It is just as Teacher Guo said, it is not about how outstanding others are, it mainly depends on the comparison with their peers. With the two unreliable comparisons of Thirteen and Fourteen, Yinzhen, who is always despised by her sixth brother, looks much more decent.
The key point is that Yinzhen performed exceptionally well today. Not only did he bring the goat that his sixth brother specifically requested, but he also bought some small items like candied haws, sugar-roasted chestnuts, and sugar paintings on the way when he saw someone selling them. Now, the criticism meeting for the thirteenth and fourteenth brothers suddenly became more intense.
It was naturally not Yinzuo's turn to worry about how to turn raw mutton into barbecue. Before the mutton was cooked, all Yinzuo needed to do was to chat with his brothers in the waterside pavilion. As for the content of the chat, it was of course the latest headline in the capital - the young prince of Prince Zhao burned down the Crown Prince's Yuqing Palace.
"If you ask me, the reason why Hongxu is so lawless is because of Fourth Brother's indulgence. Have you heard the saying that children will wet the bed if they play with fire? Even when I wanted to beat that kid, Fourth Brother stopped me..."
When talking about Hongxu burning down Yuqing Palace, Yinzuo was filled with anger. If Yinzhen had not tried to stop him at that time, he would have dragged Hongxu over and beaten him up. But now, the kid was hiding at his fourth uncle's house and refused to show up. Even if he wanted to beat him, he didn't have the chance.
When talking about Hongxu, the debt-collecting son, Yinzuo's blood pressure would soar. If he remembered correctly, this child was not so naughty when he was a child. Although he liked to put on a stern face every day to imitate his fourth uncle, he at least looked steady. When did his genes suddenly mutate?
"Big brother, second brother, third brother...it just so happens that you are all here today, can you help me analyze this? Let's say there is a possibility that Hongxu was secretly replaced when we were not paying attention?"
Yinzhi and the others had initially thought Yinzuo had discovered something significant, seeing his serious expression. But this was the end? As the saying goes, one shouldn't place any hope on something so unreliable. Who was Hongxu? He was the most precious young prince in Prince Zhao's mansion. Not to mention the constant presence of wet nurses, maids, and attendants surrounding him, who, having had enough of the mortal world, would be so desperate as to venture into Yinzuo's heavily guarded palace to exchange a child?
Although Yinzuo was thick-skinned, he still felt a little uncomfortable after being stared at by everyone as if he were a fool. He raised his hand to touch his shiny forehead, glanced at Yinzhi and the others, and then spoke awkwardly.
"Brother, second brother... can you please stop looking at me like I'm a fool? I've been staring at you for so long that I'm almost starting to doubt myself. Actually, it's not my fault for thinking that way. You said I'm an excellent student and a brilliant actor, smart and quick-witted, quick to understand, loved by everyone, flowers blooming wherever I see them, and cars getting flat tires whenever they see me. So why didn't your son inherit any of my good qualities? And that guy who's always hated by everyone makes me upset..."
Regarding Yinzuo's self-boasting behavior, Yinzhi and others said, "I just smiled and said nothing. Yes, you were smart when you were a child, but you were definitely not an excellent student in both character and academics. Have you forgotten who was it that cried and hugged Khan Ama's thighs in the Archery Courtyard just because you couldn't take the horse riding and archery lessons?"
And speaking of being hated by people and hated by dogs, you were no less irritating when you were little than your son is now. For example, didn't you do all the things Hongxu is doing now? And don't you have an idea of how many times a year the goldfish at Qingxi Book House have to change their tanks?
Did Yinzuo know what was going on? The answer was obvious: no. He was completely immersed in the joy of being able to vent his grievances, and completely ignored the hesitation of Yinzhi and others.
"Fourth brother, since you're here today, how about we make a deal? I see you like that kid Hongxu too. How about we just switch it up? You give Hongshi to me as your son, and I'll give you this brat. If you feel like you're getting a loss, I'll give you another one million taels of silver privately..."
One million taels? Good man, it seems that he really spent a lot of money to successfully sell his little monkey. To be honest, when Yinzuo said this, some of the people sitting there were really tempted, especially Fourteenth Brother. Look, he stood up and answered before his Fourth Brother even opened his mouth.
"Look at me, look at me, Sixth Brother, look at me. If you really want to exchange your son, can you please look at my Hongming? In this way, I won't ask you for one million taels, how about five hundred thousand taels? If you give me five hundred thousand taels, I will do it."
As soon as Fourteen said this, he was immediately given countless cold stares, including by Yinzuo, the instigator of the previous proposal. He first raised his eyes and gave Fourteen a fierce look, then raised his hand and pointed at Fourteen, and then pointed at the position in front of him. The meaning was very clear, that is, to let Fourteen stand in front of him.
Although Fourteen knew that if he stood there waiting for him, nothing good would happen, but since his Sixth Brother had already called him, how could he dare to run? Seeing that Fourteen was dithering for a long time and was unwilling to come over, Yinzuo did not rush. He turned around and gave Dexi, who was waiting behind him, a look. Dexi immediately led his men towards Fourteen.
"Hey, look at you, why are you so anxious? I'm not unreasonable, am I? Sixth brother, don't bother with me, I can go over there myself."
Between being forced to go over by others and walking over by himself, Fourteenth very wisely chose the latter. Yinzuo was only a few steps away from where Fourteenth was sitting. Even if he was dragging his feet, it would only take a few breaths of time for him to walk over. Yinzuo saw him coming and motioned Fourteenth to lower his head, then threw the beads in his hand onto the table and raised his hand to grab Fourteenth's ear.
"Fourteen, although they say brave people enjoy the world first, you are too brave. Let's just say you are a prince after all, are you really so poor that you have to sell your children? Also, do you know what you call cutting the price in half when you meet? This is clearly disrupting market rules..."
Fourteenth was grabbed by the ear by Yinzuo but he did not struggle. He let his sixth brother rub it three times to the left and three times to the right. When he let go, he raised his hand and touched his earlobe, which was obviously red and hot.
"Sixth brother, you are a man who is full and does not know the hunger of a hungry man. What's wrong with being a prince? I am really poor. It's hard for me to support my whole family with my salary, not to mention all the social connections. Does this cloak on me look familiar to you? It's the one you gave me for my birthday two years ago..."
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