bookcurios Chapter 283: Sudden Entry into the Palace
Chapter 283: Sudden Entry into the Palace
As summer gradually approached, Shu Jie'er was still relatively fine, but Zhao Fangyu's summer sickness came back.
He didn't want to eat for days and just drank some porridge and rice soup every day. He looked like he was going through a fast to cultivate immortality. Zhou Qinghe was so anxious that he kept running around in the kitchen.
Finally, it was Cui's uncle who prescribed a prescription to relieve the heat, and Zhao Fangyu was able to resume his normal diet.
The weather was getting warmer, and Shu Jie'er was playing in the Hewang Mansion. She almost became the apple of everyone's eye. Surprisingly, the one who loved her the most was Zhou Qinghe.
Because Zhao Fangyu seized Zhou Qinghe's good opportunity, the two of them secretly squatted in the banana garden and stole chestnuts.
Zhou Qinghe was so embarrassed that he wanted to scratch his head. Shu Jie'er and Zhou Qinghe looked at each other and found that the other person had the same guilty expression on their faces as themselves.
Zhou Qinghe was afraid that Zhao Fangyu would punish Shu Jie'er, and was about to take the responsibility himself, but he didn't expect Zhao Fangyu to reach out and confiscate the bag of chestnut kernels from the boss.
Shu Jie'er couldn't hold it in any longer, her little mouth pouted, and her big, round, beautiful eyes were instantly filled with tears.
"If you find it again, use your pocket money to treat me to a meal of sugar-roasted chestnuts at the mansion."
Zhou Qinghe didn't dare to be angry or say anything. He and Shu Jie'er held hands and looked at each other with tears in their eyes.
In the end, Sister Shu never mentioned eating sugar-roasted chestnuts again when she was a child.
After Zhou Qinghe got away, he coaxed Shu Jie'er and turned to enter Zhao Fangyu's yard. Zhao Fangyu was lying on the bed, and Xingzhi was massaging her temples.
"Is there any movement over there, Chunshao?"
Xingzhi's voice was neither too loud nor too soft, and she spoke slowly with awe for Zhao Fangyu: "No flaws have been revealed for the time being. Although she is working alone in the flower room, there are people watching inside and outside. Not to mention verbal messages, even a note can't be passed out."
Zhao Fangyu handed the fan to Shuiying, thinking that the weather was good and just took a nap, he didn't expect Zhou Qinghe to come in.
Xingzhi and Mizuying quickly retreated, and Zhou Qinghe took over Xingzhi's job, massaging Zhao Fangyu.
Zhou Qinghe was used to doing this and didn't feel embarrassed. When he came and heard them talking about Chunshao, he thought Chunshao had some ulterior motives.
"Why not just kill him?"
A maid who is suspected of betraying her master and neglecting her duties, resulting in someone's death, deserves to be beaten to death.
Zhao Fangyu kept Chunshao, and he thought Zhao Fangyu was reluctant to let her go.
Now it seems like I'm fishing again.
Zhao Fangyu fanned himself slowly, "She has been with me for many years, so her eyelids shouldn't be so superficial."
Chunshao even stayed with her longer than Xiangyao. She had seen all kinds of good things in her life, so she would not neglect her duties for some yellow and white things.
Chunshao arrived the earliest and had the longest seniority among the maids. Zhao Fangyu had originally prepared a dowry for each of them, but he did not expect that none of it would be used in the end.
But no matter what, Chunshao must have been no longer on the same page with her. When she was interrogating her, she had shown her some mercy, but Chunshao didn't want it, so she couldn't be blamed for being cruel.
Keeping her hand was to let people down when they came to look for her so as not to give up Chunshao easily.
But after waiting for these days, there was no news from Chunshao at all, as if she was really working peacefully in the greenhouse every day.
Chunshao disguised herself very well in front of her, not at all like what was said outside.
So much so that Zhao Fangyu couldn't figure out when she started to neglect her duties.
I don’t know if it’s a habit I started when Diecui and the others were still here. If it weren’t for the Zhao Fangyun incident, I don’t know how long I would have kept hiding.
Zhou Qinghe couldn't help but feel his heart beating fast when he thought of Chunshao who was suspected to be the owner of the plate and was serving Zhao Fangyu day and night.
"My second brother sent me a message saying that he will not be coming back to celebrate the New Year this year."
It is difficult to travel in Shu, and the round trip takes a lot of time. In order to avoid any mistakes, I simply decided not to come back.
"But my second brother has prepared a lot of things for you and my eldest sister. The letter said that he had set out a few days ago. I think it will be delivered in these days."
"It's only the beginning of summer, why are we talking about the New Year?"
"Won't that thing arrive this month?"
Zhou Qinghe recalled a letter and said, "Almost. The letter said that if there is no delay on the way, it will arrive this month."
Zhao Fangyu hummed in surprise, but Zhao Zhirun thought that this was not something that had only happened today, and the whole family was surprised, but it only lasted for a moment.
Zhao Fangyu's sleepiness gradually faded away. Zhou Qinghe gently pressed her temples for a while, then lay down on the Arhat bed with her to take a nap.
The weather was hot, and there were a few trees planted in the yard, so there was still a slight cool breeze. There were fruits and vegetables that had been rinsed with well water on the table. Zhao Fangyu picked up one and handed it to Zhou Qinghe as a reward for him.
"All the people from Toad Mountain have gathered together, so we can start the work in the next few days. However, we still need a blueprint to determine how deep and how big the underground palace should be dug."
The drawing was drawn by Zhao Fangyu himself, and it was somewhat unprofessional, but the values were marked on the sides, so someone who knew the subject could see it and draw a new drawing.
Zhao Fangyu rested his head on Zhou Qinghe's legs and was too lazy to move. Zhou Qinghe enjoyed it very much and nodded to everything Zhao Fangyu said.
The matter of Nanshao, like the grain route to the outside world, is to proceed step by step. The most urgent task at home is to gain the support of many aristocratic families as soon as possible.
Zhao Fangyu has made a lot of elegant little things these days, and she will send them out at the end of summer as a stepping stone to her success.
Her people discovered a kind of rice that could be harvested three times a year in a place in Pingzhou. Now the rice seeds have been introduced to the south of the Yangtze River and are being planted on Zhao Fangyu's farm.
At the latest, the results will be known by the end of the year.
It’s a pity that the seeds were discovered too late, otherwise they could have been a great help for the birthday party in autumn.
"Have you taken your medicine today?"
Zhou Qinghe watched Zhao Fangyu speak for a while, her tender red lips opening and closing. His mind was on Zhao Fangyu's lips, and he was often distracted.
But these were not important things, and Zhao Fangyu did not need his answer. These were things she had already thought of, and she would just inform him out of courtesy and then send someone to do it.
Zhou Qinghe even liked this feeling a little. He liked watching Zhao Fangyu lying on him and talking about the future bit by bit.
As a result, the warmth between the two did not last long, and an urgent decree came from the palace, summoning Zhou Qinghe to the palace.
After hearing the news, Zhao Fangyu and Zhou Qinghe looked at each other and felt something was wrong.
The relationship between the emperor and Zhou Qinghe has long been hostile.
Why would I think of Zhou Qinghe for no reason?
There was something wrong with this matter no matter how you looked at it, and it even gave off a hint of weirdness.
Zhou Qinghe stood up, tidied his appearance a little, told Zhao Fangyu not to worry before leaving, and followed the eunuch who came to convey the imperial edict into the palace.
The eunuch who came to deliver the imperial eunuch was Xiao Tan, who had delivered charcoal to Zhao Fangyu together with Xiao Quanzi. Xingzhi stuffed his purse with it.
Before the heavy purse was loosened in Xiao Tan's sleeve pocket, Xiao Tan said that there was nothing big happening in the capital, but His Majesty missed His Royal Highness the Crane King, so he suddenly issued an edict.
Not only Zhou Qinghe didn't believe this, even the dogs in the Hewang Mansion wouldn't believe it.
Zhao Fangyu suddenly called Zhou Qinghe, handed him a bottle of heart-protecting pills, and then watched the man leave.
·
Inside the palace, the emperor did not meet Zhou Qinghe in the imperial study.
Xiao Tanzi brought Zhou Qinghe all the way into the Yanyun Palace. When he saw his mother hugging the emperor's arm and acting coquettishly, his heart seemed to be soaked in boiling water.
Concubine Li wore an apricot pink dress with large sleeves and a lot of fresh flowers in her hair. She looked like a little girl, shaking the emperor's bright yellow sleeves.
The emperor was wearing casual clothes, and judging from the style, it seemed to be a style from earlier years.
Zhou Qinghe felt as if all the tendons and veins in his body were blocked, and he felt uncomfortable all over.
He forced himself to remain calm and walked before the emperor, bowing to him and Concubine Li.
Zhou Qinghe was also wearing casual clothes. The emperor could tell at a glance that Zhou Qinghe's clothes were all made of good material.
Her clothes and accessories were all taken care of by someone, and she was no longer as unrestrained as she was before marriage.
"You...are doing well."
The emperor's face darkened. Zhou Qinghe had known for years that the emperor would not invest any affection in him, so he was not surprised by the emperor's slightly sarcastic words.
"I am the Emperor's child, so naturally I am not living a bad life."
The emperor sneered, turned his head, picked up the ribbon that the palace concubine used to tease the cat slave, tied a flower on it, and waved it in front of Concubine Li.
Concubine Li couldn't tell the good from the bad, and she subconsciously reached out her skinny hands to grab them, but the flowers were instantly moved elsewhere by the emperor shaking the stick.
Concubine Li wanted to chase him, but was hugged by Zhou Qinghe and trapped in place.
Zhou Qinghe held Concubine Li's hand tightly to prevent her from being humiliated like a cat or a dog.
She was not smart and could not tell whether the emperor wanted to play with her or wanted to humiliate and despise her, but she knew.
As a child, he couldn't bear to see his mother being insulted like this.
Before the accident happened to my mother, she was a very good and decent person. If she regained consciousness one day and knew that she had been humiliated in this way, how could she feel at ease?
"Mother, this is not a crime."
The emperor stared at Zhou Qinghe with his unclear eyes, half smiling, for a while, then said it was boring and threw the stick to the ground.
"Did you do what happened in Chenzhou?"
Zhou Qinghe's pupils suddenly widened, and his whole body seemed like some kind of mechanical puppet. He raised his head little by little, and as if invisible, one could hear the clicking sound between his bones, like the movement of a puppet.
It is true that one does not visit the Sanbao Palace for no reason. If it was not related to the Third Prince, how could his good father think of him and Suyun Palace?
Zhou Qinghe let go of Concubine Li, who immediately broke free, picked up the wooden stick on the ground and handed it to the emperor with a pleading look.
Zhou Qinghe wished he could be isolated and indifferent, which would be better than being like this, where he could only watch his mother fawning over the emperor.
"If Father has already given false testimony, just show it directly."
It all depends on whether people in the world believe it or not, whether they believe that his extremely absurd past in his early years was a way of keeping a low profile.
Who has been hiding his talents under a low profile since the age of three or five?
He is only in his early twenties, but he has been keeping a low profile for twenty years and has not yet made any progress. Whether he has been mediocre or keeping a low profile, others have their own judgment.
Even if Zhou Qinghe was used to take the blame, it could fool the people of the world, but could it fool the officials in the court?
Everyone in the court knew that the emperor was biased and that he intended the third prince to inherit the throne.
"In short, to me, you are your Majesty first, and then my father."
"Your Majesty, you have raised me. I am afraid you have already thought about how I will die in the future."
Zhou Qinghe found it boring, as if everything had returned to the time when they had argued in the Imperial Ancestral Temple.
But he was unwilling to do so.
He has his mother and Zhao Fangyu, he doesn't want to die.
"Your Majesty knows the truth of this matter better than me. I have never had any real power in the court over the years. How could I deceive the officials and trap the people of Chenzhou to death in the city?"
"Even if my princess's biological sister was beaten to death by a merchant, she would go to Jingzhao Yin to seek justice. If I were really capable, how could all this have happened?"
"Even if he is a supporter, who would support a prince who can't even take care of himself?"
Zhou Qinghe uncovered the scars of the past bit by bit.
He couldn't bear the pain himself, he had to let the emperor see how powerless he was.
He was so powerless that he could not do such a big thing. Anyone with a discerning eye could understand how absurd it was for the princess to bring her sister to court when her sister was beaten to death by her husband's family.
"The former Minister of Revenue, Zhao Minshan, never submitted to my third brother. Later, when the new Minister of Revenue was taking the imperial examination and entering the government, my third brother visited him many times."
"Zhao Minshan's crime is not so serious. After investigating the truth, it is found that he is indeed guilty of negligence. But is it because of his dereliction of duty? Or is it because he is the son of Yue's family that he cannot enter the court?"
The emperor pushed Concubine Li away. Concubine Li was thin to begin with, and was pushed far away. If the palace maid had not protected her quickly, her head would have hit the edge of the flower bed, and she would have been bleeding.
The emperor was furious. He walked towards Zhou Qinghe in two or three steps and slapped him. The crisp sound echoed throughout the courtyard.
"How dare you blame me?"
The emperor looked unfriendly and glared at him, which made Zhou Qinghe feel extremely ridiculous.
The emperor probably felt that one slap was not enough to express his anger, so he slapped Zhou Qinghe twice with his backhand.
The cheeks, which had been carefully cared for in the past, were now exceptionally delicate, quickly becoming red and swollen, leaving clear handprints.
Zhou Qinghe's mouth was filled with a fishy smell and blood, but he swallowed it all.
"How does your Majesty want me to die? Here, or expelled from the capital?"
"I have never experienced the feeling of being held in my father's arms in my life, so naturally no one has taught me how to behave in the world."
"In my life, I have never done anything great that would benefit the country or the people, but I also don't want to be a traitor or a villain who bullies the people."
"My third brother has such a character. He is already past the age of not knowing right from wrong. Father is determined to clear my third brother of all charges. I have nothing to say. But I don't want to see the people suffer in the future."
"Life is but one death. Father, how your son wants you to die is beyond your control."
"But after all, this body belongs to me, so I will listen to you for once."
The emperor was seldom disobeyed like this. He hated Zhou Qinghe's self-righteous attitude the most. He had been treated like a pig or a dog since he was a child, so where did he get such pride?
He is his father, he is the emperor!
Why shouldn't he be obedient? Why do you dare to resent him?
Thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all grace from the emperor. If he wants to give them, Zhou Qinghe deserves to suffer them!
"In the beginning, I shouldn't have given Zhao to you."
If the emperor had known that Zhao could take over Li Shuqing's layout in the capital and that the Li family valued him so much, he would never have given Zhao Fangyu to Zhou Qinghe.
Zhou Qinghe suddenly raised his head: "When the emperor gave her to me, wasn't it his intention to humiliate me by using her status as the daughter of a criminal and a palace maid?"
Did the emperor really think that Zhao Fangyu was a good tea-maker, and that since her father was convicted and dismissed from his post, she, as a female official, was qualified to be the princess, or did he think that he was only worthy of a woman of such a background?