The next day, in the noisy main hall, the emperor did not let Lu Gonggong speak, but quietly sat down on the dragon throne.
The ministers were still discussing yesterday's events when they never imagined that their emperor would actually do something so cheeky.
The emperor's face darkened as he listened to the ministers' discussion.
Honestly, if he hadn't heard it with his own ears, how would he have imagined that these ministers, who were so concerned about the country and its people, would ignore the military situation in the south and instead nitpick at his daughter?
Back then, when he wanted to arrange a marriage between the son of the Minister of Rites and the daughter of a Grand Secretary of the Inner Cabinet, what did people say? Oh, how could a subject's family trouble His Majesty?
As the emperor, he had no time to meddle in other people's family affairs. But the opposite happened; his ministers were preoccupied with his family matters, and even claimed that the emperor had no family affairs.
If he truly has no family affairs, does he have to consult with his ministers before favoring any particular concubine?
After sitting upright for a while, listening to these idle gossips, the emperor now only wanted to throw all these hypocritical fellows into an ice cave to calm them down.
They're all so idle that they only nitpick over trivial matters. It seems that he, the emperor, has failed in his duty. He should have made the best use of people and resources.
Eunuch Lu understood the emperor's gaze, silently shedding a tear of sympathy for the ministers, and loudly proclaimed, "His Majesty has arrived!"
In a flash, the ministers who had been gathered in twos and threes all returned to their seats without even raising their heads.
The eldest prince stood respectfully to the side the whole time, neither interfering in the ministers' discussion nor offering any advice; he behaved in a very proper and orderly manner.
Even so, the emperor glanced at him and felt somewhat displeased.
What kind of older brother acts like this? He sees everyone talking about his sister and feels so at ease? He has no brotherly love whatsoever, and he didn't even consider her as a potential heir. How wise of him!
The eldest prince was not born to the empress; his birth mother was merely a maidservant who had accompanied the empress in her dowry. Although she had been granted the title of concubine, she was not favored and had long since given up any thoughts of vying for the throne.
He thought that he could stay safe by not causing trouble and not taking any action, but as it turns out, he was still too naive.
If the emperor doesn't like someone, they'll be an eyesore no matter where they stand.
"Yu'er, how's the task I assigned you going?"
The eldest prince's name is Yun Yu, which literally means "good," but no one dares to mention his name to his face, or even call him by his full name in private, for fear of being reported for disrespecting the prince.
Yun Yu bowed respectfully and said, "Father, it's almost done. All that's left is the final inventory."
"Alright, I'll leave this matter to the Minister of Rites. You will go with Vice General Qin to the south."
Let it out, so it won't get in my way.
"yes!"
Seeing the eldest prince accept the gift with utmost respect, the emperor became displeased again. He simply waved his hand, telling him to go back to his residence to tidy up and immediately go find Deputy General Qin.
The ministers were all stunned. What did the Emperor mean by sending the eldest prince to the south? Was it to arrange a marriage alliance?
"Your Majesty, you must not! Nanlou is a wolf in sheep's clothing. If the First Prince goes there and something goes wrong, it could be detrimental to our dynasty."
"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
Most of the court officials knelt down. The emperor squinted and saw that all the officials he disliked were among them.
It's understandable that the Grand Secretary disagreed; that old man was pedantic and had no selfish motives. But it's rather puzzling that Grand Tutor Wen also disagreed.
That old fox has always seen the eldest prince as a thorn in his side, and he would suppress him whenever the eldest prince showed any talent. This time, it was the first time he had pleaded for Yu'er, it was truly a miracle.
"Minister Wen, I haven't even told Yu'er what to do yet, and you're already so eager to object. What is your intention?"
Wen Lu cupped his hands and said, “Your Majesty, I have heard that the matter of the princess was caused by Nanlou’s intention to arrange a marriage alliance. Sending the eldest prince to the south at this time, it is hard to guarantee that Nanlou will not have other intentions. If they secretly send someone to kidnap the eldest prince and use him to blackmail our Great Yun Dynasty, wouldn’t that put our dynasty at a disadvantage? Furthermore, the eldest prince has never left the capital before. If he goes out rashly, he will inevitably suffer from acclimatization problems. I beg Your Majesty to consider the eldest prince and the people of our Yun Dynasty and rescind your order!”
"Your Majesty, please rescind your decree!"
The ministers were in unison, leaving the eldest prince, who stood to the side, extremely embarrassed. Everyone meant well, but he didn't want to disobey his father's decree. He stole several glances at Eunuch Lu, signaling him to quickly come up with a solution.
Eunuch Lu quietly looked away, fortunate enough to receive a pleading look from the eldest prince, but he was powerless to help.
He had just pleaded for the princess, and now he had a prince on the side. What if the emperor misunderstood him and thought he wanted to take his children away?
That's very possible. Who is the emperor? He changes his mind every minute and thinks too fast. He wouldn't dare to act on his own. If he can't keep up and gets lost halfway, who can he complain to?
He'd be better off keeping his life to serve tea and water.
The emperor blinked and asked, "Really not going to work?"
Grand Tutor Wen felt a sudden tightness in his chest, instinctively sensing that the emperor was up to something again. But he couldn't take back what he had just said; what if the emperor seized on his inconsistency and accused him of going back on his word? Would he have any good days ahead then? The emperor before him was a man who wouldn't let things go once he was in the right, and he could punish someone to death for a mistake.
He was able to become the Grand Tutor because of his merit in supporting the emperor, so he dared not casually say that he would lose his position. It was also mentally exhausting.
"Your Majesty, how about assigning the eldest prince another job?"
"Do you all think so too?" the Emperor asked, still uneasy.
"Your Majesty, please consider the eldest prince's situation."
"Well, since everyone agrees, I'll give Yu'er a more relaxed one." The Emperor leaned back. "Go and tell General Cheng that his good grandson, Cheng Yuqing, will be marrying the princess into the mansion on a chosen date. Go and help him."
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