Empress Lu collapsed onto the couch, her soul adrift.
The words of Emperor Chongwen echoed endlessly in her mind—
The Lu family needed a prince of mediocre talent, one who depended on them.
Yes, mediocre talent, dependent on the Lu family. Only then could the Lu family prosper eternally.
Even…
At this point, Empress Lu had to admit that the Lu family's ambition was no longer satisfied with merely being powerful officials.
The Lu family wanted to usurp the throne.
Emperor Chongwen stood up and looked at Empress Lu with pity. "Besides being the daughter of the Lu family, you are also my wife of many years, and the mother of our son. Therefore, I will not order your death. However, the Lu family, I cannot forgive."
With that, Emperor Chongwen left directly.
The Empress's palace was silent, the palace maids dared not breathe.
After an unknown amount of time, Empress Lu regained her senses. She looked at the people who had served her, and burst into laughter, tears streaming down her face.
"I thought everything was within my grasp, but little did I know, it was all within His Majesty's control. You…" Empress Lu slumped, what could she say now, what could she possibly say?
Emperor Chongwen had laid everything bare.
That meant the Lu family had also fallen under his control.
Did she still want to struggle?
A dying struggle?
No, she didn't want to die, she still had her son.
If she died, wouldn't Consort An be delighted?
"You tell me, was Consort An faking her madness?" Empress Lu shrieked.
The palace maids lowered their heads, remaining silent.
After they pledged allegiance to His Majesty, they had learned of Consort An's situation.
"Faking her foolishness and being confined to the palace. It was clearly out of fear for her safety that she used such methods to protect herself," Empress Lu murmured to herself. "If you had felt the same affection for me as you did for Consort An, how could I have…"
Empress Lu sat on the couch for a long time.
"Groom me," Empress Lu suddenly said.
She was the Empress, and no matter when, she had to maintain her imperial dignity.
The palace maids stepped forward quickly and orderly to serve her. In a short while, Empress Lu was once again graceful and noble.
·
The Prefect of Jingzhao suddenly became extremely busy.
No one knew where so many plaintiffs had emerged from to accuse the Duke of Cheng'en's manor.
Bullying, extortion, and kidnapping civilian women – these were acts that should have been committed by thugs, yet one by one, with witnesses and evidence, they all pointed to the Duke of Cheng'en's manor.
Everything happened so suddenly, catching everyone off guard.
The Prefect of Jingzhao was overwhelmed. Some major cases, which should have been handled by the Dali Temple, were inexplicably piled on his desk.
He had submitted a memorial to the palace. However, he could not get an audience with His Majesty, only receiving four words: "Handle with impartiality."
The target was the Duke of Cheng'en's manor.
Before this, no news had been heard.
The Second Prince had even married the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Cheng'en's manor.
Could it be that the Second Prince intended to usurp the throne?
His Majesty was still in his prime, it couldn't be, could it?
Thinking back and forth, the Prefect of Jingzhao nearly pulled all his hair out, utterly at a loss as to what to do.
"Handle with impartiality" was easy to say. If the Duke of Cheng'en's manor fell, it would be fine, but if it didn't, would he have good days ahead of him?
Forget it, he was a minister of His Majesty, so naturally, he would do as His Majesty said.
His memorial bore the four words "Handle with impartiality" in His Majesty's own handwriting.
The Jingzhao Prefecture dispatched almost all its personnel, some to arrest, others to collect evidence. Every bailiff felt as if they could be split into two.
With such a large commotion, Li An naturally received the news. However, everything happened too suddenly. He hadn't even had a chance to meet the Duke of Cheng'en before people were taken to the Prefect of Jingzhao. As for the female members of the household, they were confined to the manor by the Imperial Guards.
Those inside were not allowed out, and those outside were not allowed in.
The encirclement was so tight that not even a fly could get through.