Seeing that her eyes were filled with curiosity and no look of disgust, the emperor pushed the Western Prince forward: "When I was passing by the koi pond, I saw someone in the palace playing tricks on him, and actually made him lie down on the ground and eat dog food. I brought him here with me by the way. It’s not safe in the palace tonight, but he is my son after all. My beloved concubine will help me take care of him for one night, and I will send him back tomorrow.”
Jiang Xinyue nodded, maybe because she was pregnant, she felt quite fond of this soft and waxy little carrot head.
She was inconvenient, so she only held Prince Xi's other hand to comfort him: "Baby, follow Madam Zhen. There is delicious food at Madam Zhen's place."
Prince Xi's gloomy eyes lit up at the sound of "baby", and he suddenly turned his head to look at his closest and dearest Eunuch Sheng, as if to say: "Zuzu, this beautiful lady calls me baby!"
Qian Sheng also smiled at him and nodded again, indicating that he heard it.
Emperor Xuanwu looked at the backs of the three people entering, with a happy smile on his face.
He lied to Concubine Zhen...
In fact, before coming to Hexi Palace, he had already sent palace officials to Yikun Palace and asked the queen if she could take Prince Xi over to stay for one night. However, the queen refused on the grounds that she had to take care of the fifth prince and was too busy. .
It's just an excuse.
There are so many palace people in Yikun Palace, but there is just one more five-year-old child. Why can't they take care of it?
He doesn't need them to take care of him. With money, the Western Prince doesn't need anyone else.
It was just that he felt that the biological mother of the Western Prince was a sinner, and that she was conceived through trickery. She gave birth to the Western Prince without telling the emperor, and she lost her life because of it.
The emperor himself did not like this engineered son and left him to fend for himself. He had hardly seen him since his birth.
Empress Zhu felt that Prince Xi was a useless person and was not willing to take the trouble at all.
Concubine De was willing to accept her, but the emperor felt that she already had two children in the palace, and the third prince had always bullied Prince Xi in the past, so he did not consider Concubine De.
Thinking that Concubine Zhen had a black-armored army here, and she was kind and caring, Prince Xi would be well taken care of, so she brought her here.
Mainly because he took a quick look at Prince Xi today and found that he looked so much like himself when he was a child, so he felt a little compassion.
If the queen knew the reason, she would definitely regret it.
Which father has always preferred children who look like him?
The Western Prince's status is not one that can be seen on the stage, but he can use the Emperor's love for him to support the Fifth Prince's ascension to the throne!
Jiang Xinyue didn't think so much. She just felt that a child who couldn't protect herself should not be responsible for the adult's fault.
In the past, she didn't care because she couldn't figure out the emperor's will and didn't dare to take care of it without authorization. If she offended the emperor, she couldn't protect herself.
Now that the emperor has sent people to her, and she has some capital, she is naturally not afraid anymore.
Xu hadn't taken a shower for a long time, and both Prince Xi and Eunuch Qian Sheng had an unpleasant smell.
The miscellaneous palace maids and eunuchs in the outer courtyard covered their noses as they passed by, their eyes somewhat disgusted.
Jiang Xinyue was unhappy and frowned and said, "Jiang Chuan, those who just covered their noses, let them go to the groom's room to clean the bucket for a month."
Of course Qian Sheng also noticed it. When he was feeling uneasy, Concubine Zhen said: "Eunuch Sheng, there is a bathing pool behind the palace. You can take the Western Prince down to wash up. If you need anything, just ask him. He's here." I will do my best to take care of him here. You don’t have to be cautious. He is the emperor’s son and a noble prince.”
This was telling him not to be afraid. With her backing them up, no one in Hexi Palace could laugh at Prince Xi.
Qian Sheng, who had not received any goodwill for a long time, was a little unconvinced at first. He felt that Empress Zhenbi was acting like this just because of the emperor's instructions and was just doing it superficially.
But even if it was superficial, Qian Sheng was very grateful.
The Western Prince can take a comfortable hot bath. He doesn't have to collect rainwater and find a way to heat it himself. The water is smelly, and even the wooden bucket is smelly. How can he wash himself clean?
The bath towel given by Empress Zhenbi was also snow-white and fragrant. She also asked Eunuch Jiangchuan to send soap in. It was said that this thing was very precious and came from foreign countries as tribute. It only cost a few yuan in total.
After taking a bath, I prepared food. It wasn’t big fish or meat, just porridge and side dishes.
The millet was boiled into a thick paste of white porridge, which exuded the fragrance of lean meat, but there was no meat. Eunuch Jiangchuan told them: "Our empress ordered the imperial kitchen to mince all the meat and cook the broth. There is not a drop of water in this porridge." It’s not added, it’s all cooked in broth. Eunuch Sheng, please eat some with Prince Xi! This is what our empress asked the imperial doctor specifically. The imperial doctor said that you and Prince Xi should not eat greasy food, otherwise your stomach will be damaged. If you can’t bear it, we’ll prepare a more generous meal after a few more days.”
Only then did Eunuch Qian Sheng feel that this empress Zhen was different from other empresses in the palace.
In the past few years that he has been taking Prince Xi, there have been many empresses who want to show their kindness through them. Qian Sheng can clearly see that they are all trying to stand out in front of the emperor among the beauties.
Even the empress De Fei, who was always compassionate, was no exception.
That year, the Western Prince was injured by the Third Prince. Concubine De sent palace officials to apologize and rewarded them with a large table of chicken, duck, and fish.
It was the most sumptuous meal that Prince Xi had ever seen since he was born. He ate too much and ended up having vomiting and diarrhea at night. He thought Concubine De had poisoned the food and risked his life to beg the prince in front of the emperor.
Seeing how pitiful he was, the prince secretly asked an imperial physician to treat the Western Prince. The imperial physician indeed said that the Western Prince was malnourished and had no oil or water in his stomach.
After suddenly eating something so good, my stomach can't bear it, causing vomiting and diarrhea.
Concubine Zhen, she puts her heart into it.
“Ancestors…”
The Western Prince opened his big, watery eyes and looked at Eunuch Qian Sheng expectantly: "Zuzu, can we all live here in the future? Zuzu, I... I like Empress Zhen."
Obviously he has been bullied since he was a child. He has never had a good life and is always being teased. His eyes are clear and deer-like, full of happiness: "Zuzu, Zuzu can be here too. Empress Zhen protects us, Zuzu will never be beaten again.”
That sentence: We still have to leave tomorrow...
But there was nothing I could say.
With tears in his eyes, Qian Sheng hugged the fragrant and soft Prince Xi and patted him: "Prince Xi, if you want to stay here, it doesn't matter what we say. Only if Empress Zhen is willing."
He couldn't bear to teach him something he shouldn't, but... in order for him to survive, he could only let the Western Prince please the Empress Zhen.
This is not what a noble prince should learn.
But……
"Cough cough cough cough..."
The white handkerchief was stained with a bright red.