Harem Daily Life

Chapter 777 Set of Seals

But what good is being handsome? If your heart is dark, no matter how bright your appearance is, you will still be annoying.

Tao Yanyan wore a standard smile as he glanced at the three of them. After they paid their respects, he said, "My Lords, thank you for your kindness. The Imperial Kitchen has prepared Yuanxiao (Chinese dumplings). Please enjoy a bowl each."

The Yuanxiao prepared by the imperial kitchen had sesame and peanut flavors. King Liang couldn't eat peanuts, so he asked for a bowl of sesame Yuanxiao.

"I wasn't in the capital last year, so I had few opportunities to see you. Over the past year or so, each family has undergone significant changes. All three of you have added children, and the He family is flourishing. I'm so happy!"

After the Queen Mother finished speaking, she asked Eunuch Qin to bring three boxes and give them to the three princes respectively.

"Prince Yong's family has a new prince, Prince Jing has a new daughter, and Princess Liang has given birth to her third son. Congratulations! I have had three golden safety locks made. Take them back and give them to the children."

The three of them stood up and saluted: "Thank you, Queen Mother, for the reward!"

The Queen Mother smiled again and said, "In the blink of an eye, you three have grown up so much. When you were still little, the scene of me giving you golden locks is still vivid in my mind."

After she finished speaking, she looked specifically at Prince Liang. "Prince Liang, you are blessed. When you were born, you were born with congenital deficiencies and were weak and sickly. Fortunately, a great monk gave you a peace charm, which required your father to eat a vegetarian diet for 49 days, so that you could grow up safely. Your father loved you so much that he followed the monk's advice and followed the vegetarian diet for 49 days. Even though he was a man who loved wine and women, he managed to endure this forty-nine days. Now you are also the master of a mansion. The prosperity and decline of Prince Liang's mansion depends on you. No matter what, never forget your father's love for you."

King Liang nodded and said, "Yes, I will never forget the kindness of my father, and I will never forget the care of the Queen Mother."

Although he said this, King Liang really didn't want to mention his father.

In his eyes, his father, who had no ambition and only cared about romance, was not as powerful as He Linzhang's father, the emperor.

He Linzhang's father, the Emperor, the Prince of Liang's uncle, fought hard among the other princes, ultimately seizing the throne and passing it on to He Linzhang. Both were princes, one firmly seated on the throne, the other a drunken brothel dweller, and their sons bore vastly different destinies.

Prince Liang sometimes wondered if he and He Linzhang had switched places. If his father had become emperor and passed the throne to him, would he, upon ascending the throne, have the same audacity to establish a dark organization like Yixingtang? And what would He Linzhang do, now an idle prince? Would he, like him, have committed so many evil deeds in secret?

While he was lost in thought, he vaguely heard someone calling him.

"The Queen is talking to you, Brother Prince Liang." Prince Jing pulled Prince Liang's sleeve, and Prince Liang came back to his senses instantly.

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I haven't slept well recently, and my hearing has deteriorated. Sometimes I hear ringing sounds, so I didn't hear clearly what Your Majesty asked just now." Prince Liang looked polite and spoke calmly. Tao Yanyan thought that if it weren't for the fact that Prince Liang was so suspicious, she might have thought that he was a handsome and good man.

Tao Yanyan smiled and said, "I heard that Princess Liang is not at home. Your Highness must be so worried about her that he can't sleep at night, right?"

Prince Liang was teased by Queen Tao, and everyone laughed.

Prince Liang's face flushed slightly as he explained, "My father-in-law is old and worried about the princess, so she has returned to her parents' home. When she returns, I will bring her to the palace to pay her respects to the Queen Mother and the Empress."

Tao Yanyan raised her eyebrows. If she hadn't learned that Ningyuan Hou's men had sent someone back to say that Princess Liang had withdrawn 300,000 taels of silver from the Xiangcheng Bank and sold two houses of her parents' family, showing signs of running away, she would have really been fooled by Prince Liang's words.

"Princess Liang's family home is too far away, and it's not easy to go back. Let her spend more time with her parents. I remember that Princess Liang's father once worked in the Ministry of Rites. He accompanied your father on a diplomatic mission to the State of Yan, right?"

After the Queen Mother asked, Prince Liang's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't show it on his face. He smiled and said, "I heard my father mention it a long time ago. He did go to Yan State. But it was so long ago that I can't remember clearly."

Tao Yanyan took a sip of tea, his eyes darkening. "So, are we going to flee to Yan State? Is the King of Liang still involved with Yan State?"

Once it is verified, we cannot let it go!

Afterwards, the Queen Mother and the Empress had lunch with the ladies of the various families. It wasn't appropriate for Prince Yong and the other three to stay, so they all left the palace. Prince Jing insisted on staying in the palace to wait for his consort, but was eventually dragged away by Prince Liang, who told him they were going to a restaurant for drinks.

"Brother Prince Liang, you are such a fool! Your princess is not in the capital, but mine is. Why are you taking me away?" Prince Jing was very dissatisfied.

"Oh, you're so inseparable from your princess every day, so today won't be a big deal. Just treat it as some time to keep me, your empty-nest cousin, company, okay? Come on, let's go. I'll treat you to dinner. Prince Yong, come along too. It'll be more fun with more people." Prince Liang called out to Prince Yong, who smiled and said, "I won't go. Today is the Lantern Festival, and there's a lot of defense going on in the capital. You guys should have fun."

Prince Liang did not force Prince Yong. Anyway, his purpose today was to get information from Prince Jing. It would be even better if Prince Yong was not there. He could get Prince Jing drunk later and then it would be easy to get him to tell him something.

The three of them said goodbye at the palace gate. Prince Jing left his carriage to the princess and got on Prince Liang's carriage. They went to the Sihai Restaurant, the best restaurant in the capital.

The two of them requested a nice private room, ordered a table full of fine wine and delicious food, and began to chat. After three rounds of drinks, Prince Jing's face flushed, and he said, a little drunk, "No more drinking! If my princess smells alcohol, she won't let me into the room."

Prince Liang poured another glass of wine and asked with a smile, "Speaking of which, your princess is quite sociable. She's actually quite close to Empress Tao? She's been to the palace to see the Empress quite often, right?"

Prince Jing's eyes were hazy. "They are both beauties. Beauties either fight or admire each other. My princess has a good temper and can get along with anyone. But being too good-tempered is not good either. I tell you, Queen Tao has been feeling depressed since His Majesty went to recuperate. She often summons my princess to the palace to accompany her, and I am a little dissatisfied."

King Liang cleared his throat and asked, "Are you still fussing about this?"

Prince Jing had a look of "you don't understand" on his face, and said mysteriously, "The princess has complained a lot since she came back. Queen Tao is so high up that she has no close friends around her. So she has to tell my princess some things. But knowing too much is not a good thing."

When Prince Liang heard this, he realized that the topic was finally coming to the point. He quickly asked, "Hey, it's just some romantic affairs. I'm just thinking about Your Majesty."

Prince Jing was displeased when he heard this: "This is only a small part, most of it is still the affairs of the court."

Prince Liang took a deep breath and waited for Prince Jing to continue.