Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 379 Like Sunshine
After staring at Zhu Ying's face, which had become more and more beautiful as she grew older, for a long time, the emperor finally sighed deeply.
"I really shouldn't have told you the story of Emperor Taizu when you were little... My two sons didn't take it to heart, but you kept it in your mind all day long, and you're almost obsessed! Yingying, that was many years ago. If we count from the time Emperor Taizu disappeared at sea, it has been more than 80 years. There are so many rumors..."
"But rumors are different from facts! If Your Majesty says that what you hear is not true, and what you see may not be true, then what I have tasted with my own mouth cannot be false, right? I was born as the daughter of the Duke of Zhao, and you and the Queen Mother both dote on me. There is no treasure in the world that I have not seen, and there is no delicacy in the world that I have not eaten."
“But this time in Cangzhou, I ate something I had never eaten before, and the taste was incredible!”
Zhu Ying spoke excitedly about the delicious food Zhang Shou had made, her face filled with happiness, and the emperor watched, his expression gradually softened unconsciously. He had several daughters, who were either respectful or reserved in front of him. Even though they were talented and beautiful, and their biological mother was Princess Yongping, Concubine Yu, they behaved dignified and noble most of the time, and never got petty.
But probably just like he used to like Concubine Yu, who was cheerful and unpretentious, and because he knew that it was difficult to tell the identity of Princess Yongping and Zhu Ying, he had always treated her like his own daughter ever since Zhu Ying was often taken to the palace by the empress dowager to stay for a short time when she was still in her infancy. What he liked to see most was her lively smile that was like the bright sunshine.
Whether she was happy or satisfied, disgusted or angry, Zhu Ying would show it all on her face without hiding it. Her emotions were clear to everyone, and she didn't bother to hide them at all. Thinking of the little things in the past, he couldn't help but stand up, just like he did to the little girl in his childhood, and directly pointed a finger at Zhu Ying's forehead.
"Oh..." Zhu Ying quickly took a step back and then said angrily, "Your Majesty, I'm not a child anymore. Are you listening to me carefully?"
"Listen, you said that the guy nicknamed Old Salted Fish brought back all kinds of seeds from Haidong, such as tomatoes, potatoes, corn, peanuts, etc., but he couldn't grow cotton well, and only one rubber tree survived... Oh, that one is almost dead." The emperor put away his smile and said lightly, "But Zhang Shou also sent people to report these things to me one by one."
"In fact, your ideal husband does things very unexpectedly. Since he went to Cangzhou, he usually just followed your elder brother and made symbolic reports. However, privately, he kept sending letters to the outer office of the Silijian, and then sent them to me through Chu Kuan. He really pays attention to every detail. However, private reports are more important than official reports, which is a taboo for officials. Isn't he afraid that others will say that he is trying to curry favor with his superiors to get promoted?"
"He doesn't care!" Zhu Ying snorted, but her face didn't look angry, instead she looked very happy, "He said he wasn't very interested in being an official, but he was more interested in seeing my second brother and Zhang Chen and Lu Sanlang making progress. The memorials were not only for the emperor to see, but also for many officials to see, so of course there were a lot of high-sounding words."
"Since there are other channels that can reach the emperor directly, why should we not use them just to avoid suspicion? Besides, he also told me that the plants from Haidong are not only delicious, but also filling the stomach. Many places are not as picky about the land as rice and wheat, and the yield is also high..."
"Okay, okay, I understand. Don't brag about your ideal husband in front of me anymore. I'm jealous!" The emperor had to signal Zhu Ying to stop talking. When she closed her mouth with an unsatisfied look, he said bluntly, "No matter what he thinks, these are not reasons for him to spare the lives of a group of people who occupied the palace and held the eldest prince hostage."
Seeing that the topic finally came to the most important matter, Zhu Ying couldn't help biting her lip lightly, then she made up her mind, looked directly into the emperor's eyes and said, "What if it was me? What if I was forced to hold the eldest prince hostage and asked Your Majesty to give me justice? In fact, if it wasn't for Your Majesty, I would have beaten him up right in front of you a long time ago!"
"Since I was little, he couldn't stand the fact that I went in and out of the palace as if it were my own home. He pretended to be gentle and tolerant like a good brother in front of me, but he instigated people to go against me in front of the Second Prince, and even instigated the servants to release a cat to scare me. If it weren't for the powerful Madam Li that my grandmother sent to me, I would have been almost scratched by the wild cat. I couldn't swallow this breath, and I didn't want to ask for help, so I practiced martial arts desperately."
"At least I have some talent in martial arts, which makes me better than him who only cares about fighting with others all day long. That day, I asked someone to transfer his confidants away, and I personally waited for him with a stick on his way and beat him up. After that, I told him that it is never too late for a gentleman to take revenge. I am a villain, so I can only wait for a year! If he wants to plot against me behind my back, I will beat him up in front of him!"
The emperor didn't expect Zhu Ying to dig up the old things. The eldest prince had a bruised face but said he fell because he was not watching where he was walking. Of course he knew that. Later Chu Kuan secretly told him that he was beaten by Zhu Ying. But Zhu Ying was nine years old at that time and the eldest prince was thirteen years old. He thought it was just two kids playing around, and the eldest prince chose to endure it, so he didn't investigate it too deeply.
But I didn’t expect it to be like this!
He frowned and said, "What do you mean you don't want to ask for help? Why didn't you act hypocritical when you came to me to complain?"
"Later, it was because my grandmother scolded me severely." Zhu Ying snorted in dissatisfaction, "My grandmother said that just beating him up like this would vent my anger, but others would think I was unreasonable, so whenever someone provokes me, I should go to the emperor and complain without mercy. As long as I don't whitewash my mistakes and tell the truth, that's enough!"
Seeing the emperor was speechless, Zhu Ying took another step forward, slapped the table with both hands and said, "Not only him, I have also tolerated the Second Prince for a long time! He is arrogant, impulsive and irritable. When he was fifteen years old, he said in a disgusting tone that he could reluctantly let me be his concubine...Fuck him!"
Under normal circumstances, the emperor would have angrily scolded the girl to stop swearing, but at this moment, he was silent. Zhu Ying often complained about the eldest and second princes in front of him, but the complaints were often about the stupid things the brothers did outside, and never about herself.
In other words, this girl who prefers to rely on herself would usually solve any problems that involve herself, and would not bring them to him, unless the two brothers touched her sore spot.
That Ni Lin used to belong to the Zhu family, and now... there should be another Zhang Shou!
"The Third and Fourth Princes have been so well-behaved since they were young. They are the youngest in Banshan Hall, but Ah Shou said that most of the students are very respectful to them. Even if those who are not convinced mock them in front of them, or even ignore them, the two brothers just ignore them and at most argue with them!"
"Don't say they are still young. You know what the eldest and second princes were like when they were young, Your Majesty! If a child is not taught well, it is the mother's fault, but Your Majesty is also at fault. And those ministers who taught the eldest and second princes, they are not without fault! What you said is that the face of the court cannot be lost. Isn't it to restore the face of the eldest prince that they have to kill people?"
"shut up!"
The emperor finally couldn't help but scold. Seeing Zhu Ying took two steps back sullenly, but lowered his head and didn't apologize, with a stubborn look as if he was not wrong, he couldn't help but take a deep breath, trying to calm his inexplicable irritability.
"I know everything you want to say..."
"No, Your Majesty, you don't know!" Zhu Ying suddenly raised her head again, but said word by word, "The world that Emperor Taizu hoped for was not what it is now! He hoped that everyone who tills the land will have their own land, and everyone who lives in the house will have their own house. He hoped that all children in the world could learn to read and write from an early age, and be well-educated. He hoped that the Ming Dynasty could sail across the world and forge ahead. He hoped that all people in the world would be happy and content!"
"I have sneaked into the Ancient and Modern Collection Library more times than anyone else! I can't do anything about those manuscripts that no one can understand, but at least I can understand his instructions. However, those original manuscripts admonishing his subjects, the ancestral teachings to his children and grandchildren, and the letters expressing regret for not being able to make the law fair, all of them are either shelved or pressed in boxes! So, I always feel that when Taizu went to sea..."
"He must be very disappointed. He went there hoping to rebuild a pure land in a foreign country!"
"Yingying, that's enough!"
The emperor stopped Zhu Ying again. Seeing that the beautiful girl he had watched grow up had slightly red eyes, but did not shed a single tear, instead she looked at him stubbornly, he could not help but have a headache, but he felt more that Zhu Ying was either like Jiu Niang, who was extremely stubborn, or... like Concubine Yu, who used gentleness to cover up her tough nature.
Anyway, neither he nor Zhu Jing had such personalities. He was willful and impulsive to the point of being a bit eccentric, but he was not a person who would rather break than bend. Zhu Jing was cold and hard, even cruel, but he was not like Zhu Ying, who seemed to be emitting light and heat from the inside out.
He sat down slowly, rubbed his brows, and then said in a gentle tone: "Your elder brother is with Zhang Shou. Naturally, he and Zhang Shou have discussed how to deal with the criminal. Moreover, Zhang Shou has already submitted a memorial to me in advance, and I have asked Chu Kuan to go around and submit the memorial to the Tongzhengsi again. Moreover, although I am angry, I also appreciate that he deserves death for his crime and his situation is pitiful."
Seeing that Zhu Ying's emotions had stabilized and she just kept silent, the emperor said helplessly: "But, the hurdle in the court is not something I can decide on my own."
"Then let's argue. After all, if we don't argue, we won't understand the truth, and we won't understand the truth!"
Zhu Ying raised her eyebrows indifferently, and then said with a clear look: "As long as Your Majesty can feel that Ah Shou is not at fault and can spare those eight people, I am not afraid of other people's selfish motives or other tricks!"
She paused, then snorted coldly: "Although you, as a father, will definitely be angry if I tell you this, it was only after I arrived in Cangzhou that I realized what a scumbag the eldest prince is! He is much more of a bastard than the second prince!"
Before the emperor could react, he saw Zhu Ying running out at a faster speed than when she came in. But when she reached the door, she turned back and smiled at him, "I'm leaving first. I'll go to Qingning Palace to pay my respects to the Queen Mother!"
The emperor could only smile bitterly at the girl's behavior of sweeping through his East Warm Pavilion like a whirlwind and then disappearing without a trace. However, when he understood the true meaning of some of Zhu Ying's words, he smiled a little.
In the final analysis, what Zhu Ying was worried about was that he would vent his anger on those so-called rioters because of the eldest prince's incident, and on Zhang Shou and Zhu Tingfang who protected these people but criticized the eldest prince and even the officials and gentry. As for other officials who might have bet on the eldest prince and were angry and embarrassed because of this incident, those officials who now changed camps and were committed to maintaining the so-called dignity of the royal family... she didn't take them seriously at all.
Alas, he was scolded for being undisciplined, and it was the father's fault, but he couldn't get angry. Instead, he was a little complacent here. Had he been seen through by this girl a long time ago?
After going to Qingning Palace, she talked about what she saw and heard in Cangzhou, and then the empress dowager stayed for dinner, scolded and reminded her for a long time, and then Zhu Ying left the palace. Although she was already sleepy and tired, especially after taking a bath at home, she was naturally sleepy, but she was still energetic, as if she was not on a continuous journey back to Beijing.
So, when she got on the sedan chair that the Queen Mother had specially prepared for her, she fell asleep with her head tilted. When the sedan chair stopped at the gate of Duke Zhao's mansion, Zhu Hong, who was following her, called out twice but got no response. He raised the curtain and was shocked when he saw the scene, so he quickly ordered someone to send a message. Not long after, Mother Li came out in a hurry, stepped on the pedal of the sedan chair, got on and took a look, and then laughed.
"The young lady has fallen asleep! Oh, she used to be the most sleepy person, but this time she is so tired, it's hard for her!"
First, she called for a sedan chair, and Mother Li carried Zhu Ying down steadily, placed her on the sedan chair, and carried her back to her room. When she saw Zhan Jin and Liu Yin making the bed for the young lady to sleep, she only hummed a few times in a daze and didn't even open her eyelids. She couldn't help but feel more and more sympathetic.
So, when she came out, she immediately dragged Zhu Hong to Qing'an Hall, and in front of the Taifu and Jiuniang, she questioned Zhu Ying about her trip to Cangzhou in detail. When they learned that Zhang Shou had not only personally cooked there, but also went down to look for Zhu Ying as soon as he learned that she had dug a tunnel, the Taifu and Jiuniang looked at each other and breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.
The marriage certificate has been signed and neither party can regret it. Now it seems that although Zhu Ying has paid a lot, Zhang Shou is really good to her.
Just when the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had dismissed Zhu Hong and were about to discuss many things in Cangzhou, they heard a burst of voices coming from outside. Soon, the door curtain was lifted up by someone, and then Zhu Jing strode in.
"Yingying is back? I heard she's still traveling day and night? Does she know that even though the Linhai Camp has been cleaned up again and again, there are still a few fish that slipped through the net! Just yesterday, the commander of the Linhai Camp, Xiongwei, was assassinated. She dared to walk at night!"
