7 007

◎ "The Duke, carry me out of the car."◎

The morning court session on the eighth day of the first lunar month was a temporary addition when Emperor Xingwu first returned to the capital. Regular court sessions were only held on the third, sixth, and ninth days of each month.

On the ninth day of the sixth lunar month in the fourth year of Xingwu's reign, Emperor Xingwu issued an edict in Taiji Hall, appointing his eldest son Qin Hong as the crown prince.

When the imperial edict reached the harem, Concubine Li suddenly felt relieved. Sometimes she was afraid that Emperor Xingwu would dote on her too much and suddenly choose the third son as the crown prince, making the three of them hated by both the imperial concubine and the eldest prince. Her children were still young, and she was alone in the capital. How could she fight against the meritorious families behind the imperial concubine and the eldest prince?

"Mother, what does it mean to be a prince?"

The little princess's problem arises again.

Concubine Li: "The Crown Prince is the heir to a dynasty, the next emperor after Father. Lin'er, you must call me Crown Prince from now on. Remember that?"

Qingyang remembered and asked, "But father is the emperor. My eldest brother is the emperor. Where is father?"

Concubine Li's eyes suddenly sore. She hugged her daughter and said, "Lin'er will understand when she grows up. Don't ask now. Father will be sad if he hears about it, and the Crown Prince will be sad too."

Emperor Xingwu was seventeen years older than her, so he would most likely go ahead of her.

Qingyang agreed in a daze.

Concubine Li took her daughter to the Imperial Concubine's Changchun Palace. Being crowned the crown prince was a happy event, and she wanted to express her joy to the Imperial Concubine.

The three princes were still in the Taiji Hall, and the imperial concubine was chatting and laughing with Princess Yongkang.

The imperial concubine was well-read. Her father had arranged a marriage for her because he admired Emperor Xingwu's appearance and talent. Firstly, children's marriage should be decided by their parents. Secondly, the imperial concubine saw that Emperor Xingwu did have the demeanor of a king. So she willingly became Emperor Xingwu's concubine, managing his household and raising his children.

After Emperor Xingwu ascended the throne, the imperial concubine immediately thought of the issue of appointing a crown prince. As an imperial concubine, she was in charge of the harem, and her father was the prime minister. In the eyes of Emperor Xingwu, the ministers, and the common people who were watching the fun, she seemed to hope that her second prince could inherit the throne. This common suspicion in the world became a fire under the fire of the mother and son.

In fact, when reading history, the imperial concubine agreed with the law of succession of "establishing the legitimate heir based on age rather than virtue, establishing the son based on nobility rather than age", because only by establishing this rule early on, would later ministers regard the crown prince as the next emperor and be loyal to him, and would prevent other princes from using any means, including winning over followers, to build momentum for them in order to gain the reputation of being "virtuous".

In the past three years, Emperor Xingwu never asked her for her opinion on the succession of the crown prince, and the imperial concubine had no chance to bring up the matter. Now that the eldest prince has become the crown prince, she only needs to continue to be a law-abiding imperial concubine and always remind the second prince to respect the crown prince, and she can avoid the right and wrong outside the palace.

The joy of the imperial concubine was similar to that of the Li concubine. Yongkang's joy was simply because he was happy for his younger brother from the bottom of his heart.

The year her grandmother passed away, her younger brother was just five years old and Yongkang was already eight years old. Before she passed away, her grandmother talked to her alone for a long time, saying that the two siblings were pitiful because they lost their mother so early, and that although the imperial concubine seemed to be very kind to them, she must be more partial to the second brother, and that when their father really sat on the throne, the imperial concubine would definitely fight for the second brother.

The grandmother said that her brother was young and ignorant, and told her not to be fooled by the imperial concubine's appearance. She told her as an elder sister that she must keep a close eye on her brother and protect him. If her brother became stupid because of the imperial concubine, she must remember to fight for the position of crown prince for him.

Yongkang kept these words firmly in her heart and never relaxed for a moment in the past nine years. Now that she was about to leave the palace, she could no longer guard her brother closely. At this time, her father appointed her brother as the crown prince, which was equivalent to giving Yongkang a reassurance and at the same time eliminating the sour thoughts in her heart that "the emperor has a new concubine and has forgotten his old wife, and only favors his second, third and younger brothers."

Qingyang had always thought that the elder sister was a bit fierce, with more stern faces than smiles. But today, when she came in, she saw the elder sister smiling brightly, with curved eyes and a few white teeth showing. The last time the elder sister smiled like this was when the second brother fell down while running...

The elder sister was happy, and Qingyang couldn't help but laugh too.

Yongkang looked at Concubine Li first, and saw that Concubine Li's face, which was not good at disguising, showed both sincere happiness and a bit of flattery towards her, as if she wanted to prove her support for her brother. It was a thousand times easier to see through than the Imperial Concubine. Yongkang's mood became better and better. For the first time in her life, she stood up and paid a junior's respect to Concubine Li. She usually didn't show such courtesy to Concubine Li. After all, she was the eldest daughter of her father, and Concubine Li was just a concubine of humble origin who served men with her beauty.

Concubine Li was flattered.

Yongkang stood up straight and stretched out his hand to his sister who was beside Concubine Li: "Lin'er, come here, sister will hold you."

Usually she envied her younger sister and felt that all the blessings were taken by her younger sister. This made Yongkang unable to deny her younger sister's cuteness, but he was also unhappy to coax his half-sister as he used to coax his younger brother. He also opposed the eldest prince being too close to his younger sister.

Everything will be different from today onwards. No matter how favored my sister is, she is just a princess born to a concubine. At most, she will be favored by our father for another ten years. When my brother succeeds to the throne, she, the biological sister, will be more respected than the emperor's illegitimate sister.

Three-year-old Qingyang can only see the joys and sorrows of people around her, and cannot understand more complex emotions. Since the big sister likes her, Qingyang will be held by the big sister obediently, and hopes that the big sister can always be as happy as today, because only a happy big sister is willing to play with her.

The enthronement of the crown prince was a happy event. At noon, Emperor Xingwu summoned his two concubines and five children to the Qianyuan Hall for lunch.

The Imperial Concubine and the Li Concubine were accompanied by the two princesses, Yongkang and Qingyang.

The three princes were already in the Qianyuan Hall. Emperor Xingwu encouraged the newly appointed Crown Prince Qin Hong and taught his two younger brothers to put the Crown Prince first.

After the female members of the family came in, both sides performed the formalities first. The two concubines had to pay their respects to Emperor Xingwu, and the younger ones also had to pay their respects to the elders.

Fortunately, there were not many people around, so the work was done in just two or three sentences. Qingyang remembered his mother's words, looked at Qin Hongshi, and called out obediently, "Crown Prince Brother."

Qin Hong patted his sister's head and said gently, "That's the respectful name that outsiders use to address big brother. We are all siblings. Lin'er, you should continue to call me big brother. It sounds more intimate."

After saying this, he looked at his two younger brothers who had already emphasized this once.

Qin Bing: "Okay, then I will continue to call you Big Brother. I can't call you Prince, Brother, Brother."

When Qin Bing said the last two words "brother", he nodded towards Qin Hong every time. His expression was so strange that even Emperor Xingwu laughed.

After dinner, while the children were all there, Emperor Xingwu said, "Your Majesty has been busy these past few years and hasn't had time to spend with you. Now that the empire is unified, Your Majesty can relax a bit. Since tomorrow is a day off, Your Majesty will spend the entire day with you. Tell us what you want to do, or where you want to go."

He looked encouragingly at the eldest princess who was going to be married in a few months.

Yongkang subconsciously looked at the prince.

Emperor Xingwu's gaze followed.

Qin Hong has always listened to the teachings of his sister and the imperial concubine and concentrated on studying and practicing martial arts. He didn't dare to play when he was supposed to. Now he is fourteen years old and has already learned self-discipline. When he suddenly learned that he could play, Qin Hong's mind was blank. He didn't know what to play at all, so he looked at his second brother next to him.

The eleven-year-old Qin Bing said excitedly, "I want to leave the palace. Father, will you take us with you?"

Emperor Xingwu: "Yes, each of you five can make one request, and I will satisfy you in order."

He looked at his eldest son and daughter again.

Yongkang calmed down and said, "I want my father to accompany me to the jewelry store. I want my father to pick out any piece of jewelry for me so that I can keep it as a treasure."

She grew up among the common people and moved into the palace at the age of fourteen. She often had the opportunity to visit the markets in counties and towns, big and small. What she envied most were children who were accompanied by their parents.

Emperor Xingwu looked at him lovingly and said, "Okay, father will pick out a complete set of jewelry for you."

When Empress Chunxiao married him, his family was still poor. The frugal and gentle empress passed away without having many good days. Because Yongkang was his first child, he suffered the most. Emperor Xingwu wanted to compensate his eldest daughter.

It was Qin Hong's turn again. He thought quickly for a moment and said, "I want to go to the bookstore to take a look."

Emperor Xingwu: "Yes."

Qin Bing: "I think..."

Emperor Xingwu: "Your request is to leave the palace. I have already agreed to it. Just follow us when the time comes."

The Imperial Concubine and the Beautiful Concubine smiled at each other.

Emperor Xingwu did not give the second son a chance to continue speaking and looked at the third son, Qin Ren.

Qin Ren rubbed his head, his eyes evasive, feeling unsure. "When my second brother leaves the palace and my eldest brother visits the bookstore and my eldest sister the jewelry store, does the emperor also take me and my younger sister with him?"

Emperor Xingwu: "Of course."

Qin Ren immediately grinned and said, "Then father, can you promise to let me sleep until dawn tomorrow morning?"

They usually have to get up at the hour of Mao to study, and they only have three days off each month to sleep in. Although it is a good thing to leave the palace with his father tomorrow, if the price of leaving the palace is to continue to get up before dawn, Qin Ren doesn't want to go out very much.

Emperor Xingwu: "...Yes, but if you oversleep, I will not wait for you."

Qin Ren relaxed and said, "Don't worry, Father. I will sleep until noon at most."

Emperor Xingwu ignored him and looked at his youngest daughter, who was neatly lined up next to her older sisters and brothers. "Lin'er, have you made up your mind?"

Qingyang hadn't made up her mind at first, but her third brother's words dispelled her embarrassment, and she made a decision now: "I want to go to the Duke of Wei's house. Zhang Su always lives in our house. I haven't been to his house to play, nor have I met his mother and brother."

Emperor Xingwu: “…”

Qin Bing snorted, "Zhang Su, Zhang Su, you only care about Zhang Su. You are closer to Zhang Su than to us. Why don't you just become Zhang Su's wife..."

The imperial concubine shouted, "Shut up!"

Emperor Xingwu's eyes pierced him coldly.

Qin Bing silently took a step sideways and hid behind the prince.

Seeing the atmosphere cool down, Concubine Li nervously tried to smooth things over: "It's okay, it's okay. The Second Prince is still young, he was just joking."

Imperial Concubine: "Sister, there's no need to plead for him. The Second Prince is already eleven years old, yet he's still so outspoken, even daring to make up stories about his own sister. If you continue to indulge him, who knows what he'll become when he grows up. Your Majesty, why not punish him by having him stay in the palace copying books tomorrow until he learns the rules."

Emperor Xingwu glared at his second son and said, "No need for tomorrow. Let him copy the book when he returns home. Copy until dark and bring it to me. If I am not satisfied, he can stay in the palace to continue copying tomorrow."

Qin Bing was both relieved and complaining. He could have had a great afternoon, but because he didn't control his mouth, he had to be locked in the study.

Qingyang looked at the angry adults, then at his second brother who was being punished, and asked in confusion, "What is a little wife?"

Emperor Xingwu: "Don't listen to your second brother's nonsense. Lin'er, tell me, do you like Zhang Su or your second brother more?"

Qingyang said without hesitation: "Zhang Su."

Emperor Xingwu: "Why?"

Qingyang: "My second brother always pinches my face until it hurts. Zhang Su never bullies me and even tells me stories. He answers everything I ask him. He knows everything that my third brother doesn't."

Qin Ren's eyes changed. It wasn't that he didn't know how to do it, he was just annoyed by his sister so he pretended not to know and pushed it to Zhang Su.

Emperor Xingwu saw through the third brother's thoughts at a glance. If the third brother was like this, the second brother would be even less likely to have the patience to coax his younger sister, so Zhang Su was a good child who was patient and composed.

Emperor Xingwu had agreed to the requests of his first four children, so how could he object to his youngest daughter? He said, "Tomorrow is a day for us, father and daughter, to spend time together. We should go out together and not disturb the Duke of Wei's family. If Lin'er wants to go, after lunch, have your third brother accompany you to the Duke's Mansion. You can play for a while and then come back."

If he went, Zhang Jie's family would be in panic, and if the news got out, it would easily cause unnecessary misunderstandings among the ministers.

Qingyang just wanted to go to Duke Weiguo's house, and it didn't matter whether his father accompanied him or not, so he nodded happily.

The children went to take a nap. Emperor Xingwu asked He Yuanjing to arrange a young eunuch to pass a message to Zhang Jie, explaining that the little princess was just playing around and that the Zhang family only needed to give her a simple treat without any grand ceremony.

After accompanying Emperor Xingwu in his campaigns against the three kingdoms in southern Xinjiang, Duke Wei Zhang Jie was given a few days' leave after returning triumphantly. When the young eunuch arrived at the Duke Wei's mansion with the emperor's oral instructions, Zhang Jie and his wife, Mrs. Xu, had already lain down, chatting about family matters and were about to take a nap.

After changing his clothes in a hurry and rushing to the front hall, Zhang Jie was at a loss whether to laugh or cry after learning the specific order.

After sending the young eunuch away, Zhang Jie said hello to his wife, and asked Xu to lead the maids to prepare fruits and tea to entertain the third prince and the little princess. Zhang Jie did not disturb his eldest and second sons, and came to the third son's courtyard alone.

"My Lord, the Third Master has gone to his deceased son's place to rest."

Zhang Jie laughed. The third brother entered the palace as a study companion at the age of six. The time he spent at home was limited throughout the year, and the three brothers missed each other. Whenever the third brother came home, he basically slept with his two older brothers. He almost forgot about it.

Zhang Jie changed his route and came to his eldest son's yard.

The Crown Prince Zhang Jian came to see his father in his middle clothes and asked in a low voice, "My third brother just fell asleep. Is there anything wrong, Father?"

Zhang Jie explained the reason.

Zhang Jian frowned and hesitated, "The Emperor has betrothed Princess Yongkang to the second son of the Zhennan Marquis's Mansion. It's very clear that he wants to use marriage to stabilize the nobility. Princess Qingyang is so close to my third brother. Will the Emperor do the same in the future?"

Zhang Jie waved his hand. "Every thunder and rain is a sign of the Emperor's grace. Whether it's now or in the future, we, as His Majesty's subjects, will obey His Majesty's orders. There's no need to speculate. Princess Qingyang is young, and her relationship with Su Ge'er is merely playmates. There's no need to overthink things."

Zhang Jian: "Yes, then I'll wake up my third brother and ask him to get ready?"

Zhang Jie: "Go to sleep. The Third Prince and the others also need to take a nap, so they didn't come so early."

.

Zhang Su only slept for half an hour during this nap. After he finished washing up, his eldest brother told him that the third prince and Princess Qingyang would come to play at home later.

He followed his elder brother to the main courtyard to meet his parents in a daze.

Mrs. Xu smiled and praised her son, "Our Su brother is really amazing. He is so good at his job as a study companion at such a young age. He has won the favor of His Majesty the Third Prince and the Princess."

Zhang Su's ears felt slightly hot. He felt that his two elder brothers, who served in the imperial army and were at the top of the class in martial arts and civil and military studies, were more powerful.

After his ears returned to normal, Zhang Su was no longer abnormal and stood upright beside his elder brother Zhang Jian and second brother Zhang Heng.

There were clearly a family of five in the hall, but Xu was the only one who took the initiative to speak. The three children and their father were exactly the same. They were handsome, but they all looked like wooden mutes, as if saying one more word would bring trouble or violate the laws of the court.

Xu was suddenly confused as to how her youngest son had won the favor of the two princes.

Around 3 p.m., a team of imperial guards escorted a royal carriage to the gate of the Duke of Wei's mansion.

Fu'an, the chief eunuch beside Qin Ren, first helped his master out of the car, and then prepared to carry the little princess down.

Qingyang stepped out of the carriage, glanced at the Duke of Wei who was standing at the head of the group, pushed Fuan's hand away, pointed at Zhang Jie and said, "Duke, carry me out of the carriage."

Fuan: “…”

Zhang Jie: “…”

Zhang Su: “…”

Xu glanced at her husband, who was already in his early forties but still had a handsome face and the elegance of a scholar, and the confusion in her heart was immediately answered.

【Author’s words】

Here I come, 100 red envelopes, see you tomorrow [kiss]