Chapter 313 The Eighth Prince
At this moment, Ao Xue took out a waist tag of a palace guard and handed it to Xie Xin, saying coldly, "I am not an assassin, Your Highness, please see clearly."
She was a female guard with an official title, and she was allowed to carry a sword in the palace, but she was assigned to protect the Crown Princess.
Xie Xin was still a little intimidated by the fact that it was someone from the Eastern Palace. His mother said that since Xie Shang was made crown prince, his power had become unstoppable, and he should never offend the Eastern Palace.
The person in front of me is just a lowly female guard, yet she wants to interfere in the affairs between the princes. Even if she is a servant of the Eastern Palace, she is meddling too much.
Before Xie Xin could react, Jiang Fenghua approached the group and said in a deep voice, "Aoxue, Xuefei, you all step back. The Tenth Prince and the Eighth Prince are brothers. They were just playing a game between princes. Hurry up and apologize to the Tenth Prince and the Eighth Prince."
Ao Xue sheathed her sword and bowed to the two men, saying, "I thought there was a fight going on in the palace. As a palace guard, I had to step in to stop it. I apologize for the offense, and please forgive me, Tenth Prince and Eighth Prince."
Lu Xuefei also said, "This servant was unintentional just now. I didn't know that the princes were playing here. Please forgive me, Eighth Prince and Tenth Prince."
The Eighth Prince Xie Qi first bowed to Jiang Fenghua, saying, "Xie Qi greets the Crown Princess."
Xie Xin then bowed in greeting, saying, "Xie Xin greets the Crown Princess."
"I have long heard of the names of the two princes, especially the tenth prince. The Crown Prince said that the tenth prince is intelligent and studious, and is the most knowledgeable of all the princes," Jiang Fenghua said in a friendly greeting.
Xie Xin was flattered and a little embarrassed. "Did the Crown Prince really say that? Has he read my articles?"
“I’ve read it. It’s very well written. I heard that the Tenth Prince will be leaving the palace to establish his own residence next year,” Jiang Fenghua said.
Xie Xin was surprised that the Crown Princess even knew this. Next year, he and Xie Qi will both turn twenty, which is indeed the age to leave the palace, establish their own households, be granted the title of king, and marry a princess.
"Then the Tenth Prince should hurry back to the palace and study hard. I heard that even princes have to take an exam to be enfeoffed as kings. Only those with both virtue and talent can get a good title and even a good position. If word gets out at this critical juncture that the Tenth Prince and the Eighth Prince are playing around like this, and it reaches the Emperor's ears, it might affect your ability to leave the palace and establish your own residences!" Jiang Fenghua said gently. "Father still hopes to see the princes be friendly and respectful to each other."
At this moment, the tenth prince also sensed something else. He had just had Xie Qi beaten, and if this matter were reported to his father, he would definitely be punished.
So Xie Xin bowed again to Jiang Fenghua and said, "I was indeed playing a wrestling game with my octopus just now."
"Is the Eighth Prince really practicing wrestling with the Tenth Prince?" Jiang Fenghua asked the Eighth Prince in a deep voice.
The Eighth Prince clenched his fists. He was also waiting to leave the palace and establish his own residence next year, after which he would be free. So no matter how much trouble Xie Xin caused him, he endured it all. "Yes."
Just as the two were about to leave, Jiang Fenghua said again, "Eighth Prince, please wait."
Only after the Tenth Prince left did Jiang Fenghua say, "Eighth Prince, please go back to the East Palace with Aoxue to get a bottle of liniment for bruises and sprains!"
Xie Qi was stunned. He had been enduring his injuries without applying any medicine. "Princess Consort Xie, no need."
“Simply giving in isn’t the solution. The weaker you are, the more you’ll be bullied. Even if the Eighth Prince endures until he leaves the palace to establish his own residence and escapes, he will still be bullied after leaving the palace.” After saying that, she walked forward.
She knew that Xie Qi had always been bullied by the other princes because his mother was just a lowly dancer who was favored by the emperor and given the title of beauty, and only then did she give birth to him.
A few years later, his biological mother died, and the Eighth Prince could only survive by living a humble life.
The tenth prince's mother was Consort Zhao, whose maternal family was very powerful. The Minister of Revenue was Consort Zhao's own brother. The eighth prince had no power base and naturally dared not go against the tenth prince.
She didn't know what happened to them after they left the palace in her past life. She only heard some gossip in the palace. At that time, she was barely able to protect herself, so how could she meddle in other people's business like she does now?
She also heard that the Eighth Prince studied very hard, while the Tenth Prince was clearly a good-for-nothing when it came to studying, so how could the Emperor praise him?
Lu Xuefei hadn't expected that one prince would be beaten so badly by another.
Seeing Xie Qi swaying precariously, she asked, "Eighth Prince, are you alright?"
Xie Qi coughed, clutching his chest. He felt pain all over his body. He looked away from the Crown Princess and said softly, "Thank you, Miss. I'm fine."
“My name is Lu Xuefei, and I am a maidservant to the Crown Princess. I will bring you medicine later! I see that you are seriously injured, and it seems that you have not only external injuries but also internal injuries. It would be best to have the imperial physician take a look,” she said.
"No need, thank you." Xie Qi didn't want to say more. The imperial physician couldn't do anything either. There would be a next time after this. The Crown Princess was right. If he kept tolerating Xie Xin, he would only make him more unreasonable. But what could he do?
Before Lu Xuefei could say anything, Xie Qi turned and left.
Lu Xuefei caught up with Jiang Fenghua and whispered, "A prince's life is not as good as that of an ordinary official's son. It seems that not everyone who becomes the emperor's son is noble and enjoys a life of luxury."
Jiang Fenghua remained silent. This was the difference between having power and not having power. The Eighth Prince had no maternal clan to support him. The Emperor had many sons and simply did not have time to take care of each of them. However, the Empress could not escape responsibility for the way the princes in the harem were living.
It was caused by the Empress's neglect in disciplining the princes in the harem.
Upon arriving at Kunning Palace, Consort Zhao and Consort Yan were both present. Jiang Fenghua first bowed to Empress Cheng, who was seated in the main seat, saying, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings."
Empress Cheng has been suffering from a heart attack recently and often experiences chest pain. She was angry, and her expression didn't improve much when she saw Jiang Fenghua. "The Crown Princess has arrived. Please sit down."
Jiang Fenghua bowed to the concubines again and then found a seat.
Consort Zhao said, "Is the Crown Princess also here to report to Her Majesty the Empress that she will be performing a Mid-Autumn Festival program?"
Jiang Fenghua said gently, "The program list for the East Palace hasn't been released yet. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, would Consort Zhao also like to showcase her skills?" No matter what the festival, she knew that Consort Zhao would always go on stage to make a name for herself. She played the pipa very well, and no matter whether people were tired of hearing it or not, she would always give it a try.
Consort Zhao smiled and said, "It's rare to have fun in the palace. It's more lively when everyone participates! What program has the Crown Princess prepared?"
"The ladies of the Eastern Palace were overjoyed to know they would be performing on stage, so I decided not to compete with them."
"The Crown Princess's dancing skills are superb; it's a real pity she doesn't go on stage. There aren't many entertainment activities usually, so why don't you perform a dance, Crown Princess, to broaden everyone's horizons and liven up the atmosphere?" said Consort Zhao.
Jiang Fenghua remained silent and looked at Empress Cheng. "Will Your Majesty also be going on stage to play a piece this year? I can still hear Your Majesty's music from last year's Mid-Autumn Festival."
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