roccoschili Chapter 177 The Prince of Zhenbei Pays Homage to Emperor Jing'an
Chapter 177 The Prince of Zhenbei Pays Homage to Emperor Jing'an
Zhu Yu had heard some rumors and specially brought people to the study in the front yard.
The study in the front courtyard was an important place in the mansion, and a concubine like her was not allowed to enter. She was stopped by a servant as soon as she arrived at the gate.
Shen Shaoheng happened to be passing by and helped her out of the predicament, which allowed her to get to the study without any trouble.
Zhu Yu's most hated person was Madam Shen. Ever since Madam Shen was carried into the mansion in a sedan chair, she had been tormenting Zhu Yu every day under the guise of setting rules.
"Second Master, your mother cares about you the most, and she won't let your reputation be damaged." Zhu Yu said casually, "Unless it's a matter of life and death, she won't care about so much. But then again, that's only human nature."
Shen Shaohuai paused, looking at her with icy eyes: "Is that what you think?"
Zhu Yu's heart skipped a beat, and she said in a trembling voice, "I... my father always said, 'If a man doesn't look out for himself, he'll be punished by heaven and earth.' He sold me to a matchmaker for gambling money. Fortunately, a kind person saved me, so I didn't end up in prostitution."
She clutched her handkerchief tightly and said nervously, "Your mother doesn't care much about her other children, but she values you the most. She shouldn't be like my father, who would disregard his own daughter for his own sake."
Shen Shaohuai did not respond. He thought of how Madam Shen had abandoned her uncle and aunt and even betrayed her father.
Now, in order to save his own life, he completely disregards his reputation.
Who knows, one day she might push him into hell herself?
-
Prince Yu's Mansion.
After bathing and changing his clothes, Prince Yu put on clothes scented with sandalwood and came to the Buddha shrine.
He cast the Buddha statue in pure gold, and every day he would take a soft silk handkerchief and carefully wipe the dust off the statue.
His movements were gentle and meticulous. He wiped the offerings three times before washing his hands, replacing them with fresh ones, and lighting a few sticks of incense to put them in the incense burner.
The scent of sandalwood brought Prince Yu inner peace.
Even if it's only for a moment.
Therefore, he cleans the Buddha statue, changes the offerings, and burns incense every day.
Prince Yu stood before the Buddha for a long time until he heard footsteps outside the door. Then he slowly walked to the door and opened it.
"Your Highness, your informant in the Marquis's residence has sent word," the Grand Chamberlain reported breathlessly. "Madam Shen is preparing to expose Shen Qingtan's true identity. Shen Shaohuai received the news and rushed back to the Marquis's residence, ordering that Madam Shen be locked in the study in the front courtyard, along with those around her."
Prince Yu raised an eyebrow, not at all surprised: "As expected of the same lineage, equally heartless and ungrateful. I just don't know whether Lady Cheng'en died at the hands of Shen Qingtan or at the hands of the son she protected with her life."
Upon hearing this, the Grand Tutor looked up at Prince Yu.
Prince Yu stood at the doorway, dressed in a white robe. The cool evening breeze made his robes flutter, untouched by the filth of the world.
But beneath this refined and aloof exterior lies a heartless and rotten soul.
Prince Yu's eyes were cold and filled with murderous intent: "If you look at me like that again, I will gouge out my own eyes."
The Grand Master's legs went weak, and he knelt on the ground with a thud.
"Your Majesty... Your Highness..."
"roll."
The Grand Master dared not stand up, and instead knelt on the ground, somersaulting and rolling away.
Prince Yu exuded a terrifying aura of ferocity; if it weren't for the fact that the Grand Tutor was still quite adept at using him, he would have ended his life long ago.
He suppressed the raging anger in his heart, wrote several letters, and had his guards send them out.
-
The next day, morning.
Prince Yu stood in the Hall of Supreme Harmony and glanced at the officials.
Several officials lowered their heads slightly when they met Prince Yu's gaze.
Prince Yu calmly withdrew his gaze.
Eunuch Cao raised his voice and said, "If you have something to report, speak up; if not, leave the court."
"Your Majesty, when the war in the northern border was critical, you issued an edict to dispatch the Prince of Zhenbei to the northern border. The first battle was a great victory, which greatly boosted the morale of the soldiers. Since then, they have been even more powerful and have achieved one victory after another."
A minister stepped forward and said, “The Prince of Zhenbei is brave and skilled in battle, and is an invincible general of the Great Zhou. Such a rare talent should be rewarded handsomely by the court to show the imperial favor.”
Emperor Jing'an looked at the Vice Minister of War with some surprise, seemingly not expecting him to speak up for the Prince of Zhenbei.
A thoughtful look flashed in his eyes, but he asked with a calm expression, "Minister Xie, in your opinion, how should I reward the Prince of Zhenbei to show my imperial favor?"
“This…” the Vice Minister of War said again, “If I may be so bold as to say this, Liangzhou is a bitterly cold place. Your Majesty could settle the family of the Prince of Zhenbei in the capital.”
No sooner had he spoken than an official seconded the motion.
"Your Majesty, the families of military generals throughout history have been kept in the capital so that the imperial family can take care of them, allowing the generals to fight with peace of mind."
To put it bluntly, this means that by detaining the Prince of Zhenbei's family in the capital as hostages, the Prince of Zhenbei would not dare to harbor any thoughts of treason.
Emperor Jing'an's expression darkened. If he did that, he would probably be forcing the Prince of Zhenbei to rebel.
When the Prince of Zhenbei was young and impetuous, he dared to challenge the late emperor. Don't expect that the Prince of Zhenbei will become more docile as he gets older.
A stubborn person will always be a stubborn person, even in death.
"Your Majesty, when I served as the Censor in Liangzhou, I was quite familiar with the situation there. The Prince of Zhenbei was strong and brave, skilled in battle, and a loyal and capable general of the court. However, as the saying goes, even heroes have difficulty resisting the charms of a beautiful woman. No matter how tough he was, after marrying, his mind was entirely focused on his wife and children. He only wanted to live a peaceful life and completely disregarded his mission. This led to the outbreak of war in Liangzhou fourteen years ago, when it was almost completely crushed by the iron cavalry of Northern Qi."
Emperor Jing'an's eyes flickered slightly, as if he had discerned some deeper meaning.
He followed up with the question: "Could there be another hidden story behind the war fourteen years ago?"
Prince Yu lowered his eyelids, waiting for the official to tell him that fourteen years ago, the daughter of the Prince of Zhenbei went missing. In order to find his daughter, the Prince of Zhenbei relaxed the border defenses and almost let the Northern Qi break through the city gates.
This leads to the story of the daughter of the Prince of Zhenbei, who left Liangzhou and went to Nanlingzhou to visit relatives.
Seeing that the emperor had taken over the conversation, the official quickly said, "Your Majesty..."
"Your Majesty, news of victory has arrived from the northern border—"
The sound of eunuchs chanting could be heard outside the main hall.
Prince Yu suddenly raised his eyes, a sinister glint flashing in them.
After a short pause, the official finished speaking.
Just at this critical juncture, good news arrived from the North!
At such a critical juncture, officials naturally dared not interrupt.
Prince Yu's face darkened abruptly. He had missed his chance by just a word or two.
Upon hearing of the victory in the northern border war, Emperor Jing'an's gloomy expression finally broke into a smile, and he summoned the soldiers who had delivered the victory report into the main hall.
Steady footsteps echoed from the palace gate, accompanied by gasps of surprise from the officials.
Prince Yu looked up and saw a tall and imposing figure walking steadily towards the front of the palace.