The King of Chen is the King of Chen. Even the shocking words from Taoist Master Songshan did not affect him at all. After coming down from the high platform, he and Yao Niang even drank a cup together, as if he had not heard these so-called "inexpressible" words at all.
Yao Niang sometimes really admired Gao Xuance, he was truly a rare talent, no matter what, his expression remained unchanged, but she couldn't do that. Not everyone could remain calm.
But it is very difficult to impress such a person unless you truly devote yourself to him.
"You said you were hungry. Why don't you use it? The mutton here is not fishy." Gao Xuance said to her with a smile.
Yao Niang came back to her senses and said, "Well, I'm just about to eat. You should eat more too."
Gao Xuance shook his head: "I don't need to. You know I am practicing Taoism. All living beings, whether they have breath or are flying or crawling, must not be killed."
"Okay, then I'll use it myself." Yao Niang lowered her head and ate it herself. It's really amazing that even a hungry cow could eat it.
Gao Xuance couldn't help but smile when he saw her eating happily, and asked, "Do you want some snacks?" He remembered that during the short time they were together in their previous life, she got hungry very easily. She ate very little during meals, but whenever she had nothing to eat, she would buy all kinds of snacks, and the whole table would be piled with snacks.
I eat five or six kinds of melon seeds, and all kinds of fructose available on the market are piled up, not to mention peaches, loquats, starberries, grapes, and tangerines, which I buy in baskets to eat at home. Once, my face turned yellow because I ate too many tangerines.
But after she married him, perhaps because it was inconvenient, Gao Xuance rarely saw her eat snacks, or even almost never ate at all.
Could it be that she has married into the palace and cannot be bought?
Yao Niang didn't care if he mentioned the snacks. She wiped her first and then said depressedly: "I like snacks, but I can't eat too much. Some snacks are too sweet. Eating too much sweet will make you fat. There is a cousin in my family who likes to eat snacks since she was a child, and she became fat."
"What's wrong with being fat? Just be fat. Aren't you cuter if you're a little fatter?" Gao Xuance didn't mind too much.
Yao Niang glanced at Gao Xuance and couldn't help curling her lips: "I don't want to be fat. I want to have a body shape like this when I am a hundred years old."
Gao Xuance liked talking to her the most. He didn't need to put in any effort or be aggressive. It was very simple, trivial but very interesting. He tilted his head and looked at Yao Niang and said, "Do you want to fast with me?"
"No, I herself will feel uncomfortable if I don't eat." In fact, Yao Niang wanted Gao Xuance to eat normally like. After all, he had just consumed so much and his body must be very tired. And he often fasted. Isn't it bad for his body?
Is this why it died young?
She wanted to persuade him again, but she felt that she had said too much and he didn't listen.
Just when he was wondering how to persuade him, King Zhou came over. Gao Xuance stood up and the two brothers talked to each other. King Zhou came over to remind him: "You should also know what happened today. You should be more careful in what you say and do. Otherwise, I will have trouble dealing with your affairs in the future."
Originally thinking that the King of Zhou was reminding him, and in the end he was still afraid that he would be implicated, Gao Xuance snorted coldly: "Second brother, you should take good care of yourself. I have never said anything out of line, why are you saying this to me?"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Since ancient times, even the emperor has to abide by the rule of eldest son. Let alone you and me. The closer you are to the royal family, the more you need to know your responsibilities. Don't bring disaster to your mother." King Zhou warned him.
Gao Xuance said with a smile, "Second brother, is there no hope? You are persuading me now just to curry favor with eldest brother. I am also helping you, second brother, so please don't get the wrong idea. Besides, I don't want to fight or not fight."
King Zhou felt that his brother was beyond help.
Gao Xuance also felt that he and the King of Zhou had no common ground, so he returned to the banquet. Yao Niang had just finished her meal and was still hungry. The roasted lamb smelled delicious, and the kitchen was preparing pilaf.
"Are you full?" Gao Xuance smiled again.
Yao Niang nodded: "I'm full, you didn't eat much, how can this be? I know you want to practice Taoism, but you hunted today and sat all night. Since you don't like meat, how about I make you a bowl of noodles myself?" Afraid that he would disagree, Yao Niang pouted: "Don't you want me to fulfill my wife's duties at all?"
Seeing her say this, Gao Xuance had no choice but to agree.
There was also a kitchen in the palace. Yao Niang took people there and cooked a bowl of vegetarian noodles herself. The soup base was also very simple, with one spoonful of green onions, one and a half spoonfuls of green sauce, half a spoonful of sesame oil, a little pepper and salt, and most importantly, a little bit of sugar to enhance the flavor.
After the Longxu noodles are cooked in a pot, they are served in a bowl and a bowl of Yangchun vegetarian noodles is ready.
Gao Xuance was talking to Gao Jian at Maochunxuan: "Go check if this Taoist priest Songshan has been bribed by someone? I didn't expect him to be waiting for me here."
"This is all due to our poor performance." Gao Jian also felt ashamed.
Fortunately, Gao Xuance rarely blames his subordinates. Instead, he said, "It is useless to talk about this matter. We need to assign more people in the future. We cannot let this happen again."
Gao Jian lowered his head: "Yes."
Just at this moment, Yao Niang came in with a tray, and someone outside shouted, "The princess is back, the princess is back."
Gao Xuance's expression remained unchanged, and he said to Gao Jian, "In that case, you should leave first. The Ministry of Rites has the Luo family to support me, and no one will talk about appointing a crown prince at will. You should focus on the eldest and second princes first."
Gao Jian didn't dare to say anything more and left quickly.
When he walked out, he happened to meet Yao Niang. When Yao Niang saw that it was Gao Jian, she smiled and nodded. When Gao Jian saw her again, he still thought she was so beautiful that he didn't know where to put his eyes.
I thought Prince Chen had some true feelings for marrying Luo, but now it seems that he did it only for the power of the Luo family.
But she is really Xianhui.
When I went out, I heard that the princess cooked personally. Because the prince didn't want to eat pork, she made Yangchun noodles.
Gao Jian turned his head to take one look, then left in a hurry again.
When Yao Niang brought the noodles back, Gao Xuance saw the bowl of noodles. The plain noodles and the green vegetables looked very appetizing. There were also a few cold dishes on the side.
The small bowl of noodles was quickly eaten up, but I still felt like I was not satisfied.
"How come your craftsmanship is so good?" Gao Xuance was surprised.
You have to know that Yao Niang's craftsmanship in her previous life was not that good.
Yao Niang didn't understand what he meant, she just said: "It's good to be attentive in everything. When I was at home, my mother taught me how to cook. Although we don't have to cook every day because of our status, it's good if we can learn a little bit."
In fact, it was herself later because the Prince of Zhou had a weak spleen and stomach and was often sick that she figured out how to cook by. It was rare that Gao Xuance liked her.
"It's delicious." Gao Xuance held Yao Niang's hand and couldn't help but wonder why his father was not angry at all today. Maybe he really valued him, or he wanted to protect him.
Yao Niang saw that Gao Xuance was thinking about something. She always felt that he was thinking about something, but he rarely told her, probably because he thought she didn't understand.
She couldn't help but ask, "What are you thinking about? If there is something, tell me."
"It's no big deal. What do you think about what Taoist Master Songshan said today? To be honest, this title was given to me by my father. Now that I have accepted it, I can't give it up even if I want to." Gao Xuance looked at Yao Niang with sharp eyes.
If she and he are not of the same mind, then don't blame him.
he...
He could only try his best to keep her a secret and prevent her from influencing him. Otherwise, he couldn't bring himself to kill her or let her die of illness.
Yao Niang smiled and said, "There is a saying among the people: if you marry a chicken, you follow the chicken; if you marry a dog, you follow the dog. If I don't help my husband, who else can I help? But I want you to promise me one thing."
Gao Xuance was delighted to hear Yaoniang call him her husband. When he heard her make a request, he quickly asked, "What is it?"
"You must be a wise ruler, recover the lost territories, treat the people well, and make Dalin a sign of revival." When she was in Anzhou in her early years, she heard that Emperor Jianzhang lost the city and Dalin was massacred. She cried uncontrollably at the time, and Emperor Tianlu died within a year. After the Crown Prince of Zhou ascended the throne, he was still very young and there were even wars for years. Even her son Lu Chengyun went to fight in the war.
Gao Xuance didn't expect what she said. He actually held her hand and even had tears in his eyes: "Sister Yao, you are really my confidant."
"I have never thought about fighting for power. In fact, if I were to be a prince, I would just be humble and patient. But now, Dalin is still indulging in the so-called prosperity, and I can't see anyone with long-term plans. This king is extremely worried!"
At the end, he slammed the table in anger.
Yao Niang stepped forward, held his hand and said, "King Cheng of Chu killed his brother and usurped the throne, but he became a hegemon. King Mu of Chu killed his father, but he conquered the Jianghuai area. King Zhuang of Chu, the son of King Mu, was one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period. King Ling, however, committed suicide in the wilderness due to his unsuccessful conquest of the State of Wu, and was given the title of Ling. The merits and demerits recorded in history books are completely different. Although I am a woman, I know that virtue is the highest, but if it is to make the country rich and the people strong, this is what a monarch should do. When Li Shimin was in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, no one thought he was a traitor. What do you think, Your Majesty?"
These words really made Gao Xuance look at Yao Niang in a new light.
In his previous life, he heard that Lu Chengyun became the top martial arts scholar and was almost the most trusted person by the new emperor. He rose to prominence at the age of twenty-something, which was not a privilege that ordinary people could get. He was still wondering what could make a child who couldn't even be taken care of by his widowed mother grow up like this? Now he finally found the answer.
Yao Niang is just a woman, but she has such insight.
"Sister Yao, don't worry. I am by no means a heartless and ungrateful person. If that day ever comes in the future, I will definitely let you share this honor with me." Gao Xuance said sincerely.
However, Yao Niang knew that it was not a good promise to make. When Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji's original wife, Wang, established the family, she did so to help Li Longji. Later, Queen Wang was deposed and her fate was extremely tragic.
This is the love that Gao Xuance promised now, but since ancient times, all kings have had an extremely strong desire for power.
She said quickly: "What are you talking about, my Lord? I don't expect anything else, I just hope that you can realize your ambitions and make Dalin a rich and powerful country. For other things, please don't embarrass a little girl like me. I don't understand anything."
Seeing Yao Niang like this, Gao Xuance seemed to know what was in her mind and did not ask any more questions. He just childishly carried her on his shoulders and thoroughly enjoyed the pleasure of bed today.
After being pushed down several times, Yao Niang couldn't help but wonder, how could such a tall and mighty King Chen die so young? There was absolutely no sign.
Compared to Gao Xuance's calmness, the eldest prince was furious. He said to Shen Liang, "I have lost my wife and my soldiers. Taoist Songshan was bribed with great difficulty, but my father is not resentful at all. Could it be that he is really interested in Prince Chen?"
"Who knew that His Majesty didn't fear Prince Chen at all?" Shen Liang also felt that it was a bad idea.
Lin Weinan frowned and said, "Could it be that the emperor really wants to pass the throne to the third prince? Now the Ministry of Rites has not mentioned the issue of establishing a crown prince at all, and when it is mentioned, it is only a few words that are not painful or itchy. I think it is intentional by Grand Master Luo."
His family has some relationship with the Luo family, or to be more precise, some relationship with Mrs. Luo, Yu. The Lin family once received help from Lord Yu, so they have close contacts with the Yu family. Even the Princess of Chen had visited their house at that time.
This is also what made the eldest prince angry. Both his uncle's family and his brother-in-law's family are noble, so marrying someone from the Wang family is extremely unwise. If he had married Luo Yaoniang back then, he would have had the assistance of civil officials.
Civil officials are the people who are closest to the emperor, especially Luo Zhizheng, who has many students and old friends.
Shen Liang sneered, "Back then, there was another member of the Luo family who also supported Prince Heng. If it weren't for Luo Zhizheng's protection, he would have died in the end. This time, I think the Luo family will repeat the same mistake sooner or later. I wondered why Prince Chen was so obsessed with Luo's daughter, it turns out that it was all planned."
"That's not the case. It's because the Duke of Constitutionalism is sensible and knows the order of seniority and the hierarchy of legitimate and illegitimate children. Otherwise, everything in this world would be messed up." Shen Yun spread his hands.
At this time, the eldest prince knew that he was no longer a loyal emperor, and the only things he could rely on were his nobles and the so-called patriarchal system. His father was a weak person, and it was impossible for him to fight for the sake of his third younger brother.
The only way to shake his position is to have Concubine Hong become the empress, but even then the ministers would oppose it.
But they also knew that if the emperor favored someone, that person would most likely ascend to the throne, and it was not that simple. Moreover, although Prince Chen did not have the support of the nobles, Prince Jinyang did support him.
This matter was originally initiated by Shen Liang, who had no idea that the emperor was so partial. He returned to his room, feeling a little depressed.
Lu brought over some tea and asked, "Why are you back so late tonight?"
"There was a sorcerer who said that the Prince of Chen will be extremely powerful in the future, and the Emperor agreed. We are worried about the eldest prince." Shen Liang certainly would not tell his wife that he had found the sorcerer.
His relationship with Lu was better than his relationship with his previous wife. Lu was young, beautiful, capable of managing the household, and more importantly, in good health, which was very much to his liking. Therefore, he would tell Lu a little about what was happening outside.
After hearing this, Lu couldn't help but frown: "No wonder Princess Chen doesn't take Princess Sui De seriously. It turns out that it is the emperor's expectation."
She had originally thought that the Prince of Chen was favored, but she had never thought that he would pursue the throne. To be honest, wouldn't it be good for Ping An to be a prince? Why bother to fight for that position? Lu really didn't understand.
Shen Liang didn't know what happened in the polo match today, so he couldn't help but ask, "How is Princess Chen? Is she very arrogant?"
"She wasn't arrogant, but she didn't take Princess Sui De seriously. She even beat the Crown Prince's wife."
In order to get close to Princess Sui De, Lu even deliberately made friends with the daughter of Duke Xian, but Princess Chen did not try to curry favor with this clan elder at all.
Shen Liang waved his hand: "That's because Prince Chen and Concubine Hong are by the emperor's side. In terms of the emperor's favor, no one can compare to these two mother and son. As for the Princess of Chen, she——"
It was not easy for him to say anything bad about Yao Niang, because he had a woman who looked like Luo in his backyard. She was sent by the Prince of Jinyang, and he had even painted his portrait in those days.
After Lu and Shen Liang got married, Shen Liang never went to the concubine's place again. He treated her as his only favorite and never mentioned other women. Now that she mentioned Princess Chen, her husband hesitated. She couldn't help feeling unhappy.
"How is Princess Chen?" Lu still asked.
Shen Liang said: "Princess Chen is not that kind of person. She is different from Prince Chen. Prince Chen is scheming, treacherous and cunning, but Princess Chen is very simple."
Not only will you not be fooled by Prince Chen.
Luo Zhizheng was obviously a scholar-official who strongly supported orthodoxy, but he sided with Prince Chen because of his daughter.
"Simple? No way." Lu also heard many things about the palace from Zhuang Lingyi, such as how Yao Niang drove away the niece of the late emperor, how she deliberately tried to please the princess, and how she stepped on her study partner.
This is definitely not a simple woman.
Shen Liang knew that this was just the jealousy of a woman. Although he didn't agree with what Lu said, he could only agree with her.
During yesterday's lovemaking, Yao Niang's eyes were full of love, especially her pair of autumn eyes that were as bright as water. Perhaps it was because they opened their hearts to each other yesterday, that today they were even more affectionate than yesterday.
There were a lot of hunting yesterday, and the emperor also had to meet some foreign ministers, so Gao Xuance had some free time. He specially accompanied Yao Niang to the palace to soak in the hot springs. Yao Niang brought two sets of pajamas and prepared to go down for a good soak.
"Aren't you going down to take a bath?" Yao Niang saw that he didn't bring anything.
Gao Xuance said painfully: "I'm afraid I can't help it."
Yao Niang laughed unkindly. This person was sometimes too cunning and sometimes so childish. He was really so adorable.
The two walked arm in arm. Gao Xuance saw Yao Niang laughing and looked at her lovingly: "I saw a deer when I was hunting yesterday. I wanted to kill a deer, but I saw tears in its eyes, which looked like your deer eyes."
When Yao Niang heard this, she asked anxiously, "Did you hit it?"
"Of course not. I thought of you and let it go. Don't worry." Gao Xuance said with a smile.
Only then did Yao Niang pat her chest and said, "It was really thrilling."
Gao Xuance assured, "Don't worry, I know what you hate the most. I am soft-hearted. If you don't like something, I will definitely not do it."
He was willing to be humble to the person he liked, and he even picked a lot of flowers on the way. He said to Yao Niang, "Teach me how to make a wreath, and I'll make one for you, okay?"
"Will I look like a matchmaker if I wear it?" Yao Niang covered her mouth and laughed.
She really liked Gao Xuance too much, if for no other reason than that he would accompany her whenever he was free and put her first completely.
Just as Gao Xuance was about to answer, he saw Lu and his wife coming towards him. Originally, Gao Xuance was going to take Yao Niang over via a shortcut, but Lu just wanted to go out for a walk. She had no idea that she had overheard what Gao Xuance and his wife said.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Chen and His Royal Highness Princess Chen." Lu saluted quickly.
Gao Xuance hummed, but Yao Niang smiled and said, "Get up quickly and don't be so polite. Where are you going?"
"I'm just wandering around." Lu thought to herself that this was a good risk.
Yao Niang nodded: "Okay, then we'll go first and won't bother you anymore."
After they walked away, Lu's maid helped Lu up. She couldn't help but smile: "I didn't expect that His Royal Highness Prince Chen would be so humble to Princess Chen? I have never seen such a man before."
Lu married Shen Liang, the prince of Marquis Xuanping, and had become the exclusive heir of the palace. Shen Liang was also quite infatuated with her, but the prince of Xuanping was a dozen years older than her, unlike Prince Chen who was only eighteen. Princess Chen was only fifteen or sixteen years old this year. It was the first time that she discovered that Prince Chen, such a gifted son, could be so pleasing and considerate. He even mentioned that Princess Chen's eyes were like a deer's, and because of this, he let the deer go.
Royal couples usually treat each other with respect, just like the eldest prince and his wife. They would never say such things, and even ordinary couples rarely do so.
If Princess Chen is really such an unscrupulous person, how could a cunning man like Prince Chen be so good to her?
Yao Niang had no idea about Lu's thoughts. After taking off her outer clothes, she went downstairs to take a bath. Gao Xuance sat outside, concentrating on making a wreath according to Yao Niang's instructions. The most important thing was to keep an eye on Yao Niang, for fear that someone would peek at her.
No matter what others said, he just turned his back to Yao Niang and made the wreath seriously.
Soaking in the warm hot spring opened up all the pores in her body. Yao Niang felt relaxed and comfortable. It was so comfortable that she even leaned on the jade stone in the hot spring and fell asleep.
The hot springs here must be as good as those in Huaqing Pool, she thought with amusement.
In fact, she had been thinking about those words last night since the first day she was betrothed to Prince Chen. Her husband's current situation was beyond his control. Starting from this "title" and even from the misplaced relationship between Concubine Hong and Concubine Lin, it had become impossible for them to be in harmony with each other.
Unless Prince Chen publicly cuts off his relationship with Concubine Hong, or even is willing to swallow his anger and humble himself.
Even in his previous life, King Zhou was able to ascend to the throne because Emperor Tianlu died without any offspring, so King Zhou ascended the throne according to the order of seniority. King Zhou had completely cut ties with Concubine Hong.
When Emperor Tianlu was in power, the land of King Zhou was very narrow and full of snakes, insects, rats and ants. If it weren't for this, the Crown Prince of Zhou would have been weak, and later the environment would have made it even more difficult for him to survive.
She knew it was a dangerous position to fight for, but she hoped she could protect him with her meager power.
…
After getting dressed and going out, Gao Xuance was flipping through a local journal. When he saw Yao Niang coming out, he immediately took out the wreath he had woven as if presenting a treasure: "My craftsmanship is not very good, please don't laugh at me."
Although the braid was twisted and tangled, Yao Niang put it on her head and turned around in front of Gao Xuance, smiling sweetly and asking him, "Doesn't it look like a flower fairy?"
Gao Xuance held her arm and said with certainty: "You must be the King of Flowers, the fairy who controls all flowers."
"Hehe." Yao Niang finally understood why the emperor liked treacherous ministers.
Because they are good-looking and speak nicely.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
