Ye Zhengqing knelt down, trembling with fear.
In the past, he had always dreamed of being summoned by the Emperor and Empress, but today he felt no joy, only unease.
After hearing about the General's Mansion incident, he guessed that it was Ye Wantang's scheme against Prince Ning.
Although some people went to the palace gates to seek justice for Ye Wantang, many more people doubted Ye Wantang's background.
He feared that the emperor and empress were two of those many more people.
Furthermore, he did not believe that the Emperor and Empress would be satisfied with Ye Wantang as their daughter-in-law; otherwise, they would not have canceled her marriage to the Crown Prince earlier.
As expected, the Empress spoke up, "I have recently heard some rumors that Wan Tang is not the daughter of Jing Hong. What do you think of this matter?"
Ye Zhengqing's heart tightened. "Your Majesty, these are all rumors."
The Empress stared at him. "So, Wan Tang really isn't your daughter?"
Ye Zhengqing quickly denied it.
"That's a pity."
The Empress said with some regret, “Wantang has now been betrothed to Prince Ning. I pity her for having no one to rely on, and Prince Ning has no relatives to associate with. If the rumors are true, I might be able to promote you.”
Ye Zhengqing was filled with mixed feelings, feeling that this was an opportunity, but also worried that it was the Empress testing him.
In the end, they chose to keep quiet.
As long as one is alive, one can think about official positions; at worst, one can still follow the path of Li Chenghai.
Moreover, to avoid suspicion, he not only cannot use Ye Wantang to advance his career, but also has to act as if he is not so close to her.
After all, Ye Wantang had tacitly allowed him to be kicked out of the General's Mansion, so it was understandable that her uncle would distance himself from her.
Therefore, his words revealed his disgust for Ye Wantang.
But he didn't realize that being too abnormal would also arouse suspicion.
A man who spends his entire life scheming and plotting for promotion, even if he isn't Ye Wantang's father, is still her only uncle, and could easily use this to advance his career.
He deliberately avoided it, and even dared to express dissatisfaction with the future Princess Ning. The Empress has already confirmed that Ye Wantang is Ye Zhengqing's daughter.
He was trying to cover it up.
She grew increasingly dissatisfied with the marriage.
The Empress had never thought much of her brother, Ye Jinghong.
He then scratched the emperor, who replied, "An uncle is like a father, and Ye Qing is General Ye's own elder brother. It's not that we can't give him a chance."
When Ye Zhengqing left the palace, he seemed to float away.
He was actually promoted by the emperor to the rank of Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, a fourth-rank official, and was put in charge of matters related to the emperor and empress's summer retreats at the imperial estate.
Having spent over a decade welding in the fifth-rank official position, Ye Zhengqing was finally moving up, but he worried that it was all a dream.
He pinched himself hard.
It hurts!
He really did get promoted; what the Taoist priest said was true. As long as he severed ties with Ye Zhen, he could mitigate the backlash and start having good luck.
If I ask him to defy fate again, will I be able to reach even greater heights?
Ye Zhengqing suppressed his excitement and decided to wait two days before going to find the Taoist priest.
Perhaps it was because of Ye Wantang that His Majesty promoted him.
However, she rejected this idea after leaving the palace, because when the imperial decree of marriage was sent to the general's mansion, two governesses from the palace were also sent with it to teach Ye Wantang about female virtues and morality.
Ye Zhengqing then realized that the Empress had seen through Ye Wantang's scheme and had no choice but to accept it reluctantly, but she harbored resentment towards Ye Wantang.
If that's the case, why would he be promoted because of Ye Wantang? Fortunately, he acted as if he wasn't close to Ye Wantang.
Perhaps this is the real reason why I was promoted.
Ye Zhengqing thought to himself with great joy that his good luck had finally arrived. If he had known this would happen, he would not have bothered to switch the two children.
The further away from them the better.
In the palace, the emperor also asked the empress, "Since you didn't intend for Ye Wantang to marry Prince Ning, why did you promote Ye Zhengqing?"
"This is Tingzhou's idea. I also believe that those who lack ability will only make more mistakes by doing more."
The Empress pressed her temples and summoned her confidante. "If anyone inquires about my conversation with Tingzhou, let him know that Tingzhou was relaying news of the disturbances outside the palace to me."
After giving her instructions, she turned to the emperor and said, "In the past, I spoiled Prince Ning too much, which made him so naive."
"Your Majesty, send him to the Ministry of Rites to assist with this summer retreat."
The King of Liang harbors ulterior motives and might use this summer retreat to cause trouble. Let the Prince of Ning see the wickedness of the world for himself.
The emperor granted her request, and got up to massage her temples. "You're quite good to Xie Tingzhou."
"I don't know why, but every time I see him, it's as if I see Zhao'er."
The Empress looked up at the Emperor and asked, "Your Majesty, do you think it was Zhao'er's idea for him to enter the palace today?"
"Zhao'er still cares about us, and about his two younger brothers, doesn't he?"
The emperor nodded. “I always thought that child was good in every way, except that he was too kind. But kindness is not a good quality for a ruler.”
After a brief silence, he sighed, "I do hope that his experiences over the years will make him more ruthless."
Even if he becomes emperor in the future, he won't leave behind so many hidden dangers like he did.
Thinking of this, the emperor couldn't help but think of Liang Wang Kang Le and others, and his eyes flashed with murderous intent.
When the Prince of Liang returned to his residence, he summoned his advisors and told them about what had happened in the palace. "I feel that the Empress is behaving strangely today," he said.
He knew better than anyone how much the Empress loved her sons.
Even for the sake of future harmony between the brothers, she wouldn't easily agree to her younger brother marrying her older brother's former fiancée.
"Investigate who the Empress met after the incident."
The aide returned quickly and said, "Xie Tingzhou noticed that someone outside the palace was standing up for Ye Wantang and reported this to the Empress."
If the Empress had known the public opinion from the beginning and had taken the initiative to propose the marriage to prevent Prince Ning from being criticized, it would have been understandable.
Back then, the emperor defied public opinion and insisted on marrying his sister-in-law, which was criticized by the world. Afterwards, the two of them were cautious and paid special attention to their reputation.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com