Zhao Shu entered the palace, but instead of going to Cining Palace, she headed towards the East Palace. She moved very quickly, almost running.
As Xiao Yingzi of the Eastern Palace was leading the palace maids and eunuchs to serve the Crown Prince on his way to court, Zhao Yi, who was sitting in his carriage, saw Zhao Shu running over and hurriedly told her to stop.
The imperial carriage stopped, and Zhao Shu came to his side, curtsied and said, "A-Jun greets Crown Prince Brother, good morning Crown Prince Brother."
The Crown Prince stepped down from the imperial carriage and personally helped Zhao Shu up. "No need for formalities, no need for formalities. Why did you come to the Eastern Palace so early, my lady? Is there something you need?"
He wondered to himself, "Could something have happened to Uncle Nineteen? Otherwise, why would Ah Jun be up so early? At this hour, most of the princesses and concubines in the palace would still be dreaming."
Seeing the large group of people behind him, Zhao Shu carefully pulled him aside, as if she had some secret she didn't want others to know.
Zhao Yi let her pull him along until they reached a place where no one could hear their conversation, then he asked, "What's wrong?"
Zhao Shu glanced at it again, still not entirely sure, and after confirming that the distance was far enough, she lowered her voice and whispered in Zhao Yi's ear, "Crown Prince, would you like to watch the show?"
"What play?" Zhao Shu asked mysteriously, piquing his curiosity.
Zhao Shu chuckled twice. "Brother Crown Prince, if you promise to take me with you, I'll tell you."
The Crown Prince was taken aback. This girl had piqued his curiosity. Now she was being mysterious. She was just a little girl. Could she possibly cause a major incident? Besides, this girl was closer to him than he was to any of the princesses and princes. So he nodded generously, "Sure thing. If there's a good show to watch, why not take you?"
Having achieved her goal, Zhao Shu put away her smile and said in a serious voice, "There will be a good show at Taihe Gate later. Your Highness is a man of his word and must not go back on it, or Ajun will tell Grandmother!"
Upon hearing the words "Taihe Gate," the Crown Prince knew where she was headed and realized he had fallen into a trap set by Zhao Shu. "You little brat, you actually set a trap for me, you've gotten bold!" He reached out to pinch Zhao Shu's cheek, something he had done many times when they were children.
Zhao Shu hurriedly fled, saying, "My brother, the Crown Prince, is the heir apparent of the country; he cannot break his promise."
The prince wasn't so easily fooled. He put his hands in his sleeves, looked at the dark sky, and pretended to be helpless. "What I said earlier was that if there was a good show, I would definitely take you. What good show could there be at Taihe Gate? It's just a bunch of old men arguing. It's not good, not good. Be good, go back quickly. Another day, I'll take you hunting. That's much more fun."
Zhao Shu knew he would say that. Trying to trick the Crown Prince was definitely not an easy task, but she was determined to go to Taihe Gate today. So she reached out and grabbed the Crown Prince's sleeve, shaking it. "Brother Crown Prince, I promise there will be a good show to watch. Really, if you don't take me, I won't play with you next time, and someone will be in trouble today."
Someone's going to be in trouble? At Taihe Gate? Isn't it those old guys? Several questions flooded the Crown Prince's mind. He made a shushing gesture, "How do you know someone's going to be in trouble?"
"Take me there, and I'll tell you."
The Crown Prince was speechless. He couldn't do anything about Zhao Shu. This girl wasn't afraid of him, and he couldn't argue with her. He thought about the possibility of hiding people at Taihe Gate, the possibility that this girl would obediently tell him, and the infuriating behavior of those old guys quoting classics in court, which made his father grit his teeth in anger.
The Crown Prince immediately said, "Once you're there, you mustn't make a sound. You can only look, understand?"
Zhao Shu nodded hurriedly like a chick pecking at rice, "Definitely, definitely."
Then, the Crown Prince looked at the clothes she was wearing and called Xiao Yingzi over, "Find a eunuch's robe for the princess to change into."
"Ah..." Xiao Yingzi couldn't process what was happening and didn't dare to ask, so she had no choice but to take Zhao Shu downstairs to change into eunuch clothes.
After changing into eunuch clothes, Zhao Shu swaggered off with the Crown Prince to Taihe Gate.
As the heir apparent, the Crown Prince stood at the very front, while Zhao Shu stood under the eaves to the right of Taihe Gate. A large flowerpot in the distance blocked her small body. From this angle, she could see the ministers, but the ministers could not see her.
Prince Yong stood behind Prince Hui, with the ministers standing on either side. Soon after, Emperor Mingde arrived, and everyone knelt down and shouted, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
Emperor Mingde's voice was calm and unwavering: "All of you, rise."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." The ministers kowtowed in gratitude and then stood up.
At this time, it was just beginning to get light.
The officials had just taken their positions, and before the chief eunuch could even give them a chance to present their memorials, Emperor Mingde spoke up. As if he had discovered something amusing, he said, "Is the sun going to rise in the west today? Why is my nineteenth brother here to attend court?"
The obvious sarcasm was interpreted differently by others. Astute individuals secretly warned themselves to be careful with their words, for anything unusual must be suspicious.
However, some people began to stir. They heard that Prince Yong's mansion had been making a lot of moves recently, injuring and driving out many of its soldiers. Coincidentally, Prince Yong was also there, so they had to talk about it, otherwise this royal nobleman would become even more smug.
When Emperor Mingde asked the question, everyone thought that Prince Yong would have to give some explanation. But everyone else was coming to court, so why was Prince Yong absent for so long? This was disrespectful to the emperor, disrespectful to the court, and contemptuous of all the officials. It could not be tolerated. No matter what Prince Yong's reason was, they could make this prince suffer a lot in front of Taihe Gate!
However, to everyone's great surprise...
Prince Yong knelt down with a thud. He sniffed and said, "Brother, I'm in trouble. I've come to ask for help."
What's going on? The ministers were speechless, their words stuck in their throats. From the legendary creation of humankind by Nuwa to the story of a seventh-rank clerk whose wife gave birth to a son but still did not ask for leave to attend court, a collection of sage classics that could serve as a model for future generations.
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