Chapter 27 Brothers (First published on Jinjiang Literature City)
At this moment, Fu Mingzi was not as selfless as Fu Zechen had imagined. He had indeed realized that the old man wanted him to take advantage of a situation where no one was around. If he failed, it wouldn't be a big deal, but if he succeeded, it would be a great achievement.
However, Fu Mingzi knew in his heart that even if he had to choose a less favored candidate, it had to be one that he could stand. When he heard that the Fifth Prince had been chosen, Fu Mingzi was still somewhat unwilling because this candidate was far too unfavorable and the chances of him succeeding were too low.
However, after spending so much time with Zhou Xiaoyan, he finally realized that this fifth prince, though seemingly quiet, was actually quite talented and had a promising future. Coupled with his somewhat unsavory thoughts, Fu Mingzi found Fu Zechen's previous words rather unpleasant to hear, which is why he lashed out.
Looking back now, I feel a little regretful. My nephew was only thinking of him, but I said such nonsense. I wonder if my nephew will be sad.
Fu Mingzi sighed. It's true that he's been living a carefree life for too long, and his temper has gotten worse. Even something as small as this can make him lose his composure. Oh well, next time he goes out, he'll bring his nephew a piece of Huizhou ink as an apology.
Having decided how to handle the incident, Fu Mingzi put down her hands and returned to her courtyard.
The next day, Fu Mingzi went to the Imperial Study. He knew in his heart that this trip to the palace would probably not be peaceful. However, he was not flustered. He still acted frivolously and went to the West Third Palace to find Zhou Xiaoyan with a smile.
When he arrived, Zhou Xiaoyan had just finished breakfast and was drinking tea. When he saw him come in, he didn't even raise his eyelids, just took a sip of tea, and said in a deep voice, "Has everything from yesterday been taken care of?"
Fu Mingzi was taken aback, not expecting Zhou Xiaoyan to ask about this trivial matter instead of the major events of the previous dynasty.
He couldn't help but smile: "It's settled, Miss Yang has agreed."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiaoyan felt a sense of relief, and his tense expression softened.
"That's excellent."
Fu Mingzi didn't notice the change in Zhou Xiaoyan's expression. She just smiled and picked up a crystal grape from the square table beside her and put it in her mouth: "Why doesn't Your Highness ask about the cheating in the imperial examination?"
Zhou Xiaoyan glanced at him, his expression calm: "There's nothing to ask."
Fu Mingzi raised an eyebrow. Zhou Xiaoyan's answer was rather meaningful. Did he really not care, or did he already know the inside story?
Fu Mingzi was now somewhat unsure, so she stopped asking and simply smiled, saying, "Your Highness is right."
Zhou Xiaoyan pursed his lips and lowered his eyes.
Just then, Wei Baocheng suddenly came in, smiling as he presented Fu Mingzi with a bowl of almond milk: "Young Master Fu, please have some."
Fu Mingzi looked at the almond milk that emitted a faint fragrance, smiled slightly, and reached out to take it over.
"Thank you, Father-in-law." Although she was speaking to Wei Baocheng, her eyes were fixed on Zhou Xiaoyan.
Zhou Xiaoyan seemed a little restless, his eyes darting around, then he pursed his lips, his fingertips lightly touching his ears, which were also slightly red.
Fu Mingzi's smile widened as she picked up the almond milk and took a sip.
"Young Master, you flatter me. This old servant is only acting according to His Highness's instructions." As a qualified personal eunuch, Wei Baocheng always knew when to say what. Since the Fifth Prince intended to curry favor with Young Master Fu, he naturally couldn't just stand by and watch.
However, he did not know that his words would only enrage his Fifth Prince, who bit his lower lip and glared at Wei Baocheng.
"You talk too much, now get down here!"
Wei Baocheng felt a sudden jolt of fear, a sense of bewilderment washing over him. Had he made a mistake?
Fu Mingzi couldn't help but laugh out loud. This Fifth Prince was really too interesting. He looked like a cat with its fur standing on end, which was actually quite cute.
Zhou Xiaoyan's face turned even redder.
Fu Mingzi glanced at the bewildered Wei Baocheng and couldn't bear to see this loyal servant in such a difficult position, so he quickly smiled and comforted Zhou Xiaoyan: "Your Highness, please don't blame Eunuch Wei. It was my fault. I shouldn't have asked so many questions. However, I am truly grateful for Your Highness's kindness."
Zhou Xiaoyan realized his loss of composure and composed himself, coldly staring at Wei Baocheng. However, after hearing Fu Mingzi's words, he looked at Fu Mingzi with a complicated expression.
Gratitude? If I were to express gratitude, I would probably be the last person he should be grateful to.
Zhou Xiaoyan lowered his head, feeling a little depressed. He closed his eyes slightly and after a long while said, "Let's go, it's almost time."
Wei Baocheng breathed a sigh of relief, but Fu Mingzi was puzzled. He felt that Zhou Xiaoyan's mood seemed to have suddenly dropped, and he didn't know what was wrong.
Although she had her doubts, Fu Mingzi didn't pry into things Zhou Xiaoyan didn't want to talk about, so she just smiled and agreed.
**
The atmosphere in the Imperial Study was quite strange today. Although the teacher had not yet arrived, everyone was quiet. Even the Sixth and Seventh Princes, who were usually inseparable, were sitting properly at their desks, reading seriously.
Fu Mingzi knew why this was, so she wasn't surprised. She just smiled and sat down with Zhou Xiaoyan.
The morning's lessons were quite depressing. Scholar Duan seemed somewhat absent-minded, not to mention the princes below who appeared to be serious. Fu Mingzi even noticed that the usually arrogant Ninth Prince's eyes were wandering, as if he was thinking about something.
Fu Mingzi lowered her head and couldn't help but laugh. It seemed that everyone knew exactly what was going on.
After finishing their morning classes, they were just about to leave when a young eunuch came to deliver a message.
"By order of His Majesty, the martial arts class this afternoon is cancelled. His Majesty will be organizing a polo match at the horse farm in the west. I would also like to invite the princes to come and take a look."
The young eunuch had a smile on his face, but his behavior was very proper, and he seemed to be someone who was used to relaying messages for the emperor.
Before the eldest prince, the fourth prince, could even speak, the ninth prince opened his mouth first.
"I love playing polo the most. Please tell my father that I will definitely win first place for him this afternoon." The Ninth Prince had a proud smile on his face and looked very smug.
The fourth prince's face froze for a moment, then he smiled very well: "Ninth brother is indeed good at polo."
The young eunuch smiled and said, "Your Highness's words are remembered, and I will report back to His Majesty without missing a single word."
The Ninth Prince nodded reservedly to the eunuch, his smile growing even wider, but he didn't even glance at the Fourth Prince, as if he were invisible.
The smile on the fourth prince's lips gradually faded, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it and nodded to the eunuch who had delivered the message: "My brothers and I will definitely attend. Please inform Father Emperor."
Although the other princes were not asked, since the emperor had sent someone to speak, the other princes had no other choice. As the eldest brother, the fourth prince should reply on behalf of his younger brothers, which was the proper etiquette.
Therefore, upon hearing the Fourth Prince's words, the young eunuch bowed and said, "Yes, this servant takes his leave."
Seeing this, the Ninth Prince felt annoyed. No wonder this dog servant didn't move after he finished speaking; it turned out he was waiting for the Fourth Prince, that bastard, to say something.
The Ninth Prince glared at the Fourth Prince with malice, his heart filled with resentment. So what if he's a little older? Such a lowly birth has destined him to a mediocre life, and he's only doing this now because he's the eldest brother.
Thinking of this, the Ninth Prince's mood improved slightly. He then snorted coldly, waved to Luo Xing behind him, and stepped out of the study.
Despite the Ninth Prince's disdain, the Fourth Prince seemed oblivious, his eyes lowered and his expression calm. Only after the Ninth Prince left did the Sixth Prince step forward and say, "Fourth Brother, Ninth Brother is so ill-mannered! It was clearly your turn to answer, but he not only took it from you, but also treated you so poorly. It's truly..."
The Fourth Prince looked at the Sixth Prince and smiled gently: "Ninth Brother is young and doesn't know any better. As his older brothers, we should naturally be more tolerant. Sixth Brother, it's getting late. You should go back soon too."
The Sixth Prince's words were cut off, and his face turned somewhat unpleasant. However, he was used to being gentle and mild-mannered, so he did not act arrogantly like the Ninth Prince. He just forced a smile and turned to leave, but his expression looked somewhat annoyed, as if he was angry that the Fourth Prince did not know how to be pleasing.
The Seventh Prince hurriedly followed, and for a moment, only the Fifth Prince and the Fourth Prince remained in the Imperial Study.
The fourth prince forced a smile at the fifth prince: "I'm sorry to have made you look foolish, fifth brother."
He looked as if he had suffered a lot of grievances but was enduring them with great humiliation. If it were an ordinary person, they would probably feel sorry for the fourth prince. He was looked down upon by his younger brother and was instigated by the other brothers to be used as a pawn. Who wouldn't say that he was pitiful?
However, the Fifth Prince remained cold and aloof: "Fourth Brother, I'll take my leave now."
The fourth prince's expression froze instantly, and a look of disbelief flashed in his eyes.
Fu Mingzi almost burst out laughing at the scene, but she managed to hold it in and hurriedly followed Zhou Xiaoyan out of the study.
Once they were far away, Fu Mingzi finally burst out laughing: "These princes are really interesting. If we could watch this kind of show every day, it would be worth it."
Zhou Xiaoyan simply shook his head: "I feel disgusted after experiencing such a scene just once. If it happened every day, that would be unbearable."
Upon hearing this, Fu Mingzi's starry eyes immediately turned to Zhou Xiaoyan: "Your Highness, why do I feel that you are very hostile towards the Fourth Prince? Has he done something wrong?"
Zhou Xiaoyan's heart skipped a beat; he hadn't expected Fu Mingzi to be so sensitive.
He had intended to say something vague, but when the words reached his lips, he couldn't bring himself to say them. After a moment of silence, Zhou Xiaoyan finally said, "I just think he's a person who's not worth associating with."
He kept his head down, and Fu Mingzi couldn't see his expression, but judging from his tone, it seemed to contain a sigh, which must be true.
“If you find him unapproachable, then don’t associate with him.” Fu Mingzi was quite straightforward and didn’t dwell on this matter. “I also noticed that the Fourth Prince seems to have been approaching you and me with ulterior motives, so I don’t like him. Now that Your Highness also thinks he’s not good, then he must be bad.”
Zhou Xiaoyan looked up at Fu Mingzi. His dark eyes were filled with the youthful brilliance. His words made no sense, yet they seemed so sincere that people subconsciously believed him.
Zhou Xiaoyan suddenly remembered that Fu Mingzi had said the same thing to him in his previous life. At that time, he not only had rigorous reasoning but also evidence in hand. However, he seemed to be bewitched by a ghost and thought that Fu Mingzi was maliciously slandering him. Not only did he not believe him, but he also spoke ill of him, which completely chilled his heart. As a result, he fell into the trap of evil and suffered a miserable end in his previous life.
Zhou Xiaoyan felt a burning sensation in the corner of his eye. He quickly lowered his head to hide the change in his expression and gave a soft "hmm".
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