The Empress Dowager was very popular among the people, and her death was met with grief among the people.
Zi'an had no way to investigate the Empress Dowager's poison, because she couldn't operate a knife on her corpse. However, she knew that even if she found the poison, she couldn't trace it to the Noble Concubine, because the Noble Concubine didn't know how to poison, and Sun Fang'er hadn't entered the palace for such a long time.
This matter can only be put aside for now and investigated later.
Prince Nan Huai did not set off. Instead, he entered the palace in mourning clothes and kowtowed. In front of all the officials, he cried as heart-wrenchingly as the noble concubine. While crying, he bumped into the ground in front of the empress dowager's mourning hall. He did not die, but fainted.
When all the officials saw that King Nan Huai was so sad, those who were unaware of the inside story thought that he was filial and liked and forwarded the post one after another... and it became popular among the people.
Naturally, such a serious matter as the Empress Dowager's death could not be concealed from the Emperor. In his grief, the Emperor's condition became more serious.
After the Empress Dowager's funeral, the Emperor summoned all the princes and Murong Jie to the palace to discuss the selection of the Crown Prince.
Although Prince Nan Huai was demoted, many ministers petitioned the emperor to let him observe mourning in the capital because of his performance in front of the Empress Dowager's coffin.
So, when the emperor summoned the royal family members to the palace for discussion, he also came.
The King of Yuedong had seniority and was the first to name a candidate. He recommended the King of Liang.
This move was seconded by Prince An and Prince Li.
Prince Nan Huai and Prince Bei Xuan recommended the seventh prince, the son of Concubine Yi.
The two factions were in a stalemate. The emperor looked at Murong Jie and asked, "Do you have any suitable candidates?"
Everyone was looking at Murong Jie. In fact, everyone knew that Murong Jie had a good relationship with King Liang, and he had been promoting King Liang during this period, so everyone thought that he would recommend King Liang.
However, he unexpectedly said, "Mei Fei's third prince Murong Yan is young and intelligent, and I recommend him."
This move made everyone laugh. Even Prince Li said, "Forget about him. Before he went to the study last year, he had already hired a master to teach him literature and archery. But every master said he was naughty and didn't listen. Later, when he went to the study, Li Xueshi said that although he was clever, he didn't follow the right path and had many crooked thoughts. It would be difficult for him to achieve great things. He had already missed the opportunity once before, so he can't make the same mistake again."
Murong Jie looked at Prince Li and said, "Our ancestors also said that our third brother was a piece of rotten wood that could not be carved, but didn't he become a useful person in the end?"
Prince Li was stunned. "When did our ancestors say this? How come I don't know? You are talking nonsense."
"I'm not talking nonsense. Everyone knows it." Murong Jie said.
Prince An frowned, "That's not right, the ancestors said he was a stone in the toilet, smelly and hard."
"No, no," the Night King said nonchalantly, "My ancestors said he has been an old man since he was young."
Prince Li's face turned green. "She said that I am a steady young man and will become a great talent in the future."
"Yeah, you're a fool!"
The emperor also laughed, thinking back to his youth, how good it was. His ancestors took care of everything, and as long as their ancestors were around, the sky would not fall.
After talking for a while, Zi'an came over and said, "Let's discuss this tomorrow. The emperor should rest now."
Firstly, the emperor's health was indeed not good. Secondly, we had been talking for a long time today, and everyone was looking at the emperor closely, so it was easy to see the clues.
Murong Jie said, "Yes, let's all go first and discuss it tomorrow."
All the princes left, but the Prince of Yuedong did not leave. He was still sitting there motionless.
"Your Highness, do you have anything else to say?" Zi'an asked.
"Your Majesty," the Prince of Yuedong looked at the Emperor, "I want to take advantage of my seniority to say a few words to you today. No matter if you want to listen or not, I have to say this."
The emperor waved his hand, "Uncle, I know what you want to say. You want to talk about the marriage between my aunt and Xiao Xiao, right?"
Zi'an and Murong Jie looked at each other, and someone finally brought it up.
The Prince of Yuedong said solemnly, "I am old now, and I don't care about much, except for this little sister. In the past, your mother was watching over her, so I felt more at ease. But now, the Queen Mother is gone, and she is surrounded by the younger generation. I am the only one who can decide her marriage. Xiao Xiao is recovering in Hanshan now, and he is expected to recover. If he gets better, I hope the Emperor will approve the marriage. If the Emperor is afraid of the Xiao family, you can let Zhuangzhuang and his wife go to Yuedong, and I will watch over them. The Emperor will not distrust me, right? I am also a member of the Murong family. If anyone threatens the Murong family's kingdom, I will not be soft-hearted no matter who it is."
The emperor smiled weakly, "Uncle, now that things have come to this, I will not stop her. Let her get married to Xiao Xiao."
The King of Yuedong was stunned. He thought the Emperor would say some nonsense about the country and the nation, but he didn't expect him to agree so easily
Zi'an and Murong Jie felt a little relieved. At least the emperor had expressed his opinion, and it was an attitude of approval.
After sending the Prince of Yuedong away, Zi'an quickly gave the emperor acupuncture. "Your Majesty has been working hard these days and your body can't take it. You must rest more."
The emperor smiled and said, "It's okay. I'll sleep there in the future. If the things after my death are not handled properly, I won't be able to leave in peace!"
If these words were spoken by a man in his seventies or eighties, Zi'an would not feel bad, but the emperor is in his prime, and it is heartbreaking to hear him say these sad words.
After Zi'an gave the acupuncture, he withdrew, leaving Murong Jie and the emperor to talk alone.
"Tell me, why is it Yan'er!" The emperor lowered his eyes and asked lightly.
"I believe that he will become a wise ruler," said Murong Jie.
"I have heard about his affairs. Most of his teachers shook their heads and sighed, saying that he would become a person like Lao Jiu in the future. I cannot entrust the country to him." The emperor said solemnly.
"Your Majesty, seeing is believing. When you feel better, I will take you to the study." Murong Jie smiled. "I heard that he was naughty before, so I asked Zi'an to observe him. After seeing him, Zi'an spoke highly of him. I also went to observe him. His personality reminded me of someone."
"Who?" the emperor asked with a flash of his eyes.
"emperor."
"I?" The emperor was startled, then laughed and scolded: "Why are you scolding me in a roundabout way? I am not like him. When I was his age, my teachers praised me highly."
"That's because you were already named the crown prince back then, and you were the legitimate son of your mother."
The emperor looked at him and said, "You mean the teachers bully him because of his background? His background is not low, his mother is also a concubine."
"She is a concubine, and he is also a prince. His status is indeed noble, but he is not the future emperor. It seems that there is no difference, but in fact, there is a world of difference. Brother Huang, you should understand it best. You were the prince back then, so you put forward opinions that were contrary to the teacher's. You were breaking the old and establishing the new, and you had your own ideas. However, when Yan'er was like you, the teacher said he was rebellious and didn't listen to the teachings."
The emperor thought for a moment and said, "Hearing what you said, I also want to test this boy myself. Bring him here another day when I feel better."
"Okay, I'll bring him over when you feel better." Murong Jie smiled, but worry loomed between his brows. Could his spirits ever be better
After what happened to his mother, he was indeed a lot worse off all of a sudden, and even Zian couldn't give him a definite answer.
Especially today when the selection of the crown prince was being discussed, he could foresee that a troubled time was about to arrive.
Fighting for the throne is the cruelest thing in the royal family.
(End of this chapter)