People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

Upon hearing that the lines had been polished, Honglian said with great loyalty, "If she dares to cause you trouble, come to me, and I'll deal with her!"

I'm afraid you, my little red flower, will be swallowed whole by a great white shark... Cao Ze took out more than a dozen scrolls of opera lyrics one by one.

Honglian's sense of loyalty disappeared, replaced by her studying opera lyrics and occasionally trying to sing a few lines.

She had practiced with the old version of the opera lyrics before, so singing the lyrics now had a unique charm.

When the mood struck, he pulled Cao Ze aside to rehearse.

Cao Ze said, "She's angry, so she didn't bother to tidy up the flowers."

Honglian's words: "Flowers wither and fall, filling the sky; their beauty fades and their fragrance vanishes, who will mourn them..."

"Daiyu Buries Flowers" is mainly a play about Daiyu, while Baoyu is just a tool to evoke Daiyu's feelings of sorrow and grief over the flowers.

Just like the male lead in the Phoenix Legend duo, Cao Ze turned off the sound system after saying a sentence and started watching Honglian's performance.

I must say, I don't know if it's because Honglian has amazing talent or because she's really destined to be with Lin Daiyu, but her performance is quite similar to her.

However, Lin Daiyu was frail and sickly from a young age and was sentimental, while Honglian was lively, active, and carefree from a young age, so they were not quite similar.

Cao Ze naturally wouldn't choose to be disappointed. Everyone has a few favorite characters, even if the character is not the same as himself.

"Today I bury flowers, people laugh at my foolishness; but who will bury me in the years to come?"

Honglian stared at Cao Ze, repeating herself in a daze.

Perhaps Honglian was too deeply immersed in the role, because after singing the opera lyrics, she was momentarily overwhelmed by sadness and unable to extricate herself.

Cao Ze thought to himself, "Did I somehow manage to corrupt such an innocent and carefree girl?"

It seems I need to exercise more with Honglian; exercise can improve blood circulation and relieve depression.

then……

Cao Ze and Hong Lian started a snowball fight. Cao Ze fought against Hong Lian and two palace maids all by himself and was not at a disadvantage at all.

After the event, Honglian's melancholy mood almost disappeared, and she laughed and played with Cao Ze.

If it weren't for his brother-in-law Han Fei's untimely arrival, Cao Ze would have liked to build a snowman with Honglian.

As they approached the palace gates, Cao Ze and Han Fei left the palace; it was already dark.

"How did Brother Han know I was with Princess Honglian...?"

Cao Ze strongly suspected that his brother-in-law was spying on him.

Han Fei said irritably, "How would I know? Where else could you be but hanging out with Miss Zi Nu at Zi Lan Pavilion?"

After recovering from his illness, Han Fei, full of energy, couldn't help but criticize Cao Ze, saying, "Now that you have Zi Nu, can you please stop looking for my little sister?"

Cao Ze said innocently, "It wasn't me who was looking for Her Highness the Princess."

Han Fei's forehead veins bulged, and he almost flew into a rage.

"If it weren't for you! Would my little sister be able to imitate Lin Daiyu every day?"

In order to find out what was wrong with his sister, he read "Dream of the Red Chamber" in Zilanxuan while he was recuperating. It was very well written, but when he thought of his younger sister and Cao Ze, he wished he could burn it all.

Cao Ze changed the subject, "By the way, what did Brother Han want to see me about?"

Han Fei took a light breath. Never mind, important matters come first.

"Let's go to Zilan Pavilion first."

Cao Ze and Han Fei arrived at Zilan Pavilion and went to the elegant room on the second floor.

Zi Nu came in, lit incense, and placed the teapot on the small stove.

"Ninth Young Master, it has been confirmed that the information you received is true."

Cao Ze couldn't help but become curious.

What could be so important to my brother-in-law?

Chapter 252 Xuanwu Gate Inheritance Law

Han Fei revealed a piece of news.

"After winter set in, King Yan of Zhao fell ill again. Brother Cao should have heard about this."

Cao Ze pondered for a moment and said, "In the past few years, King Zhao has been recuperating in the deep palace every winter."

He knew the reason: it was the medicine given to Zhao Yan by the Empress Dowager that was causing Zhao Yan's health to deteriorate day by day.

At this time of year, the Empress Dowager was at her most unrestrained, exploiting him without regard for the consequences on several occasions, to the point that she almost got caught.

Han Fei sighed, “This is nothing. But a few days ago, I heard in the palace that the State of Zhao and the State of Qin were negotiating peace. The State of Qin agreed to cease hostilities, and the King of Zhao agreed to send Zhao Jia as a hostage to the State of Qin next spring.”

"After that, I asked Miss Zi Nu to confirm it, and I didn't expect it to be true."

Zi Nu raised her delicate eyebrows slightly and said, "This matter doesn't seem to affect South Korea, does it?"

After receiving confirmation, she asked Wei Zhuang about it.

After Wei Zhuang frowned, he asked her to inform Han Fei of the information.

Han Fei gave a wry smile and looked at Cao Ze.

“Brother Cao, you lived in Handan before, so you can tell me.”

Cao Ze said, "Zhao Jia is a hostage in Qin. He has no impact on Han now, but it's hard to say what will happen in the future."

Zi Nu seemed to be deep in thought. "Why?"

"At present, the only ones in Zhao who are qualified and capable of succeeding to the throne are Crown Prince Jia and Prince Qian. Once Crown Prince Jia goes to Qin and the King of Zhao dies, Prince Qian will smoothly succeed to the throne."

“I was Prince Qian’s teacher for a period of time, and I know his character very well. He is hopeless and eccentric. If he becomes the King of Zhao, the State of Zhao will never recover.”

After Cao Ze finished speaking, Han Fei continued, "If the State of Zhao falls into decline, the State of Qin will certainly not give up the opportunity to destroy it."

"Once the Qin state decides to completely destroy Zhao, it will first destroy Han, take Han into its hands, and start the struggle for hegemony and unification of the six states."

This is the international situation; countries are not entirely unconnected.

After listening, Zi Nu understood why Wei Zhuang frowned.

"What should I do?"

Han Fei smiled bitterly and said, "We can only hope that King Zhao can live for two more years and hold on until Prince Jia of Zhao returns from Qin."

He wanted to get involved, but he didn't have the ability.

Cao Ze sighed. Based on his understanding of Guo Kai and the Queen, he feared that Zhao Yan would be doomed as soon as Zhao Jia arrived in Qin.

……

Zhao State, Handan, Feixue Pavilion.

Yafei stood gracefully by the window. Outside, the snow was gradually subsiding, but the bare branches on the trees were weighed down and swayed precariously.

Inside the warm pavilion, incense wafted from the incense burner, swirling around the incense table, while boiling tea bubbled and steamed on the stove, yet the room remained remarkably quiet.

After a long while, Yafei turned around and stopped looking at the vast expanse of snow outside the window.

She looked at Zhao Jia and parted her lips slightly: "You cannot go to Qin."

Zhao Jia smiled wryly and said, "My father's command... is hard to disobey."

He is now cornered, and Guo Kai is pressuring him with righteousness in the court, and bringing up his previous political argument of recuperation and peace talks with Qin.

Most importantly, his father agreed, so whether he agreed or not was no longer important.

Ya Fei raised her beautiful eyes slightly and glanced at Li Ji and Xue Nu kneeling to the side.

Seeing her students with two big bellies, one big and one small, gave her a headache.

Her brother's health was very poor. She had some medical knowledge and could tell at a glance that her brother probably didn't have much time left.

If Zhao Jia were to leave Zhao at this time, the throne would very likely fall into the hands of Zhao Qian.

Once they fall into Zhao Qian's hands, given his vengeful nature, he would likely harm not only himself, but also Xue'er and Li Ji.

When the time comes, either Xue'er and Li Ji will be sent to another country, or they will be left to their fate in Handan.

But now both women are pregnant with that man's child and have gone to other countries. Who knows what might happen?

Li Ji noticed the worry in Ya Fei's eyes. Remembering what Ya Fei had said a few days ago, she hesitated for a moment and then took out a wooden plaque.

"Sister Yafei, this is the ink token he gave me. It can get help from the Mo family in Handan City. He said that if we encounter danger, we can ask the Mo family for help."

Snow Maiden smiled slightly; she knew Cao Ze wouldn't abandon them.

Ya Fei glanced at it and gave a cold smile.

This guy is something else. He left a sign and left without a care in the world, without giving any thought to the possibility that Li Ji and Xue Er might be pregnant.

"No need. Let's stay in Handan. Zhao Qian will never become the King of Zhao!"

Zhao Jia was stunned for a moment, wondering where her aunt got her confidence from.

"Auntie, is there any way?"

Consort Ya knelt before the tea table, picked up the purple clay teapot from the small stove, and brewed herself a cup of tea.

“Cao Ze once told me a story.”

Zhao Jia and Li Ji Xue Nu both looked at Ya Fei and listened attentively.

"It is said that during the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a vassal state called 'Tang,' whose royal surname was Li. The founding monarch was named Li Yuan, and he had four sons..."

Ya Fei slowly recounted the 'Xuanwu Gate Inheritance Law' that Cao Ze had casually mentioned as a joke.

Zhao Jia was terrified upon hearing this, and couldn't help but put himself in the shoes of Li Jiancheng, who was also a crown prince.

After Ya Fei finished speaking, she looked at Zhao Jia and asked, "Did you understand?"

Zhao Jia hesitated for a moment, "Does my aunt want me to be wary of my younger brother killing me?"

"Useless!" Consort Ya grabbed a wooden spoon from the tea table and smacked Zhao Jia on the head. "I'm telling you to learn from Li Shimin!"

"what?"

Zhao Jia never imagined that brothers would kill each other.

Upon hearing that Consort Ya wanted him to learn from Li Shimin about killing his brothers, he was completely flustered and almost fell to the ground, feeling a chill run through his body.