Chapter 451: Digging a pit, retreating to advance
Xiao Yan's words were like thunder. Prince Zeng suddenly looked up and asked, "Have you known about Prince Cheng and Queen Lu's affair for a long time?"
"yes."
"How is it possible..."
I hate the prince as if he were struck by lightning.
How could he have known this already?
The Lu family had clearly kept this a secret. If Xiao Yan had known about it long ago, then what did he do during this period?!
"Why not? I defeated Lu Zhao and Lu Qin, and I personally sent Prince Cheng to the guillotine. Even you can find out about this, so why do you think I don't know?"
Xiao Yan's light words made Prince Dezeng's face turn pale.
"I've long known about Prince Cheng's affair with Empress Lu, but I've held it to myself. This is partly because I'm afraid His Majesty will be furious if I bring it up, and partly because I want to make sure the Lu family has no chance of recovery before I can use this to deal them a fatal blow."
"If you and Cui Lin hadn't intervened, someone would have reported this to His Majesty within half a month at the latest. With the backup plan I've prepared, I could have not only annihilated the Lu family, forcing His Majesty to take action against them, but also allowed you to seize the opportunity to win over the hearts of the people and be crowned Crown Prince, surpassing all the other princes."
"But you are so clever and greedy that you ruined all my plans!"
"Crown Prince?"
Prince Zeng looked at Xiao Yan in shock. He was surprised at his cruelty towards the Lu family, and was also puzzled by his so-called back-up plan.
My father is in his prime, and even though he occasionally suffers from headaches, the pulse checkers at the Imperial Medical Bureau say that there is nothing serious wrong with his health. Given my father's strong desire to control imperial power, it is impossible for him to give up power or appoint a crown prince.
Prince Zeng thought so and asked.
Xiao Yan scoffed, "Under normal circumstances, Your Majesty wouldn't give up power. But if his reputation is damaged, the court is in chaos, and the Xie family's imperial power is unstable, then as long as he sits on the throne, the whole country will be in chaos and no one will submit to him."
Prince Zeng's eyes suddenly widened.
Xiao Yan looked at him and said, "You don't really think that the Lu family can become the head of the aristocratic families just because of their so-called merits in following the emperor. Just because they assisted His Majesty in ascending the throne, His Majesty repeatedly gave in to them."
"Even though you knew that the Lu family was encroaching on the court, and that Lu Chongyuan had repeatedly challenged the imperial power and suppressed Your Majesty, Your Majesty, with the evidence in hand, didn't dare to confront them directly?"
"You mean..."
"Your Majesty's ascension to the throne was not glorious."
Prince Zang's pupils constricted, and he heard Xiao Yan slowly say, "You must have heard about the story of Crown Prince Li, right?"
"Back when the late emperor was on the throne, Your Majesty was unremarkable among the other princes. Whether it was Crown Prince Li, who was personally taught and appointed as the crown prince by the Taizu from birth, or Prince Cheng, who was born to a noble mother with a prosperous and intelligent family, or Prince Ji, who seems less prominent now, or Prince Huan, who seems to have a violent and impulsive temper, they all had greater potential to compete for the throne than Your Majesty."
"But Your Majesty got the throne because the Lu family used some dishonorable means to help Your Majesty seize the imperial power."
"Those tactics have caused His Majesty to repeatedly tolerate the Lu family. Even though he resents the aristocratic families encroaching on imperial power, he dares not easily touch them. Furthermore, His Majesty's throne is not secure."
"Once the events of that year were exposed, Your Majesty's reputation would be completely ruined. To protect the Xie family's rule and to maintain the integrity of the imperial power, he could only offer his own life as an apology and find a prince to temporarily assume the throne to appease the public anger."
"And you are this person."
Xiao Yan looked at Prince Zan, whose expression changed drastically, and felt a little angry at him for not fighting back.
"I have already arranged the people, waiting for the incident to happen and push you to the throne, so that you can win the hearts of the people before His Majesty. Then, I will expose the Queen's affairs. The Fourth Prince's bloodline is in doubt, and the other princes do not have the same prestige as you. His Majesty has no choice but to give you the throne of crown prince."
"As long as we can force His Majesty to step back and allow you to gain real power, acting as the crown prince on behalf of the emperor, this Wei Dynasty will be yours. But who could have imagined that!"
Xiao Yan's eyes were filled with anger as he looked at Prince Zan:
"Even if it was Cui Lin who caused the Queen's trouble this time, I could still find a way to make amends. As long as other arrangements remain unchanged, you can still take the throne. But it has to be you!"
"You personally exposed the royal scandal, offended His Majesty in front of all the court officials, and even received such a ridiculed title. Now everyone knows that His Majesty dislikes you and that you are unfilial and unfraternal. How can I push you up and let you sit in that position?!"
Prince Hate never thought that he was so close to the throne, and never thought that he could become the crown prince by right as long as he remained patient for a while.
He had clearly obtained enormous wealth, but his own cleverness had ruined it all. He finally understood why the usually cold and stern Xiao Yan would be so angry and even nearly take his life.
Xiao Yan looked at his pale face and sighed, "Forget it, what's the point of telling you this now?"
"Although I haven't had the chance to push you up, the previously arranged actions are already set in motion. In a few days, the capital will be in chaos. I've been planning for years just for this day. Since I've assisted you before, I won't implicate you, regardless of success or failure."
"Second Prince, please take care of yourself."
Xiao Yanyouyou finished speaking and stood up to leave, but the Prince of Zeng suddenly said: "No, I am still useful!"
Xiao Yan turned around and looked at him.
The Prince of Zan was pale, but his eyes were exceptionally bright:
"Lord Xiao assisted me before, not because you wanted the imperial power. You said you wanted me to do something for you after I ascended the throne. You are not only targeting the Lu family, but also my father, right?"
Xiao Yan's expression changed slightly, his eyes became fierce, and his look vaguely revealing murderous intent made Prince Zeng even more certain of his guess.
"You did your best to sow discord between my father and the noble families, and you used every possible means to wipe out the Lu family. You have a personal grudge against them, right?... No, you also have a personal grudge against my father, so you knew all the secrets of my father and the Lu family, and even wanted to destroy my father and push me to the throne."
"You hold great power in the court, and the emperor trusts you immensely. If you only want revenge, you could have killed the emperor directly, or wiped out the entire Lu family."
"But you schemed so hard that you didn't hesitate to stay in the palace as a eunuch, and even tried every possible way to destroy the Lu family's reputation and your father's prestige."
"You want more than just revenge, right? You also want something else..."
Swish——
Seeing Xiao Yan's face suddenly become gloomy, he stepped forward in an instant, with a soft sword in his hand pointing directly at Prince Zeng's neck.
Prince Zang said anxiously: "I won't tell my father!"
The tip of the sword stopped half an inch in front of his neck. Xiao Yan's expression was grim. "Second Prince, I believe I have done my best for you."
Prince Zeng quickly said, "Lord Xiao has always been considerate of me. If it weren't for you, I would still be struggling. I also remember the favor you gave me in the palace a few days ago. I'm not telling you this to threaten you, I just want to say that I can help you."
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