readytorunbook Chapter 463: Favors Not Accepted, Resentment Received
Chapter 463: Favors Not Accepted, Resentment Received
Ever since coming out of Jianing Palace, Prince Yi has been really upset for a few days, and Zhou Chang couldn't calm down either.
It was unexpected that Prince Yi would suddenly become so valuable.
However, the news about Prince Rong and Prince Xian revealed by Duke Gu Yan of Xu was even more unexpected.
Prince Xian and Prince Duan were getting along well, but at the critical moment, Prince Xian plotted against Prince Duan and even made him disabled?
And what about King Rong?
Both Prince Yi and Zhou Chang have always regarded Prince Rong as a good person. Could it be that Prince Rong is really such a sinister and scheming hypocrite?
Prince Yi was unwilling to believe it in his heart, and Zhou Chang could not come to a conclusion.
Since there is no substantial evidence and it cannot be confirmed, just pretend it never happened and simply turn a blind eye to it.
After finally calming down, this morning, the palace suddenly issued an edict to posthumously confer the title of Concubine Lan on Prince Yi's mother.
After Zhou Chang received the order, he felt puzzled, and Prince Yi did not feel happy at all.
It was supposed to be a long time since Concubine Lan was promoted to a royal concubine. When she gave birth to a prince who had reached adulthood, she should have been promoted according to the etiquette and laws of the Dalin Kingdom.
But no one has mentioned it for so many years, so let’s just not block it.
Moreover, Prince Rong’s mother, Concubine Shun, waited until her son was 35 years old, which was half of 70, before she was promoted. Prince Yi had not yet reached the age of 30, so according to this calculation, he was still promoted “ahead of time”.
However, this "early" promotion came so suddenly that a closer look revealed that it was the work of Concubine Yi of the Jianing Palace, Gu.
The purpose of showing small favors is to win over Prince Yi's heart.
Zhou Chang did not mention the matter of Jianing Palace to anyone after he came back that day. After receiving the imperial edict today, everyone in Prince Yi's Mansion was naturally happy.
Especially when Aunt Jing heard the news, she burst into tears of joy: "Your Majesty, the queen has finally waited for this day. Come on, we have to go burn some incense for the queen and tell her the news."
"Okay." Zhou Chang supported Aunt Jing and returned to the central hall where they had just received the imperial edict.
The main courtyard of the rear hall has not yet been rebuilt, and the tablet of Concubine Lan is still enshrined in the central hall.
But it is quite coincidental when you look at it this way. The emperor's decree just now was as if Concubine Lan's spirit in heaven heard it with her own ears.
Under the arrangement of Aunt Jing, everyone burned incense for Concubine Lan, no, now it should be Concubine Lan.
When she stood up again, Aunt Jing, perhaps because she was too excited, tilted her body and almost fainted.
"Aunt Jing..." Zhou Chang and Shouhou supported her from both sides.
Aunt Jing wore a veil covering the lower half of her face, and half of her hair on the right side hung down to cover the fiery red scar on her forehead. Only a pair of eyes were exposed, showing a long-lost peace and joy: "It's okay, it's okay, I'm fine... It's just that this veil is a little stuffy after wearing it for so long."
"Yes, Aunt Jing, your body has just recovered and it is not suitable for you to overwork. You should go back and rest as soon as possible." Zhou Chang said as he sent Jing Xin back.
Afterwards, Zhou Chang reluctantly chatted with Aunt Jing for a while, but finally he had something on his mind, so he said goodbye and went back to his study.
"Your Highness, the palace suddenly issued an edict to posthumously confer a title on me. What's the reason?" Zhou Chang had just walked back to the study courtyard when he ran into Zhong Yu and others there again.
Zhou Chang didn't know where to start, and the skinny guy beside him didn't know what was going on either: "Why do you ask this, Mr. Zhong? It's not just our queen who was posthumously conferred the title this time, the two beauties were also promoted. Speaking of which, the queen should have been conferred the title of consort a long time ago, but no one mentioned it before, and this time His Majesty finally thought of the queen."
"Since you asked, why don't we go to the study and discuss it in detail?" Zhou Chang had been holding it in for a few days and had been hesitating whether to discuss it with Zhong Yu.
Now that Zhong Yu has asked about it, there is no need to hide it any longer.
The three of them returned to the study. Shouhou went to make tea first, while Zhou Chang told Zhong Yu about what happened in Jianing Palace that day.
"Not right, not right..." Zhong Yu shook his head after hearing this. "Your Highness was unable to refuse sternly at that time, and given the current situation, it is impossible for you to refuse again."
Zhou Chang was also feeling guilty about this, so he handed the thirty thousand taels of silver that was still on the table to Zhong Yu and said, "Here, sir, this is the thirty thousand taels. The other party forced it upon me, but I couldn't refuse. Just think of it as accumulating some merit for them, and you can use it as alms."
"Alas, this is not the way to give alms." Zhong Yu said this, but he had already stood up and took it with both hands.
Even the banknotes were handed over, and Zhou Chang completely "turned a blind eye to everything". However, he recalled what Zhong Yu had just said, and couldn't help asking, "Mother was conferred the title posthumously by His Majesty. Even if you want to accept Concubine Yi's favor, you don't necessarily have to agree to them. Why did you say that you can't refuse it?"
Zhong Yu frowned even more tightly, twisting his brows into knots: "This matter involves Concubine Lan, so it may not seem so clear on the surface. But from this action, we can also see the other party's determination. If one or two times don't work, won't there be a third or fourth time? Since the prince has already accepted it twice, what about the next time? Don't you know that villains are all 'not accepting kindness and being resented'?"
"If a favor is not accepted, it will be resented?" Zhou Chang had never heard of this saying.
Zhong Yujiu had to explain further: "As the saying goes, 'the friendship between gentlemen is as pure as water, while the friendship between villains is as sweet as honey'. Gentlemen only seek to interact with each other from the heart, and do not consider profit. But villains interact with each other for profit. Whether you gain his profit or hinder his profit, how can you not arouse his resentment?"
Zhou Chang understood: "Ah, yes, it is 'to seek love but to be hated', bah..., what love, there is nothing innocent between me and them."
Zhong Yu didn't say a word, but worried: "Especially if this villain is in a higher position, the higher position will always think it is a gift. If you don't accept it again and again, you will feel that you have offended them and become angry and embarrassed."
"What should we do? Not to mention that we have already received the 30,000 taels of silver, why don't we go back?" Zhou Chang was mainly thinking that Concubine Yi Gu's jeweled brocade box had been taken away, and she would never go back even if she was beaten to death, "What's more, the emperor has issued an edict to confer the title of Concubine on my mother, so I can't refuse."
"It is indeed impossible to refuse." Zhong Yuye nodded helplessly, "If your concerns are correct, the Gu family will continue to show goodwill to the prince to show their sincerity in cooperation."
"Then what should I do?" Zhou Chang also realized that he was being led by the nose, but he didn't know how to deal with it.
Zhong Yuyi couldn't think of a solution for a while: "The Gu family considers themselves to be the elders of three dynasties. They have assisted Taizong, Gaozong and then the current emperor, but they have never had a queen. This dynasty finally has a concubine, and they have always regarded themselves as royal relatives. They always wanted to help Prince Duan to the throne, but unfortunately Prince Duan's legs are disabled and there is no hope. Now they have set their sights on the prince, which shows that they are crazy. But the more they do this, the more they show their determination, and they cannot be easily shaken."
Zhou Chang had thought about these situations over and over again. Now that Zhong Yuye said this, he became even more upset and didn't know how to respond.