"Uncle, my feelings have never changed!"
Qin Junxing suddenly changed his tune, which made the emperor stunned. He immediately remembered the incident when Qin Junxing openly declared his affection for the daughter of the Xie family in the imperial study.
The emperor couldn't help but frown. "The reputation of that girl from the Xie family is now far from being worthy of you."
Qin Junxing didn't seem to care about what the emperor said. He replied nonchalantly, "Uncle, your nephew's reputation on the frontier is not that good either."
"Your Highness the Prince is wrong. Reputation is the very foundation for a woman. There is no groundless rumor in this world. If Your Highness insists on marrying the girl from the Xie family, won't it bring disgrace to the emperor? After all, you bear the surname Qin!"
Prime Minister Zhang's words hit the emperor right in the heart. Not only did he remind the emperor that Qin Junxing's marriage was a matter of the royal family, but he also subtly reminded the emperor not to take Qin Junxing lightly.
For a moment, the emperor's face looked rather grim.
Qin Junxing didn't show any sign of uneasiness. He just gave Prime Minister Zhang a meaningful look. "Sit quietly and often reflect on your own faults. Don't gossip about others when chatting. Prime Minister Zhang's tongue is even longer than those censors in the Censorate. If someone doesn't know better, they might think that the girls in the Zhang family are completely free from any rumors."
"Your Highness the Prince, it's better not to be too arrogant!" Prime Minister Zhang's face turned ashen. Since he became the prime minister, he had never been talked to like this, especially not by a junior. Immediately, he flung his sleeves and knelt down. "Your Majesty, I was just doing my duty as a subject, but now I'm being insulted like this. Please uphold justice for me!"
Unexpectedly, the emperor didn't take the opportunity to scold Qin Junxing. Instead, he tried to smooth things over. "Xing'er didn't mean it. Don't be angry, my dear minister. Get up quickly."
"Yes, Prime Minister Zhang. I just said what came to my mind and accidentally told the truth. If you don't like to hear it, please be more magnanimous!"
... The emperor couldn't even find an excuse to smooth things over this time.
Prime Minister Zhang was so angry that his face turned red. He had lost all his composure. Pointing at Qin Junxing, he shouted, "You brat is too much of a bully!"
"Prime Minister Zhang, watch your words. I'm a member of the royal family. Isn't what you're saying an insult to the royal family?"
"You..." At this moment, Prime Minister Zhang was almost fainted with anger. He had long forgotten about his plan to marry his daughter to Qin Junxing.
Just as Prime Minister Zhang was about to faint, the eunuch in charge of the imperial study quietly came in and whispered something in the emperor's ear.
The emperor raised his eyebrows and looked at Prime Minister Zhang. "My dear minister, someone from the prime minister's mansion is waiting for you at the palace gate. They said something has happened in the mansion. Go back and have a look quickly!"
"Your Majesty, I..."
"This is not something unimportant. Since the people from your mansion have come here, it must be extremely urgent. Prime Minister Zhang, go back quickly!"
The emperor waved his hand and without further ado, asked the eunuch to help Prime Minister Zhang up and sent him out directly.
After Prime Minister Zhang left, the emperor pointed at Qin Junxing. "Prime Minister Zhang is an old subject. You should give him some face."
Qin Junxing raised his eyebrows nonchalantly. "Uncle, I've been used to being unrestrained on the frontier. Besides, aren't you here, Uncle?"
"You!" The emperor shook his head but didn't say anything in the end. "Alright, since you're not willing, I won't force you. But don't mention the matter with the girl from the Xie family again!"
"Don't be like this, Uncle. That Miss Xie is extremely beautiful. I fell in love with her at first sight. How can I not mention it!"
Looking at Qin Junxing's lecherous and reckless look, the emperor scolded with a smile, "Look at your出息. Get out of here quickly!"
"Yes, then your nephew will leave now!"
Qin Junxing left with a big smile on his face.
When he reached the door, the eunuch in charge of the imperial study, who had just sent Prime Minister Zhang away, came back. Seeing Qin Junxing, he quickly bowed and said, "Farewell, Your Highness the Prince."
"Hey, Lao Wang, why are you being so polite with me? Has Prime Minister Zhang been sent away?"
The eunuch replied with a big smile, "Yes, he has. The butler of the prime minister's mansion was in a great hurry. I don't know what exactly happened."
"Who knows!" Qin Junxing casually threw a golden token to the eunuch. The eunuch quickly caught it. "I've always had someone keep an eye out for this for you. Take it."
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
After leaving the palace and getting into the carriage, Qin Junxing put away his smile and knocked on the carriage. "Go to the East City."
The East City was the gathering place of the high - ranking officials and nobles in the capital. It was the closest to the imperial city. The prime minister's mansion and the Princess Dowager's mansion were located here. However, Qin Junxing hadn't lived in the Princess Dowager's mansion since he entered the capital.
Naturally, he didn't come to the East City because he wanted to go home this time!
However, as soon as the carriage reached the East City, it couldn't move forward.
"What's going on?"
"Your Highness, the road ahead is blocked!"
"Go and have a look!"
The guard rode away on his horse. He came back after a while.
"Report to Your Highness. It's the prime minister's mansion. There's a crowd gathered in front of the prime minister's mansion. The carriage can't pass through."
Qin Junxing thought for a moment, got out of the carriage, and ordered, "Go to Jingyueju."
Jingyueju was located in a very good position in the East City. One could just see the entrance of the prime minister's mansion from there.
When Qin Junxing entered, the lobby of Jingyueju was full of people. Everyone was stretching their necks and looking out.
He was a regular customer of Jingyueju. When the shopkeeper saw him coming, he quickly came out to greet him. "Your Highness the Prince, you've come. Unfortunately, all the private rooms are full today!"
Qin Junxing raised his eyebrows, patted the shopkeeper on the shoulder, and said good - naturedly, "It doesn't matter. I'll just stand for a while and then leave."
The shopkeeper heaved a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to find a place for this important guest, a fair - skinned and beardless man came down from the upper floor. He bowed to Qin Junxing and said in a shrill voice, "Your Highness the Prince, our master is upstairs. Please go up and have a gathering with us."
Qin Junxing raised his eyebrows, looked at the shopkeeper, and said, "It seems I don't need to trouble the shopkeeper anymore!"
"No trouble, no trouble. How could I dare to be so troublesome to Your Highness the Prince."
The shopkeeper escorted Qin Junxing upstairs. In a private room facing the street, he saw none other than the crown prince and Sun Jiming.
When Sun Jiming saw Qin Junxing coming up, he quickly got up and bowed. "Greetings to Your Highness the Prince!"
"Mr. Sun, you're being too polite." Qin Junxing waved his hand, arched his hands towards the crown prince, and sat down on his own. "Why is the crown prince in the mood to come here today?"
The crown prince seemed not to notice Qin Junxing's perfunctory attitude. Looking out of the window, he replied indifferently, "Cousin also has time to come here?"
"I came from Uncle's place. I happened to see Prime Minister Zhang rushing back in a great hurry. Your Highness the Crown Prince knows that I'm quite enthusiastic. I was thinking about whether I could help!"
Qin Junxing said this without batting an eyelid. The crown prince didn't know how to respond for a moment.
At this moment, a shrill wail suddenly came from outside. "My son!"
Everyone in the room looked out. In front of the prime minister's mansion, a woman in blue was hugging a man and crying loudly.