Chapter 42 Chapter 42 Beautiful and Strong Miserable Dad 12
In the dim cell, a rat darted out from the straw and disappeared through a crack in the wall. Zhuozhuo, who was patrolling his new territory, instinctively chased after it, wanting to get down to see where the rat had gone, but Feng Pansheng quickly grabbed him and said, "The floor is dirty."
"Dad, it's so dirty here." Zhuozhuo remembered something and said with a smile, "My mom said that even if it's unclean, you won't get sick if you eat it. Dad, I'm hungry." She completely forgot that half an hour ago, she had said that she should eat less and save the food for Feng Pansheng.
Fortunately, old father Feng Pansheng didn't expect to save food from his own child. He looked at the jailer leading the way and said, "Please inform Lord Liu to come and see him."
The jailer subconsciously wanted to curse, but when he met Feng Pansheng's cold gaze, he unconsciously lowered his voice, "Uh... I will go and fetch Master Liu. Your Highness, please wait a moment."
Zhuozhuo asked curiously, "Dad, is Lord Liu also your subordinate?"
Feng Pansheng didn't answer, but instead said, "Lord Liu is the Censor-in-Chief, in charge of all criminal justice in the Great Zhou. We are in prison now, so if we have any questions, we must consult Lord Liu."
"Oh." Zhuozhuo seemed to understand, but then she spotted a swarm of cockroaches crawling out of nowhere and was about to catch a couple. Then a flurry of footsteps reached her. Zhuozhuo turned and saw a middle-aged man in a dark-brown official uniform hurriedly approaching with a large group of people.
The jailer who was sent by Feng Pansheng to invite Lord Liu was following the crowd, looking uneasy.
The middle-aged man bowed to Feng Pansheng and said, "Your humble servant, Liu Guanshan, greets His Royal Highness Prince Li. Since the young princess will be staying here for a while, I have specially brought some daily necessities to ensure she does not feel unwell."
As he spoke, he observed Feng Pansheng's expression. Seeing that he seemed in a good mood, he quickly waved his hand and had the cell rearranged. Not only that, he also set up tables and chairs outside the cell, with snacks and fruits on them, claiming that they were prepared for the little princess.
Zhuozhuo said innocently, "You came so quickly! Daddy just sent someone to invite you."
"My humble servant is very nimble." Lord Liu smiled modestly. Could he say that he rushed here after receiving the news that Feng Pansheng was imprisoned? As for who arranged these things, it was difficult to say clearly.
Feng Pansheng could guess that Emperor Zhengping had simply seen how much he cared about Zhuozhuo and was worried that Zhuozhuo would go mad if he got sick in prison, so he prepared these things. He rubbed Zhuozhuo's little head and asked, "Weren't you hungry just now?"
So, Zhuozhuo lay in Feng Pansheng's arms, eating while watching the servants clean the cell like magic, put up a large carved bed, a screen with flowers and birds, and various decorations, hung thick velvet blankets on the iron bars to block the wind and sight, turned on the lights, and the dim cell suddenly became as bright as day.
Another maid carefully lit the incense, and gently waved it with her slender hands, and the elegant and natural fragrance gradually filled the cell.
Originally, the cell they were in had the best conditions. There were no prisoners around and the interrogation room was far away, but it was still dirty and smelly. After being cleaned up like this, it was transformed into a gorgeous cell, more luxurious than the bedrooms of some wealthy businessmen.
After everyone left, Zhuozhuo suddenly leaned on Feng Pansheng's shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Daddy, someone bullied me today."
A cold light flashed in Feng Pansheng's eyes, and he said softly, "Zhuozhuo, do you still remember who they were? How did they bully you?"
"I woke up and didn't see my dad. I looked for him, but he couldn't find me. And there was this sister in pink who was mean to me and Yuzhu." Zhuozhuo had always been brave, even choosing the right person to take her to find Feng Pansheng. But now, being asked this question, she felt deeply wronged. She hummed and acted coquettishly, recounting her experiences before finding Feng Pansheng in a fragmented manner.
Finally, she suddenly remembered, "Daddy, Yuzhu said she wants you to rescue her from the palace."
"Okay, Daddy will take her out of the palace." As long as she is not dead.
The summer heat was scorching and oppressive, but the prison was surprisingly cool. Zhuozhuo nestled in Feng Pansheng's arms, playing with the knots on his clothes, feeling a little down. After a while, she whispered, "Daddy, there's someone crying and screaming in pain. I'm a little scared."
Feng Pansheng thought, he still hadn't considered it carefully. He could live with everything from fine clothes and delicious food to a shabby hut, so he habitually ignored these external things. But Zhuozhuo was still young and needed to be carefully cared for, and even the slightest negligence was unacceptable.
For example, now, it seemed as if everything was provided to Zhuozhuo, and she could stay here for a few days, but these voices filled with suffering prevented her from even getting the most basic peace of mind and sleep.
We still have to leave here.
Feng Pansheng was pondering how to get out of prison as quickly as possible when another person cautiously approached. He looked over with a calm expression. The eunuch who came with the jailer to announce the decree smiled and said respectfully, "Your Highness Prince Li, the Emperor summons the young princess to see him."
Zhuozhuo, who had already figured out that she was the little princess, asked doubtfully, "Is Daddy going?"
"The Emperor summoned only you," the eunuch announcing the decree said, "My little princess, you've just returned and aren't familiar with the palace. It's a good opportunity for you to explore."
Zhuozhuo wasn't interested. "I don't want it."
Feng Pansheng pinched her little face and said, "Zhuozhuo, go and check for Daddy to see if there are any changes in the palace."
"Dad just looked at it this afternoon."
"Because things in the palace changed so quickly, Zhuozhuo will know once he sees."
"Okay." Zhuozhuo agreed unhappily after receiving the task, "Daddy has to wait for me."
"Well, Zhuozhuo, don't worry. You'll be able to see daddy soon." Feng Pansheng smiled playfully, "Go ahead and have fun, little one."
However, the first step to meet the emperor was stuck.
Zhuozhuo was reluctant to let the eunuch carry her, but it was too far to walk out of the prison. Finally, when Feng Pansheng wanted to carry her out himself, Zhuozhuo said, "Where's Yuzhu? I want Sister Yuzhu to hold me."
How could the eunuch who announced the decree know what jade beads were? Feng Pansheng reminded them calmly, "They were the palace maids who took Zhuo Zhuo to Huaqing Pool this afternoon."
The eunuch announcing the decree remembered that the young maid had been imprisoned for violating palace rules and was awaiting a beating. Hoping that the execution had not yet taken place, he quickly ordered someone to bring Yuzhu over.
Fortunately, Yuzhu was lucky and was still imprisoned. She was still in shock when she was taken to the sky prison, and she immediately burst into tears when she saw Zhuozhuo.
After a lot of trouble, Zhuozhuo was finally carried out by Yuzhu, but the way out was different from the way in. Although Yuzhu also covered her eyes considerately, she could still hear the difference in the voices of the prisoners on both sides.
Suddenly, a voice filled with hostility called out to Zhuo Zhuo, "Are you Feng Pan's illegitimate daughter born among the common people?"
The three words "Feng Pansheng" immediately caught Zhuo Zhuo's attention. She pried Yuzhu's hand away and looked over, seeing a man who looked a bit like Feng Pansheng. He was wearing a white prison uniform, his hands and feet were shackled, his expression was depressed, and his eyes were cloudy.
Seeing Zhuozhuo looking over, the man shouted, "Feng Pansheng killed 765 people in my house! My four children, the oldest was only four years old, and the youngest was not even a year old, were all killed by Feng Pansheng and burned to death! Feng Pansheng is a heartless beast! A devil! I curse him, he—"
"Are you crazy?" Zhuozhuo's childish voice easily interrupted the man's long monologue. She was actually a little afraid of this fierce man, but he couldn't bear to say bad things about Feng Pansheng. She asked doubtfully, "Why don't you protect your child?"
The man's frantic expression froze for a moment, and he said viciously, "Feng Pansheng was despicable. He attacked the palace by surprise, and the guards were caught off guard."
Zhuozhuo was even more confused. "That's because you're useless. Do people need to tell you in advance if they want to hit you?"
In this world, Zhuozhuo's month with Wu Jingqiu in the mountains wasn't just for fun. Witnessing nature's most direct and brutal manifestation of the law of the jungle, some of her perspectives were influenced. For example, Zhuozhuo no longer felt Feng Pansheng had done anything wrong; instead, she felt he was being unreasonable.
When a tiger is going to hunt a deer, it will not tell the deer in advance. Instead, it will lie in ambush and kill the deer in one go. A rabbit whose den is robbed by a wolf will not run to the wolf and shout "Give me back my child."
When Prince Luo heard Zhuo Zhuo's words, his face darkened and then flushed, as if she was mocking him. He and Feng Pansheng had always been enemies, and when he had visited Feng Pansheng, he had declared war. He should have been fully prepared to deal with Feng Pansheng's counterattack and retaliation.
But he was arrogant and did nothing, which led to the Luowang Mansion being massacred without any effort.
King Luo was unwilling to admit his failure and could only blame others and fate, repeatedly emphasizing Feng Pansheng's cruelty and meanness to create the illusion that he was an innocent victim.
Now, Luo Wang's self-deceiving facade had been punctured by Zhuo Zhuo. His expression was ferocious, and his first reaction was to reach out and grab Zhuo Zhuo, intending to strangle this offender to death.
Zhuozhuo exclaimed, covering his eyes and urging, "Sister Yuzhu, hurry up and leave! This person is so ugly, so ugly, so ugly."
Yuzhu had been scared for a long time. She didn't understand why Zhuozhuo dared to say so much to King Luo. When she heard Zhuozhuo's urging, she breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly left with the person in her arms.
Because of Feng Pansheng's words, Zhuozhuo had been looking around the entire way, trying to figure out the difference between the palace during the day and at night. By the time he arrived at Chengqian Palace, Zhuozhu was exhausted. Yuzhu couldn't enter Chengqian Palace, so she left Zhuozhu at the entrance and let her go in on her own.
Zhuozhuo glanced at the threshold, which was almost at her chest, and when she realized no one was willing to help, she gave up trying. She clung to the door, craning her neck to look inside, and saw many eunuchs and palace maids with their heads bowed. She knew these people couldn't make decisions, so she ignored them and looked for someone who could make the decision.
After watching for a while, Zhuozhuo heard a familiar voice, "They haven't arrived yet?"
Zhuozhuo's eyes lit up and he quickly replied, "Here we are!"
The hall was silent for a moment, then a slow sound of footsteps could be heard. Prince T suddenly appeared in Zhuo Zhuo's sight, his old face smiling like a chrysanthemum. "Oh, little princess, why are you lying here? This old servant will carry you in."
"I don't want you to hold me." Zhuozhuo turned to look at Yuzhu, "You let her hold me." She already understood the power hierarchy of these people, huh.
As Zhuozhuo's designated vehicle, Yuzhu carried him into Chengqian Hall, not daring to look up the entire time. She could sense Zhuozhuo's nervousness because she was unconsciously picking at her hands, as children do when they're nervous or scared. But Zhuozhuo spoke with such force that many adults felt inferior.
Zhuozhuo didn't kneel down to salute. She didn't know how to do that. She stood firmly, looking up at Emperor Zhengping. "Are you the most powerful person here?"
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