Chapter 113: Don’t be ungrateful
Yueli noticed that his expression was a little strange. She reflected on it for a rare moment and thought, "I didn't seem to have done anything wrong today, right?"
"Your Majesty~" Yueli trotted over and hugged his arm. "It's nothing fun. Aren't all the flower-viewing banquets in the palace like that? A bunch of people gathered together chattering. I'm so tired of hearing them. It's better for me to stay with Your Majesty."
He Yanchen didn't hold her waist like before. He let Yueli rub against his arm for a while before he pulled his hand back: "Jiaojiao met an old friend."
It's not a question, it's an affirmative sentence.
Yue Li was stunned for a moment, not knowing whether the old friend he was talking about was Su Huai.
He Yanchen got angry when he saw her like this. If the parchment had not recorded all the contents of their conversation and there was nothing inappropriate in it, he would have lost control of his emotions.
Yueli looked up at him quietly, and when she met his gaze, she lowered her head instantly.
But in a moment she was confused again, why was she so guilty?
Wasn't it just a case of running into an old friend from Chunfeng Pavilion? There was nothing between her and Su Huai, and she looked down on him now, so what was the harm in telling He Yanchen?
Yue Li figured it out and immediately became confident: "Your Majesty, how did you know? I did run into an old friend from Chunfeng Pavilion. He was a zither player. He taught me the art of zither when I was a child."
He Yanchen uttered an "oh" and played with her slender fingers, "He taught you? No wonder Jiaojiao learned so well."
Yueli sensed a hint of sourness in the words. She smiled and hugged the man's neck, straddling his lap. "I've learned the other skills very well too."
"Is Your Majesty jealous?" She looked at him with a smile, a sweet wave rolling in her heart. She didn't expect He Yanchen to be so jealous.
"But I haven't seen him for many years, and I hate him."
"I hate that he still talked to him for so long?"
Yue Li thought for a moment. "Has it been a long time?" She had only spoken a few words, not even a quarter of an hour.
She raised her head and kissed He Yanchen's jaw: "I really hate him. He bullied me before, so of course I have to show off in front of him for a while, let him regret it."
It was hard to tell whether He Yanchen was happy or unhappy. Yue Li thought for a moment and said, "I only like Your Majesty. No matter how good others are, they will never catch my eye."
"Let alone Su Huai, even if my own father and mother were standing before me, I would still only like Your Majesty."
He Yanchen then smiled and said, "Really?"
"Of course!"
Yue Li immediately wanted to raise her hand to swear, but He Yanchen held her wrist and bent down to kiss the tip of her nose: "Forget it, I believe you this time."
"Your Majesty, you don't believe me. I'm so sad."
He Yanchen pinched her cheek: "I believe you."
Of course he believed it, he knew Yueli's feelings for him.
What he didn't believe was Su Huai. He had come a long way to get on Rong Jieyu's boat. Would he just sit back and watch Yue Li live a good life in the palace?
Who knows, he might be up to some trick to try to get Yueli to do something.
He wanted to see how many lives that wild man had before he dared to have evil thoughts about his woman.
*
study.
Ji Ming presented the list of children from noble families that he had collected some days ago to the emperor.
"Your Majesty, these are all the boys between the ages of three and five from the royal family. Commander Chu has investigated their families one by one, and none of them have formed any cliques or engaged in any form of illicit activities within the court. They are completely innocent."
He Yanchen flipped it open, looked at it, circled a few names and said, "Are these people in the palace?"
Ji Ming took it, glanced at it, and nodded: "They are all here. All the princes and marquises who have not yet been enfeoffed are accompanying us this time."
"The Queen Mother has hosted a banquet for the ladies of the royal family. I cannot favor one over the other. Let's host a banquet for the men tomorrow."
Ji Ming immediately did what he was told. His Majesty didn't really want to host a banquet for these royal relatives, but just wanted to find an excuse to see what kind of personalities these children had.
It's really a headache to leave no trace but still let His Majesty see it clearly.
The next day, the palace became lively again.
The banquet was still held in the Plum Garden, which covered a large area. There was a frozen pond behind it with solid ice, and the children loved to go there to play.
Xiao Dezi led a few palace servants to guard around them. After they had played for a while, he said, "My dear young masters, it's cold today. We have prepared some refreshments in the warm room. Please go and rest for a while before playing again."
When a group of little kids heard that there was food to eat, they ran excitedly to the warm room under the corridor.
Xiao Dezi took a quick look and saw that everyone His Majesty wanted to see was there, and that was enough.
He was young, looked well-behaved, and spoke sweetly, and he quickly struck up a conversation with this group of innocent children.
The warm room was very cozy. The palace servants served tea and snacks in an orderly manner. Xiao Dezi said with a smile, "Empress Yu knew that it was cold today, so she specially asked the servants to prepare these things. My young masters, enjoy them."
"Empress Yu?" A little kid looked at Xiao Dezi curiously, "Father, isn't Empress Yu very beautiful? I often hear my father talk about her."
Xiao Dezi cried out, "The ladies in the palace are naturally beautiful. Not only is Concubine Yu beautiful, she is also very thoughtful. That's why she takes care of the young masters."
Another little boy whispered, "But my father said that Concubine Yu is a demon concubine..."
"That's what my mother said..."
He thought he spoke quietly, but the secret guards on the roof heard it clearly.
Write it down, the Marquis Cheng'en's mansion slandered Concubine Yu.
"Don't say anything nonsense." Xiao Dezi made a hushed gesture. "Empress Yu is His Majesty's favorite concubine. Don't slander her."
Children are at a rebellious age, and the more they are forbidden to say something, the more they want to say it.
"But my mother said that Concubine Yu doesn't allow other concubines to see His Majesty. She is very domineering." The person who spoke was from Duke Xie's Mansion, which was related by marriage to Concubine Jin's family.
Xiao Dezi sneered in his heart. It is said that children speak without restraint. These children talk about the evil concubine all the time. It seems that their families have also slandered the reputation of the queen at home.
Xiao Dezi seemed to be unintentionally guiding them in their conversation until he noticed that the Prince of Huaiyang in the corner had remained silent. He then fixed his gaze on the Prince, "But these snacks don't suit your taste, Prince?"
The young master shook his head and said in a clear voice: "My father said that people should not be ungrateful."
The other kids looked at him, not sure why he said that.
"I ate Empress Yu's cakes, so I can't say anything bad about her."
Moreover, he had seen Concubine Yu in Hezheng Hall that day. She looked like a fairy. His father said that His Majesty and the Empress were very loving, but it was not like what they said.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com