Chapter 802 Means
"I……"
Prince Ji knelt on the ground, his lips trembling slightly: "I thought..."
"Why did you think that His Majesty would exterminate the Xie royal family?"
Tang Ning's words made Prince Ji's eyelids twitch, and his silence obviously indicated his agreement with her.
Tang Ning laughed: "Why do you have such an idea?"
"Your Majesty was personally raised by Emperor Taizu. Most of his abilities were inherited from the ancestors of the Xie family. Even though the late emperor and the deposed emperor had hurt him, it did not change the fact that he was of the Xie family bloodline. He was certainly cruel to the deposed emperor and moved the late emperor's mausoleum, but don't you know the reason?"
"Even those among the clan members who were executed were mostly for past crimes that were unforgivable. As for the rest, even the few princes and princesses left behind by the deposed emperor, have you ever seen what His Majesty did to them?"
Prince Ji was stunned.
Xiao Yan's throne was not inherited from the deposed emperor. After he seized the throne, he used ruthless means. Although there was not a river of blood in the court, many people died. But to be honest, not many of these dead people were related to the deposed emperor's bloodline.
Among the royal family members, people like King Huan all died because of their own fault in plotting treason.
Except for the first one or two restless princes who tried to collude with the vassal kings to seize the throne during the chaos in the south and were killed as a warning to others, the rest of the princes and princesses lived a peaceful life like other people in the royal family.
They were all granted titles and mansions. Except that they were not allowed to live as extravagantly as they did when the deposed emperor was alive, they were not allowed to interfere in state affairs.
Xiao Yan never took their lives, nor did he deliberately treat them badly.
Prince Ji seemed to be wounded, but he couldn't help but say, "But isn't it because the rebellion of the princes has just been quelled, and the war between the north and the south has broken out again? Your Majesty doesn't dare to touch us during this period of turmoil in the court, fearing that it will cause public discussion, or that he will be too cold and suffer backlash?"
Tang Ning laughed out loud: "When has Your Majesty ever cared about what others say? As for the backlash..."
She glanced at King Ji.
"Your Majesty, do you think you have anything that could backfire on His Majesty?"
Prince Ji: “…”
"Your Majesty holds both military and political power. All the noble families and the upright officials in the court have pledged their allegiance to you. Regardless of whether they truly submit, at least on the surface, Your Majesty is popular. Kill a few of those who are connected to the deposed emperor and who even profited from his massacres and slaughter of civilians. Who do you think will stand up for you?"
Prince Ji's face turned pale.
"Furthermore, with Your Majesty's methods, is it difficult to avoid inciting public outrage and tempting a few clan members to make mistakes and die?"
Tang Ning looked at the shaky Prince Ji and said with a half-smile: "If it's like today, all you need to do is leave some bait and put out some lures, and there will be plenty of people jumping out to step on it."
"If I can do it, do you think His Majesty can't?"
“…”
Prince Ji's pale face turned redder, his expression full of humiliation, but he couldn't utter a word of argument.
After a long while, he could only say: "If that's the case, why don't you change your name, Your Majesty?"
Tang Ning was stunned for a moment. In Ji Wang's eyes, it was as if he had found a flaw. He pressed him:
"Since he acknowledges himself as a descendant of the Xie family and acknowledges the Xie bloodline in his veins, why has he been so reluctant to return to the Xie clan after ascending the throne?"
"The remains of the retired emperor and the empress dowager have been buried in the imperial mausoleum, but he still sits on the throne as a son of the Xiao family. When others mention him, they only know him as Xiao Yan, not Xie Chen'an. Doesn't he want to change the course of the Wei Dynasty? Doesn't he bear a grudge against the Xie royal family?"
Tang Ning was a little surprised when he heard this. Looking at the angry King Ji, he was speechless for a long time.
"Prince Ji, have you ever looked through the royal family genealogy since you took over the Zongren Temple?"
Prince Ji was stunned.
Tang Ning said, "Back when the Crown Prince Li was involved in the old case, the Emperor's eldest grandson died in the fire in the Eastern Palace in the eyes of everyone. The late Emperor took pity on him because he was too young to know what the Crown Prince Li had done, and the Emperor Taizu also felt sorry for his eldest grandson, so he only removed the Crown Prince from the imperial family clan record, but the Emperor's eldest grandson still remained on the clan tree."
"Your Majesty has always been Xie Chen'an, but he has also been a son of the Xiao family for more than ten years."
"When the Eastern Palace was in trouble, Madam Xiao took the initiative to hang herself to quell suspicion within the palace. The Xiao family abandoned their entire family to protect Your Majesty, and the eldest son of the Xiao family was injured, making it extremely difficult for him to leave an heir. Your Majesty is only where he is today thanks to the Xiao family's protection. The Xiao family is like family to him."
Tang Ning lowered his eyes and looked at Prince Ji whose expression changed.
"Your Majesty is both Xie Chen'an and a descendant of the Xiao family. He hasn't given up the name of Xiao Yan despite being a descendant of the Xie family. Isn't this what the Xiao family deserves?"
Prince Ji remained silent when asked, and the anger and indignation on his face turned into silence.
The cold wind was still blowing in the corridor, and the Queen and Prince Ji were standing and kneeling respectively.
The palace maids in the distance just stood there quietly, and no one dared to approach.
Tang Ning stood there and looked at the imperial flag fluttering in the wind not far away.
"Your Majesty is away at war, and the court cannot afford the turmoil. Let's put it aside for today. I don't want a repeat of what happened today."
"Come here, escort Prince Ji out of the palace."
After Tang Ning gave his instructions, he turned around and left.
Prince Ji knelt on the ground, staring blankly at the figure that was gradually moving away, his lips tightly pursed in silence.
Pan Xi stepped forward quickly and said, "Your Highness, it's still cold out there. Let me help you up."
Prince Ji's hands and feet were frozen stiff, and his knees were numb from kneeling. Even with Pan Xi's support, he still couldn't help but sway when he stood up and almost fell.
Pan Xi hurriedly supported him: "Your Highness, be careful."
Prince Ji steadied himself. The slightest movement caused him to feel a piercing pain in his knees, but his face was pale and he endured it without making a sound, letting Pan Xi support him as he walked out. He had walked this road out of the palace countless times, but it had never seemed so long.
After finally reaching the palace gate, Pan Xi bowed and left, then he leaned over and fell onto the servant from Prince Ji's mansion who came to pick him up.
"Your Majesty!"
The people in Prince Ji's mansion were terrified.
Prince Ji, however, simply pinched his arm and interrupted his hurried voice: "I'm fine, help me get in the car."
The man from Prince Ji's mansion quickly fell silent and carefully helped Prince Ji onto the carriage outside the palace gate.
Prince Ji leaned against the carriage wall, sweat already covering his forehead. He asked in a low voice, "How is the King of England?"
The servant's face turned pale. "Prince Ying was carried to the Imperial Ancestral Temple. Princess Ying and the others were also sent to the Imperial Ancestral Temple. They were told to pray for the soldiers on the border day and night until His Majesty and the generals return victoriously..."
He paused, then whispered:
"The Queen Mother has issued an order, saying that to show the piety of the people in the Prince of Ying's Palace, no one is allowed to disturb them during their prayers, and no one except those from the Prince of Ying's Palace is allowed to set foot in the Imperial Ancestral Temple."
Prince Ji raised his head suddenly, and his hands on his knees tightened instantly.
"Anyone? What about the imperial physician?"
"The imperial physician also forbids..."
The blood on Prince Ji's already pale face and even his lips were bloodless.
The King of England was beaten with forty sticks and was half dead. He was unconscious when he was carried away.
The Queen does not allow the royal doctors to enter the Taimiao for treatment. Does she want the King of England to die in the Taimiao?
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