"That can't be right. Although the information is limited, Emperor Meng Zhao has a good reputation and is considered a wise ruler. How could Emperor Taizu have dared to do such a thing?" Zu An was a little puzzled. According to the records, when Emperor Meng Zhao was alive, Emperor Taizu still acted as a loyal minister. It was not until the later emperors ascended the throne that his power was completely out of control.
“Emperor Taizu alone could not have done it at the time, but what if Empress Huang of Emperor Zhao had cooperated?” Zhang Jie sneered.
"Empress Huang?" Zu'an was a little confused. She was already the empress, how could she conspire with foreign officials to harm her own husband?
However, when he thought about his relationship with the current empress, his expression suddenly became strange.
"Empress Huang herself had no children and was very jealous. She couldn't stand seeing other concubines give birth. She also had a good relationship with Emperor Taizu at the time, so they hit it off immediately." Zhang Jie slowly recounted, "Within a few years, several of Emperor Zhao's princes died young. He thought it was because he was unlucky and didn't suspect anything else."
"However, when dealing with the fourth prince, the imperial physicians and eunuchs who were in charge were worried that the matter would be exposed, and they were also troubled by their conscience. So they secretly sent the fourth prince out of the palace and claimed to the outside world that the prince had died young. The imperial physician contacted a friend outside the palace, namely Zitong's father, Zhang Zhiquan. He was a man of upright character and he readily helped to bring the fourth prince out of the palace. From then on, although the fourth prince was living among the common people, he at least survived."
"At the time, everyone thought that one day the truth would come out and the fourth prince could be sent back to the palace to become emperor. This group of people would not only be considered as good, but would also be considered as having made a great contribution. However, later Emperor Taizu and Emperor Taizong became powerful and successfully usurped the Meng Dynasty's throne, so this matter naturally came to an end without any resolution."
"And that fourth prince later died young, perhaps for this reason, but he did leave behind a descendant among the common people, namely the grandson of the emperor I just mentioned."
Speaking of this past event, Zhang Jie sighed: "However, the truth eventually came out, and the Zhao family found out about it. Because it was a very important matter, it was not convenient to conduct a public trial. So they ordered the Seventh Gold Medal to lead a group of people to exterminate the relevant families and at the same time interrogate them about the whereabouts of the imperial grandson."
Zhang Zitong let out a cry and burst into tears. After so many years, she finally learned the truth about her parents' deaths.
Zuan was also somewhat moved. He had previously doubted that the Golden Embroidered Robe would execute a censor in this way, but if it involved the struggle for the throne, then it made sense.
After thinking for a moment, he asked, "What about the whereabouts of the imperial grandson?"
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