Chapter 322
Chapter 322
Li Tianyou originally thought that this matter was probably just someone making things up out of nothing.
But now, seeing Xu Qingshi looking so wretched and disheveled made Li Tianyou suspect that those rumors might actually be true.
Could it be that Xu Heming really didn't want this child anymore?
Even though Xu Heming was about to marry his daughter, he still didn't want to see Xu Heming commit such an act of abandoning his own son.
"How about you come back to the Li family with me? Don't worry, I can afford to raise you," Li Tianyou said, patting his chest.
"No, if I go to the Li family, my father will definitely find out." Xu Qingshi shook his head.
He simply didn't want his father to find him.
Otherwise, why would he insist on leaving the capital?
"Then we just won't let him find out, okay?" Li Tianyou thought for a moment and said in a low voice.
"Can't you go to Prince An's Manor and help me fetch my things?" Xu Qingshi looked at Li Tianyou with a face full of expectation and asked.
"It's not that I can't go. You see, I still have to attend the morning court and I'm quite busy. Besides, if I go to Prince An's Manor and head straight to your courtyard to take things, wouldn't that be telling others I'm up to no good? It's too easy to expose myself," Li Tianyou said with an awkward smile.
However, his words were not false. After all, if he really went to fetch things like that, it would be strange if others didn't suspect him.
"But, if that's the case, I won't be able to get my bank notes," Xu Qingshi said with a troubled expression.
"You need bank notes? How much do you need? I'll just give it to you." Li Tianyou figured that if it was just bank notes, he could provide them.
After all, a young child shouldn't be able to spend that much silver anyway.
"You'll give them to me?" Hearing Li Tianyou's words, Xu Qingshi was taken aback for a moment. Then, he started calculating in his heart: if Li Tianyou was really willing to give him bank notes, how much should he ask for?
Thinking that Li Tianyou's bank notes were also hard-earned, Xu Qingshi felt it was a bit inappropriate.
Considering that Xu Heming was his biological father anyway, asking him for some bank notes shouldn't be too much, right?
"How about I write you an IOU, and later you can go ask my father for it?" Xu Qingshi asked somewhat uncertainly.
This talk of writing an IOU was something he had once heard a gambler say at a casino.
Although he didn't know exactly what those words meant.
But an IOU should be a good thing, right?
Otherwise, the casino servant who originally wanted to beat the man wouldn't have let him go.
"You even know about IOUs?" Li Tianyou was so amused that he laughed out of exasperation. This little guy knew quite a lot.
The most important thing was that he said to ask Xu Heming for it.
Was he certain that he would dare to go to Xu Heming and ask for it?
Thinking of this, Li Tianyou wondered, how much silver should he have Xu Qingshi write down?
"I know, I know. Does it work?" Xu Qingshi asked happily.
"It should work, but how much silver do you want?" Li Tianyou asked curiously.
Xu Qingshi thought about it. He was going to Li'an County; he needed a carriage and some food. All in all, he would need quite a bit of silver. After pondering it over, Xu Qingshi felt he should bring more bank notes: "Ten thousand taels!"
"How much?" Li Tianyou suspected he had misheard. After all, such a young child shouldn't need to spend much silver. Who would have thought that the moment he opened his mouth, he would ask for ten thousand taels in bank notes.
This was not a small amount. With Xu Qingshi being so young, he didn't dare give him too many bank notes either.
Looking at the black soot all over Xu Qingshi, Li Tianyou thought to himself, could it be that this child had caused some trouble and therefore needed so much money?
"Grandfather, can you lend me ten thousand taels in bank notes? Don't worry, my father will definitely pay you back," Xu Qingshi said with absolute certainty.
At this moment, Xu Heming, who was at the Zhou family's residence, sneezed loudly.
"Prince An, are you perhaps ill? Please don't pass your sickness to my master!" Eunuch Liu, who was standing to the side, said in panic.
"I'm not ill!" Xu Heming said with some dissatisfaction, while thinking in his heart, could it be that someone was cursing him?
"Your Highness Prince An!" Zhou Zhonghe, who had rushed back, called out. His voice reached the room before he even stepped inside.
"Oh, the master of this house has finally returned." Zhu Jingchen was also very curious about how Zhou Zhonghe would wrap things up later.
Coming along with him was Fang Deyou from the Court of Judicature and Revision.
Fang Deyue looked at the Zhou family somewhat strangely. If he remembered correctly, the eunuch who had just come to speak with him was from the imperial palace.
Yet Lord Zhou only mentioned Prince An.
Could it be that some trouble had occurred in the Zhou family that required Prince An to clean up?
After all, Prince An was the Zhou family's son-in-law. Although the former Princess An was no longer alive, she had at least given birth to the heir of Prince An. The two families were inseparable through marriage.
"Father, he didn't call you," Zhu Hanyu said, somewhat puzzled.
After all, wasn't his father more powerful than Prince An?
Why did that old man only call out for Prince An?
"Prince An, I have failed to welcome you, failed to welcome you!" Zhou Zhonghe said as he ran in.
It should be known that this son-in-law of his hadn't visited the Zhou family for several years.
With this sudden visit, Zhou Zhonghe felt a bit uncertain in his heart, not knowing what Xu Heming had come to the Zhou family for.
"Lord Zhou, you certainly are a busy man," Xu Heming said sarcastically.
"Prince An is joking. I wonder if Your Highness... E-Emperor!" Zhou Zhonghe had just wanted to exchange a few pleasantries with Xu Heming when he saw Zhu Jingchen sitting to the side and knelt down directly in terror.
"Father, what nonsense are you saying? Where is the Emperor?" Seeing his father actually kneel down in fright, Zhou Changfeng thought his father must have run too fast. Why didn't he see the Emperor anywhere?
"You bastard, hurry up and kneel!" Zhou Zhonghe's face did not look good.
On his way back just now, he had already heard the servant briefly describe the situation in the manor. Originally, one Prince An was already troublesome enough, but now, even the Emperor was here.
If he couldn't give a reasonable explanation for this matter, the Zhou family would probably be finished.
Thinking of this, Zhou Zhonghe was so scared that he lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to move an inch without Zhu Jingchen's orders.
"Old man, what Emperor?" Old Madam Zhou, sitting to the side, heard this and questioned in displeasure.
After all, if the person in front of her was the Emperor, then the words she had said to him earlier...
Old Madam Zhou then looked at Zhu Hanyu beside him. If this person was the Emperor, wouldn't his son be a prince?
Thinking of this, Old Madam Zhou felt her little heart tremble.
She had scolded the Emperor and a prince?
At this thought, Old Madam Zhou shook her head repeatedly. This couldn't be true.
"This humble official greets the Emperor. Long live, long live, long live His Majesty!" Fang Deyue, seeing clearly that Zhu Jingchen was here, quickly bowed in greeting.
Hearing this, Old Madam Zhou panicked instantly.
This person was actually the Emperor?
After all, she didn't know the Emperor, but she knew the Minister of the Court of Judicature and Revision. Now even Lord Fang was saying that this person was the Emperor!