Huangxiu

Chapter 31 The Beginning

When he returned home in the evening, the moon was already at its zenith.

The streets and alleys of Yujing City were still bustling, even more so than during the day, especially the laughter and joy in the restaurants, which could be heard far away.

Chu Zhiyuan walked slowly and leisurely among the guards and shook his head.

Don't these people sleep?
Why is it more lively at night than during the day?
Could it be that the martial arts practitioners' vigorous energy caused this? But martial arts practitioners also need to rest and practice.

He really couldn't understand the living conditions of these people.

Suddenly, Huang Shirong was seen in the crowd, surrounded by two girls in white.

Huang Shirong is still as cool and aloof as ever, yet still has a beautiful appearance.

She was dressed in an apricot-yellow silk gown, and her figure was as graceful as a willow swaying in the wind. The long sword at her waist still made people tremble with fear, for fear that it would break her slender waist.

She also saw Chu Zhiyuan in the distance, and suddenly accelerated, weaving lightly through the crowd and coming closer.

Chu Zhiyuan waved his hand.

Guo Chi knew the opportunity and stepped back to make way.

Huang Shirong came to Chu Zhiyuan with a faint fragrance, clasped her fists and smiled sweetly, "Prince."

"Master Huang, I hope you are well." Chu Zhiyuan smiled.

Huang Shirong smiled and said, "Your Highness, are you in such a good mood?"

Chu Zhiyuan said, "I bought a house in Mingyue Tower and go there occasionally to change my mood."

Huang Shirong nodded slightly.

Under normal circumstances, a luxurious and magnificent royal palace is more than enough to live in for a lifetime, so one would not want to buy a house elsewhere.

But the Fourth Prince is different. Having been imprisoned in the palace for twenty years, he may have a vague disgust and fear of the palace.

Speaking of which, the Fourth Prince is also a poor man. The most troublesome thing is that he is emotionally traumatized, and it may take him a lifetime to slowly heal.

Chu Zhiyuan asked: "Can you figure out why it's so lively?"

Huang Shirong frowned slightly: "Recently, more and more experts have been pouring in, saying they are here to watch the fun."

"What's the excitement?"

"The Dazhen envoys are coming to Beijing. They are here to see the Dazhen people."

Chu Zhiyuan raised his eyebrows: "Are you here for revenge?"

Huang Shirong nodded slightly, her expression solemn.

They said they came to see Dazhen, but it was obvious that they were all ready to take revenge on Dazhen.

Dazhen and Dajing also had a honeymoon period, but during the two most recent emperors, they were almost always in a state of war.

Dazhen and Daming secretly formed an alliance, exchanged glances, and worked together to deal with Dajing, causing Dajing to suffer a lot.

This time, Dazhen wanted to marry Dajing, but too many people opposed it.

The relatives and friends of those who died in the war between Dazhen and Dajing all have a blood feud with Dazhen, so how could they allow Dajing to let Dazhen go?

Although an alliance with Dazhen would be more advantageous in dealing with Damon.

But ordinary people don’t care about so much, they just want revenge.

This brought enormous pressure and burden to the Zhenwu Division and the City Patrol Guards, and if they were not careful, a big mess would arise.

If anything happens to the Dazhen envoy group, it will definitely affect the alliance between the two countries, and no one in the Zhenwu Division can take responsibility for it.

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head and said, "It gives me a headache just thinking about it."

Huang Shirong sighed softly.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and said, "However, Chief Jiang is not an ordinary person, and you, Chief Huang, are also very smart. You can do this without any difficulty."

"Please ask for good wishes, Your Majesty." Huang Shirong smiled bitterly.

Chu Zhiyuan clasped his fists, and Huang Shirong tactfully said goodbye and left.

When they returned to the palace, the entire Qing Palace had become quiet, with only the guards patrolling.

The streets of Prince Qing’s mansion were as bright as day.

There are rows of carved lanterns with the word "Celebration" painted on them on both sides of the street. The concentrated light fills the entire street, and also makes the newly painted doors and golden nails sparkle.

Chu Zhiyuan entered the palace gate, returned to his own courtyard, and waved his hand to let Mo Yi and the other three girls who had fallen asleep on the table go back.

Just at this moment, Zou Fang came in and said that Liang Guanjie had been waiting for most of the night, insisting on waiting for the prince to come back.

Chu Zhiyuan nodded.

After a moment, Liang Guanjie walked into the study room through the curtain and saluted with his fists clasped.

Chu Zhiyuan waved his hand: "It's getting late, let's cut to the chase, how is it?"

Liang Guanjie's Maitreya Buddha-like smile disappeared, his expression was serious, and he said softly: "My Lord, I have found out that the guards of the Jingwang Mansion are jointly undertaken by the Patrol City Guards and the Zhenwu Division, and the Supervisory Division is also included. There is a Grandmaster in the east, west, south and north of the mansion. I suspect that there is also a Grandmaster in charge... No one in the mansion is allowed to go out. All purchases are handled by the Zongwu Division, and then handed over to the special Forbidden Palace Guards, and then to the eunuchs."

Chu Zhiyuan frowned: "Still so strict?"

Thirty years have passed, why is the Jingwang Mansion still so strictly guarded?

If she was really dissatisfied with the Second Prince and harbored anger, she should have calmed down after thirty years and would not bother to care about him.

It's still so strict, which is really abnormal.

Liang Guanjie said solemnly: "I also heard that these guards are replaced every year and there is no duplication."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded slowly, his eyes flickering.

Liang Guanjie said: "I suspect there is a great master, so I dare not go deeper, and there is no way to find out more."

Chu Zhiyuan said slowly: "Have you seen Second Uncle?"

Liang Guanjie nodded: "I took a peek from afar and found that Prince Jing was in good spirits."

Chu Zhiyuan asked, "Where are the others?" Liang Guanjie said, "Prince Jing's wife passed away three years ago, leaving only a princess, who is about the same age as the princess."

Chu Zhiyuan frowned: "Anything else?"

"Prince Jing has no concubines or wives. It seems that there are only Prince Jing and the princess in this huge palace."

"Where are the servants in the mansion?"

"It's far inferior to our palace." Liang Guanjie shook his head: "The spirit is gone, and everyone is lazy and slack."

Chu Zhiyuan remained silent.

Liang Guanjie said softly: "My Lord, do you want to communicate with Prince Jing?"

"Wait a little longer, you guys retreat first, ... have you not been discovered?"

"Don't worry, Prince, it's impossible for us to be discovered."

"Ask Manager Feng for some silver and elixirs, and go to the manor outside the city to retreat for half a month, and come back."

"Yes."

Liang Guanjie clasped his fists and left the study.

Chu Zhiyuan paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, shaking his head.

Although my father really wants to visit King Jing, the situation seems very abnormal now, so it is not advisable to visit to avoid getting into trouble.

If you really want to visit, you have to wait until you become a master.

I've waited for thirty years, so a year or two won't make a difference.

-

At dawn the next day, he went to Mingwu Hall to practice martial arts with Chu Mingxuan, Chu Zhichuan, Chu Zhiting and others.

They practiced the Small Purple Yang Stance while he practiced the Big Purple Yang Stance.

The true qi of the Great Purple Yang Art has many wonderful benefits.

It is extremely yang and strong, and very pure. After entering the opponent's meridians, it has a special burning effect. Even if one is one or two levels higher in realm, it is difficult to expel or dissolve it.

What’s more important is that the Great Purple Yang Art has the effect of nourishing the body. At the same realm, one can live longer, and it is a miraculous achievement that can reach the level of a grand master.

Ordinary mental practice will damage the foundation, causing a loss of essence, energy and spirit, and even if one's level of attainment is high enough, one cannot become a grandmaster.

This is also one of the reasons why grand masters are rare in the world.

In between training sessions, he would get together with the other princes and heirs to chat.

He talked about what he had seen and heard in the Ministry of Rites, and they talked about what they had heard from their parents. They exchanged ideas with each other and had a lively conversation.

When the sun rose higher, he said goodbye to everyone and went to the Ministry of Rites to report.

After staying in Tongtian Pavilion until noon, we returned to Prince Qing’s Mansion and had lunch together as a family.

During lunch, Chu Zhiyuan noticed that Bai Ningshuang was smiling, so he curiously asked why.

"In a few days it will be the birthday of the King Xuan. I am invited to attend the birthday party. Yuan'er, you can go with us then."

"Fourth uncle?" Chu Zhiyuan smiled and said, "Congratulations, mother."

Because of his outstanding performance in winter hunting and his entry into the Ministry of Rites, people began to come to propose marriage to him.

When they entered the palace, the princesses' attitudes changed.

But this is the first time that a prince has issued an invitation.

This is a major signal, meaning a new beginning and the first step for Prince Qing's Mansion to integrate into the royal family.

"You are so proud of yourself, Yuan'er!" Bai Ningshuang smiled happily: "Otherwise, they would still pretend not to know me!"

She looked at Chu Zhiyuan with a smile: "Yuan'er, come with me."

Chu Zhiyuan waved his hands and said he was busy.

He was indeed busy practicing, and was not satisfied with his progress and wanted to go faster.

Bai Ningshuang glared at him in dissatisfaction.

Chu Minghou advised her not to delay Chu Zhiyuan's business, as his son was no longer an idle person and was working in the Ministry of Rites.

"The Anguo Mansion should also be invited. Maybe Princess Xiao will be there. Yuan'er, don't you want to take a look?"

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head decisively.

Now he has no time to be distracted by these things and only wants to practice.

Bai Ningshuang snorted in dissatisfaction: "Okay, I'll go with Yi'er."

Chu Yi's face suddenly wrinkled and she looked at her bitterly, as if begging for mercy.

Bai Ningshuang was unmoved and snorted, "Don't stay in the yard fiddling with flowers and plants all day long, come with me and meet some people!"

"mother--!"

"Stop talking nonsense, it's settled!"

Chu Zhiyuan ignored Chu Yi's pleading look and buried his head in eating.

He was going to the Audit Department today to personally urge the progress and, by the way, exchange the ninth-grade merit for a small marrow cleansing pill.

"Also, I asked your grandmother to find a lady-in-waiting from the palace to learn some etiquette in the next few days."

Chu Yi said unconvincedly: "Mom, I don't need to learn anymore."

"You are learning in a muddled way. If something goes wrong, you will be embarrassed and unworthy of your name."

"Mom——!" She turned her head and looked at Chu Zhiyuan pleadingly.

Chu Zhiyuan pretended not to see it, put down the bowl, said "I'm full", stood up and left. Chu Yi's dissatisfied call could not stop him from leaving.

(End of this chapter)