The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 204 Father, Son, and Brothers Are All Happy to See

When Xiao Liu saw Tu Chengyu looking at him, he spoke up:
"Fifth Brother, your younger brothers are looking for you because they want you to plead with Father on their behalf."

Tu Chengyu asked in confusion, "What are you asking for?"

Xiao Liu said, "They were afraid that Father would not allow them to attend the banquets at the four residences, so they wanted Fifth Brother to tell Father."

Hearing this, Tu Chengyu was even more puzzled. He asked, "Why doesn't Father Emperor allow them to attend the banquet?"

Xiao Liu said, "My younger brother doesn't know the specific reason either. He probably worries that they are too young to attend banquets outside the palace. Anyway, the Crown Prince and my second brother invited us, but Father only let Xiao Qi and me go. He didn't let anyone else go."

Tu Chengyu then realized that such a situation existed. It seemed that, as Xiao Liu had said, the Emperor was worried that they were too young and would all run off to cause trouble.

Then Tu Chengyu thought of his little imperial uncle standing to the side; this one was not one to obediently listen to the emperor.

He asked the young prince, "Young prince, didn't you go out the last few times either?"

The young prince said angrily, "I wanted to go out, but for some reason, Father Emperor just wouldn't allow it."

It seems that neither the Emperor nor the Emperor Emeritus trusts these little ones, so Tu Chengyu's pleas probably won't do much good.

To prevent these guys from having unrealistic hopes, Tu Chengyu first gave them a heads-up.

"Since the Emperor is not comfortable with you leaving the palace, even if I plead for you, it probably won't do much good."

As soon as he finished speaking, the younger ones all looked disappointed.

The young imperial uncle was not discouraged and said to Tu Chengyu:
“Yu-ge’er, please put in a good word for everyone. In the Emperor’s heart, you, Yu-ge’er, are different from others. If you plead for him, the Emperor will surely agree.”

Tu Chengyu had no idea when he had gained such a reputation, but looking at the younger ones rekindled his hope.

Not wanting to spoil the fun, Tu Chengyu said, "I can give it a try, but I can't guarantee whether it will work out."

The young imperial uncle said, "Yu-ge, just go ahead, you'll definitely succeed."

As soon as he finished speaking, the other younger ones nodded in agreement, clearly showing that they all trusted Tu Chengyu.

Seeing this, Tu Chengyu was both amused and exasperated, but he also realized that this trip to plead for leniency seemed unavoidable.

So he said, "Alright, when Father Emperor has some free time, I will go and plead for you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Qi, who hadn't said anything for a while, chimed in:

"Fifth Brother, there's no need to wait. Father is free right now."

Tu Chengyu looked at Xiao Qi and couldn't help but ask, "How did you know Father Emperor had free time?"

Xiao Qi said proudly, "When I came over just now, I saw the people from the Imperial Kitchen delivering food to Father Emperor from afar. Father Emperor should be eating at this time, so it's just in time for Fifth Brother to go over."

Tu Chengyu never expected that Xiao Qi would have such an ability, to see other things while running away, and to analyze from these points that her father had free time.

The other people, including Xiao Liu, came from the same road, but they didn't notice this.

So Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "Alright, I'll go find Father Emperor now."

After Tu Chengyu finished speaking, he prepared to go immediately. Unexpectedly, as soon as he took a step, he saw the youngest, Xiao Shier, clutching his robe and grinning as he said:
"Fifth Brother, do you have anything to eat here? I'm hungry."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu immediately stopped and asked, "You haven't had lunch?"

The child nodded his head and whispered, "If we come to Fifth Brother's place, there will be no food served."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu was speechless.

These guys all came together. Since Little Twelve didn't eat lunch, the others must haven't either.

What is so attractive outside the palace that made these guys skip lunch and come looking for me?

Tu Chengyu looked at them and asked loudly, "Have you guys not eaten anything either?"

Tu Chengyu responded with a series of nods.

It seems my guess was right; none of them had eaten lunch.

Seeing this, Tu Chengyu asked Xiao Xuanzi, "Is there anything to eat in the yard?"

Without a second thought, Xiao Xuanzi replied, "Your Highness, there are only some snacks in the courtyard, no proper food."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu thought for a moment and said, "Have someone bring out all the snacks and serve them to the princes so they can have a little something to eat. Then send someone to the imperial kitchen to have the princes' lunch delivered here."

Tu Chengyu originally intended to let them go eat first, but seeing how anxiously they were waiting for news, he figured they wouldn't listen and leave, so he thought of having someone bring the food here.

After listening to Tu Chengyu's words, Xiao Xuanzi went down to make the arrangements.

Soon, palace maids brought in snacks and placed them in front of everyone.

Seeing his younger brothers and the little imperial uncle gathered around to eat, Tu Chengyu took a little eunuch and headed towards the imperial study.

When he arrived at the entrance of the Imperial Study, he had the eunuch guarding the door go in to announce his arrival.

Just as Xiao Qi had said, the Emperor happened to be free at that moment and did not keep Tu Chengyu waiting, so he let him in.

Tu Chengyu followed the eunuch into the imperial study and saw the emperor sitting at the table, eating slowly and carefully.

Upon seeing this, Tu Chengyu first offered his greetings.

The Emperor was eating and couldn't speak, so he waved his hand, signaling Tu Chengyu to stand aside.

Tu Chengyu obediently stood aside, waiting for the Emperor to finish his meal.

After the Emperor finished eating, he rinsed his mouth and wiped his face and hands with Xia Shouzhong's help before standing up and saying to Tu Chengyu:

Have you had lunch yet?

Tu Chengyu: "Reporting to Father, I just ate."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor nodded and asked, "Now that you've eaten, why aren't you taking a proper nap? What are you doing here?"

Tu Chengyu was the most strict among all the princes in enforcing the rule of taking a nap, which was unique in the former Prince An's residence, so the Emperor remembered it clearly.

Upon hearing this question, Tu Chengyu smiled wryly and said, "Father, I did want to go to sleep, but Little Twelve and the others wouldn't let me."

Currently, Xiao Twelfth is still the Emperor's youngest son and is quite favored, so Tu Chengyu mentions him frequently when he speaks.

The Emperor asked, "What have the Twelfth Prince and the others done this time?"

Tu Chengyu said, "It wasn't that Fourth Brother sent out invitations to his sons to attend the housewarming banquet, but Twelfth Brother and the others were afraid that Father Emperor would not allow it, so they begged their sons to plead for them."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor snorted coldly and said, "They certainly know how to order people around, assigning you, their elder brother, to run errands for them."

The emperor said he was unhappy, but his expression showed no sign of anger.

Tu Chengyu knew that this was just the Emperor grumbling, so he said:
"They probably haven't left the palace for a long time, so they wanted to go out for some fresh air."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor paced back and forth to aid digestion, and said to Tu Chengyu:
"So, you agree that they should be allowed to leave?"

Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "Father, you didn't see it. They came here without even having lunch because they were looking for their son." Hearing Tu Chengyu's words, the Emperor looked at Xia Shouzhong and said, "The prince in the Imperial Study didn't eat. Are you aware of this?"

Xia Shouzhong bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I'm waiting for you to finish your meal before I report this matter. Just now, the Imperial Study and the Imperial Kitchen sent people together to tell you about it."

After listening to the servant, the Emperor nodded and did not ask any further questions. He then turned to Tu Chengyu and said:

"How did you arrange things for them when they didn't eat?"

No wonder he's a father; he doesn't care about anything else, but he's concerned about his son's meals first.

Thinking of the Emperor's deep affection for his son, Tu Chengyu dared not be careless, and so he said:
"Your Majesty, I first found them some snacks to eat, and I also sent someone to the Imperial Kitchen to have lunch delivered to me."

The Emperor was very satisfied with Tu Chengyu's arrangements.

"You did the right thing. They are all growing and shouldn't miss meals."

After saying that, he continued, "Since they all want to leave the palace to play, I will grant them permission. However, since you came to plead for them, I will entrust them to you. You must take good care of them."

On the way here, Tu Chengyu had already thought of it. Because of his age, if he pleaded for mercy, the emperor would definitely make him take full responsibility.

Having already thought it through, Tu Chengyu was prepared and said without hesitation:

"Father, rest assured, your son will take good care of them."

The Emperor nodded and said, "Yes, I trust you to handle things. You've returned from Jiangnan and haven't had a proper get-together with them yet. Take this opportunity to have a good chat with them."

"My son knows."

After finishing his business, the Emperor did not keep Tu Chengyu around.

After Tu Chengyu left, the Emperor said to Xia Shouzhong:

"Didn't the fourth brother say before that he wasn't planning on having a housewarming party? Why is he making arrangements again?"

Xia Shouzhong bowed and said, "Your Majesty, this servant does not know the reason either. I only know that Prince Yi sent someone to request permission this morning to enter the palace to deliver an invitation."

The Emperor knew about the request for an imperial decree, but didn't pay much attention at the time. Only now does he realize it was for this matter.

The Emperor thought for a moment and said, "Send someone to investigate and find out what happened. Also, find out who the fourth prince invited this time."

Upon hearing this, Xia Shouzhong immediately went out to arrange manpower.

Tu Chengyu was unaware of such twists and turns. After leaving the Imperial Study, he immediately returned to his own courtyard.

When he arrived, Xiao Liu and his gang were happily eating around a large table.

However, while they were eating, they also took the time to look at the door.

When they saw Tu Chengyu, apart from Xiao Liu and a few others who remained relatively calm, the rest of the younger ones all stood up and wanted to rush over.

Seeing this, Tu Chengyu quickly called out, "You guys eat first, don't move around."

But at this moment, Tu Chengyu's words had no effect. They rushed up to Tu Chengyu one by one, all wanting to get to the bottom of things.

Especially the young imperial uncle, who asked anxiously, "Brother Yu, what did the imperial brother say?"

Seeing their anxious expressions, Tu Chengyu knew that they wouldn't be able to eat in peace unless he explained things clearly.

So he didn't delay any longer and said directly, "Don't worry, Father has already agreed, you will all be allowed to leave then."

As soon as Tu Chengyu finished speaking, cheers erupted in the courtyard.

Watching them jump around, Tu Chengyu felt a headache coming on.

He quickly reassured them, "Stop arguing, let's eat quickly, otherwise if Father finds out, he'll regret it and won't let you leave."

Hearing this, they shut up and happily ran back to continue eating, chatting happily with each other as they ate.

As for the rule of not speaking while eating, they had long forgotten about it.

Tu Chengyu knew that it was unrealistic to expect them to follow the rules at this point, so he didn't say anything.

He simply pulled up a chair, sat quietly beside them, and watched them eat.

However, they didn't keep Tu Chengyu waiting for long before they finished their meal.

One by one, they gathered around Tu Chengyu, carefully inquiring about how he had pleaded for leniency.

Although Tu Chengyu went to see the Emperor to plead for them.

But this was, after all, an audience with the Emperor. How could one casually go outside and say what was said in front of the Emperor?

So he could only give them vague answers and send them away.

After finally getting rid of these annoying little things, Tu Chengyu suddenly realized there was another problem.

He grabbed the young imperial uncle and said, "Young imperial uncle, after you return to the Eastern Palace, you must also tell the Emperor Emeritus about this matter, lest he refuse to let you leave."

Although everyone is together, the matter of the young imperial uncle is something the emperor really can't decide.

The young prince only then remembered that he had this trouble.

He frowned and said, "Yu-ge'er, what if Father Emperor doesn't agree?"

This wasn't because the young prince was being overly anxious; rather, he had pleaded for mercy several times before, but each time his request had been denied, so he lacked confidence now.

Tu Chengyu said, "Just go and tell the Emperor Emeritus tonight."

Tu Chengyu spoke lightly, but the young imperial uncle lacked confidence. He rolled his eyes and said:

"Brother Yu, could you please go to the East Palace again and plead for me as well?"

After hearing this, Tu Chengyu couldn't help but roll his eyes.

This little guy really thinks he's a gofer.

He didn't want to go running off to the retired emperor to discuss this matter again.

However, Tu Chengyu also knew that if he didn't help the young prince solve this problem, the prince would definitely keep pestering him.

So he thought for a moment and said to the young imperial uncle, "There's no need for me to plead for you. The emperor has already agreed to let everyone go, and the retired emperor won't stop you once he knows."

Upon hearing this, the young imperial uncle asked with some skepticism, "Brother Yu, are you telling the truth?"

Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "Don't worry, little imperial uncle. The reason the Emperor Emeritus didn't let you go out before was because he was afraid that you would be alone and no one would take care of you. Now that everyone is going out, the Emperor Emeritus will naturally stop you."

"If the Emperor Emeritus still stops you after you tell him, then I'll secretly take you out."

Of course, Tu Chengyu's last words were just to appease the young prince, who was still clinging to him.

Although the young imperial uncle wasn't confident he could persuade the retired emperor, Tu Chengyu's final words reassured him, so he stopped pestering Tu Chengyu.
(End of this chapter)