Chapter 114 Truth 3 You Don’t Deserve to Love Her
Xie Wuhen stared at Zeng Yi solemnly, then sneered after a moment, "Mr. Zeng is a commoner, but he's quite imaginative."
How could a commoner like him see the current emperor whenever he wanted?
Zeng Yidao's words were full of hidden meaning: "If the Shaoqing can fulfill my wish, I will definitely give you a truth beyond the truth."
His eyelashes fluttered. "What do you mean by that?"
Zeng Yidao slowly shook the teacup in his hand and said, "Your Excellency, this tea was given to you by your wife before she left Beijing."
At the mention of Su He, Xie Wuhen suddenly grasped the long sword on the tea table, his knuckles turning white. He coldly demanded, "Did she see you before she left Beijing?"
Zeng Yidao shook his head. "No, this is just a farewell gift that Madam Shaoqing sent to me by her maid."
Xie Wuhen asked again, "Why did you suddenly mention her?"
Zeng Yidao's tone was profound, "Sir Shaoqing, you should now think about how to fulfill Zeng's wish."
"Could it be that she has something to do with the truth you are telling?"
"Zeng will no longer answer any questions from the Shaoqing. You can kill me or chop me up as you wish."
Xie Wuhen was silent for a moment, then stood up and said, "Okay, I promise you." He put away his sword, raised his long legs and turned to walk out of the house.
At noon the next day, Xie Wuhen led Zeng Yidao through the numerous palace gates and entered the Weiyang Palace.
At that time, the emperor was sitting upright on the dragon throne, his face solemn and his demeanor majestic, like a towering mountain, intimidating.
The two men first bowed and saluted.
Afterwards, Xie Wuhen lowered his head and stood aside, leaving Zeng Yidao alone in the open space in the hall.
All the palace servants were dismissed, and the palace became empty and silent.
The morning light leaked in from outside the temple gate, making the floor tiles shine brightly and also reflecting Zeng Yidao's lonely and resolute figure.
The two men stared at each other solemnly from a distance of half a meter.
The emperor spoke first: "What is your name?"
Zeng Yidao replied, "My surname is Zeng, my given name is Chengqi, and I later changed it to Yidao."
"Why do you insist on seeing me?"
"I want to see what the man who killed my junior sister looks like."
Xie Wuhen, who was standing by, couldn't stand it any longer and shouted, "Mr. Zeng, please be careful with your words."
The emperor waved at him, then stepped down from the dragon throne and walked in front of Zeng Yidao. He said in a deep voice, "Since you dare to come to see me, there is no distinction between you and me today as king and subject. You and I are just two men who have lost their beloved ones."
Zeng Yidao's eyes were red and he stared at the emperor without blinking.
Since the emperor ascended the throne, no one had dared to look him in the eye like this, so he just stared back at them solemnly.
Two men in their twilight years, two men with vastly different statuses, met in such a way and at such a time because of the same woman, and they couldn't help but feel a bit of sadness and hostility in their hearts.
Zeng Yidao's hostility was particularly evident: "If the Emperor regarded Junior Sister as his dearest love, why would he allow her to escape from the palace, become a slave, and ultimately end up having her throat slit?"
He has always been dignified and polite, but today, when facing the man in front of him, every word he said was so moving and sonorous that he seemed to be on the verge of losing control.
The emperor's eyes were filled with deep guilt and helplessness: "You are right, it is my fault."
Zeng Yidao gritted his teeth and said, "So, don't say she is your beloved. You don't deserve to love her."
Hearing the word "unworthy", the emperor's eyes reddened. "Let me ask you, are you worthy of loving her? Didn't she come to you? Did you protect her well? If you had even half the ability to protect her, she wouldn't have become a slave!"
Zeng Yidao's face flushed with anger, veins bulging on his forehead. "You're truly the thief crying 'stop thief!' If it weren't for you, she wouldn't have ended up in the palace, or been forced to flee pregnant. She should have been a carefree tea-making maid on the Liuyang Mountains, living a peaceful and happy life with me until old age. But in the end, because of you, your interference... she perished, her body vanished, and now there's not even a grave to honor her. How dare you question me?"
The emperor choked up several times until tears came to his eyes.
He has always been calm and composed, and has never lost his composure in front of his subjects, but today he can no longer control himself.
He asked hoarsely, "How do you know that she is unhappy in the palace?"
Zeng Yidao sneered, "To her, this palace is nothing more than a cage."
The emperor was somewhat dazed, but shook his head resolutely, memories flooding back. "Duofu once said that meeting me was the happiest thing in her life. She also said that her greatest wish was to stay with me forever and have children for me. She loved making tea for me and playing chess with me..."
Zeng Yidao interrupted him harshly: "Junior sister, I taught you how to play tea and chess..."
The emperor didn't look at Zeng Yidao, but instead gazed at the sunlight outside the palace. "Duofu's tea art was taught by her teacher Zeng Wusheng. As for her chess skills, they are indeed very poor. I personally taught her many chess games. She is quite talented and even calls me her first master."
Zeng Yidao was so angry that he clenched his teeth again, and the muscles in his cheeks twitched. "You are in a high position and have great power, so it is natural for me to be hypocritical to you."
The emperor retorted, "Your position is low and your words are not taken seriously. Duofu naturally has no time to confide in you."
"You..." Zeng Yidao was speechless for a moment.
The two men looked at each other solemnly again.
Zeng Yidao's eyes were filled with indignation, while the emperor's eyes were filled with forbearance. Thousands of soldiers and horses, as well as swords, spears, and halberds, had already crushed the other side thousands of times in his eyes.
Xie Wuhen, who was standing by, couldn't bear to watch any longer and reminded him, "Your Majesty, today's main task is to find the princess's whereabouts."
The emperor paused after hearing this and spoke in a deep voice, "Zi Yu is right. I met with Mr. Zeng today to find the child that Duofu bore me."
Zeng Yidao also slowed down, restrained his expression, and put away the hostility in his eyes.
He became gentle and polite again, bowing his head to the emperor before offering a gentle apology. "My words were too harsh just now. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."
The emperor looked calm and said, "Mr. Zeng, there's no need for formalities. Let's get to the point."
Zeng Yidao glanced at the emperor, then at Xie Wuhen, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, with a certain pleasure hidden in that smile.
He said: "Junior sister's daughter has actually been living in the capital, and even living under the nose of the Shaoqing."
Xie Wuhen was a little bit incredulous: "Living right under my nose?"
Zeng Yidao was still laughing, "Not only that, maybe the emperor has also seen his daughter."
The Emperor and Xie Wuhen asked at the same time: "Who is she?"
Zeng Yidao paused and did not respond immediately.
At this time, the hall was silent, and the two men were looking at him anxiously.
But he just wanted to delay and torture them in every detail.
He said, "Mr. Zeng said that you, the Shaoqing, must be prepared to face the truth. I wonder if you are ready now?"
Xie Wuhen couldn't stand it any longer and shouted, "Stop talking nonsense."
Zeng Yidao didn't mind the shout at all, his tone was still unhurried: "Then Zeng is going to reveal the truth, you guys better listen carefully." After he finished speaking, he smiled, and this time there was not only satisfaction in his smile, but even a bit of evil.
He spoke each word with great emphasis: "My junior sister's name is Su Xue'er, and the child she gave birth to is named Su He. You, Lord Shaoqing, should be very familiar with the name 'Su He'. She is the wife that the Emperor decreed and that you, Lord Shaoqing, formally married. It's a pity that she has now left the Xie family!"
It was like a bolt of lightning, like a bolt from the blue.
In a trance, it seemed as if the entire Weiyang Palace had turned into a dream.
Xie Wuhen was so stunned that he couldn't even breathe, and his ears were almost deafened.
Then he stepped forward at lightning speed and grabbed Zeng Yidao's neck: "If you dare to talk nonsense again, I will cut off your tongue right now."
Zeng Yidao's face flushed red from being pinched, but a smile remained on his lips. "Master Shaoqing's reaction is so intense. It seems... you're not ready to face the truth."
Xie Wuhen bit his back teeth and said, "You are deliberately causing trouble and trying to involve my wife in this, right?"
Zeng Yidao answered with difficulty: "I am only telling the truth. Could it be that... the Shaoqing has never doubted his wife?"
Xie Wuhen was stunned by his question and remained speechless for a long time.
He did find out that she was always hiding something from him, but he never thought that she had such an identity.
The emperor was also a little dazed at this time.
He suddenly remembered the woman he had met at the palace banquet that day. She had a beautiful face and picturesque features, and she looked exactly like Duofu back then.
He even sent people to check her maternal family, and only gave up after confirming that she was not his daughter. Now Zeng Yidao actually said that she was his daughter, and he was filled with mixed feelings of sadness and joy.
The emperor ordered in a deep voice: "Zi Yu, let him go first."
Xie Wuhen was furious: "Your Majesty, this person is clearly making groundless accusations."
The emperor shouted: "Let him go first."
Xie Wuhen had no choice but to suppress his anger and let go of Zeng Yidao.
The emperor stared at Zeng Yi solemnly and said, "When I issued the decree granting the marriage, it was to allow the Li and Xie families to form an alliance. Why did Ziyu's wife have the surname Su? Why did she become my daughter?"
Zeng Yidao took a breath, touched his red neck, and then looked at Xie Wuhen: "Master Shaoqing must have done a lot of research to find his runaway wife. He should know what's going on, right?"
The emperor also looked at Xie Wuhen: "Zi Yu, what on earth is going on?"
Xie Wuhen's mood was still fluctuating, he lowered his head and remained silent.
The emperor had no choice but to tell Zeng Yi, "You speak."
Zeng Yidao nodded and saluted, "I obey your command."
Then he began to tell the story, "After my junior sister was murdered, her child fell into the hands of a man. After being sold several times, it ended up in the Li family's inner courtyard, the home of Li Tai'an, the Shaoqing's maternal uncle. She became a maidservant to Li Shuli, the eldest daughter of the Li family. It's said that Li Shuli was domineering and cruel, and would either beat or scold the maids. That child must have suffered a lot of beatings in the Li family, right?"
Zeng Yidao paused, "Later, Li Shuli clashed with her stepmother and was banished to the West Mountain Courtyard by Li Tai'an. It was there that the child, unable to bear Li Shuli's beatings and scolding, killed her and replaced her in the Xie family, becoming the wife of the Shaoqing. Using her status as the Shaoqing's wife, she successfully avenged her blood feud and left the capital, disappearing from the Shaoqing's life. Now, does the Shaoqing think that Zeng is talking nonsense?"
Xie Wuhen secretly clenched his fists and remained silent.
The morning light outside the hall fell on his profile, reflecting his handsome features and pale complexion.
He seemed to be still in a dream from which he couldn't wake up, and his expression was still somewhat dazed and confused.
He thought he had hidden Su He's impersonation well, but Zeng Yidao had still seen through it. He asked hoarsely, "How did you know she replaced Li Shuli?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
