The eldest prince smiled slightly, but secretly sighed: Yes! Naturally, people flock to the things that the emperor rewards! Especially for the queen who has little favor from the emperor, she is willing to do anything in order to get one favor from the emperor!
Putting away his thoughts, the eldest prince smiled at Yuexiu and hugged his fists: "My father is coming today, and my mother will be very busy. How about this, I will greet my mother outside the door, and ask my aunt to make it convenient for her."
!」
Seeing what he said, Yuexiu didn't dare to refuse, so she had no choice but to say, "Your Highness, please!"
The eldest prince walked to the door, bowed through the door curtain, and said loudly: "Mother, my son and I have come to say hello!"
After a long time, a dignified and majestic voice came from inside: "Is it Zhen'er? Why are you entering the palace to pay your respects at such a late hour today?"
The eldest prince replied respectfully: "After returning to my mother, the child came in the morning, but Aunt Yuexiu said that Liu Shangshu was here. I didn't want to disturb the child, so I left first! I waited until evening and then came to the palace to pay my respects to you!"
The eldest prince deliberately said these false and true words just to test the queen's attitude. To see if she would hear, he was panicked when he ran into her secret conversation with Liu Bingwen.
But the queen's calm voice came slowly: "Since you are all here, why don't you come in and meet Liu Shangshu and have a chat!" The queen was also testing to see if the eldest prince had heard anything.
The eldest prince said calmly: "My mother and her family haven't seen each other for a long time. So I don't dare to disturb you to chat about everyday things." He deliberately emphasized the words "Talk about everyday things."
Then I heard the queen say calmly: "During the day...you have been waiting for a long time, right?"
This is still a kind of trial.
The eldest prince still replied respectfully: "Aunt Yuexiu said that Liu Shangshu had just arrived, and she didn't know when she would be able to finish her speech, so the child went to pay his respects to his father!"
The queen's tone softened slightly: "Actually, he sat for a while and then left..."
I don't know if she is explaining or defending.
The eldest prince changed the topic and asked, "I see that everyone is very busy today, but my father is coming tonight?"
There was a hint of joy in the Queen's voice: "Well. The Holy Emperor has just sent someone to communicate with you. He will come over in the evening and have dinner with me!"
There was a trace of pain in the eyes of the eldest prince, but he still smiled and said: "In that case, I will take my leave now and come back tomorrow to pay my respects to the queen!"
"Wait a minute!" The people in the room suddenly stopped him: "Zhen'er, you are not young anymore. When your father was as old as you, he was already married! It was your father who should have arranged the marriage for you, but
He was too busy and forgot about this matter. Why don't I talk to him tonight and get you married as soon as possible so that you can go to your own land to start a family and start a business as soon as possible. What do you think?"
The eldest prince's face was heavy, and his heart was even heavier: He knew very well whether his father was busy or not! It wasn't that he didn't have time to marry him, it was that he didn't want to marry him at all!
His father treated him just like he treated his uncle King Yi:
They didn't want to, so they found a random girl to get married, thus losing the royal family's dignity.
But they couldn't easily let them marry a daughter of an official and have someone to rely on! So, they simply pretended to be confused and put this matter aside!
As for the queen, she used to understand the emperor's thoughts and didn't dare to disobey him easily. But now she is eager to get rid of her and doesn't care about so much!
Thinking of this, the eldest prince felt infinitely sad!
Although he was sad, the eldest prince still said respectfully: "My son's affairs... are all decided by my mother!"
The queen seemed very satisfied with the answer, and there was a smile on her face: "Zhen'er, although I am not your biological mother, I have raised you for twenty years and have a deep affection for you. Naturally, I hope that everything is well for you!"
You have always been well-behaved, sensible, and very obedient, so I and your father are very satisfied with you! After you go to the fief, you must be cautious and don't cause any trouble. Do you understand?"
The eldest prince lifted up his brocade robe, knelt down upright, and bowed to the person inside the door: "My son, I will obey your mother's teachings! In the future, if your child cannot be with me, please take care of me!"
at this time,
Tears welled up in his eyes, and he sighed secretly:
In this life, the relationship between mother and son is over! I bow to you three more times to thank you for your twenty years of upbringing! After three bows, we have severed all ties and we will no longer be at your mercy!
I will definitely get the future kingdom in person! But if I ascend the throne, you and Liu Bingwen will not have a place in this credit book!
With that said, he bowed solemnly twice more before slowly getting up.
Immediately, he slowly took a few steps back, raised his head and took another look at the palace that had grown from small to large. Then he turned around and left without looking back.
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The sky is low, the clouds are gone, and the world is filled with cold air. The knife-like autumn wind blows at pedestrians on the road, making people shrink their necks to resist the slight cold.
But the cold weather couldn't withstand the ice and snow in the eldest prince's heart at this moment.
The cold wind blew across his face, and his cheeks were red and chapped, but he didn't notice it at all, only feeling that his legs were unusually heavy.
Where should he go? Where can he go? Now, who cares whether he lives or lives?
"Your Highness, where are you going in such a cold weather?" A high-pitched voice sounded in the cold wind.
The eldest prince stopped slowly, turned around slowly, and saw Eunuch Shuangxi, who was dressed in pink robes, with pink makeup and a big head and a fat body, bowing to him with a face full of joy.
The eldest prince asked indifferently: "It's such a cold day, where are Eunuch Shuangxi going?"
Eunuch Shuangxi smiled and said, "Hey, Your Highness, you forgot! Today I am going to the Queen! The Emperor will go there later tonight, so I have to trouble the Queen to wait a little longer."
The eldest prince pondered for a moment, then took out a piece of crystal-clear mutton-fat jade and placed it in his hand.
Eunuch Shuangxi was stunned and laughed in a low voice: "This is too expensive, this old slave can't afford it!"
The eldest prince smiled slightly and said in a low voice: "I heard that my father-in-law has been very busy recently, and the concubines in each palace are trying to find ways to please you. I just hope that you can take your father to stay with them."
Eunuch Shuangxi smiled awkwardly, but could not hide his amusement: "Hey! There is nothing I can do about it, old slave! Ever since that Taoist priest entered the palace, the ladies in each palace have become more active!"
The eldest prince smiled faintly and clapped his hand: "My father-in-law has also worked hard on this matter. In my opinion, it is better to give this opportunity tonight to other ladies."
Eunuch Shuangxi has been immersed in the palace all his life and has served the emperor for so many years. He has never made any mistakes. Naturally, the old woman is very cunning and versatile.
He had guessed what the eldest prince was thinking from the first word he spoke.
He rolled his eyes and smiled awkwardly: "Your Highness, this is embarrassing this old slave! The emperor comes to see the queen every month. This is the rule of our ancestors, and there is nothing I can do about it!"
The eldest prince forced out a smile and continued to persuade: "Eunuch Shuangxi, the rules cannot be broken, but my mother is getting older now, and she has been feeling uncomfortable recently. Just now, I went to pay her respects, and she kept looking at her.
She was coughing, but she cared about the rules and didn't dare to report it to her father. As a son-in-law, I really couldn't bear it. I hope that my mother can recover from her illness and then serve her father well. Otherwise, if this cough comes to my father,
Isn’t it your fault and mine?”
Eunuch Shuangxi was startled and asked in surprise: "But why didn't I hear that the Queen was unwell when I sent someone to report it just now?"
The eldest prince smiled faintly and asked: "Father-in-law, every woman these days is eager to receive a favor so that she can give birth to a son and a half-daughter. But the queen is already a queen, and there is a son like me. Do you think it is still necessary?"
Are you going to compete for favor?"
Eunuch Shuangxi chuckled and said in a neutral tone: "Your Highness, the Emperor's heirs are few and far between now, and the Empress is also kind-hearted and wants to relieve the Emperor's worries by giving birth to more heirs and spreading the branches of the royal family! Don't worry, no matter how many princes are born,
Your position is unshakable, so why worry?"
Seeing that he still refused to stand on his side, the eldest prince could only find another way.
"Father, everyone in this palace has to do something for themselves.
It’s really understandable that Eunuch Shuangxi is so active in seeking a bright future! However, you have to think carefully about whether those ladies can conceive the dragon heir smoothly, whether they can give birth to the dragon heir smoothly, and whether they can be safe after giving birth.
Growing up, all this is still unknown! Father-in-law, please don’t bet on the wrong thing and miss the opportunity in front of you!”
Eunuch Shuangxi rolled his eyes and understood immediately. He quickly bowed and smiled and said: "What Your Highness said is very reasonable! I know what to do. Since the empress is not feeling well, I will report back to the emperor truthfully and let him go to another empress."
Rest there!"
The eldest prince finally got what he wanted, with the joy of victory on his face, he gave him his hand and said, "Thank you for your kindness, my father-in-law! I will definitely remember what your father-in-law has done for me, and I will repay you in return in the future!"
Eunuch Shuangxi bowed deeply: "Then I would like to thank Your Highness for taking care of me!"
As he spoke, he approached the eldest prince and whispered in a low voice: "Your Highness is actually worrying too much. The Emperor postponed it three times tonight. Even if I don't tell you what he is thinking, Your Highness must understand!"
After saying that, he bowed and sent the eldest prince off proudly.
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The shadow of the moon was sparse, and the pale moonlight shone on the eldest prince's ruthless face, making it even more desolate. He strode on the bluestone road in the palace, and the pleasure of revenge arose in his heart.
Suddenly, a rough voice interrupted his thoughts: "Your Highness, please stay!"
The eldest prince suddenly turned his head and saw Xu Daocheng, dressed in fine clothes, bowing to salute him, with a sly smile on his face.
"Is it you?" When he saw this Taoist priest, he was furious.
If he hadn't suddenly appeared, my current life would not be such a mess.
He walked over in one step, grabbed Xu Daocheng's collar, and shouted angrily: "You stinking Taoist priest, it's all because of you that I'm so unlucky! Are you here to see a joke?"
Xu Daocheng neither hid nor was annoyed, he just smiled and said: "Your Highness, please don't be upset. I know you are in a bad situation, so didn't I take the initiative to come to you?"