Chapter 133 The Emperor Uncovers the Mystery

The emperor had a vague guess as to what Shi Yu was going to confess.

He waved his hand and said, "Tell me about it."

It probably means that he admitted that he had replaced Wei Qingyan's body. After all, after opening the coffin, it was still possible to tell whether the bones were male or female.

He also wanted to know where Shi Yu buried his eldest princess.

Shi Yu received the signal and said, "When I rushed to Huangshaling, I saw Xiao Yan using his last breath to detonate the thunder.

At first, I was so lost in the grief of her sacrifice that I didn't think much about why she had destroyed her own body. It wasn't until I personally sewed up her scars that I realized she was a woman.

"Didn't you know she was a girl?" The emperor's expression changed slightly and his fists clenched suddenly.

Shi Yu was surprised, "Should I know?"

The emperor said nothing, but looked at his expression intently, his heart shaken.

Shi Yu didn't know that Wei Qingyan was a girl before?

In other words, Wei Qingyan did not tell Shi Yu that she was a woman before her death!

He stared at Shi Yu without blinking, trying to find any signs of lying on his face.

Shi Yu ignored the emperor's sharp gaze and continued, "The one who took a hot spring bath with me was a man, so I never thought she was a woman.

After the shock, I seemed to understand why she wanted to use thunder to blow herself up. She probably didn't want anyone to discover that she was a woman.

Unfortunately, I didn't know what she was thinking. I repelled the thunder and ruined her dying wish.

Just at this time, Dongzang and his men found a male corpse that looked similar to her. At that time, Chen only wanted to help her fulfill her last wish, so he replaced her with the male corpse.

Now I know that the man is the eldest prince. I concealed it from Your Majesty. It was my fault. I am willing to accept the punishment. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

What he said was all true, so his expression was frank and could withstand investigation and scrutiny.

"Your Majesty, Prince Rong did this for Qingyan."

Lan Shu also knelt down and pleaded for Shi Yu, "No one in the world knows that Qingyan is a woman. If her identity is exposed, it is inevitable that someone with ulterior motives will accuse her of deceiving the emperor.

Regardless of whether she is a man or a woman, her contributions to the Great Wei are substantial. By doing this, Prince Rong has avoided many troubles. Your Majesty, please show some leniency."

The emperor's gaze finally shifted from Shi Yu to Lan Shu.

The girl from the Lan family didn't have to kneel, and she had never kneeled before, but she knelt at this moment.

For Shi Yu.

Or maybe for...

His eyes fell on Chang Qingnian who was kneeling behind Lan Shu.

That day, Lan Shu told him that he should know who the women were who died in the battle of Huangshaling.

However, he only learned of Wei Qingyan's identity before the late emperor died.

At that time, there were only him, the late emperor, General Wei and Wei Qingyan in the bedroom.

The late emperor and General Wei were both dead, so it was impossible for them to tell Lan Shu that he, the emperor, knew that Wei Qingyan was a woman.

Before, he thought it was Shi Yu who told Lan Shu about this.

But Wei Qingyan never told Shi Yu that she was a woman, let alone mentioning the scene of the late emperor's death. How could he tell Lan Shu something that Shi Yu himself didn't know?

The two people from the Wei family might tell Madam Wei about this matter, but judging from the relationship between Lan Shu and Madam Wei, it is obviously not good enough to reveal the secret.

That can only be...

The emperor was excited and happy thinking that Wei Qingyan might not be dead.

He always thought that Wei Qingyan and Shi Yu had a good relationship, so he revealed the woman's identity to him. He also suspected that Shi Yu was interested in the help of the National Protection Army and thus got close to Wei Qingyan.

Some even thought that Shi Yu's attack on Beiling for Wei Qingyan was also a show for the National Protection Army.

After all, after this incident, the National Protection Army, from top to bottom, were all deeply grateful to him. When Shi Yu was deprived of his military power and trapped in the capital, many people in the National Protection Army stood up for him.

But today he learned that Wei Qingyan did not betray him, the emperor, and Shi Yu was not as ambitious as he had previously worried.

It is true that he sent troops on his own, but if he confessed that it was Madam Wei who instructed him to take Wei Qingyan's body to Beiling, he would be defeated and his two cities captured.

There must be many ministers in the court who will speak up for him. Once his merits and demerits are offset, he will be able to return to his fiefdom and plan what he wants.

But he didn't.

The emperor's gaze fell back on Lan Shu and he was silent for a moment. "Since you plead for him, I will not punish him."

I originally wanted to ask where Wei Qingyan was buried.

But when he thought that she might be alive, Lan Shu didn't say a word. Perhaps he felt that he, as a father, didn't deserve to know, or maybe Wei Qingyan blamed him and didn't want to recognize him.

The words were on the tip of his tongue but he couldn't ask them. After all, Lan Shu's love for her two children was much deeper than his. Since they had made arrangements, he didn't interfere, which was considered as compensation to the children.

He turned his gaze back to Shi Yu, "But since it is deceiving the emperor, I order you to marry Chang within one year."

One year should be enough to avenge the National Protection Army.

Shi Yu thought to himself and looked at Wei Qingyan.

Wei Qingyan lowered her eyes slightly, and Shi Yu knew that she agreed, and the corners of his lips rose slightly.

Lan Shu was kneeling in front and couldn't see Wei Qingyan's expression, but she could see Shi Yu asking Wei Qingyan for his opinion.

With the emperor's will in mind, he first considered his daughter's thoughts. Lan Shu was very satisfied with Shi Yu as a son-in-law.

The three of them kowtowed together to express their gratitude.

The emperor took in the expressions of the three men.

He almost suspected that Chang Qingnian was Wei Qingyan.

But if Chang Qingnian is his daughter, how could Lan Shu agree to her marriage with Shi Yu.

They are uncle and nephew.

Lan Shu didn't know that the emperor had read her words. She said to the emperor, "There is one more thing I should tell you."

The emperor nodded, "What is it?"

"When we accompanied Yan Qing to Yongzhou earlier, we found that King Jing was a little strange." Having said this, Lan Shu said no more.

The emperor will investigate what is wrong himself.

King Jing had ulterior motives, and if the emperor had taken precautions early on, civil strife could have been avoided.

Especially now that we know about the existence of the remnants of the previous dynasty, the Wei Dynasty must be united to prevent them from taking advantage of us.

The emperor was indeed alert and glanced at Feng Ruobao. Feng Ruobao hurriedly bowed and went out. He must have sent someone to keep an eye on Prince Jing.

Then the emperor asked, "You just said what happened between Prince Jing and Lady Wei."

Lan Shu briefly talked about the ambiguity between the two.

If the emperor investigates Prince Jing, he will know what happened in Prince Jing's mansion that night and will definitely guess her involvement.

But the emperor knew that she was always ready to stand up for the weak and would not think of Qingyan...

Lan Shu's thoughts stopped, her brain buzzed, and she went blank for a moment.

She realized that what she said that day was inconsistent with what Shi Yu said today.

She learned some things from Wei Qingyan and said them naturally that day. Did Shi Jin notice it?

As soon as she returned to Anyuan Marquis Mansion, she told Wei Qingyan what had happened, looking anxious, "Will Shi Jin guess your identity?"

She was so careless. What would she do if this ruined her daughter's plans?

Wei Qingyan wasn't too surprised. When the emperor didn't ask where she was buried, she had already made some guesses. After thinking about today's events, she shook her head and said, "He must have guessed that I was alive, but he didn't know that I was me."

The sudden request for her to marry Shi Yu within a year must be a test from the emperor.

Wei Qingyan was not unhappy about this. Their purpose of entering the palace today was to test the emperor's attitude.

The fact that the emperor did not punish Shi Yu showed that his attitude towards Shi Yu had changed, and reminding King Jing showed their sincerity to the emperor. This was a smooth start.

They could then reveal appropriate information about the remnants of the previous dynasty to the emperor in exchange for information from him.