Chapter 113: I’m Not Stupid

Lu Desheng felt something was off as he entered the palace that day. He felt a sense of oppression in the palace that wasn’t there before. Noticing his somber expression, Wei Zili, who happened to be there to greet him, asked, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s just, it feels like the air around me is stagnant, making it hard to breathe.”

Wei Zili thought to himself, Lord Lu’s intuition is as sharp as a wild beast. After receiving the war report of the Crown Prince’s demise, His Majesty eventually fainted from anger. When he woke up, he ordered a lockdown on all news, but he didn’t mention how to deal with the Xie family, and Wei Zili didn’t dare ask. But Xue Huaimin and the Xie family were definitely not going to have a good time. He couldn’t talk about this matter that could cost him his life. If he opened his mouth, he wouldn’t live past midnight.

Emperor Kang Cheng in the hall had already regained his composure. After playing with his five-year-old grandson for a while, he waved his hand and had the wet nurse take him away. The Crown Prince’s legitimate son was born too late, but there was no way around it. The Crown Princess had given birth to two daughters in a row, and after a year of recuperation, she finally gave birth to Song An.

Lu Desheng’s heart skipped a beat when he saw Song An being held in the wet nurse’s arms!

In the hall, Emperor Kang Cheng’s complexion grew even paler. He looked at Lu Desheng, “Lord Lu, I have a question for you. Answer honestly.”

Lu Desheng: I have a bad feeling, what should I do to avoid this? But Emperor Kang Cheng wouldn’t give him a chance. He asked directly, “If your younger son killed your elder son to inherit the family business, what would you do?”

Wei Zili standing beside him felt sorry for Lord Lu, but thinking that the Emperor didn’t even let him be buried with him, it was only fair to make things difficult for him.

Lu Desheng nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard this question! Your Majesty! Is this a question a subject can answer? Ah! Mother, no, daughter, the Crown Prince really had an accident!

“Your Majesty, I’m not stupid.” Lu Desheng reminded him tactfully. You wouldn’t think I’m an idiot, would you? I can make connections!

Emperor Kang Cheng chuckled. His laughter strained his lungs, and he coughed twice. “Don’t be a fool, answer properly!”

After a long silence, Emperor Kang Cheng looked at him. Hmm? Your Majesty, why do you like making things difficult for me? I really don’t want to answer this question.

Lu Desheng cautiously replied, “Your Majesty, I think our family’s meager assets are not enough to make my younger son so depraved, pfft, pfft, I spoke wrong, not depraved, but… but…” Lu Desheng stammered for a long time, unable to finish his sentence.

Depraved—Emperor Kang Cheng chewed on those four words, wasn’t it depraved?

“Then what would you do?” Emperor Kang Cheng persistently asked.

This was a death trap, wasn’t it? Which side should he take? Lu Desheng was in a panic! If he sided with the Crown Prince, he would offend the Fourth Prince. The Emperor clearly didn’t want the Fourth Prince to be held accountable for the Crown Prince’s death, otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked him this question. He could have just made the decision himself. If he sided with the Fourth Prince, he would offend not only the deceased Crown Prince but also the Emperor!

Lu Desheng understood. He simply closed his eyes, steeled his heart, and boldly replied, “Your Majesty, I would definitely punish him severely. This little bastard dared to scheme against his elder brother and kill him for a little bit of family wealth. Who knows if he might kill his old father for that wealth someday? I’m afraid of death.”

Emperor Kang Cheng sighed. They, ruler and subject, were considering different factors.

“Your Majesty, please, spare me! This question is giving me a headache.”

“Alright, go back. Wei Zili, see him off.” Emperor Kang Cheng waved his hand, feeling exhausted and not wanting to keep him any longer.

Lu Desheng left, looking back three times. “Your Majesty, take care of your health.”

As he left the palace, Wei Zili, taking advantage of the opportunity to step aside, slipped a small note into his hand. Lu Desheng took it without showing any reaction.

“Lord Lu, after leaving the palace, you know what you can and cannot say, right?”

“I understand, I understand.”

As soon as Lu Desheng left the palace and boarded his carriage, he quickly instructed, “Old Li, hurry, drive faster!”

Old Li received the order and whipped his horse with a whoosh. The new carriage sped off at its fastest pace.

At this time, Lu Songli was in her study, reviewing the information sent from Li Mountain Villa, as well as the information about the Xie and Zhao families that Qin’s family had sent her. She needed to organize it and extract the information she needed.

After receiving the information about Zhao Bin, she sent a letter to Qin’s family, asking if they had collected any information about the Xie and Zhao families over the years. If they had, could they make a copy for her?

Qin Heng received Lu Songli’s letter, read it, and instructed his confidant to send all the information they had collected about the Xie and Zhao families, as well as the Empress Dowager’s family, to Lu’s family.

“A Heng, when will A Sheng be back?” He had just given the order when he saw his mother leading someone in. It  was already the thirteen, and he hadn’t even tried on his wedding clothes. Was that appropriate? The fifteenth day of the twelfth month was only two days away. It was no wonder his mother was anxious. He calculated A Sheng’s speed. If he rushed from Baihe Town to Chang’an City, it should be barely possible to reach Chang’an City in three days, right?

Qin Heng reassured Madam Qin, saying that A Sheng would definitely be able to return to Chang’an City before the fifteenth. Madam Qin was helpless, but she also knew that no matter how much she said, he wouldn’t be able to conjure A Sheng out of thin air.

Lu Songli organized all the information and found that Zhao Bin wasn’t being honest. The information he gave was nine parts true and one part false, but it was enough. She wouldn’t believe his one-sided story anyway.

After returning home, Lu Desheng went straight to his study.

“Daughter, daughter, something’s happened. Something big has happened this time…”

After Lu Desheng finished speaking, Lu Songli sighed. The Crown Prince was ultimately not saved. And the Emperor clearly knew that the Crown Prince’s death was the Fourth Prince’s fault.

“Daughter, do you think the Emperor will consider the Crown Prince’s son, his  Grandson?”

“Why do you ask that?”

“Well, the other day when the Emperor talked about the Crown Prince, I also brought up your elder brother, saying he was incompetent, and I also mentioned wanting to cultivate Xiaoxiao. Then today, I actually saw the Emperor bringing the Crown Prince’s eldest son, Song An, to the Imperial Palace. When the Emperor asked me that question earlier, I also said that I would punish my younger son severely…” Lu Desheng’s voice grew quieter as he spoke.

Lu Songli thought to herself, Father, you’re amazing. You’ve offended the Fourth Prince again and again.

“Did that child spend a lot of time in the Yuqian Palace?” she asked.

“Not long, it seems. The child stayed in the Yuqian Palace for about two quarters of an hour before being sent back to the Crown Princess.”

Lu Songli pondered for a moment and shook her head. Power doesn’t disappear; it just shifts. The Crown Prince’s eldest son, Song An, is only five years old. A weak ruler is always accompanied by powerful ministers who manipulate power. Once power is handed over, it’s difficult to take it back. She felt that the likelihood of establishing the Crown Prince’s grandson as the next in line was very low.

On the contrary, the possibility of establishing the Fourth Prince seemed higher. Just as her father had judged, when the Emperor received the news of the Crown Prince’s death, he was in his most irrational and emotional state. Yet, he didn’t deal with the Fourth Prince, indicating that he had his considerations.

“This Fourth Prince might have some destiny on his side,” Lu Desheng remarked with a sense of frustration. He had repeatedly tried to turn the Emperor against the Fourth Prince.

She tried to think from Emperor Kang Cheng’s perspective. “From the Emperor’s point of view, the Crown Prince is dead. He is angry, but he is also worried about who will succeed the throne next. Learning that the Fourth Prince caused the Crown Prince’s death is true, but it also shows his capability. Among the three remaining princes, he is undoubtedly the most outstanding.” The human heart is very dark.

Lu Desheng pursed his lips.

“Putting aside the fact that he orchestrated the Crown Prince’s death, from a rational perspective, the Fourth Prince is the most suitable to inherit the throne among the three.”

Lu Desheng responded, “Alright then.”

“Now, our Emperor has two choices: one is to choose someone else—either the Second Prince, the Third Prince, or the Crown Prince’s son—thus completely thwarting the Fourth Prince’s plans and giving him a severe slap in the face!”

Hearing this, Lu Desheng’s eyes lit up.

“But, although this might be satisfying, it could bring hidden dangers or even turmoil to the Da Li dynasty. Our Emperor has been a competent ruler for over twenty years and is relatively restrained. He probably wouldn’t want to see the ancestral foundation crumble due to his momentary whims.”

Lu Desheng reluctantly nodded, “I agree with your view.” Emperor Kang Cheng was indeed such a person.

Lu Songli guessed that their Emperor would eventually let reason overcome anger and give the Fourth Prince a chance. She estimated that Emperor Kang Cheng was currently coldly scrutinizing the Fourth Prince.

Now it all depended on what the Fourth Prince would do. His actions would determine whether he could become the successor and also how severely he would be punished.

Lu Desheng smacked his lips and said, “If the Fourth Prince ascends to the throne, then the Crown Prince died a truly unjust death.”

Politics is just that cruel.

“Yes, because the Crown Prince died unjustly, Emperor Kang Cheng, out of guilt, will have more people accompany him in death.” Speaking of this, Lu Songli’s mood became heavy. The Qin family…

If the Emperor wanted to protect the Fourth Prince, then the conflict among the brothers could not be brought to light. Otherwise, the new Emperor’s legitimacy would be questioned, making it difficult to win the people’s support and potentially leading to future troubles.

“And those ministers around the Fourth Prince, who seek to gain credit for supporting his rise, will certainly face the Emperor’s wrath.”

Lu Desheng nodded, “Indeed, those bold enough to conspire against the Crown Prince—do you think the Emperor would let them off?”

“Wait, when I left the palace just now, Wei Zili secretly slipped me a note. Let me check it.” As he spoke, he took out the note from his clothing.