Well, chapters are long, as I don’t have time to split them, so enjoy

　　The eleventh prince’s biological mother was a concubine, and she was not given a name. Her surname was Dai. Normally, the palace servants called her “Concubine Dai”. This shows that Concubine Dai was not the favored one in the palace.

　　For example, the biological mother of the twelfth prince was originally a palace maid with a pretty appearance. Earlier, the emperor was in his summer villa and he visited this palace maid while drunk. The maid became pregnant at once. At that time, there were not many children in the palace, so the emperor let her keep the baby.

　　The prince was obtained in one fell swoop.

　　The emperor was pleased and made the palace maid a noble lady, and also gave her a name, Noble Lady Xiu.

　　Now there are one queen and four concubines in the harem, the four concubines are: Duan, Xian, Shu and Yi. Concubine Duan is the oldest, already 59 years old, and has long passed the point of competing for favor. She has a son, the second prince, Prince Kang, and is the best among all the princes. Her status is stable, and even the queen gives way to her.

　　The virtuous concubine gave birth to the fifth prince, the sixth prince, and three princesses, all of whom she raised to adulthood. She was the most favored by the emperor in the past, and had both status and favor. Unfortunately, beauty fades with age, and the virtuous concubine is now 46 years old.

　　Concubine Shu is both talented and beautiful. She has given birth to ten princesses and is now thirty-eight.

　　Concubine Yi was the biological mother of the fourteenth prince, the daughter of the foreign Yi king, and was presented to Emperor Kang Jing to make peace with him. Concubine Yi was beautiful and was very favored at that time. Except for the first and fifteenth day of the month when the emperor would rest in the queen’s bedroom, he would spend almost all the rest of the time with Concubine Yi.

　　Unfortunately, she is a foreign girl. Even if she is favored, all the women in the harem know that she has favor but no status. There is not much hope for Fourteen. Now she is thirty-two. If Emperor Kang Jing goes to the harem, he still goes over from time to time to sit and watch Concubine Yi dance.

　　In the harem, the only ones who are considered favored and can serve the emperor in bed are Concubine Yi and Concubine Xiu. The newcomers who have just arrived and have high positions are just decoration.

　　Ever since the eighth prince started to write his own book, Emperor Kang Jing preferred to talk to his younger sons, enjoy the father-son relationship, have a meal with them, and ask about their homework.

　　The people before the Eighth Prince all turned cold.

　　Today, the Eleventh Prince was chosen for dinner. The Eleventh Prince’s biological mother, Concubine Dai, was not as favored as Concubine Xiu. Recently, the Emperor had been taking turns to ask his younger sons to accompany him, so Concubine Dai’s life became easier.

　　The eunuchs no longer dared to fool her with inferior products.

　　At noon today, her son went to the Palace to have lunch with His Majesty. Concubine Dai was very happy. Not long after, the Eunuchs sent over a plate of lychees. Each one was plump, and when peeled, it was beautiful and crystal clear, and it was also sweet to eat.

　　The most important thing is that it was awarded by His Majesty.

　　In the past, concubine Dai could not get such a rare fruit, so she asked the eunuch in the inner chamber, “Who else has it?”

　　The young eunuch cleverly replied, “I received Your Majesty’s instructions to deliver this to you first.”

　　So it was given to her first? concubine Dai was delighted, and the maid who served her took the reward money to send the eunuch away. After the eunuch left, concubine Dai looked at the plate of lychees with great joy, and the maid who served her said, “Madam, these fruits are so big, can I peel one for you to taste?”

　　”Peel it.” concubine Dai tasted a lychee and stopped eating. She pressed the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief and said, “I am already so old, and I don’t really want to eat a bite. The young eunuch was smart and sent me a plate first. There are some elsewhere, and I am not the only one here.”

　　”But I don’t ask to be the only one. I just hope that His Majesty can pay more attention to Eleven. He has been motivated since he was young and is a great student. It’s my fault that I am not favored and have dragged him down—”

　　The head maid said, “Your Highness is a concubine, the head of a palace, and you have done a great deed by giving birth to a prince. The Eleventh Prince is the most filial, so he will definitely not think this way, and he will not like to hear you say this.”

　　”Yes, my son is filial.” concubine Dai smiled and stopped saying discouraging words. She didn’t have any ambitions. She just hoped that the emperor would pay more attention to Eleventh and find a good marriage for him. In the future, if a new emperor took the throne, one day she would be able to leave the house and live with her son.

　　That’s the idea.

　　”Pack the lychees and send them to Prince Eleven. Tell him that this fruit is hot and he shouldn’t eat too much or he’ll get a sore throat.” Concubine Dai ordered.

　　The eldest maid said, “Your Majesty, don’t you want to keep a few? There are still many here.”

　　Concubine Dai said nothing, but nodded her chin to indicate. The head palace maid knew there was no point in persuading her, so she went out with a plate of lychees. The concubine was worried about the eleventh prince and thought of her son in all the good things.

　　The head palace maid took the food box and packed it up. The eunuchs sent a plate with ten lychees in total. The empress tasted one and there were nine left. She counted them and gave them to the eunuch Shan in the palace. The palace maids in the harem were not allowed to go there. Only those with the eunuch’s badge could enter this place.

　　Now those living in the Prince’s Garden are all underage princes, eleven, twelve, fourteen and three others. The eleventh prince is the oldest, and it is expected that he will build a mansion outside this year and get married and move out next year.

　　The eleventh prince has two concubines and has not yet married a wife.

　　Eunuch Shan from Concubine Dai’s palace walked in the shade in the corner on a hot day. When he arrived at the Prince’s Garden, he handed his badge to the gate guard for inspection. After entering, he went straight to the Eleventh Prince’s Courtyard. When the young eunuch guarding the gate saw him, he called him Grandpa Shan sweetly.

　　”Where’s the prince?”

　　”Prince was resting in the main courtyard. Prince came back at noon and wrote a few words. Then Prince said he was tired and lay down.”

　　The two eunuchs walked towards the main courtyard while talking. The eunuch guarding the door saw that it was the head eunuch from Concubine Dai’s palace. He first started to chat and greet them, then immediately went in to find the prince’s personal eunuch to talk to him.

　　This goes on and on.

　　The Eleventh Prince, who was sleeping in the main courtyard room, covered his abdomen with his hands. He had not fallen asleep since he lay down. His stomach ached and cold sweat broke out on his forehead. He was afraid that he had eaten something wrong, because he had lunch with his father at noon. The Eleventh Prince did not want to ask the servants to call the imperial physician to come and check.

　　This is so unlucky. What if father doesn’t call him next time?

　　He drank some hot tea and ate a few Taiping pills, but his stomach hurt more and more, as if his intestines were twisted together. The Eleventh Prince shouted for help, but found that his mouth was dry and his throat was hoarse. Finally, he shouted several times in a hoarse voice before the eunuch outside heard him and hurried in.

　　”You bastard.” The Eleventh Prince’s face turned pale and hideous with pain.

　　The eunuch knelt on the ground in fear and said, “My lord, it is Eunuch Shan who has come. Your Majesty has received a plate of lychees—”

　　Before he could finish his words, the eleventh prince on the bed couldn’t hold back and vomited all over the bed.

　　Now all the eunuchs were scared.

　　”Toilet.”

　　Vomiting and diarrhea.

　　Eunuch Shan in Concubine Dai’s palace noticed something was wrong. After the eunuch changed the bedding, lit some incense, and helped the prince lie down again, Eunuch Shan grabbed him and asked in a low voice, “The eleventh prince is not feeling well. Why don’t you ask the imperial physician to come and see him?”

　　”Eunuch Shan, it’s not that I don’t want to invite, it’s that the prince doesn’t allow me to.”

　　”You foolish thing. If something happens to the prince – can you afford the consequences with a hundred lives?” Eunuch Shan wanted to slap this guy in the face. He kept thinking that he was really unlucky. He came to deliver litchi and was seen by him. If anything happened, he would not be able to escape responsibility.

　　As they were talking, the eunuch who was guarding inside came out hurriedly and said, “Oh no, the prince is having blood in his stool.”

　　Several eunuchs were so frightened that their legs went limp on the spot.

　　When Eunuch Shan entered the room, he saw the scent of sandalwood mixed with a foul smell, and there was feces and blood on the bed.

　　This matter was serious, and it was not something that these little guys could decide whether to invite or not. They immediately went to the Imperial Hospital to invite the imperial physician. The whole Eleventh Courtyard was in a panic. Eunuch Shan wanted to run away, but he knew that he was already involved and could not get away. He just hoped that the Eleventh Prince was safe and sound, and that it was not some other underworld matter, but just a simple stomach upset.

　　”Go to the Palace and inform Banban Wang.” said Eunuch Shan.

　　Wang Zetian had accompanied the emperor all the way here. He was the oldest and highest-ranking eunuch in the palace, so calling him “Banban” was a respectful title.

　　Wang Zetian was not on duty and was taking a rest just after finishing his meal when a young eunuch came to report something about the Eleventh Prince’s courtyard. Wang Zetian slowly drank his tea and swallowed it in small sips, chewing the tea leaves slowly to remove the taste of the meal in his mouth.

　　He was calm and composed. He had been with the emperor for nearly sixty years and had seen many things, big and small. He was as steady as a rock and took nothing into consideration. He just gave him a look.

　　Young eunuch: “Someone came to report that the eleventh prince was vomiting and having diarrhea and blood in his stool—”

　　Wang Zetian gulped down all the tea leaves in his mouth and stood up. “You can’t even tell the urgency of your words.” He hurriedly went outside to ask the eunuch in the eleventh prince’s courtyard in person, straightened his clothes, and took the little eunuch into the inner hall to answer.

　　”Your Majesty.”

　　In the main hall of the Palace, the emperor and the entire cabinet were talking, and Wang Zetian crouched in and interrupted them. Emperor Kang Jing took a look and knew that something was wrong, or else Wang Zetian would not be so rash.

　　”What is it?”

　　Wang Zetian replied respectfully: “The eunuch from the Eleventh Prince’s Courtyard reported that the Eleventh Prince was unwell and the imperial physician had been summoned.”

　　Emperor Kang Jing’s eyes darkened, and he asked several people to wait in the side hall. After the officials left, Wang Zetian stepped forward quickly and said in a low voice: “The eleventh prince took a cup of tea and three Taiping pills in the afternoon. After resting for two quarters, he began to complain of unbearable abdominal pain. Until two quarters in the afternoon, he had diarrhea and blood in his stool.”

　　”I have detained all the eunuchs and palace maids serving tea in the imperial kitchen, both big and small.”

　　”Imperial Doctor Yan is waiting outside the palace, to check His Majesty’s pulse.”

　　Wang Zetian did everything smoothly and consistently.

　　The emperor is old, and Imperial Physician Yan usually waits in the side courtyard. When Wang Zetian heard that something was wrong, he asked the eunuch to invite him over.

　　No matter what, let’s check on His Majesty first.

　　Imperial Doctor Yan had just finished taking the emperor’s pulse and knelt on the ground, not daring to look directly at the emperor’s face. He said that he could not find out anything from the pulse and hoped that the emperor would blame him and use acupuncture.

　　Emperor Kang Jing agreed.

　　After using the needle, Doctor Yan’s face changed and the tip of the needle turned black.

　　It is poisonous, but the toxicity is very small.

　　The entire Zichen Palace suddenly fell into the silence before the bloody storm.

　　”You’ve got me here.” Emperor Kang Jing’s eyes were cold.

　　In the side hall, Grand Tutor Lin and several other officials were sitting and drinking tea in silence. After waiting for about two quarters of an hour, the young eunuch in the hall replied, asking all officials to return to the front court to handle their business.

　　They said they were inviting you in, but as soon as they went out, the palace maids and eunuchs who were originally guarding outside the Palace were now gone, and the Yulin Army was also replaced by a new group of people guarding it. The few smart people present smelled something wrong, but no one asked, and they all went back to the front.

　　Things are going to change.

　　Only those at the center of imperial power could detect to some extent what happened in the palace. Eleven was sick, and it was an emergency. As for other things, the imperial physician kept silent. Even Concubine Dai didn’t know. All they knew was that eunuch Shan had delivered the lychees until the evening and had not returned yet, so he was locked in the Prince’s Garden.

　　The remaining twelve and fourteen listened to the reports from their respective eunuchs. They knew that there were Yulin soldiers and imperial physicians coming and going in the Eleventh Prince’s courtyard. They had no idea what had happened.

　　Twelve even sent his personal eunuch to inquire, but of course he never came back. The Yulin Army locked up the eunuchs who were sneaking around. It didn’t matter who the eunuchs were, they had the emperor’s order. Fourteenth directly closed the courtyard with a cold face and ordered that no one be allowed to leave.

　　A few days later, on the fifteenth day, the emperor stopped holding the morning court.

　　Gu Zhao then realized that something was amiss, but he had no way out and didn’t want to ask for help, so he continued reading and writing. There was no rush for the second volume to be published – anyway, he felt there was no rush at this time.

　　It’s already June 15th.

　　After get off work, Senior Brother Liang came to see him and said that he didn’t need to go to his house to study these few days. The teacher said that you just need to read the books by yourself and the homework will be checked next time. If there is nothing else, just stay at home and don’t run around.

　　At the end, he added: “…get off duty early, don’t stay too long.”

　　In the past, everyone in the Hanlin Academy went to work at 9 or 10 in the morning and got off work at 3 or 4 in the afternoon. Only Gu Zhao and Yan Jinxin strictly followed the working hours of Beijing officials, clocking in from 7 am to 5 pm, and rarely being late or leaving early. Now, when they heard what Senior Brother Liang said, they nodded and said they understood.

　　So that day, Gu Zhao and Yan Jinxin also packed up and left at around 3 o’clock, and the two followed suit. Fang Liu didn’t come to pick them up, so they walked for a while and ran into two rickshaw drivers on the main street. They stopped and got on the rickshaws.

　　Fang Liu drove to the gate of Li’s house and waited for the master to get out of the car. He looked hesitant. Gu Zhao asked, “What’s the matter?”

　　”Master, things are not peaceful recently. You should come back early.”

　　How come even Fang Liu noticed it? Gu Zhao thought, Senior Brother Liang knew something about the inside story, that was because Senior Brother Liang had connections and the teacher lived in the mansion, but how did Fang Liu know that something was not going well?

　　Fang Liu lowered his voice and said, “I have a brother who cleans up the mass graves. Recently, we are short of manpower. There are only corpses in the palace…”

　　The sound was so soft that some of Gu Zhao didn’t hear it all. He only heard corpses and palaces.

　　”I know. Don’t tell these things to anyone in the future.” Gu Zhao’s eyebrows jumped.

　　Fang Liu answered yes. It was also because he came to work for the Li family, the master and mistress were kind and treated him very well, Fang Liu did not want to change jobs, and wanted to continue working here.

　　Gu Zhao put away his expression and pretended to be normal before entering. Once he entered the second door, he heard Fu Bao’s laughter in the yard, and Zhou Zhou said, “Come to Daddy’s place?”

　　When he looked, he saw Fubao pushing a walker and running around with the lambs walking around him.

　　Gu Zhao burst into laughter all of a sudden.

　　Li Zhouzhou picked up his son, and when he saw his husband coming back, he hugged him and went to greet him, “Why did you come back so early today?”

　　”It’s too hot to sit still, so I wanted to be lazy and come back to rest for a while.” Gu Zhao said coquettishly, “My underwear is all wet.”

　　Li Zhouzhou handed his son to his father and said, “Then change quickly and wipe with hot water. Don’t catch a cold.”

　　”I’ll come in and do it myself. What shall we eat tonight? Let’s make stir-fried loofah and scrambled eggs. Do you have bitter melon? Let’s make a cold dish. I’ve been feeling a bit irritated lately…”

　　Gu Zhao went into the house to change his clothes in a short shirt. As Mother Lan was in the room, it was inconvenient to untie the laces and wear it open, so he still wore his clothes neatly. However, Gu Zhao was lazy and did not wear any inner clothes. He just wore the cotton and linen short shirt directly, which was much cooler.

　　After washing my hands, my face felt better.

　　Gu Zhao came out holding Fu Bao and played with Fu Bao in the cart, saying, “There is not much work in the Hanlin Academy recently. My second brother and I have just finished editing our second book and are in no hurry to publish it. It’s a good time for me to take a break because of the hot weather. I have been saying that I would like to have a meal with the four children but I have not done it until now. I will take a day off and invite the four of them to my house for a meal and a chat.”

　　”Okay. Recently, Manager Liang said that fewer ducks are sold in a day. It may be because of the hot weather and people don’t have much appetite. About fifty ducks are sold out early in the day, so the afternoon is much freer.” Li Zhouzhou said.

　　When Fubao saw his father come back, he kept talking to him. He really wanted to make his presence felt, so he waved his arms, leaned forward, and got from his father’s arms to kiss him.

　　Gu Zhao immediately got angry, “You little brat.”

　　”Husband.” Li Zhouzhou laughed and scolded, taking Fubao in one hand, “Fubao, you want daddy to play with you, right?”

　　Fubao looked at his father again in his father’s arms.

　　”…” Gu Zhao couldn’t bear to be cruel to Fubao, so he kissed his son’s hand and said, “Daddy will play with Fubao in the cart together.”

　　The cart was made of wood, even the wheels were made of wood. The bricks in the yard were fairly flat, with a rounded handle at the back and a small seat at the front, like a tricycle. Fubao usually pushed the cart to practice walking, and sometimes when he got tired he would wave his arms like a big fluttering goose, and Gu Zhao knew he was going to take a ride.

　　”You have to tell me, tell me and Daddy will take Fubao for a ride.”

　　Fubao puffed his cheeks and said, “Fufu wants to take a ride.”

　　Gu Zhao lifted his son’s arm and put him into the seat, which was surrounded by a guardrail. Fubao put his little feet on the pedals and waved his arms happily: “Daddy, fast!”

　　”Yes!” Gu Zhao pushed Fubao around the yard. It was almost time for dinner. Fubao, who was sitting in the car, had wide eyes and shouted, “Grandpa, grandpa.”

　　Dad is back.

　　Gu Zhao raised his eyes and saw his father’s figure at the second door.

　　Li Da was bored in Beijing and couldn’t do business. He was not needed to fetch water or do housework at home. If it snowed in winter, he could still sweep the snow in the yard and sweat everywhere. Now he could only stay at home.

　　Later, Gu Zhao suggested that he and Uncle Yan could go for a stroll on the street. Not far from the Li family’s home in Beijing, there were storytellers, drum players, and sparrow players at the Old Street Bridge. They could go there for a stroll and have some fun.

　　Li Da didn’t want to get involved in money-playing games, such as collecting birds. One bird cost one or two taels of silver, and more if it was more expensive. In the past, in the mountains, you could catch as many sparrows as you wanted. It was nothing rare. But Li Da liked the storyteller, and he would call Lao Yan over to listen every now and then.

　　Both of them were wearing old clothes and robes. They occupied a table, ordered a pot of coarse tea, a plate of melon seeds, and thirty cents. You pay today and I’ll pay tomorrow. We sat there for more than an hour, and it was only two or three quarters of an hour to walk back.

　　Old Yan’s house is closer, two quarters, and his house is three quarters.

　　It’s good to walk, it can stretch your muscles.

　　Li Da was no longer depressed. When he came back and saw Fubao calling him grandpa, his wrinkles on his face were all smiling. He said to Fubao, “Wait a minute, grandpa will hold Fufu after I wash my hands.”

　　”Grandpa, candy!” Fubao said crisply.

　　Li Zhouzhou knew that his father had promised to bring candy back to Fubao before he left, so he couldn’t help but say, “Dad, Fubao is still young, his teeth haven’t grown yet, eating candy can easily damage his teeth.”

　　”He don’t eat it every day. I go out two or three times in ten days, and I don’t bring back candy every day.” Li Da explained, patting his chest.

　　Gu Zhao knew that the candy was placed on his father’s chest, and he also knew to be on guard against Zhou Zhou.

　　”Dad, can I see some candy?”

　　Li Da took out the candy, wrapped it in oil paper into a square package, and quickly slipped away saying he wanted to wash his hands.

　　Gu Zhao opened it and saw that it was a small sugar painting made of maltose. It had melted a little due to the hot weather. It was probably because his father had carried it with him all the way and stuffed it into his chest before he got home. He opened it and saw that it looked like a piglet, round and plump. He said seriously, “Let me take a look. It looks a bit like Zhou Zhou.”

　　Li Zhouzhou was puzzled. Shouldn’t he look like Fubao? Why did he look like him?

　　Gu Zhaoxiao said, “He really looks like he’s angry.”

　　”…” Li Zhouzhou couldn’t help laughing, “How does it look like me? I’m not fat.”

　　Gu Zhao broke off half of the candy painting and stuffed it into Zhou Zhou’s mouth, “Little pig eat little pig, don’t be angry anymore.”

　　The two adults took turns eating the sugar painting that originally belonged to Fu Fu, which made Fu Fu very anxious. He sat in the car waving his arms and babbling in a baby voice: “Ah ah Fu Fu Fu Fu Fu.”

　　”Sugar!”

　　When Li Da came back after washing his hands and face, he saw his baby Fubao licking oil paper in the yard. He was immediately distressed and asked, “Why did he lick the paper? Where’s the candy?”

　　Gu Zhao pretended to be innocent and got away.

　　Of course the two adults eat most of the candy, while Fubao licks the candy wrapper and eats the candy residue, which keeps his mouth sweet and won’t damage his teeth.

　　Fubao buried his chubby face in the paper, licked it clean, and happily showed a row of little white teeth, “Grandpa, the candy is so sweet~” He was so happy.

　　Li Da: …This silly child, just by smelling the sweets, it must be the bad thing done by Fubao’s father!

　　Upon closer inspection, Gu Zhao was gone.

　　Li Da felt sorry for his candy pig, but to be honest, Fubao was also happy to eat the candy and didn’t cry yet. Let’s not talk about it, he bought the candy pig for Fubao.

　　”Grandpa will buy it for Fubao next time.”

　　Li Zhouzhou said, “Dad, Fubao really needs to eat less candy. Don’t buy it for him. Even if you do buy it for him, give it to me first.”

　　”How come you two, after eating once, are still thinking about the next time?” Li Da felt sorry for Fu Bao, but he also knew that Zhou Zhou and Zhao’er would not harm the child. Damaged teeth are indeed unsightly and uncomfortable, so he said, “I understand.”

　　In the evening, there was mung bean porridge, cold bitter melon, scrambled eggs with loofah, and a plate of cold braised pig ears.

　　My family likes to eat this, so Li Zhouzhou braised some for the family to eat, and also gave a lot to mother Lan and Fang Liu. This thing is cheap and tastes good when eaten cold, but it can’t be stored in hot weather and has to be eaten on the same day.

　　The family had finished their meal and it was still light in the yard, but the temperature dropped suddenly.

　　The old courtyard houses in Beijing are like this, cool in the morning and evening. It is only mid-June now and it is not the hottest time of the year, so it is not that tiring.

　　Mother Lan boiled some hot water and everyone went to wash up one by one.

　　Fubao talked to the lamb for a while. After the adults finished bathing, they also gave him a bath, and then went back to the room to sleep. The lights were turned on in the inner room, and Gu Zhao looked for the self-made storybook. He originally wanted to tell Fubao a bedtime story, but he saw the envelope underneath.

　　I remembered now, this was sent by the caravan, written by Master Zhao, and also by the Gu family.

　　Gu Zhao was very busy at that time, so he opened the letter and took a quick look but found nothing urgent. He thought that he would have to reply by the end of the year so he put it aside and didn’t read it again. Now that he has some free time, he remembered it and wrote down what he wanted to say in the past few months, so that he would not forget it by the end of the year.

　　Master Zhao wrote to say that he had received the book and informed Zhu Xiucai during the New Year. Zhu Xiucai “tears of gratitude and copied the book with tears.” This was the original words. He then said some words of gratitude and that Zhao Ze would take the exam this spring.

　　I don’t know whether Zhao Ze passed the exam or not.

　　The letter from the Gu family was also written by Master Zhao. In just one page, Father Gu said that everything was fine at home. Stepmother Li Guihua said a lot, saying that Gu Chen had good academic performance. She had originally wanted Gu Chen to take the exam with Zhao Ze, with Zhao Ze taking the exam for a scholar and Gu Chen taking the exam for a student. Gu Chen is your younger brother, and he must be like you in terms of study and will definitely pass the exam. Unfortunately, Master Zhao felt that it was inappropriate, so he gave up and put it aside for a few years.

　　After Gu Zhao finished reading the letter, he calculated in his head that Gu Chen might have only been in elementary school for two years, and he was already taking the exam?

　　Li Guihua was a man with big strides, and she wished that Gu Chen could be a student at the age of eight, a scholar at the age of ten, and an official at the age of twelve. She wanted him to be better than him, who was “born first”.

　　At the end of the letter, it said, “If Gu Chen is admitted, Zhaoer, will you still keep your word?”

　　Master Zhao must have been bribed, otherwise the plain words might have been: Zhao’er, you said that day that as long as Gu Chen passed the examination, you would provide money for Gu Chen to study, and you couldn’t lie. Now you are an official and live a life of luxury in Beijing, but our family is still working hard in the fields to make a living, and so on.

　　Anyway, he just cries poor and wants money.

　　But unfortunately, Master Zhao did not write it directly.

　　The third branch of the Gu family also had a son and wanted to ask Gu Zhao to name the child.

　　Gu Zhao immediately took a pen and paper and began to write a reply. He first wished Zhao Ze to be on the list. If not, in case he failed, he should not be discouraged and should accumulate knowledge and make progress, and he would definitely pass next time.

　　He said that if Gu Chen passed the imperial examination, he would fulfill his promise.

　　The child of Uncle San’s family can be called Gu Yang. It just happens to be related to Gu Chen.

　　…

　　There was nothing much to write in reply to the question, so Gu Zhao waited for the ink to dry and put it in an envelope first. If he had anything else to do at the end of the year, he would write it down together and then send the two copies of “Three Years and Two Tests” back.

　　Li Zhouzhou played with Fubao on the bed for a while. When he saw his husband finished writing and cleaning up, he said, “A few days ago, the Lin family sent me a note inviting me to take Fubao to the theater. Today, someone came again saying that it was not convenient at the family’s house recently and he could not go. They also brought some snacks and fruits to our house as an apology.”

　　”My husband, is there something wrong again?”

　　Gu Zhao wiped his hands and said, “I really can’t hide anything from you.”

　　”You came back today and acted cheerful on purpose, saying you were lazy and leisurely, and someone from the Lin family came this morning, so I guessed that it might be…” Li Zhouzhou couldn’t guess, but he felt something was wrong.

　　Gu Zhao got on the bed and took over the conversation, saying, “To be honest, I don’t know what happened, but many people died in the palace, and they were all servants.” This was inferred from what Fang Liu said.

　　”But as you said, the Lin Mansion has started to close its doors to visitors, so this is not an ordinary matter.” Gu Zhao frowned, but soon relaxed. Seeing Zhou Zhou’s worry, he couldn’t help but say, “Don’t be afraid. We are a small family, and it won’t involve us. Business has been tight recently, so it doesn’t matter even if there are fewer people. The door is tight, so let Dad and Uncle Yan not go out for a walk.”

　　That’s all, right?

　　Gu Zhao didn’t know what was going on, but it was okay to follow the Lin family’s example and keep the door closed.

　　Li Zhouzhou nodded and said he understood.

　　Xiaoshu said that the business of Li Ji’s shop was very bad. Recently, the number of 50 a day was reduced by a few the next day. Li Zhouzhou heard this and simply told the shopkeeper Liang: “Only 20 to 30 a day. If all the regular customers are sold out in the morning, we will close the shop in the afternoon.”

　　Then he said to Xiaoshu, “Don’t go to the store recently. Just rest more at home.”

　　As soon as Liu Shu saw Brother Zhou Zhou’s expression, he agreed immediately and didn’t dare to say or think anything rash. He used to be afraid of no one in the village and could win a fight with that skinny man, but now he is not so brave.

　　I didn’t know anything back then, but now I know the rules and can see which direction the wind is blowing.

　　A few days later, the officials in the capital took a day off.

　　Li Ji’s business also stopped for a day.

　　The four members of the Su family closed their shop yesterday afternoon and moved into the Li residence, sleeping in the west wing of the residence at night.

　　After seeing each other again for more than two months, Gu Zhao felt that these four had changed a lot.

　　My first impression was that of four people standing at the door, looking very restrained, nervous and terrified. They didn’t even dare to open their mouths. They were small and thin, but now they seemed to have gained weight, and the weight made them look stronger and taller. They were not lively and outgoing, but each of them looked like an adult, somewhat steady and serious and called him Lord Gu.

　　Know the majesty of class hierarchy.

　　Gu Zhao felt that it would be better to be stricter with the four members of the Su family, as they would not have the opportunity to make mistakes and be forgiven.

　　On the day off, Gu Zhao took a full body bath when the sun came out. He let his hair down to dry in the sun. It was quite warm and dried in a short while. He then tied it up into a high ponytail.

　　At noon, we prepared a table of food and ate at the large round table in the main hall.

　　Gu Zhao sat down and said, “It’s a rare day off, it’s so lively.”

　　Fubao was the happiest. He sat in the baby chair and waved his arms. He looked at this and that. They were all unfamiliar faces. Fubao would call them “brother” as soon as he opened his mouth.

　　Children like big friends.

　　”You have to call him uncle, cousin,” Li Zhouzhou said to his son.

　　But Fu Fu is still a child. After listening to his father, he kept calling “brother” and “Su Su” and was so confused that he couldn’t remember what he was talking about. Finally, Li family laughed and said that he would teach him later when Fu Bao grew up.

　　The Li family was filled with joy.

　　The inner circle of the imperial city in Beijing.

　　The Yulin Army arrived outside the Eighth Prince’s residence and respectfully “invited” the Eighth Prince to enter the palace. At the same time, the Chu Mansion, which had a gate facing the main street not far away, was not so respectful. The Jinwu Guards lined up with big swords on their waists and knocked on the door of the Chu Mansion.

　　A moment of solemnity.