"So what?" The emperor gave an answer that surprised everyone. "As an emperor, I can't just arbitrarily interfere in the family affairs of my ministers. If the eldest son of the main branch has the ability to produce evidence in the future, I will enforce the law impartially. If he dies far from home, am I supposed to disregard the court and exterminate the Fang family?"
The powerful and influential Fang family had fallen from grace after being implicated in the imperial examination fraud, the crime of deceiving the emperor, and Fang Yuan's attempt to instigate the rebellion of the Zhu and Tao families. It was not something that the imperial family could easily step forward to uphold justice for.
But Fang Heng is such a young child, imprisoned and bound in the distant Anshui County, and wandering from place to place. Can we really just stand by and do nothing?
If meritorious officials knew that their descendants would be exiled in this way, would they still fight and kill on the battlefield?
How can a person be so cold-hearted!
Chang Yan clenched his fists, filled with resentment.
"You're angry." The man on the dragon bed suddenly laughed. "But my son, if Fang Heng weren't your third brother, and you didn't have any acquaintance or relationship with him, would you care about what happened in the Fang family?"
Chang Yan's body tensed up again, and the hairs on his back stood up, with a slight cold sweat breaking out.
He really does know everything.
Knowing that the Fang family had been wronged, and knowing the relationship between Changyan and Fang Heng, did he also know about those five years, and the storms Changyan stirred up behind the scenes?
"Countless noble families throughout Fengjing are always embroiled in injustices, big and small." The man remained calm. "The eldest daughter of the Meng family bullies the illegitimate daughter, the head of the Li family favors his concubine over his wife, and the head of the Zhou family is licentious. But as long as they are diligent in their official positions, why should I interfere in their private lives?"
"You are close to Fang Heng and therefore speak out for the Fang family, but why don't you help the illegitimate daughter of the Meng family, support the legal wife of the Li family, or restrain the head of the Zhou family?"
Ultimately, people only care about a few close friends and family members; they can't be fair and impartial in everything.
The decline of the Fang family's eldest branch stemmed from General Fang's death on the battlefield. The second branch then schemed to seize power, resorting to any means necessary that even the emperor despised.
But how can a wolf's ambition be formed in a day? The first wife and her husband failed to guard against and protect themselves, so who can they blame?
Survival of the fittest.
Fengjing has never been a stage for naive and innocent girls to play with their skirts, but rather an arena for countless schemes, plots, and tricks.
With the second branch of the family consolidating its power and control, the first branch almost disappeared. How could the emperor possibly uphold justice for a mere family and confront a powerful clan head-on?
There are many kinds of love in this world, but they also have limits.
Just as Xu Mo prefers the common people, Fang Heng prefers the generals and the masses, Wen Zhiyun cares more about the poor and suffering, and Jiang Sheng cares more about her aunts and uncles.
The emperor's love was too scattered; he only cared about the overall people's livelihood and survival, who could benefit the people in their official positions, and who made great contributions to the country.
To be honest, there's a bit of pragmatism involved.
Upon closer examination, there's nothing wrong with it.
Even Fang Heng himself couldn't gather evidence, so filing a complaint with the emperor at the gates of the capital was like children playing house.
Being at the top can be lonely, and sometimes it's hard to distinguish right from wrong. Perhaps we can't entirely blame him.
"Of course, I must also admit that I have a cowardly nature." Tian Jia said seriously, "From my childhood sweetheart becoming a concubine to the decline of the Yan family, I did not have enough courage and determination to protect this dynasty with trepidation."
“I am afraid that I will not be able to protect the dynasty built by my ancestors, I am afraid that I will not have the courage to expand the territory like my father, and I am even more afraid that history will record me as incompetent and foolish.”
Cowardice is a personality trait, but it is also a drawback brought about by the long-standing power and influence of a prominent family.
The differences in the personalities of different monarchs created a variety of dynastic landscapes.
"I try to protect this dynasty by playing both sides, and the feeling of being constantly constrained is not pleasant. I know everything, but I can't change anything. The only thing I can do is to choose the most suitable successor for this dynasty."
The man's eyes suddenly softened, a hopeful light shining in them. "Xiao Wu, you're very good. You're perfect for the job."
This was an affirmation, but the long banquet was not joyful.
From the moment his relationship with Fang Heng was revealed, he had a premonition that the Tian family knew everything about his years of wandering and hardship.
He even stirred up trouble upon returning to the palace, trying to win over the Jiang, Dou, and He families.
So what about the power struggles and infighting among the princes? What did he consider that?
Raising Gu poison, huh?
In the Miao region, there are people who raise Gu (a type of poison) to create deadly weapons. They use countless insects to kill each other, leaving behind a single, ferocious Gu that can devour everything.
Today's emperors allow their sons to fight and kill each other, all in order to select the best successor.
The behavior was not wrong, but the method was somewhat cruel.
Perhaps in the heart of the imperial family, the only child they truly loved was the eldest prince, Zhu Changhong; everyone else was merely an object, a vessel, or a venomous insect chosen through bloodshed and fighting.
Chang Yan raised the corners of his mouth, clearly smiling, but felt an emptiness in his heart.
People are strange. From the perspective of ordinary people, he could be considered a good emperor. From the perspective of aristocratic families, he was a bit too cowardly. From Zhu Changhong's perspective, he was a loving father. From the perspective of his other children, he was truly despicable.
Perhaps Changyan should be grateful that he was the victorious Gu worm, rather than the Gu King's whetstone.
But he felt no more emotion towards his father.
“You may resent me; I was indeed not a good father to you.” Tian Jia seemed to see right through him. “But I am handing this empire over to you. I hope you will remember the mission and responsibility of the Zhu family.”
"Changyu is like a tiger plotting with the Fang family; his nature is too sinister to be a wise ruler. The fourth son is timid and cowardly, just like me. Hong'er is spoiled and has lost his sense of proportion. Only you... only you are the most suitable."
He suppressed his cough, a look of weariness appearing on his face. "So Yan'er, go with peace of mind. Go and have Vice Minister Jiang reinstate the establishment of a crown prince, go and build your crown prince residence, go and cultivate your own confidants and manpower, go and suppress all dissent, and go and stabilize this vast country."
"With Scholar Xu around, you won't act recklessly; with the eldest daughter of the Jiang family around, you won't indiscriminately kill innocent people."
"Go, go..."
His voice grew softer and softer until he fell into a deep sleep.
A faint breath echoed in the hall, and the faint smell of blood testified to her frailty.
Chang Yan recalled Wen Zhiyun's hesitation, which must have meant that he already knew about the Emperor's health condition.
Thinking back to our heartfelt conversation, I felt a mix of emotions.
His father's image in his heart was constantly shifting, from weak and useless to quite shrewd, from indifferent and incompetent to cunning and scheming. He picked up the respect for the emperor, but could not truly love him from the bottom of his heart.
Even though she knew her father was unwell, she couldn't offer him much care or concern.
All he could do was clasp his hands together and say with basic respect, "Your subject withdraws."
There is no father-son affection between them, only inheritance and responsibility.
If Changyan hadn't been quite capable, perhaps someone else would have been the one to survive as the Gu King.
The night was as dark as ink, and Steward Wu was still waiting outside.
The guards returned at some point and followed timidly behind.
After Chang Yan nodded in acknowledgment, he got up and headed back to the West Three Palaces. But under the streetlight at the corner, he saw an old friend he had almost forgotten.
A person whose paths crossed in Anshui County, and who parted ways at the city gate, and whom they had not seen for four years.
"Dr. Wu..."
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