However, whether a son is biological or not makes a big difference. The eldest prince, Chu Fang, was born in the prince's residence and was more than ten years older than Chu Yun. He had already achieved great success at a young age, so Consort Yu was naturally not worried that her adopted son, Chu Yun, would compete with her biological son for anything.
Moreover, Chu Yun's birth mother was of low status and died young, so he had no maternal family to rely on. Let alone hoping for the throne, even if he wanted to make a name for himself and not be inferior to the other princes, he would have to rely on the Yu family to pave the way for him.
Consort Yu had long ago designated him as someone to assist the eldest prince, and Chu Yun was fully aware of this and obeyed without complaint.
"What is there for Mother Consort to fear? If I hadn't put so much effort into the wording of my letter back then, the one in the east might not be in this state now. If I go this time, would I really trip myself up?"
The eldest prince crossed his legs and smugly played with the jade thumb ring on his thumb.
Consort Yu frowned slightly, waved away the palace servants in the hall, and angrily rebuked, "Don't you know that walls have ears? What kind of place is this, daring to spout such nonsense!"
"Why are you so nervous, Mother? They're just two little girls. If you're worried about the secret being leaked, just give them to me. Once I've taken them in, their hearts will naturally be with me."
Consort Yu was so angry that her delicate eyebrows almost flew off: "Among so many princes, your household has the most concubines. Sending two more at once, are you afraid that you won't stand out in front of your father, or are you trying to cause a scene?"
The eldest prince still looked lazy: "If you think sending two at once is too much, then my fifth brother and I can each send one. That way, you can still gain a good reputation for being kind to Father."
Almost as soon as he finished speaking, Chu Yun interjected, "If elder brother thinks it is necessary, I will certainly do my duty without hesitation."
The eldest prince patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Good brother."
Consort Yu didn't smile at all, but glared at them: "You two, can't you not just share the bad things, but also do some good things together once in a while? Stop making me worry all the time." She sighed as she spoke, "His Majesty is about to go on a northern tour. You two should stay in Shangjing. Whether you accompany him or stay to oversee the country, neither is more beneficial than going to the ends of the earth to provide disaster relief. In ordinary families, with many children, fathers may not even remember those they don't see often, let alone you, who are members of the royal family. I'll stop here. You can figure out the rest yourselves."
“Mother, how could we not be concerned about such things? From the very beginning, my fifth brother and I agreed that we would definitely avoid any thankless or difficult tasks,” the eldest prince said.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Consort Yu said angrily, but did not forget to remind her, "Don't go too far, it won't be good if people find out."
Seeing that both sons readily agreed, he changed the subject and said, "By the way, your maternal grandfather originally planned to hold a birthday banquet, but the emperor said in the Golden Palace that there was a famine and the country was in trouble, so he changed his mind and decided to cancel the banquet and celebrate when he turned seventy years old the year after next."
"My gifts are all ready," the eldest prince muttered. "If only I had known..."
"You are his own grandson, does that mean you can't send a birthday gift if you don't attend the birthday banquet?" Consort Yu interrupted him, and then grabbed a bamboo stick from the chaise longue and threw it at him.
The eldest prince dodged, and the object that had been asking for help landed squarely on Chu Yun's forehead.
The eldest prince chuckled and said, "Fifth brother, you are usually more agile than me in riding horses, shooting arrows, and boxing. Why are you so slow today, like a piece of wood?"
“I was just thinking, since my grandfather isn’t holding a birthday banquet, should I send him an even bigger birthday gift?” Chu Yun said.
"Ah Wu is still the best, unlike you who have no conscience." Consort Yu turned her head and scolded the eldest prince again.
Chu Yun smiled bitterly to himself. He had been living outside the palace for four years, establishing his own residence, yet he had not married. When asked, he would simply say that he had accomplished nothing and was too busy to find a wife. But in truth, he longed for a closer relationship with the Yu family. Unfortunately, the Yu family's granddaughters were either too young or too old. Finally, when the Yu family's seventh daughter, Yu Xiangxiang, turned fourteen, he had hoped to use the birthday banquet to get closer to her and eventually win her heart. Who would have thought that a mere drought would completely ruin his long-planned scheme?
Chengxian Palace was bustling with activity, but the East Palace was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
The prince, dressed in a white casual robe, sat on a low mahogany table, engrossed in reading a book.
A slightly hunched eunuch was serving at the side. Seeing that the prince's teacup was almost empty, he stepped forward to refill it.
The Crown Prince put down the book in his hand, smiled at him, and asked, "Little Li, you've been restless all morning. Did you lose money gambling and need to borrow some, or did you get heat rash before summer even arrived and feel an intense itch?"
“Your Highness,” said Little Li, “please don’t laugh at me, it’s neither.”
"So what's wrong that's making you scratch your head?" the Crown Prince asked again, then laughed at himself. Could it be that he was really too idle, wanting to get to the bottom of even the smallest things?
Little Li leaned close to the Crown Prince's ear and whispered, "Your Highness, I heard from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs that there is a famine in Henan, and His Majesty plans to send people to provide disaster relief. If Your Highness volunteers... will His Majesty not be... angry?"
He spoke the last three words in a voice so soft it was barely audible to the prince, but he could guess their meaning from the context.
“Little Li, optimism is good,” the Crown Prince laughed, “but blind optimism can kill you.”
What he didn't say was that his father wasn't angry at him for his mistakes, but rather suspected him of vying for power and the people's support. From then on, they were no longer father and son, but merely ruler and subject, one forced to be wary, the other powerless to resist. Changing this situation wasn't something he could do; he could only wait until that day came. However, the emperor was still in his prime, and that day was still a long way off. The crown prince didn't know what changes might occur before then, or what kind of situation he would find himself in.
Wushuang, who had just moved into Furong Lane, knew nothing about the affairs of the palace.
As night fell, she took a comfortable hot bath, then lay down happily on the carved mahogany bed, beginning to enjoy her first night away from her parents.
"Clang."
The window with stained glass was knocked on.
Wushuang jumped off the bed, ran barefoot to the window, turned the handle and opened the window. She saw Chu Yao standing quietly under the eaves, the silver moonlight shining on his white robe with gold embroidery, giving him a somewhat otherworldly air.
"Why are you here?" Wushuang asked.
"I heard you moved today, so I came to see you."
How did you know I moved?
"Have you forgotten what I do? Let alone the small Marquis of Runan's mansion, there's nothing I don't know, not even in the capital, or even the entire Qi Kingdom," Chu Yao said.
"Hmph, what a load of bull." Wushuang mocked him without any politeness. If he really knew everything, how could he have died in his previous life?
"Whether you're bragging or just bluffing, are you sure we want to talk like this? Even though you live separately from your parents, there are still quite a few maids and servants in this courtyard, aren't you afraid someone will see me?" Chu Yao said calmly. "Now that you're all grown up, if people find out I'm meeting with you in the middle of the night, that would be..."
Wushuang was even more annoyed: "You know I've grown up, but you still insist on coming to find me in the middle of the night. It's really annoying."
After she finished speaking, she stomped her foot, turned around, and ran back, but the window behind her was still wide open.
Chapter 83 | Table of Contents
Chapter 83:
Wushuang ran barefoot back to bed with small, quick steps, and wrapped herself tightly in the brocade quilt. [txt ebook download: Http://wW/]
She's a grown woman now, and her figure is very well developed. Unlike when she was little and not very attractive, she can meet Chu Yao in her nightgown without any problem.
Chu Yao leaped into the room, carefully closed the window, and then leisurely strolled to Wushuang's bedside.