The Fourth Prince suddenly turned around, and Chief Eunuch Feng at the head also showed an expression of surprise. No one expected Lu Chongyuan would actually resign from his official position.
Emperor An squinted his eyes slightly. “You want to resign?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. This old minister is ashamed to stay in the capital. I hope, considering the many years of our ruler-minister relationship, that Your Majesty will allow this old minister to return to his hometown.”
Emperor An fixed his gaze on him for a while, seemingly trying to understand his intentions. Just as Chief Eunuch Feng and the Fourth Prince thought the Emperor would agree...
Emperor An spoke coldly, “The grain transportation case has not yet been settled, and whether it is related to the Lu family is still undetermined. Though the matter with Prince Cheng has been cleared up, Guo’s family is still an outsider. If I allow Minister Lu to resign because of this, people will gossip, saying that I am harsh towards the old ministers in the court, unkind and unjust.”
Lu Chongyuan looked up, “This old minister takes the initiative to resign. Your Majesty need not worry about rumors from the outside.”
Emperor An’s voice grew colder, “I said no.”
The Fourth Prince’s face showed uncontrollable astonishment. His father and the aristocratic families had long been at odds. If it weren’t for the influence of the aristocrats, the Emperor would have long since eliminated them.
If Lu Chongyuan voluntarily resigned, shouldn’t his father have accepted it immediately? In addition to the Lu family's influence in the court, he could slowly weaken the other families.
But why did the Emperor refuse?
Although Lu Chongyuan was kneeling, his expression was calm when he raised his eyes, “Then what does Your Majesty plan to do with this old minister? Keep me confined in my residence, or wait until people come after the Lu family time and again? Or must I be destroyed along with the Lu family before Your Majesty is satisfied?”
“Lu Chongyuan, you are being disrespectful!” Emperor An suddenly shouted angrily.
Lu Chongyuan calmly looked up, “This old minister would never be disrespectful, but I don’t understand why Your Majesty is treating the Lu family this way. I have never wronged Your Majesty, nor has the Lu family wronged the imperial family.”
“The grain transportation case, Lu Zhao’s rebellious son has been in prison for a long time. With the accounts and witnesses, it should have been resolved long ago. Yet, Your Majesty keeps ordering me to be confined, instructing others to dig deeper into the case. Are you trying to prove that this old minister is involved, or do you believe that the entire Lu family is tainted?”
“And regarding the earlier issue with the Song family, others may not know the reasons, but does Your Majesty not know? If not for the Fourth Prince’s greedy foolishness, deceiving my wife into taking the item from the Princess of Yiyang, would the Lu family have had to sacrifice half our library and endure insults and ridicule just to preserve the Fourth Prince and the imperial family’s face?”
“Grandfather…”
Before the Emperor could speak, the Fourth Prince had already changed his expression. He rushed forward and said, “Father, those items were given to me by my grandmother. I didn’t know where they came from…”
“Didn’t know, or pretended not to know?”
Lu Chongyuan looked at the Fourth Prince with cold mockery, showing no mercy, “The Lu family has great resources and never lacks gold or silver. But many of those items are one-of-a-kind, and some even have our family’s seal on them.”
“Your grandmother frequently gifted them, always choosing moments when no one was around. Yet, you never once inquired about their origins, nor did you let anyone from the Lu family know that you took items from the mansion. Were you too guilty to let anyone find out, or did you already suspect those items were not legitimate?”
“I…”
The Fourth Prince was speechless. He wanted to explain, but Lu Chongyuan had already turned to look at Emperor An.
“Prince Cheng’s affair with Guo, if it were one of the legitimate heirs of the Lu family, my carefully taught grandson would not even be a Lu by blood. This has caused the entire Lu family to be mocked. That aside, even the Fourth Prince, my beloved grandson, has been pushed by Your Majesty into the depths of disgrace.”
“Since Your Majesty cannot tolerate the Lu family, I will retire and live in a corner with my family. What else do you want, must you truly push the Lu family to ruin?”
Lu Chongyuan’s voice was calm, yet the force behind his words made both Chief Eunuch Feng and the Fourth Prince break out in cold sweat.
The Fourth Prince had tried to interrupt Lu Chongyuan multiple times, but today the usually cautious and thoughtful man seemed stimulated by the Guo matter, disregarding the Emperor’s increasingly darkening face, speaking with growing insolence.
“I entered the court during the reign of the late Emperor, twenty years ago during the southern floods, sixteen years ago during the Yingzhou rebellion, and thirteen years ago when Crown Prince Li rebelled. At every dangerous moment, the Lu family never once retreated, yet now I am met with suspicion. Since that is the case, why should I stay in the court?”
“I ask Your Majesty to punish me, or grant my request to resign and retire in peace.”
“Bang!!”
“Lu Chongyuan, you are being disrespectful!!”
Enraged, Emperor An suddenly stood up, grabbing a nearby object and throwing it at Lu Chongyuan. The scattered objects fell to the ground, and a paperweight hit Lu Chongyuan’s face, cutting him and rolling away. Emperor An stared at Lu Chongyuan, his breathing heavy.
His face alternated between pale and dark, as if furious, but a closer look revealed a trace of wariness in his clouded eyes.
Emperor An had been secretly struggling with the Lu family for a long time. Their unspoken understanding to avoid mentioning the past was shattered by Lu Chongyuan’s blatant confrontation.
Twenty years ago...
Thirteen years ago...
The image of that catastrophic fire in the Eastern Palace appeared in his mind, and Emperor An gripped the table tightly, shaking in anger, but then his head suddenly throbbed with intense pain.
He staggered back, and Chief Eunuch Feng was startled. “Your Majesty! What’s wrong?”
“Father!”
The Fourth Prince was also shocked, rushing forward to support him, shouting, “Someone, get the Imperial Doctor, quickly!”
The commotion outside increased, and Emperor An’s sudden illness caused panic. Xiao Yan, watching coldly from the side, spoke in a cold voice, “Lu Chongyuan’s words before the Emperor were completely disrespectful. Someone, arrest Lu Chongyuan…”
“Don’t!”
Emperor An grasped Chief Eunuch Feng’s hand tightly, struggling through his headache, and gritted out, “I have decided. The case with Prince Cheng is closed. No one else in the Lu family is to be implicated.”
“Father?” The Fourth Prince was shocked, “But the identity of Xie Yin is still unclear, and Guo…”
“Enough, I have made my decision. No more words.”
Emperor An impatiently interrupted the Fourth Prince, and continued, “Father…?"
The Fourth Prince wanted to speak, but Emperor An waved him off, “Send Lu Zhongshu back to his residence. Lift his house arrest. Investigate Lu Zhao’s corruption case, but do not bring up Lu Zhongshu’s resignation again.”
Xiao Yan looked at the Emperor and then lowered his head with a flicker of mockery in his eyes, “Understood, Your Majesty.”
As the Imperial Doctor rushed in, Chief Eunuch Feng assisted Emperor An to the inner chamber. The Fourth Prince stood in place, pale and confused.
He didn’t understand why things had turned out this way.
Clearly, his father despised the Lu family, and today’s situation could have been used to condemn the Lu family. Even though Guo wasn’t a member of the Lu family, she had married into it years ago, and all that she did was clearly tied to them. At worst, they could have been implicated in the scandal about the royal bloodline.
He had severed ties with the Lu family because he was certain they wouldn’t escape this. But now, Emperor An hadn’t punished them in the slightest. Instead, he had lifted Lu Chongyuan’s house arrest…
The Fourth Prince’s face turned as white as a sheet as he watched Lu Chongyuan rise from the ground and walk forward.
“Grandfather…”
“Did you forget, you are of royal blood, and have nothing to do with the Lu family?”
Lu Chongyuan’s words left the Fourth Prince stunned, pale and speechless.
“Grandfather, I…”
The Fourth Prince wanted to say that he hadn’t meant to, that he was forced by the Emperor’s orders. But when he met Lu Chongyuan’s icy eyes, he couldn’t utter a word.
Lu Chongyuan dusted off his sleeves and turned to Xiao Yan, “Thank you for the grace of Lord Xiao. But it seems that the Emperor’s feelings for the Lu family may be hard for you to understand. Today, I will remember this, and repay it later.”
He waved his sleeve and walked out, with Xiao Yan following leisurely behind.
Just as Lu Chongyuan was about to exit the Imperial Study, Xiao Yan suddenly chuckled, “The Lu family’s loyalty to the Emperor, is it from twenty years ago, or thirteen years ago?”
Lu Chongyuan froze.
Xiao Yan casually walked up beside him, “Speaking of which, Guo’s death was truly tragic. She confused the royal bloodline, which deserved to be punished. But Lu Zhongshu managed to protect the Lu family with just a few words. If Guo had lived to enter the palace, perhaps the Emperor might have spared her life due to the Lu family’s loyalty. But unfortunately… no one wanted her to live.”
His voice was soft
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You can read ahead to chapterr 400 (100+ extra chapters) here
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