Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 933: Chapter 53: Duke Anyang, You Owe Fourth Brother a Big Thank You

Marquis Wuping and his men acted swiftly. Overnight, the rumors about the Emperor mistreating his meritorious officials vanished completely, and no one discussed the matter again, as if it had never happened.

Early the next morning, many ministers were surprised to see Marquis Wuping and his group at the palace gate. They thought to themselves that Marquis Wuping and his men had only been ill for a few days, yet they were already back at court. It seemed they had been frightened by the rumors.

Originally, Marquis Wuping and his men had planned to be ’ill’ for a few more days, but the rumors of the Emperor’s harsh treatment scared them into resuming their duties. If they continued their ’illness’, they risked not only losing their positions but their lives as well.

When Prince Chu and Prince Wei saw Marquis Wuping and his group at the palace gate, a hint of mockery flashed in their eyes.

Marquis Wuping and his men sensed that the other ministers were mocking them, feeling as if they had become a laughingstock, and were inwardly embarrassed.

In reality, the other ministers were not laughing at them. They were not surprised at all by their return to attend court obediently. From beginning to end, the other ministers did not believe their resistance would be effective.

It’s a joke. If the Emperor were so easy to threaten, would he still be their Emperor?

Only the Emperor could threaten them, not the other way around.

However, the feeble resistance from the aristocrats and the powerful was disappointing, as it did not entertain the other ministers with a dramatic spectacle they had hoped for.

In the past, when the Emperor proposed selecting officials through imperial examinations, some people considered committing suicide in protest. Though they didn’t go through with it, at least they had thought about it. But this time, the aristocrats and the powerful showed no hint of threatening the Emperor with their lives. It was quite dull.

The censors coldly smirked inwardly when they saw Marquis Wuping and his group return to court. Later, they would certainly impeach them thoroughly. They even dared to spread rumors defaming the Emperor, an unforgivable crime.

Prime Minister He, Grandmaster Liu, along with the Minister of Revenue and the Minister of Ministry of Personnel showed no reaction to Marquis Wuping and his group returning to court. They gathered together, quietly discussing the progress of reforms such as tax inclusion and publicized treasury management, as well as officials and gentry paying taxes equally.

At the fourth quarter of the hour of mao, the palace gates opened, and the ministers entered the palace in order.

Prince Jing arrived relatively late, but his steps were quick, soon catching up with Prince Chu.

"Fourth Brother, I heard you suggested to Father that Third Brother should return from Jiaozhou."

Prince Chu was not surprised that Prince Jing knew about this. He merely glanced at Prince Jing and said nothing.

Prince Jing knew Prince Chu was sparing with words, and seeing him silent, he was not angry. He continued, "Fourth Brother, what’s the trend? Are you actually speaking on behalf of Third Brother, or are you trying to gain favor with Duke Anyang?"

Prince Dai, walking ahead, stopped in his tracks upon hearing Prince Jing’s words, then turned his head and looked coldly at Prince Chu.

Prince Jing’s voice was loud, so many ministers heard it. Naturally, Duke Anyang also heard it, and he was quite astonished that Prince Chu would take the initiative to speak for Prince Zheng.

Prince Chu glanced at Prince Jing and said expressionlessly, "It’s none of your business."

"Fourth Brother, that’s not right. Third Brother is your brother, as he is mine. How can it be unrelated to me?" Prince Jing said with a faint smile, "Fourth Brother, when did you and Third Brother become so close that you would speak well of him? I recall that you have a good relationship with Tenth Brother, so why not speak well for him to bring him back from Lingnan? Lingnan is more troublesome than Jiaozhou, isn’t it?"

Prince Dai suddenly spoke with a sarcastic tone, "Old Fourth, when did you and Old Third become so chummy?" Old Fourth asking Father to call Old Third back, what is he up to?

Prince Chu said stiffly, "Third Brother is the same as Second Brother, nothing special."

Prince Dai felt Prince Chu’s comment was an insult to him. He slightly darkened his face and said, "If there’s nothing special, why are you speaking well of him?"

"Fourth Brother, could it be that you’ve secretly become close with Third Brother behind our backs? The significance of Duke Anyang Mansion cannot be understated now. If Third Brother comes back, it poses a considerable threat to you."

Prince Chu turned his head, his gaze sharp as he looked at Prince Jing.

"Seventh Brother, mind your words." Prince Chu was disgusted by Prince Jing’s words and almost lost control of his expression, nearly showing a look of disdain.

Seeing Prince Chu genuinely angry, Prince Jing became somewhat doubtful. Wasn’t Prince Chu helping Prince Zheng to speak in favor, intending to form an alliance with him?

Prince Chu was too weary to deal with Prince Dai and Prince Jing and quickly left.