flstandardbreds Chapter 108 Mother and Son Argument
Chapter 108 Mother and Son Argument
Today's wedding was held, and many officials and ladies of high rank in the capital were present. If His Highness made a scene without knowing the severity of the situation, His Majesty would have legitimate grounds for punishing Prince Ningyuan, or even forcing him to be adopted by Prince Jin. But there was no place for him in the current Prince Jin's mansion.
"hope so!"
Lu Mingyang sighed. She had never seen such a stubborn look in his eyes, like a desperate child. Perhaps once upon a time, Prince Jin had been very kind to him.
In front of Donghua Gate, Lu Mingyang put on the phoenix crown and walked in holding the nine-feathered crown of Prince Ningyuan. Because Donghua Gate was open today for Prince Ningyuan's wedding, she said a few simple words and the eunuch took her to Wenhua Hall.
Today, they were supposed to be married in the palace.
On both sides of the platform, the Imperial Guards stood in formation. The platform itself was filled with spectators. Inside the Wenhua Hall, the Emperor sat high up, while Prince Ningyuan knelt in the center, his voice trembling.
"I beg Your Majesty to allow me to return to Jinyang to attend the funeral."
"Going to the funeral?" the emperor asked sternly.
Only when children go home to keep vigil for their parents is it called attending a funeral.
Chu Mingzheng gritted his teeth and kowtowed, "I beg Your Majesty to allow me to go to Jinyang to pay my respects to... my uncle."
The emperor sneered: "Prince Jin has a son, what are you going to do?"
Killing people and killing people is nothing more than that.
Chu Mingzheng clenched his fists, trying his best to suppress his sobs: "Your son is willing to go to pay his respects to your uncle on behalf of your father."
"Your Highness, you are so thoughtful. I have already sent an envoy." The Emperor said loudly, "I want to ask you, why did you delay the wedding?"
He didn't say this to Chu Mingzheng, but to the ministers who were watching the ceremony. It was as if he was saying, look, this is the good son you chose for me.
Chu Mingzheng had no way to explain and could only kowtow and apologize again.
The emperor only reprimanded her a few times, then said magnanimously, "Today is your wedding day, so I will not punish you for delaying the wedding. Go and welcome your bride before it gets dark. I will wait for you here."
Chu Mingzheng wanted to get up, but his legs were like lead, welded to the ground. Eunuch Su urged him several times, but there was no response. The emperor's face darkened, and he slammed the table in anger.
Chu Mingzheng straightened his back and said resolutely, "Uncle Jin has raised me for ten years. I beg you, father, to allow me to postpone the wedding so that I can observe mourning for him."
"Say that again?" the emperor was angry.
Chu Mingzheng repeated loudly: "Your son will observe mourning for the King of Jin."
"Good, very good!" The emperor angrily threw the teacup from the table. No one dared to look directly at the emperor's wrath. Inside and outside the palace, everyone knelt.
Only Chu Mingzheng, who was kneeling in the center, looked directly into his angry gaze.
"He is truly my good son." The emperor laughed heartily, his laughter piercing the sky but suddenly stopped in mid-air.
At this moment, he stared directly at his son, a murderous look flashing in his eyes: "A son has no two fathers, and a minister has no two rulers. If you insist on observing mourning for the King of Jin, then I will make you his son. A king's words are not a joke."
"Your son, your son thanks you..."
"Your Highness!"
A resounding female voice drowned out Chu Mingzheng's voice. Lu Mingyang hurried over to Chu Mingzheng's side, knelt down, and said in a clear voice, "Your Highness's health has been fluctuating lately. It is only because of his worsening condition today that he is unable to go to the wedding reception. It was not intentional to delay the auspicious occasion. I beg Your Majesty to forgive me."
As she spoke, she held up Chu Mingzheng's crown and said, "Your Highness has asked me to fetch the ceremonial crown. I beg Your Majesty to allow me to marry Your Highness."
The emperor snorted coldly, but did not reject it.
Lu Mingyang guessed that the emperor just wanted to punish his son, but he didn't expect Chu Mingzheng to dare to do such a disrespect. After all, Chu Mingzheng would rather be the son of the Prince of Jin than the son of the emperor. If this were to get out, the emperor would lose face.
"Your Highness, I will bring it to you."
Lu Mingyang leaned over and placed the Nine-Tasseled Crown on Chu Mingzheng's head. Unexpectedly, Chu Mingzheng raised his hand and knocked it off. The Nine-Tasseled Crown, symbolizing the king's nobility, lay on the ground.
"Chu Mingzheng, how dare you!" The emperor slammed the table and stood up.
Lu Mingyang hurriedly pressed the sleep point behind his ear with her thumb. This was what Wei Luo had just taught her. Just press it for three breaths and the person will fall asleep.
Sure enough, Chu Mingzheng blinked and lay obediently in her arms.
"Your Majesty, His Highness is ill and has fainted." Lu Mingyang fiercely grabbed the fabric on his chest and raised his bloody hand, which was shocking.
If a person faints, they naturally cannot get married.
……
In Shoukang Palace, the empress dowager was half lying on the couch, angrily scolding the emperor standing in front of her.
"Zheng'er won't live for many more years, can't you just let him go?"
Today, she was supposed to be attending the ceremony in Wenhua Hall, but she was suddenly overcome with anger when she heard the tragic news about Prince Jin. The emperor advised him to rest and not let Zheng'er notice anything, so she stayed in Shoukang Palace. Unexpectedly, upon waking, she heard the emperor harassing his grandson.
The emperor said angrily, "Today he refused to acknowledge me as his father. If you don't believe me, go ask your mother. I have been very tolerant of him."
The Queen Mother angrily slammed the bed and said, "If you hadn't told him, how would he have known that Prince Jin had passed away?"
"Yes!"
The emperor was no longer willing to pretend and angrily said, "My eldest son was already fully formed, with a heartbeat when he was born, yet he died alive in my hands, slowly fading away. In just three days, the grief of losing my son lasted only three days, and those ministers forced me to adopt him."
The emperor slapped his chest and said, "I will never forget this pain."
The Queen Mother leaned weakly on the couch and said sadly, "That was what I promised. If you want to hate someone, then hate me. Zheng'er was only a ten-year-old child at the time. What did he do wrong?"
"But why, why does my eldest son not even have a name, yet he can live in the palace openly and enjoy everything that should belong to my son?"
This incident has become a demon in the emperor's heart.
The Queen Mother knew that persuasion was useless, so she stood up and knelt on the couch, begging, "Your brother is gone. Mother, please let him go."
The emperor lifted his robe and knelt before the couch. Looking at his wrinkled mother, he finally couldn't bear it anymore and said, "As long as he gets married obediently, I can let it go. Otherwise, I can't protect him either."
"But he fainted!"
"Then wake up and get married. No matter how late it is, I will wait for him."
"Okay, okay, I'll go and persuade him."
The empress dowager knew that it was not easy to get the emperor to give in to this extent, so she got up and left the bed with the emperor's help.
"Long'er, you have worked hard today. Go back to Qinzheng Palace and rest first. When Zheng'er wakes up, your mother will send someone to call you." The empress dowager was worried that Chu Mingzheng would say something else that would make the emperor angry.
"Alright!"
The emperor sat in the imperial sedan chair and parted ways with the empress dowager's sedan chair at Qianqing Gate.
Concubine Song stood in a corner of the Chonglou Tower, watching the Empress Dowager's sedan chair turn into the Wenhua Gate, her eyes filled with disbelief and grievance. "Your Majesty, what does it mean that the Empress Dowager is leaving? Is Your Majesty going to spare Prince Ningyuan like this?"
Jiao Li, the dowry girl from Concubine Song's mansion, came over with hurried steps and whispered, "Your Majesty, the Second Young Master has delivered a letter."
Then he gestured to Concubine Song to go to a secluded place to talk.
"The Second Young Master said that Prince Ningyuan's pulse is very weak now, and the imperial physician has diagnosed that he is dying. If we can invite the doctor to treat him at this time, Your Majesty will personally see him brought back to life, which will be twice the result with half the effort."