Leaving aside how Pu Tao was carried half-dead into the courtyard after being struck 60 tis, Lin Shiheng left the mansion, not on horseback, but in a palanquin.
He was a Prince, so the palanquin was naturally spacious. There were four servants waiting in it. Lin Shiheng leaned back on the couch, his mouth open in enjoynt, while his servant peeled so grapes and respectfully stuffed them into his mouth.
As an individual of the privileged class, Lin Shiheng could have enjoyed this until he died of old age, provided he stayed alive for that long.
Because of the age difference between him and the current Emperor, he was barely a baby when the Emperor ascended to the throne. The Empress Dowager was still around, so as the Prince of Linjiang Lin Shiheng grew up under the watchful eye of the current Emperor.
The late Emperor was gone, so his older brother was like a father. Currently, he had no children of his own, so he regarded his only younger brother as precious as his own child.
For example, other princelings, such as Lin Chuanwang, had to descend from their palanquin when they arrived at the palace gates and weren’t allowed to bring their attendants with them, so they simply walked inside with the palace visitors on their own.
(TNote: princelings’ here ans people with Prince/Duke status, not a descendant of the current Emperor, but perhaps his uncles and nephews.)
Lin Shiheng was very different. Not only could he travel in a palanquin, but he could also bring his servants. Even when he arrived at the palace gates, the guards who went up to check on him wouldn’t dare to co in, they simply took a glance inside and respectfully retreated.
It can be said that the current Emperor, as well as the older brother, gave him the greatest trust he could give to his sibling.
Prince Linjiang, Lin Shiheng, was thus carried in on his own palanquin, in comfort, all the way to the Inner Palace, the place where the Emperor reads the official docunts and deals with official business when he leaves the morning court.
The eunuchs waiting outside the door had been waiting for a long ti, and when they saw the palanquin being carried over from afar, their faces were imdiately filled with smiles. When Lin Shiheng was lazily being helped out of the palanquin by his servants, they were even more attentive when they approached him.
“This old slave greets the Prince.”
“Hmm, get up.”
Lin Shiheng waved his hand in a careless manner, but the smile on that old eunuch’s face grew happier and happier as he braced his slightly round and fat body to get up and follow him.
“His Majesty knows that the Prince is coming, I can’t tell you how happy he is. He’s waiting inside at this mont.”
“My Emperor Brother is naturally happy with this Prince’s visit.”
Prince Linjiang took it for granted. As soone who had been brought up by the current Emperor like his own child, he should have that confidence.
Upon entering the main hall, all the palace courtiers passing by saluted respectfully, and Lin Shiheng casually waved his hand to dispense with the salute, the scenery was unparalleled.
“This younger brother greets Emperor Brother. Have you been well?”
In the upper seat of the room, Emperor Anqing was not wearing a dragon robe, but only a regular robe. His appearance was very similar to Lin Shiheng’s, except that his face was slightly pale, and he appeared older than his actual age because of his constant hard work. The two stood one above the other, just like father and son.
When he saw his younger brother, Emperor Anqing’s face imdiately showed a fatherly smile, “I’m in the palace every day for a good reason, naturally I’m fine, but you. You’re fooling around with a group of youngsters every day, going to a brothel today and a hunting trip tomorrow. Your Empress Mother is worried about you every day, afraid you’ll hurt yourself by playing around again.”
(TNote: Even if the Empress Dowager is not the current Empress, her children will still address her as Empress Mother out of respect.)
Lin Shiheng cheekily smiled, “I bring so many people around with
everyday, how could I get hurt? Empress Mother and Emperor Brother are worrying too much.”
“Be more sensible.”
Emperor Anqing helplessly smiled and called the person up, “Get up. You have always been mindless and have nothing to do. Why did you decide to visit
today?”
“Emperor Brother, you always understand
well.” Lin Shiheng chuckled wryly and simply admitted it, “This brother is here to complain today.”
“Oh?”
Emperor Anqing was slightly stunned, “There’s soone who dares to ss with you in this capital?”
“It’s not ssing with , it’s ssing with my Princess Consort.”
When Lin Shiheng said that, Emperor Anqing slightly frowned, “Isn’t your Princess Consort unconscious?”
When he ntioned this matter, he still had so regrets. At first, his brother ran into the palace with great enthusiasm, saying that he had fallen in love with a woman, who was also a first daughter of a noble house, the daughter of a marquis. Both her age and family background were sufficient to be the Prince’s main consort.
Emperor Anqing had always loved his younger brother and was ground down by his soft heart, so he gave the decree and didn’t look into the woman’s situation. As a result, who would have thought that she was a sickly child? Just after marrying Shiheng, she fell unconscious, causing the Empress Dowager to sigh every day now.
He was wondering in his mind how the unconscious person was being ssed with, when Lin Shiheng babbled about Cui Mu’s diagnosis and treatnt gone wrong on his side.
Lin Shiheng, though favored, was only a Prince and couldn’t dispose of the doctors of the Imperial Hospital.
It was like those courtiers outside, whose families had fallen ill and rushed to get a doctor to visit them. Even if the doctor made a mistake, they could only swallow their pain, offer silver and properly send the person away.
The reason was that in this dynasty, the Imperial Hospital only served the Imperial family, and the Imperial Household was rciful and didn’t care about them asking the doctors to visit their families. But if they overstepped their bounds, then when the ti ca, the doctors could be disposed of, and the person who overstepped his bounds would certainly leave a bad impression in the Emperor’s heart.
In general, the Imperial Hospital was only at the disposal of the Imperial Household, and the princes who had separated from the household could call the Imperial Doctors, but were in no position to do anything to them.
Lin Shiheng really couldn’t do anything, but he could get his Emperor Brother, who loved him, to do it.
He complained that the prescription from Cui Mu was completely different from what he told himself, and the eyebrows of Emperor Anqing were more and more wrinkled. The na Cui Mu was familiar, but he just couldn’t rember it.
As an Emperor who had to deal with many matters of state every day, he had so much to rember that his mory occasionally had trouble keeping up. This was where the Chief Eunuch at Emperor Anqing’s side ca in handy.
He turned his head and asked, “This Cui Mu, have I seen him before?”
The round, chubby Chief Eunuch bent over and replied respectfully, “Replying to Your Majesty, you have praised Doctor Cui for curing the Queen Mother’s insomnia last year.”
“Indeed.”
Lin Shiheng interjected, “You also said that his dical skills could compete with those of the Hospital Chief, and if he wasn’t too young, his official position could have been raised even higher.”
The fancy-dressed Prince Linjiang muttered in a small voice, looking discontent, “Just because of your words, Doctor Cui had beco so famous in the capital, and every household was eager to get his help for dical treatnt. It was so hard for this younger brother to snatch him up, but the result was like that.”
Emperor Anqing looked at his younger brother’s unhappy little face, laughing until his eyes watered, “So, this has beco my fault?”
“Well, then investigate. If he is really incompetent in dicine and has misdiagnosed the Princess Consort’s illness, I will dispose of him.”
Lin Shiheng’s eyes lit up and he brightly grinned, “What are you going to do to him?”
“He cured Empress Mother’s insomnia, so that is a ritorious contribution. Punishing him too severely wouldn’t be good. So, he’ll only be punished with a penalty of a year’s salary, and demoted by two ranks.”
“Ah!”
The Prince of Linjiang was pleased. He stepped forward very unapologetically, to give Emperor Anqing an attentive massage on his shoulders, “I knew my Emperor Brother loves .”
“I wouldn’t dare to say that. When it cos to loving you, it’s the Empress Mother who’s better.”
Emperor Anqing genuinely treated his younger brother like a son, and he was very pleased to be offered such attention. The smile on his face grew.
“Now that you’re old enough and have married a Princess Consort, don’t just play around anymore. Since the Princess Consort is well, get closer to her and give birth to a few grandchildren for Empress Mother as soon as possible, and study hard during the day. The teachers I have assigned to you shouldn’t be left idle, they are all very wise. If you learn from them, you’ll be able to benefit from them for the rest of your life.”
He nagged with the care and attention of a mother hen, and Lin Shiheng, standing behind him, massaged his back and smiled playfully, “This younger brother is a Prince, and I have my brother to take care of . Even if I don’t study all that literature, I can still live my life comfortably for a lifeti.”
Seeing that he was still so childish even after marrying his wife, Emperor Anqing was helpless and sad. He sighed and spoke in a sowhat mournful tone.
“You child, your brother can’t watch over you for the rest of your life.”
“How much older is my Emperor Brother? How co you can’t watch over
for the rest of my life? “
Lin Shiheng attentively rubbed his shoulders, still acting like a dandy Prince who didn’t know the hardships of the world.
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