Chapter 44 Chapter 43 The Emperor's Keen Sense of Smell

"What my wife gave birth to back then was not a stillbirth, but a baby boy. It was only due to some special reasons that it was announced to the public as a stillbirth." Gu Chengyan was brief and to the point. He did not want the emperor to know more, so he wanted to see if he could fool the emperor first.

The teasing look on the emperor's face had vanished. He looked at Gu Cheng, who was kneeling below him, as if he were a fool. "I didn't realize I was so idle that I even had to ask about such trivial matters as how many children your beloved family has, and whether they are boys or girls."

"It's just that the late emperor had asked about the child's condition before, and I had no choice but to spread the news that the child was stillborn." Gu Cheng was happy to see that the emperor was not very interested in this matter, and wanted to get rid of it quickly.

"The late emperor is dead, and you have committed the crime of deceiving the emperor. Can he still climb out of the imperial mausoleum and hold you accountable?" Mu Congmo sneered, without a trace of reverence for his so-called father in his tone.

He spoke calmly, but the eunuchs around him dropped to their knees in fear, their breathing hushed, fearing the Emperor would notice them. Gu Cheng was also frightened. Although he knew that the current Emperor often played by unconventional means, he had not expected such outrageous words to be spoken so casually.

"I dare not. I only ask Your Majesty to forgive me and approve my request to confer him the title of Crown Prince." Gu Cheng naturally did not dare to respond to him and could only emphasize his purpose again.

But the emperor on the throne suddenly became interested and did not intend to let him go easily. "Why did the late emperor care so much about an unborn child? Can you explain this to me?" The emperor smiled and sounded quite curious.

Gu Cheng was startled. He had been deliberately trying to conceal this detail, but who knew the emperor, like a dog's nose, had picked up on it. He quickly thought about how to come up with a reasonable excuse, but the emperor didn't give him time to think. Instead, he looked at the eunuch Hu Xian, the chief eunuch serving nearby.

"Eunuch Hu is also an old man in the palace. I believe he knows the details. Then I will not trouble Minister Gu. You can solve the doubts for me." The emperor's tone was a little impatient at this time. Everything in the world was dispensable in his eyes. Except for his A Yan, he had no patience for anything.

Hu Xian first glanced at Gu Cheng, who knelt on the ground. Having spent so many years in the palace, he had long since developed a knack for reading people's expressions. He knew Gu Cheng had deliberately downplayed the reason, brushing it off simply to avoid the emperor's attention. But the emperor's sense of smell was too sharp. If he had a choice, he would naturally not want to offend Gu Cheng, but now that the emperor had spoken, he naturally dared not disobey. He simply hoped that Gu Cheng would understand his difficulties.

"Your Majesty, the Imperial Master once said that the child in the Duke of Ying's wife's belly was destined to be a phoenix, and that's why the late emperor was very concerned about it." Hu Xian knelt on the ground and told the story without adding any exaggeration.

Mu Congmo finally remembered, but his thoughts were a bit off. It seemed he had used the excuse, "The Imperial Master asserted that the child in the Duke of Ying's womb was destined to be a phoenix, and therefore he should make her his empress," to dissuade the ministers from persuading him to make her his empress. It was also after this that he found time to secretly travel to Jiangnan, where he met A Yan, who had come down the mountain for the first time.

The thought of Gu Shiyan lifted his spirits, and the playful smile on his face faded into a faint smile. This kind of smile seemed much more normal. However, it was not normal for the emperor to have it on his face. Fortunately, there was a rule that prohibited looking directly into his face. Otherwise, if they had seen such a strange smile on the emperor's face, they would have been terrified again.

Mu Congmo then turned his thoughts to this matter, his expression slightly disgusted. By this calculation, could he and Gu Cheng's son still be considered engaged? He was a little panicked, and began to think wildly. Wasn't this simply tarnishing his innocence for no reason? What if Ah Yan minded this? He would never be able to clear himself even if he jumped into the Yellow River.

Gu Cheng, on the ground, was still in a state of panic, fearing that this rebellious emperor would actually do something as absurd as making a man his empress. Not to mention that Gu Shiyan had just returned, even if he had been raised by them, they would not want their son to be committed to a man, even if that man was the emperor. But the emperor's next words put his worries to rest.

"I never believe in so-called prophecies. I know that the Duke is a smart man, so he naturally won't believe it. I can agree to the Duke's request, but from now on I don't want anyone to talk about his natural destiny as a phoenix. Do you understand what I mean?" The emperor leaned forward, with his hands on the imperial desk. His tone was cold but with a hint of murderous intent, as if as long as Gu Cheng didn't agree with her, he would not be able to walk out of Chengming Palace alive.

Gu Cheng was naturally happy to see this happen, but it was a bit difficult to do. He hesitated and said, "I will keep my mouth shut and never let this matter get out. However, this rumor was so rampant back then that I'm afraid everyone in the capital has already known about it."

Mu Congmo didn't have the heart to care about these things. An idea suddenly flashed through his mind: "As long as the Duke doesn't have this idea in mind, how can they still kidnap him and bring him to the palace? As for the rumors spreading in the capital, the Duke can just find a good marriage for your son. When I personally arrange the marriage, it will be considered a beautiful story."

Seeing the emperor's serious tone, not a joke, Gu Cheng began to consider finding a noblewoman for Gu Shiyan. However, he still needed to discuss this with his wife and ask for Gu Shiyan's opinion. But facing the emperor's orders, he could only agree, "I will act according to your majesty's wishes."

Mu Congmo was no longer in the mood to watch the fun. He could only pray in his heart that the rumor would not reach A Yan's ears. He waved his hand at Gu Cheng: "In that case, my dear, please step down. Don't forget the bargaining chips you put forward." Mu Congmo reminded Gu Cheng again, hoping that he would not forget his duty, otherwise what he could give out could naturally be taken back.

Gu Cheng bowed and withdrew. Walking through the deep palace, his steps gradually became lighter after leaving Chengming Hall. His body, once tense, relaxed, giving him a feeling of having survived a disaster. They say that serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. Even among a pack of tigers, the current emperor must be a terrifying presence.

Little did they know that the emperor was now sitting upright on the throne, holding a light blue handkerchief in his hand and with a sneering look on his face. Fortunately, all the servants around him were brought out by Hu Xian, otherwise who knows how many people would have been scared to death.

He spent half a day reviewing memorials in Chengming Hall. As soon as he finished reviewing all the memorials for the day, he took out a piece of fine rice paper, wrote a few words on it with his imperial brush, and then drew a slash through it. In his eyes, the people on this list were already dead, and it all depended on Gu Cheng's efficiency.

In reality, he had the Shadow Dragon Guards under his command, so he had no use for Gu Cheng. However, since he had come to him, he was happy to take some time off. Furthermore, Gu Cheng had previously remained neutral, but now that he had something to ask of him, he had chosen to surrender. Officials often change their stance according to the situation, so perhaps those who had remained neutral would also follow Gu Cheng and pledge their allegiance to him.

He had to quickly gain firm control of the imperial court so that A Yan wouldn't suffer any injustice in the future. He had originally intended to settle accounts with the Northern Rong for Zhu Zhe's deployment against Gu Shiyan, and even considered personally leading the army. However, the ministers agreed to his dispatching troops to the Northern Rong, but refused to allow him to personally lead the army. Even the Queen Mother intervened to dissuade him, and as a result, Jing Ziping still hadn't completely conquered the Northern Rong to this day.

He saw that this matter was somewhat troublesome, and he was in great sorrow over Gu Shiyan's death at the time, so he was too lazy to argue with them about it, and the matter of the emperor personally leading the army was left unresolved.

Suddenly, Hu Xian walked in with Shangguan Jing. Mu Congmo looked up at his nominal mother, feeling somewhat puzzled. In order to avoid suspicion, she had never come to Chengming Palace on her own initiative before, so why did she come here today?

Shangguan Jing took the soup from Qingyan's hand and placed it on the table in front of Mu Congmo. She naturally saw Mu Congmo's puzzled look, but she ignored it. Instead, she said with concern, "The emperor hasn't eaten yet today, why not try this bowl of Ganoderma Lucidum and Poria Cocos Soup that I specially ordered to be prepared."

She reached out her bare hand, lifted the lid of the soup pot, and filled a bowl for Mu Congmo. She thoughtfully placed a jade spoon in the bowl, which looked emerald green against the pure white soup. Mu Congmo glanced at it indifferently, then casually picked up the spoon and took a few sips.

The common tactic used by women in the harem is to win favor with a bowl of soup. He has seen this kind of thing countless times in his father's harem. There are many women in the late emperor's harem, and sometimes there will be a spectacular scene of several concubines coming to Chengming Hall to deliver soup at the same time. He just wondered if the late emperor would get too full after drinking the soup.

Shangguan Jing had never set foot in Chengming Hall since he ascended the throne. As the saying goes, "One never visits a temple without a purpose." He presumably had something to ask of him today. Given Shangguan Jing's current status, even if she had something to ask of him, she wouldn't have needed to do something like this. But since she had done it, he'd give her a favor and have a few drinks.

"How come mother has time to come to Chengming Palace today?" Mu Congmo put on a fake smile. Over the years, Shangguan Jing has been persuading him to get over Gu Shiyan's death. Although he did not agree in his heart, he was still grateful for the other party's kindness, and now he was happy to do these superficial efforts.

After all, A Yan was back, and his mood became much better. He was also more patient when dealing with people. Otherwise, he would have driven the person away when Gu Cheng said the first sentence just now, and would not have had the idea of teasing the other person.

Seeing that Mu Congmo had only taken a few sips, he set the spoon down, the emerald green spoon making a crisp clinking sound against the white porcelain bowl. Whether or not the soup was finished wasn't important; what mattered was that Mu Congmo had drunk it. Having grown up in the palace, he naturally understood the significance of this bowl of soup. Now that he had drunk it, the rest of the process would be easy.