klisemfg Chapter 96 The Crown Prince's Dilemma
Chapter 96 The Crown Prince's Dilemma
The room fell silent. Li Heng followed the child's little finger and saw the crack, which was thinner than a hair. His face turned pale. He had the craftsmen inspect it several times yesterday.
He and Zhou Qianqian had personally inspected the site and were certain they hadn't seen the crack. How could it have developed into a problem overnight?
The Emperor and Empress also came down, their faces not looking too good. Seeing a crack on the day of the Emperor's birthday was very ominous, especially since it was on the Guanyin statue.
"It's alright, someone come and put it away." The Empress Dowager had seen her share of hardships. Although she was greatly displeased by the cold water she had been given, she would not make a fuss about it.
No one came forward to look anyway, so it was fine to cover it up and not embarrass myself.
"It's really terrible! His Highness the Crown Prince is far too careless. Doesn't he even bother to prepare a proper birthday gift for the Empress Dowager?" It was Consort Zheng, who was standing next to the Empress, who spoke.
She's been in a bad mood lately, and there's a hint of cold madness in her eyes. If she was arrogant and domineering before, now she often thinks about taking everyone down with her.
Even Emperor Cheng gave her a disapproving look, but out of consideration for the significant blow she had suffered, he reluctantly let it go.
"Grandmother, it was my oversight..." Li Heng wiped his sweat and looked down at the seats below.
The closest were Zhou Zhen and Shen Zizai, among other cabinet ministers. However, Zhou Zhen's seat was empty at the moment, and Shen Zizai was getting up to step forward.
"Grandmother, please don't be angry. Just by looking at this Guanyin statue, you can tell that His Highness has put a lot of thought into it. It must be that the craftsmen below did not do their job well. I will find a craftsman to repair it with gold. It would be a beautiful story to inlay gold on jade."
The King of Chess was clearly closer than Shen Zizai, and as he spoke, he came over and helped the Empress Dowager.
Shen Zizai's prepared explanation was roughly the same, but what he said was completely different from what Yi Wang said. He was trying to defuse the situation, while Yi Wang was just making things worse.
"Good, you are the most meticulous." The Empress Dowager patted Prince Yi's hand and ordered the Guanyin statue to be carried away.
The crown prince completely lost face. Although it was a small matter, embarrassing himself in front of court officials and vassal states would greatly affect his prestige.
"It's delicious." Shen Li ate the tangerine that Gu Chang'an fed her, turned her head and smiled sweetly at him: "It's sweet."
"Then you should eat less, it's cold." Gu Chang'an said, adjusting the cloak she was wearing and testing the temperature of the hand warmer in her hand.
Feeling the warmth around her and looking at the tense atmosphere ahead, Shen Li felt extremely comfortable.
In his previous life, the King of Chess also set this trap for the Crown Prince. However, Zhou Zhen was quick to react and well-versed in Buddhism. With a few Zen-like words, he turned a bad thing into a good thing and made the Empress Dowager laugh heartily.
Shen Li remembered those words clearly, but she naturally wouldn't smooth things over for Li Heng. Instead, she saved Zhou Zhen some trouble by letting him have an upset stomach so he wouldn't miss out on the excitement.
It seems that it is Prince Yi who has pleased the Empress Dowager. Prince Yi's situation is very different from that of his previous life. In his previous life, the Crown Prince had the opportunity to steal the spotlight at the birthday banquet and even at the Guanyin statue.
Now, it's completely reversed.
Shen Li was delighted to see this scene. Didn't Li Heng boast of being the true Son of Heaven when he ascended the throne in his previous life? She wanted to make him understand step by step that he was a good-for-nothing and that no matter how hard he tried, he could never sit on that supreme throne.
"I have a prize for you," the Empress Dowager said, pointing to the scroll being held by the palace maid beside her. "Whoever presents the birthday gift that pleases me the most will receive this prize."
Shen Li remembered that it was the Empress Dowager's handwriting. The quality of the handwriting was not important; what mattered was that having this in the house made many things much easier.
When it was her turn to present the gift, she presented a painting of chrysanthemums. When the painting was unfurled, the first person to react was Consort Zheng; her eyelids even twitched.
She saw Shen Li's painting again, and the familiar brushstrokes immediately reminded her of her own painting of a goddess, and she lost her spirit.
Everyone else praised it highly, and when it was presented to the public, the officials were all amazed by its exquisite craftsmanship and artistic conception. Many true art lovers also regretted not having seen the so-called stunning Goddess painting.
The painting of the goddess had long been admired in the palace, but outsiders not only had never seen it, but also never had the chance to see it again, which was a great pity.
"This is good. I would have exchanged it with you. Please don't be offended if it's not as well-written as yours." The Empress Dowager gave the calligraphy to Shen Li after seeing the painting.
Shen Li had expected this. In her previous life, she had given this to Li Heng, but now that it was in her hands, it was enough to show that the Empress Dowager cared a lot about the Guanyin statue. She hadn't let the shadow take that croton seed for nothing.
She thanked him for the reward and sat back down with Gu Chang'an, continuing to wait for the banquet to begin.
After the birthday gifts of this dynasty were presented, envoys from various countries came to pay tribute. There were six or seven envoys, among whom the three largest powers were Japan, Goryeo, and Annam.
After Goryeo and Annam presented their tribute, they received gifts worth more than ten times their face value. The envoys from both countries were so delighted that their eyes shone as they sat down.
"This great nation's reputation comes at the cost of my husband's pocket," Shen Li whispered in his ear. "Does my husband feel the pinch?"
"It's alright." Gu Chang'an's Adam's apple bobbed as he gave a brief reply.
Shen Li noticed his unease, so she kept a proper distance and changed the subject: "We can have dinner after they give their gifts."
If she hadn't eaten a whole table of food before she arrived, she would probably be starving by now.
"Hmm." When Gu Chang'an looked ahead, he found that he couldn't concentrate. The warm breath that had just entered his ear still made him feel tingly.
"Our country presents the Empress Dowager with a top-quality Eastern pearl." After delivering his clumsy congratulatory speech, Prince Pingcheng added, "I wonder if His Majesty the Great Zhao would allow me to play a little game."
"Oh?" Emperor Cheng knew that another question was about to be posed. This was an open game of strategy. Generally speaking, answering this kind of question was not glorious, but if you couldn't answer it, you would be laughed at.
Prince Pingcheng clapped his hands, and five attendants came up one by one, each carrying a black box. The boxes were not very well made, only decorated with the clan emblem in colored paint.
Upon closer inspection, a piece of paper with words was pasted on the top of each box.
“Your Majesty, there are five boxes here containing gold and pearls. Why don’t we ask a clever person to use their brain to find the pearls according to the clues on the paper?” A minister who spoke fluent Chinese stepped forward and said to the Crown Prince of Pingcheng.
After all, it was difficult for Prince Heisei to utter such a long sentence; he simply nodded at the end.
Emperor Cheng found it amusing and beckoned a servant to come closer so he could see the words on the box for himself.
The first box was labeled: Each box contains gold.
The second box says: The third box has no gold, the fourth box has pearls.
The third box says: There is only one box containing gold.
The fourth box says: This box contains neither pearls nor gold.
The fifth box says: This box does not contain pearls, but it does contain gold.
"Three of these statements are lies, only two are true," the minister said with a hint of pride. "Even our Japanese children know this. I wonder if your country can find the Eastern Pearl?"