Chapter 026 Chapter 26
Chapter 26
【well? 】
777 was confused by this question and couldn't help but think along the lines of Gu Youxing.
It seems, as if, it is indeed the case?
Even if the host only relies on the plot to be a prophet for a few years, his schemes will never be exposed.
Not to mention foot binding, Xie Yuanzhi had plenty of money, and after the worlds merged, sending Princess Funing to the modern era would not be a problem at all.
The host can even buy some penicillin and mix it with water to use as the healing effect of the power of faith.
Even though the modern world and the ancient world are only a step apart in development time, there are still people today who believe in the flat earth theory of lizard people and that dinosaurs are not extinct.
Has there been no miracles in modern religion? Has that stopped a bunch of people from fighting each other with the Bible and committing genocide?
This seems to be perfect, right?
777 thought blankly, while Gu Youxing quietly lifted the curtain and looked out the window.
The road leading to the outskirts of the city happened to pass by Pinglefang, and groups of people had already gathered on the street. Small vendors had also set up stalls, selling wontons, steamed buns and the like, but more were sesame cakes and buns.
What we now call sesame cakes are actually steamed buns.
Pei Muchu was only six years old and had a small mouth. He took him a long time to finish a pancake. While eating, he lifted the curtain to look outside.
Seeing this carefree look, Princess Funing felt quite uncomfortable. If she had dared to behave like this in the Empress Dowager's palace, she would have probably been punished with a ruler by the governess.
At that time, Princess Funing did not dare to resist at all. If she did, what would she, an orphan who had lost her parents, rely on?
A six-year-old brother?
Fortunately, we have all gotten through it now.
Princess Funing's originally dignified sitting posture relaxed a little. A palace maid who came out of the Queen Mother's Palace seemed to want to remind her, but the maid next to her who belonged to Prince Zhongning's Palace pulled her hand with a smile.
"Sister, please don't disturb the masters. Let's go and see if the water has boiled."
Princess Funing saw this little episode, but remained silent for the first time. If it were in the past, she would definitely speak for Amber.
After all, Amber was given to her by the Queen Mother.
But now…
Princess Funing took a deep breath and turned her gaze away from the maid and looked out the window, where she saw a lot of people making a lot of noise around a teahouse.
"Uncle Zhao, could you please find someone to check what happened?"
Princess Funing said as she looked at the blocked road.
"Yes, Princess." Uncle Zhao nodded and saluted, then pointed to two tall and strong guards and walked towards the crowd.
*
"Is it right here? That Li Qingliu, eating slop here?"
The man spoke with great excitement.
"How could I lie to you? I saw with my own eyes yesterday that the swill flew into Li Qingliu's mouth. It was a pity for the swill vendor. He was originally rushing to sell swill to refugees outside the city, but he was delayed."
Zhang Shitou also said excitedly.
There were people like Zhang Shitou standing in the teahouse, pointing and talking outside, filling the entire teahouse.
After Li Sifang ate the swill here yesterday, the people present were all contentedly enjoying the scene of a high and mighty figure eating their swill.
Originally they thought that this was the end and were planning to tell their wives about it when they got home, but who would have thought that Lord Li Qingliu really loved his people like his own children.
——Knowing that they were bored, they turned around and fell into the toilet again!
Before the people in the teahouse left, they heard the waiter rushing in excitedly and spreading the news that Jinsen had been busy late at night.
The teahouse was in an uproar now.
The waiter acted as a storyteller and told the story in detail, and the tea drinkers around who were listening to him were not stingy with their money this time.
The guests in the private rooms upstairs were even more generous and spent a few silver ingots.
The shopkeeper served tea and water with a smile on his face. Even the proprietress who was originally in the kitchen had to come out to serve tea and water, otherwise she would be too busy to handle it.
Fortunately, the shopkeeper's son, who had gone to school, came back and took over his mother's job. He was happy listening to gossip and collecting money.
The bustle of the teahouse continued until curfew.
The shopkeeper was not afraid of the officials coming to his door. Speaking without guilt was the root of the literati in the Feng Dynasty, and they did not talk about anything excessive.
A censor fell into a cesspool. How could this have anything to do with the emperor's handling of affairs?
Naturally, the whole teahouse was even more lively today.
Most people would naturally tell their families about this incident after returning home - after all, it is rare for a Censor, a seventh-rank official, to fall into a toilet.
This aroused the curiosity of most people. In addition to those who were struggling to make a living, many people who heard the news came to this teahouse.
——After all, the Li family can’t get in.
With so many people flocking into Pinglefang, the vendors setting up stalls in Pinglefang couldn't stop smiling.
The teahouse where the incident took place was packed with people. Those who saw the scene were surrounded by people, like a storyteller. Some people even threw money as rewards. Some playboys enjoyed listening to these so-called upright people suffer misfortunes, and threw coins generously.
The shopkeeper and the waiter were also busy as hell, but they all had happy smiles on their faces.
Today's revenue is almost equal to last week's revenue. How can this not make the shopkeeper and the waiter happy?
"All this is thanks to Lord Li." The shopkeeper sighed sincerely. This was the busiest day of their teahouse this year.
Zhang Shitou, who was standing next to the shopkeeper, touched the heavy copper coins in his arms and happily agreed.
Those who came to watch the fun were really generous in giving tips, and his family now has enough winter clothes for this year.
As more and more storytellers came, someone soon started talking about King Chungnyeong.
It so happened that Prince Chungnyeong had not yet entered Deweifang at that time - all the people there were royal relatives - and many people heard it.
Someone spoke up immediately.
"The young prince is quite accurate. If he says we should eat swill, we will eat swill. If he says we should go to the toilet, we will go to the toilet."
Other people present also began to talk about it, but no one spoke up for Li Sifang. They were all discussing whether the young prince, who was a tyrant in the capital, had made accurate judgments on these two matters, or whether he had dabbled in these two matters behind the scenes.
The two sides were arguing so fiercely that they ignored those pedantic scholars who were speaking up for Li Sifang.
These pedantic scholars looked at these vulgar people and loudly talked about how the current censor deserved it. There was contempt in their eyes, but they did not dare to say a word in actual actions.
Just as these pedantic scholars were getting indignant, a shifty-looking man in a scholar's robe quietly sneaked into the kitchen.
"——! How disrespectful! How can this teahouse employ a woman as a cook!"
*
"It's a filthy place full of filth and dirt! How can a woman be allowed to enter a teahouse, and even stay in the kitchen? Isn't this an insult to scholars like us?"
In the center of the crowd, the noisy scholars surrounded the teahouse tightly and spoke loudly.
The teahouse owner who was surrounded was protecting his wife who had just been hit on the head, and said to the scholars in a humbly and flattering manner: "Dear guests, please be kind. I will send my wife back right away and I promise not to let her out."
Having said that, the shopkeeper still kept his wife away tightly.
These scholars appeared out of nowhere and rushed directly to the kitchen, some of them even carried stones.
When the noble dandies saw this, they retreated to the private rooms upstairs, and the other common people did not dare to argue with these scholars.
For a moment, the shopkeeper and his wife were isolated and helpless, feeling so pitiful.
The shopkeeper's wife was crying silently behind him.
The wind direction has changed since the series of defeats at the border in the past few years.
Five years ago, she could still stand in the lobby and talk loudly to guests.
Three years ago, she could only stay in the kitchen, and only dared to come out occasionally to help serve tea when everyone was busy.
Now she is not even allowed to stay in the teahouse?
She just came out to help out yesterday, and today she was surrounded by these scholars. They shouted to rebel against Tiangang, but she just wanted to support the family. How ridiculous!
The shopkeeper's wife was not really good-looking. Years of hard work made her like most ordinary women of that era, with yellow teeth, brown skin, and spots on her face.
The sight of a woman crying after having her head smashed was not pretty at all, but it made the ordinary people watching around her feel very upset.
"Alas, it's all fate." The uncle selling sesame cakes said numbly as he packed up his stall silently.
He didn't dare to stay here any longer. If he did, he would lose his livelihood.
The other small vendors also started to pack up their things, as they were all here to eat.
Except for the scholars, all the other onlookers on the street began to watch the scene in front of them in a prudent manner.
The shopkeeper understood that this time so many scholars came to surround his teahouse, they must have been instructed by some people.
After all, their small teahouse is not located on any main road. Although the person behind the scenes never shows up, he has been able to stay here safely for so long, so he must have some background.
Although in the eyes of those big shots, they are just small stones on the roadside and they don't even take a look at them.
pity……
The shopkeeper smiled bitterly when he thought of this.
Even small stones would be kicked away if they hit the feet of those big shots.
For example, yesterday, everyone in the teahouse saw Censor Li eating slop. Censor Li had no way of causing trouble for each of the guests, so he probably held a grudge against the teahouse.
Then Censor Li fell into the toilet again. He was so angry that he had no place to vent it, so he naturally took it out on the best person to vent it on.
The shopkeeper felt that he had suffered an unprovoked disaster, especially his wife.
But he had no way to resist now, he could only put on a flattering smile and try to get these people to let them go.
He would just take the loss himself, and he really didn't want to cause trouble for that person unless it was absolutely necessary.
Unfortunately, although some of these scholars were truly indignant, most of them received special tasks.
As a result, the emotions of these scholars were incited more and more fiercely, and all kinds of insults were imposed on the woman. Seeing the woman looking at the stone lions with desperate eyes, a loud shout directly brought the situation on the scene to a halt.
"Who blocked the princess' carriage?"
The scholars present had not yet reacted, and the crowd that had just gathered to watch the excitement dispersed, exposing them to the sight of the oncoming people.
"It was you scholars who blocked the carriages of Princess Funing and Prince Zhongning? Are you deaf? Didn't you hear anyone shouting?"
Two guards, who were eight feet tall and strong, came up to these weak scholars in a few strides and spoke in a ferocious tone.
These scholars were just emotional to begin with, but under the stares of the two ferocious gods, their original courage and bravery immediately shrank back.
"I was just asking for an explanation from this boss who turned against Tian Gang and humiliated me, a scholar..."
There were a few stubborn scholars who said a few words, but they were all blocked by the two evil gods.
"How can a scholar stand in front of the princess's carriage and refuse to give way? Even Prime Minister Liu had to give way, let alone you commoners! I wanted to let you scholars go, but you still dare to quibble!"
The square-faced fierce man sneered, took out a token from his chest, threw it to the yamen runners who had just arrived, and pointed at a few people casually and spoke.
"These people have offended Prince Zhongning and will be detained for five days."
Those who were actually instigating the riot were pushed to the front of the crowd by the scholars around them before they could react.
One of them was holding a stone in his hand.
The yamen runners looked at the sign of Prince Zhongning's Palace, nodded their heads like woodpeckers, and immediately put on fawning smiles on their faces.
"So you are the elder brother from the palace. Don't worry, leave this matter to us and we guarantee that we will handle it properly."
The two ferocious gods seemed very satisfied with the actions of the yamen runners. They rummaged through their sleeves and threw out a silver ingot.
"These are the only scholars. The others just need to be more careful next time. We caught the culprit this time, but next time, don't just keep your eyes open but not your ears."
As the two fierce gods spoke, the common people who were watching the show on the side immediately nodded and smiled fawningly, and some dandies even wanted to go up to them and try to establish a relationship with them.
But the two evil gods ignored everyone and swaggered back to the luxurious carriage.
This seemed to be a signal. The originally fawning yamen runners immediately turned ferocious and started to put ropes around the literati.
Ordinary civilians immediately left this place of trouble. Even the teahouse owner protected his wife, returned to the teahouse and closed the door tightly.
As soon as those scholars shouted a few times that they were in cahoots with the others, they were slapped on the head by the yamen runners.
This force is absolutely crazy but not brain-damaging.
These yamen runners have been specially trained.
The carriage finally began to move forward slowly. Princess Funing looked at the scholars being taken away with some doubts. But when she heard what these scholars had done, she showed a look of disgust on her face.
"'When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they have enough food and clothing, they know honor and disgrace.' Could it be that these corrupt scholars have never even read Guanzi?"
Princess Funing frowned and cursed.
However, she turned around and forgot about these people, and did not notice that a couple behind her was kowtowing to her car.
*
The Imperial Palace, a remote palace.
"Is this... a letter from my uncle?" The third prince lay on the couch, his pale face looking extremely sick.
Sitting next to him was a gorgeously dressed woman. Her appearance was not outstanding but was pretty. Unfortunately, her beauty was obscured by the pearls and jade on her head.
She said happily: "Yes, Anping, your uncle finally came to his senses and came to us when he encountered problems."
The third prince coughed a few times and looked very ill, but he listened to his mother's chatter with a gentle expression.
His mother was sold to the palace because the family was poor, and his uncle failed to stop her. When his mother finally got through and even gave birth to a prince, his uncle did not dare to trouble his mother with anything. He just opened a teahouse after receiving the reward, and while supporting the family, he also paid for his children's education.
In order to avoid disaster all year round, the third prince did not dare to contact his uncle openly, so on the surface, his uncle was not much different from most ordinary people in the capital.
Most people don’t even remember what the Third Prince looks like, so naturally they won’t pay attention to their uncle’s affairs.
——Unfortunately, it was precisely because his presence was too low that he attracted some short-sighted people.
The third prince Pei Muyan quickly extracted two key points from his uncle's simple and plain letter.
One reason was that Li Sifang was resentful about the incident that happened at the entrance of the teahouse the day before yesterday, so he went to the teahouse and sent someone to cause trouble yesterday.
Second, King Chungnyeong and Princess Funyeong helped them out.
"I really have to thank King Chungnyeong and Princess Funing this time. I wonder if they will appreciate these gifts."
Seeing his mother looking at his private vault with a troubled look on her face, Pei Muyan felt helpless.
He knew that his mother was just afraid of being poor. She had a lot of things in her private storehouse, although not many of the top-notch items. But how could a concubine who gave birth to a prince be poor?
Is being an emperor just a decoration?
——Although some people did treat me as a decoration when I was a child.
Fortunately, the man died soon, and he also met a lovely girl.
Pei Muyan touched the purse that always stayed with him and thought.
"My lady, please take it from my private vault."
Pei Muyan said with a smile.
Combined with his frail face, I felt really sorry for him.
Especially since the third prince has not yet come of age and is only 17 years old.
"How can I let a kid like you come up with something as a return gift? Your uncle will definitely scold me if he finds out."
When Concubine Zhang heard her son say this, she immediately gritted her teeth and took out a large sum of money from her own private treasury. Pei Muyan felt helpless and amused by her painful look on her face.
Then he lamented the state of the world, and it would be difficult for him not to pretend to be sick even if he wanted to.
Yes, Pei Muyan’s illness was fake.
There is no other reason. Pei Muyan, who is the eldest son of a legitimate wife and has lost two elder brothers, should not be too aware of the sensitive nature of his current identity.
So what if his mother was a palace maid? She is easy to control. As long as he marries his daughter and granddaughter to himself, he, an adult prince, will be much more competitive.
Those court officials are not easy to deal with. Even his father can't control him, so he'd better not go up and humiliate himself.
Moreover, the prince was only ten years old. Although everything seemed calm in the court, more than one family had come to contact him. He had no choice but to pretend to be sick to avoid these disasters.
But now that the storm has passed, I can "recover" and go to my uncle's house to express my gratitude.
"But it's better not to be close friends. Even if King Chungnyeong is beating up the crown prince and kicking the prince, and even not giving the censor face, but..."
Pei Muyan, who was born and could remember things before Emperor Yuanxing ascended the throne, thought about this.
——He had seen with his own eyes how his good father "favored" King Chungnyeong.
It is better to be prudent and protect yourself.
Thinking of this, Pei Muyan sent someone to find out about the situation of Princess Funing and King Zhongning. The news he saw the next day made Pei Muyan open his eyes wide in surprise.
"They are actually building a temple for the former Crown Princess? Is that so aboveboard?"
*
This matter quickly spread throughout the imperial city.
Even the princes in the upper study knew about it.
"Hey, have you heard about this? Funing building a temple for her mother?"
The most mischievous fifth prince spoke mysteriously to everyone in the study room while the teacher was taking a break.
Pei Muli sat at the back with a gloomy face. At his current age, he didn't feel out of place in the study room. After all, there was the Fifth Prince, who was the same age as him, to complement him.
But who made Pei Muli's reputation as an extremely intelligent person before?
All of these princes' study companions in the upper study room had been lectured by their own mothers, who told them to learn from the Fourth Prince.
Now that the tiger is in trouble, won't they take the opportunity to add insult to injury?
Therefore, Pei Muli was ridiculed the day he returned to the Shangshufang. Fortunately, Pei Muli was not removed from his post as the Minister of Revenue by Emperor Yuanxing. It seemed that he was only given a minor punishment and a severe warning. Therefore, the princes in the Shangshufang still restrained themselves.
——From time to time, he would mention that Pei Muli, at the age of sixteen, had never beaten the six-year-old Prince Zhongning.
As a result, Pei Muli's face was black every day in the study room.
"I've heard about it a long time ago, but what does Funing want? Isn't this just becoming a nun? And isn't the Crown Princess that? Are they looking for death?"
The Sixth Prince was also a ruffian, and as he said this, there was a look of disdain in his eyes.
The tutors and princes present also showed disdainful expressions.
The prince looked as if his ears were dirty, and turned his head away, looking serious, but his ears were still erect.
The fifth prince spoke even more mysteriously.
"I guess it was the Little Overlord who got involved, and the title of Crown Princess was retained by the previous emperor, so there really is no problem with it in terms of etiquette."
The Fifth Prince pointed to a dusty desk as he spoke.
That desk belonged to King Chungnyeong. Although he had a fight with the Crown Prince on the first day of school and had not attended classes since then, the desk was still kept here.
Emperor Yuanxing’s words are golden.
"Yuanbao can come back when he wants to go to class."
This made the injured prince angry, but the prince was several years older than King Chungnyeong. Even if he was injured, could he still care about Pei Muchu, who was only five years old at that time?
Under the guidance of his mother, he finally suffered the loss.
It was also the first time in my life that I suffered a loss.
This also led to the Crown Prince and King Chungnyeong not getting along well. He was happy for a while when he heard that King Chungnyeong was reported by Censor Li for raping a woman.
Unfortunately, Censor Li was useless. Not only did he fail to report Prince Zhongning, but he ended up losing more than he gained. Just hearing about this kind of thing makes people feel dirty.
The prince couldn't help but show disgust on his face.
The fifth prince was still talking about the news.
"Think about it, Princess Funing went to the palace to ask for an imperial decree the day after she returned to Prince Zhongning's mansion. Who else but Pei Muchu would have the guts to do that?"
Hearing this, the princes in the upper study showed an expression of approval, but...
"This matter is not good for him, is it? Especially Funing. Doesn't Pei Muchu know that she doesn't know what she will face as a nun?"
The nine-year-old eighth prince asked doubtfully.
"But that's her mother. Doesn't Funing like her mother the most? And when will Funing go against Pei Muchu's opinion?"
The fifth prince rolled his eyes and said.
"That's true." The Eighth Prince nodded, thinking of his sister who never contradicted him.
I guess Funing is still thinking about gaining a reputation as a filial daughter so that it will be easier to find a marriage partner later.
She would only have the reputation of a dignified princess. If her husband doesn't like her and her mother-in-law wants to take her back as a mascot, then so what if she has a younger brother who is the apple of her father's eye? If her husband doesn't like her, then he still won't like her. Can Pei Muchu block her brother-in-law's door every day and beat him up?
but……
Far away from the imperial city, even if Fu Ning wanted to gain a reputation as a filial daughter, no one would guarantee her.
The Empress Dowager hated the former Crown Princess the most.
Although the princes present had different political levels, they all more or less guessed some of the truth.
Although these princes who are immersed in the political center can only see a superficial meaning, it is enough at this stage.
Who made the prince only 10 years old this year?
"Fifth brother, are you so kind?" The Eighth Prince said to the Fifth Prince after he figured it out.
He didn't believe that the Fifth Prince, who always wanted to create chaos in the world and had a merchant mother who could never ascend to the throne, would be so kind as to tell them such a good thing without asking for any reward.
"I just think that Funing is not having an easy time either. Why don't we..." The Fifth Prince gave a wicked smile, "Let's go see that kid Pei Muchu?"
Now even Pei Muli, who had always been watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but feel a little moved, not to mention the prince who had a grudge with Pei Muchu.
He turned his head suddenly and almost sprained his neck.
"I'll call my sister as well. It's easier for girls to communicate with each other." The Fifth Prince said with satisfaction as he saw that everyone was excited.
Everyone present realized that the Fifth Prince had actually had a feud with King Chungnyeong. They both liked a bracelet, one wanted to give it to his younger sister, and the other wanted to give it to his older sister. But in the end...
Looking at the bracelet worn on Princess Funing's hand, you can tell who won.
Now that they could see King Chungnyeong making a fool of himself, the Fifth Prince naturally wanted to bring his sister along, and the other princes naturally agreed.
Considering how much trouble King Chungnyeong caused, the only one among them who had no grudge against him was Prime Minister Liu's grandson.
——This person came to be the prince's study companion only after Prince Chungnyeong left the upper study room.
The princes finished talking at once, and even their companions looked excited. Then everyone's eyes fell on the Fourth Prince, who had been silent from the beginning.
Although the Fourth Prince does not have a very good relationship with King Chungnyeong, he had a fight with King Chungnyeong some time ago and was scolded by the Emperor. Will he go with him this time?
"I'm going too."
Pei Muli nodded, looking at the incredulous expressions of these people, he sneered in his heart. Why, did they think it was impossible for him to conflict with King Zhongning at this time?
He stood up and looked at his brothers and masters who had agreed to take leave to visit King Chungnyeong, and he told them to go first while he returned to the palace to prepare.
Even if some of his brothers didn't believe it, they just thought that he might be scared and looked at him with mockery in their eyes.
However, Pei Muli did not care about these looks. He just returned to the palace, opened the warehouse and started choosing gifts.
——That’s right, he really had no intention of conflicting with King Chungnyeong.
He even planned to go to the house to apologize.
reason?
A general with an army of 100,000 in his hands is really tempting.
It is even more attractive than the most beautiful woman in the world.
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