In the south study room, Jia Lian knelt silently.

Before Princess Zhaoyang entered the palace, she had been called away by the Queen Mother. But this had no impact, because Jia Lian originally felt that he should come alone for this matter.

It’s just that Princess Zhaoyang felt that it would be easier to persuade Emperor Ning Kang with her around, so it would be difficult for Jia Lian to refuse her.

Emperor Ningkang indeed knew about his affair with Princess Zhaoyang a long time ago. When he first asked to marry the princess, Emperor Ningkang stopped talking and pretended not to hear.

Jia Lian naturally knew that Emperor Ning Kang was expressing dissatisfaction, so he knelt down honestly.

After a long time, Emperor Ning Kang asked without emotion: "What did you just say?"

"Wei Chen sincerely asks Your Majesty to betroth the eldest princess to Wei Chen. ..."

The sound of "bang" was the sound of Emperor Ning Kang slapping the memorial on the dragon table.

Just listen to Emperor Ning Kang’s insidious words: “If I remember correctly, the Queen Mother intended to arrange a marriage between you and Zhaoyang, but you, Jia Lian, care about honor and integrity, and would rather be dismissed from office and lose your title. ?

Why, now that you have figured it out, you come to ask for me again? Do you think that my daughter is something you can do without if you don’t want it, and you can marry me if you want to? Or do you think that I have a bad temper? Okay, I don’t dare to kill you?”

The emperor’s cold voice asked, if it were any other minister, he would have broken out in a cold sweat even if he was not frightened.

But Jia Lian did not, and still said sincerely: "I am guilty. When I first met the eldest princess, I didn't know that the princess was such an outstanding woman, so I didn't want to abandon my wife who was a loser in the family. , making people think that Jia Lian is an ungrateful person.

The year before last, Wei Chen was ordered to send the princess out of the country, but encountered the conspiracy and rebellion of the third prince of Wala. Wei Chen witnessed that Her Royal Highness the Princess was not afraid of danger and served the country with dignity for me. And he was willing to be in danger, and only led dozens of personal guards to divert the main force of the rebels, buying precious time for our reinforcements.

Such a heroic demeanor deeply attracted Wei. The minister.

The minister escorted the princess all the way back to the Han Dynasty. From that time on, the minister and the princess formed a deep friendship and became mutual friends.

However, I know very well that Her Royal Highness the Princess has a distinguished status. If this matter is spread, it will definitely harm the Princess's reputation. Therefore, after weighing the pros and cons, I boldly come here to plead with Your Majesty.

As long as Your Majesty is kind enough to grant the request, I am willing to do it. I will accept any punishment from Your Majesty for my previous ignorance."

"You are good at talking. Why worry about hindering the princess' reputation? If Zhaoyang is not pregnant, you know that you can't hide it, I'm afraid you Jia Lian may not come to see me today.

I have to say, you are very capable.Big, coaxing my daughter to dance around! "

Emperor Ning Kang became more and more angry as he spoke. He walked out of the dragon case and walked step by step in front of Jia Lian. Jia Lian was ready to be kicked by the dragon at any time.
< br />He lowered his head and said, "I am guilty. ”

Too many explanations are useless at this time, because they don’t make sense at all. Sophistry is a way to death, and the only correct answer is to admit your mistakes honestly.

Ning Kangdi Standing in front of Jia Lian, seeing that even though this kid was kneeling on the ground, he still looked tall and graceful and not bloated at all, he really had the urge to kick Jia Lian.

It was this kid, It is natural that Emperor Ning Kang would have known about the affairs between Princess Zhaoyang and Jia Lian for a long time. After all, the other party seemed to be He didn't even think about how to hide it from him.

He could even see that the reason why these two people became successful was probably because his daughter was more proactive. After all, Zhaoyang originally wanted to replace his father-in-law. After sharing her worries, the only request she made when agreeing to get married was to let Jia Lian serve as her emissary.

Emperor Ning Kang knew that no man in the world could refuse the favor of a princess as good as him! Even this person It's Jia Lian.

Fortunately, Jia Lian just faced his pressure and didn't mean to put the blame on Zhao Yang. He still had a conscience.

So he didn't kick him out in the end. With that kick, he just asked lightly: "Let me ask you, what are you going to do with the Wang family in your family? "

"I dare not hide it from Your Majesty. Wang has been married to a minor minister for many years, and has been silently serving his elders and taking care of the family business. He even helped organize his father's funeral.

I can’t bear to abandon you like this. I have sincerely requested the eldest princess. The eldest princess is generous and has allowed the Wang family to continue to stay in the mansion and create a side room. "

Emperor Ning Kang frowned and said nothing in the end.

Although he seemed to be furious just now, he was just warning Jia Lian not to forget the respect of the king and his ministers. It's just humble.

If he was really angry, how could he have ignored the two of them for so long and said nothing? Emperor Ningkang is also responsible for what happened today. After all, if he had not agreed to Princess Zhaoyang's request, Jia Lian and his wife probably would not have had the chance to achieve this fate.

Of course, if If someone else had been the messenger, there might not have been anything that could have been done about Prince Wala's rebellion.

Zhaoyang might not have had the chance to return to Han.

Although Emperor Ning Kang had a fewThere are three daughters, but Princess Zhaoyang is undoubtedly the best among them and the one who makes him most relieved. He couldn't care less.

"Zhaoyang is young and ignorant, obsessed with love, and is willing to make sacrifices for you. You, Jia Lian, must keep this in mind.

You should know, Zhaoyang It’s easy to deceive, I am not easy to fool. And the Queen Mother, you should know that the Queen Mother has no children. She has regarded Zhaoyang as her own for so many years. If you dare to treat her badly in the future, I believe that I don’t need to take action. The Queen Mother will also I am determined not to get around you.

You have to take care of yourself."

"I understand, thank you for your grace."

Jia Lian has already begun to express his gratitude. Obviously tacitly agreeing, Emperor Ning Kang glanced at Jia Lian angrily.

Fortunately, it was not the first day I met Jia Lian, and he didn’t pay too much attention. He just cursed: “Get out of here.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty, hehe.”

Jia Lian laughed in response, stood up and looked at Emperor Ning Kang as if to please him, without the solemn look that he had before, as if he was ready to die.

This change of attitude made Emperor Ning Kang very displeased, and he cursed: "Children love each other long while heroes are short-tempered! A man should put his family and country first, how can he be confined to the love of his children all day long? ?

As everyone knows, so many heroes throughout the ages have been defeated at the hands of women!

With your appearance now, how can I safely entrust you with this important task? ”

Jia Lian didn’t expect that Ning Kangdi would actually say this. The general idea was that men should put their career first and talk about love all day long. It’s very disrespectful for me to do this. rest assured.

If other emperors had said this, Jia Lian would probably have smiled inwardly. But he knew that Emperor Ningkang might be serious, because the emperor in front of him seemed to be really lustful!

If nothing else, he didn't even take a look at a gentle and virtuous beauty like Yuan Chun who had been kept by his biological mother, the concubine, for seven or eight years.

Even if she was later adopted as a concubine, she seemed to be indifferent...

So he smiled and replied: "Although what your majesty said makes sense, I am not entirely sure. Agreed."

"Oh?" Ning Kangdi raised his eyebrows.

You must know that as a ninety-five-year-old man, he rarely preaches. Once a word is spoken, who dares to disrespect it?

Let alone those who dare to refute his words.

“I believe that a daughter’s love may not necessarily mean that a hero is short-tempered.

Compared with this sentence, I believe in another sentence.”

Emperor Ningkang never looked back after he left the imperial court.After returning, he stood in the same hall as Jia Lian, listening to Jia Lian's sophistry with great interest.

This scene made Dai Quan, who was smiling at the side, very touched in his heart, and there was a hint of envy and jealousy.

You must know that even a few princes must abide by the etiquette of monarchs and ministers and behave themselves in front of Emperor Ningkang. When did they dare to talk face to face with Emperor Ningkang like this?

　Not to mention him, the eunuch. Although everyone compared him to others outside, he was just a slave after all. He never dared to go beyond even half an inch in front of Emperor Ningkang.

"Comparatively speaking, I believe in the saying, 'A ruthless man may not be a true hero, but pity for a son is not a husband!'" . If the so-called heroes are heartless people who abandon their wives and children, then even becoming a hero will be in vain.

I have always believed that a man who does not even love his wife, children, or family How can a person love his country and sincerely support his king?"

"A ruthless man may not be a true hero, how can a pity for a son not be a husband..."

Emperor Ning Kang He recited something softly, then looked at Jia Lian and said, "I can often hear some fresh words from your mouth."

Emperor Ning Kang suddenly felt that Jia Lian's concept was not necessarily bad.

As an emperor, he has seen too many courtiers who expressed their loyalty in front of him. He didn't believe most of them.

He prefers to confirm his loyalty and ability from his daily performance.

Obviously, Jia Lian has always been relatively loyal to the monarch and the country in his eyes.

He also knew that Jia Lian was capable, much more capable than most of the ministers in the court. Moreover, Jia Lian was promoted by him alone. He would definitely use such a person.

The king looks at problems differently from other people. Right and wrong often don't mean much to the king. Emperor Ning Kang just felt that it would be a good thing if Jia Lian really valued "friendship" and his "family" so much.

At least, it won’t make him feel uncontrollable.

Some such thoughts flashed through his mind, but Emperor Ning Kang continued: "However, it is still the same as before, full of lies.

Since you said that a man is born in the world, Friendship and justice come first, let me ask you, since ancient times, loyalty and righteousness cannot have both sides. If it were you, what would you do between loyalty and righteousness?"

Emperor Ning Kang's eyes became playful.

His question can be considered to have "sinister intentions". The dilemma of loyalty and righteousness, facing the emperor, is actually a multiple-choice question.

But just now Jia Lian said that men should put friendship first in the world, and if he changed his words now, wouldn't he be breaking his words and spitting on his face?

Jia Lian was not panicked at all, and said with a self-deprecating smile: "Maybe I am greedy. I feel that under normal circumstances, there is no conflict between being sentimental and righteous and being loyal to the emperor and patriotism. Maybe I will never be able to do this in my life." There is no need to make such a choice.

Besides, His Majesty is a benevolent and sage king. He is willing to fulfill the honor of his ministers and will not let his ministers make such a choice easily..."

"You are naughty."

Emperor Ning Kang replied noncommittally, and then the monarch and his minister seemed to have said that. Emperor Ningkang silently walked back to the imperial cabinet and said: "Seeing that the Queen Mother summoned Zhaoyang just now, I think the Queen Mother knows what happened to you.

You must do everything according to the Queen Mother's requirements. Let's go.

I only warn you, don't let my princess suffer any injustice in your family."

"I obey the decree."

"Go down."

"Yes."

"Come back!"

Jia Lian turned around and looked at Emperor Ning Kang in confusion.

But Emperor Ning Kang seemed to be thinking deeply for a while, then picked up a jade plaque from the case and threw it towards him.

"This piece of jade was something I often wore when I was hiding in my mansion. It comes in two pieces. This is one of them, and I will give it to you."

"I thank you. Your Majesty.”

…

People say that accompanying the emperor is like accompanying a tiger, making it difficult to sleep and eat well, but for Jia Lian, this does not seem to be the case.

He found that as long as there was a method, the emperor was actually very easy to coax.

Thinking about the ministers in history who were clearly loyal but had difficulty gaining the emperor's favor, they all failed to get their way.

Thinking about it this way, Jia Lian felt that he might be the same as An Lushan and his ilk.

Ahem, in fact, as long as you don’t harbor evil intentions and do things that harm the country and the people, being on par with An Lushan is not necessarily a bad thing.

Just...

Jia Lian took out the jade plaque given to him by Emperor Ning Kang from his sleeve.

The material is not too special, but the big and conspicuous "chang" character in it is more eye-catching.

Jia Lian knew that before Emperor Ning Kang ascended the throne, his title was "King Chang".

But he didn’t know why Emperor Ning Kang suddenly gave him such a jade plaque.

I was thinking with my eyebrows raised when I suddenly saw a palace maid hurriedly coming in front of me. Jia Lian vaguely remembered that he was someone close to Princess Zhaoyang.

So he hid the jade plaque back in his sleeve and stepped forward.

"Master Marquis, the princess is waiting for you in front..."

Although Jia Lian saw that the palace maid had a strange look on her face, she didn't care much about it. She walked forward for a while, and sure enough, He saw Princess Zhaoyang in a plain dress standing far away on the white jade stone steps.

The spring breeze blew and the silk ribbons flew all over her body. For some reason, Jia Lian suddenly felt a strong sense of loneliness in her.

It is very different from the brisk way when entering the palace.

Perhaps hearing Jia Lian’s footsteps, Princess Zhaoyang turned around and looked at Jia Lian blankly. Suddenly, a touch of grievance emerged, and then she tried her best to cover it up and said with a smile: "Er Lang is here..."< br />
Jia Lian felt uneasy in his heart, and hurriedly stepped forward to grab her hands and asked, "What's wrong? Your Majesty has already agreed to our marriage, why do you look unhappy?"< br />
"Has the father promised Erlang? Erlang is really capable of convincing the father so quickly..."

Jia Lian felt even more uneasy. He heard that Princess Zhaoyang What he said was insincere.

"What happened, tell me, don't make me worry, okay?"

Perhaps Jia Lian's words were too gentle, and Princess Zhaoyang couldn't help it after all. She threw herself into his arms and cried: "Queen Mother, she just called me over and said... that she wanted to cancel our marriage and abort the child in my belly..."

Jia Lian was suddenly stunned. If he hadn't been familiar with Princess Zhaoyang's character, he would have almost thought that she was deliberately teasing him.

Taking a deep breath, Jia Lian said calmly: "Why is it that the Queen Mother didn't promise well yesterday, so why did she suddenly go back on her word?"

Princess Zhaoyang said to Jia Lian She shook her head in her arms, "This is not the Queen Mother's intention. According to what she said, this is the intention of my Grandfather.

After the Grandmother and Grandpa talked about you and me this morning, who Knowing that Grandpa Huang was furious, even Grandma Huang was rarely scolded.

Grandpa Huang said that if this matter spreads, the Tian family will become the laughing stock of the whole world..."

Princess Zhaoyang, who had always been elegant and confident, and did not panic even when she was in danger in the desert, now fell into Jia Lian's arms, but she looked very helpless and confused!

She has waited so hard for so long, overcome so many obstacles, and is now able to be with the one she loves.

Who knew that at this last moment, under the most unexpected circumstances,Festival, something unexpected happened.

Moreover, judging from the reaction of the emperor’s grandmother, the emperor’s grandfather’s attitude is probably quite firm, and there is little room for change.

If she hadn’t begged hard and promised to come only to see Jia Lian, the Queen Mother would not have let her out of Weiyang Palace!

While Jia Lian patted Princess Zhaoyang’s back to comfort her, her brows had already formed the character “Chuan”.

Before this, he had thought that the Queen Mother would object, and that Emperor Ningkang would object, but he did not expect that the Supreme Emperor would object.

In other words, in his eyes, the possibility of the Emperor’s opposition was no greater than that of the Queen Mother and Emperor Ningkang.

After all, the Supreme Emperor has been adopted by the emperor for a long time and does not care about state affairs. The possibility that he will care about the emotional entanglements of his grandchildren is very low.

Who knew that the most neglected place would become the final obstacle?

Taking a deep breath, Jia Lian helped Princess Zhaoyang up and said with a smile: "We have overcome many difficulties along the way. Are we afraid of this one more time?

The Great Emperor has been in charge of the world for so long, how have you ever seen him deliberately embarrass us juniors?

Let’s go, maybe if we beg him seriously, he will be soft-hearted and agree?”

/> Princess Zhaoyang's eyes were red. She was born in the royal family. She knew better than Jia Lian what kind of person the Supreme Emperor was.

Although I knew that the possibility was very low, there was no other way at the moment. I could only nod and follow Jia Lian in the direction of Chonghua Palace.