After the people from Jiang Suizhou left, the courtyard became completely silent.
Huo Wujiu sat up and pulled the wheelchair closer. He used the edge of the bed to push himself onto the wheelchair.
He quietly gathered his hair and neatly tied it behind his head. He raised his head and looked out the window.
The sky was bright.
He had always been very adaptable. When he was at Yangguan, he was able to tolerate the sand and dust in the Northern Lands and was able to happily ride his horse in the Gobi Desert. When his father started the war, he quickly adapted to the years of war and learned how to climb out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. He was able to lead his subordinates and become a qualified general.
Now, in a very short period of time, he had also learned how to live with a pair of completely useless legs, and how to deal with whatever came his way when he was alone in the enemy's camp.
The sun outside the window gradually rose. Light shone through the window and onto the ground. As the sun rose, it slowly moved in the direction of Huo Wujiu.
Just as the light was about to envelop the wheelchair, there was a knock on the door.
Huo Wujiu looked in the direction of the door. His eyes darkened.
He knew that if he wanted to get an answer, now was a good opportunity.
— —
Jiang Suizhou naturally didn't know that Meng Qianshan was secretly planning something behind his back. He closed his eyes. He didn't feel sleepy, so he focused on thinking about the court meeting in a while.
During the court meeting, not only did the officials have to pay their respects, but they also had to discuss official business. But … looking at the business level of the Nanjing Empress recorded in the history books, it was possible to guess that she probably couldn't discuss any serious matters in court.
What Jiang Suizhou was worried about was his identity.
After all, there were pitifully few records of his identity as Imperial Prince Jing. There weren't even many words about him.
He was the only surviving younger brother of the late Meng Qianshan, a sickly invalid who died young. Now, there was one more thing to add: he was a homosexual.
It was practically a blank page. Therefore, he didn't even know what his current position was. He also didn't know who the original Huo Wujiu knew, what kind of relationships they had, or how to deal with them.
What was even more worrying was that he had just married the famous General Huo yesterday. Presumably, he would become the target of public criticism today.
As it turned out, his worries were extremely accurate.
After all, as soon as he changed into a high-ranking official's gown, Jiang Suizhou would know his official rank. Then he would wait for the Meng Qianshan to bring him a toothbrush, and he would know where he should stand when he went to court.
The specialization he had learned was too suitable for him, which gave him an advantage when it came to transmigration.
However, what he had learned did not teach him how to deal with the strange gazes of the civil and military officials.
Ever since he got off the sedan and entered the Kaiyang Gate, the number of officials around him had increased, and they had been sizing him up continuously. It was fine if one or two people looked at him, but almost everyone looked at him a few times. Jiang Suzhou couldn't help but feel uneasy.
Some of those gazes were filled with schadenfreude, some were filled with disgust and disdain, and some were filled with grief and hatred.
There was even a courageous official who walked over to Jiang Suizhou and nudged him with his shoulder. He smiled and said, "Your Highness Prince Jing, you must be exhausted from last night, right? You're really lucky with women, you're really lucky with women! "
Judging from his official robe, he was of the third rank of the secondary class. He wasn't a high-ranking official.
Although his official rank wasn't high and he only had an idle job in the Ministry of Rites, he was still a first-rank imperial prince. Since he dared to be so eccentric with him, there must be someone backing him up.
Wasn't the treacherous official Pang Shao, who was famous in history books, in the current dynasty?
Jiang Suizhou glanced at him indifferently and didn't say anything.
His cold and arrogant gaze had always been very intimidating. Now that there was a hint of warning in his gaze, the official was immediately scared stiff. The vulgar smile on his face, which was filled with schadenfreude, awkwardly disappeared.
Jiang Suizhou didn't look at him anymore. He quickened his pace and walked away from him.
His appearance more or less intimidated some people, and it made the latter part of his journey to court much smoother.
It also freed him up and allowed him to see other things.
Before Jiang Suizhou fled to the south, the capital was Ye City. Three years ago, Huo Wujiu led the Liang army into the capital. The previous emperor, Emperor Jing Ling, hurriedly fled to the south with his family and officials. He died of illness along the way. The current emperor, Jiang Sunheng, hurriedly fled to Yuhang and changed the name to Lin 'an. Only then did Lin' an become the new capital.
It hadn't even been three years since the capital was established, but the imperial palace had already been hastily built.
The construction of the imperial palace was rough and the planning was chaotic. It was obvious that it was the result of rushed work. According to history books, after Jiang Suizhou fled to Lin 'an, he insisted that he wouldn't be the emperor without an imperial palace. This forced Jiang Suizhou to hastily build the imperial city within half a year.
Although it was rough, the cost wasn't small. Along the way, the entire imperial city was dazzling and extremely extravagant. It was obvious that a large sum of money had been spent.
Jiang Suizhou couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
The history books weren't biased at all when it came to the absurd actions of Jiang Suizhou's emperor.
When he walked up the long white marble steps in front of Guangyuan Hall, he saw that there were already quite a few court officials standing inside. Because they studied historical materials in school, they were all very meticulous. Therefore, Jiang Suizhou didn't have to spend too much effort to find his place and stand there.
Standing diagonally in front of him was an old official who looked to be in his fifties or sixties. Judging from his court robes, he was of the second rank, which was one rank higher than Jiang Suizhou.
Seeing Jiang Suizhou arrive, the old official turned around and nodded at him as a greeting.
"Your Highness, Prince Jing, you came early today," he said with a faint smile.
As he turned around, Jiang Suizhou saw the words on his toothbrush.
The Minister of Rites, Ji You, was Jiang Suizhou's immediate superior.
His expression was distant and friendly. It seemed that he didn't have a close relationship with Prince Jing. When Jiang Suizhou heard this, he nodded at him and said good morning.
Ji You looked to the side and saw that it was quiet and there wasn't anyone around. He said in a low voice, "Your Highness has suffered some grievances. Just bear with it for a while and it will pass."
After he finished speaking, he nodded at Jiang Suizhou kindly and turned around to leave.
Jiang Suizhou didn't quite understand the meaning behind his words. Hearing this, he responded and ended the conversation.
… … However, he quickly understood Ji You's meaning.
When the time came, the bright morning sun leapt over the golden glazed roof. Outside Zhengyang Hall, the sound of drums could be heard, followed by the singing of eunuchs.
History's famous incapable ruler, Jiang Suizhou's emperor, Jingyou Emperor Jiang Sunheng, had arrived.
In the thousands of years of history, there weren't many people who could be given the title of "You" by later generations. After all, as an emperor, most of them had merits and demerits. There were very few who could be so muddle-headed that later generations would point at their noses and use their posthumous titles to scold them.
Jiang Sunheng and his father, who had the posthumous title of "Ling", were two of them.
Jiang Suizhou saluted along with the civil and military officials, then raised his head to look at the Dragon Throne.
He saw that the person sitting in the Dragon Throne was a bloated fatty who looked to be around thirty years old. His body was wrapped in a black dragon robe with twelve patterns. He sat very crookedly, and the pendant on his head swayed back and forth, making tinkling sounds.
Before Jiang Suizhou could take a closer look, he met the eyes of the Empress.
That fatty's small eyes scanned the court officials, then accurately found Jiang Suizhou. Immediately, a malicious but extremely joyful light appeared in his eyes.
Jiang Suizhou's heart skipped a beat.
Sure enough, in the next moment, the Empress opened her mouth.
"Fifth brother, did you enjoy the beautiful concubine I bestowed upon you last night?"
He asked the question in a sarcastic tone, causing half of the court officials to laugh along with him. The originally solemn and serene atmosphere of the court suddenly became absurd.
Jiang Suizhou gritted his teeth.
You didn't use the court meeting that was held once every five days to discuss official business. Instead, you were ruined to this extent. No wonder the history books scolded you for being a fatuous ruler, and no wonder your Jing dynasty was destroyed.
However, Jiang Suizhou more or less sensed a different meaning from these words.
Empress Jing came with malicious intentions, and the court officials either followed suit or remained silent with ugly expressions. It was obvious that the original owner of this body was not well-liked in the court. Empress Jing's bestowment of a concubine was also killing two birds with one stone, humiliating both of them at once.
Therefore, he naturally couldn't show his happiness.
Thinking of this, Jiang Suizhou gritted his teeth and showed a somewhat humiliated expression, as if he didn't want to mention yesterday's matter. "This subject brother thanks imperial brother for the reward."
Empress Jing laughed loudly.
"No need to thank me, no need to thank me! Hey, I heard that you didn't come out of his room last night? "he said.
Jiang Suizhou: …
This fatuous ruler wasn't done yet.
As he had expected, there were indeed spies in his residence. Moreover, Empress Jing didn't hide it at all and openly said it out loud.
… Presumably, it wasn't that he was open and aboveboard, but that this fatuous ruler was really brainless.
Jiang Suizhou cursed in his heart, but on the surface, he showed a somewhat embarrassed expression.
Empress Jing became even more excited when she saw his expression.
"You woke up early in the morning and even called for a doctor? Fifth brother, you should take care of your health.How can you withstand this kind of torment when you were in your mother's womb? "
As he spoke, he even greeted one of the officials in the front row, "Uncle, did you see that? My fifth brother's face is deathly pale. I can see the dark circles under his eyes from afar! He must have had a lot of trouble last night, hahahaha! "
From the way he addressed him, the official he greeted must be Pang Shao.
Pang Shao was Empress Dowager Pang's elder brother and was the Minister of Justice. According to the historical records, he was still restrained in the previous dynasty. After Jiang Sunheng ascended to the throne, he revealed his true colors and only cared about money and power. When it came to Jiang Sunheng, he indulged and flattered him.
Therefore, Empress Jing also liked this uncle very much.
Sure enough, after hearing Empress Jing's words, a few low chuckles came from the front row of officials. They didn't express any opinion and didn't have the slightest intention of restraining or persuading him.
Jiang Suizhou even heard a bit of joy in his laughter.
He gradually understood.
It turned out that not only did his family have an ancestor who wanted to kill him sooner or later, but his situation in the imperial court was also very bad.
Jiang Suizhou didn't want to dwell on the bitterness in his heart.
He just stood there and listened indifferently to Empress Jing's wanton mockery and sarcasm, occasionally responding. The more Empress Jing spoke, the more excited he became. It was obvious at a glance that he had exhausted his pitiful little brain to come up with this wonderful marriage. He had been waiting for this day.
Jiang Suizhou couldn't be bothered to refute and let him do as he pleased.
At this moment, a few faint throat-clearing sounds came from the front row of officials. Empress Jing paused and immediately looked in that direction.
Then, he immediately showed an expression of understanding and laughed a few times.
"Fifth Younger Brother, I thought about it yesterday," he said.
Jiang Suizhou looked up and saw Empress Jing narrowing his small eyes and looking at him with a malicious smile.
"Wasn't the father of Madam Huo in your residence the Marquis Dingbei of Dajing? Now, after going around in circles, they are family again. Dajing can be considered Madam Huo's maiden home, "he said.
"In that case, the rule of returning home in three days can't be abolished. I will make the decision. Three days later, you can bring Madam Huo to the palace to return home. How about it?"