readytorunbook Chapter 333 Gu Jingzhi makes his position clear!
Chapter 333 Gu Jingzhi makes his position clear!
The two of them played in the study until almost dinner time, and then the Crown Princess quietly left the study.
Not long after, the prince came back in a hurry.
Seeing Gu Jingzhi sitting at the desk wiping his sweat with a handkerchief, he felt full of guilt!
Ugh!
Such a big case, even someone as talented as Gu Qing would find it difficult! Gu Qing treated me this way, but when I was in Ningzhou... I really shouldn't have done this!
Moreover... there is a strange smell in this study. It is really hard for Gu Qing. For my sake, he has to endure this strange smell. Thinking of this, the prince feels even more guilty!
Gu Jingzhi also heard the voice. He looked up and saw that it was the prince, and was shocked.
It was a close call!
Gu Jingzhi put down his handkerchief, a smile on his face, and said, "Your Highness is back, but I wonder how the trip to the palace went?"
"It is indeed as Gu Qing said. Father wanted to point out the core of my case. However, when I told him about Gu Qing's method, he was particularly surprised!"
The prince's face was slightly excited. Emperor Xia's approval was secondary. He also got a piece of news when he went to the palace this time.
It is indeed as Gu Jingzhi said, this time Emperor Xia is testing him. If he passes, he will have nothing to worry about!
Thinking of this, Gu Jingzhi’s weight in the prince’s heart became even heavier!
He looked at Gu Jingzhi, and said with deep emotion: "This is the first time that Mr. Gu has come to visit the East Palace. Not only did I fail to entertain you well, but I also threw this case to you. It's my fault..."
"Your Highness, what are you talking about? Sharing the emperor's worries is the duty of a minister. Besides, I feel very good in this study!"
Gu Jingzhi almost showed a squinting smile on his face.
He didn't do any work this afternoon, but was instead treated extremely warmly by the Crown Princess. How could it be considered a poor reception?
However, the prince didn't understand the inner meaning at all, and instead said excitedly: "If Gu Qing is like this, I will not let him down..."
Sharing your worries...
My duty as a minister...
Gu Jingzhi had never said anything like this in front of him before, even though everyone outside had already classified Gu Jingzhi as the prince's camp.
However, apart from the time in Ningzhou, there was no news of Gu Jingzhi visiting anyone else's home in the capital except for the banquet he attended at the Chen family!
Strictly speaking, this is the East Palace...Gu Jingzhi's first time as a guest!
Although I have been here a few times before, I always focused on official business at that time and never had a banquet in the East Palace.
The words just now can be directly understood as Gu Jingzhi expressing his intention to officially join his prince's camp.
In fact, this was indeed what Gu Jingzhi meant. Although in his heart, he had long since tacitly accepted that he was from the prince's line, he had never expressed this openly before.
The reason why he made this statement was very simple. After investigating for a period of time, he was 80% sure that...there was indeed something wrong with Emperor Xia's health!
The details are unclear, but Emperor Xia has already coughed up blood, several times!
If this symptom happened in ancient times, it would almost be a terminal illness!
The prince didn't know what Gu Jingzhi was thinking, but instead said with joy, "I'm happy today. Why don't you accompany me for a few drinks? We can talk while we drink."
Gu Jingzhi smiled and said, "That's what I wish for, but I dare not ask for it!"
"Ha ha!"
The prince laughed loudly: "Then I will drink with you today, and I won't leave until I am drunk..."
Gu Jingzhi smiled. After the two of them walked out of the study, Gu Jingzhi asked as they walked, "Your Highness proposed to go to the Central Plains. Has His Majesty agreed?"
"Ha ha!"
The prince smiled and said, "Not only did he agree to this, he also specially prepared a guard of 5,000 men. As Gu Qing expected, they are all brave men from the Imperial Guard!"
"Oh?"
Gu Jingzhi was slightly stunned, then smiled mysteriously: "It seems that His Majesty's trust in Your Highness is unmatched!"
Five thousand imperial guards... This is an opportunity for the prince to win over people!
If it were just troops from the capital camp, Gu Jingzhi wouldn't have thought much about it, but these were the imperial guards, the troops that protected the safety of the palace, and the meaning of handing them over to the prince was self-evident.
However, the Crown Prince was not as happy as Gu Jingzhi had imagined. He said with some melancholy, "I'm not sure what the Emperor's intentions are. Usually, the Imperial Guards are elite troops dispatched from the main camp in the capital! Except when the Emperor is travelling, the Imperial Guards are never mobilized at will!"
Gu Jingzhi raised his lips and said with a smile, "Your Highness, are you worried that His Majesty is testing you?"
"Yes! Father has taken some actions recently, which I really don't understand! I don't know whether they are good or bad!" The prince looked a little worried.
Gu Jingzhi smiled and said, "Your Highness, I think the exact opposite of what Your Highness thinks!"
"Oh? Gu Qing, do you have any other opinions?"
"hehe!"
Gu Jingzhi smiled and said, "Your Highness, think about it! After the incident two years ago, His Majesty did not completely depose Your Highness from the position of Crown Prince. This kind of trust is unprecedented in all dynasties!"
"In my opinion, when Your Majesty exiled Your Highness, it was partly to protect Him, but also as a test!"
"It was like this two years ago, so there's no reason to test him in this way now! Besides, Your Highness is the crown prince. If you don't fight for the power that's been handed to you, how can you be a qualified crown prince?"
"Your Majesty is a man of great talent and strategy. Why would he care about his heir's struggle for power? The only difference is a matter of scope and means!"
Gu Jingzhi smiled faintly.
If it were in the past, he really wouldn't dare to be so sure, but now...
Emperor Xia's own health was not good, so how could he control the power of the crown prince within a certain range as he did before?
The prince was a little shocked when he heard this. He stopped and looked at Gu Jingzhi: "Gu Qing... is this really the case?"
"Ha ha!"
Gu Jingzhi laughed and said, "Your Highness, are you afraid of ropes for ten years after being bitten by a snake once?"
The prince smiled awkwardly upon hearing this.
The incident two years ago caused him to become extra cautious in some aspects. It was just as Gu Jingzhi said, once bitten by a snake, one will be afraid of ropes for ten years.
Not only him, even other princes did not dare to openly get involved in military power!
Seeing this, Gu Jingzhi sighed in his heart. It is indeed not easy to be the emperor's son, especially the crown prince. If you don't fight for it... the emperor will think you are cowardly and incompetent.
Let’s fight…
They were also afraid that it would threaten the supreme emperor and thus bring disaster to themselves. Therefore, the more this happened, the more shady some of their methods became. Slowly... this has emerged in all dynasties, and most princes have more or less some quirks!
Gu Jingzhi thought for a moment and said directly, "Your Highness, you don't have to worry too much about this matter. Think about it, Huo Wenwu had 10,000 imperial guards under his command and launched a rebellion, but His Majesty still trusts you now!"
"That's true!"
The prince suddenly realized.
That incident almost pushed him to the brink of despair, but Emperor Xia still did not suspect that it was him. It seemed that these were all tests and experiences, otherwise the fact that he took a concubine in Ningzhou would not have made Emperor Xia so angry.
It must be due to the disappointment of the test! Fortunately, this matter was only in the backyard, otherwise he would not know how to deal with it!
After thinking this through, his mood became cheerful and he said, "Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's go to the banquet first! I believe my beloved concubine has already prepared everything!"
"..."