Chapter 558: At worst, I can just retire
When Chu Ruohan heard this, her heart skipped a beat. She quickly stood up and grabbed his arm.
"Are you crazy? What time is it now? The palace gates have been locked. How are you going to get in?"
There was a hint of urgency in her voice, trying to draw him back.
"Even if you were allowed into the palace, who would you go to see? Would you go to question the Empress, or would you go to argue with the Emperor?"
She gripped his arm so hard that her fingertips turned white from the effort.
"If you barge in like this, you'll be charged with disobeying the imperial order and trespassing the palace at night before you even open your mouth! Then, we'll only be in a more passive position!"
Gu Junze was pulled by her and stopped.
He turned around, and in the candlelight, the laziness and leisure on his face disappeared, replaced by a cold and gloomy look.
Those eyes were as sharp as an eagle, revealing a heart-pounding cold light.
"Passive?" He sneered, holding her hand with his backhand and pulling her in front of him, "Are you not passive now?"
"Ruohan, she's testing us today, trying to inform us. She's not interested in Qingchen as a person, but the military power and loyalty of the Zhenguo Mansion for the next few decades!"
His voice was not loud, but every word was as hard as iron, striking Chu Ruohan's heart.
"I, Gu Junze's daughter, am not a bargaining chip. I would rather she walk around the house like a tyrant for the rest of her life than allow her to enter that cannibalistic place and become a memorial tablet!"
"I understand, of course I understand!" Chu Ruohan's eyes were slightly red. "How could I want Qingchen to go down that path? But Junze, this is not a business in the market, you can just refuse it outright."
"That's the royal family! That's the emperor! One wrong step and the entire Duke's Mansion could be at stake!"
She knew better than anyone the consequences of refusing a royal marriage.
That not only offended the royal family, but also showed an attitude of non-cooperation and non-submission to the imperial power.
From now on, the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion will be pushed to the forefront and become a thorn in the eyes of countless people.
Gu Junze looked at the fear and worry in her eyes, and the hostility around him subsided a little.
He reached out his other hand, gently stroked her cheek, and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with his fingertips.
"I know." His voice slowed down, but remained firm. "I won't risk myself, much less you and the children. But this matter cannot be delayed."
He pulled her to sit on the edge of the bed, and his expression regained the calmness and decisiveness that a Duke of Zhenguo should have.
"Since the Queen has this idea, she will definitely mention it to the Emperor. If I don't go, it will be a tacit agreement. I must go and explain this matter to the Emperor before she does."
Chu Ruohan looked up at him, "How do you want to say it?"
Gu Junze's gaze calmed down, and a complex and incomprehensible light flashed in his eyes.
"Your Majesty and I have been king and subject for many years, and we were once brothers who shared life and death."
He said slowly, "I will tell him that my daughter, Gu Junze, has a bad temper and is not fit to be the queen mother. My Zhenguogong Mansion has made great contributions and dares not marry the crown prince again, so as to avoid the disaster of foreign relatives repeating."
He paused, his tone firm and unyielding.
"I will also tell him that I only have this one daughter, and I just want her to be safe and happy, and have no worries in her life."
"If he insists on putting these shackles on Qingchen, I, Gu Junze, will have no choice but to resign from my position as Duke, retire from the army, and take the three of them, mother and daughter, away from this troubled place, the capital."
Chu Ruohan gasped and looked at him in shock.
Return to the countryside?
These four words, spoken by the Duke of Zhenguo, were powerful enough to shake the entire court.
This was no longer a refusal, but a threat. Using the entire power and military achievements of the Zhenguo Mansion to make a huge gamble.
"Junze, you..."
"Ruohan, believe me." Gu Junze interrupted her, his hands tightly wrapped around hers, conveying unshakable strength.
"The Emperor is a wise ruler. What he needs is a Duke who can protect the country for him, not a father-in-law who harbors resentment and is forced to give up his daughter."
"He'll understand what I mean."
Chu Ruohan looked at the familiar confidence and determination in her husband's eyes when he was strategizing on the battlefield, and her troubled heart finally calmed down a little bit.
Yes, how could she forget.
Her husband has never been an idle gentleman who only knows how to pamper his daughter.
He was the god of war who fought his way out for the Eastern Jin Dynasty amidst mountains of corpses and seas of blood. He was the pillar of the country whom the emperor relied on the most and also feared the most.
He has his pride, and he also has his own trump card.
"Okay." Chu Ruohan nodded and held his hand tightly. "I won't stop you. But not tonight. Tomorrow morning, you hand in your name card and enter the palace to see the emperor in a dignified manner."
Gu Junze looked at her, the ice in his eyes finally melted, revealing a gentle smile.
He held her in his arms, his chin resting gently on the top of her head.
"I'm sorry for wronging you. Today in the Imperial Garden, I made you suffer so much because of Qingchen."
Chu Ruohan leaned on his chest, listening to his steady and strong heartbeat. Her nerves, which had been tense all day, finally relaxed completely.
"As long as our family is together, it won't be a grievance."
She whispered.
Outside the window, the night is deep and the moonlight is like water.
Inside the inner chambers of the Duke's Mansion, a disturbance that could shake the foundation of the country had already been determined by the couple in a few words.
But none of them expected that the whirlpool they wanted to avoid with all their might would not calm down just because you gave in.
At the same time, the atmosphere in Prince Yong's Mansion was completely different from the warmth in the Duke Zhenguo's Mansion. It was as cold as the coldest time of winter.
"This is outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous!"
The precious porcelain was thrown heavily to the ground, making a crisp whine and shattering into pieces.
The old Princess Yong was so angry that her chest heaved violently, and her well-maintained face was full of ferocious anger.
"A rude and impolite girl, a sharp-tongued shrew! The Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion is so majestic!" She leaned on the table, still breathing heavily.
Lin Xingyao quickly stepped forward, gently patted her back, and said softly, "Mother, please calm down. Be careful not to get too angry with people like this and harm your health."
As she spoke, she squatted down and seemingly accidentally pushed a sharp piece of porcelain aside.
"Chu Ruohan was simply driven to desperation and spoke without thinking. It's a shame for the reputation of our Prince Yong's Mansion that she had to humiliate us in public like this."
She paused, raised her eyes, and looked dimly at her brother who was standing silently beside her.
"I've seen the ladies present today. Those from the Shangshu Mansion are too petty, and those from the Shilang Mansion seem timid... There really isn't a single one of them who is worthy of you, brother."
In his words, he belittled all the noble ladies in the capital and only highlighted the nobleness of his own brother.
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