Chapter 150 Meeting the Emperor
The bloody smell in the capital had not yet dissipated when news of Concubine Yu's pregnancy spread from the deep palace.
The emperor probably wanted to dispel the dark clouds hanging over the palace. Concubine Yu had only been pregnant for a month, but rewards continued to flow into Xiuhua Palace. The generous rewards made everyone in the harem jealous.
In the past, if the emperor favored his concubines like this, there would definitely be people in the court who would object, especially those from the prince's lineage. They disliked the emperor's favoritism towards young concubines the most, and were afraid that the birth of a prince would affect the prince's status.
But this time it was different. Chi Liangjun was still imprisoned in the dungeon of the Dali Temple, waiting to be executed in the autumn. Even the Chi family members were implicated, and now they are in a miserable state.
Even Grand Tutor Zhang, who loved to point fingers at the emperor, shut up, and naturally the rest of the people did not dare to stroke the tiger's whiskers.
Not only that, the Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace even personally prepared a big gift and delivered it to the Jade Concubine's palace. The attitude of the Eastern Palace was very clear, and it wanted to make friends with the Jade Concubine.
The Fourth Prince's family was not to be outdone. After the news of Concubine Yu's pregnancy spread, Concubine Xu went to Xiuhua Palace three times in a month, and each time she brought generous gifts.
The Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince rushed to Xiuhua Palace to present gifts, which made Concubine Yu seem very popular.
The emperor did not comment on this. He only asked Concubine Yu to accept all the gifts when she was distressed, and did not say a word about anything else.
The Crown Prince was confined to the Eastern Palace, and the Fourth Prince's lineage also ceased its activities. For a time, the court seemed to be in harmony.
The Jade Concubine's pregnancy is like throwing a small stone into the lake in the back garden. The surface of the water soon calms down, but there are undercurrents beneath the surface. No one knows what fruit will be brewing.
All this was too far away from Su Fengzhang. He was just a grassroots official in the capital and could not even touch these things.
Who would have thought that a few days later, a palace eunuch came to the Hanlin Academy to convey the emperor's order, and it turned out that the emperor summoned him to the palace to serve as a tutor.
It has been more than half a year since Su Fengzhang was promoted to the position of attendant reader in the Hanlin Academy, but this is the first time the emperor has summoned him.
Along the way, Su Fengzhang was confused, but he did not ask the eunuch who came to deliver the message.
This made the eunuch look at him with a higher opinion. When the emperor's orders were usually delivered, these adults always liked to ask him for information, but they were just messengers and had no way of knowing the emperor's thoughts.
This Lord Su was different. Although he was polite to him and secretly stuffed his purse with money, he did not ask him any difficult questions.
Because of this good impression, the eunuch escorted him to the door and reminded him with a smile: "Master Su, His Majesty is waiting inside."
Su Fengzhang thanked him and walked into the inner hall. As expected, he saw a voice dressed in ordinary clothes. He bowed and saluted: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. Long live Your Majesty."
"Okay, no need to be so polite." The emperor was in good spirits, at least more energetic than during the Lantern Festival case.
He looked up at Su Fengzhang and saw that he looked even more handsome in his official attire. He nodded secretly in his heart and said with a smile, "You've come at the right time. Come and help me explain this Book of Filial Piety."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Su Fengzhang stepped forward, took the Book of Filial Piety, and began to explain it in detail.
But he felt a little strange. Although the Book of Filial Piety was one of the Thirteen Classics of Confucianism, it did not seem like something the emperor would read on a daily basis.
Su Fengzhang has a clear voice and speaks neither too fast nor too slow, which is a pleasure to listen to.
The emperor nodded slightly and suddenly asked, "My dear Su, I heard that your father died young, leaving you with only a widowed mother. Have you found these years difficult?"
Su Fengzhang didn't know why he suddenly asked about his personal affairs, so he quickly replied, "As a son, I should support the family, be filial to my mother, and take care of my younger siblings. Why should I suffer so much?"
"Your brother and sister-in-law are both born out of wedlock. Don't you have any grudges in your heart?" the emperor asked again.
Su Fengzhang felt his scalp tingle as he replied, "Although they are illegitimate children, they are still my biological siblings, blood relatives. I have watched them grow up slowly. Although I call them siblings, they are actually like my own children."
"It is said that an elder brother is like a father, but how many people can actually live up to it? It is really rare for Lord Su to be so attentive." said the emperor.
Su Fengzhang simply said, "Father passed away early, and I should have taken care of his younger siblings until they grew up."
"A filial son's service to his parents is to show respect when they are at home, to bring joy to them when they are cared for, to worry about their illness, to mourn their loss, and to perform sacrifices with solemnity," the emperor recited, his face suddenly darkening. "Now that I am still alive, they can't do that."
Su Fengzhang lowered his eyes, pretending he didn't hear these words.
Fortunately, the emperor had no intention of discussing the harem with him, and asked, "I heard that Lord Su is still unmarried?"
Su Fengzhang said, "I was still young when my father passed away. After that, I was in mourning and preparing for the imperial examinations, so I never got married. But today, my mother is planning something."
The emperor laughed heartily, stared at him and asked, "Do you have a crush on someone?"
Su Fengzhang felt that the trend of this topic was not good. The emperor would not arrange a marriage for him on a whim. Although arranged marriage was a great honor, he was afraid that this person would match him up randomly.
Even so, Su Fengzhang couldn't just invent a sweetheart out of thin air, so he could only reply, "This humble official has been busy studying these years, and the unmarried girls are all staying at home, so how can I possibly have a sweetheart?"
Upon hearing this, the emperor laughed again and said, "You are not as good as Meng Ting in this respect. He is only a few years older than you, and he has several children at home, not to mention confidantes all over the capital. He is worthy of the reputation of a talented and romantic man."
Su Fengzhang listened, not knowing whether the emperor was seriously praising Meng Ting or insulting him.
However, judging from the emperor's previous personality, it is possible that he really likes that kind of romantic and talented man.
Su Fengzhang could only smile bitterly and said, "I am a dull and boring person. I dare not compare myself with Lord Meng."
The emperor asked, "I heard that you are good friends with Meng Ting, Xu Zifeng, and the others. If you are good friends, why don't they help you find a marriage?"
Su Fengzhang has few connections in the capital, but Xu Zifeng and Meng Ting are different. It has been more than a year since he became the top scholar, but his marriage has not yet been decided. It is really strange.
Su Fengzhang's heart skipped a beat, thinking that the emperor's words were either a guess about his relationship with the Xu family, or he was just mentioning it casually. Since the person in front of him was the emperor, he naturally felt that the former was more likely.
"Marriage is a serious matter, and it is decided by the parents and the matchmaker. I dare not make the decision on my own." Su Fengzhang replied calmly.
When the emperor heard this, he laughed and said, "It's a good thing they haven't decided yet. They can find some good girls."
"Lord Su is young, talented, gentle, and has a promising future. It would be inadvisable to hastily arrange a marriage." The emperor said, and then followed up with a sentence, "Tell your mother not to rush into the marriage."
Su Fengzhang almost couldn't keep the smile on his face. He really didn't know how he caught the emperor's eye, so that he would interfere in his marriage. "Your humble servant obeys your command."
After hearing this, the emperor said, "Don't be so nervous. It's as if I'm going to eat someone."
Su Fengzhang could only smile: "Your Majesty cares about me, I am just flattered."
The emperor laughed and asked, "Are you surprised or happy?"
"I'm overjoyed." Su Fengzhang replied.
The emperor glanced at him again, and the more he looked, the more he felt that Su Fengzhang was indeed a good-looking man. Although he was not as suave as Meng Ting, nor as versatile as Su Qun, he was more fresh and handsome. No wonder women liked him.
Although he was the number one scholar chosen by the emperor, he did not have much contact with Su Fengzhang. When he thought of the sensational "Suihuayin" at that time, he felt that Su Fengzhang was not only talented and capable, but also had some blood and passion.
Thinking of this, the emperor's liking for him increased even more. He smiled and said, "I think you are not boring, but talented."
"Your Majesty, thank you for your praise. I am unworthy of it." Su Fengzhang replied with a smile.
The emperor raised his eyebrows and said, "Don't worry, I won't arrange marriages casually."
"Okay, let's continue talking about the Book of Filial Piety." Without giving Su Fengzhang a chance to continue speaking, the emperor changed the subject.
After talking for a full hour, Su Fengzhang left with a dry mouth. However, he was in great physical condition and there was no sign of fatigue on his face. His walking posture was still straight.
The emperor flipped through the Book of Filial Piety thoughtfully, and suddenly asked Eunuch Li beside him, "What do you think of Su Fengzhang?"
Eunuch Li was unsure of the emperor's thoughts for a moment, so he said vaguely, "The number one scholar personally selected by His Majesty is naturally a man of unparalleled talent."
The emperor sneered and said, "A Le has taken a fancy to Su Feng Zhang and wants to marry He Jing to him."
Eunuch Li was slightly surprised. You know, Princess Hejing is Prince Rong's only daughter. There have been no other heirs in Prince Rong's mansion over the years. Prince Rong himself does not seem to be anxious about it. Instead, the emperor is often worried about his brother having no descendants.
There was a rumor circulating secretly in the capital that marrying Princess Hejing was equivalent to obtaining Prince Rong's mansion and carrying a golden medal of immunity from death.
Because of this, the young masters in the capital were flocking to Princess Hejing, but unfortunately, Princess Hejing was not as kind as him. Princess Hejing had high standards, and Prince Rong looked down on none of them.
Who would have known that after all these twists and turns, Prince Rong actually fell in love with Lord Su Fengzhang, who was of ordinary birth and family background and was now just a reader in the Hanlin Academy. Eunuch Li suddenly remembered that when the Lantern Festival incident happened, Lord Su had saved Princess Hejing's life. Could it be because of this that Princess Hejing was determined to marry no one else but him?
Eunuch Li smiled and said, "Your Majesty, this man is unmarried and the woman is unmarried. Lord Su and Princess Hejing are both talented and beautiful. Besides their family backgrounds, they are quite well-matched. Why don't you just arrange a marriage for them?"
The emperor shook his head and smiled, "You don't know A'le yet. If we arrange a marriage directly, he'll get angry. Just wait and see. He'll definitely find a way to get Su Fengzhang to come and ask for his hand in marriage."
Eunuch Li also laughed when he heard it: "That's true, Prince Rong has always had this temper."
The emperor seemed to have thought of something, and said with a bit of gloating: "If Su Fengzhang wants to win the beauty, he must work hard, otherwise it will be a bargain for this brat."
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Author's words: First update
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