Return of the Swallow

Lu Wenru felt excited when he was asked, and replied quickly: "Uncle, I think this is a sign that the Holy One trusts you."

What he said was not enough to win Lu Heng's trust. But Lu Heng felt a little more comfortable after hearing this.

"Trust? Doesn't the Holy One trust Prince Zhongshun?"

Lu Wenru said: "I don't know that much, but you see that Prince Zhongshun's official career has been going downhill in recent years. Not to mention his military power has been taken away several times, and his family members have all died. If you look at it like this, you will know that there is something wrong." How many people are afraid of him. The Holy Spirit said that he is Prince Zhongshun’s sworn brother, but in fact, some people have impeached Prince Zhongshun many times, not to mention the harsh treatment that was shown on the surface.”

As Lu Wenru spoke, he observed Lu Heng's face. Seeing that Lu Heng's face softened slightly, he continued: "My uncle is different from Prince Zhongshun. My uncle has a century-old family as his foundation, and it was thanks to the support of the Lu family that the emperor practiced Zuo. , whether it is financial or personal connections, the Lu family and the old families in the Northern Hebei Kingdom are complementary to each other. Even the intertwined relationships in the court, the key point is the Lu family's arrangements. So the Holy Emperor attaches great importance to you. This It’s different from Prince Zhongshun’s origin as a warrior with no foundation.”

Lu Wenru's every word tickled Lu Heng's heart. After what he said, Lu Heng felt much better.

Lu Heng sighed: "It is already a troublesome thing to welcome Utkin Khan and Ke Dun, let alone escort them into the capital? Once we leave Huichuan, the treasure matter will come to a standstill. It will happen then There have been many unexpected changes. Now only you, me and Lu Xiong know where the treasure is. But if I leave Huichuan and leave everything to God, who can guarantee that Pang Xiao will never know about it? I am in the capital, Then it will be beyond our reach and it will only cause more trouble."

When Lu Wenru heard this, he bowed immediately and said, "Uncle, I will always be loyal to my uncle. I will keep everything secret about you and will never tell anyone at will."

Seeing how nervous he looked, Lu Heng couldn't help but laugh, "Get up quickly, can I still not trust you? I am not saying this against you, nor am I saying that Lu Xiong will leak secrets. He is under guard like that. Yan, if the secret can still be leaked, my group of people can wash their necks and wait. I'm just saying God's will."

Lu Heng's smile gradually faded, and he frowned worriedly, "The will of God is so mysterious that no one can say whether it really exists. In the past, I only thought that I was the proud son of heaven from a noble family, but as time passed, I realized that , manpower reaches its limit, and there is only so much that can be done. I’m worried that God won’t allow me to get that treasure.”

Lu Wenru lowered his eyes and thought for a while, unable to find the words to respond. After a long while, Fang racked his brains and squeezed out one sentence: "It would be nice if the Tatar Khan and his entourage could be allowed to come later, or if they were allowed to stay after arriving and enter Beijing later."

Lu Heng heard this,

Suddenly it was like an enlightenment.

His mind was too confused, and he was not as clear-minded as Lu Wenru, who was dull.

"You are usually quiet, but your suggestions at critical moments are useful." Lu Heng laughed.

Lu Wenru said at a loss: "Uncle, I have little knowledge and what I say cannot be taken seriously."

"No, what you just said is right."

Lu Heng stood up. His previous irritability was gone, and he regained his former composure and competence. He walked to the bedside with his hands behind his hands, looking at the few clumps of wilted heads next to the small puddles formed by the rain outside the half-open window. The weeds in his brain slowly burst out into a smile.

"You're right, you have to find a way to make people stay temporarily."

Lu Wenru did not dare to answer, vaguely feeling that he had heard something extraordinary again, and lowered his head deeply.

Qin Yining thought that since the queen came here, although she was ordered to pray for the natural disaster to end soon, it was impossible to stay in the temple twelve hours a day. She and Bian Ruohan were the only two people here who were qualified to accompany the queen. The queen would naturally Find her to talk to.

But it took three days to wait until the queen's little chambermaid arrived.

"Princess, my mother-in-law invites you to go."

Qin Yining immediately agreed and sent someone to talk to Pang Xiao, before taking Jiyun and Bingtang and riding out in a carriage to the villa prepared by Lu Heng for the accommodation of the Queen, Zhuang Concubine and their entourage.

The Bieyuan was much more spacious and luxurious than the Yamen. There were guards standing outside the Bieyuan and they were closely guarded. Qin Yining took Jiyun and Bingtang in front of the porch and was ordered to get out of the car. He also called the maid to check carefully and make sure they You are allowed to enter only if you don't have any weapons or poison on you.

Following the maid along the veranda towards the back house of the mansion, Bingtang and Jiyun both looked serious and looked at the surroundings nervously.

Bingtang came close to Qin Yining's ear and whispered in a breathy voice: "Princess, why do you feel that the atmosphere is not right? It's a bit like when you entered the palace..."

When Qin Yining "lived" in the palace for a while, he was almost framed for murdering the emperor's heir, and later he was imprisoned in the Empress Dowager's Ci'an Palace and almost starved to death without food or water. It was really not a good memory, and his heart felt numb when he thought about it. .

Qin Yining shook his head and made a booing gesture.

Bingtang immediately understood what Qin Yining meant and said no more.

After passing the Chuihua Gate, Qin Yining saw several servants guarding the door. Seeing Qin Yining coming with two maids, he checked again.

After checking to confirm that there was nothing abnormal, a waiter led the way.

"Don't be surprised, Princess. The slaves are just being cautious and don't mean to disrespect the Princess."

Qin Yining smiled and shook his head, "This father-in-law is so polite. What you did was just what you were expected to do. It's understandable."

The young chamberlain smiled and cupped his hands, "Oh, thank you for your understanding. People often say that the princess is the most caring person for her servants, and it is true."

Qin Yining just smiled when he heard this.

Seeing that Qin Yining seemed unwilling to say anything, the waiter kept silent and led Qin Yining and the two maids to the main room with a smile.

"Please wait a moment, Princess."

Qin Yining smiled and nodded.

The young chamberlain went in and announced the news. Not long after, the curtain was lifted, and Nanny Sun, who was beside the queen, came out quickly. She knelt down in the corridor and saluted Qin Yining: "I have seen the princess."

"Mommy, no courtesy, you are an old man next to the Queen, please don't do this."

Grandma Sun looked at Qin Yining with a smile and said, "My queen is waiting for you. Please come with me."

Qin Yining said "Thank you" and followed Grandma Sun through the door.

There is a faint fragrance in the house, like mint or some kind of elegant floral fragrance. Due to the continuous rain, the weather still had the feeling of dampness and coldness in spring. To avoid the humidity, they burned a heated kang in the house and moved the bead curtain to the side. The fragrance became stronger and Qin Yining was sure that the fragrance was the nine-eared carvings displayed in the ground. Emitted from the incense burner with carved peony patterns.

The queen wears a true red narrow-sleeved cross-collared gown and a pomegranate skirt. Her long hair is pulled into a high peony bun. Three bird feather hairpins made of twisted gold threads are inserted side by side. A crested hairpin is worn on the other side, and the phoenix is ​​still held in the mouth. Wearing a matt pearl. Although he is old and his appearance is ordinary, his graceful demeanor is unabashed.

Qin Yining knelt down respectfully and saluted, "My wife, please pay your respects to the Queen."

"Excuse me." The queen smiled and raised her hand. Grandma Sun immediately helped Qin Yining up. Then she turned around with a smile and called the palace attendants who were accompanying her. She also called Bingtang and Jiyun away.

Even if Bingtang and Jiyun were worried, they had no choice but to obey.

From the corner of his eye, Qin Yining saw that there was no one else in the room, and knew that the Queen must have something important to say, so he calmly lowered his head and waited for the Queen to speak.

Because of the angle of her head, Qin Yining did not see the complicated expression on the queen's face.

When she looked at Qin Yining, her eyes were full of scrutiny and speculation, as if she had just met Qin Yining for the first time today. It was not because of the previous closeness and the helplessness caused by the different positions of her husband and husband.

"Prince Zhongshun came to Huichuan, are you still getting used to her life?"

Qin Yining felt something was wrong when she heard the Queen address her. In the past, the Queen directly addressed her as Princess, and sometimes even referred to her as sister, but today's title gave people a very alienating feeling.

Qin Yining knew that something must have happened without her knowing it, which changed the queen's impression of her.

Qin Yining said cautiously: "Back to your Majesty, my wife was not used to coming to Huichuan at first, but then she gradually got used to it."

"Oh, is it so."

Qin Yining nodded and said: "Yes, the prince is ill, and my wife has already spent 80% of her energy looking for a suitable house when she came here. The weather is bad, and my wife has been caught in the rain and cold. That's all. Later, my wife found the house, and someone broke in, smashed it, and robbed a lot of valuables. The other party also said that she liked the house and wanted to drive me away... In short, what happened It’s very complicated, and it’s really a lot of work and effort.”

Qin Yining spoke very slowly when he replied, but his mind was moving very fast. There was no grudge between her and the queen. Although they knew that their respective husbands would definitely have different positions in the future, before that, they could still be friends who said insignificant things.

In addition, when the queen first came, her attitude towards her was very friendly, so it was unreasonable for her to change for no reason.

Therefore, someone must have been slandering the Queen without her knowledge. And here, the person most likely to do this is Bian Ruohan, not to mention that the concubine Zhuang brought by the queen is Bian Ruohan's cousin.

With this analysis, Qin Yining was certain that the queen must be because of her affair with Bian Ruohan.

In a better situation, the conflict between her and Bian Ruohan was known to the queen.

If it's not good, there's no telling what Bian Ruohan arranged for her in front of the queen.

As expected, when the Queen heard Qin Yining's words, she frowned slightly. She did not immediately express her position, but pretended to be surprised and said: "Is this really still happening? Who else in Huichuan County dares to rob Prince Zhongshun of his house? ?”

Qin Yining smiled bitterly and said: "The Queen is extremely smart, so she has naturally guessed that the other party is Mrs. Zhongyi. Mrs. Zhongyi has a deep prejudice against me. I tolerate her in every possible way, but she keeps pestering me. It's really annoying."