Zhou Gu looked at Ning Chi carefully and without comment, turned to ask Su Rong, "Where can I buy drunken flower drinks?"
Su Rong said: "At the end of this street, there is a restaurant called Xiaoyingke."
Zhou Gu nodded and asked Ning Chi, "How many jars can you drink?"
Ning Chi smiled and said, "I'm not very good at drinking, but if I drink with Brother Zhou, I won't come back until I'm drunk."
Zhou Gu asked Su Rong again, "Do you want to drink?"
Su Rong said nothing.
Zhou Gu added, "What would you do if you watched us two drinking?"
"It's better to go back to the house and sleep."
Zhou Gu Dalue said, "Then drink as much as you can." He told Midnight, "Did you hear that? Go and welcome the guests and buy five jars of drunken flowers."
Ziye asked in a low voice: "Master, can you buy six altars?"
Zhou Gu glanced at him and said "hmm".
Midnight was very happy.
"How can I ask Brother Zhou to treat me to a drink? I'll treat Brother Zhou and Miss Seven to a drink." Ning Chi took out a thousand-tael silver note from his pocket and handed it to Ziye, "Take this."
Without waiting for Zhou Gu to say anything, Ziye said happily, "Thank you very much, Prince Ning. Can you all buy some wine?"
"Okay." Ning Chi smiled.
Midnight immediately went away with joy.
Zhou Gu raised his eyebrows but said nothing.
He waved to Ning Chi, "It's not convenient to talk down below. Brother Ning, do you want to come to the room for a drink?"
Ning Chi stood up after hearing the words and followed Shan Ruliu, "Okay."
Ning Chi got up and went upstairs, and together with Zhou Gu and Su Rong, entered Zhou Gu's room.
After the three of them sat down, they closed the door. Zhou Gu and Ning Chi sat across from each other, and Su Rong sat down next to Zhou Gu.
Zhou Gu asked Ning Chi rudely, "Do you want to marry that woman named Jiang? To win over the power of the Jiangzhou governor for the eldest prince?"
Ning Chi paused and smiled, "Brother Zhou, are you too direct?"
Zhou Gu looked at him with admiration on his face, "If what I said is right, you are too generous. That woman named Jiang..." He commented venomously, "She is a fool."
Su Rong was ashamed. It was the first time she had seen Zhou Gu's venomous mouth. It could be seen that he was still very polite to her when he occasionally hummed once or twice.
Ning Chi coughed and said, "That's what my father meant."
"Then what do you mean?" Zhou Gu narrowed his eyes, "Don't you and Marquis Nanping wear the same pair of trousers? Otherwise you wouldn't have stayed here to have a drink with me today."
Ning Chi sighed lightly and said truthfully: "Brother Zhou is very sharp and intelligent, that's true. My biological mother died early. Although I live in the direct line, I don't occupy the elder brother. I have a concubine brother above me and a step brother below me. As the heir apparent, I am the heir apparent.
It all depends on my father’s words. He told me to go east, but I really don’t dare to go west.”
Zhou Gu was noncommittal. He had always known about the situation in the Nanping Hou Mansion. Otherwise, he would not have bought his account when he revealed his identity as the Nanping Hou Crown Prince. He, the Nanping Hou Crown Prince, had a very good standing in his own right.
It’s difficult, because he doesn’t have much say in the Nanping Marquis Mansion.
"So, what do you think of Prince Ning?" Zhou Gu asked directly: "You want to use me to seek refuge in the East Palace? I can help you connect the dots."
Ning Chi laughed, "It seems that Brother Zhou has defected to the East Palace?"
Zhou Gu knocked on the table, "It's not that I took refuge, it was His Majesty who kicked me to the East Palace. I have been studying with you in the East Palace for several years, and the prince has taken care of me. I can't be ungrateful, even if I am half a member of the East Palace!"
He had a very clear understanding of himself, "No matter what His Majesty's thoughts were at that time, in short, I studied with the prince in the East Palace for several years, so I certainly had feelings for him. I am not an elder, I am not a nobleman, and I have no burden on my shoulders.
The prince has both political integrity and talent, a noble character, and is a legitimate descendant with a legitimate name, so I will not resist helping him."
Ning Chi nodded, "But in the past two years, His Majesty seems to have intended to support the eldest prince and the second prince, creating a three-legged situation with the prince?"
Zhou Gu nodded, "As your Majesty gets older, he takes authority more and more seriously. He doesn't like the prince's high reputation, but he doesn't want to think about it. The prince is the prince he appointed. If the prince has no prestige, how can he shoulder the responsibilities?"
Assuming a great position in the country? Nowadays, the prince's power is suppressed everywhere. To put it bluntly, he has not been emperor enough, and he is afraid that the prince will pose a threat to him, so he does not want to abdicate. "
Ning Chi lowered his voice, "Brother Zhou, you are being treasonous, so be careful what you say."
Zhou Guxiao, "Will you file a lawsuit against me?"
"That won't happen."
"That's it. Isn't there no one else here? You and I are the ones who want to join the East Palace. Why should we be careful about what we say?" Zhou Gu leaned back on his chair and looked lazy. "So, Brother Ning, you have to think about it.
The prince is not very optimistic at the moment."
Ning Chi was surprised that Zhou Gu spoke to him so directly and honestly.
Although he was two years older than Zhou Gu, he knew that he had a lot of experience in the city. Ever since he saw Zhou Gu that day, Zhou Gu drew his sword against Jiang Yunying. When he revealed his identity, he still ignored him, and he had a profound understanding of it.
It turns out that Zhou Gu did not take Nanping Houfu seriously due to his status as Duke Protector, but this did not make him feel insulted. Instead, he had other thoughts in his mind.
In line with the idea of getting rid of the control of his father, the threat of his concubine brother, and the oppression of his stepmother and brothers, he thought over and over again, and patiently tried to reconcile with Jiang Shengxu on the one hand, and on the other hand, he thought about whether he could take a different path, different from the one his father took.
The way to seek refuge and support the eldest prince.
The eldest prince's concubine is his stepmother's younger sister. Therefore, even if the eldest prince succeeds one day, he may not be able to get a good one. The person who gets a good one will be his stepbrother. Why should he make wedding clothes for others?
And Zhou Gu happened to be the bridge for him to seek refuge in the East Palace.
Ning Chi didn't need to think too much and said to Zhou Gu: "The orthodox prince has both political integrity and talent, is gentle and upright, and cares about the people. Even if His Majesty is confused for a moment, His Highness the Crown Prince is still worth relying on, right?"
"Naturally." Zhou Gu nodded.
Ning Chi smiled and cupped his hands to Zhou Gu, "Then I'll trouble you to introduce you to Brother Zhou."
"Okay, if that's what you want, I'll volunteer to be the bridge builder." Seeing that Zhou Gu hadn't come back from buying wine at midnight, he immediately asked Su Rong, "Can you sharpen ink?"
Su Rong nodded, "Yes."
Zhou Gu called out, "Come here, ask the shopkeeper to bring you pens, ink, paper and inkstones."
Someone outside said yes.
Ning Chi was shocked by Zhou Gu's cheerfulness and speed, "Brother Zhou is planning to write a letter to His Highness the Crown Prince?"
"Well." Zhou Gu nodded, "Since you have made a decision, why delay? I will write a letter for you. Do you have a keepsake?"
Ning Chi took out the jade pendant he was wearing and placed it in front of Zhou Gu, "Is it possible to use this as a token?"
"Okay." Zhou Gu said: "You write another letter in your own handwriting, and together with my letter, I will send it back to the capital and hand it over to His Highness the Crown Prince."
Ning Chi nodded, "Okay."
Not long after, someone brought pen, ink, paper and inkstone. Su Rong rolled up her sleeves and helped Zhou Gu polish ink. Zhou Gu wrote a letter first. His letter was brief. After he finished writing, he sealed it with wax and handed the pen to Ning Chi.
Seeing that Su Rong was about to grind the ink for Ning Chi again, he stretched out his hand to stop him, "Just grind the ink for me, no one else has to do it for you."
Su Rong: "..."
Ning Chi: "..."
Ning Chi smiled, rolled up his sleeves and polished the ink by himself, echoing Zhou Gu, "Yes, I don't deserve to bother Miss Seven, I will do it myself."
