Chapter 280 Relief
The news that General Gu had defied the Emperor to save Consort Xi's life, resulting in him being punished with twenty strokes of the cane and having his pass to enter and leave the palace revoked, spread throughout the capital early the next morning.
People have always been most interested in such erotic matters.
Because it involved the emperor and his concubines, no one dared to discuss it openly, but in private, all sorts of nasty things were said.
Some say that Consort Xi and General Gu were originally lovers, but the Emperor stole her away. Moreover, the man Consort Xi was secretly meeting was General Gu. The Emperor was currently using military force, so he swallowed his anger and spared Consort Xi's life while only slightly punishing General Gu.
Some say that General Gu is incredibly audacious, coveting the Emperor's woman, and that his career is likely over. The Emperor spared his life, but out of respect for his family's loyalty, he will never again give him an important position.
Some even said that the Emperor had grown tired of General Gu, and had not only ordered Eunuch Chu to personally oversee the execution but also ordered the guards to beat General Gu to death. When General Gu returned home, he was covered in blood, and his grandmother fainted on the spot upon seeing him.
Outsiders continued to speculate, while Gu Yan had already packed his bags and left the capital. The Gu residence remained tightly shut even in broad daylight, and the young general was nowhere to be seen.
People were even less optimistic about General Gu, lamenting that the entire Gu family was full of loyal martyrs, but the only remaining son was a romantic, ruining his promising future. The Gu family was doomed from this point on.
...
After Wen Zhiming returned to the military camp, he was able to spend every night with Meng Lingge. When he caught a glimpse of Meng Lingge while traveling during the day, he would involuntarily smile. The two lived a blissful life together.
With the commander in a good mood and full of energy, the entire military camp became vibrant and highly motivated, and the marching speed was faster than before.
Before they knew it, they had traveled for another three days and arrived at the place where they had agreed to meet Meng Xingyuan.
Meng Xingyuan arrived here the day before and stayed at an inn arranged for him by Wen Zhiming's bodyguards.
After the military camp was set up for rest that night, Wen Zhiming rode his horse with Meng Lingge to the inn. The guards were waiting at the door and led them upstairs when they saw the two of them arrive, knocking on the door of a private room on the second floor.
After a while, the door opened, and Meng Xingyuan, who was already disguised, stood behind the door, looking somewhat uneasy.
Perhaps worried about being recognized, Meng Xingyuan darkened his face and trimmed his long beard, which he had kept for more than ten years, neatly. If Meng Lingge saw him on the street, she wouldn't recognize him at first glance.
Seeing Meng Lingge and Wen Zhiming slightly stunned, Meng Xingyuan leaned to one side and said somewhat awkwardly, "Come in."
Meng Lingge noticed that he had lost a lot of weight, his back was slightly hunched, and he looked several years older than she had seen in just a few months. She figured he must not have been doing well lately.
Her voice choked as she spoke, “Father!”
Meng Xingyuan gave a soft "hmm," his carefully maintained serious demeanor instantly crumbling. He reached out to pat his daughter's shoulder, only to find Wen Zhiming half-embracing her.
Meng Lingge leaned her left shoulder against Wen Zhiming's chest, while Wen Zhiming's hand embraced her right shoulder.
Wen Zhiming led Meng Lingge inside, and as he passed by her, he casually called out, "Father-in-law."
Meng Xingyuan lowered his half-raised hand, looking somewhat lost.
The three took their seats one after another. Wen Zhiming picked up the teapot on the table and poured tea for Meng Xingyuan first. Meng Xingyuan quickly stood up and said, "I dare not trouble the King of Northern Frontier. I will do it myself."
Wen Zhiming poured the tea and pushed it in front of Meng Xingyuan.
“Father-in-law is my elder, and we are all family. Why be so polite with me? I have come to this point because of the circumstances, but it was because of me that my wife and father-in-law’s whole family were used and harmed by the Emperor. I understand that my father-in-law is dissatisfied with me. I will accept your beatings and scoldings, but my wife has done nothing wrong. I hope that my father-in-law will not blame or complain about her in the future.”
Meng Lingge and Meng Xingyuan were both surprised that Wen Zhiming was so direct and frank as soon as the three of them met. Meng Lingge quickly pulled him to sit down.
It was a subtle hint that he should stop talking.
For the past two days, Meng Xingyuan had been unsure how to face Meng Lingge and Wen Zhiming. Now, seeing Wen Zhiming so protective of Meng Lingge, he felt somewhat relieved.
No wonder Ling Ge still wanted to be with Wen Zhiming after their divorce; it was probably because of Wen Zhiming's blatant protection and favoritism towards her.
Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. Since he is loyal but still cannot escape the emperor's suspicion, it is better to let nature take its course.
Meng Xingyuan took the cup of tea, took a slow sip, and said slowly, "Why bring up blame and complaints? You saved my life. From now on, I will no longer be a prime minister, but just an ordinary old man. I only hope that my family will be safe and my children will be healthy. That will be enough for me."
This means he is no longer the emperor's prime minister and can no longer control their rebellion. As long as they are safe and sound, that's all that matters.
Meng Lingge had always known that her father was blindly loyal to the emperor. She never expected that this time, when the emperor tested Wen Zhiming by sending Meng Xingyuan to suppress bandits, Meng Xingyuan would suddenly realize the truth and no longer be so devoted to the emperor.
Meng Lingge was not about to let such a good opportunity slip by, and immediately pressed her advantage.
“Father, that won’t do. You may no longer be the prime minister, but you are still the father-in-law of the King of the Northern Frontier. You can’t abandon your daughter and son-in-law, or your future grandson or granddaughter.”
When Meng Lingge finished speaking, she touched her abdomen.
Meng Xingyuan had noticed that Meng Lingge was not showing any signs of pregnancy, and wondered if she was still pregnant. Remembering his earlier suggestion that she should abort the child, he dared not ask about it.
They were worried about asking a question that would embarrass the three of them.
Now that Meng Lingge has taken the initiative to respond to the matter and the child is alright, Meng Xingyuan was overjoyed, and his tense expression relaxed.
He married late; many officials of similar age already had grandchildren. He would have to wait many more years for his grandchildren. Having a grandchild would be a source of great joy for him.
He had previously been worried that the child would implicate other members of the Meng family, so he cruelly made Meng Lingge abort the child. Now that the crisis in the Meng family has been temporarily resolved, he has the same expectations for the child as any ordinary maternal grandfather.
Meng Xingyuan smiled helplessly, "I was still considering whether to give it to you, but you're such a sly girl, bringing up the child. How can I, as your maternal grandfather, not give you a little something?"
After saying that, he walked to the bedside, pulled out a notebook from under the pillow, and handed it directly to Wen Zhiming.
Wen Zhiming took it with a puzzled look and flipped through it casually. It turned out to be a handwritten record book of officials, listing no fewer than a hundred people from top to bottom.
Everyone's personality, strengths, weaknesses, and hobbies are all recorded. Wen Zhiming also has spies in the capital, but they only investigate the surface-level things and are not as detailed as Meng Xingyuan's records.
This document lists even the residences of officials' mistresses, the military commanders in the court, and which officials harbored grievances or dissatisfaction with the emperor.
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