Chapter 54: Complaint
The Fifth Prince looked at him and immediately began to retreat after seeing him. His face turned green.
“What do I mean? Fifth brother, what are you talking about?” Ye Shuo was still pretending to be stupid.
The fifth prince was immediately furious: “Ye Shuo! Do you think I’m blind?!”
Ye Shuo was surprised: “How could it be, Fifth Brother, how could you think like that? Fifth Brother, you are really wronging me.”
“By the way, Fifth Brother, do you have anything else to do? If not, I’ll leave first. My mother is calling me back for dinner. See you later!”
Seeing the poor acting skills of Old Nine, the Fifth Prince suddenly felt unsteady.
Seeing that he was trying to slip away, the Fifth Prince didn’t even think twice and immediately winked at his attendants and companions.
The attendants and companions understood and responded immediately.Looking at the two people blocking the door, Ye Shuo was helpless: “Fifth brother, what do you want to do? Just tell me.”
“I see you don’t look very well. How about… you sit down and talk slowly. I’m sure your brother is listening.”
Ye Shuo was really afraid that he would not pay attention and lie back on the bed, and then he would be unable to explain himself.
The child’s cautious attitude finally hurt the boy’s sensitive heart. After all, as a prince, no one wants to be mistaken for a porcelain doll by his brother, right?
What’s more, he is a younger brother who is so much younger than me.
“You don’t have to be so nervous. I’m doing this for your own good!” The fifth prince felt that the other party didn’t say anything, but it was more humiliating than if he had said something or even ridiculed him.
In order to clear his name, the Fifth Prince gritted his teeth and said, “Let me ask you, why did you suddenly stop mentioning those three agreements?”
Ye Shuo was puzzled when he heard this. Why did he become unhappy when he didn’t mention it? Wouldn’t it be a good thing not to mention it?
How come there are still people like this?
“The three agreements and the like were just a joke. We are brothers, why should we care so much about them?”
Ye Shuo’s magnanimity made the Fifth Prince’s previous intention to default on his debt seem shameful.
You try your best to avoid something, but others don’t even take it seriously. This feeling is a completely different level of humiliation.
The Fifth Prince’s face flushed red, and he could not help but yell, “Your Highness does not need to give me a way!”
The Fifth Prince couldn’t afford to lose the title of a seven-year-old to a fourteen-year-old.
“Listen carefully, you have to accept these three agreements whether you want them or not!”
“Guixi, Jiangnan, let’s go!”
Unable to stay any longer, the Fifth Prince glared at Ye Shuo and left angrily.
Looking at the other person’s back, Ye Shuo couldn’t come back to his senses for a long time.
Wow, there really are people in this world who try hard to force things into other people’s hands even though others don’t want them.
After a while, Ye Shuo burst into laughter.
There is no way. As a thick-skinned and black-hearted person, he likes to deal with those who are thin-skinned and can’t save face. Because the other party can’t save face, they can only lie down and be taken advantage of by him.
Coincidentally, the entire palace is almost full of such people, including his stepfather. Ye Shuo is so happy staying there, like a fish in water.
“Take the small road, Xing Yucheng, let’s go back to the palace.”
Being in a good mood, Ye Shuo couldn’t help but hum a little tune.
Xiao Luzi and Xing Yucheng looked at each other and suddenly didn’t know what to say.
On the other side, Qingyi Palace——
When the Fifth Prince returned, it was almost time for dinner. The Second Prince was there today. After seeing his younger brother, the Second Prince asked casually, “How did things go?”
Obviously, the second prince also knew that his younger brother had made a bet with the imperial concubine’s son, and he was even the one who came up with the idea of defaulting on the debt.
In the second prince’s opinion, it is best not to give out such a promise casually.
The Second Prince gave him many instructions and thought it was a sure thing, but when his own brother heard this, he opened his mouth and said to him –
“I’m sorry, brother. I’ve already promised him.”
“Puff——” Caught off guard, the Second Prince, who was sipping his tea, was nearly choked to death.
“Ahem… Wh, what’s going on? Did he really ask you for it?”
The second prince was puzzled. This shouldn’t be the case. The reason he gave to his brother should be perfect. How could it be that –
The Fifth Prince: “No, he didn’t want it, so I forced it on him.”
For a moment, the second prince suspected that there was something wrong with his ears: “What did you say?”
“What you mean is that the Ninth Prince didn’t ask you for it, but you insisted on giving it to him, right?”
“Brother, you don’t know how infuriating the situation was!” When the Fifth Prince mentioned this, he was furious: “You know, he actually looked down on me!”
“He’s just a seven-year-old kid, looking down on me!!”
Because of his anger, the Fifth Prince’s voice was very loud at the beginning. However, he gradually realized that there was something wrong with his brother’s eyes, and his voice gradually became lower.
Feeling a little uneasy when being looked at by his brother, the Fifth Prince finally shut his mouth completely.
“You…Ah!”
He should have continued speaking in accordance with what his ninth brother said.
But it’s too late to say anything now.
For a moment, the Second Prince felt that this Ninth Prince did it on purpose, and considering his Ninth Prince’s previous deeds, the Second Prince was almost certain that he did it on purpose.
But there was nothing he could do. Even so, his brother still foolishly fell into the trap. If this happened to any prince with a little shame, he would probably fall into the trap.
“Although the Ninth Prince is absurd, he is not stupid.” The Second Prince said, skimming off the foam with the lid and taking a sip of tea.
Apart from anything else, the fact that he can coax his father around shows that he is not a fool.
Although the Second Prince had never seen him, he was very sure of this.
“Remember to be more careful when dealing with him next time.”
After learning from his mistakes, the second prince could only warn his brother again, “Don’t be fooled again.”
“Yes…” the fifth prince replied weakly.
On the other side, inside Qiuwu Palace, Ye Shuo was thinking that since he had made these three agreements, the Fifth Prince was probably pretty much doomed.
Oh, I don’t mean that he is useless, but I mean that he probably won’t be able to play any role in my life from now on.
During dinner, seeing that his son seemed to be in a particularly good mood, Emperor Jingwen couldn’t help but ask a question.
Seeing his son’s face full of “being forced into a corner” and “I don’t want to do it either”, and then listening to what he said, the corners of Emperor Jingwen’s mouth twitched slightly.
“I swear, I really didn’t mean to take it on my own. It was Fifth Brother who forced it upon me, and I couldn’t refuse it.”
Emperor Jingwen: “…”
Today he probably experienced what it meant to get something for nothing.
“Your fifth brother has just recovered from his illness. Please stop torturing him.”
Ye Shuo was immediately unhappy when he heard this: “What do you mean I’m torturing him? My fifth brother has good character and is honest. He doesn’t even deny his debts to his own brothers. I’m sure he’s very happy to be able to fulfill his promise. Father, please don’t slander him. It seems like my fifth brother is very unhappy that he agreed to my promise.”
Emperor Jingwen fell silent upon hearing this.
If Xiao Wu had the thick skin of Xiao Jiu, he wouldn’t have been trapped by him.
Xiaojiu will soon say that the black is white.
It seems that Xiao Wu has to agree to these three agreements even if he doesn’t want to.
Emperor Jingwen always thought that as long as he could trick the little bastard into going to the study, everything would be fine. Little did he know that raising a child is only the first step in a long journey.
There are ninety-nine difficulties, and this is only the first one.
[1]Refers to parental problems
Emperor Jingwen once thought that with his son’s intelligence, he could lie and play Mahjong at the age of two, so studying would be no problem at all. Emperor Jingwen was even deeply worried about this for a long time, fearing that his son’s excessive behavior would cause the Duke of Zhen to have second thoughts.
At that time, Emperor Jingwen didn’t know that there was a word in this world called “not doing one’s job properly”.
There are so many smart kids in this world, but not every smart kid can use his or her intelligence in the right way.
In addition, Ye Shuo did it deliberately, and under the double attack, Emperor Jingwen was soon called for a meeting with Master Cen as parent.
When he saw Master Cen, Emperor Jingwen didn’t think too much about it. After all, he had never been asked by a teacher to ask his parents for audience in his life.
Emperor Jingwen even had the leisure to ask about the recent situation in the study, but he didn’t notice that Master Cen’s expression was becoming more and more entangled, as if he had something to hide.
At that time, the Crown Prince and several important ministers were present, and Emperor Jingwen was discussing recent state affairs with them when Junior Master Cen happened to come over.
At that time, Junior Master Cen was thinking about reporting to Emperor Jingwen alone after these important ministers left. Unexpectedly, Emperor Jingwen did not think so much at that time. When he heard that Junior Master Cen had arrived, he directly asked Wang Ziquan to call him in as well, making it difficult for Junior Master Cen to speak or not.
“Lord Cen, if you have anything to say, just tell me.” Finally noticing the other party’s dilemma, Emperor Jingwen couldn’t help but speak.
Exactly two hours had passed, and he and the ministers were all tired. In addition, the prince would have to work in the court in the future, so it would not be a bad idea to let the ministers familiarize themselves with the situation in advance.
What you fear is bound to come true. However, since the emperor has asked, Master Cen has no choice but to speak.
Master Cen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, lowered his voice, and reminded quietly: “Your Majesty, it’s about the Ninth Prince…”
When Emperor Jingwen heard the word “nine”, he immediately understood.
Even though he had never been called as a parent before, his sixth sense reminded him that asking Master Cen to make the trip in person was probably not a good thing.
Family disgrace should not be made public. Emperor Jingwen regretted it. Just as he was about to go back on his word, he saw Prime Minister He who was sitting below him suddenly became energetic. His original fatigue was swept away instantly. Then he saw the Duke of Zhen who was sitting opposite him, who was the same. His tiger eyes immediately widened.
The Duke of Zhen didn’t expect that after being summoned to the palace by the emperor with great difficulty, he would actually hear news about his grandson here for the first time.
As the chief civil official in the empire, He Xiang had always been at odds with the military general, the Duke of Zhen, and disliked him for being crude, mediocre, and barbaric.
He Xiang had heard of the title of the Ninth Prince, and he didn’t think that there could be any good news from Master Cen from the Upper Study coming over specially. It was ridiculous that the Duke of Zhen seemed to be particularly expectant. He just wondered if the old man would be able to sit still after listening to it.
Although Prime Minister He wanted to see the Duke of Zhen embarrassed, he knew that the Ninth Prince was the Emperor’s son, and this matter was not so easy to bring up. Prime Minister He did not act rashly, but just sat there and stared at Master Cen.
The other adults were equally curious, and they also wanted to see the Ninth Prince who was so favored by the Emperor.
Just like that, almost everyone’s eyes fell on Master Cen, including the Duke of Zhen.
Master Cen immediately felt a surge of pressure.
Emperor Jingwen had already made his announcement, and now he wanted Master Cen to stay and report alone, but he really couldn’t bring himself to do so.
Emperor Jingwen had no choice but to wave his hand at Master Cen and said, “…Forget it, go on.”
References
↑1Refers to parental problems