Prince An made no attempt to dodge; he knew very well that he absolutely could not dodge at this moment, otherwise his father would be even angrier.
The teacup was smashed in front of him, almost hitting his head. He knew very well that his father hadn't gone too far, otherwise it wouldn't have missed by even a little bit.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty."
The emperor looked at his son kneeling below. When the crown prince was born, they were all very happy, saying how wonderful it was to have a little brother, and that they would protect him with all their might.
How long has it been?
How could you have forgotten what you said back then?
Was it because his parenting was a failure?
He once said that he hoped they would be brothers and respectful to each other, and that any open competition, even for the position of crown prince, should be conducted openly and honestly.
But what about him?
What is he doing?
"My lord, do you know why I won't let you be the emperor?"
Prince An was a little stunned. He hadn't expected his father to ask this question. He had been somewhat prepared for the rest.
For example, the Crown Prince gets into trouble, or he gets married at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.
I never thought about this one thing.
"It's because my son isn't good enough."
"What's wrong with it?"
Prince An: "..."
"Your subject... Your subject's literary talent is inferior to that of the Crown Prince."
Prince An was actually dissatisfied, not understanding what he had done wrong.
"Anything else?"
Prince An: "..."
"Your subject does not know."
"Eldest brother, you want to be a prince with literary talent, but you just can't seem to learn it."
Do you think that going back to school means you've truly let go? Do you think others can't see the ambition in your eyes?
Ambitious, but incompetent.
It is vicious, yet powerless.
Why are you with a woman from a brothel? What will the world think of you?!
Sure enough, it was because of this.
“Father, I truly love Lin Zhi, and she is not a woman from the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, she is a fairy.”
"Father, do you desire immortality?"
Prince An directly pointed out the key point.
The emperor remained unmoved, seemingly without the slightest curiosity, and calmly looked at his son. "Immortality?"
“That’s right, Father Emperor, Father Emperor, Linzhi said that as long as we believe in God and worship God, you will be the emperor and the son of God. Our country will then have good weather and abundant harvests, and peace and prosperity.”
The gods will protect us.
emperor:"……"
The emperor smiled.
When Prince An saw this, he saw that his father was smiling, which meant that his father also wanted to live forever. This was wonderful!
The emperor looked at his son with a smile, wondering if this stupid son was really his.
"Was everything you just said truly from the heart?"
Prince An nodded repeatedly, "Yes, Father."
"Every word I've said comes from the heart. As long as we build temples and pray to the gods with utmost sincerity, our country will have nothing to worry about in the future."
The emperor glanced at the imperial sword beside him and thought it would be a good tool to chop off his son.
"So you mean that in the future, the people of our country will no longer need to farm or work, but will just pray to gods and Buddhas every day?"
The army no longer needs to be stationed on the frontier; they can all kneel down and pray to the gods and Buddhas.
"No need to eat, no need to work, no need to strive, just pray to Buddha every day and you'll have everything?"
Prince An was a little confused. Did he mean that?
"Father, your son..."
"Isn't that what you mean? You've made all the people pray to gods and Buddhas, so shouldn't those so-called gods give everything for us? Otherwise, why should they expect our piety?"
Prince An: "..." For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
Then, the emperor took out the sword.
He placed the sword against his neck and said, "Let me see the experiment. Let me see if you can live after I kill you."
Prince An was so frightened that he kept backing away, "Father, Father, please don't do this, I am your son."
“You are not! I have said that my people may believe in gods, but they cannot worship gods.”
They no longer need to pray to gods and Buddhas; they only need to believe in me, that I have the ability to lead them to prosperity.
"The sons of God?" The emperor sneered. "Do they deserve it!"
We are worlds apart from them, and we don't interfere with each other. Why should they expect us to bow down and submit?
Did they conquer my empire?
Does the people's peaceful and prosperous life have anything to do with them?
Why should the people be devout?
We don't worship gods, we only worship ourselves!
"It's better to rely on yourself than on others, don't you know that?"
Rely on gods? What can they possibly do?
Can they farm or fight?
The emperor kicked Prince An to the ground and continued to punch and kick him.
They even sent someone in to give him fifty lashes, right in front of him.
The paddle struck again and again, and Prince An felt a sharp, intense pain in his buttocks.
"ah."
With each thrust, his buttocks were about to burst open.
"Our country has everything it has today because of the hard work of generations of people."
We have worked our way up to where we are today step by step, and it has nothing to do with gods or immortals.
You can believe in gods, but you should never bow your head or kneel before them.
The future fate of our nation rests in the hands of the people, under the protection of the emperor, and through the efforts of the ministers. It is not determined by any so-called deity.
After speaking, the emperor looked at Prince An.
"You sent someone to assassinate the Crown Prince."
The emperor spoke in a declarative sentence, indicating that he already knew about the matter.
The Prince An, beaten to the point of near death, dared not admit to the crime. "Father, I am innocent!"
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