Chapter 102 Chapter 102 Dead End
The four sat on opposite sides. Everyone in the garden was trustworthy. Shang Yuji first asked, "Have you found the small courtyard that Tian Mu placed in the south corner of the city?"
"Found them. There are five girls inside, but they're not in good condition. We'll talk to them and ask them to stay for a few more days so as not to give anything away. Just keep Tian the bandit in check, and we'll send someone to arrest him when the time comes."
Zhou Chaoyun frowned. She had heard of Tian Mu's reputation in the court and mistakenly thought that he was an upright and honest person on the surface, but she did not expect him to be a wolf in sheep's clothing and a hypocrite.
In the small courtyard in the south of the city used to imprison other men's wives, anything sharp was either rounded off or wrapped in cloth. This seemingly considerate act was merely a way to prevent the imprisoned girls from committing suicide. Seeing the girls, weakened by the leprosy-inducing drug, lying thinly on the beds or sitting blankly on the cushioned floor, their bodies too weak to move, they could only conserve their energy to eat. Under the drug's influence, even lifting a bowl or chopsticks was a struggle.
In addition, thin chains were wrapped around their necks and limbs, clanging as they moved. The chains could only keep them at a distance of up to the eaves of the veranda, where they could gaze at the lush courtyard and the magnolia trees in full bloom. Such a flourishing garden was not the result of careful tending by people, but rather nourished by the blood and flesh of those who would rather die than submit and whose bones were as strong as iron.
Years ago, a young woman suspected something amiss with the destruction of her sister's family. She infiltrated the Flower Garden, discovered the truth, and, together with the other women, fought a desperate battle. They wounded the traitor, but also enraged him, leading him to kill a group of troublemakers and bury their bones in the courtyard to be used as fertilizer. That rebellion left a lasting scar on him; he rested for two years before striking again. When he did, he was extremely cautious, not only erasing evidence but also, to prevent further resistance, putting a muscle-relaxing drug in their food. Those who didn't eat would starve, while those who did would be too weak to resist.
Numbness persisted for a long time, and he witnessed several girls who were dissatisfied with him being killed. The more they dared not disobey him, the more terrified they were when he came to serve him. That's why Zhou Chaoyun quietly entered the garden, only to find them smiling obsequiously to the extreme, disgustingly slippery, and crawling forward to serve him like tamed female beasts.
At that moment, Zhou Chaoyun felt like killing someone, but unfortunately, Tian Mu had dismissed the cases of these girls so easily that they could not be dealt with in court. He could only wait for Shang Yuji to come to the capital, put on a show, and trick the old thief into making a mistake, so that he could arrest the people on the spot.
Shang Yuji: "These past few days, his attention has been mostly on me and Qiushui, so he has neglected Huamanyuan."
Zhou Chaoyun nodded: "It will be convenient for the guards to replace the food mixed with the muscle-relaxing powder with normal food, so that they can regain their strength first, and have the strength to run away if anything happens."
Unfortunately, physical ailments can be cured, but psychological trauma can linger for a long time.
This person deserves to be torn to pieces.
If we bring Tian Mu down, the General's Mansion will be too busy to care about anything else. Without the support of the General's Mansion, it will be like losing an arm for Zhou Ao, which will give him the upper hand in the upcoming situation.
...On the day Tian Mu is punished, the victimized girls must be made to witness him confess his crimes.
Shang Yuji: "Has that lady been making any unusual moves lately?"
She was referring to Consort Shu, whose secret letter had arrived in the capital even before theirs. After receiving the letter, Zhou Chaoyun sent people to keep an eye on Consort Shu's movements. She even had a special meeting with her, but...
“No,” Zhou Chaoyun paused, “everything is as usual.”
"...His illness hasn't shown any abnormalities so far. Could it really be a case of poisoning and framing?"
This time, it was Shang Yuji who shook her head: "I'm not sure, but it's related to that beauty. If we keep a close eye on it, we'll eventually find a flaw."
The emperor was poisoned by his favorite concubine, fell ill and never recovered until the power transition was completed, at which point he finally passed away.
The imperial harem, a place that is easily overlooked yet cannot be underestimated.
The person next to you in bed is the easiest place to commit tampering.
Whether it's seductive words that distort right and wrong, or the loss of life when one is caught off guard, it all happens silently and without warning.
"There are no secrets that stay hidden forever; everything leaves a trace." Zhou Chaoyun acknowledged that the emperor's life was in grave danger, and she shouldn't be the one in a hurry.
Only in troubled waters can one fish; a turbulent situation might make it easier for them to act.
Unexpectedly, Shang Yuji suddenly smiled and said, "Your Highness, there is something I have not told you yet, and I would like to tell you in advance—we have less than four months left."
Xuan Qing raised her eyes, a thoughtful look flashing in them, while Zhou Chaoyun, who guessed what she meant by time, was stunned: "It's so urgent."
Their timeframe refers to the moment of seizing the throne, but Shang Yuji specifically stated the remaining time: the time when the emperor dies, which is the last day for them to take action.
In fact, Shang Yuji was thinking that delay would lead to unforeseen changes, so she had to strike first.
But no matter how anxious they were, they had to wait until the emperor fell ill, the situation became chaotic, and Zhou Ao couldn't contain himself and revealed his wolfish ambitions. Only then could they act on moral grounds. Now, Zhou Ao's faction had lost a lot of power to them. If he had memories of his past life, the contrast between the two would be huge, and he would inevitably feel anxious and uneasy. People are most prone to making mistakes when they are under pressure.
If all else fails, she supports the eldest princess in seizing power by force. So what if she gets a reputation as a tyrant?
Aside from a bad reputation, a tyrant has everything else a tyrant could possibly have!
Xuan Qing spoke up: "There are three forces vying for power in this situation. I didn't know who else was involved besides Your Highness and the Second Prince, but after hearing what Madam Lan said, I think it must be that 'Prince Qi'."
Initially, it was calculated that only the eldest princess and the second prince were vying for power, while the other forces were just engaging in minor skirmishes that wouldn't affect the overall situation. However, as time went on, when the second prince was thwarted, he calculated a different outcome—the throne was being contested by three forces.
The last force he couldn't calculate was hidden within the Second Prince's faction, thus obscured by the Second Prince's aura. Only when the Second Prince's forces suffered a setback and his aura weakened, unable to conceal the "Prince Qi" behind him, could he be able to calculate it.
The rivalry between the Second Prince and the Prince of Qi was intense, and when they were intertwined, they were difficult to distinguish from one another, which puzzled him for a time. However, what Lady Lan said today has cleared up his confusion.
What kind of nonsense is this? Zhou Ao was already annoyed enough, and now this King Qi has popped up. Can't he just stay in his fiefdom and behave himself?
Zhou Chaoyun felt a throbbing pain in his temples and raised his voice slightly as he asked, "Are you saying that 'King Qi' and my second brother are not on the same side?"
She sighed, "That's true. If you can sit in the seat yourself, why should you give it to someone else?"
Power is only truly reliable when it is in one's own hands.
Before leaving, Shang Yuji asked, "Your Highness, do you think the Second Prince is tyrannical, self-willed, domineering, extravagant, wasteful, and dissolute?"
"..." Although she admitted that her second brother was not perfect, he was not as extreme as described above, was he?
It sounds more like he was secretly cursing his second brother a few times. Secretly might be wrong; openly and honestly is more like it.
Having said that, Zhou Chaoyun replied, "He is easily angered but not to the point of being tyrannical. He is stubborn but can occasionally listen to others. He doesn't indulge in debauchery... If he is like Tian Mu, who is two-faced, then I'm not so sure."
Whoever ascends the throne will inevitably become more tyrannical. With the greatest power in the world in one's hands, and all things under heaven belonging to one person, just as when a person succeeds, those around them become kinder and easier to talk to, how much more so when it comes to an emperor? Everyone who sees an emperor will speak eloquently and wittily, praising him to the skies, truly granting him whatever he desires. Under such circumstances, it is only natural for ambition to swell and desires to rise.
Comparing the Zhou Ao described by the eldest princess with the new emperor in her memory, the drastic change in their personalities raises the question: was it a case of him turning ruthless after ascending the throne, or was there another hidden reason?
Shang Yuji did not hesitate to speculate with the worst possible intentions: Did he change his identity halfway through, or was he ambushed by someone?
If we don't have enough brains, let's just give them to the eldest princess. After all, she has a whole think tank behind her!
The bloodshed and intrigue surrounding these power struggles were all too familiar to those advisors.
After Shang Yuji finished recounting his doubts, Zhou Chaoyun was left alone in the pavilion, lost in thought.
After Shang Yuji left, A Yi was ordered to bring Cui Shu, Gongsun Ming, Yi An, and others, and told them what had just been said, which caused even more people to get caught up in a brainstorming session.
The two stopped Xuan Qing and pulled her aside to talk. Shang Yuji, disregarding whether the Princess's guards were stationed in the shadows where they were, asked directly:
"What is Master Xuanqing's true purpose in coming down the mountain? Could you please tell me clearly?"
With Jiang Xiqu around, there's no fear of him finding a chance to run away. If he does run away, it will be a matter of whether his legs are faster or Jiang Xiqu's whip is faster.
His eyes flickered, and he forced a smile as he explained, "As I said before, I've come for the Da'an Sheng Bureau and for the young lady."
"Hmm?" Shang Yuji drawled, her doubt deepening. It wasn't that she suspected he was lying, but rather that she felt he was hiding something. "Master Xuan, could you please explain in detail?"
In an instant, the three fell into an eerie silence. Xuan Qing was considering whether to reveal what he knew, Shang Yuji was watching him to prevent him from escaping, and Jiang Xi imitated her, keeping a serious expression as she kept watch. For a moment, no one spoke.
Finally, Xuanqing broke the silence and sighed, "Since you want to know, I will tell you. Even my junior brother doesn't know about this..."
Seeing that things had gone well, Shang Yuji's eyes lit up. Following his signal, the three of them sat down on a stone bench in the courtyard, and she listened attentively.
Xuan Qing: "A year ago, I calculated countless divinations and observed countless stars. All I could foresee and see was one ending, a bleak dead end... A dynasty should have a process from rise to prosperity to decline, but Da'an has only six short years left from now to decline. It has taken an irreversible and unstoppable turn for the worse."
“I tried to calculate whether there was a way to turn the tide, but the result was always the same – no, Da’an’s defeat was a predetermined dead end.”
“There was no sign of life. The ‘qi’ of the entire Da’an was like a stagnant pool, obstructed and without ripples, shrouded in a deathly atmosphere.”
"Over the years, I almost thought of giving up and letting Da'an end up like it originally did, but that ending was too tragic. The whole of Da'an... suffered from frequent natural disasters, the king was incompetent, the world was in chaos, and ten out of every ten of the people survived. It was a tragedy."
"I don't know if you will believe it or not, but I have tried to save those who died in disasters, but I couldn't. They still died in the end, dying the fate they had ordained."
"But you're different, you're different!"
"Their appearances have changed. They were clearly destined to die, but they survived, more or less influenced by you! They escaped that damned, unchangeable dead end."
"Everything has changed!"
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