Chapter 19 Xihe wants to see the second brother!
Zhao Jinyuan loved riding and shooting, and he asked Emperor Jingyuan to go to the West Camp outside the capital for training early on. After two months, he finally returned.
"Brother, come quickly! Xihe wants to see the second prince." Xihe suddenly became restless, moving around in the eldest prince's arms, looking around constantly, searching for the second prince.
Xihe called the second prince "royal brother" and called him "brother". Zhao Chengning felt as sweet as if he had been soaked in a honey pot.
He likes this difference.
"Slow down, I'll take you in." The eldest prince reached out and patted his sister's little butt, asking her to be quiet for a while.
The steps that were about to go in suddenly stopped.
"Ninth Prince?"
The eldest prince was so absorbed in his sister that he didn't even notice the ninth prince behind her. But didn't he always pay attention to others? Why did he suddenly come with Xihe?
"Big brother, this is my little brother. He came here with me. You can't bully him."
"Brother Xiao?" The eldest prince looked surprised, as if he couldn't believe what he heard.
Why does his sister call someone else brother, and Brother Xiao?
The eldest prince, who had just been so proud of himself, suddenly became jealous.
Seeing that the heartless little girl finally remembered him, Xiao Mingxuan's expression eased. He raised his hand and said calmly, "Greetings, the eldest prince."
Zhao Chengning nodded slightly as a greeting.
He turned to look at his silly little girl and said unhappily, "You little girl, huh? Why does brother bully the Ninth Prince?"
Xiao Mingxuan was a hostage, and it was inevitable that he would be bullied in the National Academy. Zhao Chengning disdained to do such a thing, but he also did not intervene. The National Academy was a small court with complicated relationships. Xiao Mingxuan was not yet at the point where the eldest prince would protect her regardless of his own interests.
"He who doesn't bully others is a good person. Brother is the best. Xihe likes brother the most." The little girl's eyes lit up immediately. She hugged the eldest prince and kissed him as a reward.
The eldest prince immediately became arrogant, and all principles were thrown out of the window. He thought it was just a hostage. As long as he showed some interest in her, openly or covertly, those people would have some reservations.
The eldest prince held his sister in his arms and walked in under the envious gazes of the crowd.
Xiao Mingxuan raised his eyebrows, chuckled, and followed.
Does this count as a gigolo?
Today was the archery test. When Xihe came in, she saw an arrow whizzing past her eyes. Before she could cheer, another arrow followed, flew past, broke the original arrow at the tail end, and came in like a gust of wind, hitting the bull's eye.
"Good!" Zhao Chengning shouted, and the scene suddenly became lively.
The archer was dressed in black, tall and thin, and hidden in the shadow of the treetops, making it difficult to see his expression.
"Jin Yuan, your archery skills are getting better and better."
Zhao Jinyuan looked over when he heard the voice. His stern face flickered into a faint smile when he saw the two people coming together. "Brother."
Because Concubine Xian and Concubine Chen were on good terms, the Second Prince and the First Prince had a very close relationship, unlike other brothers who were usually called Imperial Brother.
Zhao Jinyuan handed the bow to the attendant, dusted himself off, and stepped forward. When he touched Xihe in the eldest prince's arms, his eyes narrowed slightly and his lips moved, "Brother, who is she?"
Zhao Jinyuan went to the Beijing suburban camp for training and was away for two months. He only learned from a letter that Zhao Chengning had a new sister, but he had never seen her in person, so it was no wonder that he didn't recognize her.
"This is Xihe, isn't she cute?" Zhao Chengning was very proud today and introduced his sister wherever he went.
Xihe quietly looked at the person in front of him, and the person visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hello, Second Brother, I'm Xihe, hehe." Xihe struggled to run out of the eldest prince's arms, "Second Brother, hug me~"
The little girl opened her arms and stared at Zhao Jinyuan with her bright eyes.
Zhao Jinyuan pursed his lips, feeling a little helpless. Apart from his mother, he had never been in contact with a girl, let alone knowing how to hold a child. He seemed extremely flustered. Finally, Zhao Chengning couldn't stand it anymore, so he pulled someone over and stuffed the little girl in.
"Why are you so nervous? Relax your hands and don't strangle Xihe."
Zhao Jinyuan was like a human puppet, following the other party's manipulation of his arms.
In order to prevent the Second Prince from getting too nervous, Xihe put her arms around his neck and said, "Second brother, it's okay. Xihe won't fall."
The second prince felt the soft presence under his hand, and his heart, which had been hardened by training, felt a momentary numbness.
This is his sister.
His heart softened immediately, and he patted Xihe's back unskillfully with one hand, and said softly, "Okay."
The assessment of the National Academy was a one-person, one-game test. Zhao Jinyuan had already finished it, so he left the field to others and took Xihe to play in the backyard of the National Academy.
The little girl waved reluctantly to the eldest prince and Xiao Mingxuan, then followed the second prince without looking back.
There is a racecourse near the martial arts field, where students rest after taking the exam.
Xihe sat in the second prince's arms, but her eyes kept looking into the venue.
But it was too far away and she couldn't see clearly. So she begged the Second Prince to take her in to take a look. Zhao Jinyuan couldn't stand Xihe's coquettishness and agreed.
The little girl was amazed at everything she saw. They were all the same horses, but she stared at them intently.
"Second brother, can you ride a horse?"
Meeting the little girl's sparkling eyes, the Second Prince nodded without even thinking, "Yes, what's wrong?"
The little girl held his hand and begged, "Could you please take Xihe for a ride next time, Second Brother?"
Xihe was attracted by the excitement and splendor of horse riding, and was eager to try it out.
The Second Prince was silent for a while, choosing his words carefully. "You are still young, it is not appropriate."
"It's okay, it's okay." Xihe shook her head and said, "I can just sit in front of Second Brother. With Second Brother around, Xihe will definitely be fine, right?"
The second prince pursed his lips and said nothing more to refuse.
He could see that his sister was very stubborn and would do anything to get what she wanted. Well, if he wanted to give it a try, he might get scared after just one try.
Children's interests come and go quickly.
As the brother and sister were talking, a horse suddenly lost control and rushed towards the stands.
"Ah! Get out of the way!"
Zhao Jinyuan reacted quickly, picked up his sister and flew to the side.
The next second, the stands were destroyed and the people on the horses were rolling on the ground.
"Are you hurt anywhere? Arms, legs, where does it hurt?"
Although Zhao Jinyuan reacted quickly, the child was fragile and could be hurt if he was not careful.
Xihe was still in shock, tightly pursing her lower lip, her eyes still a little vague.
When Zhao Jinyuan saw this, his heart tightened. Is the little girl going to cry?
The second prince had witnessed the earth-shaking cry of the fourth princess Zhao Siyuan, which was even more devastating and headache-inducing than the sound of cannons.
But the little girl was just frightened, so it was normal for her to cry.
The Second Prince was lost in thought when he suddenly felt his sleeve being tugged at. "Brother, what are you thinking about?"
Zhao Jinyuan was suddenly pulled out of his memories and saw the little girl tilting her head to look at him, without a trace of tears on her face.
The Second Prince was silent for a moment, then asked, "Aren't you crying?"
"Ah?" Xihe was a little confused about the person in front of him. "Do you like to see people cry?"
What kind of quirk is this?
The second prince seemed to have thought of something, trembled slightly, and quickly shook his head.
The little girl then smiled happily, "Xihe is Tianshuo's strongest little princess. How could she be frightened by such a small thing? Brother Huang, am I right?"
Xihe put her hands on her hips, raised her chin slightly, her eyes filled with warm smiles, and her face full of pride.
Bathed in the gaze, hot but not hurtful.
As soon as the second prince raised his hand, Xihe offered her little head over. The moment their eyes met, a smile slowly appeared on the corner of Zhao Jinyuan's lips.
Xihe followed Yunhui to change clothes, while Zhao Jinyuan went to interrogate the man.
Why did the horse suddenly get frightened for no reason? And it happened to be the day when Xihe came.
This coincidence is somewhat artificial.
But the man was really stubborn. After a long interrogation, he insisted that his death was an accident.
Zhao Jinyuan played with the jade pendant at his waist, wondering whether he should torture him. After all, the military had plenty of ways to get people to confess.
"Royal brother, what's wrong?" Xihe changed his clothes and came out.
The man kneeling in the audience's face suddenly changed when he saw Xihe coming out. He showed a hint of panic on his face and fumbled with his clothes with his hands, as if trying to cover something.
Zhao Jinyuan naturally saw what Xihe could see. He winked at his men, and soon several people took action to control the man and handed over the things he had hidden.
"Your Highness."
Zhao Jinyuan's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the jade token in his hand. His sharp eyes swept downwards, revealing murderous intent.
It’s nothing, it’s just because it belongs to the Xu family.
The Xu family of Concubine Chen.
Xihe also came over and saw a word "Xu" engraved in the center of the jade order.
"Xihe, don't worry about it. My royal brother will handle it."
The second prince raised his hand and had someone deal with it.
The people in the audience watched as the Second Prince was about to kill and silence the witnesses. They desperately struggled to break free from the guards' restraints, quickly crawled in front of Xihe, and shouted, "Little Princess, save me! The Second Prince is trying to help the Xu family kill me and silence me."
His shouting immediately attracted the attention of others, and was heard by Xu Chengyuan who had rushed over.
Xu Chengyuan came up and kicked him, scolding him, "Bullshit! What nonsense are you talking about? When has my Xu family ever done that? Stop slandering me."
The man was kicked, his eyes filled with resentment. He pointed at the jade order in the Second Prince's hand and said, "It's obvious that the Xu family was worried that the princess would overshadow the eldest prince, so they sent me to assassinate Princess Zhaoyuan. You are destroying the bridge after crossing it!"
More and more people gathered around, whispering and saying all kinds of things, but Xu Chengyuan couldn't shut them up. If he did so, he would be considered guilty, and the dirty water thrown on the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion would never be washed away.
Xu Chengyuan gritted his teeth and wanted to eat the man alive, but he had to endure it, feeling very aggrieved.
Zhao Jinyuan glanced at the man and sneered in his heart. He didn't say anything, but his mind was as clear as a mirror.
The emperor brought my eldest brother with him to teach him, and he had the vague intention of appointing him as the crown prince, which made some people feel uneasy.
In order to squeeze the Xu family out, this group of people really did everything they could, and after a lot of twists and turns, they even set their sights on Xihe.
But I have to say this is indeed a good move.
Xihe was favored by Emperor Jingyuan, protected like the apple of his eye. Their best-case scenario was that the eldest prince would be implicated and fall from favor, while the worst-case scenario would tarnish the reputation of the Zhenguo Mansion. Either way, they were happy to see it happen. After this incident, it was certain to sow a seed of doubt in Emperor Jingyuan's mind.
If Zhao Jinyuan's guess was correct, similar things must have happened before, and there would probably be a chain of plots to follow.
The second prince glanced at the noble children around him and frowned slightly.
I realized it too late and finally lost the initiative, which is a bit tricky.
Just when Zhao Jinyuan was racking his brains over what to do, Xihe suddenly spoke.
"What did you just call me?"
Seeing that there was something going on, the man immediately got up and replied, "Princess Zhaoyuan, please save me."
Xihe let go of Yunhui, walked forward, and looked at the person in front of her with a helpless look on her face, "Hmm~ Did you recognize the wrong person? I am the Fourth Princess."
Xu Chengyuan was stunned for a moment, and just as he was about to open his mouth, he was scared back by Zhao Jinyuan's look.
Zhao Jinyuan looked at the little girl in the middle of the stage and raised his eyebrows, with no intention of stopping her.
The man looked as if he had been struck by lightning, and he fell to the ground in disbelief. "Impossible, this is absolutely impossible. The portrait I sent clearly..."
Xihe smiled, like a cat stealing fish, and dived into the Second Prince's arms, "Royal Brother~"
Zhao Jinyuan pinched the little girl's round cheeks and said, "Our Xihe is really smart."
Being praised so openly, the little girl felt embarrassed instead. She snuggled into the Second Prince's arms and didn't want to look at anyone.
Even if his reaction was slow, the man knew he had been exposed and looked terrified.
Zhao Jinyuan's face was cold. "Xihe has been kept in the palace and has never seen outsiders. Father has even ordered that no one should pass on the princess's portrait. I have been training outside for two months and have never seen it. How did you get the princess's portrait?"
Xihe was shy and the place she came and went was either Yuanyang Palace or Fuhua Palace. This was her first time in the National Academy, and she had never left the palace.
But the person in front of him was able to get it, which means he has an insider in the palace.
The man laughed sinisterly, "Others can't get it, but can't the person closest to me get it?"
The implication is that Concubine Chen gave the portrait.
Xihe tapped his chin and said thoughtfully, "My mother did draw a portrait of me."
Upon hearing this, the man's face was filled with surprise. "That's how I got the princess's portrait. The portrait is so lifelike, so accurate that I recognized the princess at first sight."
"Oh? What kind of paper did you use? Did you draw the princess's beautiful face?" Xihe finally became interested. Her eyes lit up and her face was full of anticipation.
For those who are proficient in painting, the type of paper to use is also very important.
"Top-grade tribute." The smile on the man's face became more and more obvious. He was afraid that they would not ask, and he would have no place to pour the second basin of dirty water.
This tribute notice was only for royal use, so the person delivering it must have been a noble person, which was clear evidence.
"Are you sure it's top-grade Gongxuan? Am I seeing it right?" Zhao Jinyuan confirmed again.
"I'm sure!" the man said firmly.
Zhao Jinyuan said nothing, and there was no expression on his thin and handsome face. Instead, Xihe couldn't help laughing first.
"Royal brother, he is so stupid."
Zhao Jinyuan smiled and changed his sister's posture. The coldness on his face gradually dissipated. "Don't move. Be careful not to fall."
The brother and sister were joking as if they didn't even remember there was someone in the audience.
After teasing his sister, Zhao Jinyuan looked at the man in the audience, "At least use some brains when setting up this scheme. Didn't the person who painted your portrait tell you that Fuhua Palace doesn't need Gongxuan?"
(End of this chapter)
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