Chapter 173
The emperor clenched his teeth, his eyes filled with lingering resentment.
This rebellious son first threatened him with deadly poison, and if he did not agree, he would then put him under house arrest after administering the poison.
The fact that he allowed Li He to remain alive at this point was a way to leave himself an escape route, probably to silence public opinion with a false imperial edict.
The emperor's gaze darkened, and he began to make some guesses.
Having experienced the previous battle firsthand, he naturally knew what Yan Qizhen was planning!
The Emperor of the Min Dynasty, with his somewhat aged and wrinkled eyes, glanced at Yan Qizhen once more.
I never expected this...
I never expected this...
This trusted son and minister of mine had actually plotted to this extent.
If I remember correctly, this son's birth mother was just a lowly palace maid, and it was precisely for this reason that I gave him such an important position.
If he had already made this plan earlier.
So, over all these years, how much has this rebellious son actually done?
Only then did he dare to have the courage to force his way to the top today?
But who is behind him, capable of consolidating his new imperial throne?!
*
"You think... you can threaten me like this?!" The emperor, dressed in plain robes, looked pale and wary.
Yan Qizhen paced back and forth, his slender fingertips slowly opening the jade bottle containing the deadly poison.
"If Father insists on doing so, he will suffer a lot."
He held the poison to the emperor's lips, and although it was a threat, he still had a smiling expression on his face.
"Yan Qizhen!" The emperor desperately tried to break free from the black-clad men's restraints, but to no avail.
"Yan Qizhen, how dare you!"
Li He, who was standing to the side, was also subdued and knocked to the ground by the men in black, shouting loudly, "Fourth Prince, Fourth Prince."
"Don't be so stubborn and refuse to see the truth!"
Unfortunately, they couldn't stop Yan Qizhen's actions.
The emperor remained unyielding, and seeing this, Yan Qizhen could only regretfully say, "I didn't want this to happen, Father."
"When it's time to let go, then let go."
"Don't blame me."
He had barely finished speaking when he raised his hand to administer the Worry-Free Powder to the emperor.
"Yan Qizhen!"
"I will kill you!!!" The emperor, whose temples were somewhat gray, had bloodshot eyes and looked like a mad beast wanting to skin him alive.
Yan Qizhen grabbed the emperor by the neck, trying to force him to drink the medicine from the dragon-shaped bottle.
Right now!
"Fourth Imperial Brother!"
"Stop!" A defiant voice suddenly broke the stalemate.
Yan Qizhen tightened his grip on the medicine bottle, and looking in the direction of the sound, he saw a figure that should have been far away in the military camp.
However, after just a few months of changes, the playfulness in Yan Jingxu's eyes had faded considerably, replaced by a sharper look.
He never expected Yan Jingxu to appear here.
Amidst the misty rain, a sudden glint of cold light appeared.
"Xu'er!" The emperor, who had been restrained by the guards, was in a state of panic and madness, but when he saw the sixth prince Yan Jingxu, he seemed to see a savior.
"Xu'er, save me quickly!" The old voice was filled with resentment.
Yan Jingxu merely glanced at the person he once respected most, his heart filled with sorrow, and paid him no heed.
Over the past six months, his father's attitude towards his elder brother and mother made him realize that the past mutual respect and affection between father and son were nothing but a facade for the royal family.
His father...
I don't care about them...
Even though his mother pleaded for him many times, he could not persuade his father to investigate his elder brother's affairs again.
As a result of this incident, the Empress Dowager lost favor.
Yan Jingxu had been eavesdropping from his hiding place for a while, so he naturally heard Yan Qizhen's words, even if he didn't want to admit it...
But I also know that Yan Qizhen is right.
yes...
This ruler of the Min Dynasty was such a cold-hearted person.
*
Yan Qizhen gripped the bottle tightly in his hand. Upon seeing Yan Jingxu's sudden appearance, he felt a dense sense of unease in his chest, as if it were a premonition of impending doom.
He raised his gaze and quietly surveyed the deep forest behind Yan Jingxu. It seemed exceptionally quiet, without even the slightest sound of insects or birds.
Were they already waiting here?
"Royal brother."
Yan Qizhen said coldly, "You've been waiting a long time, haven't you?"
There seemed to be no problems along the way, but now it was Yan Jingxu's group who were hiding here, presumably having laid an ambush beforehand.
Did someone leak their plans?
Yan Qizhen glanced around at the black-clad attendants but remained silent.
Meanwhile, the arrogant figure not far from him strode over, the scabbard of Yan Jingxu's Xiaoyang sword at his waist glossy black.
The shadows of the trees not far behind him were even thicker.
"Fourth brother, stop," Yan Jingxu advised.
"You're here to stop me." Yan Qizhen ignored Yan Jingxu's advice, and instead temporarily put down his hand, shook the medicine bottle in his hand, and gave a wink to the man in black beside him.
Then the man led a group of people to Yan Jingxu's back, seemingly wary of an ambush hidden in the deep forest behind them.
Yan Jingxu, however, showed no change in expression and spoke directly:
"Fourth Imperial Brother."
"You have long been the Emperor's most trusted son."
Why force a change of position?
Yan Jingxu didn't understand. If his fourth brother wanted power and status, then the fact that his elder brother and third brother had fallen out of favor had already achieved his goal.
But he didn't seem satisfied.
Is he only content when he reaches the highest position?
Yan Qizhen merely glanced at his sixth brother, who had been pampered since childhood, and then chuckled softly.
Her misty, rain-drenched features suddenly came to life, giving her a breathtakingly beautiful appearance.
"Most beloved?"
"Sixth Imperial Brother, how could our father have a most trusted son?" Yan Qizhen asked softly, and the person opposite him was speechless.
His slender fingers appeared exceptionally white against the tint of the poison.
Yan Jingxu suddenly remembered that when he saw his fourth brother when he was a child, he always wore a wide robe that covered the skin on his neck, but his face was somewhat pale.
Only when she saw the brothers would she lower her exceptionally beautiful eyes, remain silent, and turn away without uttering a word.
It seems that he has heard that the only son of the Annan County government is quite close to him.
But when...
The fourth prince, who used to stay quietly to the side, has started to change his personality?
*
“Even if your father neglected you when you were young, you don’t have to torment him like this.” Yan Jingxu still glanced at the emperor. The emperor’s doting on him when he was a child still left Yan Jingxu with a lot of compassion.
Unexpectedly, Yan Qizhen suddenly chuckled.
"Sixth brother, do you think I would care about such trivial matters?"
“I have no feelings for my father, and all these actions are merely due to the desires in the blood of this body.” Yan Qizhen raised his hand slightly.
His silk lining only concealed a patch of white, as if he were still the same compassionate man who had once been renowned.
Unfortunately, it was all an illusion.
Yan Qizhen spoke slowly again: "To be precise, you and I are nothing more than pawns on the royal chessboard."
"And we, as members of the royal family, are only one step away from ascending to that position."
"If you can't capture a piece, you'll be captured by it."
"How could I not fight?"
He spoke with a faint smile, yet there was a ruthlessness in his face that was rarely seen before.
If he hadn't fought for it, he probably would have died long ago.
How could they possibly be compared to the princes of their powerful maternal clans?
"Fourth Imperial Brother, is this why you framed the Crown Prince and Third Imperial Brother?!" Yan Jingxu's gaze gradually cooled as he looked at him.
It seems I can't persuade him anymore.
"Framed?" Upon hearing this, Yan Qizhen knew that Yan Jingxu must know a lot of things.
"It's not a case of framing them, they just got in my way."
"Why...do you have to do this?"
Yan Jingxu's gaze was almost entirely fixed on Yan Qizhen. He really didn't want to see his fourth brother, who used to be like a figure in a traditional Chinese ink painting, end up on a path of no return.
After learning of Yan Qizhen's plot, he notified the Zhenguo General's Mansion and quickly led a team to ambush the place.
Naturally, they came to stop him.
Upon hearing Yan Jingxu's question, Yan Qizhen was not annoyed. Instead, his tone softened, but his words were like icy thorns.
"Why bother?" Yan Qizhen asked softly.
Then, he quietly tore open his plain-colored inner garment, revealing the ugly scars on his chest.
"Brother, why would I do this?"
His fingertips traced the old scars, revealing to the group the sins that had befallen him years ago.
The ugly scars on his side resembled a withered and dead red plum blossom.
And along his lower chest, down to his lower right waist, a burn scar, bearing the marks of time, crawled across his body, seemingly still silently gnawing at his soul.
"Fourth Imperial Brother..."
"What exactly happened to you?!"
Yan Jingxu's gaze never left Yan Qizhen's exposed upper body, his slightly raised eyebrows filled with disbelief.
Yan Qizhen was a prince, born and raised in the palace.
Why are there such large scars on your body?!
“Royal brother,” Yan Qizhen said softly.
"As the son of the Empress, you naturally have no idea what kind of life the neglected princes lead." Yan Qizhen was still smiling as he turned to look at the Emperor.
But the murderous intent in his eyes could no longer be concealed.
"The eunuchs in the palace are vile in character. They spend their days groveling and servile in the palace. What if one day they had the chance to trample on the nobles?"
Ugly hands slashed wounds across his body, and the lewd laughter filled with lust still seemed to echo in his ears.
Out of fear of being discovered by others, he used food as a threat to prevent himself from revealing the secret.
But as time went on, some people became bolder.
Simply touching them with your hands... is no longer enough for them...
Finally, they even used boiling water...
Even with his eyes closed, Yan Qizhen could still recall the mocking laughter of those people from years ago when they saw him writhing in pain on the ground.
Why bother...
Why bother...
If he had a choice, why would he choose to live a life worse than that of pigs and dogs in the palace?
Why bother living a life of ignominy among those disgusting eunuchs?
Having already fallen into hell, he still had to watch helplessly as his fellow princes presented a series of false scenes of brotherly affection and filial piety.
It's simply...
That's absolutely disgusting.
Yan Qizhen concealed the cold glint in his eyes, but his resentment still lingered.
Since they are both members of the royal family, how could they have lost their greed?
He concealed his weakness, cowardice, and insignificant pride, only wishing that one day he could climb to the same position as Yan Jingxu and the others.
Human greed is limitless.
He knew.
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