Still waiting for Zhaoyang

Chapter 16
Jinluo didn't have such weather, and yesterday's first snow came suddenly, and she didn't buy any new clothes. At this moment, she was only wrapped in a thick coat.The corners of the skirt and the shoes under the feet were already wet, and the hands and feet were numb from the cold.

The road was covered with snow, and at this moment it was already muddy from being run over by cart wheels, horseshoes, and human feet.

Here, naturally, there is no return carriage to sit in.

She was afraid that the snow would fall harder and harder, so she gathered her clothes, watched the road carefully, and hurried back, not daring to be careless at all.

Suddenly, the sound of horseshoes came from behind.

She took He Xiang, carefully shrank to the side of the road, and silently waited for a group of people to pass by.

There were three people who came, Shang Rui led Ming Lian and a bodyguard. The three rode each, and when they passed Xia Yue, they passed by like the wind without stopping.

The gust of wind picked up the snow and hit her cheek, making her shiver.

I never thought that just after a while, the fine sound of horseshoes went and returned.

Xia Yue looked up and saw that Shang Rui was riding in front, and when he was approaching her, he reined in and stopped. He didn't get off the horse, but just looked at her condescendingly, and asked, "Can you ride a horse?"

She was dazed, and after realizing his reason for coming, she glanced at their three horses and replied: "Yes. But I don't want to ride with others."

Shang Rui raised his eyebrows, stood on the horse, and raised his chin slightly: "It just so happens that I do the same. So Miss Min doesn't have to be sentimental."

Xia Yue was somewhat embarrassed by his words breaking her mind.

Seeing Shang Rui glanced at him, Minglian understood immediately, rolled over and got his horse to Xia Yue, and handed the reins to Xia Yue with both hands.

Xia Yue glanced at it, and took it without any hesitation.She understood that the snow was so heavy, if she and He Xiang walked back like this, they would definitely suffer from the cold, and now there is an advantage, why should they make it difficult for themselves.

The thick jacket she covered was a little longer, not as neat as the riding clothes she wore before, so she tore off the side stitches with both hands, then took the reins, stepped on the stirrups and rolled over.

The maroon-red horse seemed not to be familiar with her, and shook its neck in horror, spinning around in place.Xia Yue leaned forward, stretched out her hand to run along the horse's mane, and it gradually calmed down.Then, she turned around and stretched out her hand to He Xiang: "Come up."

He Xiang hesitated.

"Don't be afraid, what about me?" Xia Yue taught her to step on the stirrups and pulled her onto the horseback with all her strength.

Seeing this, Shang Rui couldn't help asking her: "Don't you ride with others?"

Xia Yue answered without looking sideways: "He Xiang and I are like sisters, so it's not someone else."

The corner of Shang Rui's mouth curled up, but he didn't care about words with her, he kicked the horse's belly and rode away.Ming Lian got on the other horse and rode with the guard, and followed closely.

She seldom leads people on horseback, not to mention it is such a muddy snowy day, so it is very difficult to ride.

After the horse started to run, the wind and snow were even stronger, so he was not afraid of wearing a big cloak.But she was dressed in thin clothes, and stood in front of Hexiang, the wind cut her cheeks and the back of her hands like a knife, and it hurt.He rode in front, not because of any act of pity from her, and she was able to barely follow him for a distance at first, but then she fell farther and farther, and she was no longer seen after turning a corner.

When she was almost at the gate of the city, she saw them waiting for her on the side early.

"If you don't come again, I'll almost think you stole my horse." He squinted at her.

Xia Yue was so cold that she didn't even have the strength to retort, she went down to the ground with He Xiang silently, and returned the horse to Ming Lian.

She stretched out her hand to straighten her messy hair. When she raised her hand, the sleeve slid down from her wrist, revealing a section of skin.

It was only then that Shang Rui noticed the hands that he had captured.

On Bai Nen's wrist was imprinted the five finger prints he made just now.He didn't use much strength, but the skin between her wrists became red and swollen.When he looked up again, the originally slender fingers were full of small cuts, and some of the wounds had not yet healed and turned white.

He couldn't help but move his gaze to the other hand.

The same is true.

Looking at her blue lips from the cold again, he sighed softly in his heart.The one I saw in Jinluo's spring night this year, even if she was crying, she was not so downcast.

But he was not a person who knew Fengyue very well from the beginning to the end, and he was thinking about it for a long time, but he didn't know what to do.Seeing that Xia Yue bowed and thanked her and then turned away, he told Minglian: "Find someone to follow her." That look, tone had nothing to do with love.

After Xia Yue left, Shang Rui went to Zimozhai alone.

After He Lanxun learned about what happened today, he hesitated and said: "I think...the emperor shouldn't give her the jade."

"It doesn't matter. I have my own thoughts."

Yes, maybe he shouldn't give it back to her easily.The secret of Yuli, this woman doesn't understand, they don't understand, or only Wei Ranyu and him know in this world.

"What I ordered you yesterday, did you find the result?"

"No reply yet."

"Then you order someone to match my portrait and go to Jinluo to inquire about it."

"This……"

"You don't need to ask too much, just do it later."

He suddenly thought of Jingtan's words - "Brother Yu, that brother Yu who used to say that you two look alike".

Shang Rui closed his eyes silently. If the child is really alive, he doesn't know whether it is regret or happiness.

Wei Ranyu.

From birth, he was regarded as the child of the future prince.

His father became the crown prince on the full moon day after his birth. Even though his biological mother, Empress Mu, passed away for many years, and the Mu family experienced ups and downs and gradually declined, the late emperor always treated the first prince kindly.Everyone could see that his father missed the woman very much and had no intention of becoming a queen again.

As for Wei Ranyu, Shang Rui saw him up close for the first time when he entered the palace at the age of six to attend the Imperial Academy.Everyone who saw him said that Shang Rui was surprisingly similar to him.

Before the Tai Tuo came to teach, he walked to Shang Rui's table, listened to the internal officer's words, bowed, and said timidly: "Nephew pays respects to Uncle Jiu."

At that time, Shang Rui was playing with other brothers and didn't pay attention to him.

Then he was led to another table by the eunuch to salute.That shy look, if it wasn't for the clothes on his body, Shang Rui would have thought he was a girl.He really couldn't figure out how the two of them had similar looks.

He later asked the old lady in the hall, and the old lady smiled while changing his clothes and replied, "Your Highnesses all look like the emperor when he was young."

four

In the evening, Shang Rui returned to the solemn palace with high walls, and his mood became heavy with the silence under the night.He is used to being served by others, so he never shy away from the maids and eunuchs doing anything, and rarely rejects them.

At dusk when the snow falls, two eunuchs and a row of imperial guards are waiting outside the door of the imperial study room, and there are also two court ladies on both sides of the curtain in the study room.With so many people accompanying him, it was as if there was no one around him.

Goose feathers and heavy snow are flying and falling.

The sound of snow shoveling by the guards outside the hall can be heard from a distance, but there is no other sound in this world.

Shang Rui lowered his eyes for a long time without saying a word, he is not a person who is content with tranquility, so it is difficult to relax his eyebrows at such a moment.

Ming Lian came in holding a square lacquer tray with tea.Shang Rui leaned against the back of the chair, with a pair of long legs stacked together on the imperial case, closing his eyes and not speaking.

Minglian saw his depression, and said: "Your Majesty, do you want to talk to Empress Empress, I guess Empress has not rested yet."

Shang Rui's eyes were not opened, and he said displeasedly: "Today is the second time you are troublesome."

Minglian withdrew for a while, then re-entered the hall, bringing someone with him.

This person is Yao Chuang. He only learned of Shang Rui's identity after the autumn hunting last time, and later became the emperor's personal bodyguard.

Yao Chuang didn't beat around the bush, he knelt down and said to Shang Rui, "The things the emperor ordered have been done."

"how?"

"The girl's surname is Min, and her family moved to Jinluo 11 years ago." After Yao Chuang finished speaking, he took out a page of paper from his pocket and presented it.

Shang Rui put his leg down, got up and took it.He quickly read the words on the paper and handed it to Minglian.Ming Lian opened the lampshade, carefully placed it, and then put it in a warm basin on the side of the room.

Shang Rui stared at the page, saw it gradually shrinking, and then collapsed into a ball of ashes, his heart turned in every possible way, and finally it was just a sentence.

"Arrange a secret sentry to guard her, so that no one will notice."

Suddenly, a servant from outside the palace came to report, and Jinde Palace sent someone to bring soup to the emperor.Shang Rui glanced at Yao Chuang, Yao Chuang understood, and immediately sneaked into the screen at the back of the hall.

The person who came was not the queen herself, but her personal nurse and a maid.The mother said: "Your Majesty said that it was freezing cold, and she was afraid that the Emperor would catch the cold in the snow, so she specially made soup and ordered the servants to bring it to the Emperor."

"Put it on the table." Shang Rui said as he sat back in front of the case.

After taking the order, the court lady bowed and lowered her head, holding the lacquer tray and walked cautiously to the side of the table. There were memorials, pens, inks, papers and inkstones on the table, and there was tea on the other end that Cai Minglian hadn't had time to drink for the emperor. It was hard to find another Come out spacious.The maid in the palace didn't know what to do for a while, so she had to bite the bullet and put it under Shang Rui's nose.

Shang Rui glanced casually, and his eyes fell on her hands inadvertently, which were slightly similar to the hands that he had carefully looked at during the day.Heartbroken, he couldn't help but grab her.

The maid was startled suddenly, the lacquer plate fell heavily on the table, but she didn't dare to raise her head, and she didn't dare to move her hands.

Shang Rui said: "Raise your head."

The palace maid lowered her head and replied softly: "I don't dare."

Shang Rui said again in a deep voice: "Raise your head."

This time, the maid did not dare to disobey, she raised her face tremblingly, her eyes were full of fear and doubt.

Shang Rui glanced at her, and his heart sank.

Not the same, how could it be the same.

(End of this chapter)