When Duke En heard the Emperor's blatant threat, he was struck dumb, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly agape, unable to utter a word.
He never imagined that the Emperor would be so biased towards the princess, completely disregarding the feelings of his father-in-law and benefactor.
Duke Enguo was filled with resentment and unwillingness. He clenched his teeth so tightly that he almost broke them.
He cursed the emperor in his heart: "You ungrateful bastard! If it weren't for my life-or-death help back then, how could you have the throne today? Now you not only don't help me, but you even dare to threaten me!"
Duke En's face turned extremely ugly, sometimes ashen, sometimes flushed red, as if a fierce storm was raging within him.
His greatest regret was that the Empress's daughter hadn't given birth to a son. If that had been the case, he would have killed the Emperor without hesitation and then installed his own grandson as the new emperor.
Prime Minister Hu, standing to the side, took in the sinister glint in Duke En's eyes. He knew all too well the Duke En's methods and ambitions.
Prime Minister Hu lowered his head and remained silent, secretly pondering a solution.
Prime Minister Hu knew that his official position and interests were tied to the Emperor's. If the Emperor were harmed or deposed by the Duke of Enguo, he and his family would all suffer a terrible fate.
Seeing the unusually tense atmosphere between the Emperor and the Duke, with both men furious and unwilling to back down, Prime Minister Hu realized the situation was about to spiral out of control.
He quickly stepped forward and stood between the two men. He first bowed respectfully, then smiled and gently advised, "Lord Duke, please calm down. You see, although the Duke's mansion has lost a lot of valuables, they are just material possessions. As long as you retain your official position, you will naturally have the opportunity to earn them back in the future, and perhaps even double them."
Prime Minister Hu bluntly stated on the spot: "With the Emperor backing you up, getting as much wealth as you want is a piece of cake."
Upon hearing this, Duke Hu Tongtian's anger subsided somewhat. He thought to himself, "That's true. Now is not the time to turn against the Emperor for a little money."
The most urgent task is to find a way to ensure that the Empress's daughter gives birth to the Crown Prince smoothly, so as to maintain her own status and power, and even rise to a higher level.
Faced with the Emperor's cold attitude, Hu Tongtian suddenly had a scheme to substitute one concubine for another: although his son had unfortunately died young, both of his concubines were pregnant. Since that was the case, why not have the Empress feign pregnancy, and then, a few months later, establish his grandson as the Crown Prince? In this way, wouldn't the empire fall into his hands without anyone noticing?
Hu Tongtian pondered to himself, knowing full well that if he confronted the Emperor directly and forced him to punish the princess and her husband, he might face certain death.
If he were to fight the emperor, all the princes would seize the opportunity to intervene, which would be extremely disadvantageous to him.
So he decided to put aside his pride and self-esteem for the time being and endure it for a few months.
Suddenly, Hu Tongtian knelt down and kowtowed heavily, then said to the emperor with a face full of guilt, "Your Majesty, it was this old minister who was so angry that he offended you. Please punish me."
This move astonished everyone present, especially the Emperor and the Prime Minister. They exchanged a glance, both seeing disbelief in each other's eyes.
Because they all knew that Hu Tongtian was always an unreasonable and stubborn person, and it was really out of character for him to apologize to the emperor in such a humble manner.
"What's wrong with him?" the Emperor wondered to himself. "Does he have some ulterior motive?"
The Prime Minister shared the same thought as the Emperor, pondering in his heart: "What exactly is Hu Tongtian trying to achieve with this move?"
The Emperor slightly raised his right hand, his originally stern face softening somewhat, and his tone becoming gentler: "Duke Enguo, please rise quickly." He thought to himself, if this matter could be resolved by turning a major issue into a minor one, and a minor one into nothing, that would be the best outcome.
Upon seeing this, Hu Tongtian quickly stood up from the ground, his hands clenched into fists, as if he was trying hard to control his emotions.
After a brief silence, he took a deep breath, trying to make his tone sound more relaxed, and then said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, this old minister lost control of his emotions because he lost his eldest son in his old age and suddenly lost all his family property. I beg Your Majesty's forgiveness."
The Emperor nodded slightly, indicating his understanding. "I know your predicament; this matter is indeed unbearable." He then offered, "In that case, I will send officials from the Ministry of Justice to investigate the loss of property from the Duke's mansion and see if it was done by servants in collusion with outsiders."
Hu Tongtian quickly bowed and thanked the emperor, saying, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty!" However, deep down, he did not think much of the emperor's suggestion.
He pondered to himself, "Which servant has such great ability to collude with outsiders to move all the valuables from the Duke's mansion? Apart from the princes and princesses who are protected by guards, I'm afraid no one else in the world would dare to run wild and steal valuables from the Duke's mansion."
Taking the opportunity, Hu Tongtian raised another matter: "Your Majesty, some of the palace maids serving the Empress are already quite old. I believe it would be better to release them and marry them off, thus giving them a good home. At the same time, I would like to select a few more clever and obedient maids to send into the palace to serve the Empress. What does Your Majesty think?"
The Emperor readily agreed to such a small matter, and said with a smile, "Hmm, this is an excellent suggestion. Duke Enguo can send the person to the palace today and hand him over to the Empress for arrangements."
Upon hearing this, Hu Tongtian quickly bowed respectfully and thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Seeing this, Prime Minister Xiao, who was standing to the side, wanted to say something, but when he saw Hu Tongtian's sharp eyes sweep over him, he couldn't help but feel a tightness in his heart. He swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue and could only silently lower his head.
Originally, all palace maids sent to the Imperial Clan Court had to undergo rigorous physical and medical examinations to ensure their health and moral character. Only after passing these examinations could they receive specialized training and ultimately be sent to serve in the palace.
Prime Minister Xiao was, after all, a shrewd and calculating man. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Hu Tongtian's actions were somewhat strange.
Logically speaking, this was just an ordinary little thing. Hu Tongtian could have easily sent someone to the palace through the Imperial Clan Court. So why did Hu Tongtian specifically bring it up in front of the Emperor?
He was so eager to send the person into the palace...
Prime Minister Xiao's mind raced, a flood of guesses and doubts washing over him, but for the time being, he couldn't come up with a solution.
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