The palace had previously banned several children from playing Cuju, nominally so that it would interfere with their studies, but Zhu Hao knew that the palace was just trying to protect Zhu Si's safety.
The ban was suddenly lifted, and Zhu San and Zhu Si were allowed to come to the West Courtyard. This matter does not seem to be that simple.
Just as Zhu Hao expected.
Just after dinner that evening, Yuan Zonggao brought Lu Song to see Zhu Hao. At this time, only Zhu Hao and Jing Hong were left in the room.
Yuan Zonggao called Zhu Hao to the courtyard alone and said, "Zhu Hao, the palace will hold a banquet in the city tomorrow to entertain someone. You and Zhang Fengzheng will go together then."
Zhu Hao understood what he heard.
The person he was going to meet was most likely the eunuch Zhang Zhong from the Imperial Stables.
The palace wanted him to meet a senior eunuch in the palace...
This is very interesting. Could it be that he should go there as the prince of Prince Xing?
"Mr. Yuan, who am I going to meet?" Zhu Hao took the initiative to ask, contrary to his usual behavior. As the Zhu family's insider in the palace, he should not have asked such a sensitive question.
Yuan Zonggao did not hide anything and answered directly: "You are going to meet a distinguished guest from the capital, a steward of the palace. You will not go there in your own identity tomorrow, but in place of the prince... After you meet that person, you will answer any questions as the prince. With your intelligence, you should be able to handle such a situation easily, right?"
Zhu Hao thought it was most likely the Hongmen Banquet.
It is just not clear whether it was Zhang Zhong who proposed to meet the Prince of Xing, or the prince's palace took the initiative to facilitate the prince to see the world. There is a big difference between the two.
Instead of letting Zhu San go, and letting Jing Hong pretend to be him, he had to... Aren't they afraid that he would tell the Zhu family everything, and then the Zhu family would report it?
It was obvious that Prince Xing's Mansion had a comprehensive plan, and Zhu Hao felt that he was being used.
"Lu Dianzhang, you will bring the clothes that Zhu Hao is going to wear later, and you should also teach him etiquette." Yuan Zonggao first gave Lu Song a few instructions, and then looked at Zhu Hao, "If you are unable to cope with the situation tomorrow, just keep silent, understand?"
Zhu Hao said: "I understand."
Yuan Zonggao nodded with satisfaction. "Okay, Lu Dianzhang, come with me. I will tell you some details, and he will guide you later."
…
…
Yuan Zonggao and Lu Song left.
Zhu Hao began to ponder the pros and cons of this matter.
Jing Hong walked out of the room, looked around to see if there was anyone else, and then asked, "What does Mr. Yuan want to see you about?"
Zhu Hao was still in a daze and did not answer.
After a long time, when it was completely dark, Lu Song finally arrived with the clothes Zhu Hao would wear tomorrow. He called Zhu Hao to the courtyard, nominally to instruct on etiquette on behalf of the palace, but actually to explain the situation to Zhu Hao.
"...It was Eunuch Zhang who proposed to meet the prince, and the palace could not refuse...and they might even invite you to a private dinner at that time." Lu Song said.
Zhu Hao frowned, "You mean, the palace is worried that Eunuch Zhang has some bad intentions, so they asked me to replace the prince? Can't the princess go instead?"
Lu Song shook his head: "The princess is still a royal family member, and she is listed in the royal family register. Eunuch Zhang is a good judge of people, so he will definitely not be able to hide it."
Can't hide it?
Zhu Hao thought to himself that it was obvious that Prince Xing felt that Zhu San was also his own child and he could not take risks with his own flesh and blood.
"I know what you want to ask. You're asking Jing Hong, right? He's not as smart as you, and he'll be exposed if he can't react in time... You're obviously more suitable to handle this kind of situation."
At the end, Lu Song added a sentence.
Zhu Hao was thinking again.
In fact, Jinghong didn't go not because he was not smart enough, but because he was the son of an official. How could he explain to the county magistrate if something happened?
On the contrary, Zhu Hao... was originally an undercover agent sent by the Zhu family. He had a worthless life and no one cared whether he lived or died.
Zhu Hao said, "Lu Dianzhang, Yuan Changshi knows my identity and background and asked me to go see Eunuch Zhang. Let's not talk about whether the Zhu family and the captain Lin behind you are having a banquet together. As for me... Isn't the palace afraid that I will tell my family that the palace wants me to pretend to be the prince?"
Lu Song looked at Zhu Hao with pity on his face. "You are really worrying too much. It was not a formal meeting. There was no official document from the court, let alone a secret decree from His Majesty. The reason why they met was all due to his special status. Even if someone told him afterwards, what would happen? He went to Anlu not just for the Prince Xing's Mansion. At that time... the Prince Xing's Mansion will send him a generous gift. When he returns to the capital, he will naturally know how to report to the court."
This statement is self-contradictory.
Since Prince Xing's Mansion felt that it could bribe Zhang Zhong, why did they still worry about him being harmful to the Crown Prince?
It was not a formal meeting, but they went ahead with it. It was obvious that the palace wanted the prince to show up in front of the bigwigs in the court more often, to let the people of the world know that Prince Xing was not a fool. Even though he was still a long way from the position of crown prince, those civil officials in the court who had concerns about the position of crown prince, such as Yang Tinghe and Liang Chu, knew that there was such an alternative plan.
I want to show my face, but I don’t want to take risks…
Using me as cannon fodder?
"Lu Dianzhang, will you go with us tomorrow?" Zhu Hao asked.
Lu Song said: " I don't know ."
Zhu Hao asked again: "If Captain Lin asked, would you tell Captain Lin the truth that the person Zhang Zhong met was not the real Prince Xing?"
Lu Song did not answer this question, and said to himself: "The clothes are here. You and the prince are not much different in size. You need to get dressed early tomorrow morning. Don't worry about the classes. Just follow the instructions of the palace."
After saying that, Lu Song didn't stop and just walked away.
Wait for Zhu Hao to return to the house with the clothes.
Jing Hong was surprised and said, "This is... such a luxurious dress. Was it a reward from the palace?"
Zhu Hao said, "Do you think it's a good thing? You'd better stop asking about the reason. I won't go to class tomorrow. If Mr. Gongsun asks about it... just say that I have something wrong at home."
…
…
Early the next morning.
Jing Hong and Lu Bing both went to class, but Zhu Hao was still sitting by the couch, dressed in the common clothes of a prince. He looked like a bride waiting to be married, but he did not have the nervousness of a bride. Instead, he looked a little mischievous, waiting to meet the important man from the capital.
They waited until noon when Zhang Zuo, the palace attendant, arrived, followed by Lu Song and two guards.
"Oh, how else can we say that the prince is so handsome? Look... this dress is tailor-made for you. Who would dare to say he is not the prince when he walks out?"
Zhang Zuo is not as cunning as Yuan Zonggao, but the tone of his voice makes people feel that he deserves a beating.
Perhaps it was because eunuchs were born with a cunning and mean streak, and today was a meeting between eunuchs, so Zhang Zuo was too excited and actually made fun of him.
Zhu Hao asked, "Zhang Fengzheng, who are we going to meet today?"
Zhang Zuo pretended to be respectful and said, "In reply to your question, the person I am going to meet today is the eunuch Zhang Zhong from the Imperial Horse Administration. He is a well-known figure in the Leopard House. Your Highness may not know what the Leopard House is, but it is... a place where the elites of the world gather."
Zhu Hao really wanted to spit in the other person's face.
Even though the Leopard House was a filthy place where the world's elites gathered, why didn't he think Zhang Zuo was so hypocritical before? Or should he blame himself for being too "young". Before, he observed Zhang Zuo's courtesy and politeness when communicating with Jing Zhongkuan, and thought he was a decent person, but who knew he was such a wretch.
In the field of power, there are no honest people!
"Sir, it's time to set off. If there is anything you don't understand, ask as soon as possible. Don't talk too much when you get there. Even if someone asks you aggressively, just wait for me to answer for you."
…
…
Zhang Zuo didn't bring many people this time. Apart from Zhu Hao and Lu Song, there were only a few followers.
Not in a carriage, but on foot.
We arrived at a tavern, which didn't even have a plaque on the door. We went up to the second floor, which was facing the direction of the palace. On the other side, we could see the bookstore. There was an open area around it, and the scenery was nice.
Zhang Zuo arranged the seats and asked Zhu Hao to sit down and wait, while he and Lu Song stood aside.
After a long time, there was movement downstairs.
Zhu Hao was about to stand up, but Zhang Zuo pushed him back to his seat: "Don't alarm the prince. Lu Dianzhang, take good care of the prince."
Then Zhang Zuo went downstairs to greet him.
After a while, Zhang Zuo's laughter was heard, and under his guidance, a tall, fair-complexioned, but fierce-looking middle-aged man came up the stairs.
This person was wearing a loose Taoist robe, and behind him was a guard in tight clothes...
It was Captain Lin.
When seeing Captain Lin, Lu Song's expression was the first to change.
Lu Song's eyes flickered with a hint of avoidance, and he didn't dare to look at Captain Lin. Captain Lin's eyes looked at him with obvious anger.
One was his undercover agent in the palace, and the other was an insider arranged by the Zhu family in the palace...but no one informed him in advance that the palace would find someone to impersonate the prince today.
"Is this the prince of Xing?"
When Zhang Zhong arrived, he spoke very loudly, but unfortunately his voice was like a duck's, hoarse and harsh.
Although Zhang Zuo was the official in the palace and held a high position, he was just a nobody in front of Zhang Zhong, so he said respectfully, "That's right."
Zhu Hao was still sitting there.
He now had to get into character, pretending to be the only son of King Xing. He didn't need to perform greetings to a eunuch. He just had to sit there .
Seeing that Zhu Hao was unmoved and didn't even look at him, Zhang Zhong's face became even more ferocious. But after waiting for a while, he took the initiative to step forward, bowed and said, "I, Zhang, greet His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince of Prince Xing."
Zhu Hao still didn't look at him straight in the eye, raised his chin, and said loudly: "No need to be polite."
Zhang Zhong then straightened up, his eyes filled with annoyance. He felt that Prince Xing did not take him seriously and his self-esteem was hurt.
As a eunuch, and a powerful eunuch in front of the emperor, he cares most about other people's attitude towards him.
Lu Song quickly clasped his fists and saluted without saying anything.
Zhang Zhong glanced at Lu Song and asked Captain Lin beside him: "Who is this..."
"He's just a mere follower, not worth mentioning!" Zhang Zuo replied respectfully.
"Alright, we'll set up another banquet somewhere else, and we don't want outsiders to be present. Prince... please."
Originally, Zhang Zuo invited Zhang Zhong to dinner as the host on behalf of Prince Xing's Mansion. Zhang Zhong came up and said that he wanted to invite Prince Xing to the dinner alone, and no one from Prince Xing's Mansion was allowed to accompany him.
"this……"
Zhang Zuo seemed very embarrassed.
Zhang Zhong glared at him and asked, "Is there a problem?"
Zhang Zuo looked at Zhu Hao. If the man in front of him was really the Prince of Xing, he would definitely not agree. The Prince was the only treasure of Xing, and no one could take the responsibility if anything went wrong.
But if it's a fake...
Then anything is fine, it’s up to you!
But in order to dispel Zhang Zuo's suspicion, he still pretended to be embarrassed and said, "The guards must accompany us. The prince repeatedly instructed before he came out that the prince must not be harmed in the slightest. Please understand, eunuch Zhang."
Zhang Zhong glanced at Zhu Hao coldly, turned and walked towards the stairs, leaving two words lightly: "Whatever."