Sima Hao was inclined to say something, but glancing at the gloomy Yi Zixie, the expressionless Sima Han, and the still fearful Lu Taobao family, the words turned in his mouth. He ended up looking at Sima Zhu and said, "Ah Xiang, today's matter was indeed your fault. How could you do such a thing? Regardless of anything else, the Lu family extended a helping hand to Ah Wei and even donated things during the snow disaster. They are people of merit, after all. Couldn't you have invited them properly? Why did you tie them up?"
Sima Zhu, seeing Sima Hao's slightly chiding expression and disapproving tone, couldn't help but curse inwardly.
Indeed, he was as cunning as expected, having lived so long.
His words now sounded so beautiful, but wasn't it he who had spoken of capturing people earlier?
Now that he saw he couldn't gain any advantage in front of Yi Zixie, he simply shifted the blame entirely onto Sima Zhu.
What was frustrating was that he had already played the villain, and now any explanation would likely not be believed by Yi Zixie.
Furthermore, no matter what, he was still the Emperor.
The Emperor's dignity prevented him from explaining.
He could only lower his head and remain silent to Sima Hao's reprimand.
Yi Zixie, however, spoke coolly, "In my opinion, His Majesty is still too young and cannot handle many affairs. I imagine the past few years on the throne have been taxing. It would be a great loss if he were to fall ill at such a young age. Why not let me propose to the court to select several assisting ministers? I'm sure they would be willing."
It must be said, Yi Zixie's method was indeed brilliant.
Although he was the Grand Tutor, suddenly proposing to replace the Emperor would invite criticism and wouldn't be easily accomplished.
Even if it were achieved, some might still be resentful, causing trouble for the new Emperor.
Therefore, Yi Zixie merely suggested selecting assisting ministers.
This way, Sima Zhu's power would be distributed, and he would be constrained, preventing him from doing whatever he pleased without consequence.
Moreover, this approach would be more readily accepted, even agreed upon, by the court officials.
Humans inherently possess a greedy heart, always striving to climb higher.
Now, such a golden opportunity was presented before them.
While taking power away from Sima Zhu was a dangerous endeavor, constantly fearing retaliation or even assassination, the saying goes, "The timid starve, the bold feast."
With Yi Zixie present, they might not be so fearful.
The reason Yi Zixie spoke so directly was after careful consideration.
Sima Hao had always wished to regain control of the government, install a compliant Emperor, and then return to his former days of doing as he pleased, with the Emperor being merely a puppet.
Now, with Yi Zixie's suggestion, Sima Hao's ambitions might come to fruition.
Not to mention Yi Zixie's support from behind, even in selecting assisting ministers, they would surely choose those who were older and held significant positions in the court and among the populace.
However, in his years as Emperor, Sima Zhu had been excessively extravagant.
This had earned him the disdain of these elder officials.
Now, with the opportunity to seize power and curb Sima Zhu's erratic decisions, it was believed they would all be willing.
Sima Hao was also confident that with enough time, he could win them over.
He was not like Sima Zhu, that fool, who did nothing but eat and think of women all day.
Casting a look of disdain at Sima Zhu's corpulent lifestyle, Sima Hao sighed inwardly.
Recalling the previous encounter with Lin Xiaowei, he couldn't help but sneer.
Sima Zhu truly believed he was a coveted prize after being Emperor for so long.
He didn't even look at himself and wonder which woman would genuinely like him.
Especially such a delicate beauty.
It was a pity that beauty could be deceptive, and one careless touch could be fatal.
At this thought, Sima Hao's expression froze.
He then shook his head with a wry smile, wondering why his mind had wandered to such thoughts at this juncture.
Shaking his head, he suppressed the various thoughts in his mind and then said to Yi Zixie, "Grand Tutor, what did you say about assisting ministers? His Majesty is in his prime and has been Emperor for so long; why would he need assisting ministers?"
Sima Hao's face displayed shock, surprise, and disapproval as he spoke.
However, no one present was a fool.
Even the white-haired grandmother of Lu Taobao secretly glanced at Sima Hao.
Yi Zixie disdained Sima Hao's pretense but still said, "I see His Majesty is young but already somewhat muddled. It's surely due to the strain of recent years. Since His Majesty is the Emperor, his health is not just his own but belongs to the entire Chu dynasty. If the people and officials learned that His Majesty's mind was exhausted from state affairs, what would happen? They would surely be heartbroken. Therefore, it's best to select a few assisting ministers who can help His Majesty manage state affairs and allow him to rest."
Sima Hao hesitated for a moment, looked at Sima Zhu, and immediately nodded. "Although this idea might make the people think His Majesty is somewhat delicate, it is ultimately for His Majesty's health. I don't think anyone will object. Then, let it be as the Grand Tutor says. I will have Jiang Yubao summon everyone to the palace."
As the two spoke, neither asked for Sima Zhu's opinion.
One wanted to teach Sima Zhu a lesson, to let him know what he should and shouldn't do.
The other wished to quickly sideline Sima Zhu and take control himself.
Therefore, with remarkable tacit understanding, they completely ignored Sima Zhu's opinion.
Initially, Sima Zhu was unconcerned when Yi Zixie brought it up.
He was the Emperor; selecting assisting ministers was his prerogative.
Even Yi Zixie, as Grand Tutor, had no authority to make decisions for him.
But who knew this old man would seize the opportunity to add insult to injury.
"I call you Father Emperor only out of respect for you for giving birth to and raising me. You cannot be as greedy as some others. Selecting assisting ministers? Is that something for Father Emperor to worry about? I think Father Emperor should stay in his palace and enjoy his twilight years. He will no longer have to worry about external matters."
Upon hearing Sima Zhu's string of words, Sima Hao's face instantly turned ugly.
What did this mean?
Was he going to be placed under house arrest?
Considering Sima Zhu's temper, this was highly probable.
Thinking this, Sima Hao quickly looked at Yi Zixie, his eyes filled with sadness and pleading.
He had helped Yi Zixie, which was why Sima Zhu resented him. Therefore, Yi Zixie could not abandon him like this.
This was the message he conveyed to Yi Zixie through his gaze.
Yi Zixie didn't perceive anything wrong with this.
Although this old man was also annoying, compared to Sima Zhu, he was still usable.
Once these two were locked in a mutual struggle, it would be time to bring out Sima Han.
Sima Han could not remain a prince-in-waiting forever.
From any perspective, Sima Han was a suitable candidate for Emperor.
Having made up his mind, Yi Zixie said to Jiang Yubao, standing behind Sima Hao, "Why are you still standing there? Haven't you heard what the Great Emperor said? Hurry and find them."
Jiang Yubao was startled.
He hastily agreed, disregarding Sima Zhu's displeased expression, and ran out.
As he ran, he silently chided himself.
Indeed, he hadn't seen the Grand Tutor in many years. This time, the Grand Tutor was always smiling, and he had forgotten how formidable the Grand Tutor truly was.
And he wasn't the only one who had forgotten.
Thinking of the moment when Sima Zhu's neck was held by the Grand Tutor, Jiang Yubao shivered.
The Grand Tutor was terrifying.
Placing Yi Zixie in the category of someone absolutely not to be provoked, Jiang Yubao quickened his pace.
Meanwhile, seeing Jiang Yubao leave, Sima Hao felt a pang of anxiety and wanted to ask Wang Lin to stop Jiang Yubao.
But Yi Zixie merely cast a light glance at the two of them, and Sima Zhu felt as if he was completely immobilized.
As for Wang Lin, he simply collapsed to the ground.
Yi Zixie calmly withdrew his gaze, turned, and walked towards Lu Taobao and the others.
"What is going on with you all? Weren't you supposed to go back for New Year's? How did you end up in the Forbidden City? And all those meals you ate, were they for nothing? To be captured like this, don't tell me I taught you this; I can't afford such a reputation."
Yi Zixie's scolding left Lu Taobao blushing, but he dared not retort.
In Lu Taobao's eyes, Yi Zixie had always been a glutton similar in age to him.
But after the events that just transpired, he realized he had been mistaken all along.
Yi Zixie was an old demon who had lived for hundreds of years.
No matter how he appeared normally, when it came to serious matters, he possessed all sorts of means.
Comparing himself, although he always felt he was more mature than his peers due to his experience in business and considered himself a small fox, today's events made him realize that a small fox was ultimately not a leopard.
Some cleverness was inevitable, but when it came to skill in handling matters, he was still far behind.
If nothing else, he couldn't even protect his own family, which was enough to make him furious.
Before the New Year, he had to be cautious even when seeing his parents and grandmother, fearing discovery by enemies who might threaten them.
But as the New Year approached, his desire to return home intensified.
Also, fearing his family would worry too much about him, and with Bai Ying, he wanted to bring her back to show his family.
For several reasons, he and Bai Ying secretly returned home.
He had assumed that with their abilities, a secret trip home and then being careful would not cause any problems.
But who knew that while he had no issues, the servants of his parents were connected to the Emperor?
Now, thinking about it calmly, it wasn't that strange.
As Emperor, if he couldn't even track such things, he would truly be useless.
He could only blame himself for not being careful enough, which led to this passive situation.
A sense of bitterness welled up in his heart, and Lu Taobao then quietly recounted the events.
Sima Han also walked over, stood beside them, and listened quietly, finally understanding the whole story.
It turned out that long before, Sima Han had, at Fujiwara Shifei's request, sent a message to Lu Taobao and Bai Ying, stating that Fujiwara Shifei wanted Bai Ying to return.
Bai Ying was about to leave upon hearing the news but couldn't resist Lu Taobao's mother's pleas and stayed for one more night.
This morning, Bai Ying, eager to return, had left.
Although Lu Taobao was jealous of Fujiwara Shifei's place in Bai Ying's heart, he was a respectful person, so he didn't say much. After all, he would be returning in two days at most.
However, he was still worried about Bai Ying traveling alone, so he escorted Bai Ying back to Shiyang House and then returned home himself.
But as soon as he reached his doorstep, he saw his parents and grandmother with knives at their throats.