Chapter 125 – Cicadas in Kyoto

The end of summer in the seventh year of the Qingli calendar was a little hotter than usual. The first fall rains were delayed, and all of the cascading March summer heat was deposited in the streets of people’s houses, with the wind blowing and not dispersing, making Kyoto City feel like it was in a quilt on a kangtou.

Kyoto residents wake up in the morning, will feel all the body is very high concentration of sweat residue, a little freshen up, go out again after a burst of sweat, a day, straight to make people feel incredibly sticky all over the body, so uncomfortable.

Cicadas are happy, desperately hissing, just not the late summer and early fall in previous years hissing, the last of the sadness of life, but a kind of residual force, the high pitch of the tour. The sound of robins, robins, rising and falling among the clumps of green trees inside and outside Kyoto City, disturbing people’s sleepiness and mocking their embarrassment.

A green bamboo pole suddenly parted the leaves and accurately pierced a spot on the tree trunk. The cicadas that were singing at the top of their lungs only felt a white color in front of their eyes, and felt that their faces were covered with a layer of stuff, and they could no longer open their mouths, and in a hurry they tried to use their tentacles to pull them out, but unexpectedly even their tentacles were covered with the stuff, and they couldn’t break free any more. It can only sigh in the heart, secretly think of complacency really can not be too early.

A small eunuch proudly looked at the tree, back to the gentle bamboo pole back, picked by the gluten bound cicadas, thrown into the side of the large cloth bag, is ready to continue to strike, but glimpsed in the afterglow of the courtyard wall next to the one sitting on the bamboo chairs to cool off, and hurriedly farted to run over to the one who said a few words in the ear, like the dedication of the same as the other side of the cloth bag to look at.

The eunuch lying on the bamboo chair is Hong Zhu. He squinted his eyes for a moment, hmmm, signaling that he knows. After thinking about it, frowned, lowered his voice and said: “Said how many times? Want you to stick wings, not to that robin’s head to stick …… this half of the morning only stick a few? In a while, the empress dowager will be woken up, you yourself to lead the board to go?”

That little eunuch hurriedly pleaded guilty, with the green tree under the daze of a dozen eunuchs hurriedly continue to stick to the robin.

Hong Zhu half leaning on the bamboo chair, squinting at the small eunuch’s silhouette, somehow, but remembered the situation when he first entered the palace – the palace has a lot of trees, the cicadas naturally also more, especially this summer is too hot, has continued until this month, the nobles in the palace on the robin’s chirping has been annoyed, but also thanks to Hong Zhu thought of such an idea, sent a few of the robin’s chirping to the palace. Thanks to Hong Zhu’s idea, he sent several sets of eunuchs to the palaces to stick cicadas.

No wonder the emperor and the empress like him, such an attentive and considerate lackey, really rare.

Hong Zhu smiled bitterly, thinking that this method was taught to himself by Little Lord Fan, who should be in Dadong Mountain now, and I don’t know how His Majesty’s Heavenly Sacrifice is going.

Emperor Qing left the capital to sacrifice the sky, not in accordance with the ancestral rule by the crown prince supervisor, but invited out the dowager empress curtain, which contains the political flavor is very obvious. The people in the palace were cautiously waiting for the day of His Majesty’s return to the capital, people were on edge, and all sorts of rumors were spreading. The empress dowager is hanging down the curtain, and the eastern palace has long lost its power at this time, the entire harem surprisingly did not have a noble out to lead the way, the calmness within the palace walls, unable to restrain themselves to present a panic.

And Hong Zhu in this piece of panic is a different kind, his original intention or want to stay in the East Palace to serve the Empress and the Crown Prince, but do not know why, the Empress Dowager will transfer him to the Hall of Containing Light to. Half a year ago, the East Palace fire, the entire palace is clear, the East Palace and Guangxin Palace eunuchs and palace maidens all strange deaths, although the people do not dare to discuss this matter, but for the only survivor of the Hongzhu, but a few points of awe and detachment.

Everyone is dead, little Eunuch Hong is still alive, this thing itself is very horrible.

Hong Zhu stood up, his heart a little gloomy. Yes, he is a lackey, but he is a sentient and righteous lackey, so at this time in the palace, he actually somewhat did not know how to deal with himself, looking at the decadence of the Eastern Palace, he actually some sadness.

He walked toward the Hall of Containing Light, slightly stooped, young age, but began to have the kind of dead man’s odor of the old eunuch Hong.

The officers and soldiers of the thirteen city gate divisions were bracing themselves in the heat, carefully checking the customs and defense papers of people entering the capital. The troops of the Kyoto Guard Division raised their guard at the Yuan Tai camp. The thousands of forbidden soldiers guarding the palace were standing on the high palace wall, surveying everything under their feet with skeptical eyes.

The entire defense force of Kyoto was controlled in the hands of these three parts of the army, and in such a quiet and bizarre state of affairs at the moment, the slightest mishap would only lead to great chaos.

The three parties do not dare to have the slightest slackness, with the eldest prince as the leader, strong pressure to deter all the dissenting thoughts and movements.

The people of Kyoto, however, are not as tense as the officials and the army, in this hot weather, the affluent people of Qing are not willing to stay at home to fight against the sweltering heat, but are used to hiding in the shade of the teahouse, drinking the inexpensive herbal tea, enjoying the inner treasury of the rope and large-leafed fan, talking about the recent events at the court, and talking about the neighbors’ parents and their families.

To the people of Kyoto, there didn’t seem to be much difference between the imperial palace and their own neighbors.

The cicadas chirped loudly in the trees outside the teahouse, and a few of them even eye-blindly rested on top of the teahouse’s green streamers, painting the big word tea as tian. And these hissing and hissing chirping, just to cover up the good people inside the teahouse discussion.

The discussion is of course about His Majesty’s trip to Heaven. The wind has been rumored for months, the world knows that his majesty is determined to abolish the crown prince this time, just the crown prince in the past two years to show the benevolence and stability, and the appearance of previous years have a great difference, so including the officials and the people of the heart are in the heart of the muttering, why his majesty want to abolish the crown prince?

Not many people dared to ask this to his face, but there were always people who dared to talk about something behind his back. Generally speaking, the people of Kyoto gave enough sympathy and comfort to the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, perhaps because people have the spiritual need to sympathize with the weak, or perhaps because as a common people, they always hope that the world will be peaceful, and they don’t want to create too much turmoil because of the abolition of the Crown Prince.

Of course, at this time, the people of Kyoto, including the civil officials in the dynasty, did not expect, Qingli seven years of summer and fall of this storm, but in a way that no one expected, rumbling as the thunder rolled through the sky, rolled into all the people, Kyoto all the land.

Suddenly, without warning, the gale rose up from the wide streets of Kyoto, among the densely-packed homes, passed through, and swept through! The wind came so suddenly that it blew off the cool hats of those vendors who were setting up fruit stalls on the street, with their heads bowed in sleepiness, revealing those muddled eyes, blowing the fruit peels all over the street, blowing was the cicadas on the green streamers outside of the teahouse that could no longer be attached to them, and snapped to the ground with a thud.

The word “tian” has become the word “tea” again.

Sitting in the teahouse bar side of the tea guests curiously looked out, the heart wondered, this has been boring the days of March, is finally going to fall a timely fall rain?

Then they saw that the sky, which was originally a blue sky, was suddenly covered by layers of cumulonimbus clouds coming from the southeast, and the whole Kyoto was like a huge cover was added over it, and the gloom enveloped the outline of the city and the people in it.

The clouds were constantly twisting and rolling, like countless dragons in formation, with cloud filaments pulling out from time to time, looking very scary. Such thick dark clouds, naturally foretell the coming rainstorm, look at the clouds, this heavy rain will be unusually fierce.

The tea drinkers were not surprised, but rather happy, thinking that God was finally willing to let the earth clear up a bit.

A thunderclap, the rain finally came down with a crash. Street walkers have to avoid, upstairs tea guests squinting, extremely happy to enjoy the long unseen rain and the house down was wet after percolating out of some of the other beauty.

The rain was not particularly heavy, but it was particularly cool. Not a moment’s effort, the tea guests will begin to feel the slightest chill, can not help but be a little surprised, thinking that in previous years, the autumn rain just pattering down, always have to have a three, in order to dispel the heat, this year, how this rain is so cool.

To the knowledge of the people of this era, naturally do not know, in ten days ago, the East China Sea, the sea rose up this summer’s largest hurricane, this windstorm rushed to Dadong Mountain, more than fifty miles of the ground in the sea airborne countless rain, and then the momentum has not been reduced, and continue to hostage the sea vapor and moisture, straight into the hinterland of the Qing dynasty.

This hurricane is very interesting, along the road did not cause too much disaster, but to the long hot Qing Guo territory brought immediate cooling rain.

The tea drinkers rubbed their hands, sipped their hot tea, and cursed the God for being too strange. All of them hadn’t gone out with umbrellas, much less single clothes, so they had to fight hard against the slight coolness in this building.

“What happened?” Suddenly a person looked in the direction of the city gates and said curiously.

Hearing this, the people who were so lively all gathered to the side of the teahouse’s railing and looked in the direction of the city gates. Through the far layers of rain and fog, can not see clearly what happened there, only vaguely feel a noise and those soldiers panic. Kyoto four sides of the city gate, are guarded by thirteen city division of the soldiers and horses, has always been strictly prohibited, rarely appear now this situation. All the tea drinkers are a little curious.

Naturally will not be an army to attack the city, first of all, regardless of this kind of imagination itself is ridiculous enough, even if there is really an army attacked under the city of Kyoto, the periphery of the garrison division will also be the first to meet the enemy, and the city gate division located in the corner of the watchman pawns, but also in the first time to sound the alarm.

The sound of horses’ hooves, treading through the rain on the long street, sounded urgent.

Tea guests fixed their eyes to look, only to see a horse at the city gates to come quickly, only this one, the people understand that it must be an urgent message into the city, have put down their hearts.

But look at the stallion mouth foaming, horse rider full of dust haggard appearance, the crowd heart again tight, have secretly thought, could it be the border out of the problem?

Rain has been falling, exhausted to the extreme of the steed to fight the last energy, facing the wind and rain, desperately running. The horse’s clothes were tattered, the serious-looking knight did not care about the life and death of his mount, waved the horsewhip in his hand fiercely, urged the steed on his body, maintained the fastest speed, stepped through the long street under the teahouse, splashed all the way through the rain, and sprinted in the direction of the imperial palace!

Fortunately, the rain came first, the road pedestrians and vendors to the eaves of the street, or this rider do not want to run wild, I do not know how many people to die.

The tea drinkers watched that one person and one rider disappear into the rain, disappearing at the end of the long street, and couldn’t help but let out a breath. Digesting away the earlier quiet and incomparable tension, they looked at each other and wondered what exactly had happened to the court.

“Tying a white scarf ah ……,” a somewhat older tea guest suddenly said in a trembling voice.

The teahouse even quieter, although the late-born people of Kyoto did not experience the great war when the Qing expansion of the border season, but also once heard, when the three Northern Expedition in the worst that time, the Qing army in a battle of 10,000 people dead and wounded, when a thousand miles of flying horsemen to report the news of the knight …… is also tied with a white scarf!

“The knight who reported the news is ……” someone asked in doubt, “Yan …… Da Dudu, didn’t he just win?”

“It is the fast horse of the army.” The older teetotaler was obviously also a man of the line back then, and his voice still trembled. The announcer had tied on a white scarf, something big must have happened!

The chatter in the teahouse abruptly stopped, and everyone, even the store assistant and the shopkeeper, fell into silence. The people stood quietly by the railing, looking at the streets in the heavy rain, secretly praying that nothing would happen to their kingdom.

“It’s coming again!”

A young man in the teahouse cried out in fear and helplessness. At this time, the restlessness at the city gates had long since gone, and there was only a sense of solemnity and vigilance. However, the second rider came even faster than the first, like a smoke, quickly speeding past under the teahouse.

This rider was not wearing armor, just a dark black garment, holding the reins in one hand and kicking his feet sharply, his face was covered with black water stains from the rain.

His left arm was tied with a white scarf, while his right hand held up a token-like thing, directly rushed through the city gates, stepped through the long street, also toward the direction of the palace sped away.

The people in the teahouse looked at the previous teahouse customer who knew the court’s rules with an expectant gaze, hoping to hear some good news from his mouth.

That old tea guest’s face was filled with misery, muttering, “It …… is the Supervisory Yuan.”

After some more moments, the third fast rider who had sent a message for thousands of miles once again forced his way through the gates guarded by the thirteen city gate divisions and stepped onto the rainy street under the teahouse. This rider is the same as the previous one, the same is a mess, it seems a thousand miles, change the horse not change, with the fastest speed to Kyoto in the news, is really a very hard thing.

Then the knight on the horse does not feel hard, he only knows, if you can not put this shocking news, the most with the fastest speed reported into the palace, the Qing country is only afraid …… there will be a big problem.

Rain washed the knight by the sun’s dry cracked face, hit into his eyes have become blood red, but can not stop his speed, the horse galloped through the long street, to the direction of the palace rush.

He still had a white scarf on his left arm.

At this time, the tea drinkers in the building had been numbed by the successive shocks, and had their mouths open, but could not say anything. Although they didn’t know which side of the imperial court this third rider represented, they knew that the news that these three riders had brought for Kyoto must be the same, confirmed by these three parties. Then …… there must be a disaster in the country of Qing.

The teahouse was dead quiet, and everyone lowered their heads. The elderly teahouse guest was full of white, trembling and sitting down, but his eyes went black and fainted on the ground.

The crowd rushed forward to help, who did not notice that the rain outside the building slightly smaller. Although the rain is small, the coolness has arrived, those previous moments are still flaunting the cicadas, finally began to feel the irreversible disobedience of the fate of heaven, began to feel the impermanence of life, began to feel the sadness of the autumn, began to burn their own lives, in the streets and alleys of Kyoto, constantly chanting the last words of the rhetoric.

“Hissing …… Hissing …… Dying …… Dying …… Dying …… ”

The whole Kyoto began to fall into a kind of unknown fear and bewilderment, people did not know what was happening, only in the evening, they heard the sounding bell in the corner tower of the imperial city, in the background of the red twilight after the rain, slowly and shockingly struck.

Dang! Dang! Dang!

In the layers of the deep palace, there were a lot of people in that expansive Taiji Hall, but it was silent. Temporarily presided over the state government of the Qing Empire Empress Dowager, at this time has walked out from the layer of bead curtain, a phoenix robe strict often majestic.

The empress dowager stood indifferently in front of the dragon chair, her right hand was Hou eunuch support, Hongzhu with pen and ink waiting at the side, but saw the empress dowager’s hand, in Hou eunuch’s hand kept trembling.

Kneeling at the temple are three reporters whose spirit has been overdrawn to the extreme, the rainwater on their bodies wetting the gorgeous blankets, yet they still kneel with their heads bowed, not daring to make a sound for fear that they, the inauspicious crows, will end up destroying the blessings of this palace that has proudly stood in the world for thirty years.

The Empress Dowager coldly glanced at these three people, gritted her teeth, and scolded grimly, “What are you crying for?”

With these words, the concubines in the palace who were crying non-stop in sorrow forced their tears to stop, but they could not wipe away the horror and fear from their faces.

The Empress Dowager sat down on the chair next to the dragon chair with the help of Eunuch Hou and said, “The palace is closed immediately. The Prince of Harmony presides over the guards of the Imperial City, and those who disobey the order will be beheaded.”

“Yes.”

A piece of the palace answered. And with hot tears in his eyes, the eldest prince looked up at his grandmother with some surprise, feeling the heavy burden on his body, only that his mood at this time was unusually agitated, and there was no way to differentiate between the references in the empress dowager’s decree.

The empress dowager continued, “Declare Hu Su two university professors into the palace.”

“Yes.”

“Declare the city gate division commander Zhang francium into the palace.”

“Yes.”

“From now on, the city gates are closed, and may not be opened without my will.”

“Yes.”

“Dingzhou army offering prisoners dragged back, make Ye Chong within two days to return, the border is strained, should be the state affairs.”

“Yes.”

The empress dowager’s brows suddenly frowned, the old man at this time although has been calm, but finally still feel the brain began to buzz, she gently rubbed her temples, thinking for a long time and then said, “Declare the King of Jing, the Ministry of Household, Fan Jian, Qin …… Heng, enter the palace.”

“Yes.”

The Empress Dowager finally said indifferently, “Let the Empress and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince move to the Hall of Containing Light to …… Ning Cai Ren and Yi Gui Concubine come over as well, and the oldest three that child is also brought along.”

The eldest prince lowered his head, his heart tightened, knowing that his grandmother was still not at ease with himself. But in the sadness of the moment, he didn’t want to count these things at all.

The sky time has twilight, outside the bell has rested, Taiji Hall candle flame fluttering, looking is so miserable and uneasy. At this time, the actual controller of the state of Qing, has been dying of old age of the empress dowager suddenly coughed twice, eyes flashed a flash of complex emotions, said faintly: “with the inner court …… please the eldest princess your highness and the morning county master into the palace temporary residence, Fan Xian… . that concubine who is pregnant with a child to enter the palace as well.”

“Yes. ……”

The Empress Dowager hadn’t seen things for a long time, yet every decree at this time was so clearly directed to the heart of the people, as she tried to isolate the entire Kyoto from the outside world in the fastest possible time, and to control all those characters that might cause unrest in the Imperial City.

Suddenly a childless concubine frantically hissed, ”Fan Xian stabbed the driver! The Empress Dowager wants to plunge his nine clans, how can she let his family into the palace!”

At these words, the entire palace fell silent. The Empress Dowager looked at the concubine coldly, as if she were looking at a dead person, and slowly said, “Drag him down and bury him.”

Several guards and eunuchs came forward and dragged the concubine, who had already fallen into a state of madness, down, not knowing in which flower tree in the palace the poor man would be buried in the soil.

The Empress Dowager coldly swept her eyes over the people in the palace and said in a chilling voice: “Mind your own mouth and brain. Don t forget …… that there is still a lot of empty space in this palace.”

The hearts of the people in the palace were sad, but they didn’t dare to say anything more, the sadness and doubts in their hearts were the same as this concubine’s, only that they weren’t crazy, so they didn’t open their mouths.

“Where is Chen Pingping? How come she didn’t enter the palace?” The Empress Dowager asked with a cold face.

Hong Zhu stopped the brush in his hand, met the Empress Dowager’s questioning gaze, and said in a trembling voice: “After Dean Chen was poisoned, she returned to Chen Garden to be treated by the imperial physician, only …… not yet known ……”

The empress dowager’s gaze was cold, gritted her teeth and said angrily, “Pass the decree to this old dog, saying that if he does not go to the capital, the mother and child will die!”

People go to the palace quiet. Strongly suppressed the heart sadness and horror, in the shortest possible time, after making the most stable arrangements, Qing’s empress dowager suddenly seemed to have been drained of all vitality, her body limply leaned against the back of the chair, slowly closed her eyes, a drop of cloudy tears wet the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.