Since Xingxing had said so, the Fu brothers couldn't refuse any longer, so they agreed. After all, they couldn't stay at the Zhu residence forever, and it would be a bit embarrassing to eat and drink at the Zhu residence for so long. Once the house bestowed by the emperor was repaired, the five brothers would move in.
However, they still have to go to the Zhu residence every day to learn from the masters. Alas, Xingxing can't leave the capital. They will have to return to the south by next spring at the latest. Zhu Lin will stay in the capital, and the masters will definitely stay as well. Then they won't be able to learn skills from the masters anymore.
This is a truly sad story.
"Alright, although it's less than half a month until the New Year, it's still more than two months until the spring snow melts. Why think about that time? We should live in the present. Worrying too much will only kill us." Zhou Sanfu understood and didn't want to see his brothers looking so worried.
“Third brother is absolutely right. While we’re still in the capital, we should ask our masters if we don’t understand anything. They haven’t accepted any tuition fees from us, and of course, they wouldn’t accept any money from us either. In short, we should cherish what we have. People like Master Zhu won’t stay in one place for too long for anyone. We’re not stars.” Zhou Dafu pointed out with great self-awareness.
“Big Brother is right.” The other brothers nodded in agreement.
At the palace, the eldest prince and the third prince were carried back to their respective chambers, and their mothers had already arrived after receiving the news.
The eldest prince's mother was Consort Duan, who married into the royal family when the emperor was still a prince. She was an old member of the royal family, and she also gave birth to the eldest prince. When the emperor ascended the throne, he almost made her empress.
However, no matter how powerful Consort Duan's maternal family was, it could not surpass the Empress's family. Therefore, she ultimately failed to win the position of Empress and was only granted the title of Consort. However, her status in the harem was second only to the Empress.
The Third Prince's mother was Consort Duan's cousin. The Zheng family sent the Third Prince's mother to the palace to help Consort Duan. Although it didn't work out in the end, the cousin was lucky and soon gave birth to the Third Prince for the Emperor. She rose in status from a concubine to a consort because of her son.
After seeing their son, the two empresses met in Consort Duan's palace and discussed how to seek justice for their son.
"It seems that the one we found this time is the real princess. I was wondering why the previous one was so well-behaved, staying in Jinyu Palace all day and never coming out to see anyone. Occasionally, when she went for a walk in the Imperial Garden and encountered other princes and princesses, she would hurriedly hide away. I thought she had changed her personality after being in the common people for so long. It turns out she was a fake." Consort Duan sneered with a gloomy expression.
“Now that the real princess is back, the emperor is protecting her like the apple of his eye. Who would dare to provoke that little princess? She also has white-clad men with her. We all witnessed the abilities of those white-clad men that night. I’m afraid there isn’t a single guard in the palace who could match one of them.”
So it's impossible to get revenge on the princess, so he can only take it out on other people, like those five country bumpkins from the south. I heard the emperor even bestowed a house upon them. They're really lucky to have gotten involved with the eldest princess; they'll never have to worry about wealth and honor again.
If the emperor knew what Consort Duan was thinking, he would definitely spit on her. In recent years, the Great Jin Dynasty has suffered from natural disasters one after another, and the people are living in misery. The court has emptied the national treasury in order to provide disaster relief. The emperor himself is so poor that he has no ability to give others wealth and honor. It would be good enough if he could just give them a house.
The private treasury is almost empty from subsidies. These spendthrift concubines are brainless and don't know any worries.
If this natural disaster continues, the Great Jin Dynasty might be overthrown...
"Sister, do you mean to find someone to deal with those five boys? But if the eldest princess finds out and reports it to the emperor, we'll probably have a hard time explaining ourselves." Consort Shu was cautious and always considered the consequences of her actions. Consort Duan had always thought she was too timid and incapable of accomplishing anything significant.
"So we need to think of a way that won't expose us, a way to teach those five brats a lesson without implicating us." Consort Duan glared at Consort Shu in annoyance. How could her clan have chosen such a good-for-nothing to enter the palace? Her brain is rusty; it's no wonder she can't help her achieve anything.
"Sister, have you thought of any ideas?" Consort Shu asked expectantly.
Looking into Consort Shu's misty eyes, Consort Duan felt a lump in her throat. Yes, this cousin wasn't outstanding in other aspects, but her appearance was absolutely stunning, and she was also a bit naive. Perhaps men liked this kind of woman who was both beautiful and innocent, which was actually just stupid and easy to control.
"This matter cannot be rushed. Let's wait and see; we will find an opportunity eventually." Consort Duan's expression was enigmatic.
In Kunning Palace, the Emperor, in a good-natured manner, discussed with Xingxing, "Long'er, there are many concubines in the harem, and Young Master Zhu is not young anymore. It is not appropriate for him to come and go from the harem at will. Do you think we should talk to him and ask him to come to the palace less often in the future?"
"Brother Lin only came to play with me, he didn't go to any other palaces. He wouldn't deign to visit Father Emperor's concubines. What is Father Emperor thinking?" Xingxing felt that all the concubines in the harem could be Brother Lin's mother, so what was there to be ashamed of?
Moreover, her father had stopped taking in women for many years. She was still young then and heard from others that the court officials had petitioned her father to select women for the imperial harem, but her father had rejected the petition. Later, she asked her father what the imperial harem was and why he disagreed.
Her father told her earnestly that the palace was too poor to support too many people, so no more people could be added. She was young at the time, so she believed him.
Now Xingxing is two years older and no longer a three or four-year-old toddler. She understands many things now.
For example, all the concubines in the harem are the emperor's wives. There are so many that you can't even count them on your ten fingers. Why would you need to hold a talent show? No wonder the palace is getting poorer and poorer. With so many people to feed, it's no wonder they're going to go broke.
Disasters occur frequently in various places, making life extremely difficult.
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