Chapter 430 Each with their own ulterior motives
"I still remember that my brother-in-law and I used to watch you play chess. Thinking back to those days, I really miss them!"
The emperor continued speaking from what Lord Wang had said. Lord Wang's old eyes still held a hint of languor, as if he were still half asleep.
But when he opened his mouth, he said, "Your Majesty has a good memory. It's just a pity that if we want to play the next game, we'll have to wait until this old minister goes down to see them."
Lord Wang looked quite old and was usually quiet and reserved, like an old relic waiting to retire. But as soon as he said this, many people present understood that this was actually what the emperor was planning.
For a time, neither the Ministry of Justice nor the Court of Judicial Review raised any further questions about the matter.
In the inner palace, after seeing the emperor off, the empress returned to her bedchamber with her entourage.
"Your Majesty, please do not worry. Since His Majesty has said so, he should not severely punish His Highness the Crown Prince. At least His Highness's life is safe."
The old woman beside him offered her advice.
The Crown Prince's crime was quite serious. If someone with ulterior motives were to use it to cause trouble, the Emperor might very well take the Crown Prince's life in a fit of anger.
With today's assurance, the Empress's heart was finally at ease. Now, as long as her son is safe and sound, that's all that matters; the position of Crown Prince is secondary.
"I hope His Majesty is not lying to me."
The Empress glanced at the old woman as she spoke, "If you hadn't reminded me, I'm afraid I would have already made a mistake and pushed the Crown Prince into a hopeless situation."
The Empress finally realized what was happening, and she felt even more grateful to the nanny who had reminded her in time.
"Your Highness's affairs are my affairs; I am merely doing my duty."
Seeing that the nanny showed neither joy nor anger, the Empress was even more pleased with her.
In the following days, the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review investigated and dealt with many people involved in the Crown Prince's case. However, the matter was ultimately more bark than bite, and in the end, only some insignificant people were implicated.
As for the crown prince, he was naturally punished for his mistake. However, the emperor's punishment was merely to depose the crown prince and have him adopted into the empress's family; nothing else was changed.
Lu Yuanbin had exhausted all his scheming but failed to eliminate the Crown Prince, which naturally left him extremely dissatisfied. Yet, he couldn't show his resentment, which nearly caused him internal injury.
Fortunately, since the crown prince had been adopted out, he could not return to compete for the throne. In other words, although the crown prince had survived this ordeal, he had no chance of inheriting the throne.
Looking at Lu Yuanbin's expression, Lu Youming couldn't help but find it amusing. "I thought Fifth Brother would win this time, but I didn't expect that in Father's heart, the one he loves most is still the Emperor. It's really difficult for Father to come up with such a way to protect the Emperor."
Lu Youming, always eager to stir up trouble, provoked Lu Yuanbin, who turned around and glared at him. "Third brother, you should mind your own business! Even though Father loves you, he has never neglected us. But Third brother, I wonder when Father will start to pay more attention to you."
Lu Yuanbin's words were like salt sprinkled on Lu Youming, almost making Lu Youming's smile falter.
"My mother is waiting for me to have my meal, so I won't keep my brother company any longer."
As he spoke, Lu Youming hurriedly left the main hall with the eunuch beside him.
Lu Yuanbin watched Lu Youming's departing figure, his eyes narrowed, and he led his entourage to the inner palace.
In Consort Sun's bedchamber, a large spread of food was prepared in anticipation of Lu Yuanbin's arrival. Knowing that today was the day for the Crown Prince's punishment, Consort Sun's face was filled with an irrepressible smile.
However, when Lu Yuanbin entered, Consort Sun saw that her son looked unhappy.
"What's wrong?"
Consort Sun looked at Lu Yuanbin and had a rough idea of why he was unhappy.
As expected, Lu Yuanbin immediately recounted the Emperor's treatment of the Crown Prince, and at the end, he didn't forget to ask Consort Sun, "Mother, you said they are all Father's sons, so why is he so biased?"
Over the years, only the Crown Prince has been personally taught by the Emperor. As for his other brothers, they all received instruction from junior tutors.
"The Empress's family sacrificed a lot for your father's ascension to the throne, so it's only natural that your father would take care of the Crown Prince a little more. Besides, even if there was favoritism, the other party is just an outsider now, so why are you angry with him?"
Consort Sun was not unhappy about this. In her opinion, the Crown Prince's current situation was no different from that of a dead prince. In any case, she could no longer interfere with her son's becoming the Crown Prince.
"Come here, you've been hungry all morning. Your mother has had your favorite drunken chicken made."
After Consort Sun finished speaking, she personally served Lu Yuanbin a piece of food. Although Lu Yuanbin still felt unhappy, he still ate the meal with Consort Sun.
The atmosphere in Consort Liu's bedchamber was completely different from that of Consort Sun. Looking at her son who had walked up to her, Consort Liu's face showed a hint of gloom.
"I heard that the Empress went to His Majesty's bedchamber and asked him to severely punish the Crown Prince. I'm afraid His Majesty's later change of heart is inseparable from the Empress's influence."
Lu Youming nodded in agreement with Consort Liu's words, "The Empress Dowager has enjoyed undiminished favor in the harem for so many years. Even at her worst, the Emperor still gave her some face. Naturally, she is not as easy to get along with as she appears on the surface."
In Lu Youming's view, anyone could do bad things, so he was not at all surprised that the empress could influence the emperor.
"It's a pity that they couldn't get rid of the Crown Prince in the end. As long as he's around, no matter who sits on the throne, they'll probably never have a stable position."
Consort Liu looked somewhat worried, and Lu Youming quickly said, "Mother, don't worry. Lu Tianhua is too stupid. Father thinks he can save his life this way, but I assure you, it won't be long before he causes trouble again."
If we were to ask who understands Lu Tianhua best, it would naturally be the Third Prince Lu Youming, who has always followed his lead since childhood.
Seeing her son's confident demeanor, Consort Liu nodded slightly. "Right now, the most important person is still Lu Yuanbin. Now that Lu Tianhua has been adopted out, the most lucrative contender for the crown prince position is naturally Lu Yuanbin. However, the Sun family has become rather arrogant in recent years, and His Majesty may not be willing to make him the crown prince."
Throughout history, the selection of a crown prince has not only involved considering whether the candidate is capable of being the crown prince, but more importantly, it also involves examining the candidate's family background and whether there is a possibility of interference in politics by the maternal relatives.
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