The palace was closed to the public, except during the morning court session. No one was allowed to enter without being summoned. Ministers who had left the palace would go to the government hall to handle government affairs. If they did not have government affairs, once they left the palace, they could not return that day. Even the princes were no exception. It was wishful thinking for them to go to the harem to see their mother.
Xuan Tianyi had heard about these things on his way back to Beijing, but he didn't believe it! Based on his understanding of Emperor Tianwu, this was simply impossible. With Emperor Tianwu's personality, he wished his sons would come to the palace to see him every day. Although his sons were good and bad and had their own ulterior motives, as a parent, he always hoped to enjoy the emperor's wheel of heaven and was most happy to see his children and grandchildren. Therefore, Xuan Tianyi didn't take the servants' reports about the palace seriously at all, and rode his horse straight to Deyang Gate.
However, the palace gates, which were tightly closed in broad daylight, kept him out of the palace.
Xuan Tianyi frowned as he looked at the gate in front of him. He sat on his horse and listened to the imperial guards reporting to him, "The morning court session has passed and the palace ban has begun. If the Fourth Prince wants to enter the palace, please come back tomorrow during the morning court session."
He looked down at the imperial guards, unfamiliar faces, full of arrogance, and even more arrogant than him, the prince. Even after he finished speaking, another imperial guard followed up with a sentence: "Fourth Prince, please go back!"
He was so angry that he wanted to whip these bastards to death like Xuan Tianming. Unfortunately, he didn't have the confidence like Xuan Tianming. He didn't have it before, and he didn't have it now. He was still a prince, but he had lost his throne. In addition, he had participated in the dark history of the third prince forcing the emperor to abdicate. His status in the capital had plummeted over the years. If he hadn't been so tolerant, he would have died long ago.
But he still had some questions in his mind, so he asked the two imperial guards, "Why is the palace under house arrest? Who gave the order?"
One of the other party said, "Your Highness, the order to ban the palace was issued by the emperor. As for why the palace was banned, please forgive me for not assuming the emperor's intention."
"Holy will?" Xuan Tianyi snorted coldly, "I'm afraid it's not the will of the Holy Spirit, but the will of your master, right?"
The imperial guards responded fluently: "We are guarding the palace, and the emperor is our master. This is naturally what the emperor wants."
"Hmph!" Xuan Tianyi had no intention of talking to these servants anymore. He whipped his horse whip and walked away on the snow. "Forget it. I'll come again tomorrow."
Seeing Xuan Tianyi's horse running away, the two guards looked at each other, and saw contempt in each other's eyes. One of them said, "He is just a deposed prince, why is he showing off?"
Another person also said, "That's right. Does he think we have forgotten about the rebellion?"
Xuan Tianyi's horse ran farther and farther, and only stopped at the gate of Prince Ping's mansion. The worries on the way back to Beijing did not really reach their peak until this moment. His intuition told him that something was going to happen in the palace, and this change would continue until it was irreversible. Suddenly, he regretted returning to Beijing. If he had known this, he would have kept Xiangrong in Ji'an County at all costs. It was better for her to live happily there than to be involved in this storm. That girl was Feng Yuheng's sister, and Feng Yuheng was now married to Lao Jiu. He always felt that this matter would sooner or later involve a lot of people, and even Xiangrong could not escape.
"If it doesn't work, I'll persuade that girl to go back tomorrow!" Xuan Tianyi murmured, and at the same time he said self-deprecatingly: "As a prince who has been stripped of his throne, what else can I do in the capital? Morning court? It's not my turn to attend the morning court."
In the Prince Yu's Mansion, Xuan Tianming had not returned yet. Xiang Rongzheng was talking about the things in Ji'an County. She told Feng Yuheng, "Since the Sixth Prince left, all the major matters in that county have been taken over by Qian Zhizhou, and the minor matters have been decided by my mother and me. Now Ji'an County has developed very well, and is more presentable than Yuzhou and Haizhou. Qian Zhizhou always said that he had been an official for so many years, but it was not as good as the few months that Princess Ji'an lived here. He said that he had never seen such a good governance in Ji'an County in his life, especially the public carriages, which greatly facilitated the travel between several counties and prefectures. Because the price was reasonable, many people who didn't have the money to hire a carriage before but wanted to visit relatives and friends can now come out from time to time."
Xiangrong was very excited when she talked about the official carriage, the governance of Ji'an County, the school opened by the Sixth Prince, the Baicao Hall and the jade mines there. Every place was thriving and flourishing. Finally, she concluded, "I used to live in the capital, and I felt that the outside world was a barbarian land, and it was not as prosperous as the capital. But later, Ji'an County was established. Now I feel that compared to the capital, Ji'an County is the best place in our Dashun. Now everyone's hearts and minds are in the same direction, and everyone hopes that the county can develop better. Second sister, when can you go back? Everyone misses you very much."
Feng Yuheng was also excited when she heard Xiangrong talk about Ji'an County. It can be said that the development of Ji'an County is an experiment she conducted in the Dashun Dynasty according to the social form of later generations. The success of Ji'an County gave her hope. One day, such a governance method will be further promoted, which will truly benefit the people. But, will there really be such a day? Thinking about the current political situation, she couldn't help but worry again.
At this time, Mrs. Zhou's voice rose outside the door, "Princess, I have something to report."
Wang Chuan hurried over to open the door, and Feng Yuheng immediately took over: "I've said long ago that Madam doesn't need to call herself an old slave in the mansion. The Ninth Prince and I have never regarded you as a slave."
Madam Zhou smiled and stepped forward to salute, saying, "That's the care of the masters, but I can't be ungrateful." As she spoke, she saluted Xiangrong again and said, "Greetings, Third Miss."
Xiangrong quickly stood up to return the greeting, and said flatteredly: "Mrs. Zhou is a first-rank imperial concubine, and Xiangrong is just a commoner. The Zhou people's courtesy is really embarrassing for Xiangrong."
Madam Zhou looked at Xiangrong and said with a smile: "The Third Miss has really grown up. I remember when I first went to Feng Mansion to pay the betrothal gifts and saw the Third Miss, she was still a timid little girl hiding behind her family members."
Xiangrong's face turned red, and she thought of her own state back then, and couldn't help but smile bitterly, "Yeah, why was I so timid back then?" This sentence made several people laugh.
Madam Zhou then said to Feng Yuheng, "The prince sent someone to tell him that he went directly to Prince Chun's mansion after leaving the palace, and asked the princess to go there in the afternoon and have dinner with Concubine Yun in the evening." After that, she handed over a note in her hand and said, "This is a note sent from the palace for the palace banquet on the first day of the new year. The note not only invited the princess, but also the third young lady."
"Invite me?" Xiang Rong was shocked. "Why would they invite me? Now that the Feng family is gone, I am just a commoner. Why would they invite me? Besides, I just returned to the capital today! How did the palace know that I was back?"
Feng Yuheng took the note and didn't think it was strange. She just said, "See, you can't avoid it. Every palace banquet always causes trouble. Who knows what will happen this time. As for your return to Beijing, I'm afraid people will know everything before you even enter the city gate." She said, looking at Xiangrong, "Because you are my sister, understand?"
Xiangrong nodded. Her brain was working well now. Feng Yuheng only needed to say one word and she could figure out what was going on. Because of Feng Yuheng's special status, her younger sister would also be watched by others. Even in this palace banquet, something unexpected might happen to her. But Xiangrong was not afraid. Being able to fight side by side with her second sister was something she had always hoped for. She told Feng Yuheng: "Since you invited me, I will go and accompany my second sister to see what kind of trouble they are going to cause."
"Okay." Feng Yuheng was very satisfied with Xiangrong's attitude. "This is more like my sister. I tell you, no matter what happens, don't be afraid. I will fight back. Those troublemakers can't do anything to me." After saying that, he rubbed Xiangrong's head, as if he was caring for a child. "Come with me to Prince Chun's Mansion later. It's a good opportunity to meet Empress Yunfei."
When she heard that she was going to Prince Chun's mansion, Xiangrong, who had finally become strong, suddenly became weak again. Her two little hands subconsciously twisted the corners of her clothes, which made Madam Zhou smile. She thought that the third daughter of the Feng family was still a child after all, and she couldn't hide her thoughts. But she didn't know what kind of result her love for the Seventh Prince would bring.
Feng Yuheng brought Xiangrong to Prince Chun's mansion, under the pretext of meeting Concubine Yun. When Xiangrong came back from Ji'an County, she brought a lot of embroidery that she had embroidered herself. She originally wanted to give them to some sisters after returning to Beijing, including Xuan Tiange, Feng Tianyu, and Ren Xifeng. But on the way back, she heard that Ren Xifeng went to Ji'an County to see Bai Furong, and the two of them went in different ways, so they missed each other, so she saved a gift. Today, she can just give it to Concubine Yun. Although the gift is light, she knows that Concubine Yun has everything, and anything she gives is redundant. It's just a token of her thoughts. Fortunately, this embroidery is unique and has never appeared in Beijing.
When the two of them arrived at Prince Yu's Mansion, they heard that Xuan Tianming had just left to meet with Xu Jingyuan at the Ministry of Justice to discuss some matters. Before leaving, he also told Feng Yuheng to wait for him at Prince Chun's Mansion, and he would come back for dinner.
Feng Yuheng didn't mind, she was a frequent visitor to Prince Chun's mansion, and now that Concubine Yun lived here, it was even more legitimate for her to visit her mother-in-law as a daughter-in-law. It was just that Xiangrong felt a little awkward when she met Concubine Yun, and after presenting the gift, she hid behind Feng Yuheng again, instantly returning to the way she was a few years ago.
Feng Yuheng smiled bitterly and said to Concubine Yun: "My daughter-in-law, the third sister, is nervous when she sees Concubine Mother!"
Concubine Yun said indifferently, "Why are you so nervous when you see me? I'm not a cannibal, and this is not the imperial palace. It's just a family meeting, there are no rules. Third girl, you can sit down too!" She left the palace and simply stopped calling herself "this concubine". Her wild nature was revealed again. She asked Xiangrong to sit down while looking at the embroidery pieces, and exclaimed in amazement, "What a great thing! Not only is the embroidery good, but the patterns are also something I've never seen before. What the hell is this?"
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