mtl008 Chapter 10: Let her go to Mount Fotuo to fulfill her filial duty to the Empress Dowager in my stead.
Chapter 10: Let her go to Mount Fotuo to fulfill her filial duty to the Empress Dowager in my stead.
This is the first time I've ever seen someone force the crown prince to do something at their own birthday banquet.
The scene became even quieter for a moment.
Lu Yuxi smiled meaningfully, "I wonder what Old Madam Wu wants to say?"
Grandma Wu immediately beamed with joy and pushed Wu Shuangwan, who was blushing shyly behind her, to the front.
"I know Your Highness has already chosen a Crown Princess, but I fear this Young Master Lin will not be able to produce an heir. Therefore, I beg Your Highness to grant me this request. This is my own granddaughter, who has long admired Your Highness. Now that she has the opportunity to meet you, I have dared to presume upon my seniority and, despite my age, risk my reputation—"
"Your Highness, please accept Shuangwan's offer and marry her as your concubine!"
Now, even the sound of everyone breathing became barely audible.
Lu Yuxi glanced around. The Marquis of Nanyang's family dared not speak, looking terrified, but their eyes were full of ambition and anticipation. His two good brothers were looking at him mockingly, as if they were watching a good show. The others, on the other hand, were truly terrified, their heads bowed and motionless.
As for Lin Shiming beside him, Lu Yuxi glanced back and saw Lin Shiming staring at him with a half-smile.
Lu Yuxi shuddered almost imperceptibly and quickly looked away.
After composing herself, Lu Yuxi finally spoke amidst the trepidation and anticipation of the crowd.
"Princess Heyi, who gave you the audacity to pressure the Crown Prince in public and interfere in my marriage? You dare to make decisions for me?"
As she spoke, Lu Yuxi slammed her wine glass heavily onto the table. Wu Shuangwan, who was standing next to her, screamed in fright, and her face turned pale instantly.
Old Madam Wu was also quite frightened. She feigned composure and said, "Your Highness, I am your elder! The Empress Dowager has said that elders have a saying..."
"Insolence!" Lu Yuxi finally snapped. "Guards!"
Suddenly, chaotic footsteps echoed outside. Within moments, a squad of the Crown Prince's personal guards burst in, swords in hand, and surrounded the group.
"By my decree, the Marquis of Nanyang's residence has been found guilty of plotting against and coercing the Crown Prince, which constitutes an act of usurpation and insubordination. They shall be immediately apprehended and imprisoned in the Imperial Prison for trial."
"Crown Prince!" Prince An suddenly stood up. "The Marquis of Nanyang's family is a noble household, and Old Madam Wu is a princess of the royal family. How could you—"
“If Prince An is not satisfied, imprison him in the Heavenly Prison as well.”
After saying that, Lu Yuxi stopped talking, grabbed Lin Shiming, and strode away.
As soon as they stepped out of the main hall, the cries for mercy from the Marquis of Nanyang's family rang out behind them, but they were quickly silenced by the actions of the guards.
*
Inside the carriage, Lu Yuxi drank three cups of tea before she could barely calm down her anger.
"First, escort Young Master Lin back to his residence."
The carriage slowly began to move, and Lu Yuxi breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing that the person was indeed quite angry, Lin Shiming tried to appease them with a joke, "They were eyeing you right in front of me, and I wasn't even that angry. Why are you so furious? Aren't you supposed to be a proper and polite Crown Prince? Why are you acting so decisively today?"
"You're just teasing me." Although Lu Yuxi was still angry, she played along with Lin Shiming's joke. "Aren't you angry? Who was it that was giving me that murderous look just now?"
"Don't spread rumors! I didn't say anything!" Lin Shiming was quite annoyed that the person he was trying to comfort had gotten himself into trouble. "You've got it wrong."
Lu Yuxi let him argue, "Fine, I misread it."
Lin Shiming snorted in dissatisfaction, and was about to continue to make excuses for himself when a bird suddenly chirped outside the carriage.
"Come in."
Lu Yuxi looked up, somewhat surprised, at Yu Sheng who had suddenly appeared in the carriage.
"Your Highness, Young Master," Yu Sheng bowed first as before, "The people from the Marquis of Nanyang's residence have all been captured and sent to the Heavenly Prison. His Highness Prince An did not stop them and left directly."
Lin Shiming scoffed, "I knew he was all bark and no bite."
Yu Sheng did not agree, but continued to report.
"His Highness Prince Ping and the other guests have also left. Apart from the two princes' carriages heading to the palace, no one else went into the palace."
"Alright, you can go out now." Lin Shiming instructed Yu Sheng, "Go and send a message to your brother, tell him what happened today, and then go straight back to the manor. Be careful."
Yu Sheng nodded, then disappeared again the next second.
"This person is quite good. His lightness skill is superb, he appears and disappears like a ghost, and his ability to gather information is also first-rate. Where did you find him?" Lu Yuxi's anger had subsided, and her tone returned to its usual gentle manner.
"I found them on the road, I found a pair!"
"You're quite lucky then," Lu Yuxi chuckled. "But speaking of which, if Prince Lin hadn't asked me to come and keep you company today, what would you have done?"
Lin Shiming poured himself a glass of water. "When we learned about Uncle Ji's accident this morning, my brother and I already sensed that something was wrong, so we brought Yu Sheng with us. He's good at gathering information and observing changes, so I asked him to keep an eye on things."
"Just keep an eye on the point?"
"Hmm. Although I haven't seen many conspiracies and tricks, I can guess that they probably want to ruin my reputation. Although I don't know the specifics of how they do it, I guess it's pretty much the same few things, like luring someone out alone to do something, and then calling a group of onlookers to witness it."
Lu Yuxi thought about it carefully for a moment, "That makes sense. So how do you plan to get out of this?"
Lin Shiming smiled brightly, "As the saying goes, 'One force can overcome ten techniques.' No matter how many schemes he has, I can just use my light-footed skill to run away. Then I'll send a signal to Li Yi and Yu Sheng to find a place to cause some trouble and lure everyone there. With the crowd mixed in, it will be easy for me to do whatever I want."
As he spoke, Lin Shiming pulled a black bullet out of his sleeve.
"Have you ever read any martial arts novels? The Thunderbolt Hall of Jiangnan, Thunderbolt Boy, I made it according to what's written in the book. It's a bit big, a bit ugly, and the sparks are a bit small, but it's loud enough. If you use it a lot, it can set a house on fire."
"At that time, Yu Sheng and the others will throw handfuls of pellets into Old Mrs. Wu's usual room. It won't hurt anyone, but it will be quite a spectacle. You can consider it my birthday gift to her."
"I just didn't expect it to be such a coincidence today. She changed her plans at the last minute and pulled off a surprise attack right there and then, going straight to the point." Lin Shiming shook his head with a regretful expression. "She didn't even give me a chance to signal."
Lu Yuxi shook his head with a helpless smile. Following Lin Shiming's method, they would inevitably have to summon the Military Command, the Imperial Guards, the Ministry of Justice, and the Court of Judicial Review. He had never thought Lin Shihe was so prescient.
"If there are any gatherings or banquets in the future that require you to attend alone, you must invite me." I'm afraid that you might do something outrageous on a whim.
Lin Shiming naturally understood what Lu Yuxi meant. He hummed in dissatisfaction but still nodded.
*
On the sixth day of the lunar month, there will be a great meeting.
"Your Majesty, I have a memorial to present." Tang Yong, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, stepped forward with a memorial. "Yesterday, the Marquis of Nanyang's residence hosted a birthday banquet for his late mother in Heyi County, but His Highness the Crown Prince imprisoned them all on charges of 'scheming to coerce the Crown Prince and overstepping his authority,' and even threatened his elder brother to imprison His Highness Prince An as well."
"The Crown Prince's actions are arrogant and disrespectful to his elders. We beseech Your Majesty to issue an edict to release the Marquis of Nanyang and his family, and to reprimand the Crown Prince."
Emperor Longyun, seated on the dragon throne, took the memorial handed to him by the eunuch and glanced at it casually.
"Prince."
"My son is here."
"According to the memorial, I ask you, did this Princess Heyi really interfere in your marriage and scheme against you?"
“Your subject dares not lie. Yesterday, when all the officials attended the banquet, Princess Heyi said that the Crown Princess was unable to have children and asked your subject to ‘marry’ her granddaughter. This is truly presumptuous.”
"Vice Minister of Justice, is what the Crown Prince said true?"
"This, this," Tang Yong's forehead was already covered in cold sweat. He had only been instructed to impeach the Crown Prince late last night, so how could he know the specific details of the situation at that time?
"I ask you a question: Did Princess Heyi say or do any of the things the Crown Prince mentioned?"
Tang Yong knelt down with a thud, "Probably, probably? After all, Princess Heyi is His Highness the Crown Prince's elder, so perhaps there are some discrepancies, who knows..."
"What a fine 'it is uncertain'!" Emperor Longyun slammed the memorial shut, then turned his attention to Lu Yuchen, "Prince An, yesterday the Crown Prince pressured you to imprison you?"
If Lu Yuchen still couldn't see through Emperor Longyun's attitude at this moment, then he could be described as being less than a three-year-old child.
"Your Majesty, yesterday there was a misunderstanding between me and the Crown Prince."
Emperor Longyun let out a heavy snort.
"In that case, the charges against the Marquis of Nanyang are true, and the Crown Prince's handling of the matter is appropriate. The Marquis of Nanyang is hereby stripped of his title of Viscount, and the Princess of Heyi is demoted to Lady of the Township. Both are to be fined one year's salary and confined to their quarters for six months. The Imperial Clan Court shall proceed immediately!"
"I accept the decree!"
"As for the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, as a member of the Ministry of Justice, he falsely accused the Crown Prince, knowingly breaking the law. He shall be demoted three ranks and given fifty strokes of the cane as punishment. Let this go."
"Your Majesty, spare your life! Your Majesty, spare your life!"
Tang Yong was quickly dragged out by the imperial guards. Soon after, the dull thuds of sticks hitting his body and Tang Yong's uncontrollable cries of pain could be heard outside, making some people tremble.
After dealing with the Marquis of Nanyang's affairs, the officials thought the matter was over, but unexpectedly, Emperor Longyun brought up the Crown Prince's marriage again.
"I issued an edict more than half a month ago to bestow a marriage upon the Crown Prince, but there were a few points that were not mentioned in the edict. Now that this matter has come up, I will clarify them all at once. Lin Shiming is betrothed to the Crown Prince as his principal wife, and in this life, the Crown Prince will only have this one principal wife."
"Your Majesty, you mustn't!" The Crown Prince's tutor immediately stepped forward. "Bestowing a male consort upon the Crown Prince is already unheard of. How can Your Majesty allow the Crown Prince to have only this one male consort? Wouldn't that cut off the Crown Prince's lineage?"
"It's alright. I haven't finished yet. The former Crown Prince will be posthumously honored as Crown Prince Hua Min. His posthumous son, Lu Tingsong, will be raised by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess after the Crown Prince's wedding, so that he can be his heir."
The court erupted in uproar, but Emperor Longyun said nothing more.
"The matter is settled then. Court adjourned!"
*
The court session had ended, and the officials gathered in twos and threes, discussing the events of the morning court session as they walked out.
"Just a while ago, we were debating whether His Majesty had grown tired of the Crown Prince or had already decided to put him on the throne. But today, it seems that His Majesty is indeed most concerned about Crown Prince Hua Min."
"That's right. This Crown Prince is probably just a shield that His Majesty has set up for Crown Prince Hua Min's son. He is a temporary custodian of the Crown Prince's position and the throne."
"Well, there's no need to jump to conclusions so quickly. His Majesty seems to be in good health, but there are still many variables in this matter!"
"That's true."
"Alright, other matters are uncertain. But His Majesty has already decreed that there is no one else suitable for the Crown Prince except for that Young Master Lin. You should worry about the selection of the Sixth Prince's principal wife!"
"Yes, yes!"
"..."
*
Huangji Palace, Xuanzheng Hall, Imperial Study.
Emperor Longyun was flipping through a book of greetings when he suddenly asked the eunuch Li, who was grinding ink beside him, "Li An, what do you think those ministers are talking about right now?"
Li An was used to this, but still thought seriously, "This servant does not know. But it's probably about His Highness the Crown Prince's marriage."
"That's true. What other purpose can they serve besides keeping an eye on those things?"
Li An dared not respond to this; he could only offer a fawning smile.
Emperor Longyun didn't expect him to say anything, and instead asked about other things.
"Tell me, why was the Crown Prince so angry yesterday that he imprisoned all those people? He almost didn't even spare the Fourth Prince."
"This servant heard that His Highness the Crown Prince was only angry and reprimanding her, but... Lady Heyi said that she was His Highness's elder and mentioned the Empress Dowager's words in the past... and then His Highness the Crown Prince suddenly exploded and immediately imprisoned her."
"She's truly outrageous!"
Li An immediately knelt down, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"
Emperor Longyun took a deep breath, leaned back in his chair, and rubbed his temples. After a long while, he finally roused Li An, "Rise. My harem has been empty for a long time. Proclaim the imperial decree: the eldest granddaughter of Lady Heyi..."
Li An cautiously reminded her, "Wu Shuangwan."
"...Wu Shuangwan is extremely sincere and filial, therefore she is hereby conferred the title of Beauty. Let her go to Mount Fotuo to fulfill her filial duties to the Empress Dowager on my behalf. Inform the Empress that the decree will be delivered now, and they will depart tomorrow!"
"Whoo."
After Li An left the hall, only Emperor Longyun remained in the Imperial Study.
He sighed deeply, rose, and walked to the window. "Yu Xu, my crown prince..."