Chapter 53

After entering the door, Song Xinghai saw the lady of the house and his son come to greet him. He grinned widely and said, "Lady, Lier, I'm back."

The three of them, with beaming faces, sat down in the hall. The servants brought up three cups of tea, and they began to chat while sipping their tea.

Song Xinghai was clearly very excited and recounted everything that had happened in the imperial court today to his wife and son. Since he had experienced it firsthand, his account was much more detailed than Pang Da's. Although they already knew the outcome, the intricate and devious aspects of the events still captivated the two of them. When he mentioned that the Holy Emperor had bestowed him the title of "Duke of Ming" and entrusted him with the management of the three special agencies, both his wife and son clapped excitedly. Song Xinghai praised his son endlessly, and he understood that his son was the greatest contributor to his promotion. The entire process unfolded almost exactly as Song Lier had predicted, and even the reactions of Prince Kang and others were not far off. It was as if his son had foreseen everything, and Song Xinghai still found it quite miraculous.

He asked about this, and Song Lier brushed it off by saying he had read similar books in the palace. His parents did not suspect anything. This was indeed the most reasonable explanation. The palace was the most intense place for political struggles, and since Song Lier had grown up there, it was normal for him to have such insights.

"Father, what did the Holy Emperor and Chancellor Wen say to you after you were left behind?" Song Lier was particularly interested in this.

Song Xinghai smiled and said, "They didn't say much, just some encouraging words. Chancellor Wen was told to manage the cabinet well, and I was told to reorganize the three special agencies, all to serve the Holy Lion Empire. Some things the Holy Emperor didn't make too clear, but after leaving the palace, Chancellor Wen reminded me. He said that from today on, we are the Holy Emperor's most trusted and capable ministers, his confidants. You wouldn't know, but Chancellor Wen is extremely grateful to our family. He said that if it weren't for me, it would have been him, Wen Liren, who would have been thrown into prison, not Huang Tingxuan. I told him that it was all thanks to you, Lier, and he even insisted on thanking you in person, saying that you are a young and promising talent with a bright future."

Song Lier rubbed his temples, dissatisfied. "Father, didn't I tell you not to reveal me? We agreed that you would say you overheard Prince Kang's plot by chance and that the plan was your idea. This way, you could gain the Holy Emperor's favor."

Song Xinghai smiled sheepishly and said, "I didn't mention you to the Holy Emperor, just to Chancellor Wen. Chancellor Wen is a gentleman, and I couldn't bear to deceive him."

Sighing, Song Lier realized that his father wasn't yet ready to be a politician. Honesty was a good quality, but for a politician, it wasn't always a good thing. If Chancellor Wen were a complete gentleman, he wouldn't have climbed to his current position. Essentially, he was a politician. Unlike Huang Tingxuan, Wen Liren was a principled and idealistic politician who was willing to do some practical things, but he was equally adept at all the political tricks. If one day he and Song Xinghai had a significant conflict of power or interests, Song Lier was sure that Wen Liren would forget their past kindness and do everything to strike against the Duke of Ming. This wasn't to say that Wen Liren had a bad character; in a politician's eyes, interests were far more important than feelings.

In the world of politics, one's actions were often beyond their control.

However, Song Lier didn't expect his father to become cunning and devious overnight. Many things had to be done step by step, and rushing wouldn't help. Fortunately, Chancellor Wen was still a relatively upright and principled person. If it were someone like Huang Tingxuan, he might have immediately gone to the Holy Emperor to report the matter, and Song Xinghai would have been accused of deceiving the emperor. After all, it was his son who discovered the plot and came up with the plan, not him.

The enfeoffment of a duke was a significant event. The Holy Emperor only verbally promised it in the Golden Hall, but afterward, an imperial edict would be issued, and there would be a grand ceremony, as Song Lier would say in his previous life, a formal document and a grand ceremony.

On the day of the ceremony, the duke's mansion was completely transformed. The sign "Duke's Mansion" was replaced with "Duke of Ming's Mansion," and the interior and exterior were extensively renovated, making it much more magnificent than before. This was all done with funds allocated by the Ministry of Revenue, as the Holy Emperor had decreed. The standards for a duke's mansion were different from those of a county duke's mansion. Now that Song Xinghai was officially a duke, his mansion had to be renovated to the standards of a duke's mansion.

The front of the Duke of Ming's mansion was bustling with activity. The ministers, who were no fools and had a keen sense of smell, all knew that the Holy Emperor favored Song Xinghai. No one wanted to miss the opportunity to befriend this rising star in the imperial court. So, they all arrived early at the mansion to celebrate before the ceremony began.

Except for the Loyal Prince, the Tranquil Prince, Prince Kang, and the Nine Gates Inspector, the National Duke, and other loyalists of the Loyal Prince, almost all the other ministers were present. Even those who belonged to the Loyal Prince's faction didn't want to miss the chance to befriend the Duke of Ming, at the very least, to avoid his enmity. The Duke of Ming himself wasn't scary, but the three special agencies under him were. The Inspection Agency, in particular, was responsible for monitoring the ministers. If the Duke of Ming disliked someone, he could easily find a pretext to have the Inspection Agency investigate them, and they would be in serious trouble.

The former county duke's mansion was usually deserted, with few visits from princes and ministers. Suddenly, it became so lively that the staff were overwhelmed. Although they were not used to it, they were secretly delighted. After all, being respected was much better than being forgotten, wasn't it?

With so many guests arriving suddenly, the staff were stretched thin. Song Lier asked Pang Da to bring the brothers from the Justice Alliance to help. Seeing how everyone, including the high-ranking ministers, treated their leader Song Lier with utmost respect, calling him "Prince," Pang Da and the others were envious. To be treated like that, one's life was truly worth living.

The Chief Eunuch personally came to read the imperial edict, giving the Duke of Ming's mansion a great honor. In the Holy Lion Empire, only the enfeoffment of a prince was attended by the Holy Emperor himself. The next highest honor was the presence of the Chief Eunuch. The Holy Emperor's dispatch of the Chief Eunuch to read the edict and preside over the ceremony clearly showed his support for Song Xinghai.

When the Chief Eunuch read the imperial edict, all the ministers knelt in unison, shouting "Long live the Emperor." In their hearts, they all understood: a significant political star was rising in the capital. From now on, Song Xinghai would no longer be a minor figure in the imperial court, a powerless duke. He had become a key player in the capital's political landscape, and no one dared to ignore him.

No one knew why the once unassuming county duke had suddenly become so sharp and formidable, like an ancient divine weapon that had been hidden for a long time and now revealed its lethal edge. Had he been enduring all along? Or had he been provoked by something? If they knew that the mastermind behind this political star was a sixteen-year-old boy, they would be astonished.

Song Lier didn't want people to know about this. It wasn't that he was particularly low-key, but he understood that the more powerful his father became, the more benefits he would receive. Being a prince wasn't something anyone could aspire to, so he would do his best to help his father advance in his career, ideally to the rank of prince, which would make his status even more prominent.

Among all the ministers present, only Chancellor Wen Liren knew this secret. His gaze couldn't help but linger on Song Lier, finding him increasingly extraordinary. He admired him deeply: others relied on their fathers for status, but the Duke of Ming did the opposite, relying on his son for his own glory. Thinking of his own useless son, Wen Ruyu, his heart ached as if cut by a knife. Although he knew that the brocade box that could send him to hell was placed by his son, he couldn't bring himself to execute him. He just locked him up and made him reflect on his actions. He hoped that after this incident, his son would repent.

His own son could only tarnish the family name, while the Duke of Ming's son could bring glory to his father. What a huge difference between sons!

In the princess's private quarters of the Loyal Prince's mansion, the living room.

Long Ziyi sat in the center with a cold expression, while Song Mojie and Song Qingshan stood on either side of her, heads bowed, not daring to speak.

Song Qingshan's cheeks were swollen, and his already narrow eyes were almost slits. His face was ashen, the most miserable of the three.

"Song Qingshan, you just told me that you set a trap to lure Song Lier to the Langya Cave and intended to burn him to ashes with the fire from the earth's core?" Long Ziyi's voice was still melodious, but Song Qingshan could feel the coldness in it. His heart sank, thinking he might have misunderstood her.

When they confirmed that Song Lier had been burned to death, they had intended to report it to the princess immediately. However, when they came to the Loyal Prince's mansion, Long Ziyi was in seclusion. She only emerged today. From her expression, Song Qingshan felt that she was furious. Could it be that she didn't want Song Lier dead?

Long Ziyi certainly didn't want Song Lier dead. She needed to ask him about the secret of his transformation. Even if she had to kill him, it would be after she got the information. These two idiots had misunderstood her, and they deserved to die. If this weren't the Loyal Prince's mansion, she would have slapped them into meat pies!

"Your Highness, Song Lier fell for our trap and rushed to the Langya Cave alone to save someone. Not long after he entered, the fire from the earth's core erupted. Even if he managed to escape, he would have been burned to a crisp," Song Mojie, less perceptive than Song Qingshan, continued, oblivious to the tense atmosphere. "No matter how you look at it, there was no way he could have survived. But he appeared in the capital alive and became the Prince of Ming's heir. This is truly bizarre!"