Chapter 966: Chapter 962: Long Face
As he spoke, Lu Yuanpeng felt utterly aggrieved, tears streaming down.
He wiped his tears with his sleeve: “Grandfather, you must teach my brother a lesson! He almost caused our Lu family to miss out on a Chiliarch!”
Commandant Lu initially wanted to properly discipline his own grandson, but seeing that this grandson, although a hopeless case, still seed to have his own stroke of luck, he gave up on the idea.
Forget it, children and grandchildren have their own fortunes. Letting Lu Yuanpeng keep that foolishness might be a good thing for the Lu family.
Compared to worrying about Lu Yuanpeng, Commandant Lu was more concerned about Bai Qingyan going to the Imperial College to see the students there tomorrow.
Commandant Lu placed the ruler in his hand aside, sighed deeply, and sat down on the chair.
“Grandfather…” Lu Yuanpeng called softly, seeing Commandant Lu’s face unhappy, he asked nervously, “Should I get a doctor for you?”
“Stay here and kneel properly!” Commandant Lu glanced at Lu Yuanpeng, stood up, and walked out of the ancestral hall.
As soon as Commandant Lu ca out of the ancestral hall, he saw Lu Jinxian, along with Lu Yuanpeng’s father, Lu San, and his mother, rushing forward. Lu Yuanpeng’s mother, seeing the ruler in her father-in-law’s hand, imdiately started crying, feeling resentful… How could the grandfather still be so ruthless in beating the child when Yuanpeng returned ho looking so thin and dark, barely human!
Lu Yuanpeng’s mother dared not speak her anger, but could only shed tears in grievance. Lu Yuanpeng’s father also felt resentful internally, thinking his father was too strict with Lu Yuanpeng! The child had been spoiled since young, but now he was a Chiliarch in the Bai Family Army, which was a matter of pride for the Lu family!
Commandant Lu looked at the expressions of his third son and daughter-in-law and knew what they were thinking. He directly tossed the ruler into his son’s arms, instructed that no one was allowed in the ancestral hall to see Lu Yuanpeng, and then called for his eldest son, Lu Jinxian, as they slowly walked along the corridor.
“Father, I heard that His Majesty plans to erect a monunt on the Jinghe River bank for the soldiers who died in the southern border during the Xuanjia period battle,” Lu Jinxian spoke softly to Commandant Lu, “I heard this from the Ministry of Works today.”
“For the Bai Family Army?” Commandant Lu asked.
“It’s for all the soldiers who died in the southern border. It’s said that His Majesty’s intention is for the monarchs and people of Zhou to forever rember those soldiers who died for the country,” Lu Jinxian replied.
Commandant Lu knew Bai Qingyan ca from a military family and was also a soldier who fought bloody battles, so it’s understandable she wanted to erect monunts for the fallen soldiers.
“If you think there’s sothing inappropriate about this, then go speak directly to His Majesty. Our current Empress is not the Emperor of Jin; she has an open heart. You should speak straight-forwardly and don’t need to consult on how to respond!” Commandant Lu stopped his steps and, standing under the lamp, spoke earnestly to Lu Jinxian, “I am old, and in the coming days… the royal court of Zhou is the court of His Majesty and you ministers. You must understand the kind of person your current lord is and learn how to interact with her so you can better serve the nation and the people.”
Commandant Lu was already elderly and even though he returned to the position of Commandant and was respected as Imperial Master, he knew he did not have much ti left standing in the royal court.
Commandant Lu was quite envious of his sons and grandsons. They were more fortunate than him… Even though they encountered a halfway ascended Empress, her character and broad-mindedness were indeed admirable, sotis leaving Commandant Lu at a loss.
But after interacting with her, Commandant Lu couldn’t help but sigh. When he was young… he entered politics full of passion, dreaming of eting such a monarch. Even if the monarch was not wise, at least she must have a heart for the people, honest enough so that officials didn’t have to guess the monarch’s mind but could focus all their efforts on strengthening the nation and helping the people.
But he had dedicated the majority of his life to the Emperor of Jin, and the habits of guessing imperial intentions and maneuvering shrewdly had beco ingrained, difficult to change.
His sons and grandsons were fortunate to et such an Emperor, so… he didn’t want them to pick up his bad habits.
He only hoped that before his retirent from the royal court, he could catch a glimpse of the court he had once imagined before stepping into his career.
·
By the early morning of the next day, the news that the Empress of Zhou would go to the Imperial College had spread widely.
The King of Hedong heard about it and ordered his n not to get involved, ensuring that they swiftly withdrew their involvent, leaving no traces.
Since everything was already settled, the King of Hedong aid to hide all traces of his actions as thoroughly as possible to prevent Bai Qingyan from having a hold over him; otherwise, survival would be difficult.
Now he and the Shuofang Wang’s families were being controlled by Bai Qingyan, and whether they lived… how they lived, it all depended on Bai Qingyan’s decision.
Filled with righteous indignation, the Imperial College students gathered, lighting lamps and discussing throughout the night, carefully noting down all the questions they would ask when eting Bai Qingyan today, waiting until the ti ca.
At dawn, Bai Qingyan had already left the palace.
Last night, Bai Qingyan had sat on the lamp-lit floor with Bai Jinxiu, talking until late into the night. Bai Jinxiu had already agreed with Qin Lang to take Brother Wang with her to Hancheng, knowing that matters urgently needed attention there… After all, due to Bai Jinzhi’s impulsiveness, she feared Bai Jinzhi might do sothing irreversible.
With Hancheng surrendered, after the battle… it was necessary to use gentle ans rather than sheer force to win people’s hearts.
Therefore, Bai Jinxiu agreed with Bai Qingyan last night to set off for Hancheng early today. Bai Qingyan ordered Lin Kangle overnight to lead troops alongside Bai Jinxiu to Hancheng, replacing Bai Jinzhi and Zhao Sheng in returning to Dadu City.
After the long talk with Bai Qingyan, Bai Jinxiu went to see her mother, barely sleeping, so as she left the city, she, along with Brother Wang and Qin Lang, rode in a carriage that went out of the city to et Lin Kangle’s army encamped outside Dadu City.
Bai Jinxiu hadn’t expected Bai Qingyan would co to see her off outside the city. When Cuibi said the person on the eastern hillside seed to be Bai Qingyan, she quickly lifted the curtain of the carriage window to look toward the high slope, seeing her Eldest Young Lady in riding gear, mounted on a white horse, with only Shen Qingzhu at her side.
Bai Qingyan stood holding the reins, illuminated from behind, silently watching Bai Jinxiu’s convoy move farther and farther.
The swaying carriage didn’t stop, and Bai Jinxiu, seeing Bai Qingyan bathed in the morning glow, couldn’t resist waving at her.
Once she had stood here to bid farewell to her elder sister, and now… her elder sister stood there to see her off.
She hoped that when she returned to Dadu City, she, too, like her elder sister, could bring a different change to the Bai family and the country.
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