Chapter 374 Turning Point
The Emperor of Northern Qi and the previous emperor had been looking for the remnants of the previous dynasty. Now that she had found the remnants, the Emperor of Northern Qi not only did not believe her words, but also said that she was the culprit who killed the Lin family.
Concubine Shu opened her eyes wide and looked at the Emperor of Northern Qi in disbelief, as if she had not expected him to say such heartbreaking words.
"Your Majesty, are you joking with me?"
Concubine Shu tried to force a smile and use a relaxed tone to ease the tense atmosphere.
But her face was stiff, and she forced out an expression that was uglier than crying. Her throat seemed to be strangled, and she uttered a word with difficulty.
"Every word I say is true. Jiang Su's father was the governor of the previous dynasty and was loyal to the previous emperor. How could he suddenly pledge allegiance to the new master? His family must be remnants of the previous dynasty, lurking around you in order to help the orphans of the previous royal family overthrow your dynasty and restore the country in the future."
The more Concubine Shu spoke, the more agitated she became. "The Lin and Jiang families have a feud. Who else but the Jiang family would wipe out the entire Lin family? It must be Jiang Su, using the power left over from the previous dynasty, who killed the Lin family members without anyone noticing."
"Shut up!" The Northern Qi Emperor's face turned ashen. Every word the Concubine said crossed his line, igniting his rage. "Jiang Jianzheng can see through the secrets of heaven, and everything he does is in accordance with the will of heaven. You say he is a remnant of the previous dynasty, helping it to restore the country. According to you, I am not the true emperor?"
Concubine Shu was terrified and knelt on the ground: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty did not mean that..."
"That's not what I meant." The Northern Qi Emperor said cryptically, "Tell me, how did the Jiang family become enemies with the Lin family?"
Concubine Shu froze and suddenly realized that the Emperor of Northern Qi did not believe her because he knew the grudge between her and Jiang Jianzheng and believed that she was falsely accusing Jiang Jianzheng.
She panicked and opened her mouth to explain.
The Northern Qi Emperor, however, refused to discuss the matter with her and directly charged her with a crime: "Shu Fei has interfered in state affairs, abused her power, murdered loyal ministers, and attempted to alter the fate of the nation, thus bringing disaster upon the Lin family and bringing heaven's wrath upon them. I, in compliance with Heaven's will, depose Shu Fei from her position as consort and bestow upon her a three-foot white silk garment."
Concubine Shu was on the verge of collapse, unable to believe that the emperor who had bestowed upon her the highest favor could turn against her more ruthlessly than anyone else.
In order to protect Jiang Jianzheng, he pinned the Lin family's injustice on her and wanted to sentence her to death.
"Over the years, I have been law-abiding and have never persecuted a single loyal official or general."
Concubine Shu knelt before the Northern Qi Emperor and grasped his sleeve. "If you allow me to die, I will not complain. But I am unwilling to bear this false charge."
The Northern Qi Emperor was impatient to listen to her sobbing and pulled out his sleeves: "Imperial Guards, take her away."
The imperial guards stepped forward and restrained Concubine Shu.
At the moment when Concubine Shu was tied up, she truly felt the coming of death, and her eyes were filled with fear.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..." Concubine Shu struggled desperately: "When you were in your residence, I was by your side and gave birth to your children. Even if I didn't do anything meritorious, I did work hard."
At this point, she was truly heartbroken: "We've been friends for over twenty years, have you really not cared at all? For a mere supervisor, you actually want to sentence me to death."
The Emperor of Northern Qi remained indifferent and did not even look at her.
Concubine Shu stared at the cold and ruthless face of the Emperor of Northern Qi, and all the expectations in her eyes turned into despair.
This is the emperor’s grace.
With the emperor's grace, even if she committed a heinous crime, he would only give her a light punishment that would not cause any harm.
The emperor's grace is gone, and she can be killed by accusing her of any crime.
She should have seen through the Northern Qi Emperor's ruthlessness long ago. In order to get Yizhen, he risked losing his position as crown prince and secretly released Emperor Jing'an back to the Great Zhou.
What’s the final result?
It's just that Yizhen was left to die in the mouth of a wild beast.
Why did she think she would be an exception?
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Concubine Shu laughed, laughed crazily, laughed until tears streamed down her face.
Suddenly, Concubine Shu saw a figure running towards her. Her laughter stopped abruptly, and a glimmer of light appeared in her dead eyes, and she was full of life.
"Father..." The virtuous prince, who had rushed over after hearing the news, knelt on the ground and pleaded, "My mother was wrongly accused. How could she, a woman living deep in the harem, interfere in state affairs?"
He rested his forehead on the ground and said, "I beg you, Father, to spare my life for all the years I have devotedly served you."
The Emperor of Northern Qi looked at the virtuous king kneeling at his feet, rubbed his fingertips behind his back, thought of Jiang Jianzheng's prophecy, and couldn't help but re-examine the current situation.
The entire Lin family was wiped out, and he couldn't track down the murderer. In order to shut up everyone, he had to put the blame on Concubine Shu and let her take all the responsibility.
Because the guards did not find the murderer in the past few days, but they found out another thing.
In order to save the Lin family, Concubine Shu captured Jiang Jianzheng's son and forced Jiang Jianzheng to defy fate. She predicted that the Lin family would be the pillars of the country and hinted that the virtuous king had the potential to be an emperor.
Jiang Jianzheng is an upright official. He would rather sacrifice his son's life than obey Concubine Shu's orders. He handed over the true prophecy at the palace banquet, which put Jiang Chengfeng's life in danger.
Concubine Shu has gone to this extent to save the Lin family. In the future, in order to get the position of crown prince, she will definitely use any means, even trying to usurp the throne.
In this way, the prophecy was confirmed.
So he no longer showed mercy to Concubine Shu and decided to eliminate the trouble.
But if we want to eliminate the trouble forever, we must eradicate it completely.
He was worried that if he did not deal with the virtuous king, he would be forced into a desperate situation in the future and would burn his boats and think of usurping the throne.
After all, he had personally experienced the road to succession and knew very well what the princes were thinking.
In order to prevent the situation of father and son killing each other, he decided to make a decision in advance.
The Northern Qi Emperor asked, "Are you willing to return to your fiefdom for the sake of your biological mother? However, you cannot maintain personal soldiers and guards like other princes, and you must submit all taxes from your fiefdom to the imperial court."
The wise king was stunned.
"I have assigned ten palace maids and ten eunuchs to serve you, and the court will allocate you a monthly salary according to the regulations. You may never be summoned back to the capital. If you violate this order, you will be punished for treason."
The Northern Qi Emperor asked again, "Are you willing?"
This is a disguised form of confinement.
The wise king slowly closed his fingers, finding it difficult to make a decision.
If he agreed, he would be a powerless prince who lived on the salary from the court. His every move would be monitored by his father, and he would not even be able to protect himself.
If he doesn't agree, his mother will be sentenced to death.
In the freezing winter, beads of cold sweat oozed from the wise king's forehead.
The light in Concubine Shu's eyes instantly extinguished: "Don't agree..."
In order to make her son the crown prince, she worked hard for more than 20 years and countless lives were lost.
Because of this, his brother died at the hands of Zhao Yi and the Lin family was tragically wiped out.
She couldn't accept paying so much and ending up with nothing.
If her son gave up his right to compete for the crown prince position for her, she would rather die.
Even though a centipede is dead, its limbs are still strong. The Lin family still has some power left. They are lying low for the time being, gathering their strength so that they can make another attempt in the future.
There was nothing left when I returned to my fiefdom.
When the new emperor ascends the throne, how will they and their son survive?
"Heng'er, your mother has committed many evil deeds. Her crimes are unforgivable. It's not worth your pleading for me." Concubine Shu admitted her guilt and said urgently, "Be obedient and don't do anything stupid."
The wise king closed his eyes tightly, dug his fingertips into the ground, and fine sand embedded in the cracks between his nails.
"My son is willing," the virtuous prince said with difficulty, "I beg you, father, to spare my mother's life."
This is his biological mother who gave birth to him and raised him. He cannot ignore her life or death.
He said he would protect her.
The Northern Qi Emperor gave the virtuous king a deep look and said, "As you wish, I will do. You will leave for your fiefdom tomorrow."
"Your son obeys your command." The wise king kowtowed to express his gratitude.
Concubine Shu felt as if the sky had fallen on her head. She couldn't bear the blow and asked, "Why did you agree?"
She wanted to rush over and question the wise king, but she was firmly restrained by the guards and could not take a single step forward.
Concubine Shu said sternly, "Why don't you listen to me?"
The virtuous prince lowered his head, not daring to face the virtuous concubine.
The Northern Qi Emperor looked at Concubine Shu, whose emotions were completely out of control, and said, "Send her to the cold palace."
The imperial guards dragged Concubine Shu out.
Concubine Shu struggled fiercely, shouting until her voice was hoarse and she was exhausted: "Your Majesty, I have interfered in state affairs, abused my power, and killed loyal ministers. My crimes are unforgivable. Please kill me..."
Only if she died would she not hinder her son's great cause.
Unfortunately, she failed to achieve her wish.
The imperial study was getting further and further away from her, and Concubine Shu was in despair.
At this time, the imperial guards saw Zhao Yi coming towards them and saluted hurriedly.
"This subordinate pays his respects to His Highness."
"No need to be so polite."
When Concubine Shu heard Zhao Yi's voice, she suddenly looked up and saw Zhao Yi standing in the twilight, as if she saw a turning point.
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