The uncle borrowed some merits, and the princess drew the talisman fiercely

Chapter 1695 People's Hearts Gradually Win Together

The prince frowned as he looked at the obvious wet stains on his clothes.

Having grown up in the inner palace, he was very cautious. Most people might think that the other party had accidentally spilled wine or tea and gotten their hands wet.

But the crown prince's first reaction was suspicion, suspicion that it was something bad.

He arrived at the Prince's residence early today and went with the Prince of Jin to fetch the bride. He did not bring any maids or change of clothes.

“Your Highness, that was wine. I accidentally spilled a cup of wine and reached out to block it, but I ended up getting my hand all over myself. You see, I was in a hurry to wash my hands, so I bumped into you.”

The man quickly explained, his expression a perfect mix of apology and nervousness, looking at the stain on the prince's chest, unsure of what to do.

The prince lowered his head and sniffed, quickly detecting the smell of alcohol.

The table he had just walked over to indeed had an empty wine glass on it, and the tablecloth was wet, with the guests on either side seemingly wiping it with handkerchiefs.

It looks like the wine was spilled accidentally.

The crown prince calmed down and waved his hand to signal the two guards not to come forward.

"Alright, go wash your hands."

"Your Highness, if you brought a change of clothes, I'll wash this one for you and bring it back, okay?" the man said again. He still looked very guilty.

"Need not."

After the Crown Prince finished speaking, he took out a handkerchief to wipe his face and then quickly walked towards his uncle.

Lu Anfan had originally followed him to hear Zhou Shiyue's opinion. He had also witnessed the small incident, but felt it wasn't his place to speak on it.

Now that His Highness the Crown Prince doesn't care, Lu Anfan naturally won't say anything more.

He also thought that His Highness the Crown Prince was a rather nice and easy-going person. He wasn't even angry that his clothes had been dirtied like that.

If he ascends the throne in the future, he will probably be a wise ruler.

Just as Lu Anfan was about to continue riding to the Crown Prince, he caught a glimpse of the man from before as he turned around. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, giving off a crooked smile.

He couldn't explain why, but that micro-expression made Lu Anfan feel very uneasy; it felt like something sinister.

His heart jumped into his throat.

Seeing the person walk towards the corner, Lu Anfan quietly followed.

Whether this person intends to harm the Crown Prince or ruin today's joyous occasion, Lu Anfan will not allow it.

And that's how much he trusted Zhou Shiyue.

If something happens to the Crown Prince, his brother-in-law will definitely find out.

This reflects Lu Anfan's enigmatic confidence in Zhou Shiyue and Lu Zhaoling.

The Crown Prince had already walked up to Zhou Shiyue.

At this moment, Zhou Shiyue was toasting several veteran officials. These officials had worked diligently and wholeheartedly for the benefit of the Great Zhou Dynasty since the reign of the retired emperor, and Zhou Shiyue held them in high esteem.

However, during his childhood, he was often scolded and complained about by these older adults.

Because they are loyal and patriotic, but also old-fashioned and conservative. They used to disapprove of Zhou Shiyue's behavior.

At that time, they felt that Zhou Shiyue was not much older than his imperial nephews, so he should set a good example and guide his nephews well.

As a result, Zhou Shiyue argued with those delinquent young men every day, and could beat them to a pulp at the slightest provocation.

Moreover, despite being members of the royal family, they acted like ordinary children, going to their elders to complain!

People call him a dog, and he'll go to their house in the middle of the night and let his dog roam freely. People call him a wolf, and he'll actually go into the mountains to collect wolf teeth and stick them in their hair.

If any elders of the other party come to persuade him, he will turn around and run away, saying, "I'm going back to the palace to find my father too. You wait, son against son, father against father, I'll get my father to come and argue with you!"

Anyway, these old men were often angered by the Prince of Jin back then, causing them chest pains.

“Your Highness,” an elderly man with white hair, Juying, said with a sigh as he held up his wine cup and looked at the now tall and imposing Prince Jin, “Back then, this old minister went to your father’s palace several times to say bad things about you!”

Uncle Juying has lost three teeth, and now he speaks with a slight lisp. He hasn't been out for a long time; he's been staying home, playing with birds and enjoying his retirement.

I made a rare trip out today to attend the Prince of Jin's wedding banquet.

"Guess what the Emperor Emeritus replied to this old minister back then?"

Zhou Shiyue was quite patient with him.

"What did you reply to?" he asked.

"The Emperor Emeritus said at the time, 'It's rare that my son still has a chance to rely on me. Shouldn't I make sure he's useful? If I'm no longer of any use to him, he'll turn the world upside down, and I, as his father, won't be able to control him.'"

"Listen to that, listen to that, what kind of talk is that?"

The other older men also burst into laughter.

The retired emperor is also here.

These are his long-time loyalists, and he wanted to come over and have a drink with them.

Now, standing beside Zhou Shiyue and looking at these veteran officials, he sighed and said, "Alas, time is like a butcher's knife. Look at these old fellows, their faces are full of wrinkles when they laugh now, and even their laughter is slurred..."

Zhou Shiyue: “…”

It's not that exaggerated. Should we let these veteran officials hear what Father Emperor said?

“Lord Juying, I was young and somewhat arrogant back then,” Zhou Shiyue said.

"Now that the prince is married, he will be a high-ranking official after taking a concubine, and from now on he must be calm and composed..."

An old scholar said this, and Zhou Shiyue continued.

"Now that I'm older, no one dares to mess with me. Otherwise, I'd be arrogant, not just frivolous. They wouldn't be able to handle it."

puff.

The retired emperor pointed at him speechlessly, "You brat..."

Before these elders could even raise their beards and glare, Zhou Shiyue had already turned around and said, "Gentlemen, please eat and drink well. All the dishes on this table have been specially stewed until they are soft and tender, so they won't hurt your teeth."

The older men were stunned as they watched his retreating figure.

Looking at the dishes and meats on the table, and peeking at the dishes on other tables, they did indeed look quite different.

For some reason, Ju Yingbo felt a slight soreness in his nose, and his speech became even more slurred.

"After the Emperor Emeritus passed away, it seemed like we old folks had all been forgotten..."

An older man also said something in a low voice.

After the emperor ascended the throne, he treated these people very badly. He probably held a grudge against them for not doing their best to help him ascend the throne and for letting him remain in the position of crown prince for so long.

He might also think that they had served the retired emperor for a long time and wouldn't be too loyal to him, that they only thought about the retired emperor and weren't part of his faction.

So after a year and a half, they either proposed to retire from the court to live out their retirement, or they were marginalized, and what they said in court was not taken seriously.

Unexpectedly, the Prince of Jin formally sent them wedding invitations and even prepared a banquet for them.

"Uncle Emperor."

The Crown Prince approached Zhou Shiyue and said, "It seems that Mother Empress has gone to the back courtyard..."