Dad, don't be greedy! My brother climbed into the emperor's bed, and I became famous overn

Gu Mingli's hand holding the letter froze in mid-air.

Goodbye?!

Gu Mingli slowly raised his head and looked at his father sitting opposite him.

Gu Debai leaned back in his chair, his phoenix eyes half-closed.

"I changed my name from that day on."

"He changed from Gu Sheng to Gu Debai, and his appearance changed."

Gu Mingyue raised her red and swollen eyes, her voice hoarse.

"Father, what about the Lu family army?"

"They're all still alive. I've turned them into merchants,镖师 (bodyguards/escorts), and craftsmen, and scattered them across various places."

"Later, we gradually made contact with the Lu family army that had escaped from the western border. It took us three years to build a city on the border between the northern and western borders and to raise an army."

How many people?

"Sigh, so all those old men from the Lu family army have retired and been reassigned to other tasks."

"The current Lu Family Army is the next generation they have trained."

Gu Debai smiled and waved his hand frankly, "The number is not large, only 100,000 troops."

Gu Mingyue: "..."

Gu Mingli: "..."

No wonder his father was the person Xiao Ye felt most uneasy about.

Seven hundred million in cash, an army of one hundred thousand, plus a network of influence in the imperial court!

His father is the biggest boss in the world, isn't he?

Gu Mingli folded the letter, put it back in the box, closed the lid, and tentatively asked:

"Father, what was your original plan?"

Gu Debai looked at him, the smile in his phoenix eyes fading.

"Now that the Cui family has been destroyed, as long as Xiao Ye is killed, the remaining three major clans will be relatively easy to eliminate."

"At that time, the court will be ordered to exonerate the Lu family."

"etc!"

Gu Mingli froze completely.

Damn!

"Father, the matter concerning my maternal grandfather was handled by the late Emperor; it has nothing to do with Xiao Ye."

"Yes, I know. But the late emperor was Xiao Ye's father."

Gu Debai's tone remained calm, but it was stubborn.

"The late emperor is dead, so this debt falls on his son's shoulders. Besides, it was Xiao Ye's mother who denounced the eldest princess! That traitor!"

Gu Mingli's lips twitched, and he found himself unable to find a rebuttal for the moment.

From the father's perspective, this logic holds true.

The late Emperor Dayong seized the throne from his idol, Emperor Guangxian, and killed his godfather and godmother, as well as massacred his godfather's Lu family army.

In the end, he indirectly caused the death of his wife, turning him into a complete tragic hero!

However, from another perspective, Xiao Ye is also quite pitiful! He was a product of the emperor and empress's exchange of interests from a young age.

No one really looked forward to his birth, and no one cared about his existence.

Yet he was able to protect his younger brother Xiao Jue as he grew up, proving himself to be a truly good emperor who cared for his country and its people.

Moreover, Xiao Ye did not shirk responsibility. He said, "If it is truly the late emperor's fault, I will give Prime Minister Gu an explanation." He was actively trying to resolve the grievances with the Gu family.

We can't let Father kill Xiao Ye!

Gu Mingli wanted to say something more, but Gu Debai stood up and waved his hand.

"Alright, that's enough for now. Dad's going back to his room to rest."

Having said that, he strolled out of the room with his hands behind his back.

Gu Mingli couldn't sleep that night.

He tossed and turned in bed like a pancake until the fourth watch of the night, and finally got up and sat by the window in a daze.

Should I tell his father about my "life-and-death" relationship with Xiao Ye?

Tsk, no way.

Behind his father were the wronged Lu family army and the former officials of the Great Qi Dynasty who had been persecuted by the late emperor and powerful clans.

Once this matter is exposed, even if his father doesn't pursue it, it will inevitably attract those forces to assassinate him.

The moon outside the window had already set in the west, and its light was so pale it looked as if it had been washed with water.

Gu Mingli sat cross-legged on the bed, his mind filled with too many thoughts.

All the grudges and resentments were mixed together, giving him a headache.

He rubbed his face, got up, poured himself a cup of tea from his desk, and took a couple of sips.

I still need to discuss this with my sister.

The main hall in the early morning.

Several light breakfast items were laid out on the table: white porridge, pickles, steamed cake, and a plate of salted duck eggs cut into flower petal shapes.

Gu Debai sat in the main seat, holding a bowl of porridge in his left hand and a piece of pickled vegetable in his right hand, eating happily.

Her phoenix eyes narrowed into slits, and her round face was full of smiles.

Gu Mingyue sat to his left, and Gu Mingli sat to his right.

The brother and sister didn't sleep well all night, and there were obvious dark circles under their eyes.

But Gu Debai looked as if nothing had happened, and was even more energetic than usual.

"Come on, come on, let's eat."

Gu Debai gave his daughter a salted duck egg, then turned to look at his son.

"What's wrong? You all look so wilted, like eggplants that have been wilted by frost."

Gu Mingli held the bowl and ate the porridge in a half-hearted manner.

He spent the whole night thinking about how to talk to his father.

But the system wouldn't let him reveal any of the rules or secrets.

Then we can only try to persuade them from other angles.

Gu Mingli was preparing his opening remarks when Gu Debai suddenly put down his chopsticks, leaned back, and waved to the door.

Several servants immediately carried in several large wooden money boxes.

Gu Debai looked at his daughter with a smile.

"Moon, your mission is to spend money to benefit the people, right?"

"Here are ten million silver notes. Take them and spend them however you like."

"ha?"

Gu Mingyue's hand holding the bowl wobbled slightly.

Then the familiar ice-blue system panel popped up in front of her.

[Ding! Large fund injection detected!]

[Limited-time mission: Spend ten million taels of embezzled silver within three months!]

[Countdown: 90 days.]

Gu Mingyue: "..."

Her father certainly flaunted his box of silver notes with great generosity.

She was left wondering whether to appreciate her father's thoughtfulness or to say that he trusted her abilities too much.

The reason I was able to spend a large sum of money so quickly last time was because I was fighting against the Cui family in a grain war.

But she hasn't even looked for a new project yet, so how did she end up spending such a huge sum of money?

Gu Mingyue gave two awkward laughs.

"Father... could you please take this money back?"

"Why? Not enough?"

"It's not that it's not enough, it's that it's too much. You could give it to us in smaller portions."

Gu Debai waved his hand.

"Hey, Yue'er, don't worry about spending money. Once your father seizes the throne, I guarantee you'll have more money than you can spend."

Gu Mingyue: "..."

Wow! Her father's only thought now is how to kill the emperor!

Gu Mingyue secretly glanced at her brother.

Gu Debai turned around and looked at Gu Mingli.

"Li'er".

"Um?"

Gu Mingli had just taken a sip of porridge and was about to swallow it.

"These days I've seen you rise step by step in the court, which shows that you are a person of great talent. I am happy for you from the bottom of my heart."

As he spoke, Gu Debai reached out and patted his son's hand.

"So what exactly is your mission?"

Gu Mingli's heart skipped a beat.

This is not the right thing to say.

Sure enough, Gu Debai smiled and leaned close to his son's shoulder, chirping softly.

"Although Xiao Ye is stronger than the late emperor, he is still a member of the Xiao family. If you follow him, you will suffer sooner or later."

"Father will arrange for someone to take care of Xiao Ye in the next few days."

"puff--"

Gu Mingli spat out the porridge in his mouth.

"Cough! Cough cough cough..."

Gu Mingli suddenly turned his head away and coughed violently.

The mouthful of porridge that was about to be swallowed got stuck in his throat, choking him until the corners of his eyes turned red.

Gu Mingyue silently handed over a handkerchief, unable to help but feel sorry for her brother for three seconds.

In contrast, Gu Debai calmly reached out and patted his son's back lightly twice.

"Oh, don't worry. Don't you trust your father to handle things? Everything has been arranged perfectly."

"Once Xiao Ye is gone, Father will go to the royal family and pick a young, soft-tempered, preferably incompetent good-for-nothing, and put him on the throne."

"When the new emperor ascends the throne, he will have complete control of the court. Then you can comfortably serve as his regent and complete your tasks. Who would dare to mistreat you?"

Gu Mingli clutched the handkerchief his sister handed him, hastily wiping the rice gruel from his mouth, his whole body practically exploding with rage.

"No, Father! I can only serve Xiao Ye; no one else will do!"