Volume 2: Residence in the Capital Chapter 231: The Dead Bones in the Tomb, the Endless Love Talk
Although Zhang Shou did point out a way, the Second Prince did not trust him at all. In addition, he was unwilling to give in and did not dare to gamble on his father's trust in him. Therefore, he decided to burn his boats and gamble on the efforts he had made for many years by the First Prince's side. After all, they had a common mother, so their manpower had something in common.
The second prince certainly knew that it seemed easier to get things from Zhang Shou and others, but since Wang Jie, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, had already been alerted, it would be too easy to alert his father if he took action against Zhang Shou. He could only choose to fill the gap with human lives and open a breakthrough from the eldest prince.
However, after more than ten days of work, seven or eight of his assassins died, but he got nothing. Not only that, the second prince also got five fingers from the eldest prince, and a bloody note was also attached to the box - what is in my hands, ghosts and gods cannot take it away!
This arrogant note made the Second Prince so angry that he smashed the study. He knew very well that the First Prince was not talking about the spinning machine, but was referring to the East Palace that the two had been fighting for, and even the future throne!
The clearer it was, the angrier he became. He was even more unwilling to give up. After thinking it over, he even wanted to ask the queen for help, but he finally gave up the idea. After all, he had seen clearly that his mother was more inclined to his elder brother than him. Because he was the legitimate eldest son and the most popular candidate for the East Palace.
But the more he suppressed his anger, the harder it was to eliminate it. Wang Jie repeatedly interrogated the guards in his palace, causing everyone to feel insecure. Some even talked behind his back, wondering when the Shuntian prefect would be so ruthless as to bring him, the second prince, to the Shuntian prefectural government. Although the second prince beat the man to death in anger after hearing this, the situation got out of control.
In a state of panic, some people thought that instead of living in fear day and night, they might as well fight hard, and they actually reported the Second Prince's beating of a slave to death to the Shuntian Prefecture! Now, the Second Prince, who was already embroiled in lawsuits, became a rat crossing the street, and everyone wanted to kill him, especially the First Prince, who stood up and openly accused the Second Prince of being arrogant and tyrannical, and tarnishing the virtue of the royal family.
According to the old system of Emperor Taizu, slaves who betrayed their masters, bullied their superiors, abused their subordinates, disturbed the people, and committed adultery were considered unforgivable and could be killed by their masters. In addition, if a slave was killed for trivial matters, the crime was reduced to one level of murder and the slave was caned 40 times, and no fine was allowed to redeem himself.
Seeing that the second prince had gone insane and committed two serious crimes, the officials in the court who had originally disliked the second prince naturally attacked him. Many of them were upright people who strictly abided by etiquette and believed that the eldest son should be made the heir. Seeing that the situation was precarious, even though the emperor did not summon the second prince and did not make any decisions, the once glorious villa was deserted.
If it weren't for the servant who ran to the Shuntian government office to report the incident and did not escape the punishment of the iron-faced prefect Wang Jie, who was beaten with forty sticks and almost died for reporting her master, the others would have fled like birds and beasts. Who would have the patience to serve the Second Prince who not only had no hope of entering the Eastern Palace but could be severely punished at any time and could not even be a rich and idle person?
In this situation where everyone deserted him, the second prince was the one who threw himself out. Instead of staying in his mansion to reflect on his mistakes, he went out with his entourage every day in fine clothes and on a horse. Although he did not abandon himself to the point of molesting women in the street and bullying the people, wherever he went, everyone avoided him as if he were a tiger or a wolf passing through their territory. As time went by, he became more and more angry.
However, on this day, he, who was still desperate, ran into an evil star on the street - to be more precise, an evil star plus a nemesis. It turned out to be Zhu Ying and Zhang Shou!
Because it was already the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, when the Imperial College was closed for the New Year, most of the students had gone home. In addition, it was said that the Northern Expedition Army was about to return to the capital, so Zhu Ying was extremely happy and took Zhang Shou shopping to buy New Year goods and gifts for his father and brother who were about to return. The two people and the followers who followed them also did not expect to meet the second prince by chance.
When enemies meet, they are particularly jealous of each other. This was originally an absolute truth for the second prince . But now when he saw Zhu Ying and Zhang Shou, the second prince's first reaction was not to provoke a fight, but to turn his horse and ride away to avoid these two untreatable guys.
He is in trouble now, but as long as he does not provoke Zhu Ying, who has always been favored by his father, and as long as he does not provoke Zhang Shou, who his father has recently valued, he thinks he can still enjoy a period of unbridled life.
However, Zhu Ying was not satisfied when she found that the Second Prince was avoiding her like a snake or scorpion. She took a deep breath and shouted, "Stop! Have you done something harmful again? Otherwise, why are you hiding from us?"
The Second Prince had already galloped out for more than ten steps, but he was so angry when he heard this that he turned his horse back without a second thought. His followers, who were already listless, were all stunned by this unexpected scene.
"Zhu Ying, don't think that just because I've always given in to you, you can act recklessly in front of me!" The Second Prince used his whip to lightly point at Zhu Ying, his expression seemed to be resentful and angry, but only he knew that he was clearly a little bit timid at this moment. However, if Zhu Ying still refused to give in, even if he was now surrounded by enemies, he would not give in.
Seeing Zhu Ying's eyebrows raised and her beautiful eyes filled with anger, she was about to retort when Zhang Shou suddenly coughed and pulled Zhu Ying back: "Yingying, why bother provoking him? He hesitated when he should have, and instead got himself into deeper trouble. If this goes on, even if he lingers on, he will be nothing more than dry bones in a grave."
Zhu Ying's anger turned into joy, and she nodded repeatedly, saying, "Ah Shou, you are right. We are just going about our business. What does he have to do with us? Wang Dayin has already said that if he catches the Second Prince disturbing the people again, he will come to our door in person!"
The second prince's heart skipped a beat when he heard Zhu Ying's words. The shock and anger he felt when Zhang Shou called him a dead bone in a tomb suddenly disappeared. He kept thinking about Zhang Shou's words, "If you don't make a decision, you will get deeper and deeper into trouble." When he understood the deep meaning of Zhang Shou's words, he looked up again, but there was no trace of the two people and Zhu's followers.
Zhu Ying, who had walked away, took Zhang Shou to visit two antique shops in a row. Seeing that Zhang Shou just made nodding sounds from beginning to end and could not offer any constructive suggestions on the gifts she wanted to buy for her father and brother, she suddenly felt unhappy as she had long forgotten about the second prince.
When they walked out of the antique shop, she said gloomily, "My father and elder brother haven't met you yet. I brought you here to choose gifts to tell you what they like! They are not my grandmother and mother. What if they don't like you?"
Zhang Shou certainly understood the young lady's intention, and immediately said with a smile: "It has always been the case that the more the mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law, the happier she is, while the more the father-in-law looks at his son-in-law, the more he dislikes him. As for the eldest brother-in-law and the younger brother-in-law, ten out of ten can't stand their brother-in-law or brother-in-law. So, Yingying, instead of helping me to please them in this way, you might as well find another way."
Hearing that Zhang Shou was speaking openly of words like son-in-law, brother-in-law, and even addressed him as mother-in-law, father-in-law, and uncle-in-law so naturally, Zhu Ying felt both happy and worried.
The good news is that although she was more proactive at first, judging from Zhang Shou's current attitude towards her, he obviously has feelings for her. The bad news is that her father had clearly arranged this marriage for her a long time ago, but he never mentioned it to her before. Even though he had invited Ge Yong as a teacher for Zhang Shou , after Ge Yong came back, her father seemed to ignore him, and her eldest brother was a meticulous person...
Thinking of this, Zhu Ying was worried that her father and brother would really dislike Zhang Shou, so she immediately asked, "How do you find another way?"
Zhang Shou looked at the anxious girl with a smile and said slowly, "As long as you are determined to marry me, that's enough."
"Ah?" Zhu Ying couldn't help but widen her eyes. As generous as she was, her face was extremely charming. It wasn't until she realized that there was no trace of teasing in Zhang Shou's eyes when he looked at her that the shame and anger in her heart immediately disappeared without a trace. Instead, she was deeply happy. She smiled and said, "Well, Ah Shou, marry me and take me home as soon as possible!"
“Cough… cough cough cough cough…”
Zhang Shou couldn't help but be choked by Miss Zhu's straightforward love words. This girl actually said his confession first! Shouldn't it be the man who says marry me first in such an important event in life the equally stunned guards of the Duke of Zhao's mansion at the door of the store, and deeply realized what kind of existence this girl next to him was.
Seeing Zhu Ying's expression that said she would not leave unless she agreed, Zhang Shou could not help but take a deep breath and whispered, "Silly girl, who else can I marry if you don't marry me? However, we are only seventeen after the New Year, so you should wait for me for a few more months."
Zhu Ying raised her eyebrows, feeling a little annoyed: "Why do we have to wait a few more months? Wouldn't it be enough to wait for Dad and Big Brother to come back?"
"Because marrying you is a big deal." Zhang Shou smiled and tightened Zhu Ying's red gorilla felt cloak, then said in a deep voice, "You can't let people laugh at you and say that the eldest daughter of the Duke of Zhao's mansion is always so picky, but after careful selection, she ended up marrying a poor man from a humble family with nothing..."
"As long as I like it and my parents, grandmother, eldest brother and second brother can accept it, I don't care what others say!"
Zhu Ying's answer was still straightforward and direct. Zhang Shou was naturally happy and relieved when he heard it. But in the end, he still smiled and said, "You don't care, but I am narrow-minded and care about what people say. Even if I can't give you good things, at least I can't let your life be too much worse than before... Come on, I'll take you to see something."
Zhu Hong, who was standing by, saw Zhang Shou pulling Zhu Ying onto the horse. He quickly called out to the guards to follow, but he couldn't help thinking about the shocking conversation between the engaged couple.
Zhu Ying's words could scare those Confucian gentlemen to death, while Zhang Shou's words could make those gentlemen who wanted a noble wife but were self-righteous feel ashamed to death... However, it is too difficult to make Zhu Ying live a life no worse than before marriage. You know, Zhu Ying has been raised in wealth since she was a child. The Lady Dowager and the Duke have spoiled her like the apple of their eye!
When Zhang Shou took Zhu Ying to visit his "R&D base", the second prince lost interest in sightseeing and hurried back to his own villa. He ordered everyone to prepare to follow him into the palace, and then he hurried back to his room. When he came out, the servants who dared not speak to him were suddenly as if they had been struck by lightning.
The second prince, who was always aggressive, impulsive, tyrannical and unwilling to admit his mistakes, was now wearing a cloth robe?
If he hadn't been bare-chested and covered with thorns, it would have been too conspicuous, and too much is as bad as too little. The second prince was even willing to make up his mind and apologize. But now seeing the stupid looks of his subordinates, he knew that this was enough. At that moment, he said with a gloomy face: "What are you all standing there for? Drive the car and take me to the palace!"
Although he usually prefers riding a horse rather than staying in a carriage like the eldest prince, who is proud of his status and isolated from the outside world, the second prince was afraid of being laughed at for dressing up like this today, even if he had other plans, so of course he was unwilling to show off in the streets. But even if he was riding in a carriage, when he got off at Donghua Gate, he still attracted many eyes.
He felt that all those who looked at him were laughing at him, and he wished he could dig out their eyeballs, but at this moment he could only ignore them and hurried to the palace. When he finally arrived at the Qianqing Gate and claimed that he had something important to ask to see his father, he saw several guards staring at each other for a while, and finally one of them ran to report, and the rest just smiled and said nothing.
Although he knew that the people in the Qianqing Palace were different from those in the Kunning Palace, and few of them had tried to curry favor with him in the past, the Second Prince was now at his most sensitive, so he naturally became even more furious. But who would have thought that after the guard who went to report came out, he would say something respectful and hard: "Second Prince, please go back. The Emperor said that he has a lot of things to do, and will see you later when he has time."
The second prince was so angry that he almost went crazy. He, as a son, couldn't even see his father? He was even worse than those ministers!
He raised his voice and said word by word: "When you report again, tell them that I have something urgent to report to my father!"
The guard was immediately embarrassed: "Second Prince, the emperor said that he has several reports on the Northern Expedition waiting for his consideration, so he really has no time to come and see you..."
In fact, the emperor's words were more straightforward: "He came to see me in plain clothes, and he wants to offset his previous actions of taking human lives lightly and doing whatever he wanted? He should stop dreaming. If he has the time to act in front of me, he might as well think about his future! "
The second prince had no idea that what others said was already taking his fragile mood into consideration. He only knew that his anger could burn down the entire palace! After enduring it again and again, he finally chose to give in, and actually knelt straight down.
"Today I am asking to see the emperor, it is indeed a matter of great importance for the country and the people. If the emperor does not see me, I will kneel here and die!"
When the emperor heard the news carefully reported by Liu Feng, the steward of the Qianqing Palace, he could not help but throw down the memorial in his hand in a bad mood and said impatiently: "If he really knew how to admit his mistakes, why would he wait until today? He was forced into a desperate situation, so he burned his boats! Let him kneel, if he can really kneel for half an hour, I will listen to what he has to say!"
