The crown prince, having recovered from his grief, seemed stunned by the shock.

Gu Jiangli said with a smile, "I think the emperor also wants him dead, Your Highness. Why don't we grant the emperor's wish?"

Her eyes shone like stars. Prince Yu was stunned for a moment, then he understood what Gu Jiangli meant.

His wife was straightforward and decisive, but not so cruel as to kill an innocent child of about ten years old.

So he readily agreed with an expression of approval, saying, "Indeed, the emperor is ruthless, sending his own son to his death. Let's grant his wish."

His gaze swept over the crowd of onlookers, who were already trembling with fear, and then he asked Gu Jiangli:

"And what about them? They know too much."

Gu Jiangli chuckled to herself. Prince Yu had already figured things out; there were some things he had already learned on his own without her having to teach him.

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone knelt down on the ground.

The younger brother in the lead spoke first:

"Your Highness, Your Highness! We won't say a single falsehood!"

Another person hurriedly added:

"If His Majesty asks, we... we'll just say that His Highness the Crown Prince was slow-witted and couldn't dodge, and that it has nothing to do with the Prince!"

"Yes, yes, we will listen to the Prince and Princess!"

......

Everyone chimed in, siding with Gu Jiangli and Prince Yu.

Gu Jiangli didn't find it strange.

After her analysis, she concluded that the emperor had long since transformed from a perfect figure into a ruthless and vicious ruler.

The consequences of a persona collapsing are disastrous.

The image of Prince Yu remains intact; he was merely someone who was plotted against and murdered by the emperor, and had no choice but to rebel.

Moreover, there are many old craftsmen who have been working in this mine since the time of Prince Yu's father. The wages for working here are much higher than those for manual labor outside. No one is willing to give up the Prince's formidable "gold mine".

They preferred to stand with Prince Yu, their former master, rather than with the emperor, their later master.

Gu Jiangli was very satisfied and looked at the Crown Prince with a smile in her eyes.

Everyone's stance is already very clear; now it's up to the crown prince.

The prince was covered in sweat. The scene before him made him feel that he was in even greater danger than when the mountain collapsed.

Nobody's on his side!

He thought about it for only a brief moment, and a decision immediately came to mind.

There's only one way to survive!

Since his father is determined to kill him, why should he continue to be his father's filial son?

He turned around and knelt down in front of Prince Yu and Gu Jiangli with a thud.

"Your Highness, today's events are my father's fault! He's the one who put us in danger; I had no idea!"

Prince Yu and Gu Jiangli remained silent, wanting to see what else the Crown Prince would say.

Immediately afterwards, in full view of everyone, the Crown Prince kowtowed three times towards the positions of Prince Yu and Gu Jiangli, and shouted:

"Please, Your Highness and Your Highness, accept me as your adopted son! From this day forward, I will only obey your commands! If you wish to overthrow my father's throne, I will have no complaints!"

Gu Jiangli was somewhat surprised.

The prince's decision was even more ruthless than she had imagined.

He originally thought that the Crown Prince would lower himself to become Prince Yu's lackey and follow his lead, in order to beg Prince Yu and himself to spare his life.

I never expected him to become Prince Yu's son!

She stared wide-eyed, silently seeking Prince Yu's opinion.

Prince Yu met her gaze, clearly somewhat surprised as well.

“Ahem…” Prince Yu coughed lightly, “There’s no need for that. The Princess Consort isn’t much older than you. It would be too unfair to her to be your mother.”

Gu Jiangli nodded repeatedly.

She was only ten years older than the Crown Prince; how could she possibly be his mother?

This is outrageous, no way!

Seeing that the two refused, the crown prince hurriedly said:

"Then... how about my sworn brother and sister-in-law? In any case, I will never again consider that cold-hearted man my father! He is no longer worthy of being my father!"

"As long as my sworn brother and sister-in-law are willing, I can become your younger brother. No matter what happens, I will stand by your side and never have any second thoughts!"

This crown prince is quite different from his previous composed image.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that his previous composed demeanor was formed under the emperor's coercion.

In reality, the mind of this still underage crown prince was no match for those old foxes.

Gu Jiangli and Prince Yu exchanged a glance, understanding each other's feelings.

"Your Highness, since the Crown Prince is so sincere, then we don't need to kill him, right? Given his loyalty to us, if he becomes emperor in the future, it should be very easy for him to appoint you as regent."

This was Gu Jiangli's plan.

She knew that Prince Yu had no intention of becoming emperor. Over the years, he had amassed enormous wealth, and given his cunning, he would have already rebelled if he wanted to.

He didn't take action because the emperor's throne held no appeal for him.

Like Gu Jiangli, he longed to be a carefree, idle tycoon.

"Prince Yu" is just a nominal title, while the Regent is different; he has real power.

Only with power in his possession can he maintain his immense wealth.

The Crown Prince instantly understood Gu Jiangli's words and quickly replied:

“Of course! If my sworn brother wants to be regent, then so be it! I will absolutely not object! With my sworn brother as regent, I couldn’t be happier!”

Prince Yu smiled at Gu Jiangli, but did not answer the Crown Prince's question. Instead, he lowered his head and spoke to the child in his arms.

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