"yes."
Lin Wanru was so scared that she broke out in a cold sweat. She caught a glimpse of the smile in Xie Yunqi's eyes, and her fear instantly turned into anger.
If it weren't for him, Cai He wouldn't have died. If he had just asked for mercy, the Queen would never have taken Cai He's life.
It's all Xie Yunqi's fault.
Yes, it was all Xie Yunqi's fault and had nothing to do with her.
"Alright, let's leave it at that. All of you, kneel down and pay your respects."
Xu Jing and the others, except for the Lin sisters, bowed and took their leave. After leaving the palace, Xie Yunxiu quickly walked over and blocked Xu Jing's path. "Fifth brother, where have you been?"
Xie Yunxiu's biological mother was Zhang, the Consort Min. The Zhang family was a military family, and the current head of the Zhang family, Zhang Duo, was the emperor's Grand Marshal, controlling the country's military power.
Generally, those who controlled military power were either the emperor's close confidants or people of humble origins whom the emperor could control. Empress Shen's family was also a military family. After supporting the emperor's ascension to the throne, Emperor Zhaodi gradually dismantled the Shen family's power, giving military power to the Zhang family and marrying a daughter of the Zhang family as Consort Min.
Emperor Zhao supported Consort Min to compete with the Empress, but he didn't expect that Consort Min was not smart at all. She had been in the palace for many years but never competed for favor. She lived in her own small courtyard and didn't interact with other people at all.
The only person he interacted with was Xie Yunqi's mother, Concubine Lin. The two were close friends, their personalities were compatible, and they often drank tea and chatted together. Xie Yunqi also had a good relationship with Xie Yunxiu.
Xie Yunxiu always regarded Xie Yunqi as his own brother. Although Xie Yunqi was a idiot and acted unruly, Xie Yunxiu did not dislike him at all and often cleaned up his mess after Xie Yunqi got into trouble.
Xu Jing thought, perhaps God saw that he was too exhausted from fighting alone and sent him a gifted talent. If he could establish a good relationship with Xie Yunxiu and gain control of the Zhang family's military power, then his dream of unifying the country would no longer be a dream.
"This isn't the place to talk. It's getting late, why don't you come to my house and discuss it in detail?"
"Okay."
When the princes came of age, Emperor Zhaodi conferred titles of king on them and selected separate palaces for them to live in in the imperial capital.
The Prince of Qin's Mansion was about half an hour away from the Forbidden City. The two of them arrived after taking a short rest in the carriage.
When I got off the carriage, servants were already waiting for me.
Xiao Ziye, the palace steward, came forward to greet the two of them.
"Zi Ye, tell the kitchen to prepare some wine and food and send them to the study. I want to have a candlelit chat with my ninth brother."
"yes."
The two of them went to the study, one after the other. After closing the door, Xie Yunxiu said, "Fifth brother, when you disappeared, Sixth brother used the power of the emperor to bully others and turned the cold palace upside down. His goal was to capture you and Lin Qingru and hand them over to the emperor. What did you do that angered heaven and man to make him treat you like this?"
Xu Jing said calmly, "There's nothing between him and me. Even if there's any rift, it's between my mother and Concubine An. It has nothing to do with me."
"Then what did he do to you?" Xie Yunxiu was still brooding over this matter and couldn't figure it out.
Xu Jing laughed and said, "Silly boy, can't you see that his eyes are almost glued to Lin Wanru? He's not targeting me at all. He just wants to sacrifice me to win Lin Wanru's favor."
Xie Yunxiu was unhappy and drank a glass of wine, still feeling indignant. "But Lin Wanru is your fiancée. Isn't he afraid that the emperor will blame him for doing this?"
Xu Jing ate the food that was brought to him, but his mood was not affected at all. "How do you know that the emperor didn't see that he was targeting me?
The thing that my father hated most as an emperor was brothers rebelling against each other and living in harmony. This would inevitably threaten his position.
"You're getting too close to me, and my father will definitely suspect you're after his position. Using him to get rid of me would also be like cutting off one of your arms. That way, he can sit back and reap the benefits."
Xie Yunxiu's face was solemn as he said, "Are you saying that the Emperor did this intentionally in order to get rid of you?"
"Even a tiger won't eat its own cubs. Why would Father want to get rid of me? He just wants to use Sixth Brother to kick me out."
Xu Jing glanced at Xie Yunxiu and said with a smile: "After all, the Lin family's status in the court is not low. My mother's close relationship with Empress Min must have aroused the suspicion of the emperor.
Lin Wanru wanted to use this opportunity to force me to break off the engagement. How could my father's spies not know that I was being framed? He turned a blind eye and allowed this to happen just to get rid of the Lin family as soon as possible."
"Fifth brother, how do you know this?" Could it be that he was pretending to be a fool before?
Xu Jing sighed and thought: The original owner was a real idiot. He didn't have any other ideas and just wanted to live a peaceful life.
But being in the royal family is bound to make you a pawn. Emperor Zhao had long been dissatisfied with the Lin family's behavior and wanted to eliminate them as soon as possible.
Emperor Zhao always thought he was a mantis, and that the matter would be over after he dealt with the original owner. He didn't expect that there was Prince Chen behind the scenes, waiting for the emperor to get rid of Prince Qin before taking action against his other descendants. In the end, he made wedding clothes for others in vain, which is really sad.
"Ninth brother, you and I are now in the same boat. If anything happens to me, you won't be any better off."
Xu Jing said softly, "If you don't want a position in the royal family, you'll end up dead. I was kicked out, but I can still save my life. But you, my ninth brother, are different."
Xie Yunxiu's heart was pounding, but his expression remained calm. "Fifth Brother, you're going too far. This matter has nothing to do with me."
"How can it be okay?" Xu Jing drank a glass of wine and continued, "The Zhang family holds military power. If they were on par with the Shen family, my father wouldn't have targeted me. But not long ago, your uncle succeeded to the position of Grand Marshal, a position much higher than the Shen family. If it were you, wouldn't you be wary of a knife above your head?"
"The Zhang family is loyal and dedicated, and has no second thoughts."
"Naive." Xu Jing laughed and said, "How can anyone sleep on the emperor's bed? Ninth brother, you are well-versed in history books, so you must understand the meaning of this, right?"
"You mean after you, it's my turn next?"
"Yes." Xu Jing cut off all of Xie Yunxiu's escape routes and revealed his inner thoughts to him. "If Ninth Brother is ambitious, he can also compete for the throne."
Xie Yunxiu smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty, you are just teasing me. If I had such a heart, why wouldn't I have stepped into the court and sought power by now? I just want to live a peaceful and idle life in a corner."
This is what it means to be in a blessed position but not know how to appreciate it. It is such a pity to leave such a good military power unused.
It would be better to transfer it to him and let him take control of the situation.
"Ninth brother, I want to fight for it."
Xu Jing raised his eyes, a glimmer of light flashing in his eyes.
"If I fail, I'll end up in pieces. Is it worth it?"
"Even if you don't fight, you'll be eliminated. Instead of living at the mercy of others, it's better to seize the glimmer of hope and swim against the current. If you fail, you'll just die, so why fear?"
Xu Jing poured more wine for Xie Yunxiu, raised his glass, and said, "I wonder if Ninth Brother could give me a helping hand?"
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