In the end, Grandpa Gu did not accept it, only asking that the Empress Dowager would support the children in the future.
If their entire family were to be princes, marquises, princesses, and duchesses, even the emperor would become suspicious, and that would be troublesome.
The Empress Dowager had her own plans. In any case, she wanted to make her son a prince, her grandson a marquis, and her granddaughter a princess while she was still alive. Her great-grandson would inherit the title, and her great-granddaughter would have to marry the best man in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
As people age, they tend to become stubborn, and this almost became the Empress Dowager's obsession for the rest of her life.
At noon, the Empress Dowager ate lunch at the Gu family's house. Everyone had already met her and they were quite familiar with each other.
Apart from Aunt Gu and Uncle Gu's family, all the other descendants were here. The Empress Dowager was so happy that she even drank a small cup of wine. She rested at the Gu family home in the afternoon and left after having dinner.
Upon returning to the palace, the emperor immediately went to report: "Grandmother, you've finally returned! This time, I listened to you and didn't let anyone follow you, so, Grandmother, where have you been?"
The Empress Dowager laughed and said, "We went out to play. We ran into the Gu family, which was quite interesting."
The emperor's eyes lit up: "Interesting, isn't it! I've always thought their family was interesting. Has that child grown up yet? Just look at Xiao Renren. You don't know how clingy that kid was last year, ignoring even his own father. He's got some sense!"
Empress Dowager: "Little Renren, you've turned into a round ball. Their children are so good-looking. Come to think of it, they're just like you when you first entered the palace, a round little thing, very endearing."
The emperor also thought of his childhood, and when he thought about it too much, he became depressed.
He could have been a carefree prince, indulging in eating, drinking, and merrymaking like the Prince Kang, but instead he ended up in the palace.
He heard from Eunuch Fu that the eldest son of the Gu family had come to the capital and quickly became familiar with Prince Kang and Duke Cheng'en. He then went around playing and even got into arguments. He was so envious!
Sigh, why didn't my grandmother choose my uncle Kang to be emperor? Why did she choose his father instead?
The emperor had no idea that when the old lady chose him, she had taken a liking to him at first sight, not to his father.
As it turns out, the old lady had excellent judgment; the emperor was far superior to Prince Kang.
Seeing the Emperor's ever-changing expression, the Empress Dowager knew he was trying to slack off again. She coughed twice and asked, "Ahem, Your Majesty, why have you come to my court so late? Is it because of something that needs to be done at court?"
The emperor came to his senses and said seriously, "Grandmother, a few days ago, an urgent report came from Kuncheng that the magistrate of Kun County, Langge, colluded with the country and sold the Peng family army's defense map. Langge launched a surprise attack, and nearly 10,000 soldiers in Kuncheng died."
The Empress Dowager's eyes narrowed: "Whose man is the magistrate of Kuncheng County?"
The Emperor said, “It was only after this incident that evidence was found in the study of Prince Qu’s men. Unfortunately, he has already committed suicide by swallowing gold, and there is no way to verify the facts. Prince Qu has a good reputation among the people and has done many things that benefit the people. I have never doubted him. But compared to Prince Qu, I trust the Peng family more. Therefore, it is not a good time to deal with Prince Qu now.”
The Empress Dowager understood the Emperor's meaning. The magistrate of Kuncheng County had committed suicide by swallowing gold. If the royal family were to kill someone who had done so many good things for the people, they would inevitably lose the support of the people. The Great Zhou had seized the throne from the previous dynasty for less than a hundred years. If they rashly dealt with the King of Qu and lost the support of the people, the Great Zhou would be in chaos.
The current Prince Qu is of the same generation as Grandpa Gu. Prince Qu's father was the eldest son of the founding emperor, and the one who succeeded to the throne was the legitimate son, who was also the husband of the Empress Dowager. Grandpa Gu's father was the grandfather of the current emperor.
The Empress Dowager had always been wary of Prince Qu, but Prince Qu's mansion had a very good reputation among the people and had indeed done so.
However, such a person with the heart of a traitor cannot be allowed to live, especially since his subordinates have already colluded with the enemy state and severely damaged the soldiers of the Great Zhou.
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