Professional Ethics of a Concubine

Ye Qingzhi didn’t know about other people, but she was startled by the sudden appearance of the emperor and others. She immediately reflected on whether she had said anything wrong just now.

She was relieved after making sure that she had not forgotten to flatter the leader and the big boss.

It’s just that, isn’t the title of Master Ye just something that is called in private?

With so many people here, you still call it private?

She could feel the surprise and astonishment in everyone's eyes when they looked at her.

Among them, Yi De Zhaoyi showed the most obvious reaction. She stared and asked,

"Oh my god, how did Concubine Ye become Master Ye?! Is this even possible?"

Ye Qingzhi,...

She also wanted to say no.

She also wanted to say to De Zhaoyi, who is in menopause, "Can you please think before you speak and not let your temper take over your mind?"

She was clearly here to watch the show, so how did it end up being her being roasted?

Ye Qingzhi was complaining in her heart, but she looked very dignified and followed everyone else in paying respects to the Emperor and the Crown Prince.

De Zhaoyi quickly put away her surprise and knelt down to salute, but her eyes were always looking at Ye Qingzhi.

The emperor asked everyone to stand up without formalities, then looked at Ye Qingzhi with a gentle expression and explained with a smile,

"I have never seen a woman as sensible and intelligent as Grand Tutor Ye. Although she is a woman, she deserves to be called Grand Tutor."

"Your Majesty, I am humbled and unworthy of your praise." Ye Qingzhi said modestly.

"I am able to have such insights, all thanks to the daily teachings of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"Hahaha, the prince told me that he was able to have such a broad mind and pattern because of the good teaching of Master Ye."

The emperor laughed and looked at Xie Jin and said jokingly, "I think the prince is right. Otherwise, I would not call you Master Ye."

Ye Qingzhi,...

Haha, Your Majesty, you are still quite naughty even though you are so old.

"Your Majesty is right. Before, Your Majesty wanted to give her the title of Grand Tutor, but she refused. However, with her talent and what she has done, the title of Grand Tutor is not enough to show her merit."

Xie Jin also smiled and looked at Ye Qingzhi, his words full of love and affection.

"However, she is such a person who is indifferent to fame and fortune, never takes credit for herself, and doesn't like to take on too many things.

I am a little surprised to see her here today, it doesn't match her usual lazy personality."

"Oh?" The emperor also knew Ye Qingzhi's lazy nature, and asked her with interest, "Why is Master Ye here?"

"Your Majesty, your Highness, I was the one who brought Qingzhi here. She is the best at persuading people. I was afraid that I could not persuade the two ladies well, so I asked Qingzhi to help persuade them. The effect was indeed remarkable."

At this time, Zhang Jingyi also spoke with a smile, covering up Ye Qingzhi's desire to watch the fun and taking credit for her.

"...I am just doing what I can." Ye Qingzhi's face was dark, and she quickly shifted the focus away from herself.

"Today, the two ladies were not feeling well and their tempers were hard to control. They said a few unhappy words to each other, which was a bit out of line. It was not a mistake of principle."

Concubine Rou also quickly said, "Thanks to the advice of Grand Tutor Ye, I deeply realized my mistake. I shouldn't have attacked Concubine De."

"I was wrong too. I shouldn't have been so impulsive." De Zhaoyi also quickly admitted her mistake.

The emperor then looked at them and saw that they were all covered in bruises. His face darkened again and he snorted angrily.

"When I first heard the news, I couldn't believe you could do such a shameful thing! You even asked the younger generation to persuade you and give you a way out. Do you think this is shameless?"

"Your Majesty, please calm down. I know I was wrong!"

"I was wrong, I accept the punishment."

When Concubine Rou and Concubine De heard that the emperor was angry, their faces turned pale and they quickly knelt down again, lowered their heads and honestly admitted their mistakes.

This whole incident was seen by the younger generation, who had to advise him, which made the old man feel really embarrassed.

"Each person will be fined half a year's salary. Within one month, he must copy the palace rules twenty times and the Buddhist scriptures twenty times to cultivate his mind and cultivate his character."

The emperor frowned and gave a punishment, which was not severe.

But copying so many palace rules and Buddhist scriptures within a month is not easy.

The matter was just covered up, and the emperor was too lazy to ask more questions or investigate further.

This was also due to Ye Qingzhi's words just now, which made the emperor feel comfortable.

You know, on the way here just now, the emperor learned the whole story from the eunuch, and he was so angry that he immediately glared at Prince Duan.

His face was terribly gloomy, like a volcano about to erupt.

Prince Duan wanted to cry at that moment.

Oh, are his good days over just like that?

Along the way, Prince Duan hid behind his elder brother, the Crown Prince, not daring to breathe, feeling bitter in his heart.

When Prince Duan heard his father's words, he realized that the matter was not as serious as he thought, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

De Zhaoyi and Rou Fei also hurried to express their gratitude and secretly thanked Ye Qingzhi in their hearts.

"Father, it is better to do it now than to wait for a better day. Why don't we go to Sixth Prince's residence right now to see him and get to know him better?"

Xie Jin spoke up.

"Okay." The emperor glanced at Concubine Rou, nodded and agreed.

When Concubine Rou heard this, she was surprised and happy, but also very nervous. Should she go now? She was not ready yet.

Her son was even less prepared!

Who knows what would happen if the emperor saw the mess in his residence?

Concubine Rou's heart was suddenly in turmoil, and she couldn't help but look at Ye Qingzhi for help.

Ye Qingzhi gave her a reassuring smile, walked over to her side, and whispered, "The Emperor and the Crown Prince want to see the real Sixth Prince."

Concubine Rou naturally understood as well.

This is because they are afraid that the truth is not what they want to see.

Forget it, the words have been said, there is no need to worry about the consequences.

Although the things my son likes are not serious, they are not harmful to others. No matter how bad it is, it will not be worse than being a fool and invisible person now.

When Concubine Rou thought about it, she suddenly understood, released the shackles, and took the initiative to say to the emperor,

"Your Majesty, the Sixth Prince doesn't like to write articles, nor does he like to read Confucian classics or historical records. He just likes to read some miscellaneous studies, such as arithmetic and the Book of Changes.

He is actually quite smart and can do math very quickly, but he is not good at speaking and can't express himself.

I am not expecting him to do anything extraordinary, I just hope that Your Majesty can understand him better and accept his differences."

As she spoke, Concubine Rou couldn't help but her eyes turned red again. She didn't dare to say these words before.

Because her son was a weirdo among all the well-behaved and talkative princes.

Before, there was pressure from the Queen, and some things could not be told to the Emperor.

However, ever since the queen passed away and the crown prince was replaced, the atmosphere in the harem has become increasingly different, and the emperor seems to have become more tolerant and forgiving.

Princess Ling Yue was able to marry Prime Minister Fang Yunyan, and the prodigal son Prince Duan was able to take on important responsibilities. Concubine Rou felt that her son might also be valued by the Emperor.

"I know. I neglected him too much before. I didn't do well enough."

When the emperor thought of the Sixth Prince, he only remembered that every time he checked his homework when he was a child, he could not answer the questions, which made him feel that his son was extremely stupid.

After that, I naturally ignored him.

Moreover, the Sixth Prince never took the initiative to approach him, so his impression of this son became increasingly shallow.

After searching his memories of the Sixth Prince over the past two years, the Emperor came up with nothing. He felt ashamed and guilty.

He is such a failure as a father.

The former crown prince is a vivid example, and so is Prince Duan. Fortunately, they both had the opportunity to correct themselves.

Concubine Rou didn't expect the emperor to be so tolerant and admit that she didn't do well enough. She immediately burst into tears.

"Let's go and take a look together." The emperor patted Concubine Rou's arm to comfort her.

"Xiao Liu is not young anymore. After the crown prince's enthronement ceremony is over, I will also confer the title of king on him. You can then hold a flower-viewing banquet, choose a noble lady for him, set a wedding date, and then leave the palace to build a mansion."

This is the emperor's promise. Regardless of whether the Sixth Prince has talent or not, he will not be deprived of any less basic treatment.

Concubine Rou wiped her tears, quickly thanked him with a smile, and her heart immediately calmed down.

-

Two quarters of an hour later, the prince and others arrived at the residence of the Sixth Prince.

The gate to the courtyard was tightly closed, and a faint foul smell was emanating from inside. There were no eunuchs on duty outside the courtyard.

The emperor's steward immediately stepped forward and pushed the door open. After pushing it open, a pungent smell came out, somewhat like the smell of rotten eggs.

Concubine Rou's face changed immediately and she gritted her teeth in worry.

What is her eldest son doing now?

"Ouch, it stinks!" Prince Duan, who came with him, immediately pinched his nose and said angrily,

"How do the servants in Sixth Brother's courtyard work?"

The emperor and others frowned when they smelled the stench, but they didn't say anything. Instead, they quickened their pace and went in to see what was going on.

"No one else said anything, but you are the only one who is talking too much. From now on, talk less and watch more." De Zhaoyi tugged at her son's sleeve from behind, glared at him and whispered a lesson to him.

“……”Prince Duan.

Mother, you seem so righteous when you ask me to do something that you cannot do yourself.

Who understands my grievances?

-

The two young eunuchs on duty in the yard were frightened when they saw the emperor and others suddenly come in, thinking they had made a mistake.

Why is the emperor coming here?

However, they were familiar with Concubine Rou who was standing beside them, and knew that it was the emperor, so they quickly knelt down and kowtowed, their mouths trembling with fear.

"Slave, slave greets His Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince..."

"Where's the Sixth Prince?!" The Emperor frowned and asked in anger, "What's that smell? It's so pungent. How do you do your job?"

The emperor thought that his son was neglected by him, so the young eunuchs bullied him and did not do their work seriously, which made the yard where he lived so smelly.

The emperor, with the heart of an old father, immediately occupied the high ground of IQ.

He didn't even think about the fact that even without his incompetent old father, he still had Concubine Rou as his mother.

Concubine Rou is a concubine after all, and she cares about her son. How could she allow the young eunuch around her son to bully him?

"Your Majesty, the Sixth Prince is in his...study. This is the smell of sulfur. It's something the Sixth Prince needs."

The young eunuch spoke tremblingly.

Knowing clearly that he might not be able to fool people, he did not dare to tell the truth and just spoke vaguely.

The emperor frowned tightly. He asked the eunuch to lead the way. He wanted to go to the Sixth Prince's study to see what he was tinkering with.

After Ye Qingzhi confirmed that the pungent smell was sulfur, she developed a strong interest in the Sixth Prince.

Ye Qingzhi looked around again and saw some strange-looking tools placed in the corner of the yard, so she whispered to Xie Jin,

"Your Highness, your brother may really be able to bring you a surprise."

"I'm looking forward to it too." Xie Jin nodded with a smile.

The emperor and others walked quickly and had already arrived outside the study. The little eunuch wanted to struggle and shout inside, but the emperor just frowned and told him to push the door open.

The young eunuch opened the door with weak legs, looking as if he was going to die.

The emperor didn't even go in. He just took a look outside and became furious.

Xie Jin followed behind and saw the situation in the house. He said to Ye Qingzhi with a look of surprise, "...It is indeed a surprise."

When Concubine Rou saw the alchemy furnace inside and her son wearing a mask and in a mess, she was so angry that she immediately lost her mind.

She rushed in immediately, grabbed the Sixth Prince's ears, and yelled at him,

"You rebellious son, when did you start tinkering with alchemy? Don't you know that alchemy is prohibited in this dynasty? You, you want to piss me off to death!

Wuuwuwu...you want to die, just hang yourself or take poison, don't drag others down with you!"

Because the last emperor of the previous dynasty was obsessed with alchemy and wanted to achieve immortality, he not only spent a lot of money and manpower to build many alchemy platforms.

They also listened to the words of some Taoist priests, believing that using the blood of boys or virgins to make elixirs could prolong life and beautify the skin. They really slaughtered and abused the people like cattle and sheep.

Therefore, Emperor Gaozu hated the art of alchemy. After he overthrew the previous dynasty and established his kingdom, he issued a clear ban, no longer allowing Taoists to make elixirs, and even killed many Taoists.

The Taoists of this dynasty all hid in the deep mountains and old forests, and dared not walk openly in the world.

What the Sixth Prince is doing now is touching the reverse scale and teetering on the brink of death.

If he had not been his own son, the emperor would have ordered him to be taken out and beheaded the moment he saw him.

The Sixth Prince knelt down directly, without showing any fear on his face, and said calmly,

"I have committed a heinous crime, and I will bear the consequences alone. Please, father, execute me and do not implicate innocent people."

The emperor wanted to applaud his courage. He was not a coward, but why did he do such a thing!

"Do you also want to live forever?" the emperor asked him.

"I don't want to. Alchemy can't make people immortal. I just think it's interesting." The Sixth Prince said with a blank expression and a level voice.

"Interesting?" The emperor frowned, unable to understand, and asked angrily, "Alchemy is a waste of money and labor, and it harms others and oneself. Where is the fun in it?"

"Father, as long as the quantity is controlled, it won't be a waste of money and labor. These cinnabar, sulfur, charcoal, etc., only cost five taels of silver in total.

As for harming others and yourself, although lead and mercury are indeed poisonous, it is okay as long as you take good precautions. Father, please leave this room. The powder inside may endanger your health..."

The emperor and others' faces changed and they quickly left the room.

Concubine Rou really wanted to faint.

If she hadn't had a sudden impulse today and wanted to change her son's fate, which led the emperor here, her son's alchemy would not have been exposed.

Well, fate has indeed changed. Oh, she sent her son directly to the guillotine.

Ye Qingzhi looked at the Sixth Prince and asked with a smile, "Sixth Prince, may I ask, what interesting phenomena have you seen in alchemy?"

If the Sixth Prince was smart enough, wouldn't he be a genius in mathematics, physics and chemistry?

She glanced at the prince again, thinking that she might have really found a treasure.