The Palace.
Right after the court session ended, the prime minister was hurriedly pulled by the emperor to the study in the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
The emperor didn't bother with small talk. He said bluntly, "Do you know about the matter of the Yong'an Marquis Mansion? I'm going to publicly appoint the eldest daughter of the Yong'an Marquis as the heir apparent. You handle it."
Handle it? By whom?
The prime minister was nearly fifty years old. He used to be the minister of the Ministry of Revenue. After Prime Minister Shen retired, he was promoted to the position of prime minister. Over the past few years, he had been diligent in assisting the emperor, and their relationship was quite harmonious. But what on earth was the emperor talking about today? It sounded like nonsense to him.
Out of caution, the prime minister lowered his head and kept silent, pretending not to hear.
Seeing that he didn't say a word, the emperor cursed under his breath that this old fox was hard to deceive. He had to make his words clearer. "Stop pretending to be stupid. The Yong'an Marquis has been insisting on having his just - returned eldest daughter establish her own household. I want to fulfill this small wish of his. I've decided to confer the title of heir apparent of the Yong'an Marquis Mansion on Chen Miaochun. By the way, Chen Miaochun is the eldest daughter of the Yong'an Marquis who was separated from the family for more than a decade."
The prime minister looked up and quickly dissuaded, "Your Majesty, allowing Chen Miaochun to establish her own household is already a great grace to the Yong'an Marquis. How can you confer the title of heir apparent on her? Throughout the dynasties, heirs apparent have always been men. How can a woman be an heir apparent?"
"This goes against the ancestral teachings!"
"Moreover..."
As the emperor had expected, the prime minister cited seven or eight examples in a row to stop him. Finally, he knelt on the ground and prostrated himself, saying, "If this matter spreads out, it will surely be laughed at by the people all over the world. If Your Majesty insists on doing this, I will have to stop you at the risk of my life!"
After the prime minister finished speaking righteously, there was silence. After lying there for a while, he quietly raised his head to peek at the emperor, only to find that the emperor was munching on melon seeds and looking at him leisurely, as if watching a show.
If it were a more thin - skinned official, they might have blushed because of the emperor's contempt. But the prime minister was different. To rise above the other officials, he had many skills, one of which was his thick skin.
Since the threat didn't work, the prime minister stood up straight and stared straight ahead.
The emperor finished the melon seeds in his hand, took a sip of tea, and said painstakingly, "Prime Minister, you've really disappointed me!"
"I only came to you because you're the official I trust the most. Among all the officials in the court, you're the closest to me."
The prime minister was a bit touched. But when he thought about the emperor's plan to make Chen Miaochun the heir apparent, that touch disappeared. "Even though I admire Your Majesty, please forgive me. Since ancient times, only men have been heirs apparent. Men work hard outside to support the family, while women take care of the household inside. If we just make Chen Miaochun the heir apparent today, what about tomorrow and in the future? Won't it disrupt the harmony between yin and yang and lead to chaos in the world!"
This was not only the prime minister's thought but also the thought of other officials.
Seeing the prime minister so strongly opposed, the emperor had no choice. He sighed softly and led the prime minister into the secret room in the study.
The entrance to the secret room was behind the bookshelf. The emperor led the prime minister through a small passage before entering the secret room. In the middle of the secret room, there were two stands, on which a dragon - shaped ornament and a large pearl were placed respectively.
The large pearl had just been put there and was the closest to the door.
The prime minister saw it first. This pearl was huge, bigger than any pearl he had ever seen. It was round, bright, and shining brightly in the candlelight. It didn't seem like an ordinary treasure.
Seeing the prime minister staring blankly at the large pearl, the emperor was in a great mood. He thought it wasn't that he had no vision, but that the pearl bestowed by the immortal was really too amazing.
The emperor patted the prime minister on the shoulder and pointed backward. "Take a look at that."
Following the direction the emperor pointed, the prime minister saw a dragon - shaped ornament. The ornament was half a meter long and carved from a whole piece of yellow jade. The golden dragon in the ornament was soaring, surrounded by clouds. But when the prime minister couldn't help but step closer to take a look, he found that those were not carved clouds but a mass of mist.
The emperor was a bit proud. If it weren't for the fact that the mist on the dragon - shaped ornament would dissipate if it was taken out, he would have shown it off all over the world long ago. Today, he finally found a chance to make the prime minister envious.
The prime minister was shocked when he saw the mist. He pointed at it and stammered, "This... this... this is a demon!"
"This was bestowed on me by the immortal... Bah, bah, bah. What demon? This is a treasure, a treasure bestowed by the immortal!" The emperor was angry with the prime minister.
The prime minister looked at the emperor painstakingly. He finally understood why the emperor wanted to help the Yong'an Marquis make Chen Miaochun the heir apparent. It turned out that the emperor was bewitched by a demon, which would harm the Great Yong!
First, it would cause chaos in the court, and then it would bring disaster to the common people!
The more the prime minister thought about it, the more heart - broken he became. He knelt down and advised, "Your Majesty..."
The emperor glared at him fiercely. "If you can't talk, then shut up! What demon? I've been diligent all my life, but in your mouth, I've become a fatuous king who attracts demons. Am I really that bad?"
The emperor always thought that he was a wise king who loved his people. So when he saw Shen Baozhu's strange behavior, his first reaction was that she was a celestial boy sent from heaven. After all, only fatuous kings would attract demons.
Later, when Shen Baozhu gave him the dragon - shaped ornament, the emperor was even more convinced that Shen Baozhu was a celestial boy and that he was a wise king, a wise king who had attracted the help of a celestial boy.
But because the mist on the dragon - shaped ornament would dissipate, the emperor could only put the ornament in an air - tight secret room. He dug a tunnel from the study and would come through the tunnel every day to admire the dragon - shaped ornament.
Now that the prime minister had labeled him as a fatuous king with just one sentence, how could the emperor not be angry?
He was very angry. Regardless of the prime minister's old age, he pointed at the prime minister's nose and started scolding.
The prime minister realized his mistake as soon as the emperor started scolding. He cursed himself for being stupid. He had forgotten that demons were always associated with fatuous kings. If he said this thing was a demon, wasn't he also scolding the emperor? No wonder the emperor was angry.
After scolding to his heart's content, the emperor pointed at the mist on the ornament like he was showing off. "Don't say I don't care about you. Come closer and smell the mist."
Looking at the hazy mist, the prime minister was a bit scared, but he still summoned up his courage and stepped forward to take a sniff.
As the mist was inhaled into the prime minister's body, his mind became clear, and golden light appeared in his eyes. He seemed to see a sacred and mighty golden dragon soaring. His knees went weak, and he subconsciously wanted to kneel down.
When he came to his senses, the prime minister found that he was kowtowing to the dragon - shaped ornament.
The emperor looked at him mysteriously. "Do you understand now?"
The prime minister was extremely excited. He understood. He understood everything now!
That was a real dragon. How could it be a demon!
But the prime minister was still confused. "Your Majesty, why does the immortal want to help the Yong'an Marquis?"
"You're wrong. The immortal is not helping the Yong'an Marquis but Baozhu, the youngest daughter of Mu Lanyue, Shen Baozhu." The emperor gave a brief explanation.
He showed off, "Baozhu must be a little celestial boy sent by heaven to help me! This real - dragon ornament and the pearl were both given to me by Baozhu. Baozhu loves me like a dear uncle, and I can't let her down."
The prime minister suddenly understood. He clapped his hands. "I see. I misunderstood."
"Since Baozhu wants to help Chen Miaochun instead of the Yong'an Marquis, it's not difficult."
Under the emperor's skeptical gaze, the prime minister leaned over and whispered a few words in his ear.
The emperor was stunned at first, then he reacted. He looked at the prime minister appreciatively. "Sure enough, you're the prime minister, the official I trust the most. This method is wonderful, extremely wonderful!"