The Prime Minister's Darling
Chapter 844 - 844 388 Extra Clingy (Second Update)

Chapter 844: 388 Extra Clingy (Second Update) Chapter 844: 388 Extra Clingy (Second Update) On the other side, the Emperor had endured an incredibly uneasy night; Eunuch Wei did not dare to hurry him until just before dawn, when he mustered his courage to enter the Study Room, whispering, “Your Majesty, it’s time for morning court.”

“Mm.”

The Emperor responded in a deep voice.

Eunuch Wei did not dare guess what kind of inner turmoil his Emperor had faced throughout the night; he merely followed behind without straying his gaze, attending to the Emperor in the Sleeping Palace as he washed up, changed his clothes, and donned the Dragon Robe.

Due to a sleepless night, the Emperor had two prominent dark circles under his eyes, so noticeable that even from a distance, the ministers at the front row couldn’t help but see them.

The Minister of the Ministry of Revenue glanced at Minister Zhuang beside him, lowering his voice to say, “What has befallen His Majesty?”

Minister Zhuang replied softly, “Perhaps he has been overtaxed by state affairs.”

“Is it about the border pass issue?” asked the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Prince Ning and Tang Ming had gone to suppress bandits and discovered movement at the border of the Chen Country. The King of Chen Country was outwardly preparing to enthrone a new Empress, drawing the attention of other nations, but who could say for sure that Chen Country wouldn’t secretly send troops to attack Zhan Country?

Without waiting for Minister Zhuang to answer, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue clicked his tongue, “The hostage from Chen Country is still in Zhan Country, yet they are so eager to send troops; isn’t that too indifferent to the life and death of their hostage?”

Minister Zhuang thought to himself, wasn’t it the same when Marquis Xuanping attacked Chen Country while the Prince of Anjun was there as a hostage?

With that thought, he wondered if the Emperor and Marquis Xuanping had also been too indifferent to the life and death of the Prince of Anjun in the past?

However, the battle waged by Marquis Xuanping had been too magnificent; not only had he sent troops ahead to protect the Prince of Anjun, preventing him from becoming a hostage in Chen Country’s hands on the battlefield, but he also charged straight to the heart of Chen Country, nearly toppling the imperial palace of Chen Country.

It was uncertain whether Chen Country possessed such a brilliant and brave general.

The morning court had no particular surprises today, apart from a censor, who was a follower of the Zhuang family line, impeaching a favorite minister of the Emperor for frequenting brothels and disgracing his office.

Truth be told, an accusation of visiting brothels was hardly enough to bring someone down; it was typically only the righteous censors who would do so, and everyone thought the Emperor would not entertain the impeachment.

To everyone’s astonishment, the Emperor gestured grandly, ordering the head of Dali Temple to deal with the accused severely.

The ministers were stupefied.

This… could this be done?

“Your Majesty!” The Minister of the Ministry of Works stepped forward, even he, an outsider, couldn’t stand by and watch this unfold—since when was visiting a brothel a valid reason for impeachment? If that were the case, Marquis Xuanping would have been stripped of his official hat many times over, wouldn’t he?

“That person once showed disrespect to the Empress Dowager; boldly speaking against her even in front of Us. Such a traitor should be severely punished without mercy. Our mind is made up; there’s no need for further discussion,” said the Emperor sternly and turned to glance at Empress Dowager Zhuang behind the screen, his eyes somewhat excited as if to say, ‘Praise me, praise me!’

Empress Dowager Zhuang ignored him.

After the court session, the Emperor caught up with Empress Dowager Zhuang’s Feng Nian.

Empress Dowager Zhuang, with a sacrificial spirit credits to five candied fruits, patiently stepped out of the Feng Nian, looking at him with a pleasant and amiable face, “Does the Emperor have matters to discuss with this dowager?”

The Emperor said, “I want to talk to Mother alone about something.”

In the past, he’d refer to himself as either ‘Us’ or ‘your son’, carrying a hint of teasing; tragically, Empress Dowager Zhuang cared only about her five candied fruits, and she completely missed the deeper implications in his way of referring to himself.

Empress Dowager Zhuang dismissed her servants, and the Emperor also sent away Eunuch Wei and others, leaving only the stationary mother and son on the long path.

The Emperor had struggled all night before deciding to lay everything out to Empress Dowager Zhuang. She was one of the victims of the incident and had the right to know the truth.

However, his thoughts were still in disarray, resulting in somewhat disjointed speech, but fortunately, Empress Dowager Zhuang understood and even realized that her naive son had been fooled by Xiao Liulang, that little sesame dumpling.

But the truth was the truth, and Xiao Liulang did not twist the facts.

“… I never expected Concubine Jing to do such a thing… But Mother can rest assured, I’ve already destroyed the imperial edict…”

He wasn’t sure if he had expressed himself clearly enough; the Empress Dowager’s expression was too calm, and he suspected she had not understood.

He continued, “And the relationship between Mother and me these years… it’s really been a misunderstanding… all these years I was influenced by…”

“So we don’t have to keep up the act anymore?”

Empress Dowager Zhuang interrupted the Emperor.

The Emperor paused, momentarily taken aback.

Uh… is this the main point?

Not having to keep up the act meant no more candied fruits.

Without the allure of candied fruits, the Emperor instantly lost his appeal, Empress Dowager Zhuang’s smile fell, and she turned with a look of disdain: “This dowager is leaving!”

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