.
In fact, I don't blame the ministers. This gate is in the palace, between the imperial court and the Shangshu Province. Since Queen Mother Guo is here, isn't it just to handle the government affairs and meet with officials?
Empress Dowager Guo bit her shell teeth lightly, tried her best to maintain her tone, maintained a dignified sitting posture, and said briefly in a solemn voice: "Your Majesty, please excuse me."
The three of them thanked each other one after another and knelt down to sit at the banquet on both sides. Sun Li's voice said: "I was welcomed by Taichang Guangluxun and all the people, and I was ordered to go to the palace to get the Taiwei's seal and ribbon. I heard that His Highness was closing the door, so I asked to see you to express my gratitude. .”
Empress Dowager Guo calmed down and pretended to be calm and said: "General, Sun Deda is loyal to the country and has made great contributions. He has governed many prefectures and counties, cared for the people and soldiers, and achieved results. In Huainan, Jingzhou has made military achievements. Please be promoted to the rank of Taiwei, you have served the country for many years, and your hard work has made great achievements. Therefore, at the request of the general, I order Deda to return to the capital. King Yinshou ordered it to be in Zhongshu Province, so I can go and get it."
If the generals and officials who led the army in the Wei Dynasty did not want to be powerful ministers, their official career goal was to be a Taiwei, which was a great recognition and reputation from the court. Sun Li became a Taiwei because of Qin Liang's recommendation. Therefore, the Empress Dowager Guo deliberately mentioned it.
Sun Li should be loyal to the Wei Dynasty, and logically he should also be loyal to the Ming Emperor, because the Ming Emperor valued Sun Li very much and specifically asked him to assist Cao Shuang. But Sun Li's loyalty to the Ming Emperor was obviously different from Guanqiu Jian. Later, Sun Li had a falling out with Cao Shuang, and he even turned to Cao Shuang.
And befriend Sima Yi!
But maybe Sun Li really didn't see Sima Yi's ambition? Because there was nothing wrong with Sima Yi back then, especially during the periods of Emperor Wen and Emperor Ming. During the period, he behaved like Zhuge Kongming of Wei State, except that he was not a clan member of the Xiahou and Cao clans, and He is a veteran of several dynasties and has accumulated too much capital.
In this case, has Sun Li seen Qin Liang's ambition now?
Qin Liang's military exploits were great and he accumulated a lot of prestige, but he was kind to others and even allowed the Empress Dowager to come to court. If we look at Qin Liang with Sima Yi's loyalty, Qin Liang can be regarded as a loyal minister!
No matter what Sun Li thought, Qin Liang treated him well, probably because he had been Sun Li's servant.
At this time, Sun Li's voice interrupted the Queen Mother Guo's thoughts. She cupped her hands and said: "I am old and have submitted a letter to resign. The general refused. I asked for the position of the Three Dukes for me. I was afraid of accepting it. I bowed my head in gratitude. Thank you, Your Majesty." , His Highness’s favor.”
The imperial edict was still issued in the name of the emperor. Sun Li mentioned His Majesty twice, so he at least openly acknowledged the result of the abolition!
Empress Dowager Guo nodded slightly and said: "Every time in the new year from now on, I will still invite the Taiwei to come to the court to see you." She then added: "It's too often, Guang Luxun will go out of the city to greet you."
Yang Dan and Zheng Chong hurriedly bowed to each other and said, "It's my duty."
Empress Dowager Guo stopped responding. The three of them waited for a moment, then paused together and said, "I'll beg you to leave."
The three of them stood up, bent down and took two steps back, then turned and walked towards the door. Empress Dowager Guo immediately breathed a sigh of relief and softened. Her body felt a little sore from trying hard to maintain a dignified posture just now.
Mrs. Zhen then closed the door of the back room. Qin Liang then left
Queen Mother Guo walked out from behind the screen. She glanced at his robe and then at Mrs. Zhen aside. Her cheeks suddenly felt like fire and her mood was very complicated. However, there were many girls in the General's Mansion, and it was already late. , there is really no chance.
Sure enough, Qin Liang also whispered: "Mrs. Zhen, please go out of the north gate first and take a look."
Mrs. Zhen responded and walked towards the back door. Empress Dowager Guo asked softly: "Zhong Ming, is it okay?" Qin Liang came closer and said: "Being close to His Highness Fangze has eased my longing for you."
Queen Mother Guo was sitting on the couch with her feet down. When she heard what she just said, she immediately remembered how she tossed and turned when they couldn't see each other for a long time. She couldn't help hugging Qin Liang, smelling the breath on his clothes, and suddenly felt a little reluctant to let go. .
...Not long after, Qin Liang returned the same way and returned to the department room to the west of the gate tower.
Now that Qin Liang's power is increasing day by day, he feels more and more nervous. But what he did today is actually not that serious. It seemed like a dangerous act, but it was not exposed. On the contrary, it seemed to give people some kind of comfort?
But he didn't expect that after being away from Sun Li for several years, he would meet again on such an occasion! However, this place was the seat of the majestic Wei Dynasty, so the occasion was not wrong.
I heard that Sun Li spoke a little slowly, and his breath was not enough. We haven't seen him for several years, and it turns out that time is not forgiving.
Considering Sun Li's age, he probably only wanted to be a Wei minister who started well and ended well; but Qin Liang still remembered Sun Li's trust and delegation of power to him during the Battle of Shaopi. The time Sun Li asked for credit was when Qin Liang reached the peak of his official career. An important step! He suddenly felt that it seemed a bit excessive just now.
The sun has reached the zenith in the south, and I can no longer read the archived documents today. Qin
Just as Liang was about to leave, several assistants brought meals and placed them on two small wooden tables.
Qin Liang has never eaten the free lunch in the Shangshu Provincial Courtyard. He also likes to try the meals of various government offices and the money and food provided by the treasury, but the chefs in each government office are different. So Qin Liang made an impromptu decision to eat here.
Wu Xin tasted two dishes first before letting Qin Liang sit down at the table. There should be no colorless and odorless oral poisons at this time, not to mention that the guards in the palace were Yan Ying's men from the old department, but it was right to be careful.
Qin Liang picked up the chopsticks and said casually: "Next time, let someone else taste it."
Wu Xin's reaction to a simple sentence was a bit unexpected. Her slightly hollow eyes suddenly focused. Her gaze flicked across Qin Liang's face and she responded: "Here."
After lunch, Qin Liang and others walked out of the palace through Dongye Gate. They met Rao Dashan inside the palace gate. Qin Liang had no intention of going back to the General's Mansion immediately, so he asked: "Have you eaten yet?"
Rao Dashan said: "The servants have eaten before setting off. As soon as they arrived at the palace, they exchanged Qida's people back."
Qin Liang nodded and walked towards the tailgate of the carriage.
At this time, Rao Dashan said again: "Mrs. Yang brought a woman to the house this morning and brought some game, including venison and pheasant."
Qin Liang stood behind the carriage, turned around and said, "Uncle Yang's sister?"
Rao Dashan said: "Exactly. The prey was brought by the Bai family and given to Mrs. Sheep. Mrs. Sheep said that everyone in the family was in mourning, so she sent it to Mrs. Wang's house."
When Qin Liang heard this, he couldn't help but secretly wonder: Did Yang Huiyu want to come here, or was it a gift that Mrs. Bai asked Yang Huiyu to give? After all, the things belong to the Bai family.