Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
After eating the cake, Li Jian Cheng withdrew. In the following days, everyone waited anxiously for the Emperor to take his last breath, but the Emperor, a man of martial background, proved to be more resilient than anyone had anticipated.
No longer entangled with Chen and Cai, under the careful care of the imperial physicians, he even showed signs of gradual recovery.
This left the Crown Prince's faction with somewhat grim expressions, but no one dared to voice any complaints; no one wanted to bear the blame that might fall on the Crown Prince.
However, it must be noted that our Crown Prince had developed a slight infatuation with the stunningly beautiful Chen and Cai. Both hailing from noble families, they were unwilling to serve both father and son but also did not dare to act against the Crown Prince; they could only politely refuse and evade him.
The Crown Prince felt disappointed, while Liu Shu and others seemed to have found a glimmer of hope. Yet they knew that mere whispers would no longer shake the established order.
With the Crown Prince holding the upper hand, there was no rush on his part. Meanwhile, Liu Shu and others, who had already been in despair, found themselves with a chance to breathe as they attended to the Emperor daily.
Everyone understood that once the Emperor passed away, they would inevitably face a thorough reckoning.
One day, as the Emperor lay on his couch, Left Minister Yang Su and Minister of Personnel Liu Shu were keeping him company while discussing matters. The Crown Prince had gone to handle memorials sent from Capital City.
As a eunuch came in to deliver medicine, a piece of paper unexpectedly slipped from his sleeve and fluttered to the ground. It caught the Emperor's eye; he recognized it as the Crown Prince's handwriting.
The Emperor's heart trembled as he gestured for it to be handed over. The eunuch nervously picked it up and presented it. Yang Jian quickly glanced over it; it was clearly a message from the Crown Prince urging His Majesty to take all of his medicine and outlining how to handle affairs after his passing in order to stabilize court matters.
While he could overlook the latter two points, the matter regarding the medicine filled him with fear and anger. He forcefully swatted away the medicine bowl and coughed several times before sternly demanding, "Who sent you to deliver this letter? Who was it meant for?"
The eunuch turned pale as he looked towards Yang Su behind him. Yang Su furrowed his brow at Liu Shu before bowing to the Emperor and saying, "Your Majesty, I do not know what is written in that letter nor who would send such a fool to deliver it."
"This is clearly an attempt to frame me; I ask for Your Majesty's discernment!"
The Emperor calmed down slightly, but just then, loud arguing erupted outside, causing Yang Jian's head to throb. He ordered that those outside be brought in; he had made up his mind that regardless of the reason, someone would pay for this disturbance.
The newcomers included not only guards stationed at the palace gates but also maidservants from Chen and Cai's side. They rushed in and fell to their knees, crying loudly.
Yang Jian still valued Chen and Cai highly; suppressing his pain and anxiety, he asked, "What has happened?"
Yang Su interjected, "Your Majesty, I sense something is amiss. Moreover, Your Majesty's Dragon Body has yet to fully recover; it would be best to rest for a moment before investigating further."
But those two maidservants had already begun complaining to the Emperor: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has been disrespectful! The noble ladies can no longer bear to see Your Majesty; they are shedding tears and wish to leave first. We implore Your Majesty to take action on their behalf!"
Upon hearing this, darkness clouded the Emperor's vision as he choked on his breath. Fortunately, Liu Shu stepped forward to pat his chest and fed him a piece of ginseng that had been prepared earlier, allowing him to recover slightly.
Yang Jian's eyes were filled with rage, his pale face, already weakened, flushed red as blood surged within him. He angrily slammed his hand against the bed: "Beast, ungrateful son, how dare you deceive me like this!"
Yang Su spoke loudly, "Your Majesty, how can we determine the Crown Prince's guilt based on mere hearsay? We should summon His Highness the Crown Prince and inquire about the facts."
But at that moment, Yang Jian was consumed by a furious realization that his own son was so eager for his death and sought to usurp his consort.
"Dugu has betrayed me! We must not hand over the State to him. Summon the deposed Crown Prince and bring my legitimate eldest son, Yang Yong, here quickly!"
Liu Shu and Yuan Zeng hurriedly accepted the order and rushed outside, while Yang Su quietly stepped aside, casting a peculiar glance at the emperor.
This was not the gaze of a subject towards a ruler; Yang Jian seemed to recall something: "First, summon the Commander of the Imperial Guards to see me!"
As Liu Shu and Yuan Zeng left, those remaining in the hall acted as if they had heard nothing. Yang Su did not bow as he had before when receiving orders.
Yang Jian coughed several times before struggling to speak: "Yang Su, do you intend to rebel?"
"I dare not; I am loyal to the Sui Dynasty and its State."
"Then you shall summon the Imperial Guards. I will promote you to Minister of Rites and grant you authority in affairs, elevating you to Duke Chu."
The Left Minister was technically an official under the Minister of Rites. Since this dynasty had never had a Minister of Rites, the Left Minister became the head of the Ministry of Rites, effectively serving as Chancellor.
Yang Su felt tempted; if the emperor could live for a few more years, he would be willing to take a gamble. Perhaps he could replace Yang with Yang. Unfortunately, the emperor lacked that destiny.
"I cannot obey your command; currently, the Crown Prince is the State Protector of the Sui Dynasty. Your Majesty, you truly should not act this way."
…
"Whoosh." An arrow grazed Liu Shu's cheek, instantly drawing several lines of blood. Then came more arrows whistling through the air as Liu Shu's guards and eunuchs fell with cries of despair.
Li Jian Cheng lowered his bow, still trembling from tension, and rode up to Liu Shu. "Consort, why drag so many into this?"
"Li Jian Cheng, His Majesty has treated you well; your father and ancestors have also received great imperial favor. You..."
Li Jian Cheng waved his hand for them to restrain Liu Shu and silence him while he awaited judgment. At that moment, in the distance, Yang Guang approached with a group of guards; he already knew what had transpired.
Seeing this, Li Jian Cheng dismounted and retrieved from Liu Shu's arms a decree sealed with a jade seal but did not open it for inspection. Instead, he held it high above his head.
Yang Guang took the imperial edict and opened it, glancing at it briefly before his expression darkened. He shot a cold glance at Liu Shu and then said to Li Jian Cheng, "The Emperor has promoted Chen to Madam Xuanhua and Cai to Consort Rong. Go deliver the decree."
"Yes."
Li Jian Cheng, feeling no need to request the edict, went directly to the rear palace to convey the message. Meanwhile, Yang Guang had already begun issuing orders to apprehend Liu Shu and others. The court ladies who had been serving in the hall were also confined in another palace, forbidden from moving about freely.
He then strode into the Emperor's chamber, where Yang Jian had already sensed that something was amiss and began to regret his earlier decisions.
Having seen the edict, Yang Guang was not inclined to believe that Liu Shu had acted alone in forging it. With their relationship strained to this point, who would dare trust the other?
Yang Jian looked at his son, who entered with a gloomy demeanor, and asked, "Do you wish to commit patricide?"
Yang Guang shook his head. "I would not dare."
Yang Jian sighed in relief. "It was merely a schemer sowing discord. My son, send someone to retrieve Liu Shu."
"Liu Shu is just outside the hall."
"That is good, that is good."
Comment 0 Comment Count