150 150
◎She is determined to be a wise ruler!◎
The East Palace was not far from the Qianyuan Hall. Qingyang and Zhang Su passed through a palace gate and the Qianyuan Hall came into view.
From childhood to adulthood, Qingyang had witnessed the four weddings of her eldest sister and her three royal brothers in succession. She was very familiar with the tea ceremony the day after the wedding. In a blink of an eye, it was her turn and Zhang Su's turn to be the couple serving tea.
Qingyang looked at Zhang Su: "Are you nervous?"
There was a playful look in the Crown Princess's eyes, and the smile in that look reminded Zhang Su of how the princess often teased him like this when he was a child. However, the little princess, who always valued her dignity, was dignified and polite in front of most civil and military officials, children of nobles, and the common people. Only the royal family, several founding heroes, close attendants, and he, the third prince's study companion, had the opportunity to see the little princess's expression of joy and anger.
Zhang Su knew that the little princess had long considered him one of her own, but before the wedding, he did not have the status of "one of her own" that would allow him to occasionally exceed the rank of a subject.
Now he has it.
So Zhang Su smiled and said truthfully: "Not bad."
Qingyang was dazzled by his rare smile, but was not surprised by Zhang Su's answer. After all, among his father's sons-in-law and daughters-in-law, Zhang Su should be the one who had the most dealings with his father. He was very familiar with his mother, the imperial concubine, and the three imperial brothers. He was also a military commander who had been to the battlefield. How could he be scared by the small scene of serving tea?
The tea ceremony was held in the central hall. Emperor Xingwu, the two concubines, and several royal relatives living outside the palace were all present, including the eldest princess Yongkang, who was granted special permission to enter the palace during the past two days.
Five princes and princesses, when it came to the fifth tea ceremony, Emperor Xingwu's white hair and the increasing number of grandchildren all became evidence of the passing of time.
Princess Deng of Prince Yong knew that her husband had been ignored by Emperor Xingwu years ago because he opposed the appointment of the Crown Princess. Although everything seemed to be fine after the New Year, she would not dare to make fun of the Crown Princess even if she had a hundred guts. At this moment, she just kept smiling and watched the younger generations laughing and talking.
Prince Yong felt sorry for his eldest brother. Glancing at his gray hair, he consoled him, "Well, now that even our youngest, Lin'er, is married, you won't have to worry about your children's marriages anymore. Lin'er is promising, and since you've praised her as even more of a wise ruler than you, you can give her more of the state affairs and rest up."
After all, he was his elder brother who raised him. Although Prince Yong supported his son in seizing the throne from his three incompetent nephews and his niece who was not supposed to be the head of the family, he was unwilling to hope for his elder brother's early death because of this selfish motive. He hoped that his elder brother would live to be seventy or eighty years old and still have the strength to beat him, and hoped that his elder brother would think it through at that time and depose his niece as the crown princess.
Emperor Xingwu glanced at him indifferently. The palms and backs of his hands were all flesh, as were the soles and backs of his feet. At least 30% of his hair had turned white for his younger brother.
At this time, the Crown Princess and her husband arrived.
Emperor Xingwu's mood naturally brightened, his back straighter than before, and he smiled as he looked at his daughter and son-in-law who walked in side by side. His daughter's complexion was as rosy as usual, indicating that she had slept enough last night. Zhang Su didn't get too much sleep. Zhang Su still had the same dignified and handsome face as his father, open and confident, unlike his three daughters-in-law who blushed.
When offering tea, Qingyang offered it to his father first, and Zhang Su followed suit.
However, the princes-in-law of each dynasty could only call the emperor "Father" in private and when the emperor was in a good mood. They had to be the kind of people who could please their father-in-law. In formal occasions, they would respectfully call him "Your Majesty" to show that they would not forget the relationship between monarch and subject because of their status as son-in-law. Fu Kui was like this, and Zhang Su, who was always polite, would do the same.
After the tea ceremony, the entire royal family had breakfast together. After the banquet, Emperor Xingwu left behind his youngest daughter and son-in-law, and Concubine Li also stayed.
Afterwards, Zhang Su played chess with his father-in-law, the emperor, outside, while Qingyang was taken to the east room by his mother.
Even if Zhang Su did not become her son-in-law, Concubine Li had already regarded Zhang Su as half a son. The only thing Concubine Li needed to worry about in this marriage was whether the young couple could get along well at night.
Qingyang had no intention of revealing his private affairs to his mother, but he also didn't want her to speculate too much, so he simply gave a simple answer: "It suits my taste very well."
Seeing her daughter's seriousness, Concubine Li burst out laughing, her cheeks flushed, and she didn't look like she was in her early forties at all.
Qingyang's face inexplicably turned red because of his mother's smile.
Outside, Emperor Xingwu was silently playing chess with his new son-in-law. If Concubine Li had not wanted to have a personal conversation with his daughter, he would not have kept Zhang Su at all, because he was very confident in Zhang Su about the things that could be discussed. If he insisted on asking about the things that were not convenient to discuss, wouldn't he be considered as an old pervert?
After a while, Qingyang came out. As soon as he stepped out of the side room, Zhang Su temporarily left his seat and bowed slightly to the Crown Princess.
This is completely in line with etiquette, just like when Lü Wenrong was talking to the imperial concubine, she had to bow to Qin Hong who was walking over, and just like when Yang Zhimin was playing chess with Emperor Xingwu, he also had to bow to Yan Xizheng who suddenly appeared.
But Emperor Xingwu just wanted to tease his son-in-law, so he deliberately said with a stern face, "Have I allowed you to get up? Is paying respects to Lin'er more important than playing chess with me?"
Emperor Xingwu glared at his son-in-law. A few steps behind him, Qingyang smiled nonchalantly, implying that his father, the son-in-law, was just pretending.
Zhang Su replied respectfully, "Yes, because the emperor is magnanimous and will not punish me for such a small matter. However, if I were to be disrespectful to Your Highness, the emperor would never forgive me."
Emperor Xingwu: "...You are good at talking, better than your elder and second brothers." Zhang Jian and Zhang Heng are really as stupid as Zhang Jie.
Zhang Su: "That's because I'm more fortunate than my two brothers. I'm favored by the Emperor."
When Concubine Li, who was following behind her daughter, heard this, she smiled even more obviously than her daughter.
Emperor Xingwu snorted and said, "I love you as much as I love your dog, but you also need Lin'er to like you for you to receive this blessing. I hope you remember this and never let Lin'er down."
Zhang Su immediately knelt down and said, "Your Majesty..."
Emperor Xingwu raised his hand to interrupt his oath: "I don't believe these empty words, just know what you are doing. Okay, go back with Lin'er and rest. It's only three days off, so cherish it."
Qingyang came over and helped Zhang Su up. He raised his chin towards the half-finished chess game and asked his father, "Is this game over?"
Emperor Xingwu: "Call your mother."
The young couple is so sweet, and the old couple also has their sweetness!
.
After leaving Qianyuan Palace, it was springtime, and Qingyang took Zhang Su to the Imperial Garden.
The peonies had already faded, but the peonies were in bloom. Qingyang walked into the pavilion next to her and sat next to the beauty on the side that was best for viewing the flowers. She asked Zhang Su to sit next to her and Jie Yu, who had been following the two princes at a distance, stopped outside the peony garden, allowing the couple to talk freely without worrying about being overheard by passing palace servants.
Qingyang rested his right arm on the backrest of the beauty chair, supported his chin with his hand, and looked at the prince consort beside him and said, "Come to think of it, I haven't had this much free time in a long time."
The year before last, I was busy accompanying my father on his southern tour, and last year, I traveled back and forth between the two places for the Northern Expedition. When I returned to Beijing, I appointed a crown prince.
Although Zhang Su had not been with the Crown Princess for the past six months, and the two of them had no chance to sit together and chat like they were now, Zhang Su could imagine how many things were in the Crown Princess's mind, and they were all things that he could not share with her.
Now that the dispute over the crown prince has ended, there are still some people among the people who question the emperor's decision to appoint the princess as the crown princess, and the farther away from the capital, the deeper the doubts.
The Crown Princess, standing at an arm's length away, seemed relaxed and attracted by the blooming peonies. Who knew what she was thinking?
Zhang Su moved closer and held the Crown Princess's left hand which was resting on her leg.
Qingyang's gaze shifted over, quite surprised.
Zhang Su asked in a low voice: "Are you nervous?"
He was nervous about ruling the world and about the inevitable public criticism.
Qingyang smiled, shook his hand and said, "Never."
She is qualified to be the crown prince, and she also has the ability to be a good crown prince. Since she has confidence, why should she be nervous?
.
After spending half an hour in the Imperial Garden and returning to Jiuhua Palace, Qingyang asked the palace maids, both big and small, to come and pay their respects to the prince consort. Except for a few newcomers who were transferred in after Zhang Su left the palace, the rest were all familiar with their princess and prince consort as they were familiar with Prince Xian.
It was still early for lunch, so Qingyang took Zhang Su on a tour of the two-story Jiuhua Palace, and finally came to the West Wing Hall. The West Wing Hall had only three rooms: the middle one was the living room, the north one was the bedroom, and the south one was the study.
The "dowry" Zhang Su brought from the Duke of Wei's mansion hadn't been unpacked yet, and the study looked empty. Qingyang stayed for a while before sitting on the bed in the bedroom. He asked Zhang Su, who was parked outside the bed, "Do you want to live with me in the main hall, or do you only come over when I need your company and stay here the rest of the time?"
A well-behaved prince consort would have chosen the latter. Zhang Su was silent for a moment, but then he looked directly at the princess beside the bed and said, "I wish to live with Your Highness and only wash and change in the side hall."
Because he is not only a prince consort, but also a prince consort who has been thinking about the princess day and night for many years.
Qingyang deliberately misinterpreted his meaning: "Do you want to sleep with me every night?"
Zhang Su: "...I dare not. I just want to accompany Your Highness."
Qingyang smiled: "Okay, it's settled."
After checking the west wing hall, Qingyang asked Zhang Su to pack up the boxes first while she went to the main hall.
Qingyang was absorbed in state affairs, but she also understood the importance of balancing work and rest; otherwise, exhausting herself would render all her ambitions futile. So, upon receiving her leave, Qingyang temporarily put her duties at the Secretariat behind her and settled down on the couch in the east side room to read her leisurely books.
After lunch, Qingyang wanted to rest for half an hour. When he heard Zhang Su ask to leave, Qingyang raised his eyebrows and asked, "Do you think I don't want to keep you, or do you prefer to rest on your own?"
Upon hearing this, the four senior palace maids of Fu Liu tactfully retreated.
Zhang Su, whose face was already slightly red, finally explained, "I wanted to spend some time with Your Highness, but I was afraid Your Highness would misunderstand that I had other intentions."
Qingyang: "...I won't misunderstand you, and I'm not afraid that he will think of you. It's useless to have you anyway."
If she doesn't want to, then he can forget about it.
Zhang Su: "Yes, I hope Your Highness does not misunderstand me."
Qingyang thought for a moment and added, "In the future at Jiuhua Palace, if I don't want you to stay, I will tell you clearly. I'm not driving you away, so you don't have to worry too much."
Zhang Su remembered it.
They didn't sweat in the morning, so they rinsed their mouths and washed their faces, changed their clothes, and lay down.
Zhang Su was still lying on the outside, and he didn't move once he was there.
Qingyang looked at him amused, and asked him while lying on his side: "Besides sleeping with me, don't you want to have any other physical intimacy with me?"
She just wanted to hug him, but she didn't want to take the initiative every time.
Zhang Su sighed in his heart, then turned around and took the Crown Princess into his arms, who had no idea how much her words tortured him.
After seeing this hug and the sticker, Qingyang was stunned.
Zhang Su pressed his hand against the crown princess's back and whispered in her exposed ear, "I will never force Your Highness, but I cannot help wanting to sleep with Your Highness."
The warm breath turned into fire when it fell on his ear. The Crown Princess who had just told him that it was useless to think about it was actually shaken by such a sentence.
But she saw the afternoon light coming through the window, illuminating the entire area brightly.
"Late, at night."
She is determined to be a wise ruler, how could she commit adultery in broad daylight?
【Author’s words】
Here I come, today is also a single update~
100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow, [pat on the head]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com