Chapter 1235 Showing off

Chapter 1235 Showing off

Chapter 1235 Showing off
In late June, bad news came one after another.

By the end of the month, there were rumors in Jianye that Su Jun had surrendered. The Liang people offered a price for the position of prefect, but Su Jun was unwilling to accept it. However, his subordinates did not want to fight anymore and protested.

Su Jun smelled danger, so he led 20,000 troops to surrender to Liang.

Sima Chong, the King of Langya who retreated to Guangde, was suddenly attacked by the Shen family, his army was defeated and his whereabouts were unknown.

It was heard that he had asked to enter Guangde City, but the defenders ignored his identity and closed the city gates tightly to prevent Shen's pursuers from rushing into the city.

Sima Chong had no choice but to flee and there was no news of him again. Some said he fled to Xin'an with his confidants and was captured by the county people.

The news was very convincing and did not seem fake, so everyone in Jianye believed it. At this time, people would not believe good news even if it was true, but would believe bad news even if it was false.

Hongxun Palace is located in the northwest corner of Taicheng, and Yundu is just across the wall.

At this time, someone paddled a small boat far away on the river, which was filled with various objects. Although it was covered with tarpaulin, one could still see a glimpse of it: most of them were small items used in the palace, not expensive, but not cheap either, such as the fine celadon selected by Kuaiji and Wujun.

Shi Guipin went up to the tower and looked out, feeling sad. Someone had actually started stealing and selling things in the palace. But when you think about it carefully, it's not surprising. They haven't been paid much for two months, and they're not allowed to find a way out on their own?
However, it was just that the atmosphere of a nation's demise made her feel uncomfortable, so she stopped looking after a while, turned around and looked at Shan Yinan, and said, "Queen, where is my son Daorang?"

Shan Yinan's face was not looking good either. After a moment, he said softly, "Under an overturned nest, how can the eggs remain intact? Since the King of Langya has led his troops to the battle, he has already put his life and death aside."

"That's easy to say!" At this point, Concubine Shi didn't want to be polite to Shan Yinan anymore, and said angrily: "He obviously didn't have to go to the war. There are so many royal family members, can't you just pick one? Why did you send my son away? If he stayed in Jianye, he might not die even if the house collapsed. Why is he like this, not knowing whether he will live or die?"

"When Jianye City is broken, neither you nor I will be spared. It only makes a difference if we die early or late?" Shan Yinan said.

Hearing such horrifying words, Concubine Shi was somewhat shocked.

She was used to living in the deep palace, and although she occasionally heard news of failures here and surrenders there, they were not comprehensive, and she had no idea what they meant. To put it bluntly, she was shocked by the fact that some scattered Liang army cavalry shot arrows across the river at the walls of Hongxun Palace on the ninth night of the first lunar month.

After that day, the situation in Jianye was generally stable, and she was no longer panicked. She deliberately did not think too much and lived a peaceful life. From winter to spring, and now to midsummer, it seemed that everything had returned to normal - as long as she did not think too much, as long as the enemy did not come to her, everything was normal, and she could live on.

But now it seems that she can no longer pretend to be ignorant, because Shan Yinan said that they are all going to die, which makes Shi Guipin a little defensive, because she doesn't want to die, not at all!
"Death? Impossible!" She had some stress reactions, and then she felt like crying. Perhaps she felt that it was inappropriate to shed tears in front of the younger generation, so she held them back and said in a trembling voice, "I have lived in the deep palace and have never cared about this world. What does the collapse of the empire have to do with me? But you, you are so power-hungry, you meddle in this and that, and you fight over everything. You are to blame for the fall of the Great Jin Dynasty, and you deserve to die!"

Shan Yinan lowered his head sadly.

Was she power-hungry when she first got married? No.

But when did it come to this? She couldn't quite remember. Too many things, one after another, forced her to step forward, as if she would fall into the abyss if she paused even for a moment.

"Why? You can't bear to die?" Shi Guipin sneered, "That's right. Only a woman like you who is obsessed with money and like a hen crowing at dawn would be reluctant to die!"

Shan Yinan didn't want to talk to her any more, so he just said, "If that's all you have to say, I'll leave."

Shi Guipin was stunned for a moment, but when she thought about her son's whereabouts, she finally softened her tone and said, "Now that things have come to this, why not think of a way to discuss surrender? This way, fewer people will die and less bloodshed will be committed."

"You were the one who invited those monks and Taoist priests in the palace, right?" Shan Yinan looked at her and asked.

"Yes, pray for the dead soldiers and civilians." said Shi Guipin.

"Do you know that there was a demon called Tianshi Dao in Linhai County who rebelled and killed county officials?" Shan Yinan asked.

"I don't know..."

"Clear them all out. There might be evil thieves inside."

Shi Guipin hesitated for a moment and nodded. She was afraid of death, and if there really was a demon thief, it would be a matter of concern, so she asked someone to leave today.

"Is there any shortage of funds in Hongxun Palace?"

"It's much less. But I also know that the current situation is difficult. It's enough to fill our stomachs. We can't ask for too much." Shi Guipin sighed and said, "Just bear with it and it will be fine."

The benefits have been reduced from delicacies from land and sea to limited supplies of meat and milk. Life is really "too difficult"!

However, for those who were originally high and mighty, these were indeed hard times and they needed to be patient. And what Shi Guipin revealed in her words was that she only intended to endure for a while, not for a long time.

To her, the world is men's business.

So many ministers, generals, and hundreds of thousands of troops lost their troops and territory one after another, causing the Liang army to approach Jianye, the people to suffer, and the ancestral temple to be lost. How could she be blamed?
She is just a woman raised in the deep palace. It is her duty to serve and comfort men. What does the world have to do with her?

It is absolutely impossible to let her die for her loyalty. If you blame her for being shameless for this, she will ask you in return, blaming a woman for the collapse of the world, where do you put the ministers and generals of the Jin Dynasty?
Shan Yinan seemed to know what Shi Guipin was thinking, so he didn't say much. After saying a few words casually, he left quietly while Shi Guipin was about to say something...

It was midsummer, and the grass and trees in Jianye Palace were lush and green.

The midday sun was very bright, but the interior of the palace seemed a little dim.

Shan Yinan had never had this feeling before. Perhaps it was the change in her mood that made her notice some things that she had never paid attention to before.

Between the pavilions and towers, the rotting lotus leaves carry a sweet scent.

The old wood used in the construction was very mottled and looked as old as the entire Jin Dynasty.

When passing through the corridor, a draft suddenly came.

Shan Yinan stopped and let her skirt flutter.

She didn't know why, even though there were palace maids following her, she felt that this wind gave her a feeling of emptiness.

It was empty and deserted, with no one in sight.

It turns out that this palace is so empty and makes people feel so helpless.

She swayed slightly, tired.

The palace servants cried out in surprise and came forward one after another. Shan Yinan waved his hand, leaning against the pillar and slowly sitting down, as if he had lost most of his energy.

After a long time, she finally let out a long sigh of relief.

Everything around me seemed to come alive again.

The cicadas are still chirping and the sun is shining brightly.

Lotus flowers in the pond are competing for beauty and wind chimes are jingling.

Everything is normal, perhaps only people have changed.

She slowly stood up and walked to the Shiqian Hall.

There were many memorials piled on the desk, some of which were sent from the Prime Minister's Mansion to the Emperor's bedroom, and some were sent from the previous dynasty (Taiji Hall).

In the past, she would have patiently reviewed each document and given her opinions, but today she felt lazy all over and could not muster any energy to sit there.

I haven't smelled flowers for a long time.

When she was a girl, she liked to dance among the falling petals, and she still did it occasionally even after she got married. But later, too many things weighed on her, making her feel that doing these things was not solemn and serious, so she stopped doing it.

She wanted to force herself to focus, read the memorials, and try harder for the world, but she just couldn't muster the energy.

She reluctantly picked up a memorial written by Shan Xia from Wuhu, but she felt nauseous and sick. She didn't even dare to open it, for fear that she would see some bad news inside, bad news that she could not bear.

She smiled to herself.

She was just a woman, and ultimately she could not compare to those men with iron wills, such as Prime Minister Wang Dao, or even Shao Taibai in Luoyang who braved arrows and stones and killed people in blood.

She is usually dignified and solemn, but gives up in advance when the time comes. This is exactly her.

But what if it’s not like this?

Zhuge Hui surrendered Jingzhou, and the important cities in northern Jiangnan fell one after another. The counties in southern Jiangnan were also in a mess, and collapse was not far away.

The number of officials in the imperial court was decreasing day by day. Even in the palace, there were people stealing and selling property, and more than one or two people were leaving.

The emperor was drunk all day long and sighed.

Who can persist in this situation? If people’s hearts are no longer there, what will happen even if Xuan Jing is resurrected?

She can no longer bear this burden.

It was as if there was an invisible pressure, pressing her down little by little onto the table.

No longer sitting there solemnly and upright, without worrying about other people's eyes, he rested his head on his arms, lazily and weakly flipped through the memorials, and read the lines of words with the attitude of a bystander.

The handwriting doesn't seem so ugly anymore, and the content isn't so scary anymore. It feels so comfortable and relaxing.

Shan Xia said a lot of things and said he would lead his troops back to Jianye.

She picked up the pen nonchalantly and wrote a few words crookedly: "You can decide for yourself."

Wang Bin said that the navy of Jingzhou was powerful, and the two sides had been fighting fiercely for a long time and were about to collapse, so please send reinforcements as soon as possible.

Shan Yinan watched it from beginning to end. In the past, she would have definitely tried to find a way to solve it, and would have exhausted herself, not been able to eat or sleep well, and would have been worried, but at this moment, she was so upset that she didn't say a word in response.

It turns out that avoiding responsibility feels so good.

As she read on, she became bored again and threw a pile of memorials onto the felt carpet.

Now she didn't want to do anything. She just felt empty inside and tears flowed unconsciously.

I’m twenty-nine years old and I don’t know what I’ve been doing with my life.

He lost his parents at a young age and was raised by the elders of the tribe. He was taught from a young age that he should take care of the tribe members in the future.

After the marriage was arranged, she was like a puppet, first becoming a princess, then a crown princess, and finally the queen.

At this point, she felt that she should be freer and should not have to live such a hard life, but in the end, she became even less free.

Anyway, we are all going to die, so what does everything about the Shan family have to do with me!
It turns out that saying “what does it have to do with me” feels so good.

Shan Yinan cried and then started laughing.

In the end, she was not as clear-headed as Concubine Shi.

But that woman was so annoying, and she didn't want to lose face in front of her or show any sign of weakness.

Shan Yinan slowly sat up straight, quietly wiped away her tears, and then picked up the memorials one by one.

After opening the first copy, he read it carefully, wrote down comments, and ordered the Grand Herald to count the funerary objects and prepare them to be given to Liu Kun, who was on his deathbed.

He opened the second one and rejected the request of the Chief Justice to arrest Su Jun's brother Su Yi and punish him.

Then open the third one...

(End of this chapter)