Chapter 13 Martial Virtue Abundant, Prosperous Dynasty
As soon as it was light, Zhou She delivered an invitation to the Gu family as planned, arranging a meeting for the next day, and then headed straight to the gold shop in the west of the city.
When he returned to the princess's residence last night, the sky was already faintly lit. The other masters of the residence had already gone to sleep, and only the lanterns at the gate greeted him.
Zhou She didn't care. He was used to being a marginal figure in the princess's residence. Since he wasn't going to take on his obligations, he naturally wouldn't compete for more attention.
I tossed and turned in bed late at night, unable to fall asleep for some reason. Before I knew it, I remembered what Tianmu had said.
He was still somewhat dazed about his upcoming marriage.
Zhou She was self-aware; he couldn't give his wife the most prestigious status like Emperor Hong'an or Emperor Zhongzong, but he wanted to do his best to be a harmonious couple with Gu Xunhui.
Since he couldn't sleep anyway, he decided to get up and prepare a gift—his parents would pay for the bulk of it, while he would show off his thoughtfulness.
He drew a design based on the style he had seen in his previous life, and just as he arrived at the gold shop, he bumped into his good younger brother Zhou Ze.
From a distance, Zhou She could see that he wasn't wearing scholar's robes, and that there were several other people with him, but they had their backs to him, so he couldn't see their faces.
Zhou She felt extremely unlucky and tugged at the sleeve of Prince Huai's heir, Zhong Jin: "Is that my younger brother?"
Zhong Jin was dragged up by him to act as his advisor. He probably hadn't slept well last night, as he had heavy dark circles under his eyes. He covered his face and replied, "I don't know."
Zhou She stared at the man, just as the man turned halfway to the side, and he was immediately shocked: "Is that the heir of Prince Su?"
Just moments ago, Zhong Jin was rubbing his eyes and saying he couldn't see, but now he quickly rubbed his face, craned his neck to get a better look, and immediately let out a strange laugh: "Zhou She, your family is finished."
Prince Su has a bad reputation, but his only advantage is that he is the emperor's second brother and has the most numerous offspring.
However, this advantage... is only useful at certain times.
Zhou She was a little confused by this arrangement. He recalled his father's instructions to befriend the princes. Could it be that now that the princes were all incompetent, he was being asked to befriend a prince instead?
Zhong Jin gloated, "Your brother is really not afraid of death."
Everyone knows the emperor is old but not stupid. With Tianmu's reminder, he must be keeping an eye on the princes, looking for the traitor to be killed. Who would dare to associate with him?
"Perhaps they want to pass on their family fortune to me." Zhou She didn't want to look any longer, afraid of angering himself to death. He picked up the barely-formed hairpin and said, "Don't look at it anymore. Look at this. Do you think my wife would like it?"
"It's just a broken stick, I wouldn't call that something to like." Zhong Jin's eyes were still fixed on the person opposite her, her gaze not even glancing back. She curled her lip in disdain and said, "Can't you be a little more dignified?"
Zhou She ignored him, turned his head and continued polishing, while rudely saying, "You don't know anything."
“I don’t understand. I got married much earlier than you.” Zhong Jin sat beside him, yawning incessantly, looking around aimlessly. Suddenly, his gaze stopped, and he hesitated, “Is that… Huai Leju over there?”
"What?!"
Zhou She, who was rolling up his sleeves and getting to work, turned around at the sound. He saw Huai Leju with a lifeless face, his fist the size of a sandbag hitting his good brother's face.
Zhou She suddenly jumped up, his movements so swift that Zhong Jin almost thought he was going to rescue his younger brother.
However, Zhou She simply strode over there, crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, glanced at the stunned Prince Su from head to toe, and said disdainfully, "If you don't leave, I'll beat you up too!"
Huai Leju: "...?"
The way you're putting it, it makes me sound like your henchman.
The Crown Prince of Su finally regained his composure, his face flushed with anger after being humiliated by Zhou She. His first instinct was to retort, but his attendant quietly tugged at his sleeve: "Master..."
The Crown Prince of Su couldn't catch his breath; he first thought of the current emperor's protective nature.
What sets Emperor Hong'an apart from other emperors is that he not only protects the shortcomings of his own children and grandchildren, but also the children of his daughters.
Princess Zhaoping, as the eldest daughter, was clearly someone who couldn't be offended.
"Zhou She!" The Crown Prince of Su roared in fury, his voice nearly splitting, yet a hint of guilt lingered in his tone. "You've been so arrogant today, I'll make you pay for it all sooner or later!"
Zhou She remained expressionless, treating him as if he were invisible.
Huai Leju's hand had already landed on Zhou Ze's face. He ignored Zhou She and finished hitting him thoroughly before asking, "What do you want?"
Zhou She looked surprised: "What is Lord Huai talking about? Are you tired of beating? Let me bring you a stick."
He pulled out the wooden board he had just grabbed from the gold shop.
“?” Huai Leju stared at his face, a line of thoughts slowly flashing through his mind: This boy is suspicious, he must have some kind of conspiracy.
He casually tossed Zhou Ze onto the street, clapped his hands dismissively, and remained expressionless: "Your brother and the Crown Prince stole my things."
"Oh, oh!" Zhou She agreed wholeheartedly. "What is it? Did you find it? If you didn't, I'll go back and beat it up again."
Huai Leju remained silent.
His fingers rubbed against the inside of his sleeve pocket, where a thin piece of silk lay.
Zhou Ze was young, and he frequented places unsuitable for children with the heir of Prince Su, which he originally did not want to interfere with.
However, these two lingered outside every day without informing the school supervisor. Last night, when the three met, Zhou Ze, as if he had caught them red-handed, sneaked into their room and stole their belongings.
More importantly, Zhou Ze started a fire before leaving. Fortunately, the fire was put out quickly, preventing any major incident.
He confronted Zhou Ze, who swore loudly and indistinctly. Unfortunately for Zhou Ze, Huai Leju was not a good-tempered person; he would settle scores on the spot.
Zhou She waited for a long time, but Huai Leju didn't speak. He lost all patience and awkwardly looked away.
He was still thinking about cultivating a good relationship with the newly rich, believing it would be useful sooner or later. But now it seems that Huai Leju is still the same as ever—irritable and arrogant!
Huai Leju finally came to his senses. He looked at Zhou She, who had a strange expression, and emphasized, "Your brother is obstructing official business. If you want to file a complaint, just go ahead."
Zhou She: "...?" Huh?
Huai Leju walked away, leaving only his back view. Zhou She looked bewildered and turned to Zhong Jin, asking, "What does he mean?"
What Huai Leju means is, I don't care if you sue me or not, I'm going to sue you.
Although Huai Leju lacked human sensibility, he was adept at the art of conversation. He subtly embellished his words before the emperor, adding a few embellishments to portray himself as an innocent and virtuous woman. And the one who ruthlessly destroyed this facade was, of course, the completely unaware Zhou She himself.
Zhou Ze was also among those being accused, but unfortunately, he had been punched in the nose by Huai Leju and was still recovering. Emperor Hong'an, pitying his youth, told him to come and apologize when he was better.
When Zhou She was found, he was still hammering his hairpin, covered in dust. After hearing the order, he hurriedly stuffed the hairpin into his sleeve, brushed the dust off his clothes, and then followed them into the palace.
The emperor's bedroom was naturally bustling with activity.
When Zhou She arrived, there were already several people there. At the front, naturally, was Huai Leju, the complainant. He stood solemnly to the side, his face showing no concern for the matter, even though it was clearly caused by him.
Several ministers sat below, including Prime Minister Xiao Yichun, Chancellor of the Imperial Academy Shen Mingzhe, and Zhou Xuyan, Zhou's father.
Standing below them was the Crown Prince of Su, whom they had met that morning.
Zhou She arrived last, and his knees had barely touched the ground when he heard the emperor cough lightly: "I heard you've caused trouble again today?"
Zhou She was greatly shocked, and his gaze drifted to Huai Leju beside the throne.
Huai Leju met his gaze, his eyes open and honest, as if to say: What does it have to do with me?
"Why are you looking at him?" Emperor Hong'an was very displeased, feeling that his grandson had ignored his words. He had been reprimanded yesterday, but the grandson had done it again today. Therefore, he was slightly angry. "I already know that Zhou Ze set fire to the city. Fortunately, Ziyou discovered it in time and prevented a major disaster. As the eldest brother, it would have been fine if you hadn't stopped him, but how could you have covered for him?"
Zhou She was completely bewildered and could barely understand what he was saying.
To cover for Zhou Ze? Your Majesty, are you still talking about me?
And I clearly reprimanded him, Huai Leju, how can you pretend you don't know?!
Whether Huai Leju was feigning ignorance or genuinely naive, he spoke earnestly and with an air of impartiality, saying, "Your Majesty, the Second Young Master is young and ignorant, and presumably has no ill intentions. However, I am bound by Your Majesty's grace and must inform you, lest..."
Zhou She understood. Leaving a record of work is to report to the leader as soon as possible and get rid of the blame as quickly as possible; this is normal practice.
But what right do you have to slander me!
Zhou She's eyes were practically spitting fire; if his gaze could turn into knives, he could tear Huai Leju to pieces with his eyes.
Emperor Hong'an was displeased: "Zhou She, did you pretend you didn't hear what I said to you yesterday?"
The kind-hearted Xiao Yichun quickly stood up, first giving Zhou She a reassuring look, and then said, "Your Majesty, the eldest son may have simply been unaware, and did not do it intentionally."
Zhou She was deeply moved.
Prime Minister Xiao is indeed a great man; he has actually forgotten the time I angered him to the point of fainting. Alas, I should repay evil with kindness! If I have the opportunity in the future, I will definitely repay him in kind.
However, he was too quick to be moved. The Chancellor of the Imperial Academy had long disliked him, and upon hearing this, he sneered repeatedly: "Although Prime Minister Xiao and the eldest son have a teacher-student relationship, he has not yet experienced his respect for teachers! The eldest son's disruptive behavior in class and disrespect for teachers is a precedent. If the upper beam is not straight, the lower beam will be crooked as well, which is a common occurrence!"
Zhou She felt somewhat guilty, thinking to himself: "Xiao Xiang probably understands my respect for teachers better than you do." Hearing the rest, he was completely dumbfounded, forgetting his anger, and his first reaction was to look at his father beside him.
He's insulting you, Dad!
Zhou's father seemed to have just woken up. He sat upright, glanced at the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy out of the corner of his eye, and said disdainfully, "It's just sophistry. Although my son is a bit mischievous, his nature is excellent... Forgive my bluntness, but I don't know if Lord Shen's words are due to stupidity or hysteria?"
Zhou She acknowledged the power of Zhou's father's attack.
Shen Mingzhe agreed, slamming his hand on the tea table with a loud bang, and raised his hand to hit someone: "What nonsense are you spouting?!"
Zhou's father retorted, "We'll just give them a taste of their own medicine!"
Seeing that another farce was unfolding, Zhou She quickly reached out to pull the principal and parents apart. Exhausted and covered in sweat, he smiled apologetically at Emperor Hong'an, "Your Majesty..."
The weight lifted from his hand. It was Huai Leju who had stepped forward and grabbed the other side, separating the two who were locked in combat.
The two high-ranking officials were drenched in sweat, panting heavily, their hair disheveled, and utterly devoid of any elegance.
Hong An looked at them and was so angry he laughed: "Do you two have any manners left?"
Zhou's father smoothed his hair, his eyes brimming with tears, and said, "I cannot stand by and watch my child suffer such injustice..."
"..." Zhou She was dumbfounded and disgusted.
Father, you actually have this face!
Shen Mingzhe seemed eager to continue beating Zhou's father, but surrounded by others, he couldn't find an opportunity to strike. He could only say dejectedly, "This is just my opinion. Is Minister Zhou angry or anxious?"
Emperor Hong'an was getting a headache from their chatter. He raised his hand to silence them and gave each of them a few lashes: "Enough! Minister Zhou, Zhou Ze has really gone too far this time. Make him copy books a hundred times in the mansion and confine him to his quarters for three months. Minister Shen was also a bit too hasty. Don't talk nonsense next time."
After he finished speaking, he rested for a while, then glared at Zhou She and said, "You go back and reflect on your mistakes behind closed doors!"
Zhou She had no choice but to lower his head: "As you command."
I'm still so angry!
He walked outside the hall and saw Huai Leju also coming out. Beside him, his father and Principal Shen still looked indignant, with Prime Minister Xiao between them, turning their heads away and not even looking at each other.
Anger welled up in his heart, and evil thoughts took root in his mind. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, Zhou She suddenly raised his fist and punched Huai Leju in the face with a "bang".
"Young Master! Let go!" It was the Prime Minister pulling him from the side.
"You wretched child!" That's what Dad was yelling at.
The shouts around him gradually became clearer. Zhou She punched Huai Leju three times, but seeing his still calm face, he let his father pull him back, and was slapped twice more by his father, his whole face quickly swelling up.
Mr. Zhou was heartbroken: "What are you doing!"
Zhou She looked away: "I didn't do anything."
"What did I say to you?" Seeing that Shen Mingzhe had already walked away, Zhou's father leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Why did you hit him in broad daylight? Next time, remember to find a secluded place!"
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