Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 840: Father Emperor

Chapter 840: Chapter 840: Father Emperor

Hanlin Academy, Lv Liang’s heart throbbed with unease as he repeatedly recalled his past at the academy, ensuring he hadn’t deeply offended Shen Yang. His anxious heart slowly settled only when his gaze fell upon Zhou Changlian, whom Shen Yang had been targeting, and he became puzzled.

Lv Liang walked around the table and approached, "Shen Yang has gone to the palace, and you don’t seem to have any reaction at all?"

Today, it was Eunuch Liu who personally came to Hanlin Academy to escort Shen Yang away. Despite his old age, Eunuch Liu still served by the Emperor’s side, a person the Emperor trusted. This meant the rumors about the prince were very likely to be true.

Chang Lian raised his eyebrows, "What kind of reaction should I have?"

With Shen Yang gone to the palace, he felt a sense of relief, no longer having to be on guard against Shen Yang all the time.

Lv Liang’s mouth twitched, wanting to say aren’t you afraid, but looking into Zhou Changlian’s eyes, the man was truly fearless. Then he remembered, the man had a powerful father; Grand Master Zhou was highly regarded by the Emperor, and the Crown Prince also spoke highly of him. Coupled with Zhou Family’s marital ties to the Duke Ning’s Residence, Zhou Changlian truly had nothing to fear.

Lv Liang forced a smile, "Never mind, it’s good for you to be this way."

He envied such luck in being born into the right circumstances.

Chang Lian hmmed, and bending his head, continued with the task in his hands, for the headmaster to use the next day. Twitching his ears, he noticed the usually quiet room was now in disorder, with most people having lost the heart to work.

At Yao Wenqi’s residence in the Duke’s house, Yao Wenqi paced his study upon hearing the news. Zhang Jinghong had returned to the capital yesterday, and today the Emperor had summoned Shen Yang to the palace, which meant the Emperor had been waiting all along for Zhang Jinghong to return.

Yao Wenqi swept a teacup off the table in rage, cursing under his breath about being good for nothing but spoiling things, but it was too late for regrets now.

With a stern face, Yao Wenqi realized that the Emperor might have long believed Shen Yang was indeed the fifth prince and had covertly won over Zhang Jinghong, purposely setting up a maze. He had used Zhang Jinghong as bait; if it weren’t for his quick reaction, his Jianghuai stronghold would have been taken.

Damn it, now his greatest fear was that Zhang Jinghong did actually see Shen Yang’s face. Formerly the mastermind, he now found the situation reversed, having lost too many pawns. The only small consolation was that the Emperor finally acknowledged Shen Yang.

At the Ministry of Revenue, Zhou Shuren met with Mr. Fang from the Ministry of Works, "I understand the purpose of your visit, and I’ve already inquired with Grand Master Xiao. I truly am powerless to help."

Fang Tan had come with hopes, now dashed. If Grand Master Zhou could not sway Grand Master Xiao’s mind, then the funds would not be granted to the Ministry of Works. Yet he still couldn’t let go, "Ever since our conversation, you mentioned that failure is not to be feared, but rather the lack of trying. You said there will be a time for success, so I have been continuously trying to improve the method of crafting Liu Li. Not a single penny has been wasted in the Ministry of Works; every sum has been put to proper use."

Zhou Shuren was silent, remembering the grand visions he had painted, how had the conversation gone with Fang Tan? Right, even common folks could have glass windows, and children in school could read in well-lit rooms. He seemed to have spun many such dreams at the time.

He was very much looking forward to the success of the Ministry of Works, so he hadn’t skimped on the pep talks — cough — of course, not in front of the Crown Prince, but he had blown quite a bit of smoke.

Zhou Shuren, seeing Fang Tan’s anxious eyes, couldn’t help but glance at the room where Grand Master Xiao was and felt the urge to scratch his head. Overstepping was not acceptable; moreover, Grand Master Xiao had made his stance very clear yesterday. If he were to interfere from another angle, even without appearing directly involved, Grand Master Xiao would know it was his meddling.

Having been at the Ministry of Revenue for some time now, he knew that Grand Master Xiao regarded him as his successor and gave him access to much more than Mr. Qiu did. Grand Master Xiao was good to him, and he couldn’t betray that confidence.

So all he could say was, "The Ministry of Revenue has its own difficulties. The Emperor wants to build warships, which are like money-eating beasts. I presume the Ministry of Works has already heard and is preparing for this."

Fang Tan uttered a sound of realization, "We’ve received the news and have begun recruiting craftsmen. When we expanded the seaport, Grand Master of Writing already had a premonition about it."

Zhou Shuren thought to himself, don’t underestimate the unnoticeable Minister of Works; his foresight was profound. He wouldn’t have known the Emperor’s great ambitions to buy grain overseas if he hadn’t heard a word or two from the Crown Prince.

Fang Tan knew that the funding was definitely off the table, "The Ministry of Works still has matters that await me, so I must take my leave first."

"I’ll see you out."

Fang Tan suddenly lowered his voice, "I heard that the scholar from Hanlin Academy has entered the Palace."

Zhou Shuren knew the news before Fang Tan’s arrival, "Hmm, I heard as well."

Fang Tan said dismally, "Troublesome times."

Then he added, "Right, how is your eldest granddaughter’s marriage arrangement coming along?"

Zhou Shuren paused mid-step, "Ah, I thought about it, the child is still young, there’s no rush."

Ever since Zhou Shuren had inquired about his son, Fang Tan had taken the matter to heart. The Grand Master of Writing had said that the next Minister of Revenue would most likely be Zhou Shuren. Not to mention Zhou Shuren’s rapid rise, even his current network of connections made him a very suitable marriage partner.

Now, hearing what Grand Master Zhou said, Fang Tan, being a perceptive man, chuckled dryly and quickly left.

Zhou Shuren felt it was a pity in his heart; Mr. Fang’s son was indeed excellent, but this cousin business was truly disheartening.

Within the Palace, Shen Yang’s legs were numb from standing, wanting to ask Eunuch Liu, he could not take it anymore and made a bit of noise, but unfortunately, Eunuch Liu did not pay him any attention.

Eunuch Liu heard but pretended not to, knowing full well that the Emperor was annoyed, and begrudgingly, he was torturing him on purpose!

Eunuch Liu sighed internally; as winter settled in, his legs and feet would become uncomfortable. One cannot defy aging, but he could not just retire, knowing too much was also not good, and he did not know when it would end so that he could peacefully enjoy a few years in his twilight.

In the room, the Emperor was lying on his side, reading a book, estimating the time in his heart but also feeling unwilling; he couldn’t vent the anger inside of him.

The Crown Prince looked at the Zhezi and then at the already drafted imperial decree, which was for Zhang Jinghong.

Regardless of the Emperor’s unwillingness, this piece had to be used. He sat up, coughing twice.

Eunuch Liu heard the signal and led Shen Yang inside. Shen Yang’s legs were so numb from standing that he had difficulty walking, but his heart was ablaze.

The Emperor gestured for Eunuch Liu to leave and looked at Shen Yang with disdain in his eyes, "We have ascertained your true background. You are the fifth Prince, Xiao Wu, who was switched at birth."

Shen Yang’s mind went blank; his hopes had come true, he indeed was the fifth Prince. Then followed a surge of rage aimed at Zhang Jinghong, believing Zhang Jinghong had taken his place and was enjoying everything that belonged to him, "What about the current Fifth, Zhang Jinghong?"

The Emperor said indifferently, "You are real; naturally, he is fake."

Shen Yang clenched his fists, "Emperor, Father."

He paused after two words, unsure of how to address him.

The Emperor looked at the emotions flickering across Shen Yang’s face, fell silent, and bluntly said, "Call me Father Emperor."

Shen Yang shuddered with emotion, "Father, Father Emperor."

The Crown Prince used the Zhezi to cover his face; if he didn’t, he was afraid he would burst into laughter. He had always dealt with the cunning ones; suddenly dealing with someone so naïve and foolish was truly amusing.

The Emperor glanced at the Crown Prince out of the corner of his eye, silently retracting his gaze, then turned to Shen Yang and said, "The fifth Prince’s Residence will be vacated in a few days, but for now, you will stay in the Crown Prince’s Residence."