Chapter 406: Finding Another Way Out
The Northern Qi Emperor's smile was somewhat forced upon hearing Zhao Yi's words. After all, he hadn't treated Yizhen as well as he claimed, and it was precisely because of this guilty conscience that he wasn't sure whether Zhao Yi's words were literal or had a deeper meaning.
Suddenly, he noticed that Zhao Yi's attitude had changed.
When facing him before, his tone was indifferent and distant, but now it is more respectful and close.
The Emperor of Northern Qi suddenly realized that it was probably for the throne.
"I'm glad you understand." The Northern Qi Emperor looked relieved and patted Zhao Yi on the shoulder. "You're tired today. Go back home and rest. As for other official business, put it aside for now and deal with it tomorrow."
Zhao Yi glanced over his shoulder and thanked the emperor for his grace.
When he came out of the hall, he saw that the eunuch guarding the door had a new face.
During this period of time, the Emperor of Northern Qi became increasingly manic and would chop off people's heads at will.
If this continues, tyranny will not be far away.
Zhao Yi wiped his shoulders, walked down the steps step by step, and left the palace in a sedan chair.
After returning to the Prince of Guangling's Mansion, Zhao Yi stopped at the fork in the road.
He raised his eyes and looked in the direction of Lanxue Garden, was silent for a moment, turned around and went to the study in the front yard.
Zhao Yi pushed open the tightly closed door and saw Shen Qingtan lying on the couch. The spring weather was a little chilly. She pulled a thin blanket over her waist, outlining her graceful figure.
There was a flash of surprise in his eyes, as if he didn't expect to see her in the study.
Today's conversation with the Emperor of Northern Qi in the Imperial Study had affected his mood after all. He didn't want to pass on his negative emotions to her, so he didn't go to Lanxue Garden.
Unexpectedly, Shen Qingtan would be waiting for him in the study.
Zhao Yi walked slowly towards her and stood beside the couch: "Why don't you go and rest instead of waiting in the study?"
Shen Qingtan waved at him, and he obediently leaned down. Her hands climbed up his neck, and her soft red lips kissed his chin: "I calculated with my fingers that you would definitely want to see me, so I had no choice but to come here to wait for you."
Zhao Yi was stunned, lowering his gaze to gaze into her smiling eyes, which looked like two crescent moons. Inexplicably, the haze in his heart dissipated under her bright smile.
He whispered, "So what did you get?"
Shen Qingtan pinched her fingers in a serious manner: "You are in a good mood now." She tilted her head to look at him, "Am I right?"
Zhao Yi chuckled: "That's a really accurate calculation."
He grasped her slender wrist, pulled her up, and sat down beside her, cupping her delicate, jade-smooth hand in his. "When I told you today that I wanted to fight for that position, my original intention was to break free from control and no longer be controlled by others. After visiting the palace today, I discovered that there was more than one reason."
Shen Qingtan asked softly, "And then?"
"The Emperor of Northern Qi forced my mother to death, leaving me in Northern Qi to hinder the Great Zhou, using me to clear obstacles for the King of Qi. I'm afraid that once he's squeezed out all my worth, he'll settle accounts with me one by one, weakening my power and making room for the King of Qi."
"He feared the blood of the Great Zhou flowing through my veins and never considered handing Northern Qi over to me. To win me over and make me his own will, he even offered me the throne as bait."
Zhao Yi's expression was cold. "He values the Chu family's kingdom extremely highly. If one day, the Chu family's kingdom changes its name and is incorporated into the territory of the Great Zhou, he will never be able to rest in peace."
This is the best way to take revenge on the Emperor of Northern Qi.
Shen Qingtan didn't know what Zhao Yi had experienced in the palace, but he could feel that his determination to fight for the throne was becoming more and more firm.
Her brows furrowed. "The King of Qi is afraid we'll get involved in the fight for the throne. When he learned we wanted to take back the Great Zhou, he secretly helped us. If he knew we were eyeing the throne, he would probably turn against us."
Their enemies were not only the Emperor of Northern Qi, but also the Empress and the Shou'an Marquisate.
Zhao Yi thought of the Prince of Qi and fell silent. Because the Prince of Qi was the Queen's son, according to the ancestral system, the throne would be inherited by the Prince of Qi.
On the other hand, the Prince of Qi also thought so. He was the legitimate son of the Queen, and the kingdom of Northern Qi should be his in the future. Unfortunately, his father was confused and actually wanted to support the virtuous prince to fight against him.
The virtuous king was demoted back to his fiefdom, and he could finally breathe a sigh of relief. However, he didn't expect that his father wanted to support Zhao Yi to check and balance him. Fortunately, Zhao Yi wanted to return to the Great Zhou and posed no threat to him.
However, when he heard that the Emperor of Northern Qi had given Zhao Yi military power, he couldn't help but feel anxious and angry, fearing that the more power Zhao Yi held, the more reluctant he would be to give up everything here and return to the Great Zhou.
He wanted to make things difficult for Zhao Yi, but when he thought of Chang An's instructions, he suppressed the idea and arranged for someone to help Zhao Yi steal Princess Yizhen's bones.
However, the skeleton was stolen from a secret passage.
Everyone speculated that it was stolen by the remnants of the previous dynasty, but he always felt that Zhao Yi was involved in this matter.
If Zhao Yi took it away, then three days later, the day Guangning got married, would be the day Zhao Yi returned to the Great Zhou.
Thinking of this, the King of Qi breathed a sigh of relief and felt that the wounds on his body no longer hurt.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, something terrible has happened." The attendant came running in, anxiously saying, "News has come from the Shou'an Marquis's Mansion, saying... saying that in three days, Your Majesty is requesting that the appointment of a crown prince be postponed for the time being."
The Prince of Qi's expression suddenly changed. He sat up abruptly, then touched the wound on his buttocks. The pain made him fall back down. "Didn't Grandfather promise to join forces with the ministers to appoint a crown prince in three days? Why did he suddenly change his mind?"
The attendant shook his head, saying that he didn't understand why Marquis Shou'an suddenly changed his mind.
The King of Qi had a gloomy expression on his face, worried that his grandfather might have heard some rumors or something had happened, which was why he changed his mind at the last minute.
He felt a surge of uneasiness in his heart, and could no longer lie still. "Go get some writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. I'm going to write a letter to my grandfather."
The attendant quickly retrieved the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, and helped the King of Qi write a letter, which was immediately delivered to the Shou'an Marquis's residence. Afterwards, he also brought the reply letter written by Shou'an Marquis back to the King of Qi's residence.
The King of Qi could not wait to tear open the letter and pulled out a piece of paper. He saw that the letter only contained words instructing him to take good care of his injuries. As for why he was not forced to force the Emperor of Northern Qi to appoint a crown prince, there was no mention at all.
He crumpled the letter into a ball and threw it on the ground angrily.
The attendant was startled and said tremblingly, "The people you sent out have found clues to the remnants of the previous dynasty. Do you... want to continue the investigation?"
King Qi sneered and said, "Investigate!"
The Emperor of Northern Qi was afraid of the remnants of the previous dynasty. If he could capture them first and eliminate the hidden dangers for his father, he would definitely be appreciated by his father.
At that time, it didn’t matter whether his grandfather helped him or not, because his father would definitely make him the crown prince.
The attendant quickly gave orders to continue tracking down the remnants of the previous dynasty.
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At the same time, the people who were keeping an eye on Prince Qi's mansion quietly returned to the Siyi Pavilion and reported to Prince Yu: "Your Highness, we have given the information to Prince Qi's people, and he has sent people to investigate according to the clues we arranged."
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