Chapter 465 Asking for His Majesty’s permission
"Whom does Your Majesty think I should be?"
Pei Yuan looked at Emperor Longqing with a calm expression.
Emperor Longqing's pupils contracted slightly, and a dark look appeared in his eyes.
"You won't even call him Father anymore, does that mean you're admitting you're Lu Zhan?"
Pei Yuan curled his lips into a smile. "That's right, I am Lu Zhan."
The entire court of officials gasped.
Everyone looked at Pei Yuan in disbelief.
Including Prince Heng and Marquis Anding, they devised this plan simply to exploit the emperor's suspicious nature and bring Pei Yuan down.
But unexpectedly, Pei Yuan was actually Lu Zhan.
After the initial shock, a flash of wild joy quickly crossed Prince Heng's eyes.
Pei Yuan himself admitted that he was Lu Zhan, not a prince, so he was completely out of the running for the throne.
It poses no threat to his position whatsoever.
Prince Heng was so engrossed in his ecstasy that he didn't notice the sudden darkening of Marquis Anding's expression.
Pei Yuan is Lu Zhan, which is a good thing for Prince Heng, but not for Marquis Anding.
The same thought flashed through the Longqing Emperor's mind, and his gaze toward Pei Yuan was filled with cold anger.
"Good, good indeed, Consort Yu, how dare you confuse the royal bloodline right under my nose."
And you, Sixth Prince, no, Lu Zhan, you know perfectly well that you are not a prince, yet you comfortably enjoy my favor and the treatment of a prince.
Can you honestly say you have absolutely no intention of rebelling?
A hint of mockery surfaced in Pei Yuan's eyes.
"Your Majesty is a person of high status and has a bad memory. You probably don't remember. After returning from Liangzhou in the tenth year of the Longqing reign, I was ill for a long time and have no memory of my childhood."
This matter is recorded in the medical records of the Imperial Hospital, so for all these years I have believed I was Pei Yuan, and I didn't know I was Lu Zhan.
He took out the letter that Consort Yu had left before her death from his bosom.
"It wasn't until recently, when I saw the letter left by my aunt, Consort Yu, before her death, that I learned about my background."
"Your Majesty surely doesn't know that my aunt left me a letter before she passed away? Aren't you curious about what she wrote in it?"
A flicker of fear crossed the eyes of the Longqing Emperor.
Damn it, Consort Yu actually left a letter before she died?
Pei Yuan unfolded the letter and faced the assembled officials.
"Everyone, my aunt revealed the truth about the massacre in Liangzhou in her letter. It was Marquis Zhou Qi of Anding who carried out the extermination of the Lu family army on His Majesty's orders."
My aunt took me and the sixth prince to hide everywhere in order to save me. As a result, the sixth prince died of illness. My aunt concealed my background and took me into the palace to raise me in order to save me.
Later, His Majesty discovered that my aunt was collecting evidence in the Liangzhou case, so he ordered Consort Meng to poison my mother, causing her death in childbirth.
An uproar erupted in the hall, and everyone's eyes were fixed on the paper in Pei Yuan's hand.
Pei Yuan handed the letter to He Zhengxiang, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, his words filled with anguish.
"Everyone, many of you are older adults, and you must still remember my father and the Lu family army."
My Lu family has always been loyal and devoted, guarding the border of Liangzhou for generations, and has never overstepped our bounds.
They worked so hard to drive back the Northern Rong people, protecting their homeland and ensuring the well-being of their people, only to be brutally and maliciously killed by their own people in the end.
This matter was witnessed by Momo himself, and is evidenced by a handwritten letter from my aunt Lu Yu and testimonies from the soldiers under the Marquis of Anding.
Fifty thousand Lu family soldiers shed their blood in Liangzhou. Shouldn't I seek justice for my father and for the Lu family army?
Where is justice? Where is fairness? If even such a massacre of meritorious officials can be tolerated, how can ministers serve their ruler in the future? How can the people win their hearts?
The hall was deathly silent, with only Pei Yuan's generous voice echoing, sending chills down one's spine.
Pei Yuan looked at He Zhengxiang, who had already finished reading the letter.
"Lord He, you are a veteran of two dynasties and the head of the Censorate. You have always been a just person."
I implore you to seek justice for my father and for the Lu family army.
He Zhengxiang slowly put away the letter, his face filled with cold anger.
He turned around and took the file from Mo Chen's hand, flipped through it, and his expression became even more indignant.
"Since the founding of this dynasty, the Lu family, the Duke of Zhenguo, has guarded Liangzhou. Most of the Lu family members died on the battlefield for the country."
They were loyal ministers and generals of our great Wei Kingdom! Why did Your Majesty order the massacre of the Lu family army?
"I did not!" Emperor Longqing denied it outright.
"If there was no such thing, why did Your Majesty poison my aunt?" Pei Yuan questioned aggressively.
The Longqing Emperor's face turned ashen, and he grabbed the memorial from the table and slammed it down.
"Nonsense, blatant lies! When did I poison Consort Yu?"
Pei Yuan: "Since there is no such thing, Your Majesty, would you dare to send someone to investigate? Although many years have passed, I think that since the servants who served my mother are still alive, it is possible that Consort Meng still has someone by her side."
The records of pulse diagnosis from the Imperial Hospital and the medication records of the Empress Dowager can all be checked. Everything that has been done will leave a trace.
Since Your Majesty has a clear conscience, would you dare to allow an investigation?
The Longqing Emperor flew into a rage, "Insolence! You're implying you doubt me by asking this question? Since ancient times, has any subject ever questioned the emperor? Who gave you the audacity?"
“The prince is subject to the same law as the commoner, and Your Majesty should be treated the same way.”
"You!" The Longqing Emperor was furious, his eyes flashing with murderous intent.
"Don't think I wouldn't dare kill you. With such insubordination, I can have your head chopped off immediately."
"Your Majesty, you mustn't!" He Zhengxiang cried out, kneeling on the ground.
“Since there are doubts about the matter, it should be investigated. Your Majesty, I, He Zhengxiang, request a reinvestigation of the Liangzhou massacre and the Yufei childbirth case, so that the truth may be revealed to the world. I beg Your Majesty’s permission!”
He Zhengxiang prostrated himself on the ground and made a loud plea.
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Jun immediately led all the censors of the Censorate to step forward and kneel down to plead.
"Your Majesty, please grant me permission!"
"Your Majesty, please grant me permission!"
The clear and loud shouts echoed throughout the hall, giving everyone a jolt.
The Longqing Emperor gritted his teeth and swept all the memorials on the table to the ground.
"How dare you! Do you all want to rebel?"
He Zhengxiang led a group of inspectors and censors forward, crawling two steps on his knees. He repeated the same words, but with even more force than before.
"I beg Your Majesty's permission."
"you!"
Emperor Longqing was so angry that his eyes turned black.
At this moment, the eunuch rushed over in a panic.
"It's terrible, Your Majesty! Master Mei and the scholars who participated in this year's imperial examinations are kneeling outside the Meridian Gate."
They said that as long as His Majesty did not restore justice to the Lu family, they would not disperse, until they knelt to death outside the palace gates.
What?
Emperor Longqing nearly choked on his breath and collapsed onto the dragon throne.
"They...they dare! Even Mr. Mei is here?"
The young eunuch shrank back and whispered, "Old Master Mei is kneeling at the head of the group. He said... he said..."
The Longqing Emperor urged, "What did he say?"
The young eunuch shouted in a trembling voice, "Old Master Mei said that if His Majesty still remembers the kindness and guidance he received in the past, he will give the Lu family justice."
Otherwise, he would surely have run himself ragged and died at the Meridian Gate today.
Emperor Longqing gasped, his face beyond ugly.
Those scholars were alright, but Mei Xuwen was his mentor.
When he was still an unfavored prince, Master Mei began to teach him his studies, never slacking off in the slightest because of his lack of favor.
If Mr. Mei were to die by crashing into the Meridian Gate today, the emperor would become the object of scorn from scholars across the land, thus completely losing the hearts of the people.
He regarded Mei Xuwen as his mentor, so how could Mei Xuwen coerce him like this?
Absolutely outrageous!
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