Volume 2: Residence in the Capital Chapter 218 Good things are coming
Good things are about to happen to you. This simple sentence made all four of them dry their mouths.
After all, they were in their own home, so Zhu Er couldn't help but ask first: "It's not that bad, is it? There are only two princesses and two princesses in total, we can't take them all, right? If that were the case, the whole capital would explode!"
Seeing that Zhang Chen, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu all showed expressions of approval, and Lu Sanlang stood there with a smile and said nothing because he was the first person to accomplish the good deed, Zhang Shou said with a half-smile: "It is true that there are only two princesses and two county ladies this time, but don't forget that there are many daughters of the royal family, the emperor is familiar with them, and there are also girls from various noble families and officials."
"There is no need for the emperor to grant a marriage. As long as the emperor sincerely praises you, are you afraid that no one will want you?" What's more, the emperor seems to have already made plans for Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu. The rest are Zhang Chen and Zhu Er, who have good family backgrounds. As long as others are sure that the two have the tendency to turn over a new leaf, how many people can refuse the two in-laws, the Duke of Qin and the Duke of Zhao?
Zhang Chen was hit hard by the emperor and knew that there was no hope for Princess Yongping. Coupled with the setback he had suffered from Zhu Ying before, he couldn't help but feel a little bored. He said listlessly, "Zhu Er and I made such a fool of ourselves in front of the emperor, and we came out empty-handed. We were laughed at. The emperor played a trick on us, so why would he care about us!"
Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu only knew what happened when they met the emperor, and they knew nothing about the others. They knew something was wrong when they saw Zhu Er and Zhang Chen fighting. Now that Zhang Chen said this, they became even more curious. As for Lu Sanlang, his desire to watch the fun and gloat over others' misfortunes became even stronger.
However, Zhang Shou himself asked the emperor not to reveal the matter of today's interview, so of course he would not reveal it. He smiled and said, "It seems that the emperor is playing tricks on you, but if he didn't treat you as close juniors, he would have sent you away with just a few words, why would he say so much nonsense to you?"
Zhang Chen was stunned for a moment, and Zhu Er suddenly realized, "Yes, if the emperor doesn't like us, why would he bother talking to us so much? Haha, I didn't expect that I would have a lucky day!"
"What a lucky day!" Following this voice, the door was pushed open rudely by the boss, and then Zhu Ying rushed in without caring about anything. She looked around and saw that the room was full of her acquaintances, so she glanced at them casually, and her eyes finally fell on Zhang Shou.
"I was kept in Qingning Palace by the Empress Dowager for most of the day, as if she was afraid that I would go to Qianqing Palace to peek in! I was not released until Ah Shou and my second brother Zhang Chen finally left Qianqing Palace." Zhu Ying revealed her whereabouts today, and then said with a smile, "Ah Shou, when others saw you sitting aside today, did they become suspicious and behave in a panic?"
"Even if there was, it was because he was stunned when he first saw me." Zhang Shou casually changed the subject and pointed at Zhu Er and said, "As for your second brother, the emperor personally promised him that he would select a master to teach him martial arts, but he has to pay five strings of cash every month for tuition. The emperor clearly stated that he has to pay for it himself."
Seeing Zhu Er's bitter expression, Zhu Ying couldn't help but burst out laughing: "This is a good idea. He will feel sorry for the money when he takes it himself! Grandmother has said before that she will never give Second Brother a penny more in the future. She also ordered people to take good care of every item in his room to prevent him from taking it out to exchange for money. She also forbade me to give him money or things. So, Second Brother, you have to work hard on your own!"
What the hell can you do with five strings of cash a month in Beijing? It's just enough to invite friends to a restaurant for a couple of drinks!
Zhu Er's sad expression also infected Zhang Chen. When he thought that he would never marry a unique beauty like Princess Yongping, and that the emperor had heard his words about learning eight-part essays, he suddenly felt like crying but had no tears. Therefore, he could only look at Zhang Shou for help: "Young Master, can you give me some advice? I don't want to recite the Four Books all day long!"
Although he couldn't write that damn eight-legged essay, he at least knew that in order to write those things well, one must be familiar with the Four Books!
"The emperor is just trying to scare you. Even if you write eight-legged essays beautifully, will you take the imperial examination? He will definitely choose an open-minded teacher for you, so you can rest assured. But..." Zhang Shou glanced at the dejected Zhu Er and suddenly laughed, "But if I had to guess, you probably still have to pay tuition, and the emperor may instruct Duke Qin and his wife to limit your spending."
Zhu Er, who had just been complaining about himself, suddenly perked up and slapped his thigh, saying, "Yes, there's no reason to limit me and not you!"
Zhang Chen, who was already depressed, was so angry that his lungs exploded: "What does it have to do with you whether I have money or not? Why are you gloating over other people's misfortunes? You are hurting others and not benefiting yourself!"
"So what if it hurts others but doesn't benefit yourself? Who told you not to appreciate the good fortune you have? You sigh all day long and feel that your life is not easy. Bah, look at Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu, they have a hard time at home, but they don't complain outside every day!"
Seeing that her second brother and Zhang Chen first quarreled and then glared at each other, as if they might fight at any time, Zhu Ying could not help but shout angrily: "What are you quarreling about? If you want to quarrel, go outside and quarrel. If you want to fight, go outside and fight!"
As soon as he said this, Zhang Chen did not hesitate any more, and he grabbed Zhu Er and dragged him out. Zhu Ying stopped Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu who wanted to stop the fight, and waited for the two to leave with a smile, then she went straight to the study door and bolted it. She turned around and clapped her hands, and then said to Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu who were dumbfounded: "My second brother is just a bad mouth, he should be taught a lesson."
Lu Sanlang finally found an opportunity to speak, and immediately laughed dryly: "When Zhu Er has the training of the masters sent by the emperor, won't he be able to defeat Zhang Chen easily? After suffering a little today, his determination should be stronger!"
"That being said, it depends on how long his perseverance can last!" Zhang Shou smiled, but seeing that Zhu Ying's bright smile didn't seem to be in such a good mood, he said, "Okay, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu, you have been here, it's time to go back. Come to my room at noon tomorrow, good things are coming, and I have something to say to you two."
As for Lu Sanlang, as soon as he saw the fat boy's smiling face, he knew that he would come and join in the fun without any instructions.
Hearing the constant scolding and groaning outside the door, Zhang Shou was afraid of something happening, so he quickly went out to stop the two guys who were angry and fighting, and then drove everyone else back. As soon as Zhang Chen and his four men left, the old lady immediately sent Mother Jiang over to talk to Zhu Er, whose mouth was broken by Zhang Chen and who was in a mess, but left Zhu Ying behind.
Seeing Zhu Ying walking around in Ziyan Pavilion, as if treating Zhu Er's place as his own, Zhang Shou couldn't help but think of Zhang Chen's study room, so he just wandered around. Unlike Zhang Chen who deliberately tried every means to anger his father, Qin Guogong Zhang Chuan, Zhu Er was obviously cautious in Zhao Guogong's mansion. He looked around the bookshelves and saw that they were all serious books.
The most unserious of them were just books about strange and bizarre things like "Soushen Ji". Obviously, if there were any pornographic paintings or something like that, Zhu Er would have hidden them very well. He casually flipped through a new volume of "Four Books Annotations" and suddenly asked without turning his head, "Yingying, did something happen in Qingning Palace today?"
"How do you know?"
Zhang Shou turned around and saw Zhu Ying lazily lying on Zhu Er's desk without any manners . He immediately dropped the book and walked behind her.
Seeing the swallowtail of her hair hanging down smoothly on her left shoulder, he couldn't help but subconsciously reach out and circle it. When he realized that the action was a bit frivolous, he was about to withdraw his hand, but Zhu Ying seemed to have eyes on the back of her head and suddenly grabbed his hand.
"Ah Shou..." Zhu Ying held Zhang Shou's five fingers tightly, and whispered after a long while, "I just found out today that Yongping doesn't want to get married! She knows very well that no matter who she likes, even those talented men from poor families that she has admired, as long as she tells the emperor, the emperor will definitely fulfill her wish, but she doesn't want to get married!"
"Because she had this idea, and somehow someone found out about it, someone actually sent her a note in my name. If the Queen Mother hadn't acted decisively today, there might have been a big incident! The Queen Mother said that someone might have used my tone to tell her how not to get married in that note, and there might be other motives behind it, maybe accusing her of having an affair."
At this point, Zhu Ying suddenly turned around and stood up. Seeing Zhang Shou's clear eyes on her, with a bit of surprise on his face, she looked again and saw that her hand was still tightly holding his hand. She couldn't help but blush slightly, but then she looked straight into his eyes frankly: "A Shou, why do you think she is so stupid?"
Since the first time Zhang Shou met Princess Yongping in Yuehua Tower, he had realized in the few contacts that beneath the veil of the talented princess, she was hiding a man's ambition, or ambition. As for the golden branches and jade leaves in the legendary stories, such as choosing a son-in-law with embroidered balls or poems, they had nothing in common with this princess who always showed the characteristics of an orchid in the valley.
Therefore, he thought about it and smiled: "Maybe it's because Princess Yongping doesn't want love between men and women, but other things."
"What does she want? To be like Princess Taiping, to point fingers at the country, to place prime ministers, and even to depose and enthrone the emperor... Ugh!" Zhu Ying raised her eyebrows in annoyance, but when she said the last few words, she saw Zhang Shou's warning look, so she swallowed the word "Son of Heaven" and said with disapproval, "She is too wishful thinking. This is not the Han or Tang Dynasty!"
"Everyone has their own aspirations, and they cannot be forced."
Zhang Shou shrugged slightly, and seeing that his hand was still in Zhu Ying's, he shook her hand back. Seeing that she was suddenly surprised and flustered, he smiled and said, "Aren't you and her not on good terms? Why are you suddenly so concerned about her affairs?"
"After all, we were born on the same day of the same month of the same year. Besides, Concubine Yu has always been very kind to me, and I... well, I love her and love her too!" Zhu Ying tried her best to appear nonchalant, with an expression that showed that she was sympathetic, but her eyebrows and eyes were all smiling in an instant. "Besides, I didn't really want to get married before, but when I went to the countryside, I met you, and I felt that it was destined that we would meet each other even though we were thousands of miles apart!"
"Well, look how kind I am. She used to be hard on me, but I still thought that if she wasn't so stubborn, she would definitely be able to find her ideal husband! But the prerequisite is that she doesn't care so much about power and looks for it carefully!"
Zhang Shou finally laughed again. Maybe some people think that Miss Zhu is arrogant, unreasonable, and self-willed, but this girl in front of him, despite her seemingly reckless appearance, actually has a very kind heart.
He immediately stretched out his other hand and held her hand in his: "If I'm not mistaken, the nosy Miss Yingying must have reminded Princess Yongping a few more times afterwards, right?"
"Of course!" Zhu Ying simply placed her other hand on the back of Zhang Shou's warm hand, and then she repeated her words with a smile, and then snorted, "The one who can order people to do such a thing in Qingning Palace must be the queen! She is so stupid, thinking that the queen mother will follow her wishes to embarrass Yongping?"
"Even if I am her beloved niece, closer than her own granddaughter, the Empress Dowager would definitely not do that! My grandmother always said that the Empress Dowager is the one who values stability the most, so she always scolds the Emperor for being reckless!"
Speaking of which, the emperor was indeed... quite rash! Of course, it could also be interpreted as being eccentric.
Zhang Shou smiled immediately. At this moment, a slight cough suddenly came from outside. Before he was ready to let go of her hand, Zhu Ying immediately put down her hand, then turned around like a whirlwind and rushed to the door, and then opened it. Seeing that it was Mother Li standing outside the door with a smile on her face, Miss Zhu tried to ask in the most natural manner: "What's the matter, did my second brother make my grandmother angry again?"
"No, not really." Mother Li had a calm expression on her face, as if she had seen nothing and heard nothing. Especially when she saw Zhang Shou strolling over and standing side by side with Zhu Ying, she couldn't help but take a few more glances at this talented and beautiful couple, and then she said with a smile, "The masters sent by the emperor have arrived, and the madam and the lady sent me to report it!"
"Huh? This is really a good thing to come!"
Zhu Ying then became excited. She turned her head to look at Zhang Shou, and seeing that he was also very excited, she immediately grabbed Zhang Shou's sleeve and left happily. When Mother Li, who was left behind, saw this, her face was immediately filled with helplessness.
However, Zhu Ying finally let Zhang Shou go, or rather let his sleeve go, and rushed into Qing'an Hall first. But after she looked around for a while, she found that Zhu Er was sitting there obediently, and Ah Liu was answering the questions of the lady seriously, although he was mainly saying "um" and "ah", but the person she wanted to see was nowhere to be seen.
So she immediately asked, "Where is the person sent by the emperor? Is he leaving now?"
Zhang Shou, who came in later, saw that everyone in the room, including the lady, had a subtle expression. Soon, he saw Jiu Niang glance in a certain direction, and he had to follow her gaze, but then he was stunned.
