Chapter 159 You're just better at being born into the right family
The emperor shook his head: "You, Miss Zhou saved you from the brink of death. You should be grateful, but you shouldn't continue to speak ill of her."
“I am the patient, and she is the doctor. A doctor cannot stand by and watch someone die! Besides, I am a princess. If I ask her to save someone, she must save them! Father, you have changed. Jinling is no longer your favorite daughter. I am heartbroken and do not want to go with you!”
Princess Jinling snorted and strode forward, with two female guards quickly following behind.
After walking for a while, the lively sounds became clearer. The emperor listened for a few moments and figured out what was going on. It turned out that the same person had booked both Haoyunlou and Yuedonglou for the day and was hosting a large banquet for guests, and anyone could go in and eat!
"This person is very generous." The emperor smiled. "Eighteen, your father has never been to a banquet before. Today, you will accompany your father to broaden your horizons and experience more of life. This will help you understand the people's lives and make you a better person."
"Yes, Father."
Seeing Princess Jinling enter Yue Dong Lou from afar, the Emperor and the Eighteenth Prince went to Hao Yun Lou across the street. Hao Yun Lou was a mixed bag of people, and when the two went in, there were people performing acrobatics.
A fiery dragon lunged at the Emperor's face before quickly retreating, startling the Eighteenth Prince so much that he almost cried for the Emperor's protection.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
The guests pointed at the emperor and the eighteenth prince and laughed loudly: "Look at them, so cowardly, they look like they've never seen the world before, and they're so delicate and fair-skinned, could they be eunuchs from the palace?"
The emperor's face darkened, and the eighteenth prince was about to reprimand him when another guest spoke up: "He doesn't look like a eunuch. This old man has an air of nobility and seems to be of extraordinary status. But this young man, don't you think he looks like the young master from Chu Feng Pavilion?"
The young master of Chu Feng Pavilion?
The Eighteenth Prince's face darkened, and then Princess Jinling's voice rang out: "What young master of Chu Feng Pavilion! That's my Eighteenth Brother and Father—"
At the last minute, the word "Emperor" was changed to "Dear." Princess Jinling strode in and exclaimed, "Zhao Yunjing! I heard you won first place in the competition, and I, this young lady, have come to congratulate you in person!"
Hearing the commotion, Boss Tang peeked out and saw the Emperor and the Eighteenth Prince. He had never seen the Emperor before, but he had seen the Eighteenth Prince before. He quickly went upstairs to inform Zhao Yunjing and Zhou Mujiao.
"The Eighteenth Prince and a noble-looking middle-aged man?" Zhou Mujiao clicked her tongue. "Brother Zhao, you have quite the influence, even the Emperor himself came to your banquet!"
Mr. Tang slipped and almost knelt down.
That middle-aged man was actually the emperor!
When Zhao Yunjing and Zhou Mujiao arrived downstairs, even Princess Jinling was mistaken by the drunken guests for a courtesan from Chang Le Fang, which made her eyes red with anger. If the emperor hadn't been there and she couldn't give orders over his authority, these people would have been killed long ago!
Upon seeing Zhao Yunjing, Princess Jinling's pent-up grievances burst into tears: "Zhao Yunjing, I came here out of kindness to congratulate you, yet you have someone insult me like this! I... I don't want to live anymore!"
Zhao Yunjing cupped his hands in apology, while Zhou Mujiao was already drinking with the group of men like brothers. After three cups, Zhou Mujiao waved her hand and said, "Please take these men to the back to sober up. They can apologize to that young lady after they've sobered up!"
Then she picked up a glass of wine, looked around, and said loudly, "Thank you all for coming today. Although it is just simple food and drink, Mr. Zhao and I hope that everyone can enjoy themselves. However, we still hope that everyone will take care of their own face and image and not do anything reckless under the influence of alcohol. If you lose face, I'm afraid you will never be able to show your face again!"
"Don't worry, Miss Zhou. Today is a special day for you and Young Master Zhao. We certainly won't spoil your fun or cause you any trouble! Miss Zhou, please go and entertain our distinguished guests. Come on, everyone, let's continue drinking!"
Princess Jinling, who had been crying her eyes out and looked pitiful with tears streaming down her face, stopped crying immediately upon hearing the words "good day." Her eyes widened as she questioned, "Zhao Yunjing, isn't today a celebration of your winning the top spot? How has it turned into a good day for you and this wretch?"
Upon hearing the word "bitch," the emperor's face immediately darkened: "Jinling, remember your place, and don't embarrass our family in public! Yunjing, Miss Zhou, let's go upstairs and talk."
Boss Tang had already cleared out a clean private room and quickly served a table of food and wine. Once the emperor and his entourage were seated, he hurriedly led his men away.
Jinling had long been too ashamed to lift her head after the emperor's rebuke. Although she had received more love from the emperor than her sisters since childhood, she was also well aware of her importance in the emperor's heart. Compared with the country's affairs, the nation's affairs, and the honor and disgrace of the royal family, she was nothing and could be discarded at any time.
Therefore, even though she felt extremely wronged and angry, so angry that she wanted to kill Zhou Mujiao, she still had to endure it.
The emperor first congratulated Zhao Yunjing: "I was right, you are indeed a capable person! Continue to work hard in the imperial examination and strive to win the top spot. Yunjing, I don't necessarily expect you to pass all six levels of the examination, but if you have the ability, I hope you will give it your all."
"I will certainly live up to His Majesty's expectations and will do my utmost."
Zhou Mujiao poured the Emperor a cup of wine: "Your Majesty, this is the 'Ding Lou' wine from Haoyunlou. Please have a taste."
Yue Dong Lou sold wine, while Hao Yun Lou sold beer. The emperor had never drunk either of them. He only took a small sip and found the taste strange, so he put it down.
Turning his head, he saw the Eighteenth Prince chugging cup after cup. The Emperor smiled faintly and said, "Eighteenth Prince, Jinling, you were publicly insulted by people who said you were the young master of Chufeng Pavilion and a courtesan of Changlefang. I forbade you to seek revenge against those people. Aren't you feeling very wronged?"
The Eighteenth Prince paused, then said, "Father, I just don't understand. When a child from an ordinary family suffers such injustice, their elders will seek justice for them. But I am a member of the royal family—"
"When you say ordinary families, do you mean families like the Duke of Wei's mansion, the Duke of Ding's mansion, the Prince of Ding's mansion, or the Marquis of Pingnan's mansion?" The Emperor smiled faintly. "If you were a child from a family like Yun Jing's, you would understand why your father forbids you from causing trouble for them."
The Eighteenth Prince did not understand.
"For you, the Dingwang Mansion and the Weiguo Duke Mansion are ordinary families, but on the way back to the capital, didn't you already see the truly ordinary families? They are those who can't get enough to eat, whose homes are bare, or who don't even have a house and can only live in thatched huts or simply in caves."
You've had a life of comfort and ease since birth, seeking only my favor and the praise of others, while they struggle with nothing but survival. In the face of survival, dignity is worthless. You feel wronged and want to punish them, not because you're so great, but because you were born into royalty!
Recalling everything that had happened on the way, the Eighteenth Prince lowered his head in shame: "Father, your son knows he was wrong."
"Jinling, what about you?"
Princess Jinling thought to herself, "Father, you're talking nonsense," but she obediently said, "Father, Jinling knows she was wrong. Jinling is very grateful to Heaven for allowing Jinling to be born into the royal family and become Father's daughter."
"That makes more sense." The emperor smiled and asked Zhao Yunjing, "Someone just said that today is your and Miss Zhou's auspicious day, and that you two are getting married today?"
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