BHBF Chapter 89.2

Boss, He’s Becoming a Father (Arc 4) Chapter 89.2: Playful Son (71)

The crown prince is not a son, but a rival who is eyeing his position. Everyone knows that the crown prince is certain, and the court and harem are all stable, but how many emperors really want to decide?

The old emperor had just been cured by Shao Yu, but he had already turned around and stared at Shao Yu with a scrutinizing look.

Shao Yu asked, “Your Majesty, do you want to hear the truth?”

The old emperor nodded and stared at Shao Yu without hesitation.

Shao Yu did not shy away from the question and said, “Each of the adult princes has his own strengths, but in my opinion, they may be good sons and good brothers, but they will not be good emperors.”

The old emperor was in a very conflicted mood. He didn’t want to be replaced, but he didn’t want to hear Shao Yu belittle his sons.

Shao Yu continued, “The princes all look like Your Majesty, but their actions are not as decisive and sophisticated as Your Majesty’s. I doubt their abilities.”

Although Shao Yu’s words were harsh, he was comparing the old emperor with his words, which were full of praise for the old emperor. The old emperor didn’t know whether to be angry or happy.

“Then who do you think is most likely to be the crown prince?” asked the old emperor.
Shao Yu frowned, as if it was difficult to make a decision.

“I haven’t had much contact with other princes, but the Seventh Prince…” Shao Yu seemed to be thinking about how to express it.

The old emperor looked at him quietly, thinking that Shao Yu had finally chosen the Seventh prince, and he couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed.

But Shao Yu changed the subject and said, “The Seventh Prince is really not suitable to be the crown prince.”

The old emperor didn’t expect Shao Yu to say that, and immediately asked, “Why do you think so?”

Shao Yu mentioned the Seventh Prince’s visit a few days ago and said, “At that time, I just thought that Your Majesty favored the Seventh Prince. When I thought that he would become the future crown prince, I couldn’t help but ask a few more questions.”

“I had thought that since His Highness the Seventh Prince loved the people like his own children, he would have an easy answer to such a question. Unfortunately, I am disappointed.”

Shao Yu’s words were full of regret, as if he was sad that the country had such a crown prince.

“Your Majesty, the Crown Prince is the future Emperor. In my opinion, he should be like you, decisive and responsible, able to accept advice internally and expand the territory externally. Only then can he be worthy of being the ruler of a country.”

“It’s a pity that after just a few questions, the Seventh Prince is still just the Seventh Prince.”

The implication is that the Seventh prince is far inferior to the old emperor.

The old emperor originally valued the Seventh prince. After hearing what Shao Yu said, the old emperor was happy with Shao Yu’s affirmation of him, but he couldn’t help but began to doubt his own vision.

After all, according to what Shao Yu said, the seventh brother doesn’t look like someone who can carry a country.

“You don’t think highly of the seventh brother, but do you really not think highly of anyone?” asked the old emperor.

Shao Yu thought for a moment and said, “It’s just your Majesty and me here, so I’ll speak from the bottom of my heart.”

The old emperor nodded.

Shao Yu said, “I won’t say Your Majesty will live for a thousand or ten thousand years, but at least you will be safe for ten years.”

After the previous experience, the old emperor was now very confident in Shao Yu’s medical skills.

He originally thought that his end was near, so he was in a hurry to arrange everything. Now that he knows that he has at least ten years left, he is not so anxious anymore.

Who would want to give the throne to his son when he can be the emperor himself?

Shao Yu continued, “Your Majesty still has so much time to slowly cultivate a satisfactory crown prince. Why rush into it?”

The old emperor thought of his older sons and then of those sons in the harem who were only a few years old, and he felt that what Shao Yu said made more and more sense.

He stepped out of that framework at this moment, and naturally became picky when looking at the Seventh Prince. Originally, he wanted Shao Yu to assist the Seventh Prince, but now he just wanted Shao Yu and the Seventh Prince to be as far away from each other as possible.

After the old emperor’s mentality changed, his view on everything changed.

“Marriage is destined by heaven, so don’t force it. My dear minister, I heard that your eldest son is getting married?” The old emperor said this, and it was obvious that he had given up the idea of ​​letting the seventh prince marry into the Shao family.

Shao Yu spoke of his eldest son with pride in his voice. “He had accomplished nothing before, and I thought that was all he had,” he said. “But the day before yesterday, he passed the imperial examination and was admitted to the Imperial Hospital. Even if Your Majesty doesn’t tell me, I would still ask you for a reward.”

“My dear minister, you have excellent medical skills. I believe you will teach another good doctor.”

The old emperor said with a smile. He was already prepared for Shao Yu to ask for an official position for his eldest son.

Shao Yu said, “My eldest son is engaged to the eldest daughter of Lord Fang Ye, so I would like to ask Your Majesty for a reward to use for the betrothal.”

The old emperor was slightly stunned.

Shao Yu said somewhat embarrassedly, “Because of that mistake three years ago, I squandered all my family wealth. Now that my eldest son is getting married, my family is poor and I can’t afford a generous gift right now. I’m afraid Lord Fang will find it insignificant, so I have no choice but to shamelessly ask Your Majesty for it.”

Shao Yu solved a big trouble for the emperor today, which was originally a great achievement, but Shao Yu used this to ask for a reward, which actually earned him a favor.

The less Shao Yu asked for, the more the old emperor felt he owed him.

The old emperor listened to Shao Yu’s recollection of the incident three years ago and said, “My dear minister, what happened back then was your wife’s fault. Why do you have to bear the responsibility alone?”

Shao Yu was not surprised that the emperor knew so much. He simply said, “Husband and wife are one. It doesn’t matter whose fault it is.”

When the old emperor heard this, he thought of the deposed empress who was now in the cold palace. After all, they had been married for many years. When he thought of his old wife who had gone through many hardships for many years and was now in the cold palace, he felt sorry for her.

After Shao Yu left, the old emperor summoned the chief eunuch and said softly, “If you have time, go to Jing’an Palace and take a look. If there is anything missing, remember to make up for it.”

The eunuch’s heart trembled when he heard this, but he didn’t say much and just nodded in agreement.

The old emperor thought for a moment and then said, “She is the queen after all. Don’t let the people below look down on her.”

When the eunuch heard it, it was like a loud thunder.

After all, the empress was deposed by a clear decree, but when the emperor spoke at this time, it was as if the dethronement had never happened.

Moreover, the old emperor would get angry even when he heard the surname of the deposed empress some time ago. Now, no one knows what Shao Yu said to him, but he actually wants to take care of her.

The eunuch silently raised his rating of Shao Yu.

As soon as Shao Yu returned home, someone from the palace came to announce the imperial decree.

An imperial decree granting marriage and some rewards.

With this imperial decree granting the marriage, no one would think it was shabby even if the marriage between the Shao and Fang families was held with tight financial constraints.

Shao Jiashan had never expected that he, a young apprentice who had just entered the Imperial Hospital, would be granted marriage by the emperor. He also knew that this decree must have come because of something Shao Yu said in front of the emperor.

On the other hand, Madam Fang’s original favorite son-in-law was Shao Jialiang, who was devoted to studying. She did not have much affection for Shao Jiashan, who was preparing to become a doctor. She even heard a lot of ridicule because of this future son-in-law.

But with the issuance of the marriage decree, all the unhappiness in Madam Fang’s heart disappeared.

Fang Ye also said at the right time: “Shan’er wants to be a doctor, but this is also a doctor with a nominal title in front of His Majesty.”

It happened that Shao Jiashan entered the Imperial Medical Service again. Madam Fang thought that Shao Jiashan might be the future director of the Imperial Medical Service, and suddenly she no longer felt that this marriage was a bad idea.

Shao Yu called Shao Jiashu over again and said, “You won’t need to go to the palace to be a companion in the future.”

Shao Jiashu immediately asked, “Dad, what did you do? Why don’t I have to go to the palace now?”

What happened in the palace was too complicated, and telling Shao Jiashu everything would not be a good thing, so Shao Yu just evaded the question.

Although the old emperor did not issue an explicit decree, after Shao Jiashu recovered, the palace no longer urged her to return to the palace. Instead, Princess Rongjia sent people to visit her once or twice, but was rejected every time. The princess was annoyed and simply left her alone.

In a blink of an eye, it was the day for Shao Yu’s follow-up visit.

This time, Shao Yu again took his three children to the Duke of Pei’s Mansion.

The butler was waiting at the gatehouse early, but the feeling this time in the Duke of Pei’s Mansion was very different from the last time.

Shao Yu clearly noticed that in just ten days, the Peiguo Mansion seemed to have undergone great changes.

The servants in the mansion moved more orderly and respectfully when they saw the visitors. They looked like they had been made an example of to scare others, and there was a hint of fear on their faces.

Shao Yu asked the housekeeper, “I have something I want to ask you. Is Madam Yun in the mansion today?”

The housekeeper smiled and said, “Doctor Shao, it’s unfortunate that Madam Yun has taken her daughter to the Qingjing Temple on the mountain to practice.”

Shao Yu asked again, “When will the lady come back?”

The housekeeper said, “Madam Yun and her daughter are staying here temporarily. Madam Yun has come to her senses and plans to leave the world behind and cultivate herself in the nunnery.

She will most likely not return for a while.”

Shao Yu immediately understood that this was the punishment given to Madam Yun after the matter was investigated.

He originally thought that Jing Shang would take into account their years of friendship, but he didn’t expect that he was also a person who cut the Gordian knot. This is a good thing, as it proves that Jing Shang is not a confused person.

When he saw Jing Shuhui again, it seemed that she looked much better than before because she had been taking good care of herself during this period.

Shao Yu gave the housekeeper a list of many medicinal herbs.

“Once the medicinal materials are prepared, give your young lady a medicinal bath every day for a full hour,” Shao Yu explained.

Upon hearing this, the housekeeper carefully put the list away.

After taking the pulse, Jing Shang appeared. There was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, and it was obvious that he had rushed here in a hurry.