Chapter 16: Playing tricks
After several princes presented their gifts, it was the concubines' turn. Sun Mengqiu prepared a white jade ruyi. The jade was thick and soft, and it felt warm to the touch, which showed that it was indeed a good thing. There was even a beautiful lotus carved on the end of the ruyi. The exquisite craftsmanship showed the care that went into this birthday gift.
Zhu Zhanji's intention was to demonstrate the peace in his harem. Seeing this, he immediately praised Sun Mengqiu's virtuous character and said to Hu Shanxiang, "Changqiu loves scriptures and Taoism the most. This lotus flower rises from the mud without being stained, and washes in the clear water without being coquettish. It is also carved from flawless white jade. The two complement each other very well. The imperial concubine has put a lot of thought into it."
Sun Mengqiu looked at Yan Xiaoyan, without any of the panic she had when she was talking to Zhu Yuhuan before, as if nothing had happened.
"Your Majesty, your praise is undeniable. The Empress is a role model for the six imperial concubines, noble and elegant, and a perfect match for this Ruyi."
Zhu Yuhuan, watching from the side, could not help but sigh inwardly: what kind of lotus is this on the jade ruyi? Zhu Zhanji and Sun Mengqiu are the ones who are so eloquent!
Everyone knew that this was Zhu Zhanji's intention to show the unity of the emperor and empress and the harmony in the harem, and they nodded in agreement.
Hu Shanxiang smiled and had someone put it away, saying, "Your Majesty is absolutely right. The Imperial Concubine has always been very attentive."
Seeing Sun Mengqiu sitting down, Wu Miaosu stood up and said, "I have only been in the palace for a short time. I thought that Your Majesty, as the heir of a country and an equal to His Majesty, would be accustomed to the treasures I could bring out. So I thought I could use a trick. It just so happens that His Royal Highness Prince Xiang has found some ancient music scores, so I have the audacity to prepare a pipa for Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will accept it."
Hu Shanxiang was a little surprised. She glanced at Zhu Yuhuan and saw that she was still as still as a mountain. Then she carefully examined the pipa handed to her by the palace servant and said in surprise, "This pipa... could it be made by Concubine Xian herself?"
Zhu Zhanji was a little surprised and asked, "You made it yourself? Concubine Xian, you can also make a pipa?"
Wu Miaosu's face was slightly embarrassed as she said, "To answer your Majesty, when I was young, there was a neighbor who made musical instruments. My younger brother learned from him for a while, and I just watched from the side and learned only the basics."
Zhu Zhanji originally thought that this pipa gift was rather simple and crude, but when he heard that it was made by Wu Miaosu herself, he found it rather interesting and said, "It's hard for you to put so much thought into this for the Queen's future. But the material for this pipa..."
Zhu Yuhuan noticed Zhu Zhanji's gaze, and then he stood up obediently and said, "Dad, the materials for the pipa were all brought back by Huanhuan from outside the palace."
These materials had to be verified before entering the palace. Zhu Zhanji must have known this for a long time and deliberately did this to suppress Zhu Yuhuan's arrogance.
Zhu Zhanji pretended to be stern and scolded: "Now you are learning to deceive your mother by hiding the truth from the world."
This reaction was expected. Zhu Yuhuan bowed and said, "Huanhuan knows his fault. Please punish me, Daddy."
Empress Dowager Zhang smiled upon seeing this and said, "This is also Huanhuan's filial piety. Why are you trying to scare her?"
Zhu Zhanji finally smiled and said to Zhu Yuhuan, "You made a music box for your mother's birthday. What new things have you prepared this time?"
Zhu Yuhuan met Zhu Zhanji's gaze with a faint smile on his lips, saying, "The Tao Te Ching says: 'I have three treasures, which I hold fast to and protect. The first is kindness, the second is frugality, and the third is not daring to be the first in the world.' Kindness is the first treasure, as the saying goes, 'Love equally, and love even those of different races.' Father is the sovereign and father of all people, and he carries the lives of all living beings on his shoulders. As Empress, you should also, like Father, care for the people of the world as your own children. Therefore, Huanhuan will use the profits from the shop to build a charity hall, and let the poor people in the outer city work in the shop, and use the wages to support their families, to fulfill the kindness that Father and Mother have shown as sovereigns, empresses, fathers, and mothers. This charity hall will be left to Mother to manage. If there is any allocation of funds, you can also follow Mother's wishes and give the excess money from the palace expenses to the charity hall for the people's livelihood."
As soon as she said this, the hall, which had been noisy before, suddenly became silent. Everyone looked at each other, and no one dared to make any movement.
Only Zhu Zhanji, who knew the general situation, was stunned.
His own niece, how can you flatter me like that? Isn't that playing with fire? Your father is the emperor, how can you tell him what to do? Isn't that like pulling out a tiger's beard?
Unexpectedly, Zhu Zhanji just smiled and said, "You are the most ingenious person in our family. You can come up with such an idea to celebrate your mother's birthday. Daddy was originally thinking about what to give your mother as a birthday gift, but you knew that Daddy was sleepy and brought a pillow." He thought for a moment and said to Empress Dowager Zhang, "I will grant this charity hall a plaque with my own handwriting. What do you think, mother?"
Empress Dowager Zhang nodded slightly and said, "This is very good. The Queen was so worried and worried about resettling the victims that she couldn't sleep at night. Now Huanhuan's method is very good and has relieved the Queen's worries."
Zhu Yuhuan said with a smile: "Huanhuan has relieved Daddy's worries like this, Daddy must reward Huanhuan with some good things."
Seeing her playful appearance, Hu Shanxiang scolded her, "Huanhuan, where are your usual etiquette?"
Zhu Zhanji waved his hand and said, "Filial piety is the most important virtue. Of course, I will reward our Princess Shunde well."
Empress Dowager Zhang smiled at Zhu Yuhuan and said, "You, just remember to ask your father for a reward! You clever little rascal!"
Zhu Yuhuan said coquettishly: "Daddy loves Huanhuan, even if I don't want it, Daddy will give it to me."
Seeing her so well-behaved, Zhu Zhanji laughed and said, "Of course."
Seeing that Empress Dowager Zhang and Zhu Zhanji didn't take it to heart, everyone laughed and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Thanks to Zhu Yuhuan's youth, his bluntness and his unauthorized decisions were not taken seriously by His Majesty, who instead expressed great joy... He had Zhu Yuhuan's ability, but not his courage; he had Zhu Yuhuan's courage, but not his status; he had Zhu Yuhuan's status, but not his ability. Who would dare to imitate such a risky military tactic?
Only Zhu Zhanji could sense a hint of something, thinking that his eldest niece was trying to give the emperor a way out.
Rumors among the common people could not be suppressed by the Jinyiwei alone; some concrete action was needed. Zhu Zhanji presented a plaque with his own handwriting. It was not painful, but it could stop the rumors. Why not? For Zhu Yuhuan, this would not only make the matter of the shop and the charity hall clear to everyone, but also gain a reputation for being virtuous for Empress Hu Shanxiang, and ease the relationship between the emperor and the empress.
It seemed that Zhu Zhanji, as an emperor, was magnanimous and tolerant, but in fact, Zhu Yuhuan saw through Zhu Zhanji's thoughts and took the initiative to please him.
These father and daughter are both very cunning.
But it is also because of this that the father and daughter can understand each other's meaning invisibly.
Zhu Yuhuan noticed the gaze of his fifth uncle, so he just picked up the pine sugar thirsty water② and winked at him, as if he was satisfied with just this glass of sweet water.
For her, the most important thing today was to give Hu Shanxiang a way to leave the palace in an upright manner. Although she could not leave physically, at least letting Hu Shanxiang take the first step to break free from the shackles spiritually was far more important than simply preaching to her.
This was the birthday gift she wanted to give to her mother.
Seeing her like this, Zhu Zhanji couldn't help but worry about the future crown prince.
My unborn nephew, if you don’t have a thousand tricks up your sleeve, how can you survive with your sister?
She is not someone who can be dismissed with just a glass of sweet water.
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