My father, Gao Huan, is an invincible prince!

Chapter 14 My disciple has advanced; he possesses the qualities of a hero!

Seeing how obedient he was, Gao Huan's remaining anger dissipated considerably.

He then said no more, his tone indifferent: "Since that's the case, you may return home, pack your belongings, and tomorrow the officials will escort you to the Zhangshui Villa."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I take my leave."

Gao Cheng felt as if he had been granted a pardon, and hurriedly got up from the ground, turning around to leave.

Just then, Gao Huan seemed to suddenly remember something and called out, "Wait!"

Gao Cheng hurriedly stopped, turned around, and asked respectfully, "Does Your Majesty have any further instructions?"

Gao Huan frowned slightly, as if carefully considering his words. After a long while, he asked, "What were you saying to Zijin during the banquet just now? I saw that when he left, his face was gloomy and his expression was apprehensive. Did you mock and insult him again?"

Gao Cheng was taken aback when Gao Huan suddenly asked about Gao Yang.

Despite the commotion in the hall just now, Gao Huan was still able to notice the little things he and Gao Yang were doing.

However, considering that what he had said to Gao Yang was not a secret, he did not hide anything and honestly bowed his head, replying, "Your Majesty, there is nothing else. I only ask if Erlang would be willing to come with me to Ye City, enter the palace to manage affairs, and share power?"

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Huan's eyebrows shot up sharply, his expression one of surprise.

He had assumed that the scoundrel whispering in Gao Yang's ear was just using his elder brother status to tease and ridicule Gao Yang for his ugly appearance, which was why he asked casually.

After all, it was no secret in Jinyang City that his eldest son disliked his second son for being ugly.

Unexpectedly, this scoundrel wanted to drag Gao Yang along to Ye City.

For a moment, he was filled with suspicion, staring at Gao Cheng and asking, "You used to dislike Zijin's appearance the most, always mocking him and treating him with contempt. Why have you suddenly changed your mind and want to take him along, even taking away your power?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Cheng replied without hesitation, "I truly believe that Erlang's appearance is inferior to others, but even though he is not handsome, he is still my blood relative."

"As the saying goes, 'Brothers fight tigers together, fathers and sons go to war together.' When you go to Yecheng, you will be alone in the heart of the country, in charge of all affairs and to check and balance the court. Only trusted confidants can be of service to you."

"Since we are already using it, it would be safer to entrust it to our own family rather than to entrust it to outsiders."

Upon hearing this argument about blood ties, Gao Huan's expression became even more surprised.

He truly hadn't expected that these words would come from Gao Cheng's mouth.

You should know that this kid used to be very arrogant and looked down on everyone except himself.

But today, not only did he take the initiative to bring Gao Yang to Ye, he could even come up with such a reasoning?

He did indeed have some of the demeanor of an eldest brother.

A moment later, his gaze toward Gao Cheng was filled with admiration.

Seeing that his expression relaxed, Gao Cheng continued, "Besides, although Erlang is ugly, he is calm and composed, and does not panic in the face of danger, and has..."

He paused here, his brows furrowing as if he were carefully choosing his words.

Gao Huan frowned and asked, "What is it?"

Gao Cheng steeled himself and said, "He has the bearing of a hero."

Gao Huan: "..."

He fell silent, staring intently at Gao Cheng, who was lying on the ground. After a long while, his eyelids twitched repeatedly, as if trying to determine whether the boy was being sarcastic or mocking Gao Yang.

After all, everyone in Jinyang knew that his second son, Gao Yang, was dark-skinned, ugly, and dull-witted, and even the servants in the mansion dared to secretly ridicule him.

Gao Cheng disliked his appearance, and this dislike lasted for fourteen years.

And now this scoundrel is saying that Gao Yang has the bearing of a hero?

He could not have believed it unless he heard it with his own ears!

However, he was too lazy to delve into the brothers' complicated relationship, since brotherly harmony was always better than brotherly discord.

Therefore, he said slowly, "I have no say in matters between you brothers. If you truly wish to do so, go and speak with them yourself. There is only one thing: if they are unwilling, you must not force them, understand?"

"I understand!"

Gao Cheng quickly responded, his attitude extremely respectful.

Seeing that he agreed readily, Gao Huan didn't say much more and waved his hand, saying, "Go, get some rest. We have important business to attend to tomorrow."

"Yes, I shall take my leave."

Gao Cheng bowed again before carefully rising, head bowed, and backing out of the main hall, quickly heading back towards the Crown Prince's residence.

Seeing that Gao Cheng had gone far away, Gao Huan also got up and went to the backyard.

......

Meanwhile, in the main house in the backyard, Lou Zhaojun was also anxiously awaiting the final result, her handkerchief almost torn to shreds, her heart pounding in her chest.

Upon seeing Gao Huan return, he couldn't help but hurry to greet him, wanting to ask him how he had dealt with Gao Cheng.

But when the words were on the tip of his tongue, he didn't know where to begin. After all, it was an incestuous affair involving his father's concubine, and Gao Huan could punish him severely without going too far.

How could she possibly ask such a question?

In the end, Gao Huan couldn't bear to see his wife looking so hesitant and fearful. He sighed and took the initiative to speak, "Don't worry, I haven't been harsh on Cheng'er. I'm only punishing him by confining him to the Zhangshui Villa for ten days to temper his impetuous nature and prevent him from committing another serious offense in Yecheng."

Upon hearing this, Lou Zhaojun's nerves, which had been tense for several days, finally relaxed completely.

Her eyes immediately reddened, and she curtsied to Gao Huan, saying, "Your Majesty, I have troubled you. This is all due to my failure to manage my household properly and educate my children well, which has caused Your Majesty to suffer this humiliation. I beg Your Majesty to punish me."

Seeing this, Gao Huan quickly reached out to support her.

He and Lou Zhaojun were truly childhood sweethearts, having weathered countless hardships together. He knew better than anyone how much Lou Zhaojun had worried about this family.

Seeing her eyes redden at this moment, I felt both heartache and helplessness.

But since things had come to this, he could only help Lou Zhaojun to a seat and gently comfort her, saying, "What you have done is already too much. It is all because this rebellious son is so audacious and blinded by lust that it is not your fault."

Lou Zhaojun felt even more guilty upon hearing this and tried to get up to apologize, but Gao Huan held her down firmly.

The two of them struggled for quite a while before they finally calmed down.

Although the two had calmed down, this scandal was far from over.

After all, Gao Huan has only dealt with Gao Cheng so far, but Zheng Dache, the other protagonist in this matter, is still sitting peacefully in his courtyard.

She might not even know that Gao Huan had already seen through her carefully laid plan.

Lou Zhaojun remained silent for a moment, then finally asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty, although Cheng'er was at fault, Zheng is not necessarily entirely innocent. How will Your Majesty deal with this?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Huan's smile vanished instantly, and he fell silent.

According to common sense, if a concubine has an affair, even if she is not sentenced to death, she should be forced to shave her head and become a nun, and be imprisoned for life. Moreover, Gao Huan was a powerful and ruthless man. How could he tolerate such a disgraceful act that ruined his family?

The key point is that Zheng Dache was no ordinary concubine; she was the daughter of the direct descendant of the Zheng family of Xingyang, with deep ties to the Han Chinese aristocratic families of Hebei.

What appears to be a private scandal within the women's quarters is actually a scheme by a powerful family in Hebei to use a woman as a pawn to test the Gao family and reach for power.

Although he now holds power in Eastern Wei, the troops and provisions of the Six Garrisons, as well as the affairs of the court in Ye City, all depend on the supply from the powerful families of Hebei.

Even with his immense power, he could not ignore these powerful clans.

Therefore, he was really struggling with how to deal with Zheng Dache.

If the punishment is too lenient, it will not be enough to establish authority and will only invite ridicule; but if it is too severe, it may alienate powerful families and even cause them to side with Yuwen Tai of Guanzhong.

This is a dilemma where one can neither advance nor retreat.

After much deliberation, he was unable to give a definite answer, only vaguely saying, "I haven't decided yet, let's leave it for now and see what happens next."