Chapter 545: The Royal Family Is Really in Trouble

Chapter 545: The Royal Family Is Really in Trouble

There was no need for Mo Jiuya to say it; Nan Yu had already planned to do the same.

"Good, I will immediately go to the palace to arrange this matter."

He didn’t say he would immediately go to the palace to report it to the Emperor, indicating to Mo Jiuya the fact that the matter was already settled on his end, and all they needed to do was wait patiently for the news.

Nan Yu moved quickly. The very next day after the morning court ended, Minister He returned with new information immediately.

It’s unclear how Nan Yu presented this issue to Emperor Shunwu, but he issued an edict directly during the morning court to completely clear the Mo family of their wrongful charges. In front of the entire court, he admitted that he had wrongfully exiled the Mo family to the Northwest for a year due to being misled by treacherous individuals.

Anyone with eyes could see that Emperor Shunwu was publicly apologizing to the Mo family.

Not only that, Emperor Shunwu also issued an edict, conferring the title of Prince of the West on Mo Jiuya and granting the western region as the fiefdom for the Prince of the West.

The title of Prince of the West was hereditary and perpetual, and Nan Yu had also mentioned that there were other male members of the Mo family still alive.

This royal edict specifically stated that there could only be one Prince of the West, and any male member of the Mo family who wished to assume the title could request an imperial decree to change it.

Additionally, Emperor Shunwu issued an edict ordering Mo Jiuya to personally arrange for the male members of the Mo family to immediately take up arms and head to the battlefield, without needing to come to the Imperial City to pay their respects.

As soon as the edict was issued, the entire court was stunned.

This was the first time since the founding of Great Shun.

At the founding of Great Shun, there was indeed a prince of a different surname, but that was because he had fought alongside the founding ancestor to establish the Great Shun dynasty.

Even so, the Prince of Yong'an had never had a fiefdom.

As for the Mo family, who had been exiled to the Northwest last year, their presence had gradually faded from the sight of these officials.

What no one expected was that the Emperor not only exonerated the Mo family but also publicly admitted that he had been misled by treacherous individuals, leading to their wrongful exile.

This was a first in the history of emperors, something that had never happened before.

Even more astonishing was that Emperor Shunwu immediately conferred the title of Prince of the West to Mo Jiuya.

Although the Mo family had made significant contributions on the battlefield for Great Shun, there was no precedent for such a title to be granted so readily.

For a moment, the entire court was abuzz with discussions, and some even voiced opposition.

However, Emperor Shunwu angrily rebuked each one of them.

The officials were seeing Emperor Shunwu's unyielding stance for the first time, and it became clear to them that the fact of Mo Jiuya being conferred as the Prince of the West was unchangeable.

Before Emperor Shunwu had the edict read, Nan Yu had anticipated that there would be opposition and had wondered how his father would react if he faced such a situation.

He had not expected that his usually soft-hearted father would be so resolute today.

Regardless, things were progressing as he had hoped, which was good news for Nan Yu.

In addition, Emperor Shunwu also revealed a major issue in front of all the court officials today.

The imperial seal was missing!

He had personally hidden it in a secret passage leading from the treasury to the outside. The entrance to the passage had been rebuilt, and after its completion, he had ordered it to be sealed. In theory, no one should have discovered it.

Yet, someone had found it, and not only that, the treasury's wealth had once again disappeared, leaving Emperor Shunwu utterly perplexed.

The reason he dared to publicly announce the loss of the imperial seal was because Nan Yu had given him a reminder.

After all, he had been on the throne for decades, and even without the imperial seal, he would not face the same lack of legitimacy as the Empress's faction.

On the other hand, he also hoped more people would step forward to help find the imperial seal.

At this moment, someone came to report that a wandering Taoist priest was asking to see the Emperor at the palace gate.

As many people knew, Emperor Shunwu was a devout Taoist, so naturally, he didn’t refuse to meet the Taoist priest.

In front of everyone at court, the wandering Taoist was brought into the grand hall.

The Taoist, dressed in a gray robe with white eyebrows and beard, had an air of a sage. Upon seeing him, Emperor Shunwu felt an inexplicable sense of trust.

After some inquiry, it was learned that the Taoist priest’s name was Yuan Qing, and he had been practicing on Xianfeng Mountain in the Great Shun Dynasty. Recently, while observing the celestial phenomena, he noticed the Ziwei star flickering, leading him to conclude that the royal family might be facing trouble.

Besides trouble, the flickering of the Ziwei star indicated the imminent birth of a new emperor.

Before today, no one knew better than Emperor Shunwu that the royal family was indeed in trouble.

Losing the imperial seal wasn’t a small issue; it was a significant problem for the royal family.

What others did not know was that Emperor Shunwu had already thought about abdicating in favor of Nan Yu. Taoist Yuan Qing’s mention of the flickering Ziwei star and the imminent birth of a new emperor likely referred to this.

Based on these two points, Emperor Shunwu completely trusted Taoist Yuan Qing’s words.

In front of everyone at court, Emperor Shunwu asked Taoist Yuan Qing how to solve this problem but did not inquire about the birth of the new emperor.

After performing some calculations, Taoist Yuan Qing advised Emperor Shunwu to set up an altar in the Imperial City by midnight that night.

Since the Ziwei star had become prominent, a new emperor was about to be born in the Great Shun Dynasty, a ruler who would become a wise monarch in history, leading the Great Shun to a historical peak.

Of course, this new emperor would undoubtedly be a legitimate royal descendant.

He advised Emperor Shunwu to place a list of suitable candidates for the throne on the altar and sincerely pray for guidance from the Taoist ancestors.

Following this method, if the prayers were sincere, he guaranteed the royal family’s troubles would be resolved by morning, and the new emperor would emerge in accordance with divine will.

Emperor Shunwu was completely convinced and immediately ordered the court to adjourn, inviting Taoist Yuan Qing to guide him in personally overseeing the construction of the altar.

Although Emperor Shunwu believed in these things, some court officials did not.

However, they all knew Emperor Shunwu's temperament, and even if they found the situation utterly absurd, no one dared to speak out against it!

In fact, no one knew that Taoist Yuan Qing had also been entrusted by Mo Jiuya and He Zhiran to meet with Emperor Shunwu.

A few days earlier, Mo Jiuya and He Zhiran, bored at the Minister's residence, decided to disguise themselves and take a walk in the outskirts of the Imperial City.

That day, they encountered Taoist Yuan Qing, who was wandering towards the Imperial City.

He Zhiran and Mo Jiuya disguised themselves as the merchant couple they had been on their first day in the Imperial City. Shortly after leaving the city, they met the parents of Gou Dan, whom He Zhiran had once saved.

Gou Dan's mother immediately recognized He Zhiran as her son's savior and sincerely thanked her.