Chapter 41 The Emperor Seems to Be Hit in a Painful Place
The carriages and horses and the guards, who were also dressed in disguise, were already standing in front of the square between the Huiyin Gate of the Eastern Palace and the Donghua Gate of the Imperial Palace, ready to set off for the Yang Mansion in the east of the city at any time.
It was a sunny day after the snow, and the snow on the ground had been cleared in advance, but the glazed tiles on the palaces were still covered with silver.
When Yang Manyan heard the emperor's urgent summons, his heart sank slightly.
Xiao Yan calmly held her hand and squeezed it as if to comfort her. "The weather is nice today. You can take the birthday gift and leave first. I will be there soon."
"I'll go alone first?" Yang Manyan's eyes widened.
She thought that the prince had been summoned to the Qianqing Palace, and his trip out of the palace to visit his relatives and celebrate his birthday would be cancelled.
Xiao Yan chuckled and said softly, "Xue Shuren wanted to see Yuanyuan, so it's fine with me. You go first. I promise to be there before the dinner."
Before leaving, he squeezed her soft and lovely little hands again.
The two men were pressed close together, and the sleeves of their outer cloaks were wide; the eunuchs and palace maids around them did not dare to look directly at them, so no one knew of their intimate behavior.
Yang Manyan nodded, her round little face flushed.
She discovered that the Crown Prince particularly liked to pinch her hands, and the other man also always liked to pinch her face.
Although she is plump and round, is she really that easy to pinch?
The wheels rolled across the empty palace road, and the two separated in opposite directions.
As soon as Yang Manyan arrived at the gate of Yang Mansion in Chengqingfang in the east of the city, he met a young man with delicate features and beautiful eyebrows wearing purple brocade clothes.
It was her aunt’s cousin Xu Huaiying, who was only sixteen years old at the time.
Xu Huaiying was in a trance for a moment after seeing her, then his eyes lit up, "Sister Manyan?"
Yang Manyan nodded slightly and said with a smile: "It's me. It's been a long time since we last saw Huaiying. He has grown taller again."
The boy's face turned red with shame and his heart beat like a drum.
The two cousins are only one year apart in age, but girls naturally grow faster, so Yang Manyan has always been half a head taller than him since childhood.
Now sixteen-year-old Xu Huaiying has finally started to grow rapidly. He has suddenly become half a head taller than his cousin, and he may continue to grow taller.
The two of them walked into the Yang Mansion side by side. Their mother, the Xue sisters, were already waiting at the corridor.
When Yang's mother Xue Shulan saw her daughter, her eyes suddenly turned red. She was about to salute according to the rules but was stopped by her daughter.
"I have come here in disguise today, so there is no need to be polite, mother." Yang Manyan's eyes were also filled with tears and his voice was slightly choked.
A month ago, Xue Shulan heard that the prince had gone out of the capital to provide disaster relief and her daughter had inexplicably gone to the Imperial Temple in the western suburbs to pray for blessings, and she felt something was wrong.
My daughter likes reading and playing chess, and doesn't believe in gods or Buddhas at all. Why would she ask to go to a Buddhist temple to meditate?
She was worried every day for the entire month, and her husband was busy outside, which made her feel even more uneasy.
Seeing my daughter standing in front of me today, I finally felt relieved and couldn't stop crying.
Aunt Xue, who was standing by, hurriedly advised, "It's rare for Lady Shangyi to come back to visit her parents. Shulan, why are you crying? This is a great occasion!"
Yang Manyan also comforted his mother with a few words, then looked around and did not see his sister.
"Where is Zhenzhen? Where did she go again?" she asked softly.
Her younger sister's maiden name was Jingzhen, and she was thirteen years old. Her father and mother Yang gave her this name because she was particularly noisy since she was born. Unfortunately, it was of no use.
When Yang Manyan was at home, he was either studying or busy looking for his sister, or he was holding his sister down to play chess with her.
"Don't worry about that crazy girl. She will come out by herself soon." Xue Shulan wiped her tears and asked, "Didn't they say that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would also come? Why..."
Yang Manyan smiled and said, "Your Highness has something to do. He said he would come before the dinner."
At the other end, Xiao Qing strode through the Qianqing Gate and saw a tall man in a black crane cloak holding a ten-force bow. He had sharp eyes and a gloomy and oppressive aura emanating from his body.
It was just like the scene when his father summoned him to come at the beginning of the East Palace wedding last month.
Xiao Yan was stunned for a moment, and suddenly understood why his father asked them whether they had consummated their marriage the day after their wedding, which was unusual. It seemed that his father had...
Suddenly, there were several "whoosh" sounds, and the arrow flew out and went straight into the center of the bull's eye dozens of feet away.
After a moment of silence, Xiao Yan cupped his hands as usual, "Father is in his prime, and he is truly heroic."
But there was no longer the worship and admiration he once had in his words.
The emperor handed the Ten-Force Bow to his son just like he did last time, but this time he said nothing and just looked at him seriously.
Xiao Yan took it silently. Perhaps he was holding back some anger, he drew the bow and arrow smoothly, and effortlessly pulled the ten-force bow with a pulling force of 120 kilograms.
In an instant, a sharp sound of cutting through the air was heard, and the feather arrow flew away, also going straight through the center of the bull's eye, and even knocked the arrow that the emperor had just shot into the bull's eye to the ground.
Even the emperor was a little surprised. He raised his eyebrows and said in a deep voice: "It seems that Zi'an has indeed made rapid progress recently."
Xiao Yan casually placed the bow and arrow on the rosewood bow stand behind him.
"If your Majesty has no other important matters, I will take my leave. Today is Xue Shuren's 36th birthday, and Yang Shangyi and I must attend the banquet on time."
Upon hearing this, a hint of viciousness flashed across the emperor's brows.
"Zi'an, Yang is not suitable for you." He said coldly with a cold light flashing in his eyes.
Xiao Yan's expression was calm. "I said this last month. Yang Shangyi is very good. She is beautiful and intelligent. She also shares the same interests with me."
He was going to accompany Yang Manyan out of the palace in disguise today. He was only wearing a plain jade-colored brocade robe, a dark gray cloak, a silver crown to tie his hair, and no accessories around his waist.
After a moment of silence, the emperor slowly said, "You are the crown prince of a country, my heir. I don't want to see you indulging in love and women every day."
"What about father?" Xiao Qi asked with a sneer.
The emperor seemed to have been poked in a sore spot, and his eyes darkened instantly, "I am different from you, I can control it."
"Has father got it under control?" Xiao Qing asked calmly.
No. The father and son knew it very well.
If he had it under control he shouldn't have robbed Yang Manyan.
The emperor pursed his thin lips, his fingertips dug deep into his palms, and veins on the back of his hands popped out.
"Yang was already my woman half a year ago. It was indeed my fault that I mistakenly assigned her to you. I will make it up to you."
Xiao Yan's expression suddenly froze, and he said slowly, "If your Majesty wants to make amends, just stop interfering in the affairs between me and her."
Today the sky is clear and the air is sunny. The frost and snow that have accumulated for several days are gradually melting and dripping down along the roof.
All kinds of emotions surged in the emperor's heart, his eyes became slightly bloodshot, and when he opened them again, the redness in his eyes could not be concealed.
"Zi'an, I seem to have never told you how the late emperor died?"
Xiao Qi frowned slightly, not understanding why his father suddenly changed the subject.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
