svetikya Chapter 335 Brother-in-law
Chapter 335 Brother-in-law
Xu Wanyi was like a deflated balloon; the joy of his wedding, the pride of marrying a noblewoman, and the excitement of becoming brothers-in-law with the emperor all vanished in an instant.
Especially when he heard Shen Shiwan snoring softly in her sleep, he wanted nothing more than to pull her up, grab her shoulders, and shout, "That's not how it is!"
This shouldn't be happening!
The next day, Fu Chuji invited Xu Wanyi, saying that he was going to the palace to pay New Year's respects to the Emperor.
Xu Wanyi was in a really bad mood. He was a little intimidated by the women in the Shen family because their thought processes were different from normal women. He suddenly realized that he didn't understand his wife at all.
Li Yuanke is taking care of the child at Qianyuan Palace.
These two little ones have very loud voices. They cry when they are hungry, cry when they need to poop, cry whenever they are uncomfortable, and cry whenever they are slightly unhappy. Shen Shixi was annoyed by the noise. There was no other way, so early in the morning, Li Yuanke brought the twins to Qianyuan Palace.
Upon hearing that Xu Wanyi and Fu Chuji had requested an audience, Li Yuanke didn't know what the two were doing in the palace. But after considering the pair, he said, "Please come in. Have the East Kitchen prepare a feast for lunch. After all, they are my brothers-in-law. Let them have a drink with me."
Li Fude reminded him, "Your Majesty, the Empress has instructed that if you drink alcohol, you will not be able to take care of the Crown Prince and the Princess."
Li Yuanke paused, then said, "Oh, let them drink, I won't."
When Xu Wanyi and Fu Chuji entered, they saw two cradles placed side by side in the East Warm Pavilion, where the ministers usually knelt. The Crown Prince and Princess Xihe were lying in the cradles, not asleep at the moment. The Emperor was holding a rattle drum in one hand and shaking it, making a tinkling sound.
Is it too late to go out now?
Xu Wanyi paused, and Fu Chuji had already entered. He knelt down and paid his respects, saying, "Your subject greets His Majesty, Your Highness the Crown Prince, and Your Highness the Princess!"
Xu Wanyi was truly impressed by him and quickly followed.
"Rise, no need for formalities!" Li Yuanke handed the rattle drum to Li Fude, and as a result, the Crown Prince burst into tears, kicking and punching until the swaddling clothes were torn apart.
The princess was not to be outdone, and cried softer, but the demonic sound entered Xu Wanyi's ears, and he was immediately in a real predicament.
Even Fu Chuji was at a loss.
Why is it the emperor taking care of the child?
What about the wet nurse?
What kind of grown man takes care of a kid?
These days, people prefer to hold their grandchildren rather than their children.
Li Yuanke quickly snatched the rattle drum from Li Fude's hands, kicked him, and yelled, "Useless thing, get out of here! You can't even soothe a child!"
Then, he shook them, one in each hand, while the Emperor muttered, "Alright, stop crying. Your father will shake you. Why aren't you asleep yet? My arms are about to break!"
The prince stopped crying, and the princess also calmed down, so she listened carefully to the sounds.
After rocking them for a while, the two babies started crying again.
The Emperor reached out and touched the Crown Prince's crotch with practiced ease, then said to the two of them, "You two go out first, I need to change the Crown Prince and Princess's diapers."
Xu Wanyi and Fu Chuji exchanged a glance, both of them looking incredulous.
The wet nurse was already waiting with diapers. Li Fude told the young eunuch to take the two of them outside to wait under the eaves.
After a while, the two came in again, and the prince and princess had already been taken away to nurse.
Li Yuanke took a sip of tea, let out a long sigh of relief, and asked, "Having nothing better to do, you've come to the palace to see me taking care of the kids?"
"No!" Fu Chuji said, "I have a request for Your Majesty!"
He blushed slightly as he spoke, looking somewhat embarrassed.
Li Yuanke knew perfectly well that Fu Chuji and the Fourth Miss Shen had taken a liking to each other and would often run to the Shen family. Even the icy-faced Second Brother Shen couldn't do anything about him; he just stuck to her like glue.
This time, I guess they've come to ask him to issue an imperial decree.
Li Yuanke said, "I cannot make this decision! If you wish to marry a girl from the Shen family, you must have the girl from the Shen family come to the palace to plead with the Empress. Only if the Empress agrees will I issue the decree."
Xu Wanyi then realized Fu Chuji's plan and kindly said, "So Lord Fu wants to marry Miss Shen. I thought it was something else entirely. However, this matter must be handled with care, as Miss Shen is really difficult to deal with!"
Upon hearing this, the Emperor and Fu Chuji were immediately energized, exchanging a glance and deciding that Fu Chuji would ask the question.
Fu Chuji then asked, "What do you mean? Xu Hou is just a groom, how can he say such a thing?"
Xu Wanyi hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
Just as it was lunchtime, the emperor ordered, "Stay for lunch. You two are different from others now that you've entered the palace. I have some good wine here; let's drink and talk."
As soon as the snow wine was served, Xu Wanyi drank two cups and began to pour out his grievances.
Li Fude was in charge of pouring the wine, Fu Chuji was in charge of urging people to drink, and the emperor was in charge of providing the straight man. In no time, the whole story between Xu Wanyi and Shen Shiwan was clear.
"Your Majesty, please analyze for me where I went wrong. Chunxing and Chunliu are my concubines, and it is not normal for me to share a room with them."
"I have been away on campaigns for many years and have been away from home for a long time. Now that I have returned, it is understandable that they want to be closer to me. I can't just leave them aside!"
Li Yuanke and Fu Chuji looked at him like he was a fool. In the eyes of people at that time, a mere concubine was no different from a plaything. Look how much Xu Wanyi cherished him.
Li Yuanke didn't know what to say, so Fu Chuji said, "Lord Xu, it's not that I'm criticizing you, but you really deserve it. Such a good marriage has been ruined like this. I feel sorry for you."
Li Yuanke buried himself in his meal. He had been quite tired lately. Twins are really hard to raise; they have terrible tempers. He didn't know who they got their temper from, but if you trace it back to the source, it's that both Shen Shixi and he have bad tempers.
He ate while listening intently.
Xu Wanyi was very humble. "Lord Fu, you are a scholar. Please help me analyze where I went wrong?"
Fu Chuji said, "Lord Marquis, you have done wrong in every way! First, you are newly married, yet you have abandoned your third sister to favor your concubine maid; second, the concubine maid has stolen your favor, yet you have accepted it so readily. Have you ever thought about how the mistress feels? In this way, will these two concubines still have any respect for the mistress?"
You said you couldn't fathom the Shen family's daughter's thoughts; since you haven't put yourself in your third sister's shoes, naturally you can't fathom them.
"If she doesn't want to, she can tell me. I didn't say I wouldn't go along with her!" Xu Wanyi said, puzzled.
Li Yuanke really felt sorry for this fool. He thought about his sixth prince and wondered if he would end up like his uncle.
He advised, "In this world, official positions and wealth can be sought, but love is something you can't! What do you expect her to say? 'Don't you dare spoil those concubines? Don't those girls have any shame or dignity?'"
Xu Wanyi was thankfully not completely stupid. In that instant, he truly admired his wife; she was indeed a capable woman. His legs immediately went weak, and he asked, "Is there any hope for me?"
Fu Chuji looked at the Emperor, then at Xu Wanyi, "There should still be hope, right?"
The Emperor instantly understood Fu Chuji's meaning. He sneered, "Don't compare yourself to me! The Empress is no match for Sister Shen San!"
Xu Wanyi immediately knelt before the Emperor, pleading, "Your Majesty, please help me! Please put in a good word for me with the Empress. I truly dare not do this again. Please ask the Empress to persuade my wife to give me another chance!"
Li Yuanke kicked him impatiently, "Get out! What does your affair have to do with me and my wife? You all come to me begging, but I'm not the matchmaker. If you want to kneel, go home and kneel yourself, don't drag me down with you!"