Chapter 361 Daily Life After Marriage
The events of the third year of Chunhua seem like they were just yesterday, and in the blink of an eye, it has been ten years of Chunhua.
After several years of favorable weather and abundant harvests, the officialdom of the Great Zhou Dynasty became increasingly transparent and efficient. The younger generation of court officials gradually became the backbone of the government, and the national treasury became increasingly full, showing signs of a revival.
It was another early summer with flowers in full bloom. The cherries in the palace were bright red and exuded an enticing fragrance, but no one dared to pick them, because the emperor had decreed that they should be picked and given to the empress when they were fully ripe.
Dou Wenyi returned to Kunning Palace from the Imperial Hospital feeling refreshed. Her second son, Pei Huaixu, was only three years old and at the age where he was playful and curious. He pestered her every day, wanting her to take him out to play, and especially wanted to leave the palace.
Having some free time today, she thought of taking them out of the palace to pick cherries at a separate courtyard.
"Preface—"
A group of palace maids and eunuchs rushed over and knelt down, crying, "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! The Second Prince has disappeared..."
Dou Wenyi's smile froze on her lips. "What happened?"
"Your Highness, after school, you took the Second Prince out to play. Everything was fine at first, and we servants were keeping an eye on them. But in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, they disappeared near the rockery in Yichun Garden. We searched for them for quite a while."
Where is Yu Chen?
"Your Highness, you didn't see it either!"
A sinister glint flashed in Dou Wenyi's eyes, and her heart sank to the bottom.
The palace had already been massacred by Pei Siyan several times, and all the spies and agents had been wiped out. The powerful families had been divided and suppressed in recent years, and no one was in a dominant position anymore, so they no longer posed a threat to the dynasty.
No one had the guts to come to the palace and kidnap her two sons.
Could someone have infiltrated the Imperial Guards, drugged them, and then secretly taken the two away?
Dou Wenyi's mind raced through a series of suspicious faces. "Someone, convey my decree: close the palace gates immediately."
"yes!"
"Summon the commander of the Imperial Guards to see me!"
When the news reached Chongzheng Hall, Pei Siyan was discussing the retirement of Chief Minister Du. "Teacher, there's no need to discuss this matter any further. We'll make plans after we find a suitable successor. The Empress has urgent business with me, so let's stop here for today."
Two years ago, evidence of the Meng family's corruption was brought to the forefront. Pei Siyan, remembering that the Meng family had shown some remorse and protected him during his ascension to the throne, ultimately did not confiscate their property, but instead allowed him to retire and live a life of seclusion in the countryside.
However, the Meng family suddenly fell from grace, and the descendants of that family ultimately ruined their future, unable to achieve anything again for nearly a century.
Du Hao, the second-ranking minister, had long since been promoted to the first minister. His face was full of bitterness and helplessness. "Your Majesty... but I promised your teacher's wife. One cannot break one's word!"
He had promised Madam Luo that he would accompany her to see the beautiful landscapes of the Great Zhou Dynasty, but year after year he kept putting it off, and nearly forty years had passed in the blink of an eye. If he didn't retire from office soon, he feared he would never have the chance to spend time with her properly.
Upon hearing this, Pei Siyan got up and headed away, for he could no longer allow Grand Secretary Du to retire into seclusion.
He had promised Dou Wenyi many things, such as often accompanying her out of the palace for short stays or to escape the summer heat, but he hadn't kept his promises.
Dou Wenyi originally wanted to leave him behind and go on her own trip, but if she was away from him for more than three days, he would feel restless all over...
As a result, she hasn't been able to go anywhere all these years!
Pei Siyan strode outside, "What trouble has the Crown Prince gotten into this time? I think he's asking for trouble."
Eunuch Anxi hurriedly followed behind, “No…no, His Highness was playing with the Second Prince near the rockery in Yichun Garden. They can’t find him now. Her Majesty is worried that evil people might be causing trouble, so she just ordered the palace gates to be sealed off.”
"rockery?"
Pei Siyan suddenly stopped and turned around to ask, "The artificial hill in Yichun Garden?"
"yes."
Pei Siyan breathed a sigh of relief, quickened his pace, and headed straight for Yichun Garden.
Meanwhile, Crown Prince Pei Yuchen, holding his younger brother Pei Huaixu's chubby little hand, sneaked through the secret passage like a thief and soon arrived at the cave entrance.
Pei Yuchen peeked out and saw that outside were bustling streets, lively and bustling.
Pei Huaixu's eyes darted around, staring intently at the candied hawthorns across the street.
His mother bought it for him last time, and he ate it. It was delicious!
He wants it!
"Brother, why aren't you leaving? Can you buy me some candied hawthorns?" Pei Huaixu kept urging him.
His eyes were glued to the view; there were so many fun things to do outside.
Pei Yuchen squeezed his pockets with a bitter expression, only to find them empty. He touched the lustrous jade pendant at his waist, suddenly feeling a pang of reluctance.
If he had known it would be so easy to slip out of the palace, he should have taken out all his gold ingots.
The Crown Prince, with not a single copper coin in his purse, would be the subject of Zhang Xueyin's ridicule if she knew.
"Royal brother?"
Pei Yuchen snapped out of his daze and patted his head. "Are you being good? Are you being obedient?"
"I'll be good."
Pei Huaixu laughed, his eyes narrowing into slits, his voice soft and sweet, making it hard for him to refuse.
He seemed to have made up his mind, his tone firm, "Then I'll go back and get the silver. You stay at the cave entrance and don't go anywhere. Wait for me. Understand? Otherwise, neither of us will get out!"
As he spoke, Pei Yuchen took Pei Huaixu's hand and started walking back. A section of the dark passage was pitch black, but thankfully he wasn't afraid of the dark.
"Brother, I don't want to go back. Why don't I wait for you here?"
Pei Yuchen, pretending to be an adult, threatened, "Then you're not allowed to run around! Otherwise, I'll beat you up!"
"I'm not leaving, I'll wait for you." Pei Huaixu sat on the ground, grinning foolishly, and simply started to act like a scoundrel.
Pei Yuchen turned and ran back. As soon as he emerged from the hole, someone grabbed him by the back of his collar.
"Pei Yuchen! Are you asking for it?! Where's your brother?"
Pei Yuchen shuddered in fright. The tall figure behind him was none other than his father, the Emperor.
Pei Siyan's face was ashen, his voice calm yet imposing, "Your tutor, Grand Tutor Shen, even praised you for your recent academic progress, but it turns out you can't handle praise at all."
"All you ever do is cause trouble. Today, I'll give you a beating! Or I'll make you write three essays as punishment, like Grand Tutor Shen."
"Ah! Father, we discovered this secret passage by chance. My little brother was making a fuss about wanting to go out and eat candied hawthorns!"
"Shut up! If you say another word, you'll be punished with five more essays."
Pei Yuchen looked bitter and resentful, "It's not fair, Father! Why isn't my brother punished?"
"Same here! Both of you should be punished!"
Dou Wenyi's voice came from behind, "Where's your brother?"
Pei Yuchen pouted, "He's waiting for me in the secret passage. I'm going to give him money to buy candied hawthorns."
Pei Siyan and Dou Wenyi exchanged a glance and entered the secret passage. The imperial guards wanted to follow, but were driven back by a single look from the emperor.
Pei Siyan took her hand. "There's a temple fair today, shall we go take a look?"
Dou Wenyi's feet trembled, so she could only grip his arm tightly. "Did you also sneak out of the palace through this secret passage before?"
"Um."
He would never tell her that the first few times he crawled out through the dog hole in the cold palace.
"Why is the traffic jam gone?"
After asking, Dou Wenyi immediately realized that the palace would naturally have some secret passages leading outside, just in case. If treacherous officials were to attack the palace, survival would be the most important thing.
The two quickened their pace, but when they reached the end of the secret passage, there was no sign of Pei Huaixu.
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