Chapter 180
When Xie Shuyu was about to reach Suiyu Bridge, he suddenly asked the driver to stop and turned in another direction to Songyang Academy.
The morning class at Songyang Academy had not yet ended, and Xie Shuyu waited for a while before seeing Yin Zheng.
When Yin Zheng came out, he immediately saw Xie Shuyu waiting in the corridor. His eyes fixed on her, and he walked forward and asked anxiously, "What happened to Jiaojiao?"
If it wasn't something related to Jiaojiao, Xie Shuyu would never have come to Songyang Academy to find him.
Xie Shuyu said nothing, turned around and walked out.
Yin Zheng frowned and followed him. The two of them came to a quiet courtyard in the back mountain of Songyang Academy.
"Jiaojiao is in danger!"
Yin Zheng's heart tightened, and his mind went blank for a moment. He suddenly raised his eyes to look at Xie Shuyu, and his pupils facing the light turned vertical for a moment. The danger coming towards him made Xie Shuyu stiff for a moment.
"Don't be nervous, at least Jiaojiao is safe now." Xie Shuyu said as he handed the envelope in his hand to Yin Zheng, turned around and walked to the desk and sat down, his eyes fell on the tree in the yard that was sprouting.
Yin Zheng looked down at the letter in his hand. His rapidly beating heart had not yet recovered from its previous state, and it hurt his ribs.
Xie Shuyu withdrew his gaze from the window to look at Yin Zheng and said, "In fact, I have always wondered why His Majesty is so interested in Jiaojiao. He has never been so close to any of the princes or grandchildren, but he is so close to Jiaojiao."
"Because I couldn't imagine what he could possibly be plotting against you and Jiaojiao, I suppressed my suspicions and observed Your Majesty. The more I observed, the more alarmed I became. Your Majesty truly seemed to be doting on Jiaojiao like the most beloved of children. Sometimes I even suspected that Jiaojiao was Your Majesty's child, lost to Xingzhou Prefecture for some reason, and then found by you on Wushan Mountain."
"Then I thought this was unlikely. Given His Majesty's temperament, if Jiaojiao was truly his child, he would openly bring Jiaojiao into the palace and would not allow him to be raised by you like this."
"I can't find the reason why His Majesty treats Jiaojiao so specially. Although Jiaojiao has the ability to make people take him to heart, I don't think His Majesty would notice him for this reason. There must be something I haven't noticed or thought of."
"Until a few years ago, I saw His Majesty and Jiaojiao standing in front of a pot of Pengyu, which shouldn't have sprouted in winter. At that moment, my suspicion reached its peak."
"When I got home that day, I sent someone to Lijia Village to investigate what happened between you and Jiaojiao during the time I was away."
Xie Shuyu's index finger moved slightly. He still maintained the original sitting posture, raised his eyes to meet Yin Zheng's dark eyes. The sunlight fell in through the window lattice, falling on Yin Zheng's angular mandible and the scar that ran through his left cheek. Xie Shuyu retracted his gaze and fell on his own hand.
"Do you know how the late emperor's sons and grandsons died?"
This matter was kept secret in Dayong. Those who knew about it kept it in their hearts and did not dare to reveal a single detail even in their dreams. Yin Zheng was in the remote and poor Lijia Village, so there was no way he could know about this.
Xie Shuyu didn't want to hear his answer. His slender index finger unconsciously tapped the tabletop. He lowered his eyes and said, "The late emperor was a wise and capable emperor. He worked diligently for the people, saved the country from collapse, and saved the country from ruin. He was the Son of Heaven and Emperor of Dayong. All scholars in the world admired him. But people eventually grow old and weak. When is a beast most dangerous? When it is injured or old, because at that time, any slight disturbance is enough to provoke the vigilance of the old emperor."
"It's human nature to desire life and fear death, especially for those in high positions of power. Most people have a far greater fear of death than the average person. The aging late emperor grew increasingly distrustful of the adult princes, monitoring several of them to the point of drinking only a few sips of water daily. Often, he treated them less like his own sons and more like the sons of his enemies. As time passed, the late emperor grew increasingly suspicious, sometimes even suspecting a prince as young as five."
"The late emperor was facing old age, which is not a disease. The imperial physician was obviously useless, so the late emperor, fearing death, began to summon all the monks in the world to the capital to find a way to immortality for him."
"At the beginning of the 26th year of the Zhengyuan era, there was a Taoist priest who was over 50 years old but had white hair and a youthful appearance. Due to his age, his energy was gradually declining. The late emperor, who was no longer able to perform his duties, took the elixir he had refined. The next day, he appeared radiant, his face flushed, and his spirits were full. From then on, the Taoist priest became a favorite of the late emperor."
"However, as he grew older, the late emperor was no longer satisfied with this. He used the hundreds of lives lost in the Taoist temple where the Exiled Mountain Taoist came from as leverage, forcing him to refine an elixir that would prolong life and grant him immortality."
"The Taoist priest from the Exiled Mountain had been in seclusion for six months. Just as the late emperor's patience was about to run out, he emerged from his retreat, dishevelled and extremely excited, claiming to have developed a life-extending elixir. Then, with an embarrassed look on his face, he said, "The most crucial ingredient is a bit difficult to find." The late emperor was delighted and waved his hand, telling him to just name it. There was no herb in the world he couldn't find."
Xie Shuyu looked at Yin Zheng and suddenly asked, "Do you know what this most crucial ingredient is?"
Yin Zheng looked back at Xie Shuyu: "The prince and the grandson of the emperor."
Xie Shuyu's eyes lit up with a smile that was either mocking or something else. "The emperor's sons and grandsons... or rather, the sons and grandsons of dragons. The late emperor was a true dragon emperor. How could earthly herbs prolong the lifespan of a true dragon? But the sons and grandsons of dragons, born into the royal family, are different. They are born with great luck. Using their flesh and blood as the medicine, we can naturally refine earthly elixirs into elixirs that prolong life."
"The late Grand Tutor was upright and pedantic. Upon hearing the news, he rushed to the palace at night and hurled curses at the exiled Taoist, calling him a demon. He had devised such an inhumane and unjust scheme to deceive the late Emperor, alienate the royal family, and accuse the sage of being unkind and unjust. He then petitioned the late Emperor to execute the exiled Taoist. The late Emperor showed no sign of regret, but half a month later, the entire family of the late Grand Tutor was executed for treason. There were always those in the court who were fearless and stubborn. After the Grand Tutor, they continued to urge the late Emperor to kill the demon. The aging late Emperor had, in a sense, become mad. He saw all those who tried to persuade him as those who wished him dead. So the late Emperor killed one by one, two by two, and from May to September of the 28th year of the Zhengyuan era, the capital was ablaze with blood. After the 'pedantic' members of the court were all killed, all the civil and military officials swallowed their words of advice."
"The late emperor loved his sons and grandsons dearly, and only used the blood of young princes and grandsons, refusing flesh. Not to mention, after using such an outrageous medicinal ingredient to make the medicine, the late emperor actually looked a little younger, and even his gray hair stopped growing in those two years. But gradually, the late emperor wasn't satisfied with just blood, and then flesh and blood weren't enough either, so he began to use bone powder mixed with flesh and blood as the medicine powder."
"In just two years, dozens of princes and grandchildren died young in the capital. During that time, even the most dissolute princes refused to take concubines for several years. They even stopped going to the backyard, fearing that the women there would get pregnant again. After the young princes and grandchildren were devastated, the late emperor turned his attention to the adult princes."
"From the 31st to the 35th year of the Zhengyuan reign, the entire capital was in chaos, with various incidents occurring one after another. On May 20th of the 31st year, the late emperor's fourth son, Prince Yongping, committed suicide by burning himself after a failed rebellion. On August 9th of the 31st year, the late emperor's second son, Prince Yongchang, was accused of secretly possessing the dragon robe. The imperial guards found the robe in the second prince's residence, and upon discovering his treason, the second prince hanged himself. On the beginning of the 32nd year of the Zhengyuan reign, the third son, Prince Yong'an, fell from his horse while hunting outside the capital and died. In August of the 32nd year of the Zhengyuan reign, the fifth son, Prince Yongyi, attempted to assassinate the late emperor, but ultimately died by slitting his own throat with a sword... Until the end of the 35th year of the Zhengyuan reign, the late emperor died suddenly, and the royal bloodline was cut off, with only the current emperor surviving."
"After Your Majesty ascended the throne, he didn't execute the Exiled Mountain Taoist. Instead, he was imprisoned in the courtyard of the Imperial Palace where he made elixirs. He was cut once on odd days and twice on even days until he could no longer hold on. Then the imperial physicians gave him good medicine to nourish him. He still lives today."
Yin Zheng understood the rest of Xie Shuyu's words without having to explain them. The more powerful and wealthy a person is, the more he fears death. If the late emperor was like this, what about the current emperor?
Even if he didn't have that idea originally, but when he met such a strange Jiaojiao... would he still not have any ideas?
Yin Zheng also guessed who the Majesty Xie Shuyu was talking about was. It was Huo Youqi who often visited his home during this period.
Yin Zheng is not stupid. He did not realize this before because no one in his world is so crazy about wanting to survive. Instead, there are a lot of people who are actively seeking death. He himself was stuffed into the consciousness separation cabin and teleported to other worlds in an attempt to arouse his desire to survive because his desire to survive was too low.
When Yin Zheng came to this world, he was born into a poor little village on the border. He had no family burden and no one had high hopes for him. He himself had no material or financial desires. All he wanted every day was to fill his stomach. He didn't pay attention to or care about anything else.
In addition, in the world he lives in, except for scientific researchers, almost everyone has lost their emotions. Everyone is like a cold machine. There is no desire, no dispute, and no calculation of interests. This creates the feeling of surprise that Yin Zheng has about some things.
"What are your plans?" Xie Shuyu asked.
"From the moment His Majesty noticed Jiaojiao, you couldn't escape. All under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people are his subjects. Unless you leave Dayong and go to foreign tribes like the Turks or the Western Qiang, you will face the full might of Dayong hunting you down. Don't doubt it, His Majesty is fully capable of such a thing."
Yin Zheng said nothing. He folded the letter in his hand, put it into an envelope, handed it to him, and walked out. He went straight home without even having time to attend the afternoon class.
When Yin Zheng and Xie Shuyu returned to Suiyu Bridge, Emperor Yongzheng was just walking out of the house with Jiaojiao, who was already fast asleep, in his arms and was about to get on the carriage. When he saw Xie Shuyu and Yin Zheng, he stopped and looked up to meet Yin Zheng's eyes. Yin Zheng's gaze passed through the heavy guards and fell on Jiaojiao in his arms. His dark eyes were darker than usual, as if thick ink was about to drip out of his eyes.
Emperor Yongzheng stood on the carriage, a pale smile on his pale face. He pulled out the sword of the imperial guard and threw it in front of Yin Zheng. With a hint of indifference and arrogance in his eyes, he raised his hand and beckoned Yin Zheng: "Come!"
The early spring wind grew louder and louder, making Yin Zheng's clothes flutter. He picked up the knife on the ground and looked over.
Yin Zheng was a marshal in his original world. In that world where artillery fire had been continuous for five hundred years, it was extremely difficult to stand out from the many carefully trained human war machines.
He couldn't remember how many wars he had participated in, nor how many lives had been lost at his hands. If one was interested in calculating, the number would probably be astonishingly large, large enough to support him in climbing from a small soldier to the position of marshal step by step.
As a marshal, one must be extremely outstanding in all aspects. Excellent combat ability alone is not enough, but also requires excellent strategic vision and command ability. Yin Zheng is undoubtedly excellent in all aspects. He can accurately predict and defeat the enemy's strategies and tactics in advance. Often, as soon as the opponent makes a move, he can calculate the enemy's possible next move based on the little information he gets. On the battlefield, he has a sense of smell that is beyond God.
However, his sense of smell only applies to enemy countries. When it comes to his own country and people, he is so dull that even his emotionless colleagues are surprised.
Yin Zheng has no emotions, but surprisingly has a subconscious desire not to attack the people of the Federation. Therefore, whenever the various legions are training in the holographic world, the First Legion led by the most famous marshal of the Federation is always the first to be eliminated. The reason is that he does not regard them as enemies, so he is a little slow to react when it comes to various related strategies.
Another thing is that most of the strategies on the battlefield are for the country and the soldiers under his command, without so many private matters and various desires and interests mixed in.
That is why, after discovering Jiaojiao's abnormality, Yin Zheng still did not realize the possible danger, because in his subconscious, this is his country, and he would not feel hostility towards his own country!
Blood bloomed in the air like the most fiery flowers. The battle was so silent, dull and strange. One side had hundreds of imperial guards, and the other side had only this one person.
A drizzle started to fall from the sky, making the blood color on the ground deeper. The rich blood paved a path, and the man walked to the front step by step along this path.
When Yin Zheng was about to walk in front of him, Emperor Yongzheng placed his pale but powerful fingers on the neck of Jiaojiao, who was sleeping in his arms. Yin Zheng suddenly stopped, and blood dripped from his soaked body. For a moment, they even hallucinated the sound of blood dripping to the ground.
Emperor Yongzheng looked at the man in front of him with some surprise in his eyes. He knew that the man in front of him was very skilled, and he even killed so many Turkic soldiers in Jiayang County that they could not bear the damage and retreated voluntarily. However, he did not expect that he could be so skilled that hundreds of imperial guards could not stop him.
The man in front of him killed hundreds of imperial guards and walked up to him with bloody footprints at every step.
Emperor Yongzheng's gaze fell on the hideous scar that ran through Yin Zheng's left cheek. He suddenly chuckled softly, and his laughter grew louder and louder, until he almost fell off the carriage. He finally started coughing. He lowered his head to look at Jiaojiao, whose face was flushed as she slept in his arms. She didn't wake up despite the loud noise. He looked up at Yin Zheng and said, "Ahem... Don't worry, it's just a little drowsiness drug. Ahem... It won't cause any harm to Jiaojiao's body. After all, if anything happened to Jiaojiao, I would be heartbroken... Ahem..."
Against the backlight, the expression in Emperor Yongzheng's eyes was unclear. "There are 13,000 Imperial Guards, and 30,000 Tiger Guards stationed outside the capital. Do you think you can kill them all by yourself?"
People will eventually become weaker and weaker. "Ten thousand enemies" refers to the commander of an army, not the bravery of an individual. No matter how strong a person's own martial arts is, he will eventually be drowned in the vast human power. Ten people, a hundred people, a thousand people, ten thousand people, how many people can you kill?
Yin Zheng also knew this truth, but... Jiaojiao was in his hands...
Emperor Yongzheng lowered his head and squeezed Jiaojiao's chubby hand, then changed the subject: "The border war has begun. The Turks, Western Qiang, and Northern Di have joined forces to invade. If you go to the border, I won't give you preferential treatment, but I won't deliberately suppress you either. How much military merit you earn and how much military power you can command will all depend on you. When the time comes, come before me again and see if I can force me to return Jiaojiao to you. And I promise that when you stand before me again, Jiaojiao's life will not be in danger!"
There was wanton arrogance in his words and a look of disdain in his eyes. Letting Yin Zheng go was like letting a tiger go back to the mountain, but Emperor Yongzheng himself was a complete madman.
Yin Zheng's gaze fell on Emperor Yongzheng's hands placed on Jiaojiao's neck. Although those hands looked pale, the strength in them should not be underestimated.
Before he became Prince Yong'an's son, Emperor Yongzheng was the late emperor's sharpest sword, striking fear into the barbarians. His personal prowess was unrivaled, and even though his body was now broken and frail, that hand could surely snap Jiaojiao's neck before Yin Zheng killed him.
The drizzle in the sky was getting heavier. The busy long street was lined with oil-paper umbrellas. A horse-drawn carriage was rolling on the bluestone slabs. Yin Zheng, dressed in blood, followed the carriage, attracting many people's surprised eyes along the way.
The carriage drove into the vermilion palace wall. Yin Zheng, covered in blood, looked up quietly at the high vermilion wall in front of him.
The rain was getting heavier, as if to wash away the blood on his body. Xie Shuyu, holding an umbrella, looked up at the tall vermilion wall, and a heavy atmosphere spread between the two of them.
Emperor Yongzheng finally took Jiaojiao away, which was as painful as a heartbreak for Yin Zheng.
"Noble Consort Rong in the palace is my mother's sister. I will ask her to look after Jiaojiao in the palace. His Majesty...he always keeps his word. He will definitely not harm Jiaojiao's life."
Yin Zheng said nothing, his eyes grew darker and darker. The rain soaked him through, his wet hair stuck to his cheeks. He slowly closed his eyes and opened them again. His eyes were so dark that not a single light could penetrate them.
The aura around him began to shift. For the first time, he, who had always been indifferent to desire, burst into a startling ambition for power. Deep within his bones and blood, a deeper desire was boiling...
"Look at Jiaojiao!"
He threw down four words, turned around and strode away.
Xie Shuyu stood there looking at his back for a long time, then looked away and closed his eyes slightly.
When birds of prey are about to strike, they fly low and fold their wings; when beasts are about to fight, they stop their ears and lie prostrate... The wolf leader that has been lurking behind the child finally stands in front of the people!
When Jiaojiao woke up, he saw an unfamiliar ceiling. He was stunned for a moment, then sat up in bed. After looking around for a while, his big eyes were full of confusion. Where was Jiaojiao? Where were Dad and Shi'an?
Jiaojiao, who was sitting on the bed, tilted his head and stared at the palace maid who was standing beside the bed without looking away, then he lay down on the edge of the bed and slid down. Lianxiang came forward and picked him up. Just as she was about to put shoes on him, Jiaojiao ran out, shaking his little hands.
A four-year-old child's strength was neither great nor small, and the palace maid didn't dare to use any force, so Jiaojiao ran out of her arms with a flick of her hand.
Jiaojiao was running hard with his short legs, his little face full of seriousness. He woke up in a strange place and thought he must have been abducted by a kidnapper. His brother Mianmian told him that when he was abducted by a kidnapper, he found himself in a strange place the moment he opened his eyes.
Emperor Yongzheng was reviewing memorials and instructing the palace servants to prepare some things for the child. When he heard the unique footsteps of a child, he turned his head and saw Jiaojiao running out from the side hall.
Seeing her uncle, Jiaojiao's eyes lit up. She ran forward and grabbed Emperor Yongzheng's knees, saying aggrievedly, "Uncle, there's a kidnapper kidnapping Jiaojiao."
Emperor Yongzheng put down the memorial and held him on his lap, saying, "No, this is where my uncle lives."
"Hmm?" Jiaojiao tilted her head and asked in confusion, "Why is Jiaojiao at my uncle's house?"
The eunuchs waiting nearby were momentarily startled when they heard the child address His Majesty and saw him cradling the child in his lap. Didn't His Majesty only have one nephew, the Little Prince Qin? When had he acquired another nephew, even more favored than the Little Prince? Had Princess Yonghe secretly given birth to another child?
Hearing Jiaojiao's question, Emperor Yongzheng leaned back in his chair with a half-smile: "Because my uncle abducted you here."
Jiaojiao leaned forward a bit, leaned in his arms, and looked at Emperor Yongzheng with her bright eyes: "Uncle, Jiaojiao is hungry, where is Daddy?"
Seeing that he was not frightened, Emperor Yongzheng reached out and poked his chubby face and asked, "You are so brave, don't you know how to be afraid?"
Jiaojiao reached out and grabbed the hand of Emperor Yongzheng that was poking her face: "Don't be afraid, uncle is just teasing Jiaojiao."
"That's a shame." The smile on Emperor Yongzheng's face faded, he withdrew his hand and looked at Jiaojiao coldly: "I really have abducted you back to the palace, and you won't be able to see your father again."
After saying this, he looked at the eunuch chief Jiang Haifu who was waiting at the side and said, "Serve the meal."
Jiaojiao was stunned for a moment, and after coming to her senses, she snorted angrily, turned around and faced Emperor Yongzheng with her butt, indicating that she was unhappy and didn't want to pay attention to him for the time being.
Emperor Yongzheng was stunned for a moment, not expecting his reaction. He then reached out and poked Jiaojiao's little butt: "What are you doing?"
Jiaojiao slapped the hand that was poking her butt, and angrily moved forward and away from him: "Uncle is teasing Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao is angry."
Emperor Yongzheng felt a little amused. Such a little kid actually had a temper. He immediately became interested in teasing him: "Your father went to the war and left you with me."
"Fighting?" Jiaojiao, who didn't understand what fighting meant, turned back to look at him: "Dad, are you going out to earn money to support Jiaojiao?"
In the past, when we were in Lijia Village, Uncle Huaizhi was around, and my father would not take Jiaojiao with him when he went out to make money.
Emperor Yongzheng murmured, "You can say that."
"When will Dad come back?"
"I don't know, it should take a long time."
"Will it take as long as tomorrow?"
"no."
Jiaojiao blinked hesitantly: "Does that mean it will take as long as the day after tomorrow?"
"At least several years."
Jiaojiao looked up at him with her big eyes, and Emperor Yongzheng also lowered his eyes to look into Jiaojiao's eyes. Just when he was admiring in his heart that the child's eyes were so surprisingly clear, he saw Jiaojiao's mouth droop, and her eyes turned red. A tear overflowed from her eye socket under his gaze, condensed into a teardrop, slid down from the corner of her eye and fell into his hand.
The warm touch spread from the back of his hand all the way to his brain nerves. Emperor Yongzheng was stunned for a moment, then his eyes widened: "...?!?...Jiang Haifu! Jiang Haifu!"
This was the first time in his life that he called out someone's name so frantically!
Two-in-one
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