Chapter Nine Killing a Chicken with a Sledgehammer
"Who are you?" Zhu Zhen looked at the old eunuch with a eunuch-like face.
"Back to Your Highness, this old slave named Hou Lixie is appointed as the general manager of Changyang Palace." Eunuch Hou lowered his eyebrows and said.
"The person named Hou is a concubine." Zhu Di whispered to his sixth brother: "It's probably because of Lao Qi, right? She is famous for being unreasonable and unforgiving. You have bullied her sons to the point of pissing.
Can I not settle the score with you?"
"No, I'm just helping him practice calligraphy." Zhu Zhen asked the eunuch with an innocent look: "Is there anything delicious at your place?"
"Of course, we have prepared a lot of fruits for His Highness to eat." Eunuch Hou said with a smile.
"Then I will go there." Zhu Zhen responded and turned to Zhu Di: "Fourth brother and fifth brother, I can't go with you."
"We will go with you." Zhu Di said solemnly: "You are a kid, you will be bullied."
"Your Highness, King Yan, forgive me, but my wife has something to ask His Highness, King Chu alone." Hou Lixie refused.
"Who are you? Can you care about Gu?!" Zhu Di didn't even look down on him. He rolled up his sleeves and said, "I have to go, can you stop me?"
"Don't worry, fourth brother." Zhu Zhen helped the other party to persuade him, and said with a sensible look on his face: "Even if the empress wants to settle accounts, she is trying to save face for me. Anyway, she can only scold me a few times, and I will definitely be scolded in private.
Isn’t it better than being scolded in public?”
"That's right. If no one hears it, it means that she didn't get scolded." Zhu Di took it seriously and said, "Anyway, she doesn't have a ruler given by the emperor, so she doesn't dare to touch your finger."
"Come back and tell me that you are safe." The fifth brother shook Zhu Zhen's fat hand vigorously. This sixth brother is really very sensible now.
After being separated from his two brothers, Zhu Zhen followed Concubine Ding's entourage to Changyang Palace.
But Hou Lixie did not follow him back, saying that he wanted to go in to make up for King Qi's leave.
When the main hall was in class, no idlers were allowed in, so he had to wait until classes were over before going in.
~~
Changyang Palace is located in the East Sixth Palace, and you have to walk to the East Erchang Street to get there.
Wang Defa had not dared to interrupt until now, but now he dared to ask in a low voice: "Your Highness, what happened?"
"I scared the seventh child to the point of peeing. Concubine Ding wants to talk to me." Zhu Zhen looked at Wang Defa, who was still in the dark, and thought it would be better to talk to him.
"It just so happens that I also have something I want to talk to her about, so it's a two-way trip."
"Going in both directions?" Wang Defa said in confusion, "Why are you looking for your concubine?"
"Please let my mother and concubine go." Zhu Zhen said with a pure expression: "My father said that as long as she agrees, he will let my mother and concubine come back."
"Oh, my little highness, Xie has really grown up..." When Wang Defa heard this, his nose felt sore, and he quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe his tears and said: "If the empress knew that Xie was trying to save her, she would be extremely happy.
.”
"Who asked me to deal with such a careless mother?" Zhu Zhen sighed.
"Uh..." Wang Defa almost choked on his saliva. Seeing that Changyang Gate was right in front of him, he hurriedly warned: "If Concubine Ding says something unpleasant, Your Highness must not take it to heart."
After a pause, he said softly: "Just do your best, and don't be too aggrieved and forceful. At worst, we can think of other ways."
Wang Defa has no hope for His Highness's trip. It's just that His Highness's filial piety is commendable, so of course he must encourage him.
"Well, don't worry." Zhu Zhen nodded. Although the old eunuch was effeminate, he seemed to really care about him.
After the announcement, Concubine Ding invited in. As expected, Wang Defa was stopped outside the palace door.
~~
The main hall of Changyang is luxuriously furnished and decorated with flowers.
Concubine Da Ding, who has returned to being the most beautiful woman in the palace, specially chose this meeting place in order to turn this conversation into a crushing match.
I saw her with a bun on top, a phoenix crown on her forehead, gold beads and hairpins beside her, a bow gown, and a haori. She was gorgeous and noble, and she was sitting on the throne on the ground screen with a majestic manner, which made her feel very oppressive.
Zhu Zhen walked in and bowed respectfully.
Concubine Da Ding asked everyone in the palace to retreat, and did not offer a seat as usual. She just looked condescendingly at the sixth son of the emperor standing in the hall.
I saw that he had thick eyebrows, round eyes, chubby cheeks, and an innocent look on his face. He looked like a completely innocent and innocent kid.
"What are you doing? Starting this fight with a kid?" Concubine Da Ding rubbed her temples with her right hand, feeling that she was "picking out her ears with a horse spoon - making a fuss out of a molehill".
"Ahem." But it's already here, so hurry up and get it done.
She coughed lightly and said, "Your Highness, do you know why I invited you here?"
"Well, I don't know." Zhu Zhen said timidly.
"Then I will let you know." Concubine Ding's tone turned cold and asked: "Tell me, why did you frame Lao Qi?!"
"I, I don't have one." Zhu Zhen seemed to be scared to tears.
"Why not? Lao Qi told me even when he came back!" Thinking of what happened in the morning, Concubine Ding became angry and gritted her teeth and said:
"Who did you learn this from? You are talking nonsense at a young age and you are trying to be smart. In fact, you are playing with fire and burning yourself. You are so stupid, do you know?!"
"I'm not lying?" Zhu Zhen said aggrievedly: "He even admitted it and even wet his pants."
"Shut up!" Thinking that the good image she had worked so hard to create for her son was ruined today! Concubine Ding broke her guard on the spot.
If the other person's identity wasn't there, she would have to tear his mouth apart.
"The seventh child was still a child, and he was coaxed and tricked into a trap by you! Is this how you treat an older brother?!"
"He pushed me into the lake and treated me as his brother?" Zhu Zhen said with a cry: "Besides, who is not a child?"
"Humph, it's useless what you say. Who doesn't know that Lao Qi is a good boy? Do you think the emperor will believe your words?" Seeing that he couldn't hold on, Concubine Ding threatened him fiercely.
"We also said that you were holding a grudge because of your mother and concubine, and you were slandering others and slandering Lao Qi!"
"I didn't!" Zhu Zhen argued loudly.
"No matter how loud you scream, it's useless." Concubine Ding felt that she had already secured the victory, so she said in a tone of toying with prey:
"Do you think the Emperor will believe the words of a ten-year-old child? Or will he believe the words of this palace?"
As she spoke, she said in a more serious tone: "And you also have a criminal mother, like mother, like son!"
"You are talking nonsense, my mother did not commit a crime!" Zhu Zhen was really angry. This woman is too vicious. How could a ten-year-old child withstand such a terrible verbal attack?
You must be scared to death by her!
Of course, this is her goal.
"It's useless what you say. Your father will definitely believe us! Don't you know that your father hates people deceiving him the most? Once he decides that you are a liar, he will beat you to death! Then he will beat you to death!
Imprisoned until death!"
Concubine Ding completed the final blow and said to herself that with her superior fighting ability, it would be a killing blow to deal with such a stupid kid.
She took a sip of tea to moisten her throat and looked at Zhu Zhen at leisure, ready to watch his collapse process.
Zhu Zhen was seen lowering his head and shaking his shoulders slightly, as if he was told to cry.
"But for the sake of your youth and indolence, as long as you kneel down, kowtow, admit your mistake, and write a letter of guarantee, I will consider exposing this article and not mention it to the emperor..."
Concubine Ding felt that the heat was coming, and Tu Qiong saw it.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Zhu Zhen thanked him and slowly raised his head. He said in a calm tone that a ten-year-old child should never have: "Let me see how disgusting a person can be."
Concubine Ding was surprised to find that His Highness King Chu was not crying at all, but smiling.
That smile was innocent and bright, but it made her scalp numb.
