Lu Chuncai was extremely anxious. He first wanted to pack up his valuables and escape, but the Daming Mansion was full of imperial guards, and there were spies everywhere around Lu's Mansion. He was afraid that he would be targeted as soon as he left the mansion.
With nowhere else to go, he was extremely angry and wanted to rebel and fight to the death. But in the current situation, not to mention mobilizing troops, even the servants were unwilling to follow him. No matter how loyal they were, if they were asked to die, usually no one would be willing to do it.
He was extremely resentful and unwilling to accept his fate, and even if he died, he would drag someone else down with him.
Finally, he thought of a way. Lu Chuncai hated the Fu family for their betrayal, abandoning him to protect themselves, and not even seeing him; and all the disasters were caused by Madam Fu, and he was ready to drag the Fu family down with him.
What he wanted most was to kill the emperor Guo Shao together, because the emperor's life was more precious than his own. But he couldn't do that, because the emperor's guards were too dense, so he could only settle for the next best thing.
A few days later, Lü Chuncai was ready and went to the Prince of Wei's mansion to ask for an audience with the Prince of Wei and Minister Lu, but no one paid attention to him after waiting for a long time. He only attracted a crowd of local onlookers to point fingers and talk.
Lü Chuncai felt deeply that the world was fickle and angry, and suddenly shouted: The Fu family wanted to establish a country and become emperor, and they were plotting a rebellion with me.
The crowd was suddenly in an uproar.
As expected, someone came out to stop him and told him to go inside the mansion to talk things out. But Lu Chuncai didn't go in, and just kept yelling at the crowd outside, accusing the Fu family of treason. More and more people came to watch the excitement.
Soon, the guards from Prince Wei's palace came out, pushed Lu Chuncai to the ground, stuffed a cloth into his mouth, and forcibly dragged him into the palace.
At this time, a civil official clasped his fists and said to the people around him: This thief is desperate and has slandered the King of Wei. The palace is not trying to shut him up.
Everyone turned around and saw that Lu Chuncai's mouth had been blocked.
The civil official continued: "Please invite the people of reputation and virtue in Daming Prefecture to come in and be witnesses." So he selected some people who were wearing robes and looked wealthy, and invited them to come into the palace to watch.
Upon hearing the news, Fu Yanqing was so frightened that he almost recovered from his illness and asked someone to carry him out of the ward. Fu Zhaoxu and others also came to the main hall. Lu Duosun, the Minister of Rites, also arrived, and the scene was very chaotic for a while.
Fu Yanqing said angrily: You traitor, you are defaming my good name, do you have any evidence
As soon as the cloth ball on Lu Chuncai's mouth was removed, he said angrily: The King of Wei asked me to join him in the rebellion. Because we trust each other, he wanted to promise me the marriage between our two families with Madam Fu.
Zhao Xu was so angry that his face turned red. He pointed at Lu Chuncai and said: How could this happen? Do you have any evidence
Lu Chuncai said: The one who brought this together was the eldest daughter-in-law of King Wei, Zhang. Zhang sent her trusted maid to the Lu family to discuss the matter. If you don't believe, ask her.
After hearing this, Zhao Xu said: This is simply slander. Go and call the lady to the palace for a confrontation.
At this moment, a fat white eunuch came forward, and everyone looked at him sideways. The eunuch said: "Your Majesty has an order."
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to him. Except for Fu Yanqing, who was sitting, everyone else bowed and faced the throne. The eunuch puffed out his chest and said, "The king of Wei is loyal and brave, and I have no doubt about it. The country of Daxu is so powerful, and the daughter of the king of Wei is already the queen, so how could he have second thoughts?"
Fu Yanqing and his son were so grateful that they shed tears and shouted in public: The emperor is very observant and a wise ruler.
The eunuch walked up to Lu Duxun and whispered a few words. Lu Duxun, who had been silent, spoke up: "Lü Chuncai, you accused the King of Wei of having two minds, but even His Majesty doesn't believe it. It's useless to sue. You have publicly admitted that you have ulterior motives and intend to rebel. I have also found that you have hidden armor and have always robbed men and women and taken their lives. The evidence is irrefutable. Do you admit your guilt?"
Lu Chuncai said: I did do some evil things, but if my confession is to be believed, then both the Lu family and the Fu family are plotting rebellion.
Zhao Xu gnashed his teeth and said: You are a mean person who repays kindness with enmity.
Lu Duxun said directly: "The punishment for multiple crimes is enough to put you to death. Take Lu Chuncai back to Beijing for execution. The Lu family will be exiled to Lingnan and their property will be confiscated."
Lu Duosun did not insist whether Lu Chuncai was plotting a rebellion because there was insufficient evidence. However, he had other murders and crimes on his hands, so the death of one person and the exile of his family were enough to convince the public.
As the only remaining Han Chinese royal family of a different surname, Fu Yanqing was extremely powerful and fearless. The only thing he feared was the emperor's slightest suspicion.
Fu Yanqing was extremely cautious in this matter. The Fu family had remained strong through several dynasties, and Fu Yanqing was not afraid of death, but was most afraid that the family would be defeated in his hands.
Zhang's maid Li Shibao was secretly locked up by Fu Yanqing's confidant. Then the father and son questioned Zhang about her relationship with Lu Chuncai. Zhang was afraid that the maid would not be able to bear the torture and tell the truth, so she had to tell the whole story of how she disliked Jinzhan and how she agreed to the Lu family because of her greed for money.
The next day, the servant disappeared without a trace.
Guo Shao had never personally taken care of Lu Chuncai's affairs, but according to Lu Duosun's report, this man was a tyrant and a nuisance, so it would be better to kill him. The Lu family was rich, and it could make up for the embarrassment of the national treasury.
Whether he really had the intention of rebellion was irrelevant. Lu Chuncai was just a chess piece in a game of chess. He was too weak and perhaps he had never thought of rebellion, because people usually would not desire something that they could not even see when it jumped. Even if Lu Chuncai had great ambitions but little talent and a confused mind, he posed no threat to Guo Shao's throne.
After all, Lu Chuncai is far inferior to Li Yun and others.
Guo Shao listened to Lu Duosun's report in the palace and nodded in agreement. He thought to himself: This matter can be resolved by killing one person who should have died.
Lu Duosun said goodbye. At this time, Wang Zhong came in and said: Cao Tai wants to see the emperor.
Let him in. Guo Shao said immediately.
When Guo Shao heard that Cao Tai was beaten by Zhang's men, he was concerned about this eunuch. In Guo Shao's mind, this eunuch was not the same. He was not only a eunuch, but also an accomplice in the Tokyo mutiny.
But Cao Tai was, after all, a eunuch, and no matter how much Guo Shao cared about him, it was inconvenient for him to go there in person as the emperor to pay respect to him.
Guo Shao was not very happy that Zhang had beaten Cao Tai. But the woman was the daughter-in-law of the King of Wei after all, and Guo Shao was not willing to interfere in the internal affairs of the Fu family, so he decided to let it go.
After a while, Cao Tai limped in, holding a wooden stick.
With a bang, the wooden stick was thrown to the ground, and Cao Tai fell to the ground and burst into tears.
Guo Shao was stunned and turned to look at Wang Zhong. Wang Zhong was a man who could read people's expressions very well. His mind was always on Guo Shao. Without saying a word, he quietly bent down and left the room.
Without outsiders, Guo Shao didn't care that Cao Tai was a eunuch, and stepped forward to help him up with his own hands: Why are you crying
Cao Tai sobbed and said: I thought I would never see the emperor again.
Guo Shao said unhappily: I thought you were a very intelligent person and you should know that you will be able to return to the palace sooner or later.
Cao Tai said: I also vaguely thought so, but before the emperor came, the situation was too critical. Madam Zhang was determined to match the eldest lady with the general named Lu, and she hated me for obstructing her good deeds and wanted to get rid of me. If it weren't for the eldest lady's protection, I would never have lived to see the emperor again. Just after the emperor visited Daming Mansion, Madam Zhang wanted to poison me.
What? Guo Shao frowned and said, "Mrs. Zhang was the one who arranged Lu Chuncai's matter."
Cao Tai said: If she didn't care about that good thing, how could she have wanted to kill me? Madam Zhang is the mastermind of this matter.
Guo Shao paced a few steps and asked: Zhang wanted to poison you. She is a noble lady in the palace, how could she be so mean
Cao Tai said: "Mrs. Zhang bullies the eldest lady every day, saying bad things about her behind her back, and even refuses to give her lamp oil. The eldest lady has really suffered all the hardships of her life recently, and her days are like years." Cao Tai began to wipe away his tears again.
Guo Shao was not sure whether Zhang would poison Cao Tai. Cao Tai should not dare to deceive the emperor, but it was possible that he exaggerated his suspicion. But when he heard that Fu Jinzhan was bullied, Guo Shao was furious. At this moment, he felt more pain than if he had been stabbed.
Guo Shao had a cold face and swallowed his anger.
In the afternoon, Guo Shao went to see Fu Yanqing to inquire about his condition, comfort him, and express his favor and trust.
After a heart-to-heart talk, Guo Shao had revealed that he had no suspicion of Fu Yanqing's intentions. This was also true. It was true that Fu Yanqing wanted to preserve the Fu family's honorable status, but there was really no need for him to rebel.
After finishing his words, Guo Shao said calmly: I have heard that a harmonious family is the root of all prosperity, and a corrupt official is no small matter.
Fu Yanqing and Zhao Xu's faces both changed color, and the entire upper room fell silent.
Guo Shao's words cannot be taken lightly because they are the words of the emperor. Not only are they golden words, but the emperor generally does not speak nonsense.
As soon as Guo Shao left, Fu Zhaoxu became anxious: The emperor must be blaming his wife, and his son is not good at managing his wife.
Fu Yanqing opened his cloudy eyes, shook his head slightly and said: The Lu family is ignorant and wants to die, but marriage is not something a woman can decide, and women have no role in this matter. I think they may want to test me.
Zhao Xu pondered and said: Test whether my father respects the emperor
Fu Yanqing nodded slightly.
Zhao Xu said: Zhang's family is the mother's family of my brother and sister, so I am afraid of losing harmony.
Fu Yanqing said calmly: There is more than one woman in the Zhang family. Your father will give Mr. Zhang a letter of divorce and pick another girl for you.
Zhao Xu said again: "Our Fu family is a wealthy family. When we married a wife, we dared not treat her badly and gave her a large betrothal gift. Now we want to divorce her, so the betrothal gift will be wasted."
Fu Yanqing said: Money is something outside of one's body.
After hearing this, Zhao Xu bowed and said: "I will obey your wishes, father."
Fu Yanqing nodded and praised: Your father values you the most, you are loyal, filial and respectful.
Zhao Xu bowed and said: "My son dare not. Our family values etiquette because my father taught me well. I am also a loyal and filial son. I dare not slack off in the teaching of etiquette."