Chapter 79 She Will Ascend the Throne and Become Empress
Lu Yuandao was sentenced to exile in Qianzhou.
On the eve of his departure, Cui Shiliang made a special trip to the prison to visit him.
Inside the prison, Lu Yuandao wore a tattered prison uniform, his hair was disheveled, and his face was deeply lined with wrinkles. He had long lost the dignity of the former Minister.
Seeing Cui Shiliang enter, a glimmer of light flashed in his cloudy eyes, and he struggled to sit up from the haystack: "Lord Cui..."
To say that he had no resentment towards Cui Shiliang for pushing him out to take the blame would be self-deception.
But since he held his Achilles' heel, he had no choice but to comply.
It's a stroke of luck that I've been spared and only sentenced to exile.
Whether he could return to the capital in the future depended on Cui Shiliang's intervention, so naturally he dared not utter a single word of resentment at this moment.
Cui Shiliang's gaze swept over his disheveled appearance, and he said coldly, "Lord Lu, we're setting off tomorrow, and there are some things I need to make clear to you."
He paused, his tone carrying an undisguised warning: "When you get to Qianzhou, you'd better keep your mouth shut. I don't need to teach you what to say and what not to say, do I? Your family is still living in the capital. Whether they're doing well or not depends entirely on whether you're sensible or not."
Lu Yuandao froze, and the color drained from his face instantly.
He certainly understood what those words meant.
If he dares to gossip and expose this matter on the way to exile or after arriving in Qianzhou, his wife, children, and elderly parents left in the capital will likely be in grave danger.
"I...I understand." He hurriedly assured, "This was my doing alone, and has nothing to do with Prime Minister Cui or the Second Prince."
Cui Shiliang nodded in satisfaction, his tone softening slightly, "Don't worry, I've made arrangements for you. In Qianzhou, I have people I've placed to take care of you. They won't make you do hard labor like digging canals or building roads. They'll find you a quiet place to live, where you'll have no worries about food or clothing."
Seeing the renewed hope in Lu Yuandao's eyes, he continued to offer bait: "As long as you stay peacefully in Qianzhou for a few years, when the Second Prince ascends the throne, he will definitely recall you immediately. It's not impossible for you to be ennobled and appointed as a prime minister. You suffered this misfortune because of the Second Prince, and he will not forget your contributions."
These words, first offering the hammer, then the sweet treat, combined both soft and hard tactics, striking the perfect balance.
Sure enough, Lu Yuandao's eyes shone even brighter, his voice filled with the excitement of surviving a disaster: "Thank you, Lord Cui! Thank you, Second Prince! I will definitely behave myself and wait... wait for the day the Second Prince ascends the throne!"
"Alright." Cui Shiliang raised his hand to interrupt him. "I've said everything I needed to say. You'd better take care of yourself."
After saying that, he turned and left.
The next day, just as the carriage carrying the exiled man left the capital region, Lu Yuandao encountered two unexpected people.
The eldest princess and Pei Huaijin.
The two men, one on each horse, stood quietly in the middle of the official road.
Li Yuanzhao, dressed in a red riding outfit with a jade belt around his waist, looked at him expressionlessly.
Pei Huaijin, dressed in a moon-white brocade robe, followed behind her with a calm expression.
The two were followed by a few attendants, who were obviously waiting there on purpose.
Pei Huaijin dismounted first and called out to him, "Uncle."
Pei Huaijin's mother was Lu Yuandao's cousin, so according to seniority, Pei Huaijin should call Lu Yuandao "uncle".
Lu Yuandao looked at him, then glanced at Li Yuanzhao beside him, his brows furrowing almost imperceptibly.
If he had come alone to see him off today, Lu Yuandao would have thought his nephew showed some humanity, but...
When did Pei Huaijin become so close to this princess?
Li Yuanzhao remained seated on his horse, smiling at Lu Yuandao from afar, "Lord Lu, won't you invite us to ride in and catch up?"
Lu Yuandao's eyes darkened. What past relationship did he have with Li Yuanzhao?
Over the years, although he did not openly oppose her, he secretly worked under Cui Shiliang's orders to make things difficult for her.
Could it be that she's here to kick someone when they're down and get revenge?
Or was it that they wanted to take the opportunity to extract information about Cui Shiliang from him, and deliberately brought his nephew along to win him over?
He snapped out of his reverie, stepped aside to make way for her, and said, "Please, Princess."
Seeing this, the prison guards who were escorting them had already tactfully retreated to a distance, giving the group some space to talk.
Li Yuanzhao entered the carriage, and Lu Yuandao immediately knelt down to pay his respects.
Li Yuanzhao didn't look at him, his gaze sweeping over the soft cushions in the carriage and the thick blankets folded in the corner. "It seems that Cui Xiang is quite considerate of Lord Lu. Ordinary prison carriages don't have this kind of dignified treatment."
When Lu Yuandao saw that she had seen through Cui Shiliang's favor towards him with just one sentence, he confirmed her purpose for coming.
It seems they really came for Cui Shiliang.
"Your Highness, you certainly didn't come here just to say these things, did you?"
He felt that he still had some value to Li Yuanzhao at this moment, and his tone became a bit firmer.
Li Yuanzhao chuckled, "I didn't expect that Lord Lu would be so willing to take the blame for someone else, even being exiled to the wilderness and still begging for mercy from his enemy. This 'spirit' is stronger than that of ordinary people."
Lu Yuandao's expression changed drastically, but he forced himself to remain calm. "What is Your Highness talking about? I don't understand."
"Cui Shiliang visited you yesterday and promised you many benefits, didn't he?" Li Yuanzhao raised an eyebrow, ignoring his feigned deafness, and continued, "He told you to stay obediently in Qianzhou, and that he would summon you back when Li Yuanyou ascended the throne, and bestow upon you a title and appoint you as prime minister?"
Lu Yuandao was shocked, and his face turned ashen instantly.
He couldn't understand how she could have guessed these private conversations.
At this moment, Pei Huaijin spoke up at the opportune moment, "Uncle, do you think Prime Minister Cui would let you live to Qianzhou? Hasn't he done enough of this kind of thing, crossing the river and then burning the bridge? Have you forgotten my uncle and Lord Zheng? My uncle was just sentenced to exile, and he died tragically on his way out of the capital."
With each word he spoke, Lu Yuandao's face paled a little more, until he was almost deathly pale, finally muttering, "Impossible, this is impossible."
Pei Huaijin coldly refuted, "What's impossible about that? To him, only the mouths of the dead are the most reliable."
Lu Yuandao looked up at the two of them and asked, "What exactly are you trying to say?"
Li Yuanzhao smiled slightly, "What Cui Shiliang can give you, I can give you too, and even more. He makes you wait in Qianzhou, but I can make you return to the capital openly and legitimately tomorrow, and be reinstated to your original position."
Lu Yuandao knew, of course, that the eldest princess always meant what she said.
Since she asked, she can naturally do it.
However, this comes at a price.
He couldn't bring himself to betray Cui Shiliang and switch allegiance to her.
Because deep down he felt that the eldest princess was not fit for that position.
He is a man, and the emperor is a man. In this world, which man would give his family property to a daughter who will eventually marry out?
He abandoned the second prince to follow her, and he might gain temporary glory, but he might not have a good ending in the future.
Moreover, having been immersed in officialdom for many years, how could he not see through these threatening and enticing tactics? They were merely using Cui Shiliang to frighten him.
He composed himself, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Highness, thank you for your kindness, but I deserve my fate and have fallen into this predicament. I dare not ask Your Highness for help any further. Please return."
The smile on Li Yuanzhao's face slowly faded, and his words lost all patience. "If that's the case, then so be it."
Upon hearing this, Pei Huaijin subconsciously clenched his fist.
He knew Li Yuanzhao's nature all too well; this man was determined to kill him.
As expected, Li Yuanzhao slowly spoke, saying to Pei Huaijin, "Kill him."
Pei Huaijin's eyes widened. "Your Highness?!"
He had never killed anyone before, and felt it was inappropriate to kill Lu Yuandao at this time, especially since Lu was his nominal uncle.
Lu Yuandao was terrified and stumbled back several steps, crashing into the carriage wall: "How dare you! Although I have been exiled, I was once a high-ranking official. If you kill me, the Emperor will not let you off easily!"
"What? Are you unwilling? Or afraid?"
Li Yuanzhao completely ignored Lu Yuandao's roar, and looked at Pei Huaijin, saying slowly, "You know, I only give people one chance."
After saying that, she ignored the two of them and turned to leave the carriage.
Only Pei Huaijin and Lu Yuandao remained in the carriage.
Pei Huaijin looked at the dagger in his hand, then at Lu Yuandao.
Lu Yuandao's voice trembled as he hurriedly advised, "Huaijin, I am your uncle! Do you really intend to remain obstinate and collude with the Eldest Princess? Have you not considered that after the Second Prince ascends the throne, will Prime Minister Cui let you off the hook?"
Pei Huaijin tightened his grip on the dagger, his tone unwavering, "The Second Prince will not ascend the throne."
"Impossible!" Lu Yuandao retorted sharply, "Li Yuanzhao is nothing but a woman who squats to urinate! How could His Majesty appoint a woman as Crown Prince..."
Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly looked down at the dagger embedded in his abdomen, blood gushing from the blade, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Pei Huaijin suddenly drew his dagger, looked at Lu Yuandao's fallen body, and said calmly, "She will ascend the throne and become empress. Uncle, you can watch from the ground."
Outside the carriage, Li Yuanzhao looked at the blood-stained dagger in Pei Huaijin's hand and smiled. "Spread the word that Cui Shiliang has betrayed his benefactor and killed him to silence him."
Pei Huaijin lowered his eyes, concealing the complex emotions within them. "Yes."
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