Do you know: I am the crown prince

Chapter 5 The Gu family
In the evening, the emperor came to Mingren Hall.

Zhao Xing’s biological mother was not favored before, otherwise she would not have been just a talented woman.

After Zhao Xing was born, his mother was given the title of imperial concubine because of her son's status.

The emperor loved his son very much, and when Zhao Xing was with his biological mother, the emperor would stay there almost every night.

Ever since Zhao Xing moved to Mingren Hall, the government family has almost always lived here.

I would come back every evening to have dinner with Zhao Xing.

No matter how tired he was, as long as he saw his son, he would feel instantly full of energy.

As soon as the official came back, he hugged Zhao Xing and told him to go to school the next day and study hard under the guidance of the two teachers.

Queen Cao ordered someone to serve the meal, and when it was served, she invited the father and son to come and eat.

"Let's go eat."

The official held Zhao Xing in his arms and walked towards the dining table.

"Father, please let me walk by myself. I am heavy now and I don't want to tire you out." Zhao Xing said.

As an adult, even though he is a child now, Zhao Xing is not used to being held all the time.

There was no way around it before, but now I have to be carried while walking, which is so embarrassing.

"Haha, Brother Fu knows how to care for his father. His filial piety is commendable. But, father is in good health and won't be tired."

The official laughed out loud, feeling very relieved, but he did not put Zhao Xing down. He carried him all the way to the dining table before putting him down.

"Ever since he could speak, Fu Ge'er has never made anyone worry. Naturally, he knows how to care for Your Majesty." Queen Cao said with a smile.

"That's right. Fu'er is my precious son." The emperor said with a smile.

"Father, please have your meal first. You must be hungry after a busy day," said Zhao Xing.

"Yes, yes, yes, let's eat first. We don't want Fu Ge to be hungry."

As the official spoke, he picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of food and started eating.

Zhao Xing waited until Queen Cao started eating before he picked up his chopsticks.

"Your Majesty, Brother Fu told me today that he wanted to learn martial arts," said Queen Cao.

"Ok?"

The official was stunned, put down his chopsticks, looked at Zhao Xing, and said, "Why are you learning martial arts for no reason?"

The Song Dynasty has always valued culture over military affairs, and Zhao Xing is a prince and his only son, who will become the emperor in the future.

"Father, I want to learn martial arts to strengthen my body. Look at how strong and sturdy those soldiers are. I am afraid of taking medicine. I think after practicing martial arts, I will be healthy and less likely to get sick, so I don't need to take medicine." Zhao Xing said with a deliberately bitter face.

Zhao Xing knew what to say to impress his father.

For an official who had several sons die young and then had a son in his old age, nothing was more important than his son's health.

Sure enough, the official hesitated after hearing this.

He knew that the civil officials in the court were weak and the military generals were strong.

After several children died in succession, the government was really a little scared.

What if Zhao Xing...

When the official thought of this, he didn’t dare to think any further.

"Xing'er is right. Practicing martial arts can strengthen your body and you should definitely learn it."

The emperor nodded, pondered for a while, and said, "Marquis Ningyuan's martial arts are unmatched in the army. His son came to the palace to perform for me during the Mid-Autumn Festival two years ago. His spear skills are very good at a young age. I will let him come to the palace to teach you martial arts tomorrow."

"Father, why don't you let the son of Ningyuan Marquis come to the palace to be my son's study companion?" Zhao Xing said. Although the world of "Do You Know" is set in the Song Dynasty, it is still somewhat different from the Song Dynasty in official history.

Moreover, even if it was official history, Zhao Xing's understanding of it was limited.

Therefore, Zhao Xing naturally would not give up on the talents who had appeared in the original drama.

Gu Tingye comes from a family of generals. Except for appearing a little stupid when facing Xiao Qinshi and Man Niang, he is a talented person with both civil and military talents.

"That's not impossible. The boy is quite smart. He dares to ask me for reward at such a young age. But his temper needs to be tempered. Let him be your study companion, learn more rules and control his temper." The emperor said with a smile.

The Song Dynasty valued civil officials over military officials, but this was only in terms of status. In order to appease the military generals, they compensated them in other aspects.

The status of a military general of the same level is much lower than that of a civil official, but his salary is indeed twice that of a civil official.

Although Zhao Xing was not canonized as the crown prince, as the only son of the emperor, he was no different from the crown prince except in name.

Choosing a study partner for Zhao Xing was not only to cultivate his confidants, but also had political considerations.

Not only the children of civil officials should be selected, but the children of military generals and nobles are also indispensable.

The Gu family is both a noble family and a military family, so it is natural for them to choose one of their sons as a study companion.

Therefore, when Zhao Xing proposed it, the emperor did not refuse and agreed.

Empress Cao repeated the story of Princess Pingning entering the palace and wanting Qi Heng to come in to be Zhao Xing's study companion.

The government didn't say anything, and he himself had the same idea.

After the meal, the emperor directly ordered the eunuch to go to the Gu family to convey the oral order, asking Gu Yankai to bring his second son to the palace early the next morning.

……

At the Gu family, Gu Yankai was preparing to wash up and rest, but suddenly learned that someone was coming from the palace. He quickly sent someone to call his children over and brought his wife to listen to the imperial edict.

After the eunuch finished delivering the oral instructions, Gu Yankai stuffed some silver into the eunuch's pocket and personally escorted him out of the mansion.

Then he returned to the main hall with his wife and children, looking excited.

"Master, how old is the prince? Why would the emperor allow you to enter the palace to teach him martial arts?" Xiao Qin frowned.

"How can we, the ministers, guess what the emperor is considering? We just need to follow his orders." Gu Yankai said calmly.

"But what does the emperor want the master to take Erlang to do?" Xiao Qin said.

She really didn't want Gu Tingye to enter the palace. After the emperor rewarded Gu Tingye with a red tassel spear when he entered the palace two years ago, Gu Yankai's attitude towards Gu Tingye changed.

In the past, Gu Yankai disliked Gu Tingye, but the eldest son Gu Tingyu was in poor health, and Gu Tingye was the second son, so it was very likely that he would inherit the title in the future.

Therefore, even though Gu Yankai didn't like his son very much, he was still very strict with him.

However, under Xiao Qin's deliberate flattery, Gu Tingye often made Gu Yankai angry, making the relationship between father and son increasingly worse.

Gu Yankai became more and more disappointed with Gu Tingye, and even became less strict with him, as if he was giving up on Gu Tingye.

However, ever since Gu Tingye performed for the emperor in the palace and received rewards from the emperor, Gu Yankai once again began to pay attention to Gu Tingye's education.

The inheritance of a title is different from the inheritance of a family business. It is not just about specifying who will inherit it.

Instead, one must report to the imperial court and obtain approval before inheriting the title.

If Gu Tingye entered the palace again and won the emperor's favor, it would be even more difficult for her son to inherit the title.

Gu Yankai didn't know what Xiao Qin was thinking, so he smiled and said, "What do you know? This is a great thing. I heard that the emperor has been selecting a teacher for the prince's enlightenment lessons recently, and asked me to take Erlang with him. It is very likely that Erlang will be the prince's companion in study."

Among lords, the rank of the title is only secondary. The most important thing is whether one can be reused and gain the favor of the government.

(End of this chapter)