kvmb Chapter 309 Cruelty
Chapter 309 Cruelty
The Imperial Tutor emerged from the carriage, draped in a sky-blue cloak to shield himself from the wind and snow. He stood tall and elegant on the carriage shaft, his bearing unparalleled.
Princess Guangning stared at the white jade hand warmer held in the hands of the Imperial Tutor. His fingers were fair and slender, the same color as the hand warmer, warm and flawless, untouched by the filth of the world.
She trembled as if she had seen something terrifying.
No one would have known that such an elegant person, as pure as snow and as bright as the moon in the clouds, would be so cruel.
The Imperial Tutor has never married, has no concubines or maids in his harem, and no woman has ever been able to get close to him.
He held a high position and was deeply respected by the emperor of Northern Qi. He enjoyed great prestige in the court and among the people, and everyone wanted to get on his good side.
Unfortunately, the Imperial Tutor was a loner and never formed deep friendships with others.
His only concern was the people of Northern Qi.
The court officials then set their sights on the Imperial Tutor's harem, offering their daughters to him in an attempt to form a marriage alliance and gain favors from him.
The Imperial Tutor was not interested in women and rejected them all.
The court officials knew that the Imperial Tutor was a tolerant man; even if someone crossed his bottom line, he would only offer a few words of admonishment and would never get angry. If the other party sincerely apologized, he would forgive them.
Taking advantage of the Emperor's good temperament, the court officials had wicked ideas and arranged for their daughters to stop the Emperor's carriage in the street.
Once it was done, he boarded the great ship of the Imperial Tutor.
If it doesn't work, there's no loss.
No harm at all.
When Princess Guangning heard this news, she felt that the Imperial Tutor was too kind, which was why he was being humiliated like this.
She actually hoped the Imperial Tutor would be angered and make an example of him.
Until last year on the Qixi Festival, she encountered a woman on the street who stopped the imperial tutor's carriage. That woman was the second daughter of the Junior Grand Tutor of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.
She thought the Imperial Tutor would refuse, but to her surprise, a hand reached out from behind the carriage curtain and gently led the woman into the carriage. As if afraid that the woman would bump her head, the hand reached out to protect the top of the woman's head.
When she saw this, she was somewhat disappointed, yet felt it was also understandable.
No matter how much the people praise the Imperial Tutor as a divine figure, he was still just a mortal. No matter how pure and detached he was, he could not resist the allure of beautiful women.
From then on, she never saw the second daughter of the Junior Chamberlain at banquets.
Later, when she passed by the Imperial Tutor's residence, she noticed that the residence, which never used to hang lanterns, now had one.
She couldn't help but take a second look and discovered that the lantern appeared to be made of human skin.
At that moment, she suddenly thought of the missing woman, and her heart was greatly shocked.
Therefore, when she saw Prince Yu gently strangling the rabbit in Yanxiang Palace, she inevitably thought of the Imperial Tutor, which is why she couldn't break free from her fear.
Princess Guangning slowly came to her senses, and when she was caught off guard and met the eyes of the Imperial Tutor, she felt as if her whole body was frozen, and a chill seeped out from her bones.
Suddenly, her sleeve was yanked hard, and she was so frightened that she turned her head in terror, only to meet the King of Qi's sinister eyes.
King Qi whispered, "Hurry up and follow us."
Princess Guangning lowered her head, suppressing her fear, and followed behind Prince Qi toward the Imperial Tutor's carriage.
The envoy from Northern Qi bowed to the imperial tutor.
The Imperial Tutor noticed that Princess Guangning's gaze was subtly different from that of others, and that's when he finally paid attention to her.
His gaze fell lightly on Princess Guangning. Seeing that she kept her head down and dared not meet his eyes, he withdrew his gaze and slowly stepped down the wooden stairs.
The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies stepped forward and clasped his hands in a salute to the Imperial Tutor: “Imperial Tutor, you have come from afar. I have failed to greet you properly and have been negligent.”
The Imperial Tutor said humbly, "You flatter me, sir."
The envoy from Northern Qi stirred up trouble in Great Zhou, causing public resentment. However, Great Zhou not only did not make things difficult for him, but also treated him with courtesy, demonstrating the demeanor of a great power.
The Imperial Tutor glanced at Zhao Yi beside him, his gaze lingering on his face for a moment, as if wanting to see what the prince of Northern Qi who had been stranded in Great Zhou looked like.
He glanced at him once, then looked away and followed the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies into the city.
King Qi did not miss the Imperial Tutor's scrutiny of Zhao Yi. Although it was just a glance, it was enough to make him wary.
The Imperial Tutor wielded considerable influence in Northern Qi; it is no exaggeration to say that he could interfere in the selection of the Crown Prince.
He was born to the Empress, and although he was not the eldest son, he was the legitimate son.
Among the many princes, he was the one the emperor favored the most, and it was almost certain that he would be the crown prince of Northern Qi.
Before he went on his mission to the Great Zhou, his mother had mentioned that after he returned to the Northern Qi, his father would appoint him as the crown prince.
However, Zhao Yi's appearance made him feel a sense of crisis, and he was worried that something might go wrong.
Before entering the city, King Qi glanced at Zhao Yi with a gloomy look, thinking to himself, "Wouldn't the Imperial Tutor be so foolish as to recommend a prince with the blood of an enemy country as the crown prince?"
Zhao Yi did not miss the hostile look in Qi Wang's eyes. He gently stroked the sleeve censer with his fingers, pondered for a moment, and then his eyes showed a clear understanding.
After the Northern Qi imperial tutor sized him up, the King of Qi became hostile towards him, which shows that the Northern Qi imperial tutor and the King of Qi were not of one mind.
King Qi was worried that the imperial tutor was on his side and would threaten the position of the crown prince.
Zhao Yi and the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial escorted the Imperial Tutor to the Four Barbarian Inn, where he settled in before leaving with his entourage.
The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies turned to Zhao Yi and said, "Hey, Lord Zhao, do you think the Imperial Tutor of Northern Qi came sincerely to seek peace, or did he come with a belly full of evil intentions?"
The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies knew that Zhao Yi was a prince of Northern Qi, but he did not regard him as a person from Northern Qi.
One reason is that Zhao Yi grew up in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Secondly, Zhao Yi had a deep-seated blood feud with the Northern Qi.
He speaks without any restraint.
Zhao Yi said, "We sue for peace."
The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies asked, "Why?"
Zhao Yi smiled and said, "Although it is said that envoys should not be killed when two countries are at war, Northern Qi did not follow the rules first, so we don't need to reason with them."
The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies instantly understood and clapped his hands, saying, "That's right, how come I didn't think of that? The key ministers of Northern Qi are all in our hands. If Northern Qi doesn't want them to fall here, they'd better think twice."
Zhao Yi thought of the look in Qi Wang's eyes, his smile faded, and he fell silent.
The most uncontrollable thing in this world is the human heart.
The people of Northern Qi feared being detained in the Great Zhou and becoming hostages to threaten Northern Qi, but there was no guarantee that the King of Qi wouldn't take chances for his own selfish interests and cause other trouble.
-
In the Four Barbarian Pavilion, the Imperial Tutor emerged from his bath, dressed in a moon-colored robe, and sat leisurely before the mirror.
Yan Yi took a clean handkerchief and wrung out the Imperial Tutor's long hair while starting to talk: "Master, I think the First Prince's demeanor is just like yours, and he seems very kind."