Queen Mother Han in Fengxiang Palace had been feeling restless for a long time, but when she saw her two sons, she calmed down, sat down at the head of the table, picked up the teacup and started to sip the tea.
"Your son greets the Queen Mother." The two brothers said in unison.
Queen Mother Han stared blankly at her two increasingly accomplished sons, now capable of supporting the Tianyu state. Past scenes kept replaying before her eyes: how the three of them, mother and son, had struggled in the deep palace, and how many hardships they had endured before finally securing the throne...
Has it come to the point where the cunning rabbit dies and the hunting dogs are cooked, and the good bows are hidden away after the birds are all gone?
Seeing that Queen Mother Han had not responded for a long time, the two brothers felt uncomfortable. Unless it was absolutely necessary, who would want to see mother and son glaring at each other?
"You have grown up, and I am old too." Queen Mother Han never wanted to admit her age in front of others. Those who dared to show pity or even a hint of doubt in her presence were long gone. Now, facing her own son, she finally admitted it herself.
"Mother, please don't say that. I will never forget everything you have done for me." The emperor said with emotion.
"You two, get up quickly!" No matter how angry or dissatisfied the Queen Mother was, she could not deliberately make things difficult for the Emperor. After all, the relationship between them was not just a simple mother-son relationship. To a country, the Emperor was much more important than her, the Queen Mother. Sufficient decency and respect were absolutely indispensable.
"Thank you, mother." The emperor and Prince Jing sat down below Queen Mother Han. The palace maids served snacks and tea and then quietly left. In less than a moment, only the three of them, mother and son, and Eunuch Qu, who hoped to be invisible, were left in the spacious hall.
"Will Eunuch Qu not step down?" Did this Han family lackey intend to listen to their conversation before reporting it to Duke Han and Duke Qing? King Jing lowered his eyes, hiding the cold glint that flashed across them. When he returned home today, he would order those monitoring the Han family to shoot this villain with arrows on sight, leaving no one alive.
"I will withdraw now." Eunuch Qu had no choice but to retreat. He believed that if he dared to delay or find excuses to stay, King Jing would make him the first choice.
"All of you stay away from Fengxiang Palace and are not allowed to come in without being summoned." The Queen Mother did not want anyone to overhear her and her son talking about the Han family. If the matter could be resolved quietly, that would be what the Queen Mother Han hoped to see most.
"Your Majesty, I heard that the Duke of Qing's Mansion had angered the Emperor. I wonder what exactly happened. Your uncle is a bit reckless. You should not take it personally." She could not tell her directly what the matter was because it would be suspected of interfering in state affairs. She also did not want her son to know that she had placed people around him. Daring to spy on the Emperor's whereabouts and words and deeds is a capital crime. No Emperor could tolerate such a thing.
"I don't know who told you this, it's obviously a distortion of the facts and a bunch of rumors." The emperor first made his attitude clear. He and Duke Qing were not having a personal grudge, and his mother's idea of handling the matter by resolving internal conflicts would not work.
"Let me explain! This time when I went to the northwest to suppress bandits, I accidentally discovered that the Han family had secretly purchased war horses and stored food and fodder. When I was collecting evidence, Han Yaowu not only obstructed me many times, but also sent a large number of masters to besiege me in a small town when he saw that the matter was exposed. If it were not for my royal brother who sent people to rescue me, my son would have almost not been able to come back." Jing* narrated his experience with emotion.
"This... how is it possible?" Queen Mother Han looked at her two sons in disbelief, but unfortunately, she could not find any clues. In her eyes and in her heart, the Han family had always been loyal and devoted, and she had never thought that the Han family would ever have other intentions.
"Do you think I am lying?" In the heart of the queen mother, the Han family is indeed more worthy of her trust.
This realization made the Yun brothers very sad, and it also made them more determined to deal with this matter with a strong hand. Only by eliminating the Han family could their mother be able to be the queen mother peacefully and without distraction, and no longer be influenced by others.
"My Queen Mother is saying that the Han family definitely doesn't have the guts. Could there be some misunderstanding here?" Queen Mother Han also realized that her tone and wording were somewhat inappropriate. Who would be happy to hear such a statement as favoring her mother's family and questioning her own son? Moreover, the people sitting opposite her were not just her sons; they were the most distinguished and powerful people in Tianyu. It would be strange if they were willing to hear such words!
"Duke Qing and Duke Han are our uncles. If there were no solid evidence, I would not have rashly sentenced them. Here is the evidence." The emperor pulled out a few pages of paper from his sleeve. This was a more representative part of the Han family's evidence, including the receipts for the purchase of food and fodder between Duke Han and Han Yaowu, and the evidence that Han Yaowu delivered war horses to Duke Qing... After reading it once, people will understand what happened.
"Why are your eldest uncle and second uncle involved here? Yaowu is a little too arrogant and impractical. If I say he did something wrong, your mother will believe it, but your two uncles will never be involved in it." Queen Mother Han put one hand on the pages of paper. She was not in a hurry to look at the so-called evidence from her son's mouth, but tried to put all the blame on her nephew Han Yaowu, hoping to sacrifice the car to save the driver.
Because she knew better than anyone that if the two Duke's Mansions collapsed, she, the Queen Mother, would have no one to rely on and would have to stay in the harem for the rest of her life. Everything she was planning or intending to do would come to nothing. In that case, in a few years, who would remember the Han family and her, the Queen Mother!
"Your Majesty, may I ask you to take a look at what you have before we continue our discussion?" At this point, the Emperor had already seen how determined his mother was to protect the Han family. His attempts to convince her with reason and emotion were likely futile. He could only hope that his mother would believe the evidence and, for the sake of the country and the greater good, side with him. Otherwise, mother and son would inevitably be on opposing sides today.
After a while, Queen Mother Han put down the things in her hands with a very grim expression. It was obvious that she was full of anger, wanting to vent but having to hold it in. She paced back and forth in the hall, and the two brothers cooperated with her silently, quietly waiting for Queen Mother Han's reaction.
"Are you sure that these evidences are not forged?" Queen Mother Han still wanted to gain a glimmer of hope for the Han family.
"These were collected by your son after going through untold hardships. Mother, have you never thought about why your son took more than a year to return to Kyoto? If no one had obstructed me, if there had not been reinforcements, I dare not imagine whether I could still see you, but what is the result? You would rather believe the Han family, but are unwilling to acknowledge the evidence that your son has worked so hard to obtain. You are really my good mother, a good queen dowager from the Han family!" When King Jing said this, tears were already flashing in his eyes.
He was not only sad because he was suspected and ignored, but he was also heartbroken that after so many things happened, his mother still stood firmly on the side of the Han family, disregarding her two biological sons and Tianyu's safety.
King Jing couldn't imagine that if the Han family's ambitions continued to grow and one day they really wanted to replace their brother, would his mother support him and his brother with the same firm attitude? He didn't dare to think too deeply.
Perhaps she sensed her sons were already dissatisfied, or perhaps she remembered that the surname of this beautiful country belonged to Yun, not Han. Empress Dowager Han asked feebly, "How do you plan to deal with this matter?"
"What does your mother think is the appropriate way to deal with this?" The emperor asked instead of answering. He still hoped that his mother would choose her sons instead of the Han family at the last moment.
"Then let's deal with Han Yaowu." Queen Mother Han said somewhat dejectedly.
"What about the Duke of Qing and the Duke of Han? There is so much evidence here, you can't just pretend you didn't see it!" King Jing said emotionally.
"Although Duke Hanguo and Han Yaowu exchanged letters, it only proves that they are connected, not that he is involved! Duke Qingguo has already lost his eldest son, what else do you want, Xuan'er, he is not only your uncle, but also the grandfather of your two daughters!"
You're talking about family affection now. There are more than just your granddaughters in Jinxiu Garden in the palace. Why have I never heard you mention Ruonan? The Han family, I will never let them go no matter what. The people in Jinxiu Garden are only the Han family and your nieces and grandnieces. One day you will know that they have no relationship with your son at all.
"Mother, how do you want your son to explain to all the ministers and the people of the world? Are you going to say that Duke Han and Duke Qing had nothing to do with this matter, and that all the things were done by Han Yaowu alone? Or are you going to say that the evidence that Brother Xuan brought back was a lie, and that everyone in the Han family is innocent?" The emperor said with a cold face.
"Can't you consider your mother?" Knowing that mentioning the Han family again would have no effect, Queen Mother Han changed her tone.
"You will still be the most honorable queen mother in Tianyu, with a status unmatched. I will never allow rumors that are unfavorable to you to spread. As the ruler of a country, I must give an explanation to the officials and the people."
"So what are you going to do?"
"Han Yaowu must be executed immediately. Duke Qing and Duke Han will be demoted to commoners and expelled from Kyoto. They will never be allowed to return to the capital." The emperor said in a firm tone.
"I'm afraid you've already thought of this answer. What if Mother doesn't agree with you doing this?"
"Then my son had no choice but to kill Tianyu for the sake of the Yun family's kingdom. You can say that my son doesn't care about family affection, or blame me for being cold-blooded. I can't joke with the country, and I can't give those with evil intentions an opportunity to take advantage of me."
"I am also a member of the Han family. You should expel me from Kyoto too!" Queen Mother Han said this with her eyes closed, and then she stopped talking. She was gambling, gambling on her weight in her son's heart, and gambling that the deeply rooted Han family would have a chance to turn the tide.
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