It's easy to be a villain, but hard to be a princess

Han Zixiao led two guards and a servant to follow the young man in blue, but he didn't want to get on another boat.Han Zixiao looked at the man in purple standing on the bow of the boat with his hands behind his back, and cupped his hands, "I will see you, my lord."

"Don't be too polite."

"Thank you, lord." Han Zixiao raised his head, "I don't know why the lord is in such a hurry to summon the officials?"

Chu Muqing said: "This king is going to Suzhou to pay homage to his teacher, and I happen to be on the way with you."

Isn't the mentor of the regent Suzhou his grandfather?Han Zixiao was stunned, "This..."

Chu Muqing glanced at him, "Why, don't you want to take this king's ride?"

Han Zixiao smiled all over his face, "How could it be that I am flattered to be able to board the prince's boat."

Chu Muqing's complexion turned ugly instantly, and the phrase "I can get on the prince's boat" is not pleasant to my ears.

Han Zixiao couldn't control Chu Muqing's current expression, and thought in his heart that this was a great opportunity to get close to the regent.It would take at least 20 days to travel from the capital to Suzhou. During these 20 days, he and the regent were trapped on this small boat. They would not see each other in the morning and see each other in the evening. There was always a chance to get close.

Sure enough, on this boat, the regent probably felt bored.He often let Han Zixiao play chess with him. Han Zixiao's chess skills are not bad. When he was idle at home, he studied the endgame a lot, so he could put it on the table.

It is a science to please people. First of all, you can't let people feel that you are trying to please people and give up the game, and then you can't kill people mercilessly at the beginning.

Han Zixiao has mastered this knowledge, and every time he plays chess with the regent, the regent is very satisfied.The regent, who won two chess games in a row, was very happy, "Back then, I often played chess with my mentor, but never won."

Han Zixiao said: "It must be that the prince often yields to grandfather."

Chu Muqing sighed softly, "This king wants to let it go, but he has to afford it."

Han Zixiao smiled, "But if the lord doesn't let me down, it's hard for me to win a round."

Chu Muqing glanced at him lightly, picked up the tea on the case table and took a sip, "I'm going to Yunzhou, although the investigation is important, but I'm not familiar with Suzhou, and I need you to lead the way to pay homage to my benefactor, so let me go back first." Suzhou."

"Thank you, Lord."

Twenty days later, when the ship docked at Suzhou Ferry, Han Zixiao first arranged for the servants around him to hurry back to the Han Mansion to communicate a letter, and then hired a sedan chair to slowly lead the regent to the mansion.

The boy was originally his book boy, named Ye Qing, he was also familiar with Suzhou, so he arrived at the Han Mansion in less than half an hour.Knowing that the regent is coming to the house, the whole Han family immediately called back Han Yunyin and Han Zifei who were still in the shop to greet the regent.

As soon as the regent's sedan chair arrived at the gate of the mansion, all the members of the Han family went out to greet him. Han Yunyin bowed at the front, and Han's mansion plus twenty servants said in unison: "Welcome to the prince, the prince is a thousand years old."

Chu Muqing raised her sleeves, "You don't need to be too polite."

Han Yunyin raised her head, thanked the prince, and made a gesture of invitation, "It's sunny outside, please sit inside the prince's mansion."

Han Zixiao followed behind the regent and entered the mansion together.It stands to reason that if he hasn't come back for a year, the parents in the family should be very concerned about it, but because of Chu Muqing's arrival, the attention of the whole family has been drawn to him, but he, the Tanhualang who has returned to his hometown with honor, is ignored next to.

Chu Muqing sat in the upper seat, and Han Yunyin ordered someone to prepare tea for him, after a while of pleasantries.Han Yunyin asked tentatively: "Gouzi is playful by nature and has a loose attitude. I don't know what mistakes he has made these days as an official in the court?"

Chu Muqing glanced at Han Zixiao, and said: "Master Han, just rest assured, your son is strict in his actions in the court, he is thorough, and he has never made a mistake."

Han Yunyin was very happy to hear what the regent said, but she didn't show it in words, she just said: "His temperament is clear, and there will be no trouble in a while, but it will be hard to say after a long time. In the future, I have to ask the prince to mention it more." Make a point."

Han Zixiao who was standing on the side interjected: "Father, my son has been in the court for half a year, thanks to the advice from the prince, he was able to go smoothly."

Han Yunyin looked at Han Zixiao, and said seriously: "I would like to remind you that the prince thinks highly of you, you must be down-to-earth in the court in the future, don't open a dyeing workshop just to give you three points of color."

"What the father teaches, the son remembers."

Han Yunyin's stern face changed into a smile and he looked at the regent, "Your lord is tired from traveling all the way, and the grassroots have prepared a room for him, so you can move first and rest."

Chu Muqing nodded, and Han Yunyin personally led the way and took him to the room to rest.Fortunately, Han Zixiao sent someone back to the mansion to inform him in advance, and the upper room just happened to be ready at this time.

After the regent went to rest, Mrs. Han could finally have a good conversation with her precious son.Although Mrs. Han has two sons, the eldest son is very competitive, and now most of the family's business is managed by him, but Mrs. Han prefers his mediocre and ineffective second son.

Mrs. Han stepped forward to hold Han Zixiao's hand, looked him up and down, with a smile on her face, "Oh, this official is different, he is full of heroism inside and out."

Han Zixiao was not humble in front of his mother, "Mother, what you said seems to say that I was a wimp before I became an official?"

Mrs. Han smiled, "You still like to play tricks."

Mrs. Han saw that her second son was getting better, and she couldn't help feeling a lot of emotion, "My mother told your father a long time ago that you are talented and bright, and you will become a great success in the future. No, he studied hard for ten years before entering high school. It's done."

Han Zixiao smiled, he knew exactly how he came to be a prostitute, and he was ashamed to boast, "Mother, I know what my son is, and it's luck to be able to go to high school this time."

The elder brother Han Zifei behind him followed his words and said with a sneer: "It really depends on luck. The imperial examinations lasted for thousands of years, and what came and went was nothing more than the Four Books and Five Classics. Anyone who has read the books knows that."

Han Zixiao has always been at odds with this elder brother. Hearing his disdainful tone, he curled his lips and said, "Brother is right, the imperial examinations are nothing more than four books and five classics. I can pass the mud that can't be put on the wall." A Tanhua, presumably it would be more than enough to be a top three scholar among the elder brothers who have been smart and peerless since childhood."

Han Zifei's face was livid, the lively atmosphere cooled down, Mrs. Han laughed a few times, and changed the subject: "Zi Xiao, it seems that you have lost your temper in recent years, even the regent praised you Seriously."

Han Zixiao responded: "That's just the prince's kind words, my son still needs to improve in many areas."

"Take your time, don't rush." ​​Mrs. Han was happy when she saw her son, and then she remembered something, "My mother asked Xiu Niang to sew some clothes for you, and I was going to ask someone to take them to the capital. But now that you're back, go try it out and see if it fits."

"Son will go later."

At the dinner, Han Yunyin ordered people to prepare delicacies and wines, and arranged for a bath after the meal.

Han Zixiao's room was not far from Chu Muqing's, and at night, he went to Chu Muqing's bedroom with a chess urn and wine.These days they were all bumping around on the boat, except for occasionally going out of the bow to look at the scenery on both sides, and playing chess in the cabin.In the past 20 days, I have to play several rounds every morning and evening, and I haven't played today.

Knocking on the door of the regent's room, it was him who opened the door, Han Zixiao was stunned.Chu Muqing, who was behind the door, had just finished taking a bath, her hair was loose on her shoulders, and she was wearing a purple singlet. Compared with the majestic and untouchable Prince Regent in the court, this appearance was much more elegant.

It was the first time for Han Zixiao to see the Prince Regent in this way. Looking at it carefully, he felt that the Prince Regent was truly a beauty.

When Han Zixiao saw this, Chu Muqing turned cold, "Why?"

Han Zixiao came back to his senses, gestured to the chess urn and wine in his arms, "I am afraid that the prince will be lonely in the house, so I want to come and play a few games of chess with the prince and drink a few glasses of wine to relieve boredom. If the prince If you are tired, the next official will not bother you."

"This king is not lacking." Turning around and walking in, Han Zixiao understood, and entered the room with a chess urn and wine.Put things on the table before turning to close the door.

Chu Muqing went into the back room and put on another coat, but the black hair on the other end still hung down on her shoulders.Han Zixiao took advantage of the time when he was getting dressed, laid out the chessboard, found two more glasses and poured wine.

Han Zixiao took a sip of his wine first, and asked: "Compared to the Wang's mansion, the mansion is a little cruder, I wonder if the lord still has the habit of living here?"

"Simplicity?" Chu Muqing glanced at the room. There are no precious treasures in this room. Even this low couch is made of high-quality sandalwood. The mansion where the first-rank officials in the capital live may not be comparable to the Han Mansion. .

Chu Muqing said leisurely: "If this house belongs to you, Han Zixiao, you will be the first one to check at Yushitai."

Han Zixiao picked up a white piece and dropped it, "Fortunately, since I became an official, I've been very relaxed, so I'm not afraid to check it out."

The corners of Chu Muqing's lips twitched, "Master Han doesn't know that among the corrupt officials who have beheaded for public display over the years, there are also one or two who were wronged."

Although Chu Muqing looked more gentle with her hair down, she still spoke unambiguously.Han Zixiao laughed dryly, "It can only be said that I was a bit unlucky."

"Your Majesty Han has a prominent family background and a rich background, why would you want to take the imperial examination and become an official?"

Speaking of this, Han Zixiao also felt bitter. When he returned to Suzhou from the capital, his shrewd and capable elder brother was already the heir to the family business in Han Yunyin's mind, but his elder brother was afraid that his younger brother would rob him and opposed him everywhere. Han Zixiao didn't want his brothers to kill each other, so he just idled around all day, and didn't care about the family business.Han Yunyin was very disappointed with his second son, so Han Zifei felt relieved.

Seeing that he didn't speak like this, Chu Muqing asked, "Why, Mr. Han doesn't want to talk about it."

"No." Han Zixiao smiled lightly, "To tell you the truth, the lower official entered the court and became an official just to make a living."

Chu Muqing glanced at him, "Master Han has the father of the richest man in Suzhou, are you afraid that he will have nothing to eat?"

Han Zixiao picked up his wine glass and took a sip, "I don't have to worry about food and clothing now, but I won't have to worry about it in the future."

"Master Han knows how to be prepared for danger in times of peace, but he thinks more than other rich kids."

"My lord has won the prize."