"Really? Looks like the Emperor?"
Xiao Lingyu didn't believe that only a few of the emperor's brothers would survive and be crowned kings.
"I looked carefully. Master's eyebrows, chin, and face shape are like the emperor's. Overall, he looks about 30% like the emperor. Master is more handsome than the emperor."
"Do you see that he looks like the Queen Mother?"
Su Xingyi thought about it carefully and said, "Not really."
Xiao Lingyu: "Who looks older, the Emperor or Master?"
"I can't tell, Master is very good at taking care of himself."
Xiao Lingyu pinched his chin and thought, "Did Master tell you about his relationship with the Emperor?"
"I hadn't thought of coming here at the time. After all, a friendly face doesn't mean much. I was more curious about why Master had gone to such great lengths to make arrangements for me, so I asked him what his relationship was with my mother."
"What's the connection?"
"He and my mother are apprentice brothers and sisters. In their early years at Dongjun, they studied under Mr. He, a student of Qilin. Later, they followed Mr. He to study in the four countries. In Huayang County, they met the current emperor."
Xiao Lingyu instantly imagined a love triangle. "So, at that time, both my mother and my master were hiding their identities, right?"
"My mother was hiding her true identity. My master was Mr. He's most proud student at the time, and even then he wore a half-lotus mask. Later, when the late emperor learned that Mr. He had come to Beiyi in a low-key manner, he invited him to the capital. The current emperor and the empress dowager arranged all the accommodations and transportation for Mr. He and his disciples. After studying in Beiyi for three months, my master and his disciples were assassinated on their way back to Dongjun. In order to protect Mr. He and my mother, my master was seriously injured and fell off a cliff, never to be seen again."
"And what happened next?"
"Master was rescued by Bai Yi's father. He suffered a brain injury and lost his memory. After living in Baijia Village for four years, he regained his memory. Upon returning to Dongjun, he learned that his mother had married the current emperor six months earlier."
Xiao Lingyu felt that there was some conspiracy when he heard this. Dongfang Yinzhang must like Empress Fu'an. "Did your master tell your mother, or did Mr. He send someone to look for her at the bottom of the cliff?"
"When Master returned to Dongjun, he first went to see Mr. He. Master said that when Mr. He saw his sudden appearance, he was so frightened that he fainted. After waking up and telling Master that they had escaped danger, the Queen Mother led people to the bottom of the cliff to look for Master. It didn't take long to find Master at the bottom of the cliff, who had been mauled beyond recognition by wild beasts."
"Are they sure it was Master?"
"The mask, the clothes, the accessories, and even the crescent birthmark on the inside of Master's arm are enough to prove it's Master."
"Did your mother believe it?"
Su Xingyi shook his head. "Mr. He said Mother didn't believe it, but all the clues pointed to the incomplete corpse, mauled to a pulp by wild beasts, as Master. After another three months of fruitless searching, Mother finally accepted that it was Master. She fell ill after returning home. Three months later, the current Emperor went to celebrate the Dongjun Empress Dowager's birthday on behalf of the late Emperor. It was then that they learned that the young apprentice sister who had been with Master was the most favored princess of the Dongjun royal family. A year later, Mother's health finally recovered."
Xiao Lingyu had to resort to conspiracy theories, "The corpse at the bottom of the cliff was obviously made by someone, in order to make your mother confirm that your master is dead."
Su Xingyi agreed, "I think so too."
Xiao Lingyu glanced at Su Xingyi's tall nose and asked, "Who do you think could have done this? Mr. He took his students on a study tour in four countries, and no assassinations occurred in the other three countries. But it happened on the way back to Dongjun after spending three months in Beiyi."
Su Xingyi lowered his eyes, "It might be him."
He? Without a doubt, it was Emperor Qianyuan.
Master had mixed emotions when he mentioned Emperor Qianyuan.
He planned to marry the Queen Mother, so why didn't he protect her well? Was he just using her power to help him ascend the throne?
"Okay." Xiao Lingyu pulled him into his arms and comforted him. "Don't think about it for now. Once we find out who really persecuted your mother, the Queen Mother, everything will be revealed. Then we can avenge our wrongs and take revenge..."
After Xiao Lingyu comforted Su Xingyi, he went to find Xiao Tianci.
"Yu'er, why did you come here alone? Come and sit down." Xiao Tianci quickly brought the soft chair and placed it behind her.
"All of you go down."
Xiao Tianci frowned, "Send everyone away, what's the big deal you want to tell Grandfather?"
Since this matter concerned Emperor Qianyuan, Xiao Lingyu lowered his voice and asked, "Do you still remember Empress Fu'an?"
"What?" Xiao Tianci was shocked. "Why did you think of asking Queen Fu'an?"
"I just remembered the Ninth Prince of Dongjun and the Crown Prince of Dongjun. The last time they came to Beiyi to pay homage to Empress Fu'an, they were assassinated and were rescued by us... I remember you said that Beiyi and Dongjun had a mediocre relationship. Do you know how the Emperor and Empress Fu'an met?"
Xiao Tianci looked at Xiao Lingyu solemnly, "Are you asking if the late emperor appointed the emperor crown prince only after the emperor arranged a marriage with Empress Fu'an?"
As expected, the old ones are the wisest. "Yes, Grandfather."
Su Xingyi's face flashed through Xiao Tianci's mind. "Grandfather remembers that when the Empress Dowager of Dongjun celebrated her birthday, the late Emperor was going to send Prince Xuan with generous gifts to congratulate her. I don't know what happened, but the responsibility fell to the current Emperor. It must have been during that time that the Emperor met Empress Fu'an. Since the Emperor was Mr. He's student, the Emperor would go to Dongjun every three months, and he would be gone for half a year. It was on the Emperor's third trip to Dongjun that he and Empress Fu'an got engaged, and the late Emperor then made him the Crown Prince."
"At that time, the late emperor's several children were all outstanding. He favored the third prince the most, even though he was neither the eldest nor the heir. The late emperor had been paving the way for the third prince. However, the current emperor became engaged to the Dongjun royal family. All the court officials, led by the Du family, urged the current emperor to be the crown prince. The emperor followed suit and made the prince the crown prince."
As she had guessed, the emperor married Empress Fu'an in order to gain the throne.
"Isn't Mr. He a great scholar from Dongjun? Did the emperor catch Mr. He's eye when he went to deliver the gift?"
"Before the Emperor went to Dongjun to celebrate his birthday, Mr. He had already brought his students to Beiyi for study. It was the Emperor who invited them to the capital, and they returned to Dongjun three months later. Now that you ask, the mission to celebrate the Emperor's birthday in Dongjun must have been due to Mr. He."
Xiao Lingyu asked again, "Does Mr. He have any female students?"
"Yes, when Mr. He came, all the famous noble ladies and gentlemen in the capital went to the Royal South Garden to listen to his speech. Your father and your second uncle also went."
"Then do you still remember the female student who followed Mr. Crane?"
Xiao Tianci frowned. Was a female student important? Seeing Xiao Lingyu's questioning, he couldn't bear to see her disappointed, so he continued, "Grandfather only met Mr. He at the palace banquet and didn't have much impression of the female students he brought with him. However, he was deeply impressed by his eldest disciple, Dongfang Yinzhang. He always wore a half mask in public, so it's hard for him to forget."
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