Chapter 617: Birds of a feather flock together
It's really bad luck.
I had been stuck at home for seven or eight days in a row, and the sky was clear the whole time. But just as I decided to go out for a walk, a sudden storm started.
Early that morning, Ruan Rong was stirring half a bowl of crab roe and green stem porridge, saying, "A few days ago, everything was fine, and the master refused to go out for social events. But today, it's windy and rainy, and the master is making a fuss about going out! If he catches a cold..."
"I'm not that delicate."
Sun Shaozong chewed his mouthful of sour and spicy bamboo shoots and said vaguely, "Besides, didn't we get the imperial edict a few days ago? According to convention, civil and military officials who are waiting for the court to reward them have to wait at home."
One of the benefits of this trip south was that when I passed by Yangzhou on the way back, I found someone planting a bed of peppers. They said they bought them from Westerners and were going to grow them as flowers.
Sun Shaozong immediately bought it all and brought it back to the capital to try replacing the dogwood with the dried bamboo shoots. The sour and spicy dried bamboo shoots indeed became more delicious.
"Why is this?"
While asking the question, Ruan Rong placed the cooled porridge on the low table next to her.
His son Sun Chengyi had been waiting impatiently with a spoon in hand. Seeing that there was only half a bowl left, he simply put down the spoon, picked up the bowl and poured it into his mouth.
“This child!”
Ruan Rong hurriedly took out the handkerchief and put it under his neck, but it was too late. She could only complain: "I just changed into new clothes, and they are dirty again in the blink of an eye - I don't know when I can change my eating habits!"
Sun Shaozong paused for a moment, but then picked up another piece of braised chicken hearts and eggplant with his chopsticks, acting as a negative example with a nonchalant attitude.
When Ruan Rong glared at him, he explained in all seriousness, "It is said that there was no such rule before. Later, some people returned to the court after making military achievements and went around the capital to make connections. As a result, they were reprimanded by the court and their chances of promotion and wealth disappeared. Later, those who came later stayed at home honestly, and gradually it became a custom."
As they were talking and eating, they saw that most of the dishes on the table had been eaten, but their son was still sitting on a low table nearby, fighting fiercely with some Jinhua ham stewed pork elbows.
Sun Shaozong stood up and walked around to him, smacked his lips on the only clean spot on his forehead, and said with a smile: "My dear son, when daddy comes back in the evening , we will continue to set off fireworks!"
When the little fellow heard the word "fireworks", he immediately dropped his meat and bones, and rushed to Sun Shaozong with his two oily paws, shouting "Fireworks, fireworks, Daddy, please set off the fireworks".
Sun Shaozong dodged and hid behind Ruan Rong. He took the wet towel handed to him by Shi Liu and wiped his hands and mouth. He made a face at his son and ran out of the door laughing.
"You provoke him again! For no reason at all, he insists on making things difficult for me all day long!"
Ruan Rong chased after him and complained a few words, but when she saw the burly figure gradually disappearing in the rain, she couldn't help but burst out laughing.
But Sun Shaozong walked out of his yard and was blown by the cold wind on the corridor. He couldn't stop sneezing twice, thinking to himself, it's only the end of September, why is it so cold?
He regretted not listening to Ruan Rong just now and sewed a cloak before coming out, but he was too lazy to fold it and go home.
So he pulled himself together, rushed straight to the stable, asked the coachman to harness the carriage, and went out of the corner gate and headed straight for the Prince's palace.
No conversation along the way .
By the time we arrived at the Prince's Mansion, the rain had turned into ice chips, cutting our faces like knives.
Relying on Sun Shaozong's thick skin and strong body, he got out of the car without noticing and introduced his name and official position in front of the door.
Hearing that the new Dali Temple Shaoqing Lord Sun had arrived, how dare the two gatekeepers be negligent?
He hurriedly let him into the mansion and sent someone to talk to the manager.
Sun Shaozong waited in the living room in the front yard for about a cup of tea, when he saw a short and fat man rolling in like a ball. It was none other than Wang Dexiu, the chief clerk of the Zhanshi Mansion.
No.
Judging from his official robe, he has obviously been promoted to the sixth rank.
So Sun Shaozong joked, "Should I call you Lord Prime Minister now?"
"My Lord, please don't make fun of me."
After not seeing each other for two years, Wang Dexiu still had a silly smile on his face. He wiped the rain from his forehead and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince heard that you were coming, so he asked me to invite you in to talk. He also blamed me for not instructing you earlier, and letting the dog servants stop you."
Sun Shaozong had seen the prince's face turn against him in a blink of an eye, so he didn't take this closeness to heart at all.
Of course, I pretended to be grateful on the surface and said some 'heartfelt' nonsense.
He stood up and followed Wang Dexiu to the backyard. After turning around the red pavilion, he saw a tree of charcoal-red maple leaves rustling in the wind and rain.
Thinking back to two years ago, it was here that he offered the strategy of "fulfilling filial piety and nurturing power" to the Crown Prince, and at the same time he had admired the beautiful breasts of the Crown Princess, Sun Shaozong could not help but feel deeply moved.
Speaking of which...
After returning to Beijing, I only heard that the Prince's Mansion had a new prince, but I didn't hear what happened to "Li".
Of course, no matter how curious he was, Sun Shaozong would not be stupid enough to find out the truth - even though he was the one who arranged this matter in the first place.
Back to the book
Sun Shaozong originally thought that he had to enter the flower hall to see the prince, but as soon as he got nearby, he heard drums and music in the courtyard.
He could not help but frown, thinking about the scale of the ensemble. There must be at least seven or eight people, but there seemed to be only a small pavilion in the yard. How could it accommodate so many people and so many musical instruments?
Therefore, before he went in, he had a bad feeling in his heart.
When I stepped over the threshold, I saw more than a dozen musicians playing hard in the wind and snow. Among them was a group of young women, naked, dancing to the music.
Tsk~
Although the Crown Prince and King Zhongshun are at odds with each other, they are actually of the same bloodline!
Maybe it was because their hands and feet were frozen and out of control, or because of the sudden arrival of the two men, that distracted the dancers, but one of them tripped and fell onto the bluestone slab with a cry.
Pah~
Before she could get up, an apple hit her chest.
As the apple fell to the ground, someone in the pavilion shouted, "You blind bitches! His Highness is finally in a good mood, and you guys are flirting here. How dare you put on an eye drop for His Highness?"
One could tell from the sharp, high-pitched voice that it belonged to a young eunuch.
The dancer groaned from being hit, but she didn't even dare to soothe the pain in her chest. She quickly climbed up using her hands and feet , and tried her best to keep up with the dance steps of her other companions.
Although she caught up with the rhythm quickly, her thin skirt was stained with light yellow mud and stuck to her hips and legs, like a pair of flesh-colored stockings, which was particularly eye-catching.
Taking his sympathetic gaze away from the dancer's hips and legs, Sun Shaozong strode to the pavilion. Just as he was about to bow and salute, the prince was already inside, waving at him: "My dear, please come in and talk. There is no need for us to be so polite!"
After hearing what he said, Sun Shaozong didn't say anything polite and walked straight into the pavilion without saying a word.
However, he saw four basins of charcoal fire near the railings on the four sides of the pavilion, and three handsome young eunuchs were surrounding the prince, serving him by serving him tea and water and massaging his legs and feet.
Seeing Sun Shaozong coming in, the three eunuchs greeted him with smiles, and even the prince stood up from the stone table.
Faced with such a humble attitude, Sun Shaozong took the initiative to say with a straight face: "I have a few words from the bottom of my heart that I would like to report to Your Highness in private!"
With the wind and rain and the sound of drums and music, the musicians and dancers outside would never be able to hear what is being said in the pavilion unless they shouted loudly.
Therefore, it was almost clear that the three young eunuchs were to be expelled - and the smiles on the faces of the three men became a little stiff.
At the same time, the prince's eyes lit up, and he waved his hand like he was shooing away flies, and shouted, "Retreat, everyone, retreat!"
Although the three young eunuchs were somewhat dissatisfied, they had no choice but to follow orders. They went outside to call the musicians and dancers, and all of them moved away from the vicinity of the pavilion.
"My dear!"
When everything was quiet, the prince immediately stepped forward and grabbed Sun Shaozong's wrist, and asked with a burning gaze: "I wonder if you have any brilliant ideas to offer me today?!"
The cool and slippery fingers pinched Sun Shaozong so hard that goose bumps appeared on his arms.
“It’s not a good idea.”
He suppressed his discomfort and said solemnly, "I just hope Your Highness can understand the truth that people's words are scary."
"Is what people say scary?"
The prince frowned and suddenly became alert: "Could it be that after returning to the capital, you heard some rumors that were unfavorable to me?"
"That's right."
Sun Shaozong nodded: "Someone once mentioned to me the saying 'Birds of a feather flock together'. It is said that although Your Highness has made great progress recently, it is a pity that he is surrounded by a group of young and frivolous eunuchs. Over time, I am afraid that he will be deceived by villains..."
“Bold!”
When the prince first heard the saying "Birds of a feather flock together", he found it a little confusing. But when Sun Shaozong mentioned the eunuchs, he suddenly realized that this was clearly saying that he and those eunuchs were the same, all without roots and race!
He could not help but roar, gritting his teeth and questioning: "Which traitor said this?!"
"Your Highness, how can anyone who is willing to talk about this in front of me be a traitor?" Sun Shaozong spread his hands and said with a wry smile, "I'm afraid that someone with ulterior motives will spread this widely, and then all your efforts will be wasted!"
"So what you mean is..."
“Your Highness!”
Sun Shaozong took a half step back and said sternly, "Your Highness's ambitions are not originally for the women in the harem, so why do you need to rely on these feminine eunuchs? Moreover, now that the autumn examination has just passed and the literary style in the capital is flourishing, why not get closer to the scholars and talents?"
"If you can have one or two pillars of society by your side, the saying 'birds of a feather flock together' will be a compliment to Your Highness, not a derogatory one!"
