On New Year's Eve, a palace banquet was held.
Zhao Wenqi ate very restrainedly while facing a table full of dishes.
He picked up a piece of meat, put it in his mouth, and chewed it...
After chewing, I put down my chopsticks.
Crown Prince Zhao Wenyi, who was standing nearby, asked with concern, "Second brother, why aren't you eating? Don't you like these dishes?"
Zhao Wenqi shook his head: "I'm not hungry."
Glug glug—
The timing of my stomach growling was perfect, not too early, not too late.
Zhao Wenyi said helplessly, "Children shouldn't lie."
Zhao Wenqi grinned: "Brother, your stomach will rumble even when you're full."
The crown prince looked incredulous.
“Brother, we are family, and family members should trust each other. If you can’t even trust your own brother, how can you trust the entire court?”
"How come you've become so eloquent lately?"
"hey-hey……"
The two children chatted in a corner, while the adults over there clinked glasses and toasted each other.
Emperor Zhao Changheng noticed that the King of Yue was eating very little today.
"Fourth brother, why are you only drinking and not eating? There's nothing you like in today's imperial meal. What do you want to eat? Have the imperial kitchen make it again."
Zhao Changheng is a person who spoils his children and his younger brother to an extreme degree.
Zhao Changqing quickly explained, "I ate some snacks at home before coming here today, so I'm not very hungry."
Crown Prince Zhao Wenyi glanced at his younger brother, then at his fourth uncle, lost in thought.
However, he was mature beyond his years, deep in thought, and rarely revealed his emotions and thoughts.
He kept it to himself, but didn't show anything unusual on his face.
The New Year's Eve banquet started early and ended early as well.
Considering that all the princes would be returning home to celebrate the New Year's Eve, the palace would not keep them too late.
However, the emperor and the King of Yue were brothers.
Every time we meet, we always hold hands and talk for a while.
Zhao Wenqi was extremely anxious as he watched his father pull his fourth uncle to the back hall.
I wish I could catch up with him.
She had barely taken a step when her elder brother, the Crown Prince, stopped her.
"Wenqi, where do you want to go?"
"Brother, I need to go find Uncle Si. He should be going home soon, or it'll be dark by the time we get to have supper."
"night snack?"
Zhao Wenqi quickly covered his mouth: Brother, you didn't hear anything.
The emperor led Zhao Changqing to the rear hall.
The rear hall was empty.
It contained only a few tables, chairs, and a couch, and was usually the emperor's temporary resting place.
In a corner of the rear hall, there was a quiet room with its door tightly closed.
A large, antique brass lock hung on the door, its copper color tinged with green, and it looked quite old.
Zhao Changheng stopped in front of the door and turned to Zhao Changqing, saying, "Fourth brother, when you were little, you were always curious about what was in this quiet room and why Father always locked it and wouldn't allow anyone to go in."
More than a decade has passed, and Zhao Changqing can no longer clearly remember things from his childhood.
He had a vague recollection of this quiet room.
But not many.
"Brother..."
Zhao Changheng took out a brass key from his sleeve and stepped forward to unlock the lock.
The door was pushed open.
Zhao Changqing followed Zhao Changheng into the room.
There was an offering table right in front of me.
A small portrait hangs on the wall above the offering table.
The portrait depicts a boy of about fifteen or sixteen years old.
The young man exuded heroic spirit, dressed in full armor, and smiled brightly.
Below the portrait is a memorial tablet.
"The memorial tablet of my dear friend, Han Shizhao".
Zhao Changqing's eyes widened.
"This is not..."
Zhao Changheng knew what he was going to say.
He simply nodded silently.
In front of the memorial tablet, besides the incense burner and fruit offerings, there is also a copy of the "Rebirth Mantra".
The pages of this scripture are yellowed, indicating that it is an old object that has been used for decades.
Zhao Changheng's hand gently brushed over the copy of the "Rebirth Mantra".
"Before my father passed away, he entrusted this place to me and instructed me to make offerings to it every day. Han Shizhao and my father were childhood friends. He was not yet sixteen when he passed away. My father would recite this 'Rebirth Mantra' every day after court to help Han Shizhao's spirit pass on."
Zhao Changqing asked in surprise, "Why do we need to perform rituals for the deceased every day?"
Normally, when an ordinary person dies, it is sufficient to invite a few eminent monks to perform a ritual to help the soul find peace.
Why would one need to chant sutras for salvation every day?
Zhao Changheng turned to face his younger brother, his expression grave.
"Because the Han family was wrongfully killed. The bodies of more than a dozen members of the Han family were stolen from the execution ground by the Emperor. If the souls of the wrongfully killed are to be reborn in the Pure Land, their grievances must first be redressed. But... the grievances of the Han family... cannot be redressed."
In the banquet hall ahead, Zhao Wenqi waited anxiously.
He craned his neck and frequently peered into the rear hall.
Seeing his expression, Zhao Wenyi asked in confusion, "Wenqi, who are you waiting for? It's getting dark soon, you should go back to your mother's palace."
Zhao Wenqi tiptoed and whispered in the Crown Prince's ear, "Brother Crown Prince, I'm going to sneak back to the Yue Prince's residence with Fourth Uncle tonight. After I leave, please tell Mother for me. Make sure to tell her after I leave, otherwise, I'm afraid she'll stop us."
The crown prince exclaimed in surprise: "You've got some nerve, kid..."
"You...you just sneaked away like that? When you come back, be careful your mother will punish you."
"Brother—the matter is urgent, so I have no choice but to act first and inform you later. Even if I am punished... I accept it."
Zhao Wenyi was surprised that he would rather be punished than leave the palace.
How come this kid's relationship with the Fourth Imperial Uncle suddenly became so good after he went to Jizhou?
They were inseparable.
As the two were talking, they saw Zhao Changqing emerge from the back hall.
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