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Chapter 75 The Emperor Suspects the Lin Family Marquis and Resigns
The queen passed away suddenly, and the balance of power in the harem was instantly unbalanced.

Now, Concubine Lin has two princes under her control, and her family holds military power. Her power in the harem cannot be underestimated.

On the other hand, Gao Cairen became pregnant, and her favor increased day by day, and she gradually emerged in the harem.

Because of her ability, Concubine Cui gave birth to a princess, who also had a place in the harem.

As a result, the power structure in the harem faced a reshuffle. After the queen's funeral, ministers in the court and elders in the royal family came forward to persuade the emperor to re-enthrone the queen.

In the past half month, the emperor's visits to Liuhua Palace have become increasingly rare. This day was a rare occasion, as the emperor actually came to Concubine Lin's place during dinner time.

As usual, Concubine Lin carefully prepared the dishes for the emperor. But just as she placed the dishes gently into the emperor's bowl, the emperor suddenly raised his hand and blocked it with his chopsticks.

Then, he raised his eyes and looked directly into Noble Concubine Lin's eyes. He said straight to the point, "Recently, ministers in the court have repeatedly urged me to appoint a queen as soon as possible. What is your opinion on this matter, Noble Concubine?"

Lin Yu's heart suddenly tightened. She could clearly see a test in the emperor's eyes. The gentle and tender affection they had shown in the past had now completely disappeared.

"On such a major matter as the establishment of a queen, I ask Your Majesty to make your decision. I dare not speak rashly."

But the emperor did not intend to restrict the topic and immediately continued: "Some court officials have suggested that the imperial concubine has the talent to shoulder great responsibilities and is worthy of the responsibility of being the mother of the country."

Upon hearing this, Concubine Lin was flustered. She quickly put the chopsticks on the table and hurriedly saluted the emperor.

"I know full well that I am not as thorough as the late queen. In comparison, Concubine Cui is more suitable to manage the harem."

"Besides, the late Empress has decreed that I take the utmost care of the Second Prince. My primary responsibility is to ensure that these two children grow up safely. I am truly overwhelmed and unable to shoulder this heavy responsibility."

The emperor stared at her expression for a long time, half believing and half doubting. He finished his meal in silence and left without saying a word.

After the emperor left Liuhua Palace, Lin Yu hurriedly called Yunshan and explained the matter to her.

After hearing this, Yunshan couldn't help but feel a pang in her heart.

"If Your Majesty has doubts about me, these doubts will be extremely difficult to eliminate. We must not allow these suspicions to deepen further." Lin Yu said worriedly.

Yunshan nodded and helped analyze the situation. "Given the current situation, the First and Second Princes are both in Liuhua Palace. It's very likely that one of them will become the future crown prince. Therefore, the court officials are keeping a close eye on us."

"What's more, when the Marquis was in Nanzhou, he led many border guards, and Lin Xiao has repeatedly made remarkable achievements. Such a force will inevitably make His Majesty and the court officials worry about the increasing influence of the foreign relatives."

Lin Yu nodded continuously: "I understand. These things have pushed me to the forefront. As the saying goes, it's lonely at the top. There's really nothing I can do."

"My Lady, if we continue to delay like this, it will only be more disadvantageous to us. After all, a tall tree attracts the wind."

Lin Yu met her gaze and motioned for her to continue.

"In your opinion, Your Majesty, is it possible that this situation will be alleviated over time?"

"I'm afraid that's impossible. How dare I gamble my time on something like this?"

"Since this is the case, please, Your Majesty, and the Lin family, make a decisive move and cut off your tail to survive." "Cut off your tail to survive?"

"Your Majesty, if you want to gain a permanent foothold in this palace, the Marquis will probably have to give up some things, such as military power and influence. Perhaps this is the safest way."

"This is a difficult decision, Your Majesty, please consider it carefully!"

Since the Empress entrusted Lin Yu with the care of her son, Lin Xiao and his father had deliberately avoided communicating with the harem to prevent Lin Yu from getting into trouble. Consequently, for the past two weeks, Liuhua Palace had been completely unaware of the situation at the Marquis' Mansion.

Two days later, Li Song entered the palace with the princess. Taking advantage of the right opportunity, he quietly revealed to Lin Yu that the emperor had met with Lin Hou.

"I was standing outside the Imperial Study at the time, and His Majesty left only the Marquis alone, so I don't know exactly what was said."

This news made Lin Yu realize that she could no longer sit idly by, so she immediately asked Li Song to pass on the message.

Li Song conveyed Lin Yu's words to Lin's father verbatim:
"My daughter is unfilial. The current situation is unpredictable. To protect our family, I ask my father to resign from his official position, take my mother and younger brother with him, and leave Kyoto. From now on, I will be a free man."

Lin's father was also a very wise man. After receiving the news, he acted quickly and fell seriously ill that day.

He applied for sick leave from the court that night, claiming that he had dreamed of his deceased father and mother. The two elders scolded him for being unfilial and had not visited the ancestral temple to pay homage for many years. If he did not go there again, his illness would probably be difficult to recover.

The emperor went to visit the marquis at his residence after retiring from court the next day.

Father Lin looked gaunt and sick, his condition appearing to be extremely serious. He lay quietly on the bed, his once rosy complexion now as pale as a sheet of bloodless paper, revealing a sickly pallor.

His eye sockets were deeply sunken, rimmed with dark circles, as if struck hard. Fine beads of sweat oozed from his forehead, soaking strands of hair and leaving them matted to his cheeks. His chapped lips trembled slightly, occasionally emitting a few suppressed sobs, as if he were enduring immense pain in a dream. His hands clutched the blankets beneath him tightly, his knuckles white from the exertion.

It turned out that Father Lin had already taken the pills Yunshan had prepared the previous day and had forced himself to stay awake all night. The drug's effects were only superficial, quite subtle. The weak pulse was similar to the signs of nightmares, and recovery would be difficult for at least ten days or half a month.

The emperor naturally knew that Lin's father was putting on an act, but this was exactly what he wanted.

So the emperor pretended to persuade him, saying, "My dear minister, how could you be so ill? You are leaving me now. I really cannot do without you. Dali also needs a loyal minister like you."

However, Lin's father spoke earnestly, dragged his sick body and struggled to roll off the bed, knelt heavily at the emperor's feet, and begged bitterly.

Seeing this, the emperor had to pretend to be helpless and finally agreed to his request to resign.

The emperor took back the military order for guarding the capital from Lord Lin, and then allocated him 800 acres of fertile land in Wen County, Nanzhou.

In order to make the play more realistic, Lin's father even dismissed most of the palace soldiers and handed them over to the Beijing government to be deployed to each household, leaving only a few old and weak servants to look after the house.

After this matter was arranged, the emperor was worried that Lin's father would encounter danger along the way, so he specially sent the newly appointed Wen County Governor, whom he had personally selected, to escort Lord Lin and his entourage.

Although this military governor held a low position, he was a close official highly valued by the emperor. A guard who had followed the emperor since childhood, he had a deep and extraordinary friendship with Tianwei.

(End of this chapter)