Although the slap on the back of Li Ye's head was not heavy, Li Ye still flinched his neck symbolically, grinned with his teeth bared, and then started to make a bitter face and frowned and said: "There What should I do now? Even if I return the things that Pei Qing and Pei Xuan usually give me, it makes people feel that I am trying to get rid of suspicion and want to avoid being punished by my father. Just withdrawing and staying out of the matter, there is no way to prove that I have no intention of coveting the position of prince. "
"What do you want to do?" Li Hong looked at the door of Zichen Palace on the steps. Due to the height relationship, now he stood at the foot of the steps of Zichen Palace and could only see most of the three women at the door.
"I don't know, Erchen has never thought about it this way, but Pei Qing is too insidious. Every time he gives me the impression that he is upright and upright, who would have thought that he would do this behind his back? Erchen is still too young. I guess I have to carry the blame." The little guy also started to put his hands behind his back at some point, shaking his head and sighing in an old-fashioned way.
Such behavior naturally caused Li Hong to give him a slap on the back of the head. He looked at the little adult with a sad face and scolded him with a smile: "Young people should be lively and active. It's okay. You shake your head and sigh. What do you mean by the sophistication behind your hands?"
"It seems that all the gentlemen of the Imperial College are like this. When the royal children are studying, some of them cause trouble and do not pay attention. Sir, there is no way to increase the punishment. In desperation, it is like this. By the way, I heard that when you were studying, the father of Shangguan's mother and concubine, Shangguan My lord was once so angry with you..."
"It's none of your business. At that time, I was protected by your imperial concubine, so naturally I could act unscrupulously. Your mother was calm-tempered, and she never favored any of your brothers. So, don't expect to reach the age of 18 at the same age. They are at the same height." Looking at Li Ye, whose originally straight back suddenly collapsed due to his words, Li Hong had no choice but to comfort him: "But you are doing well now, and my father is very satisfied. "
"When I was ten years old, I was appointed as the Minister of the Ministry of Finance, and when I was fourteen years old, I went to Anxi! It's incredible when I think about it. Alas..." Li Ye sighed again and said something to Li Hong. Although his mood was no longer depressed, he was still troubled in his heart. The big stone thrown by Pei Qing still pressed firmly on his heart.
Li Hong looked at Li Ye who was becoming more and more relaxed, and asked seriously: "Then tell me, as a minister, what did Pei Qing do wrong?"
"Er Chen, now... From Er Chen's point of view, I just feel that I have been used, and I feel unconvinced. But from Pei Qing's point of view, Pei Qing probably wants to be the first to win, and to be one step ahead of others. Establish a circle of interests around your son and minister, so that you can easily obtain the maximum benefit after your father establishes a prince. In fact, if your son and minister are Pei Qing, you will not be in a hurry to win over the circle. After all, your father has never established a prince. , Pei Qing did this, obviously... "
Li Ye was suddenly startled, then looked at Li Hong and said urgently: "Pei Qing actually doesn't care very much about whether his son can be established as a prince by your father. He does this now for two reasons. One is to get ahead of others. One step is to win over the courtiers, hoping to one day become the prince's confidant. The second is that before he deliberately win over and use the name of the courtiers, he has already violated the laws of the Tang Dynasty, and some people have already known about it, but... maybe he has not been caught. There is no excuse for him, so in order to protect himself, or to be punished lightly by the court, he ropes in his subordinates to warn people who know that he is corrupt and perverting the law, not to offend or report him easily, right?"
"Absolutely, so he chose you, killing three birds with one stone. It can not only deter those who are aware of his corruption and bend the law, but also draw you to stand behind him to show other officials. And once you are appointed as the prince by your father, then he It's like killing three birds with one stone." Li Hong didn't expect that his eldest son was quite smart and could guess Pei Qing's thoughts.
Although it includes the step-by-step guidance I just gave, it is very valuable to be able to grasp the main context of the matter and then draw inferences.
"It's not your mother or your gentle mother-in-law, or is it your Aunt Bai Chun who is teasing you?" When I asked this question, it seemed a bit redundant, as if I was afraid that my son would be smarter than him.
"No, Concubine Wen just reminded Erchen that he might be beaten. Empress Wen just listened to Erchen's narration and didn't say anything. Aunt Bai didn't know at all, and Erchen didn't say anything." Li Ye answered to himself. road.
"Let's go to Chang'an with my father. During this trip, maybe you can understand whether the officials above the court are still as modest, cautious and kind as you saw after leaving the palace. Come on." Li Hong had a whim, and it happened that he hadn't been to Chang'an City for a long time. The weather was nice today, so the father and son went for a walk.
Only Hua Meng and Mang Zhong followed Li Hong and Li Ye. They walked out of the square of the Zichen Palace Palace and passed behind the Xuanzheng Palace in front. An ordinary carriage, no longer ordinary, had stopped at the door. The father and son walked out of the square. They got on the car one after another, and Hua Meng and Mang Zhong drove the single-horse carriage on the left and right, and drove slowly towards Chang'an City.
The three women at the door of Zichen Hall watched the father and son disappear, and then looked at the back of Xuanzheng Hall in the distance. A wisp of breeze ruffled the hair on their foreheads, and they could only hear her murmuring: " Didn't he send it to Zongzheng Temple in person?"
"You're so cunning." Bai Chun, who was standing between the two women, looked at Pei Wanying's speechless eyes, stretched out his fingers and pinched the gentle and slender waist of the palace attire.
Then she looked at Pei Wanying who seemed to be really worried by the gentle words of the big mouth, and said softly: "Ye'er has run so many laps, and is already tired, sweating and panting. It must have been your Majesty's response. Ye'er's punishment is over, now I'm afraid His Majesty couldn't bear the loneliness and went to Chang'an City. "
"I'm a little worried about being told by Wen Wen. I hope I won't get it right with her crow mouth." Pei Wanying sighed, and then seemed to think of something. She looked at Bai Chun and hesitated for a moment before saying, "Others in the palace." "Prince, it seems that I should remind my sister that as they grow older, some of the courtiers have begun to lose their control and reach out to them, so that things like Li Ye don't happen again."
Bai Chun nodded but did not speak. Pei Wanying was the master of the harem and the empress of the Tang Dynasty. Since she was asking for her opinion, she had to give the empress enough face. She could not really speak and agree. , this will make her feel that as a slave, she seems to be above the queen's head.
So the calm and slight nod not only allowed Pei Wanying to see her support, but also made Pei Wanying's words seem like she was mumbling to herself instead of asking for her opinion.
Wen Wen looked at Bai Chun, who was always cautious and never got involved in the affairs of the harem. Even when she went to the harem, she only went to greet her mother, and Pei Wanying, who turned to look at the Zichen Palace after speaking, curled her lips and said in a disgraceful way: "You Are you two tired?"
"Huh?" Pei Wanying, who was a little slow to react, turned her head and blinked her bright eyes, looking at Wen Wen for no apparent reason.
"I'm not tired of you. Taking Li Mei with you every day has turned the palace upside down. Queen, why don't you make a decree and keep the lovable Li Mei by your side, otherwise..." Bai Chun said with a hint of schadenfreude in his tone. : "The princess of the Tang Dynasty is about to become a tomboy. How can she be betrothed in the future..."
"No, no one can take her away, she is mine." Wen Wen said firmly, but seeing the two women looking at her at the same time, she felt guilty and pulled Bai Chun's sleeves: "It's yours too."
"Then don't let her hide with that tiger to scare people. Be careful one day if she scares His Majesty, then kill that tiger." Bai Chun looked at the shameless Princess Wen and said angrily.
"That's right, I was shocked last time. In the evening, when the lanterns were first lit, on the way back to the palace, I saw Li Mei riding a tiger out of the flowers. It almost scared me out of my mind. In the future, you have to Be more restrained," Pei Wanying also said.
Wen Wen was alone and without two foreign aids, An Xiaohe and Yan Lingbin, so she had no choice but to bow slightly: "Yes, Wen Wen will obey the wishes of my two sisters."
The three girls chuckled and lowered their heads and talked about some women's affairs, and then walked to the harem together. Although Pei Wanying and Wen Wen could stand at the door of Zichen Palace, it did not mean that they could enter at will when the emperor was not around, so Bai Chun accompanied the two of them to the harem slowly. Li Ye, who followed Li Hong out, was once again forgotten by his biological mother about his upcoming situation.
Ordinary carriages are walking on the bustling streets of Chang'an. Shops are lined up one after another. On the wide road, pedestrians and carriages go their own way. From time to time, you can see some celebrities and elegant people facing each other. The prosperity of Chang'an is at your fingertips.
The curtains on both sides of the carriage were slightly opened, allowing the father and son in the carriage to observe the situation outside, but making it difficult for pedestrians outside to see clearly who was sitting inside.
In addition, the carriage is ordinary, so walking on the bustling streets of Chang'an will not attract the attention of others.
"Where are we going, Father?" Li Ye, who had not left the palace for a long time, still couldn't hide the excitement and novelty on his face when facing the blossoming Chang'an City.
"How long have you been out? I didn't care about you coming to Chang'an, right?" Li Hong frowned slightly when he saw Li Ye's excitement.
"It must have been... two or three months. Oh, no, I came out during the Lantern Festival, but I never came out so relaxedly. My mother wouldn't let us, because she was afraid that we would cause trouble." Li Ye, who is still a young man, said His biological mother was betrayed in two sentences.
As expected, after hearing Li Ye's unintentional words, the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty couldn't help but curl his lips: "As a woman, she is afraid of causing trouble when she comes out. When you are in the palace, won't trouble come to you automatically? Next time you want to come out, just do it." Come out directly, as long as you don't bully others, I, the prince of Li Hong, can't just be a bird in a cage."
"Really?" Li Ye, who had been looking out the window, asked excitedly.
"How dare you doubt your father's words?" He raised his foot and lightly kicked Li Ye on the butt.
(End of chapter)