The joy that came from the bottom of his heart made his eyes sparkle like a starry sky.
An Le, who was sitting opposite the two of them, looked back and forth at Gu Yanfei and Chu Yi, smiling until his eyes narrowed. He raised his little finger to Chu Yi in a good mood, "Big Brother, then we have a deal."
Chu Yi also stretched out his right little finger, and the two hooked their little fingers together to make an agreement.
"We'll make a promise and stick to it for a hundred years."
Gu Yanfei laughed uncontrollably at Anle's childish voice.
The next moment, Chu Yi's little finger turned in a different direction and hooked towards Gu Yanfei, "Is it settled?"
The three words were full of meaning, and his eyes were looking at her deeply, blazingly and brightly.
It seems to be talking about this thing, but also seems to be talking about something else.
Gu Yanfei smiled gently and hooked her little finger with his.
She hooked her little finger around his and shook it gently.
Shaken again.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Even after seeing off the Chu Yi siblings and returning to the small study in Yuheng Garden, her heartbeat was still somewhat unsteady, and would occasionally beat uncontrollably.
She stared blankly at the little finger of her right hand, as if she could still feel his body temperature.
Juanbi's voice went in one ear and out the other: "Miss, the entrance to Zhen's Silver Shop is very busy right now. The whole street is packed with people."
"Not long after the eldest princess returned to the palace, the people in the palace sent the gold and silver jewelry, silk and satin that the eldest princess had rewarded to Zhen's Silver Shop, saying that the eldest princess thought Miss Zhen was clever and skillful, and this was a reward for Miss Zhen."
"Boss Zhen was so grateful that he knelt down and kowtowed three times in the direction of the imperial palace. He also announced in public that his family would be inherited by his daughter and would not be adopted by another family."
At this point, Juanbi laughed out loud with joy, feeling the same pleasure as when watching a play where one could feel the satisfaction of revenge.
"The people gathered there all praised Boss Zhen for being so lucky. Having a daughter who can support the family is worth ten sons. He will be blessed in the future."
"Boss Zhen was so happy that he sprinkled two baskets of copper coins on the people on the street. Even the children around ran to pick up the copper coins. It was even more lively than the Chinese New Year..."
"Ms. Zhen can finally be proud of herself this time!!"
The Zhen family was just an ordinary merchant family. During the Dajing Dynasty, although the status of merchants was slightly improved compared with the previous dynasty and they could participate in the imperial examinations, they were still at the bottom of the hierarchy of scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans.
Common people naturally have a sense of awe towards the royal family. To them, the eldest princess is no different from a deity in heaven. Even the eldest princess summoned Miss Zhen, so Miss Zhen's character must be extraordinary, and the daughter of the Zhen family should also feel proud of her.
All the people from the clan came that day, and they were overjoyed and asked about the eldest princess's visit to the silver shop. Except for a few elders who took advantage of their seniority and said a few sour words, no one else dared to oppose Miss Zhen's inheritance of the family business.
With the publicity of Boss Zhen and some people with ulterior motives, the news of the Zhen family spread like wildfire in the capital. Whenever people mentioned the matter of the female marquis in the Marquis of Ji'an's Mansion, they would inevitably mention this Miss Zhen.
Naturally, all the court officials had heard about it, including Prime Minister Xiao.
"absurd!"
In the main hall of Prince Kang's mansion, Prime Minister Xiao slammed his palm heavily on the coffee table. His face turned pale and his beard blew in disarray. He could no longer maintain his usual calm demeanor and said angrily, "Your Highness, how can you let a woman inherit the family business? If this continues, the Great Jing Dynasty will be finished!"
Prince Kang Chuyou sat at the top, his face as gloomy as water.
Xiao Shoufu's right hand suddenly closed, and he said, "Your Highness, you can't sit back and do nothing any longer. If you continue to let the emperor do whatever he wants, it will only lead to the reversal of yin and yang and the hens crowing at dawn."
Chu You tightly grasped the armrest of the chair with one hand, feeling upset, with a sinister light in his eyes.
In recent days, Prime Minister Xiao has been coming to the palace almost every day, advising and talking every day. At this moment, Chu You can already guess what the other party is going to say next.
Sure enough, Xiao Shoufu's next sentence was -
"Your Majesty, for the sake of this great world, you must restore order. Those who want to accomplish great things must always put the overall situation first..."
Before Xiao Shoufu could finish his words, Chu You interrupted him impatiently: "Sir Xiao, I will not marry the princess of Yue."
Chu You's eyes were glowing with coldness, so cold that it was a little scary, and the irritation in his heart was piling up little by little, almost exploding: People like Xiao Shoufu and Wang Kangyin kept repeating the same things over and over again every day just to persuade him to marry the Kingdom of Yue.
Because of the marriage between the two countries, Meng'er ignored him for several days, even though their wedding date was approaching.
In a few days, it will be the day for him and Meng'er to get married...
He was extremely worried, fearing that something unexpected would happen in the last few days.
Sometimes, Chu You couldn't help but wonder, Xiao Shoufu and the others had been persuading him to form an alliance with Yue. Did they think that without Yue, Chu You wouldn't be able to accomplish anything? Xiao Shoufu didn't show it on his face, but his eyes grew colder little by little, and he felt quite unhappy.
If their family had no other choice, and if the late emperor had only two legitimate sons, the Emperor and Prince Kang, they really wanted to change someone.
Suppressing his mixed feelings, Prime Minister Xiao took a deep breath and calmed himself.
He slowly stroked his goatee and suddenly changed the subject of his next sentence: "Emperor Taizu was wise throughout his life, but in his later years he did something foolish."
"Does the prince know?"
Prime Minister Xiao looked at Chu You steadily, his eyes as deep as the sea. Sure enough, the next moment, the impatience on Chu You's face faded a little.
Chu You raised his sword-like eyebrows, and was somewhat curious about Xiao Shoufu's shocking words.
Everyone in the world says that Emperor Taizu is wise and powerful, but no one has ever dared to describe him as "incompetent". If Xiao Shoufu's words were to be spread outside, it would be considered treason! "Please give me some advice, Shoufu." Chu You said patiently.
Chief Minister Xiao did not keep the secret, still staring into Chu You's eyes, and continued: "Emperor Taizu once mentioned deposing the crown prince in his later years."
Of course, the one who deposed the crown prince was the late emperor.
"..." Chu You was startled, his eyebrows jumped suddenly, and he couldn't help but think: Who did Emperor Taizu want to give the throne to when he abolished the crown prince? Taizu had ten sons. The late emperor was the eldest son, and the youngest son was Prince Cheng Chuchi. Parents loved the youngest son, so could it be Prince Cheng Chuchi?
Chu You was thinking with his eyes slightly focused, and then he heard Xiao Shoufu, who was sitting below him, utter a name lightly: "Grand Princess Fengyang."
Prime Minister Xiao's voice was as light as a gentle breeze, but to Chu You's ears, it was like a thunderclap in the plain.
What?! Chu You was really shocked, his eyes widened slightly.
Seeing his reaction, Xiao Shoufu became calm and collected. He picked up the teacup, took a sip of tea, and then began to slowly talk about the past thirty years ago: "Taizu didn't care about the legitimate and illegitimate sons in the past, and only valued ability. But because of the bloody incident in Yongcheng Earl's Mansion, Taizu decided to make the legitimate and illegitimate sons official, and established the eldest legitimate son, that is, the crown prince first."
"But in his later years, Taizu, who was famous for his heroic deeds, became incompetent. In the 29th year of the Tianli period, he proposed to depose the crown prince. He ignored the opposition of the court officials and wanted to appoint Fengyang instead. Taizu also kept saying that Fengyang was also a legitimate son."
“……” Chu You looked at Prime Minister Xiao in surprise and doubt.
Back then, Emperor Taizu had great prestige in the court, almost to the point of having the final say, and the people even worshipped him as a god and a faith. If he insisted on establishing Fengyang, then why...
As if he could see what Chu You was thinking, Xiao Shoufu's lips curled up into an almost transcendent sneer, and he sighed: "Fortunately, Taizu is a human being. No matter how great his achievements are, how wise and brave he is, and how perfect his calculations are, he can never defeat fate."
"That year, the Red Di invaded Dajing in large numbers in the north, and the Yue Kingdom in the south was also ready to make a move, attacking Dajing from both sides. If we change the crown prince at this time, it will only cause instability in the government and unrest among the people."
"A year later, we finally pacified the Red Di and defeated the Kingdom of Yue. Not long after, Emperor Taizu fell ill again and never recovered from his illness..."
Later, in the 30th year of the Tianli period, Emperor Taizu passed away.
Before Emperor Taizu died, the crown prince was not changed after all.
When talking about this history, Prime Minister Xiao looked solemn.
Chu You was also infected by this solemn emotion and vaguely felt a sense of fate.
The late emperor’s ascension to the throne was destiny!
It turns out that even a wise and powerful person like Taizu could not escape the fate of being a fool for thousands of years, and he could not resist the will of heaven! "Ah!"
After a moment of silence, Xiao Shoufu sighed quietly, "However, Emperor Taizu was still too partial to Princess Fengyang. Although he failed to change the crown prince, he still gave the "Emperor Taizu's Notes" to the Princess."
As soon as these words came out, Chu You's expression changed again, and he asked in a lost voice: "...Is he really at the Royal Aunt Fengyang's place?"
When the late emperor was dying, he was still obsessed with Taizu's Notes and suspected that Fengyang had taken the notes. Chu You also knew this, but Chu You used to think that it would be useless even if Fengyang had taken the notes.
Xiao Shoufu nodded and stroked his beard, saying, "After Emperor Taizu passed away, the Taizu Notes disappeared. The late emperor had asked the Grand Princess about the whereabouts of the notes several times, but the Grand Princess had always been overbearing and refused to admit it. She even cursed the late emperor..."
Having said this, Prime Minister Xiao looked as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
He raised his hand and made a gesture. His attendant was very good at observing his expression and immediately left the main hall in a hurry.
Chu You saw that Prime Minister Xiao had something important to discuss, so he ordered the eunuchs to leave the hall and stand guard under the corridor outside the hall.
They were the only two people left in the room. The swaying shadows of the trees outside were cast into the living room through the window, and a solemn atmosphere naturally filled the air.
Prime Minister Xiao locked Chu You's gaze with his eyes and said sternly, "An incident also happened that year that many people don't know about. I guess Your Highness doesn't know about it either, right?"
(End of this chapter)
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