Chapter 1138: Awe
It was more than half an hour later that Zhou Shuren left the palace, and he limped out. He calculated how long he had been kneeling. It was the first time he had knelt for so long. Fortunately, he had not changed his cotton pants, otherwise his legs would have been damp. The icy ground was too cold.
After leaving the palace gate, regardless of the surprise of the gatekeepers, he was helped to get into the carriage by Jianyan, and it took him two tries before he could climb in.
When he got into the carriage, Zhou Shuren shuddered, not caring how much his legs hurt. Waves of chills spread from his heart to his whole body. He was cold and sweaty, and he was terrified!
Just now the emperor had a blank expression on his face and did not ask him to get up, but that was also a warning to him. The emperor warned him that he should accept the emperor's grace, and also told him that the emperor's grace could be given to him and could also be taken back.
Zhou Shuren paused for a moment, touched his swollen legs, and his face turned cold. This was the imperial power in ancient times, and the emperor was supreme. He reflected more deeply on his actions in the past few years.
Zhou Shuren closed his eyes and sneered in his heart. He was somewhat relaxed and complacent. As expected, he was still a mortal and a vulgar person.
He had a smooth career, many achievements, a close relationship with the emperor, and the emperor's favor. Even though he was cautious and never exposed himself, he was clear about whether his heart had changed.
This time, the blow woke him up completely, but his face became a little colder, reminding himself that imperial power is supreme.
They soon arrived at the Ministry of Revenue. Zhou Shuren's legs were too heavy to get out of the carriage. His legs had never suffered such pain before, but he still had to endure the pain to move.
Jinyan looked at the smiling adults and inexplicably felt that there was something different about them.
Zhou Shuren took a deep breath and endured the pain, "Help me down."
Jinyan supported her carefully, feeling the weight of the master on him. He didn't know what happened in the palace, and was very nervous. "Master, do you want to call a doctor?"
Zhou Shuren waved his hand, "No need, let's go."
If he were to hand him over to a doctor at this time, wouldn't that be an insult to the emperor? Since the emperor had punished him, he had to accept it. Both reward and punishment were the emperor's grace.
The officials from the Ministry of Revenue who saw this were stunned and didn't know how to react for a moment. This was Lord Zhou, and it was obvious that he was being punished.
Even Lord Zhou was punished, not to mention them. They didn't understand. Wasn't he entering the palace today for the southwest border? Was it because of money?
Zhou Shuren returned to his room and just as he pulled up his pants, the door opened.
Xiao Qing came in with a heater, took out some ointment from her arms and handed it over, "Apply it!"
Xiao Qing paused and continued, "This ointment is very useful. I have been using it all the time."
Working in the Ministry of Revenue was very difficult in the past. He wanted to hide but couldn't. When the Emperor got angry, he would have to kneel for a long time.
Zhou Shuren was about to thank the master, but before he could open his mouth, Xiao Qing said hurriedly: "I haven't used the ointment for a long time, and I don't know if it is still effective."
Zhou Shuren's thanks got stuck in his throat. He thought to himself, "Pah, it's not just that I haven't used it for a long time, the ointment has expired and is dry. "It's not serious, don't touch it."
Xiao Qing took the ointment back, tacitly acknowledged that it could not be used, pulled over a chair and sat down, pressed Zhou Shuren's leg, and saw that Zhou Shuren's face turned green from the pain, then he said faintly: "Have you learned your lesson?"
Zhou Shuren endured the pain and said, "Sir, please take your hand away. I will remember this lesson."
Xiao Qing pressed it again, "It seems you still haven't learned your lesson."
Zhou Shuren was stunned, "Sir."
Xiao Qing signaled everyone in the room to leave, and when there was no one in the room, he said, "I knew this day would come sooner or later."
Zhou Shuren stared at Lord Xiao. Even though the old man was a minister and gave up his power very easily, Zhou Shuren never looked down on him. He raised his head and waited for Lord Xiao to continue.
Xiao Qing looked directly at Zhou Shuren with deep eyes, "You have no respect for the imperial power."
Zhou Shuren's heart skipped a beat, "Your Excellency is joking."
Xiao Qing's sharp eyes seemed to be an illusion just now, and he raised his head, "Don't deny it, you are cautious about the imperial power, but you rarely have awe, awe engraved in your bones, and I got it the first time I covered for you."
But he was shocked and thought he had made a mistake, but after a few times, he knew he was right.
Xiao Qing did not give Zhou Shuren a chance to speak, "So I know that you will be punished sooner or later. The imperial power must be respected, and the ministers cannot escape the imperial power."
After saying that, Xiao Qing stood up and patted Zhou Shuren on the shoulder. Zhou Shuren was smart and understood what he had not said. This was all he could do to help Zhou Shuren.
Zhou Shuren took a long time to come back to his senses. So that's how it was. The emperor was not only showing favor to him. What he really wanted to teach him was awe, awe of the royal family. The emperor had a filter for him before, but he still had the filter now, but not so much. It was because the emperor wanted to meditate and jumped out of it, so he discovered his problem!
Inside the palace, the emperor came back and sat there without saying a word. The news that the emperor punished Lord Zhou spread throughout the palace.
The prince looked up at his father several times. He couldn't understand why his father would punish Zhou Shuren. He was disgusted and said, "No."
The Emperor saw the Crown Prince observing him and spoke, "Zhou Shuren has the blood of the Rong family. Regardless of whether other blood of the Song family can be found, Zhou Shuren can be considered a member of the Rong family."
The prince was stunned, "Yes, I know."
The emperor continued, "I hope that the Rong family will be stable after going through hardships. You don't have to think about letting Zhou Shuren be Xuhao's master. I hope Zhou Shuren can be a loyal minister."
What the Emperor said was very straightforward. The Prince came to his senses and realized that his father thought that he had assigned Zhou Shuren to Xuhao!
The prince was silent. It seemed that he did have this thought, but it was not obvious before. Now that his father had revealed it, he also faced his own thoughts, "Son, I just want to give Xuhao the best like your father."
The emperor understood, and it was because of this understanding that he was afraid. This was a warning to Zhou Shuren, and he was glad that he discovered it early. "You do love the Crown Princess, but you and the Crown Princess are different from me and your mother."
He and the empress have been through so much, they have lived and died together, and gone through many hardships along the way. Their relationship cannot be compared to that of the prince and princess who have a smooth life.
Even though the Crown Prince loves the Crown Princess, he often goes to the backyard. His son does not have the same affection as him. It can be seen from his feelings towards Yue's family. Time takes its toll on people.
The prince wanted to deny it, but he couldn't find a reason to refute it. "My son really wants to give Xuhao the best."
The emperor waved his hand and said that it was the best thing now, but he couldn't afford to take the risk in the future.
In the evening, when Zhou Shuren came home, Zhulan smelled the medicine on him and looked at the way her husband walked. "What's wrong with your legs?"
Zhou Shuren signaled the maids to go down, "Don't worry, I've already applied medicine. The medicine from the palace is really good. The swelling has gone down a lot."
Yes, it was the medicine from the palace. Not long after he returned home, a eunuch came to deliver the ointment. He was completely relieved when he saw the ointment. He knew that this incident was over and he had completely solved the problem of becoming a master to the emperor's grandson.
The most important thing is that he knows the problem he has been hiding and will not make the same mistake again in the future.
Today's Chapter
(End of this chapter)