Chapter 668: If You Don’t Want to Be the Emperor, Then Don’t Be One
Liu Tong'en couldn't help but look at Emperor An, who quickly said, "There are other people in the palace who can carry out the execution. The most important thing right now is the Crown Prince's matter..."
"The Crown Prince is already dead, it wouldn't have mattered for a moment. But Liu Tong'en is dead." Xiao Yan looked at Emperor An. "He accidentally killed a witness, leading to the empress dowager's tragic death, and nearly wrongfully murdered Miss Qian and my wife. How could Your Majesty be so reluctant to let go of such a foolish and useless person?"
The hall suddenly became quiet, and Emperor An's face twisted for a moment.
What do you mean Liu Tongen caused the Queen Mother's tragic death? It was obviously Xiao Yan and Song Tangning!
But Emperor An didn't dare to say anything, but he still didn't want Liu Tong'en to fall into Xiao Yan's hands. It was not that he cared much about Liu Tong'en, but he knew Xiao Yan's temper. Once Liu Tong'en really fell into his hands, there would be no way for him to survive.
He is now in prison, and nothing must happen to Liu Tongen.
Emperor An lowered his posture and pleaded for mercy, saying, "Duke Dingguo, I know you're angry about what happened today, but I didn't expect the Queen Mother to act this way. Now that she's dead, the events in Shoukang Palace were all her and Nanny Ran's doing. Liu Tong'en certainly made mistakes, but he was only fulfilling his duty..."
"His duty is to silence the Queen Mother, or is it to silence His Majesty?"
Xiao Yan's words startled Emperor De'an. He suddenly looked up and said, "Xiao Yan!"
Xiao Yan said indifferently: "Why, what does Your Majesty want to say?"
Emperor An opened his mouth and said, "I don't know what's going on in the Empress Dowager's palace..."
Seeing Xiao Yan's cold expression and the silence of the others, Emperor An suppressed his panic and tried his best to remain calm: "You have misunderstood me."
"I don't know what happened to you outside the palace, but I can't wait for the army to return victorious. How could I help the rebels to disrupt my own country? I only know about General Yin's affairs from what you said. If you don't believe me, I can swear an oath."
Gu Helian sneered: "If your oath was effective, the ancestors of the Xie family who died long ago would have crawled out of the imperial mausoleum and strangled you to death in the middle of the night."
Emperor An: “…”
Gu Helian turned her head and said, "Why are you talking nonsense to him? He can force his own mother to death, kill his own son, and use his own mother's life to frame you. And you still expect him to take good care of this Wei Dynasty from the throne?"
Emperor An's expression changed drastically, and Liu Tong'en suddenly raised his knife: "Xiao Yan, do you want to rebel?"
Xiao Yan: "So what if we start a rebellion?"
Liu Tongen was shocked: "You!"
Xiao Yan glanced at the messy palace with a cold expression: "I was too good-tempered before, which made you think that the throne was yours to rely on. Since you don't want to be the emperor properly, then don't be one."
"Take him away and lock him up!"
Everyone in the hall was in a panic, and Emperor An stood up in a panic, his eyes full of fear.
No, it shouldn't be like this. Xiao Yan had always been cautious. He had always been concerned about the reputation of the He family and didn't dare to seize the throne for fear that the He family would be stigmatized. He had always been forbearing and giving in.
He did not take action during the previous Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet, which was such a good opportunity, but only pushed the prince out to compete with him for the power of the court.
Emperor An had always believed that Xiao Yan would be cautious and not rebel, but why would he...
"Xiao Yan, listen to my explanation!"
Emperor An looked anxious. "I really didn't know what happened today, and I don't understand why you misunderstood me like this. I shouldn't have been resentful of you for assisting the Crown Prince before, and wanted to capture Song Tangning to vent my anger on you. But I really didn't know the Queen Mother would set up such a scheme, using her life to plot against others."
"Today, Shoukang Palace is hosting a banquet. I was invited here by the Empress Dowager. I..."
Jinyun brought his men forward, with no intention of listening to Emperor An's explanation.
Liu Tong'en and the few remaining guards tried to stop them with knives. Liu Tong'en sternly said, "Xiao Yan, you're crazy! His Majesty is the Son of Heaven. If you lead people to rebel like this, you will be despised by the world. He Wenzhuo and the ancestors of the He family will also be cursed and unable to raise their heads."
"Why should I hold my head up when the person is dead?"
Xiao Yan's words choked Liu Tong'en.
Emperor An looked at the people who gathered around him and said anxiously, "If you don't care about the He family, then the Rong family doesn't care either?"
He looked at Song Tangning in panic, "Grand Tutor Rong has been in the court for many years and everyone praised him as the pillar of the Wei Dynasty. When he was alive, he was famous throughout the country. Even after his death, everyone praised him as a loyal minister. The Rong family has a good reputation for a hundred years. After Grand Tutor Rong's death, there was still a lot of glory. Song Tangning, don't you care?"
Emperor An stepped back and leaned against the chair, his face pale and timid:
"The He family is dead, but you and Song Tangning are still alive, Xiao Yan. Don't you care about your reputation or her and Rong Yue's?"
"You're rebelling today, and the Rong family's century-long reputation is ruined. The He family will become even more infamous because of you. Even if Taifu Rong has been dead for many years, people will still stab you in the back and call you a traitor. Do you want Song Tangning and Rong Yue to be despised by the world like you?!"
"It's just killing a dog emperor. People all over the world are praising him, how can they despise him?"
A cold and angry voice came from outside the hall. Everyone looked up and saw Rong Yue appearing there at some point, with the pale and weak wife of Marquis Wenxin beside her.
"Mother!"
The moment Zhou Yuchang saw the wife of Marquis Wenxin, tears instantly welled up in her eyes and she trotted to her side.
The wife of Marquis Wenxin looked at her daughter, whose face was pale, and reached out to hug her in her arms.
Zhou Yuchang leaned against the wife of Marquis Wenxin, smelling the strong bitter smell of medicine on her mother's body, as if she had returned to the time of despair before. All the panic, fear, and pain that she had forced herself to suppress came up again. She hugged the wife of Marquis Wenxin's waist and began to cry.
"Mother..."
Lady Wenxinhou's heart ached. Listening to her daughter's sobbing in her arms, and feeling her trembling all over, she felt as if her heart was being torn apart.
This was her beloved daughter, the flesh and blood that fell from her body after ten months of pregnancy. She had planned and been careful in every way, just to give her a good future, to let her find a husband of her dreams and live a happy life in peace and stability. But now, all of her life was ruined by the dirty schemes of the royal family.
Rong Yue was also filled with heartache when she looked at Zhou Yuchang, but with so many people watching in the hall, she absolutely could not let anyone notice anything.
Rong Yue stood aside and whispered, "Yuchang, don't worry. Although your mother was injured, it wasn't a serious injury. With Madam Qin here, she'll be fine after some time of recuperation."
Her voice became heavier: "Don't cry, or your mother will worry."
The wife of Marquis Wenxin also suddenly realized that this was still the imperial palace and there were many people around. She was afraid that others would notice something was wrong, so she spoke in a hoarse voice, holding back her tears.
"Don't be afraid, Mom is fine."
Madam Wenxin patted Zhou Yuchang on the back and whispered, "Don't let others laugh at you."
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