The snow finally melted, and spring arrived. It was a different kind of atmosphere.
In the blink of an eye, seven days had passed. The water in the mansion was gurgling. Waizumi Shikabe hid her uneasiness and pretended to be calm as she chatted with the maids. She stood at the entrance of the corridor and looked inside. She asked, "What is Yamada doing?"
"Lord Yamada is writing in his study every day, using the paper he got from the Prince's Mansion."
"Ah, let's go and take a look."
Although it was winter, the weather was warm. Several people walked along the corridor and saw that the window of the study was open. Yamada Shinji was writing in front of a table.
"It's said that it's a collection of poems written by the Right Servant …"
"His words are very strong. He doesn't look like a warrior, let alone a killer."
The maids whispered. Waizumi Shikabe lowered her head. Her gaze fell on him. Although she had gotten used to it, she was still in a trance. It took a long time for her to wake up.
"Hey, you said that the Emperor summoned me. It's been seven days."
Pei Zi Yun stood up and admired his post. "The Emperor summoned me for a few more days, one day at most, three days at most."
Waizumi Shikabe pinched her fingers, her face pale. She did not believe Pei Zi Yun.
But he did not care if she believed him or not. Pei Zi Yun said casually, "If these words were false, they would be exposed in a blink of an eye. Do you think I would be so unwise?"
"Besides, I killed an important retainer of Minamoto no Raiko. If something really happened, would there be no movement in these few days?"
"Besides, I wrote these poems because I have something to do. The Emperor will definitely summon me because of these poems. Or he has already sent a female official."
"Poems?" Waizumi Shikabe was startled. She slowly turned to the dignified handwriting, tidied her hair, and looked at Pei Zi Yun again. Her attitude was serious, but there was a hint of hidden expectation.
"Yamada-kun, is what you said true?"
"Please understand my situation. I have just been abandoned by my father. If I am to be accused of harboring a traitor, I might as well die early."
"It's true. Abe said that to me the day before yesterday." Pei Zi Yun did not hesitate and said, "Besides, if you really want to punish me, you can just say that I am coercing you."
"Abe courtier?" In fact, this was the correct form of address. Waizumi Shikibe was somewhat relieved, and in the blink of an eye, her attitude was much better than before.
"I was impolite just now. Please allow me to go back and deal with some matters. You are now …"
"Go ahead and do what you need to do. I shall write another chapter." Pei Zi Yun knew what she wanted to say and replied plainly.
Izumi Shibe breathed a sigh of relief and lowered his head slightly. "That's good. I will immediately order the people in the residence not to affect Yamada-kun's mood."
As he spoke, he took small steps out.
Looking at Izumi Shikibu's silhouette, her long black hair was very eye-catching. Even her silhouette looked graceful because of it. It was said that her beauty was better than Seiji Naeyan, and Seiji Naeyan was better than Zi Shikibu, but the result was the opposite. This was a little thought-provoking.
Pei Zi Yun retracted his gaze and laughed, "Ah, interesting!"
As soon as he exited the room, he was immediately welcomed by a few maids. One of the maids came over. Although her figure was weak, she was still beautiful. She was different from the others. She bent down and said softly, "Shikibu, have you made up your mind?"
Seeing that Izumi Shikibu did not speak, she continued, "Yamada has been in the residence for seven days. You should send someone to arrest Yamada. If you do not go, not only Shikibu, but the entire Ju residence and the Ju family will be severely criticized. The courtiers will definitely think that the Ju residence is in cahoots with this traitor."
Izumi Shikibu looked up at the female official and then looked at the maids. Although they did not speak, their expressions showed the same meaning.
Izumi Shikibu glanced at them, and her pale face showed anger. Her face darkened. "This matter should have been settled long ago. Let's stop here. I will deal with Yamada-kun's matter. Do not spread it."
"But Shikibu, the news of Yamada's murder has spread throughout the city. If someone finds out that he was in our residence, then …"
The maids, who usually did not dare to easily refute, all spoke up.
Izumi Shikibu understood their thoughts. Suppressing his annoyance, he sneered. "Then I will say that this is Yamada-kun's coercion. After all, you and I are both weak women. We cannot resist, and there may not be a disaster. Moreover, you are both innocent. When the time comes, you can go your separate ways."
"If you really feel uneasy, you can resign today."
As soon as these words came out, the maids lowered their heads and did not dare to speak again.
Waving his hand to dismiss them, his personal maid immediately came over and bowed to Izumi Shikibu. "Shikibu, I did not tell anyone about Yamada-kun's matter …"
"It's okay. I was in trouble and was scolded by my father. Other than you, I'm afraid everyone else is at a loss." Izumi Shikibu sighed. He did not blame her.
As the saying goes, when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.
She could not even protect herself now. She was abandoned by her father and looked down upon by outsiders. She had an empty residence, but it was like duckweed on the surface of the water with no one to rely on.
Even her current husband, after learning about what happened in the capital, would definitely cut off all ties with her.
And her lover was a noble prince. It was unknown whether he was alive or dead. Even if he could survive, he would probably not continue their relationship.
These maids must also be terrified and uneasy, which was why they lost their sense of propriety. Did she not know that Yamada Shinichi was a hot potato? Whoever touched it would be burned?
But she had no other choice. She had seen Yamada's fierceness with her own eyes. If she really disobeyed him, not to mention in the future, she would not be able to escape the calamity now.
"But, they can't be kept."
The rule of the Heian era was that the palace would choose three or more daughters of high-ranking officials to be maids or maids. The maids or maids would then choose five or more daughters of nobles to be maids or maids.
Five or more daughters of nobles, such as herself, would choose seven or more daughters of officials to be maids or maids.
These all had to be given salaries.
Once they were abandoned by their husbands and fathers, how could Izumi Shikibu afford to raise such maids?
Rather than saying that these maids were afraid, it was better to say that they were worried about their future. Thinking of this, she could not help but look gloomy. She forced herself to cheer up and gave orders.
"Shikibu, someone from the palace has come!" Just as Izumi Shikibu ordered Yamada Shinichi to tidy up the room and was about to tidy up the poetry manuscript in the study, a maid ran in with a panicked expression to report.
Izumi Shikibu was shocked, then thought of Yamada Shinichi's words and forced herself to calm down. She said, "Come with me to welcome the maids."
Although she was a daughter of nobles and the wife of Izumi Shou, she still needed to go to the door to welcome the maids because they came on behalf of the emperor.
Her thoughts were tumbling. When she reached the door, she found not only the maids who came in the ox cart, but also a group of onlookers, pointing at the door.
Seeing that she was surrounded by the maids, these onlookers became excited, and their voices came.
"… Could it be that the emperor also heard about this? This woman is so slutty, it's really, tsk tsk …"
"It's not even a year, don't look for others. You even caused her death, scourge."
"Shh, I heard that she had evil spirits on her, and caused the death of the prince. Someone from the palace must have come to investigate this matter …"
These voices made Izumi Shikibu's face pale, and her eyes, which were always full of affection, showed anger.
The maids who came from the palace looked ordinary, but had a good temperament. It was obvious that she was from a noble family. She had also heard about what happened to Izumi Shikibu, and couldn't help but take a look.
But thinking of this task, she slightly raised her chin and said lightly, "Izumi Shikibu, I came to visit your house because I have something to tell you. Won't you invite me in?"
Izumi Shikibu suppressed her anger and said, "I was rude, please come in."
When the maids went in slowly, she didn't dare to look at the onlookers. She covered her face with a fan and immediately said to the maid, "Close the door!"
Their master was humiliated by outsiders, and these maids' faces were already red. Hearing the order, they didn't say anything and closed the door in laughter.
"Is Yamada-kun, who presented the poem to the emperor, in your house?" The maids heard the movement, and the corners of her mouth slightly raised. When Izumi Shikibu came up, she turned back and asked.
It turned out that the last time Abe no Seimei's child came to fetch the poem, it was to present it to the emperor?
Izumi Shikibu immediately replied, "Yamada-kun is in the house."
"That's good. I came here this time to convey the emperor's order to Yamada-kun." The maids said reservedly.
Izumi Shikibu saw that the other party didn't want to talk to him more. He was ashamed and angry, but he could only endure it and accompany her inside.
The group walked quietly for a while and saw a pavilion. Izumi Shikibu saw the figure in the pavilion at a glance and said to the maid, "Look, that is Yamada-kun."
At a glance, the youth was wearing a samurai's clothes. He could pick up a pen and write. Even the maid, who was used to seeing officials, slightly raised her eyebrows and said to Izumi Shikibu, "Please wait here."
She went over. In the pavilion, Pei Zi Yun was leisurely reading a book. There were more than ten pieces of paper on the side that hadn't dried yet, which attracted the attention of the maid.
She then picked up a piece and read it aloud. After reading it, she realized that the style of the poem was very familiar.
"Does the Right Servant She (Bai Juyi) actually have this poem?" She asked in surprise.
"Yes, but this is the collection of poems that I presented last time. There's no need to present more." Pei Zi Yun replied casually.
At that time, the Japanese nobles were very respectful of Bai Juyi's poems, especially the noble ladies. Everyone was familiar with the Ten Thousand Leaves Collection and Bai Juyi. It could be said that in this era, if one didn't know Bai Juyi well, they would be despised and excluded from social circles.
However, not all of Bai Juyi's poems were spread to Japan. These poems that she had never read before were obviously in Bai Juyi's style. This made the maid very interested. Could it be that these poems attracted the emperor's attention?
When she finished reading, she reluctantly put down the book and said to Pei Zi Yun, "Yamada-kun, I'm here to convey the emperor's order. The emperor has specially granted permission to meet you at Changhe Palace. Tomorrow, an ox-cart will come to pick you up and bring you into the palace."
Pei Zi Yun didn't care where he would meet the emperor. After all, this wasn't his ultimate goal.
"I understand. Please report back to the emperor. I will enter the palace on time." Pei Zi Yun said lightly.
The female official gave him a deep look before bidding farewell and leaving.
After the maid left, Pei Zi Yun continued to sit in the pavilion, writing poems. After a while, he heard footsteps. Waizumi Shikibu walked to his side and looked down.
She then said, "Yamada-kun's words are really elegant and elegant. It really surprises me."
Pei Zi Yun smiled and took the tools. He bound the poem that had just been written and dried, together with the previous poems, into a book. He handed it to Waizumi Shikibu who was looking at it curiously. She didn't expect Pei Zi Yun to do such a thing and looked at him in surprise.
Pei Zi Yun said, "Although Bai Juyi's poems are good, I like Li Bai's poems better. Bai Juyi's poems have been given to the emperor. This Li Bai's poems are for you."
"Why?" Waizumi Shikibu felt that the poems in her hands were a little hot, and she was quite flattered.
Pei Zi Yun smiled, "I'm going to the palace tonight. This is my accommodation fee."
He wanted to refuse, but Yamada said it openly. Waizumi Shikibu stared at the poems in her hands for a while and couldn't help but open it to read.
Li Bai, Li Taibai?
As a result, she was attracted to the first poem.
As she was reading, Pei Zi Yun suddenly asked, "Shikibu, do you know why Taibai's poems are not as good as Bai Juyi's in Japan?"
Waizumi Shikibu thought for a while. She wanted to answer that it was because the poems were good, but she had just read Li Taibai's poems. They were equally romantic and beautiful, and she couldn't put them down.
She was a rare talented woman in this era. Waizumi Shikibu thought for a while and said her answer, "Because he is Bai Juyi's?"
"That's right." Pei Zi Yun smiled and looked at Waizumi Shikibu with a little admiration.
Just as Izumi Shikibu had said, the Japanese nobles admired Bai Juyi's poems more because Bai Juyi's status was higher. At that time, Bai Juyi was conferred the title of Marquis Feng Yi. He was given the title of Minister of Justice (Grade Three) and was given the title of Minister of the Right Bodhisattva (Grade Two).
It was not completely snobbish, but Japan went to the Tang Dynasty to learn. Naturally, they had to learn from Le Tian. At that time, Bai Juyi had a high official position and was obviously more authoritative.
It was rare for Waizumi Shikibu to think of this.
However, all good things must come to an end. The two volumes of poems that she had written were more than enough for food and accommodation. She bowed and said, "I'll go back first. There's no need to send me off when I leave."
Just as she was about to turn around, she suddenly turned back and asked, "I heard that the princess of the Prince passed away today because of grief?"
"Yes, she went this morning." Waizumi Shikibu didn't know what he meant and just answered. Pei Zi Yun smiled and didn't say anything more. She turned around and left.
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