Gu Tingchen's eyes turned cold, and he lowered his head nonchalantly to play with the ring on his thumb, not paying any attention to his father at all.
Gu An was furious when he saw this. He knew that his son was blinded by power and was too lazy to argue with him. The car suddenly fell silent.
Arriving at the Cining Palace, Empress Dowager Gu had just finished dinner. Seeing her nephews and grandnephews coming over, she smiled and ordered Zhou Fuhai to seat them and serve them tea. Then she slowly said, "Gu An, today I have conferred upon Tingchen the title of King of a Different Surname. Is there any movement in the court or the country?"
Gu An shook his head in dismay: "Aunt, you are now in power. Even if someone is dissatisfied, they dare not criticize you."
"That's true." Queen Mother Gu nodded in satisfaction. "In that case, my wish to rule the country is in accordance with the will of Heaven and the people."
"Aunt, who on earth is so ill-intentioned as to persuade you to attend the court?" Gu An frowned and said, "The northern border is in danger right now. The entire court should be united in fighting the enemy. Yet, someone is urging you to attend the court at this time. This is clearly a sinister intention."
"Father, this is wrong."
Gu Tingchen disagreed and said, "Grandma has been in charge of government affairs for Your Majesty for decades. If Your Majesty had not been brought out of the Northern Capital and helped him ascend the throne, he would have been killed by the rebel army long ago. It is all thanks to Your Majesty's painstaking efforts that the Daye Dynasty has been in turmoil these years. However, the old emperor has always listened to the instigation of treacherous and stingy people, and has gradually become alienated from Your Majesty. Now, only Your Majesty can maintain the unity of the court."
"Balancing the political situation at court is the duty of every emperor. What emperor would want to see one power dominate the court?" Gu An said unhappily, "Stop your lies and sow discord between the Queen Mother and His Majesty."
"In my opinion, Gu An, you are becoming more and more confused as you grow older."
Empress Dowager Gu was already very displeased: "Tingchen is right. What kind of person is Prince Yongning? He is Taizong's bloodline, so his heart must be different. But the emperor is so stubborn that he insists on welcoming him to Lin'an. What is his intention?"
With a long sigh, she slowly straightened up and fiddled with the newly-delivered peonies on the table. "Back then, our great-grandfather fought hard to conquer the world and challenge the powerful, but he died halfway through. Emperor Taizong relied on his military power to steal the throne, and it was his due. He died just two years after conquering the country. If Empress Xiaorenduan hadn't forced Emperor Taizong to issue a will that allowed the younger brother to succeed the older brother, how could our Chengzu lineage have survived for over ten generations? Now that we've rashly welcomed back Emperor Taizong's offspring, how could Prince Yongning let the Chengzu bloodline go?"
"If Auntie doesn't trust Prince Yongning, she could just support another member of the royal family. Why risk the wrath of the world and invite further criticism?"
Gu An bluntly remonstrated, "Although our Gu family has been powerful over the years, the person sitting on the throne is still surnamed Fu. If my aunt takes her place, it will only cause greater instability among the people."
After a brief moment of contemplation, he immediately said, "I have heard that Prince Yan's second son is quite intelligent. Why not bring him back to Lin'an and make him the heir to the throne?"
"Prince Yan was demoted. I heard that his wife died of illness during exile. The hatred for killing his mother is irreconcilable. If I bring his son back to Lin'an, it will be the biggest threat to our Gu family."
Looking at Gu An, Gu Tingchen said in a deep voice, "Father claims to be the pillar of the Great Ye Dynasty. If the day ever comes when our Gu family is overthrown, no one in this world will remember your loyalty. They will only regard us as relatives who abuse power and disrupt the government. We will be criticized anyway. It is better for you to help your aunt build a foundation that will last for thousands of years and ensure the immortality of our Gu family."
"Asshole," Gu An said angrily, "Is there any precedent in the history of the dynasties where a woman ruled and her descendants had a good end?"
Kneeling down suddenly, Gu An said earnestly, "Aunt, I beg you to put the overall situation first and return power to Your Majesty. Although this kind of confrontation between civil and military officials is not good for our Gu family, it can dispel Your Majesty's doubts..."
"Gu An, you've truly failed my family's years of painstaking cultivation of you. Your wisdom and insight are far inferior to your son's."
Queen Mother Gu's face was filled with irritation. "You look down on women, and on this old woman like me, with such disdain. Have you ever thought carefully about who has given you your current wealth and glory? Without this old woman like me, you might have become a powerful official in the Daye Dynasty."
Gu An knocked his head heavily to the ground, tears streaming down his face as he said, "Your Majesty, I am grateful for your kindness. For the future of the Gu family, I beg you not to risk the wrath of the world by proclaiming yourself emperor."
Queen Mother Gu was extremely disappointed with him and said in a deep voice, "Go away. I have made up my mind. I hope you will never regret it."
Looking at her aunt's resolute eyes, Gu An felt hopeless. She glanced at Gu Tingchen silently, then stood up and left with the palace maid in disappointment.
When the room was quiet, Queen Mother Gu sat back on the soft couch, looked at the Gu brothers with a smile, and said softly, "Tingzhou, your father is confused, you must not follow his lead. I hope you can be like Tingchen and serve me well in the future."
Gu Tingzhou looked at Gu Tingchen with disdain. He could no longer find any appropriate words to describe his fellow brother.
I really underestimated him before. He actually encouraged my aunt to become emperor. He really has evil ambitions.
"Aunt, my grandson has come to the palace today for only one thing," Gu Tingzhou said bluntly, "I beg you to withdraw the marriage decree."
"What did you say?" The hope that Queen Mother Gu had just ignited in him was instantly extinguished: "I will give you one more chance. Say what you just said again."
Gu Tingzhou knelt down and said righteously, "Aunt, please withdraw your order for the marriage."
"Drag him out and let me beat him until he surrenders."
As soon as Empress Dowager Gu finished speaking, Gu Tingchen slowly raised his arm to stop the palace maids from coming forward.
Queen Mother Gu was stunned: "Tingchen, what do you want to do? Are you going to protect this evil creature?"
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