Chapter 936: Chapter 934: Becoming the Scapegoat
Xing Yuyue stood up angrily and said, "Since ancient times, the affairs of the world have been outside for men and inside for women. Women should stay in their proper place, supporting their husbands and educating their children in inner chambers, with virtue as their foundation. But the granddaughter of the Duke An’s Mansion, she has always disobeyed the rules, completely without virtue, and scandals have abounded over the years, tainting female virtue..."
"... disregarding shame, mingling among men, and even managing a group of men, utterly bringing shame to all the men in the world..."
"... such a woman, yet His Majesty allows her to enter the hall and the room, not only summoning her to the royal palace with court officials for discussions but also often mentioning this woman in court meetings..."
Xing Yuyue spoke with righteous indignation, "If this continues, the distinction between the sexes will be gone, and the Great Xia Dynasty will lose its heavenly order. For the sake of the etiquette in the Central Plains, I implore Your Majesty to sternly reprimand the Ye Family for their granddaughter’s unvirtuous conduct, strictly ordering her to remain in the inner chambers and not show off outside. And Jiang Yifan and the Duke An should be severely punished for their improper discipline of their family and descendants."
Listening to Xing Yuyue’s nonsense, Duke An found it increasingly absurd.
The court discussions were about the Crown Prince, about the succession of kings and emperors. Yet Xing Yuyue, out of shame and anger, brought up the affairs of others’ children to save face, a practice truly contemptible.
This matter supposedly had little to do with him, for what his granddaughter was doing was greatly beneficial to the court. According to his grandson-in-law, his granddaughter was overseeing the Mechanical Workshop to develop a device that, if successful, could improve iron-smelting efficiency.
What an achievement this was, something beyond the comprehension of this pedantic old man!
Moreover, the businesses his granddaughter managed were under Jinrong’s name, or enterprises partnered with Jinrong. As long as His Majesty and His Highness Prince Yu were willing to bear the losses, he had no objections.
But, to insult his beloved granddaughter in his presence with these civil officials’ ridiculous words—this was intolerable beyond endurance.
Did they think the Ye Tang was easy to bully, or that his granddaughter, Ye Xinyan, was easy to bully?
Duke An snorted coldly, ignoring Xing Yuyue’s obvious provocative words, and bowed to report, "Your Majesty, I believe the urgent matter is still the Crown Prince’s affair. The Crown Prince is inherently kind, but those gathered around him..."
Duke An glanced meaningfully at Xing Yuyue before continuing, "Precisely because scoundrels gather around the Crown Prince, things have reached the current state. I believe, to create a conducive environment for the Crown Prince to correct his habits, there should be a timely purge of those petty villains around him."
The emperor was contemplating how to refute Xing Yuyue’s pedantic arguments without hurting his pride when Duke An took up the conversation.
And in the verbal exchange between Xing Yuyue and Duke An, Duke An managed to shift the topic to cleaning up the Crown Prince’s Mansion affairs... Then wasn’t this a perfect pretext for what he had been planning?
Cleaning up the Crown Prince’s Mansion—this was not the monarch taking advantage of the Crown Prince’s illness to suppress him, but rather the core power of the Crown Prince’s side working to ensure the Crown Prince’s speedy recovery.
If Grand Tutor Xing could be brought in, it would be ideal...
The emperor exchanged a glance with Han Yanhui, then shifted his gaze, vaguely responding, "Well, what Beloved Minister Ye said seems to make some sense. However, this matter... seems not easy to handle..."
Duke An, with lowered eyelids and an unwavering tone, said, "For the sake of the Crown Prince’s better recuperation and tranquility, I believe a virtuous and capable pillar of the state should be appointed to the Crown Prince’s Mansion to clean up idle persons."
"What Beloved Minister Ye says is very insightful, minister, continue," the emperor promptly nodded in approval.
He never regretted his trust in Duke An, who indeed won his favor. No matter what, Jinkun remains the Crown Prince, as long as there is no formal dethronement, it’s truly inappropriate to act otherwise, and no influential minister is willing to take this task. Here, Duke An handed him a suitable candidate.
"I believe, among the court officials, Grand Tutor Xing stands out for his high moral reputation, the most upright and honest. Having taught the Crown Prince before, he genuinely considers the Crown Prince’s interests. I recommend Grand Tutor Xing to go to the Crown Prince’s Mansion and purge those treacherous individuals leading the Crown Prince astray, restoring the Crown Prince a clear and bright environment."
Xing Yuyue’s mouth opened slightly in shock, his beard trembling, knowing full well that Duke An was setting him up, yet not knowing how to refute. The inappropriate women at the Crown Prince’s Mansion indeed need cleaning up, and the undesirable around the Crown Prince cannot remain.
But surely the Crown Prince would not be pleased with this. This task shouldn’t fall to him!
He intends to support the Crown Prince’s ascension wholeheartedly, yet now he finds himself doing things contrary to the Crown Prince’s wishes, incurring the Crown Prince’s displeasure... In the future, should the Crown Prince ascend or not?
Han Yanhui and others lowered their heads, not showing any emotion or expressing any opinions.
Especially Han Yanhui, who refused to look up. Since yesterday, the emperor had this intention, yet didn’t wish to escalate matters to the extent of searching the Crown Prince’s Mansion, was troubled by the choice of candidates, and here came Duke An’s suggestion.
His Highness Prince Yu was also pondering this matter, needing to extract the women inserted into the Crown Prince’s Mansion from the Prince Yu’s Mansion. Several candidates had been considered, but none had Xing Yuyue’s qualifications.
Xing Yuyue was throwing himself onto the knife’s edge.
The emperor was overjoyed, thoughts of an insidious nature swirling in his mind, but showed sincerely, "As a minister serving three dynasties, the Grand Tutor is most likely to earn the Crown Prince’s trust. I, too, have confidence in the Grand Tutor’s integrity, ensuring the Crown Prince understands the good intentions of myself and the Grand Tutor."
The emperor looked expectantly at Xing Yuyue, seeing him about to speak, quickly continued, "Grand Tutor, rest assured, I will not let you toil. Now, without delay, I’ll immediately arrange for two people to assist the Grand Tutor, leaving the specifics to them, ensuring the Grand Tutor doesn’t overstrain."
Xing Yuyue was left with no choice but to accept the commission, leaving the palace’s great hall.
Underneath the already semicircle sun, looking at the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard Camp and the Assistant Minister of Rites waiting respectfully outside, Xing Yuyue felt something akin to regret rising in his heart.
His Majesty had planned this for a long time, probably just troubled over the choice of personnel, and he ended up stepping up. Duke An wasn’t wrong, upon viewing the entire court, there are few court officials who can curb the Crown Prince; Duke An himself is one.
But failing to see the pitfalls, he prematurely angered Duke An, pushed out by that crafty old man as a scapegoat.
Despite Grand Tutor Xing’s advanced age, his mind was not slow; since he accepted the task, he had to carry it out properly. Not expecting excellent results, yet ensuring no loss to his lifelong reputation.
After confirming with his two temporary subordinates the current state of the Crown Prince’s Mansion, considering the time, Xing Yuyue instructed them to go back and prepare the personnel heading to the Crown Prince’s Mansion, meeting at Wei Hour.
Afterwards, Grand Tutor Xing solemnly returned to his residence.
Xing Yuyue’s eldest son, Minor Prefect of Honglu Temple Xing Bin, had returned early from the Honglu Temple, waiting quietly for his father, awaiting the result of his father’s audience with the emperor for the Crown Prince’s sake.