Chapter 98: Establishing an Heir Apparent.

On New Year's Eve, Chu Heng was to enter the palace early in the morning. Daiyu sat on the bed and, through the screen, instructed him: "After the commotion the other day, the Emperor and Empress Dowager will definitely not have a good New Year. You must be careful with your words and actions, so as not to incur their wrath."

Since the fire at Renshou Palace had been announced, it was no longer possible to pretend nothing had happened. The Empress Dowager hadn't had time to come up with a proper explanation or send a palace maid or eunuch out to take the blame. The Emperor, on the other hand, simply said that the Empress Dowager had accidentally dropped her hand warmer, which caused the small fire.

Everyone is seeking good fortune during the New Year, especially in the palace. However, the Empress Dowager personally caused a fire. Regardless of what outsiders say, the Empress Dowager herself was so angry when she heard what the Emperor said that she nearly fainted.

Chu Heng smiled reassuringly and said, "Don't worry about it. I'm not home today, so don't stay bored by yourself. Call someone in to keep you entertained."

Daiyu agreed and then said, "It's getting late, you should go."

Chu Heng looked in the mirror and saw that he was all ready. He then turned around the screen, spoke a few more words with Daiyu, and then left home to enter the palace.

Regardless of their private lives, the Emperor and Empress Dowager kept it out in the open. On New Year's Eve and the first two days of the Lunar New Year, they acted as if they were a loving mother and filial son, appearing no different from before.

Chu Heng was used to acting in such plays, but watching the emperor and empress dowager's every move, he still felt that he was far from adequate.

When Yongkang heard that Chuheng was present on the day of the Renshou Palace fire, he curiously asked about the incident on the third day of the Lunar New Year when he visited the residence to pay New Year's respects.

Chu Heng was puzzled: "Not a single room burned, so how did it become a fire?"

Yongkang shrugged: "That's what everyone's saying outside. Some people even say that Renshou Palace was mostly burned down. They're making it sound so real. If I hadn't been there just the other day, I would have believed it too."

Chu Heng and Daiyu exchanged a glance. The fact that this matter could spread so quickly and become increasingly exaggerated must have been largely due to the Emperor's encouragement.

Before the New Year was even over, the dispute between the Emperor and the Empress Dowager had already begun in full swing.

"I can't say anything about this," Chu Heng said seriously. "You'd better ask less, stay in your princess residence, and don't go to the palace unless necessary."

Seeing his reaction, Yongkang knew this was no simple matter, and hurriedly nodded solemnly: "Apart from paying my respects, I will not go to the palace for any other reason." She then turned to Chuheng, "Fifth Brother, you must be very careful in court."

Chu Heng exclaimed in surprise, "When did you start caring about me? You've really grown up. All my hard work over the years hasn't been in vain."

Yongkang rolled his eyes: "It's not like you've raised me all these years, Fifth Brother, you really can't speak properly."

Chu Heng smiled and said, "That's much more normal."

Yongkang was speechless for a moment, then looked at Daiyu: "Sister Lin, do you find Fifth Brother annoying?"

Before he could finish speaking, little Chu Yang in his swaddling clothes started crying. Yongkang was stunned: "No... can't Yang'er bear to hear me say anything bad about his father?"

Daiyu chuckled, "He's hungry again..."

As they were talking, the wet nurse came over and took little Chu Yang away to breastfeed him.

“Being hungry is one thing, but he's also unhappy with you, his little aunt.” Chu Heng raised an eyebrow. “My son, I know what he's thinking.”

Daiyu patted his hand: "You've brought Yang'er along again. You two siblings will bicker for a lifetime, and in the future, will you be taking care of your grandchildren?"

Upon hearing this, Yongkang immediately got goosebumps: "Sister Lin, that's a bit scary. I don't want to be a grandmother. That would be too old."

Chu Heng said, "Look at the Empress Dowager, she has been a grandmother for more than ten years."

Yongkang: "..."

This example is even more frightening.

After Xiao Chuyang was brought back after eating and drinking his fill, he showed no intention of going back to sleep, so Yongkang coaxed him for a while.

Yongkang also found children very interesting. He thought, "Everyone gets old eventually; the key is how to live this life well."

...

As soon as the imperial seal was opened in the first month of the lunar calendar, the Fang family submitted a memorial to the emperor requesting that he establish an heir as soon as possible to ensure the stability of the country. In accordance with the ancestral rules, the eldest son of the legitimate wife should be established as heir. The Fang family also suggested that the eldest son of the legitimate wife was the most suitable candidate for heir.

During the morning court session, the emperor presented the Fang family's memorial to the court officials for deliberation.

Most of the court officials were shrewd and could see that the emperor had no intention of establishing a crown prince at all. They all said that the emperor was in his prime, the princes were young and their abilities were unclear, and the succession was a matter of national importance, so they should not act rashly. It would be fine to wait a few more years.

Where there are smart people, there are also fools. The eldest patriarch of the Fang family stepped forward and said that it would be more beneficial to the stability of the country if the foundation of the nation were secured as soon as possible. He argued that the eldest prince had the right and ability and should be made crown prince.

Immediately, some people objected, saying that if one were to entrust the country to a ruler, one should choose a virtuous person, and the second prince was a more suitable candidate for crown prince.

The fools engaged in a war of words, and unanimously requested the Emperor to make a judgment.

The emperor, high above, gazed at the court officials below, each with their own thoughts, through his crown and pointed to the Left Censor-in-Chief, asking, "Minister Fu, what is your intention?"

Lord Fu is a smart man. Even if he wanted to establish the second prince, he wouldn't say it now. Therefore, he also belongs to the faction that disagrees with establishing an heir at this time.

Of course, he didn't leave a good impression on the emperor either.

The emperor himself chose his in-laws, so he naturally knew that the prince was a smart man. The fact that he did not recommend the second prince now was simply a matter of assessing the situation.

The court officials each took their positions. The emperor narrowed his eyes, wondering, "Who is on my side?"

The emperor memorized all these names, and finally turned his attention to Chu Heng.

"Prince Duan."

These words struck Chu Heng like a bolt from the blue. In this situation, no matter what answer he gave, the emperor would not be satisfied.

As for the current emperor, he already had a preconceived notion of everyone's stance in his mind, and he had his own interpretation of whatever anyone said.

Chu Heng slowly stepped forward and said slowly, "Your Majesty, I think..." He paused here.

The emperor tapped the armrest of his dragon throne, quietly awaiting Chu Heng's answer.

"I wish to resign from my position as Minister of Revenue and take my family to Qingzhou to assume my fiefdom," Chu Heng said in one breath, and promptly knelt down. "Please grant me permission, Your Majesty."

emperor:"……"

This was a response that was completely unexpected by the emperor. He had considered what kind of answer Chu Heng would come up with, and he had three pre-set answers. However, Chu Heng did not answer at all.

The emperor was not angry, which was both unexpected and reasonable, because Chu Heng was always good at using his status.

After all, he was the emperor's younger brother. As long as he didn't rebel, the emperor wouldn't do anything to him. It didn't matter if he was a little cunning or reckless, because the emperor would indulge him.

Moreover, the emperor understood that Chu Heng was not beating around the bush; in fact, he had already made his stance clear to the emperor: regardless of who the crown prince was, he was the emperor's man.

"Nonsense," the emperor said. "You are now an official of the court; you cannot treat this so lightly."

This was the most gentle and soothing thing the emperor had said since the morning court session began.

With Chu Heng's interference, the emperor conveniently dropped the matter of establishing an heir.

...

The 22nd day of the first lunar month was Xiao Chuyang's full moon, and neither Chuheng nor Daiyu planned to hold a grand celebration.

Although no grand banquet was held, all the gifts that were due were still received, and the palace still bestowed its usual honors, with the emperor's reward being the most generous.

"You little rascal, you're still so young, but we already need to clear out a warehouse for you." Chu Heng pinched Chu Yang's nose.

The little guy shook his tiny fist in his sleep, expressing his dissatisfaction that his dad was disturbing his sleep.

“He’s still not satisfied…” Chu Heng looked at Daiyu, “Yu’er, look at him, his father suffers while he enjoys the good life, and he still dares to be dissatisfied.”

Daiyu was combing her hair in front of the mirror when she heard this and laughed, "Then what should we do? He won't understand if you scold him now."

Chu Heng rubbed his son's belly through the swaddling clothes: "You little rascal, grow up quickly so your dad can teach you a lesson."

Daiyu laughed out loud: "If you say that, he won't dare to grow up."

Chu Heng got up and went to the mirror. He took the comb from Daiyu's hand and slowly combed her cascading black hair, saying with a smile, "Our child can't be so stupid, can he? Can't he think that he can only run away when he grows up and I have to discipline him?"

Daiyu laughed so hard she bent over, almost pulling the strand of hair Chu Heng was holding in his hand. After a while, she stopped laughing and looked at Chu Heng in the mirror with her eyes crinkling: "That makes sense, that makes sense. I'll tell him that in the future."

Chu Heng carefully tied up Daiyu's hair, since she wasn't going out, so he just casually put her hair up in a bun.

After instructing the wet nurse to watch over the soundly sleeping Chu Yang on the bed, the two sat down on the couch. Daiyu played with a jade hairpin she had taken from the dressing table and said, "The Empress Dowager must be very angry that the matter of establishing an heir failed."

"Judging from today's rewards, the Empress Dowager is quite angry with me." Chu Heng raised his hand and poured Daiyu a cup of water.

Since the emperor lukewarmly rejected the idea of ​​establishing an heir apparent in court, Chu Heng has not yet visited Renshou Palace to pay his respects. However, he has not heard that the Empress Dowager is ill either, so he must not be too angry with the emperor. After all, the emperor had already angered her once before the new year, so the Empress Dowager was mentally prepared.

Daiyu nodded and said, "Ever since the Empress Dowager was recuperating, she suddenly stopped liking you and me, but I don't know why."

“She didn’t mean to make things difficult for us last time, but who knows if she will this time,” Chu Heng said, frowning. “When we go to Renshou Palace to pay our respects next month, you absolutely must not be separated from me.”

Although Xiao Chuyang was already a month old, Chu Heng thought it best to be on the safe side, and since it was still cold, he asked Daiyu to rest in the house for a few more days and not go out until after the first month of the lunar calendar.

Daiyu smiled and said, "I've dealt with the Empress Dowager more than once or twice, it's nothing special."

Chu Heng shook his head: "In the current situation, neither the court nor the harem is stable. Who knows what kind of trouble the Empress Dowager will come up with to make things difficult for us?"

Daiyu glanced at the little one sleeping peacefully on the bed, and held Chu Heng's hand: "It's alright between you and me, but we need to be careful at home, Yang'er is still young."

Chu Heng said solemnly, "I have already instructed Eunuch Zhao, so don't worry, no one with ulterior motives will approach Yang'er."

Even so, since it involved children, Daiyu couldn't completely put her mind at ease.

However, they soon had nothing to worry about, because the Empress Dowager fell ill again.

It was still before the end of the first month of the lunar calendar. Chu Heng left Daiyu at home and went to the palace alone to pay his respects. Neither the imperial physician nor Shuang Yun revealed the Empress Dowager's condition to Chu Heng, but the Emperor had a medical record.

This time, the Empress Dowager was still angry, but not by the Emperor and Chu Heng, but by the Fang family.