Chapter 62 Consort Hui's Responsible and Good Elder Brother
Regardless of whether he was a good younger brother or not, Prince Cheng had been demoted to Prince Cheng, his mansion had been sealed off by one-third, and he had also incurred the hostility of the Thirteenth Prince.
Who told Prince Cheng to do something so blatantly disrespectful to his mother?
It's all thanks to the heavy workload of the Imperial Study and the fact that the Thirteenth Prince couldn't leave the palace without being caught in the crossfire.
Baoqing was extremely eager to know what had happened to her third brother, so she went straight to Prince Cheng's residence after leaving Yanxi Palace.
Prince Cheng's Mansion is also located in the West District, just north of Prince Baoqing's Mansion, separated by Prince An's Mansion.
The new chief secretary of the Prince's mansion treated Bao Qing like his own father, being extremely attentive to him the whole way.
Who understands? A sudden disaster struck. His master's reckless actions implicated his servants. The previous chief secretary had already been punished by the emperor with twenty strokes of the cane for failing to advise his master, and was even reduced to a blank cane. Now he just hopes someone will come and persuade his master to stop making trouble. He doesn't want to follow in his predecessor's footsteps.
Bao Qing was completely bewildered as the Chief Secretary eagerly welcomed him into the Prince's residence.
As they approached the main house in the front courtyard, the chief secretary stammered to Baoqing, "Your Highness, if I may be so bold, please be sure to persuade your master not to do anything foolish."
Baoqing: "·······"
What's wrong with the Chief Secretary of Prince Cheng's residence? He doesn't seem very bright.
As Baoqing walked through the covered walkway and stepped onto the stairs, he saw his third brother sitting elegantly at the round table in the central hall, with a cup of tea and a plate of fried peanuts in front of him.
Bao Qing sat down next to Prince Cheng without any hesitation, picked at the peanut skin, threw it into his mouth, and asked casually, "What's going on?"
Prince Cheng picked up the flat, round, curved-handle teapot, poured himself a cup of tea, and placed it beside Baoqing. His face showed no sadness; he was as calm as if he were not the one who had been stripped of his title.
"Just as my elder brother knows."
Bao Qing didn't believe his nonsense and scoffed, "Dare to shave your head on the 100th day of the lunar month but not drink alcohol?"
Prince Cheng asked him in return, "Brother, would you like a drink?"
Baoqing glanced at him with a curious look, as if he were meeting his third brother for the first time. "You've gotten bolder. You would never have spoken to me like this before."
The third brother was so well-behaved when he first returned to the palace. At that time, there were only the two of them in the Imperial Study; the Crown Prince did not study with them.
The third brother was always calling him "elder brother" and "senior brother." When he first got on the horse, the third brother was a little hesitant, so it was the elder brother who guided him.
Prince Cheng casually picked up his teacup and said, "People always change."
Baoqing was uncomfortable with the atmosphere, which seemed like they were about to open up to each other at any moment. He slapped Prince Cheng on the shoulder and said, "No matter what, when your confinement ends, apologize to your thirteenth brother. What kind of older brother are you? We're all family. Just talk it out."
Caught off guard, Prince Cheng nearly knocked over the teacup he was about to drink, and quickly steadied himself.
He knew he hadn't done anything right, but he had no other choice.
The old man has not seemed as kind as before these past few years. His gaze towards them is sometimes proud and sometimes wary, and even the crown prince sometimes can't get the better of him.
He was well aware of his place in the old man's heart.
The old man only had eyes for the Crown Prince. His elder brother might have a ten or two percent chance, but all the princes combined couldn't even get a ten percent chance. How could he dare to compete with the Crown Prince and his elder brother?
Don't think he doesn't know; the old man's gaze towards him has been getting increasingly strange lately.
Seeing that his elder brother was slow-witted and prone to hurting himself while trying to compete with the Crown Prince, they wanted to support him again to create a three-way power struggle.
It just so happens that the crown prince is the legitimate heir, the eldest brother is the eldest son, he has a good reputation among scholars and some influence, plus his younger brothers...
But he didn't want to get involved.
After this ordeal, his reputation among scholars is probably pretty much ruined. He should be able to settle down and live his life quietly, writing books.
Seeing that he was holding the teacup and not speaking, Baoqing thought that he was too embarrassed to admit it, so he kindly offered a suggestion: "How about I beat you up to vent my anger for Thirteenth Brother? Then you can go to see him with a bruised and swollen face. He should feel better when he sees you in such a miserable state."
Cheng Beile came to his senses and thought it was rare for his elder brother to be so unreliable at his age.
“There’s no need to trouble you, elder brother,” Prince Cheng refused quickly, afraid that his elder brother would drag him to the martial arts arena to practice the next second. “I will send someone to prepare a gift and trouble you to deliver it to my thirteenth brother.”
Emperor Kangxi's house confinement not only prohibited Prince Cheng from leaving his residence, but also restricted his subordinates. Only the purchasing staff were allowed to move around normally, but they were also unable to enter the Forbidden City, let alone deliver apologies to the princes.
“Okay,” Baoqing readily agreed, then added, “but if Thirteenth Brother doesn’t accept it, there’s nothing I can do.”
Bao Qing continued very sincerely, "Actually, I really think that beating you up to vent your anger is a good method."
Prince Cheng: "..."
You're the only one who thinks that method is good, bro.
He would rather wait until his confinement ended to go to his brother's residence and have his thirteenth brother personally punch him.
After all, the thirteenth brother's punches certainly didn't hurt as much as the eldest brother's. The eldest brother's strength was honed in real battles; one punch could take away half a person's life.
He felt that his life was quite precious and shouldn't be wasted on this.
The chief clerk had been waiting in the corridor. When he heard Prince Cheng ask him to go to the storeroom to select a gift as an apology, his eyes welled up with tears.
Prince Zhi is indeed exceptionally reliable, being the eldest son.
One visit was enough to persuade the master.
He no longer had to worry about losing the job he had secured with his money.
-
A steady clatter of hooves and the crisp sound of wheels rolling over cobblestones approached from afar. The guards at the Forbidden City's gates saw the familiar carriage coming this way and were very puzzled.
Didn't this gentleman just leave the palace? Why is he back again?
With a genuine palace gate pass in hand, no matter how much they grumbled in their hearts, they had to let them pass.
Generally speaking, princes who have left the palace to establish their own residences are no longer considered palace personnel and cannot enter the palace at will. They need to report to the Imperial Household Department in advance and explain the reason for entering the palace. Only after obtaining the emperor's approval can they enter the palace with their waist token.
However, since the emperor valued this eldest son, he specially granted him a waist token that allowed him to enter the palace at will, which now made things convenient for Baoqing.
As Baoqing had predicted, the Thirteenth Prince did not accept the apology from his Third Brother. Instead, he clenched his fists and looked furious. "Although I am young, I have studied in the Imperial Study for several years. I understand the principles of being a son. My Third Brother looks down on my mother. I will go to him after his confinement ends!"
The thirteen-year-old boy's eyes welled up with tears.
I don't know if it was because she was angry.
Bao Qing looked pleased. "Very good. Keep up this momentum and give him a good punch when the time comes."
The Fourteenth Prince, who was copying homework from the Thirteenth Prince with a half-dry brush in hand, encouraged him from the side, saying, "Thirteenth Brother, I'll go with you and support you."
He and his thirteenth brother were so close that they could copy each other's homework. In his heart, his thirteenth brother, who let him copy his homework, was more like a brother than a blood brother.
Bao Qing applauded their brotherhood, then said with a regretful expression, "It's a pity I'll have already set off for the Yellow River by then, otherwise I should have been there to cover for my thirteenth brother. I guarantee I would have beaten him so badly that even Father Emperor wouldn't recognize him."
The Fourteenth Prince blinked and reassured Baoqing in a serious manner: "Don't worry, elder brother. Even if you're not here, we can beat the Third Brother so badly that even Father Emperor won't recognize him."
Baoqing found the Fourteenth Prince more and more pleasing to the eye, thinking that he was truly a good younger brother who cared about his elder brother.
He admired this kind of temperament, and on a whim, he said boldly, "Let's go to the training ground and practice together. I'll teach you a few moves, and then we must teach Third Brother a good lesson."
Otherwise, given the physiques of his two younger brothers, it's uncertain how much damage they could have caused to his third brother.
For a young person who loves to read, nothing is more interesting than studying.
With Baoqing's words, the Fourteenth Prince stopped copying his homework, grabbed the Thirteenth Prince's hand and walked towards the door, saying happily, "Big Brother is from the battlefield, he will definitely teach us how to beat Third Brother to a pulp."
They didn't feel there was anything wrong with one older brother teaching them to beat another older brother.
-
Emperor Kangxi's control over the palace was exceptionally strong. Not long after Bao Qinggang re-entered the Forbidden City, the Qianqing Palace received the news.
"Did Baoqing go to the Prince's residence?"
Kangxi frowned, puzzled.
"Let's go take a look."
Just as I arrived at the princes' quarters, someone came to report that Prince Zhi and the thirteenth and fourteenth princes had gone to the drill ground together.
Kangxi paused, his mind involuntarily conjuring up conspiracy theories.
As the eldest son, Baoqing was only in the Imperial Study when his two younger brothers entered the palace to establish their own residence… Consort De… Fourth Prince…
With his mind a jumble of conflicting thoughts, Kangxi's aura grew increasingly oppressive. The attendants behind him dared not even breathe, silently quickening their pace to keep up with him.
In summer, it always gets dark very late. When Kangxi arrived at the drill ground, the sky was still filled with beautiful five-colored clouds.
But even the most beautiful scenery couldn't save Kangxi from his indescribable feelings at that moment.
Look what he saw!
"Baoqing, what are you teaching your younger brother!" Kangxi couldn't control his anger and shouted, "All of you, get over here!"
As the Qing Dynasty gained popularity, people felt that the fourteenth brother was quite talented in this area, while the thirteenth brother was more refined and made slower progress.
But it's okay, both younger brothers will go together, and they'll definitely teach the third brother a lesson.
Upon hearing his father's voice suddenly boom behind him, the Thirteenth Prince froze.
On the other hand, Baoqing and the Fourteenth Prince, one being Kangxi's favored eldest son and the other being Kangxi's favored youngest son for five years, both enjoyed Kangxi's fatherly love and were not afraid of him.
Baoqing led his two younger brothers, one on each side, to Kangxi.
Kangxi couldn't help but get angry when he saw Baoqing's honest and simple eyes. He berated Baoqing mercilessly: "You princes, what are you doing, learning such low-class methods as gouging eyes and attacking the lowest parts of the body? Anyone who didn't know better would think you were street thugs instead of royalty. Where is your dignity and manners as princes?"
"And you, Baoqing, my eldest son, my Prince Zhi, it's one thing for you not to set a good example as the eldest brother, but look at what you're teaching your two younger brothers. Is that what proper princes should be learning? Are you going to take your two younger brothers to fight in the marketplace? Or is it that I can't afford to raise my sons anymore, so I'm sending them to become outlaws and bandits!"
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