As far as Gu Qingyan was concerned, Gu Lin still had some "conscience" as a father. On the night of Gu Qingchen's full moon celebration, he dealt swiftly with the corrupt officials suspected of embezzlement.
The speed of the action caught Jiang He and Bai Qian off guard. The two had just returned to the Dingyuan Marquis's residence from the palace when news came that Lingxiao Pavilion had gone to arrest people.
"The person has already been arrested?"
Bai Qian's eyes almost popped out of her head. She simply couldn't reconcile the image of Gu Lin, who was just a moment ago sparring with Gu Qingyan at the dinner table, with the image of Gu Lin now sending people to round up those corrupt officials.
This sense of disconnect...
Not only Bai Qian, but Jiang He was also clearly still a bit dazed.
"It's absolutely true. The prison gates were opened, and I heard they searched the homes of five officials." The servant's voice trembled slightly. "Moreover... the palace has announced that the officials whose homes were searched are suspected of embezzling a huge sum of money. If other officials voluntarily hand over their embezzled funds to the national treasury within three days, they will not be pursued further; otherwise..."
"That move was truly brilliant."
Jiang He couldn't help but exclaim, "This move is a perfect example of making an example of someone, and the Ministry of Revenue will probably get a lot more money from it."
"And it was the Emperor Emeritus himself who took action..." Bai Qian shuddered. Even though she and Gu Lin were now somewhat related, she still felt a chill whenever Gu Lin made a move.
Every move he made hit the mark, and no one dared to refute him in the slightest.
"This can be considered the retired emperor's alternative compensation to the emperor," Jiang He said, putting his arm around Bai Qian's waist. "After all, the emperor's mouth was so full of oil tonight."
“That’s true, let’s go to bed early.” Bai Qian patted Jiang He. “I’m still a little worried about A-Chen. Let’s go to the palace first thing tomorrow morning.”
"good."
The couple here went to sleep early, and Jiang Yu in Zhaoning Palace was also sleeping soundly. Only in the capital, there were soldiers carrying torches all night long.
......
The next morning.
While Gu Qingyan was attending the morning court session, Gu Lin swaggered away from the palace with Jiang Yu. As soon as they left the palace, both of them felt refreshed.
"The air outside the palace is so much fresher." Jiang Yu stretched out her limbs, embracing the free wind.
"Luckily, I finished what I promised that brat yesterday, so it's perfect to take Ayu out for a trip today." Gu Lin had a satisfied smile on his face. "Where would Ayu like to go? We can leave the capital."
"really?"
“Of course, I have never disobeyed Ayu.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yu pursed her lips and chuckled, "I want to go to a place with mountains and water, not too many people, just a quiet place."
"Let's go, let's set off."
Gu Lin rode his horse, holding Jiang Yu in his arms, and the two quickly headed towards the outskirts of the capital.
Gu Qingyan, who had come to Zhaoning Palace after court to see off his unscrupulous parents, was completely stunned when he saw the empty main hall.
Gu Qingchen's crying came from the side hall. Gu Qingyan pouted; he also felt like crying.
With no other choice, Gu Qingyan resigned himself to picking up Gu Qingchen and began his life as both father and mother.
"Don't cry, Achen. When Achen grows up and can talk, he will cling to his mother." By evening, Gu Qingyan, who had been coaxing the child all day, looked exhausted, and even his voice was much lower.
"That way, even if Father and Mother go out to play, at least they can take you with them, right?"
Bai Qian, who was just entering the room, chuckled upon hearing Gu Qingyan's words, "Your Majesty, let me hold the Prince for a while, so you can rest."
"Aunt, I want to too." Gu Qingyan looked at Bai Qian with a hopeless expression, and Bai Qian also showed a helpless expression.
"Sigh, it's probably because the Empress isn't in the palace, so the Prince keeps clinging to the Emperor. He cries whenever we hug him." Bai Qian got up early to go to the palace, only to find that she had no use for her skills.
Gu Qingyan showed a sad expression, looking down at the little guy in his arms with his big eyes wide open, "Come with your brother to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, your brother still needs to review some memorials."
Then Gu Qingyan glanced at Bai Qian and said, "I'll leave those officials that Father arrested yesterday to Uncle and Aunt."
"Don't worry, leave it to us."
Bai Qian quickly agreed, and only then did Gu Qingyan carry Gu Qingchen toward the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
Bai Qian watched the two brothers' backs as they walked away, then silently lowered her head.
These two brothers are clearly the most noble brothers in the world, so why do they inexplicably give off a feeling of being dependent on each other for survival?
......
"Eunuch Yingzhi, it's time for the prince to be fed."
"Eunuch Yingzhi, His Highness needs a change of clothes."
In just one day, Yingzhi saw that Gu Qingchen's wet nurse had already begun to feel fear. Good heavens, to put it bluntly, taking care of a baby is really exhausting.
At this time, Yingzhi would enter the palace with trepidation, then nervously take Gu Qingchen from Gu Qingyan's hands and hand her over to the wet nurse.
Throughout this process, Yingzhi always felt like his head was tied to his waistband.
By the end of the day, not only Gu Qingyan but also Yingzhi were exhausted.
As evening fell, Gu Qingyan faced an even bigger problem.
The wet nurse, looking troubled, held Gu Qingchen tightly, saying, "Your Majesty, Your Highness..."
Looking at Gu Qingchen, whose face was already red from crying, Gu Qingyan sighed resignedly, "Go and move Achen's bed over here. Achen will sleep here with me tonight."
Before going to sleep, Gu Qingyan glanced at Gu Qingchen, who was sleeping soundly beside him.
He gently kissed Gu Qingchen's cheek.
"You little rascal, don't blame your elder brother for not warning you. You must be careful of Father Emperor in the future. He might kidnap Mother Emperor if you're not careful. Look at you, you're just a pitiful little worm without Mother Emperor."
Gu Qingchen, on the other hand, had no idea what had happened. All he knew was that there was a familiar scent in the air. He clenched his little fists and fell fast asleep.
"Alright, you've kept me up all day, I need to sleep now."
As soon as Gu Qingyan lay down, something flashed through his mind, and then he slowly curled the corners of his mouth into a smile. "Little one, if you wake up early tomorrow morning, your brother will carry you to court."
Gu Qingyan couldn't help but chuckle to himself. His son, Achen, was so adorable; he was the perfect person to take to the morning court session.
If any clueless old man speaks too loudly and scares Ah Chen to tears, he will immediately have a reason to punish that person!
The more Gu Qingyan thought about it, the more relaxed he felt. He even felt as if all the fatigue from the day had vanished. He was already planning to wake Gu Qingchen up manually even if he wasn't awake by tomorrow morning.
Meanwhile, Gu Qingchen, who was fast asleep, thought: ...
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