Chapter 405: I am his own uncle, how could he treat me this way?

Chapter 405: I am his own uncle, how could he treat me this way?

After leaving the palace, Elder Master Ming confronted Second Master Ming, “Second brother, why did you not discuss your wish to return to Huangping with me?”

Master Ming the Second watched him and replied, "You didn't even tell me you wanted to stay in the capital!"

"You..." Master Ming the Elder, pointing at Master Ming the Second, said, "The capital is the imperial city, and now that Jingyi is the emperor, isn't it natural for us to remain here?"

Master Ming the Second looked at him with disappointment in his eyes, but after all, he was his elder brother. He approached and lowered his voice, "Elder brother, we have been away from the capital for over a decade. The capital today is completely different from before. It's not so easy to reestablish our roots here."

Master Ming the Elder completely disagreed, "Our nephew is the emperor, how could we not reestablish ourselves in the capital?"

Master Ming the Second said, "The emperor was adopted by the carefree king and is no longer our nephew. Moreover, the young emperor needs the support of Duke Dingguo to secure his position. If we truly consider him our nephew, we should not be causing him trouble at this time."

"…You are just cowardly and incompetent." Master Ming the Elder was at a loss for words and in a fit of anger, turned and boarded the carriage.

Master Ming the Second watched his departing figure and said, "Yes, I am well aware of my limitations. I do not have the capability to reestablish the Ming family in the capital now."

With the new emperor's ascension, so many are vying for more power at this time, and he did not believe he had the ability to compete with them. Although the emperor still remembered their past kindness, it wouldn't be much; after all, he was only four years old when they left. And when the emperor faced his most challenging times, they had not offered help; why should the emperor go out of his way to support the Ming family now?

Having boarded the carriage, Madam Ming the Second was already seated inside. Seeing his troubled expression, she asked, "What's wrong?"

Master Ming the Second leaned against the carriage wall and sighed, "It's nothing. Was your audience with the Empress Dowager successful?"

Madam Ming the Second said, "The Empress Dowager was very amiable. However, the family of the second brother keeps praising Ming Yu, clearly hinting at a wish for her to enter the palace."

Master Ming the Second's brow furrowed, "What did the Empress Dowager say?"

"The Empress Dowager didn't pick up on her hints at all," whispered Madam Ming the Second, moving closer, "I've heard that the emperor is fond of Duke Dingguo's legitimate daughter, but since she is too young to enter the palace, he's not allowing other women in either."

After hearing this, Master Ming the Second fell silent for a while before saying, "The affairs of the capital are too complicated. We should not get involved. I have already told the emperor that I wish to return to Huangping and am waiting to see how he arranges it."

Madam Ming the Second sighed, "Returning to Huangping might be for the best. We can be more selective with Huijie's marital prospects."

In the capital, others pick from them, not the other way around.

Meanwhile, Master Ming the Elder was also discussing marital prospects for his children. Madam Ming the Elder said, "I hinted several times to the Empress Dowager about having Yu’er enter the palace, but she didn’t bite. Is it really as people say, that the emperor is waiting for Duke Dingguo's legitimate daughter?"

Master Ming the Elder frowned, "Let's wait and see about this matter. Later, we can arrange for the emperor to meet Yu’er. With her looks, she's sure to catch the emperor's eye."

He had great confidence in his daughter's beauty, and so did Madam Ming the Second, who added, "I'll have to see this legitimate daughter of Duke Dingguo for myself, to see what sort of celestial being she really is."

Master Ming the Elder said nothing, still angry about Master Ming the Second's decision to return to Huangping. Although he felt that as long as the emperor still cherished their kinship, they could make a new start in the capital.

But he also knew the complexities of relationships in the capital; if Master Ming the Second returned to Huangping, and their family stayed in the capital, they would be left without any support.

At that moment, Lady Ming added, "If the Duke of Dingguo's legitimate daughter enters the palace, the empress's seat will undoubtedly be hers, relegating our dear Yu'er to a lesser position. Nevertheless, considering Yu'er is the Emperor's cousin, he will surely show her some consideration in the future. Besides, with Yu'er's beauty..." She chuckled at the thought.

The thought of the good days ahead made Lady Ming laugh, but Lord Ming frowned and said, "If the Emperor insists on waiting for the Duke of Dingguo's daughter to come of age before allowing other ladies to enter the palace, how can Yu'er afford to wait?"

The smile froze on Lady Ming's face; indeed, the Duke of Dingguo's daughter was only eleven or twelve, and their Yu'er was already fifteen. Even if the Duke's daughter were to enter the palace at sixteen, that would mean four or five more years. By then, their Yu'er would be nearly twenty - unheard of in the vast lands of Dagan for a lady of such age to be unmarried.

"What shall we do?" Lady Ming asked, gripping Lord Ming's arm.

Lord Ming clenched his fist and pondered for a moment before replying, "Let's wait for the Emperor's decision before we do anything."

Unable to restrain herself, Lady Ming complained, "That Duke of Dingguo, keeping his own daughter from the palace because of her young age and preventing other girls from entering as well... such a domineering way to handle things."

Lord Ming remained silent. He shared the sentiment, feeling it wasn't the Emperor who was unwilling to hold a selection, but rather the Duke of Dingguo who was preventing it.

The two branches of the Ming family arrived at Ming Mansion one after the other, with Lord Ming once again trying to persuade his brother to stay in the capital instead of returning to Huangping. Lord Ming the Second only gave him one reply, "Let's see what the Emperor decides."

After saying this, he turned and walked away. Seeing his brother's obstinacy, Lord Ming became angry and, with a flick of his sleeve, returned to his own quarters. The next day, they received imperial edicts: Lord Ming was appointed as a middle-ranked official in the Ministry of Works, a fifth-grade position, and Lord Ming the Second as the Prefect of Huangping, a fourth-grade position.

After the imperial messenger left, Lord Ming stood there holding the imperial edict, disbelief written all over his face. An official in the Ministry of Works was a position without real power or perks.

"Jingyi... Why won't Jingyi..."

"Big brother!" Lord Ming the Second interrupted, "Mind your words. Is the Emperor's name something you can just casually invoke? The relationships among the officials in the capital are complex; you must be careful with your behavior in the future."

"It's not that," Lord Ming said, "I am his maternal uncle. How can he treat me this way?"

Lord Ming the Second huffed, "Now do you see? The Emperor will look after us to some extent because of our kinship, but he won't entrust us with significant responsibilities. So, big brother, you had better tread carefully from now on."

Holding his own imperial edict, Lord Ming the Second left, content and even pleasantly surprised by his appointment as Prefect. It seemed the Emperor indeed still remembered the bond of blood between them.