Chapter 202: His Majesty is Leading You into a Trap
When the news of the fourth prince's escape reached the emperor, he became furious.
The tragic scene of the fifth prince being beaten to death is still vivid in my mind.
Coupled with the constant instigation from the people around the Fourth Prince, the Fourth Prince made up his mind that rather than being executed by the Emperor, it would be better to strike first!
Once you succeed, you will be above everyone else!
The Fourth Prince joined forces with the noble families and officials who supported him, and with his own secretly trained private soldiers, he marched towards Shengjing late one night.
The city gate was opened by secret stakes planted in advance, and the Fourth Prince's men successfully entered the city and headed towards the palace.
…
Shang Xi stood in the princess's mansion, listening to the noise outside, and shook his head.
"The Fourth Prince will never amount to anything."
Furong asked in confusion, "Why does Your Highness say that? Judging from the noise, they haven't even reached the palace yet."
"Don't you think it went too smoothly? There wasn't even a sound of fighting."
Furong listened carefully and found that it was indeed too quiet. Apart from the chaotic sound of horses' hooves and running, there was almost no other sound.
"Your Majesty is clearly trying to lure me into a trap."
Shang Xi turned around and said, "Let's go back and rest. We don't have anything to do tonight."
Upon hearing this, the guards from the princess's mansion who were standing neatly behind Shang Xi scattered.
Furong followed Shang Xi back to Fuqiu Garden.
Yu Qing watched Shang Xi return to the main house of Fuqiu Garden before she breathed a sigh of relief and returned to her bed.
Fu Xian looked at him puzzledly, "Can I blow out the lights and go to bed now?"
Yu Qing nodded, and Fu Xian blew out the light and went to bed.
Shang Xi returned to the room, lit some calming incense, walked to the bed, and casually picked up the wooden carving on the low cupboard.
Because of his constant caressing, the surface of the wood carving became smooth and shiny.
Shang Xi placed his fingertips on the wooden sculpture's face, rubbed it a few times, sat down on the edge of the bed, and poked the wooden sculpture's mouth with his fingers again.
"Aning, I miss you so much..."
"Originally, I said that if the Fourth Prince could force his way to the throne, I would go and join you, but he is too weak to defeat the Emperor."
"This delay may take several more years..."
"These princes are really useless. It shows that the emperor's foundation is not good..."
Shang Xi lay on the bed, placed the wooden sculpture against his chest, and closed his eyes.
"Aning, see you in my dream..."
…
Just as Shang Xi expected.
The emperor was well prepared.
As soon as the Fourth Prince entered the palace, the gate was closed, cutting off their retreat.
And their future...
Torches were lit.
The Royal Guards blocked the way ahead, and the palace walls were filled with archers.
The Fourth Prince's originally passionate heart was doused with a basin of cold water.
"Fourth Prince, please."
The leader of the Royal Guards stepped forward and gestured "please" to the Fourth Prince.
The fourth prince closed his eyes and followed.
As soon as he walked out, thousands of arrows were fired from the palace walls, killing the Fourth Prince's men on the palace road.
The fourth prince turned around, his eyes bloodshot.
His attendants and his study companions all died before him.
The Fourth Prince's Adam's apple rolled, he closed his eyes and opened them again, the scarlet in his eyes faded away.
"Let's go, His Majesty wants to see me."
The commander of the Imperial Guards brought the Fourth Prince to the Qinzheng Palace.
The palace lanterns are bright.
The emperor stood on the palace steps, looking down at his son, with whom he was originally quite satisfied, walking towards him step by step.
With a lot of frustration.
"Old Four, do you know your mistake?"
The emperor's voice fell from above.
"What have I done wrong?"
"As a prince, is it wrong to want to compete for the throne? Father has been delaying the appointment of a crown prince, isn't it just because he wants to watch us brothers fight, thus reducing the threat to you?"
"There's nothing wrong with wanting to be the heir. You're better than all your brothers, and I'm very pleased with you."
"But you shouldn't have mined gold privately!"
The aristocratic family was extremely wealthy, but the national treasury was so tight that it couldn't even afford the military pay. Fortunately, Xiao Yanqing was honest and relied on the rebels' granaries for supplies all the way without asking him for a penny.
But his son controlled the gold mine and only cared about satisfying his own selfish desires.
Don’t you think about how difficult his father’s life is!
Now the rebels outside and the military governors of various prefectures have seized control of the cities, and the country is on the verge of collapse. The aristocratic and powerful families in Shengjing City not only do not want to share his worries, but are only concerned with fighting for power and profit, causing him headaches every day. Only the pills of Doctor Xu can provide some relief.
"Because I also want to sit on the throne beneath your father, the emperor. If I don't have money, how can I support my private army? If I don't have money, who will be willing to be loyal to me?"
This statement is extremely outrageous.
"presumptuous!"
The emperor shouted angrily.
"presumptuous?"
The Fourth Prince chewed over these two words in his mouth, then laughed to himself, bent down, and laughed louder and louder.
"Father, is your behavior today not outrageous enough?"
He has already rebelled, what else can he say to be even more outrageous?
The emperor looked at the Fourth Prince, who was laughing like crazy, and said coldly, "Originally, I only intended to demote you to a commoner, but today you are seeking death again and again!"
Common people...
For the proud and noble Fourth Prince, this was more painful than death.
He didn't want to be a commoner, so he chose this path.
The Fourth Prince's lips curled up, and he smiled with relief, "There's no need for your Majesty to do anything. The victors are victors and the victors are bandits. I can afford to lose."
After saying that, he drew the dagger from his sleeve and committed suicide with the knife.
The emperor was so fast that he didn't have time to call for help to stop him.
Seeing the blood spurting up half a foot high, the Fourth Prince took two steps back and fell to the ground with a bang.
The emperor's pupils constricted.
He staggered down from the high steps and came to the side of the Fourth Prince.
He reached out to press the wound on the Fourth Prince's neck, but blood still flowed out from between his fingers and onto the ground.
Li Dezhong saw this and hurriedly shouted, "Quickly call the imperial physician!"
Someone hurried away to call the imperial physician.
The Fourth Prince looked at the Emperor in front of him, whose temples were gray and whose eyes were filled with pity, then turned his head and closed his eyes.
He always claimed that he was his favorite prince, but he was reluctant to make him the crown prince.
He even supported other princes to compete with him.
Now that he is dying, why is he pretending to be a loving father?
I just feel sorry for my mother...
Because of him...
The Fourth Prince's consciousness gradually faded, and in the end he only heard a woman's scream.
It seems to be the mother...
But he couldn't open his eyes anymore.
The Fourth Prince's body relaxed, and his head, which had been tilted to the side, turned back to face the Emperor.
But he didn't want to open his eyes and look at him again.
His favorite son died just like that...
The emperor's hand loosened from his neck and he staggered and fell to the ground.
At this moment, something pierced his back.
The emperor turned around and saw his most beloved concubine, who was also the mother of the fourth prince.
Time has left no trace on her charming face.
He used to love this beautiful face the most.
But at this moment, the beautiful woman's face was hideous, with many wrinkles on it, which was particularly scary.
"You killed my son!"
"I'm going to kill you!"
The Royal Guards grabbed her and dragged her away. The hairpin that she was holding tightly in her hand and had pierced his body was pulled out, causing her to feel pain again.
Li Dezhong panicked and covered his wound with a handkerchief.
He asked again and again: "Where is the imperial physician? Has the imperial physician arrived?"
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"
The emperor tried to stand up, but he felt dizzy and passed out.
Li Dezhong and others hurriedly supported the emperor and carried him into the hall.
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