Chapter five hundred and eighty-eighth: Ye Zhonggong will be the chief assistant
On the fourth day after the wedding, it was the day when the concubines inside and outside came to congratulate the Queen, the Queen Mother, and the Queen Mother. However, the Queen Mother Wang was not a person who liked to make such fuss, and the Queen Mother Zhang was too lazy to sit upright. After everyone kowtows, they all ordered to skip this trip. As there are currently no married women, only the eldest princess, the eldest princess, and many foreign married women are paying their respects to the queen.
Early in the morning on this day, the ladies in fine makeup gathered in front of the Fengtian Palace, and it was quite a lively scene. However, the ladies who congratulated her did not come to the palace to talk like ordinary people thought, but spoke to the civil and military officials. The first court ceremony usually takes place at Danchi in front of Fengtian Hall, and then the queen ascends to the hall. Except for the two ladies, everyone else salutes one by one in the open air. It is the most tiring job. Therefore, every Qianqiu Festival is usually held. During the winter solstice, the Queen Mothers of the two palaces are often reluctant to see their wives suffer, and they are too lazy to bother with this time. Most of them will issue an order to avoid paying congratulations. However, this is the first time since the appointment of the Queen, so naturally it is unavoidable. Go. Fortunately, the current season is neither too cold nor too hot, so wearing the heavy crown clothes on the body, the married women can still endure it.
There are hundreds or even thousands of married ladies from Dukes and Princes to first- and second-grade ladies to Shuren Yiren and above. At first glance, they can be divided into several groups based on their clothes. They are all clearly distinguished and of similar grades. Twos and threes gather together to talk. The low-level ones don't talk to those above them, but the high-level ones easily ignore those below them.
This was Shen Yue's first visit to the palace to congratulate her since she married Xu Xun. Although she had just given birth a few months ago, because she was well-maintained and young, she stood among many older duchess and ladies. Naturally, she stood out from the crowd. For example, the Marquis of Shouning and the Duke of Dingguo, whom she was familiar with, naturally all talked to her. Even the always arrogant Princess Renhe came over to say hello with a smile.
After dealing with this and then another, Shen Yue finally took a breath. Suddenly, Shen Yue caught a glimpse of Li Dongyang's Madam Zhu, who had slightly frosty hair on her temples but a straight waist. She recalled that meeting in Lingji Palace. , she couldn't help but squinted her eyes, and when she saw someone looking towards her, she lowered her head slightly and showed another smile.
As the daughter of the Duke of Chengguo, Mrs. Zhu married Li Dongyang as his wife. Li Dongyang's first wife and step-brothers all died, so many people felt that she was wronged. However, now her girlfriend from back then has married into a wealthy family. After that, she was nothing. Although her life was not luxurious, her husband was a minister in the cabinet and he was devoted to her. Apart from having no children, there was nothing unsatisfactory about her. Most people outside were flattering and flattering. .At this moment, seeing Shen Yue's kind and silent greeting, thinking of her husband's mental and physical exhaustion these days, and the tone of his voice last night, she pondered for a moment, and finally stepped forward.
"We haven't seen her for several years. But Mrs. Pingbeihou makes me almost afraid to recognize her."
Shen Yue didn't expect that Mrs. Zhu would come up to greet her like this. Although she felt strange in her heart, she still knew what was going on outside. She immediately said with a smile: "Madam, you are still the same as before. You look better than when I saw you." I was younger when I was younger."
"I don't dare to take Mrs. Pingbeihou's words seriously. Time flies by. Of course I am getting old." Seeing Mrs. Shouninghou and Mrs. Dingguo knowingly making some room, Mrs. Zhu nodded gratefully at them. , and then said, "I wonder if Mrs. Pingbeihou will be interested in revisiting her old place after the greetings are over?"
Although she didn’t know whether Mrs. Zhu’s move was on Li Dongyang’s behalf or just as a communication between the wives, Shen Yue roughly understood that Xu Xun’s intention was to force Yang Tinghe away in order to make Li Dongyang feel isolated and helpless. Therefore, after listening to Zhu’s suggestion, When the lady said this, she immediately replied with a smile: "Of course that is good. I heard that the two gods in Lingji Palace are very efficacious. I also want to go to worship."….
The two just talked for a while, and when a eunuch came out, it was the Queen who got up. Everyone stood up one by one according to the previous order. Mrs. Britain was the first, followed by Mrs. Dingguo, and then Mrs. Baoguo. When she reached the level of Madam Marquis, Shen Yueren was young and Xu Xun was a newly promoted Marquis. She was originally supposed to be at the bottom, but a few people who were very knowledgeable and worldly put her in the front. It is located after Mrs. Jianchanghou.
After a moment, the queen's carriage was seen coming slowly, and finally she entered the palace and was seated. Even people like Shen Yue who were in the front row could not see clearly the middle palace in the palace, let alone others. As for the British lady and the senior class. Mrs. Dingguo was led into the main hall by the leading female officer, and soon the sound of praise came from inside.
"kneel!"
Hundreds of women all knelt down in response to Si Zan's voice, and they heard the voice of the female official Si Yan coming from the palace: "The British lady, the concubine Xu, the Dingguo lady, the concubine Liu, etc., have met the master of the palace. Congratulations to Her Royal Highness the Queen!"
After these words, everyone inside and outside the palace kowtowed and expressed congratulations. When the two ladies in the middle class left the palace, all the ladies were demoted one by one. After the queen delivered the order, they bowed and congratulated again. Only then did this complicated etiquette come to an end. Logically, the maid should lead everyone out of the palace at this time, but just as the lowest-ranking wives in the back class began to leave, a young Shang Yi hurriedly came out of the palace and went straight to the first few ladies. First, One by one, I saw the British ladies, Mrs. Dingguo, Mrs. Baoguo, followed closely by the two national relatives, Mrs. Shouninghou and Mrs. Jianchanghou. She just arrived in front of Shen Yue.
"But Madam Pingbeihou?" After that Shangyi bowed and saw Shen Yue nodding in response, she smiled and said, "The queen would like to ask Mrs. Pingbeihou Kunning Palace to speak."
Shen Yue was thinking about what to do with Madam Zhu's invitation, but she found that after Shang Yi had spoken to her, she went straight to the back, starting with Madam Zhu, and nodded to several important ministers and wives in succession. Everyone else looked envious. Looking at the youngest version of herself, Shen Yue could finally realize for a moment how helpless the young Xu Xun was in dealing with the elders. When the Queen Luan Jia went ahead and everyone followed closely to Kunning Palace, A little suspicion just arose in her heart.
It seems that the Queen did not leave any of her relatives behind, but she left people like them behind, but why?
However, Zhou Qiniang, who returned to Kunning Palace first, gave Zhu Houzhao a cold face - even though she gave it to him after he had retreated. Seeing that the little emperor's face was full of flattery, she finally sighed, and it was useless. The tone was too formal, but he still said seriously: "Your Majesty, I know you are doing it for my own good, but by calling all the wives of important civil and military ministers to Kunning Palace in such a unclear manner, do you want me to say something to them? What? Let them assist their husbands and help the emperor? But they are all very old, how can they not understand these principles. I say it is inevitable to be arrogant. But when it comes to talking about common gossip, they are not that familiar now. , there is no reason for people to sit around and restrain themselves. This has spread to the ears of the Queen Mothers of the two palaces. It doesn’t matter that I am being blamed. What will people say about you, Your Majesty?"
What he said made Zhu Houzhao speechless. He originally wanted to make Kunning Palace lively and lively, and at the same time make the queen and the ladies familiar, but who knew that the ladies have always treated the queen as if they were distinguished guests? .The same principle applies to him facing the ministers.
Zhou Qiniang sighed again when she saw the guilty look on the person's face. Although she came from a small family and didn't know much about the big things in the court, Zhu Houzhao even summoned the person under the pretense of Yi's decree, but she didn't see it. Impossible. So, after thinking about it, she finally thought of a solution that was not a solution.
In the evening, when Xu Xun entered the house, he saw a pot of orchids placed in the house. At first glance, the white flowers were particularly pleasing to the eye. He suddenly raised his eyebrows and said, "I don't remember that I have never planted orchids at home. This is Who gave it as a gift?”….
"It was awarded by the Empress." Shen Yue raised her head and replied. Seeing that Xu Xun was stunned when she heard this, she added, "To be more precise, it should be awarded by the Empress on behalf of the Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager. In addition to this, there are also the tangerines that have just been sent as tribute from Yiyi, which are quite new. Although there are occasional rewards from the palace on weekdays, this time it was the empress who presented the gift on behalf of the two empresses, so it is naturally even more different."
Speaking of this, thinking of the scene where the little emperor led Zhou Qiniang out secretly while watching a play in Xianyuan, Shen Yue couldn't help but smile, and then said with a smile: "I'm not criticizing the emperor behind his back. I was sitting there talking. , I saw that the curtain in the back room seemed to have been opened a crack. I expected that the people around the queen would not be so reckless. The emperor must be peeking there. I can’t say for sure. I was left with many important civil and military ministers and their wives, I guess. This was also a false edict from the emperor. Fortunately, after the queen gave the gift, she only asked some questions and let everyone out. Mrs. Zhu and I went to Lingji Palace to pay our respects."
Xu Xun had long been accustomed to Zhu Houzhao's temperament of doing whatever he pleased. After smiling at this moment, he couldn't help but secretly sigh that Zhou Qiniang was still clever after all, and finally covered up the unexpected move of summoning these important ministers and wives. He passed by, and the gift was given on behalf of the two palaces, which could be regarded as a favor to the two queen mothers. However, when he heard about Mrs. Zhu, his relaxed expression suddenly turned serious.
"Mrs. Zhu? Is she the wife who assists Li Dongyang?" After receiving Shen Yue's affirmative answer, he asked with bright eyes, "She invited you to Lingji Palace. What did she say?"
"She said that the two gods in Lingji Palace can best protect human health. That's why she was able to confer the title of real person from the Yongle period to the Chenghua period. She said that recently, she seemed to be mentally and physically weak, so she went to worship After bowing, she said it was extremely effective for children, so I naturally followed." Shen Yue blinked, and then said with a smile, "As for after arriving at Lingji Palace, what she said about our Auxiliary Master is now... It is rare for me to go home after a break, and I have no time to host any literary and poetry meetings. I often put on my common clothes and go out from the back alleys to visit Yongfang Shuangta Temple in my childhood. You should know what this means."
"Thank you for telling me, ma'am!" Xu Xun smiled and sat down, cupping his hands. When the wet nurse brought the baby over, he reached out his hand to snatch the baby over before Shen Yue. After holding him and being intimate for a while, he saw the little boy caressing his breasts. He blinked his chin and seemed a little puzzled. He suddenly laughed and said, "Good girl, do you know that your father shaved off the little beard that he just grew? It's not easy to do things without hair on your mouth. , since your father is still young, he doesn’t want to wear a beard and pretend to be a man of many years of experience. Compared with the beard, it will take several decades for your father to challenge those elders!"
Shen Yue was so amused by Xu Xun's strange words, especially the youth and the profound vicissitudes of life. In the end, she simply stood up and came to Xu Xun. She personally stretched out her hand and rubbed Xu Xun's smooth chin. Then he smiled and said: "That's right, no matter how much I pretend, I can't grow old. Today I stood among those ladies, and everyone envied me for being young. At first I wasn't used to it, but later I not only got used to it, but also felt better. Awesome. Money can’t buy time. This is our blessing!"
"Yes, it is a blessing!"
The Twin Pagoda Temple facing West Chang'an Street in Yongfang is also called Daqingshou Temple. During the Jin and Yuan Dynasties, it was one of the most famous temples. It is said that when the Yuan Dynasty was building the capital, the city wall once turned to avoid Daqingshou Temple. It turned a corner. Even in the early Ming Dynasty, there was a famous celebrity here - Daoyan monk Yao Guangxiao. However, with the death of this legendary figure who was named Rong Guogong, the temple underwent orthodox reconstruction. It was once renamed Daxinglong Temple, also known as Ci'en Temple, but most people call it Twin Pagoda Temple. One of the twin towers in the temple is nine stories, and the other is seven stories. From a high altitude, you can see the West Garden and even the Royal Palace. .Therefore, after Yongle, ordinary people were once prohibited from climbing the tower. Later, few people gradually paid attention to this matter...
However, nowadays, the Shuangta Temple has long lost the glory of the Jin and Yuan Dynasties, and there is no longer the strange man who could seek advice for the emperor in the early Ming Dynasty. Although the tall brick pagoda often has good men and women climbing up the stairs, it is not like Chang'an in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. , the disciples were all honored to leave the name of the Wild Goose Pagoda. At this moment, when Li Dongyang stood in front of the Master Haiyun Pagoda, he stood with his hands behind his hands and looked up for a while, but he had no intention of going in and climbing the tower. Until he heard There were rustling footsteps behind him, and then they stopped not far behind, and he turned around.
Even though he was wearing cloth clothes, Li Dongyang still looked elegant and tidy when he was wearing Tsing Yi. At first glance, he seemed to be a much older scholar. Xu Xun was also wearing Tsing Yi and black cloth shoes. He had a smile on his face and was as young as usual. Scholars are no different. What's more, the autumn period has just ended, and all the candidates taking the exam in Shuntian Prefecture are waiting for the results to be released, so the combination of the two, an old one and a young one, is even more unsurprising.
"Mr. Xiya, don't you plan to climb the tower?"
His wife, Mrs. Zhu, came back and said this. Li Dongyang came to the Shuangta Temple quietly early in the morning without anyone else. Xu Xun came not long after waiting. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart. At this time, When he heard the invitation, he looked up at the tall brick tower again, shook his head and said: "At my age, I won't suffer this. Since you are here, let's take a walk around the temple. lock up."
Li Dongyang said so. Although Xu Xun did not intend to force anyone to do anything difficult, he still said with a smile: "Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. There will be more people in the temple than usual. Mr. Xi Ya came early, and there are not many people outside the mountain gate. , when I just came in, I already saw a lot of pilgrims. If I were to climb the pagoda, I would ask the monks in the temple to close the door to prevent idlers from climbing the pagoda, but I would still have a quiet place to talk. But if I just walked around the temple, I would be afraid that There will be a lot of noise later. If Mr. Xiya is worried about whether he can get up or down, the worst is that I, a junior, will carry you down on my back."
ps: It turns out that the pilgrimage is not to Kunning Palace, but to a large number of people kneeling and worshiping in the open air. No wonder I often see records in Ming Dynasty records saying that the Millennium Festival is exempt from pilgrimage and so on...