Chapter 471 The Emperor's Decision
Teng Wenfu told the emperor exactly what Lu Qinniang had said.
After hearing this, the emperor was silent for a long time before he sighed softly, "It's good that she didn't blame me."
"Qi Niang is very understanding and understands your painstaking efforts." Teng Wenfu bowed and replied.
"That's good. It's not easy for her to take care of four children." The emperor's tone was filled with a barely perceptible trace of pity.
Teng Wenfu pondered for a moment and carefully told Lu Qiniang that she was determined to go to Qiongzhou with Xiao Yan.
"Isn't this nonsense?" The emperor frowned, his face full of disapproval. "Originally, I was planning to find her another suitable person if I see one."
After all, Xiao Yan was destined to be imprisoned in Qiongzhou for the rest of his life and never be able to return.
"I tried to persuade her, but she's stubborn. Once she's set her mind to something, I'm afraid nothing can change her mind." Teng Wenfu observed her expression and said, "I think maybe after she leaves, she'll miss her children in the capital and come back."
He was very worried that the emperor would not allow Lu Qiniang to go with Xiao Yan.
Unexpectedly, after a moment of silence, the emperor said with some sadness: "...If that's the case, I'm afraid I won't be able to see her again in my lifetime..."
Upon hearing this, Teng Wenfu knelt on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, you will surely live a long life."
"Get up," the emperor said calmly, "The two extra years I have now are also thanks to Qi Niang. I haven't lost anything. I'm just worried..."
He didn't say anything else.
But Teng Wenfu understood that the emperor was talking about the prince.
Needless to say, the emperor has feelings for the prince, but he is not a tyrant after all.
He had already seen that something was wrong with the prince.
Not to mention anything else, in the case of Xiao Yan, the prince did not show the due mercy, and even couldn't wait to add insult to injury.
This is not what a wise ruler does.
"Zhang Heyao, are you very close to the prince?" the emperor suddenly asked.
"I don't know," Teng Wenfu said thoughtfully, "but since Lord Zhang saved the Crown Prince's life, I think it's reasonable for him to be closer."
"I don't know," the emperor murmured, "whether Zhang Heyao had instigated this matter."
Others may not understand the meaning of this, but Teng Wenfu has followed the emperor for many years and has become a worm in the emperor's stomach.
"I guess there is," he said, "otherwise, there wouldn't be any conflict between His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Xiao Yan."
The emperor just wants to find someone to shift the blame.
"Zhang Heyao is the same." The emperor frowned. "They have already married, but they can't bear to see Qi Niang live a good life. If he didn't have some ability, I would have killed him long ago-"
"Your Majesty, even an incorruptible official cannot judge family affairs. Qi Niang was so kind, but now, Lord Zhang, I heard, has a strained relationship with the princess, and it's inevitable that he'll recall the past and feel uneasy."
"It's good to abandon my mother. He divorced his wife and remarried first, and he still has the nerve to slander her in front of the prince."
The emperor indeed diverted his anger.
Teng Wenfu thought to himself, he knew this would happen.
The emperor is wise, brave, generous and kind in other matters, but he is always confused when it comes to the crown prince, the most important matter of a country's heir.
——The emperor and the late queen had a very good relationship, so he wanted to make up for what he owed to the late queen through their son.
However, the emperor is a person who clearly distinguishes between public and private affairs.
Although he was unhappy with Zhang Heyao's behavior, he would not dismiss him from office for this.
After all, Zhang Heyao will continue to be the prince's right-hand man and a loyal minister in the future.
The emperor was comforting himself that the prince was only bewitched by Zhang Heyao and was only targeting Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan's background has doomed him to have no chance of recovery.
I'm afraid this matter will end in nothing, but it will still leave a thorn in the emperor's heart.
"Are Zhang Heyao and the girl from the Prince of Zhenbei having a bad relationship now?" the emperor asked again.
"It's probably not good. Didn't the censor impeach Lord Zhang for keeping a mistress a few days ago?"
If the relationship is good, this kind of thing will not happen.
"Didn't Zhang Heyao deny that? Does he still dare to deceive you?"
"Of course I wouldn't dare. But the concubine was indeed sent away, and I heard that she left behind a son. This is probably something the princess cannot tolerate."
The emperor frowned, "It's really absurd to mess up the order of seniority. I'll give Zhang Heyao a private reprimand someday. If he doesn't want to give face to the monk, he has to give face to the Buddha. By doing this, where does he put the Prince of Zhenbei?"
"Your Majesty is right."
Teng Wenfu agreed, thinking to himself that the emperor was very busy and had to worry about so many things.
I guess it's just talk and will be forgotten soon.
"Teng Wenfu."
"The old slave is here."
"In two days, go to Qi Niang's house again. Don't tell her that I asked you. Just treat it as a private visit and see if Qi Niang has changed her mind." The emperor had a complicated expression.
If Lu Qiniang really wanted to follow Xiao Yan...
It is necessary to see her again before she leaves.
An unspeakable sadness rose in the emperor's heart.
The upcoming separation may very well be the last time we see each other for the rest of our lives.
He really doesn't have much time left.
Not only Lu Qinniang, but also many others, whom I may only see once for the rest of my life, or even never see at all.
Thinking of this, the emperor suddenly said, "Teng Wenfu, do you think I should summon the Prince of Yan and his men to the capital this year?"
Even if he doesn't like her, she is still his own flesh and blood.
If you can meet once, then meet once.
It was also a good opportunity to give him a warning in person, so that he would behave himself and assist the prince wholeheartedly.
"Your Majesty has not seen the princes for a long time. It is a wonderful thing to reunite with your family."
Teng Wenfu now follows the emperor's orders in everything.
Because the emperor is surrounded by not only him, but also others.
Among those people, there are many spies of the prince.
As the saying goes, a new emperor appoints new ministers. After the emperor passed away, Teng Wenfu had to retire.
He just wanted to escape unscathed.
"Let me think about it again." The emperor stood up and said, "Let's go to Longtao Pavilion and take a look."
The position of Xiao Yan, the chief academic officer of the Imperial College, has become vacant, and there is an urgent need for an upright, open-minded, and knowledgeable person to take it.
When the emperor walked outside Longtao Pavilion, he heard a clear and gentle teaching voice coming from inside. It was the fifth young master Zhou Xiaoyao.
The emperor raised his hand to stop the eunuch who was about to report, and stood quietly outside the door to listen.
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