Liang Jiugong stopped when he saw the Fourth Master from afar. He bowed and said, "Greetings, Fourth Master. Is there any instruction? His Majesty just lost his temper inside. If you have anything to report, you will have to wait a little longer."
He lowered his voice slightly at the end of the sentence, which also carried a hint of reminder.
Fourth Master nodded politely: "There are some things to report. I will wait outside, you may go and attend to your business."
Liang Jiugong said "Ah," bowed again, and before leaving, asked his apprentice to lead the Fourth Master to the warm pavilion to wait.
When the Fourth Prince sat down in the warm pavilion, Su Peisheng stood behind him and whispered, "It seems that Lord Longkodo and several other ministers are inside right now."
Fourth Master lowered his head and drank tea to quench his thirst and sober up: "Where is Liang Jiugong going?"
“This servant had Fulu follow them quietly, but only from a distance. It looked like they were heading out of the palace. This servant saw that Chief Eunuch Liang was carrying a waist token.”
When Liang Jiugong bowed, the Fourth Master also saw it and naturally noticed the waist token he was holding.
After finishing his tea, the Fourth Prince closed his eyes slightly, already having a map of the entire capital city in his mind. If he were to leave the palace, there would be many places to go.
About fifteen minutes later, the Fourth Prince was still being discussed in the Hall of Mental Cultivation and had not yet been summoned. It was Fulu who returned first.
"This servant did not dare to follow too far. After leaving the palace, Chief Steward Liang was accompanied by many guards. However, if this servant is not mistaken, Chief Steward Liang was leading people towards the Imperial Clan Court."
Imperial Clan Court
When the Fourth Prince opened his eyes, he immediately thought of Suo'etu, who was still being held in the Imperial Clan Court.
With the Crown Prince secretly making arrangements after returning to the capital, Suo'etu's health did not deteriorate due to the Imperial Clan Court, but it was not as good as before.
He waved his hand, and Fu Lu, sensing the situation, went outside to keep watch.
There were only a few servants guarding the warm pavilion, and only Su Peisheng was left by the Fourth Master's side.
The Fourth Prince said in a flat tone, "The birthday gifts couldn't just disappear into thin air, and no one else would dare to do that. So it can only be that the various Mongol tribes took it upon themselves to send the gifts elsewhere..."
Fourth Master suddenly stopped speaking at this point.
Where will the items go?
If the Mongol tribes didn't send their birthday gifts to the Emperor, where else would they send them? Who would dare to accept them? And who would they be eager to curry favor with?
At this moment, Fourth Master only had two people on his mind.
"Prince Zhi and the Crown Prince."
Fourth Prince subconsciously tapped the table. He didn't dare to guess whether his elder brother, Prince Zhi, had such audacity, but he also didn't dare to trust the Crown Prince.
After waiting for about fifteen minutes, a servant finally came in to summon the Fourth Prince to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
As the Fourth Prince came out of the warm pavilion, he ran into Longkodo, who was also coming out. Longkodo was still wearing his court robes and looked to be in good spirits.
The two men bowed to each other. No other ministers were seen behind Longkodo, suggesting that Longkodo was kept on by his father at the end.
Longkodo patted the sleeves of his court robe: "Fourth Master is quite free now? Did you come to personally wish His Majesty a happy birthday?" He was always smiling, and wrinkles were faintly visible at the corners of his eyes.
The Fourth Prince replied, "So, Uncle has also come to wish Father Emperor a happy birthday?"
Longkodo, responding to the Fourth Prince's probing with a forced smile, deflected the question: "Your Highness is too kind. I am here on official business. Is Your Highness here to offer birthday wishes?"
He then asked the same question that the Fourth Master had not answered directly earlier.
Fourth Master's eyes changed slightly: "What Uncle came for, I have come for."
From the subtle expressions on Longkodo's face, the Fourth Prince could already guess some of what was going on.
The Fourth Prince suddenly felt a little reluctant to see his father, the Emperor.
I'm afraid that by now, Father Emperor has already figured out the whole story.
However, Fourth Master could not desert his post at this moment.
The Fourth Prince walked slowly into the Hall of Mental Cultivation, each step steady, his court beads never swaying.
The Fourth Prince, dressed in court robes, looked very dignified.
The Xia Dynasty crown was topped with a two-tiered golden dragon, adorned with four pearls and a gold flower at the back. When the Fourth Prince bowed, he removed the crown, and the pearls on his court robes did not touch the ground, only making a slight sound.
The Emperor seemed somewhat surprised: "Why is the Fourth Prince here?"
"The Ministry of Rites and the Court of State Ceremonial reported that the birthday gifts sent by the various Mongol tribes were not quite appropriate. My son handled this matter and has come to apologize."
Fourth Master took the blame first.
His Majesty excused the Fourth Prince from the formalities. The Hall of Mental Cultivation was unusually gloomy after noon. The Fourth Prince lowered his eyes, waiting for his father to continue.
"The fault does not lie with you..."
His Majesty uttered only this one sentence, followed by a long silence.
This silence calmed the Fourth Prince down, giving him time to think about how much his father, the Emperor, knew and how he knew it.
By this time, the Fourth Prince no longer suspected the Prince of Zhi. From the moment Liang Jiugong went to the Imperial Clan Court, he had already guessed that it was the Crown Prince.
Although this is really illogical and absurd.
After all, the Crown Prince is still under house arrest, so how could birthday gifts have flown to Yuqing Palace?
Fourth Master hadn't figured it out on the way here.
The Fourth Prince stood with his head slightly lowered, yet his demeanor was impeccable.
After an unknown amount of time, the Fourth Prince finally heard his father's deep voice.
The Emperor sighed first, then casually pointed at the Fourth Prince in the air, "It's getting late, Fourth Prince, you may leave now."
The Fourth Master paused for two seconds, then said he was taking his leave, without saying another word.
The Emperor watched the Fourth Prince depart, then glanced around the empty hall, and sighed again: "I am truly getting old..."
The Crown Prince's men were his personal spies and agents, whom he had personally selected. They knew exactly what the Crown Prince did every day.
His Majesty received the news long before noon when several Mongol tribes delivered birthday gifts and other offerings to Yuqing Palace.
On the surface, the various Mongol tribes were extremely respectful to the Qing Dynasty, but weren't there countless minor skirmishes and conflicts every year?
The Emperor knew perfectly well that when the various Mongol tribes sent their birthday gifts for his fiftieth birthday, he also sent one to the Crown Prince...
The Emperor wasn't unaware of this blatant provocation and attempt to sow discord, but it didn't stop him from feeling resentful.
Today is his fiftieth birthday. He is old, but his children are still young and vigorous, in the prime of their lives...
The prince, whom he personally tutored from childhood, excelled in everything, surpassing his teacher in every way; he was destined to govern the country well in the future…
However, the current emperor does not acknowledge his age, and no emperor would willingly abdicate early.
His protection of the emperor was immense, and so were the princes below him...
His children have all grown up, but he is no longer young...
But today is his birthday, so he has to force a smile no matter what.
This is the dignity and respect of a monarch.
Whether old or young, to His Majesty, only the person sitting on this throne is the emperor.
Everyone else is just an ant.
His Majesty's gaze slowly turned cold.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
