Building a Harmonious Song Dynasty

Chapter 15

Qin Zhen was delighted to see Gao Qiu invite Zhao Gou to join the team. Emperor Huizong loved these kinds of things and was especially fond of Cuju (ancient Chinese football). Zhao Gou had never been valued by Emperor Huizong, so this was a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

She tried to wink at Zhao Gou, but Zhao Gou didn't look at her. He said, "Grand Commandant Gao must be joking with a child like me. I just won by luck. Grand Commandant Gao's team is full of hidden talents, so why should I get involved?"

Gao Qiu's face darkened. He hadn't expected Zhao Gou to be so disrespectful, but he wasn't angry. Perhaps it was his nature as a lover of football; he simply didn't want to see such a talented child go to waste. Besides, he had long heard that Zhao Gou was enthusiastic about martial arts, unlike the other princes who were so averse to military generals. Perhaps, he would achieve something great when he grew up.

"How could I dare to joke with Your Highness? I am making this request with utmost sincerity."

“In that case…” Zhao Gou glanced at the guards behind Gao Qiu, “I look forward to your guidance from now on.”

The guards were taken aback, not expecting the prince to speak to them in such a way. Their previous disdain for his age vanished completely, and they were all amazed by his "humility".

Gao Qiu was delighted to see him agree, and he added, "To prepare for receiving this envoy, I have selected many strong men from the Imperial Guard and prepared various programs. If Your Highness is interested, would you like to come with me to take a look?"

Zhao Gou frowned and said with some dissatisfaction, "Why should our Song soldiers entertain those foreign ministers? Protecting our dynasty and guarding our emperor is the proper thing to do."

Gao Qiu was startled. He suddenly realized that Zhao Gou was young, but as upright as the Crown Prince, he could not be treated the same way he had treated Emperor Huizong. Such empty gestures would only lead to trouble.

"Your Highness is right. I will certainly make new arrangements and will not disgrace the prestige of our Great Song Dynasty."

The two agreed on the time for their next Cuju practice session, and then Zhao Gou left with Qin Zhen.

Qin Zhen had been quietly observing Zhao Gou's words and actions, and was somewhat amazed. Zhao Gou's performance exceeded her expectations. He used both soft and hard tactics without losing his imperial dignity. How could an ordinary child be like this? Are royal children really different?

“Cough…” Zhao Gou coughed lightly, then glanced uncomfortably at Qin Zhen, who was a step behind him. Qin Zhen never cared about the distinction between master and servant, and always walked alongside him when no one else was around. Now that she was a step behind him, he felt very uncomfortable.

Zhao Gou recalled the "rules" he had discussed with Qin Zhen the previous night, and assumed that Qin Zhen had taken his words to heart. He then said, "You don't follow the major rules, but you get caught up in these trivial details. You're a strange person indeed."

Qin Zhen was taken aback, thinking he was referring to her earlier shouting, and quickly said, "I just..."

Thinking of Qin Zhen's exclamation of "So handsome!", Zhao Gou felt a little smug and embarrassed. He interrupted her, saying, "I take back what I said last night. There are no rules to follow with you."

Qin Zhen chuckled. It was perfect that she didn't have to follow the rules.

Zhao Gou had worked up a sweat playing football and decided to practice archery in the afternoon. He went back to change his clothes first. When they returned to the palace in high spirits, Qinglan was already waiting at the gate. Upon seeing them, she quickly said, "Your Highness, we couldn't find you anywhere. His Highness the Crown Prince sent someone to look for you and Qin Zhen. It seems there was something urgent."

Zhao Huan was quite cautious and would never say that something was urgent. If he did say something was urgent, it would be extremely urgent. Zhao Gou and Qin Zhen did not dare to delay for a moment and immediately turned around and went to the East Palace.

When they arrived, Zhao Huan was in his study, frantically discussing something with Cai Xiao.

"Brother, what has happened?"

When Zhao Huan saw them arrive, he didn't answer Zhao Gou's question in his haste. Instead, he grabbed Qin Zhen and said, "What should we do? Your father offended the Emperor today. The Emperor is furious and has ordered him to be imprisoned in the Imperial Prison!"

Qin Zhen was shocked and hurriedly asked, "Is it because of the arranged marriage?"

Both Zhao Huan and Zhao Gou were surprised. Zhao Huan asked, "You already knew about the arranged marriage?"

Zhao Gou, standing to the side, felt a chill in his heart. Why did he know nothing?

When Qin Zhen learned that his father had been arrested, he was also anxious. He didn't care what Zhao Gou was thinking and instead hurriedly asked Zhao Huan what had happened.

It turned out that after returning home yesterday, Qin Hui pondered the matter and was unwilling to divorce his wife and marry Wang Zhongshan's daughter. So he wrote a long memorial in his study and presented it to the emperor early this morning. In the memorial, he refuted the "seven grounds for divorce" with "three reasons not to divorce" (note), and his words were firm and resounding. He argued his case with reason and then appealed to the emperor's emotions, pleading for the emperor's favor for his wife who had shared his hardships.

After reading the entire edict, Emperor Huizong felt remorse and was almost about to retract his draft. However, Wang Fu suddenly appeared and said that Qin Hui was arrogant and domineering, relying on the Crown Prince's favor and not even putting the Emperor in his eyes. No matter how moved Emperor Huizong was just now, this provocation made him have to harden his heart for the sake of his imperial authority.

To make matters worse, Qin Hui was incredibly stubborn this time and argued with Wang Fu on the spot, ultimately being detained by Emperor Huizong for insubordination.

After hearing this, Qin Zhen's lips curled into a cold smile, which startled Zhao Huan.

She said to Cai Xiao, who was standing beside her, "Lord Cai, I would like to trouble you to contact the officials of the Ministry of Justice and ask them to take good care of my father. As long as he is not tortured in prison, that will be fine."

The Cai family had many subordinate officials in the Six Ministries, which was a piece of cake for him. So Cai Xiao said, "Lord Qin serves the Crown Prince, so I should naturally do more for him." Although he said this to Qin Zhen, he still looked at the Crown Prince.

"So, have you come up with any plan to save Qin Qing?" Zhao Huan asked Qin Zhen.

Qin Zhen said, "Wait. You don't need to do anything. The results will be available in less than three days."

——

Note: The "Three No-Destination" refers to the restrictions on the seven grounds for divorce: first, having no one to return to after marriage; second, having been in mourning for three years; and third, having been poor and lowly in the past but rich and noble in the future.

Do you remember what the ant said to the spider? "My mom said that people who are always online are not good people."

Everyone, get some rest early, be good people, take care of your health, and don't stay up late.

Okay, I'm going to bed now. I have a lot of things to think about today.

Volume One: Destined for Each Other 029 Two Hearts Warmly Understanding Each Other

Zhao Huan asked Qin Zhen for her advice, but she only said "wait," which puzzled him greatly. He thought that Qin Zhen was still young and probably couldn't come up with any ideas, so he decided to try to find a way to get Qin Hui out of prison on his own.

Qin Zhen seemed to have seen through his thoughts and said directly, "Your Highness, you must not act rashly now. Although Wang Fu's words today were directed at my father, they were actually a reminder to the Emperor that the Crown Prince's power has affected his imperial authority. If you are caught by others now, all your efforts in recent days will be in vain."

Zhao Huan understood her meaning and regretted that he hadn't thought of this, almost ruining everything. At the same time, he was very moved that Qin Zhen was still thinking of him when her father was in trouble. He was very fortunate to have such a good help.

However, he held Qin Hui in high regard, and thinking of his current situation, he sighed and said, "Seeing Qin Qing suffering in prison, and that I can do nothing about it, I feel uneasy."

“Of course the Crown Prince has things to do,” Qin Zhen said.

"What is it? I will do my best to do it if I can."

Qin Zhen said solemnly, "The greater good must be put aside even one's own family. Tomorrow, the Crown Prince should go before the Emperor and request that my father be severely punished, and also examine himself for his laxity in managing his subordinates."

“How could I do that? How could I kick someone when they’re down?” Zhao Huan refused.

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, that you will proceed accordingly. Before tomorrow, new developments will emerge."

Zhao Huan gradually realized that Qin Zhen had other plans, so he reluctantly agreed.

Qin Zhen walked out of the East Palace with a heavy heart, filled with self-reproach. If she had told her father beforehand not to act rashly, this would not have happened. The key reason she didn't inform Qin Hui in advance was that she had already harbored prejudices in her mind, believing that her father would not offend powerful people and invite trouble for the sake of her mother. Little did she know that this time she had truly "judged a gentleman's heart with the mind of a petty person."

"Qin Zhen."

Zhao Gou, who hadn't spoken until now, suddenly called out to her. Qin Zhen turned her head and saw his gloomy face, but for a moment she didn't realize what was wrong.

Looking at Qin Zhen's furrowed brow, Zhao Gou couldn't bring himself to say the words of reproach he had intended. Her father's accident had already upset her; why should he make things difficult for her now? Thinking this, Zhao Gou pulled her onto the carriage and instructed Zhao Yong, "Leave the palace."

"Huh? Where are we going?" Qin Zhen asked in surprise.

Zhao Gou stubbornly pulled her into the carriage, and only after the carriage started moving did he say, "Your mother is alone at home, I'm afraid she will feel uneasy."

Qin Zhen felt a warmth in her heart and looked at Zhao Gou with gratitude. He had thought of something she hadn't!

"Thank you," she said softly, looking down.

Zhao Gou looked at Qin Zhen as if she were a monster. This was probably the first time she had ever said "thank you" to him.

"You... if you have something on your mind, you don't need to hide it from me." He didn't like the feeling of being the only one who knew, like a fool.

Qin Zhen gradually realized Zhao Gou's inner conflict, and now there was nothing he couldn't say.

“My mother used to be a dancer, and her dancing skills were stunning. My father was deeply attracted by her ‘Palm Dance’, which is why I was born. Since marrying my father, my mother has always been very self-conscious and never dared to complain no matter how many cold words she endured. I don’t want to mention her past in front of others, not because I feel there is anything shameful about it, but because I think that if others don’t know, they won’t look at my mother with the eyes of a dancer. Under normal eyes, she will eventually emerge from the shadows.”

So that's how it is... The dark cloud in Zhao Gou's heart dissipated, and he instead blamed himself for being too petty.

The carriage rumbled along and soon came to a stop in front of the Qin residence. The Qin residence was no longer the small courtyard in the alley it once was. Ever since Qin Zhen learned that the small courtyard had brought about the massacre of his entire family, he had urged Qin Hui to move. After passing the imperial examinations, and with the help of Zhao Huan, Qin Hui chose a medium-sized mansion in the east of the city and moved in.

The mansion hired some maids and servants. Qin Zhen hadn't been home for almost a year, and it was likely that those people wouldn't even recognize her as their young lady.

"Knock knock knock".

Qin Zhen and Zhao Gou alighted from their carriage and knocked on the large bronze ring on the vermilion gate. Soon, a servant came to answer the door. The servant saw a pair of children standing at the door and was about to ask them who they were looking for when he heard a gasp from behind him.

"Your Highness, Seventh Miss!"

The two looked up and saw that it was none other than Qingmei, who had been left at Liquan Temple that day.

Qingmei was about to go out to buy some things with another maid when she saw the two of them at the door, which surprised her greatly. Qin Zhen was also slightly surprised. She had only mentioned it to her eldest brother, Master Fan, asking him to arrange a good place for Qingmei, but she hadn't expected him to settle her in his own home. However, this was fine too. Qingmei was loyal to Zhao Gou and was a useful person, so it was good to have her by his side.

Qingmei told her maid to quickly go back to the backyard to tell the lady and young lady that they had returned to the mansion, and then she led Zhao Gou and Qin Zhen into the mansion.

Zhao Gou was quite pleased to see that the Qin family had taken in Qingmei. He gave Qin Zhen a deep look, and everything was understood without words.

Wang rushed out from the inner courtyard to greet Qin Zhen. Upon seeing Qin Zhen, she embraced him tightly, tears welling up in her eyes.

"My child, your mother has missed you so much..."

"Mother..."

Qin Zhen's voice was soft. She thought about how she and her mother were separated by a wall and could not see each other. She was also unable to come back to visit her without permission. This separation had lasted for almost a year. Now that they were meeting again, she was extremely moved.

Wang looked at Qin Zhen carefully and, seeing that she was neat and tidy and in good condition, said with satisfaction, "You've grown up..."

Qingmei helped Wang up and said, "Madam, please take His Highness and Miss inside to sit down."

Only then did Lady Wang notice Zhao Gou, and she became somewhat embarrassed. She curtsied to him and said, "This humble woman greets Your Highness, I have been impolite in Your Highness's presence."

Zhao Gou returned the courtesy due to an elder, saying, "There's no need for such formalities, Madam."

Indeed, "a teacher for a day is a teacher for life." In Zhao Gou's heart, he still regarded Qin Hui as his teacher.

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Just like the title of this chapter, I feel a warm feeling in my heart right now.

I am very grateful to all my readers for their support, especially Wu Gumei and Ye Jiumei. There are too many readers to thank here.

Having readers and friends like you makes Ling Jia truly content! For you all, I will definitely keep working hard!

Volume 1: Fate Determined 030: First Sowing Discord, Then Framing