Yong'an Temple
The next day, Di Shaoze calmed down and finally stepped out of the dusty door. He was uncomfortable with the sunlight and raised his hand to block it.
"Your Highness! You finally showed up, little prince!!!!!!!!!!"
Before seeing the person, I heard his voice first——
First there was a deafening cry of mourning, and then the butler rushed towards him from nowhere, half-knelt and put his arms around Di Shaoze's waist, wailing so hard that even the gods and ghosts would tremble.
"Stop! Stop! I'm not dead yet..."
Di Shaoze felt complicated because of the butler's exaggerated actions.
"Your Highness, I know you've been feeling depressed lately..." The butler relaxed a little, fighting back tears as he continued, "I've been feeling miserable lately, too. I've been wondering what to do. Why is His Majesty so angry? After much thought, I decided to meditate at Yong'an Temple for a while. We can donate some money and ask for the Buddha's blessing to improve our fortunes. With the Buddha's blessing, things will go more smoothly for you."
Di Shaoze remained silent. He knew the butler had good intentions, but his method was too crude. Whenever something happened, he would kneel and kowtow nine times before the gods and Buddhas. Di Shaoze didn't want to step out of the mansion and then turn around and hide in front of the Buddha. If this got out, it would be too embarrassing.
Besides, you can hide on the first day, but you can't hide on the fifteenth. He is still a prince after all. How can he stay away from public view for his whole life?
The butler added, "I was worried that Your Highness would have no one to accompany you, so I asked Mr. Lin, and he is willing to go with you."
Upon hearing this, Di Shaoze knocked the butler on the head. It felt as hard as wood. Why didn't you tell him earlier about this? Too stupid to understand the point, the butler rubbed his head in pain, wondering how he had offended the young prince.
Four carriages were neatly equipped and ready to set off at any time from the front of the mansion. The horsemen whipped their whips, and the horseshoes made a cheerful knocking sound along the way. As the saying goes, "It's hard to catch up with a horse with four horses." On the soft seat at the side of the carriage, Lin Huai'en was holding a large package and looking out of the small window again and again. The little pig next to him was pulling at his boots with its hooves, as if it also wanted to see the beautiful scenery of the capital.
Lin Huai'en picked up the little pig and said with a smile, "Thank you, little prince, for taking me out."
The Lord God Shaoze looked at him and smiled: "It's just a small matter. No need to thank me."
The little pig was particularly excited because it rarely went on a long journey. Its four little hooves kicked and glared around, making it harder to control than the pigs during the Chinese New Year. But after Lin Huai'en held it in his arms, he stroked its fur twice and actually coaxed it into submission. His technique was like magic.
When encountering a beautiful scenery somewhere, Lin Huai'en pointed it out to the little pig and said, "Qiuqiu, look, isn't it beautiful?" As he said this, he stroked the pig's hair along its back twice, making the little pig's eyes blurry.
Lin Huai'en's voice was soft and almost doting, coaxing: "Oh! What should we do? Our Qiuqiu is now a little pig that has seen the world. He is no longer an ordinary little pig."
The piglet seemed to understand and hummed comfortably. If it continued to be pampered like this, it would be so carefree that it would not even know what cabbage was.
This scene reminded Di Shaoze of the moon-viewing scene last night.
He was obviously bored in the room and had no appetite, but Lin Huai'en's smooth combination of moves made him whet his appetite and all his worries disappeared.
Di Shaoze: “…”
Di Shaoze turned his face away and decided not to think too much about it. At least he was a prince, so how could he be treated like a baby?
The car soon reached the foot of the mountain, and Di Shaoze and Lin Huai'en chose to get off. It was said that sincerity could bring good luck, and that walking to pray to the Buddha was the most effective. Apart from other things in the mountains, as soon as they approached, a cool breeze hit them in the face. The air was much clearer than in the city, and it made their chests and lungs feel much cleaner.
Lin Huai'en stretched his limbs. He was a child from the countryside, and he felt more comfortable staying in such a place than in the complicated capital.
The little fragrant pig Qiuqiu hopped up the stairs on its four short legs and could rest in Lin Huai'en's arms when it got tired. Lin Huai'en was in good health. All the work he had done over the years was not in vain. He could walk faster than the servants even when carrying a large package or holding a pig.
Halfway up the mountain, the group encountered a waterfall about a hundred feet long. A pool of water formed in front of the waterfall, so they decided to rest for a while. The servants sat scattered around the pool. Di Shaoze sat on a prominent boulder. Lin Huai'en sat next to him, pulling two handkerchiefs from his large bag, wet one with the pool water, and handed it to Di Shaoze.
Di Shaoze was stunned, took it and wiped the sweat off his forehead.
Lin Huai'en pulled out a small gourd from the large package and filled it with some liquid, letting Di Shaoze use it first. Only then did Lin Huai'en begin to wipe his face with a handkerchief. After climbing half the mountain, even with all his strength, he still broke out in a thin layer of sweat.
It would take some time before they could set off again. After wiping the sweat off his face, Lin Huai'en lay on the rock with his face up. He could feel the cold water vapor and mist splashing from the waterfall.
Di Shaoze looked at him and could feel that he was in a particularly relaxed mood today. Come to think of it, there were mountains near his hometown.
After a while, Lin Huai'en opened his eyes again and winked at Di Shaoze: "My dear, did you play skipping stones?"
Di Shaoze was stunned and asked, "What is this?"
Lin Huai'en, upon seeing the young prince's bewildered reaction, instantly became excited and leaped up from the rock. Here was his chance to show off his skills! He picked up a flat stone from the nearby pile and said, "Young prince, look carefully!" Then, lowering his body, he swung it outward. The stone flew at breakneck speed, like a bird with outstretched wings, or like a flying knife in the martial arts world that flashed by and never missed its target. It struck the water countless times before disappearing into thin air.
The whole process was brisk, clean and efficient, giving the feeling that only a top-notch expert could do it.
Di Shaoze opened his lips slightly, and even his pupils dilated. He was deeply amazed by the technique he had never seen before.
Lin Huai'en deliberately didn't look at his reaction. Even though he secretly counted thirteen hits on the water in his mind and silently cheered for his perfect record, he just looked at the water calmly, as if he had just tried it casually.
But in fact, he could see Di Shaoze's admiring expression with his peripheral vision...
alright.
It's really well-pretended.
satisfy.
Now it was Di Shaoze's turn to be particularly excited. He stood up and grabbed Lin Huai'en's sleeve: "Huai'en, teach me. I want to swing it once too!! How can it fly so fast and so far? And one after another..." Di Shaoze was so excited that he was a little incoherent.
Lin Huai'en only nodded slightly, pretending to be serious: "It's not difficult, first of all..."
While the two were immersed in the game, they did not notice that a five-horse carriage was passing by on the nearby hillside, flanked by two rows of guards with swords. A small window was opened, revealing a bright yellow five-clawed python robe. It belonged to the current crown prince, Emperor Guangqing.
"Heh. This idiot brother is embarrassing himself again, learning some unruly things."
The carriage stopped, deliberately not disturbing them. Di Guangqing looked at the two people by the pond, his expression covered with a layer of frost. He asked the mounted guard by the window: "That Shuang'er next to him..."
The guard understood and confirmed it before replying, "It's Lin Huai'en."
Di Guangqing's expression became even uglier now——
today.
After the morning court session, Di Guangqing was privately summoned to the imperial study by his father, and then stacks of impeachment memorials were thrown at him, like a hard slap in the face, making his face flush with humiliation.
He and his advisors made mistakes in command during this flood. They opened the sluice gates to change the course of the flood and asked the small counties to share the water power of the central counties. However, they did not expect that the small counties were all thatched houses and could not withstand water at all, and most of the people were killed. This aroused public resentment and caused heated discussion among officials.
The second slap in the face was a "Disaster Guide".
The strategy proposed by a country girl named Shuang'er was adopted by many places. Counties exchanged grain for emergencies, sending grain in times of famine and returning it in times of plenty. It was called "exchange" but it was actually "loan". The relationships and interests of the two counties were all taken into account, and charity granaries were established to prevent disasters and guard against the next flood or drought.
I was actually slapped by a country girl from a distance.
This "slap" was louder than the previous one for Di Guangqing.
Out of desperation, Emperor Guangqing could only ask to go to Yong'an Temple to pray for the people. On the one hand, he wanted to make amends and consolidate his position as the crown prince, and on the other hand, he wanted to ease the public resentment.
After Di Guangqing thought about the previous situation, his eyes became more fixed on the green by the water - the cold wind brought by the splashing water mist made the two long hairbands of the girl fly open, and the pair of dark eyes seemed to be washed by the lake water, shining with a clean light.
The green shirt fit his slender figure well, like a long bamboo standing by the water.
When these two girls are silent, they give people a very smart feeling, like elves in the mountains.
As he looked at it, Di Guangqing couldn't help but feel a little itchy in his heart. Rare and new things always make people want to own them.
However... not long after...
Lin Huai'en started to move, because he had taught Di Shaoze how to skip the water eight times, jumping a few times while exclaiming, and then skipping the water on the water continuously, completely without any rules.
Now Di Guangqing saw what a deceptive appearance was. She was truly 'quiet as a virgin, swift as a rabbit'.
Think about how the girls in the big cities are all graceful, calm and generous, with a natural air of nobility. This feeling is something these girls from the countryside can never learn.
Perhaps tired from playing, Lin Huai'en sat back on the boulder, removed his shoes and socks, revealing his slender, white calves and ankles. He rested, treading water and playing, attracting the attention of all the men present. In the countryside, Shuang'er worked in the fields, so there was no rule against showing feet. This cultural difference made him unaware of the feasting eyes of the men from the capital.
Afterwards, Di Shaoze fixed his eyes and scanned the area outside. Only then did the servants around him, who were treating Lin Huai'en as a piece of scenery, calm down and turn their heads away.
This also allowed Emperor Shaoze to discover Crown Prince Di Guangqing.
Di Guangqing looked at Lin Huai'en's feet longer than the servants, his eyes seemed to be glued to him and he looked away several times before looking back into the eyes of Shangdi Shaoze belatedly.
At the moment of their encounter, Di Guangqing raised the corner of his lips slightly. He had no idea that this stupid brother would have such a look, this kind of look that is unique to males protecting their food, which is dangerous and scary.
But the boy's face was still a little tender, which weakened the power of his eyes.
Lord Di Guangqing was magnanimous and did not take it to heart. He just closed the curtain and asked the coachman to hurry to Yong'an Temple so as not to miss the important matter.
Di Shaoze withdrew his gaze and only then sat down beside Lin Huai'en in a relaxed manner. Lin Huai'en smiled at him gently, completely unaware of what had just happened, and his two feet splashed in the water lightly.
Di Shaoze tried his best not to look, but occasionally his eyes were disobedient and he still glanced a few times.
These legs are perfect for hanging something, like a bell or a red rope...
Unable to help but think of this, Di Shaoze's ears turned slightly red, and he quickly turned his back and sat on the side of the stone.
After the group had rested and arrived at Yong'an Temple, except for Di Shaoze, everyone else was surprised to see the attendants of the current crown prince. Their mansion was already luxurious, but it still could not compare with the crown prince's ceremonial guard. After all, there were so many princes, but there was only one crown prince.
When entering the main hall, Di Shaoze remembered what happened by the pond and pulled Lin Huai'en's sleeve: "Huai'en, go to the main hall first, I'll go see the abbot."
Lin Huai'en was stunned and nodded without asking why.
In the main hall, the abbot was chatting on the side seat, and together with several senior monks in the temple, they were accompanying the prince nervously. Then they turned around and saw Di Shaoze entering the main gate. The monks saluted and moved another seat outside, so Di Shaoze and Di Guangqing sat next to each other.
Tensions mounted. Di Guangqing spoke first, smiling, "My brother didn't see you at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, and I heard you were sick at home, so he was very worried. Father was the same way. It would have been fine if he'd just asked you to kneel before your brothers, but he also asked you to kneel before all the officials, making them talk about you being an unfitting prince."
Di Shaoze gritted his teeth secretly, but could not show it on his face: "It's just a discussion, it will be over in a few days. Unlike my royal brother, he has to pray for the people in Yong'an Temple for 49 days, not even a day less. It's really hard work."
This sarcasm made Di Guangqing hold the handle of the chair tightly, with an unhappy look on his face, but he had to endure it. He was in the Buddhist temple to make amends for his mistakes and could not make any mistakes. If the quarrel with his brother became known, it would be even more difficult to shut up the ministers.
Di Shaoze put down his teacup and wanted to leave as soon as possible: "I will only stay in the temple for a few days. I will just stay in the west wing where I live. I won't disturb the state affairs of the temple that are praying for the people."
Seeing that Di Shaoze was about to leave, the abbot and the monks stood up in unison and bowed.
Di Guangqing's eyes followed his fleeing figure, then he sneered, not forgetting to sprinkle salt on his face at the end: "Yes, my brother is so old and has never attended court, never written a memorial. The rare time he had to write a memorial, he knelt before all the officials, becoming a laughing stock in the capital. How unprofitable! He should have found a place to rest soon..."
As Di Shaoze quickened his pace, all those unpleasant words were left behind. When he walked out of the door, his tense shoulders finally relaxed...
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