The Aloof Lord's Mysterious Wife
Chapter 651: The Incense Goes Out, The Ancestors Do Not Acknowledge Chu Yan

Chapter 651: The Incense Goes Out, The Ancestors Do Not Acknowledge Chu Yan

"Your Majesty, I caught a cold last night. It’s nothing serious, just a bit of coughing," Ye Siheng said with an apologetic expression, "I just disturbed Fourth Brother while he was reciting the memorial."

Emperor Muwu replied, "Why didn’t you say earlier that you were sick? Quickly, Fourth Brother, please read faster."

Don’t let the Ninth Brother’s love for his wife cause further disruption.

Prince Zhuang looked up at him.

Ye Siheng’s complexion was rosy, his body strong and healthy—hardly someone who had caught a cold.

Instead, it was Nanli whose face was slightly pale, clearly struggling from the situation.

This Ninth Brother... he really pampers his wife too much!

But although he could grumble in his heart, he said aloud, "Yes, I will read faster."

Then, a long memorial was read out loud, and it didn’t take long to finish.

First, Emperor Muwu lit the incense and made offerings to their ancestors, and then it was Chu Yan’s turn.

Chu Yan had been anxious at first, but when he remembered Sixth Sister’s words that their ancestors had already reincarnated, he felt relieved and proceeded with offering incense.

However, as soon as the incense stick was placed in the incense burner, it quickly went out.

The people present froze.

Emperor Muwu squinted his eyes.

The little eunuch quickly said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. It’s my fault; I didn’t light the incense properly."

This gave Chu Yan a way out.

The eunuch quickly replaced the incense and lit it again. After Chu Yan bowed, the eunuch inserted the incense once more.

But in the blink of an eye, the incense went out again.

Even Emperor Muwu’s expression darkened. He muttered to himself, "Could it be that some ancestors haven’t reincarnated yet?"

Elder Xu stepped forward and coldly said, "Your Majesty, it seems that the ancestors are unwilling to accept Fifth Prince into the royal family’s register. Please reconsider!"

Although Prince Zhuang was cautious about Ye Siheng’s power, he still carefully spoke up, "Royal Brother, we cannot ignore the words of our ancestors; otherwise, it will bring disaster to Mu Nation."

Several ministers, including Elder Xu, knelt down and implored Emperor Muwu not to act rashly.

If Chu Yan was not acknowledged by the ancestors, he could not be entered into the royal family register!

Emperor Muwu did not expect such a mishap at this moment. He looked at Ye Siheng and the others, signaling them to calm the situation.

But Chu Yan had already stood up and walked to the incense burner.

Elder Xu was startled and shouted, "What are you doing?!"

Chu Yan didn’t overturn the incense burner or anything like that; he simply picked up the incense stick, looked at it, and sniffed it.

He spoke calmly, "There’s something wrong with this incense."

Elder Xu was stunned. He was a straightforward man and said, "What’s wrong with it?"

"There’s something soaked into the bottom of the incense, so it can’t burn properly and keeps going out," Chu Yan said. "If Elder Xu doesn’t believe me, you can try lighting it yourself."

Elder Xu stood up and walked over.

He held the incense stick and placed it over the candle flame.

Sure enough, it wouldn’t light no matter how he tried.

"Well, I’ll be..." Elder Xu murmured, then immediately corrected himself, "Third Prince, how did you notice this?"

"It’s just some tricks to prevent the incense from burning. The scent is somewhat like that of incense, but if you smell it closely, you can tell the difference. I learned a lot from Lord Qin at Dalisi Procuratorate," Chu Yan said.

Elder Xu was rather surprised. "You were only at Dalisi Procuratorate for a couple of months, and you learned so much?"

Chu Yan humbly replied, "It’s not that much; I haven’t learned everything yet."

Elder Xu said, "It’s more than enough already."

Most of the young masters in the capital were useless and couldn’t endure hardships.

Yesterday, he had gone to inquire with Qin Zheng, who spoke highly of Chu Yan. At that time, Elder Xu had sneered, thinking that Qin Zheng was just trying to flatter him, but it turned out to be true.

If it were someone else, they would have lost their composure under such sudden circumstances.

But Chu Yan remained extraordinarily calm and identified the problem.

In terms of composure, he was certainly much better than Ye Chengyan and Ye Chengbo, the two brothers.

Elder Xu studied Chu Yan for a while longer, noticing how his golden-red dragon robe was both elegant and striking, giving him a noble air. His brown eyes were clear and lively...

"You..." Elder Xu suddenly grabbed Chu Yan’s arm.

"Hey!" Emperor Muwu became anxious and reminded them, "This is my last precious son! Didn’t you just praise him? Why are you grabbing him now?"

Elder Xu’s hand trembled slightly, forgetting about status as he pointed at Chu Yan. He called over Prime Minister Lu, "Look at his eyes."

Prime Minister Lu walked over and examined Chu Yan closely.

"Now that you mention it, I can see it. They look somewhat like the late Empress’s eyes."

Prince Zhuang also joined in, quickly walking over. When he saw Chu Yan’s attire and bearing, his face changed instantly.

The clothing and accessories were similar to the late Empress’s style, drawing immediate attention to Chu Yan’s eyes.

He muttered, "No wonder Third Prince doesn’t look much like the Emperor; he looks more like the late Empress."

It was also a bit embarrassing. He had privately mocked Emperor Muwu and even suspected that Emperor Muwu had tampered with the Bloody Enchanting Bug to randomly select someone to make a prince and inherit the throne of Mu Nation.

Fortunately, he lacked the courage to act, or he might have lost his position.

Emperor Muwu raised his chin, looking proud. "Enough! We’ll investigate the incense later. Chu Yan, take the incense your royal aunt brought and offer it to the ancestors."

Chu Yan’s attire had been arranged by the Emperor himself.

After today, it was certain that Elder Xu and the others would no longer have any other thoughts, and Chu Yan’s path as the royal heir would be much smoother.

However, Nanli’s face grew even darker when she was referred to as "royal aunt."

But the incense still had to be offered.

This time, there were no issues with the incense.

Next, Prime Minister Lu picked up the brush to add Chu Yan’s name to the royal family register.

But then he paused and said, "Your Majesty, granting the Third Prince a surname is a bit hasty, don’t you think?"

As a first-rank prime minister, he still wanted to make a final objection.

Because the Third Prince’s name was Ye Chuyan...

They had only added the character "Ye" in front of it.

Emperor Muwu puffed up his chest and said, "He’s been using this name for over ten years. Changing it would make him uncomfortable. Just leave it as is."

"..." Prime Minister Lu thought to himself that maybe it was because the Emperor couldn’t be bothered to come up with a new name.

"Stop dawdling, hurry up and write it!" Emperor Muwu urged.

Unable to avoid it, Prime Minister Lu reluctantly wrote "Ye Chuyan" on the family register.

Chu Yan breathed a sigh of relief and gave Emperor Muwu a grateful glance. This name had been given to him by his father, and he didn’t want to change it.

Once the royal register was completed, Prime Minister Lu moved to the side and, along with the ministers, knelt and bowed, "We pay our respects to the Third Prince! Long live the Third Prince!"

Chu Yan looked at the ministers kneeling before him, his youthful face exuding unprecedented authority.

He spoke in a low voice, "No need for formalities."

From this day onward, he was the Third Prince of Mu Nation!

After the ceremony was over, Emperor Muwu’s previously joyful expression darkened, and he immediately summoned the head of Dalisi Procuratorate to investigate how the incense had been tampered with.

Before leaving the palace, Nanli changed out of her princess gown and into a simpler, lighter dress with a single bun and two small braids. This new look made her feel like she was reborn.

But she didn’t wash off her makeup, so she looked somewhat charming.

Yet Nanli felt sticky and wanted to wash it off.

Just then, Qing Feng’s voice came from outside the door: "Your Highness, we have the results of the investigation."

"So fast?" Nanli was curious to know who had been behind the sabotage of her Fifth Brother. She walked out, and Rainbow had already opened the door for her.

She asked, "Which minister was it?"