In the palace of Guangling King, the lights were bright at this time.

Since Xue Yan officially served in the court last summer, he has been named king and left the palace to open a mansion.

Now the emperor is in good health and has not established a prince, so the titles of their princes are not princes, but county kings, without exception.

Although the grades are the same, but no one in the court now knows that the palace of Guangling County is the most eye-catching boundary of the entire Chang'an City except the imperial city.

The King of Guangling has only been in the dynasty for a year, but he has made great achievements, even if the ordinary officials in the dynasty are not as reliable as him. In addition, Emperor Qing Ping suddenly favored him again. In the past year, he has easily changed from an obscure prince to the most popular prince in the court.

In addition, the second prince is now unloved, the fourth prince's biological mother is immoral, and although the sixth prince is the direct son of the middle palace, his ambition is not in the court, and he refuses to come out once he goes to the military department. This time, even a prince who could compete with him could not be found in the court.

For a time, the eyes of the officials of the DPRK, those who spy, those who seek refuge, those who wait and see, all fell on the palace.

However, even so, as the most secretive existence in the imperial city, Dongchang can still come and go freely here.

Xue Yan sat in front of the desk, the lights on the desk flickered gently. He also held an envelope in his hand, which was a secret letter sent by someone from the East Factory.

A month ago, he received such a letter, saying that there were many officials in the court secretly playing to Emperor Qingping, Yan Yongning had a close relationship with Jiang Taifu, and Jiang Taifu was From Jiangnan Linjiang Academy, it is not appropriate to have Duke Yongning invigilate the examination in Jiangnan.

After all, Mrs. Yongning and the daughter of Mrs. Jiang were close friends in the early years, and they had some personal friends, which are well known in the court.

The secrecy was presented one after another, and the Qing Ping Emperor, who had no doubts, was also a little shaken.

Therefore, he summoned the ministers to discuss how to deal with the matter - after all, it was about Mrs. Jiang, and he did not summon any of the officials from the civil imperial examinations, but only met the noble family in the court. officials.

Xue Yan knew at a glance that this was a scheme set up by officials from the Xu family's faction.

They didn't want to let the errand of Jiangnan examiner fall on Yongning Gong, so they wanted to arouse Qing Ping Emperor's suspicion first, and then send their own people, so as to do something secretly.

This is the second time that the Xu family dares to move the people of the Jun family under his nose.

Xue Yan knew that they couldn't sit still. In the past, there were only two factions of Jiang and Xu, one from the aristocratic family and the other from the commoners. Although there were constant struggles, it was considered a balance.

But now, killing him halfway, not only won the Sacred Heart, but also took control of Jinyiwei. Jin Yiwei has the right to supervise hundreds of officials, and has a strong deterrent power, which immediately broke the balance.

The Xu family wanted to prevent him from getting bigger, but also to prevent the Jiang family from overpowering themselves, jumping over the wall, and set their sights on Duke Yongning.

After all, Yong Ning Gong does not belong to any faction.

For Xue Yan, this matter could not be better resolved. Even in his subconscious, he was extremely happy to solve the matter himself.

Because Jun Huailang is in the south of the Yangtze River.

This year, he kept himself busy as much as possible and taught himself that he had no time to be distracted by him. But you can control what you do every day, but you can't stop who you think about.

His heart was empty for a whole year.

If he had never met Jun Huailang, it would not be difficult for him. But the warm wind blew, melted the ice, and left him in the cold night again. This kind of cold, which he was used to, became extremely unbearable.

Even after that, he was much better off. Emperor Qingping was no longer afraid of him, and the ministers in the court began to curry favor with him, but in his eyes, these only made him feel disgusted and troublesome.

Zhuyu is in front, how could he put these other things into his eyes.

Therefore, he did not hesitate to mention this matter inadvertently when Emperor Qing Ping summoned him.

In the past year, Emperor Qing Ping trusted him more and more. In addition, there has never been anything wrong, and Shaxing's assertion seems to have been self-defeating, and Emperor Qingping is closer to him.

Sure enough, Emperor Qingping told him his plan.

"I feel that I should send someone to take a look," he said. "I can be more at ease."

"How did the royal father determine that the official who received the secret order would be reliable?" Xue Yan said. "If it is an official in the DPRK, there will definitely be news out of Beijing. If it is not an official in the DPRK, one is of insufficient rank, and it is difficult to resolve the situation;

When Emperor Qing Ping heard the words, he really fell into contemplation.

Xue Yan added: "If the father secretly investigates Duke Yongning and makes him realize it, it will surely chill the hearts of the ministers. It is better for the father to send officials to the south in an upright and bright manner. No matter what Duke Yongning wants to do, he will I dare not."

The Qing Ping Emperor nodded in agreement: "It's just that the Duke of Yongning has a high position, who is the right person to send?"

Xue Yan lightly curled her lips upon hearing this.

"My son is willing to go," he said.

So, within a few days, the imperial decree to send Xue Yan to the south for inspection was issued. Not long after, Dongchang couldn't sit still, and sent a letter a few days before his departure.

This letter persuaded Xue Yan to find a way to stay. His power in Beijing has just been established, and it is not yet stable. Except for the Duke Yongning, there are no officials in Jiangnan who are worthy of wooing. What's more, he went to inspect this time, maybe he couldn't win, and he would also provoke Duke Yongning to guard against jealousy.

Xue Yan held the secret letter in his hand and smiled.

The East Factory is not what it used to be. Originally, they wanted to win over Xue Yan secretly, give help in the snow, and slowly nurture him, but they didn't expect Xue Yan to be so lucky, and suddenly a blessing in disguise and the green eyes of Emperor Qing Ping.

This time, Dongchang was reluctant to bear his big tree, and instead began to flatter him with the kindness of "giving charcoal in the snow" before.

After all, these eunuchs are different from officials, only relying on the imperial power can they make a fortune. Xue Yan gave them enough face again, and there is no more suitable backer than Xue Yan.

"The king doesn't want to go either, but it's just that the emperor's life is hard to violate, and it's not easy to resist the decree." Xue Yan put away the letter, looked up at the Dongchang fanzi who delivered the letter, and said lightly. "When the autumn season is over, this king will be able to come back, and the affairs of Beijing will be troublesome for Eunuch Duan to worry about."

Even if he leaves, he is at ease. Dongchang is here, and will obediently monitor the movements in Beijing for him, after all, they can't bear his big tree.

With Xue Yan's remarks, all the news of Chang'anzhong was delivered to him through the hands of Dongchang, which also showed that he loved and trusted Dongchang, which made those eunuchs even more rest assured.

It is also interesting to think about. Although Jinyiwei supervises hundreds of officials, it is an independent organization, subordinate to the imperial court, only Dongchang, directly under the imperial power, is the emperor's closest eyeliner.

However, Emperor Qing Ping insisted on favoring the eunuchs serving by his side, allowing them to crowd out Dongchang, forcing Dongchang to go elsewhere to recognize the master.

When he heard the words, he didn't persuade him much. After clasping his fists, he said: "My lord, Eunuch Duan said that if you insist on going, he will not be able to stop you, but the mountains are high and the road is far away. Please bring Duan Shishi with you, so that you can take care of it."

Xue Yan knew that this was a competition for favor.

Now that Jinyiwei is under his command, he will also bring some Jinyiwei's followers this time. The factory guards have always fought endlessly, so Duan Chong must have a close person by his side to be at ease.

This fourteenth paragraph is Duan Chong's adopted son.

At that time, he secretly raised twenty orphans and trained them in a unified way under the name of numbers. Then they put them in one place to kill each other, and finally left one, which he adopted as his adopted son.

"Duan Shishi just turned 12 this year, right?" Xue Yan lifted his eyelids and asked.

The son said: "Yes. But Eunuch Duan said, you don't have to worry about his young age. Duan Shishi is very quick and won't drag you down."

Xue Yan nodded with a half-smiling smile.

"Then I would like to thank Eunuch Duan for your kindness," he said.

—

That night, after Jun Huailang finished writing the letter, he sat in a dream at night.

It has been a year, and for the first time he dreamed that he had returned to Mingluan Palace. He was still the same as before, getting up early in the morning and tidying up, Xue Yunhuan was waiting for him in the front hall of his palace.

"Where's the Fifth Highness?" Jun Huailang came out and asked quite naturally.

Xue Yunhuan showed a puzzled look: "What is the fifth highness?"

Then, he seemed to suddenly remembered and said: "Oh, that evil star. How could he be here? Who knows where he was driven by the father. What did you ask him for? ?"

Jun Huailang paused, turned and walked out.

Xue Yunhuan quickly caught up: "What are you doing?"

Jun Huailang said: "I'll find him."

After that, Xue Yunhuan didn't seem to follow, but he himself searched the palace and couldn't find where Xue Yan was.

Until the sky broke, Jun Huailang woke up.

He lay quietly on the bed before he recovered from the dream.

In the dream, what he thought was not that Xue Yan would repeat the same mistakes and do the things of the previous life again, but worried that he would be bullied if he was not in Mingluan Palace and no one would protect him.

When he regained his senses, Jun Huailang smiled helplessly.

I am really worrying. Not to mention that the current Xue Yan will never be bullied again, just talking about himself, how can he be able to protect him in the palace?

But after thinking about it, Jun Huailang thought of something else.

For example, when he was in Mingluan Palace, Xue Yan solemnly promised to be Ling Huan's elder brother, such as the large stack of silver bills he gave him during the New Year, such as the glazed lamp in front of his house, The tears he fell wetly after he fell into the water.

Thinking about it, the corners of Jun Huailang's lips curled up involuntarily.

These things are easy to do if you don't want to, but once you start this, Jun Huailang realizes that he clearly remembers them all.

He stayed in bed for a rare day, until Fuyi called him to get up, he suddenly came back to his senses.

After that, Jun Huailang took precautions and started going to Linjiang Academy every now and then.

Fortunately, now that summer is about to begin, students from all over the south of the Yangtze River have rushed to Jinling one after another and gathered near the Linjiang Academy. Every day, new students come to Linjiang Academy to study, and the Academy also has a tradition of accepting students, so Jun Huailang's move is not abrupt.

He will have the opportunity to go to the river bank to take a look and check a little.

Shen Liufeng was quite happy, really thought Jun Huailang was here to study, and reserved a good seat for him every day so that he could teach him to read with him.

Jun Huailang did not reject his good intentions, and he went back and forth between the government office and Linjiang Academy on weekdays, secretly listing what he had investigated and learned, including the memories and experiences of previous lives. , back and forth comparative analysis.

It's summer.

In summer, the rain in Jiangnan will be more abundant. It was raining continuously, and even the corners of the academy grew moss.

It's been raining for days. He only felt that he was trapped by the continuous rain, and finally found the day to clear up. Without waiting for a rest, he dragged Jun Huailang away after class during the day.

“You are not allowed to go anywhere today,” he said. "I have already sent someone to book a cruise ship on the East Lake, and I will eat boat dishes with me tonight."

Jiangnan people have the custom of "no food from time to time", and always pay attention to what time they eat. There is a lot of water in the south of the Yangtze River, and there are lush fresh rivers in summer. There is a custom in the south of the Yangtze River. They will salvage aquatic products in the lake and cook them on the boat.

The East Lake is in the eastern suburbs of Jinling, connected to the Yangtze River, and the canal to the north. The East Lake is wide and the water flow is gentle, and a wharf is built on the north side. Ships coming from the south and east, if they want to stop at Jinling, are all anchored at the pier of the East Lake.

Except for the route and the wharf, it is a place to play.

, Just standing on the shore, you can hear the sound of singing and music curling on the lake.

Jun Huailang had nothing to do today, so he never declined.

Neither of them knew that there was a huge official ship from Chang'an that was sailing quietly along the southward canal to Jinling.

It will be moored on the East Lake tonight.