amaotonovel Chapter 301 The sun rose from the west today.
Chapter 301 The sun rose from the west today.
Yinzhuo had no idea that his words had sparked a tree-planting craze throughout Suzhou. He basically forgot about it as soon as he said it, and for the next few days, apart from going to his father's place twice a day to report for duty, he spent the rest of his time wandering all over Suzhou with his four troublesome younger brothers. Let's just say that they wanted to visit every place that was worth mentioning. It wasn't until Emperor Kangxi issued an imperial decree that they would be setting off soon and strictly forbade Yinzhuo and the others from going out at will that they finally calmed down.
With the Emperor about to leave Suzhou, all the officials in Suzhou, big and small, were eager to get acquainted with him. Good heavens, this kept Yinzhi, who served as Kangxi's mascot, extremely busy. He wished he could grow three heads and six arms and learn Sun Wukong's seventy-two transformations. Watching Kangxi and Yinreng handle the various people who came to see the Emperor with ease and skill, Yinzhi had only one thought in his mind—being an emperor is not something anyone can do.
"Grandpa Wan, Dexi, come quickly and massage my head, neck, and shoulders. I've been standing all day and my whole body feels stiff. My feet hurt, and my head keeps spinning. Father, can I not go with you tomorrow? My elder brothers are there anyway, so it won't matter if I'm there or not. Even if I go, I'll just be helping you serve tea and pour water; I don't know how to do anything else..."
Yinzhuo spread his arms and sat sprawled out beside Kangxi, letting Wan Quan and Dexi massage his head and relax his neck and shoulders. His extremely lazy appearance was utterly unseemly. Normally, although Kangxi favored him, he would inevitably scold him for this. But seeing the genuine exhaustion on Yinzhuo's face, the old father naturally chose to turn a blind eye.
"You look exhausted. It seems you didn't listen to a word I said at dinner. We're setting off back to the capital the day after tomorrow, so I plan to visit the scenery of Taihu Lake tomorrow. If you're too tired to go, that's fine too. I'll leave Liang Jiugong with you. Anyway, your eldest and second brothers are here, and they can handle serving tea and water..."
Despite his seemingly drowsy appearance, Yinzhuo's ears were perked up the whole time. Upon hearing that he wouldn't have to continue working on the wooden stakes tomorrow, his dizziness and leg pain immediately disappeared, and he was so energetic that climbing five flights of stairs in one go was no problem at all.
“Visiting Taihu Lake is wonderful! Everyone says the water is beautiful on a sunny day, and the mountains are enchanting in the rain. I really want to experience what makes Taihu Lake so special. Father, you absolutely have to take your son with you tomorrow. Although my older brother and the others can do things like serving tea and water, I promise you, they definitely can't do it as well as I can. Father, you'll take me with you, right…”
Kangxi was not annoyed by Yinzhuo's shaking of his arm. He pointed to the empty teacup on the table, his meaning clear: it was up to Yinzhuo to see how he would behave. Yinzhuo understood and got up to take the teacup from the table, filled it with water, and respectfully handed it to Kangxi.
Kangxi was naturally very pleased with Yinzhuo's sensible actions. He took the cup Yinzhuo handed him, drank a few sips, put the cup back in its place, and then reached out to poke his forehead and laughed.
"You won't admit you're ignorant and incompetent, will you? Is 'The shimmering water is beautiful on a sunny day, and the misty mountains are also enchanting in the rain' a description of Taihu Lake? Come here, recite the last two lines for me."
Of course, Yinzhuo knew that these two lines of poetry did not describe the scenery of Taihu Lake. He was just trying to find an excuse to start a conversation. As the saying goes, Yinzhuo was always very generous in front of Kangxi. If you ask me to recite it, I will recite it. It was just something he could recite off the cuff.
Because they had to get up early the next day, the father and son didn't chat much. After joking around for a while, they went back to rest. Because he was still thinking about going out for a trip, Yinzhuo got up very early the next morning, which was quite unusual. How early? Well, let's just say that Kangxi was woken up by him.
"Oh dear, this is really something! Liang Jiugong, hurry up and go outside to take a look. Is the sun rising in the west today? Our Sixth Prince hasn't gotten up this early in years, has he? Yinzuo, come here to your father, let me take a good look at him. Is he having hysteria?"
Yinzhu never expected that not only would he not receive any praise for getting up early, but he would also be criticized by his father. Could he stand it? The answer was obviously yes. After all, whether he could go out to play today was entirely up to his father. It really proved the saying that a higher rank can crush a person.
“Father, you don’t need to bother having Eunuch Liang go outside to check. Your son can answer your question. It’s still dark outside right now, you can’t see the sun at all. Besides, your son doesn’t have hysteria. Look, I’m perfectly awake.”
Faced with Yinzhuo's stubborn and unyielding attitude, Kangxi was completely helpless. He could only get out of bed with the force of Yinzhuo's tugging and have Liang Jiugong help him change and wash up. After everything was settled, the father and son sat down in the flower hall outside. Breakfast was almost finished when Yinti and Yinreng arrived one after another.
"Oh, Sixth Brother, you're up early today. It looks like you've already had breakfast. Move over a bit to make room for your eldest brother. I had a few drinks yesterday and got up late, so I haven't had breakfast yet."
It's said that brine is used to curdle tofu, and that one thing can subdue another. It's no problem that Kangxi couldn't do anything to Yinzhi. Look, someone else has come to deal with him. Not only did Yinzhi lose his position to Yinti, but even the plate of pastries in front of him was taken away by his elder brother. As the saying goes, once is enough, twice is inevitable. With Yinti setting the precedent, others naturally followed suit. Soon, the little food in front of Yinzhi was completely devoured by his brothers.
If Kangxi could watch the fun with amusement when Yinti took away the snacks in front of Yinzuo, then the double-standard father became somewhat displeased after the snacks in front of Yinzuo were all gone.
"Liang Jiugong, go to the small kitchen and have them send over another portion of the same breakfast that Yinzhuo just had for Yinti and the others. No one can leave until they finish it. How old are you all? Have you forgotten all your manners? Have I ever let any of you go hungry? Why are you all fighting over food like this..."
Yinti and Yinreng weren't stupid; they could easily understand the underlying meaning in their father's words. That last sentence was the key point, the part that should be emphasized on the test. To put it bluntly, he was upset that they were taking his precious son's food. The portion of breakfast in front of Yinzuo wasn't large, and for someone like Yinti who hadn't eaten, it was nothing. But Yinreng, Yinzhi, Yinzhen, and the others, who had already eaten, were already regretting it. "You know what kind of person your father is, why did you go and join in the fun?" they thought. "Now, eat up, and you're not allowed to leave until you finish..."