Regent, please maintain your aloof image.

That day, Su Jing'an returned to the mansion from outside. As soon as he stepped into the mansion gate, he was summoned to the study by the old Marquis.

In the study, the old Marquis, Su Shenglin, and Su Songwen were sitting and drinking tea, but their expressions were all different.

The old Marquis looked grave, Su Shenglin looked dejected, while Su Songwen had a smile on his face.

Afterwards, Su Jing'an went to the study and greeted his father.

"You're here, please have a seat."

"Yes," Su Jing'an said, walking over and sitting down.

"The Ministry of Revenue has been very busy lately; I've noticed you're always coming home quite late."

"Yes, there are quite a few things to do," he said, then asked, "I wonder what brings Father here to see me?"

"Now that your elder brother has been dismissed from his post, do you have any plans?"

"no".

"So, is my second brother planning to stand by and watch, or is he just waiting to see me make a fool of myself?"

"Then, in your opinion, elder brother, what should I do?"

“If my second brother were so kind, he should have gone to Lord Song and asked him to reassign me to a new position. After all, it would have been an easy task for him. But my second brother has remained unmoved, which means he doesn’t respect me as his elder brother.”

"As an official, it's one thing to go to a brothel, but to get into a fight over a courtesan is another. How am I supposed to go to Lord Song? Besides, you were only dismissed from your post three days ago, and everyone in the alleys is still talking about it. Are you suggesting we go to Lord Song now so we can defy the law?"

Su Shenglin felt a fleeting moment of embarrassment, but it was only for a second. Then, shamelessly, he said, "I think you just don't want to help, that's why you're making all sorts of excuses."

Su Jing'an did not refute this. In fact, he really did not want to help, and he would not help.

"Dad, look."

"Jing'an, the Su family's ancestral precepts are to be friendly and respectful to each other, and to help one another. Have you forgotten them?" the old Marquis said sternly.

“Your son would never forget, but I believe I have done my duty to my ancestors, to be respectful to those in lower positions, and to work diligently to practice virtue and righteousness. However, I wonder if my elder brother has done it.”

"I……".

The old Marquis couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. "Shenglin, do you now realize your mistake?"

Su Shenglin immediately knelt down, saying, "Your son knows his mistake and begs for your forgiveness, Father."

The old Marquis looked at Su Jing'an and said, "Now that your elder brother has realized his mistake and has been punished, let's let this matter go."

On the day of the incident, the old Marquis was furious when he learned of it. He immediately punished Su Shenglin by making him kneel in the ancestral hall all night, but that was all.

Su Jing'an disapproved of his careless handling of the items, but said nothing.

Then, the old Marquis said, "The best course of action now is to think about how to reinstate your elder brother to his original position. Even if he cannot be reinstated, he should at least be able to serve as an official in the court."

"So, Father also wants me to go see Lord Song."

The old marquis didn't speak, but his meaning was clear.

Su Shenglin then said, "If my second brother doesn't want to find Lord Song, that's fine too." He paused for a moment, then added, "Prince Min intends to marry Qian Rou as his concubine."

Su Jing'an's expression changed drastically.

However, Su Shenglin did not notice and continued, "As long as Qianrou marries Prince Min, Prince Min will resolve this matter himself."

"Brother, you'd better give up on that idea as soon as possible. I will never agree to let Rou'er marry into the Min Prince's mansion. Don't even think about it."

"Second brother, don't be ungrateful. It's a blessing for Prince Min to take a liking to Qian Rou. So many people want to enter Prince Min's mansion but can't."

“What benefits did Prince Min offer his elder brother that made him willing to betray his own niece?”

"Don't put it so harshly. I'm doing this for Qian Rou's own good. If she marries into the family, she'll be a princess."

“I can’t control what my brother does when he sends his daughter away, but my daughter is none of your business.”

"Second brother disagrees. Does he want Qianrou to marry that useless man from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion?"

Su Jing'an stood up angrily, ready to argue with him.

Seeing that they were about to start arguing, the old Marquis stopped them, saying, "Enough." Then he added, "Jing'an, although Qianrou is a secondary consort when she marries Prince Min, she is still a princess. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with that."

"Father, do you know what it means if Rou'er marries into that family?"

The old Marquis naturally knew this, but he didn't see any problem with it; on the contrary, he thought it was quite good.

“The Prince Min’s intentions are obvious. By marrying Ziyao off to him, our Anping Marquis’s Mansion has the intention of getting closer to the Prince Min. If Rou’er marries off to him as well, then our Anping Marquis’s Mansion will be completely tied to the Prince Min. If something happens to the Prince Min in the future, has Father ever thought about what will happen to the Anping Marquis’s Mansion?”

The old marquis remained silent.

Su Shenglin said, "How could my second brother know that Prince Min would lose?"

"Leaving aside the fact that Prince Min's title is not legitimate, let's talk about the Regent. Everyone has seen how capable and competent the Regent is. Do you think Prince Min can succeed?"

Su Shenglin was still not giving up, "What if it works out?"

"So, is elder brother planning to gamble with the entire Marquis of Anping's mansion?"

Su Shenglin remained silent.

"That's what Dad thinks too."

"Yao'er is a concubine of Prince Min, and our Marquis Anping has long been inextricably linked to Prince Min."

"That can be done by the eldest brother alone, but if Rou'er is married off to him now, then our Anping Marquis's Mansion will be completely implicated. Father, have you thought this through?"

“What my second brother said makes sense, Father. This matter should be carefully considered,” Su Songwen said.

The old marquis fell into deep thought, and after a moment, said, "Let's drop this matter."

“Father, that’s the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review.”

Su Jing'an never expected that a mere Dali Temple official would make them so arrogant. "Just because of a Dali Temple official, you want to marry Rou'er off to the Min Prince's mansion. Have you even asked if Rou'er is willing?"

"Why would she be unwilling? That's the position of a princess. Besides, since ancient times, marriages have always been arranged by parents and matchmakers. How could she possibly be unwilling?" Su Shenglin said nonchalantly.

"Then I'll make this clear today: Rou'er's marriage is her own decision, and no one can make that decision for her."

"Second brother, what do you mean by that? Even if she is a princess, she is still a member of our Marquis's mansion and should work for the benefit of our mansion. You are letting her make her own decisions. Where does that leave our mansion?"

“Your elder brother is right, Rou’er’s marriage must be decided by us.”

"I have no say in the marriages of the other children in the Marquis's household, but I ask that Father and Elder Brother not interfere with my child's affairs. I have some official business to attend to. If Father has nothing else to attend to, I will take my leave now." With that, Su Jing'an walked out without looking back.

"Father, look at my second brother. Now he's the Minister of Revenue, and he doesn't even respect you anymore."

"This unfilial son really thinks he can turn the world upside down."

The old Marquis was not only easily influenced, but also very arrogant. He would never tolerate anyone disobeying him, and he had always been like that.

Su Jing'an is a very principled person. He will never do anything he believes is wrong, and he will not obey no matter how he is coerced.

Therefore, compared to Su Shenglin and Su Songwen, he appeared more rebellious, which is why he disliked the old Marquis from a young age.