071. Win

The officials who wanted to reprimand Rong Se were now silent.

When the Dianzhou troops entered the capital, neither the Regent Prince nor the Marquis of Dingbei took it seriously and did not react at all. If they did, it would have been a big deal.

Rong Se sat in the upper seat, watching the ministers whispering to each other nonchalantly. He had a cold expression and there was no turning back once his words had come out. Liang Shenyu, who was among the ministers, was calm and composed. Only when his eyes passed over him did the gloom between Rong Se's brows ease a little.

"My Lords, why are you silent?"

Rong Se's lips curled slightly, with a hint of coldness in his smile.

"It's not just one person who can mess up the harem. You all speak so conspicuously as if you saw the adultery with your own eyes, and you should also name the adulterer. How come it's clearly the fault of both parties, but the woman is the only one to bear the responsibility?"

This time, beads of sweat were dripping down Cao Lun's forehead.

When Yan Shuang was dealt with, it was told to the outside world that she committed suicide. Even though the rumors about Rong Xu and Yan Shuang were known to the common people outside the court, they were just rumors and no one dared to speak openly about it.

After all, this matter cannot be wiped out by simply blaming Concubine Yan for causing chaos in the harem.

Rong Se leaned calmly on his Qilin throne, tapping the Qilin head armrest with his fingertips, again and again, neither hurried nor slow, with a mocking and teasing look in his eyes.

"And..." He turned his eyes to Rong Jing, this time his eyes were chilling, "Since the others won't say anything, then it's your turn to say it. You just said it was absurd, then tell me, my biological mother was buried in the imperial mausoleum, where is the absurdity in it?"

“This…” Rong Jing was panicked when he saw that none of the ministers were willing to speak for him anymore, and blurted out: “Empress Dowager Yan—”

"Your Majesty!" Cao Lun interrupted him abruptly. This was obviously very rude to a minister, but no one said anything. He took over the conversation and said in a deep voice: "The Regent Prince is right. Let's... let Concubine Yan enter the imperial mausoleum."

Rong Jing couldn't believe it, "But..."

"Your Majesty." Cao Lun's eyes were solemn.

The expression on Rong Jing's face suddenly became as ugly as if he had eaten a fly, and he was speechless.

Cao Lun turned to Rong Se and said, "Since Emperor Yuanguang's concubines can also be promoted, we cannot treat the Queen Mother unfairly. Why not ask her to return to the palace..."

"Don't worry, Lord Cao."

Rong Se interrupted him loudly and smiled slowly: "Of course, this king will not treat the Queen Mother badly. The Queen Mother's title will naturally be promoted. However, the Queen Mother is now focused on reciting scriptures and worshiping Buddha for the late emperor. It is better not to disturb her peace."

The meaning is very clear: the concubine can enter the imperial mausoleum, but the empress dowager can't even think of leaving the mausoleum.

Cao Lun clenched his fists tightly, raised his head and looked coldly at Rong Se.

There was a brief, silent exchange between the two.

Rong Se did not back down for a moment. Normally, he did not like to compete, but when it came to a goal that had to be achieved, Rong Se was more willing to take risks than anyone else.

Finally, Cao Lun withdrew his gaze without saying a word.

It is obvious who will win this clash.

Rong Se sneered silently, then said, "The matter of the dowager's promotion to a higher position and her entry into the imperial mausoleum will be handed over to Guanglu Temple."

Even beyond the Ministry of Rites.

Ji Miaotong, who had quietly put his hands in his sleeves, appeared and leaned forward and said, "I obey your order."

He was also tactful enough not to look at the emperor's expression.

"If there is nothing else, then let's go." Rong Se stood up and walked out, but suddenly stopped, looking at the ministers inch by inch, and said in a calm voice: "If any lord wants to die for his remonstrance, this king is willing to send him off."

He left after saying that.

As soon as he left, the court became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

No one expected that the Regent would do something big after just two days of peace, but he had to use the reputation of the late emperor as a threat, and at this moment, the orthodox royal family would not tolerate any stain.

Once they oppose Yan Shuang's entry into the imperial mausoleum, Rong Xu's reputation will be ruined.

Rong Se is fearless.

But they were timid.

Liang Shenyu was the first to move. He calmly turned around and chased Rong Se.

Seeing this, the court officials of the Regent King's lineage were proud and followed him with their heads held high.

Until only the emperor and Xi Yan and Cao Lun were left in the hall.

Xi Yan thought for a moment before saying, "I'm afraid the Regent Prince is just trying to hit back at us by making such a fuss."

"More than that." Cao Lun said coldly, "I've said it before, there's no need to talk about what happened back then. There's no need to talk about it. The young master of the Liu family has been flirting these past two days, but even I know what he said, how could it not have reached the ears of the Regent Prince?!"

Xi Yan's expression changed slightly, and he frowned and whispered: "But this..."

"Since Liu Xu came to the capital, he has repeatedly invited Marquis Dingbei to banquets." Cao Lun's tone was calm, but it made people feel creepy. "He has no intention of becoming an enemy of Marquis Dingbei."

After a long while, Xi Yan had nothing to say and could only sigh: "I understand. I will give him a lesson when I get back."

"Also tell your nephew to be quiet." Cao Lun snorted.

After listening to this, Rong Jing couldn't help but ask, "Are we really going to let that slut Yan Shuang enter the imperial mausoleum?!"

"Otherwise, what do you want, Your Majesty?" Cao Lun asked, "Let Rong Se cling to Your Majesty and bring disgrace to the royal family?"

Rong Jing didn't care, "But father is right, he is the emperor, how can the emperor be wrong?"

Cao Lun was choked, and even felt for a moment that Rong Jing was really useless.

"The emperor is right because his authority is supreme. However, if he really makes a mistake, the backlash will be even greater." Cao Lun said, "Not to mention that now, this supreme authority is not in your hands. Once the royal family is tainted with such a stigma, coupled with the failure of the Imperial Ancestral Temple, your majesty, do you know that the public opinion in the world will be enough to make your majesty step down from the throne!"

Rong Jing's face turned pale.

It was scary.

He never thought that he would lose the throne because of someone other than Rong Se.

Even a year ago, he didn't even take Rong Se seriously.

"But, but..." Rong Jing was speechless.

"No buts." Cao Lun's eyes were sharp and disappointed. "Your Majesty, if you refuse to give in today, the Regent will definitely use the late emperor's reputation to be buried with Concubine Yan. She is just a dead person. If she wants to enter the imperial mausoleum, she can go there. What can we do about it? The living are more important. Find a way to bring the empress dowager back to the palace as soon as possible."

Xi Yan remained silent.

Concubine Yan's burial in the imperial mausoleum was indeed a matter for the dead, and the dead cannot care about their reputation. This matter was clearly for the living to see.

Rong Se wanted to do this for them to see, and also for the people of the world to see, that Concubine Yan was innocent and could be buried in the imperial mausoleum, worshipped in the imperial temple, and enjoy incense.

But they had to agree. Rong Se did have the upper hand in this matter. The Regent could go all out without any scruples, but they didn't dare to do so.

It's like being in shackles.

"Lord Cao is right." Xi Yan sighed, "If the reputation of the late emperor is affected by a woman, it will also affect your majesty. If Concubine Yan is allowed to enter the imperial temple, the regent prince will stop. Let's do as he pleases this time."

Seeing both of them say this, Rong Jing felt aggrieved and tightly grasped the armrest of the dragon chair, but he still had to force a smile and nodded, "Then... I'll listen to you."

.

After coming out of Linghui Pavilion, Rong Se leaned back in the carriage tiredly, closing his eyes to rest.

Soon someone opened the carriage door and sat next to him.

With Yunchu watching outside, the only one who could be so presumptuous was Liang Shenyu. Rongse was not on guard and heard the man say with a smile: "Congratulations, Your Majesty, you beat them today."

"This matter is not over yet." Rong Se opened his eyes, his eyes full of clarity and coldness, "Letting her enter the Imperial Temple to enjoy offerings is only the first step. Rong Xu, that bastard, did something evil, why should others bear the blame for him?"

Liang Shenyu heard something else from this, "What does the prince want?"

"Let's wait and see." Rong Se didn't say it directly. He was rarely so tough and aggressive.

The last time was probably when he was in the court overturning the thirteen unjust cases in Jizhou. He was clearly not a very courageous person, yet he was fearless. His blood was boiling beneath the loud words he spoke.

But Liang Shenyu also noticed that when Rong Se mentioned Yan Shuang, his expression was no different from when he dealt with the thirteen unjust cases in Jizhou. It didn't seem like he was mentioning his mother, but rather like he was just speaking out to see injustice.

"Concubine Yan...will I treat you well?" Liang Shenyu asked after carefully considering his words.

Rong Se paused slightly.

Concubine Yan undoubtedly treated the original owner well.

But he is not the original owner, he can only admire and feel pity, maybe even heartache, but he is only looking at it as an outsider.

...Even if it was just this, Rong Se felt truly sad for the original owner and her son.

After thinking for a long time, Rong Se said in a calm and detached tone: "She only sells her skills in the entertainment places, but not her body. If Rong Xu hadn't threatened her young son, she would definitely not give in. In this matter, she is not mean. The fault lies with Rong Xu. As for her... she is also a kind mother."

The obsession that the original owner refused to let go of until his death was his mother.

No matter how vicious and cold-blooded he is, Yan Shuang is the only pure land in his heart. This is also the reason why Rong Se is determined to avenge the original owner. Since he has used someone else's body and identity, he should do what he should do.

Otherwise, he would find it difficult to be himself.

Liang Shenyu nodded slightly. He could tell that Rong Se would not stop there. Concubine Yan's entry into the Imperial Temple was only the first step.

Since Rong Se didn't mention his other plans, Liang Shenyu didn't ask any more questions. Instead, he said with a smile, "Liu Xu has done nothing since he came to the capital, and he has hosted banquets for the Marquis' Mansion twice and three times. It's not hard to guess that your incident today was caused by Liu Chi. I'm afraid Cao Lun will go and cause trouble for Xi Yan."

Rong Se nodded slightly: "It's best if it's dog bite dog."

Rong Se was not very good at calculating, but in his current position, if he didn't think about it, he would lose his life. Before deciding to make trouble in the morning court today, he repeatedly considered and weighed the pros and cons, and thought of this point.

If Liu Chi dares to be presumptuous, he will be even more presumptuous. As the instigator, Liu Chi should not expect to remain immune.

Liang Shenyu said: "They won't make a big fuss. Xi Yan favors his concubine and won't be too harsh on the Liu family. And as Xi Yan is the Minister of the Chancellery, Cao Lun won't offend him."

There are too many interests involved.

Rong Se held his hands up, not too disappointed, and just said: "I don't expect this to break them up, but it would be nice if it could just cause some trouble."

Liang Shenyu laughed.

Rong Se was truly the most detached chess player he had ever seen.

"Let's go home and have dinner." Rong Se was already thinking about the menu.

After all, we were going to the Xi family’s garden party after the afternoon.

Judging from the state banquet, the Xi family probably didn’t have anything edible.