Chapter 187 Loyalty
"Clang—"
The medicine box in Little Bell's hand fell to the ground with a crisp sound.
Su Qingci shook her head in disbelief, "Your Highness, how is this possible? How could you not be the late Empress's biological child?"
Pei Huaijin looked at Li Yuanzhao with a complicated expression, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
Her Highness's expression suggested she wasn't joking. Was she testing her? Or was she serious?
Li Yuanzhao's gaze swept over the surprised and uncertain faces of the crowd. "Let's not discuss whether this letter is true or false for now. I just want to know, if I am really not His Majesty's bloodline, what will you do?"
Su Qingci was the first to react, and without the slightest hesitation, she knelt down and kowtowed, "Your Highness, whether you are of imperial blood or not, I do not care. The only person I have ever followed is you!"
Pei Huaijin followed closely behind, lifting his robes and kneeling down. Although his movements were not as hasty as Shen Qingci's, they were equally solemn.
He raised his head, his gaze fixed intently on Li Yuanzhao, his tone steady and sincere: "Your Highness, I feel the same way. My only wish is to stay by Your Highness's side and share Your Highness's burdens. Regardless of your status, my heart will never change."
Ru Mo knelt on one knee, placed his right hand on his left chest, and performed the most solemn salute in the army.
"Your Highness, I will always follow you, even at the cost of my life!"
Seeing the resolute expressions on the three faces, Li Yuanzhao smiled with satisfaction, "Get up."
What she wants is not loyalty based on her status as the "eldest princess".
What she wanted was absolute loyalty from someone who would stand by her side because of "Li Yuanzhao," regardless of her status or circumstances.
Needless to say, Su Qingci was already hers.
Ru Mo has followed her through thick and thin all these years.
The Pei family is now firmly tied to her.
These people, whether out of genuine affection or self-interest, have no way out and can only follow her wholeheartedly.
She picked up the secret letter and slowly brought it closer to the flickering candlelight.
The flames quickly engulfed the edges of the letter, and black ash fell onto the table.
Li Yuanzhao looked at the burning letter and said coldly, "Since they have gone to such lengths to force me to take action, I might as well grant their wish."
...
After all the arrangements were made, just as everyone was about to take their leave, Li Yuanzhao suddenly called out to Xiaolingdang, "You stay."
Little Bell paused, her heart instantly tightening.
After the door closed, she walked nervously to Li Yuanzhao's side.
Li Yuanzhao instructed, "Sit down."
Little Bell sat down nervously.
She was too flustered to speak when everyone was expressing their loyalty.
Seeing that His Highness had left her alone, she couldn't help but feel nervous, afraid that His Highness would misunderstand her as having ulterior motives. She quickly said, "Sister, you saved my life. No matter what your status is, no matter what happens in the future, I will always follow you!"
Li Yuanzhao did not respond to that question, but instead asked, "How is Father's health?"
When the emperor's condition was mentioned, Xiao Lingdang composed herself and said, "After His Majesty vomited blood last time, in order not to arouse suspicion, I added a few strong medicines to the medicine. Now His Majesty looks rosy-cheeked and can even handle memorials until late at night, but his health is already severely depleted. At this rate, he should not last more than a month before passing away."
"Hmm." Li Yuanzhao tapped the table lightly with his fingertips, his tone carrying a hint of reminder, "I've heard that Prime Minister Zheng has been secretly investigating your background recently."
Little Bell said, "Luckily, my sister had the foresight to conceal my identity, so they probably won't notice anything unusual for a while."
Li Yuanzhao looked at her and said, "What about Director Wen of the Imperial Hospital? He is an old man in the palace and very shrewd. You work in the Imperial Hospital and are in contact with him every day. It is inevitable that you will slip up."
When Wen Shuzheng was mentioned, Xiao Lingdang's eyes lit up. She leaned closer and lowered her voice, saying, "Speaking of which, these days, Wen Shuzheng has been bringing it up intentionally or unintentionally, wanting me to introduce him to someone. It seems like he wants to rely on you, sister."
"Oh?" Li Yuanzhao raised an eyebrow. "He's quite the shrewd one. Since he's interested, bring him to see me another day."
"Yes." Little Bell quickly replied. Seeing that His Highness did not ask any further questions, she stood up and said, "Sister, it's getting late. You're still recovering from your serious injuries, you should rest early. If there's nothing else, I'll go back to the Imperial Hospital for my duty."
“No rush…” Li Yuanzhao suddenly spoke, his tone somewhat nonchalant, “I heard that you have a good relationship with Chen Yanqing and have even given him medicine a few times.”
Upon hearing this, Xiaolingdang's body froze instantly, and her face turned deathly pale.
She never expected that His Highness would suddenly bring this up again after so long.
Especially when she thought about how she had secretly given Chen Yanqing the antidote and even concealed it from His Highness, her heart jumped into her throat.
Now that she had been exposed on the spot, she knew she could no longer hide it, and she knelt down with a thud.
"I...I didn't mean to hide it from you! Last time Chen Yanqing told me that his face was uncomfortable, and I don't know why, I impulsively gave him the antidote ointment."
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Every time I see him, I can’t control myself and I do stupid things! I’m sorry, sister, I really didn’t mean to. I was afraid you would be angry, afraid you would leave me, so I didn’t dare to tell you…”
As she spoke, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. She gripped Li Yuanzhao's clothes tightly with both hands, her voice choked with sobs.
Li Yuanzhao looked at her like a child who had done something wrong, without a trace of anger in his eyes. Instead, he reached out and gently patted her shoulder, "Get up, why are you crying?"
Little Bell paused, then looked up at her with her tear-streaked face, puzzled.
Li Yuanzhao slowly spoke, "I already knew about your affair with Chen Yanqing."
"Then why..."
Little Bell opened her mouth, wanting to ask why she wasn't punished for being a traitor and ungrateful person? Why was she still kept by her side?
Li Yuanzhao wiped away her tears. "I personally rescued you from a pile of corpses and have raised you by my side for so many years. How could I possibly punish you or even abandon you because of someone who is dispensable?"
Hearing this, Little Bell felt even more guilty.
She could no longer hold back and threw herself into Li Yuanzhao's arms, hugging her waist and crying loudly, her tears soaking her clothes.
"Sister... I'm sorry, I won't be confused anymore. I swear, I will never hide anything from you again!"
Li Yuanzhao gently stroked her hair, as if stroking a cat's fur.
"I know that you have always felt stifled and restricted in this palace and want to return to Nanzhao. I promise you that after I ascend the throne, I will help you conquer Nanzhao and give you a home to return to."
Little Bell suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with shock.
She never imagined that His Highness would know all the thoughts she had kept hidden so deeply.
"Sister, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." She couldn't stop her tears. "Actually, you are my only family. I only want to go back to Nanzhao to see our parents' graves one last time. I have no other wish. From now on, I will follow you wherever you go! I just need to stay by your side!"
Li Yuanzhao smiled softly, "Okay."
The truth is, she had people watching Chen Yanqing's every word and action long ago.
So she found out not long after Little Bell gave him the antidote.
She didn't punish Xiaolingdang at the time, but just wanted to see what other tricks the two of them could pull behind her back.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Lingdang suddenly realized her mistake and even poisoned Chen Yanqing again.
She generally doesn't hold grudges against her subordinates as long as they don't infringe upon her core interests.
The reason why Xiaolingdang was bewitched by Chen Yanqing was more because of the inexplicable magic that Chen Yanqing possessed. Rather than blaming her for being weak-willed, it would be more accurate to say that Chen Yanqing truly deserved to die.
Now that Xiaolingdang knows her mistakes and can correct them, why should she keep dwelling on the past?
Moreover, keeping her around will provide a ready-made reason to "punish" her when she sends troops to Nanzhao in the future.
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