in2ebook Chapter 219 The Cui Family Loses Power
Chapter 219 The Cui Family Loses Power
The Cui family couldn't understand it either. Similar things had happened before, but the county officials knew the immense power of the clan, and for the sake of their own uncertain future careers, they would choose to endure it.
This Hua Liufang had no father, no mother, no wife, and no children. He was all alone, yet he was like a burr; anyone who passed by him would be covered in it and might get pricked.
The Cui family is still searching for Fu Changyi's whereabouts; they don't want to lose a money pouch like this. What angers the Cui clan chief most is that he cannot accept Fu Changyi's betrayal of the Cui family!
As a member of the Cui family, betraying the family is a capital offense!
"Guards! Remove Fu Changyi from the family genealogy! Tell any Cui family members outside the clan that if they see this man, kill him without mercy!"
Someone below said awkwardly, "Fu Changyi isn't on the family genealogy. If he were a member of our clan and broke the clan rules, he'd be executed, but it wouldn't attract the attention of the authorities. But he's not..."
Killing someone would be intentional homicide.
Chief Cui was so angry that his eyes rolled back and he fainted.
Soon, the imperial envoy arrived. The county government office was a mess, and the dilapidated gate hadn't been repaired yet. During this time, Hua Liufang had been staying at an inn. Many people sighed; they all thought this county magistrate was a good man, and they didn't know how he had offended the Cui family. Alas!
After numerous investigations and visits, it was discovered that the Cui family held deep-rooted power in the local area, and many people dared not speak out against them. He immediately wrote a memorial and returned to the capital overnight.
When the Cui family received the message from the capital, the imperial envoy had already left.
Business trips are already a hassle, so he naturally didn't want to deal with the Cui family. Although he could have taken the opportunity to extort money from them, the Peng family was offering far too much!
Therefore, while the Cui family was cautiously preparing to welcome the imperial envoy, their memorial had already been submitted to Yuwen Wuji's desk.
Yuwen Wuji instructed the Ministry of Justice to take over the matter, thoroughly investigate all cases involving the Cui family, and deal with them according to the law.
The Crown Prince volunteered for the task. He had been keeping a low profile during this time, not daring to utter a word in court, for fear that the Emperor would be angry with him because of Gao Ping.
However, Gao Ping's case remained unresolved, which gave the Crown Prince the feeling that he still had a glimmer of hope. If he handled his duties well, there might still be room for maneuver in his mother's case.
Cui Maosheng's legs went weak as soon as he left the court. His hometown had been raided. What was he going to do?
Left with no other choice, he quickly wrote to the Lu family's hometown to ask for help. He hoped they would lend a hand because of his kinship with the Lu family.
The Lu family's old residence received his message, but there was no reply for a long time.
Meanwhile, at the Lu family's old residence.
The head of the Lu family sat in the main seat and handed the letter to his second brother, who then passed it on to his third brother after reading it.
"Since the Emperor ascended the throne, he has been giving several powerful families the cold shoulder. First it was the Xie family, then the Gao family, and now it's the Cui family. Who knows if the next one won't be our Lu family?"
"But the message from the Imperial Noble Consort..."
"The Emperor only needs a good knife to help him deal with dirty business. With the Gao family as an example, if our Lu family does the same, we can see what the consequences will be."
"But the Imperial Noble Consort has not conceived, so we have no opportunity to support the prince."
The Crown Prince already has his own power base, so there's nothing good for them to gain by joining him now. As for the other princes, the Fourth Prince is relatively unknown, but the Emperor seems to be grooming him, making him a good candidate. They can get to know him better over time.
As for that little prince, whether he will grow up is another matter.
"Have we forgotten that there is a neglected prince?"
The Prince of Yong is currently in Xuzhou, his fiefdom.
In the capital city, the weather was dry, and the emperor had already moved to the Summer Palace. Song Wenyue specially asked his father to take his second brother, Song Hanzhi, along to arrange a meeting between him and Lu Yujie.
On the first night at the Mountain Resort, a banquet is traditionally arranged.
Halfway through the banquet, Lu Yujie, unable to hold her liquor, was helped back to her residence by palace maids.
Unexpectedly, Song Hanzhi blocked his way on the road.
Lu Yujie was startled when she saw him, but then she was relieved.
During her time in the palace, she occasionally received love letters from Song Hanzhi, which Song Wenyue managed to deliver. Those words stirred her heart, and she could hardly contain her girlish feelings.
"lady......"
When Song Hanzhi saw her, his eyes were filled with emotions that had been suppressed for a long time, making Lu Yujie's heart pound.
Song Hanzhi was undeniably beautiful, with a pair of gentle, watery peach blossom eyes. Now, with a deeply affectionate expression, her eyes seemed to hold whirlpools that could draw people in.
Lu Yujie looked at him and subconsciously took a few steps back. Her maidservant scolded, "Where did this lecherous fellow come from, daring to treat our young lady so disrespectfully!"
Song Hanzhi looked at her with a hurt expression and said softly, "Ms. Lu, can we talk alone?"
Seeing his appearance, Lu Yujie felt sorry for him and nodded shyly in agreement.
The palace maid was Lu Yinghong's person. Seeing her like this, she wanted to step forward to stop her, but when she met Lu Yujie's gaze, she said nothing.
Once they reached a secluded spot, she asked, "What does Young Master Song want to say?"
Song Hanzhi looked at her, her eyes seemingly filled with tears.
"Is there truly no chance of salvaging Mr. Song's marriage to Miss Song?"
Lu Yujie held the handkerchief tightly. In fact, she was happy every time she received a letter that he had tried to send to the palace during this period of time.
She was also afraid that, given her current reputation, she might not be able to marry into a good family in the future.
She was deeply moved that Song Hanzhi was able to overlook that incident. She figured there were probably very few men in this world who wouldn't care about such a thing.
Even if they don't say it, they'll still feel resentful.
"I..." Before Lu Yujie could finish speaking, the palace maid on lookout immediately exclaimed, "Miss, someone is coming this way!"
Lu Yujie knew the gravity of the situation and immediately turned to leave, but Song Hanzhi grabbed her wrist.
"Miss, please give me an answer today, so that I, Song, will not have to wait in vain."
Lu Yujie looked at him in surprise, the lust in her heart instantly vanishing. A complicated expression appeared in her beautiful eyes as she said, "Young Master Song, you're hurting me."
Hearing this, Song Hanzhi didn't let go of her hand, but just stared intently at her. The palace maid beside her was frantic; Song Hanzhi was doing this on purpose!
If the young lady doesn't agree tonight, everyone will see the two of them "meeting in secret," confirming their affair.
"You audacious scoundrel!" The palace maid immediately stopped being polite and kicked Song Hanzhi in the groin.
Let them be! Anyway, we have the Imperial Noble Consort backing us up!
Song Hanzhi hadn't expected this palace maid to have such audacity, and he immediately stepped aside. But he didn't let go of Lu Yujie's hand.
With a startled cry, he felt a sharp pain in his wrist.