Zhou Gu watched as Cui Yanjin painstakingly unpacked the luxurious box, which was indeed full of frivolous trinkets.
Knowing that these were his fourth uncle’s prized possessions, he looked at Cui Yanjin, "Do you think I have the leisure time to play with these?"
"Probably?" Cui Yanjin uncertainly replied.
"Not quite." Zhou Gu stated definitively.
"Then..." Cui Yanjin scratched his ear in distress, "In my father’s warehouse, there’s pretty much nothing else valuable except these playthings."
"Handing these to me, wouldn’t it pain him to lose these precious things?" Zhou Gu asked.
Cui Yanjin nodded emphatically, "Yes."
"Perfect." Zhou Gu found perverse pleasure in causing Cui Yuanbin discomfort, "Even if I don’t have much leisure time, I guess I can squeeze in some time for it."
Cui Yanjin looked at Zhou Gu with a tilted head, "Cousin, overindulging in luxuries is not good."
Zhou Gu lightly tapped his forehead, "Then why are you gifting it to me?"
Cui Yanjin replied with a grin, "Just letting you have some fun during your free time, it’s not like you’re going to squander your life away playing."
Zhou Gu didn’t comment, but instead pointed at the largest box, "What’s inside this one?"
"My mother’s excellent sword." Cui Yanjin immediately opened the box.
Zhou Gu "hmm" in response, also looked at the sword inside, picked it up for a closer examination and then nodded, "It is indeed a good sword."
In actuality, he wanted to say, kudos for having a son like you, who readily gifts away the best items in her private collection to Su Rong and him.
He returned the sword, "Give this sword back to your mother, I am content with your dad’s gifts."
Cui Yanjin looked at Zhou Gu, earnestly said: "Cousin, it’s fine if you accept it all, my mom wouldn’t punish me."
"Sure, they probably won’t lay a hand on you now that you’re a court-appointed official." Zhou Gu dismissed, urging him, "Go back, get on with what you’ve gotta do."
"Fine, I’ll return it to my mom." After packing the box, Cui Yanjin was reluctant to leave as Zhou Gu was being amicable to him, "Cousin, I’ll keep you company for a while."
Zhou Gu asked, "Do you want to go to the Ministry of Housing?"
"No."
Zhou Gu raised an eyebrow, lazily saying: "I thought you wanted to go to the Ministry of Housing, you’d be able to see me and keep me company every day there."
Cui Yanjin immediately picked up the box and departed, "Goodbye, Cousin."
He vanished in a flash, his figure disappeared from Feng Hall in an instant.
Ziye was left marveling, "Young Master, how on earth did Cui Yanjin suddenly become so sensible?"
"He assumed my position was unstable and wants me to pay more attention to myself and consolidate my position." Zhou Gu snorted with amusement, "He was probably scared by my display at Heiya Pass and subsequently after meeting Ye Guixue, he became overly worried by comparing him with me. Furthermore, he likely heard idle gossip both in the military and court regarding protocols of sending chamber servants into the palace for the Princess etc., being young and impressionable, he became concerned over my precarious position and went above and beyond to assert me. By now, his grandfather must have said something to him and disciplined him, prompting him to back off and stop bothering me as otherwise, it depicts poorly on him."
Ziye looked embarrassed, "Little Cui truly had a tough time."
He was surprised that Cui Yanjin could be so astute given the circumstances, initially, he thought he would continue to feud with Young Master forever. Seemingly, he was adaptable and able to foresee his own limitless future prospects, as many were saying. .
He sighed, "Indeed, there are still people in court who are unresigned. For a while, it was quite noisy and as Cui Yanjin had considerable interactions outside the palace."
He looked at Zhou Gu, "Master, you need to play hardball, make the whole court and country fear you, likely then nobody will dare interfere."
Zhou Gu casually dismissed, "How should I get stronger? I am not in charge of the Ministry of Justice, should I establish an imperial city surveillance office? My grandfather already supports me, with the Cui family’s backing, many people have already given up. Our grand wedding is coming up, and my grandparents and mom will be there, naturally they would stay for a year or so. During this time, no one will stealthily plot anything."
Ziye responded: "What about after?"
Zhou Gu laughed, tapping his head with a rolled-up scroll, "Dummy, Su Rong is there, don’t you think she should stand before me in these matters?"
Ziye rubbed his head, rather doubtful about the Princess’s role in dealing with such matters.
As if reading his mind, Zhou Gu nonchalantly said, "I already struggle with one, who would be so short-sighted to land in her way, let’s see if she doesn’t unsheathe her sword."
Ziye twitched at the corner of his mouth, "Master, aren’t you being a bit too confident?"
"What do you think?" Zhou Gu gestured dismissively.
Ziye turned and left without a word, agreeing with everything the Young Master said.
Su Rong was unaware that Cui Yanjin had proactively sought forgiveness and reconciliation from Zhou Gu. She was currently glowering at the Nanchu King, fuming, "You really are my dear father, are you hoping that my relationship with Zhou Gu isn’t too good, and we would fight?"
The Nanchu King coughed, yet responded with righteous indignation, "Do you think what you did today was right? Even going as far as to grind ink for that Nangong lad, isn’t that beneath your dignity?"
Su Rong challenged him, "What of my dignity?"
"You are the Princess."
"So what if I am the Princess?"
The Nanchu King glared, "As a Princess, naturally, you should maintain your dignity and not do what you should not do."
"What is it that I should not do?"
"Grinding ink for a young man of a minor clan like Nangong, especially a man at that, is something you shouldn’t do."
"Man or woman, what of it? In my eyes, his only identity on the Golden Hall for the palace examination was that of my future court official. Father, you’re the king and yet you’re being petty."
Su Rong rolled her eyes, "In the past, Zhou Wenwang drove his carriage to the bank of Wei River to pay his respects to Jia Ziya. To test Ji Chang’s sincerity, Jia Shang asked him to pull the carriage himself, which he did willingly. Thus, minister and monarch departed Wei River together, leading to Jia Shang’s appointment as Prime Minister, aiding King Wu establish his dynasty. Following Qin Xiaogong’s ascension to the throne, feeling belittled by other states, he decided to re-institute the law for strength, and issued a decree seeking talents whereupon Shang Yang carrying the ’Law Classic’ was welcomed to the State of Qin, leading to the implementation of Shang Yang’s Reform, resulting in Qin’s prosperity. Then there was Peng Yue’s allegiance to Han, Liu Bei’s thrice visit to a humble thatched hut, and Duke Zhou spitting up his food to feed others etc. I am paying respect to a scholar below me due to his talent, and eagerly seeking talents. The ancestors did the same, so I haven’t done anything wrong?"
Nanchu King was speechless, unable to refute her logic.
Su Rong snorted, "Father, Zhou Gu is far more open-minded than you, don’t corrupt him."
Nanchu King defensively responded, "I just summoned him for the palace examination."
Su Rong was unimpressed, "You really have an issue with the Nangong surname."
The Nanchu King was silenced, indeed, he was discontent about the Nangong clan, especially when his daughter treated them with such courtesy.
Su Rong stood up, "If there’s a next time, I’ll have the Queen bug you every day."
The Nanchu King: "..."
What a harsh punishment indeed.
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