Of the ten brocade boxes, he was most satisfied with the painting of ten thousand miles of rivers and mountains and the Tao inkstone. The Tao inkstone was shaped like a unicorn, green as blue, and smooth as jade.
Tao inkstones are made from the deep waters of the great river, not by human hands, and are considered priceless treasures in this world.
Zhao Shu immediately saw through Emperor Mingde's intentions. She hadn't brought these things into the palace to keep them for herself. She pointed to the jade headdress and the purple-gold crown and said, "The jade headdress is mine, and the purple-gold crown belongs to my father. Uncle, you shouldn't even think about it."
Emperor Mingde's mind was not on this at all. He glared at her and said, "I will not compete with you for it. This vast empire and the Qilin inkstone are barely qualified to be placed in the Imperial Study. I will give you face because of your filial piety."
Zhao Shu pursed her lips, making an expression that said the Xie family's things were nothing special, which made Emperor Mingde laugh out loud again.
When she returned to her residence, she only took the jade headdress and the purple-gold crown with her. She gave the "Ten Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" painting and the Qilin inkstone to Emperor Mingde, and the warm jade and black pearl bracelet to the Empress Dowager. She left the rest of her belongings in Cining Palace.
After Zhao Shu returned to the palace, Emperor Mingde read the intelligence report again, and as he read it, he laughed to himself.
Liang Yunsi, who was standing to the side, said, "The princess is intelligent and always makes the emperor very happy. In the future, the princess will have to visit the palace more often."
Emperor Mingde glanced at him, and Liang Yunsi hurriedly lowered his head and chuckled dryly. In the past, he dared not speak out casually, because the person who informed on him died under mysterious circumstances, and he always felt sorry for the princess. Now he just wanted to do something for the princess. After all, Taihe Palace was under his jurisdiction, and someone actually committed a crime under his nose!
"Ah Jun is indeed intelligent. How did she know that the old scoundrel Xie's Achilles' heel was that pillar?" Emperor Mingde asked.
Liang Yunsi said with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, this servant is stupid and does not know how the princess found out. However, this servant heard from others that if the elders in the family are intelligent, the younger generation will naturally be no less so."
“Nineteen is nowhere near as clever as Ah Jun. She’s bullied and doesn’t even know how to fight back.” Emperor Mingde was not satisfied with this answer.
Liang Yunsi smiled and said, "Your Majesty, the princess is of the same lineage as you."
Emperor Mingde nodded, finding the answer acceptable.
Upon returning to the Prince's residence, Prince Yong summoned her. At this moment, Prince Yong felt somewhat guilty and asked Zhao Shu, "A-Jun, has the Xie family made things difficult for you?"
Zhao Shu shook her head, "How dare the Xie family? In the future, when Father sees the Xie family, he need not be afraid of them, because A-Jun knows Xie Shuling's weakness."
Prince Yong waved his hand, "No, the Xie family sent a lot of things, and they've all been placed in your Qionghua Courtyard."
Zhao Shu: ...What is the Xie family trying to do?
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