readx(); Within three days, the same rumor spread throughout the streets and alleys of the capital: the good deed in the north of the city was not done by the Eighth Prince at all. The Eighth Prince did not contribute a penny from beginning to end, but he forcibly seized a good reputation. He was an out-and-out hypocrite!
The rumor only said so much, without mentioning Zhu Kongshan. When Xuan Tianmo heard this, he was so angry that he smashed a century-old inkstone in the study. Then he went to Zhu Kongshan to ask what was going on. Zhu Kongshan said anxiously, "I was just about to discuss this with my cousin! Now in the north of the city, all the officials who used to provide porridge and rice have left. At first, I thought it was because their families didn't have enough money to support them, so they left. After all, doing charity is voluntary, and it's hard to keep them. Later, I found that more and more people left, and I was curious. In the past few days, I have been going around many times to find out the real reason why those officials withdrew the porridge stalls, but I didn't expect it was because of my cousin."
"Because of me?" Xuan Tianmo was puzzled. "What does it have to do with me whether they leave or stay?"
"Oh!" Zhu Kongshan stamped his feet in a pretentious manner, "Cousin, why don't you understand? All along, the government has paid for the porridge with me, but the Sheng Palace has never compensated them with a penny. Instead, the good reputation has been taken by us. It's okay for a day or two, but over time, how can these people not feel resentful? When I asked more, more than one person told me that the Eighth Prince was too stingy and too domineering. He would think of them for the work of paying money and working hard, but he never touched them when there was any benefit. They have been donating rice for so long, but they haven't received any real benefits, and they haven't been promoted at all, so they can't hold on any longer."
Xuan Tianmo was furious. "They want to be promoted after doing such a small thing? They are dreaming!" Thinking about the rumors on the street, he didn't need to ask, they were naturally spread by those officials. He had thought that people in small official positions were unreliable. Although there were daughters in the palace who were bullied by Concubine Yun and had no children for decades, most of them were of the rank of noble ladies and concubines, and could not achieve anything big. And he couldn't win over those concubines and ministers of the first and second ranks. This was his biggest shortcoming. "Has everyone withdrawn?" Xuan Tianmo asked Zhu Kongshan.
Zhu Kongshan nodded, "We are the only ones left."
"Yes." He pondered for a while, then said, "Five days later, I will go to the north of the city myself, and I will also bring the winter clothes that my mother prepared. You can make the arrangements then."
Zhu Kongshan felt joyful and nodded quickly, "Kongshan remembers, cousin, don't worry, Chengbei will arrange everything." After that, he looked at Xuan Tianmo again, his face flushed, "Cousin, are you staying here tonight?"
Xuan Tianmo waved his hand and said, "I have something to do tonight, so you should go to bed early!" After that, he turned and left.
Zhu Kongshan didn't breathe a sigh of relief until he walked out of the yard. Xiaoyu helped her sit back in the chair and said worriedly, "Miss, what if the Eighth Prince finds out about what we did? Will he..."
"Will he kill us?" She sneered, "Of course he will, and I will die miserably." As she spoke, she clearly felt Xiaoyu shudder, and she quickly comforted her, "Don't worry, I have already arranged it for you. Before anything happens to me, I will arrange for you to leave the capital." As she spoke, she reached into her bosom and took out fifty taels of silver notes, "Take this, and before you leave, I will give you another hundred taels, and I will also prepare some change for you to use on the road. The money you have is enough to find a place far away from the capital and Pengzhou to live a good life. In addition, I will also return your indenture contract to you. From now on, you will be a free person and can go wherever you want."
When Xiaoyu heard this, she was excited and extremely grateful to Zhu Kongshan. She knelt down and said, "Miss, I am your maid and I am willing to serve you for the rest of my life, no matter life or death!"
Inseparable in life and death? Zhu Kongshan sneered in his heart. There is no such thing as inseparable in life and death in this world. Although Xiaoyu is loyal, it is impossible for her to die with her master. Of course, she did not intend to really let this girl go. What's the point of keeping a servant who can't share honor and disgrace with the master? But now is not the time to turn against her. She still has a lot of things that need the help of this girl, and she has to prevent her from complaining to the Eighth Prince. It's only five days. After five days, as long as the Eighth Prince takes Yuan Guiren's clothes to the north of the city, everything will be over.
Rumors in the capital were still spreading, and the Eighth Prince gradually became alienated from the officials who depended on him. In the north of the city, the poor people knew that the porridge they ate was paid for by Miss Zhu alone, and it had nothing to do with the Eighth Prince. Those families who participated in the porridge distribution came here for the Eighth Prince, and they left because of the Eighth Prince. Because the Eighth Prince had promised them silver before, but he didn't give them a penny, so those people withdrew.
The maid from Prince Sheng's Mansion who followed Zhu Kongshan was very confused about where this rumor came from. It was clear that Prince Sheng's Mansion had paid a lot of money, so how come these rumors said that it had not paid a penny? She asked Zhu Kongshan in confusion what was going on, but Zhu Kongshan just shook his head at her, saying that he didn't know either, and told the maid: "My cousin is also investigating, I hope the truth can be found out!"
In front of the common people, Zhu Kongshan kept explaining to them that the rice was bought by the Sheng Palace. However, people agreed on the surface, but secretly said: "Miss Zhu is so pitiful. If she doesn't speak well of the Eighth Prince, she will be beaten when she returns to the Sheng Palace. Alas, such a good girl, how can she have such a miserable life?"
The wind direction in the capital changes at any time. In Feng Yuheng's eyes, this is normal. She even sneered at it and said, "I thought they would be able to hold on through the winter, but I didn't expect them to break up so soon."
Huang Quan said, "In my opinion, it's better to leave as soon as possible. Otherwise, I will feel sick to death listening to people praising the Eighth Prince all day long."
Feng Yuheng laughed at her: "You just can't stand it. What's so disgusting about it? We can't afford to lose a piece of meat. We have to eat every meal. Just praise it. Remember, the higher the person is praised, the harder he will fall. I want to see how far Zhu Kongshan can make this matter, and how Lao Ba will take it."
Wangchuan and Huangquan thought differently. She asked Feng Yuheng, "Miss, if the Eighth Prince gets into trouble again this time, will the Emperor punish him severely? So many things happened before, such as the jade mine and the South Territory collusion with the enemy, but they were all covered up by the Eighth Prince. From what I've seen, the Emperor's attitude was to turn a blind eye. What about this time? If the Emperor still has that attitude, then all our efforts will be in vain."
Feng Yuheng also had this worry. In the competition with the Eighth Prince, she had always been in a passive position. She would unbutton the buttons when the other party buttoned them, and counter the moves. And the attitude of Emperor Tianwu was indeed as Wangchuan said, turning a blind eye. If the previous things were investigated strictly, she didn't believe that nothing would be found. With such a serious crime, she didn't believe that the Eighth Prince could still be as arrogant as today.
But the emperor just didn't investigate strictly, giving the old eighth a chance to continue to develop. She had already seen that the old Emperor Tianwu was now ready to sit back and watch the fight between the two tigers, just to see which one would be the winner in the end. This was a cruel game, and she had no intention of playing along, but she had no choice but to let Xuan Tianming, who was in the position of a prince, back out even if he wanted to. Xuan Tianming wanted to guard this world, and she could only guard it with him. There would be a day when the outcome would be clear, and she should show the same fighting spirit as when she fought against the Feng family.
Feng Yuheng encouraged himself, and then said: "Just wait and see, with Zhu Kongshan here, I'm afraid that Old Eight won't be able to show off for a few more days. His success is due to his cousin, and his failure is also due to his cousin. This can be regarded as tit for tat. He will fall where he stood up."
A few days later, the eighth prince Xuan Tianmo rode in a royal carriage, leading a convoy of ten carriages, to the north of the city. Zhu Kongshan had already told the people in the north of the city that the eighth prince would come here to visit them today, and he also brought new cotton-padded clothes made by the palace maids and maids organized by the palace noble Yuan. He repeatedly emphasized: "This time, noble Yuan really paid for it herself, just to let everyone wear new winter clothes, noble Yuan stayed up for several nights in the palace without sleep!"
She had already infiltrated these words to the beggars in the dilapidated temple, making them believe that under the pressure of recent rumors in the capital, the Eighth Prince finally wanted to do something practical. She also told the beggars that this was a good thing, as long as the people could benefit.
After hearing her words, the beggars told people that it was really Concubine Yuan and the Eighth Prince who contributed this time. People then began to believe her and looked forward to the arrival of the Eighth Prince.
Xuan Tianmo came to the north of the city that day. He not only brought new winter clothes, but also brought several carts of food. He also brought the chefs of Prince Sheng's Mansion. He cooked for the people on the spot and distributed new bowls and chopsticks. He personally served rice to these poor people. It took a whole day and was very lively.
The people had good food to eat and new clothes to wear. For a moment, the criticisms they had against the Eighth Prince a few days ago were offset. Some people even felt deeply guilty, thinking that they had wronged the Eighth Prince.
It was not until the sky gradually darkened that Xuan Tianmo led his people away. Before leaving, he said a lot of "heartfelt" words to the people, and even promised them: "As long as Prince Sheng's Mansion can afford to eat, we will not watch you starve."
After Xuan Tianmo left, Zhu Kongshan stayed behind to clean up the mess. He warmly said to the people who had received new winter clothes, "It's almost Laba, and it's been very cold these days. Don't keep the new clothes you got. Everyone should wear them. Don't get cold at night."
People nodded repeatedly, especially the beggars living in the dilapidated temples. It was really cold these days, and even if the temples put charcoal basins, it couldn't solve the practical problem. So people put on their new winter clothes and prepared to wrap themselves tightly at night. At least psychologically, new clothes are definitely warmer than old ones, at least the cotton is new and thicker.
Zhu Kongshan smiled when he saw that everyone was wearing them, and kept saying, "As long as everyone likes it, it won't be in vain. It's not easy for the Eighth Prince, who looks down on the poor people in the north of the city, to come here in person today."
After saying this, the people's hearts skipped a beat. Thinking about it again, it was impossible. The Eighth Prince had not smiled at all throughout the day.
People spent this winter night with mixed feelings, thinking that they would be warmer with new clothes. However, they did not expect that the next day, bad news came from the north of the city that nearly one-third of the poor and beggars were frozen to death overnight!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
