Chapter 354: Be Loyal to Yourself
Lu Jiang sighed young and gently smoothed Yuan Wanru's slightly frowned brows with his fingertips. A dark cloud appeared outside, blocking the scorching sun, and the wind was much cooler.
The cool breeze shines through the gauze window, bringing with it the faint fragrance of the lotus flowers in the courtyard.
"Don't worry."
His voice was low and firm. "The Second Prince sent people to assassinate me twice. He obviously regarded me as a thorn in his side. In the eyes of the Emperor, the reason why he was exposed was because I had tracked down the matter of the Dalushan token."
The tea on the table had long gone cold.
Lu Jiangnian picked up the glass and drank it all in one gulp.
"The Second Prince hates me to the core. Your Majesty will not believe his slanderous words."
His tone gradually became deeper, with a hint of deep thought, "But the crown prince is different. He is the heir to the throne."
Even though no one pointed the finger at him, the Emperor still suspected the Crown Prince. If the Second Prince and Concubine Liang whispered something divisive to the Emperor, the Crown Prince's situation would be very bad.
Yuan Wanru felt his heaviness and said after a moment of silence: "With the prince's intelligence, he should be able to think of this."
Outside the window I could hear the sound of Liu Yan and her friends packing up their things. They were talking and laughing, looking relaxed and happy, which was completely different from the atmosphere in the room.
Yuan Wanru didn't care much about either the emperor or the prince.
However, compared with the emperor, Lu Jiangnian seems to be more inclined to the prince, so Yuan Wanru does not want the prince to lose.
"He already knew it."
Lu Jiangnian's voice was low, and he held Yuan Wanru's hand in his palm, "Seeing that the second prince is about to fall, I wonder if the next person to fall will be the crown prince?"
Yuan Wanru also drank a cup of tea. It was hot in summer and people always felt thirsty unconsciously.
Lu Jiangnian continued, "Since the beginning of this spring, the emperor has promoted several people from the Jiang and Chen families."
"Outsiders think it's to appease Madam Zhaohua, but in fact..." He tapped his fingertips lightly on the table, "The positions held by those people from the Chen and Jiang families are not simple."
Yuan Wanru noticed the sharpness in his eyes. She looked at the tea leaves floating in the tea soup and listened to Lu Jiangnian continue: "Military Doctor, City Gate Captain, Ministry of Revenue Doctor..."
Every time he mentioned a position, his tone became heavier, "These important positions are slowly being replaced by the Fifth Prince's people."
"The emperor has never given up on supporting the fifth prince. The prince has been cautious over the years, but he still can't resist the emperor's suspicion."
"The emperor asked you something in the palace today, right?" Yuan Wanru asked softly.
Lu Jiangnian closed his eyes: "Yeah."
His voice was a little absurd, "The prince has never shown any rebellious intentions over the years, even though his reputation has gradually increased. It's just that the emperor is getting older and more suspicious."
"The Crown Prince is the legitimate heir. I have always believed that being loyal to the Crown Prince is being loyal to the Emperor."
He said the last sentence softly, just like the lost friendship that will never come back.
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Yuan Wanru opened her mouth slightly, her lips trembling, but she couldn't speak immediately.
She thought of the prince who was hastily deposed in the book, and Lu Jiangnian's worries coincided with the plot in the book.
The ripples in the teacup were reflected in her eyes, casting a fragmented light and shadow.
Yuan Wanru carefully recalled the plot of the book.
In fact, in the book, the prince was a bit ridiculous because he was poisoned by a Gu, but compared with history, there were even more ridiculous princes. Let’s not talk about others, just take Li Shimin’s son Li Chengqian as an example.
Li Chengqian was lame, unruly, killed his teacher and brother, and even threatened to become a Turk, but Emperor Taizong of Tang never deposed him. If he had not rebelled in the end, he would have probably been able to sit on the throne of crown prince for much longer.
A complex light flashed in Yuan Wanru's eyes.
But in the book, the prince clearly said that he was wronged, but the emperor did not give the prince any chance and deposed him.
If an emperor truly treated the prince, he would never handle it like this.
He would not easily abandon an heir whom he had taught so carefully, unless he wanted to replace him in the first place.
Yuan Wanru's heart shook violently.
I see.
Only now did she realize that the Second Prince and Concubine Liang were the driving forces behind the dethronement of the Crown Prince, but the one who really wanted to do this was actually the Emperor.
The ending of the book is that the second prince became the crown prince.
Perhaps, the Second Prince, the crown prince, is just a whetstone for the Fifth Prince.
However, the emperor was unaware of the ambitions of Concubine Liang and her son, and mistook the jackal for a sheep, supporting the second prince to ascend the throne.
Yuan Wanru's gaze fell on the tea leaves floating on the tea soup. The leaves rose and fell, just like the ups and downs of fate in the court.
She suddenly wanted to know who was the final winner in the unfinished ending of the book?
Seeing that she remained silent for a long time, Lu Jiangnian thought that she was frightened by the tricks in the court.
He reached out and covered the back of her hand, and the warmth from his palm brought Yuan Wanru back to her senses.
"Don't think too much about it," his voice softened, "It may not come to that. I may be overthinking it."
Yuan Wanru suddenly raised her head and looked into his eyes with burning eyes: "You just said that Dad wants you to be loyal to the emperor."
Her voice was very soft, but every word was clear, "If the day ever comes when the Crown Prince and the Emperor are at odds..."
Lu Jiangnian tightened his fingers slightly.
"I think that at times like this, the first person you should be loyal to is yourself."
Yuan Wanru's expression was more serious than ever before, with a unique calmness between her brows, "You should consider, if you choose to be loyal to the emperor, what will the future of the Great Jing Dynasty be like?"
Her fingertips tapped the table lightly, "If we are loyal to the Crown Prince, what will the future of the Great Jing Dynasty look like?"
"I think the world in your heart is actually more important."
Yuan Wanru remembered that Lu Jiangnian once said that his biggest wish when he was young was to be a knight traveling around the world with a sword, but because of a book, he changed his ambition.
She has been in this dynasty for nearly a year, and during this year, she has traveled to many places.
She had seen the water towns of the south of the Yangtze River in spring, where she saw farmers planting rice in the fields and children playing by the stream; she had passed through countless towns and saw a constant stream of merchants and travelers and the bustling markets.
Not all people are rich, but they can live and work in peace and contentment.
The Dajing Dynasty can be described as a time of peace and prosperity.
The current emperor is a wise ruler.
Emperors are also human beings, and selfish desires are unavoidable. The emperor supports the fifth prince and is suspicious of the crown prince. These calculations are just human nature and cannot erase the peaceful scene under his rule.
So what about the prince? She doesn't understand him.
Lu Jiangnian should have his own answer.
She is not a member of the court and does not understand the intrigues and schemes, but she understands people's hearts and can see the general trend.
Sometimes, the truth is very simple, but those involved are often confused.
No matter how the court changes, the ordinary life of the world is what is most worth protecting.
Lu Jiangnian's eyes gradually became deep, as if he was looking into a very far place.
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