....
Back in the Emperor's Palace, the atmosphere was really heavy. No one dared to move at all, only taking subtle glances at the Emperor's face, wondering what he might be thinking about.
Before the Emperor stood the Patriarch of the Chen Family, who was also the son of the Eastern General of the Eternal Dynasty!
It was said that amongst the four Generals of the Eternal Dynasty, the Eastern General was the second strongest! In fact, even in the entire Eternal Dynasty, his strength was near the peak!
Since his father was guarding the Eastern Border, the Patriarch of the Chen Family, Chen Huo, came here personally after receiving the Emperor's orders.
It was late at night when he came home after dealing with some official matters, only to find out that his daughter had been missing!
The last clue they had about her was that she went with her guards to the Third Prince's Palace.
As soon as Chen Huo heard about it, his heart skipped a beat. He had a bad feeling about it! He sent his most trusted men to bring his foolish daughter back before she did something truly stupid.
Unfortunately, it was too late as it was also around that time when a Royal Guard came with the Emperor's Degree, telling the Chen Family Patriarch to report to the Royal Palace right away!
As soon as Chen Huo saw this decree, his face darkened as he realized that he was already too late.
He asked the Royal Guard about what had transpired. Unfortunately, the Royal Guard didn't give much information since he himself didn't know much. All he knew was that Chen Rouyin was brought to the Royal Palace by the Third Prince's Head Protector as if she was a prisoner!
As soon as Chen Huo heard it, he understood that what he was most worried about had happened! He immediately rushed to the Royal Palace!
By the time he reached the Royal Palace of the Emperor, Zi Huang had already left with the aura ring.
No matter how precious the aura ring was, the Emperor didn't refuse since it was a request from his third son! He didn't even ask why his son needed the ring.
It wasn't long after Zi Huang left that the Chen Family Patriarch arrived!
It was only when he stood in the majestic Royal Hall that he was informed about what had transpired!
"Assassination Attempt?" No matter if it was true or not, this accusation was too dangerous! It was a crime worthy of the death penalty! In fact, even if he had tried to assassinate a Royal, he would've been killed as well, let alone his daughter!
He glanced at his daughter, who was sitting on her knees with her head down. She wanted to yell out loud that she was innocent! Unfortunately, she neither had the courage nor the opportunity!
She couldn't even raise her head before the mighty aura of the Emperor, who was said to be the strongest person in the Eternal Dynasty! Even her grandfather's strength paled in comparison to the Emperor!
Moreover, even if she could somehow tell the truth, who was going to believe her? Even her father wouldn't openly say that he believed her since saying that would mean that he thought the Royal Guards and the Third Prince were lying!
In the end, they could only hope for mercy and try to avoid the Calamity called the Third Prince next time!
"Your father asked me to engage his granddaughter with my Third Son. Even without asking my son, I agreed. Is this what I agreed for? So your daughter could try to kill my Third Son?"
The Emperor's aura was like a mountain! Despite being a patriarch of the Chen Family, even Chen Huo was struggling under this aura!
"Your Majesty, mercy! My daughter is foolish! I would make sure she wouldn't even dare to think about it in the future! Please have mercy on her!"
Chen Huo didn't show any dignity of the Patriarch of one of the four great families! What was his dignity worth before the Emperor?!
Not only did he scold his own daughter, but he also begged for forgiveness without even offering an explanation! He was wise enough to accept everything as his daughter's fault!
This was also what Xu Shan thought would happen when he sent Chen Rouyin to the Royal Palace as well. Not only that, but he also expected the incoming rewards. As for what those rewards were exactly, he wasn't sure at that time!
"As a token of my sincerest apology and to ask for the Third Prince's forgiveness, I would like to offer half the Alchemy Shops that the Chen Family runs in the Capital to the Third Prince! I'll also personally go to him with my daughter to apologize! Please give us a chance to repent!"
Chen Huo did as best as he could, all to make the Emperor calm his anger and free his daughter!
The Emperor was also slightly surprised at the compensation offered by Chen Huo. The Alchemy Business made up to twenty percent of the Chen Family's total income! Half of that was ten percent of their total income, which wasn't small by any means!
Hearing this, the Emperor's gaze slightly softened. He was somewhat happy with Chen Huo's attitude. He was a wise man who knew how to deal with the situation.
Moreover, it wasn't as if he personally wanted to kill the precious heir of the Chen Family either. That wasn't good for the future growth of the Empire.
"This is the last time I'll forgive this! If it happens next time, then..."
The Emperor didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood his meaning. The Third Prince was his reverse scale!
Unfortunately, no one understood why he favored his useless Third Son so much! Almost everyone thought that Chen Rouyin was innocent, but the Emperor didn't care when it came to his Third Son!
The Emperor's attitude toward his Third Son had been the biggest mystery for many people! In fact, not a single person knew why it was the case!
It was said that the Third Prince's mother was an ordinary concubine of the Emperor who didn't have any family backing her. Moreover, she was said to have died during childbirth. As if it wasn't strange enough, the people who delivered the Third Prince also died the same night!
Other than the Emperor, no one who witnessed the Third Prince's birth was left alive!