Chapter 424: Each with His Own Thoughts
The second prince went in vertically and came out horizontally.
Cui Lin stood outside and only heard the sound of something heavy falling to the ground inside the hall, and vaguely heard Emperor An cursing. His good mood had long since disappeared. When he saw the Second Prince being carried out with blood all over his head and face, he became even more panicked. He wanted to step forward to ask, but was stopped by the guards in front of the hall.
"Your Majesty has ordered Minister Cui to wait here for an audience."
"The Second Prince..."
Cui Lin wanted to ask a question, but before he could open his mouth, his answer was pushed back harshly.
"Minister Cui, please follow the emperor's will."
Cui Lin reluctantly retreated, standing outside under the sun, watched closely by the palace guards. He wondered if something had happened to the Lu family. He wondered what he would do if Emperor An summoned him, but who would have thought that no one would summon him for a long time.
He stood in the scorching sun from the end of the morning court until after noon, when Grand Tutor Liang and Cao Dejiang came out of the hall.
"Grand Master..." Cui Lin quickly opened his mouth to inquire about the news.
Grand Tutor Liang gave him a cold look, saying "You'd better take care of yourself" before turning and leaving.
"Grand Master!" Cui Lin's face looked grim, and he had to turn his head to look at Cao Dejiang.
Cao Dejiang sighed, "Minister Cui, what a talent!"
He raised his finger towards Cui Lin with admiration, and without waiting for Cui Lin to speak, he put his hands behind his back and slowly followed Master Liang in front of him.
The two were close to each other, and Cao Dejiang was given a fierce look by Grand Tutor Liang.
Cao Dejiang said innocently: "What is this, Grand Tutor? I didn't do anything."
Liang Taishi had a toothache: "Why are you pretending? You are not a good person either."
Cao Dejiang rolled his eyes: "You are being unreasonable."
Grand Tutor Liang: “…”
Pooh.
Old man!!
Don't think he didn't see him flirting with that guy surnamed Xiao in the hall just now. Do you really think he's blind?
However, most of the censors were thick-skinned. Seeing Cao Dejiang's expression as if he didn't understand what he was saying, Liang Taishi was so angry that his head hurt. He threw his sleeves and wanted to leave, but he didn't expect Cao Dejiang to suddenly come forward.
"What Cui Lin did this time was immoral, and the Lu family has caused another terrible disaster. The Grand Tutor must be very troubled, but I find it a bit strange."
"The Privy Council has been investigating the Lu family for quite some time now, and even with Xiao Yan's methods, they haven't been able to find any solid evidence. Who would have thought that they would uncover everything in just a few days? Isn't that strange, Grand Tutor?"
Liang Taishi's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't show any expression on his face: "What do you want to say?"
Cao Dejiang laughed and said, "I'm just curious. Aristocratic families always protect their own people, but the Grand Tutor didn't even plead for the Lu family. What did the Lu family do to make you abandon them?"
Liang Taishi didn't expect Cao Dejiang to be so perceptive. He said coldly, "The Lu family has done evil and deserves what they have today."
"Really?" Cao Dejiang asked meaningfully.
Grand Tutor Liang didn't want to say anything more to the old fox in front of him. Besides, the Lu family couldn't hide some things for long. He didn't even bother to put on a show. He just started mockingly: "If Cao Gong is curious, why don't you ask Governor Xiao? Who knows the Lu family's affairs better than him?"
"But I feel sorry for you. You've thrown away your former dignity to help a eunuch like him. It doesn't mean he's truly sincere to you. Lord Cao, please don't let an eagle peck at your eyes."
After saying this, Grand Tutor Liang snorted coldly and left.
Cao Dejiang tilted his head and looked at his back with a slightly serious expression, but he did not believe the words of Liang Tai Shi's provocation.
His relationship with Xiao Yan was originally just a "personal relationship", which could not be considered sincere. He coveted the other person's unique copy and accepted the other person's favor. At most, he took the blame for that bastard twice.
It’s just that the Lu family…
What outrageous things did the Lu family do that could make old man Liang Guangqi give up the Lu family?
Cao Dejiang thought for a while with his hands behind his back. Xiao Yan was not easy to fool, Tang Ning was also very cunning, and his unlucky grandson was even more of an idiot. If he tried to get information from him, he would probably lose his pants.
Want to find out the news...
Cao Dejiang, who was originally planning to return home, turned around and went straight to the Ministry of Revenue.
Qian Baokun, who was packing things, suddenly sneezed.
…
Cui Lin stood outside the Imperial Dragon Terrace. Seeing that Xiao Yan had not come out, he still had hope in his heart. He thought that Emperor An might be discussing something with Xiao Yan, but who knew what would happen after a short while.
Yu Yanfeng, the deputy commander of the imperial guards, came over and was punished with thirty sticks. Even the imperial guards guarding Fengxi Palace were punished.
Officials from the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court entered the palace one after another, and several old princes from the royal family also entered angrily.
One after another, people were summoned by Emperor An and entered the hall, and one after another, people came out.
The sun above his head had gone from being at noon to starting to set in the west. The people from the imperial kitchen even delivered two small meals to the Imperial Dragon Terrace, but Cui Lin was still standing outside.
His face was sunburned and his forehead was covered with sweat. His legs were weak and he was about to fall.
As soon as he wanted to move, the guards came forward.
"Minister Cui, His Majesty has ordered you to wait here."
"I'm in a hurry..."
"Your Majesty, please don't make things difficult for us, Minister Cui."
"I want to see His Majesty..."
"Minister Cui, please wait for your Majesty's summons."
“…”
Cui Lin looked at the man who was blocking his way with his hand, and then looked at the guards around him who were staring at him with murderous eyes. Even a fool would know that something was wrong.
Emperor An did it on purpose.
Cui Lin licked his dry lips with an ugly expression. He wanted to curse but couldn't directly disobey the order. He endured the exhaustion, retracted his foot, and continued to stand.
Seeing this, the man retreated back to the shade of the corridor.
…
Inside the Imperial Dragon Terrace, Emperor An didn't want to see Cui Lin outside at all. He hadn't been so busy for a long time. After summoning everyone, he just felt very weak.
Eunuch Feng poured tea for him and stood behind him to pat his shoulders. Only then did Emperor An wave his hand and let everyone leave.
Only Emperor An and Xiao Yan were left in the hall.
Emperor An looked at Xiao Yan and said, "What do you think about the Lu family's affairs?"
Xiao Yan raised his eyes and said, "The Lu family's crimes are unforgivable. If Your Majesty shows any leniency, I'm afraid people all over the world will criticize them."
Emperor An still had hesitation in his eyes.
Xiao Yan said bluntly, "I would like to ask, Your Majesty, why is you so lenient with the Lu family?"
Seeing that Emperor An remained silent, he said, "The reason Your Majesty is so cautious is simply because Your Majesty has a weakness that could fall into the hands of the Lu family, and they are afraid that the Lu family will be desperate and endanger Your Majesty. However, Your Majesty indulged the Lu family in previous matters and was able to cover it up with the relationship between monarch and subject. But what about this time?"
"What Queen Lu did is a grave crime no matter where you look. If the Lu family had confessed earlier, at most His Majesty could have secretly dealt with the Queen and her son, and the matter would have been over."
"Yet they chose to deceive the emperor, and now the whole court is in an uproar. What reason can Your Majesty have to forgive the Lu family?"
Emperor An felt extremely disgusted when he thought of the Lu family, but he could not tell anyone about the Lu family's affairs, even if he trusted Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan naturally understood that Emperor An didn't dare to speak, and he didn't intend to get to the bottom of it. He was silent for a moment and whispered:
"I don't know how Your Majesty intends to deal with the Lu family, but the Lu family has already turned against Your Majesty and must not be allowed to stay."
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