Chapter 236 Youngest Son (First Update)
Princess Rui's performance was so good that it also made Prince Rui look good. The emperor called his third son over and praised him.
Prince Rui was overjoyed.
Of all the princes, Prince Rui was actually the least conspicuous. In terms of specialness, he was not as special as his eldest brother, Prince Ning; in terms of nobility, he was not as noble as his second brother, the Crown Prince; in terms of intelligence, he was not as intelligent as the Fourth Prince; and in terms of appearance, he was not as handsome as the Fifth Prince.
From childhood to adulthood, he was always a prince who was easily overlooked.
However, it seems that his luck started to improve from the first day of the Lunar New Year this year?
"Go back and spend some quality time with your wife; pregnancy is hard work," the Emperor said to Prince Rui. Then, he muttered a few more words, "Who arranged for her to play the zither? What if she gets tired while pregnant?"
Consort Zhuang smiled and said, "It was my fault. I will not do it again."
Although the emperor did not approve of his third son's wife getting pregnant and playing the zither, he had to admit that if it weren't for this incident today, the Zhao Kingdom would really lose face.
Consort Zhuang understood this as well, so she readily admitted it, but she didn't mention a word about the Crown Princess's contribution.
The Crown Princess's actions were somewhat unintentional, but they turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
Strategically speaking, it was perfectly reasonable for the Crown Princess to pair up with the Princess Consort of Rui, allowing the Liang Kingdom's musicians to steal the spotlight. This was both a matter of hospitality and a tactic of expediency.
If Liang is happy, won't the subsequent negotiations be much easier?
The only thing is that Princess Rui was wronged.
As a royal daughter-in-law, she should still be prepared to make this kind of sacrifice.
But no one expected that Princess Rui would take out a broken zither, which was undoubtedly an insult to the other party—do you want me to be your concubine? Fine, you're only fit to use this broken zither!
This reversal was unexpected by everyone.
But an even bigger reversal is yet to come.
The Liang envoy's heart was in turmoil; what a wonderful welcoming banquet it was!
As for the matter of the guqin suppressing the flute, only those who are well-versed in music, such as Princess Rui and Wuming, would understand. In the eyes of others, the fact that Zhao Kingdom presented such an excellent piece of music must mean that they highly value Liang Kingdom!
This is what a top-tier feast looks like!
After the banquet.
Princess Rui walked out accompanied by Lady Xu. The Emperor had enjoyed himself tonight and had inevitably drunk a bit too much. Prince Rui first escorted him back to his palace before meeting Princess Rui outside the palace gate.
Just as she stepped out of the Qilin Palace, a familiar voice called out to her: "Princess Rui, please wait."
Princess Rui turned around.
The lady-in-waiting, Xu, who was holding the zither case, also stopped in her tracks.
The visitor was nameless.
Wuming looked younger than under the candlelight, perhaps because he was new to the place and was naturally a bit reserved at the banquet. He relaxed considerably once the banquet was over.
He bowed to Princess Rui.
Among the six states, the etiquette of Liang and Zhao was quite similar, which may be due to the large amount of cultural export from Liang to Zhao.
Princess Rui nodded slightly in return: "May I ask what brings you here, Lord Wuming?"
Wuming, abandoning his arrogance before the ensemble, cupped his hands politely and said, "Princess Rui, you can just call me Wuming."
Princess Rui nodded slightly.
They listened, but whether they actually shouted is another matter.
Wuming glanced at the zither in Lady Xu's hand: "May I ask if Princess Rui would be willing to sell this zither to me?"
Princess Rui was taken aback by his sudden request. She looked him up and down and said, "I told you, this is my friend's zither."
How could she sell her friend's piano?
Doesn't this person even understand this simple principle?
That's an incredibly unreasonable request!
Wuming wasn't unaware that his request was unreasonable, but he really wanted the zither: "Please ask Princess Rui to convey that the price is negotiable."
Princess Rui looked at him as if he were a fool, then turned and left.
Wuming gazed at her retreating figure and said, "Princess Rui, I sincerely request the zither; please grant my request, Princess Rui!"
Princess Rui wouldn't do anything to put Gu Jiao in a difficult position. This is a fine zither; if Gu Jiao wanted to sell it, she would have done so long ago.
Next door was a girls' school, full of daughters from prominent families, so Gu Jiao had no worries about selling her guqin.
"That nameless one, how annoying!" Princess Rui stormed off in a huff.
Wuming watched her retreating figure with resentment.
Prince Yu and his wife from Liang also came out of the hall. Seeing him shouting at Princess Rui, they couldn't help but frown slightly.
Wuming was a court musician in the Liang Kingdom and was deeply favored by the King of Liang, which was why he was qualified to accompany them. However, he was of no help whatsoever in making political connections.
He was just doing it for fun.
Prince Yu said solemnly, "Wuming, be mindful of your identity. This is not Liang Kingdom."
Wuming turned around, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Your Highness, Your Highness, I have been rude."
"What were you saying to Princess Rui just now?" Princess Yu asked.
Princess Yu was a dignified and gentle woman, not as cold-tempered as Prince Yu.
The nameless man said, "I want to buy the zither that Princess Rui has."
Princess Yu did not ask him how he could make such a rude request, but instead asked, "Why do you want that zither?"
Wuming said, "I suspect that it is the real Fuxi, but judging from Princess Rui's reaction, she seems to not even know it herself."
If he knew it was the real Fuxi, would he still have let his servants hold him?
She treated the zither like any other guqin, without a trace of ostentation in her eyes.
The others in Zhao Kingdom probably didn't know either.
"Are you sure?" Princess Yu asked.
Wuming nodded: "I'm sure. The reason why my master was able to make the best replica zither is because he had seen the real Fuxi zither and heard its music. I was too young to go inside then, but I stood outside the curtain and listened to a piece. I will never forget that music."
Princess Yu asked in bewilderment, "But how could the Fuxi Qin have been burned? And what about the two characters 'Fuxi'?"
Wuming thought for a moment and speculated, "Those two characters must have been carved on later. As for why it was burned black... I don't understand either."
Did someone burn the Fuxi Qin as firewood?
Would you really be that wasteful?
Princess Yu looked at Prince Yu: "Does Princess Rui know the owner of the Fuxi Qin?"
Prince Yu frowned: "I don't know."
He looked at Wuming, "Have you ever met the owner of the Fuxi Qin?"
Wuming shook his head regretfully: "I have never seen it, but my master has. He even drew many portraits of the other person, but my master has always regarded those portraits as treasures and does not allow any of us to peek at them."
Prince Yu: "You don't even know if it's a man or a woman?"
The anonymous man shrugged: "Anyway, I don't know."
Prince Yu has a headache.
If it really is the Fuxi Qin, then he is quite tempted.
Everyone knows that the King of Liang is fond of music. If one could obtain the Fuxi Qin, it would surely please the King.
Princess Yu looked at her husband, took his arm, and gently shook her head: "We must not force it."
Prince Yu's expression softened instantly, and he said with a grin, "I know, I know, don't worry, Madam, I won't force you."
Princess Yu thought about it and still felt it was inappropriate: "It is already a blessing to hear a piece of Fuxi Qin music, so let's not disturb them."
"Don't you also like the zither? I'll buy it for you!" He wouldn't give it to the king! Prince Yu was famously doting on his wife.
Princess Yu shook her head: "A gentleman does not take what others cherish."
Prince Yu grasped his wife's hand: "Alright, I'll do whatever you say!"
Wuming was completely bewildered. "No, Your Highness, is it really okay for you to be so unprincipled?"
Princess Yu nodded and said, "It's getting late, let's go back and see how Ming'er is doing."
Ming'er is the son of Prince Yu and his wife. He is ten years old this year and has also come to Zhao Kingdom.
Actually, this was not the first time that Prince Yu and his wife had visited Zhao. They had visited five years ago when Princess Yu was pregnant.
She only discovered she was pregnant halfway there, and it was too late to send her back. Besides, Prince Yu was worried about letting her go back alone.
The two stayed in Zhao for a while. After the envoys left, they stayed, intending to return to Liang after the birth of their child and the completion of their postpartum confinement.
Four years ago, Princess Yu gave birth to a son in Zhao Kingdom, but it is said that he died shortly after birth.
The child named Ming'er is now the couple's youngest child.
Having lost a child, she was exceptionally doting on this one.
I didn't bring him with me last time I came to Zhao Kingdom, but I brought him this time.
Fortunately, the child lived up to expectations. Although he was only ten years old, he was a gifted child prodigy who had completed the Four Books and Five Classics and was also excellent in mathematics.
The only problem is that he's a bit too delicate and has a weak constitution. Just a few days ago, Prince Yu took him out for a ride, and he immediately started coughing.
Prince Yu: "Don't worry about Ming'er, he'll be fine in a little while."
Princess Consort Yu: "You are not allowed to take him horseback riding anymore, the wind is too strong."
Prince Yu: "I know, I know!"
As the couple's voices faded into the distance, Wuming sighed and followed them out of the palace.
(End of this chapter)
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