Chapter 90 Regret
90 Regret
What?! Chu You suddenly pulled the reins. The black horse under him raised its front hooves high, and white air blew from its mouth and nose.
“Slam!”
In the next moment, he swung his whip heavily on the horse’s rump and urged it towards the gate as fast as a gale.
When Chu You arrived at the main entrance, one of the gates of the manor had been removed, and a few imperial guards were dismantling the other.
!!
The commotion here was too great and attracted many pa.s.sersby who were watching the commotion. All of them pointed in the direction of the manor.
“Your Highness Kang w.a.n.g!” The eunuch who had come to pa.s.s the decree bowed politely to Chu You with indifferent eyes. “I’m here to pa.s.s the decree.”
Of course, he came to pa.s.s on the imperial decree to reduce Kang w.a.n.g’s t.i.tle from the Prince of the First Rank to the Prince of the Second Rank.
The eunuch took the bright yellow imperial decree from the tray and read it without caring if Chu You knelt. “By the heavens, the Emperor has issued a decree. The decree says: Kang w.a.n.g, Chu You, is young and impetuous…”
Chu You’s ears buzzed and he didn’t hear the rest. He just watched as they completely tore down the vermilion door of the prince’s manor.
According to the rules of the Great Jin Dynasty, the door of the Prince of the First Rank’s manor was nailed in nine rows and seven columns, while the number of nails in the Prince of the Second Rank’s manor was reduced to nine rows and five columns. Therefore, since Kang w.a.n.g had been demoted, the original door of the manor naturally could not be used.
Not only that, but even the pair of Qilin Stone Beasts in front of the door had been carried away.
The entrance to Prince Kang’s Manor became empty. At first glance, it looked as if a decree had been issued to confiscate the house.
“Regards.”
After reading the last two words, the eunuch closed the imperial edict and said indifferently, “Your Highness, the Emperor said that there’s no need to mobilize people for the changes of the house regulations.”
The eunuch immediately changed his address to “Your Grace.” Kang w.a.n.g was no longer a Prince of the First Rank, so he was not qualified to be called “Your Highness.”
“Your Grace, please accept the decree,” the eunuch said as he handed the imperial edict to Chu You with both hands.
Chu You gritted his teeth tightly, his expression sinister.
He wanted to wave away the imperial decree, but he also knew that he would be charged with disobeying the decree and it would become evidence for him to be criticized by others.
Now that things had come to this, he decided to endure it for a while.
“I thank His Majesty for his kindness,” Chu You said with a dark expression. He took the imperial edict with both hands, and a chill rose in his heart that quickly spread and expanded in his body.
So what if the house regulations did not change? The world only cared about how it looked on the outside.
He had been demoted.
He had been conferred the t.i.tle of Prince of the First Rank by the late Emperor when he was 10 years old, but now it was gone.
Chu You’s dark eyes were filled with humiliation as he clenched his fists.
He watched helplessly as the people from the Ministry of Internal Affairs removed the plaque that had been placed on the door with the words “Prince Kang of the First Rank’s Manor” and replaced it with a new plaque with the words “Prince Kang of the Second Rank’s Manor”.
The plaque was personally written by the late Emperor and was the glory given to him by the late Emperor.
But now, that glory has been taken away.
Chu You slowly knelt down, bit by bit, bit by bit… Finally, his knee hit the ground hard with a thud.
He watched in a daze as the plaque that meant so much to him faded into the distance. He felt the weight of the imperial edict in his hand.
For a moment, he felt a little regretful…
As soon as this regret surfaced, it was suppressed by another stronger emotion.
He told himself that for Rong’er’s sake, he would have no regrets!
After the eunuch issued the imperial decree, he left in a mighty manner with his men. The commoners outside the manor who were watching the commotion scattered.
These people also spread the news that Kang w.a.n.g had been demoted as a topic of leisure. That day, everyone in the capital knew about this.
This news also spread to the Dingyuan Marquis Mansion.
Madam Gu locked herself in the small temple hall and focused on chanting scriptures.
She did not go out for a few days and told her juniors not to greet her in the morning.
After enduring for a few days, Madam Gu finally could not help but instruct her trusted aide, Granny Li, to make a trip to Yuheng Garden.
“Second Lady, Madam wants you to go to the Benevolent Harmony Hall to talk about the Third Lady.”
When facing Gu Yanfei, Granny Li’s att.i.tude was extremely respectful and polite, her face full of smiles.
“I won’t go.” Gu Yanfei’s indifferent voice came from behind a screen embroidered with a big red peony.
Granny Li’s expression froze and her heart sank.
Through the hazy screen, she could vaguely see Gu Yanfei putting on her clothes one by one, accompanied by a faint rustling sound.