Chapter 405: Chapter 237: Arrogant Because of Favoritism_2
The Emperor forcefully threw the handkerchief onto the dining table, startling Sun Kui and Sun Doudou, who both immediately knelt on the ground.
"This is what you call arrogance from favor." The Emperor stood up, with a cold expression, and said, "He hasn’t learned any other skills, but he’s mastered arrogance from favor. It’s truly disappointing for me." A mere Princess Consort Ying has stumped Noble Princess Consort Rong and Prince Dai, and so far, they haven’t come up with an effective counterattack, which is greatly disappointing to the Emperor.
Sun Kui and Sun Doudou lay on the ground, not daring to utter a single word.
The Emperor sighed softly and said, "Marquis Xuanping is never a match for Duke Zhen." He walked over to Sun Kui and kicked him on the backside, "What are you still lying there for? Go to court."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Sun Kui swiftly scrambled to his feet and followed behind the Emperor.
"They all say the second one resembles me, but tell me, how does he look anything like me?" The Emperor grew more annoyed the more he thought about it. "I’m certainly not this foolish."
Sun Kui quickly tried to please, saying, "The Tenth Prince is most like you."
The Emperor gave Sun Kui a sidelong glance upon hearing this: "You certainly know how to flatter."
Sun Kui, just feeling ominous from the Emperor’s gaze, now secretly breathed a sigh of relief when the Emperor said this.
"Your servant speaks the truth."
"I never expected the second one to be this foolish." The Emperor felt depressed, "The Crown Prince is also foolish. How is it that I, so exceedingly intelligent, father so many stupid sons?"
Sun Kui was at a loss for how to respond and could only say, "Your Majesty, a dragon begets nine sons, each different."
"I have so many sons, but only two of them are intelligent. Should I laugh or cry at that?" The two intelligent sons the Emperor referred to were the Fourth Prince and, naturally, Zhao Yao.
"Your Majesty, if each of the princes were exceptionally intelligent, wouldn’t that be another headache for you?"
"You’re not wrong, if they were all too smart, I would have a headache too." The Emperor said with a slight frown, "With the second one being so foolish, what am I to do?"
Sun Kui comforted the Emperor, saying, "Your Majesty, perhaps Prince Dai will soon understand."
The Emperor’s tone was somewhat sarcastic, "Then I really am looking forward to it."
In his heart, Sun Kui silently sympathized with Prince Dai.
At this moment, the ministers were already in the main hall of Chengguang Hall, and upon seeing the Emperor enter, they hurriedly knelt to greet him.
"Greetings to Your Majesty, may Your Majesty live ten thousand years."
The Emperor gestured with his hand, "Rise."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The Emperor leaned on the armrest of the dragon throne to his right, listening idly to the ministers’ reports.
The morning court session had just begun, and the matters brought up by the ministers were not significant, just minor issues.
After a while, the ministers began reporting on major affairs.
Recently, there have been no particularly major issues in the court. No major issues, which is a good thing.
However, there was a close call last month.
Last month, Jiangnan almost got flooded, but fortunately, the Governor of Yangzhou had started reinforcing and raising the river banks months ago, and cleared the silt from the rivers, thus sparing the entirety of Jiangnan from flood disaster.
Since the onset of spring, rain had been incessant in Jiangnan, raising the water levels of the rivers significantly even then. When summer arrived, heavy rains fell frequently over Jiangnan. Last month, torrential rains lasted the entire month, and if not for the prior reinforcements and elevation of the riverbanks, it’s feared that all of Jiangnan would have been submerged.
Fortunately, this month saw the cessation of the torrential rains in Jiangnan. If the heavy rains had continued like last month, perhaps even the reinforced embankments wouldn’t have held.
Although Jiangnan was spared a flood disaster, the continuous heavy rains still ruined many rice fields. Luckily, Jiangnan’s granaries were unharmed; otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
This year, only Jiangnan encountered issues. The Northwest, which usually faces frequent droughts, surprisingly received ample rainfall and did not experience drought as in previous years. However, one year without drought doesn’t guarantee the next. The Emperor had previously decreed the construction of reservoirs in various places.
Just as the reservoirs were dug in the Northwest, it began to rain. Now, with many reservoirs filled with water, the local people felt much more secure.
After discussing issues in Jiangnan and the Northwest, Grandmaster Liu brought up the topic of several countries near the Southern Border wishing to come to Great Zhou to celebrate the longevity festival.
The Emperor’s birthday falls on the tenth of November, two months away. If Annan, Johor, Lusong, and several other countries were allowed to come, they could set out now.
"Since they wish to come to celebrate, let them come." The Emperor directed at the Crown Prince, instructing, "I’ll leave this matter in your hands."