Chapter 228 Old Things
"Ah? Imperial grandmother, since my aunt had the imperial decree granting her marriage, why did she still go to marry?"
After taking a look around, Chu Lange was attracted by the imperial edict with the jade seal, and his mind was instantly hooked.
"Maybe... this is fate."
Wu Qingyi's hand scrawled the last few lines one by one - appointing Li Zi'an as the eldest princess's consort.
"Later, the late emperor accidentally learned the identity of the child. How could the son of a criminal be worthy of the Princess of Yu?
Therefore, the late emperor granted him a new marriage contract, and Zhaohua also tried his best and did not insist.
But who would have thought that in the countless days and nights that followed, the late emperor and I would regret our choice every day. "
"During those years, the five countries stood side by side and checked each other.
Later, the ruler of Yue State became incompetent and the power of Yue State gradually declined. As a result, the greed of various countries gradually emerged.
Unexpectedly, when the four countries sent troops to annex Yue, Jing and Sheng secretly colluded with Yue and used our 100,000-strong army of Yu to attack the border with Yue from both sides. At this time, Liang chose to protect itself and not participate in this fight. "
"To fight the enemy, almost all of our soldiers were dispatched. Millions of bodies were killed every day at the border, and rivers of blood flowed. The national treasury and granaries also began to run out of money quickly.
At this time, Jia Lan suddenly sent an envoy to ask for Zhao Hua's hand in marriage, and the late emperor clearly refused at first.
But... do you know how Galan could have survived peacefully for nearly a hundred years in such a tiny place?
The Jialans were born in a swampy and miasma-filled land. They were skilled in using poisons and could drive away poisonous insects. They were unwilling to expand their territory, not because they didn't want to, but because there were not many places in the Nine Provinces that were suitable for them to live in, like the Jialans.
On the surface, they brought a betrothal gift to propose marriage, but in private they were filthy and disgusting. When they entered the capital, they released a kind of poisonous insects that could reproduce rapidly on the water. Within a few days, most of the people in the capital developed sores on their fingers and began to suffer from diarrhea.
All the doctors in the capital came forward, but none of them could cure the poison.
Zhao Hua was furious upon seeing this, and threatened to lead the elite troops of no more than 5,000 that could be gathered in the capital to destroy Jia Lan.
But...if the late emperor agreed, not only would the five thousand elite soldiers die, she would die too.
By then, Yu State and Jia Lan will turn against each other, and Yu State will be attacked from all sides. We...cannot gamble with the lives of Zhao Hua and the soldiers, as well as the century-old foundation of Yu State. "
These old things seemed to drain Wu Qingyi's strength. She rolled up the imperial edict again, with tears welling up in her eyes.
"Later, Zhaohua agreed to marry, and the late emperor and Jialan signed a covenant. Jialan promised to give Zhaohua the highest honor and make her the next Queen of Jialan. The late emperor was worried about her and sent half of his assassins to her.
Since Zhaohua got married, a letter was sent from Jialan to the capital every three months. It was written by Zhaohua, saying that she was living a good life and we didn't have to worry.
But how can we not worry? The Yu Kingdom spent three whole years fighting with the Jingsheng Kingdom, and Jingsheng also suffered heavy losses. Only then did the three kingdoms sign a non-aggression pact again.
The late emperor's health had deteriorated significantly in those years. In order to bring Zhaohua back, he emptied out all the money in the treasury, and even wrote an IOU and made a promise to collect gold, silver and food from officials and wealthy merchants. The emperor then organized the army and sent troops to Jialan."
"Do you know why the country of Jialan was destroyed by the 30,000-man army led by the emperor?"
When talking about this, Wu Qingyi's eyes became even redder:
"It was Zhao Hua. She spent more than three years stirring up internal disputes in Jialan, learned how to control Jialan's poisonous insects, and even developed a drug that caused the poisonous insects in Jialan's hands to go out of control and devour their masters.
Her actions angered King Jialan, who went mad and all his men went out to capture Zhaohua.
At that time... he was attracted by Zhaohua and offered to exchange his life with that of King Jialan. One was the son of a criminal, and the other was his aunt who had taken care of him for many years. The emperor... would naturally choose Zhaohua."
"Since the death of the child, Zhaohua's mood began to change from normal to extreme when she returned to China. She never mentioned the years she spent in Jialan, but we can guess the sadness of her life.
After all, the royal family owes her... So, since she doesn't make much noise, we just let her do what she wants.
No matter how much trouble she makes, it's better than her committing suicide one day."
"Later, she proposed to go to Jiangnan to practice Buddhism with her hair untied, and we naturally agreed. If we talk about this... besides the fact that my mother owes her, she owes you the most, Yu'er."
"I hate her for trying to take you away, but...I can't do anything to her. I can only do my best to make up for you."
Wu Qingyi gently touched Chu Youning's head with an apologetic look in her eyes.