Chapter 16

016 Version 3

Don't say.

This character "狗" is written very standardly except that it is ugly.

Qu Watanabe raised his head and asked, "Is it written incorrectly?"

Master Fang choked for a long time and shook his beard, "No." He wrote the word "father" next to it, "It's written like this."

Qu Watanabe suddenly realized something, looking innocent as if he had learned something new. "Oh! So they look so different!"

"Yes, they are obviously not the same at all. How could I remember them wrong?" After saying this, Master Fang seemed to have realized something and his voice suddenly rose. "You can't compare these two!"

Qu Watanabe pretended to understand and nodded.

Master Fang asked him to write a few simple words from the Three Character Classic until he came to a difficult one. Only then did Qu Dubian stop and say that he couldn't do it.

Now there were no typos. Master Fang pondered for a moment and said, "You don't have to learn so fast now. If you can only read but not write, what's the point. Let me leave you some homework. Next time you come, write fifty big characters."

Qu Watanabe: “Yeah.”

If it weren't for the incident in the big kitchen, he would have worried about not having enough ink and paper. But now he doesn't have that problem anymore, as he has enough paper and pens.

Master Fang: "Go back."

Qu Duanbian was silent for a long time.

Master Fang suddenly realized, "Oh, I am leaving too."

After saying this, he hurriedly packed up his things and left the school. How could he have forgotten that the little prince came here secretly, and the people who served him also came to pick him up secretly. If he didn't leave, the little prince couldn't leave either.

As expected, Wen Xiaochun, who was hiding in the dark, saw that Master Fang had also left the school, so he quietly went to the window and opened a crack. After confirming that no one was there, he called out, "Your Highness."

Qu Dubian dragged his cross-body bag to the window, and the master and servant slipped away.

-

Ju'an Hall.

After lunch, Qu Dubian practiced calligraphy by the window for a while.

Only after dinner was over did Yi Twelve quietly leave Ju'an Hall.

After hearing the broadcast, Qu Watanabe looked towards the direction of Ganji Palace with all his thoughts.

Wen Xiaochun: "What is your highness thinking about?"

Qu Watanabe: "I'm thinking about Master Fang."

Even if that old scholar with black beard is not in trouble now, he will be scolded by the emperor in the future.

Wen Xiaochun praised: "Your Highness is really serious about learning."

Qu Watanabe thought about it and felt that he couldn't be so unscrupulous, "Xiaochun, I think I may have done something bad."

Qu Dubian thought back to the concern in Master Fang's eyes when he had pulled him out from under the table just now, and his hesitant comments on what the eldest prince had said - this man had most likely recognized his identity and was just pretending not to know.

It was just because there was no movement from his stepfather that he chose to wait and see.

Of course, it is possible that Master Fang did not recognize him. He said that Master Fang should reveal his existence, but this person still helped him to conceal it.

But Qu Watanabe had no way to remind him directly.

"What bad thing?" Wen Xiaochun frowned.

Qu Duanbian considered what to say, "Hmm..."

Wen Xiaochun: "No matter what bad thing it is, it is the thing that is bad, not the person. Your Highness must have been forced to do it by someone else."

Qu Watanabe: “…”

"What if no one forces me?"

Wen Xiaochun said without hesitation: "Then Your Highness must have his own reasons."

Qu Watanabe asked, "What if I am simply bad and just want to do bad things? Doing bad things makes me happy."

"Anyway, Xiaoyuan and I don't think that what His Highness did was a bad thing," Wen Xiaochun thought seriously, "If that day really comes, then let all those who say that what His Highness did was a bad thing change their words."

Your Highness is a little baby, and babies still need to be stroked gently.

His voice was gentle and soft as he coaxed the child: "This way no one will say that Your Highness did something bad."

Good and bad are defined by people. If Your Highness does not want to do bad things, then just define everything Your Highness does as good things. What's so difficult about that?

Qu Watanabe: “…”

He really felt from the bottom of his heart that Xiaochun's occasional words and actions would reveal a little bit of the sinister villain temperament, even when she was coaxing him now.

But generally speaking, this speech is still quite simple. Even if he is the emperor in this world, he cannot expect everyone to praise him.

Qu Duanbian turned around and asked Ye Xiaoyuan: "Does Ye Banban think Xiaochun is right?"

"What's right or wrong?" Ye Xiaoyuan didn't listen at all and brought a bowl of milk. "Your Highness, drink this and you will sleep well later."

All right.

After Qu Dubian finished drinking the milk that Ye Banban poured for him, he lit a candle for Master Fang through the air.

-

Tutor Fang left a little late today and assigned a bunch of extra homework to the eldest prince. He ignored the other's bitter face and said that he would check it the next day.

After tormenting the students, he strolled out of the palace with his hands behind his back, smiling.

His kindness to Qu Watanabe was not just out of kindness.

During the time of the previous emperor, the northern territories were invaded and Marquis Zhijian sent troops to guard the frontier. However, people in the court were only concerned with wrangling and gobbling up the military rations and pay to enrich themselves.

Although the late emperor was a scoundrel, he was clear-headed and clear-headed when it came to major issues. When he saw that the foundation of his ancestors was going to be ruined in his hands, he was afraid that he would be held accountable by his ancestors after his death. He thought to himself that this was bad and that he couldn't go on like this, otherwise he wouldn't be able to have fun in the future.

He knew who was the officer in charge of the military, who was the officer in charge of the people, and who was the officer in charge of the officials, so he stood up from his gentle embrace, privately found several capable ministers of Fang Hechuan, and began to work together as monarch and his ministers.

The previous emperor dealt with the court, purged a number of obviously corrupt officials, and directly appointed Fang Hechuan as the Minister of War, in charge of military and political affairs.

In the system of the Zhou Dynasty, the Ministry of War issued military orders, and the Five Military Commandery issued military orders. In order to streamline the court process and avoid disputes, Fang Hechuan, who was not yet Fang Taifu at the time, took on the role of the Minister of War and concurrently served as the Chief Inspector of the Five Military Commandery.

He almost held most of the military power of the entire court in his hands.

Although Emperor Chongzhao cursed his father to pieces after taking over the mess, he still admired him for this matter.

After all, not everyone has the courage to give away such power. If one is not careful, the Zhou Dynasty may change.

Fang Hechuan simply took on the trust and worked with Marquis Chijian, one in charge of the rear and the other in charge of the front line, to suppress the several attempts to make moves in the northern border.

The friendship formed by our common fight against the enemy at that time was far better than that of ordinary colleagues. We had a lot of pleasant conversations when we met later and we still keep in touch occasionally.

After the major event was settled, Fang Hechuan's personal prestige in the court reached a peak. He decisively resigned from the post of the Five Military Commandery. A few years later, he disappeared from the court for three years due to his mother's death. After he came back, he only took an idle job on his own initiative. Only then did his influence slowly recover to a level that the emperor would not be afraid of.

Later, when Emperor Chongzhao ascended the throne, Fang Hechuan was given the title of Taifu, a first-rank official. Although he had the responsibility of assisting the emperor in governing the country, it was actually just a nominal position, and he was temporarily responsible for teaching the princes knowledge.

When Concubine Yun was pregnant with the Seventh Prince, his old friend Marquis Chijian wrote to him from time to time to greet him, and his words were full of joy. Unexpectedly, that incident happened later.

His old friend asked him to pay more attention to his grandson if he had the chance, after all, he was the only bloodline left by his only daughter.

Naturally, he had no reason to refuse such a request, but Ju'an Hall was where princesses of all generations lived and was part of the harem. As an outsider, he had no chance to enter.

Now, by chance, I have run into my old friend's grandson, so of course I have to take care of him.

Before he had walked halfway, he heard a eunuch jogging behind him, "Master Fang! Master Fang!"

Master Fang asked curiously, "What's the matter? Hey, you are the eunuch beside His Majesty."

"Thank you for your concern," said Bao Gonggong. He served in the Purple Palace, occasionally taking over for Yu Gonggong, so the ministers who often served in the imperial court were naturally familiar with him.

"Fortunately, my lord, you walked slowly. His Majesty wants to see you."

"Oh oh, let's go then."

Taifu Fang thought that His Majesty wanted to ask about the princes' knowledge, so he followed Eunuch Bao and didn't think much about it. But when they were almost at the Purple Palace, Eunuch Bao suddenly stopped and spoke in a low voice.

"Your Majesty is in a bad mood, please be careful."

Master Fang nodded.

"Thank you, father-in-law."

No silver was inserted.

Even if he stuffed it into the imperial court, the eunuchs would not accept it.

As Fang Taifu lifted his skirt and stepped inside, he wondered who was so blind as to offend the petty-minded Emperor.

He saluted: "Your Majesty, may you be well."

Emperor Chongzhao glanced at him and said indifferently, "Are you having fun playing with my son?"

Fang Taifu raised his face with a puzzled expression: "Your Majesty! I have always taught the princes seriously and never slacked off for a moment. Especially the eldest prince, as the oldest among the princes, I have assigned him a lot of extra homework today."

"Humph!" Emperor Chongzhao's face darkened, "You still have the nerve to talk about schoolwork."

He was so disappointed with the old man: "You just didn't give enough instructions!" The eldest prince was such a bastard that he said such nonsense!

Taifu Fang: "..."

He silently swallowed the words "I will keep less in the future", coughed lightly, and said dignifiedly: "Your Majesty is right."

"You haven't answered me yet. Are you having fun playing with my son?"

Fang Taifu shouted: "This old minister is wronged——"

"I mean, are you happy crawling under the table with my son?"

Master Fang stopped howling, and the air fell into an awkward silence.

The two looked at each other in silence, and Emperor Chongzhao looked at the old man's face and suddenly a shy smile appeared on his face.

"Oh, so you know it."

Emperor Chongzhao calmed himself down: "You... you were once my teacher. When my father left you to me to assist in the administration, he said that you were dignified and steady. Taifu, how old are you now? Steady? How can my father have the nerve to say these two words? I think he was blind when he was young--"

The last few words were not spoken, but everyone knew that they were not good words. Master Fang was pretending to be deaf, with his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart.

Emperor Chongzhao drank a sip of cold tea and calmed himself down. "Xiaoqi is a prince after all. How can a prince go under the table to study? If he wants to learn, can I stop him? After he turns three... he can go anywhere in the palace. And how old is he now? How much can he learn?"

"I was waiting for you to tell me. Now it seems that if I hadn't discovered it, you would have kept it a secret forever."

"Squatting under the table in such a cold weather is just nonsense."

Fang Taifu suddenly sighed: "You have never met the Seventh Prince. Although the child is young, he is very smart. He may not understand what others say. Over time, there is no guarantee that the Prince will not have the thought of 'Father hates me' in his heart."

"Little kids always have their own way of doing things. Your Majesty, why do you think the little prince would rather hide under the table to study?"

"It is the nature of children to love playing. The little prince is studying ahead of time so that you can pay more attention to him."

He said solemnly: "Your Majesty, do you know that the first word that the little prince learned to write in front of me was 'father'."

It would have been better if Master Fang hadn't said anything, but once he said it, it was simply adding fuel to the fire.

The anger that had been gradually fading away in Emperor Chong Zhao suddenly rose to a peak. He slammed the table three times, almost having a heart attack: "Did he write 'father' or 'dog'?!"

"You know this too?"

Oh no, that's not good.

Master Fang hurriedly stroked his fur, "He must have written 'father' in his heart! Your Highness is still a child, less than three years old. He doesn't know what father and dog are, and he can't even write... Your Majesty, don't be angry. For this kind of thing, it's the heart that counts, not the deeds. From the heart, isn't it a kind of filial piety?"

Filial piety?

Emperor Chongzhao took a deep breath as he watched the old man racking his brains to say nice things to his young son. In just two days, he had been angered twice.

But he couldn't really do anything except get angry.

Are you really going to get into a fuss with a kid like that just because of a wrong word he wrote accidentally?

He experienced the indescribable feeling of suffocation for the first time in a long time.