"Father, please take care of your health." Zhu Zhi said with a worried expression.
“Yes, Father, Your Majesty’s health is of utmost importance. Several small countries have come to pay homage, and the Great Zhou is peaceful and prosperous. Your Majesty should take better care of your health.” The Third Prince, Zhu Chen, glanced at Wang Zhemao and said urgently.
Lu Xiaoyun stood there, listening to Zhu Zhi and Zhu Chen express their filial piety.
When it came to the old emperor's health, the two princes, who were usually at odds, surprisingly reached a consensus.
The second prince glanced at Lu Xiaoyun without making a sound, and said something indifferent like "Father, please take care of your health."
Only Lu Xiaoyun, the "Fourth Prince," remained indifferent, saying nothing.
"No problem." The old emperor waved his hand, not even glancing at Lu Xiaoyun, and said to Wang Zhemao, who was in a dilemma, "Present the memorial."
The third prince grabbed the hand hidden in his sleeve tightly.
After reading it, the old emperor's face darkened. He glanced at Lu Xiaoyun, who had remained silent since entering the hall, and asked Wang Zhemao, "Is the evidence conclusive?"
Wang Zhemao said, "Yes, Lian Yongyuan and his servants have confessed their crimes and we request Your Majesty to make a decision. In addition, another assassin who attempted to assassinate Prince An has also been captured."
The old emperor slammed the memorial in his hand down and roared, "Li Quan, give me an explanation!"
Li Quan trembled instantly, immediately knelt down with a thud, picked up the memorial from the ground with trembling hands, and cried out after reading it: "Your Majesty, this old minister is innocent! Every word in this memorial is a frame-up. On the day of the assassination, this old minister was drinking wedding wine at Prince An's residence. How could I have colluded with the assassins of the Fengyue Gang to assassinate His Highness Prince An?"
The old emperor looked at Lu Xiaoyun and asked in a deep voice, "Fourth Prince, this matter concerns you. What is your opinion?"
Oh, how does she see it? There are no seats for her here, she can only stand and watch!
Lu Xiaoyun took the memorial from Li Quan and read it from beginning to end. Wang Zhemao was indeed worthy of being the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review; his ability to fabricate stories was first-rate.
After reading it, she said calmly, "Father, whether it is a wrong or not, please ask Commander Xiao to go to Lian Yongyuan's and Li Quan's residences to search. If it is true, we will surely find evidence."
She paused, looking at Li Quan on the ground: "If not, then someone must have wronged Lord Li and Lord Lian. After all, in this matter, I am the one who was wronged."
The old emperor's gaze lingered on Lu Xiaoyun's face for a moment: "Hmm, if that's the case, Xiao Song, take two thousand men to search the Lian and Li residences. Make sure you search thoroughly. Whether there's any injustice or not, the investigation will tell."
Li Quan knelt down calmly. Lu Xiaoyun glanced over and knew that Li Quan had probably already cleaned things up. It was just a pity that Feng Yan would let him know what it meant to be "cry to heaven and earth but get no help".
Zhu Chen pursed his lips tightly; Li Quan and Lian Yongyuan were considered his men.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Xiao Song accepted the order and walked out of the palace.
"If there's nothing else, then the court may adjourn." The old emperor stood up, but suddenly fell backward, followed by a series of violent coughs.
"Father!"
"Father!"
Zhu Zhi and Zhu Chen spoke at the same time.
"Quickly, quickly summon the imperial physician!" Zhang Zhongwei shouted shrilly.
Lu Xiaoyun's lips curled up slightly. Oh, so the performance is about to begin.
The old emperor leaned half his body against Zhang Zhongwei, waving his hand and saying, "It's nothing, just an old ailment. The imperial physicians always say the same few useless things. How could I not know to take care of my health and get some rest!"
"Your Majesty, you fainted yesterday. Imperial Physician Jiang said that you must not overwork yourself. Your health is of utmost importance."
"Sigh! I'm getting old."
The old emperor sighed heavily and said to his anxious ministers, "I have been unwell recently. For the foreseeable future, Crown Prince Zhu Zhi will oversee the country, and the Third Prince Zhu Chen will assist in governing. All matters in the capital will be decided jointly by the Crown Prince and the Third Prince."
Zhu Zhi was initially delighted, but his face fell when he heard that "Zhu Chen would be the regent." His father still didn't trust him enough. He was the crown prince, and his father was unwell. Why not let him handle state affairs alone? Why put some damn Zhu Chen on the sidelines? It was really annoying.
It's because he doesn't have military power. Tomorrow he'll go see Ren Yong'an. That little vixen, how come he hasn't gotten Zhu Yu's military power for him yet?
waste!
The old emperor rose with Zhang Zhongwei's help: "That's enough, I'm tired too."
“Father,” Lu Xiaoyun said weakly, her hand pressed against her chest, unwilling to stand in this hypocritical court any longer. “The wound in my heart is aching slightly.”
Zhu Zhi and Zhu Chen both turned to Lu Xiaoyun, thinking to themselves, "Is your chest pain more important than Father's health? Aren't you going to see that Father is going back to rest?"
The old emperor stopped, looked at Lu Xiaoyun, and said coldly, "Since your injuries haven't healed properly, why aren't you resting? Why are you in such a hurry to come to court! Zhang Zhongwei, hurry up and summon Imperial Physician Jiang to examine Prince An's pulse!"
The chief eunuch, Zhang Zhongwei, responded with a "yes" and immediately went to summon Imperial Physician Jiang.
Lu Xiaoyun twitched her lips, her dislike was too obvious, and said, "No need, Father. Physician Jiang said that my injury can only be treated by resting. I will be fine after resting at home for a while. Thank you for your concern, Father."
Zhu Zhi looked up at Lu Xiaoyun and said coldly, "Heh, Fourth Brother, don't be so arrogant because of your youth. Getting an arrow in your heart is no small matter. You've only been recovering for a few days, why are you in such a hurry to come to court?"
Zhu Chen chuckled and said, "Fourth brother, the morning court of the Great Zhou doesn't necessarily require you, the Prince of An, to attend. You've been away from Shengjing for ten years, and there are some things you really can't get involved in. It would be better for you to go back to your residence, recover your health, and then attend court. Father will understand."
Lu Xiaoyun raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhu Zhi. Hadn't he been pinched hard enough? Hadn't he learned his lesson? But Zhu Zhi, let's put him aside for now.
She looked at Zhu Chen again and smiled slightly: "Yes, yes, Third Brother is absolutely right. It was I who did not take care of my health. I will go back to the manor to rest now. When I am strong and healthy, I will go to court again to share the burden with Father, Crown Prince and Third Brother."
"You! Zhu Yu, what nonsense are you spouting!" Zhu Chen's expression suddenly changed, and he looked up at the old emperor, only to find that the old emperor's face was terribly gloomy.
What does it mean that his "admonition was extremely correct"? What does it mean that he referred to himself as "your humble servant"? What does it mean that he "shared his burdens"?!
He was neither his elder nor the crown prince, so how dare he speak of lecturing him? He was neither the emperor nor the crown prince, so how dare he call himself "your subject" or "sharing his burdens" in front of him, who had not even been granted the title of king and was only the third prince?
This was not only a blatant mockery of him, but also an attempt to provoke his father's displeasure with him!
Zhu Yu is trying to kill him!
"Oh, right, right, I spoke too quickly. It's my fault, my fault. I'm sorry, Third Brother. I thought you were the Crown Prince." Lu Xiaoyun apologized very sincerely.
He then said to the Crown Prince, "Brother Crown Prince, I'm sorry, it's just that Third Brother is too conspicuous, and I was blind for a moment."
Upon hearing this, the expressions of all the civil and military officials present changed simultaneously. Prince An really dared to speak his mind.
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