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◎The Imperial Brothers Who Got into Trouble◎

The little princess said that she came to pay her respects to Prime Minister Yan, so after she sat down, she naturally had to stare at Prime Minister Yan. Therefore, Qingyang first looked at the prime minister's official hat on Yan Xizheng's head, then his wrinkled forehead, his dull and yellow face, his tightly pursed lips, his beard that was about a palm's length, and finally his right hand with a black mole at the base of his little finger holding the pen.

When the little princess noticed the mole, the hand seemed to move back.

It was pointless to just stare at his hands, so Qingyang looked up at Yan Xizheng's purple official robe, shoulders, and neck...

After looking around three or four times, less than half a cup of tea had passed, Yan Xizheng suddenly put down his pen and frowned at the little princess. "I'm not used to being stared at like this. Your insistence on sitting here is deliberately hindering my official duties. I think when the Emperor bestowed upon her the plaque, he must have instructed her not to disturb me."

Qingyang: "My father ordered me not to make trouble. Does that count as making trouble if I just sit there quietly?"

Yan Xizheng: "You have disturbed my mind, so of course you are causing trouble."

Qingyang: "Alright, then, Minister Yan, please report me to the Emperor. The Emperor clearly distinguishes between public and private matters, and will definitely stand up for Minister Yan. Although I will be punished by the Emperor, I think it's worth it for looking at Minister Yan a few more times."

A short, low laugh suddenly came from behind the desk of the right prime minister opposite.

The little princess didn't look back. Yan Xizheng glared at Dai Lun, who was holding up the memorial to his face. Then, seeing the little princess's infuriating expression, showing no fear of his complaint to the emperor, Yan Xizheng felt a real headache. Of course, he couldn't complain to the emperor. The emperor was busy with countless affairs, and the prime minister was supposed to share his worries. Wouldn't it make him, the left prime minister, seem incompetent if he bothered the emperor with such a trivial matter?

"What does the princess want to do to make her leave?" Yan Xizheng decided to solve the matter himself, but if the little princess asked him to apologize for the incident in Tingquan Palace, that would be absolutely impossible.

Qingyang certainly didn't want to sit here doing nothing all morning. After a moment's thought, he said, "The other day, Zhenzhen and I were picking wildflowers on the grassland, and we only found five species in total. If Xiang Yan can personally find nine blooming wildflowers for me before nightfall today, I promise not to look at you like this again."

It was just picking wild flowers, and although it was a bit silly, it didn't sound difficult, so Yan Xizheng agreed immediately.

The little princess went to play somewhere else.

At dusk, Yan Xizheng returned to the courtyard of his official residence. It was a privilege to accompany the emperor to the palace, so Yan Xizheng brought his wife and cute granddaughter with him. His son was a sixth-rank official in Beijing and was not among the officials accompanying the emperor. The grandson was only five years old, and bringing him along would only cause trouble for the old couple.

"grandfather!"

"Why!"

Yan Xizheng hugged his granddaughter, who was smiling like a flower, and said with relief: "You miss grandpa so much?"

His granddaughter had never welcomed him so warmly before.

Yan Zhenzhen looked up, her little face full of anticipation: "Princess Qingyang said that Grandpa will take us to the grassland to pick wild flowers after dinner. She also said that Grandpa can find nine kinds. Grandpa, hurry up and eat, dinner is ready!"

Yan Xizheng: “…”

Although he was disappointed, he could not go back on his word. He forced a smile and had dinner with his wife and granddaughter, then left with his granddaughter under his wife's gloating gaze.

Qingyang asked his third brother to come watch the show. The brother and sister took Yan Zhenzhen to pick wild flowers. Since there was no goal to be completed, they talked and laughed as if it was just a game. Yan Xizheng was in a different mood. There were not enough nine kinds of wild flowers nearby, so Yan Xizheng had to walk farther away. When the sun was about to set, the old prime minister, who was nearly sixty years old, had actually walked a mile and was about to go to the nearby mountains.

Qin Ren looked up and whispered to his sister, "Isn't the ninth type too difficult? Don't tire Yan Xiang out."

Qingyang asked Yan Zhenzhen to call the old prime minister back.

Yan Zhenzhen shouted, but the stubborn old prime minister insisted on fulfilling his promise.

Qingyang had no choice but to send his third brother and Fu'an to help, and finally helped the old prime minister collect nine kinds of wild flowers before dark.

"Should I send someone to get a horse?" Looking at the dust on the old prime minister's shoes, Qingyang asked considerately.

Yan Xizheng: "...I am not that old yet. It is getting late. Your Highnesses, please go back quickly. I will also take Zhenzhen with me and take my leave."

After getting permission, Yan Xizheng took his granddaughter away and even carried her on his back while walking.

After seeing this scene, Qingyang was completely relieved.

Emperor Xingwu did not show up, but sent people to keep an eye on the movements on the grassland. Upon learning that Yan Xi had collected nine kinds of wild flowers, Emperor Xingwu smiled and went to the back hall to accompany Concubine Li.

.

Since he only needed to study for three days every ten days in the palace, Qingyang had plenty of time to have fun. Sometimes he would go hiking, boating, and horseback riding with his second and third brothers, sometimes he would play with the girls who accompanied him, such as Yan Zhenzhen, sometimes he would accompany his mother, the imperial concubine, and the wives of officials to appreciate flowers, and sometimes he would bring his badge and call Fan Zhong to inspect the five military camps stationed outside the Western Garden.

In mid-June, it started raining early in the morning. Qingyang stayed with his mother in the morning. After a break, he went to look for his third brother, but was told by the eunuch there that his third brother had gone to the official residence to play with his second brother.

There were several palace walls between the East Palace in the capital and the West Palace where the two concubines lived, so a companion of Zhang Su's height could still live in the palace of his third brother. The inner palace in the west courtyard was not so spacious, so Zhang Su and Yuan Chongli, both companions, lived in the official residence of the previous dynasty.

Since it was far away, Qingyang didn't make the trip and went back to his yard to practice calligraphy.

After practicing calligraphy and reading for about an hour, just as Qingyang was about to walk to the window to enjoy the rain and relax his eyes, Jie Yu walked in with an uneasy look on his face. "Your Highness, the Emperor's men just came and took away the palace servants from the courtyards of the Second and Third Princes. It seems that the two princes were gambling with others while fighting crickets in the official residence, and the Emperor caught them red-handed."

Qingyang: “…”

.

Emperor Xingwu lived in the Hanyuan Hall of the temporary palace. The palace maids around the two princes were interrogated by his capable eunuchs. Those who were qualified to be interrogated by Emperor Xingwu himself were all kneeling outside the main door of the Hanyuan Hall, with their heads lowered, and their bodies were soaked by the drizzling rain.

Kneeling in the front row were Qin Bing and Qin Ren, followed by Yuan Chongli and Zhang Su, and in the third row were several other sons of high-ranking officials and nobles who were under the age of 20 and had not yet taken up official positions and had participated in the gambling.

Emperor Xingwu sat under the eaves of the corridor, with seven or eight small bamboo cages, some round and some square, in front of him. From time to time, the chirping of crickets could be heard from inside.

"Tell me, who started it?"

Emperor Xingwu casually kicked over a bamboo cage, watched it roll between the second and third sons, and asked in a deep voice.

Qin Ren shuddered, his head drooping even lower. Qin Bing, without moving his head, glanced back quietly, gritted his teeth and said, "Father, after I left the palace, I saw people fighting crickets on the street, so I bought a few and brought them to the palace, instigating them to catch crickets too to keep me company."

Emperor Xingwu kicked away another bamboo cage, and this time it rolled between Zhang Su and Yuan Chongli in the second row.

Yuan Chongli, who was kneeling on the ground, had his entire upper body shaking, making Zhang Su, who was also kneeling, look as steady as a rock.

Emperor Xingwu glanced at Zhang Su and asked the third brother, "Why didn't you ask Zhang Su to accompany you to the official residence?"

Qin Ren opened his mouth, and the rain that had been rolling down his face flowed in first. He didn't dare to spit it out, so he instinctively swallowed it. Then he said regretfully, "I know Zhang Suban is very polite, so I didn't dare tell him from the beginning. I always played behind his back, otherwise he would definitely stop me..."

Emperor Xingwu asked: "How many times have you played with him without his knowledge? And where did you find the crickets?"

Qin Ren: "...three times. The first cricket was given to me by my second brother. After that one died, I went to the grassland and caught two big ones myself. Zhang Su was not present when I caught them."

Emperor Xingwu: "Zhang Su, is what the Third Prince said true?"

Zhang Su: "I really don't know about this." He only knew that Yuan Chongli raised crickets and occasionally asked the second prince to come over to play, but Zhang Su had no clue when the third prince secretly joined in.

Emperor Xingwu ordered Zhang Su to stand under the eaves of the corridor, but Zhang Su insisted on kneeling: "As the Third Prince's companion, I failed to dissuade him in time and I shall be punished."

Emperor Xingwu snorted, his gaze lingering on the trembling Yuan Chongli for a moment before he addressed the crowd, "I'll send someone to investigate the origins of the Second Prince's first crickets. But I'm giving you a chance. As long as you tell the truth, I won't punish anyone severely. I'll simply consider it a case of a group of young people making a mistake out of play. If your accounts don't align with what I've found, don't blame me for making a fuss. I'll punish you for deceiving the emperor."

When these words came out, even a bold person like Qin Bing panicked. Yuan Chongli burst into tears and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I was bewildered and took the crickets to entertain the Second Prince. I know I was wrong, and I beg Your Majesty to spare my life!"

He had confessed, and Qin Bing could no longer cover up for him. He looked up and pleaded for Yuan Chongli: "Father, Chongli only wanted to please me because he saw that I was bored. If you want to blame someone, blame me. Please forgive him this time."

Emperor Xingwu hadn't been particularly angry at first, but upon hearing this, he grabbed a bamboo cage and smashed it on the second son's head. "Bored? I've given you a mansion, gold and silver, and even arranged for the best teachers in the world to teach you how to read and practice martial arts. How could you possibly have the time to be bored?"

Qin Bing's head was knocked crooked, and the cover of the bamboo cage was loosened. A huge black cricket jumped out and was stepped on by the prince who came to plead for his brothers after hearing the news.

"Father, my second and third brothers are young, so it's inevitable that they will indulge in play for a while. You..."

Meeting his father's cold gaze, Qin Hong's heart trembled. He quickly knelt beside his third brother and dared not say anything more.

Emperor Xingwu: "Second Brother, have you never been invited to such a joyous occasion?"

Qin Hong didn't dare to lie. He glanced in the direction of his second brother and said, "My second brother did invite me, but I have no intention of doing so..."

Emperor Xingwu grabbed another bamboo cage and threw it at the prince: "If you don't want to play, then don't play. But as the eldest brother, knowing that your younger brother is not learning well, why don't you try to stop him?"

Qin Hong had a hard time speaking out his feelings. Qin Bing didn't want his elder brother to be implicated by him, so he said stubbornly, "My elder brother advised me, but I refused to listen. If the emperor wants to punish someone, please punish me alone!"

Emperor Xingwu looked up. The sky was gloomy and raindrops were dripping from the eaves like beads.

These are his three sons. The eldest is cowardly and cannot control his younger brother. The second is tough but cannot distinguish between loyalty and treachery. The third is useless but has the ability to avoid Zhang Su and go gambling!

"As a prince, you have no moral integrity and you gamble with others. You are aware of the palace rules and yet you willfully break them. You will all be punished with three lashes and be confined to study for a month."

"Yuan Chongli, as the second prince's tutor, led him to indulge in pleasure and indulge in idleness. He shall be punished with ten lashes and dismissed from his position as tutor."

"Zhang Su is innocent. The others will be punished with two lashes and confinement for ten days."

【Author’s words】

Completed, the second update will be around 10pm, 100 red envelopes, thank you for waiting for so long [burst crying]