Prince Ping hesitated immediately.
"Brother Emperor makes some good points," he thought, the more he thought of the colorful flowers at Four Seasons Manor, the more tempted he became.
The Emperor watched Prince Ping’s face change colors and couldn’t help but smile.
Xiaojiu loved flowers as if they were his life; he wouldn’t believe he wouldn’t take the bait.
Later, the Emperor invited Prince Ping to appreciate the new characters he had written. After Prince Ping shamelessly requested a genuine piece by the Sage of Calligraphy, he hurriedly left.
The Emperor shook his head with a chuckle.
Not long after Prince Ping left, Eunuch An approached and reported, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince and the others have come to pay their respects."
Hearing this, the Emperor’s smile vanished. Thinking that they had also specifically gone to the Imperial Temple to pray for the Empress Dowager today, his eyes grew colder, "Let them in."
Soon after, the Crown Prince and the Second Prince entered the great hall.
After they had paid their respects, the Emperor asked, "Why have you all come together today?"
The Crown Prince glanced at his younger brothers and replied with a smile, "Father, my brothers and I saw that our grandmother has been ill, so we decided to go to the Imperial Temple to pray for her. We have just returned to the palace."
The Emperor glanced lightly at the princes and said meaningfully, "You are indeed filial, but unfortunately, the Empress Dowager is suffering from a heart ailment."
Hearing this, the brothers all lowered their heads, their hearts tightening. Was Father truly no longer willing to tolerate the Jiang Family?
The Emperor continued writing his characters, not paying any more attention to the Crown Prince and the others.
The hall grew somewhat quiet until the Third Prince, seeing that his brothers seemed ready to leave, couldn’t help but speak with a smile, "Father, guess who we saw at the Imperial Temple today?"
The Emperor looked up at the Third Prince. "Who did you see?"
The Third Prince replied, "We saw the Countess of Shengping."
The Emperor continued writing, showing no reaction.
Seeing this, the Third Prince continued, "Usually, ordinary people cannot enter the Imperial Temple at will. I wonder how the Countess of Shengping managed to get in?"
The Crown Prince and the Second Prince glanced at the Third Prince but said nothing.
The Fourth Prince, who had been invisible since entering the hall, did not express any opinion either.
However, the Fifth Prince responded with a laugh, "Why, it must be because Xiao Yeyang gave the Countess his visiting card."
The Third Prince chuckled nonchalantly, "Yeyang really indulges the Countess too much. Although the two are engaged, the Countess has not yet married into the Imperial Family. Allowing her into the Imperial Temple—isn’t that a bit disrespectful to the Imperial Family rules?"
"The Countess herself going in is one thing, but she even brought outsiders with her, which is really..." he tsked, shaking his head.
The Emperor put down his brush and looked emotionlessly at the Third Prince, "Really what?"
The Third Prince tightened inside and quickly replied, "Father, I just think it’s inappropriate for the Countess to take her master to the Imperial Temple."
The Emperor thought for a moment, "Fourth doesn’t have to." Looking at the Fourth Prince, he said, "Knowing how to respect the elderly, very good!"
The Fourth Prince was astonished; he seldom received attention from his father and never expected to be praised for carrying the Countess’s master.
More surprises followed for the princes.
"This is a piece of writing I just finished. Fourth, you take it."
...
The Fourth Prince, still dazed, exited Qianqing Palace with the scroll, while the other princes also left with puzzled faces.
What had the Fourth done to receive Father’s calligraphy?
"Loyalty, Filiality, Integrity, and Righteousness!"
Looking at the four characters on the scroll, the Crown Prince and the others looked at the Fourth Prince, feeling quite dissatisfied.
The Crown Prince asked, "Fourth brother, which of these four characters do you think you embody?"
The Fourth Prince looked at the Crown Prince, "I will strive to embody all four."
The Crown Prince scoffed and left without another word. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
The Second Prince and the others also left after looking at the Fourth Prince.
In the end, only the Fourth Prince remained, staring at the calligraphy in his hand.
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