When Qi Jin appeared, Chen Jingzong and Emperor Yuanyou were standing on Jingshan Mountain in the middle of the Imperial Garden.
The higher you stand, the farther you can see. Qi Jin was still some distance away from Jingshan, but Chen Jingzong also discovered him.
Chen Jingzong pursed his lips slightly, with displeasure in his eyes, until he noticed Emperor Yuanyou's inquiring gaze. Then he quickly suppressed his strange expression and pretended nothing had happened as he continued to look for sparrows on the treetops.
Emperor Yuanyou used his eyes to signal the chief eunuch Cao Li not to follow. He took Chen Jingzong away and then asked in confusion, "Does the consort dislike Qi Jin?"
Chen Jingzong immediately said, "I dare not. Lord Qi is a gentleman, and he is also your and the princess's cousin. I admire him very much."
Emperor Yuanyou snorted: "You dare to deceive me, do you know what crime you should be punished for?"
Chen Jingzong's expression suddenly became extremely complicated.
Emperor Yuanyou comforted him again, "Don't worry, I just want to know how the feud between you two came about, I won't do anything."
Chen Jingzong: "It's not a big deal, just some quarrels. Complaining to you about these things makes me look narrow-minded."
Emperor Yuanyou: "What exactly is going on?"
Chen Jingzong hesitated, looked at Emperor Yuanyou, and said tentatively, "Then I'll tell you, Your Majesty, you must keep this secret for me. You can't tell the Empress Dowager or the Princess. I'm afraid they will favor Master Qi more. No, Your Majesty is definitely more fond of Master Qi. I'd better not tell you."
Emperor Yuanyou's appetite had been whetted to the fullest. Seeing that Qi Jin had already reached the foot of the mountain and would soon come up, he hurriedly coaxed him, "You are my brother-in-law, and your child will be my nephew in the future. Of course, I prefer you. You can speak freely. If Qi Jin is at fault, I will teach him a lesson for you."
Chen Jingzong: "No, I am satisfied that the emperor does not blame me. But please do not make a big deal out of this matter. If you really make a big deal out of it, my old man will scold me first."
Emperor Yuanyou: "Okay, okay, okay, I have agreed, tell me now!"
Chen Jingzong glanced down the mountain and whispered, "In the martial arts competition that year, I won the first place, causing the Jinwu Vanguard to lose the top three. Lord Qi was jealous of me. Later, I accompanied the princess to the Marquis' Mansion to celebrate the 60th birthday of the lady. Lord Qi drank with me at the same table. I drank too much, and I went to the toilet. He followed me and deliberately picked on me. I had no choice but to fight with him in the clean room. He kept pestering me, so I used the princess to pressure him, hoping that he would sober up. But he said that if I was not the son of the elder, I would not even be able to see the princess, let alone be the commander of the Daxing Left Guard!"
Emperor Yuanyou: …
One is his elegant cousin, and the other is his heroic brother-in-law. They both look so handsome in front of others, but they actually fought in the bathroom in private
Chen Jingzong said to himself, "Of course, Lord Qi is telling the truth, but we are all relatives, and his words are too rude. Isn't that a slap in the face of me? But he is good at pretending, and always pretends to treat me as a good brother. I don't have such a broad mind, and I can't play the role of a good brother. If it weren't for the fact that he is your and the eldest princess' cousin, I would have punched him if he dared to smile at me hypocritically."
Emperor Yuanyou was stunned.
Chen Jingzong said worriedly, "You wouldn't disbelieve it, would you? I tell you, the more they look like gentlemen, the better they are at acting. Take my third brother for example. When he was a child, he wanted to go on the ice, but he was afraid of being scolded by the old man, so he urged me to go. When I got on the ice first, he came up later. When the old man asked about it, he said it was to take care of me. Of course, the old man only scolded me and praised him for caring for his brother!"
Emperor Yuanyou: …
Chen Xiaozong turned out to be such a third place winner!
At this time, Qi Jin finally came up.
Chen Jingzong stood with his back to him and winked at Emperor Yuanyou: "You asked me why I was at odds with my two brothers, and I told you the truth. Please don't tell this to my father, he will definitely not believe it, but will think that I deliberately slandered my two brothers in front of you, and my situation at home will become even more difficult."
Emperor Yuanyou: "Don't worry, my husband. I am trustworthy."
Qi Jin smiled and asked gently, "What are the emperor and his wife talking about?"
Chen Jingzong said coldly: "My family affairs have nothing to do with you."
Qi Jin shook his head helplessly and looked at Emperor Yuanyou: "I wonder what instructions the emperor has for summoning me here?"
Emperor Yuanyou was upset because he could not leave the palace for the autumn hunt. Of course, he understood all those principles, but he just wanted to find someone to talk to about his troubles.
However, this annoyance had been resolved by Chen Jingzong. Emperor Yuanyou did not want to mention it again and explained: "I want to practice archery and would like to ask my cousin and the prince consort for some advice."
Qi Jin glanced at Chen Jingzong and said modestly, "Your Majesty is skilled in archery and horse riding. With Your Majesty here, I will not embarrass myself."
Chen Jingzong said sternly, "Master Qi, you are too kind. I just practiced archery casually on my own. How can I compare to Master Qi who has been taught by a famous teacher since childhood?"
Emperor Yuanyou watched silently as the two men flattered each other.
Chen Jingzong's flattery sounds sarcastic, while Qi Jin behaves like a gentleman and his compliments to others seem sincere.
But Emperor Yuanyou had seen too many people like Qi Jin who said one thing and meant another.
The first are the civil servants in the court. No matter how different their political views are, when they really need to be flattering, they can praise their opponents to the skies.
Also, when Zeng Ge Lao passed away, Chen Tingjian shed tears. But the reason Zeng Ge Lao died was that he was too afraid of being retaliated by Chen Tingjian. How deep could the friendship between these two people be
Surrounded by a group of people who were good at superficial work since childhood, Chen Jingzong became one of the few people with temperament that Emperor Yuanyou had come into contact with.
In order to preserve Chen Jingzong's true character, Emperor Yuanyou would not tell anyone about the conversation just now, lest Chen Jingzong be scolded by his mother, sister or Chen Tingjian and never dare to open up to him again.
"Don't be so modest, let's compete. In two quarters of an hour, right here on this mountain, whoever hunts the most sparrows will be praised by me for his archery skills and will be rewarded."
As soon as Emperor Yuanyou finished speaking, Chen Jingzong set off first, carrying a bow and arrow.
Before Qi Jin left, he reminded Emperor Yuanyou to sit in the pavilion on the top of the mountain to avoid being hurt by their arrows.
Emperor Yuanyou followed suit and went to the pavilion. Cao Li led several young eunuchs to surround the pavilion.
Emperor Yuanyou poured himself a bowl of tea, his mind still on Chen Jingzong's dissatisfaction with Qi Jin.
It's not that Emperor Yuanyou believed Chen Jingzong's one-sided words, but that Chen Jingzong really had no need to lie. If he really wanted to frame Qi Jin, he should have charged Qi Jin with a crime instead of engaging in a harmless verbal dispute.
Therefore, Qi Jin's tolerance is really small. He was jealous of Chen Jingzong because of the victory or defeat in a martial arts competition. He seemed to be a gentleman, but he said the words of a villain.
It is true that Chen Jingzong benefited from Chen Tingjian, but didn’t Qi Jin also benefit from the help of his mother and him
He thought Qi Jin was so handsome and charming, but in fact he was someone who couldn't afford to lose.
Emperor Yuanyou still prefers honest people like Chen Jingzong.
Quarter of an hour later, Chen Jingzong and Qi Jin came back.
Chen Jingzong used one arrow to string together seven or eight sparrows, and the sparrows died in an untidy manner, which shows that Chen Jingzong was not a man of particulars.
Qi Jin was very gentle. He only shot the wings of the sparrows. He caught four in total. He tied their feet, and the four sparrows fluttered around trying to escape.
Qi Jin looked at Chen Jingzong's harvest and said to Emperor Yuanyou with shame.
Emperor Yuanyou felt more and more fed up. Military generals just wanted to fight and kill. Why was Qi Jin pretending to be elegant here? He was not her sister. Why would he be sad to see a dead sparrow
"Just reward the prince consort to have lunch with me." Emperor Yuanyou said fairly.
Qi Jin looked normal, and Chen Jingzong seemed to be hesitant to speak.
Emperor Yuanyou: "You want something else?"
Chen Jingzong coughed and said, "When I entered the palace, the princess was still angry with me. I would like to ask the emperor to give me something that the princess likes, so that I can borrow flowers to offer to the Buddha."
Emperor Yuanyou almost forgot about this. He paused and said to Cao Li, "Didn't the inner treasury record a pair of Hetian white jade lotus last year? Go and get them and give them to the prince consort."
Cao Li will do it immediately.
Chen Jingzong hesitated and asked, "Will it cost you too much?"
Emperor Yuanyou: "You want to please your sister, and sending a messenger will only add fuel to the fire."
After he finished speaking, seeing Qi Jin still standing aside, seemingly curious about what they were talking about, Emperor Yuanyou waved his hand and told Qi Jin to leave first.
Qi Jin lowered his eyes, bowed and left.
Chen Jingzong watched him walk away, then looked at Emperor Yuanyou and asked anxiously, "Your Majesty, will you not bear a grudge against Lord Qi because of what I said?"
Emperor Yuanyou: "I'm venting your anger, aren't you happy?"
Chen Jingzong said sternly, "Lord Qi and I only had a momentary dispute of arrogance. He is loyal to you and the court. I said those things only in the hope that Your Majesty can forgive my disrespect to Lord Qi. If Lord Qi is ignored by you because of this, it is my fault."
Emperor Yuanyou smiled and said, "Don't worry, I am not confused about public and private affairs. It's just that there is really nothing for him to do here, so I asked him to leave."
Chen Jingzong breathed a sigh of relief.
Later, Cao Li came over holding a rosewood box and carefully placed it on the stone table in front of Emperor Yuanyou.
Emperor Yuanyou opened the box and asked Chen Jingzong to come and have a look.
Chen Jingzong took a few steps closer and took a look. He saw that the box was covered with a layer of aquamarine silk, and on the silk were two white jade lotus flowers as big as bowls placed side by side.
Even a rough man like Chen Jingzong was stunned by these two pure white "lotuses".
He looked at Emperor Yuanyou again: "One flower is precious enough, why don't you keep one for yourself?"
Emperor Yuanyou: "I will give you a reward. Take it back and please your sister."
Chen Jingzong thanked the emperor for his grace, put away the box as carefully as Cao Li did, held it in his arms, and walked down the stairs step by step.
Emperor Yuanyou looked at his steady gait and shook his head in amusement.
It was because the Chen family lacked financial resources that Chen Jingzong treasured this reward so much. If it were a nobleman who had been pampered since childhood, he would have seen countless similar jade articles.
.
The Princess's Mansion.
Chen Jingzong was suddenly called away by Emperor Yuanyou. Huayang continued to stroll around the garden for a while and then returned to Qifeng Palace.
She lay on her side on the couch, basking in the sun and wondering what had happened in the palace. Unexpectedly, Chen Jingzong came in and presented her with treasures.
Huayang liked the pair of white jade lotus very much, but was just wondering: "Why did my brother give it to you as a reward?"
Chen Jingzong then told the conversation he had just had with Emperor Yuanyou: "We often go out of the city, and the emperor is envious. If I tell him that you and I are strolling together in the garden, will he feel comfortable?"
Hua Yang glanced at him and said, "Who is in love with you? Besides, what you said is not all lies. I really dislike that you only care about eating lotus roots."
Chen Jingzong: "It's necessary to be half-truthful to convince people. If the emperor asks you about it later, you must be careful not to reveal your true identity, or the emperor will accuse me of deceiving the emperor."
Huayang was not that stupid. He played with a jade lotus and asked, "After being gone for so long, what else did your brother tell you?"
Chen Jingzong: "Nothing. The emperor was itching to play mahjong, so he asked me and Qi Jin to play mahjong with him. I played a lot, so the emperor wanted to give me a meal. I don't care about a meal, so I asked the emperor for something you would like."
Huayang: "… You are really brave to ask the emperor for something."
Chen Jingzong looked at her cheek, which was reflected by the white jade lotus in his hand, and smiled, "You are very proud. When the emperor heard that I wanted to please you, of course he was willing to cooperate."
Huayang stared at him with a smile on his face.
Chen Jingzong put his hands on both sides of the wooden box, wanting to kiss her beautiful lips.
Huayang stepped back and said, "You've hunted so many sparrows, but you haven't washed your hands of this yet, have you?"
Chen Jingzong: "I don't need to kiss you with my hands."
Huayang: "That won't work either, go wash it first and wipe your face."
Every autumn, the wind in the capital city will always bring some dust.
The eldest princess was too delicate and dignified to tolerate any flaws, so Chen Jingzong had no choice but to get off the bed and tidy himself up first.
But the more effort he put into it, the more he felt that the person in his arms was as rare as a fairy when he really kissed her, and he wanted to kiss her until her muscles became weak and she was unable to break free.
(End of this chapter)