Chapter 8: Aftermath

Within the imperial palace.

The Tianyuan Emperor, already troubled by the front’s military defeat, turned green with rage upon hearing Prince Fu’s account.

He was already burdened enough, and now his trusted right-hand man, the Embroidered Uniform Guard, had gone and created a disaster for him.

As a secret police and law enforcement agency, their methods might be harsh, but they must still have limits.

This incident was a textbook case of failure: not only did they injure countless civilians, but seven retainers of the Prince's Mansion were also lost.

If not for the luck that a Hanzhong Guard Commander happened to be inside the teahouse, his own younger brother might have fallen into the hands of the criminals.

“Younger brother, I understand the full course of events. Please go rest for now.”

“I will make sure you receive proper redress for this unjust suffering today!”

The Tianyuan Emperor said, looking exhausted.

“Your Majesty, please take care of your imperial health!”

“My affairs are not urgent—it’s nothing serious, so you needn’t dwell on it.”

Prince Fu immediately urged.

Dealing with a few lowly Embroidered Uniform Guard soldiers required no action from the Emperor—the censors’ memorials alone would see them crushed.

He came to the palace to complain not because the matter was small, but because it was too large—he had to make his position clear as the victim.

“Hmm, I understand.”

The Tianyuan Emperor nodded slightly.

Normally, his good elder brother would have comforted him thoroughly, but not today.

The catastrophic defeat in Liaodong awaited his attention; compared to this minor failure by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, it was utterly insignificant.

As soon as he left the imperial study, Prince Fu collided head-on with the Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander, Gu YuanSong, who had rushed over to beg for pardon.

“Gu YuanSong, Commander Gu, why are you rushing about like this?”

Prince Fu said coldly, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

The younger brother causes trouble; the elder brother bears the blame.

A doomed Embroidered Uniform Guard Company Commander wasn’t worth lowering himself to confront.

If he was going to fight, it had to be against the Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander—that was the only fitting response for his status.

“Your Highness, forgive me!”

“This incident was caused by my subordinates’ incompetence—I’ve already ordered a full investigation.”

“Once the results are in, I will personally come to your door to beg forgiveness with thorns on my back.”

“But right now, military affairs are urgent—I must see His Majesty immediately. Please forgive any discourtesy!”

Knowing the man before him was dangerous, Gu YuanSong swiftly yielded.

Seeing this, Prince Fu frowned.

This man was ultimately the Emperor’s trusted confidant; if he pushed too hard, everyone’s face would be lost.

If Gu YuanSong had chosen to stand his ground, Prince Fu would have struck back.

But since the man had come straight in to apologize, it was now difficult for him to continue pressing.

“See to it that your men are properly controlled—I will not tolerate a repeat of this!”

…

In the evening, Li Yuan returned to the Hou Fu, weary and burdened.

As one of the core figures of the noble elite, he had once been the strongest opponent of military reform; now, with the front defeated, he was the one most eager for its success.

Military reform had indeed damaged the noble elite’s interests, but it brought great benefit to the state.

Li Yuan had studied history and knew full well what a combat-capable army meant to a nation.

The Tianyuan Emperor had succeeded in military reform not only due to his political acumen, but also because the noble elite’s opposition had been half-hearted.

Their interests were too thoroughly intertwined—prosperity or ruin was shared by all.

Of course, his changed mindset was also tied to the Emperor’s sincere openness.

Raised under Confucian culture, the principle that the ruler is the pillar of the minister had long been ingrained in his bones.

If the Emperor himself had privately admitted fault, then past grievances could be laid to rest.

Now came the time to clean up the mess.

“Master, today Mu’er...”

Before the Marquis’s wife could finish, Li Yuan waved his hand to interrupt:

“I know everything.”

“Just now in the palace, His Majesty mentioned his name—I sent someone to investigate.”

The daytime incident was purely accidental, but Mu’er has, by misfortune, gained favor—he’s now on the Emperor’s radar.”

This matter concerns the court’s dignity and must be handled discreetly; public commendation is not possible.”

Once he enters official service, the imperial family will compensate him.”

“Later, I will remind Mu’er to handle his relationship with Prince Fu carefully.”

The Fanzhen princes were a special presence in the Dayu Dynasty.

They could not be offended, nor could they be approached closely.

The Tianyuan Emperor’s push for royal reform was largely driven by frustration with these worthless men.

Either they bullied the people and seized women in their fiefs, or they extorted property—local officials dared not touch them.

Worst of all, they bore the blame while the real gains went to local powerful clans.

The recent Lu Wang case was a classic example.

Through extortion, he seized forty thousand hectares of fertile land and ran illegal salt trade, nearly collapsing local tax revenues.

When the scandal erupted, the Tianyuan Emperor decided to make an example of Lu Wang.

He expected to seize a fortune and relieve the court's financial crisis, but when they seized the estate, they found the Prince of Lu Mansion's annual income listed at only forty thousand taels of silver.

Excluding commercial income and attributing everything to land rents, the average annual income per hectare was just one tael of silver.

Deeper investigation revealed that local gentry had bribed the Prince of Lu Mansion's Chief Secretary to register illegally seized lands under the Prince's Mansion name to evade imperial accountability.

The Prince of Lu bore the blame, while others reaped the profits—even the Prince's Mansion Chief Secretary earned more than he did.

Soon, the title “foolish prince” echoed throughout the entire Dayu Dynasty.

Enraged, the Tianyuan Emperor executed all the Prince's Mansion officials and exiled the foolish Prince of Lu to guard the imperial mausoleum.

There were more such fools among the Fanzhen princes.

Prince Fu had been enfeoffed before coming of age, and now he appeared to have the potential of a virtuous prince—but precisely because he might become virtuous, he was even less to be approached closely.

A foolish prince fraternizing with court officials was no concern to the Emperor—those men were all useless, incapable of success and guaranteed to cause failure.

But a revered virtuous prince was different: they were sensible, had good reputations, and if they acted, it would always be something major.

“Master, Lady, Young Master Mu is waiting outside!”

The servant’s voice rang out; the two exchanged glances, and the Hou Fu Lady spoke:

“Master, you speak with Mu’er. I have matters in the inner quarters—I’ll take my leave.”

After a moment’s thought, Li Yuan understood his wife’s concern.

Though the Emperor had merely mentioned him in passing, Li Mu’s obstacles to official service had already been cleared.

The coming conversation would inevitably involve court affairs.

Women must not interfere in state matters—that was an ancestral rule.

In noble families, this was not strictly enforced; privately, husband and wife could discuss such things.

But in public, even before a nephew, it was a sign of poor upbringing.

“Lady, go as you please.”

“Take Mu’er to the study—I’ll join you shortly!”

…

(End of Chapter)