Chapter 020: A Little Way to Appease a Tyrant

The two quarreled all the way and finally arrived at their destination.

This place is only about ten minutes away from the bathing pool, and is even closer to Zong Zhengxiao's Qinzheng Hall.

Overall, it looks like a large and luxurious garden. Standing at the gate and looking out, the three characters "Silver Shark Garden" carved on the top of the arch are particularly eye-catching.

After all, he had stayed with Zong Zhengxiao for some time, so Rong Yin could recognize his handwriting. The words engraved on this stone plaque should be the text provided by Zong Zhengxiao.

At this point, Rong Yin vaguely understood why Zong Zheng Xiao brought him here.

After stepping through the archway, the first thing Rong Yin saw was a large field of lotus flowers in full bloom. The pink flowers and green leaves swayed in the breeze, like young girls laughing and dancing, extremely fresh and beautiful.

Next to the lotus pond is a clean water pond of the same size. There are no plants in it. The bottom of the pond is paved with flat stones, and the decorative stones on the edge of the pond are also polished to be smooth and round, as if for fear that the sharp corners of the stones will pierce anyone's skin.

The pond is surrounded by a white stone road, and various flowers and plants are planted on the roadside, attracting butterflies to fly around.

In the middle of the lotus pond and the purification pond stands a pavilion two meters above the water surface, with red-painted railings, four-corner pillars, and a roof covered with black tiles. There are white curtains hanging around it to block out the sun and allow for ventilation.

There are gentle slopes on both sides of the pavilion leading directly to two pools, followed by a corridor, at the end of which are two houses. At this time, the doors of the houses are closed and the layout inside cannot be seen.

It is clear at a glance who this layout is for.

Zong Zhengxiao looked down at Rong Yin, who was surprised and delighted, and said, "This is the new home I built for you. Do you like it?"

"Ah!" Rong Yin replied to Zong Zhengxiao excitedly, shouting in his heart: I like it! Bad... No, you are a good emperor today!

Zong Zhengxiao chuckled softly, carried Rong Yin to the clean pool, leaned over and put him in, "Swim a couple of laps and see if it suits your taste."

Rong Yin jumped into the water without hesitation, swam his tail, and swam freely in the water.

The area of ​​this pool alone is many times larger than the Jinlin Pool at the beginning and the bathing pool where I stayed the longest. Moreover, it is outdoors, so I can bask in the sun and enjoy the breeze. It couldn't be more comfortable.

In the sunlight, Rong Yin's silver-white scales emitted colorful light, a brilliance that could not be matched by any precious gem. His black hair floated in the water like algae, making his skin look even more delicate and white.

Rong Yin looked up at the sun, his light blue eyes seemed to merge with the blue sky, and a happy smile kept appearing on his face.

Seeing Rong Yin having a great time, Zong Zhengxiao's eyes became more doting.

Zong Zhengxiao ordered the construction of this new home after he brought Rong Yin to the bathhouse. After accidentally obtaining the method of making ice, Zong Zhengxiao spent more time and money on decoration as a way of rewarding Rong Yin.

As long as Rong Yin needs it, he will try his best to satisfy it.

Arriving at the new home, Rong Yin was so excited that he was busy exploring everywhere and had no time to look for Zong Zheng Xiao.

Zong Zhengxiao didn't mind. He came to the terrace of the pavilion and sat down, drinking tea while watching Rong Yin play.

When Rong Yin's curiosity was slightly satisfied, he remembered that he was not here alone.

He turned his head to look at Zong Zheng Xiao and others on the terrace, then turned around and plunged into the lotus pond. He nimbly picked the lotus stalks and flowers and climbed up the slope of the pavilion.

"Ah!" Rong Yin, whose whole body was wet, rushed straight into Zong Zheng Xiao's arms, almost knocking over the teacup on the low table, and the lotus in her arms also poked Zong Zheng Xiao's face.

Zong Zhengxiao held his thin waist and smiled helplessly: "Slow down, be careful not to hurt yourself."

Rong Yin was not able to pay attention to these small details at this moment. His eyes were shining. He picked up three lotus flowers and handed them to Zong Zheng Xiao: "Ah!"

Rong Yin: I didn’t forget to bring you a gift when I went out to play. Isn’t that very loyal?

Zong Zhengxiao raised the corners of his lips and took the lotus: "Thank you."

Rong Yin raised his chin proudly: You're welcome.

Zong Zhengxiao's portion was sent out, and Rong Yin looked at Si Xi and Lu'e again.

"Ah!" He gave the two remaining lotus flowers in his hand to Lu'e and Sixi respectively. The only difference was that Lu'e's had an extra lotus flower that had just bloomed.

Before extending his hand, Si Xi secretly glanced at Zong Zheng Xiao, and seeing that he had no objection, he signaled Lu E to take it as well.

They both bowed at the same time to thank Rong Yin for the gift. Rong Yin waved his hand generously, indicating that it was a small thing and nothing to thank him for.

Zong Zhengxiao was playing with the lotus in his hand, but his eyes inadvertently glanced at the lotus in Lu'e's hand several times.

Lu'e is the only girl here, so there is nothing wrong in giving her lotus flowers, but who says that men cannot be given flowers?

Zong Zhengxiao felt a little depressed without even realizing it.

"Ah!" Rong Yin's voice brought Zong Zhengxiao back to his senses. Rong Yin took the lotus stalk from Zong Zhengxiao's hand, peeled it open quickly, removed the green skin and lotus core, and fed the milky white lotus seeds to Zong Zhengxiao's mouth.

Zong Zhengxiao subconsciously opened his mouth and put it in. The lotus seed was crisp and sweet, and he liked it very much.

The most important thing is that it was peeled by the mermaid and the first one was fed to him.

Zong Zhengxiao suddenly felt that the lotus flower was not that important.

After being fed several lotus seeds by Rong Yin, Zong Zheng Xiao peeled off another lotus stalk and fed the lotus seeds to Rong Yin.

So the two of them sat on the terrace, basking in the sun and feeling the breeze, and feeding each other lotus seeds. It was really comfortable.

Lu'e was busy admiring the lotus flowers that Rong Yin gave her, thinking that she would put them in a vase for worship when she got home, and that after they withered she could make them into dried flowers and preserve them forever. Therefore, she didn't notice the affectionate scene between her two masters at all.

It was different for Si Xi. It was not convenient for him to peel lotus seeds and eat them now, but he felt that although he did not eat lotus seeds, he ate something else that he could not describe.

This made him feel inexplicably sad.

After taking a short rest, Zong Zhengxiao took Rong Yin to see the two houses behind the corridor.

The rooms are side by side. The one on the left is similar to a bathhouse, with a pool that takes up half of the floor area. If it is windy or rainy, or Rong Yin doesn't want to be outdoors, he can go in and play and rest.

There are also beds, tables and chairs by the pool, which are for Zong Zhengxiao to use.

The room on the right is used to store books and various things that cannot be exposed to moisture. There is also a small courtyard with bamboo trees, which is suitable for drinking tea and chatting.

The kitchen and the palace maids' living quarters were at the back, and one had to turn around a rockery to reach them in order to ensure that Rong Yin and Zong Zheng Xiao would not be disturbed.

That night, the two of them slept in the room on the left. Rong Yin was so happy that she sang a song for Zong Zheng Xiao.

When Lu'e heard Rong Yin's singing for the first time, her eyes widened in surprise, thinking that there was such a beautiful voice in the world.

*

After moving to the new house, Rong Yin has a wider range of activities. He no longer has to stay in the temple like before and only do painting and playing with small toys.

The two large pools are large enough for Rong Yin to swim freely. If he sees a bee, he can chase it along the pool for a long time.

When Prince Ji came to deliver the account book to Zong Zhengxiao, he happened to meet Rong Yin picking lotus flowers. Seeing that Rong Yin was brought in by Si Xi, he knew that Rong Yin knew Zong Zhengxiao and gave him a lotus flower.

Ji Xie was a man of propriety. Even though he was stunned by the beauty of the mermaid, he only glanced at her and quickly lowered his eyes. Apart from thanking Rong Yin for the lotus flower, he did not dare to say a word to him.

A garden was specially built for this merman to live in, which was enough to show how much the emperor valued him.

As an emperor, what he hates most is someone coveting his things, whether they are people or things.

As one of Zong Zhengxiao's most trusted ministers, Ji Xie naturally had this awareness.

Zong Zhengxiao met Ji Xie in the room on the right, which was half of his study.

After looking at the account book sent by Ji Xie, Zong Zhengxiao showed a look of satisfaction in his eyes.

As more and more ice was produced, the price of ice in Ji's Ice Shop gradually decreased, and finally it was low enough that even ordinary people could afford it easily.

Their earnings are indeed much less than at the beginning, but still considerable.

Moreover, the Ji family ice shop has been trying to expand business in the surrounding states. Once it is stabilized, it will bring in a considerable amount of income.

The ice-making method was given to Ji Xie by Zong Zhengxiao. The Ji family was considered to be selling on behalf of the company, and the bulk of the income still went into Zong Zhengxiao's private treasury. However, the Ji family also made a lot of money. Ji Xie's father, Ji Chunqiu, counted money at home every day and was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling.

After Zong Zhengxiao finished reading the account book, Ji Xie said, "The price of ice is basically stable now. We are promoting this to the outside world as a sign of your majesty's grace. The people are praising your majesty for his immeasurable merits."

In addition to selling ice, Ji's Ice Shop delivers free ice every seven days to those who really can't afford it.

Regardless of whether it was cheap ice or free ice, the Ji family told the outside world that the emperor could not bear to see the people suffer from the scorching heat, so he used his own private treasury to subsidize the people, in order to promote Zong Zhengxiao as a benevolent and wise monarch.

While praising Zong Zhengxiao, the Ji family also stepped on the feet of the aristocratic families, implicitly criticizing them for deliberately raising the price of ice, only caring about making money for themselves and not caring about the lives of the people.

Although this will not cause any substantial harm to the family, reputation may seem unimportant at ordinary times, but at the critical moment, it can determine a person's life or death.

The noble families deliberately spread rumors that Zong Zhengxiao was a tyrant, with the intention of taking their time to take action.

If Zong Zhengxiao's reputation among the people was really terrible, then when the aristocratic families pulled him down and supported their own puppet to take the throne, they would encounter fewer obstacles, and the records in history books would be more glorious.

Zong Zhengxiao knew exactly what they were thinking, and asking the Ji family to do that was also a way of giving them a taste of their own medicine.

Seeing that the aristocratic families were in trouble, Ji Xie and other members of the group of meritorious officials were happier than Zong Zhengxiao.

After leaving the palace and returning home, Ji Xie had a few drinks with his father.

As for Zong Zhengxiao, not long after Ji Xie left, Si Xi hurriedly delivered a secret letter. When Zong Zhengxiao opened it, his originally gentle expression immediately turned into as cold as winter.

He sneered, "He is really my good nephew."

Si Xi huddled aside and didn't dare to make any noise. After a long while, Zong Zheng Xiao said in a cold voice, "Send the invitation to Prince Ning's Mansion."