Compared to the unsettling journey there, nothing major happened on the way back.
After returning to Kyoto, Lu Qingyan planned to wash up at her residence before going to the palace. However, for some reason, Feng Changgui didn't return to his own residence but instead followed Lu Qingyan.
“Big brother,” Lu Qingyan’s throat moved, “Big brother’s palace isn’t far from here, why do you insist on following your younger brother?”
"Since we are brothers, why be so polite? We were originally going to see Father Emperor together, but we came here just to save trouble. What, Third Brother, you don't welcome me?" Feng Changgui's phoenix eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Lu Qingyan, giving off a sharp feeling.
Lu Qingyan choked, then forced a dry laugh and said, "Big brother takes such good care of me, how could I dare to complain about him?"
"That's good." Feng Changgui curled the corners of his lips and walked ahead of Lu Qingyan, acting like the master of the house.
Originally, Feng Changgui had planned to bathe with Lu Qingyan, which wouldn't be a problem between brothers, but the problem was that Lu Qingyan wasn't a real man, so she was too scared to agree. Fortunately, after several refusals, she managed to avoid it, and Lu Qingyan couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Then came the opportunity to report to the emperor at the palace. Come to think of it, Lu Qingyan hadn't had many chances to see her father, the emperor, and this seemed to be the first time she'd seen him so closely.
Lu Qingyan presented all the evidence she had collected and stood obediently below, waiting for him to finish reading it.
Although the Emperor had become senile in some matters, he was still clear-headed about matters of national importance. Looking at the irrefutable evidence, he glanced at his son, whom he had never valued, with a complex expression.
"Third brother, he's quite capable." It was a casual remark, leaving one unsure whether it was praise, sarcasm, or something else entirely.
Feng Changgui stepped forward and attributed all the credit to Lu Qingyan. He said with a smile, "Third brother is indeed excellent. He made great contributions to the disaster relief this time. I can only admit defeat. If it weren't for your help, I probably wouldn't have been able to come back."
"What happened?" The Emperor was shocked. He didn't care much about Lu Qingyan, but his eldest son was someone he had chosen and placed great hopes on, and he absolutely could not let anything happen to him.
Feng Changgui recounted the assassination attempt in detail, neither downplaying it nor exaggerating the facts.
The Emperor roared, "What a fine Meng family! What a fine second son!"
Although he valued the eldest son the most, he had treated the second son well over the years. Especially in recent years, he hadn't interfered much in court affairs, placing most of the burden on the second son. He had even considered that if the eldest son couldn't handle it, he would push the second son into the position. But he never expected that the second son would do such a thing with the Meng family.
Fratricide is something I absolutely cannot tolerate. What the second son did this time has crossed my bottom line.
“Father, please calm down,” Lu Qingyan stepped forward and pleaded, “In truth, I do not believe that my second brother was responsible for this. I beg you, Father, to investigate the truth.”
"Oh?" The Emperor was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected his third son to plead for his second son. "Why do you think this has nothing to do with the second son?"
Lu Qingyan's lips twitched. Wasn't this question a bit difficult? If she insisted that this matter was related to the second prince, the emperor would probably be the first to be unhappy.
Now that I've taken the initiative to speak, he's asking me why.
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