I have suffered enough in my previous life, my cousin will never marry me

Chapter 176 The Empress Dowager is Under House Arrest
Gu Tingchen's eyes turned cold. He casually lowered his head and fiddled with the thumb ring on his thumb, paying no attention to his father.

Gu An was furious. He knew his son was blinded by power, and he didn't bother arguing with him anymore. The carriage fell silent.

Upon arriving at Cining Palace, Empress Dowager Gu had just finished her dinner. Seeing her nephews and grandnephews approaching, she smiled and instructed Zhou Fuhai to offer them seats and tea. Only then did she slowly speak, "Gu An, today I conferred the title of Prince of a different surname upon Tingchen. Has there been any movement in the court or among the people?"

Gu An shook his head reluctantly: "Aunt, you now wield immense power in the court. Even if someone harbors resentment, they wouldn't dare to speak ill of you."

"That's true," Empress Dowager Gu nodded in satisfaction. "In that case, my desire to rule from above is in accordance with the will of Heaven and the people."

“Aunt, who is so ill-intentioned as to advise you to assume the throne?” Gu An frowned and said, “The northern border is in grave danger right now. The court should be united in fighting the enemy, but someone is advising you to assume the throne at this time. This is clearly a sinister plot.”

"Father, you are mistaken."

Gu Tingchen disagreed, saying, "My aunt has been in charge of the government for His Majesty for decades. If it weren't for my aunt taking His Majesty out of Beidu and helping him to sit on the throne, he would have been killed by the rebel army long ago. In recent years, the Great Ye Dynasty has been in turmoil, and it is all thanks to my aunt's hard work that it has been able to hold on. However, the old emperor has been listening to the instigation of treacherous and stingy people and has gradually become estranged from my aunt. Now, only when my aunt is in charge of the court can the court be united."

“Balancing the power of the court is the duty of every emperor throughout history. What emperor would want to see one power dominate the court?” Gu An said unhappily, “Stop spouting nonsense and trying to sow discord between the Empress Dowager and His Majesty.”

"In my opinion, Gu An, you are getting more and more confused as you get older."

Empress Dowager Gu was already very displeased: "Tingchen is right. What kind of person is the Prince of Yongning? He is a descendant of Emperor Taizong, and his heart must be different. Yet the Emperor is stubborn and insists on welcoming him to Lin'an. What is he thinking?"

She sighed deeply, slowly straightened up, and fiddled with the newly presented peony flowers on the table: "Back then, Emperor Gaozu fought for the world and vied with other heroes, but died halfway through. Emperor Taizong seized the throne by relying on his military power, and he deserved it. He died less than two years after conquering this country. If it weren't for Empress Xiaorenduan forcing Emperor Taizong to establish the edict of succession by younger brother, how could our lineage of Emperor Chengzu have been passed down for more than ten generations? Now, if we rashly welcome back Emperor Taizong's descendants, how could Prince Yongning let go of Emperor Chengzu's bloodline?"

“If Aunt doesn’t trust Prince Yongning, she can simply support another member of the imperial clan. Why risk the world’s condemnation and invite further controversy?”

Gu An bluntly advised, "Although my Gu family has held immense power in the court these past years, the one sitting on the dragon throne is still surnamed Fu. If my aunt were to take over, it would only lead to greater instability among the people."

After a brief moment of thought, he immediately said, "I have heard that the second son of Prince Yan is quite intelligent. Why not bring him back to Lin'an and make him the heir apparent?"

"I heard that Prince Yan was demoted and his wife died during his exile. The hatred for the murder of his mother is irreconcilable. If we bring her son back to Lin'an, it will be the biggest threat to my Gu family."

Looking at Gu An, Gu Tingchen said in a low voice, "Father prides himself on being the pillar of the Great Ye Dynasty. If the day comes when our Gu family is destroyed, no one in this world will remember your loyalty. They will only regard us as relatives who abuse their power and disrupt the government. Either way, we will be criticized. It would be better to help Auntie establish an everlasting foundation and ensure that our Gu family will last for ten thousand years."

"You scoundrel!" Gu An roared, "Is there any precedent in history where a woman ruled the court and her descendants died peacefully?"

He suddenly knelt down and earnestly said, "Aunt, I humbly beg you to consider the bigger picture and return power to His Majesty. Although such a power struggle between the civil and military officials is detrimental to the Gu family, it will dispel His Majesty's doubts."

"Gu An, you have truly failed me after all these years of painstaking cultivation. Your wisdom and insight are far inferior to your son's."

Empress Dowager Gu's face was full of anger: "You look down on women so much, and you look down on this old woman like me. Have you ever thought carefully about who gave you your current wealth and honor? Without this old woman like me, could you have become a powerful minister in the Great Ye Dynasty?"

Gu An kowtowed heavily to the ground, tears streaming down his face, and said, "Your Majesty, I am grateful for the Empress Dowager's kindness and for the future of the Gu family. That is why I implore you not to defy the world and assume the throne."

Empress Dowager Gu was extremely disappointed in him and said in a deep voice, "You may leave. My mind is made up. I hope you will not regret it one day."

Seeing her aunt's resolute gaze, Gu Anxin felt utterly hopeless. She glanced silently at Gu Tingchen and had no choice but to get up and leave with the palace servants in a huff.

Once the room was quiet, Empress Dowager Gu sat back on the soft couch, smiled at the Gu brothers, and gently comforted them, "Tingzhou, your father is confused, you must not follow suit. I hope you can be like Tingchen and serve me well in the future."

Gu Tingzhou glanced at Gu Tingchen with disdain. He could no longer find the right words to describe his younger brother. He had truly underestimated him before; the fact that he could incite his aunt to declare herself emperor was truly a wolf in sheep's clothing.

“Grandma, I have come to the palace today for one matter,” Gu Tingzhou said directly, “I implore you to withdraw the decree for the marriage alliance.”

"What did you say?" Empress Dowager Gu's newly ignited hope in him was instantly extinguished: "I'll give you one more chance. Say what you just said again."

Gu Tingzhou knelt down immediately and said righteously, "Please, Aunt, withdraw your decree for the marriage alliance."

"Drag him out and give him a good beating until he submits."

As soon as Empress Dowager Gu finished speaking, Gu Tingchen slowly raised his arm to stop the palace servants from coming forward.

Empress Dowager Gu was taken aback: "Tingchen, what do you want to do? Are you going to protect this wretched child?"

Gu Tingchen shook his head coldly: "I just think that what my elder brother said is right. I don't object to my aunt wanting to carry out a marriage alliance, but the person to be married off must not be Princess Jinghe."

"Insolence!" Empress Dowager Gu slammed her hand on the table. "You want to defy my orders? Let me tell you, I can support you or I can destroy you."

"My aunt has been in charge of the government for so many years and has seen countless people, how come she can't even understand people's hearts?"

Gu Tingchen showed no fear and replied calmly, "After all, I am not like the one next to me. Since I dare to enter the palace to persuade my aunt to withdraw the decree, I should naturally be well prepared."

He clapped his hands toward the door, and Liu Zhang led the Imperial Guards in, quickly surrounding the entire hall.

Empress Dowager Gu stared in disbelief: "You scoundrel! I appointed you to lead the Imperial Guards, and this is how you repay me?"

After saying that, she glared fiercely at Zhou Fuhai and asked sternly, "I ordered you to bring Princess Jinghe into the palace, where is the person you brought?"

Zhou Fuhai turned ashen with fright and immediately knelt down, timidly raising his eyes to look at Gu Tingchen: "Empress Dowager, this old servant..."

“Why make things difficult for Eunuch Zhou, Aunt?” Gu Tingchen said, “Aunt has seen it too. You can’t count on your father. Now that you want to rule the court, I will do my best to support you. But the matter of the marriage alliance is not negotiable.”

"You wretched child, you've gone too far!" Empress Dowager Gu staggered around in anger, clinging tightly to a nearby pillar, and roared, "I've told you before, the only choice for this marriage alliance is Princess Jinghe."

"No rush," Gu Tingchen sniffed. "Grandson has the patience to wait."

After saying that, he calmly instructed Liu Zhang, "Keep a close eye on the Empress Dowager and have the old emperor write the abdication edict as soon as possible."

Then he turned and left the palace.

Seeing this, Gu Tingzhou followed suit and went out as well.

Liu Zhang secretly glanced at Empress Dowager Gu, and seeing her angry face, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and soothe her, saying, "Please take care of your health, Your Majesty."

Empress Dowager Gu was so angry that she threw the teacup on the table at him and shouted, "How could I have raised such ungrateful wretches?"

Liu Zhang gave a half-smile and a cold snort, then ignored him and led his men to guard the outside.