Jiang Suzhou cursed him in his heart.
Kneel to you? I'll break your legs and see if you can kneel to me.
He raised his head and looked at the Empress Dowager. His gaze swept over the crowd and saw that most of the courtiers around him were gloating and looking at him calmly.
To them, watching the Empress Dowager make things difficult for him and Huo Wujiu was something they had been waiting for for a long time.
He paused, stood up, turned around, and bowed to the Empress Dowager.
"My wife has been impolite. Please forgive her, Imperial Brother," he said.
When the Empress Dowager heard this, he slowly chewed the meatball in his mouth and smiled lazily. "Yes, forgive me. But how do you plan on making me forgive you? "
Jiang Suzhou glanced at Huo Wujiu.
"Although this thing's legs are inconvenient, I still have to show my sincerity." His gaze was cold and disdainful, as if he had been offended by something foul. His tone carried a bit of impatience and hatred.
As he spoke, he raised his head and looked at Meng Qianshan.
"Why aren't you bringing him over? Even if we have to drag it out, we still have to make him kowtow to Imperial Brother. "
The last few words were squeezed out through gritted teeth.
It wasn't hard to see that Imperial Prince Jing truly detested and loathed Huo Wujiu, who had been forced into his residence.
How could he lock him in his room and torture him like this?
The Empress Dowager's expression became more and more excited.
Meng Qianshan, who was standing in the back, was dumbfounded.
He knew that the prince wanted to pretend to hate Madam Huo … but was he really going to do it?
What … what should he do?
At this moment, he saw Jiang Suzhou frown slightly and look at him coldly.
"Be careful with your hands and feet," he said. "Don't let the dirty blood from his legs get on the carpet and bring bad luck to Imperial Brother."
The banquets in the palace, especially the emperor's birthday, were never bloody. This had always been the rule of the Jing Dynasty.
Hearing this, the successor asked, "What dirty blood?"
Jiang Suzhou glanced at Meng Qianshan and blinked slowly. Then, he said calmly, "It's nothing. Just be careful."
Then, he looked at the Meng Qianshan.
"If you dare to drop a bit on the ground, I'll have your head."
Meng Qianshan was startled. The next moment, he met Jiang Suizhou's eyes.
He was immediately enlightened.
Yes, yes, yes … His Highness had reminded him before he left today!
Meng Qianshan quickly turned around and knelt down in front of the Queen.
"Your Majesty, save me! Madam's leg … Yesterday, His Highness … His Highness was careless! The wound on Furen's leg will bleed if you touch it, and it hasn't scabbed yet … This servant, this servant doesn't dare to bring bad luck to His Majesty! "
He stammered and trembled as he spoke. Everyone immediately understood that Jiang Suzhou must have abused Meng Qianshan yesterday. He went overboard and caused Meng Qianshan to be even more injured.
The Queen felt quite good.
Sure enough, his uncle was right. The most interesting thing was not to beat the dogs, but to put them in a pen and watch them bite each other.
However …
Although he felt good, he couldn't really do it if Huo Wujiu kowtowed at his banquet. It wasn't that he was afraid of his ancestors' orders. It was just that it was inauspicious. He was afraid that the heavens would have eyes and cut off his lifespan.
However, he couldn't lose the face he needed to regain.
The smile on the Queen's face deepened. His gaze moved between Jiang Suzhou and Huo Wujiu.
Finally, he looked at Jiang Suzhou.
"Then forget it. It's bloody. I'm not such an unreasonable person. "He said.
Jiang Suzhou heaved a sigh of relief. However, he didn't forget to show some unwillingness on his face.
He even glared coldly at Huo Wujiu.
However, before he could completely relax, the Queen spoke again.
"However, since he's your concubine, the two of you can be considered as one, right?" The Queen said with a smile.
Jiang Suzhou raised his eyes to look at him.
The Queen smiled proudly and said, "You can kneel in his place."
All the court officials sat in their seats and stared at him in full view.
… The Queen was clearly taking the opportunity to trample on his face again.
Jiang Suzhou took a deep breath and gritted his teeth.
He knew that this damned fatuous emperor wouldn't give up after receiving guidance from Pang Shao.
Forget it, for Huo Wujiu's sake, how many times had he suffered at the hands of his future master? Now, kowtowing would only embarrass him. It wasn't a big deal.
He quickly prepared himself mentally. However, he didn't forget to show a troubled expression on his face. He looked at the Queen, waiting for the Queen to force him again. He would be forced to kowtow and be done with it.
However, at this moment, a low and deep voice sounded in the silent hall.
"Why should he kneel in my place?"
There was a hint of contempt in the voice.
Jiang Suzhou was stunned.
What was Huo Wujiu doing?
He looked back in surprise. The court officials in the hall also looked at Huo Wujiu.
Huo Wujiu, who was sitting in his wheelchair, raised his head and looked at the Queen from afar.
At this moment, he slightly raised the corner of his lips and lazily gave the Queen a provocative smile.
For a moment, it was as if the sun shone into a deep valley. That arrogant and sharp appearance was like a war flag that was raised by the wind again. It was like a fire beacon that suddenly lit up the city, suddenly shining brightly.
It was as if this was his original appearance. He was wearing bright clothes and riding a horse, proud and showing off his ability.
Jiang Suzhou listened to Huo Wujiu continue speaking.
"As a court official, I, Huo Wujiu, only kneel in front of my own monarch," he said slowly. "What right does he have to kneel in my place?"
The raised end of his voice was steady and arrogant.
The Queen was so angry that his eyes widened.
"Your monarch?" He gritted his teeth. "The Huo family is a court official of Da Jing. You are my watchdog. What monarch do you have?"
Huo Wujiu laughed and shook his head as if he had heard a joke.
Jiang Suzhou saw Huo Wujiu laugh for the first time.
It was a little wild, but it was extremely dazzling. It was like a blade buried in the sand, reflecting the light of the sun.
"Even if the Huo family is a watchdog, it is not under your command now," he said. "The ancestral teachings say that the north should resist foreign enemies and guard Ye City. Your Majesty, Ye City was lost by your father three years ago."
The Queen was so angry that he started trembling.
He had the nerve to say that? Ye City was conquered by the Huo family, who claimed to be loyal to him!
This was clearly a slap to his face. He wanted nothing more than to immediately tie Huo Wujiu up, cut him into pieces, and feed him to the dogs.
But he couldn't. His uncle said that this person would be of great use if he kept him alive. Moreover, only by keeping him alive could he be tortured and make him suffer a fate worse than death …
The Queen's eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. He took a few deep breaths and looked at Pang Shao for help.
Jiang Suzhou, who was standing at the bottom of the stairs, was so happy that he could barely hide the smile on his face.
Although he knew that the Queen wouldn't kill Huo Wujiu easily since he had spared his life, he didn't expect that Huo Wujiu would use this to openly challenge the Queen at the banquet.
He was so good at infuriating people? No wonder he usually didn't speak. He was hiding his true strength!
Jiang Suzhou felt very satisfied. However, he clearly remembered that he still needed to say something. Otherwise, the Queen would make a move if he didn't open his mouth.
Even if the Queen didn't kill Huo Wujiu, he wouldn't let him have a good ending today.
Jiang Suzhou grabbed the jade cup on the table and smashed it on the table in front of Huo Wujiu.
The small jade cup didn't have much power, but when it suddenly shattered on the corner of the table with a clang, it was enough to startle the people around them.
Jiang Suzhou turned to him and gritted his teeth. His expression was gloomy, as if he was hiding his fury.
"Very good." He said each word with a pause. Because of his weak body, he was suppressing his anger. His breath was beginning to tremble.
"It seems that this prince hasn't taught you how to shut up."
He said the last few words through gritted teeth. It was so gloomy that it made people's hair stand on end.
All the officials felt that if this wasn't the Queen's Millennium Banquet, the furious Imperial Prince Jing would have rushed forward and grabbed Huo Wujiu by the neck.
Seeing this, the Queen's anger was suppressed a bit.
Yes, there was still Imperial Prince Jing. He didn't need to personally make a move and ruin the joy of his birthday.
Huo Wujiu dared to talk nonsense like this. When he returned to Imperial Prince Jing's Estate, he would definitely beg for death.
Below the high platform, his uncle slightly shook his head at him, indicating that he should suppress his anger and not act out.
He gritted his teeth and squeezed out a few words.
"Disappointing," he said. "Alright, we're hungry. Let's start the banquet."
Immediately, all the officials raised their cups as if nothing had happened. The sound of a string instrument rang out. A grand and peaceful melody immediately sounded, as if it was desperately trying to drive away the hostility from earlier.
The Queen took a big gulp of wine.
It was strange.
Although it was very nice to see a dog-eat-dog scene dripping with blood, why did it feel like … he couldn't take advantage of them at all?
— —
Jiang Suzhou could vaguely see why Huo Wujiu did this.
He didn't dare to believe it.
Could it be that Huo Wujiu would take such a big risk just to prevent him from kowtowing to the Queen alone?
Huo Wujiu definitely knew better than him that the Queen was a scoundrel who didn't care about the occasion. It was very likely that in a fit of anger, the Queen would drag him back to the imperial prison in front of all the civil and military officials to pull out his tendons and skin him alive.
Jiang Suzhou's heart was somewhat shaken.
However, he didn't dare to look at Huo Wujiu.
At this time, he still had to put on a cold expression and treat Huo Wujiu, who was next to him, as if he didn't exist.He didn't eat much of the food on the table and only occasionally drank a cup of wine.
None of the officials in the hall dared to provoke him. When they toasted each other, they tacitly avoided Jiang Suzhou's table.
This saved Jiang Suzhou a lot of trouble.
The pitter-patter of the rain outside the door didn't lessen in the slightest. Under the bright lights, everyone toasted each other. Gradually, everyone's faces were stained with drunkenness.
Some of the officials came forward and toasted the Queen.
Jiang Suzhou sat in front of the table and listened to their extravagant birthday speeches in boredom. Occasionally, he would steal a glance at Huo Wujiu from the corner of his eyes and couldn't help but think about what had just happened.
At this moment, he heard a voice coming from the front of the stairs.
That person was quite eloquent. After chattering for a long time, he still couldn't finish his speech. Jiang Suzhou was a little surprised and glanced at him indifferently.
… Chen Ti?
It was the person who had asked his wife to send an invitation to Huo Wujiu and ask him to go admire the flowers.
Jiang Suzhou picked up his teacup and took a sip.
When it came to flattery, this person was indeed an expert. It was no wonder that he could do well under Pang Shao.
However, at this moment, he heard Chen Ti, who had finished his cup of wine, speak.
"Your Majesty, today is a joyous day. This official shamelessly wants to ask Your Majesty for a favor." He said with a smile.
The Queen asked, "What is it? Tell me. "
Chen Ti said with a smile while holding a cup.
"A few days ago, this lowly servant sent an invitation to Prince Jing's Estate to invite Madam Huo to admire the flowers. However, Madam Huo was a little reserved as it was her first time here and actually rejected the invitation. "
As he spoke, he turned his head and smiled at Jiang Suzhou's table.
"This lowly servant was afraid of offending Your Highness, Prince Jing, so he specially asked this official to ask Your Majesty to allow Madam Huo to come to this official's humble home in half a month for this flower-admiring banquet."