The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 188 The Retired Emperor Suddenly Disrupts the Situation
Just as the Grand Secretary and Gu Changyuan were confronting each other, the eunuch who had been sent by the Emperor to retrieve the secret edict from Emperor Taizong returned.

However, he returned empty-handed.

This scene took on a special meaning in the eyes of the entire court.

Many people immediately turned their attention to the Prime Minister, probably wondering if what he said was true.

Perhaps Emperor Taizong's secret edict never existed. Would the Grand Secretary really dare to risk committing the crime of deceiving the emperor by spouting such nonsense?

The Grand Secretary also saw the empty-handed eunuch. His usually calm eyes were now wide open, as big as copper bells, and his face was full of disbelief.

Being closely watched by so many people, the eunuch who entered seemed a little hesitant to act freely.

He took small, quick steps to the imperial steps, and the emperor looked at him and asked:
"Have you obtained Emperor Taizong's secret edict?"

The eunuch bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, this servant did not receive the secret decree."

As expected, the Emperor's expression also turned somewhat grim. He asked:
"Isn't this secret edict in the imperial treasury?"

The eunuch replied, "Your Majesty, I found such a secret edict in the archives, but it is not currently in the Imperial Treasury."

Upon hearing that the secret decree had indeed been issued, the Grand Secretary visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone was wondering why the secret edict, sealed in the inner treasury archives, had disappeared.

The Emperor was clearly curious as well, and he asked, "Have you inquired where the secret edict went?"

"I asked the head eunuch in charge of the inner treasury," the eunuch said calmly. "He said that the secret edict was taken away by the Emperor Emeritus last night and has not been returned yet."

This statement caused an uproar in the room.

No one expected that the retired emperor would suddenly appear at this time.

Moreover, they took this important secret edict at such a precise time.

It should be noted that the impeachment of the prime minister only happened yesterday.

Moreover, during yesterday's impeachment, the issue of the Prime Minister's background was not yet so clearly addressed.

However, the retired emperor, though separated from the court, guessed what was going to happen today and even made preparations in advance, taking away the secret edict overnight.

Whatever the Emperor Emeritus's purpose, this move had a significant impact on everyone in the court.

This was particularly bad news for the emperor.

By doing this, the retired emperor was blatantly telling everyone that he was constantly watching the court and could influence it at crucial moments.

Moreover, as everyone could imagine, the retired emperor had abdicated less than a year ago, and the vast majority of the officials in the court were still the old men from the retired emperor's time.

Especially the Grand Secretary and the Second Grand Secretary, who were promoted by the Emperor Emeritus.

Perhaps the retired emperor still maintains contact with these people.

Moreover, to take a more serious view, perhaps Emperor Taizong's secret edict never existed at all.

All of this was orchestrated by the retired emperor and the chief minister in order to help the chief minister escape punishment.

If this is true, it means that the Grand Secretary is still loyal to the Retired Emperor behind the Emperor's back, and the Retired Emperor may be considering re-intervening in the court.

This is just speculation, but it is undoubtedly a great concern for the emperor.

However, the emperor did not show the slightest emotion in the face of this situation.

He looked at Xia Shouzhong and said, "Since the Emperor Emeritus has taken the secret edict, go to the Emperor Emeritus and see if he has read it."

The Emperor probably couldn't fathom the Emperor Emeritus's thoughts, nor was he sure if he could get the secret decree back.

That's why they decided to send Xia Shouzhong, since Xia Shouzhong was capable and would have room to maneuver if things went wrong.

But before Xia Shouzhong could even leave, he saw the eunuchs who were on duty at the entrance of the Hall of Supreme Harmony running in.

He took a few steps forward and shouted, "Your Majesty, Chief Steward Dai Quan requests an audience."

We were just talking about the Emperor Emeritus taking away the secret edict when, in the blink of an eye, Dai Quan, who was in charge of the Emperor Emeritus, came over.

Everyone was guessing that Dai Quan's coincidental arrival was perhaps related to the secret imperial edict.

This shows that the retired emperor was indeed paying close attention to the court; otherwise, how could he have known so quickly that the emperor was looking for a secret edict?

At this moment, Tu Chengyu was thinking about something else.

He suddenly remembered that when the emperor ascended the throne, there was also an impeachment in the court, and the retired emperor also sent Dai Quan to deal with it.

This marks the second time the Emperor Emeritus has sent Dai Quan to the court assembly held by the Emperor.

Moreover, both times, the emperor sent them suddenly when important officials in the court were arguing and the emperor was using his methods.

No one knows whether the retired emperor sent Dai Quan to cause trouble because he feared the emperor would completely control the court.

However, last time, the Emperor cleverly used Dai Quan to reduce the influence of the retired Emperor.

I wonder how the Emperor will respond this time.

Thinking of this, Tu Chengyu slowly raised his head and carefully observed the Emperor.

The Emperor, without changing his expression, said, "Let Dai Quan in."

The eunuch who came in to report quickly withdrew upon hearing this.

A moment later, Dai Quan walked in steadily from the doorway.

“This servant, Dai Quan, pays her respects to Your Majesty.” Dai Quan walked to the center of the Hall of Supreme Harmony and bowed.

Tu Chengyu followed everyone's gaze and saw that Dai Quan also had empty hands.

It seems he didn't bring the secret decree with him either.

After Dai Quan finished bowing, the Emperor asked, "Dai Quan, have you come to see me because the Emperor Emeritus has some instructions?"

Dai Quan replied, "Your Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus sent me here to convey a message to you."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu noticed that the Emperor's brows furrowed noticeably.

Then the Emperor asked, "Does the Retired Emperor have anything to say to me?"

Dai Quan said, "Your Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus said that the secret edict is genuine, and the contents written on it are indeed as the Grand Secretary said."

He heard that the secret decree was real, and that the retired emperor had endorsed the chief minister.

Now, the prime minister should be able to clear his name of any charges.

However, this clearly tells everyone that the retired emperor is helping the chief minister to escape punishment, but this help is a bit strange.

This is a situation that the Emperor probably doesn't want to see.

Sure enough, Tu Chengyu saw the Emperor's face darken instantly.

Compared to the Emperor, Tu Chengyu felt that the Grand Secretary must have been very happy when he heard the news.

But when Tu Chengyu turned to look at the Grand Secretary, he found that the Grand Secretary's expression was even more unpleasant than the Emperor's.

Moreover, he seemed to be suppressing his anger.

Tu Chengyu didn't understand what was wrong with him. Wouldn't it be better if the Emperor Emeritus exonerated him? Just as Tu Chengyu was thinking about these things, the Emperor spoke again.

"Dai Quan, I already know what the Emperor Emeritus said. But I would like to know, where is the secret edict now?"

Dai Quan said, "Your Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus said that although Emperor Taizong's secret edict was for the purpose of saving people, it went against the wishes of Emperor Taizu. Therefore, it was not convenient for more people to see it, so the Emperor Emeritus put the secret edict away."

It's understandable that the retired emperor would do this.

The Emperor did not dwell on the secret edict; he said to Dai Quan:
"Alright, I understand. You may leave now."

Upon hearing this, Dai Quan took his leave.

Before Dai Quan could leave the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Emperor addressed the civil and military officials:

"Since the Emperor Emeritus has said so, it means that what the Grand Secretary said is true. Therefore, the charge of impeaching the Grand Secretary for harboring a criminal is unfounded."

"Minister Gu, may you have any objections to what I have said?"

Since it was the retired emperor who said it, and it seemed that the emperor did not intend to dwell on the matter, Gu Changyuan naturally did not dare to continue to ask.

He replied, "Your Majesty, I have no objection."

The Emperor nodded and said, "Since there are no objections, let's continue with what we were just discussing."

What just happened was that Gu Changyuan brought up Yin Weixing, saying that the Grand Secretary was colluding with the Japanese.

The Grand Secretary was supposed to answer Gu Changyuan's questions, but Dai Quan's sudden arrival interrupted him.

Everyone was waiting to see how the Prime Minister would respond, but at that moment the Prime Minister kept his eyes closed, as if he was thinking about something.

After waiting for a long time, nothing happened.

The Emperor had no choice but to speak up and remind him, "Minister Shen, do you have anything to say?"

Upon hearing this, the Grand Secretary slowly opened his eyes.

At this moment, Tu Chengyu noticed that the Prime Minister's expression was no longer as calm as before.

His lips were tightly closed, and his eyes were slightly shut. His expression was cold and serious.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, he slowly turned around, staring intently at Gu Changyuan, and said:
"Lord Gu, please tell me what Yin Weixing did that I should be held responsible for."

The prime minister's sudden change of attitude was quite oppressive.

However, Gu Changyuan withstood this pressure and calmly said:
"As far as I know, Yin Weixing does business in Jiangnan using your name, Grand Secretary, and most of the money he earns each year is given to your household as tribute. If you do not believe me, Grand Secretary, I have witnesses for you to question."

Upon hearing this, the Grand Secretary snorted coldly and said:

"Regardless of whether he sent money to my residence, even if it were true, how can it be proven that I was involved in instigating the salt workers' rebellion or colluding with the Japanese pirates?"

Gu Changyuan replied, "Because both Wu Youwei and Yin Weixing have close ties with you, Grand Secretary, and both of them are directly related to the salt workers' rebellion."

Upon hearing this, the Grand Secretary's face flushed with anger, and he shouted:

"What a joke! They have connections with me, so why should I be held responsible for their actions? What kind of logic is that? It's utterly absurd!"

No one expected that the usually calm and collected chief minister would openly lose his temper in court.

As the one bearing the brunt of the anger, Gu Changyuan showed signs of panic for the first time today.

Seeing this, Tu Chengyu was confused.

People today don't seem quite right.

The originally calm Grand Secretary changed after the Emperor Emeritus sent Dai Quan to help him clear his name.

Instead of becoming happy, he looked gloomy and angry.

Despite being the Grand Secretary's adversary, Gu Changyuan remained calm throughout.

He not only confronted the Grand Secretary head-on in court, but also made the Grand Secretary look very embarrassed.

Logically, he should have had the upper hand, but when he pushed the prime minister to the point of anger, he panicked instead.

The behavior of these two people is somewhat puzzling.

Perhaps due to his panic, Gu Changyuan was unable to speak for a moment.

Upon seeing this, the Grand Secretary glared at him and said fiercely, "What, now you have nothing to say?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Changyuan trembled, recovering from his panic.

He glanced at the Grand Secretary, his expression slowly returning to calm, and then said:
"If it were just a simple family relationship, I would naturally not dare to implicate the Grand Secretary in these matters. However, it is an indisputable fact that Wu Youwei and Yin Weixing have made money for the Grand Secretary's household."

The Grand Secretary, still furious, said, "As I have said, sending money to my residence does not mean that I have any connection with them, nor does it mean that I will instruct them to do anything that violates the law."

Gu Changyuan replied, "They instigated the salt workers to rebel in order to seize the salt trade from the salt merchants. And the business they seized was to make money for the Grand Secretary's household. How can you say it has nothing to do with you?"

Gu Changyuan's words did make some sense, but they were all just empty words and couldn't prove that the Grand Secretary was definitely involved in these matters.

As expected, the Grand Secretary accurately seized upon the flaw in Gu Changyuan's words and asked directly:

"As I told you, I have been serving in the capital for many years and have never returned to Jiangnan. Therefore, I know nothing about what these people have done in Jiangnan."

If they are using my name, they certainly weren't ordered by me.

The prime minister immediately absolved himself of any responsibility, and what he said made a lot of sense.

Even if everyone knows that Wu Youwei and Yin Weixing are working for the Prime Minister, as long as there is no direct evidence to prove that what they did was on the Prime Minister's orders, there is no way to convict the Prime Minister.

Among those in the court, some might think that by interrogating Wu Youwei and Yin Weixing, they could obtain evidence to implicate the Grand Secretary.

Tu Chengyu could tell them very clearly that this wouldn't work.

Because Tu Chengyu had interrogated Wu Youwei, he knew that Wu was an orphan with no parents, no children, and no ties to his family.

If someone like that intends to keep a secret, there's simply no way to get them to talk.

Moreover, Tu Chengyu knew that after he left Jiangnan, He Lizhang would help the Grand Secretary deal with some unfavorable factors.

Therefore, Tu Chengyu dared to assert that Gu Changyuan should not have the confessions of Wu Youwei and Yin Weixing.

As for whether there were other people involved, Tu Chengyu didn't know.

As Gu Changyuan and Tu Chengyu had guessed, they had no answer to the Prime Minister's question.

Just when Tu Chengyu thought that Gu Changyuan would take a different approach and start with other charges.

Suddenly another voice came from behind.

"Your Majesty, I, Zhao Hanquan, an Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Justice, have something to report."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu looked over and saw a short, middle-aged civil official walking out from behind him.

The fact that this person is willing to speak up at this time means that what he says must be related to the current situation.

It's unclear whether this person is part of the Grand Secretary's faction or here to speak on behalf of Gu Changyuan.

(End of this chapter)