Chapter 198 The eldest princess holds a high position and enjoys great popularity, so why would she rebel?
Lu Lingfeng stood frozen in place, his eyes fixed on Su Qingci.
Seeing that she was still sitting calmly, her expression utterly composed without a trace of guilt, and even talking quietly with the person next to her, a chill instantly ran through my heart.
Did she deliberately pass on false information to deceive him?
But why?
If Prime Minister Cui loses today, he, as an official who is affiliated with the Cui family, will inevitably be implicated and suffer the fate of having his entire family executed.
Didn't they already pledge their lives to each other, fall in love, and promise to spend the rest of their lives together?
Could it be that all those vows of eternal love were a carefully crafted deception from beginning to end?
He looked at Su Qingci's beautiful profile, his face turning pale, even his lips losing all color.
On the other side, Feng Deshun finally realized belatedly that he had been terribly tricked by Cui Shiliang.
He thought he had seized the great merit of "suppressing the rebellion and protecting the emperor" and could use it to rise to the top, but he never expected that he would become an accomplice to "treason" in a muddle.
He immediately knelt down and begged for forgiveness, "Your Majesty! This humble general has absolutely no intention of rebelling! This humble general only heard from Prime Minister Cui that the Eldest Princess had poisoned Your Majesty and that Your Majesty's life was in danger. In a moment of panic, I took it upon myself to mobilize troops to provide support. This humble general... this humble general was also deceived by Prime Minister Cui!"
Seeing Feng Deshun's eagerness to distance himself, Cui Shiliang's eyes flashed with a hint of anger at his lack of self-respect.
But there was no turning back now, so he could only kneel down and plead, “Your Majesty! I was also deceived by the secret letter! I only wanted to protect Your Majesty, which is why I was confused for a moment and begged General Feng to mobilize troops to protect Your Majesty! I have no disloyalty to Your Majesty, please forgive me!”
Seeing their commander kneel and admit his mistake, the other soldiers also threw down their swords, knelt down, and cried out in unison, "We know we were wrong! Please forgive us, Your Majesty!"
At this moment, Duke Liang and Shen Guojiu, who had been sitting in their seats watching the whole thing, slowly got up.
Despite his white hair and beard, Duke Liang was still vigorous and spoke in a loud voice, “Your Majesty! Cui Shiliang has privately mobilized the Longwu Army, surrounded the palace and forced the emperor to abdicate, and even fabricated lies to frame the Princess. This is no different from treason! If he is not severely punished, it will be difficult to win over the people and even more difficult to appease the hearts of the people!”
Shen Guojiu followed closely behind, saying, "Your Majesty! Feng Deshun, as the commander of the Longwu Army, mobilized troops and stormed into the palace banquet without Your Majesty's military order. This is a blatant disregard for palace rules and a lack of respect for the emperor! He should be punished the same as the traitor Cui and should not be let off lightly!"
These two are very important figures; one is a Duke, and the other is the Emperor's brother-in-law. With these words, the matter has been definitively settled.
Officials who had previously hesitated, now seeing that the wind had turned in their favor, fearing being labeled as "Cui's faction," have voiced their demands for severe punishment of the Cui family.
"The Duke of Liang and the Imperial Uncle Shen are absolutely right! Cui Shiliang's treasonous intentions are crystal clear, and he must be severely punished!"
"Feng Deshun's blind obedience and reckless orders are also among the main culprits, and he must not be let off the hook!"
"Your Majesty, please issue an edict to thoroughly investigate the Cui family's associates, to serve as a warning to others and to cleanse the court!"
In an instant, voices denouncing Cui Shiliang and Feng Deshun rose and fell.
Lin Xueyan could no longer suppress his hatred. Seeing that Cui Shiliang had completely lost power, he finally found an outlet for his anger.
He stood up abruptly and shouted, “Cui Shiliang! You treacherous villain! You have always formed cliques for personal gain, suppressed loyal officials, and caused the deaths of countless innocent people! Today you dare to plot rebellion and even frame the Princess!”
His "righteous indignation" was not only an attempt to take revenge on the Cui family, but also an eagerness to show his loyalty to the Princess and pledge allegiance to her side.
"Do you think you can distort the truth with a fake secret letter? If it was really to protect the emperor, why didn't you present the secret letter to the emperor first, instead of directly leading troops into the palace? If you were really worried that His Majesty was poisoned, why didn't you wait for the imperial physicians to treat him before accusing the princess of murdering the emperor's father?"
He became more and more agitated as he spoke, almost pointing his finger at his nose and shouting angrily.
"I think this is clearly a premeditated frame-up and treason plot by you! Now that the matter has been exposed, you are eager to shift the blame onto the secret letter! I ask you, the Princess holds a high position and is deeply loved by the people, why would she rebel?!"
Upon hearing this, everyone echoed his sentiments.
"Yes, the Princess is currently enjoying great favor from the Emperor and has just been bestowed the title of Princess Tiance Zhenguo. How could she possibly plot a rebellion?"
“Cui Shiliang’s claims are completely untenable; his actions clearly constitute treason.”
Looking at the questioning crowd in the hall, Cui Yunyi was both anxious and angry, wishing she could reveal Li Yuanzhao's identity to the public on the spot.
Remembering her brother's instructions, she forced back the words that were on the tip of her tongue, and instead kowtowed heavily towards the throne, "Your Majesty, my brother has served in the court for twenty years, wholeheartedly serving Your Majesty and being loyal to the Great Qi. Your Majesty knows this! How could he inexplicably commit treason?"
Lin Xueyan retorted without hesitation, "What else could it be? Isn't it because the Princess is popular and prestigious, and the Cui family's dirty deeds can no longer be hidden, that they've resorted to desperate measures?"
Cui Yunyi's face darkened. "Minister Lin, I am speaking to His Majesty. How dare you cause trouble and confuse right and wrong here!"
Li Ye looked at the chaos in the hall, his eyes dark and unfathomable, and remained silent.
Amidst the commotion in the hall, only Zheng Wenkai remained calmly contemplating the situation.
He stared at Cui Shiliang's figure, his brows furrowed.
If Cui Shiliang really wanted to rebel, he could have easily led his troops to surround the palace and killed His Majesty and the Princess directly, with the Dragon Guard under his control. Why go through all this trouble?
Moreover, Cui Shiliang's reactions just now, though flustered, also revealed a sense of certainty, which didn't seem like an act.
If he were truly the mastermind, why would he be so bewildered after it was proven that the wine was not poisoned and the female soldier was a dancer?
It was more like being led by the nose, falling step by step into a pre-set trap.
Zheng Wenkai's gaze slowly fell on Li Yuanzhao, who was sitting next to the throne.
She stood tall and calm, as if this dramatic treasonous farce had nothing to do with her.
The calmer she appeared, the more doubts arose in Zheng Wenkai's mind.
The eldest princess remained remarkably composed throughout, as if everything was under her control.
Although he and Cui Shiliang were not from the same faction, they shared a common goal—to enthrone the second prince.
If today's events were indeed a scheme orchestrated by the Eldest Princess, confirming that her uncle Cui Shiliang was plotting a rebellion, then the Second Prince would essentially have no chance of ascending the throne again.
Thinking of this, Zheng Wenkai prepared to stand up and defend Cui Shiliang, hoping to gain some room for maneuver for the Cui family and the Second Prince.
Sitting next to Liu Liniang, Cui Dalang was already trembling with fear.
He looked at his father kneeling on the ground and listened to the clamor in the hall denouncing the "Cui family for treason," and his mind went blank.
How could my father dare to commit such a heinous act as treason, which could lead to the extermination of the entire clan?
Why wasn't any information given to him beforehand?
If he had known this beforehand, he would never have come to this banquet today.
Now that the Cui family has fallen to such a state, is there any hope for them?
Upon seeing this, Liu Liniang feigned ignorance and asked, "Husband, what's wrong? Are you frightened?"
Cui Dalang, however, was like a firecracker that had been lit. He shoved her away and said fiercely, "Do you even have the right to speak, you woman? Shut up!"
To everyone's surprise, Liu Liniang maintained her gentle smile, her voice eerily calm, "Husband, you're wrong then. It's my turn to speak now..."
After saying this, under Cui Dalang's astonished gaze, Liu Liniang slowly stood up, walked to the center of the hall, and knelt down.
"Your Majesty, I have something to report."
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