Chapter 761 Rumors of the Fourth Prince's Rebellion Spread Ahead of Schedule
"Yang'er, I beg you to release him. I am only alive now because of Shu Lang's support." Consort Chang then said to Xie Shang, "If His Majesty does not release Minister Shu, your mother will not live either."
Xie Shang said coldly, "What did you do to her?"
Consort Chang was fearless in the face of death. "I hate her so much that I will not let her die peacefully. I will torture her to the point of wishing she were dead, and then let her die slowly. She has been poisoned by a Gu poison. I will wait for the right time for the Gu poison to take effect and then torture her day and night."
"Is what you said true?" No matter how much Xie Shang disliked his mother, she was still his biological mother, and he wouldn't let her really suffer like that.
"She hurt me so much, why would I lie to you? I was going to poison you too, but..." He was the only one who treated her son like a brother. If she died, Yang'er would have no family left.
Xie Yang said, "Mother, he is lying to you. He is instigating his son to rebel. He is the one who orchestrated everything, and you are still helping him."
Shu Lang hurriedly said, "Fourth Prince, please hear my explanation. I did not instigate you, I really did not..."
Xie Yang went out just now to calm down, because he was afraid he would lose control and kill his mother as well.
At this moment, he finally understood. "It was you who contacted the court officials, the Zhu family, the Qin family, the Yang family, and the remnants of the Zhao family. It was you who was instigating me all along. What was your purpose in getting close to my mother...?"
Xie Shang narrowed his eyes and thought to himself: When Imperial Censor Zhu wanted to help Shu Lang compete for the position of Minister of Revenue, they had already colluded. In fact, the Zhu family and Shu Lang were related by marriage because of the daughter of the Yang family. The Yang family and the Zhu family were also relatives. Shu Lang married the daughter of the Yang family.
Xie Shang was also confused by his own actions.
It is perfectly normal for court officials to marry into each other's families, but for them to conspire to harm the interests of the imperial family is a capital offense.
Just then, news suddenly spread from the Imperial Guards that the Fourth Prince had rebelled.
Xie Yang was stunned. He hadn't given the order to act now. What was going on?
Seeing this, Shu Lang snatched the dagger from Xie Yang's hand and attacked Xie Shang, shouting, "Fourth Prince, run!"
Shu Lang's attempt to strike with a short dagger was futile. Xie Shang kicked the dagger away from his hand and then kicked him in the chest, coldly saying, "Leave him alive."
Lin Feng and his men detained him immediately. Shu Lang sneered, "The Emperor's reputation is already ruined. I have no regrets even if I die, Mingxiu..."
"Lin Feng, they're going to commit suicide!" Jiang Fenghua shouted.
Now that Lin Feng had Shu Lang under control, he wasn't going to let him die. He grabbed Shu Lang's jawbone and, without knowing what he did to Shu Lang, the poison in his mouth was instantly spat out. "If you're going to die, at least tell me the truth before you die."
At the same time, Jiang Fenghua grabbed Consort Chang's hand again, "If Consort Chang dies like this, neither the Fourth Prince nor Shu Yan will have a good time. I believe that besides hating Empress Dowager Cheng, the people Consort Chang cares about most in her life are her two children. If you really die like this, you will not be helping him, but harming him."
Consort Chang was stunned. Tears streamed down her face, as if she could never stop crying.
Shu Yan stared at her warily, her face pale. Xie Yang was even more heartbroken that his mother would choose to die for a man.
Madam Shu was even more heartbroken. She never expected that after decades of marriage, Shu Lang would completely disregard her and their child, preferring to die with Chang Mingxiu rather than even look at her.
She burst into loud sobs, crying, "What did I do wrong to deserve this treatment? Husband, tell me! I'll change, okay? Why are you doing this to me?!"
No matter how much she cried, Shu Lang remained unmoved, his attitude one of accepting death.
Xie Shang found it noisy and coldly shouted, "Shut up! Your husband doesn't like you. You should look for the reason within yourself. Is it because you're too ugly?"
Madam Shu immediately shut her mouth, and was stunned for a moment. "Is it because I'm not pretty?" What's wrong with her? Although she's not a celestial being, she's still a pretty girl from a modest family!
Jiang Fenghua also found it annoying. Madam Shu was the daughter of the Yang family. If the remnants of the Yang family were to rebel with the Fourth Prince, did she really not receive any news at all?
She said, "Your Majesty, the most important thing right now is the situation outside. How could there be rumors that the Fourth Prince has rebelled?"
Xie Yang is right here. If he wants to rebel, does he not even care about his life?
There are still many unsolved mysteries. Who exactly is that man who is completely covered in black clothes?
Xie Shang coldly ordered, "Lock up Shu Lang and Consort Chang."
He then looked at Xie Yang and said, "You'd better tell me everything you've been doing behind my back. I treat you as my fourth brother because you are my fourth brother. If you dare to do anything that harms the interests of the royal family, I will take your head off as well."
Xie Yang cupped his hands in greeting, "I certainly didn't give the order, and I'm not aware of the situation outside."
Xie Shang sneered, "So, all those rumors flying around outside are really related to you, and you're really planning to order a rebellion."
Xie Yang did not deny it. He thought that the rumors flying everywhere that the emperor was referring to were about Zhang Yurou saying that the child was Xie Shang's.
In fact, the rumors spread by Empress Dowager Cheng were actually fabricated by Consort Chang and Shu Lang. Their aim was to continue spreading the rumor that the Emperor was not the son of the late Emperor, and they even went so far as to spread the rumor that Xie Shang was the illegitimate child of Empress Dowager Cheng and her cousin.
Xie Yang was indeed preparing to rebel and seize power, but he didn't know that he was also a pawn in someone else's game. He bore all the responsibility but was only doing the work for someone else.
Empress Dowager Cheng was the mastermind behind Consort Chang's tragic life, yet Xie Shang never allowed her to appear. Could it be because Empress Dowager Cheng was his mother, and he was protecting her?
Jiang Fenghua was somewhat disappointed in Xie Shang, who should have been a fair and just emperor who distinguished right from wrong.
She only guessed that Shu Yan might be the one who helped Shu Lang and Consort Chang send messages, but she didn't expect that it would lead to their decades-long grudges and affections, which also interrupted Xie Yang's next plan.
However, now that news of the Fourth Prince's rebellion has spread, the matter has fallen into another mystery.
When they returned to the banquet hall, the other princes of the Xie family were already drunk, but upon hearing that the Fourth Prince had rebelled, they all sobered up.
At this moment, Xie Yang was seen following behind the Emperor, and he did not appear in the banquet hall bound hand and foot.
The first person to stand before the Emperor and Empress was the Eighth Prince, Xie Qi, who said, "Your subject requests an imperial decree to investigate this case."
He glanced at Xie Yang, who returned his gaze. "I have not yet rebelled."
These words are tantamount to saying that he is preparing to rebel.
Everyone was stunned. The Third Prince and his wife sat together, staring at the Fourth Prince in disbelief. Was he really going to rebel?
The other concubines would definitely look to the Empress, who was the backbone of the harem. What had happened? How could someone spread the news that the Fourth Prince was rebelling?
Is it a rumor or the truth?
The Fourth Prince stood upright to one side. He didn't look like a rebel at all; he looked like he had been crying. His eyes were red, his face was red, and his neck and ears were red, as if he had just suffered a great injustice.
The most spineless prince in the royal family is going to rebel? No dog would believe it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
