Chapter 2017
The Prodigal Son 11
It seems that the younger generation of the Liu family kept this scheme a secret from their elders.
Lu Zhiyuan glanced at Liu Yuer and received a questioning look from her.
"It's nothing." Lu Zhiyuan looked away.
The Duchess of Cheng's lips curled into a small smile.
Her good son has already been attracted to his daughter-in-law.
The coup attempt was quickly suppressed.
The ministers were released from the palace. This time they were quite frightened and felt a slight resentment towards the emperor for having made arrangements in advance, but they dared not show it.
They were alarmed by the emperor's control over the capital.
The fact that the Prince of Liyang was able to seize power so secretly, even the emperor himself, demonstrates how terrifying the emperor could be.
The emperor is very different now compared to before.
Indeed, now that the emperor has his own flesh and blood, he will naturally plan for his children in every way, instead of just letting them do nothing as before.
This incident involving the Prince of Liyang has deterred all those with ulterior motives, and they no longer dare to harbor any other thoughts.
After that, the capital returned to peace.
Liu Tong stayed in the capital for a year, during which time he helped Liu Yu'er to improve the emperor's health, extending his lifespan by ten years.
Ten years later, the young prince turned fifteen and was ready to ascend the throne.
Liu Dong went on another trip. He hired skilled craftsmen by the sea to build a large ship capable of sailing the oceans and recruited a group of people to go to sea with him.
They traveled along the Bering Strait and reached the Americas.
Many of those who went to sea with Liu Dong were people who had lost their land. When they discovered such a large piece of unclaimed land, they were very excited and decided to stay and live there.
Liu Tong granted their wish and left the Americas with only the potatoes she had found.
After returning to the Central Plains, Liu Dong bought a farm and devoted himself to growing potatoes.
Potatoes today don't have the same yield as modern potatoes; they're smaller and more toxic.
Liu Lian has improved potatoes generation after generation, carrying out detoxification treatments to increase yield.
Several years passed in this way.
The old emperor's time had come, and before he died, he passed the throne to his crown prince.
When the crown prince ascended the throne, the Liu family presented him with potatoes.
The new emperor was overjoyed and bestowed upon the Liu family an unbreakable title.
The Liu family was extremely prominent.
But Lord Liu was very sensible. Half a year after the new emperor ascended the throne, he submitted a memorial to resign from his official post and then took his mother back to his hometown to open an academy to teach.
The new emperor was very satisfied with his maternal grandfather's actions and boldly appointed his two maternal uncles.
However, both Liu Chong and Liu Chong had people around them who were under the new emperor's control.
Liu Chong and Liu Chong also knew.
They all had nautical charts given to them by Liu Dong, and knowing that the Liu family still had a way out, they stayed in the imperial court with peace of mind.
If the new emperor truly turns his back on his promise and discards them, the Liu family will be able to retreat overseas.
My younger brother told me that there is a land there that is even more vast than the Great Xia Kingdom.
There is no monarchy there; they can do whatever they want.
Now, my younger brother has led a group of people to establish a country in that place called America.
Standing at the bow of the ship, gazing at the endless sea, Lu Zhiyuan felt his heart and mind expand.
He was filled with anticipation for that place in the Americas.
The Duke of Cheng's mansion faces the same situation as the Liu family: their achievements overshadow their master.
Lu Zhiyuan's father guarded the border and was highly respected.
At the border, the common people only knew the Duke of Cheng, but not the emperor.
However, the Duke of Cheng could not leave the border, as the northern frontier was eyeing the Great Xia with hostility. Therefore, after learning that the Liu family had discovered unclaimed land overseas, the Duchess of Cheng discussed a backup plan with Lu Zhiyuan.
Of course, they knew this because Liu Yuer told them.
Liu Yuer is not love-struck and would not do anything to harm her family.
Regarding the matter of overseas territories, Liu's father knew, Liu's eldest and second eldest brothers knew, and Liu Yu'er also knew, but Liu's mother and Empress Dowager did not know.
Liu's mother didn't want her to worry, and as for keeping it from Empress Dowager Liu, it was naturally to guard against the emperor.
Although the Liu family is the emperor's maternal family, who knows if the emperor will take action against them?
The emperor had very little affection for his family.
How many uncles in history were personally dealt with by the emperor?
The Duke of Cheng's Mansion was a partner of the Liu family, and Liu Yu'er was naturally aware of this, becoming the contact person between the Liu family and the Duke of Cheng's Mansion.
Over the years, Liu Yuer and Lu Zhiyuan's relationship has improved considerably.
In Liu Tong's opinion, Lu Zhiyuan had already fallen in love with Liu Yuer.
Although Liu Yuer's opinion of Lu Zhiyuan changed, she did not fall in love with him.
Liu Yu'er remained calm and guarded her heart firmly.
She regarded Lu Zhiyuan as her husband, but not as her lover.
Lu Zhiyuan didn't realize this and still thought he and Liu Yuer had a very good relationship.
After all, Liu Yuer had even told him about the existence of the Americas, helping the Lu family find a way out overseas.
The two lived a normal married life, so it was impossible for them not to have children.
When the twins were eight years old, Liu Yuer became pregnant again and gave birth to a son.
Three years later, Liu Yuer gave birth to another daughter.
The Duchess of Cheng was overjoyed and devoted all her energy to raising her grandchildren.
Twenty years passed in this way, and the emperor had grown into his prime, consumed by desire.
The emperor began to be wary of his own maternal family, let alone the Duke of Cheng's mansion.
The Duke of Cheng has passed away, and the general who inherited his military power is actually the Duke of Cheng's illegitimate son.
It turns out that the Duke of Cheng was once injured and rescued by a village girl, and he developed a romantic relationship with her.
The Duke of Cheng promised to marry that village girl, but neither of his parents would allow him to marry a village girl.
The Duchess of Chengguo arranged a marriage for the village girl, sending her to marry a traveling merchant and away from her hometown.
Since the Duke of Cheng could not find a village girl, he had no choice but to obediently marry the current Duchess of Cheng as arranged by his parents.
Neither he nor his parents knew that the village girl was already pregnant with the son of the Duke of Cheng.
That child looks very much like the Duke of Cheng.
When the Duke of Cheng saw the man, he ordered an investigation and learned that the man's mother was the village girl from back then.
Duke Cheng naturally realized that this was his son.
Duke Cheng then devoted himself to cultivating this person, even giving the illegitimate son the connections the Lu family had in the army.
Before his death, the Duke of Cheng allowed his illegitimate son to be recognized as a member of the royal family and gave him military power on the border.
Since the illegitimate child was from the Lu family, the emperor naturally feared the Lu family.
Lu Zhiyuan and the Duchess of Chengguo in the capital have become hostages, but the illegitimate son has no kinship with Lu Zhiyuan and the others. He even harbors resentment towards the Duke of Chengguo's mansion because of his mother, so how could he possibly care about Lu Zhiyuan's life or death?
Lu Zhiyuan and the Duchess of Chengguo were unwilling to become tools in the power struggle between their illegitimate son and the emperor, so they decided to leave with the Liu family.
Lord Liu and his mother have passed away.
Liu Chong and Liu Chong have already incurred the emperor's suspicion and have resigned from their official posts.
Their sons were all outstanding, but they were not given important positions by the emperor.
The Liu family knew that the emperor was no longer their relative.
Liu Chong and Liu Chong were very interested in the overseas countries their younger brother had mentioned, and decided to set sail to find him. (End of Chapter)