The Devil's Tribulation

Chapter 459: The 3rd Prince Meets the Emperor

The capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the residence of the Third Prince. The Third Prince watched the singing and dancing and drank some wine. Although the singers were all very beautiful, the Third Prince had no mood to appreciate them. These were the best singers specially selected in the capital by the lackeys who knew that their master was in a bad mood. The singers performed very hard, knowing that the person in front of them was the extremely noble prince. If they could catch the prince's eye, they would be promoted to heaven in one step.

The singing and dancing continued, but the Third Prince became more and more annoyed. He suddenly shouted, "Get out! Get out! It's so annoying!" The singing girls were startled. The less courageous ones collapsed and knelt on the ground, trembling. The Third Prince's personal eunuch knew that it was not the singing girls' fault, but that the Third Prince did not want to watch these things. He waved his hand and asked the singing girls to leave. He then approached the Third Prince and whispered, "Master, if you don't like to watch singing and dancing, how about I find some magicians to help you?" The Third Prince said angrily, "What kind of fun is that? Get out too! Let me be quiet for a while!" The eunuch knelt down hurriedly and said in fear, "I will get out right now. Master, please don't get angry and get sick."

The third prince couldn't suppress his anger when he thought that the eldest prince had led troops to guard the border, while he was still at home listening to music and watching dances. He picked up the wine glass in his hand and wanted to smash it. His hand was halfway raised when he suddenly remembered Wei Qing's previous teachings. The third prince slowly suppressed his anger. Seeing the eunuch kneeling and trembling, the third prince sighed and said, "Hey, get up. The king is in a bad mood. It's none of your business." The eunuch hurriedly said, "It's because I didn't do my job well and made the master unhappy. Please punish me, master."

The Third Prince stretched out his foot and kicked San Dezi lightly, saying angrily: "Just get up when I told you to. Why are you wasting your words!" San Dezi was happier than picking up gold after being kicked by his master. He knelt down again and said: "Thank you for the punishment, Master~" The Third Prince laughed and said: "Haha, San Dezi, only you understand my mind. Get up quickly and talk to me." San Dezi got up hurriedly and said: "My master is in a bad mood, and I can't help you. But when I went out to find the singing girl today, I heard a piece of news. I don't know if it's true or not~" The Third Prince laughed and said: "What news can you get? The eldest prince has led the troops to the battle. Is there any news that can make me happy?"

San Dezi whispered, "When I passed Xuanwu Gate today, I heard some guards talking about how they seemed to see Wei Qing, the Great Marshal Wei, entering the palace." The Third Prince stood up and asked hurriedly, "Did you hear it clearly? Did the Great Marshal Wei really enter the palace?" San Dezi hurriedly said, "I heard it clearly. I even deliberately asked them how they could possibly know the Great Marshal Wei. As a result, the guard said that he knew the Great Marshal Wei and there was no way he could have made a mistake."

The third prince paced back and forth, somewhat excitedly saying, "Does father intend to re-employ the general guard? Then will I have the opportunity to follow the general guard to fight again? No, no, Sun Erleng is in command now, and the battle is going well. Father can't change the commander in the middle of a battle, which is a taboo. Then what's the matter with letting the general guard enter the palace?" San Dezi saw his master pacing back and forth, talking to himself, and hurriedly said, "How about I go to the palace to ask?" The third prince was overjoyed when he heard this, and hurriedly said, "Then what are you still standing there for? Go!"

San Dezi hurriedly pulled up his trouser legs and was about to trot away. Just as he was out of the door, he heard the Third Prince shouting, "Come back!" San Dezi was stunned and asked, "Master, what's going on?" The Third Prince said, "I am anxious and went to find out what my father and Wei Shuai are talking about. If my father knew, he would definitely be unhappy and think that I am impatient. When did Wei Shuai enter the palace?" San Dezi said, "It seems that he entered the palace early in the morning." The Third Prince looked at the time. It was almost noon now, which meant that the emperor and Wei Qing had talked for at least four or five hours. Whatever it was, it took so long, and it was almost over.

Now, under Zhou Zhixiong's deliberate control, the princes have maintained a delicate balance, and no one can suppress the other. This time, when the army was used against Chu, all the princes wanted to follow the army to earn military merits. They also showed their talents in the court, but in the end, no one got a job. It doesn't matter if no one got it, they all stayed in the capital. Who would have thought that two days ago, news suddenly came that the eldest prince led the army to go to war. Although he was going to defend the city, it was at least a job to earn military merits.

If the eldest prince returns to the court after making meritorious contributions, the emperor will certainly reward him. Now the eldest prince is already the assistant minister of the Ministry of War and the doctor of the Ministry of Rites. If he is rewarded again, he must be promoted to a higher level or take on another position. If so, the eldest prince's bargaining chip will be more powerful than all the other princes. Now Wei Qing has also entered the palace. The third prince knows his father well. It is impossible for him to summon the retired Wei Shuai for no reason. And it is very likely that he will ask for Wei Qing's opinion. Thinking of this, the third prince is looking forward to it. Although Wei Qing did not say it, he has already made his attitude clear and supports him. Now the emperor wants to talk to Wei Qing. If there is a chance, Wei Qing will definitely speak for him.

As expected, just when the Third Prince was wondering whether Wei Qing would speak for him, the eunuchs from the palace came. It was the eunuch of Emperor Zhou Zhixiong who came to deliver the message. Eunuch Zhao De walked into the Third Prince's residence with a smile and said, "Your Majesty has ordered that the Third Prince Zhou Shijun come to the palace to meet the Emperor." The Third Prince was ecstatic in his heart, but his face was calm. He said politely, "Please wait for a moment, Eunuch Zhao. I will go into the palace with you after I change my clothes." Zhao De smiled and said, "Of course, of course, Your Highness, don't worry."

The news that the third prince was going to see the emperor soon reached the ears of all the brothers. At this critical moment, the emperor summoned the third prince, and even a fool knew that the third prince was going to be successful. They had just received the news that the eldest prince was going to the war, and before they had time to calm down, the third prince came. They didn't know what good job the emperor was going to arrange for the third prince. Some people couldn't wait and wanted to inquire about the news in the palace.

The fourth, fifth, and seventh princes all sent eunuchs to the palace. But now the entire Great Zhou is firmly controlled by Zhou Zhixiong, and no one can hide any small action from Zhou Zhixiong's eyes and ears. As soon as those people entered the palace, Zhao Quan already knew about it and whispered in the emperor's ear. Zhou Zhixiong frowned and said, "You can do whatever you want."