Sun Ganzheng, Yang Zhong, and Wei Caitao gathered together to discuss their future path. This was Wei Caitao's private villa, which was exceptionally quiet and undisturbed by anyone.
"Alas, what a pity for Zihang, who knows when he will return." Zihang was Ji Dongxue's courtesy name.
The speaker was Wei Caitao. When he was released from Wei Tingsi's private tent, he rushed to the Sun family and was relieved to find that the Sun family members were still alive and well. He had once thought that his son was going to lead troops into the city to slaughter the Sun family.
Yang Zhong was somewhat better off. After discussing with the clan elders, they all felt that Emperor Mingde would not disregard his reputation by slaughtering the Sun family. Sure enough, Emperor Mingde was someone who cherished his reputation and did not harm any members of the Sun family. Instead, he removed hundreds of Sun family assassins, who had been trained for decades, some even hereditary assassins. All of them were removed one by one.
Without its henchmen, the Sun family was no longer a threat. The Sun family had never produced a sage like Confucius or Mencius, so they were no longer a concern for Emperor Mingde. Moreover, no one would say that the Sun family was unreasonable, because the Sun family's assassins launched a night raid on Prince Yong's mansion!
Suicide squads are not so easy to train, and Zhao Shu knew this well, so she chose to take a different approach.
After saying this, Wei Caitao felt very sorry for Sun Ganzheng, so he stood up and bowed deeply, "I'm sorry, brother, I couldn't control that unruly son! Please forgive me, brother Sun."
Sun Gan smiled calmly, seemingly unconcerned. "It's just a few servants. It's alright. Don't blame yourself, brother. Everyone in the Sun family knows it's not your fault. Besides, when you think about it, we're brothers-in-law."
After hearing this, Wei Caitao didn't stand on ceremony. After sitting down, he started discussing kinship with Sun Ganzheng, saying, "To be honest, my wife is your cousin..."
Zhao Shu was unaware that Sun Ganzheng, seeing that his family could no longer stand at the forefront, had hastily separated the family and established a kinship relationship with Wei Caitao spanning more than eighteen generations, preparing to fight Emperor Mingde to the death.
At this moment, she was leisurely having Green Ivy bring over a small stool so that she and Emperor Mingde could sit side by side and fish.
Luo Hu had a thatched hut built for him. Next to the hut was a stream, a tributary of the moat. The stream was lined with green willows. It was a hot summer day. He took a small stool, set up his fishing rod, and sat under the green willows to fish. He was indescribably leisurely and carefree.
Upon being treated with respect for talent for the first time, Luo Hu naturally became arrogant, stating that he was indifferent to fame and fortune and unwilling to serve in the government. He also believed that what is easily obtained is not cherished, so he refused to see Emperor Mingde and instead locked himself in his room to sleep.
Emperor Mingde was an emperor determined to create a peaceful and prosperous era. Naturally, he would not be furious because of Luo Hu's first cold reception. He was very eager to find talented people and started fishing in front of the thatched hut.
They put on a show of being courteous and respectful to scholars, but deep down they both knew it was just for appearances. They were even secretly thinking about who to target first after entering officialdom and where to get that person appointed as a county magistrate...
Zhao Shu didn't want to pay attention to these two elders who loved acting, nor did she care to chase butterflies. Summer flowers were in full bloom, and wildflowers were blooming all over the stream and the mountains, filling the air with fragrance. Green Luo had been itching to catch the butterflies on the wildflowers, but since the princess wasn't going, she was too embarrassed to chase them.
"Does Ah Jun also like fishing?" Emperor Mingde asked gently. At this time, the princesses and concubines in the palace often gathered together to catch butterflies. He was very curious as to why Zhao Shu liked to fish here like him.
"Jiang Taigong fished and those who were willing took the bait. Ah Jun doesn't have his level of understanding, but Ah Jun knows that grilled fish is delicious. Ah Jun will grill it for her royal uncle when she catches it later."
Emperor Mingde: ...If you're talking about grilled fish, why bring up Jiang Ziya? He thought his niece was going to spout classical allusions again, but she ended up talking about food.
"But judging from this situation, it's estimated that we won't catch a single fish even after two or three hours of fishing. Uncle, why don't you go down into the river and catch some for me?" Zhao Shu rolled up her sleeves, eager to try.
Emperor Mingde quickly stopped him, saying, "Fishing is for calming the mind, not for eating."
“Uncle, you are mistaken. You are the emperor, ruling the world. You fish to cultivate your mind and character, but ordinary people fish to survive. And the fishermen on the coast risk their lives to catch fish.” Zhao Shu solemnly corrected Emperor Mingde’s ‘erroneous’ idea.
Emperor Mingde noticed the resemblance between him and Prince Yong in their features, and his serious demeanor, and inexplicably found himself amused. He put down his fishing rod and said, "Alright, let's go fishing in the river."
"Uncle, are you also going to fish in the river?" Zhao Shu asked in surprise.
Emperor Mingde nodded and began to roll up his sleeves and take off his shoes. Liang Yunsi did not stop him and followed suit. Fortunately, the area was surrounded by the Imperial Guards, so no one would stand up and point at Zhao Shu, saying that she was "shameless" or that the uncle and nephew had violated the rules of propriety.
Today, Zhao Shu brought three people with her: Green Ivy, Wan Dong, and Xiao Guozi. When they saw that Zhao Shu was going to go down to the river to catch fish, they immediately rolled up their sleeves and took off their shoes, but Zhao Shu stopped them and told them to wait on the bank. She rolled up her sleeves, took off her shoes, and went down to the river with Emperor Mingde.
The stream is not deep, only knee-deep. The fish in the stream are mostly small fish and freshwater shrimp. There are very few larger fish. The water is crystal clear. As soon as you enter the water, the fish and shrimp are startled and dart around in the water.
When Zhao Shu was in elementary school, she read some books similar to "National Excellent Essays by Primary and Secondary School Students". The books described the fun of catching fish in the river, but she did not know how to catch fish.
However, Emperor Mingde seemed to be very perceptive. As soon as he entered the water, he saw the fish and shrimp scattering into the grass on the shore. He said, "Ah Jun, come to the middle and scare the fish to the shore. Your imperial uncle will catch them."
"Okay." Zhao Shu was feeling childlike and wanted to play a water fight, but since the target was Emperor Mingde, it wasn't appropriate. She could only stand in the center and keep stirring.
At first, Emperor Mingde was clumsy, often letting the fish escape as soon as he touched it, which made Zhao Shu burst into laughter. The palace maids and eunuchs watching on the table also wanted to laugh, but none of them had the courage of Zhao Shu.
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