stonecrandall Chapter 414 What a temper!
Chapter 414 What a temper!
Subsequently, the Emperor issued an edict stating that Xu Wanyi, as the Marquis of Changning, was dismissed from his post and ordered to reflect on his actions in seclusion for beating an ordinary citizen in the street and then breaking into a private residence.
Once the position is gone, there is no real power in his hands. What use is an empty marquis?
In the inner palace, Shen Shixi also issued an imperial edict: Consort Li and Consort Xu had illicit relations with foreign officials and disturbed the palace. They were both demoted to the rank of Beauty and confined to their quarters, forbidden from stepping out of the palace gates without an imperial decree.
The sixth prince is already ten years old (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning). He originally lived with his mother, but has now been ordered to move to Xianfu Palace.
On the contrary, the Fifth Prince was older than him and lived with Consort Shu.
That's not the worst part. The Third Prince and the Sixth Prince are not allowed to see their mother at any time. If they want to see her, they must ask for permission.
Li Sihe was struck dumb. She was thinking of finding an opportunity to climb up the social ladder so that she could help her son. Who would have thought that she would be a hindrance?
Both of them were expelled from the main hall and moved into a side hall.
When they were the first in the palace, the Empress disliked them, so the Imperial Household Department, the Imperial Kitchen, and other institutions did not treat them well. Now, they are even less taken seriously.
Li Sihe truly hated Consort Xu. She had meant well by offering advice, but in the end, not only did she harm a senior palace maid named Feng Yuan, she also suffered misfortune herself.
The third prince hated Dongjun to the core, and every time he saw Dongjun, he felt an urge to bite him.
On the second day of the second month, the second prince returned to the palace. He was first summoned by the empress, and later questioned by his father, the emperor. He received some rewards, not many, but he was the first among the princes to receive them, so he was inevitably happy.
He prepared a feast and invited his brothers to eat in his palace. The Crown Prince, Xihe, and the eleventh and twelfth princes were all invited.
When the Third Prince heard that the Crown Prince had been invited, he said he would not come.
The second prince came over and asked him, "What's wrong? Still dreaming? I'm your elder brother. Take my advice: stop indulging in wishful thinking. Your ideas are unrealistic."
The Third Prince said, "How is it unrealistic? This dream was taught to me by my mother. When I was little, I grew up in Fengyi Palace. Back then, my mother was worried that the palace maids who took care of me wouldn't pay enough attention to them, so she often sent them money and gifts."
"Back then, I was afraid of everyone. My mother taught me to show my face in front of my father, so I hid behind a pillar to peek at him, but he only glanced at me and didn't even ask a question. But look at Dongjun and the others, how does my father treat them?"
The third prince was extremely resentful. "We are all Father's sons. Just because we weren't born from Mother's womb, does Father think he can treat us like we don't exist?"
The second prince didn't think so, because he received both his mother's favor and his father's rewards, which showed that his father still recognized him as his son.
As for the Emperor favoring one over the other, the Empress Consort said that even ten fingers are not all the same length, and he will understand when he becomes a father.
The second prince naturally wouldn't try to comfort him, only saying that if he didn't attend the banquet, he would be disrespecting his elder brother. Only then did the third prince reluctantly agree to go.
Dongjun and Xihe brought their two younger brothers to the banquet. As the crown prince, he naturally had to sit in the seat of honor. He and his sister had to take care of the eleventh and twelfth sons, who were also legitimate sons. The twelfth son, in particular, was the apple of their father's eye, and they couldn't let him suffer even the slightest grievance.
So, the four legitimate sons wanted to sit together, so they all occupied the most prominent positions. The second prince, the host, sat next to them, while the third prince was pushed to the bottom, which made him even angrier.
"Xihe, how can you do this? I can let it go, but my second brother is the host, so he should sit with the Lord of the East."
Xihe got up to move, and Fuguang was fine with it, listening to her sister. But Wangshu disagreed, saying, "No, I'll sit here."
He held onto the table, refusing to move it no matter what.
The third prince then reprimanded him, "Twelfth Prince, how dare you disobey your elder brother?"
The twelfth prince glared at him, then suddenly shoved the table. The octagonal table wouldn't budge, which only fueled his anger. He grabbed the tablecloth and flung it towards the third prince, scattering cups, chopsticks, bowls, and the food and wine inside them like a torrent towards him.
The princes and princesses screamed and quickly got up, but inevitably they were also covered in a lot of things.
The Third Prince, furious, shook the soup from the hem of his robe and pointed at the Twelfth Prince, "You, you, you..."
If "you" don't come out, he raises his foot and strikes at Twelve. The Crown Prince quickly shouts, "Stop!"
But he didn't have time to stop him. The twelfth prince was quick-witted. He shrank back and hid under the table, then suddenly pushed the stool, bumping into the third prince's knee.
The third prince was in so much pain that he broke out in a cold sweat. He was furious and wanted nothing more than to beat him to death.
The Crown Prince and Xihe stood in front of the Twelfth Prince, glaring angrily at the Third Prince, preventing him from making a move.
The second prince and the fifth prince also came over to pull him away. The second prince warned, "Be careful, Father!"
The third prince stubbornly replied, "I am the elder brother, am I not allowed to discipline him?"
The Crown Prince retorted angrily, "I am still here. Who gave you the right to lecture me, Third Brother? There is a distinction between嫡子 (legitimate son) and 庶子 (illegitimate son). Have you forgotten the proper etiquette, Third Brother?"
Wang Shu crawled out from under the table and made a face at the Third Prince, which made the Third Prince so angry that his fists hardened and he almost spat out a mouthful of blood. He wished he could eat him up in one bite.
"There is a difference between legitimate and illegitimate children, but look at his character! Shouldn't we do something about him?" the Third Prince accused Wang Shu.
Wang Shu chuckled, tilting her little head. "Mind your own business? Mind your own business? I'll have Daddy beat you to death!"
Everyone was speechless. Only the four legitimate sons were qualified to call him "Father," while the others didn't even have the chance to call him "Emperor."
The second prince then said, "Wangshu, give your elder brother some face today and don't cause any trouble. How about I bring you a cricket tomorrow?"
Wang Shu didn't know what a katydid was, so the prince taught him, "It's a small insect that makes a loud noise. Two katydids can fight to see who's stronger."
Wang Shu held up two fingers. "Two, one for me and one for my brother."
He called the Crown Prince "elder brother" and Fu Guang "brother," not because he didn't want to help Fu Guang, but because he felt it was pointless to fight against himself alone.
Fu Guang knew perfectly well that this was probably a telepathic connection between the twins, but he was neither moved nor grateful.
The second prince naturally agreed.
After the hall was tidied up, those affected changed their clothes and took their seats again.
After that, no one dared to compete with the four of them for a place. The third prince suffered from indigestion after the meal, and the other princes and princesses were all like quails. Only Wang Shu kept asking for this and that, and Xi He was busy taking care of him. When the second prince wanted to take care of him, he complained and refused.
After they finished eating, Li Fude and Chao En came to pick them up personally, and the other princes and princesses didn't even have the right to be jealous.
After bidding farewell to the second, third, and fourth princesses, Xihe took the twelfth prince's hand and left, while the crown prince took Fuguang's hand.
With the four children out for a banquet, Shen Shixi and Li Yuanke finally had some free time. Shen Shixi wanted to dine in the small garden, but after the table was set, she complained that it was too cold outside and wanted to move inside.
Li Yuanke was truly exasperated by her. Rubbing his stomach, he exclaimed, "I'm starving!"
In front of the children, he dared not call himself "Laozi" because he was afraid that Wang Shuxue would turn around and call him "Laozi" instead.
After finishing their meal, the couple took a walk hand in hand, just like before. They had only been talking for a short while when their four mischievous children returned.
Xihe saw her younger brother, who had been chattering incessantly the whole way, burst into tears the moment he saw their father. He flew into his father's arms like a butterfly, crying, "Father, my third brother hit me!"