Liu Mu stood in front of the hall, his figure towering like a mountain and a sword. His servants had already surrounded the place. Liu Mu looked coldly at Liu Chu who had the courage to step into his house to lobby, frowning, with a look of impending disaster: "The Lu family dared to search my house, which means they don't take me seriously. Why do you say that I deliberately provoked hatred between the two sides?"
The staff was so anxious that they were sweating profusely: "This, this... Lu Jia Erlang has been missing for four or five days. I'm afraid he is in danger. The Lu family can't wait any longer..."
Liu Mu said sternly: "Can't you wait to search my mansion? I know that you are all afraid of the noble families, and you have made your own families lose their confidence and have no royal style at all. But I am different from you. Who dares to search my mansion without my approval?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the guards on all sides drew their swords, and there was a cold and murderous aura on their faces.
The staff then remembered that this young Prince Hengyang had also come from the battlefield. He was full of blood and blood, and was indeed different from the ordinary young masters of Jianye.
Seeing that Liu Mu was about to order the killing of this talkative staffer, Liu Chu slowly said: "The Lu family wants to search your mansion, of course, there is some evidence."
Liu Mu's eyes were like lightning, piercing coldly at His Royal Highness Prince Chen, who stood in front of the hall. He looked gentle and delicate, but in fact, he showed no fear under the cold light of his sword. Liu Mu narrowed his eyes. Before he opened his mouth, Prince Chen's words reminded the staff member he brought with him. The staff member came back to life and nodded repeatedly: "Right! The Lu family wants to search the Hengyang Palace because they found something. It is true that Lu Erlang kidnapped the Taoist priests you were going to send to Taichu Palace, and it is true that those Taoist priests are now missing. It is also true that your mansion suddenly changed its guard. The Lu family suspects that someone in your mansion has disappeared inexplicably... Of course, we don't believe it! But in order to clear the suspicion of Your Highness, we have to let the Lu family search it."
Liu Mu's heart skipped a beat.
It was during this brief pause that the subtle change in his expression was caught by Chen Wang Liu Chu. Liu Chu said softly, "If this matter is brought to the attention of the emperor, he will also blame you."
Liu Mu felt as if he had been hit by a heavy punch. His face tensed and his muscles shrank so much that his entire face was distorted. He looked coldly at Prince Chen - Liu Chu had touched upon his most troubling concern. Now that he knew that the Emperor wanted to kill him, if this matter reached his brother, who knew that he would use this as an excuse to hand him over to the aristocratic family for punishment.
Liu Mu was disdainful in his heart, but he knew that the old emperor could sit firmly on the throne because of the full support of the aristocratic families. Imperial power was a very complicated thing, and the old emperor would give the aristocratic families some face appropriately so that both sides could live in peace. And of course, he, Liu Mu, must be the one who was sacrificed.
Liu Mu said calmly, "Prince Chen came to me just to persuade me to put aside my dignity as a prince, let the Lu family search my house, and make up some random charges to convict me?"
He sneered, "Could this be what my royal brother meant?"
Liu Chu's eyebrows jumped slightly, sensing the dissatisfaction with His Majesty in the words of the Prince of Hengyang. This incident left a mark in his heart, and he would ponder it later, but he would not use it to make a fuss at the moment. Liu Chu said: "I am here to mediate between you two. Little uncle, please rest assured, I am watching here, the Lu family cannot wrongly accuse you; and you, cannot wrongly accuse the Lu family."
Liu Mu remained silent.
He was shaken for a short time - it was impossible for the Lu family to find any trace of Lu Erlang in his house, because the man was already dead. What he was afraid of was that the Lu family would frame him. Moreover, as a prince, his house was searched by the ministers. Even though he knew that the family was powerful, Liu Mu's self-esteem made him unacceptable.
He hated the aristocratic families in his heart.
But he knew Prince Chen. Among his brother's sons, Prince Chen was very low-key. He did a lot but said little. And what he did was nothing more than resettling refugees, arranging official positions for poor people, and building water conservancy projects, which had nothing to do with fighting for the throne, so his brother trusted this son. Although this person did not fight for the throne, he was very purposeful in doing things, and Liu Chu would not usually show up if there was nothing useful to do. On the contrary, Liu Chu's appearance here meant that this matter had to go on, and he could not resist.
Right now, Liu Chu just has to ensure that within a certain range, both the Lu family and the Hengyang Palace can get through safely.
Liu Mu was still hesitating whether to trust Liu Chu, but outside his wide-open gate, soldiers and horses were already pouring in. The young master of the Lu family came forward, wearing a long hat and a long robe, and said loudly: "Your Highnesses, haven't you come to an agreement yet? The Lu family can't wait any longer."
Liu Mu and Liu Chu, the uncle and nephew, looked over and saw that a member of the Lu family, who was an official in the court, led the troops and surrounded the Hengyang Palace. The young man from the Lu family had a look of aloofness and reserve unique to the children of aristocratic families. He nodded to the unpleasant-looking Hengyang Prince and said, "We have searched the other mansions that the Lu family suspected, but no suspicious evidence was found. Now the Hengyang Palace is the only one left. Please make way for us to search it and give you a clear conscience."
Liu Mu said calmly: "What if you don't find anything?"
The young master of the Lu family said indifferently: "If we don't find it, the Lu family will come to your house to apologize to you someday."
Liu Mu was irritated by the pride in the Lu family. Liu Chu was speechless and could not stop them. Liu Mu was already laughing in anger: "We searched the wrong palace, and in the end, we were just asked to apologize. The Lu family is really arrogant and doesn't take our Liu family name seriously. If you treat me like this today, will you search the palace if you suspect His Majesty one day?"
The Lu family's young master's expression changed subtly.
In fact, the relationship between the imperial power and the noble families is very delicate. Everyone knows it tacitly and tries their best to maintain friendship. However, this friendship is extremely fragile. Because the noble families are unwilling to make concessions and the royal family wants to seize power, the conflict between the two sides will sooner or later erupt. When the Prince of Hengyang pointed out this contradiction, the young master of the Lu family, who brought people to search the Prince of Hengyang's mansion, was immediately embarrassed and annoyed.
Finally, the young master of the Lu family decided not to play tricks with the King of Hengyang anymore and directly signaled the soldiers behind him: "Search!"
The King of Hengyang was furious: "How dare you!"
The troops of both sides met immediately, and the troops brought by the Lu family and the attendants of the Hengyang Palace fought together. Liu Mu also drew out a long sword and rushed into the enemy camp. Chen Wang Liu Chu's eyelids twitched slightly, and his heart sank secretly. When the battle started, he retreated with his staff in time to avoid being mixed in. Liu Chu sighed in his heart, thinking that the little uncle had a bad temper and could not tolerate humiliation. The Lu family wanted to search the Hengyang Palace, and the situation was finally out of control.