You rascal, stop right there!

Chapter 188 Zichen, I'm not doing this for you

"Blindness equals useless."

Bai Wan smiled gently: "No, people don't just have a pair of eyes!"

After he finished speaking, the Empress Dowager Cixi saw the man take out the painting album he carried with him, with a small piece of rice paper and a brush interspersed between them spread out on the ground.

Obviously I can't see...

Although he could not judge the direction of colors or the thickness of the brush strokes, he was able to hold the brush and paint on the rice paper as usual.

The vigorous brushstrokes are like plucking the strings of a dulcimer, painted with large strokes and flowing smoothly.

About an hour later, black bamboo, green stone and a blue dragon flying in the clouds appeared on the paper.

What I have done is to hold on to the green mountains, to keep my innocence, to have the blue dragon overlooking, to settle the matter peacefully.

"Although my physical eyes are blind, my heart is not blind." Bai Wan clenched his teeth and his voice was clear.

Finally, he said a little loudly: "I am not here just to accuse Minister Ling of usurping power. I just feel that the people of the three cities are lonely and miserable, and the ministers who advocated war are innocent."

This person was neither humble nor arrogant, and didn't care at all about the hierarchy and status at the moment.

From the moment he thought of coming to see the Queen Mother, he knew what he would face.

In the past, I was stubborn and silent, and I liked to make my own decisions. Now that I have started over again, my thoughts have not changed.

The Empress Dowager looked at the painting in astonishment. She was so horrified that she stood up.

She just felt that there really was jade from Jingshan in the world. It would be fine if her right hand was disabled, but she actually felt that even a blind person could still be a genius.

"People who are conceited by their talents should behave like this."

As she spoke, she called two young eunuchs over and asked them to pick up the remaining pictures on the ground and scan them one by one.

The picture is incomplete, but it can be pieced together to some extent. Once this person can copy it, the whole transcription will be complete.

After a long time, the Empress Dowager Cixi looked solemnly and said, "The villa outside the capital has not been completely abandoned."

Bai Wan held the bamboo pole nonchalantly, with a calm expression, but his hands were trembling slightly.

Beijing Suburbs Villa...

In an instant, more memories overwhelmed him, coming one after another...

In the fifty-ninth year of Daying Luzhen, he was kidnapped by Li Xiang's men as soon as he was released by the Criminal Justice Department.

He was sent to the royal villa in the suburbs, and was asked to copy and paint the world's number one painting, "Wan Li Min Yuan", which he had given to the previous emperor.

At first, we were treated generously on the first day, but later we found out that we were being forced into house arrest.

In the end, because of his stubbornness, arrogance and strong character, he was trapped in a well prison.

He was imprisoned for three full months, his hands were crippled by torture, and he managed to escape with great difficulty.

In order to avoid being contaminated by the imperial city, he escaped twice, once losing his memory and crippling his hand, and once becoming blind and ending his career as a painter.

This time, he came here on his own initiative, fearless of life or death.

The Empress Dowager looked at him for a long time without saying a word.

The so-called beauty of calligraphy is the ink staining the Hanlin Academy and the friendship between close friends.

If I had known that this man could do this, it would have been better than the two families fighting each other and imprisoning him for rebellion.

The most frightening thing for people like this who have no foundation or background is that they have no weaknesses.

"You really thought about it."

"Real!" Bai Wan hesitated for a moment, and finally smiled, "It's more real than real gold."

His expression was sincere, without any sign of reluctance or unwillingness.

Although to this guy, such oaths are now as cheap as the unwanted weeds in the field.

"I only hope that the Queen Mother's words will be kept." Bai Wan seemed to be using all her strength to speak word by word.

The Empress Dowager looked at him, her eyes dull and her hands covered with tiny scars from a blind man's groping.

This man stood resolutely in the hall, his face calm and steady. He was much different from the mess in prison six years ago, but he was still outspoken and persevering as usual.

In a trance, she seemed to recall the scene when she pretended to be crazy and stupid, tried all kinds of ways to escape from the villa in the suburbs of Beijing, and jumped into the moat when being chased.

I don't know why, but I feel scared.

This is the first time I have seen someone who can be compared to the nine-life cat demon in human form.

"allow!"

The Empress Dowager smiled gently and agreed.

"good --"

Bai Wan took a deep breath, endured the slight trembling of her legs and feet, and tensed her muscles. She stood up straight away, ignoring the fact that the other party had not yet excused herself. As if she had thought of something, she finally blurted out:

"There is one more thing. I have been confused for many years and have always wanted to know why you all want that painting. This painting, 'Wanli Minyuan', is just a painting by ordinary people."

"In fact, the late emperor burned the painting himself after seeing it. You imprisoned me to copy it, but you didn't want me to show it to the public."

……

Then, he chuckled uncomfortably: "I am just a small painter, why should I be favored so much?"

"You ask too many questions." The Empress Dowager was reluctant to answer and said sternly, "Although I want the painting, I would rather die with you."

Bai Wan walked forward rebelliously and spread out his left hand: "Then I won't ask..."

He tapped the bamboo pole in his right hand and his whole body relaxed.

He took a deep breath and suddenly said, "Take me back to my hometown—"

Zichen,

I'm not doing this for you!

My legs are on my body, I can go wherever I want...

……

It is exceptionally chilly at the end of September in late autumn.

Although Ling Shumo risked his life to borrow troops to fight the enemy, Ling Yu's troops were stopped by the court just as they started to put pressure on him.

Daying and Xuanli finally negotiated and signed the Xingjing Peace Agreement.

Emperor Jiaxing emptied the national treasury and plundered the wealth of merchants and common people around the capital, giving away 50 million taels of silver and gold, 1 million pieces of silk, and countless cattle, sheep, horses, and mules.

A bright moon hangs in the sky, clouds are rolling, and moonlight is streaming in through the small window.

Ling Shumo was sitting in the cell when he suddenly felt a chill on his back. The damp and cold smell was even more damp than in the past few days.

He had no choice but to hold tightly the small hand warmer that Bai Wan had sent him a few days ago, and he felt more comfortable.

I only stayed in the cell for ten days. If it weren't for this thing, I would have been unable to endure it.

The man looked at the white lotus-shaped jade pendant in his hand, which was crystal clear under the moonlight, and ripples appeared in his heart.

And Bai Wan hasn't come to visit for ten days...

This is not like this person -

When the jailer opened the cell door, Ling Shumo was ready to be whipped to death or beheaded like other pro-war officials...

"Ling Shumo, the emperor has issued an order."

The imperial city was cold, and in late autumn the autumn leaves were rolling up, forming whirlwinds, which made it seem even more desolate.

He was removed from the cell in shackles and shackles and was escorted out of the cell in a relatively decent manner.

It was really a bit surprising. He should have been killed long ago for borrowing troops to fight the enemy without authorization and for opposing Your Majesty in public in the court. I didn't expect that he was only demoted.

"The Minister of Rites Ling Shumo was demoted to the post of military governor of Dingzhou."

"Dingzhou..."

Ling Shumo was stunned by the cold for a moment. When did Emperor Jiaxing become so kind?

After all, he could kill other ministers of the six ministries at will, but he was only demoted from the second rank to the fourth rank.

He looked back carefully, and the prison behind him remained the same, which really made him think deeply.

Just as I was about to move forward, I heard a sentence from the side -

"Master Ling! Brother Bai asked me to give you a letter."

Ling Shumo stopped and took the letter in a daze.

"Zi Chen wrote this personally, I am grateful for your kindness."