Or perhaps, in the beginning, that Grand Secretary did indeed want to respect the eldest prince.
However, as his power grew, Zhang Bingzhi was gradually tempted by the overwhelming power and began to be dissatisfied with his current position, desiring to go further and grasp more power in his hands.
However, he did not want to become a traitor and leave any stain on his reputation after his death, so the best way was to support a puppet.
The eldest and fourth princes were already difficult to control; his favorite was the unfavored Chu Minghuan.
It's hard to say that the infighting between the two princes wasn't instigated by Zhang Bingzhi behind the scenes.
But Song Ting didn't care about any of that. As long as he was dead, that was enough.
“I avenged you. I dug up their graves, whipped their corpses, crushed their bones and scattered their ashes on the official road, where they were trampled by thousands.”
He looked slightly smug as he spoke, but when he finished and looked at Chu Huaixu's expression, he became nervous, held his breath, and carefully asked, "Do you think I'm cruel?"
"No." Chu Huaixu kissed his forehead and said decisively, "A person like that deserves to die ten thousand times. I only regret that I cannot take revenge with my own hands."
Song Ting secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"But what worried Zhang Bingzhi was that they did not find the imperial seal and the edict on the prince and the second young master."
From the palace coup to the deaths of Prince Duan and his son, only a few hours passed. Zhang Bingzhi refused to believe that something could simply vanish into thin air, so he ordered his men to search the palace many times, practically digging up the entire palace grounds. But they still couldn't find it.
"No wonder that eunuch named Fushun tried to get the whereabouts of the item from me when we were in prison."
Chu Huaixu cupped Song Ting's face in his hands and stared at him with a scrutinizing gaze. "You hid the thing, didn't you?"
Song Ting nodded honestly: "Yes."
The old prince sought out Song Ting about this very matter before entering the palace. At the time, the prince was not entirely clear about the late emperor's plans, but he keenly sensed that something might happen, so he found Song Ting and had a frank and open conversation with her for a long time.
"If anything happens to me and Yun'er, please spare his life, for the sake of Mingyu's true love for you."
These were the last words Prince Duan heard from Song.
Song Ting knelt before the old prince and promised him that even if she died, she would protect Chu Huaixu.
But he dared not imagine how distressed Huai Xu would be if something happened to the Prince and the Second Young Master, or if the Prince Duan's mansion could not escape this calamity.
Furthermore, he was just a lowly bodyguard, his own life was in the hands of others. How could he possibly protect Huaixu when things got to that point?
Are you going to rely on his worthless life?
He was willing to give everything for Huaixu. If his death could ensure Huaixu's safety, he would be willing to go through fire and water, even if it meant dying a thousand or ten thousand times.
But of course, that was impossible. Given his abilities at the time, he felt only despair and confusion.
So he said to the old prince, "Your Highness, take the young masters and escape to the northern desert. Your Xuanjia Army is there, and you will be safe once you reach the northern desert."
The Xuanjia Army is the invincible army of Dayan, and no one in the Dayan court can rival it.
The northern desert is bitterly cold, and Huai Xu has never suffered hardship. If he can't stand it, he can lead the Xuanjia Army back to Chang'an and become emperor himself.
But Chu Mingyao solemnly shook his head: "The Xuanjia Army is not my Xuanjia Army, but the Xuanjia Army of Dayan. Its blade will not be pointed at me."
"His Majesty is still in the palace. If I were to truly flee, I fear I would one day be branded a traitor. Moreover, the Xuanjia Army is stationed at the border and requires supplies. My visit to the palace this time was also for the sake of supplies. Chang'an has not been able to transport supplies to the northern deserts for quite some time."
Song heard this and said, "That must also be a conspiracy by Zhang Bingzhi and others, to deliberately lure Your Highness into the palace. This is a trap, Your Highness, you must not go. Perhaps the imperial decree to enter the palace was not issued by His Majesty."
Song understood this principle, and Prince Duan certainly understood it even better, but Chu Mingyao still shook his head: "I know, but I still have to go."
Song couldn't understand. He didn't understand why the old prince would continue walking forward when he knew it was a dead end. The court had wronged them first, so why should he care about the lives of others? Shouldn't he save his own life first?
He posed the question, and the old prince smiled and patted his shoulder, saying, "You don't need to understand. Just remember your promise to me: if I die, you must protect Huaixu's life no matter what."
"I know this is difficult, but I believe in you. You will protect him, won't you?"
Song Ting was terrified. He had killed so many people, suffered so many injuries, and had his life hanging by a thread countless times, but this was the first time he had felt such immense unease and fear.
He cared too much about Huaixu, and he knew all too well how insignificant he was; he was afraid he couldn't protect it.
He still didn't understand what the old prince meant. He didn't want him to run away with Huaixu, but he also wanted him to protect Huaixu. What was the prince trying to do?
"What about the others in the Prince's mansion...?"
"The others in the Prince's mansion..." The old prince looked past Song Ting and gazed ahead, seemingly looking at something, his eyes glistening with tears. "It is I who have wronged them."
"Song Ting, you must remember that you must save your own life first before you can protect Huai Xu. Whether Huai Xu can live or die depends entirely on you."
Song Ting lowered his head and kowtowed heavily once more.
“But I failed to keep my promise to the prince, I still…” Song Ting’s eyes were red and her voice was choked with sobs, “I still made you suffer so much.”
He even risked his life by taking poisonous insects in order to avenge his family.
This is something Song Ting can never forgive herself for.
“No, you’ve done very well,” Chu Huaixu said softly.
During the time he was waiting for Song Ting to return, he did hate this person intensely, just as he had just told Song Ting. This hatred was even greater than before, but now, looking at the person in front of him, Chu Huaixu felt only heartache.
At that time, this person had no power at all; he was just a pawn controlled by Zhang Bingzhi with Gu poison. Chu Huaixu could hardly imagine how he would deal with the sudden changes in those few short hours and find a way to survive.
He still hated Song Ting's cruelty and deception, but felt even more sorry for her.
He dared not imagine what Song Ting must have felt when he pointed his sword at the other people in the Prince's mansion, and at the old steward who had taken such good care of him.
This person is not truly cold-blooded and heartless; he feels pain and sadness.
The swords that pierced the people in the palace also stabbed his own heart.
"I understand now. That's why Father made an excuse to expel many people from the mansion back then. It was actually to save their lives, right?"
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