The abstinent and powerful minister is cold and aloof during the day, but he adores her in his dream

Chapter 296 Touched the Reverse Scale
“These two young ladies just said that there are many other young ladies imprisoned with them. In my opinion, we should rescue those young ladies as soon as possible. In addition, we must severely punish those kidnappers!” Lu Zhan stepped forward and bowed.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Commander Shen hurriedly approached and reported, "Your Majesty, the men I sent to investigate have returned. Those thieves were too cunning; they managed to shake us off by taking advantage of their familiarity with the terrain. However, when our men returned, they found a house in a mountain valley, surrounded by many thugs. It seems that the house is where those innocent women who were abducted are being held."

Upon hearing this, the emperor immediately ordered, "Duan Ling, you must immediately lead men to rescue those girls. I want to see who dares to be so audacious!"

"Yes!" Duan Ling immediately stepped forward, and after gathering his men, they set off.

The eunuch standing nearby glanced at the sky and said to the emperor, "It will probably take some time to rescue those girls. Would Your Majesty like to go to the hunting grounds first, or rest at the nearby Puzhao Temple for a while?"

The emperor hated those who kidnapped innocent women more than anything else in his life, but to his surprise, someone dared to do such a thing in the suburbs of the capital. Needless to say, it was even more outrageous in other places.

He always believed that under his rule, the people of Dachen had lived a peaceful and prosperous life. Although it could not be said that no one would pick up lost items on the road or lock their doors at night, at least no one dared to openly kidnap people.

But now, someone has actually done it, which shows that someone is outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant and doesn't take him seriously.

This touched a nerve with him, and he was determined to teach those people a lesson.

Seeing that it was still early, he decided to stay and wait for news.

So he selected a few ministers to follow him and told the rest of them to rest where they were.

……

Although Puzhao Temple is located in the suburbs of Beijing, it attracts most worshippers because of the century-old Huangjue Temple. In addition, because Puzhao Temple is not a large temple, there are not many worshippers coming here to burn incense on weekdays.

When Lu Zhan and several other ministers arrived with the emperor, they suddenly heard cries for help coming from the temple.

Before anyone could react, a disheveled woman rushed out of the building in a panic, with a man in hot pursuit.

"My beauty, you can't escape my grasp."

The woman screamed and was tackled to the ground outside the temple gate by the man.

"Help!" The woman struggled incessantly, but the man impatiently slapped her across the face. "Don't be so ungrateful. Obediently submit to me, and I will definitely make you a Zhaoyi."

“Benefactor, this is a sacred Buddhist place, where such lewd acts are forbidden. Please, benefactor, show mercy and release this young lady,” the abbot of the temple hurriedly advised, chanting “Amitabha” several times.

"You old bald monk, get out of here!" the man cursed, and ordered his men, "Drag this old monk away, don't ruin my good time."

Just as his men were about to drag the monk away, they noticed the emperor and his entourage standing not far away. They were so frightened that their faces turned pale and they knelt down, saying, "Your Majesty..."

The man snorted coldly and said unhappily, "You dog of a servant, what are you shouting about? Do you also want to defy me? You dare to bring up the Emperor to scare me. When we get back, I'll teach you a lesson!"

The man was none other than Xuan Yuan Hongjun. After angrily reprimanding his subordinates, he ripped open the dress of the woman beneath him, causing her to scream repeatedly, but this only aroused Xuan Yuan Hongjun's interest.

He buried his head in the woman's neck and began to kiss her indiscriminately.

The emperor, standing not far away, was furious, his face turning ashen, unable to believe what he was seeing.

Is this the crown prince to whom he entrusted important responsibilities?
He was the son on whom he placed high hopes.

I never imagined they would be so absurd in private.

The emperor closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and ordered, "Guards, arrest the Crown Prince!"

Instantly, the imperial guards following behind rushed forward to arrest him. Soon, Xuanyuan Hongjun was captured.

"How dare you! I am the Crown Prince! If you do not release me, I will sentence you to death!" Xuan Yuan Hongjun had not yet seen the Emperor when he was suddenly arrested. He was initially bewildered, but after realizing what was happening, he shouted angrily.

The emperor, unable to bear it any longer, strode forward and slapped him across the face, yelling, "You unfilial son!"

Xuanyuan Hongjun then saw him, and was somewhat bewildered. "Father...Father Emperor? What are you doing here?"

The emperor said coldly, "If I weren't here, I wouldn't have seen the absurd things you've done."

Xuanyuan Hongjun then realized what had happened and quickly knelt down, saying, "Your subject was confused for a moment, please forgive me, Father Emperor."

The emperor looked down at his son, his eyes filled with disappointment.

"Have I given you fewer opportunities than I have?" After a long pause, the emperor said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Xuanyuan Hongjun was terrified. He immediately grabbed his leg and wept bitterly, saying, "Father, please understand! I was truly confused for a moment and did such a foolish thing. Please give me a chance to repent, otherwise my mother will not rest in peace even in the afterlife..."

When he heard him mention his first wife, the emperor seemed dazed for a moment, but looking at his son crying with tears streaming down his face at his feet, he still felt annoyed.

He kicked him away and walked straight into the temple.

Lu Zhan gave Xuan Yuan Hongjun a cold look and followed him into the temple.

Just then, the woman who had almost been violated suddenly sobbed and called out to Lu Zhan's retreating figure, "Cousin..."

Upon hearing this, Xuanyuan Hongjun's spirits lifted, and he suddenly shouted, "Father, I have been framed! It was Lu Zhan! It was Lu Zhan who plotted against me!"

Upon hearing this, the emperor paused and turned to look at Lu Zhan.

Lu Zhan smiled bitterly and said, "If that's the case, then Your Majesty can forgive the Crown Prince. In that case, I'll just say it was my doing that made the Crown Prince who was wronged." After saying that, he lifted his robe and knelt down in front of the Emperor, pleading, "Although the Crown Prince is the heir apparent, he is still a human being. Humans make mistakes. I beg Your Majesty to give His Highness a chance to correct his mistakes."

Upon hearing this, the emperor's doubts vanished, and he personally helped him up. "Do you think I don't know what kind of person Minister Lu is?" he said, his sharp eyes sweeping over Xuan Yuan Hongjun. "You beast, you dare to do it but not to admit it. To escape punishment, you've resorted to falsely accusing others. You're utterly beyond redemption!"

Lu Zhan turned his head and looked indifferently at Xuan Yuan Hongjun.

Xuan Yuan Hongjun was so angry that his eyes were bloodshot. "Lu Zhan, you despicable villain, I will never let you get away with this!"

The emperor was furious. "Guards, lock the crown prince in a meditation room and await further instructions."

Xuanyuan Hongjun had never been treated like this before, and he roared angrily, "Father, I am innocent! Someone has framed me! You cannot be so foolish..."

The emperor was furious. "What I saw with my own eyes, how could it be someone else's scheme against you?"

The crown prince was eventually confined to a meditation room by the imperial guards.

Upon entering the temple, the emperor suddenly remembered something, looked at Lu Zhan, and asked, "That girl from earlier, who called you cousin, who is she...?"

“She is my cousin, Wei Jinyi,” Lu Zhan replied.

"A girl from the Wei family?" The emperor looked at him scrutinizingly.

Lu Zhan: I won't let any of those who bully my cousin get away with it!