Chapter 69 Reunite

It was the first time that the grand princess heard her younger brother the emperor took the initiative to mention the things from the past, so she could not help but get closer and asked, “It’s the old marquis Zhao who stuffed Ye Zhen into your bag, not because you fall for her beauty that you robbed her? At that time, our group of brothers kept asking, why didn’t you speak up?”

Emperor Sheng Yuan shook his head with a wry smile, “Zhen found that there was a woman without an inch of thread in the quilt, and she was also my savior, my brother’s wife, you can imagine the feeling of being struck by thunder. Zhen wanted to order a few soldiers to send her back, but didn’t expect she agreed on the surface, but later tried to kill herself, fortunately she was rescued in time. She knelt at Zhen’s feet and kept saying that her chastity had been lost, she had no face to go back to see Zhao Luli, let alone face the pair of children, and begging Zhen to let her die. However, Zhen knew how serious Zhao Luli is to her, and knew that she had saved Zhen’s life, so how can we bite the hand that feeds us? In desperation, had to take her along. Originally after capturing Yanjing, Zhen would explain the matter to Zhao Luli, as long as Zhao Luli do not dislike her and want her back, everything would be fine. But really didn’t expect her to seek death again, begging Zhen not say that the old marquis had sent her, lest it hurts the relationship between the Zhao family’s father and son, and also said that she is no longer clean, she has no face to return to the Zhao family, so it’s better to die. Seeing her so ready to die to preserve her chastity and suffering in silence, Zhen have to give her a place to live.”

The grand princess fixed her eyes on him and said after a long silence, “You haven’t touched her at all?”

“Haven’t touched her in the slightest. Zhen only responsible for taking care of her and keeping her worry-free for the rest of her life.”

“Just take a look at her body, and she won’t leave?”

“How could Zhen know what the women in Central Plains were thinking?” Emperor Sheng Yuan’s eyes were red, “She has been tried to kill herself three or four times. After all, Zhen is a man and have to take responsibility, so Zhen have to bear all the blame and criticism. However, Zhao Luli still knew what the Old Marquis Zhao did, he hated his parents and turned against Zhen since then.”

Unconsciously, his palm pressed a dent on the incomparably hard red sandalwood imperial table, gritted his teeth and said, “But do you know, imperial sister? That life-saving grace back then is most likely made up by the Ye family, and Ye Zhen definitely not as innocent as it looks on the surface. Zhen wanted admit Madam into the palace and confer her as Zhaoyi, so she incited Zhao Luli to ask Zhen for a marriage decree and intercepted Madam! People from the Central Plains are really devious and hateful! ”

The grand princess was also a forthright person. Although in recent years she had many contact with people from the Central Plains and had become a lot more cunning, she still felt her brain was not enough. She raised her hand and gestured, “Wait, let This Palace sort it out the situation.” she pondered, “First of all, Ye Zhen rescued you is false, but you thought it’s true, and regarded her as a savior, so back then, Ye Quanyong could have died, his family wealth confiscated, and his business taken, but you let him go?”

“Yes. Ye Zhen didn’t recognize Zhen, she sucked out the snake venom for Zhen, put the medicine on it, and left while Zhen was still unconscious. Later, Zhen sent someone to investigate and found out that she was the daughter of the Ye family, and because she sucked that poison, it wounded her root bone, and she was seriously ill for a long time. Even after getting better, it did not heal completely and she became very weak. Although Zhen felt guilty, Zhen also had doubts. While continuing to investigate, Zhen waited for her to come to the door to ask for repayment. But she still live her life as usual, as if she didn’t know anything about Zhen and didn’t care about it, and all the people who participated in the assassination died without proof, so Zhen dispelled the doubts and released Ye Quanyong.”

Emperor Sheng Yuan repeatedly recalled the past, and he felt more and more that the people in the Central Plains were cunning and treacherous, hard to tell what was real or fake, used retreat to advance, it simply fooling him! Later he learned from experience, and slowly learned the Central Plains characters, read the art of war, and mastered the power of human heart, so that he would not suffer any more losses. However, people from the Central Plains were hateful, but they were also lovely, such as Madam, Emperor Teacher and Chief of Ceremonies. They were truly loyal, pure, kind, and upright, it was relaxing to interact with them, even when he was taught a lessen by the Emperor Teacher, it was also very comfortable.

The grand princess slapped her mouth and continued, “If This Palace remembers correctly, after she saved you, Ye Quanyong gave all his family property and surrendered to you?”

“At that time, Zhen had already wipe out the six feudal vassal, taken down the two Princes along with the army of the previous dynasty, how could he not surrender to Zhen? It was also because the Ye family produced war horses, army provisions and other things, that Zhen gave him a position as Grand Astrologer. Zhen didn’t expect that Grand Astrologer has to be a great writer who is proficient in literary and calligraphy.” Emperor Sheng Yuan’s ears were red, and he thought that even the Emperor Teacher couldn’t stand Zhen run amok, afraid Madam was even mocking him as a boorish emperor in her heart.

Alas, all the faces were lost!

The grand princess was amazed and concluded, “If This Palace understand correctly, first Ye Zhen saved you, then after meeting again, she had a lot of contact with you, causing the old marquis to misunderstood that the two of you were having an affair, then simply sent her away to fulfill your adultery couple. She sought death again and again, forcing you to protect her and take care of her.”

The grand princess’ expression was a little distorted, and her voice was very strange, “As a result, in the end you found out that all of this is fake, just a play and a game. Ye Zhen is trying to cling to the powerful, want to remarry but doesn’t want to bear the crime of being a fickle woman, so she used the old marquis’ hand to do that unrighteous thing, and tried to die again and again to flaunt her preserving chastity, coaxing you, a “responsible” man, to take all the dirty water, and instead she washed herself clean and pure without any dirt. Over the years, you have raised her deliciously, provided her with high authority, and protected her openly and secretly. In the end, she joined force with Zhao Luli and intercepted the person you really put you on top of your heart? You didn’t touch a hair of other people’s wife, but they snatched your wife away, and still with your own decree?”

Emperor Sheng Yuan nodded stiffly, “Yes, the Miao expert who used the snake flute to kill Zhen back then should have something to do with the Ye family. Imperial sister, you at once go to Guizhou Qiandong…”

Before he could finish his words the grand princess burst into laugh, slapping the imperial table while exclaimed, “Wow, this drama is so exciting! It’s so funny, enough for This Palace to laugh for more than a year! Hahaha, my foolish brother. Oh, how can you be so stupid…” She stepped out of the door with her hands clapping, and go far away.

“…you should know more about the Miao expert. Why don’t you find out for Zhen who is good at controlling snakes, worms, rats, ants, and find out the real culprit and break this deception.” Emperor Sheng Yuan spit out the second half of the sentence to the back of the grand princess, and his complexion that turned blue and white was extremely wonderful.

What the hell is going on? Can you let Zhen finish the sentence? Did you enter the palace just to see Zhen’s jokes? It’s not that Zhen is stupid, it’s clearly that the people from Central Plains are too deceitful! He brushed off memorials, ink stones, books, and other items, his burning anger had nowhere to vent, but instead his eyes became red.

When he was struggling in vain like a trapped beast, Madam had reattached the broken mirror with Zhao Luli, leaving him less and less time. How could he not be in a hurry, how could he not be impatient, God knows that he was almost instigated by Zhou Tian and ordered the death soldier to end Zhao Luli secretly. But he still held back in the end, so he wouldn’t feel ashamed facing Madam and facing his heart.

When you meet a very wonderful person, you will try to catch up, trying to make yourself more compatible with her. In the past, he wanted to be an emperor in order to survive, to satisfy his ambition to conquer the world, but now it was for the common people, for the peaceful world, and for Madam, who sincerely praised him as “Wise Monarch of the whole generation”.

A wise monarch would not disregard the law for selfish desires, and if he wanted to separate the two people, he had to completely separate their feelings. In recent years, Emperor Sheng Yuan had learned a lot of tricks from the people of Central Plains, and soon he smoothed out his brows and carefully plan.

—-

After Guan Suyi visited Zhao Luli and determined that there was no danger to his life, she returned with the family. The carriage drove into the inner lane and stopped at the west gate. It was reasonable to say that the sister and brother Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu should return to the east mansion, but they all shamelessly followed behind the stepmother into the main house.

After all, Guan Suyi was the nominal mother of the two. Now that Zhao Luli was gone, if she opens her mouth to chase them out, it would become fodder for gossip and let the Guan family’s benevolent reputation be covered with ashes. With no way out, she just pretended not to see. But in her heart she secretly sighed that becoming a virtuous person was not easy, no wonder Zengzi*Zengzi (505-435, student of Confucius compared virtuousness to “like approaching the abyss, like walking on thin ice“, and could only be free when one died.

The old madam saw that her daughter-in-law was not harmonious with her grandson and granddaughter, and inevitably pulled people together to mediate and persuade her daughter-in-law not to bother about the two children. Zhao Chunxi was very aware of the intention, and quickly pulled her younger brother to kowtow to her stepmother, saying that she would be obedient in the future. Ruan shi brought Mu Mu to inquire about the situation of the elder brother, and after seeing this scene, she followed up with a few words.

The whole family was dispatched, and to put it bluntly, if Guan Suyi  refuse to forgive it would be too unreasonable. She repeatedly recited the words “have a clear conscience”, and then she said calmly, “Forget it, since you know your mistakes, you will still follow me in the future as you did in the past, I will teach you what you need to learn, and I will do my duty. I hope you do what you say and don’t disobey your parent.”

After pondering for a moment, she continued, “Zhou Tian led the team to raid the Marquis Zhenbei Mansion, even if all the courtyards were demolished and the whole mansion was forced to death, we would also have nowhere to avenge our grievances, because he was in charge, obeyed the rules, and served Emperor’s order. However, I put up the plaque ‘General Zhengbei Mansion’, so this family is not your father alone, but also your second uncle’s share. If he act recklessly, even disrespect his superior and arrogate his power arbitrarily, your second uncle is enough to cause big trouble for him. So this plaque is not only a plaque, but also a rule. In this world, everyone has to abide by the rules, even the emperor is not exempt. What will happen if you don’t follow the rules? There are Ye family over there, presumably I don’t need to say any more.”

Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu nodded repeatedly, although they didn’t understand the situation, they were very obedient to receive the teaching.

Guan Suyi was a little unaccustomed to the change of the two, lowered her eyes and said coldly, “After saying so much, I just want you to understand that when you come to my place, you have to abide by my rules, pay respect in the morning and evening, do homework in the morning and evening, serve the elders, worship the ancestors, deal with social relations, deal with common affair of central feed… everything has to be learned, and everything should not be missing.”

“Mom, we know.” The two agreed in unison.

Mu Mu also nodded solemnly, but because there were too much movement, he almost fell off the chair, Ruan shi got close and pulled him back.

Guan Suyi was startled at first, then smiled again, under the ups and downs of her mood, she couldn’t help but teach a few more words, “There are three kinds of people in this world, one who follow the rules; second who make good use of the rules; third who make the rules. The former is at the mercy of others, the second can still protect themselves, but the latter can reach the peak and control the fate of themselves and others. You are the former now, and in the future you will be promoted to the second by learning more wisdom, and if you want to become the latter, you will have to redouble your efforts. The world is harsh on women, Zhao Chunxi, it’s enough for you to be a second person, don’t be greedy, and mislead others and misled yourself; Zhao Wangshu, the world is tolerant towards men, and the one on top is a wise monarch, who intends to build a road to heaven for poor and humble family. You are lucky to be born in this generation. Although your father made mistake and demoted, as long as you study properly and take the imperial examination in the coming year, you will be able to enter an official position and become a person who sets the rules. So you don’t need to belittle yourself, and you don’t need to be timid, just abide by the rules, be good at working for your own advantage, and there will be a way out in the future.”

The sister and brother suddenly realized that they promised again and again. Especially Zhao Wangshu, his eyes were getting brighter and brighter, he seemed to have infinite courage and determination, as well as endless enthusiasm and momentum, clenching his fists and swore, “Mom, I dare not forget a single word of what you said today. You see, I will study hard, earn my father’s title back in the future, and rely on my own efforts to give you and my grandmother a title order.”

“Good, good, good, my precious grandson have great ambitions, grandmother is waiting for you!” The old madam cried with joy, and put the whole family’s hands together and pressed it tightly.

Guan Suyi couldn’t take it out, so she could only endure it silently.

Previous     TOC     Next