klisemfg Chapter 12 My son is dead, so none of your sons should live either!
Chapter 12 My son is dead, so none of your sons should live either!
When the three forgotten people stepped into the main hall, Zhang Ting and Ji Tiao, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, were already holding their child, playing with little Anji, and chatting about Lin Shiming's dowry.
"...In short, our family is not short of money. The palace is the most expensive place, so we have to add as much money as possible to it."
“Mother is right. I heard that Princess An’s dowry was comparable to that of the Empress back then. We can’t lose to her!”
"Cough cough." Lin Yunyue coughed twice.
“That makes sense. We’re marrying the Empress’s legitimate son, who is also the Crown Prince. We naturally need to save face.”
"Cough cough cough." The sound grew even louder.
“How about this, too many boxes will make it difficult for the families behind us. My daughter-in-law knows a carpenter who is quite skilled. Let’s go and make some big boxes to fill them up.”
"Stop, stop, stop! What are you stopping me from doing!" Lin Yunyue finally snapped. "Let him earn it himself. I'm not giving him a dowry."
Zhang Ting slammed his hand on the table. "Who are you trying to challenge?"
Lin Yunyue instantly deflated. "I'm angry... The Lin family has taken three wives from the Lu family across so many generations, including Shi Heguang's. My great-uncle even took one of their future heirs. I'm not forcing Shi Ming to take another wife so I can show off later, but I can't, I can't let Shi Ming actually marry into the family. How am I supposed to face my ancestors after this..."
And when I drink with that emperor in the future, he will definitely use this to annoy me!
"Don't you know how to explain this? Why didn't you think more about it when you agreed to the marriage? Now you're trying to act tough with me. Don't force me to embarrass you in front of the children on your very first day back."
Lin Yunyue felt even more aggrieved, "No, that stingy emperor wrote me a thick letter, and I acted impulsively out of loyalty, blinded by brotherhood..."
"puff--"
The moment Lin Shihe laughed, he knew something was wrong, and sure enough, he was caught immediately.
"What are you laughing at, Lin Shi? You dare to laugh?" Lin Yunyue didn't dare raise his voice to his wife, but he could scold his son scathingly. "If you hadn't been manipulated and persuaded by that emperor first, would I have impulsively agreed to him? You..."
"Impulsive! Impulsiveness is bad~" A child's voice suddenly interrupted Lin Yunyue's anger.
“… …” Lin Yunyue turned around and saw a little child sitting comfortably in Zhang Ting’s lap, clapping his little hands with a smile.
"Where did this child come from?" He didn't react for a moment.
"Lin Yunyue, are you determined to make me lose face today? Don't you even recognize your own grandson?"
"Get to know him!" Lin Yunyue's mind finally registered, and his anger instantly turned to joy, his face beaming with delight. "My grandson! Little Anji!"
"Come here, let your grandpa love you! Grandpa will take you horseback riding tomorrow!"
"...Father, Father, it's winter now. Are you taking a one-and-a-half-year-old child horseback riding?" Lin Shiming, who had been watching the drama for a while, finally had a chance to interject. "Don't take him. Take me instead. After the last birthday banquet, my brother hasn't let me leave the house for days."
Staying at home all the time was too boring, and the wolf cubs would often disappear without a trace. So, out of boredom, he went to play with the pair of geese that had been part of the betrothal gifts sent by the Ministry of Rites a while ago. However, he was caught red-handed by Lin Shihe and received a good scolding.
"Don't you know why I didn't let you go out?" Lin Shihe looked at him irritably. "Besides, tomorrow is the betrothal ceremony, and the Ministry of Rites will be coming to deliver the betrothal gifts. How can you not be home?"
"Payment? The process is that fast?"
Ji Tiao chimed in, "Yes, the Ministry of Rites had already prepared everything this year, so the process was quick once the decree was issued. Also, since this marriage was bestowed by imperial decree and the wedding date had already been set, there was no need for a formal request for a date. Therefore, after the betrothal ceremony tomorrow, we just have to wait for the grand wedding on the second day of the second month next year."
"The wedding date has been set so early, could it be that Her Majesty the Empress—"
Zhang Ting didn't finish her sentence, but everyone understood.
Lin Shihe nodded silently, "That's one of the reasons why I agreed to His Majesty's request. If we don't make a decision soon, it will be too late."
Zhang Ting sighed deeply, and the entire main hall fell silent.
"No, what are you all talking about?" Lin Shiming finally couldn't help but jump out and break the atmosphere. "What's wrong with Her Majesty the Empress?"
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone looked at him in surprise.
Lin Shiming's hair stood on end from the stare. "W-what do you mean?"
"You didn't know?" Lin Shihe looked shocked.
Lin Shiming was even more embarrassed. He tentatively asked, "Is there something I should know?"
You should know a lot more!
"Let me put it this way, how much do you know about Crown Prince Hua Min?"
"Ah, he was His Majesty's eldest son, and was made Crown Prince at the age of six. People in the martial arts world said he was handsome and elegant, with unparalleled charm and a pure and gentle spirit. However, four years ago, there was a change in the court, and this Crown Prince and his Crown Princess suddenly passed away, leaving behind only a posthumous child, who is my future eldest son, Lu Tingsong. A year later, His Majesty made the Empress's second son, His Majesty's fifth prince Lu Yuxi, the Crown Prince, and he has been so ever since."
“I know you don’t like it and don’t pay attention to politics, but I never expected you to be so indifferent.” Lin Shihe shook his head helplessly. “You are, after all, the son of the Duke of Zhenguo’s mansion. How can you know only a little more than a villager from the countryside?”
Lin Shiming gave an awkward laugh, using drinking water to cover up his embarrassment.
"Since I have some free time today, I'll explain it to you in detail. That way, you won't make a fool of yourself or cause any misunderstandings when you meet Her Majesty the Empress at the New Year's banquet this year."
*
Emperor Longyun, Lu Changfeng, was the third son of the late Emperor's Consort Gu.
Consort Gu came from the Gu family, a prominent family consisting only of her father, brothers, and herself. However, when she was fifteen, war broke out on the border, and her father and brothers were killed in battle, leaving her an orphan overnight and making marriage difficult.
To appease the soldiers and to treat the orphans of meritorious officials well, the late emperor brought her into the harem, where she was immediately given the rank of a second-grade imperial concubine.
Two years later, Consort Gu gave birth to the late emperor's third son, who is now the Longyun Emperor, Lu Changfeng. Fifteen years later, Consort Gu died of illness and was posthumously granted the title of Imperial Noble Consort.
Lu Changfeng was exceptionally intelligent and deeply favored by the late emperor, who then betrothed him to Lady Bai when he was eighteen. Three days after the wedding, he was made crown prince.
At the age of nineteen, Lady Bai gave birth to Lu Changfeng's eldest son, who later became Crown Prince Hua Min. In the same year, Empress Qin, the late emperor's wife, in order to support her maternal clan, suggested to the late emperor that her niece, Lady Qin, be sent to the Eastern Palace as a concubine. A year later, she gave birth to Lu Changfeng's third son, Lu Yuchang.
Not long after, the late emperor passed away, and Lu Changfeng ascended the throne, adopting the reign title Longyun. He posthumously honored his birth mother, Lady Gu, as Empress Dowager, his legal mother, Lady Qin, as Empress Dowager, his principal wife, Lady Bai, as Empress, his secondary wife, Lady Qin, as Noble Consort, his secondary wife, Lady Shen, as Consort Shen, his concubine, Lady Yue, as Consort Yue, and Liang Chenghui as Consort Liang...
In the first year of the Longyun era, His Majesty, based on his exceptional intelligence and noble character, appointed his eldest son, Lu Yuxu, as the Crown Prince.
For the next ten years, the government was stable.
In the twelfth year of the Longyun era, Empress Dowager Qin and the Qin clan, the maternal family of Consort Qin, hoped to support the third prince, born to Consort Qin, as the new emperor. However, the crown prince was legitimate and exceptionally capable, making his position difficult to challenge. Therefore, they meticulously plotted to eliminate the crown prince directly.
In the height of summer, Empress Dowager Qin, citing illness, requested that the Crown Prince and his soon-to-be-born wife travel lightly to Mount Fotuo to offer prayers for her.
Emperor Longyun considered the Crown Princess's situation and initially intended to refuse, but Empress Dowager Qin, in alliance with the Qin clan of the previous dynasty, used the concept of "filial piety" to coerce the Crown Prince and his wife into going to Buddha Mountain with only twenty personal guards.
On the way, the Qin family, in alliance with civilian rebels and experts from other countries, attempted to assassinate the Crown Prince, while deliberately delaying when they received a distress signal. Outnumbered, the Crown Prince's guards fought desperately but only managed to escape with the Crown Princess; the Crown Prince himself perished on the spot.
Three days later, the Crown Princess, who had narrowly escaped death, gave birth to the eldest grandson of the Emperor, Lu Tingsong, but still died in childbirth.
Emperor Longyun was furious. Ignoring the objections of his court officials, he joined forces with the Tingyun Army of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion to forcibly take control of the capital. After several investigations, he finally found all the evidence that the Qin family had colluded with the rebels to murder the crown prince.
Emperor Longyun originally intended to kill all those involved to avenge his son, but the Empress Dowager personally came to the court and, with propriety, refuted his claims, stating directly:
"Our dynasty governs the country with filial piety, and filial piety is more important than law. I am the emperor's legal mother and the crown prince's elder. What elders say, juniors must obey; what elders desire, juniors will obey even unto death. Today I am here to inform all the ministers that if the emperor insists on killing the Qin family, then I, as the legal mother, will demand that the imperial clan depose the emperor and establish a new one!"
Emperor Longyun would not back down because of Empress Dowager Qin's words, and ordered the Tingyun Army to continue arresting people.
The next day, however, Empress Dowager Qin attended court again, holding the late emperor's memorial tablet and weeping bitterly.
"...If the Emperor insists on this, I cannot live on! Today I will follow the late Emperor's memorial tablet. The court and the public, the historians and their pens, will all remember you, Lu Changfeng, for forcing your stepmother to her death. You are an unfaithful and unfilial person, a violation of filial piety, and unfit to be Emperor!"
At the same time, the Qin clan mobilized all their connections, uniting with court officials who did not want the crown prince to ascend the throne, and other forces, to echo the Empress Dowager in court, saying, "The crown prince is dead and cannot be changed. How can we allow the crown prince alone to affect Your Majesty's long-standing reputation and cause turmoil in the court and the country? Such actions may cause unrest among the people and endanger the nation."
Even more so, "If the Crown Prince still possesses a heart of benevolence, he would surely be extremely filial and unwilling to coerce his grandmother."
Emperor Longyun immediately ordered the Tingyun Army to arrest the sons of those ministers, saying: "Since you all believe that it is a matter of filial piety for the younger generation to die for their elders, today you have offended me, so I will kill all your children. I suppose they will be willing to die for you elders!"
My son is dead, and you all make sarcastic remarks? Then let your children die too! None of you should live!
Immediately, a clamor arose as officials petitioned the emperor to rescind his decree. His Majesty, however, with the full support of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, remained undaunted.
Just as chaos reigned in the court and among the people, Empress Bai personally came to the court and said to His Majesty, "I still have a second son." Then she held a closed-door discussion with Emperor Longyun.
Three days later, Emperor Longyun summoned his ministers, and both sides compromised.
The entire Qin clan was demoted to commoners, their property confiscated, and they were exiled to the northern deserts. For five generations, they were barred from holding official positions in the court or serving in the military. Consort Qin was demoted to the rank of Changzai and was never allowed to advance in rank.
The Third Prince was confined to the Imperial Clan Court. Emperor Longyun said, "Even if all the men and women of the Lu imperial family die in the future, Lu Yuchang will not be allowed to touch the throne."
As for the Empress Dowager, since she was unwell, she moved to Mount Fotuo to recuperate.
Thus, a major case finally came to an end.
*
"Emperor Longyun decreed that the entire court and the people should observe a year of mourning for the Crown Prince. After the year of mourning, Lu Yuxi was established as the new Crown Prince." Lin Shihe picked up his teacup, took a sip, and eased the dryness in his throat. "Since then, Her Majesty the Empress has been grieving day and night, and her health has been deteriorating. She rarely goes out now. The reason she is in such a hurry to arrange your marriage with the Crown Prince is because the imperial physician said that Her Majesty only has a year or two left."
Lin Shiming never imagined that the few words he had overheard before concealed so much bitterness and resentment. Just as he was feeling indignant, something suddenly occurred to him.