Despite Erfu's usual boldness, he was genuinely startled when he heard that he was going to the palace. He secretly asked Sanfu, "Third brother, are we just going to the palace like this? Shouldn't we dress more properly?"
“What else can we wear? We’re already dressed respectably enough in the capital. The other clothes are all made of the same fabric and are similar in style. What difference does it make whether we change them or not?” Zhou Sanfu replied in a low voice.
That's true, then I won't change my clothes. But I suddenly feel inexplicably nervous about going to the palace.
"It's alright, Xingxing is in the palace too, and so is Lin-ge'er, don't panic." At this critical moment, Zhou Dafu, as the eldest brother, still showed his true colors.
The Fu brothers entered the palace in a luxurious carriage. Along the way, they didn't dare to lift the curtain and look around. They sat quietly inside the carriage and spoke in hushed tones.
Half an hour later, the carriage stopped, and the eunuch who had come to pick them up lifted the curtain to let them off. After getting off the carriage, the five of them stood there, quite shocked, looking at the surrounding buildings. The magnificent palace walls and the golden glazed tiles shone in the sunlight, and there were magnificent pavilions all around.
"Brothers, you've finally arrived." A soft, sweet voice rang out, and the brothers all looked over. They saw a young man in white leading a beautifully sculpted princess, surrounded by a group of palace servants, walking briskly towards them.
"Did you send Xingxing to the palace?" Zhou Erfu rushed forward to greet them.
"No, it's Father and Mother who want to see you. Don't be nervous, just be normal. Father and Mother won't make things difficult for you," Xingxing explained in a chattering voice as she led the boys towards the Empress's palace.
The emperor was also there. When the Fu brothers arrived at Huayun Palace and saw the emperor and empress, they hurriedly and awkwardly performed the rites. They had not learned the palace etiquette, so they just knelt down and bowed haphazardly.
"No need to be nervous, rise." The emperor was still quite amiable, his tone as gentle as possible.
The Empress was gentle by nature, and knowing that the brothers Fu were her adopted brothers, she naturally felt a sense of closeness to them. After asking them to stand up, she had the palace servants bring them chairs to sit down.
However, the Fu brothers were always very reserved. They answered the emperor and empress's questions one by one, not daring to say more, for fear of making a mistake. The storybooks said that saying the wrong thing in front of the emperor could lead to death. They did not know what the rules were in the palace, so they could only speak less.
"Long'er was well taken care of by your family in the south, and the Empress and I are very grateful. If you have any requests, please let us know, and we will try our best to fulfill them."
The brothers exchanged glances, and finally Zhou Sanfu was sent out to reply, since he was the smartest of the five. Sanfu had no choice but to stand up and thank them, "We have no requests, we only hope that we can go to the palace to see Xingxing again in the future... even if it is the princess, no matter what her status is, she will always be our sister. Please grant us permission, Your Majesty and Empress."
The Emperor's eyes flickered slightly, and he exchanged a glance with the Empress. Then, they both looked at Xingxing, who was also looking at the Emperor and Empress. Her expression seemed to say, "Hurry up and agree! Why are you hesitating?"
"I grant your permission. I will issue a decree later, and from now on you will be the princess's recognized brothers." With the emperor's promise, the Fu brothers no longer need to worry about not seeing the stars in the future.
"Thank you, Your Majesty and Your Majesty." The brothers bowed to the Emperor and Empress together again.
Seeing how uncomfortable they were, Xingxing spoke up to defuse the situation, "Father and Mother, I'll show my brothers around the palace. You're both busy, so we won't bother you any longer."
The brothers glanced gratefully at Xingxing. The Emperor and Empress exchanged a smile. The little princess had spoken; what else could they do but go along with her, or she would become unhappy again.
After leaving Huayun Palace, Xingxing and Zhulin led the Fu brothers around the palace for a while. They didn't really wander around, but the palace was so big that they could easily spend half a day just exploring Huayun Palace and Jinyu Palace.
"This Jinyu Palace used to be my bedroom. Later, I was kidnapped by Prince Gong's men, and it was left empty until the fake princess was found. She lived here for a year, and that wicked woman also died here. Now I don't live here anymore; I want to choose another palace to live in." Xingxing explained in a flurry when they arrived at Jinyu Palace.
"Sister, are you going to live in the palace from now on? You can't go out and live with us anymore? Then it will be difficult for us to even see you." Zhou Erfu sighed.
“I can leave the palace to see you, and you can come into the palace to see me,” Xingxing said.
“But going to the palace is too troublesome. We don’t know the rules of the palace. What if we embarrass you?” Zhou Erfu shook his head, looking very troubled.
“If you find the palace too restrictive, then don’t come. I’ll just leave the palace to visit you,” Xingxing said with a sigh.
The six siblings whispered among themselves all afternoon but couldn't come up with a good solution. The main problem was that Fu Ge said he wouldn't stay in the capital for long and would definitely go back to Nanyang Prefecture, since their parents and villagers were there.
Thinking about being separated from her brothers and not knowing when she would see Zhou Laoda and Zhao Guihua again, Xingxing pouted, her big eyes misty, looking like she was about to cry at any moment.
"Don't be sad, we'll always find a way. With me here, do you think there's any problem we can't solve? At worst, I'll secretly take you back to the South," the boy said calmly.
"But if I run away secretly, my father and mother will worry, and I don't want them to be sad." Xingxing was very distressed and didn't know what to do. She couldn't bear to leave her father and mother, and she also missed her parents.
But her parents don't want to come to the capital, and her brothers are going back to the south. What will she do if she misses them in the future?
The group looked distressed and remained silent for a while. As they walked, they arrived at the Imperial Garden. Suddenly, a group of people came from the front. Leading the way were two princes dressed in fine clothes, both older than Xingxing, about thirteen or fourteen years old.
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