It is not so easy to see one's parents. To Li Hong, the long shouting of the ceremonial officer sounded similar to when Xia Zhi and others were forced to sell popsicles in the palace.
As the dragon chariot and phoenix carriage slowly stopped, the ceremonial guards moved to the sides, and then, under the arrangement of the ceremonial officers, led by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the Regent, led all the civil and military officials towards the dragon chariot.
After stopping at a distance of about ten feet, the Crown Prince Regent began to salute loudly, and then all the civil and military officials cheered to welcome His Majesty back to the capital.
Li Zhi got off the car and met with all the officials, mainly the Crown Prince Regent and the heads of the three provinces and six ministries. Then, under the salutes of the Crown Prince Regent and the officials of the three provinces and six ministries, he slowly got on the carriage that was as big as a house.
At this time, the prince should be supporting the sedan chair, followed by civil and military officials, and everyone follows the dragon sedan chair and slowly enters Chang'an City and the imperial palace.
But before the ceremonial officer could speak, Li Hong ran to the carriage behind, patted the window of Li Zhi's carriage with his hand, and shouted loudly: "I'm going to the back, if you have anything, find them."
Li Zhi, who had just got on the carriage, glared at Li Hong. He knew that this little bastard was going to inform his mother. On the way back, he already knew that Helan Minzhi and Lady Han Guo were both dead. He was thinking all the way about how to deal with him when he returned.
Unexpectedly, the little bastard had a sense of crisis and went to his mother for public relations at this time.
Li Zhi stood in the carriage and pointed at Li Hong through the window: "You little bastard, just wait, I will deal with you sooner or later."
...
...
Li Hong waved his hand, chuckled, ignored the ceremonial officer's pulling, and hurried to the phoenix carriage at the back.
"Your Highness, this is against ancestral etiquette. You must support the sedan chair and welcome His Majesty back to the palace..." The ceremonial officer was helpless. He looked anxiously at His Highness, who had already run to the phoenix carriage. His duties were once again ignored and trampled upon by His Highness, the Crown Prince.
Wu Mei was in the carriage, and through the front window she saw clearly the entanglement between Li Hong and the ceremonial officer. How could she not know the little bastard's thoughts?
"Liantie, open the door." Li Hong knocked on the door of the carriage helplessly, but it was locked from the inside by his mother.
"Your Highness, I cannot make the decision." Lian Tie looked at Li Hong in embarrassment and said through the gap in the window.
"You don't want to open it, right? If you don't, I'll pry it open. Then your mother will still blame you." Li Hong said as he drew the sword from his waist, which had more decorative function than practical use, and was about to pry the door open.
"Let him in. I want to see how capable he is now." Wu Mei said to Lian Tie who was standing at the door of the phoenix carriage with a frown on her face.
Princess Taiping Li Lingyue, who was just over one year old, and Prince Yin Li Dan, who was just four years old, were in the phoenix carriage. When they heard Li Hong's voice in the carriage, Princess Taiping jumped happily and ran to the door, wanting to see her royal brother as soon as possible.
Li Dan was unhappy and kept shaking Wu Mei's arm. He didn't want Li Hong to get on the carriage, as he would be bullied by him if he got on.
"Why are you afraid of him? I told you to eat less every day, but you didn't listen. Look how fat you are now." Wu Mei rubbed Li Dan's head and said.
“Ahhhhhh…”
"Little Taiping has become fat again. Your royal brother can hardly hold you. Lian Tie, do you want to get down by yourself or do you want me to kick you down?" Li Hong said to Lian Tie while holding Taiping, who was staggering and falling into his arms.
"Li Hong, come in here. Where else could Lian Tie be if he's not in the carriage? When will it be your turn to call the shots with my servant?" Wu Mei in the room was full of black lines in her mind. For some reason, this little bastard just didn't want Lian Tie and others to be in the carriage with him.
After shouting, there was no response from Li Hong. Sure enough, within a few breaths, Li Hong appeared in his sight holding Taiping, and Lian Tie's figure also appeared under the carriage, and was walking towards the palace with him.
Wu Mei was not sitting behind the desk that Li Hong had specially placed on the carriage, but was sitting on a lounge chair on the other side, where she was pruning the small potted plant in her hands with Banmei out of boredom.
"Your son greets the Queen Mother." Li Hong teased Taiping, who was hugging his neck in her arms and refused to let go, and said casually to Wu Mei.
Wu Mei was too lazy to pay attention to him and said nothing. Someone was not polite either, and directly carried Taiping to sit on the chair behind the table, put Taiping on his lap, and let him jump.
Li Dan sat opposite, feeling depressed. Even though he was only four years old, he knew that no one except his mother could sit on that chair.
"Dandan, what delicious food have you eaten in Luoyang during this period? Look at your fat face, you can hardly see your eyes. Starting tomorrow in Chongwenguan, you must lose weight." Li Hong took out a piece of candy and handed it to Taiping, and said to Li Dan.
"My name is not Dandan, my name is Li Dan, huh." Li Dan hated his name now, as his brother the Emperor forced him to call him Dandan.
And now, not only he calls him Dandan, but Li Xian and Li Zhe also call him Dandan. Even Taiping, who has just learned to speak, hums unclearly, but he can understand that they are calling him Dandan!
"Oh, what's the difference? Are Dandan and Dandan different? Did you learn the pronunciation in Chongwenguan?" Li Hong ignored Wu Mei who was frowning at the side, and stopped what he was doing. He had just wiped his hands under Banmei's waiting, and continued to tease the little fat boy Li Dan.
"Of course I learned it. Anyway, my name is not Dandan."
"Then let's call you Qiuqiu. You're so round now. How are you any different from chicken eggs, duck eggs, or goose eggs? Ouch, it hurts, it hurts, mother, please be gentle. It's about to fall off." Wu Mei's delicate hands had already mastered the "Nine Yin White Bone Claws" and she was always accurate in pulling Li Hong's ears.
Taiping in her arms looked at her mother excitedly as she pulled her brother's ear. She stood up in Li Hong's arms and imitated Wu Mei, stretching out her little hand to stroke Li Hong's face, looking for the other ear.
"Hehe...you deserve it. Let's see if you'll keep calling me Dandan." Li Dan looked at Wu Mei with a dark forehead and a dark face. He silently pulled his brother Li Hong's ear hard, and his heart was about to bloom with joy.
"You've been trying to get yourself into trouble in front of me since you came in. Even you're giving me a nickname? Do you act like a brother at all? Have you been asking for a beating again these days? Are you doing it on purpose?" Wu Mei grabbed Li Hong's ear as he stood up from the chair while her hand was raised higher and higher, and said coldly.
Then he waved his hand and asked Banmei to carry Princess Taiping Li Lingyue and Li Dan into the bedroom at the back of the carriage.
After Li Dan and Taiping went in, they, mother and son, were the only ones left in the middle area of the carriage.
Wu Mei unhappily let go of Li Hong's already red ears and let him continue to sit on the exquisite phoenix chair, while she sat on a chair opposite.
"Tell your mother why?" Wu Mei took a glass of water, handed it to Li Hong opposite her, and asked.
"There's no reason. I just can't bear it, and I'm afraid that father will... be too lonely." Li Hong rubbed his ears, took the water handed to him by Wu Mei, and drank it in one gulp.
"Lonely? He often visits Xiao. Don't you know, Li Hong? Xu Hui's sister has been promoted to Consort for many years. During the selection of concubines every three years, your father was too lazy to choose one. Didn't your mother also give him the opportunity..."
"What's the point of you telling me this? You should tell your father. Besides, your father is not a playboy. You know that your father only has you in his heart. If it weren't for you, how could he like Madam Han and Helan Minyue?"
"Hey, you little bastard, are you speaking for your father now? Is there anything wrong with me complaining a little?"
"No, no, no, please calm down, mother. That's not what I meant. What I meant was that you are the only one in father's heart. I have been studying psychology recently. Don't you know what psychology is? It is a new subject in Chongwen Hall. It studies one's words and deeds..."
"Speak human language." Wu Mei leaned back in her chair, looking at the people who were isolated on both sides of the street and kneeling outside, and said lightly.
"Okay, let's talk human language. That is to say, let me make it clear first, this is not treason, please don't accuse me of anything when the time comes. Judging from my father's experience, he lost his grandmother when he was young, and psychologically, he has a natural dependence on maternal love, so... mother, please don't do it, just pull this side, otherwise, it will hurt..."
"You little bastard, are you saying that your mother is old?" Wu Mei gritted her teeth and grabbed Li Hong's ear across the table and shouted angrily.
"You are old, please let go. When you stand next to your father, it feels like your father is several years older than you."
Wu Mei lazily let go of her hand and said calmly: "Then how do you plan to deal with Helan Minyue? Are you really going to let her enter the palace in the future?"
"How is that possible? She can only die of old age in Prince Pu's mansion! If she leaves, father will only miss her more. If she stays, slowly, everything will fade away. Besides, you are the unparalleled one in the world to accompany father. Little Helan Minyue should just stay at the feet of Madam Rongguo and fulfill her filial duties."
Li Hong looked into his mother's beautiful eyes. This was the first time he had a frank discussion with her about strategy. His palms were sweating from nervousness.
No matter who he looks down on, he would never look down on his mother. Even if he had the memory and experience of nine reincarnations and ten lifetimes, he would never dare to be careless in front of his mother.
This time, his mother was able to get rid of Lady Korea within her sphere of influence without anyone noticing, which forced him to put aside his contempt for her.
Moreover, he was not sure whether his mother did this to remind him, Li Hong, of her existence!
For so many years, Li Hong always thought that there were no dissidents around him, but what he did not expect was that his mother was still able to deal with everything that happened in Chang'an calmly and easily from hundreds of miles away. This is not just the power that a queen should possess.
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