CHAPTER 133: CHAPTER 132: BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I DON’T CARE!

On this day of rest, Lu Yanqing was having fun outside, but Princess Changping sent someone to tie him up and bring him back.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the main hall of the Princess Mansion was very tense.

Princess Zhao Xunyin and Prince Consort Lu Xingzhou sat at the head of the room on the left and right.

Lu Yanqing knelt on the ground with his hands tied behind his back, escorted by guards. He didn’t dare to look at his mother and kept his eyes on the floor tiles, his head bowed.

The Eldest Princess was cold by nature, but she always felt helpless when it came to Lu Yanqing. "Yanqing, how many times have I told you, sending you to the Imperial College is to make you study and learn to be a decent person? Why don’t you listen and keep causing trouble?"

Lu Yanqing was full of defiance, "If someone bullies me, shouldn’t I bully them back? If I do nothing and let people bully me, how can I go on living?"

"Who bullied you?" The Eldest Princess’s face suddenly turned cold. "Is dirty shoes your excuse to hit someone?"

Lu Yanqing snorted, "I just can’t stand those scholars. They’re obviously poor, yet they pretend to be so superior in front of me. They deserved a beating!"

"Lu Yanqing!" The Eldest Princess was furious, slamming the table. The teacup fell down and shattered into pieces.

Lu Yanqing was dumbfounded with fear, opening his mouth but not daring to make a sound.

Lu Xingzhou glanced sideways at his stunningly beautiful wife, disbelief in his eyes.

She had always been strict with this son, but while she was strict, she rarely got angry directly. Today was the first time.

After thinking for a moment, Lu Xingzhou spoke up to persuade her, "Ah Yin, I’ve already taught Yanqing a lesson before, and he has long since admitted his mistake. Don’t be so angry for your health’s sake."

The Eldest Princess looked at Lu Xingzhou, "When people at the Imperial College said that raising a child without teaching them is like raising a donkey, the Prince Consort must have felt bad too, right?"

Lu Xingzhou recalled those disrespectful yet piercing words said by Huo Yuan in the pharmacy, words that struck at the backbone of any parent.

The Eldest Princess didn’t want to argue with him. Seeing his silence, her tone softened a bit and she turned her gaze back. "The Prince Consort and my mother both spoil him too much. Sooner or later, he’ll cause even bigger trouble."

Lu Xingzhou didn’t refute, looking at Lu Yanqing with deep, complex eyes.

"If you really want what’s best for Yanqing, you shouldn’t indulge him in everything. From today on, if he does anything wrong, don’t bother discussing with me, just apply family discipline directly!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Yanqing panicked, shouting loudly, "Mother, you can’t do this, Father just said I’ve already admitted my mistake, so why apply family discipline?"

The Eldest Princess rubbed her throbbing temples, "Someone come, send the Young Marquis to the Lu Family Ancestral Hall to kneel before our ancestors’ memorial tablets. Without my permission, no one is allowed to bring him food. When the Young Marquis admits he’s wrong, bring him back to see me."

The Lu Family Ancestral Hall was at the Lu Family Old Mansion. If Lu Yanqing went there, he would surely become a laughingstock for all the households to see.

Lu Yanqing was so angry that he shouted without thinking, "Always punishing me like this, it seems I’m not even your real child!"

The Eldest Princess closed her eyes and waved for the household guards to take action.

Lu Yanqing, with his hands bound, struggled non-stop, "Let go of me, let go! I want to find Grandmother to stand up for me!"

After Lu Yanqing’s shouts completely disappeared from the Princess Mansion, Lu Xingzhou stood up and walked behind the Eldest Princess, massaging her shoulders with even pressure as he sighed lightly, "Ah Yin, this punishment is too harsh for him. Yanqing is just a child of ten or so."

The Eldest Princess opened her eyes, gazing at the plum blossoms gently blooming in the cold wind outside the window. Pressing her red lips together, "I just want him to know that his surname is Lu, not Zhao. The kingdom belongs to the Zhao Family, the world to the Zhao Family. In the Zhao Family’s domain, an outsider like him doesn’t get to run wild."

Having said this, she collected herself and gently pushed Lu Xingzhou’s hand away, "I’m tired, you should leave first."

Lu Xingzhou made a sound of acknowledgment, turned to leave but looked back from the doorway, "The jar of wine I buried under the jujube tree last year is ready to be opened. Does Ah Yin want to have a taste?"

She gazed back at him, the man’s steady eyes free of any distraction, a slight smile on his lips.

He was naturally handsome and dashing, mature and masculine in demeanor. Such a gentle scene could easily make one’s thoughts swirl.

She closed her eyes slightly, suppressing the struggle in their depths; the coldness between her brows never dissipated.

Such interactions between husband and wife were not out of the ordinary; Lu Xingzhou was long accustomed to this. Saying nothing more, he withdrew his gaze and walked away.

——

Unable to find the Divine Doctor, Song Wei wouldn’t help with tutoring. Xu Shu personally went to squat at the old doctor’s doorstep for half a month before finally catching him.

Xu Shu, an impatient person, said nothing as he dragged the old doctor straight to Song Wei’s house.

The old doctor had just returned from relocating his wife’s grave from the ancestral home and hadn’t entered his own door before encountering the irritating event of being "abducted," sitting in the Xu Family carriage, gasping in anger, finger pointed at Xu Shu, only able to sputter out "You brat" after a long time.

"Life-or-death matters, I have to hurry," Xu Shu clasped his hands together, pleading, "If you can really cure the person, never mind calling me a brat, even calling me a smelly grandson is fine."

Doctor Li squinted at him, "I’m in the same generation as your family’s old lady, you are naturally my grandson!"

"Alright, whatever you say goes. Let’s not dwell on this; let me explain the situation. It’s like this: my fellow student, his wife lost her voice due to a fever when she was young, and since then, she hasn’t been able to speak again. My fellow student implored me to find a highly skilled doctor to see if she can be cured. I thought, who has the highest medical skill in the Capital? It has to be Grandpa you, so I came specifically to find you!"

Doctor Li snorted twice, narrowing his eyes, "It’s been a while since we met, and your flattering skills have improved significantly. Unfortunately, you missed the mark this time."

Xu Shu sensed something was wrong, "... don’t tease, back when you were young, you were renowned in the Imperial Hospital; there was no illness you couldn’t cure, right?"

As he spoke, he gave a thumbs-up to Doctor Li.

Doctor Li continued to squint, leaving only a slit open, "You could break horse legs today with your flattery and it won’t help; not treating it when she was young. How many years has it been? Now, do you still want to see a doctor, or go to the temple to burn incense and pray to the Bodhisattva and the Great Luo Heavenly God?"

With that, he asked the coachman to stop and was about to slip away by lifting the curtain.

Xu Shu acted fast, lunging to hug Doctor Li’s leg, "Oh dear, Grandpa, dear Grandpa, you can’t back out at this time. Otherwise, I won’t be able to explain to people!"

"Brat, let go!"

"No way! How can you say it can’t be cured without even seeing it? Isn’t this fooling your grandson?"

"Need I see it?" Doctor Li blew his beard, "Over ten years, there’s no cure."

"I don’t believe it."

"Believe it or leave it!"