Your Majesty...what does this mean?
The ministers looked at each other, trying to guess what Emperor Xuan meant.
And Concubine Shu's face was as pale as paper.
Her eyes moved back and forth between Emperor Xuan, Yuan Cheng, and Yuan Heng, her heart beating wildly.
His fingertips clutched his sleeves tightly, like a drowning man trying in vain to grab the last straw.
“How…how could it be…”
She murmured to herself, unable to believe what she saw.
Emperor Xuan slowly turned his head, his eyes as deep as the abyss, and as sharp as a knife when they fell on her.
"Noble Concubine..."
He spoke in a deep voice, his tone steady, yet revealing an indescribable pressure.
"Do you think I've already been poisoned and will never wake up?"
Concubine Shu's heart skipped a beat, a chill ran down her spine to the top of her head, and she broke out in a cold sweat in an instant.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."
Her voice trembled, and her body took a step back uncontrollably. Finally, she could no longer hold on and fell heavily to the ground.
It’s over…
Her pupils shrank slightly as she looked at the almighty emperor. Her throat seemed to be strangled by an invisible hand and she could no longer utter a complete sentence.
Emperor Xuan's eyes were indifferent as he glanced at Concubine Shu who was sitting on the ground, and he spoke slowly -
"I already knew about it the day the imperial concubine cast a spell on me."
As soon as these words were spoken, it was like a thunderclap, shocking all the civil and military officials in the hall to change color.
Lian Yuanheng raised his head in shock, looking at his mother in disbelief, his voice trembling with anger.
"Mother! You actually..."
He didn't finish his words. The anger and grief in his throat intertwined, leaving him speechless for a moment.
Emperor Xuan just looked at everything in front of him indifferently. He slowly withdrew his gaze and looked at the ministers kneeling in the hall.
The voice was deep and majestic, and every word was loud and clear.
"I ascended the throne at a young age, and it has been fifty years since then. Although I hold a high position of power, I also know that human hearts are unpredictable."
"Especially since returning to the capital during the reign of Emperor Showa, I have felt increasingly overwhelmed."
"Over the past few years, how many people in the court have harbored ulterior motives? How could I not know?"
Emperor Xuan tilted his head slightly, his eyes sweeping over the courtiers in the hall, who all had different expressions on their faces. He paused, and his tone became even more unpredictable.
"Therefore, I have already made the decision. Before I abdicate, I must clean up the government and restore order to the land!"
These words were so powerful, like a raging storm, that they struck everyone's heart.
The air in the hall seemed to freeze suddenly, and all the ministers held their breath, not even daring to breathe.
No one had ever thought that Emperor Xuan had been in a coma for several months and had already laid out this conspiracy.
However, Concubine Shu actually put herself into a dead end with her own hands.
When did this game start?
How much do the Crown Prince and the Prince of Jin know about this?
Emperor Xuan's calm and majestic voice echoed in the Golden Palace, like a morning bell and evening drum, striking everyone's heartstrings.
Concubine Shu fell to the ground, her face pale as a sheet of paper, her fingers tightly clutching her sleeves, as if she could still grab something from the brocade.
Her lips trembled, her voice trembled,
"Your Majesty...you..."
There was reluctance and fear in her eyes, as if she suddenly realized something, she raised her head abruptly and said sternly,
"You lied to me?! You lied to me from the beginning to the end!"
She shouted this sentence almost hysterically, her eyes were bloodshot.
"You're not unconscious! You knew all along and have been using me all along!"
Her weakening body was fake, her argument with Yuan Cheng was fake, and even her trust in Yuan Heng was fake...
Use her ambition and stimulate it, let her think she has it all under control, and then go catch bigger fish!
Emperor Xuan stood on the Dragon Steps, looking down at her with his hands behind his back, his eyes indifferent, and said solemnly,
"Your Highness has been smart all her life, but now she is so foolish."
He walked down the stairs slowly, and every step he took seemed to strike at Concubine Shu's heart.
"Do you really think that I will fall when the world is still unsettled and the Crown Prince has not yet fully seized power? Do you really think that some minor witchcraft can completely trap me?"
"If I hadn't been 'unconscious', how could I have tricked you into revealing your weaknesses? How could I have caused all those treacherous followers who have been lurking for years to reveal themselves?"
He lowered his head slightly, looking at the pale-faced Concubine Shu, and spoke lightly, even with a hint of regret.
"You are just walking on the road I have paved for you."
"You think you've calculated every step, but all your calculations are part of my plan."
Concubine Shu's heart suddenly tightened, and even her breathing became rapid.
Her nails dug into her palms tightly, she shook her head almost madly, her body swayed slightly, and suddenly she looked at Yuan Heng, as if she had grasped the last glimmer of hope.
"Heng'er! You are my biological son!"
Her eyes were full of pleading, and her tone was a little broken.
"You can't just stand there and watch them do this to me!"
"You should stand on Mother's side, you should help me!"
It was at this moment that Yuan Heng understood Emperor Xuan's entire plan.
What he knew before was just the tip of the iceberg.
He turned to look at Yuancheng. How much did Yuancheng know?
Is it all... or are the two brothers just pawns of their father?
But then I thought, how could it be possible that my father didn't have any leverage in his hands?
In addition to uncovering those traitors, the main purpose of this game is to test the two brothers.
If the two of them make a mistake, they will be the next to be liquidated.
At this moment, Yuan Heng couldn't help feeling sad.
He kowtowed to Emperor Xuan and said sadly,
"Please, Father, spare Mother's life!"
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