Feng Zhouyuan and Hu Feifan quickly bowed and said, "Your subordinate (grandson) is foolish!"
"You are indeed foolish!"
Hu Tianyong said angrily, "What's so clever about such methods? But look at us, the Emperor only raised a finger, and we've already been utterly defeated. If the Emperor really has bigger plans, our Hu family will be destroyed!"
Hu Tianyong never used such harsh words when disciplining his children or subordinates. But this time, he was genuinely angry. He couldn't understand why, in such a tense situation, all the important people around him still seemed calm.
Hu Feifan knelt on the ground, completely speechless. Feng Zhouyuan, on the other hand, frowned and raised his eyes to look at Hu Tianyong.
"According to the old master, does this mean that the Emperor intends to eliminate our Hu family?"
Hu Tianyong immediately let out a long sigh, his eyes filled with desolation, and said, "Without the Emperor's permission, who would dare to easily kill a concubine in the harem? Moreover, this concubine is the mother of a prince and the eldest daughter of the Prime Minister's family. Based on my deduction, the Empress definitely did not hang herself; the Emperor must have tampered with it. In this way, the matter will fall entirely on Xu Jinlan. At that time, it will kill two birds with one stone, and the harem will immediately be quiet."
At this point, Hu Tianyong let out a long sigh: "His Majesty's intentions are truly profound! He even summoned the Princess Consort, deliberately provoking the Empress to spill a bowl of tea. This gave Xu Jinlan an excuse, and also a knife to the wound! Only His Majesty would have such thoughts, because he has long seen through all the women in the palace, and he has meticulously planned every step each of them takes! Unfortunately, the Empress Consort didn't see through His Majesty's intentions, the Xu family didn't see through His Majesty's intentions, and even you didn't have any interest in His Majesty. So, we deserve to have someone die in our family today! This is a stark lesson!"
"Why did the Emperor kill my aunt? She's already in the Cold Palace, why can't the Emperor forgive her!"
Hu Feifan asked somewhat impulsively, unable to understand how a man could so easily kill a woman who had been with him for twenty years.
Hu Tianyong gave a bleak smile: "The Emperor can't tolerate your aunt, he can't tolerate our entire Hu family! So many years have passed, but he still harbors the thought of revenge! It's truly a case of the dead not dying, but the living dying first!"
Seeing Hu Tianyong's sorrowful expression, Feng Zhouyuan quickly went over and offered him a cup of tea, saying comfortingly, "Prime Minister, there's no need to be too sad. The Emperor may not necessarily still hold a grudge about what happened to the Qin family back then!"
Upon hearing this, Hu Tianyong turned his head and glanced at Feng Zhouyuan indifferently: "Do you really think so?"
Feng Zhouyuan immediately lowered his head and remained silent. What he thought was unimportant; what mattered was what the Emperor thought!
Hu Tianyong could tell what Feng Zhouyuan was thinking from his face, and couldn't help but sigh again: "See, even you don't believe it! The Emperor's heart has never strayed from Qin Meiying. He's been lying low for so many years, waiting to deliver a fatal blow to us. Now that the first punch has been thrown, he'll probably be even more swift and decisive in what follows! I just don't know if our Hu family can escape this calamity this time!"
Hu Tianyong has known Lan Shanyang very well over the years, and it can be said that the two have never stopped competing and scheming against each other.
However, as time went by, Hu Tianyong found himself increasingly confused about Lan Shanyang's thinking! Because Lan Shanyang's methods became more and more unexpected. For example, right now, he had caught Hu Tianyong somewhat off guard.
He could understand Hu Qianyu being imprisoned in the cold palace as a result of his daughter's poor planning, being caught red-handed. But her swift murder caught Hu Tianyong completely off guard.
Even if Lan Shanyang wanted to kill Hu Qianyu, he wouldn't have acted so swiftly. He is still a first-rank official in the court, with countless supporters. How could the emperor dare to act so recklessly?
Moreover, the central government has made no preparations to bring in new blood recently.
This kind of cooking is completely illogical.
"Prime Minister, since the Emperor has already made such preparations, we cannot stand idly by and wait to be killed. Shouldn't we also take some action?"
Feng Zhouyuan stared intently at Hu Tianyong, awaiting his decision.
"Of course we can't just sit here and wait to die! This time, we can't just wait and see; more importantly, we have to take the initiative. Otherwise, once the Emperor gets the first move, we won't have a chance to act!"
As he spoke, Hu Tianyong's eyes narrowed as usual.
Feng Zhouyuan knew that this was Hu Tianyong's habitual action when he was thinking, so he shut his mouth and waited quietly for Hu Tianyong's instructions.
Hu Tianyong thought for a long time before slowly raising his head and saying to Hu Feifan on the ground, "Get up! Don't keep kneeling!"
Hu Feifan glanced at Hu Tianyong, then stood up with his head bowed and the curtains drawn.
"Since His Majesty is going to arrange a marriage for Lan Linxue, we can't help but offer our congratulations. Feifan, go and distribute all the information we've gathered about Qin Kou'er. We must get Qin Kou'er's name removed from this year's list of imperial concubines!"
Upon hearing this, Feng Zhouyuan's brows furrowed slightly.
Hu Feifan immediately raised his head and said, "Grandfather, no matter what, you recommended Qin Kou'er. If these things are made public now, wouldn't the Emperor have even more leverage to criticize you for your incompetence? You recommended a woman with such a flawed background, wouldn't that give the Emperor more reason to criticize you on other matters?"
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