sjar Chapter 649 The Little Ancestor is Finally Leaving the Palace
Chapter 649 The Little Ancestor is Finally Leaving the Palace
A rest stop on the outskirts of Beijing.
Qian Dekun, the Prefect of Jingzhao, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
He was followed by dozens of servants, each with their hands on their waist knives, yet they dared not even breathe loudly.
Inside the main hall of the post station, Gu Junze was slowly massaging Chu Ruohan's shoulders, seemingly oblivious to the tense atmosphere outside.
Qian Dekun waited for a long time, but seeing no movement from inside, he had no choice but to bite the bullet, bow forward, and loudly proclaim through the curtain: "Your humble servant, Qian Dekun, Prefect of Jingzhao, has come by His Majesty's decree to invite the Duke and his wife... back to the palace."
He emphasized the word "please" and adopted an extremely humble posture.
After a long pause, Gu Junze's indifferent voice finally came from inside.
"understood."
Those were just two words, and that was the end of it.
Qian Dekun stood frozen in place, unsure whether to leave or stay, his face turning a deep purplish-red.
He knew this man was being presumptuous, but as the Prefect of Jingzhao, how could he dare to urge the Duke of Zhenguo?
Meanwhile, deep within the palace, in the palace where Gu Qingchen was confined.
Granny Qin held a ruler in her hand, her face ashen.
"Your wrist is raised too high, and your pen strokes are weak. This is already the tenth sheet of paper you've wasted today."
She stretched out the ruler and lightly tapped Gu Qingchen's hand without any mercy.
"Sit upright! Keep your back straight, feet together, and eyes straight ahead!"
Gu Qingchen bit her lip, and a faint red mark appeared on the back of her fair hand.
It hurts so much! This Granny Qin's strength is too great. Even her father has never hit her like this!
The feeling of being constantly watched, unable to even breathe freely, was driving her crazy.
"You must not make any noise while eating. I have reminded you three times already."
"Your skirt swayed too much while you were walking, which is very unladylike. Please walk it again."
"besides……"
"enough!"
Gu Qingchen slammed the calligraphy brush in his hand onto the table, splattering ink everywhere.
She jumped off the chair, tilted her small face up, and her big eyes burned with anger that had been suppressed for days.
Granny Qin's face instantly turned cold: "What are you trying to do? Do you intend to defy the imperial decree?"
"So what if I disobeyed!" Gu Qingchen remembered what Aunt Song had told her, straightened her chest, and became bolder.
"Aunt Song said, if you can't tolerate it anymore, you shouldn't tolerate it anymore! If anyone dares to bully me, I'll fight back!"
Before she finished speaking, she pounced on him like a leopard that had been provoked.
Granny Qin never expected that this little girl, who usually only threw tantrums, would actually dare to lay a hand on someone.
Caught off guard, she was grabbed by the legs by Gu Qingchen and pushed hard.
Granny Qin staggered and fell backward, hitting the back of her head on the corner of the table with a thud, the pain causing her vision to go black.
"Ah! Someone hit someone!"
The palace maids and eunuchs inside the hall screamed in fright, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.
Gu Qingchen ignored everything, grabbed the inkstone from the table, and instead of hitting anyone, threw it at the valuable porcelain vases.
"Crack!"
The crisp cracking sound continued incessantly.
She was blinded by rage, and when she saw Granny Qin struggling to get up, she rushed over and, imitating the moves she had seen in the storybooks, grabbed Granny Qin's meticulously combed hair and yanked it hard!
"You dare to tell me what to do! You dare to hit me with a ruler! You dare to not give me meat!"
At this moment, the dignity and respect that Granny Qin was so proud of were completely shattered by a seven-year-old child.
Her scalp throbbed with pain, her hair was disheveled, and her palace dress was filthy with ink. She screamed in a sorry state on the ground.
In the imperial study room.
When Zhao Yunci heard that the Prefect of Jingzhao had "invited" Gu Junze and that the ebony carriage was slowly driving towards the palace gate, the heavy weight on his heart finally lifted.
Before he could catch his breath, a eunuch rushed in, tumbling and crawling, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
"Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened! Granny Qin... Granny Qin has been beaten by Miss Gu!"
Zhao Yunci's teacup wobbled, spilling scalding tea all over her hand.
"What did you say?"
"She...she beat Granny Qin until her head was bleeding, and smashed everything in the hall. Now she's chasing the palace maids and eunuchs all over the courtyard with a ruler..."
Zhao Yunci's mind went blank.
He closed his eyes, as if he could already see the chaotic scene.
He took a deep breath, and when he opened his eyes again, his face showed a kind of relieved calm.
"Pass on the message to the guards at the palace gate," the emperor's voice carried a hint of weary relief, "tell the Duke of Zhenguo."
"Tell him he doesn't need to come see me; go directly to pick up his little tyrant!"
"immediately!"
This is the scene that greeted Gu Junze and Chu Ruohan when their carriage stopped in front of the palace.
The courtyard was a mess, with shards of porcelain and torn pages of books scattered everywhere.
Granny Qin was disheveled, her face was covered in bruises, and blood was seeping from her forehead. She was being supported by two palace maids and was crying uncontrollably.
The palace maids and eunuchs kneeling on the ground were all ashen-faced and trembling.
His "little darling," Gu Qingchen, stood majestically on the steps, one hand on his hip and the other holding a ruler, his face flushed with excitement.
But when she looked at Gu Junze and Chu Ruohan, her arrogant demeanor instantly vanished.
The ruler in her hand fell to the ground with a "thud," and she shrank back, instantly transforming into that obedient and sensible daughter.
"Father... Mother..." she called out timidly, then lowered her head.
Looking at the scene before her, Chu Ruohan felt a throbbing pain in her temples.
Gu Junze didn't even raise an eyebrow, as if he had expected this to happen.
Just then, a small figure came running from a distance.
"Sister! I can finally get out!"
Qian Zhenyun rushed over, tears streaming down his face. He had just been released from the East Palace and had heard about the "victories" here, so he came to join them without stopping.
Gu Junze's gaze swept over the two children, then looked at the palace servants kneeling on the ground, and spoke in a calm voice.
"Cheng'an, take the princess and the Qian family boy with you, let's go back to the manor."
Gu Qingchen is leaving the palace!
The news spread like wildfire throughout the entire palace.
As Gu Junze and his wife led their two children out of the palace, all the palace staff along the way felt as if they had survived a catastrophe.
At the palace gate, several ministers who had just come out of the Imperial Study were walking together when they bumped into Gu Junze and his entourage.
Upon seeing Gu Junze, Vice Minister Wang of the Ministry of War immediately smiled and cupped his hands in greeting: "Lord Duke, you've finally returned! If you hadn't come back, this capital city..."
Before he could finish speaking, Gu Qingchen, who was hiding behind Chu Ruohan, peeked out and curiously looked at him.
"Uncle Wang, does your knee still hurt? Has your shrew wife made you kneel on the washboard again?"
The smile on Vice Minister Wang's face froze instantly.
Beside him, Li Taifu, known for his many wives and concubines, stroked his beard, about to step forward and exchange pleasantries.
Gu Qingchen turned her gaze to him again and asked innocently, "Grandpa Li, did your seven concubines fight today? You should take care of your health and not get upset."
Li Taifu's hand, which was twirling his beard, suddenly trembled, almost pulling the beard out.
The most miserable one was Lord Shen from the Ministry of Rites, who was standing at the very back.
When Gu Qingchen saw him, her eyes lit up, and she asked in a clear voice, "Uncle Shen! I heard Shen Yu say that you...you..."
She frowned slightly, as if trying hard to recall a difficult word.
"Oh! Right! He said you're impotent! Uncle Shen, what does 'impotent' mean? Is it a very prestigious official position?"
boom!
Lord Shen's face instantly turned a deep liver color. He felt a wave of dizziness and almost fainted on the spot.
The surrounding officials, wanting to laugh but not daring to, turned their faces red and turned their heads away.
Chu Ruohan's face also turned pale.
She pulled her daughter behind her and covered her mouth tightly.
How did her daughter, her mischievous but still innocent daughter, turn out like this?
Impotence?
How could a young girl say those two words so easily!
She was both angry and anxious. She looked up at Gu Junze, only to see that he remained calm, though a hint of a smile clearly flashed in his deep eyes.
"Lord Duke, you're finally back!"
An official finally couldn't hold back any longer and spoke with a sincere expression, as if he had seen a savior.
"Yes, yes, if you don't come back soon, I'm afraid our dynasty will soon be on the verge of collapse!"
Everyone echoed this sentiment, their eyes filled with eager anticipation as they looked at Gu Junze.