Rebirth: I'm a Daddy's Darling in the Qing Dynasty

Chapter 300 Starting Tomorrow I Will Be a Free Person

There's a saying that goes, "If you walk by the river long enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet." Look at Yinzhuo, his own scheme backfired. He thought that after escaping his fourth brother's control and moving to Kangxi's side, he could fly freely. Who would have thought that before he could even take off, he would find himself forced to land.

"What happened to being so busy you wouldn't even have time to rest? What happened to not having time to care about me? What happened to being free as birds in the sky and fish in the sea? This is not what Fourth Brother said, no, it should be said that it is exactly what Fourth Brother said. If I had known this would happen, why would I have run away? Now it would be better to live with Fourth Brother and Fourteenth Brother. Father, if your son says he wants to move back now, will you agree?"

Would Kangxi agree? Hmm... Anyway, judging from his reaction, Yinzhuo felt it was hopeless. But there's a saying that difficulties are like springs; the stronger you are, the weaker they become, and vice versa. How can you retreat when faced with difficulties? You have to overcome them. Yes, that's the saying: if you have the conditions, go for it; if you don't have the conditions, create them... That's why people say Yinzhuo is a ruthless person. Look, when he gets ruthless, he even manipulates himself, and it seems to be working quite well. Now he's all standing on end.

"Father, I'm officially informing you now that I'm no longer going to be your little follower. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to be a free person, shopping, eating, wandering all over the city. Starting tomorrow, I want a house, facing the sea, where spring is warm and flowers bloom... Ouch, Father, why are you hitting me? I haven't finished blooming yet!"

To be honest, if this weren't his own son, judging from Yinzhuo's seemingly deranged state, Kangxi would have had him dragged out and beaten up. But as the saying goes, he's his own son, his own son, his own son... At that moment, Kangxi suddenly thought, let this unfortunate child go wherever he wants.

"Hahahaha, I told you, when in doubt, you have to go crazy first. Look, we're out here now. Fourteen, come here and help me carry these chestnuts. Nine, isn't that plum blossom cake over there? It looks good, go buy me some. Ten, don't just sit there, there's some osmanthus wine over there, go buy me some to try..."

Have you ever felt despair? If not, then look at Yinzhi now. It's no exaggeration to say that if kowtowing were the answer, Yinzhi would kneel down and kowtow to his sixth brother without hesitation. You know, his father said that anyone who gives his sixth brother wine will be severely punished. This wine is still wine, isn't it?

"Sixth Brother, have you forgotten? Father Khan said you're not allowed to drink anymore, and the written guarantee we brothers signed is still with him. If I go and buy you this osmanthus wine today, we brothers will all be in trouble tonight, without even waiting to return to the capital. To be honest, this wine isn't anything special. Look, there seems to be a pretty big restaurant over there. How about this, I'll treat you to lunch there, Sixth Brother..."

Although it's said that when one is far from home, one may disobey the emperor's orders, that only applies when the emperor is far away. Right now, these brothers are all right under their father's nose. The consequence of knowingly disobeying would probably be to risk their father's punishment. That would truly be a case of "a sip of wine before leaving home, two lines of tears upon returning." It's not worth it, really not worth it...

"If you don't cause trouble, then the weather will be sunny"—this saying is absolutely true. After Yinzhuo behaved himself, the rest of the trip went much more smoothly. The brothers first strolled around Suzhou for a while, then had lunch at a restaurant that Yinzhuo thought was good. In the afternoon, they visited some places that interested Yinzhuo. As evening approached, the brothers, accompanied by their guards, rode out of the city. You might ask why they were leaving the city when it was already dark? The reason was actually quite simple: "Outside Gusu City, there is Hanshan Temple; at midnight, the bell tolls to the traveler's boat." Yinzhuo had memorized this poem, "A Night Mooring at Maple Bridge," in his previous life when he was in elementary school, but he had never seen what Hanshan Temple looked like. He hadn't had the chance before, but now that he was in Gusu City, wouldn't it be appropriate not to go and see it?

The saying "If you don't go, you'll regret it for a day; if you go, you'll regret it for a lifetime" reached its peak when Yinzhuo stood by Fengqiao Bridge. No, this was different from the pictures he had seen online. It wasn't that Hanshan Temple, this ancient temple with a thousand-year history, wasn't majestic or magnificent, but the scenery surrounding this Qing Dynasty version of Hanshan Temple didn't match the scene Yinzhuo had imagined. There were no willows swaying in the breeze, no small boats on flowing water, and to make matters worse, it was pitch black all around. In short, he had come for nothing.

"Alright, Lao Shi, stop craning your neck and looking around. What can you see in this pitch black? It's getting late, let's go back first, and come back for a stroll another day when we have more time..."

The group arrived full of enthusiasm but left disappointed. When Yinzhuo returned to his residence, he was still in a bad mood. His listless and dejected appearance naturally caught the attention of Emperor Kangxi.

"You were unhappy when I told you not to go out and play before, but why are you still like this after you've been out having fun all day? Yinzhuo, come here and tell your father, did something unpleasant happen when you went out to play today? Or did some idiot provoke you..."

Seeing that Kangxi's guesses were getting more and more outrageous, Yinzhuo quickly spoke up to stop his father from letting his thoughts wander. Putting aside everything else, who in Suzhou doesn't know that His Majesty is here? Who would dare to cause trouble at this time? Do they think their heads are too secure?

"Father, please stop guessing. The more you talk, the more absurd it becomes. I didn't go out alone. Not to mention the guards around me, even with Xiao Jiu, Xiao Shi, Xiao Shisan, and Xiao Shisi standing there, who would dare to cause trouble? You know the poem 'Mooring at Maple Bridge at Night,' right? When I was studying, I read the lines about Hanshan Temple outside Suzhou and the midnight bell tolling to the passenger boat, and I wanted to come and see it. But I never had the chance before. Today, I thought I'd experience 'Mooring at Maple Bridge at Night' since I was in Suzhou. But when I got there, I realized the gap between ideal and reality. Maple Bridge is still Maple Bridge, and Hanshan Temple is still Hanshan Temple, but it's just not the scene I imagined. Father, how about this, you have someone plant some willow trees along both sides of the river..."

Emperor Kangxi was always generous to Yinzhuo, and in his view, planting some willow trees along both sides of the river was not an excessive request. Naturally, he readily agreed. Coincidentally, Cao Yin came to see the emperor the next day, and Kangxi casually gave the order. As the saying goes, "the superiors open their mouths, and the subordinates run their legs off." Although the temperature in Suzhou at the end of February was not very warm, the tree planting activity was already in full swing.