The prince is more stable

Chapter 542 Leaving the palace incognito
Zhao Xu and Zhao Ji are brothers. Although they have the same father but different mothers, their relationship is much closer than that of Zhao Xu and Zhao Xiaoqian.

However, Zhao Xu was obviously closer to Zhao Xiaoqian, which made Zhao Ji feel unfair.

But in this world, status is ultimately determined by strength. If one's strength is absolutely strong, then one's origin is not that important.

For example, if Zhao Ji really had the ability and could achieve the same achievements as Zhao Xiaoqian, Zhao Xu would certainly value him.

Zhao Ji was indeed good at reading, painting, calligraphy, etc., but compared with state affairs, his excellence was just minor and could not change anything.

It can only be said that Zhao Ji chose the wrong skill tree since he was born, and he simply did not have the ability of Zhao Xiaoqian.

Zhao Xu entrusted Zhao Ji with the important task of assisting the minister in charge of state affairs. Although his words seemed unintentional, Zhao Ji and Zhao Xiaoqian both kept them in mind.

Zhao Xiaoqian looked at Zhao Xu carefully and saw that Zhao Xu had a smile on his face and was teasing the prince who was woken up. His words just now seemed unintentional, but also intentional, and there was no clue.

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Xiaoqian bowed and said, "I will devote my life to the great Song Dynasty, assist the emperor and the prince, and be loyal to him for the rest of my life."

Zhao Xu turned his head to look at him and said with a smile, "I have been in power for two years. Without Zi'an's assistance, I don't know how far the Song Dynasty would have fallen. It was Zi'an who washed away the humiliation for me. In the future, I will need Zi'an in many more areas."

After a pause, Zhao Xu continued, "The recent storm has not yet subsided, and there are still criticisms in the court. Zi'an should take this opportunity to rest and recuperate in Bianjing and get back on track. Perhaps before long, Zi'an will have to travel to Zhending again to share my worries."

"It is my duty as an official to live up to the trust placed in me by the government."

As the emperor and his ministers were talking, the nurse holding the prince suddenly said cautiously, "Your Majesty, the virtuous concubine just asked you to come and say that she's not feeling well and wants you to accompany her..."

Zhao Xu frowned: "If you feel unwell, you call the imperial physician. I can't treat illnesses, so what's the point of accompanying her?"

Hearing the impatience in Zhao Xu's tone, the wet nurse shrank her shoulders and dared not speak.

Zhao Xu looked at Zhao Xiaoqian with some dissatisfaction and said, "Women are so troublesome. When she was pregnant, Zi'an didn't know what she was like. She often woke me up in the middle of the night, asking for this and that, crying and laughing for no apparent reason, like she was crazy."

"When she was pregnant, I could still tolerate her. After all, the prince was in her belly. Now that the prince is born, she still doesn't know what's going on. She has no idea what's going on!"

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and didn't dare to say a word.

Palace affairs, especially the secrets of royal couples, have always been taboo and sensitive topics. Zhao Xiaoqian would not be stupid enough to comment on the affairs of other couples as an outsider.

Although he didn't dare to comment, Zhao Xiaoqian quickly looked at Zhao Ji and silently encouraged him with his eyes.

You are brothers, so please give your evaluation of your sister-in-law.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Ji took a step back and pretended to appreciate the furnishings in the Funing Palace. He turned a deaf ear to Zhao Xu's complaints, as if he was deaf and blind.

Zhao Xiaoqian twitched the corner of his mouth. This guy is also a smart one, and he is not easy to deal with.

Zhao Xu had probably been feeling aggrieved for too long. Concubine Liu was pregnant for ten months, and Zhao Xu had endured her for ten months. Now that Concubine Liu had given birth, Zhao Xu had no scruples anymore and kept complaining to Zhao Xiaoqian in front of his wet nurse.

Looking back on the past ten months, how Concubine Liu acted like a demon, how she was willful and capricious, how she looked down on everyone in the harem, and how she was arrogant and domineering...

Zhao Xiaoqian felt his scalp tingling as he listened to this. You don’t have to tell me, an outsider, about your marital affairs in such detail, right?
What if one day you come to your senses and realize that I know too much and want to silence me?
I don't want to know about your little affairs as a couple!
Zhao Xu continued to complain. Just as he was about to talk about how unpleasant it was to have sex with Concubine Liu, and how the emperor was actually ridden on by a woman, he was about to continue describing it when Zhao Xiaoqian's eyelids twitched and he hurriedly interrupted him.

"Your Majesty!" Zhao Xiaoqian whispered, then blinked, "Your Majesty is delighted to have a prince. Court is adjourned today. How about leaving the palace for a secret stroll? Just to relax and make up for the grievances you've endured for the past ten months?"

Zhao Xu's eyes lit up. "Eh? That's right. I've been feeling depressed for ten months. This woman has already given birth. Why should I still stay with her? I want to go out and have fun!"

As he said that, Zhao Xu called Zheng Chunhe and asked him to change his clothes.

After a long time, Zhao Xu had changed into casual clothes, and Zhao Xiaoqian had also changed into a low-key black silk shirt. The two of them walked excitedly towards the palace gate.

As I stepped out of the palace, I heard a wronged voice behind me.

"Your Majesty, where is my brother?" Zhao Ji said aggrievedly with a pout.

Zhao Xiaoqian only took one look at him and was disgusted by his pretentious appearance.

"Damn green tea!" Zhao Xiaoqian cursed inwardly, "I really hope that when you have a circumcision, the doctor will need a magnifying glass to find the right spot."

When Zhao Xu turned around and saw Zhao Ji's appearance, he suddenly understood, as if he had just remembered him.

"Ah! Brother Ji..." Zhao Xu thought for a moment and said, "Brother Ji, if you have nothing to do, please return to the Prince's Mansion. Zi'an and I will go on a secret tour."

After saying that, Zhao Xu waved his hand and took Zhao Xiaoqian with him, and the two of them left the palace excitedly.

Zhao Ji stood at the gate of Funing Palace, looking at the two men from behind, his eyes becoming more and more sinister. Of course, Zhao Xu and Zhao Xiaoqian did not see his eyes, but Zheng Chunhe, who had been standing next to them, did see them.

Zheng Chunhe's face was full of smiles, with an unfathomable light flashing in his eyes. He lowered his head and respectfully saluted Zhao Ji, then took small steps to follow Zhao Xu's footsteps.

…………

When the emperor goes out of the palace incognito, it is not like in movies and TV dramas where he can just put on ordinary people's clothes and travel around carefree.

In fact, even if Zhao Xu went out of the palace in disguise, there were still hundreds of disguised imperial guards around him. As Zhao Xu moved, the imperial guards could set up the first, second and third lines of defense at any time, and deliberately screen out civilians who had no intention of approaching Zhao Xu.

Therefore, when the emperor traveled incognito, the people who worked the hardest were the imperial guards who protected him closely.

Zhao Xu was completely oblivious to the hardships of the imperial guards. After leaving the palace, he was like a bird that had flown out of a cage, flapping his wings and exploring everywhere. He was curious about everything outside the palace. Just like the old saying goes, when he passed by a dung cart, he couldn't wait to taste it to see whether it was salty or not.

Zhao Xiaoqian accompanied them somewhat helplessly. He was too familiar with Bianjing, and eating, drinking and having fun were no longer new to him.

Zhao Xu looked like a country bumpkin who had never seen the world. He stopped and walked everywhere to look around. At this moment, he even took a fancy to a crystal ball on a stall. He didn't even ask the price and just took it away. Hu Shang was very anxious and was about to stop him, but Zheng Chunhe, who was in disguise, immediately stood in front of him and paid the bill.

Zhao Xiaoqian shook his head secretly. According to the clichéd plot development, this country bumpkin's love story was about to happen.

On the busy streets, the emperor of the dynasty was out for a visit incognito, and the lively and smart heroine made a brilliant appearance. She bumped into him hard on the street, and they fell in love at the first touch. The heroine yelled and scolded him, but the hero remained calm, revealing a devilish and unruly expression, muttering, "Woman, you have attracted my attention..."

From then on, a touching love story began, which was both sad, sweet and enjoyable.

However, how could Zhao Xiaoqian allow such a clichéd and melodramatic love story to happen?
There are already three thousand beauties in the harem, so don't harm the bloody heroine. You must be quick and kill Zhao Xu's love in the cradle.

Grabbing Zhao Xu's arm, Zhao Xiaoqian said, "Your Majesty, you haven't been to a brothel yet, right? It's a rare opportunity to leave the palace today, why not go and listen to some music?"

Zhao Xu nodded immediately with interest. "Very good. I've heard for a long time that listening to music in brothels is a refined activity in the modern world. I must give it a try today."

The two of them arrived at Zhouqiao and randomly found a busy brothel and walked in.

Two men dressed as wealthy young men came in, and the brothel immediately arranged the best seats for them and served them wine, drinks and snacks.

On the stage of the brothel, a storyteller was talking incessantly. After listening for a while, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

The storyteller was telling the story of "Prince Hejian Conquers Liao".

However, Zhao Xiaoqian was not talented, but he was the "Prince of Hejian".

Sitting in the audience and listening to my own story, this feeling... is definitely not pleasant. Instead, it is embarrassing and socially unacceptable.

Just like some online writers who come up with weird names, they were out of their minds when they came up with the names and really didn’t consider their future situation at all.

Imagine how the writer felt when the big boss yelled "Who's the shifty one?" on the stage. If this happens too often, he'll really become withdrawn...

This is how Zhao Xiaoqian feels at the moment.

In particular, when the storyteller on the stage recounted the story of the pacification of Liao, the process and details were particularly exaggerated, such as "divine soldiers suddenly descended, and thunder rumbled in the sky as if to cheer them on", and "His Highness sat firmly in the commander's tent, his orders were as strong as a mountain, and all the horses were silent"...

Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't help rubbing his cheeks, and goose bumps appeared on his face.

Approaching Zhao Xu, Zhao Xiaoqian smiled bitterly and said, "I was wrong, Your Majesty. How about we go to a brothel? The courtesans in Bianjing's brothels are quite beautiful, even more charming than the concubines in the palace..."

However, Zhao Xu seemed to have no interest in women. Perhaps he had been psychologically traumatized by Concubine Liu's mischief in the past ten months, and he became somewhat immune to women.

On the contrary, she was quite interested in the storyteller's story. She looked at the gentleman on the stage with bright eyes. She was very impatient with Zhao Xiaoqian's suggestion and pushed him aside, saying, "Stop making noise! ​​I'm really enjoying it."

Zhao Xiaoqian remained steadfast and said, "Most folk stories are exaggerated. If Your Majesty wants to hear the truth, I can report it to you... Your Majesty, please believe me. No one understands the Liaodong pacification better than me."

"Shut up!" Zhao Xu shouted. Then, upon hearing what the storyteller had said, he turned around and said in astonishment, "During the Battle of Juma River, was our army truly blessed by heaven? The reeds on the bank transformed into a hundred thousand decoys, preventing the Liao army from making any rash moves?"

Zhao Xiaoqian's face darkened as he sighed helplessly, "Sir, there are no reed marshes on the south bank of the Juma River..."

Staring at the storyteller who was talking nonsense on the stage, Zhao Xiaoqian picked up a piece of dessert on the table and threw it at him, hitting the storyteller on the head.

"Shut up and come down! Let me talk!" Zhao Xiaoqian said angrily.

The storyteller was stunned, but Zhao Xu, who was standing next to him, was dissatisfied. He immediately covered Zhao Xiaoqian's mouth and said, "You shut up too. I like to listen to him!"

(End of this chapter)