Li Shan also told the Third Prince that in her dream, Consort Lin and the Seventh Prince would come after him, and that the ice cellar incident was orchestrated by Consort Lin.
As a prince, he naturally knew what this meant.
Therefore, when Li Shan told the Third Prince that Lu Zheng, the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, was not dead and that Lu Zheng and Gu Shouxin would later join the Seventh Prince, the Third Prince had no doubts at all.
Li Shan also said that the Emperor particularly liked the Gu family, and this was an opportunity to get rid of them. Of course, even if they couldn't be eliminated, the Gu family couldn't be allowed to stay in the capital.
Li Shan didn't know where Lu Zheng had gone. She guessed that Lu Zheng might have transported the seeds to Jiangnan or Taizhou. She asked the Third Prince to keep an eye on Lu Zheng.
She also drew a portrait of Lu Zheng and asked the Third Prince to find it secretly, and preferably kill Lu Zheng before he joined the Lin family.
She also clearly told the Third Prince about her deal with Lady Lin, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo, and she didn't hide the fact that Lady Lin had sent people to hunt down Lu Zheng.
The Third Prince sent people to investigate, and they found out.
Moreover, the Third Prince has gained the help of several capable people in the past two days, and he trusts Li Shan even more.
Some of the rumors circulating among the people originated from the Qu Prince's residence, while others were fueled by the Third Prince.
...
Once no one else spoke up, the Emperor declared, "Fuquan, go and have someone place Ye Wei's body at the palace gate. Have ten folk doctors examine him to determine how he died! Also, go to the imperial estate and summon a few members of the Zhou family to the palace gate to talk to the people about the yield per mu of grain grown by the Gu sisters! Ask them if they want to eat it in the future. If anyone doesn't, they can sign a document, and I will grant their wish! As for the Qu Prince's Mansion, ha! Go to the dungeon and bring the spies we captured from Kuncheng a couple of days ago to the palace gate. Ask General Peng to tell everyone how many soldiers of our Great Zhou died last month because the Qu Prince's men colluded with the Langge Kingdom and missed the border map. Ask them if any of these soldiers had relatives among them."
The third prince stepped forward: "Father! Prince Qu..."
The emperor glared at the third prince and patted the dragon throne: "What? You can't wait to sit here?"
The third prince knelt down in fright: "Your subject did not mean that, Your subject..."
Emperor: "Then shut up! As long as I live, it's never your place to teach me!"
The third prince wiped the sweat from his forehead and remained kneeling, not daring to get up.
The Seventh Prince glanced at the Third Prince with disdain but remained silent.
Emperor: "Issue my decree: The rebellion of the Prince Qu's family is both a matter of state and a family affair. My mind is made up. The Prince Qu's family has colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country, intending to rebel. They shall be executed without mercy! Immediately, send them to the marketplace and behead them in public!"
The Minister of Works knelt down: "Your Majesty, please reconsider! His Highness Prince Qu possesses a pardon granted by the founding emperor!"
The emperor glared at the Minister of Works. "That old fool! Of all the people in the world, only you know this. I thought you were on my side because you didn't stand up earlier, but I never expected..."
The Third Prince's eyes lit up. Sure enough, what Shan'er said was true. The Prince of Qu had a pardon from death, bestowed by the founding emperor, and it was also proposed by Minister Liu of the Ministry of Works.
Even he didn't know about this; Shan'er's dreams really do have the ability to foresee future events.
The Third Prince felt reassured: "Father, I dare to be so bold as to ask you to spare the life of the Qu family. We are all of the same blood. Father can strip them of their titles and make them commoners. My grandfather also said that we should govern the country with benevolence!"
Many ministers exclaimed in unison, "His Highness the Third Prince is wise!"
The emperor laughed in exasperation: "Are you trying to force me to abdicate? I'm not dead yet!"
"Your subject dares not!"
"Your subject wouldn't dare!"
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