Three days before the enthronement ceremony of Imperial Consort Yun, the Liuli Palace was particularly quiet.
No one knew where the news came from in the palace, saying that Prince Zhao was so stupid that he went to the embroidery room on purpose that day. He looked at something and took away a silver embroidery needle from the room. After returning to the palace, he didn't go out for three days. He said that he wanted to embroider something for Imperial Concubine Yun so that she could use it in the enthronement ceremony.
The news received by the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace and Concubine Xue's Linyue Tower was similar to that outside. Although it was a little unbelievable, the spy who was gathering the information did say so.
"How stupid is this?" Concubine Xue snorted while holding the hot water bottle. "I think it's useless even if he is made a prince. As for Yuan Wanyun, her son has become like this. Without this support, I wonder how long she can enjoy her glory."
Fu Rongye was reading a book on the side. He glanced at her and said, "Say less. If you really count, mother should thank Liuli Palace. If they hadn't asked father for mercy, the previous incident wouldn't have been so easy to get over."
"I thank her?" Concubine Xue sat up suddenly, her tone changed with anger, "Whose son are you? Why do you always talk to that person?"
"I'm just telling the truth," Fu Rongye said without even raising his head. "Mother, you have to admit that father likes that side. I think even if the ninth prince... oh no, Prince Zhao, no matter how stupid he is, father will be happy to see him."
Concubine Xue looked at him in disbelief, her hands shaking with anger: "I think you are the one who is wrong. Are you going to piss off your mother to death?"
Seeing her say this, Fu Rongye's face was full of helplessness. He raised his head and said, "Then I'll say something that will make you happy. My father is interested in letting me and my grandfather take charge of this imperial examination together."
The grandfather he was referring to was Prime Minister Xue in the court.
Concubine Xue's mood fluctuated greatly, but she couldn't suppress her excitement. The imperial examination has always been a major event in the court. Not only can it easily attract attention, but it can also seize the initiative and recruit future talents in the court. She covered her mouth with joy for a long time before she whispered to confirm: "Really?"
"Don't make it public for now," Fu Rongye's face turned serious, "Don't tell him about Rong Li for now. He can't keep secrets, and I'm afraid the news will leak out. I'll find an opportunity to let him participate. At least he can learn something and show his face in front of the emperor, so that the emperor won't only remember his mistakes."
Concubine Xue nodded repeatedly, and then she heard Fu Rongye suddenly add: "This matter is still in the Liuli Palace. It is said that the emperor originally wanted the ninth prince."
"Fu Zhiyu?! Is the emperor crazy? He is only sixteen years old!"
"He is a famous talent in the capital, and Grand Secretary Xu likes him and made special recommendations to our father," Fu Rongye said, "but that was in the past. After his illness, everything is different. It is said that Grand Secretary Xu was sick for a long time because of this. He was in poor health to begin with, and the imperial physician said that he was worried too much and needed to rest. It was not easy for my grandfather to get this job from Grand Secretary Xu.
Fu Zhiyu's stupidity came at the right time, and it's not an exaggeration to say it was just right."
Concubine Xue still had some doubts in her heart and said, "But Li'er has always suspected that he is not stupid at all."
"Just listen to Rong Li's words," Fu Rongye waved his hand and said, "He has been targeting Fu Zhiyu for a long time. If he is really not stupid, then why is he pretending to be like this? Is he giving away his interests to others?"
Concubine Xue stopped talking, as if she believed it halfway.
"We still need to keep an eye on the Liuli Palace," Fu Rongye said, "but the focus is no longer on them. The reason I told mother all this is to let you and Rongli know that you should not be blinded by temporary jealousy. It is useless to keep watching others. The only fundamental way is to strengthen yourself."
Fu Zhiyu didn't know how others evaluated him. He was now curled up on the soft couch, nibbling on a piece of mung bean cake bit by bit, like a weak, pitiful, helpless but edible little rabbit.
The news outside was not completely nonsense. After he confirmed the mutation of his body, he started to do other things, such as... embroidery.
Although Caiyan and the others said that this kind of thing is only done by women, Fu Zhiyu felt that embroidery is just embroidery. There is no reason in the world that stipulates that it must be done by women. Besides, he is doing it for his mother, so what can't he do
What's wrong with starting over again and trying something you haven't done before
But he still overestimated his talent. Being able to draw is not the same as being able to embroider. These are two completely different skills. He was originally ambitious and wanted to embroider "A Loving Mother Feeding a Child", but then he gave up step by step. In the end, he embroidered a loving mother on his handkerchief... A chick at her feet.
"A Loving Mother Feeding Her Child" is a famous painting. In the original painting, even the chick at the feet was vivid and lifelike. The material Fu Zhiyu used was the finest gold thread, but he eventually embroidered a chick that was obviously overfat and extremely deformed. It was so ugly that no one could recognize it as a chick unless they told them it was a chick. It would be an insult to the famous painting if it was put together with the other ones.
He didn't want to give this thing to his mother, so he had better pretend that nothing happened. The auspicious clothes embroidered by the embroidery room have been sent to the Glass Palace. They are elegant and magnificent, and his ugly little chicken is even more embarrassing.
But the news had spread all over the palace, so how could Imperial Concubine Yun not know about it? She took the handkerchief from him.
"Mother, please take a look at what's wrong. Isn't it embroidered for me?" Her eyes were full of smiles. "I heard from Caimei that it took a long time to embroider. It's a pity to just lose it for no reason?"
Fu Zhiyu buried his head in his white fox fur coat and said in a muffled voice: "... Mother is making fun of me."
"How could I be making fun of you?" Imperial Noble Consort Yun treasured the handkerchief and put it away. "Mother really likes it."
Fu Zhiyu raised his head from the white fox fur, glanced at her, and asked, "People in the palace say that Prince Zhao doesn't read books, doesn't practice martial arts, and spends time embroidering. I'm afraid his brain is really hopeless."
Imperial Concubine Yun smiled and said, "What they want is different from what mother wants, so naturally they are more talkative."
"I know," Fu Zhiyu looked at her and smiled, then changed the subject and said, "After I accompany my mother to complete the ceremony tomorrow, I want to leave the palace."
"What are you going to do?"
Fu Zhiyu said: "Let's go to Yuan Mansion."
Yuan Fu is the mother of Imperial Noble Consort Yun.
"Go ahead," Imperial Concubine Yun laughed when she heard it, "bring some more things back with you. I'm afraid that your illness will leak out, so I haven't planned to tell them. Your family has sent several letters to the palace recently, all of which are about your concern. I'm afraid your father and mother are worried sick."
Fu Zhiyu nodded.
Now that he has been crowned a king, it is much easier for him to enter and leave the palace than when he was a prince.
"Oh, right," Imperial Concubine Yun seemed to have remembered something, "the one who saved you in the icy lake was called Xie Ke. He said at the time that he would go to Xie's house to thank him. Why don't we go to Xie's house together this time? We should still show the proper etiquette. After all, he saved your life."
Fu Zhiyu was stunned when she heard Xie Ke's name from her mother's mouth. She replied, "I will go. I will handle all of Xie Ke's affairs, but mother should stay away from him. It's best not to talk to him. He is very dangerous."
Imperial Concubine Yun didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She said, "I live in the harem, how can I talk to a man outside of my family? Besides, Xie Ke is your lifesaver anyway, why do you have to be so defensive against him?"
Fu Zhiyu patiently explained, "He just entered the palace yesterday and became a royal guard. He is always by my father's side. I think you will see him often in the future. I want you to listen to me and stay away from him."
"Okay, mother understands," Imperial Concubine Yun touched his face, "You, it's just a small matter, why are you so serious? Your face is so tense."
It’s not a trivial matter, Fu Zhiyu thought.
However, my mother hated Xie Ke in her previous life, probably because she knew that she liked him very much but couldn't get him. The way she looked at Xie Ke was probably no different from looking at a wild vixen. She felt that every time this person appeared, he would bar his fangs and suck her son's blood. To some extent, Imperial Concubine Yun was right.
I don't have to worry about it in this life...right