Bachelor

Chapter 362 Changes
Kunning Palace.

A large amount of ink spreads unrestrainedly on the eight-foot plain, forming a dark and desolate mountain high enough to reach the sky, and it is so dark that people can't breathe.

But just when the audience was about to suffocate, a silver waterfall fell from the dangerous rock on the mountainside, from top to bottom, cutting this thick black picture into two pieces, making people's hearts flutter along with that rushing waterfall. The sky below plummeted.

The waterfall cascaded down to the foot of the mountain and converged into a stream in front of the small village. The momentum of the water also slowed down, completely relaxing the tight string in people's hearts.

His eyes were full of red threads, and he hadn't slept all day and night.

Empress Chen only wore a narrow-sleeved floral red jacket for the convenience of brushwork. Her hands were full of ink and paint. Although her face was tired, her spirit was extremely excited.

For this large-scale landscape painting, from conception to writing, she has stood in front of the case for a day and a night.

The maid beside her, Ah Lu, looked at the master worriedly, with a look of anxiety on her face: "Your Majesty, you are not in good health, and you haven't eaten for a day, so you can't go on like this. If something goes wrong, let alone Long Live Lord, what will happen to you?" Blame us slaves, we have to kill ourselves first."

Empress Chen turned a deaf ear to the words of the court lady Ah Lu, and did not take her eyes off her painting for a moment.

Ever since she listened to Sun Dan's "Qinyuanchun? Changsha" that day, for some reason, she was suddenly overwhelmed by the overwhelming momentum, and there was always a creative urge to draw something in her heart. .

The Chen family was originally a family of calligraphy and painting. Empress Chen's family members are all famous painters. She picked up a paintbrush when she was five years old. Although her level is not very high, her foundation is very solid.Later, she married Zhu Houcong, became Princess Xing, and later became a queen, with a noble status, and never had a chance to hold a pen again.

The things in life are really unclear. Empress Chen remembered that when she was a child, she aspired to be a great painter like Huang Gongwang, but who would have thought that she would become a queen in the end.

This time, I wanted to paint, but the impulse in my heart could no longer be suppressed, and I didn't sleep, I just repeated the phrase "Look at the red mountains and forests burning all over the mountains" over and over again, until the passion was like spring water It spewed out from the ground, and then picked up the pen to paint the thick black to shiny ink on the paper.

At this moment, she only felt that the blocks in her chest were forming little by little with the trend of the pen and ink, filling the eight-foot-square universe in front of her little by little.

The overall shape has been drawn, all that remains is to add the details.

At this time, Empress Chen turned her head to Ah Lu and said, "Ah Lu, what do you think of this painting by Ben Gong?"

Ah Lu hurriedly said: "Niangniang's paintings are naturally excellent, according to this servant, they have already surpassed Qiu Shizhou."

Empress Chen's chapped lips moved, and she smiled: "Nonsense, don't flatter people. Qiu Ying's is fine brushwork landscape, and Bengong is splashed ink freehand brushwork. The painting method is different, and there is no way to compare it. The reason why you say that, That’s because I’m afraid that I’ll respect me. In fact, I’m not a narrow-minded person, so if you have something to say, just say it, and talk about what’s wrong with drinking paintings.”

Ah Lu stuck out her tongue, and said playfully: "Mother, Ah Lu is just a vulgar girl who can't even read words, how could she know how to draw?" The first-class caring girl is also very casual when talking to Empress Chen on weekdays.

Empress Chen said in her heart: I forgot this point. What kind of painting and calligraphy does little girl Ah Lu know? If Lu Fang was by Ben Gong's side, with his talent and Mr. Sun's guidance, he might be able to tell whether this painting is good or bad. .This child...it's a pity.I have to find a way to get him out of prison, of course, there is nothing I can do now.He could only try his best to defeat Zhang Huhu, as long as Zhang Huli and the others fell, Lu Fang would have a chance of survival.

Empress Chen felt a little melancholy when she thought about it, and said to Ah Lu after a long time: "You don't have to be suspicious to please me, just tell me your first impression."

Only then did Ah Lv laugh and said, "Your Majesty, this painting is not good-looking."

Empress Chen stretched out her ink-stained hand to touch her head, and asked pleasantly, "Why isn't it so pretty?"

Ah Lu was patted on the head lovingly by Empress Chen, and her attitude became even more casual.She smiled and said, "Madam, I'll just tell you that slave girl. I'm not good enough, so please forgive me." She pointed to the high mountain on the painting and said, "Madam, your painting is really good. It's too high, it almost touches the sky. I have seen many landscape paintings in this palace with my mother before. The sky above them is very wide and very high in other paintings."

Empress Chen smiled and said, "That's blank space, this painting pays attention to blank space."

"I don't know how to leave white and black." Ah Lu said, "Anyway, the landscapes in other people's paintings are not like your mother's, so they go straight to the sky. Also, your painting is too dark. The whole sheet of paper is covered, there is no gap at all. It's dazzling... no, I'm still a little dizzy."

Empress Chen laughed suddenly, staring up and down at Ah Lu.

Ah Lu was suspicious after being watched by Empress Chen: "Your Majesty, what are you looking at, this servant is so scared."

Empress Chen: "Unexpectedly, you girl, even though you don't understand anything, you can still read paintings. Let me tell you, this painting method was taught to me by Mr. Sun when he was teaching. What I want is black, full, rising, Astringent. You see, this portrait is not like Fan Kuan’s landscape, with less blank space and full composition. The mountain is oncoming, and the waterfall is condensed into a white crack. To every corner of the picture. Generally speaking, the relationship between near and far in landscape painting is expressed by the thickness of brush and ink. The far one is light, while the close-up is thicker. Today, Ben Gong is doing the opposite, far and near light. In this way, This mountain has a feeling of standing upright, as if it is about to fall down. This makes you feel dizzy, haha, I didn't expect that you little girl has a bit of eyesight."

"This Mr. Sun really knows a lot. I heard from the people in the palace that Mr. Sun is the reincarnation of Zhuge Wuhou. Madam, Mr. Sun is currently taking an exam. With his talent, it should be easy to be a Jinshi. Wait for him in the future Now that you have become a senior official, you might as well ask Your Majesty to make him a Marquis of Wu as well."

Empress Chen: "You girl, Mr. Sun will inherit the title of Marquis of Huichang in the future, and he will be made Marquis of Wu. What do you want Marquis of Wu Ding to do?"

Ah Lu angrily said: "What is Guo Xun? He just relies on the merits of his ancestors to make a living. He can't compare to Mr. Sun. I heard people say that Mr. Sun came from a poor family. If he can have the status and achievements he has today It’s a real skill. According to the servants, he should be named Marquis Wu to make it appear that Marquis Wu of Guo Xun is a fake.”

Empress Chen laughed loudly, because she laughed too hard, the chapped lower lip opened, and a drop of crimson hot water fell onto the paper.

"Your Majesty!" Ah Lu was startled, and hurriedly shouted: "Emperor Physician, Imperial Physician, hurry up and pass on the Imperial Physician!"

"No, no, actually..." Empress Chen said to Ah Lu: "Actually, this painting is not finished yet, so you feel dizzy when you look at it, and you feel that this painting is too full and messy. Let's look at Bengong's method .”

Ah Lu: "My lady, your injury...you haven't eaten for another day, why are you still painting at this time?"

Empress Chen ignored Ah Lu, picked up the pen and dipped it in the cinnabar box, and tapped it directly on the paper, leaving a bright red stroke.

When this point of cinnabar goes down, the picture suddenly becomes vivid.

Although Ah Lu didn't know much about painting, she was still moved by this stroke, and stood there blankly.

I saw that Empress Chen moved her brush like flying, and she didn't use any techniques, she just went down so simply, and it was out of control.

A large number of dense cinnabar dots make the picture effect extraordinarily strong, and the visual charm is extraordinary. With the thick ink color as the background, it forms a contrast between cold and warm, with rich layers; The imposing manner has become the bright color of the picture, while the stream in the foreground adds movement to the majestic and magnificent picture.

With the flying brush of Empress Chen, countless red cinnabar splashed in the air like raindrops, falling on the paper, Ah Lu's head, and her own face.

At this moment, Empress Chen only felt as if a god lived in her body, guiding her hand down—let everything burn!
In this patch of red, a young man in white stood with his hands behind his back, and said in a loud voice: "Look at the mountains that are all red, and the forests are all dyed."

That boy is Sun Dan and Sun Jingyuan.

"Haha, the royal atmosphere is majestic!" Finally, Empress Chen threw the pen far away from the room after finishing the last touch of red, with blood dripping from her lips like crazy.

At this moment, she is considered to be among the best landscape painters in the world.

And all this is because of Sun Dan's "Qinyuanchun".

After the laughter fell, Empress Chen suddenly rolled her eyes and fell to the ground with a plop, unconscious.

After a day and a night without sleep, without a drop of water, when she finished painting this painting, she finally couldn't hold it anymore.

"Prince doctor, hurry up and tell the doctor!" Ah Lu cried loudly.

……

Liugong was shocked when the news of the empress's sudden fainting came out.

Of course, only the one who lived in the Imperial Garden was secretly complacent, gnashing his teeth and cursing: "Why don't you just die clean?"

In the past, the empress had already fallen out of favor. If it was changed to that time, if something happened to the empress, it might not have such a big impact.But recently, the queen got advice from an expert, and gradually won back the emperor's heart.Some time ago, the emperor even visited her for several nights.

The emperor is a half-immortal body, and has been taking elixir for a long time, so he is not enthusiastic about the affairs of men and women.Being able to live in Kunning Palace for a few days is already a rare thing.

Most of the people in the palace are influential people, and they have sharp eyes and quick hearts. Seeing that the queen is gradually gaining power, they all want to please the East Palace.

When they heard that Empress Chen had fainted, they all rushed over to serve the queen, looking as if they were in mourning.

He trotted quickly to report to Xiyuan, crying and begging the emperor to come and see the queen for the last time.

Jiajing listened to the exaggerated words of the messenger, saying that the Empress Dowager was about to die, so she was not surprised, so she put down her affairs and came to Kunning Palace.

As soon as he entered the hall, he saw eunuchs and court ladies kneeling all over the ground, all of them crying until their eyes turned red.

"Your Majesty, my servant, wait to kowtow to His Majesty." Seeing the emperor coming in, everyone hurriedly wiped away their tears and kowtowed in unison.

"Where's the empress?" The emperor frowned slightly, on the surface he still looked unhurried.

"I'm lying on the bed, I've woken up." A eunuch replied.

"Did you call the doctor?"

"I've already passed on the message to Lord Long Live. I'm on my way, and I'll arrive in a while." The eunuch replied.

Emperor Jiajing nodded: "Take me to see the queen."

After entering the Nuan Pavilion, he saw Empress Chen lying on the couch with a white face, and the maid Ah Lu and two young eunuchs were waiting in front of the bed.

"Queen, Queen, Your Majesty is here to see you." Ah Lu called to the Queen in a low voice with tears in her voice.

The queen opened her eyes slightly, struggled to get up, and said weakly: "Your Majesty, my concubine... my concubine..."

"How did you make it like this?" the emperor asked: "The queen was in good health before, why did she faint after not seeing her for a few days?"

Ah Lv "Plop!" Kneeling on the ground, she kowtowed and cried, "Long Live Lord, it's all the fault of the servants. The lady spent a whole day and night without eating or sleeping in order to paint, and finally... finally..."

The emperor's face darkened: "The queen never sleeps, you don't know how to stop her, how to do things, someone is here, pull that bitch, Ah Lu, out and beat him to death."

Upon hearing this, Ah Lu's face turned pale, her whole body was trembling, and she kowtowed until blood was all over her forehead: "Long live Lord, spare me, Long live Lord, spare me!"

Empress Chen saw that the emperor was going to do something bad, she was already eating, she straightened her body suddenly, and shouted repeatedly: "Your Majesty, it's not about Ah Lu's business, it's all the fault of the ministers, it's all the fault of the ministers... Ah Lu has been serving the marquis and concubines for many years , if she was beaten to death and replaced by another person, I am afraid that she will not be considered a concubine, so please forgive her once..."

Before he could finish speaking, he coughed loudly.

Seeing that the empress was in such a hurry, the emperor also knew that Ah Lu was the most caring court lady of Empress Chen, so his heart softened, and he glared at Ah Lu: "What are you still doing in a daze, why is the queen like this?"

Ah Lu stood up in a hurry, walked to Empress Chen, supported her body, and patted Empress Chen's vest lightly with her hand to comfort her.

The emperor sat beside the queen and asked in a low voice: "Queen, what's wrong with you? Why did you paint for a day and a night, and finally made it like this. You are now a queen, and every word and deed should be an example of the six palaces. Don't be careless." Recklessly."

Empress Chen sighed: "The fault is Mr. Sun Dan's "Qin Yuan Chun"."

The emperor wondered: "What's the matter with Sun Dan?"

The queen replied: "Since reading that poem, I have been chanting the sentences in the poem over and over again, and suddenly I feel like I want to draw a picture. This painting cannot be accepted as soon as I post it, so that it has become like this. The body belongs to His Majesty, but now it has been ruined like this, the concubine will be punished with death, and the concubine will be punished with death."

Jiajing was very helpless: "It's just a poem, what about it? Well, when I see Sun Dan, I will definitely punish him severely."

Empress Chen was shocked: "This matter is all the fault of my concubine, but it has nothing to do with Mr. Sun. If your majesty wants to punish me, I will punish my concubine."

The emperor said with a straight face: "Why is it none of his business? It wasn't his poems. Would the queen make it like this? Well, I will punish him to write a few more poems of the same kind. To be honest, I like it very much too. Poetry!"

Empress Chen breathed a sigh of relief, and said with a smile: "It turns out that His Majesty also likes Mr. Sun's words!"

The emperor sighed: "This man is indeed talented. I am very pleased to have such a subject. Such a person, no matter how wrong he is, still needs protection! Back then Tang Xuanzong could accommodate Li Bai, why couldn't I accommodate another Sun Dan. Besides, Sun Qing is a talented minister, and when he wins Jinshi, I will rely heavily on him for the new government."

Empress Chen asked again: "Your Majesty, has the Queen Mother left now?"

"Already set off, Luanjia has arrived in Nanjing." The emperor nodded and sighed: "It's rare that the empress has the heart to remember the empress dowager. Among the six palaces, only you remember this matter."

"The concubine wanted to take the queen mother into the capital for a long time, so that she could honor her old man nearby. This is the concubine's duty, and I dare not forget it for a moment." The queen still spoke softly.

The emperor was very touched: "These days, I have used six hundred miles to rush to contact the Queen Mother. According to the current pace of the Queen Mother, she should be able to reach the capital in a month. She is old and cannot go too fast. I will do it this way." It’s not easy to urge your son.”

Empress Chen: "It's true, the queen mother rarely comes out once, so let her old man see Jinger along the way."

Emperor Jiajing: "After the Empress Dowager enters the palace, I'm afraid she won't have the chance to go out in the future. This trip to the south of the Yangtze River is indeed a good opportunity. By the way..." The emperor waved his hand to let the eunuchs and the maids go out.

Only Jiajing and the queen were left in the warm pavilion.

"By the way, regarding the Queen Mother's entry to Beijing, if she is really blocked from going through the Zhengyang Gate, is Sun Dan ready?"

Empress Chen whispered: "Mr. Sun is a cautious person, he should be prepared?"

"That's good." The emperor suddenly felt a little nervous, and immediately realized that the question of the emperor's exam would be directly worshiped on the table because of the empress dowager's entry to Beijing, and it would be a fierce contest.

Sun Dan and the queen are all ready, so...

Will I win?

Jiajing was not sure either.

As he was talking, he suddenly seemed to think of something: "This...why hasn't the imperial doctor come yet, and how did he do it?"

As soon as the words fell, Ah Lu brought a bad old man with a white beard into the room.

This person is the Royal Doctor of the Imperial Hospital.

The old man was so old that he was already slow in action. When he saw the emperor, he trembled for a long time and was about to kneel down as he struggled.

The emperor: "Excuse me, don't bother me, and take care of the queen's illness."

"Yes."

Long ago Ah Lu wrapped a silk thread around the queen's wrist and brought it to the imperial physician.

The imperial doctor held the silk thread with one hand, put two fingers on the thread with the other hand, and closed his eyes to feel the pulse.

He felt his pulse for a long time without retracting his fingers, just closed his eyes and did not move, as if he had fallen asleep.

The emperor couldn't bear it anymore, and called out: "Emperor doctor, what's the matter, what's wrong with the empress?"

"Ah, Queen!" The imperial doctor seemed to be awakened from a dream, his body trembled, and he opened his mouth to say such things as metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, Wuxing mutual generation and restraint, how qi and blood flow, and the emperor and Everyone seemed to be in a fog.

Jiajing was an impatient person, and said angrily, "Don't talk so much nonsense, just tell me what kind of disease the Empress is suffering from, and what prescription do you want to prescribe?"

"The recipe is very simple!" The imperial physician stroked his beard and said, "Stew a chicken, add some ginseng to invigorate Qi, and then put some red dates to invigorate the blood. By the way, eat some wild gourd to open up the taste." .So be it."

The imperial physician's prescription stunned the emperor: "What kind of prescription is this?"

Generally speaking, the concept of hierarchy in the Ming Dynasty was not as strong as that in the Qing Dynasty. The imperial physician was not very afraid when he saw the emperor. He stood up, packed his belongings, and said in a phlegm voice: "Actually, there is no need to take medicine." Yes, the queen is happy, eat more good food on weekdays."

(End of this chapter)