154. The shining prince
Dou Shichen continued his incessant chatter, arrogantly saying, "What? Are you mute? Did I hit the nail on the head? Your Xixiang is such a poor and desolate place, you probably can't even afford a decent meal, right? You dare to come to the capital and embarrass yourself? Look at your clothes, they'd be too shabby to even be used as clothes by my groom!"
Bai Qingzhong finally couldn't help but raise his head and retort, "You're talking nonsense! Although Xixiang is not wealthy, the people live and work in peace and contentment! It's not as bad as you say!"
"Living in peace and contentment? Ha, eating chaff and wild vegetables is what you call living in peace and contentment?" Dou Shichen scoffed, looking Bai Qingzhong up and down. "Look at your appearance, you're the best proof of Xixiang's 'living in peace and contentment,' aren't you? If I were you, I would have been ashamed and hidden back in the mountains long ago, how dare you come to the palace banquet..."
“Young Master Dou,” Xie Wenling interrupted Dou Shichen.
He stepped forward and subtly inserted himself between the two.
Dou Shichen was in the middle of a heated argument when he was interrupted, which made him very unhappy.
But upon seeing that it was a strange adult, and remembering his father's instructions before he left, he toned down his arrogance somewhat, though his tone remained sharp: "Who are you? From the capital? If you are from the capital, that's good. I'd like to ask you how you arranged the seats? This bumpkin who appeared out of nowhere dares to sit on equal footing with me? You've offended this young master, and haven't even offered a proper apology!"
Xie Wenling remained calm. He first nodded slightly to the two princes in greeting, and then looked at Dou Shichen, speaking in a businesslike tone: "Prince Dou, I wonder how Prince Bai offended you? Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, and His Majesty will be arriving soon. A little misunderstanding is fine to clear things up, so let's not hurt the harmony."
Dou Shichen snorted and pointed to a water stain on the hem of his robe: "He deliberately spilled wine on my robe! This is Suzhou embroidery! If he ruins it, can he afford to pay for it?"
Xie Wenling and Xiao Tuanzi were both stunned and turned around to look at Bai Qingzhong behind them. They didn't expect that he was the one who started the trouble.
"He was the one who started the sarcastic remarks. I was so angry that I threw water at him..." His voice grew softer and softer, and his head drooped down, his fingers twisting the hem of his clothes helplessly.
He looked both inferior and aggrieved, yet also stubbornly unwilling to admit defeat completely.
Xie Wenling roughly understood.
The gist of the story is that Dou Shichen provoked Bai Qingzhong with his sharp tongue, and Bai Qingzhong retaliated by splashing water on him.
Then Dou Shichen got furious.
The little dumpling hid behind Xie Wenling, peeking out her little head. Looking at Bai Qingzhong, who was about to cry but was trying hard to hold it back, and then at Dou Shichen's angry and arrogant appearance, the little scales in her heart had already tipped.
She hid behind Xie Wenling and quietly tugged at his clothes: "This shiny little prince is no good. Brother Xie said we shouldn't argue, but he argued loudly. Brother Xie, he's bad."
Xie Wenling glanced at Dou Shichen subconsciously; he was indeed dressed in dazzling jewelry.
Plus, his surname is Dou... "Shining Bean Prince" is quite fitting for the image.
Xie Wenling snapped out of his thoughts and was about to speak up to settle the child's case when Dou Shichen, like a firecracker that had been lit, preemptively turned his attention to him.
"Your surname is Xie? You're Xie Wenling?! You are Xie Wenling!" Dou Shichen was truly enraged this time, his hair standing on end. "Stop pretending to be a good person here! Don't think I don't know that it was you who gave His Majesty the brilliant idea to make me leave my father and mother and travel thousands of miles to this unfamiliar capital city! What were you up to?!"
He was so angry he jumped up and down whenever he thought about it.
He was the apple of his father's and mother's eye, the little prince who was showered with love and affection. But because of this wicked adult's bad idea, he had to leave his father and mother.
When the imperial decree came down, the whole family couldn't sleep. The three of them cried together every day, but crying was useless, and he still came.
The Zhennan King's family gritted their teeth with hatred whenever they thought about this matter.
But this was all within Xie Wenling's expectations.
He knew this situation would definitely occur from the moment he proposed the plan.
Not everyone is willing to give away their beloved prince.
Especially in cases like that of the Prince of Zhennan.
For the Prince of Zhennan's family, sending their heir to the palace was not equivalent to vying for the throne, but rather to becoming a hostage.
But that's exactly what Xie Wenling and Wei Xiuming were after.
Relying on their superior conditions, the Prince of Zhennan has been ambitious and restless for more than a year or two; it can be said that they have coveted the throne since their ancestors.
Unfortunately, although Wei Xiuming's father died young, he was not easy to deal with, and Wei Xiuming was even more difficult to handle.
If it had been a less capable emperor, the Prince of Zhennan might have already raised an army and changed the dynasty's name.
It can be said that a significant portion of Wei Xiuming's decision to approve Xie Wenling's proposal was based on the fact that it targeted the Prince of Zhennan.
Let them send the crown prince over; it will give the Prince of Zhennan a chance to calm down and think twice before making any moves.
Now, Xie Wenling looked at Dou Shichen with no change in expression: "Young Master Dou, please be careful with your words. It is an honor and a matter of custom for the young masters to come to the capital to study and to pay homage to His Majesty. If you have any objections to this, you may wait until His Majesty arrives and explain to him in person."
These words left Dou Shichen speechless. How could he dare to actually complain about this to the emperor?
He grew even more furious: "Don't try to intimidate me with His Majesty! Everyone knows you, Xie Wenling, are masters of flattery and climbing over others to get ahead! So what if you're just a third-rank official? What's there to be so smug about! Just wait and see..."
"What if I wait for you?" Xie Wenling interrupted him again, his tone calm but carrying an invisible pressure. "Young Master Dou, be careful. Inappropriate words and actions will not only damage your personal dignity, but also the reputation of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion. Do you perhaps want His Majesty and all the officials to think that the Zhennan Prince has failed in his duty to raise his son, and that the Young Master is arrogant and domineering, and unfit for great responsibilities?"
Dou Shichen was only six years old, so he definitely couldn't win an argument against Xie Wenling.
His face turned white then red, then red then white again. He pointed at Xie Wenling and stammered "You...you..." for a long time, but he couldn't utter a word of rebuttal.
Xie Wenling looked down at him coldly.
The little dumpling watched all of this quietly.
[Task triggered]
Dou Shichen, the female lead's loyal male supporting character.
If Wei Jiayou was her protector, then Dou Shichen was the sharp knife in her hand.
As the heir apparent to the Prince of Zhennan, he possessed a distinguished lineage and, relying on his status, acted arrogantly and domineeringly, a spoiled and arrogant young master.
He's targeted you quite a bit, under her guidance.
However, it's a pity...
He can't be so arrogant now.
[Because not long ago, Prime Minister Xie Wenling uprooted the entire Zhennan Prince's lineage on charges of plotting a rebellion, and the Zhennan Prince's former glory has now vanished.]
[When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter; without his father, Dou Shichen is nothing.]
He was quickly dumped by her.
Xie Wenling has given him to you, so you can do whatever you want with him.
Now, he is your prisoner.
You are free to retaliate against any insults you may receive.
Please bully him as much as you like!
[Mission: Bully him to your heart's content]
[Reward: Basic Healing Talisman]
The little dumpling understood.
Dou Shichen was indeed a villain!
That despicable, shiny little prince, how dare he bully her brother Xie!
They bullied her brother Xie so much that he didn't want to talk anymore!
She recalled the repeated admonitions from her older brother, her eldest brother, and her mother.
You must never argue.
But this bright and shiny young master always wants to argue with Brother Xie.
She had to stop him.
So she thought for a moment, then crawled out completely from behind Xie Wenling, stood between the two of them, and, imitating an adult, put on a stern face. In what she thought was the most serious voice, she called out in a childish voice, "Stop arguing! This is a very, very serious place! You can't argue loudly! I'm talking to you, Shining Bean Prince!"
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