Chapter 9
Since it was a life-or-death favor, the Xie family naturally couldn't pretend it hadn't happened. The next day, Xie Qingya prepared generous gifts and went to the post station to find the Prince of the South to express his gratitude.
Pei Du, with his refined and elegant demeanor, looked no different from any other scion of a prominent family in the capital. He said politely, "There's no need for such formalities. I would have done my best to rescue anyone. Fortunately, I still possess some martial arts skills and managed to prevent the young lady from being injured. But I wonder if the young lady was frightened?"
Xie Qingya didn't want to talk about Xie Qinghong's matter, so he simply answered "no" and then thanked him, saying, "Your Highness's kindness is deeply appreciated. My sister's life is more precious than any gift. If Your Highness ever needs my help in the future, I will definitely do my best."
This indicates that Xie Qingya is the one who owes this favor, and that it has nothing to do with Xie Qinghong and the Xie family. However, this statement sounds very pleasant and leaves no room for criticism.
Pei Du's eyes flickered slightly. He declined for a moment, but after a brief tug-of-war, he reluctantly agreed. He had heard that the eldest son of the Xie family was a man of integrity and upright character, a rare gentleman who was true to his word.
Unfortunately, in this world, the wicked prosper for a long time, while the virtuous find it difficult to move an inch.
Having expressed his gratitude and conveyed his sincerity, Xie Qingya did not linger and soon took his leave. After he left, Emperor Xingde in the palace received the news.
"A life-saving grace?" Emperor Xingde chuckled with interest. "Your youngest daughter was saved, and Xie Wen sends his son to express his gratitude? That's a bit too stingy."
The eunuch beside him smiled obsequiously, "Your Majesty is right."
"Xie Wen is indeed composed. Very well, since there is no intention to arrange a marriage, I will naturally not force him." Emperor Xingde said he would not force the issue, but in reality, he was quite satisfied with the Xie family's pragmatism. He had already arranged a marriage for the Prince of Nan, one that was both prestigious and posing no threat. If the Xie family were to interfere, then he would have to consider whether to have a talk with Xie Wen.
"Has the daughter of the Imperial Censor been investigated?"
Huangmen's spirits lifted, and he hurriedly replied, "I've investigated. The Imperial Censor's family has only two daughters, half-sisters. The younger daughter is named Lingxi, and she is the daughter of his stepmother..."
Emperor Xingde interrupted, "Why are you saying all this?"
Sweat beaded on the eunuch's forehead. He racked his brains, choosing what His Majesty wanted to hear: "It is said that this girl was once shy and introverted, and her studies were not outstanding. However, after falling into the pond at home in the first month of the lunar calendar, she woke up with a clear mind and a flood of inspiration, composing a poem entitled 'Sympathy for the Farmers.' The Grand Secretary was extremely shocked and asked her about many trivial matters, to which she answered fluently and without any surprise. A few days ago, she attended the Qinghui Poetry Society's spring tea party and composed 'Ode to Tea,' which even the Cui family's daughter praised and wanted to publish. However, during the poetry party, she had a disagreement with Xie Qinghong, the daughter of the Grand Secretary. The Xie family's daughter was assertive, and the girl apologized as a result."
After he finished speaking, Emperor Xingde remained silent, only tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest of his throne, lost in thought. The young eunuch stood trembling beside him, wondering why His Majesty was investigating the families of court officials. However, these were all trivial matters, like quarrels among young women, yet the emperor insisted on uncovering the details. In contrast, the major incident of the assassination attempt on the day of spring plowing was left to his subordinates to investigate, and he hadn't inquired about it in detail.
Xie Qinghong had no idea that a small argument he had with a girl his own age had been reported to the Emperor, nor did he know that he, who always considered himself kind and gentle, had been described as domineering.
When her brother returned home, she inquired about the details of the thanks. When her brother described Prince Pei as "refined and elegant," she narrowed her eyes suspiciously, thinking that Pei was quite good at pretending. Who knew that he would secretly use a rope to pretend to be a snake to scare the little girl?
"He didn't ask for anything?" After all, it was a life-saving favor, so she felt it was normal for him to ask for something. If he didn't ask for anything, she would have to suspect his motives.
Xie Qingya said, "The young master is not the kind of person who seeks repayment for favors. By the way, His Majesty's birthday banquet is in seven days. Ayao, is your leg feeling better? Would you like to come to the palace for a visit?"
Last year, His Majesty's birthday banquet coincided with the national mourning period, so it was not held in a grand manner. According to the etiquette, it should not be held in a grand manner this year either. However, this year, the Hu people sent envoys to visit for the birthday banquet. Emperor Xingde wanted to show the prestige of the prosperous dynasty, so he not only ordered a grand banquet, but also allowed all the officials to bring their families to the palace to participate.
Putting aside Pei Shizi's intentions for the moment, Xie Qinghong had no interest in the palace banquet. She had attended several banquets in the palace before and didn't like the kind of liveliness that came with it. Everyone was smiling, but there was no sincerity in it. They would sit for two hours at a time, and if they saw a dish they liked, they had to restrain themselves from eating too much.
In short, going to the palace would certainly broaden her horizons, but as for entertainment, that's another story. Besides, she's recently been wronged by some villains and her leg is injured, so she certainly can't sit for long at banquets. Why bother going to the palace to suffer?
"Alright, then I'll go buy you some travelogues. You stay home and read them obediently." Xie Qingya patted her head. "You'll be all alone at home. If anyone comes to the door, don't open it, and don't sneak out to play. If anything happens, send someone to deliver a message to me outside the palace, understand?"
"Okay, okay," Xie Qinghong said helplessly. "I'll stay home and not go anywhere."
Xie Qingzhou was a little sad to learn that she wasn't going. He and Ayao were the closest in the family. In the past, when he went out to do whatever he wanted, he would take Ayao with him. Ayao would obediently and softly call him brother. He had been going in and out of the palace quite often recently and wanted to take Ayao for a stroll in the Imperial Garden.
"Auntie, you really aren't going? If your legs hurt and you don't want to walk, your brother will carry you."
Xie Qinghong shook his head again: "If I have to carry it when I enter the palace, how many people will laugh at me? There are also foreign envoys at this banquet, I don't want to go."
Upon hearing this, Xie Qingzhou, recalling the barbaric manner of the Hu envoys and the princess of the imperial clan who had gone to marry into the royal family, immediately said nothing more. For Emperor Xingde's birthday banquet, both the Northern and Southern Kings sent their heirs to offer their congratulations. The Southern King's heir arrived a month in advance, while the Northern King's heir arrived only the day before spring plowing, arriving around the same time as the Hu envoys.
The Honglu Temple made thoughtful arrangements, placing the Hu envoys separately in the west post station, while the heirs of the Northern and Southern Kings stayed in the east post station. Even so, the heirs of the Northern King and the Hu envoys still bumped into each other on the street. Naturally, they disliked each other, and if their companions hadn't intervened, they might have even started fighting.
Thinking about the palace banquet, where the Crown Prince of the Northern Kingdom and the Hu envoy were at loggerheads and might even challenge each other to a contest on the spot, it would be unacceptable to frighten A-Yao.
Xie Qinghong had naturally heard about this as well. The Hu envoy was named Wushilantuo. He was strong and powerful, and acted arrogantly. He even dared to bully the weak in Wangjing City. The Prince of the North rushed forward to fight him as soon as he saw him.
The two sides bumped into each other on the street. In between, there was the matter of Pei Du, the heir of the Southern King. Xie Qinghong finally learned Pei Du's full name from his brother's account. The one who stopped people in the middle was Pei Du. It is said that he made Wu Shilan Tuo leave in shame with just a few words.
However, others only saw him speaking softly to Wushilantuo, but they couldn't hear what he was saying, so the story became more and more bizarre.
Xie Qinghong was very curious and asked his brother, Xie Qingzhou, but he didn't know either. He scratched his head and guessed, "Perhaps he issued a challenge? Prince Pei's swordsmanship is very exquisite, far beyond what the Hu people can match, so he naturally retreated."
Xie Qinghong asked suspiciously, "Brother, he beat you last time, and you actually praised his swordsmanship. Is his swordsmanship as good as yours?!" How could this be? Not only did he lose to his brother, but he also managed to win him over?
Xie Qingzhou laughed: "Of course, we became friends after a fight. I think he's a nice guy, so I'll just consider it making friends. He hasn't competed with my brother before, so I don't know, but I imagine they're about evenly matched."
Xie Qinghong felt betrayed and turned away angrily, deciding to break off his friendship with his brother for half an hour. No matter what Xie Qingzhou said, he couldn't be coaxed back.
That evening, Xie Qingzhou went out to drink with friends and happened to run into Pei Du and Zhou Qin, the heir apparent of the Northern King, at a restaurant. Pei Du, seeing that he was alone, invited him to join them. Xie Qingzhou joked, "I made an appointment but they haven't arrived yet. However, I can't drink with the heir apparent, or my sister will be angry."
Pei Du seemed surprised and put down his wine cup, asking sincerely, "Why?"
Xie Qingzhou waved his hand, but wanting to show off his sister, he pretended to be hesitant: "I'm still angry about the last time the young master won. I feel like I was taken advantage of. If there is a next time, please let me win, so that I can show off in front of my sister."
"You flatter me, Second Brother Xie. Last time it was just a lucky sword fight. If we were fighting bare-handed, I, Pei Du, would be no match for you, Second Brother Xie." Pei Du cupped his hands and joked, "Next time there is a competition, I'll invite your sister to come and watch. That will make you look impressive."
Xie Qingzhou cupped his hands in greeting, everything understood without a word.
After he left, Zhou Qin asked Pei Du, "How come you're so familiar with the second son of the Xie family? They're all smart people."
"What are you talking about? Do I have something to hide?" Pei Du poured himself a full glass, but only swirled the glass without drinking.
Zhou Qin's probing gaze fell on his face. He poured himself a full cup, took a small sip, and said, "It's hard to say about others, but can you really be honest and upright? I can almost smell the blood from the long sword at your waist."
Pei Du touched the scabbard with his left hand, recalling the little girl's gaze upon his sword, a pure and clear look that concealed affection.
He tilted his head back and drank the wine in his cup in one gulp, then replied, "There is indeed something that cannot be told to others."
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