319 Courtesy before Force
The guards groaned inwardly.
Just now, Eunuch Wei had hinted to them to be gentle. Now, Princess Tao Ran wanted them to hit him hard.
They were caught in the middle. It was inconvenient!
In the end, they had no choice but to look to Wei Huai’en for help, hoping that he would point them in the right direction.
Wei Huai’en did not expect Princess Tao Ran to appear at this time.
He could not mess up the job given by the emperor. He had no choice but to stand up and speak.
“Your Highness, please calm down. You haven’t recovered yet. The imperial physician instructed you to recuperate well.”
“It’s windy outside. If you catch a cold, it would not be good.”
“I’ll get someone to go back and rest. I’ll watch over this place.”
Princess Tao Ran did not have much patience with anyone other than Xiao Juan, especially since the other party was a lowly eunuch.
“This is none of your business. Get lost!”
Wei Huai En’s expression did not change. He still had a kind smile.
“I’m here to watch. Unless the emperor says so, I won’t dare to leave my post.”
Princess Tao Ran sized him up unkindly. “Are you using Father to threaten me?”
Wei Huai’en bowed slightly. “I wouldn’t dare.”
Princess Tao Ran could not be bothered with him and said to the two imperial guards.
“What are you waiting for? Continue hitting!”
The guards could only raise their staffs again.
This time, they still did not dare to use force.
Seeing that Xiao Juan’s expression did not change, Princess Tao Ran was very dissatisfied.
“You two pieces of trash, you don’t even know how to hit someone. Get lost!”
Then, she pointed at the two strong eunuchs behind her and said to them.
“The two of you, go! Remember, you must use all your strength. If anyone dares to go easy, I’ll chop off his hand!”
The two eunuchs jumped.
They were just standing at the side, but they were also dragged into the picture.
They were too unlucky!
However, since the princess had given the order, they did not dare to disobey. They could only brace themselves and walk forward, preparing to take the court staffs from the two guards.
How would the two Imperial Guards dare to hand over the staff?
If someone else obtained the staff, they would immediately know what was going on.
How would the two of them explain themselves then?
They did not dare to betray Wei Huai’en. In the end, they could only admit defeat.
The two Imperial Guards gripped the staff tightly, not daring to let go.
Wei Huai En also helped persuade her.
“Your Highness, don’t make things difficult for them. The emperor gave the order to flog Duke Lang. They’re under orders. They can’t report until they’re done.”
Princess Tao Ran refused to listen to his advice and insisted on changing people.
No one was willing to give in. The situation was in a stalemate.
Wei Huai En secretly winked at the young eunuch behind him.
The young eunuch understood and quietly ran to the study to report what had happened outside to the emperor.
Then the young eunuch returned with the emperor’s decree.
“Your Highness, the emperor orders you to go back immediately. If you continue to cause trouble here, we can only send someone to forcefully send you back.”
Princess Tao Ran refused to go back.
“I want to see Father. I’m not convinced! Duke Lang clearly bullied me. Why can’t I vent my anger?”
Wei Huai’en said politely, “You said that Duke Lang bullied you. Do you have any real evidence?”
Princess Tao Ran gritted her teeth. “What do you mean? Do you suspect that I’m lying? This concerns my reputation. As a princess, would I joke about my reputation?!”
Wei Huai En smiled but said nothing.
His appearance completely angered Princess Tao Ran.
She cursed in exasperation.
“You’re just a lowly eunuch who has been castrated. What right do you have to question me?!”
No matter how strong Wei Huai’en’s composure was, his expression could not help but change when he heard the word “castrated”.
As an incomplete person, this was the greatest taboo. Princess Tao Ran’s words accurately stepped on Wei Huai’en’s minefield.
Wei Huai En’s smile disappeared completely.
“My status is low. I’m indeed not qualified to question the noble princess.
“I was wrong.”
“I’ll report it to the emperor now and ask him to punish me.”
With that, he cupped his hands at Princess Tao Ran and turned to leave.
Seeing this, Princess Tao Ran panicked.
She knew that Wei Huai’en was actually going to complain even though he said he was asking for forgiveness.
But soon she calmed down.
She had only scolded Wei Huai’en. Could it be that as a princess, she could not even scold a eunuch?
Besides, she wanted to see her father in the first place. If Wei Huaien complained, her father would probably summon her. At that time, wouldn’t she be able to cry to him soon?
As soon as Wei Huai En walked into study, he knelt on the ground, his voice sobbing.
“Your Majesty, I’m guilty!”
The old emperor was puzzled. “What crime have you committed?”
Wei Huai En choked.
“Just now, Princess Tao Ran accused Duke Lang of bullying her and even shouted that she wanted to see you. I asked her if she had any real evidence.”
“I deserve to die. I’m just a lowly person. How dare I question Princess Tao Ran’s words?”
“Your Majesty, please punish me.”
When the old emperor heard this, he knew that Princess Tao Ran was pestering him.
He said with a dark expression, “Your question is reasonable. What’s wrong with it? Get up first. I’ll get someone to send Princess Tao Ran back. As soon as she recovers, I’ll send her back to her fief and forbid her from coming to the Imperial Capital again.”
Wei Huai’en wiped his tears with his sleeve and raised his upper body. He spoke gratefully.
“Thank you for your forgiveness, Your Majesty. You didn’t blame me.”
He stood up and continued, “Hasn’t Your Majesty been worried about the Chen Nation’s envoy recently?”
Ever since the internal strife of the Eastern Expedition Army was resolved, the emperor of the Chen Nation learned that his wolfish ambition had been exposed.
In order to prevent Dayan from finding trouble with him, the Emperor of the Chen Nation took the initiative to propose marriage.
They wanted to ask to marry a princess of Dayan and eternally unite the two countries through marriage. The envoy sent by the Emperor of the Chen Nation was already on the way and would arrive at the Imperial Capital soon.
The old emperor did not have a good impression of the Chen Nation.
He wanted to reject this marriage, but he did not want to completely fall out with the Chen Nation because of this. Recently, he had been worried about this matter.
The old emperor could not help but ask.
“Do you have a solution?”
Wei Huai En spoke respectfully.
“As the old saying goes, harmony makes money. Try not to fight if you can, lest you waste money.”
“Since the Emperor of the Chen Nation wanted to marry our princess, why not follow his wishes? This way, not only could you show your magnanimity to the world, but you could also give the Chen Nation one last chance. If the Chen Nation still did not repent and still plotted against our Dayan Dynasty, the world will only think that the Chen Nation deserves it if we send troops to them.”
The old emperor looked thoughtful. “Courtesy before force?”
Wei Huai’en pretended to understand. “Yes, yes, yes. That’s what I meant! Your Majesty is so knowledgeable and hit the nail on the head.”
The old emperor said, “What you said makes sense. Let me think about it again.”