PFC Chapter 1836 Hong Jiutong Admonishes the Crown Prince
Chapter 1836 Hong Jiutong Admonishes the Crown Prince
"Why not? Anyone who can hold a pen can help me! Who cares about those things? As long as I don't have to write the 'Crown Prince's Instructions,' anyone can write it!" As he spoke, Cheng Youning shook his hand as if it still hurt!
With someone copying the "Crown Prince's Instructions" for him, Cheng Youning had no more worries and ran around happily with his dog outside the main hall!
Qiao Rong couldn't reason with Cheng Youning, so he stopped talking. After all, Cheng Youning was the master, and he was the servant! How could a servant repeatedly try to reason with his master and get him to listen to him?
After writing "The Crown Prince's Instructions" for two days, Cheng Youning can finally let loose and have some fun! "Big Yellow Jump!"
Big Yellow leaped five or six feet high.
"Big Yellow Lying Down!"
Big Yellow plopped down on the ground, its bright red tongue sticking out several inches long, panting heavily, its body swaying back and forth.
Cheng Youning held a small piece of dried meat, and with a gesture, Da Huang came wagging its tail. With another gesture, Da Huang began to spin in circles. Cheng Youning's silvery laughter echoed outside the hall, and the servants passing by all smiled, knowing that the Crown Prince was in a good mood again!
Before anyone knew it, Hong Jiutong arrived with her maid. Qiao Rong whispered, "Your Highness, Consort Hong has arrived!"
The person was right in front of her, and Cheng Youning saw them too.
Hong Jiutong was perfectly proper, without a smile on her face. "This concubine, Hong, greets Your Highness the Crown Prince."
"No need for formalities!" Cheng Youning saw Hong Jiutong's satisfied expression for the first time. He turned his head slightly and said to Qiao Rong beside him, "Go and find a copy of 'Crown Prince's Instructions' for Consort Hong as well!"
Qiao Rong moved her lips, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopped herself, and turned to go into the main hall to find the "Crown Prince's Instructions"!
Before Qiao Rong could take two steps, Hong Jiutong spoke up: "Your Highness, my purpose in coming here is the same as that of the other concubines. I, Hong Shi, am not here to curry favor with Your Highness. I implore Your Highness to retract the 'Crown Prince Instructions' from the other concubines, to stop this unhealthy trend, and not to encourage this improper practice. Furthermore, I urge that Concubine Nan, the instigator, be severely punished! To rectify this situation!"
"How dare you, Hong Jiutong, lecture me, the Crown Prince!" Cheng Youning's face immediately darkened. He had thought that Hong Jiutong and the other concubines had come to share his burdens!
Hong Jiutong knelt on the ground with a thud, her body ramrod straight, displaying an unyielding spirit—a side of her no one had ever seen before! "I beg Your Highness to heed my advice! Your Highness is the Crown Prince, the heir I have begged to be chosen. Your actions today are nothing but laziness, opportunism, and scheming. How are such behaviors any different from those of petty commoners? If Your Highness leads the way in corrupting customs and disregarding morality, how will you govern the country, uphold discipline, and rectify the hearts of the people?"
"Well, this is outrageous! All the other concubines know to help me share the burden, but you not only don't help, you've gone even further by lecturing me, the Crown Prince! You dare to call me a petty commoner! Hong Jiutong! What are your intentions?"
"Your Highness, I, Hong Shi, dare not. Every word I uttered was for the Crown Prince's sake. I hope that the Crown Prince will not be unable to distinguish between good and bad people. The Southern Consort must be severely punished. She instigated Your Highness to scheme and cheat, and to waver in your principles. She is trying to lead the Crown Prince astray and guide him astray!"
"Absurd! Everyone kindly helped me copy the 'Crown Prince's Instructions,' and now you've led me astray and astray? If I copy the 'Crown Prince's Instructions' less often, I'll be lazy, cheat, and scheme for personal gain! Why don't you just put me on the pillar of shame and proclaim it to the world? You're making such a big deal out of this; I think you just don't want to see me at ease, you can't stand to see me doing well!" Cheng Youning's face turned pale with anger. He never imagined that one day he would be reprimanded by Hong Jiutong, especially for such a trivial matter!
“Your Highness, small evils, if left unchecked, will surely become great calamities. A thousand-mile dike can be breached by an ant hole, and even the slightest malpractice must not be tolerated. If Your Highness cannot distinguish between truth and falsehood today, you will surely confuse the public in the future. Only by acting uprightly and honestly can Your Highness stand tall between heaven and earth! Malpractice must not be allowed to grow. Consort Nan’s actions today will not only harm the Crown Prince, but also corrupt the other young consorts! Consort Nan must be punished, and the other consorts must also be punished!” Hong Jiutong’s attitude was extremely firm, leaving no room for compromise.
Cheng Youning put her small hands behind her back, her chest heaving with anger, "Hong Jiutong! You're so stubborn!"
Hong Jiutong said in a deep voice, "Your Highness, I advise you to nip problems in the bud and to restrain yourself and return to propriety!"
"Hmph, I've come to realize today that the one who's been the harshest on me is you, Hong Shi. Considering my good relationship with your brother Hong Yunrang, I won't kick you out. But you've disturbed my peace, so I've decided that until I'm out of confinement, you should go back to your parents' home for a while!"
Hong Jiutong saw that Cheng Youning was also quite angry. Hearing that she was told to go home for a short stay, Hong Jiutong's eyes turned red.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will return to my parents' home immediately!"
The maidservant listened anxiously, but dared not speak, fearing that a single wrong word might anger the Crown Prince and cause them, the concubines, to be thrown out!
Watching Hong Jiutong's departing figure, Qiao Rong earnestly advised Cheng Youning, "Your Highness, there's no need to send the concubine back to her parents' home after a quarrel. If word gets out, won't everyone say that the Crown Prince is incompetent in managing his household!"
Cheng Youning was furious, his eyes bulging with rage. He was already in a fit of anger, and hearing Qiao Rong's words only fueled his rage. He couldn't have lost his temper in front of Hong Jiutong earlier, but now that Hong Jiutong was gone, he didn't care about his composure anymore. He jumped up and down, yelling at Qiao Rong, "I, the Crown Prince, am completely incompetent at managing my household! Even a concubine dares to boss me around! She's trying to climb all over me! Listen to what she's saying! She calls me an opportunistic, petty person! She calls me lazy and cunning, and says I've gone astray!"
Cheng Youning's voice was louder and louder, each shout higher than the last. Qiao Rong had never seen Cheng Youning so angry before. It was as if her tail had been stepped on!
But Qiao Rong wanted to say something fair, otherwise he would also become the bad guy who led the Crown Prince astray in Hong Jiutong's eyes. "Your Highness, Consort Hong's words were a bit harsh, but thinking about it carefully, they seem to make some sense!"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Youning realized that he had been verbally abused by Hong Jiutong, yet this man continued to speak up for Hong Jiutong. Was he no longer obedient? So Cheng Youning immediately turned his attention to Qiao Rong, "Qiao Rong, are you also planning a rebellion? If you want to go back to Hu Family Village, you can pack your bags and leave immediately. If I keep you here, I'm a dog!" Cheng Youning flicked his sleeves, turned, and walked towards the main hall. Seeing this, Qiao Rong had no choice but to follow!
Qiao Rong felt aggrieved. It's so hard to be a good person! What did he do to offend anyone? He was just saying a few words of justice, how did he manage to anger the Crown Prince?