Lord Gu was led away.
Prince An stood beside Shen Xiabai, slightly raising his sword-shaped eyebrows. "Lord Shen, care to explain what tricks you've got up your sleeve?"
Shen Xiabai replied, "Your Highness was so quick to act. I thought you were like a worm in my belly, having already guessed it."
"..."
This couple really knows how to be irritating.
Prince An stood there for a while, not even getting a word of thanks.
The gloomy look on the Crown Prince's face lightened a bit. "It seems that the favor our dear brother intended to do didn't go as planned. All for nothing."
Prince An remained calm, casting a disdainful glance at the several ministers beside the Crown Prince. "Well, it's still better than the bunch of pigs His Majesty has raised."
The ministers were left speechless.
They felt insulted but didn't dare to retort.
Prince An paced away with his hands behind his back.
The ministers looked ugly. The Crown Prince also glanced at them, full of disgust. "They are indeed pigs."
With that, he flung his sleeves and left.
"Your Highness!" The ministers wrinkled their faces, looking aggrieved.
#
"I thought Lord Shen had left," Prince An said as he saw Shen Xiabai standing with his hands behind his back at the side hall entrance, as if waiting for something.
Shen Xiabai gave Prince An a sidelong glance. "Your Highness, why do you keep staring at me?"
The Crown Prince's voice came from behind. "You two haven't left yet."
Prince An and Shen Xiabai were both a bit annoyed.
The Crown Prince clearly felt the unwelcome atmosphere but didn't care. "What are you discussing? Let me join in."
Prince An said, "Lord Shen was asking why His Majesty keeps staring at him."
The Crown Prince said, "Lord Shen misunderstood. I always like to keep an eye on our dear brother."
Otherwise, who knows what tricks he'll come up with? With the current tense situation, the Crown Prince didn't dare to slack off for a moment.
Shen Xiabai said, "For a prince, the most important thing is to have a large number of offspring. The two Highnesses should focus on how to have a grandson for the emperor as soon as possible."
To inherit the throne, one must have many children to stabilize the foundation, especially for the crown prince.
Neither the Crown Prince nor Prince An responded to this.
In short, neither of them had any offspring, so there was no need to be jealous of each other. They were on the same level.
Shen Xiabai was annoyed looking at the two of them.
Just then, the imperial physician came out of the side hall with a medicine box. The three of them all looked at the imperial physician in unison. The imperial physician trembled and bowed to each of them.
Shen Xiabai asked, "Is Lord Gu awake?"
The imperial physician replied, "Yes, Lord Shen. He's awake."
Shen Xiabai gave a faint response and was about to walk into the side hall when the Crown Prince grabbed him. "Isn't it a bit too much to be so aggressive?"
The man had fainted. Was he still going to pursue the matter?
Shen Xiabai said, "Your Highness, I don't understand what you're talking about."
Prince An said, "Lord Shen has been standing here for a while. Could it be that he's concerned about Lord Gu's health, afraid that he'll pass out and die?"
The Crown Prince nodded in agreement.
After all, Lord Gu had just lost his son. He thought Shen Xiabai's actions were a bit too much. "Even a cornered rabbit will bite."
Anyway, Lord Gu was from the maternal family of the Empress Dowager.
As they were talking, Lord Gu was being supported by two people and walked out.
Shen Xiabai pushed aside the Crown Prince's hand and said calmly, "Your Highness misunderstood. I'm just concerned about Lord Gu and want to give him a few words of advice."
Lord Gu's face was as white as paper. He could barely walk even with support. When he saw the Crown Prince, Prince An, and Shen Xiabai, he rolled his eyes, bowed, and was about to be dragged away.
"Wait," Shen Xiabai said. "I have a few words to say to Lord Gu."
The two palace servants immediately stepped aside tactfully.
But the Crown Prince and Prince An didn't have such awareness.
Their lack of tact was really annoying.
Shen Xiabai ignored them. Lord Gu said weakly, "What does Lord Shen want to say?"
Shen Xiabai said, "I have a few words to advise Lord Gu. The Ministry of Justice will soon reach a conclusion. If Lord Gu can no longer stay in the court, there's only one way left for him: to return to his ancestral home."
"However, Lord Gu's ancestral home is far away. The journey will be filled with wind and snow, and you have so many enemies. Can you really make it back safely?"
Lord Gu was slightly stunned. His pupils dilated slightly, and he looked at Shen Xiabai in disbelief, with his lips trembling slightly.
"You... you..."
Shen Xiabai gently patted Lord Gu on the shoulder. "The human heart is unpredictable. Lord Gu must be extremely careful. My advice is that if possible, it's better to stay in the capital. It's safer."
"Don't end up buried in the wilderness at the end."
Although the hand on his shoulder didn't use any strength, Lord Gu felt as if there were a thousand pounds on it. His legs went weak, and he almost knelt on the ground.
"I don't remember when I offended Lord Shen," he said. Although he was from the maternal family of the Empress Dowager, the emperor was very wary of the power of the in - laws. The Gu family didn't have much power. Their years of arrogance were just relying on the Empress Dowager.
Shen Xiabai smiled faintly. "Lord Gu misunderstood. I'm just seeing that you're getting old and kindly reminding you. It's not worth dying with a bad reputation for others. It's better to stay in the capital if possible."
Lord Gu's confused eyes regained some clarity. He blinked and stared at Shen Xiabai for a long time.
"I'll take Lord Shen's advice," he said.
Shen Xiabai smiled and stepped aside. The palace servants immediately stepped forward to support Lord Gu and left.
Prince An stood with his hands behind his back, looking back and forth between Shen Xiabai and Lord Gu.
The Crown Prince kept smiling, but his eyes were slightly narrowed.
"Lord Shen is really a kind - hearted person," the Crown Prince said, pretending to be oblivious.
Prince An sneered disdainfully and left the place.
After leaving the palace gate, he lifted the curtain of his carriage and ordered, "Send someone to find out who the dead servant in the Cui Mansion is and the details of the two women raped and killed by the Gu family's son."
On the other side, the Crown Prince also frowned in thought. "Go and find out what conflict there is between Lord Gu and Lord Shen."
#
Shen Xiabai got into the carriage. Yu Feng asked in a low voice, "My lord, where shall we go?"
Shen Xiabai lowered his eyes. "To the fruit shop on East Street."
Yu Feng immediately understood that they weren't going back to the mansion today but to the Cui Mansion.
Shen Xiabai selected several kinds of the sweetest fruits in the fruit shop and went directly to the Cui Mansion. The carriage stopped directly at the side gate of the Cui Mansion.
Yu Feng was still a bit uncomfortable with such a blatant entrance. "My lord, is this... okay?"
Shen Xiabai ignored him and walked directly into the mansion. On the way, he found a servant and ordered, "Lead the way to Lord Prime Minister Cui's study."
The servant looked at the official robe on Shen Xiabai and led the way without any suspicion.
Cui Qingyuan had returned to the mansion earlier. When he heard from the steward that Shen Xiabai had swaggered into the mansion, he frowned. Before he could say anything, a young servant reported, "My lord, Lord Shen is here and waiting outside."
Cui Qingyuan calmly put down his pen. "Let him in."
The young servant immediately went out to invite Shen Xiabai. But a moment later, he came back alone, looking strange and embarrassed.
Cui Qingyuan glanced behind him and asked, "Where is he?"
The young servant said, "Lord Shen said he won't come in. He just came to say hello and let you know he's here."
Cui Qingyuan was speechless.
"Damn it!"
The steward stood aside, not daring to utter a word.
Wasn't it said that Lord Shen and the Lord Prime Minister were sworn enemies in the officialdom and very difficult to deal with?
Now that he saw them, why did they seem a bit... cheeky!
Cui Qingyuan said, "Give the order. Be smart about what to say and what not to say."
The steward obediently responded and went to make the arrangements.
