Chapter 128: Natural Countermeasure for Darkness
In the palace's imperial chamber, Zhao Zhen was lying on the bed, while Empress Cao was sitting beside him, carefully placing a cold, wet towel on his forehead.
"My headache is gone, Queen, there's no need to do this." Zhao Zhen said helplessly, "Master Lu's Jade Bee Juice is not an ordinary thing. I've drunk half a bottle. As long as the person is not dead, he can be saved, not to mention that it's just a stroke."
"But Master Lu also said before the court was dismissed today that the emperor's headache was caused by excessive obesity. Jade Bee Jelly can only treat the symptoms, but it can't make people lose weight." Empress Cao said in a gentle tone: "He said that if the emperor wants to stop suffering from headaches, he must lose weight."
Zhao Zhen smiled bitterly and said, "Master Lu is forcing me to do what I want. Over the past ten years, my appetite has gradually increased. I cannot live without meat at every meal. I have to eat until my stomach hurts before I feel satisfied. How can I lose weight?"
When Zhao Zhen was young, he had an upright figure and was not fat. He could definitely be described as a handsome man.
But less than ten years after he sat on the throne, he began to gain weight rapidly.
In fact, this is because Zhao Zhen is under too much pressure and lacks sleep. The more this happens, the more the human body craves food, and eventually becomes fatter and fatter.
Empress Cao recalled how Zhao Zhen looked when he was thin, and a gentle smile appeared on her lips.
Zhao Zhen lay down for a while and felt that he was too tired to do anything but sleep, so he stood up and turned to the eunuch standing next to him and said, "Wang Aban, go outside and notify Minister Bao, Grand Tutor Pang, and Councillor Ouyang to come to the Imperial Study to discuss matters."
The father-in-law next to him nodded and left.
Empress Cao couldn't help but ask, "Is there another change?"
"Marshal Mu received the order, but sent a message back saying that she would appoint a few generals herself and let Master Lu be the military supervisor. At the same time, she also requested that Madam She be granted the title of First-Rank Lady."
Hearing this, Empress Cao was stunned for a moment, then frowned and said, "The Yang family is famous for its loyalty and bravery. How can they take advantage of the national crisis? Let alone the matter of the imperial concubine, the post of military supervisor is of great importance. How can we let the generals choose it? This is nonsense!"
"That makes sense, but I think special matters should be handled specially, so I asked Lord Bao and others to come and discuss the matter."
Empress Cao snorted, "Master Lu is her son-in-law, and he is also the military supervisor. Haha, what does Marshal Mu want to do? Your Majesty, you can't let Marshal Mu resign again."
"Her proposal really makes people not want to let her lead the Imperial Guard." Zhao Zhen sighed leisurely: "But if this is what Marshal Mu thinks, she may not want to lead the army."
"Why would you abandon such an honor?"
"Yes, it's an honor. The last time Marshal Mu retired, he returned with a great victory, which was a rare achievement in a thousand years." Zhao Zhen said depressedly: "Then the Yang family was suppressed by the civil officials. The rank of the Yang family dropped again and again. In just about ten years, it went from being prosperous to being in danger now."
Queen Cao was speechless for a moment.
She now considers herself a member of the royal family, but after all, she is born into the Cao family, a family of generals. She knows very well the extent to which the generals were suppressed by the civil officials.
After the great victory, he was abandoned, which was heartbreaking. She put herself in Mu Guiying's shoes and felt that if it were her, she would definitely not want to go to war again.
Seeing that the queen stopped talking, Zhao Zhen patted her hands, stood up and left the pepper room.
A moment later, Zhao Zhen summoned Bao Zheng and others to the imperial study, and the meeting lasted for nearly two hours.
The next day, Zhao Zhen announced a new edict, which was stamped by the Secretariat.
Mu Guiying was appointed as the Grand Marshal of the Army, with the power to dispatch generals from the capital, and command 250,000 troops of the Western City Imperial Guard.
He then appointed Lu Sen as the accompanying military supervisor and Zhang Zai as the accompanying general to assist them in all matters, big and small.
At the same time, he promised that if Mu Guiying returned victorious, he would reward the Yang family handsomely.
Several people gladly accepted the appointment.
In the next two days, the entire court worked hard to get the imperial guards "mobile". Mu Guiying selected some generals who were barely acceptable from the two general families of Cao and Wang.
Although the direct descendants of the Cao and Wang families began to move towards civil service, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse, and there are still many outstanding warriors and generals among their relatives.
At the same time, Mu Guiying also brought her daughter, Yang Jinhua.
Although Yang Jinhua had never been on the battlefield, Mu Guiying knew her daughter best. She knew that her daughter was quite capable, especially now that she had a 'contracted spirit beast'. Her personal strength had greatly increased, and she seemed to have become more 'agile' and 'intelligent'.
It should be okay to take them to the battlefield for some training. Anyway, Yang Jinhua's husband and her son-in-law Lu Sen will go to the battlefield with them, so there should be no problem with their personal safety.
Because the matter was urgent, the court only took half a month to prepare everything, and then the army set out.
Zhao Bilian stood on the hillside, watching the army gradually go away. In the end, all she could see was a wisp of yellow dust, and she felt a little disappointed in her heart.
The master and Jinhua have both left. Now besides myself, Ringo and Heizhu are the only ones left in the hills.
Although she did not discriminate against Ringo and Heizhu, she wanted to stay with Lu Sen and Yang Jinhua more.
So I feel very lonely now.
When even the khaki smoke column could no longer be seen, Zhao Bilian walked back and accidentally saw a familiar figure among the crowd of people seeing her off.
Her eyes lit up and she trotted over.
"Mei'er, Mei'er." Zhao Bilian squeezed into the crowd and found her good sister inside: "Why are you here too?"
Pang Mei'er's expression was a little unnatural, but she quickly covered it up: "No, I just came to see Jinhua off."
She actually came to see Lu Sen, and seeing Yang Jinhua off was just a side note.
But of course she couldn't say this in front of anyone, and because she had a guilty conscience, she even dared to hide in the crowd to see him off, thinking that this way her acquaintances wouldn't be able to see her.
But unexpectedly, he was caught by Zhao Bilian.
"Then you should come to me first, so that we sisters can see you off together." Zhao Bilian was a little puzzled, but then she threw this little doubt to the Kingdom of Claws, took Pang Mei'er's right hand, shook her head gently, and said, "By the way, Mei'er, come to Aishan to accompany me."
Pang Mei'er was stunned for a moment, some indescribable emotions flashed in her eyes, and then she looked very proud as usual, and proudly raised her head and chest and said: "You are afraid of sleeping alone in an empty room, so you let me accompany you, which is too snobbish. You don't think of me when you have nothing to do, and you only come to play with me when you are in trouble."
Zhao Bilian laughed dryly and continued shaking Pang Mei'er's hand: "Good Mei'er, good sister, come to Aishan to accompany me."
Hmm... Pang Mei'er gently pressed the smooth skin under her lips with her jade fingers: "Let me think about it!"
Seeing Pang Meir considering it, Zhao Bilian said nothing, took Pang Meir's hand and walked forward: "Whether you are willing or not, you have to accompany me during this period, otherwise I will be unhappy. Don't you want to take a hot spring bath? Now that the husband is not here, we can go and try it."
Although there are three hot spring baths in the low mountain, except for the one used exclusively by Lu Sen, neither Yang Jinhua nor Zhao Bilian would go into Ringo's, let alone the one used by Heizhu.
When Mu Guiying was helping to look after the house on the hill, she shared a hot spring bath with Ringo.
"Don't pull me, don't pull me, I'll just go with you." Pang Meir had always wanted to live on the hill for a while, and now that she was being forced to do so, she felt her intention had been fulfilled, so she stopped pretending.
Hearing that Pang Meir was willing to go up the hill, Zhao Bilian was so happy that she let Pang Meir go immediately.
"How come you are so strong now? It hurts when you grab me." Pang Meir rubbed her wrist as she walked.
"Of course. Now I have started to practice martial arts, and I am practicing Xuanmen immortal techniques."
Pang Mei'er's thin little ears seemed to move slightly, and she asked, "Is the Xuanmen Immortal Technique very powerful? Can it make you immortal?"
"I don't think I can achieve immortality." Zhao Bilian put her hands behind her back, leaned forward slightly, and said to Pang Mei'er while walking: "But my husband told me that even if I can't achieve immortality, I can prolong my life and stay young forever."
"Youth lasts forever?"
Pang Meir asked subconsciously... Any normal woman would be interested in this word.
"Yes, my master said that as long as I practice the current Xuanmen Immortal Technique well, even if I live to be fifty, I can still be as beautiful as a young girl in her twenties."
"So awesome?" Pang Meir's eyes almost widened, and she was very envious.
"The martial arts I practice are just so-so. The martial arts that Master and Jinhua practice are really powerful. Put your ear over here."
Pang Meir curiously put her head over.
Zhao Bilian chattered for a long time in her ear. The more she spoke, the redder Pang Meir's ears became, and the red began to spread to her cheeks and neck.
After a while, Pang Meir seemed like a cooked lobster.
She was in a trance, her body swaying slightly from side to side, as if she was about to faint: "Immortal magic, how can... how can it be so dirty!"
"What's so dirty? You don't know what's good." Zhao Bilian snorted and said, "Husband and wife are in love, which is a beautiful thing in the world. In such a beautiful and comfortable environment, you can also practice martial arts. Is there anything more cost-effective than this?"
Pang Mei'er was so excited that her eyes almost became dazed. She grabbed Bilian's hand tightly and said, "If you, if you say these dirty things to me again, I will... not accompany you anymore."
"Okay, I won't tell you. I won't tell you."
Zhao Bilian changed the subject at that moment, and the two women returned to the low mountain under the protection of the masters of Runan County Prince's Mansion .
After walking for a while, Pang Meir finally stopped looking dazed like before.
Standing outside the fence, looking at the lush green plants inside, Pang Meier suddenly thought of a question: "By the way, isn't the right to enter and exit this courtyard in the hands of Master Lu and Jinhua? You don't have it, so how can you invite me in?"
"Hmph." Zhao Bilian snorted twice with great pride: "Before leaving, the master temporarily handed over the power of Jinhua's mistress to me, which means that I can let anyone in if I want."
So that’s it... Pang Meir looked at Zhao Bilian deeply.
She felt that Zhao Bilian was really lucky.
Although Zhao Bilian was the illegitimate daughter of the Prince of Runan, she seemed to have never suffered any hardship since childhood. When she grew up, she was brought back home by the Prince of Runan and raised with fine clothes and delicious food. Except for the title of a princess, she was no different from a princess in other aspects.
And now, she is Master Lu’s concubine.
Enjoying the love of Master Lu, I believe that I will be free from illness and disaster and live a happy life.
And myself...Thinking of this, Pang Meir felt a little heartbroken.
The two entered the low mountain. Zhao Bilian found Heizhu and said, "Go to Pang's mansion for me and inform them that Mei'er has been living in the mountains for a while. Tell Master Pang and others not to worry."
Heizhu took the order and left.
Now Heizhu is becoming more and more famous in Bianjing City.
After all, Lu Sen is the prime minister's doorman and one of the seven palace officials, with a transcendent status. In addition, he has a monopoly on fairy fruits and jade bee nectar, so his presence is very strong.
As a result, the status of the black column also rose.
All the doormen of wealthy families not only know Lu Sen, but also Hei Zhu.
After Heizhu left, Zhao Bilian took Pang Meir to the flower fields to catch butterflies, play with vine weaving, and play with each other. They were having a great time.
There is no way around it. Entertainment activities are scarce in this era, and catching butterflies is one of the favorite "hobbies" of young ladies.
After playing in the garden for a while, the three of them went to take a hot spring bath. Half an hour later, Pang Meir climbed out of the hot spring water. She looked at her skin which seemed to have become softer, and showed some joy, but then sighed.
Because she had just secretly observed Zhao Bilian's skin, which was much better than hers.
She was as tender as a one-month-old baby, white and smooth, without a single blemish on her body.
Pang Meir remembered that Zhao Bilian was naughty when she was a child. She ran around everywhere and often fell down. She had some tiny scars on her hands and feet, but now they are all gone.
It should be Master Lu’s magic, or it might be because he eats fairy fruits and jade bee jelly all year round.
She put on the yukata that Ringo brought her, and after Zhao Bilian got up, they went back to the third floor together.
"Would you like to stay in the guest room, or would you like to stay in ?"
"Of course it's the guest room." Pang Meir glared at Zhao Bilian with a slightly red face.
I am not related to Lu Sen, so how can I just sleep in his bed?
Zhao Bilian said with a look of disdain: "You should have told us earlier that you would marry the official together with us, but you refused. Now we have to redecorate your living quarters for you, what a hassle."
When Pang Mei'er heard this again, her face turned red again, and she spoke hesitantly: "Who wants to marry Master Lu, Master Lu? I, I don't care."
"Not interested? Is there any man in this world who is better than my husband?" Zhao Bilian snorted, "If you don't want to marry, it means you have no vision and no spirit."
Pang Meir subconsciously took a step back, looking as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore." Zhao Bilian waved her hand, then she showed a flattering smile and came up to her: "Sister Mei'er, please do me a favor."
"What's the matter?"
"Before the master left, he asked me to take over the distribution of the fairy fruit and jade bee syrup that Jinhua had previously managed. She also kept records, but I don't quite understand them. Can you help me explain it?"
Pang Meier was stunned for a moment, then said, "Where is it? I'll help you check it out."
Just like that, she got on board the pirate ship, and the next day she took Zhao Bilian and a basket of fruits to visit the homes of various officials to chat.
This incident made the entire city of Bianjing excited.
"The young lady from the Pang family is doing what Lu Yangshi did before?"
"What did she mean by marrying into the low mountains? Why haven't we received any news about her?"
The Pang family was also in a state of confusion.
