"Those heartless, murderous Duan family members! Blah blah blah..."
Sun scolded the Duan family until they reached the gate of the General's Mansion.
The gatekeeper, seeing that it was his own carriage, excitedly went forward to greet it and reported, "The other masters of the house have all gone out. I will send someone to inform them right away!"
Madam Sun waved her hand and said, "They have their own things to do, no need to inform them. Is everything alright at home?"
She thought that since the Duan family was targeting Lu Baichuan's family, even though they were so far away, they would send people to hunt them down. Wouldn't everyone living in the capital also be targeted?
The servant nodded and answered honestly, "Everything is fine at home. It's just that a few days ago, several new braised food shops and clothing stores opened in the city. Their styles are imitations of our Jiayuan Pavilion, and their prices are much cheaper than ours. Miss Lianhua is very troubled by this. However, she later came up with a way to expose those shops, and the lost customers have gradually returned."
These things weren't exactly secrets; everyone in the family knew. In fact, after Lianhua found a way to turn the situation around, everyone recognized her abilities and admired her even more.
When Madam Sun heard that Lianhua had resolved everything, she felt relieved and praised her without reservation, "Lianhua has always been a capable child. With her in the capital, we can go anywhere with peace of mind!"
Surrounded by servants, the group entered the mansion. Lu Baichuan went to the courtyard to wash up, and then someone from the palace came to summon him to the palace to meet the emperor. The emperor had always known his itinerary, and even the time of the summons was perfectly timed.
Lu Baichuan also wanted to know what the emperor was planning, so he decided to go to the palace to find out.
As a result, the first person he saw upon entering the palace was not the emperor, but the retired emperor.
The Emperor Emeritus asked with concern, "How is Gou'er's health? Why didn't he come back for treatment this time?"
Lu Baichuan knew that he was genuinely concerned about Gou'er, and respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, rest assured, Gou'er is fine. Jiu'er has a way to control him."
"Oh, that's good, that's good! I knew that girl was capable!"
The Emperor Emeritus was very pleased, but his next words left Lu Baichuan stunned.
He said, "I heard you have a new baby girl, and I'd like to visit Gou'er. So, when you go back, please take me with you. What do you say?"
He had a big smile on his face. Anyone who didn't know better would think he was asking Lu Baichuan if he had eaten. Who would have thought he would make such an unreasonable request?
"Your Majesty, please reconsider! Leaving the palace is no small matter, and Your Majesty's status is special; who knows how many people are watching you..."
Lu Baichuan wanted to offer some advice, but before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by the Emperor Emeritus, who said seriously, "I have made my decision. If you can all go, so can I. I have hardly ever gone out in my life. Now that the court is in the hands of the Third Prince, it is time for me to go out and travel."
"Don't worry, I will make arrangements for my affairs after my death. Even if I go out and never come back, I will not blame you."
Who would have thought that someone who always sought immortality could say such a thing so calmly?
Lu Baichuan's first reaction was that he had been traumatized, otherwise why would he be so suicidal?
"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
He knelt down immediately. He couldn't make such a decision on his own, at least not before the emperor gave his approval.
Let's see what the retired emperor is doing. The emperor might not even know that he wants to leave the palace. If he dares to agree, he'll be asking for trouble.
The Emperor Emeritus was also annoyed by his behavior. He thought to himself that if it were Jiang Jiuniang who had returned this time, she would have agreed without hesitation. Why all the twists and turns?
"I'm not asking for your opinion, I'm informing you that when you leave, you should take me and Consort Liu with you. It's settled then!"
After saying that, he didn't give Lu Baichuan a chance to refuse and quickly turned and left.
That back view looks like it's carrying a guilty conscience!
Lu Baichuan was speechless, wondering what this person was up to. Just then, the emperor sent someone to urge him to come, so he stopped thinking about it and followed the emperor's messenger to see the emperor.
After the emperor and his ministers met, the emperor asked about Gou'er's condition. Upon learning that Gou'er was alright, he breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that he's alright. Father and I were very worried about Gou'er's safety. Now that we know he's safe and sound, we're relieved."
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty the Emperor Emeritus and Your Majesty."
Lu Baichuan thanked him politely, but didn't know how to ask about the Duan family, so the atmosphere became a little awkward.
Fortunately, the Emperor took the initiative to speak: "I have already dealt with the Duan family's matter. As for Consort Hui, out of consideration for the royal family's reputation, I have sent her to a mountain temple according to my father's wishes. She will never have the chance to come down the mountain again in this lifetime, and she will not pose a threat to the Lu family. You can rest assured."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. This is the very reason I returned to the country. The Duan family has attacked us time and again in order to obtain the Pangu Jade. I suspect they may have some kind of cooperation with the Eastern Court, and I intended to investigate this matter carefully upon my return..."
The implication is that the original plan was to conduct a thorough investigation, but the emperor alerted the enemy.
emperor:……
You finally tried to be proactive, and then you messed things up?
Why didn't you say so sooner!
The emperor was speechless. He had thought that Lu Baichuan's son had gotten into trouble and that he had left his wife and children behind to come all the way here, so he had only wanted to help him share the burden. Who knew that he would make things worse?
Lu Baichuan: ...
He hadn't expected the emperor to be so proactive this time. In the past, he always had to wait for the emperor to handle things himself.
After a moment of silence, Lu Baichuan finally spoke, "It's alright. I will be traveling and will keep an eye out for information."
The emperor breathed a sigh of relief, picked up something prepared beside him and handed it to him, saying, "This is information that I pried out from everyone in the Duan family. Take it and see if it's useful."
Lu Baichuan took it, glanced through it casually, and said, "Your Majesty, we cannot let our guard down with Consort Hui. Perhaps we can use Consort Hui to lure the enemy out."
Although the Eastern Court appears to be holding back, their wolfish ambitions are not so easily quelled. They have been doing countless shady things behind the scenes, so it is not impossible that they will use Consort Hui to achieve their goals.
"Alright, I understand."
The emperor nodded. Although he hadn't thought that far ahead, Consort Hui had indeed sent people to keep an eye on things to prevent any scandals from bringing shame to the royal family.
"How have you been doing these past few days? I heard you've been traveling and doing business along the way. You're really something!"
The emperor laughed and sighed, "Such a carefree life, who does he want to envy to death!"
Lu Baichuan guessed that the emperor was worried that the Lu family was becoming increasingly powerful and controlling, so he said, "These are just small businesses right now, mainly to help our hometown and make us feel more at ease. However, Jiu'er has many ideas, such as wanting to trade with overseas countries. I wonder what Your Majesty thinks?"
"Trade with overseas markets?"
The emperor frowned. This place was far from overseas, and it would not be easy to travel between them. Moreover, they did not speak the language, and those people were not good people. They were always eyeing this place. Once the trade started, there would be a lot of trouble and the risks would be too great.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com