Successfully entering Prince Xing's Mansion seems good, but in fact it is full of dangers.
People know your details. As an enemy of the royal family, how can they trust you and let you meet the only son of King Xing?
If I can give you a place to sleep with a roof over your head and provide you with three meals a day, then I am worthy of you.
This is nerve-wracking!
After some observation, Zhu Hao figured out the current situation. This courtyard was similar to the woodshed or timber warehouse of the palace, and the room he lived in was reserved for the night watchman. Although it was in the palace, it was
It does not belong to the inner house, but is the area transitioning from the inner house to the outer house.
To enter the inner house, you have to pass through a gate or climb over a two-meter-high wall. It is difficult to overcome without being guarded and patrolled.
Zhu Hao thought about it.
What can I do in the inner house?
I'm here as a spy, not an assassin.
Normally, no one comes to the warehouse, and the yard is full of wood and tools. You have to eat with the carpenters and helpers in the east courtyard of the palace.
A group of people from Dongkuaoyuan were led by the "Two Evils".
"Two Evils" is Zhu Hao's nickname.
As their names suggest, they were both very vicious and hated by humans and ghosts. One was named Hou Chun and the other was named Li Shun.
Hou Chun was not a craftsman, but a thorn in the side of the workers. He was related to an official of the Palace Chief Shi Si, and he was used to being arrogant and domineering, often scolding others.
Li Shun is the foreman of the craftsmen, responsible for directing the work of the palace craftsmen. He is unsmiling and arrogant in his behavior. He will deduct wages from others if he does not go well.
Under the two evils there are "two dog legs".
The specific names of the two are not known, but outsiders call them Daxi and Jian Mao Dao... Jian Mao Dao is a local dialect, which means stingy, tricky and mean, and he is Hou Chun's first horse.
When Zhu Hao went to the dining hall for lunch on his first day in the palace, he was targeted by Hou Chun and Li Shun.
Li Shun threw two rice balls into Zhu Hao's bowl with a cold face, while Hou Chun called for the sharp-haired hoe and "carried" Zhu Hao back to the yard.
"... From now on, I will chop wood here carefully. If I dare to come out casually, I will kill you!" Jianmao Dao threatened viciously.
Zhu Hao argued: "What should I do if I eat?"
Jianmao Dao sneered: "I'll tell you to eat before you go. If you don't scream, you won't be able to cross the line even if you starve to death here."
Afternoon passed, night fell, and no one came to ask Zhu Hao to eat when the second watch drum sounded.
Zhu Hao simply left the courtyard by himself, walked through the corridor with high walls on both sides, and entered the gate of the dining hall in the east cross courtyard. He saw a group of people who had finished eating and drinking and were gambling around the open-air stove in the backyard.
Only at this time did they lose sight of Zhu Hao, leaving Zhu Hao to find leftovers to feed himself, and no one paid any attention to him until he barely ate enough and left.
The people who work in the palace are basically recruited locally. They have families and houses. They get a fixed salary and live their lives. They eat, drink and go whoring without money or status. But gambling can be done by one person.
If you have big money, gamble big; if you have small money, gamble small.
The person who was the banker that night was Jian Maoluo. He was shouting and drinking at the gambling table, and he was very powerful.
After leaving the kitchen, Zhu Hao was not in a hurry to go back, and continued walking along the side road towards the inner house. Unexpectedly, after only a few steps forward, someone from the Royal Guards Department on patrol passed by.
"For what?"
A guard came over and asked.
"I... came to the palace as a companion. I reported on the first day and couldn't find my way back to my residence." Zhu Hao bowed and saluted.
The guard pointed to the alleyway behind Zhu Hao: "Just turn back and you'll be there. Don't go near the inner house!"
These guards seemed to know his identity, and their attitudes were vicious and defensive, which gave Zhu Hao a headache.
You can only turn back.
Zhu Hao thought about it for a while. Since Zhu San and Zhu Si were able to escape from the heavily guarded Prince Xing's Mansion to play, there must be a secret channel leading to the inner house and the outer courtyard, and they could easily pass through the two walls.
But he had just arrived at the palace, and it was not easy to figure out the situation. It was still the same problem. There was no point in entering the inner courtyard of the palace alone. The most important thing was to get in touch with Zhu San and Zhu Si quickly so that he could implement the next plan to obtain
The trust of the royal family.
…
…
At this time, the inner courtyard of the palace.
Zhu San and Zhu Si finished their schoolwork for the day and were about to go back to rest in the evening when they saw Yuan Zonggao who was in a hurry.
"Mr. Yuan!"
The two children hurriedly ran to Yuan Zonggao.
When Yuan Zonggao saw the two young masters, he smiled and nodded.
Zhu San asked: "Mr. Yuan, I heard that the companions chosen for us have been found. Why haven't we seen them in the past two days? When will they come?"
"oh!?"
Yuan Zonggao pretended to be surprised, "Didn't you ask the boy from the Lu family to be your companion?"
"He? He's too young... He hasn't even started yet. He doesn't even know a few words... Didn't it mean that the two selected companions are very knowledgeable and about the same age as us?"
Zhu San was well-informed. He had been looking for people to inquire in the past two days, but the instructor and the guards avoided answering, so he could only ask Yuan Zonggao.
Yuan Zonggao smiled.
In fact, not only Zhu Hao, but also the son of Jingzhi County was not summoned to be with the two young princes... You, a magistrate of Fuguo County who had just arrived in the place, immediately fawned over King Xing and even sent your son to the palace as a companion.
, maybe there is some conspiracy behind it...
How could Prince Xing's Mansion rashly summon people into the Prince's Mansion without conducting a thorough investigation?
However, unlike the attitude towards Zhu Hao, Prince Xing's Mansion has not called Mr. Jing to the Prince's Mansion for the time being, so now the only person who really becomes Zhu San and Zhu Si's companion is Lu Bing, who is not familiar with the world.
Yuan Zonggao said: "His Royal Highness Prince Xing is still considering the matter of accompanying reading, so you don't have to worry, you will see it eventually."
After saying that, I stopped bothering with them and went straight away.
…
…
Seeing Yuan Zonggao leaving, Zhu San was very dissatisfied.
At this time, Lu Bing trotted over, holding a Cuju in his hand.
Behind Lu Bing was a boy, one or two years older than Zhu San and Zhu Si. He was the follower that the palace had found for them earlier, and he was almost like a young boy.
"Third sister, let's go play Cuju." Zhu Si just wanted to have fun.
Zhu San waved and called Lu Bing closer and asked: "You said you brought the news out before, and you also said that someone you knew could bring the message to the rabbit seller... What does that person look like?"
Lu Bing's eyes widened. At his age, he still didn't know how to describe the appearance of the people he had seen.
"How do you know him?" Zhu San continued to ask.
Lu Bingdao: "I...I came to take the exam with him. He...is much better than me..."
Zhu San's eyes lit up and he asked: "Do you know his name?"
Lu Bing shook his head.
"Is your name Zhu Hao?" Zhu Si asked.
Lu Bing nodded in surprise and said repeatedly: "Yes, yes, his name is Zhu Hao, I remembered it."
Zhu Sanyi pointed his finger on Lu Bing's forehead and complained: "If you didn't tell me earlier? Wouldn't it be just a message for him? Do you know if he has entered the palace now?"
This stumped Lu Bing.
Zhu Hao's entry into the palace was not a secret to those who wanted to guard against Zhu Hao's spying on intelligence, but how could these little guys in the inner courtyard of the palace know?
"Go back and ask your father. He should know...Okay, let's go play!" Zhu San saw that Lu Bing was too young and it was too difficult to communicate with him, but this did not prevent him from letting Lu Bing do things.
Lu Bing had a father, Dian Zhan, from the Imperial Guards Department, who was a well-informed person who could meet the needs of Zhu San and Zhu Si.
…
…
Zhu Hao's first three days in the palace.
It's calm, nothing happened.
His main task is to chop firewood, but he does not ration it regularly. He goes to eat when it is time to eat. Occasionally he is targeted by people, but after two days, no one cares about him. Even the "two evil" and "two doglegs"
Everyone lost interest in him. There was no fixed supply in the canteen. If there was more, he would eat more, and if there was less, he would eat less. It was not enough for a child to be hungry. After a few days, he could occasionally see meat and fish, which showed that the food in the palace was not bad.
It was unrealistic to want to go to the inner courtyard of the palace. Zhu Hao tried to sneak out of the palace and found it very difficult.
Fortunately, there are still ten days of vacation, and I can go out of the palace to get some fresh air.
The current situation seemed like he was trapped in the palace and couldn't move, but in fact he could only be considered as working here. The palace did not say that he would be trapped here for a long time and would not let him leave.
At night, when everything was dark, Zhu Hao climbed up to the roof and observed the alleyway outside.
One convenience is that the alley outside is the only road leading to the inner courtyard from the southeast of the palace. If he catches a cat on the roof at night, no one will notice that there is a child watching above his head.
Zhu Hao could remember who was walking around, what time he came and went, and there was a windproof tung oil lamp at the end of the alley. Although it could not clearly illuminate the faces of people coming and going, Zhu Hao could roughly distinguish people's physical appearance.
There is an impression in my mind.
Strangely enough, there were still people entering and exiting the warehouse during the day, but at night there was no one there.
It wasn't until Zhu Hao was looking out on the roof on the fourth night after entering the palace that he heard two helpers passing by whispering: "There is a ghost in here, so be careful..."
Haunted?
Zhu Hao stayed for a few days and felt that he ate well and slept soundly. His life was monotonous, but he had time to sort out and think about life. It was rare that he could sum up the gains and losses of his two lives with a calm mind. Who would have thought that he would live in a haunted house?
The next day, Zhu Hao went to ask Old Song, an old carpenter who seemed kind enough and had talked to Zhu Hao before, when he was eating. Only then did he find out that there were maids and guards in the palace who were messing around in the warehouse at night.
He did it, but was discovered. The maid was so ashamed and angry that she hanged herself from the beam inside the next day.
Finally, Lao Song said meaningfully: "You are a boy, your yang energy is strong, you can suppress ghosts and gods, there is no need to be afraid!"
Zhu Hao wanted to yell, "I'm afraid of you big-headed devil."
I've already died once, why am I still afraid that someone has died in the house?
Zhu Hao wanted to ask further which guard was messing around in the palace, but Lao Song kept it secret. It seemed that he knew but didn't want to tell.
The next day, the fifth day of July, according to the rules, he could go home early that morning and could stay at home for one night before returning the next day.
Zhu Hao still went to the roof out of habit.
The weather was hot at the turn of summer and autumn, and it was a good time to go out for some fresh air. As midnight approached, the two men came over secretly and went outside the yard, leaning against the wall to discuss something in a low voice.
Originally, Zhu Hao would not get too close to the alleyway, but seeing the two of them acting sneaky, he naturally wanted to get closer and listen, and immediately climbed carefully to the direction near the courtyard wall.
"...The Marquis said that if this boy stays in the palace, he will be a disaster sooner or later. How about we brothers take the initiative to share the worries of the superiors and give him to..."
When Zhu Hao heard it, the voice seemed familiar.
After thinking about it for a while, I remembered that the speaker was Jianmao Dao, and I don't know who the other one was.