088. Reprimand

The next day.

The night before, the imperial guards surrounded the Xi residence. The military movement was quite commotion, and the people in the streets thought there would be a mutiny. Even the ministers in the court thought that the regent was finally going to force the emperor to abdicate. However, the chaos ended in less than an hour.

The imperial guards only took away Xuan and the eldest princess.

Before going to court, Rong Jing summoned Cao Lun and Xi Yan, naturally because of what happened last night. Xi Yan was furious, his face ugly, and he kept scolding: "Rebellious ministers and thieves! They are all traitors! Under the feet of the emperor, the imperial guards dared to disregard the emperor and besieged the residence of the current Shangshu Ling with the order of the Regent King! They don't take the civil and military officials of the court seriously at all!"

Rong Jing soothed him, "Don't worry, Lord Xi. If the Regent is really so unruly, the officials will certainly not watch him do whatever he wants."

Xi Yan was still furious, and said with a sullen face: "The funeral of the Liu family has just been completed, and Liu Chi's death was definitely not an accident! The Regent King has been so presumptuous, how can he still take the law seriously!"

Liu Chi's death was strange, and anyone with a discerning eye could see it.

But there was no evidence, and even Xi Yan couldn't figure out what means the Regent had used to make Liu Chi so addicted to women that he killed himself.

But this way of dying is absurd in itself.

Cao Lun frowned and looked at Xi Yan with heavy eyes, "Lord Xi, let's not talk about other things for now. There are two things I can't figure out. First, why did the Regent Prince order the imperial guards to break into the Xi family mansion at night and take away Xuanhe Princess. Second, the imperial physician on duty last night was hastily transferred by the Regent Prince's mansion, and this morning the news came out that Xuanhe Princess was seriously injured and her life was hanging by a thread. Lord Xi, can you explain this to me?"

Cao Lun hit the nail on the head.

Xi Yan suddenly stopped, his expression changed, and he was silent for a while.

Cao Lun guessed that there might be something behind this, and with the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of the fleeting guilt in Rong Jing's expression, and his heart sank to the bottom.

After a while, Xi Yan said, "Princess Xuanhe married into the Xi family and became the wife of the Xi family. This is the family affair of our Xi family!"

This is like having the word guilty written on your face.

Cao Lun took a deep breath and finally lowered his voice: "But she is a princess of the royal family!"

How the Xi family treats the princess is how they treat the royal family, because Rong Zhixu is a princess representing the royal marriage. She is the sincerity of the royal family. If the Xi family treats her as a guest of honor, it will be a return gift to the royal family!

Over the past year, rumors have been circulating that Xi Chaoyi has turned over a new leaf and is in love with Princess Xuanhe. Cao Lun believed it to be true, and never expected that something would go wrong here.

Xi Yan knew that he was in the wrong, and his spirit was not as high as before.

"Uncle, don't be angry yet." Rong Jing tried to ease the atmosphere. "No matter what, Ah Xu is the wife of the Xi family. It is too presumptuous for the emperor's uncle to take her away like this. After this incident, I believe... the Xi family will not make things difficult for her again, right?"

Xi Yan naturally walked along the steps and said, "Of course, of course. My son is willful. I will make him apologize to Your Highness in person! We are all family. How can there be any grudge?"

Cao Lun did not say much, only said: "Master Xi, the royal family is the royal family."

Xi Yan understood his warning and nodded vaguely: "I understand."

After Xi Yan left, Rong Jing whispered worriedly, "Uncle, why did you say such harsh words to Lord Xi? It's just Xuan He. Is it worth offending the Xi family for her?"

"Offended?" Cao Lun snorted coldly, "Your Majesty, the Xi family treated His Highness Xuanhe disrespectfully, which means they didn't even take the Royal Family seriously. They despised not only Xuanhe, but you as well! The Emperor of Jin! If they had any resentment towards you, how dare they do this?!"

Cao Lun had been immersed in the court for many years and saw things much more clearly than Rong Jing. After saying a few words, he couldn't help but sigh.

"No matter why the Regent Prince wants to take Princess Xuanhe away, Your Majesty." Cao Lun said a little tiredly, "The Regent Prince used Fusheng Tower as a prelude to trip up the Jingzhao Prefecture Governor, Jizhou Governor, and the current Minister of Revenue. We have been defeated in the several battles with him. Now he has made a move on the Xi family. Your Majesty thinks that he is just for Princess Xuanhe?"

Rong Jing was awakened, and was furious at the Xi family, yet also extremely frightened.

yes.

What does Rong Se want to do? !

.

A military march in the middle of the night caused a commotion in the city, but the regent, who had stirred up the fury, was oblivious to it. He slept late at night and could not get up in the morning.

Liang Shenyu was already dressed and holding the lazy Regent Prince in his arms. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and said softly, "Prince, we can't sleep anymore. We have to go to the morning court today."

Even ordinary people heard the movements of the imperial guards last night. At the morning court today, the regent king must give an explanation to all the civil and military officials.

Rong Se reluctantly opened his eyes, feeling unhappy, and sighed in Liang Shenyu's arms: "...When can I stop being the regent king? I really want to be a leisurely prince who can do whatever he wants. In this way, I can sleep until I wake up naturally and get up whenever I want."

"Now, Your Highness can also ask for clothes." Liang Shenyu put his hands under his armpits and lifted him out, "I will help Your Highness change clothes."

Rong Se hung his head, not moving a single step, and allowed Liang Shenyu to carry him out of the quilt.

Marquis Dingbei did what he said and even tied Rongse's hair and made sure she wore the golden crown clearly.

The end result was that the Prince Regent and Marquis Dingbei entered the Xuanzheng Hall on time again, just one step later than Rong Jing.

Rong Se nonchalantly sat on his Kirin throne, holding back his sighs, and maintaining his aura as the regent. However, because he did not sleep well, his expression was not only cold, but also a little depressed.

So the censors who were about to launch a military campaign to hold the emperor accountable looked at each other and began to back off.

There are very few censors in the court who dare to speak out and make honest suggestions. Most of them are people who curry favor with the powerful and try to save the situation. Seeing that the Regent is in a bad mood today, even the suggestions are blocked.

They didn't say anything, but Rong Se spoke up himself.

"Master Xi."

Rong Se leaned lazily on the Qilin throne, glancing down indifferently, his sharp eyes revealed and his tone sharp.

"Last night, I ordered someone to bring Xuan He back. In front of all the civil and military officials, I ask you, do you accept it?"

Xi Yan was stunned by this question.

Shouldn't he be the one to be held accountable? Why is he being questioned instead?

He then stepped out of the line to cry out for justice, "I am innocent! The imperial guards surrounded my house, injured my wife, and took away His Highness Xuanhe. I have done nothing wrong, so why did the prince order the imperial guards to surround my residence?!"

Rong Se only showed a sarcastic look of "As expected", sat up a little straighter, with no smile on his face.

"Really? But isn't the lady of the mansion fine? Last night, there was only a lowly woman who dared to whip the eldest princess of the dynasty with a bamboo whip and injured her body. How can it be considered an injury if my people just gave her a little lesson?"

Rong Se threw his hands to the ground with a loud noise, and was not prepared to show any mercy to the Xi family, and his tone became more and more harsh.

"Why don't you tell me why Xuanhe knelt in the ancestral hall for so long and why he was whipped?"

Xi Yan remained calm: "Even though she is a princess, she is still a junior in the Xi family. It is only natural that the eldest princess offended her parents-in-law and was punished. It is just family law. The country has its own laws, and the family has its own rules. It is just a family matter. What does it have to do with the Regent Prince?"

"House rules?"

Rong Se uttered these two words slowly, with overwhelming anger and slightly narrowed his eyes.

"Xi Yan, Liu is just a concubine, how can she be called Madam? According to the laws of our dynasty, if a concubine offends the main wife of the master, she can be dealt with like the main wife. As Xuanhe is the eldest princess of the dynasty, and the main wife of Xi Chaoyi, she has no right to say anything if she is sold. What qualifications does she have to use family law against Xuanhe?"

Xi Yan was at a loss for words to refute for a moment, and the ministers began to discuss the matter.

The affairs of the Xi family had long been spread throughout the capital of Jin. He initially relied on women to rise to power, and later neglected his wife. However, it was really too much for the concubine to use family law against the eldest princess, who was his wife.

"Master Xi, tell me, how did the princess disrespect her parents-in-law?" Rong Se sneered, "Did she fail to take good care of your impotent son, or did she fail to take good care of your ungrateful concubine?"

Xi Yan's face turned blue and red, he took a few deep breaths, and was unable to speak.

The eyes of the ministers, either probing or mocking, all fell on him.

He had nothing to say. No matter what, it was a concubine who attacked the princess, which was enough to be punished!

Rong Se snorted coldly, glanced at the ministers, and said in a deep voice: "The eldest princess is now in a critical moment of life and death. Everything will be discussed after Xuanhe recovers. If anything happens to the eldest princess..."

Finally, his cold eyes fell on Xi Yan, carrying a heavy sense of oppression, as dark as a dark cloud covering the sun.

"Then let your good son and his good mother pay for Xuanhe's life."

Having said that, Rong Se sat back on his throne as if nothing had happened. He caught a glimpse of Rong Jing's ugly face and couldn't help but sneer in his heart.

This time he took the initiative and did not give the other party a chance to refute. Instead, he directly revealed all the secrets of the Xi family in front of everyone, leaving them speechless.

In the end, Cao Lun just lowered his eyes calmly without saying a word.

After the morning court was over, everyone left. Rong Jing said to Cao Lun in the deserted hall: "Uncle, Xi Yan..."

"Don't meddle in the affairs of the Xi family." Cao Lun sighed. "The Xi family was wronged first, and the Regent Prince stood up for the royal family. If you publicly protect the Xi family now, aren't you really going to establish your reputation as an incompetent and tyrannical monarch?"

Rong Jing knew this and couldn't help being impatient: "But if something happened to the Xi family, wouldn't Rong Se have the final say in the court? Even if the Xi family is wrong, Rong Se can't just get rid of people who are loyal to me!"

Cao Lunhe didn't know, and was silent for a while, then said: "If Xuan and the princess are fine, maybe this matter can be turned around... Besides, the princess may not be as he said."

Rong Jing was stunned, "What does uncle mean?"

"The solution lies with Xuan and the Princess." Cao Lun said solemnly, "As long as she is not willing to break up with the Xi family, this matter won't be a big deal."

Rong Jing reacted and immediately showed a happy expression. He nodded and said, "That's right. As long as Xuanhe is willing to go back to the Xi family, it will be fine. She has been raised in my mother's harem for so many years. If I persuade her a little, she will definitely listen!"

After all, they raised her. Even if the Xi family treated her badly, why couldn't she endure it for the sake of the greater cause?

Rong Jing took it for granted.