Chapter 958 Compensation

Inside the Zheng Palace, there was only the Emperor. The Crown Prince was not there. Eunuch Liu left. After Zhou Shuren greeted them, he glanced at the messy folds on the table and felt a sinking feeling in his heart. The Emperor was not in a good mood!

The emperor motioned Zhou Shuren to sit down, "Have you met with the King of Qi and the King of Chu in the past few days?"

Zhou Shuren heard that the emperor was indeed the most suspicious person. The prince of Qi had many ulterior motives. If the prince of Qi came a few more times, he might have lost the emperor's trust. He generously admitted, "Yes, the prince of Qi told me that he did not send anyone to assassinate me, and also hinted to me that the prince of Qi knew who did it. The prince of Qi invited me to have tea, but I refused."

The emperor was stunned. He didn't expect Zhou Shuren to say so generously, "Prince Qi is my son."

Aren't you afraid that I will favor my son and trust him more?

Zhou Shuren understood the emperor's hidden meaning, "I am your subject. If you ask me anything, I will tell you everything I know. I will never hide anything from you."

The emperor looked into Zhou Shuren's eyes, and he really saw sincerity in the eyes of this old fox. He was somewhat jealous of this old fox, especially because the old fox had a strong desire for revenge. He had had people keep an eye on the Zhou Mansion these past two days. He knew all the reactions of the Zhou Mansion, but Zhou Shuren didn't react at all. He also met the second and third sons in succession, so he couldn't help but think too much.

This led to today's question. The emperor withdrew his gaze and asked, "What did the third brother tell you?"

Zhou Shuren rolled his eyes in his heart, "The King of Chu asked about my son and told me to keep my eyes open. What did the King of Chu think the King of Qi said to me?"

This time it was Zhou Shuren's turn to look at the emperor. When he heard the emperor snort, Zhou Shuren knew it was not the King of Chu. The emperor snorted because the King of Chu was not a thief but had an extreme reaction. So it was the King of Liang. That's right, the King of Liang has been very powerful in the past year, and with so much flattery, he has become a little too arrogant and his wings are puffed up. Isn't he the bravest one?

Zhou Shuren touched the jade pendant on his waist. Prince Liang has always been very courageous. When Zhang Jinghong was still the fake fifth prince, Prince Liang was the emperor's youngest son. He curled his lips in his heart, knowing that both legitimate and illegitimate sons of the royal family have the opportunity to inherit the throne.

The emperor knew what the third son said, but he didn't know what the second son said. There was no one around them at the time. Zhou Shuren was an old fox, and considering what his two sons said, this old fox must have known something in his mind, just like Ning Xu. Why didn't Ning Xu make a fuss? Because she guessed who did it.

The emperor fiddled with his bracelet, "I heard from Rongchuan that your third son wants to be sent out of the capital?"

Zhou Shuren nodded, "Yes, I have climbed up step by step, so I hope Changlian can also walk steadily. Although I am more fortunate, Changlian is not bad either. He has a father like me who can protect him from the rain."

What Zhou Shuren said was frank. Even if he didn't say it, it was the truth. Isn't the purpose of being a father to support his son?

The emperor paused, feeling that Zhou Shuren's words were pointing to him, "In the past two years, the coastal states have developed rapidly."

Zhou Shuren's heart moved. It was indeed developing very fast. The better the development, the more achievements it could make. "Indeed, it can be seen from the tax revenue of each state."

The emperor hummed, "I think the coast is a good place, what do you think?"

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "I think it's good too."

This is compensation. It is better to have compensation than no compensation. He also has to thank King Qi and King Chu. If it were not for the two of them, the emperor would not have summoned him, especially after ignoring Chang Lian.

The emperor smiled, "You really live very clearly."

Zhou Shuren's heart was moved, "I am the pillar of the family. I have a big family to support, so I must live a clear life."

He will definitely live longer than the emperor, and he is waiting for the crown prince to ascend the throne.

In the temple, the queen had already prayed first. There were many steps in the temple. Several princesses were very nervous. They were very tired but they did not dare to fall behind. They had to kneel while praying, and some of them were a little swaying.

Xue Han felt like she was sitting on pins and needles. Her position was ahead of the other princesses. Although she was a little behind the Crown Princess and other princesses, her position was wrong.

The Queen sensed Xue Han's uneasiness and opened her eyes, "Calm down."

Xue Han quickly closed her eyes and recited scriptures silently in her heart, reciting them over and over again, slowly calming her mind.

The Queen was very satisfied, but the Crown Princess was worried that her mother must like Miss Zhou too much to bring her along to pray for blessings.

Princess Qi was so angry that her teeth were itching. The Queen did it on purpose. The Queen also practiced martial arts in the palace. Even though she was old, she was still in good health. She didn't even breathe heavily when going up the stairs. They were different. Even when burning incense, they walked slowly. She felt pain in her chest from walking so fast.

Princess Qi looked at the young lady of the Zhou family again and asked, "What does the Queen mean?"

The Princess of Chu and the Princess of Liang were not much better; they were both delicate ladies from wealthy families, and it was summer, so their makeup had all faded.

Another half hour passed. Zhulan thought to herself that the knees of ancient people were not really knees. Even with a cushion, her knees were very uncomfortable after kneeling for so long. She had already sat on her heels. Her kneeling posture was not standard at all.

The Queen stood up first, followed by the Crown Princess. Xue Han was confused, and the Crown Princess pulled Xue Han up. Xue Han had never kneeled for so long before, but she was so flustered that she ignored her legs.

Xue Han looked at the princesses and then silently looked away. The princesses' makeup was smudged and they looked very ugly.

The Crown Princess also wanted to laugh. She was not born into a military family, but in order to cater to her mother's preferences, she also practiced martial arts. So she didn't think much of going on the stage. Then she thought of Miss Zhou. It seemed that Miss Zhou also practiced martial arts.

The Queen walked out without even looking at the Princess and the others, and the officials and their wives also stood up one after another.

The empress first chatted with the wives of several important officials, and when she had taken care of all those who needed to be taken care of, she said, "Ms. Yang Shu, come forward."

Zhu Lan secretly thought that she was lucky to have kept her heart tied up, and hurried forward to greet her, "Her Majesty."

The Queen personally helped her up and said, "Please don't be polite. The Emperor has mentioned the Third Young Master of the Zhou Family to me many times. The children that I have taught are all very outstanding. I like Xue Han very much. In the future, I should come to the palace more often to talk to me."

Zhulan thought that she had guessed right. Today, the Queen organized a prayer for Rongchuan and the Zhou family. All the wives of officials from the fourth rank and above in the capital came. The Queen's words elevated the Zhou family and also elevated her. She felt warm in her heart. "As long as the Queen doesn't mind me, I will definitely come to the palace more often."

The Queen smiled and said, "I don't mind, I'm just worried about having no one to chat with."

This is interesting. Does the Queen need someone to chat with? No, there are many officials’ wives who want to catch the Queen’s eye, but unfortunately the Queen seldom summons them.

The Queen's words were about people, and Zhou Yang was someone she valued.

In the capital, Zhulan did gain a lot of respect with the help of Zhou Shuren, but the wives of officials from the big families still looked down on her. As for the Queen, at least no one would look down on her openly in the future.

(End of this chapter)