Yan Lin didn’t get to see the Emperor. He was both furious and anxious, and felt that he couldn’t continue like this. He needed to think of a solution.
He hurried back to his residence and went to the second prince consort’s room. He asked Zhang Wan, "Did you receive a reply to the letter you wrote to your father?"
Zhang Wan shook her head, "Not yet."
Yan Lin’s face darkened, "It’s been so long. Why hasn’t there been a reply? Could it be that he hasn’t received it?"
Zhang Wan also felt it was unusual and speculated, "Your Highness, do you think the letter I sent to my father might have been intercepted midway? He might not have received it at all?"
Yan Lin immediately frowned, "Is that possible?"
Zhang Wan said, "Although the Zhang family’s secret agents have never let us down before, things are different now. In the past few months, the Rui’an King, the Eastern Palace, and Su Rong have been conducting intensive investigations, causing an upheaval in the Capital City. It’s hard to guarantee that the Zhang family’s secret agents haven’t been exposed. I’m afraid my letter to my father might have been intercepted. Otherwise, my father wouldn’t take so long to reply."
After all, the letter contained matter of great importance.
Capital City was far from Jibei, so unless someone deliberately sent the letter from Capital City to Jibei, it would take at least a year and a half for the news to reach there.
Yan Lin also felt that Zhang Wan’s speculation made sense. He immediately said, "Send someone to Jibei, send multiple messengers."
Zhang Wan nodded.
Yan Lin paced back and forth in the room, "Now, I don’t know what’s wrong with the Emperor, he seems to trust the Crown Prince more than ever. Then what was the point of him supporting my elder brother and me against the Crown Prince all these years? I tried to see him several times in the palace, even waiting outside Yangxin Hall, but I still couldn’t manage to meet him."
Zhang Wan comforted him, "Your Highness, the more turbulent the situation, the calmer you need to be. You mustn’t be impatient. Think about the Crown Prince. How many times has he also been turned away? He could always endure it, and you should do the same now. After all, the case of the Imperial Concubine doesn’t have much to do with us."
Upon hearing this, Yan Lin fixated on her, "Are you sure it has nothing to do with us?"
"No connection, do not worry, Your Highness." Zhang Wan confirmed.
Yan Lin’s unease lessened somewhat after Zhang Wan’s confirmation, "Then what do you think I should do now? Should I do nothing? Won’t that just give Yan Huisheng more power?"
"Now that the Crown Prince is in power, no matter what you do, it won’t make much difference. You can only not go wrong by doing nothing, not giving the Crown Prince anything to use against you. The more dire the circumstances, the more you should keep a low profile." Zhang Wan continued, "Remember what your father once told you, impatience won’t help. With your father backing you up, what do you need to be afraid of?"
Yan Lin thought about it and found her words reasonable. After all, his father-in-law controlled a military force not inferior to that of Duke Residence.
The elderly Duke learned that the Emperor had woke up, and he, accompanied by Zhou Gu, went to the palace to visit the Emperor.
The Emperor could ignore the princes and princesses, and those of imperial harem who were not implicated in the case. He could also dismiss court officials, but he could not afford to ignore the elderly Duke.
Therefore, as soon as the elderly Duke and Zhou Gu arrived outside Yangxin Hall, they were invited in after their arrival was announced.
The Emperor, assisted by attendants, sat up from the bed and said to the elderly Duke, "Elderly Duke, don’t worry. I am not seriously ill. I just caught a cold after going out of the palace late that night, it’s not a big deal."
The elderly Duke looked at the Emperor’s sickly face and the strong smell of medicine in the room. He thought that the Emperor who had been unconscious for two days and nights was still saying it was nothing serious. However, he would not expose the Emperor and he simply nodded, "It is indeed colder this winter than the previous years. A lot of people have caught a cold due to the heavy snowfall. Take care of yourself. Preserve the Dragon Body."
The Emperor nodded, "You’re right, Elderly Duke."
The Elderly Duke added, "According to me, the reason for Your Majesty’s weak constitution is a lack of exercise. If you exercised daily like me, for instance, by practicing your saber skills every morning, it would build your body and keep you healthy."
The Emperor coughed and said, "I have been somewhat lax in my training these past few years due to the heavy demands of state affairs."
"The Crown Prince and the other Princes are now adults. Why should Your Majesty have to bear the burden alone? They can share some of the state affairs." said the old Duke. "Your Majesty’s wellbeing is of paramount importance to our Daliang."
The Emperor didn’t like the first half of the Duke’s speech, but he very much liked the second half and so did not counter the old Duke. Suppressing his cough, he said, "The Duke is right. Recently, aren’t most of the state affairs taken care of by the Crown Prince? Although I am eager to help, my health prevents me from doing so."
The old Duke stroked his beard and commiserated over the Crown Prince’s hard work, "Ah, the Crown Prince has been terribly busy these days while the second and fourth princes, among others, are at leisure. I even saw them when I entered the palace just now. Your Majesty should let them share some of the work too."
The Emperor cast a doubtful gaze at the old Duke. If the Crown Prince took care of everything, wouldn’t it be exactly what the Duke wanted? Why then was he suggesting that Yan Lin and Yan Shen also share the workload?
He was unsure of the old Duke’s intentions at this moment.
The old Duke knew what he was suspecting, so he explained directly, "The Crown Prince hasn’t slept for two nights. Your Majesty may not have noticed due to your illness, but I have just seen him. Ah, although the future king shoulders great responsibilities, we should not work him to exhaustion. Therefore, I think the second and fourth princes are too idle."
The Emperor thought that Yan Li and Yan Shen were indeed idle. After all, weren’t their mothers implicated in a case? Wasn’t Yan Li, who was in the Crown Prince’s residence, the most idle one? He understood now that the old Duke was not saying that Yan Lin and Yan Shen were too idle, he was actually reminding him that this case had been dragged on for too long.
He nodded, "Indeed, it seems I need to assign them some tasks."
The old Duke bowed his head in agreement, "Yes, we can’t just let one person carry the burden."
The two of them went back and forth with their discussion, giving Zhou Gu, who was listening, a lesson on how a king and his subjects should converse.
A moment later, the Emperor’s gaze fell on Zhou Gu and he chuckled, "Well done, lad. To be ranked first, that’s very impressive. You have brought honor to Grand Tutor Qin and your grandfather."
Zhou Gu corrected the Emperor, "We shared the first place."
The Emperor replied, "Of course I know that. Nevertheless, you both did exceedingly well. I studied both of your papers and found it difficult to decide who was superior."
Zhou Gu smiled, "Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty."
The Emperor continued, "Remain modest and patient, and don’t get complacent just because you passed the examination. There is still the Palace Examination. Even if you don’t perform as well as Su Xingze does, I will not declare you as the Number One Scholar."
Zhou Gu fell silent upon hearing this, and turned to look at the old Duke.
At this time, the old Duke sighed and began, "Sire, there is a favor I must ask of you, and it is concerning this troublesome grandson of mine."
The Emperor looked at the pair of them. He had expected that their visit was not just a simple courtesy call; they had an ulterior motive. He then said, "What is it? Speak your mind!"
The old Duke sighed again, "He says he’s young and has spent many years reading in the Eastern Palace without experiencing the world, hence his knowledge is limited. Although he has ranked first in the examination, reading ten thousand books is not as beneficial as traveling ten thousand miles. To better perform his duties as an official in the future, he wishes to travel for three years and will not participate in the Palace Examination, thus not taking up a spot."
The Emperor frowned and looked at Zhou Gu, "Why haven’t I heard you mention this before?"
"I, too, have only recently found out. He didn’t dare say it before because Grand Tutor Qin had high expectations of him." replied the old Duke. "After he brought it up with me, I thought about it for a few days and decided his words were reasonable, so we have come to see you."
The Emperor asked, "Does the Crown Prince agree?"
Meeting the Emperor’s gaze, Zhou Gu nodded, "The Crown Prince agrees."
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