Chapter 538 Insurmountable Prejudice
Prince Yu looked down on the Third Prince's behavior, and naturally he also looked down on the gift sent by the Third Prince. According to his usual style, he would just ignore the Third Prince and leave.
When Prince Yu saw the palace maids brought by the Third Prince, he discovered that two of them were eunuchs on duty in the Taiji Palace.
He thought for a moment and then accepted the brocade box handed to him by the third prince.
Prince Yu said indifferently, "Third brother is thoughtful."
When the Third Prince heard Prince Yu's indifferent tone, his eyes widened instantly and he asked nervously, "Is my Royal Brother unhappy?"
He seemed afraid Prince Yu would be displeased by his hasty gift, and he explained anxiously, "I had originally thought of giving you the gift after you and the Empress's wife were married, and when you brought her to the palace to pay your respects to the Emperor. But I don't know when you'll be married, and the Emperor wants to personally examine my knowledge. I... I still have a lot of things to learn, and I'm afraid I won't be free for the next two weeks, so I'm giving it to you in advance."
Prince Yu lowered his eyes and looked at the Third Prince, who was a whole head shorter than him. He was timid and looked very timid, but he spoke a lot, and all his words were filled with ulterior motives.
How is this cowardice?
A truly timid person would be like Princess Guangning, stuttering when speaking. Not only that, she would have to go over every sentence she said to him several times in her mind, for fear of saying something wrong and angering him.
"It doesn't matter whether you send it earlier or later. As long as the thought is there, that's all that matters." Prince Yu's patience ran out. "Go review your lessons."
After saying this, Prince Yu prepared to leave.
The Third Prince whispered to Prince Yu's back, "Brother, this is a fox pelt that Father gave me as a reward during the winter hunt two years ago. It's spotless. I've never received anything so precious, and I've kept it carefully, intending to give it to the one most important to me. I heard that you love foxes, so I'm giving it to you as a gift."
Prince Yu left without stopping.
Prince Yu did not take the Third Prince's tricks seriously, because these were just what he had left over from his tricks.
Huichun, who was chasing after him with a bundle, became furious when she heard what the third prince said.
The Third Prince's words and deeds all showed how much Emperor Jing'an valued and favored him.
Everyone in and outside the court knew that Prince Yu had won first prize in the winter hunt two years before. However, because Prince Rui and Prince Yu were sworn enemies, Prince Rui hated to see Prince Yu in the spotlight, so he instigated Emperor Jing'an to give the reward originally intended for Prince Yu to the Third Prince instead.
Now, the Third Prince actually gave the reward that originally belonged to Prince Yu to Prince Yu as a wedding gift.
Isn't this punishing King Yu's heart?
Furthermore, everyone knew that Prince Yu was unwilling to marry Princess Guangning because if he did, it would mean he would lose his chance of becoming emperor.
The Third Prince chose the first day when Prince Yu returned to the capital to pick up his bride, and he couldn't wait to hand the gift to Prince Yu. Anyone with a discerning eye could see what he was thinking, but the Third Prince pretended to be sincere.
Huichun couldn't swallow this anger, so she turned around and went back to Yanxiang Palace.
The Third Prince stayed where he was, quietly watching Prince Yu's back as he walked away until he disappeared from his sight.
At the same time, the timidity in his eyes gradually faded away.
Although Emperor Jing'an was the legitimate son of the Empress, he was not favored by the late Emperor and was sent to Northern Qi as a hostage along with Princess Yizhen in his early years. In Northern Qi, the brother and sister suffered from the oppression of the powerful and lived a life even more difficult than that of ordinary people.
Although Emperor Jing'an returned safely to the Great Zhou, Princess Yizhen became a plaything that was trampled upon and humiliated by the powerful people of Northern Qi, and eventually died at their hands.
For this reason, Emperor Jing'an deeply hated powerful people who abused their power to oppress others.
It just so happened that Prince Yu used his power to persecute the people, which undoubtedly violated Emperor Jing'an's taboo.
In the eyes of Emperor Jing'an, Prince Yu was no different from the powerful officials who bullied him and his siblings in Northern Qi.
How could Prince Yu easily resolve such a deep prejudice?
"Go back." The Third Prince said to the eunuchs accompanying him, "Thank you for accompanying me on this journey."
The eunuch was flattered and said quickly, "Your Highness, please excuse me. This is my duty."
The third prince smiled implicitly and left with the eunuch.
Given Concubine Ling's character, once Prince Yu gains power, she will definitely eliminate future troubles for Prince Yu and leave him no way to survive.
As an unpopular prince without the protection of his maternal family, he had to fight if he wanted to survive in this cruel palace.
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Inside the Taiji Hall, Emperor Jing'an reviewed the auspicious date chosen by the Imperial Astronomical Observatory while listening to the secret guards' report on matters concerning Yanxiang Palace. He couldn't help but frown when he heard Concubine Ling and Prince Yu talking about everyday matters.
He handed the auspicious date for marriage to Eunuch Cao, who was standing beside him, and said, "Send it to Prince Yu's Mansion."
Eunuch Cao accepted the petition for selecting a date and said, "I will arrange it right away."
Emperor Jing'an looked at the remaining date selection memorial. This was the auspicious day selected by the Imperial Observatory for the enthronement of the crown prince, which was ten days after Prince Yu welcomed the princess into the palace. Before that, he had intended for Prince Yu to take the princess back to his fiefdom.
After deciding on the idea, Emperor Jing'an summoned the Minister of Rites into the palace to prepare for the enthronement ceremony.
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