No sooner had he heard about the silver coins hidden by his Xie family ancestors and the previous emperors than Yue Fuguang pinned a huge black pot right on his head!
He was the emperor of a nation, did he have no face to save? Was it glorious to be known as poor? And pretending to be poor? He was genuinely broke!
The Crown Prince: Father, for the sake of the Xie family's empire, for future emperors to never lack money, please bear with it! Finding our Xie family's treasure is what's important!
Emperor Mingxi: You unfilial son!
The system scratched its round, hairless head, feeling compelled to speak up for Emperor Mingxi, who seemed on the verge of crying from grievance.
It said, [Master, is it possible that Emperor Mingxi himself didn't know about the treasure hidden by their ancestors or the private savings stashed away by the previous emperors?]
Emperor Mingxi nodded silently in agreement. Yes, yes, I didn't know. Please, kind soul, tell me where the money is! Eyes sparkling with gold coins JPG
If Emperor Mingxi had been exposed to modern 'cultural influences', he would definitely have added: I'll Venmo you 50!
"Didn't know? He's the emperor, if he didn't know, then who did?"
[The one who knew was Prince Rong, the son born to his father's favorite woman, Consort Hui.]
Emperor Mingxi: Those two again! Why are their shadows everywhere? They really are like lingering ghosts!
But thinking of the treasure, he couldn't help feeling a twinge of regret. Ah! He had Prince Rong and Consort Hui killed too early!
"Was his father that biased? Not telling the future heir about so much money, but telling a prince instead? Was he worried the Xie family's reign was too stable?
That old fool probably wanted one brother to have the money and the other the status, setting them up with their own advantages to fight chaotically over his throne!
The old man was the chief culprit of sowing discord and endangering the state! Could he have died from his own stupidity?"
The court ministers, hearing Yue Fuguang call the late emperor an old fool and an old man, wore expressions of embarrassment, especially those who had once served the late emperor, burying their heads even lower.
There was no helping it; the one insulting their former master was the little immortal lord. They couldn't afford to offend him!
Even his own son wasn't saying anything, so as outsiders... they'd better pretend they didn't hear it!
Besides, they secretly thought the little immortal lord's scolding wasn't wrong. Wasn't he indeed the chief culprit of endangering the state and sowing discord?
As the son, Emperor Mingxi, hearing Yue Fuguang curse his father like that, wasn't angry at all. Instead, he cheered for her inwardly. If you know how to curse, curse more! Use the same vigor you used to curse me before and curse him hard! He loved listening to it!
At this moment, Yue Fuguang was practically his mouthpiece! As a son, bound by respect for elders, he felt aggrieved but couldn't say much, sometimes even having to hold his nose and offer praise!
It was utterly frustrating!
Now, listening to Yue Fuguang's curses, which sounded like heavenly music, the wounds from being cursed so many times himself were instantly soothed!
Unfortunately, the little immortal lord's curse vocabulary seemed a bit lacking, otherwise Emperor Mingxi felt he could be even happier.
Feeling immensely pleased, Emperor Mingxi forcefully suppressed his rising lips. Though he tried hard to disguise it, his cheerful mood was noticed by the minister currently presenting a report.
This man thought his suggestion had struck a chord with His Majesty and gained his approval. Feeling encouraged, he spoke with even more enthusiasm!
The system seriously flipped through historical records. [According to records, the late emperor died of illness. Looking at this medical report, Little Pearl, it doesn't seem like he died from any... clean disease!
Master, this old emperor's death was not clean!]
The few who were in the know wore another wave of awkward expressions.
"Clean or not, he's dead anyway. Let's set aside the old man's death for now. First, tell me why he hid the money and didn't tell Emperor Mingxi?"
Emperor Mingxi curled his lip. What else could it be? Afraid his most beloved son would suffer in the future, of course. Or even thinking that if Prince Rong didn't ascend the throne as he envisioned, with this money, whether for staging a comeback or... other purposes, he would have the means.
Emperor Mingxi understood his father all too well. He must have thought exactly that!
[That old man's original plan was to depose the then Crown Prince, now Emperor Mingxi, and install Prince Rong as Crown Prince. So he prematurely revealed the matter of the Xie family's founding ancestor's treasure to Prince Rong.
However, as soon as the old emperor hinted at this idea, he met with fierce opposition from the court ministers. The system of primogeniture was the most stable method for imperial succession and smooth political transition.
Later, the old emperor, still unwilling to give up, tested the court officials several times, failing without exception.
In the last two years before his death, he gradually emptied almost his entire private treasury, all to save more private funds for his beloved son.
That's why when Emperor Mingxi succeeded to the throne, the private treasury he inherited from his father contained only a little over a hundred thousand taels of silver. It wasn't that the old emperor was poor; he had moved his money!]
"Giving Prince Rong so much money, what was he trying to do? Seed funding for a rebellion? While he was alive, Prince Rong couldn't become emperor. After he died, could Prince Rong possibly raise an army, rebel, and successfully seize the throne?
Wasn't he afraid the Great Yan Dynasty, the Xie family's empire, would be torn apart by the fighting between his two sons?"
The courtiers of Great Yan were also speechless upon hearing about the late emperor's actions. They didn't know what he was thinking. Emperors usually feared instability and internal strife.
But with the late emperor, it seemed he almost wished for chaos!
Wouldn't he be afraid of being chased and beaten by the Xie family ancestors in the afterlife?
[This old emperor probably didn't even realize his own intentions until the last two years before his death. He left his own and the previous emperors' private savings to his beloved Prince Rong.
However, the treasure of their founding ancestor, Emperor Gaozu, he intended to leave for the future successor. Even though this successor wasn't the heir he approved of, the Gaozu treasure should rightfully be passed to the next emperor.
He only came to this realization at the very end.
Unfortunately, as soon as he figured it out, he kicked the bucket!]
So the late emperor had once considered telling His Majesty about the Gaozu treasure?
Kicked the bucket? What does 'kicked the bucket' mean? Judging from the context, it should mean passed away?
"He already told Prince Rong about the Gaozu treasure, wasn't he afraid Prince Rong would go and take it?"
Right, Prince Rong knew about it. Wouldn't he have taken it?
Oh, Prince Rong has been dead for over ten years. Never mind then.
Some with heavier thoughts had flickering eyes. Could Prince Rong have told others, like his own son?
[The old emperor only told Prince Rong that such a Gaozu treasure existed, but didn't reveal its specific location. As for the money hidden by the old emperor and the previous emperors, Prince Rong died before he could retrieve this capital for a comeback, even after learning the locations.]
"So all the money is still there? Including the Tong family's?"
[Yes. The Tong family treasure is in two parts. The Gaozu treasure is actually part of the Tong family treasure, to which he later added a bit himself.
The other part of the Tong family treasure, Emperor Gaozu also sent people to search for but never found.
For this purpose, he specifically established a department called the 'Secret Vault Bureau' to find the other half of the treasure.]
Only now did Emperor Mingxi learn that the Secret Vault Bureau was established for this reason.
