Chapter 113 (End of the Main Text) (1)

Soon Wan'er washed her hands and came over.

Yan Qiushu also put a small stool for her to stand on.

Wan'er wasn't very old, only eight years old, so she treated this like a child playing with mud. After everything was ready, she started playing with the mud. Even though Yan Qiushu had taught her the method, every time she squeezed out a line...

Yan Qiushu was so annoyed by what she saw that she simply stood on the other side and joined in.

Shui Xian struggled to find a gap, scooped up the fried meatballs and filtered the oil.

When the first meatball was made, Dongdong, who had nothing to do, was the first to clamor for a taste, so Shuixuan naturally gave it to him.

The crispy meatballs do not need any seasoning at all. When you bite into the thin crispy outer layer, you will find the hot meat filling. The fat and lean meat is fragrant but not greasy or dry. Even people who usually hate eating fatty meat can eat a few bites.

The salty, fragrant and slightly numb taste makes the greasy feeling disappear.

The meatballs were eaten by sticking them with chopsticks. Dongdong nibbled on them, finishing the thin and crispy outer skin, and then ate the meat filling in one bite. Soon, another meal appeared in front of him.

He blinked and took a step back in resistance: "It doesn't look delicious!"

Wan'er pouts unhappily: "It's delicious. If you don't believe me, try it!"

"No!" Dongdong shook his head quickly. The thing was about the same length as his finger and as wide as three fingers. It was fried into a dark yellow color. Because of the soy sauce inside, it was a little brown. At first glance... it was really not that good.

How can I even muster up any appetite?

Wan'er didn't expect that, and turned around angrily and handed it to Xiao Pingsong: "Brother Pingsong, this is for you to eat!"

Xiao Pingsong was also eating meatballs, but he ate even faster. This was already the second one, and he had no interest in the one in Wan'er's hand: "I don't want any, you eat it yourself."

Wan'er's eyes immediately turned red.

Yan Qiushu couldn't bear to see such a well-behaved child like Wan'er cry, so she gritted her teeth and said, "I'll eat it. Wan'er's cooking is the best!"

Wan'er burst into laughter and put the strip of meat to Yan Qiushu's mouth.

Actually, the taste is almost the same, but the shape...

Yan Qiushu kept a blank face and tried to ignore some strange thoughts. She endured the heat and ate three or two bites. Facing Wan'er's expectant eyes, she nodded and said, "It's delicious! Wan'er makes it even better!"

Wan'er smiled with satisfaction and said shyly, "Then Wan'er will do it for Sister Shu again."

"...No need, you can take the rest back and give it to your mother, your grandmother, and your uncle..." Yan Qiushu said with a smile.

Wan'er's eyes lit up: "That's right!"

Yan Qiushu secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Then we have spring rolls next. Wan'er, go wash your hands and help knead the dough."

Wan'er said crisply: "Okay!"

The method of making spring rolls is also very simple, mainly involving spring roll wrappers and fillings.

Yan Qiushu was making spring roll wrappers. After the wrappers were made, the dough would rest. While the dough was resting, it was time for everyone to share the meatballs. After everyone was full and the dough was ready, they started to knead the dough.

Until the end, add oil, stack layer by layer, roll the dough into a thin skin, and steam it in a pot.

Because of the oil, the skin can be easily torn apart. After tearing it apart, spread it on a plate, put the fillings in the middle, mix meat and vegetables, overlap it, and roll it up, and a small spring roll is ready.

Before, squeezing meatballs required skills, but now it doesn’t require any skills at all. Just follow Yan Qiushu’s steps.

Xiao Pingsong does the best job, he is very methodical and sometimes even better than Yan Qiushu.

Once all the spring rolls are done, you can put them in the frying pan.

The fried spring rolls are rectangular and you can only bite half of them at a time. After biting them open, the filling inside will be revealed. There are so many fried foods, but each one tastes different.

Spring rolls are even more so. The thin spring roll wrappers are fried crispy after being frying in oil. Salt needs to be added when making the spring roll wrappers, so they taste salty. The fillings inside depend on your taste.

When Yan Qiushu cooked it, she added more vegetables and only a little meat. When you eat it in one bite, your mouth is full of fungus and carrots. It is so delicious.

Compared to purely meaty foods like meatballs, spring rolls are obviously more popular with children.

As soon as it came out of the pot, Wan'er and Dongdong sat there and refused to leave.

Yan Qiushu placed a cup of tangerine peel fruit tea next to them to relieve their greasiness and let them eat and drink. Xiao Pingsong preferred meatballs. He sat next to the two children and ate one meatball at a time until his cheeks were stuffed with it.

When Yan Qiushu was cooking, Wan'er fed her some food. Now she couldn't eat anything, so she drank some tangerine peel fruit tea.

As it was getting dark, she had the casings put away and the children had to leave.

When I left, I took some leftovers with me, feeling as satisfied as a little mouse that had stolen some meat.

Yan Qiushu laughed at what she saw.

Within two days, the casings had not been dried enough when the September dividend came out. Yan Qiushu was so scared of the dividend of nearly 100,000 that she didn't dare to touch it and had someone send it back.

With such a large dividend, it is definitely not just pure profit, it should be the franchise fee.

Xiao Huaiqi has always been very efficient. I guess he should have opened more than a dozen fried chicken shops in other parts of Kyoto. The franchise fee alone is quite high.

But she couldn't accept it. She proposed the franchise fee mainly because she wanted the Xiao family to make more money. If the money fell into her hands, it would be a bit redundant. She didn't have any copyright fees, after all, the things were not created by her.

Yan Qiushu was determined not to take it, but Xiao Huaiqi was determined to give it to her. Both sides even had to make several trips to get the money. In the end, Yan Qiushu won and the money stayed.

The servant said: "...Master, next time we will listen to the Lord."

Xiao Huaiqi: "..."

He was also helpless. He wanted to give the child more dowry, but the child was unwilling to accept it, which made him, a man who was more than ten years older than him, feel a little embarrassed.

After receiving the dividends, time seemed to pass a lot faster.

The situation in Kyoto became increasingly serious. Both sides were constantly testing the waters, but nothing really happened. The old emperor was bedridden and unable to attend court, and he no longer cared about what was happening in the court.

It was all thanks to Prince Chang, Prince Shun, the Fourth Prince and those ministers who maintained the relationship.

But because of this, the ministers all took sides openly.

Among them, there were surprisingly many people who supported King Chang.

Because of this, Concubine Lu became more and more anxious.

Yan Qiushu could feel an imminent anxiety from the information she had heard. With the arrival of October, the potatoes had another good harvest and sausages were hung all over the farm, and her anxiety was relieved a little.

With enough food and silver, the army can hold out for a while longer. With Xiao Huaiting's military strength, it will not be difficult to escape unscathed!

Yan Qiushu was very confident about this and was obsessed with cooking all day long.

By the end of October, when the peppers were ready for harvest, I spent a large sum of money to buy beef tallow to make hot pot base and marinade ingredients.

Also at the end of this month, the State of Qi sent troops and occupied two cities on the border of the Great Zhou at lightning speed. When the battle report came, everyone in the court tacitly turned their attention to Xiao Huaiting.

The conscription lasted seven days, and Xiao Huaiting set out in early November, accompanied by Xiao Huaiwu.

Facing the behemoth Qi State, which had once left General Xiao and Xiao Huaiqi with only a pair of legs, he took away most of the troops, leaving only tens of thousands of imperial guards in Kyoto.

After Yan Qiushu sent someone to deliver all the things she had prepared, she was taken to the Xiao family by people sent by the Xiao family.

Just like the days after the Third Prince's rebellion last time, the entire Xiao Mansion was on alert, and all servants were not allowed to go out easily. The food delivered every day had to be checked repeatedly before it could be eaten.

Last time, Yan Qiushu didn't feel anything, but this time, she couldn't sleep well at night.

Occasionally, when I fall asleep, I have nightmares.

He wanted to ask Madam Xiao about the specific arrangements, but he was afraid that there might be eavesdroppers, so he kept it to himself.

Every morning when I had dinner with Mrs. Xiao, I yawned all the time. I didn’t want to eat the spicy snacks that I usually liked, and I had no appetite to cook anything else.

More than ten days passed like this, until the Xiao family army fought the first battle with the Qi army and a small victory report came. The cheers of the people reached their ears, and the tense atmosphere in the Xiao Mansion finally relaxed a little.

Yan Qiushu herself was still worried.

Seeing her like this, Madam Xiao waved the maid away and said with a smile, "Didn't you eat and sleep well last time? Why are you so worried this time?"

Yan Qiushu said with a bitter face: "I knew it would not succeed that time. Now if Prince Shun and Prince Huai join forces, it's not certain. Besides, all the troops in Kyoto City have been taken away..."

This is their open conspiracy.

But it was so obvious that they could not object, and they had no one to rely on, so they could not do anything.

Madam Xiao said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, nothing will happen!"

Yan Qiushu nodded quietly: "I hope so."

She looked at the others and wondered how they could be so calm?

Xie Qingyun smiled at her with a familiar calmness: "If it succeeds, then everything will be fine. If it fails, mother will definitely not let anything happen to us, right?"

Xiao Huaiqi smiled lightly: "After so many years, the Xiao family has made some preparations. Protecting you will not be a problem."

They are all old, weak, women and children. It is much easier for them to survive than for people like them who can control power.

Yan Qiushu felt a little relieved, but not by much, because she knew that if they failed, the other members of the Xiao family might be able to survive, but Xiao Huaiqi and Madam Xiao might not, and Xiao Huaiting was even less likely to survive.

She cares more about this.

But when she saw this, she suddenly remembered, why haven't she seen Xiao Huaiya and Xiao Huaiyu for several days?

That night, something happened in the palace.

The Xiao family's residence was close to the imperial city, and there was a lot of noise, which they all heard. Yan Qiushu still couldn't sleep much at night, and woke up at the slightest noise. Listening to the noise over there, she was taken to Madam Xiao.

The charcoal stove in the room was burning, and the temperature was just right. She was still covered with a thick blanket, but her hands and feet were cold.

But even so, Yan Qiushu said nothing, as if she felt nothing.

Mrs. Xiao, Xie Qingyun, Xiao Huaiqi and others were also around her. They all looked solemn and no longer had the calmness and composure they had during the day. They were still very nervous. Success or failure depended on this one night.

Someone from the Xiao Mansion went out to gather information, and they kept coming back to report: "The imperial guards are guarding the palace gates, and outsiders cannot enter."

"It seems a fight has broken out in the palace. Without an imperial decree, the ministers are guarding the palace gates and dare not enter."

"The Minister of War arrived with his men and said that the remaining half of the military token had been stolen..."

"Prince Jin has brought his imperial guards to surround the Xiao Mansion. We can't get out!"

The Xiao Mansion was surrounded!

When Yan Qiushu heard this, her eyelids twitched and cold sweat broke out on her palms.

Madam Xiao's expression remained unchanged, as if she had already known it: "Forget it, just wait."

She looked at Yan Qiushu, her sons and daughters-in-law, and smiled reassuringly, "The mansion is protected by retired veterans of the Xiao family. They dare not act rashly. We have made all the necessary preparations. The rest is to do our best and leave the rest to fate."

Yan Qiushu hugged Dongdong tightly and nodded obediently. She experienced the horror of the power transition in this feudal dynasty firsthand. She could not say anything at this time. If the Xiao family could not withstand it, she naturally could not withstand it either.

Fortunately, she did not participate directly.

I just don’t know if this night will ever end?

Imperial Palace.

Unlike the calmness of last night, the palace was now in chaos, with the smell of blood filling the air. Countless palace maids and eunuchs had died, and the rest had all hidden.

King Huai brought a large number of imperial guards to control all the rebels and approached the emperor's bedroom step by step, which had the most guards.

Zhou Zejing met up with him along the way with another group of men and reported, "Prince Chang seemed to have made preparations. When I led my men there, the building was already empty."

"Did someone leak the news?" King Huai wiped the blood off his face and asked in a deep voice.

Zhou Zejing shook his head: "Impossible, we only decided this afternoon. I guess they noticed it and ran away immediately. I have left a thousand people to search the whole city. But it's okay. As long as we control the power, it doesn't matter if Prince Chang is alive. The Xiao family is in our hands. Xiao Huaiting values his family more than his father does."

They had already decided to rebel as soon as they heard the news that Xiao Huaiting was fighting with the State of Qi, but it was unknown when exactly Xiao Huaiting would fight with the State of Qi, so no one knew when they would rebel.

But Prince Chang, who had just attended court during the day, was nowhere to be seen, which seemed very strange.

King Huai nodded reluctantly. He could understand. His royal brother had always been smart. If he hadn't sought death six years ago, this scene would never have happened!

He waved his hand and said loudly: "Noble Concubine Lu held the emperor hostage. I am late in coming to your rescue. I beg your forgiveness, father!"

"yes!"

Then all the imperial guards strode forward, holding swords stained with blood.

Concubine Lu, who had never thought that Prince Huai would be the first to rebel, looked at the murderous group and, under the protection of her guards, stumbled to the old emperor and cried, "Your Majesty, Prince Huai has rebelled!"

The old emperor had already been awakened by this unexpected change. He did not feel the slightest bit upset about it. Instead, he smiled and said, "Good news, good news!"

"Your Majesty, don't you want the fifth prince to be the crown prince?" Concubine Lu was not expecting his reaction like this. She was stunned and asked in a shrill voice.

She was also prepared for her son to rebel, but she didn't expect it to happen today. She didn't have much on hand, only the military token of the Minister of War, which she had exchanged with the Minister of War. If the fifth son became the emperor, the position of empress could only be the daughter of the Hong family.

But before the things were used, they were cheated by the always obedient King Huai!

The old emperor pushed her away with disdain and said coldly, "My kingdom is for anyone who has the ability to take it. If the fourth brother has the ability, it doesn't matter if he takes it!"

They are all my sons anyway.

The fourth brother wanted to kill Prince Chang before, which means he had been enemies with the Xiao family for a long time. Now that he has ascended the throne, Prince Chang may die, and the Xiao family will certainly not survive.

That's enough!

The old emperor was satisfied, but Concubine Lu was in disbelief. She had never thought that the man she had always coaxed around would actually think this way?!

Concubine Lu was anxious and said angrily, "What about Lao Wu? Your Majesty, you can't do this!"

The old emperor asked in reply, "Then what are you going to do? We've already come this far!"

Concubine Lu's breathing stopped and she was unable to answer.

Yes, it has come to this, what can she do? Blame her for not being prepared from the beginning, who knew that the beast King Huai had such evil intentions?

Soon, the sound of fighting could be heard outside the door. After a while, the sound disappeared. The bedroom door opened, and the smell of blood wafted in. Prince Huai, dressed in armor, strode in, a smile on his handsome and gentle face. "Father, Mother Concubine Lu, good evening."

Concubine Lu's legs went weak and she dared not utter a word, cold sweat breaking out on her back.

The person in front of her had been tortured by her countless times.

His mother was tortured to death by her.

When she was unhappy, she would smash a vase and make the woman kneel on the broken pieces and kowtow to her. It was a common occurrence. Even King Huai was beaten by her.

Now the tide has turned...

The old emperor smiled and said, "Fourth Brother, you did a great job. This is what an emperor should do!"

Is that how it should be?

Are you so cruel?

King Huai looked at him sarcastically, without a trace of respect on his face.

The old emperor felt something was wrong, but he couldn't figure out what it was. He continued to instruct, "I will pass the throne to you. I only hope you can spare Lao Wu's life. That child is innocent and has done nothing wrong. Don't hurt him. I will take the imperial concubine away, and I must not let the Xiao family go..."

"Hahaha..." King Huai laughed out loud, and his handsome face became very mean.

The old emperor paused and looked at him in confusion.

King Huai said softly, "Don't pass the throne to me. I don't want it."

The old emperor paused, looking a little surprised.

The smile on King Huai's face grew even more intense. "Don't worry, none of your sons will inherit your throne. The second and fifth sons have been hunted down by the soldiers I sent. If nothing unexpected happens, they will die soon. I will use their heads as a sacrifice to you. I hope you will like it."

The old emperor stared at him, his hoarse voice filled with disbelief: "You...you are crazy!"

"Whatever you say, I won't take this position anyway. I will give it to the Prince of Jin. He really wants it. So you see, you wanted so many women and gave birth to so many sons, but in the end, none of them was there to see you off to the end. How great is that..." King Huai was smiling, but his eyes revealed madness. This was his revenge. He had planned for a long time and finally succeeded. From now on, he would no longer have to endure the torture of nightmares.

He whispered, "All your sons, go and apologize to my mother! I had already killed King Xuan before he came, and it will be almost over soon... I don't know if you will be able to see him again..."

"No! No..." The old emperor's face gradually turned red as he spoke, and he struggled to get up.

Although he didn't care what future generations thought of him, he was unwilling to hand over the throne he had fought so hard for to someone else's son! Wouldn't that be making things easier for someone else?!

Not to mention the son of King Jin!

The Prince of Jin had been suppressed by him all his life. How could his son become the emperor? How could he take his place?

But he couldn't struggle. He was already terminally ill, and the fact that he was still alive was the result of the imperial physician's strenuous efforts. After struggling twice, his body fell limply on the bed again.

The old emperor's face twisted: "Old Four, calm down!"

Seeing this, Zhou Zejing stepped forward with a smile and said, "Uncle, my nephew will definitely sit firmly on the throne in the future and work for the welfare of the people. You can rest assured."

Seeing him, the old emperor's eyes widened: "Come here! Kill him! Kill him!"

He shouted loudly, but no one in the bedroom paid any attention to him. After he struggled until he vomited blood, his cloudy old eyes widened and stared at King Huai fiercely and terrifyingly.

Prince Huai waved his hand, and someone restrained Concubine Lu while another person wrote the imperial edict. He dictated it, and the old emperor's chief eunuch wrote it on his behalf, passing the throne to Zhou Zejing, the crown prince of Jin...

Finally, the seal was stamped and the old emperor’s fingerprint was pressed on it.

The old emperor refused to move, and King Huai said coldly, "Use force!"

The chief eunuch had tears in his old eyes. He gritted his teeth and pried out his fingers, stained them with red mud, and printed them on the imperial edict.

This time, the old emperor seemed to be completely stimulated. He spat out blood again, his body softened, and he closed his eyes.

The chief eunuch shuddered and immediately checked his breath. Then he collapsed beside the dragon bed: "Your Majesty has fainted! Your Majesty has fainted!"

Concubine Lu, who was staying in the corner, was so frightened that her whole body became weak and her eyes were filled with despair. She fainted at this moment... But it was no use if she didn't faint. She felt a black screen in front of her eyes.

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion outside, and the next second, a personal guard came over to report: "Your Highness, His Royal Highness Prince Chang and His Royal Highness Prince Shun are coming with their troops!"

The despair in Concubine Lu's eyes disappeared, but the old emperor did not move on the dragon bed.

The report from the personal guards made King Huai and Zhou Zejing, who were originally confident of victory, change their expressions and quickly ran out to check.

I saw a group of people fighting with their own people. Looking at their number, there were actually quite a lot of them!

Among them, Prince Chang and Prince Shun were protected in the crowd.

There were two female generals in the crowd wearing armor and holding long swords. They stabbed accurately and countless imperial guards fell around them.

"Where did they get the troops?" King Huai said sternly, "Didn't Xiao Huaiting take all the troops away to avenge his father?!"

Zhou Zejing was also very puzzled, but even more so, he was filled with shock and anger: "I don't know either. These soldiers shouldn't be here!" After a pause, he recognized them: "That's Xiao Huaiya! The fifth young lady of the Xiao family!"

"That's not right! Where do these soldiers come from? Didn't they say that all the people in the Xiao family who can lead troops have gone to the front line?!" King Huai roared.

They all watched it with their own eyes, because they were afraid of any accidents. They did not wait for Xiao Huaiting to die. They just made sure that there were enough troops over there and that the two powerful generals Xiao Huaiting and Xiao Huaiwu were not in Kyoto before they led people to rebel. And how did the fifth brother get involved with the second brother?

But the situation before them forced them to admit that these two people were not only prepared to escape, but they had even prepared their troops!

Amid their shock and anger, the winner gradually became apparent.

When Prince Huai saw this, his eyes became fierce and he said, "Bring Concubine Lu here."

Someone immediately went over and brought Concubine Lu over.

Prince Huai held his sword across Concubine Lu's neck and shouted, "Stop! Otherwise, I will cut Concubine Lu into pieces!"

There was some commotion among the crowd, but soon King Chang gave the order: "Don't stop!"

Everyone returned to normal and continued fighting.

They had obviously undergone long-term training, and their skills were superior to those of the imperial guards, and they had the upper hand in battle. As time passed, more and more imperial guards on King Huai's side were killed.

These soldiers are not ordinary soldiers!

It’s the real Xiao family army!

When King Huai realized this situation, his body shook. Although all the soldiers recruited by the Xiao family could become the Xiao family army, the real Xiao family army was still the group trained by the old Duke Zhenguo, with only 3,000 people.

Every time there was a war, a group of these 3,000 people would be reduced, and then top students would be selected to fill their positions. Their salaries and burial expenses were all paid by the Xiao family themselves. Over time, the royal family seemed to have forgotten about this team.

But now they appear again! And at such a critical moment!

Prince Huai's expression became increasingly grim, and he finally couldn't help himself and slashed his sword across Concubine Lu's body.

"Ah—" Concubine Lu screamed miserably. A bloody wound on her arm caused her to be unable to stand up due to the pain. She screamed, "Stop! Stop! Do you want to watch your mother die in front of you?!"

"Stop!" King Chang said.

Everyone stopped and quickly divided into two distinct formations, looking at each other with hostility.

King Huai took a deep breath, his face trembling. He looked behind him and then at Zhou Zejing.

The latter also looked a little excited: "Your Highness, you can't give up halfway!"

Although I have taken revenge on the old emperor, there is still a grudge that has not been taken!

King Huai uttered two words between his teeth: "Don't worry."

He waved his hand and led his men forward, and the imperial guards took the initiative to make way for him.

Prince Chang and Prince Shun on the opposite side also stepped forward. The two sides stood ten meters apart and looked at each other.

Behind Prince Chang, Xiao Huaiya and Xiao Huaiyu had just experienced a fierce killing and were taking the time to rest. Their fair and beautiful faces were still stained with blood.

The held hostage Concubine Lu looked at her son, her eyes red with relief, but she was also a little frightened when she thought of this situation. She had fallen into the hands of King Huai, and with the hatred of her mother's murder standing in the way, King Huai would not let her go.

Can she live to enjoy the honor of being the queen mother?

"Stop, I will leave you a way out." King Chang looked at his younger brother and cousin and said softly.

King Huai sneered and said sarcastically, "Stop?" He looked at King Shun who remained silent. Compared to the other princes, King Shun was the best looking, with red lips and white teeth. He could be described as beautiful, but at this moment the young man's beautiful and gorgeous brocade clothes were stained with blood, and he no longer looked as noble as he once was.

He coaxed, "Old Five, kill Prince Chang and I'll release your mother, how about that?"

call out!

Everyone looked over and stared at him.

Prince Shun's face twitched, and he said in a deep voice, "You won't."

Prince Huai curled his lips in a smile, and slashed the sword across Concubine Lu again, this time slicing through her belly. He said in a gentle tone, "Do you really want to watch your mother die in front of you?"

When her stomach was cut, Concubine Lu didn't even feel any pain, but she was still panicking. Soon, severe pain hit her, and her face lost all color. She curled up on the ground in pain and said in a hoarse voice, "Old Five, do it! Hurry up!"

Prince Chang sighed and said, "Noble Concubine, please commit suicide."

Concubine Lu shook her head without thinking: "I won't! I want to live!"

She was afraid of death and didn't want to die at all. She just wanted to live well and see the person who had hurt her kneeling at her feet. If she couldn't do that, she would die with regrets!

Prince Chang stopped talking. If he chose to give in for Concubine Lu, he would be sorry for the deaths of so many soldiers, and also sorry for Xiao Huaiting who left the 3,000 Xiao family soldiers in Kyoto and led the ordinary army to fight against Qi.

Prince Shun smiled bitterly, raised his hand and drew out his sword. The white sword was not stained with a speck of blood. Although he was also standing in the center of the killing, he had never pulled out the sword because he was protected.

At this moment, when the long sword came out, the Xiao family army stared at him with fierce eyes, as if as long as he caused harm to King Chang and others, these people would come and kill him.

Prince Huai's eyes lit up slightly, as did Zhou Zejing and Concubine Lu, all staring at him closely.

Prince Shun seemed not to feel it. He held the sword, his eyes fixed on his mother for a few moments, and then turned his wrist.

Under everyone's expectant gaze, he decisively stabbed himself in the abdomen with a sword.

"You are crazy!" Concubine Lu never thought that this sword was a suicide. She wanted to run over in shock and anger, but was held back. She could only watch her son stab her through and then pull out the sword. Blood flowed out from the hole in his abdomen. Prince Shun was unable to support himself and was about to fall to the side.

Prince Chang raised his hand to catch him, his face full of regret, but he said nothing.

Concubine Lu has done too many evil things and killed too many people. Even if he ascends the throne, Concubine Lu will still die. Today, Prince Shun comes here. It is his duty as a son to stand by his mother.

As a son, he could not stand by and watch his mother being bullied, but he would not let King Huai succeed for his mother's sake.

"Thank you," Prince Shun said weakly. He steadied himself and raised his hand to strike again. The pain made cold sweat break out on his face. He paused for a long moment before trying to speak to the person opposite him, "Mother, you gave birth to me. I can't save you, so I will suffer with you. If this time, mother and I die here, that's also...good."

"Zhou Zejin!" Concubine Lu was stunned. She never expected her son to do this. Her voice broke as she screamed sharply.

Prince Shun, however, looked calm and smiled at her, as if to comfort her.

Concubine Lu realized that he was not threatening anyone, not joking, and not acting impulsively. He had simply decided to do this long ago. He would not kill Prince Chang for his own sake.

Her legs went limp and she knelt on the ground with a bitter smile. However, she could no longer bear the heartache for her son and began to struggle desperately to get away from this group of people, but she couldn't. At this moment, she finally forgot her ambition and hatred and knelt down in front of King Huai: "Please let me go, I was wrong, I know I was wrong, I won't go against you anymore, just let me go! Please..."

Prince Huai and Zhou Zejing's expressions also changed. Even when Concubine Lu knelt and begged for mercy, they did not respond. Prince Huai kicked her away and said sternly, "Do you really want to watch your mother being skinned alive by me?!"

Prince Shun pursed his lips and gave a weak smile.

King Huai was no longer as naive as before and thought that he would agree.

Sure enough, Prince Shun whispered, "When I die, I won't be able to see."

"Coward!" King Huai said hatefully.

Prince Shun lowered his eyes and said nothing more.

He was indeed a coward. He did not have enough ability to stop his mother and could only watch everything develop like this. Since he was very young, he had been a coward when he watched his mother torture those concubines. He deserved to be in this situation.

Prince Chang helped his brother sit down and waved his hand. The imperial physician who had been prepared came over with medicine to treat the external injuries, but was pushed away by Prince Shun.

"Be obedient!" King Chang said in a deep voice.

But seeing the persistence in Prince Shun's eyes, he had to have someone hold his arm to prevent him from moving, then he held him down and applied medicine to him.

Prince Chang stood up again and looked across at Concubine Lu. His voice was slightly lowered: "Are you really not going to commit suicide?"

This time, Concubine Lu didn't say a word, but just stared at her son, with resentment, hatred, but also regret.

She resented her son for being useless, not daring to make decisions, and unwilling to fight for the throne, otherwise they would not have fallen into such a passive situation.

But now it has come to this. For her, her son would rather stab himself twice. Those two stabs are enough to kill him!

After all, this was the child she had carried for ten months and protected for more than ten years.

Concubine Lu gritted her teeth and tried to charge at the sword of the guard beside her, but King Huai grabbed the man in the first place.

Upon seeing this, King Chang raised his hand.

The war that had just subsided broke out again. King Huai's face changed drastically and he quickly took his men to hide backwards.

But this time, King Chang did not give him time to react. With a wink, Xiao Huaiyu and Xiao Huaiya quickly stepped forward, covering each other and going straight into the heart of the enemy. The two sides were only ten meters apart, and King Huai was carrying someone and could not walk fast, so he was caught up by them in a short while.

"Puchi--" The sound of a long sword piercing into the abdomen was heard. King Huai turned back angrily, but he didn't expect that another sword would come at him immediately. His neck felt painful and blood spurted out.

Seeing this, Concubine Lu struggled to break free from his restraints and threw herself on Xiao Huaiya: "Save me! Save me!"

It’s better not to die if you can!

Xiao Huaiya and the others were ready to retreat. If they were hit, they would run quickly, otherwise they would be easily injured by the time the enemy reacted. However, she was suddenly slowed down by such a heavy burden. Her face changed, and her delicate eyes were filled with rage: "Fuck you!"

Seeing this, Xiao Huaiyu turned around and pulled his sister, then saw Zhou Zejing react and stab him with a sword.

But this time Xiao Huaiya leaned forward, and the sword pierced Concubine Lu on her back: "Ah!"

Zhou Zejing felt annoyed when he saw this, and drew his sword to attack again.

But this was enough for Xiao Huaiya to run away. She raised her foot and kicked, then pushed back with force.

"Hmm!" Concubine Lu only felt a pain on her back, and the next second the world was spinning, and then she saw her son.

"How are you?" Concubine Lu wanted to see her son, but she herself was covered in wounds and unable to move, so she could only ask weakly.

Prince Shun hadn't expected Xiao Huaiya to be able to save his own mother. Just as he showed a look of surprise, he looked at the blood on Concubine Lu's body and couldn't smile anymore: "Imperial Physician! Treat her quickly!"

The imperial physician nodded obediently and smeared the powder on Concubine Lu's belly. After pouring a little, he exclaimed in surprise: "This wound is poisonous!"

The blood that should have flowed out was bright red, but her abdomen was actually dark red. He then looked at Concubine Lu's shoulder, and sure enough, it was also dark red: "Prince Huai's sword is coated with poison!"

Prince Shun's face was blank, but his mind was clearer than ever. It turned out that from the first moment he cut the knife, Prince Huai had never wanted to let Concubine Lu live.

After all, the people he hated the most were probably the old emperor and Concubine Lu.

Along with the words of the imperial physician, a loud cry echoed from the battlefield: "His Royal Highness Prince Huai is dead! The Crown Prince of Jin is dead! Surrender immediately and you will be spared!"

Seeing this, the imperial guards quickly dropped their weapons and chose to surrender.

The sky was gradually turning white, and this palace coercion came to an end at this moment!

When the news reached the Xiao Mansion, the imperial guards outside the gate had already been driven away.

The person who got the news came to report immediately: "Prince Chang has won. Prince Huai and the Crown Prince of Jin are both dead. Their heads are hung on the city wall for public display. Your Majesty has fainted from Prince Huai's anger. Concubine Lu and His Royal Highness Prince Shun are seriously injured. The imperial physician has been summoned to treat them..."

Win!

Madam Xiao smiled sincerely and nodded with tears in her eyes: "Okay! Okay! Rewards!"

Nanny Huang was deeply moved and took the red envelope that had been prepared long ago and gave it as a reward.

Xie Qingyun happily held Xiao Huaiqi's hand: "It's okay, it's okay! I live again!"

Yan Qiushu was also so surprised that she almost jumped up and down. Dongdong, who had been quiet all night, was awakened by her overly strong hug. He rubbed his eyes drowsily and asked in a childish voice, "Did we win?"

"Yes!" Yan Qiushu answered loudly: "We won! We are all safe!"

His tone was more excited than ever before.

Suddenly, a scream came from the side, and Xie Qingyun, who was very excited just now, fell into Xiao Huaiqi's arms. The blush caused by the excitement was still on her face, but her eyes were closed.

The usually calm man panicked at this moment. He couldn't walk and could only support his wife. He looked at his mother helplessly: "Mom! Ayun fainted! What should I do?"

Madam Xiao looked at him and was immediately shocked. "Hurry up and find Doctor Yao! Go!"

A servant ran out in a frenzy, shouting from a distance, "Doctor Yao! Doctor Yao!"

After about a cup of tea, Doctor Yao finally arrived. Seeing everyone's expressions, he became extremely cautious. He came over to take Xie Qingyun's pulse and held his breath.

Supporting his wife