Chapter 57
After breakfast, the butler had already prepared the carriage. The two of them went out together. Wei Yan got into the carriage nimbly, then turned around and held out his hand to Lu Ze, who was under the carriage.
Lu Ze paused, and the old butler who was waiting on the side also stiffened. He carefully observed Lu Ze’s expression, but he saw him suddenly smile and obediently held out his hand, and got on with Wei Yan’s help.
He even said with a smile, “Thank you, Fulang.”
Wei Yan hadn’t thought much of it at first. He just felt that his husband’s body didn’t look very good, so he had subconsciously held out his hand. After he came back to his senses, he also felt that his behavior in public seemed a bit inappropriate. He was about to withdraw his hand, but he saw Lu Ze’s warm and gentle smile, and the palm he touched was dry and warm, and he held his hand firmly.
Wei Yan’s gaze paused slightly, and the corners of his mouth pursed slightly as he turned and entered the carriage.
Lu Ze sat down beside him very naturally and said, “Why don’t you introduce this Prince of Nanping to me, Marquis?”
Wei Yan thought for a moment and said, “Xiao Lingrui… although he is of the imperial bloodline, he is very distant from the current emperor. But because his father had saved the late emperor’s life, this branch was also highly valued by the late emperor. When Xiao Lingrui was born, his name was personally bestowed by the late emperor, and he was given the seniority of a prince. He often went in and out of the palace when he was young, and later he even entered the palace to be a study companion for the princes, and grew up with the princes.”
Hearing this, Lu Ze said, “In that case, this Prince of Nanping must have had a particularly close relationship with the current emperor when he was young.”
Wei Yan paused, his face a little strange. “Not really.”
Lu Ze looked at him sideways. Wei Yan thought for a moment. “When Xiao Lingrui was young… because he was extremely favored by the late emperor, he was… very arrogant in the palace.”
Not to mention the princes born of low-ranking concubines, even the son of the favored noble consort and even the son of the empress… could not get any advantage in front of him.
Occasionally, when there was a big fight, the emperor would scold the princes more, and for him, it was mostly a small punishment.
Because of this, he had developed a lawless personality. In those years, everyone in the palace had a headache when they saw him.
At that time, the current emperor was still biding his time and was not outstanding among the princes. It was unknown how he had provoked this troublemaker. The two of them had a falling out by mistake, and the emperor had suffered a lot of bullying from him, both openly and secretly.
Later, when the late emperor was old, the disputes between the princes also slowly emerged. Many people tried to curry favor with this Prince of Nanping, who was greatly favored by the late emperor, but he always had a self-satisfied look on his face, accepting all the flattery. As for what he was asked to do or say, he just pretended not to understand.
He had even earned a lot from the princes.
Lu Ze couldn’t help but laugh. “He’s quite a character.”
Wei Yan frowned. “What character? He’s just a dog with a bad temper.”
The nine sons were constantly fighting for the throne, and Xiao Lingrui was like a fish in water. His attitude towards the princes had not changed at all, and he was always openly and secretly sarcastic towards the obscure seventh prince.
Who would have thought that he would end up joining the seventh prince’s team and become the final winner?
Later, when the current emperor successfully ascended to the throne, Wei Yan learned about the past and was curious as to why he had looked at the emperor differently. He heard him shaking his fan and laughing sarcastically, “The first, third, and fifth, they all pretended to be kind and fawning on the surface. But if you think about it, after being bullied by me so much since they were young, how could they not have some resentment in their hearts? The better they pretend now, the deeper their grudge will be when they really ascend to the throne.”
Wei Yan had asked at that time, “Then you and the current emperor also have a long-standing grudge. Aren’t you afraid that His Majesty will take revenge in the future?”
“A long-standing grudge?” Xiao Lingrui had sneered at that time. “You only know that I bullied him, but you don’t know how he secretly retaliated.”
“I’ve been running rampant in the palace for so many years. No matter who it was, the first or the third, no one has ever made me suffer a single bit of grievance. But every time it was him, I had a grievance that I couldn’t express. And he even made everyone think that I was bullying him, and he got a lot of benefits from the emperor.”
Because of his humble birth, the current emperor had never been favored by the emperor, and he was also bullied in the palace. Xiao Lingrui had also thought that he was a soft persimmon that was easy to handle, but he didn’t expect that this persimmon had thorns inside, and he had accidentally pricked his own hand.
But in the eyes of outsiders, it was not so. It was he who was arrogant and domineering and bullied people. Although the late emperor had always been partial to him, he also felt guilty towards the seventh prince who was bullied by him, which in turn made him get a lot of good things.
Of course, if he was really a poor little thing who didn’t fight back when he was beaten or cursed, Xiao Lingrui wouldn’t have bothered with him for so long.
He had always been lawless, and there were not a few people around him. How could he pay attention to an uninteresting person?
Wasn’t it because he had suffered a loss in secret and wanted to retaliate?
In the end, Xiao Lingrui even tutted, “That guy, Xiao Lingcheng, has never been a good person since he was a child. Hey, it turns out I was right.”
Hearing this, Lu Ze was silent for a long time before he said, “The current emperor is indeed broad-minded.”
Wei Yan also couldn’t help but laugh at his words. “That’s also true.”
If it were anyone else, with Xiao Lingrui’s arrogant and domineering appearance, he would probably have died countless times.
Especially after the emperor ascended to the throne, he did not restrain himself at all. Not to mention the civil and military officials, even the emperor was often choked by him and was often so angry that he couldn’t speak, but he had never been punished.
In Xiao Lingrui’s words, they had fought since they were young, and he knew the emperor’s temper to some extent. He was not the type to burn the bridge after crossing it. As long as he did not commit treason, the emperor would not easily do anything to him.
Wei Yan then thought of something, frowned, and instructed him, “He’s always been unreliable in his words. If you hear him say anything, you don’t have to care. Just treat it as a passing wind.” He paused. “If he says anything that makes you unhappy, just tell me.”
Lu Ze smiled and agreed. “With the Marquis here, I am naturally not afraid.”
As they spoke, the carriage had slowly driven to the side of the Linjiang Tower.
Lu Ze got out of the carriage first and, imitating Wei Yan’s appearance just now, held out his hand. Wei Yan was stunned for a moment on the carriage, then held out his hand, and their hands were tightly held.
There were quite a few people coming and going, and at this moment, more and more gazes fell on them.
Wei Yan subconsciously wanted to withdraw his hand, but it was held tightly by Lu Ze. He turned his head to look and explained, “There are many scholars in the Linjiang Tower. If it gets out…”
“Then let it get out,” Lu Ze said flatly. “You are my fulang. What’s wrong with me holding you?”
Hearing this, the corners of Wei Yan’s mouth couldn’t help but curl up, and he didn’t say anything more.
And on the second floor, by the window, a man was gently fanning himself. He looked through the window at the intimate appearance of the two holding hands, couldn’t help but shake his head, and tutted.
Sour, really sour.
The Linjiang Tower was a famous large restaurant in the capital, and it was named for its proximity to the moat. What was popular in it was not only the delicious dishes, but also the beautiful scenery by the river, and also the famous literary style, which often attracted a group of scholars and refined scholars to gather here. So it was perfectly normal to see elegant scholars in green clothes inside and outside the restaurant.
The two walked in together. The waiter in the building warmly greeted them. When he saw Wei Yan, he immediately smiled. “It’s been a long time since you’ve been here, Marquis!”
His gaze shifted slightly and fell on Lu Ze, who was beside Wei Yan. As his thoughts turned, he saw their clasped hands and suddenly smiled in realization. “This must be… the Tanhualang!”
Wei Yan looked back at him. Lu Ze’s expression was natural as he nodded at him. “My surname is Lu.”
“Master Lu, Master Lu!” The waiter quickly smiled, and led the two of them inside, and said, “Marquis, Master Lu, the prince is already waiting in the old place!”
Wei Yan nodded slightly and said to him, “I know. You can go and do your own thing.”
The waiter smiled and nodded. “Yes, yes, then I’ll be leaving. If you need anything, Marquis, just let me know.”
Wei Yan waved his hand, and the person obediently retreated. Lu Ze looked around. There were many people coming and going in the lobby. The most important thing was a platform in the center, on which was a piece of calligraphy. It was not very clear what was written on it, but many scholars were gathered around it, whispering about something.
Seeing that he was interested in that side, Wei Yan took the initiative to explain, “This is also a tradition of the Linjiang Tower. A piece of calligraphy is hung every ten days, either a riddle or the first line of a couplet, waiting for the scholars who come here to answer. If you answer correctly, you can get a reward from the owner. There is no punishment for answering incorrectly. The question is changed every ten days, and it is quite popular among scholars.”
“Within ten days, if someone answers correctly, they can get a prize and win. If no one can answer, it will be postponed for another ten days, until a month later. If no one can answer, this question will be taken down and replaced with a new one, and the old question will be completely sealed.” As he spoke, his gaze fell on that place and he added, “This question has been here for nearly a month, and no one has been able to answer it. It’s quite rare.”
Lu Ze glanced over and smiled. “There have been many difficult problems from ancient times to the present that no one has been able to solve. It’s quite normal.”
Wei Yan turned to look at him and suddenly suggested, “Do you want to go and have a look?”
Lu Ze shook his head and smiled. “Isn’t the Prince of Nanping still waiting upstairs? It’s not good to keep him waiting for a long time. We can come and have a look again when we have a chance in the future.”
Hearing this, Wei Yan did not force him and stepped onto the stairs to the second floor.
The Linjiang Tower had three floors, and they all had a layout where the center was empty and the surroundings were surrounded, which also allowed the scene in the lobby on the first floor to be seen on the second and third floors.
The old place the waiter had mentioned was a room in the center of the second floor, from which you could see the scenery by the river outside, and you could also see the downstairs from the best angle.
Wei Yan pushed the door open and entered. Inside, there was already a young man in a blue brocade robe sitting by the window. The man’s face was handsome. In this still somewhat cold early spring, he was holding a fan and fanning himself on and off. Hearing the noise, he looked back, his eyebrows raised slightly, and he said lazily, “You, Wei Lin’an, it’s really not easy to invite you out after you’re married.”
Wei Yan’s face was still the same. He just said, “You only invited me once two days ago.”
“Do you think I don’t know? You were going to stand me up today. My people have already gotten the news, but you suddenly said you were coming.” Xiao Lingrui’s fan was tapping on the table on and off, his long and narrow peach blossom eyes slightly narrowed, and he slowly looked at Lu Ze. After a moment, he said with a half-smile, “I was wondering what could make you suddenly change your mind. It turns out you have a beauty with you.”
Wei Yan’s brows furrowed, and he said with a slight warning, “Xiao Lingrui.”
