Chapter 318 The Real and Fake Imperial Brother, A Nighttime Investigation of the Su Residence
Li Yuzong had been watching Prince Yong from the crack in the window of the palace for a long time.
He had watched Zhao Minghong grow up and knew his temperament very well.
If a playful, energetic child suddenly becomes quiet and overly still, it means they're holding back and are about to cause a big commotion.
As expected, Prince Yong rushed towards the gate of Zhaoyang Palace with his head down.
Li Yuzong flicked his whisk and, with agile movements, appeared in front of Zhao Minghong in the blink of an eye.
He exclaimed, "Oh dear! Your Highness, this is unacceptable! This is His Majesty's bedroom. Unauthorized entry is a capital offense."
Zhao Minghong's plan was interrupted when the chief eunuch suddenly appeared in front of him from nowhere.
His eyes were dark, and he said in a sarcastic tone, "My brother's life is hanging in the balance in the palace, but Eunuch Li is full of energy and doesn't look listless at all."
Li Yuzong greeted people with a smile, as if he hadn't noticed the sarcasm in his words.
"In order to better take care of His Majesty's health, this old servant has been exercising these past few days, and I even run on my way to my duty posts."
Zhao Minghong gritted his teeth and said, "Your old bones are really strong!"
Normally, he wouldn't be so rude to the chief eunuch, but now... he already considers Li Yuzong a traitor.
He repeatedly prevented me from visiting Emperor Wusu, and there must be something fishy going on behind the scenes.
Perhaps his elder brother has already been framed by outsiders...
Zhao Minghong dared not think any further. The thought made his eyes turn red, and he couldn't control his temper. He cursed, "You traitorous eunuch!"
Li Yuzong gave a look to the black-clad guards behind him, and immediately someone stepped forward to pull Prince Yong away.
Zhao Minghong drew a guard's sword and waved it wildly, shouting, "Let's see who dares to stop me! You bunch of traitors and villains!"
Li Yuzong, fearing that the sword might injure Prince Yong himself, frowned.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhao Minghong charged valiantly toward the entrance of Zhaoyang Palace.
He kicked open the palace door and shouted, "Your subject brother has arrived!"
The words "save the emperor" were swallowed back by Prince Yong.
Emperor Wusu, tall and imposing, sat behind his desk in the center of the hall. He put his pen down on the desk and smoothed out his sleeves.
He said in a cold tone, "What are you doing here? Why don't you continue?"
Zhao Minghong stared blankly, his eyes wide open, as if trying to discern whether the man before him was indeed his own elder brother.
Emperor Wusu's gaze fell on Prince Yong's right hand holding the sword, his tone calm and even.
"You broke into my bedchamber with weapons, you traitor, aren't you referring to yourself?"
That's so heartless of you to say that...
Coupled with the cold look she gave him...
It must be his elder brother, that's right.
Zhao Minghong loosened his grip, and the sword he had snatched from the guard fell onto the gold bricks. He quickly walked to the steps in front of the hall.
He called out longingly, "Royal brother."
Upon hearing this, Emperor Wusu frowned and rebuked, "What kind of tone is that?"
If it weren't for his elder brother's cold expression, Zhao Minghong would have rushed over for a brotherly hug.
He looked left and right and found that his elder brother had only become thinner, but otherwise had not changed and did not seem to be sick.
Zhao Minghong asked worriedly, "Brother, when did you recover? Could it be a final burst of energy before death? Should we have the imperial physician take another look?"
Emperor Wusu reached for the inkstone, and Prince Yong clapped his hands and said, "That's right, the imperial physician is unreliable. Your Majesty, go and call Ji Qingwu over."
He was about to get up, but then stopped.
"Royal brother."
Emperor Wusu couldn't stand his lingering tone and said sternly, "Speak if you have something to say, or get out."
After being scolded by the emperor, Zhao Minghong felt completely at ease.
"Brother, I have something to say to you. It's a big matter, so you must be prepared."
Seeing that Emperor Wusu was losing patience and about to throw an inkstone at him, Zhao Minghong lowered his head and quickly said, "Ji Qingwu has already married Wei Ting."
He secretly glanced at his elder brother's reaction, but saw that Emperor Wusu's expression had not changed at all.
That shouldn't be the case.
Zhao Minghong began to doubt again whether the person in front of him was the emperor himself.
He tentatively asked, "Brother, do you remember the last time you hit me?"
Zhao Mingyan was amused by his question and looked up at him.
“I wouldn’t mind beating you up right now with the exact same moves, so you’ll remember everything.”
When he saw the emperor stand up and pull out a ruler, Zhao Minghong's eyes lit up.
He waved his hands repeatedly and said, "No need, no need, I've remembered everything."
Zhao Minghong breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Your Majesty is not in any serious condition, so I will not disturb your rest any longer."
He bowed and retreated, his steps light and cheerful, as if a heavy burden had finally been lifted from his heart.
Emperor Wusu watched Prince Yong's retreating figure, then rose and walked down the steps.
"Akihiro."
Upon hearing his elder brother's cold and deep voice, Zhao Minghong turned around, his eyes stinging, and immediately strode back.
"Brother, I knew you wouldn't want to part with your younger brother..."
Zhao Mingyan frowned slightly and said, "Stand still and don't come any closer to me."
Not knowing what the emperor had instructed Prince Yong, Zhao Minghong left Zhaoyang Palace with a beaming smile.
Upon stepping out of the palace gates and seeing Li Yuzong, she excitedly shook his hand, a stark contrast to her previous furious demeanor.
Zhao Minghong said, "I have misunderstood you. You are utterly loyal..."
"...A good person."
Li Yuzong saw Prince Yong off with a forced smile, but he always felt that the two words Prince Yong wanted to say were not those of a good person.
You can't expect anything good to come out of a dog's mouth.
Chief Eunuch Li flicked his whisk and returned to the palace to serve.
*
Night falls.
The moonlight grows deeper into the night.
The Prime Minister's residence is surrounded by high walls, exuding an air of solemnity and grandeur. Ancient trees reach for the sky within the courtyard, and the ground is paved with blue bricks.
Two maids in white came into the kitchen and asked, "Is the soup ready, Master?"
The cook, wearing a headscarf, was kneading dough with her head down.
The shorter maid scolded, "Sister Hanzhang is asking you a question, why aren't you answering!"
"Nongying, I think this cook is new and doesn't know the rules. Call her—"
Before Hanzhang could finish speaking, Nongying heard the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground behind her.
The tall maid had already been swiftly knocked unconscious with a hand chop. When Nongying turned around, she was also struck by a palm and fell to the ground.
Seeing this, Ji Qingwu threw the dough aside and went to the kitchen door to close it.
She knelt down to check on the two maids and fed them two pills.
Wei Tongyou stood in front of the stove and asked, "What are you doing?"
Ji Qingwu said, "Let them sleep a little longer." As he spoke, he began to strip off their clothes: "Change into their clothes."
The maids in the Su household all wore spotless white clothes. After the two women changed into them, their behavior was automatically restrained. They dared not touch anything for fear of getting soot on their hands.
Wei Tongyou stroked her chin and said, "Even if we change our clothes, people who know the two of them will still recognize us. We're not from the manor."
Ji Qingwu remained silent, quietly fiddling with the object for a while.
When I looked up again...
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