Tianliangyuan

Chapter 478 Please give me a decree.

Li Guang had always called his father "father" and rarely called him "Emperor." Perhaps because he was a child, His Majesty had always doted on him and never corrected him.

Moreover, His Majesty also felt that it was normal for the child to call him "father," and that calling him "Emperor" felt somewhat distant.

"You even went to the trouble of learning it?"

"Yes, yes! But I'm not good at cooking. My sister only told me to learn a simple stomach-soothing porridge. She also said that Father is very busy and doesn't sleep well, and his diet is irregular. So, nourishing his stomach will make him feel more comfortable."

"Oh? Anle agrees to let you learn?"

Xu Zhaozhao stood a little further away at this moment, deliberately giving the father and son a chance to have a heart-to-heart talk.

Li Guang chuckled: "My sister agrees. She said that if I'm only concerned with my own appetite, she doesn't think I need to learn it. But if I want to fulfill my filial duty, then it's fine."

"Haha! Have you ever heard the saying that a wise man keeps away from the kitchen?"

Li Guang nodded: "The correct meaning of 'a gentleman keeps away from the kitchen' is: a gentleman should have a kind heart and cannot bear to see animals being killed, so he stays away from the kitchen to preserve his compassion."

Emperor Yong'an raised an eyebrow: "You've already read this far?"

Emperor Yong'an refers to the book "King Hui of Liang, Part 1" in Mencius, since the saying "A gentleman keeps away from the kitchen" originated from this book.

When he was a student, he consulted his teacher about this issue and was told that the core of it was to cultivate the concept of benevolent governance through moral self-reflection, rather than literally avoiding contact with the kitchen or looking down on the kitchen.

However, there will always be people who deliberately misinterpret the situation, saying that men should not go near the kitchen, otherwise they are not gentlemen!

What kind of bullshit theory is this!

Emperor Yong'an was naturally delighted to see that his youngest son had actually thought of cooking a meal for him.

Even though he was the emperor and could easily get whatever he wanted, he still couldn't refuse a bowl of porridge from his own son.

Li Guang didn't stay with His Majesty for long before going to change his clothes and then preparing a stomach-soothing porridge.

Xu Zhaozhao followed behind His Majesty and slowly strolled back to the Taiji Hall.

Upon entering the Taiji Hall, His Majesty's smile had faded considerably.

"Anle, you specifically had Xie Zheng tell me he wanted to enter the palace first, not just to bring me this Longevity Wine?"

“Your Majesty is wise. I dare not conceal anything from Your Majesty. Indeed, there is something I need to report to Your Majesty.”

"sit."

As Xu Zhaozhao sat down, the Emperor glanced at her, and the Grand Eunuch dismissed almost everyone in the hall, while he and another eunuch remained inside.

Xu Zhaozhao's expression appeared calm, but it was actually quite solemn: "Your Majesty, this matter is related to Princess Ning Shuo, and I dare not conceal it. This is evidence collected by my subordinates. I believe that the Qu family and the Cui family are also working on this matter. I am not sure which of them is truly on the princess's side, and which one is trying to use this to blackmail her. That is why I thought of going to the palace to present it to Your Majesty."

The steward presented the items to the emperor, but before the emperor could finish reading them, his face turned pale, and he casually threw the items on the table.

"Now that you have the evidence, why don't you just hand it over to Ning Shuo?"

“Your Majesty, there is a small misunderstanding between me and Princess Ning Shuo. If I were to deliver it, she might suspect that I have ulterior motives. Moreover, this matter is somewhat related to me. If it were not because she is a princess, I would have sent the evidence directly to the Jingzhao Prefecture.”

Towards the end, even his self-reference changed; I wonder if it was because he was angry.

"What does this have to do with you?"

Xu Zhaozhao didn't hide anything and pouted as she told the story of how the princess tried to steal her Er Qiao away.

Xu Zhaozhao didn't say much, but kept emphasizing that she absolutely could not give away that King of Two Qiaos plant, let alone resell it.

"Alright, I know you've been wronged. I'll have Ning Shuo apologize to you later, how about that?"

Xu Zhaozhao immediately looked unhappy, and then said indignantly, "How dare I! But you can't be too biased towards her. My orchard may seem to be thriving, but you know how many people it actually supports! Besides, my third brother was there cultivating new crops with the old farmers, and I invested a lot of money in it."

These words caused Emperor Yong'an to burst into laughter again.

"Alright, I know you've done well! Stay and dine with me today. We can also invite Xie Zheng from outside to join us."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. Perfect timing. I was just telling the young prince to cook some more stomach-soothing porridge."

Emperor Yong'an was taken aback, then pointed at her twice in a suggestive manner: "You!"

Lunch was indeed eaten together by the group of them.

When the news spread, Empress Qu became increasingly uneasy, fearing that Xu Zhaozhao had come to the palace to file a complaint.

Could it be that she really wants the princess to apologize to her?

"Your Majesty, I came to the palace to file a complaint, and now I must take my leave. As the princess's father, you can't just leave without saying anything, can you?"

This really put Emperor Yong'an in a difficult position.

"You silly girl, tell me, what do you want?"

"Your Majesty, I would not dare to make things difficult for you. The young prince is living with me now. In a few days, I plan to take him to Yunqi Manor. I would like to ask you for your permission first. Whether I make the young prince farm the land himself or make him fetch water, you cannot say that I am mistreating him."

Emperor Yong'an was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter: "Good, good, good! Whatever you say. This is a good thing, it's good for him to have more contact with the common people. Don't worry, I won't blame you."

Xu Zhaozhao was finally satisfied: "That's settled then, you can't go back on your word."

"I am the Son of Heaven, my words are law, how can I go back on my word?"

"Then why doesn't Your Majesty issue me a decree?"

Emperor Yong'an hesitated for a moment, then thought it was nothing, just to train Ah Li.

"Very well! Then I will issue you an imperial decree."

"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"

When Xu Zhaozhao was about to take her leave, Emperor Yong'an stopped her again: "Why don't you hand these things over to the Empress?"

Xu Zhaozhao pouted: "Your Majesty, I'm not stupid! This involves court officials. Even though the Empress is the mother of the nation, she can't get involved in this kind of thing. Besides, the Empress never leaves the palace and is out of touch with the world. What if she is used by someone else?"

Before she could finish speaking, Xu Zhaozhao quickly covered her mouth and took a step back in horror, saying, "I didn't say anything."

Emperor Yong'an shook his head helplessly and chuckled: "Alright, you may leave. Remember to bring Ah Li back to visit me often."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The chief steward helped Emperor Yong'an into the inner palace to rest. As soon as he lay down, Emperor Yong'an gave another order: "Tell the outside world that you will not see anyone who comes, especially the Empress."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The steward understood that His Majesty was truly angry.

This anger was clearly not directed at Princess Anle; in fact, it was quite satisfied with Princess Anle's actions.

So, who is this anger directed at?

Whom did Princess Anle come to sue?

The young eunuch stepped outside and asked, "Father, has His Majesty angered the Princess?"

He's still young and inexperienced!

The steward glared at him: "Get out! You blind fool!"