Chapter 292: Recorded in the Family Tree (Two Chapters Combined into One)
Zhao Tingluo guessed correctly, that person was the retired emperor's secret guard.
The retired emperor lived in a quiet courtyard. There was no such place in ordinary official inns. This official inn was very close to the capital. This courtyard was reserved for royal nobles. Princess Jiayi, the fourth prince and others had lived here. However, so far, the retired emperor was the person with the highest status who had lived in this courtyard.
Zhao Tingluo followed the secret guard and entered the yard without anyone noticing. Zhao Shiqing was standing in the corridor waiting for him. Seeing him coming, she smiled and said, "Little Luoluo, long time no see."
"Sister, how are you? Disaster relief work must be very hard. You've lost weight."
This child is so heartwarming. Zhao Shiqing subconsciously wanted to rub his little head, but found that he had grown taller again, like a little adult, serious and solemn.
"I think I've lost weight too. When we get back to the capital, we'll have a few feasts and we'll make it back."
The two men entered the house one after the other and saw two people playing chess. One was the emperor, and the other was Xiao Zhen, whom they had not seen for a long time.
Zhao Tingluo was slightly surprised. This was really Xiao Zhen, but...
He and Xiao Zhen were ten years apart in age, so they couldn't play together. They had never had any contact with each other before, and they had never even spoken to each other.
But when he saw Xiao Zhen in front of him today, Zhao Tingluo felt a sense of familiarity.
How could this happen?
I haven't seen it many times before.
Zhao Tingluo was puzzled, but his eyes just swept over Xiao Zhen, and then he stood obediently aside, watching the two play chess.
The emperor won this game of chess.
He was very happy, stroking the beard he had grown with great difficulty, and said to Xiao Zhen: "This is my true level. I was giving in to you before."
Xiao Zhen: You are such a shameless chess player! If I don’t let you win another game, you won’t give up.
The emperor was in a good mood and only then noticed Zhao Tingluo standing beside him.
"Please take a seat!"
"Thank you for the meal, nephew." Zhao Tingluo thanked him with a smile and sat down at the bottom.
Zhao Shiqing pushed a box full of snacks in front of him. He picked up a piece of candy and put it in his mouth: "This candy is crispy and crunchy, even better than the ones in the palace."
"Yeah, I think it's delicious too. I bought it in a small town."
The retired emperor watched coldly. He had only thought that the child was good-looking before, but now looking at him again, he was calm and composed, and exuded spiritual energy. It was indeed a good thing. Prince Fu, that good-for-nothing, actually had such an outstanding grandson.
Thinking of Prince Fu, the retired emperor recalled the scandals of Prince Fu's son that Zhao Shiqing had told him. The corners of the retired emperor's mouth curled up slightly. It was shameful, and it was indeed something that Prince Fu and his son could do. Prince Fu's Mansion was rotten from the root. Zhao Tingluo must have taken after his maternal father and uncle.
The second prince had good taste and actually picked such a playmate for the seventh prince.
No matter how despicable Prince Fu is, his descendants are of legitimate royal blood. The second son's son is not worthy!
"Your name is Tingluo? I heard you have a younger brother?"
Zhao Tingluo bowed slightly, and the Emperor said, "Sit down and answer."
Zhao Tingluo sat down again and said, "Reporting to the Supreme Emperor, my nephew's full name is Zhao Tingluo. He is still young and has no given name. Tingluo has a younger brother, who is his biological brother."
"Well, tell me what's new in the capital recently." said the emperor.
Zhao Tingluo acted as if he knew nothing and talked excitedly about the latest news in the capital.
From the fourth prince's arrival in Beijing to the myth of Xiao Zhen's resurrection, the subject suddenly changed and another thing was mentioned.
"Something happened to the Fourth Prince's maternal family. Master You died inexplicably, and he died in his concubine's house. Before the You family had time to deal with the matter, the Fourth Prince's affairs reached the capital. His Majesty ordered the siege of the You family, and Master You's funeral has not yet been held."
The Emperor looked at Xiao Zhen and asked, "What's going on with Master You?"
Xiao Zhen said in a deep voice: "That Liu Wang is the person that Master You placed next to the Fourth Prince. I think..."
Xiao Zhen didn't say the rest of the words, but the emperor already understood.
Xiao Si did it!
He thought Liu Wang had betrayed him, so he hated the You family as well. He sent his shadow guard back to the capital early to kill Master You.
Master You is the Fourth Prince’s uncle!
"He is indeed a heartless and ungrateful person!"
He is not a member of the royal family, but he has learned the ruthlessness of the royal family.
"I heard that you were raised in the palace when you were a child. Is there anything new in the palace recently?" asked the emperor.
Zhao Shiqing also wanted to hear that the Wei family had sent two beauties into the palace, plus Old Madam Wei. By the way, before going to Tongzhou, there was the incident with Wei Wubing and Wei Yaer. I wonder if there will be any follow-up.
Zhao Tingluo was a little embarrassed: "There are many new things in the palace, and Tingluo has heard a few of them. But Tingluo is young and doesn't know what to say and what not to say..."
The emperor snorted coldly, this kid is smarter than a monkey!
"Children speak without restraint, I forgive you!"
"Okay, uncle, Tingluo will tell you everything. Speaking of which..."
Zhao Tingluo made a fortune by selling gossip. Some of the things he told had been exchanged for money, some were still waiting to be sold, and some could not be exchanged for money and were only circulated in a small circle.
So Zhao Shiqing knew a lot of things.
For example, the Wei family sent two beauties into the palace. One of them became pregnant but unfortunately had a miscarriage, resulting in two deaths.
The one who did it was Fan Qiuyun!
Fan Qiujun was originally with Concubine Qiao, and later became pregnant. The child was not Emperor Yongjia's, but the third prince's.
She was a palace lady, but she was pregnant with the prince's child, which was a scandal.
Concubine Qiao naturally did not want her eldest grandson to bear such a stigma before he was born, so she wanted to have Fan Qiujun abort the baby. However, Fan Qiujun did not want to do that. In exchange, she would get rid of Concubine Wei and the child in her belly, and Concubine Qiao would give her a status so that she could give birth to the child.
Now Concubine Wei is dead, and Concubine Qiao has betrothed Fan Qiujun to her own nephew. The marriage is scheduled for next month, and in a few days Fan Qiujun will leave the palace to prepare for her marriage.
Zhao Shiqing interrupted, "Is Concubine Qiao asking her nephew to raise a son for the Third Prince?"
Zhao Tingluo: "Maybe the Imperial Concubine feels that there is no place safer than her parents' home."
Zhao Shiqing didn't understand: "Even if Concubine Wei gave birth to a prince, it wouldn't affect the Third Prince's status. Why would they want to kill her?"
Zhao Tingluo: "Whether Lady Wei lives or dies is unimportant to the Imperial Concubine. This is just Fan Qiujun's token of loyalty to her."
The retired emperor looked at Zhao Tingluo with a deeper look, worthy of being a child who grew up in the palace.
If this child were placed with Zhao Yuan...
After all, Zhao Yuan is alone and weak, and having only Xiao Zhen as his helper in the imperial city is definitely not enough. Zhao Tingluo represents the Prince Fu's Mansion, and now he has the final say in the Prince Fu's Mansion.
Although Prince Fu is a waste, he is a prince after all, and my brother!
His status is very important in the royal family.
If we add Prince Lu's Mansion...
The retired emperor thought of the Prince of Lu who howled as soon as they met. He was so annoyed. Zhao Yuan definitely looked down on him.
Forget it, let’s take it one step at a time and bring Prince Fu’s Mansion over first.
What Zhao Shiqing cares about most is Old Madam Wei.
"Where's Madam Wei? Is she still living in the palace? The Emperor hasn't kicked her out yet. And what about Concubine Li? Is she causing trouble again?"
Zhao Tingluo glanced at the retired emperor and saw that he looked normal, so he continued, "Old Madam Wei is still in the palace. Ever since she entered the palace, the relationship between Concubine Li and Your Majesty has become increasingly strained. Your Majesty has been bringing the Seventh Prince with him recently. The Seventh Prince lost his mother at a young age and was raised in the palace of Concubine Shu. After the Fifth Prince's accident, Concubine Shu fell ill, and the Seventh Prince was left in the care of Concubine De.
The deceased wife of Marquis Baoqing, the former daughter-in-law of Old Lady Wei, was the cousin of Concubine De. Old Lady Wei disliked her former daughter-in-law and also disliked Concubine De.
Unfortunately, Concubine De was one of the four concubines and not an ordinary palace maid, so Madam Wei could not touch her.
So Old Lady Wei secretly instigated the relationship between Concubine Li and Empress De. Since the Seventh Prince was favored, Old Lady Wei said that Empress De was honored because of her son and was disrespectful to Concubine Li.
Concubine Li always obeyed Madam Wei's words, so she filed a complaint against Concubine De in front of His Majesty, causing Concubine De to be confined to the palace and she is still confined to the palace and unable to leave.
Even the family of Concubine Yan, the biological mother of the Seventh Prince, was affected. When Uncle Yan's term of exile expired, the position that had been originally reserved for him was replaced by someone else. The person who replaced him was none other than Concubine De's cousin. As a result, the Seventh Prince also had an opinion of Concubine De.
Well, ever since Madam Wei entered the palace, the relationships between the palace masters have become more complicated than before.
And Princess Huixin, who was originally engaged, didn't want to marry, so she went to ask Concubine Qiao for help, and the marriage was dropped. Now, Princess Huixin goes to the palace every now and then to talk with Concubine Qiao, and they are closer than real mother and daughter.
That night, Zhao Tingluo stayed in the emperor's courtyard until very late before returning. After Zhao Tingluo left, the emperor remained silent for a long time. After a long time, he suddenly smiled.
"Look, I've only been away for over ten years, and these evil people have already turned my palace into a mess. The Wei family is so bold! It's not enough to confuse the royal bloodline, they also want to trample on the reputation of the royal family. They are so cruel, so cruel!"
Zhao Shiqing rolled her eyes. The Wei family confused the royal bloodline, but they did it under your nose. They are brave, but what about you? You are blind and blind-hearted, you deserve it!
"Hui Xin? She must be Zhao Yuan's sister, right? Why is she so close to the Qiao family? Shouldn't she stay away from them?"
Zhao Shiqing didn't say anything. She didn't know what was going on with Princess Huixin. She didn't like these two princesses and was too lazy to meddle in their affairs.
The retired emperor shook his head. No wonder Jiayi had to hide the fact that Zhao Yuan was still alive from even the two princesses. It seemed that Zhao Yuan's two sisters were confused.
Zhao Shiqing asked, "Grandpa Emperor, you know everything that's going on in the capital and the palace. What are your plans for the next step? Will you force the emperor to abdicate and remove Hook-Nose from the throne? Or will you plant rat poison and kill every Hook-Nose in the palace?"
The emperor looked at her and thought, this girl is just hoping that the world will not be in chaos.
"Wait two more days, Yuan'er hasn't arrived yet."
Zhao Shiqing: "Don't always call him Yuan'er Yuan'er. He is now Guanyue. Have you forgotten the name you gave him?"
"Yes, Guanyue. From now on, I'll call him Guanyue."
When the emperor thought of Chen Guanyue, his eyes and eyebrows were full of smiles. This is my only remaining grandson!
Since the retired emperor refused to leave, the seventh prince had no choice but to accompany him, and this companionship lasted for three full days.
On the third day, a eunuch came running in, "Seventh Prince, someone has arrived at the official post station!"
The Seventh Prince was puzzled: "This is an official post station. If no one comes, can it still be called an official post station?"
The eunuch raised his hand and slapped himself: "This servant is not very good at speaking. What this servant said is that the leader of the people who came is a young man who calls himself Young Master Guanyue. Moreover, he also said that he is the grandson of the retired emperor."
Before the Seventh Prince could speak, Prince Lu interrupted, "Oh my, so the Emperor Retired really does have a god-grandson. The rumors in the capital are true. I hadn't seen this person before and thought they were talking about Xiao Zhen. I also thought the rumors were wrong and that they were talking about grandson instead of grandson. It turns out there's no legend. He just has a grandson, but he's not his biological son."
Zhao Tingluo: You are lying with your eyes open. When you left the capital, you secretly prepared generous gifts for Master Guanyue and my sister Qing. Do you think I don’t know?
The Seventh Prince hurriedly asked, "Where are the people?"
The eunuch said, "The Emperor had someone waiting outside the door early in the morning. As soon as Master Guanyue arrived, he was taken to see the Emperor."
The Seventh Prince hurriedly said, "Wise Uncle, Luoluo, let's go see the Retired Emperor and also meet this person...Should I call him Brother? Or Royal Brother?"
Zhao Tingluo didn't know either. Normally, he should call him Emperor Brother, but this Young Master Guanyue was only the adopted grandson of the retired emperor, not his biological son.
"Let's see what the emperor says." Zhao Tingluo said.
The three men did not see the legendary Master Guanyue immediately. They waited outside the door for half an hour before the eunuch took them in.
When they saw Master Guanyue, not only Zhao Tingluo, but even the Prince of Lu was stunned. The Seventh Prince noticed something was wrong with the two of them and looked at them subconsciously. The Prince of Lu opened and closed his mouth, then opened and closed it again, and finally forced out an ugly smile.
In contrast to him, Zhao Tingluo was only stunned for a moment before returning to normal.
But in his heart he was howling loudly: "Ahhh, isn't this Xiao Yue? Xiao Yue, this is Xiao Yue!"
Similarly, he and Xiao Yue did not know each other, but he had seen Xiao Yue. Xiao Yue was so handsome that anyone who had seen him would not easily forget him.
Of Prince Consort Xiao's two sons, Xiao Zhen came back to life, and Xiao Yue transformed himself from a ridiculed concubine's son into the praised Master Guanyue. Not only that, he also became the godson of the retired emperor!
Who can tell him what is going on?
Unlike the other two, the Seventh Prince had never seen Xiao Yue. He was just surprised that the godson of the retired emperor was so handsome.
"You're here? This is my new grandson, Chen Guanyue. Hey, where are the people from the clan house? Come, call them over."
Prince Lu and Zhao Tingluo exchanged glances. They both understood that the retired emperor wanted to record this godson in the family tree!
Before the clan officials arrived, the emperor looked at Chen Guanyue and smiled, his face wrinkled. "When the clan officials arrive, I'll change your name. From now on, your surname will be Zhao, and your name will be Zhao Guanyue. Emperor Xiaokang's youngest son died young, and he has no children. I will register you under his name, okay?"
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