After hearing this, Long Yi was so angry that he didn't want to talk.
Fu Ciyi spoke up, "Prime Minister Cai's legitimate daughter is Long Yaodong's concubine. This is known to everyone in the court. Prime Minister Cai's understatement has truly astonished me."
Cai Tingzhou immediately panicked and defended himself, "The document appointing Long Yaodong as concubine only mentioned a daughter of the Cai family. Your Highness Prince Rui's words make me feel terrified."
After these words were spoken, many people whispered.
"The Cai family's legitimate daughter was the concubine of the late emperor's deposed crown prince. This is a well-known fact."
"Yes, it's because Prime Minister Cai exploited a loophole in the document that this happened."
"He's eager to protect his daughter."
"Do you still remember that Prime Minister Cai once wanted to recruit Lord Fu as his son-in-law? Now that Lord Fu has been reinstated, I wonder if Prime Minister Cai regrets having such a feud?"
The voices were very low, mostly just the ministers at the back of the queue discussing in a small circle.
It was difficult for the ministers who stood in front of the civil and military officials to hear it.
"You're right to be apprehensive," Fu Ciyi said calmly. "Prime Minister Cai knew that Cai Mushi was Long Yaodong's concubine. Long Yaodong's treason was an unforgivable crime, so Cai Mushi's crime should naturally be punished. From what I heard from Prime Minister Cai today, it seemed to me that Cai Mushi didn't directly participate in the treason, and therefore could escape death."
Cai Tingzhou quickly said, "Mu Shi has indeed never participated in any form of treason. When Long Yaodong was discussing conspiracies, he never let her participate."
Fu Ciyi smiled: "Everyone has heard it, right? What Prime Minister Cai said now shows that Cai Mushi is indeed staying in Long Yaodong's residence."
Cai Tingzhou choked.
He actually fell into Fu Ciyi's trap.
I had no choice but to keep quiet at this moment.
The only one to blame is Old Master Ling, because it was he who forced him to speak out.
You have to know that the world now belongs to Long Yi. No matter how unsettled Long Yi is in his position as emperor, he is still Fu Ciyi's father.
No matter how much Long Yi disliked Fu Ciyi, he still named him Prince Rui.
It can be said that the father and son of the Long family are the kings and they are the ministers.
When he should have stayed out of the spotlight, Old Master Ling, who had supported him in the past, happened to ask for something, so he stepped forward. Unexpectedly, the problem suddenly became so serious.
Fu Ciyi continued, "Of course, the reason Prime Minister Cai could use the Cai family daughter mentioned in the document as an excuse is because Long Yaodong himself did not want to take Cai Mushi as a concubine, so he was too lazy to write her name on the document."
"It's worth mentioning that Prime Minister Cai not only sent his legitimate daughter to Long Yaodong, but also sent a concubine's daughter after sending a daughter."
"At that time, Long Yaodong was still the nominal crown prince under the name of his uncle. For his future, Prime Minister Cai was really willing to invest."
"Prime Minister Cai's evasive remarks today seem to echo the same sentiments as his own daughter's guilt. He truly is a seasoned official."
Fu Ciyi's frank words made Cai Tingzhou's face turn pale and blue.
Cold sweat oozed from his forehead, and he repeatedly bowed to the emperor on the dragon throne: "Your Majesty, it is my fault for not teaching my daughter well."
He didn't want to say anything at this moment. With Fu Ciyi's mouth, he was afraid that he couldn't deal with it.
Not only would his daughter's life be at stake, but his entire Cai family's...
It's dangerous!
Fu Ciyi raised his eyebrows and asked, "I wonder if the Lords Ling have anything else to say?"
Among the Ling family members present, Old Master Ling is Ling Li’s brother, the father of Concubine Ling, and the grandfather of Long Lihui.
The remaining middle-aged men of the Ling family are all Long Lihui's uncles.
Old Master Ling snorted and took the lead, saying, "Your Majesty, the old emperor doted on Concubine Li, now the Empress Dowager. Because of this favor, Your Majesty was valued by the old emperor. You are now the supreme ruler, so you should understand the difficulties of this journey to sit on the throne."
The old emperor doted on Ling Li, which is why Long Yi has been in the spotlight since he was young. Now that Long Yi sits on the throne, he should be even more grateful to Ling Li.
Hearing this, Long Yi was furious.
It is a fact that the Ling family has military power.
When the military power of the Yan family was taken back, the emperor divided it into four parts, one of which was given to the Ling family.
If the Ling family only had a quarter of the military power, he, as the emperor, would not be afraid. However, the other quarter of the military power was controlled by the Lou family, the Ling family's in-laws.
That's why Old Master Ling can be so arrogant at this moment.
Suddenly, I thought of the Yan family, which has been the Duke's Mansion since the founding of the country. Although many Dukes in history have been so powerful that they frighten the emperor, in fact, the Yan family has never done anything out of the ordinary.
However, the fact that the current Duke Yan once opposed him becoming the crown prince is indeed hard to let go...
Apart from this, they can indeed be said to have been loyal from generation to generation.
The Ling family's behavior at this moment was really infuriating, and he immediately glanced at Eunuch Han.
There were some things that he, as the emperor, couldn't say. Eunuch Han was the head eunuch, representing him and allowing him to say things that he couldn't bring himself to say.
Eunuch Han understood and said, "The Emperor is kind and has always wanted to save the Ling family's reputation."
"Master Ling said so, but I cannot bear to hear it any longer. I was present when the truth was revealed yesterday, so please listen to it."
"Your Highness Prince Rui mentioned that Gu Zhongfang used the term 'fake eunuch'. I imagine you gentlemen were so focused on the status of the deposed Emperor and Empress Dowager that you overlooked this term, right?"
Upon hearing this, someone immediately said, "Yes, I thought I heard it wrong."
Eunuch Han cleared his throat and said loudly, "Gu Zhong is indeed a fake eunuch. He has been the concubine of the deposed emperor and the empress dowager for more than forty years. Imperial Physician Lu Tongfu was also a lover of the deposed emperor and the empress dowager. Imperial Physician Lu even kept a book recording their affairs."
His words were very serious, but they stunned all the officials in the court.
The Ling family man's face immediately turned ugly.
Eunuch Han continued in a loud voice, "Scandals shouldn't be publicized. The deposed Empress Dowager's infidelity to the old emperor is a royal secret. You should know that Gu Zhong is the son of the Ling family and was arranged by the Ling family to enter the palace. His identity as a fake eunuch has not been exposed for more than 40 years..."
After saying this, he turned the conversation over to the emperor.
Long Yi raised his eyebrows and said, "Since the Ling family is like this, then please let us judge for ourselves."
"The Ling family sent their daughter to the palace as a concubine, and secretly gave her a lover. What kind of thing is this?" The old prime minister frowned.
If the old emperor knew about this, he would probably be so angry that he would die.
Yan Cheng stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that someone with such character is truly unfit to be the Empress Dowager."
Although he and the Yan family were at odds, Long Yi nodded in satisfaction that Yan Cheng could say so at this moment: "Yeah."
Shi Yu also stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, not only is she unfit to take the position, she must be held accountable."
The Ling family has military power, so he wants to see whether Long Yi can still sit firmly on the throne after falling out with the Ling family.
Long Yi nodded again: "Yeah."
"Your Majesty!" Old Master Ling and the Ling family knelt down.
"The old minister's daughter, Consort Shu, and the Emperor were betrothed when they were young. The old Emperor made the decision at the time, which shows that the old Emperor has great trust in my Ling family."
"My sister must have known she was wrong in this incident. Your Majesty should just depose her from the position of Empress Dowager. She is old and cannot withstand any punishment!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
