Chapter 104 All were beaten to death outside the palace.
"I say, am I truly your daughter?" Princess Ning'an stared at the Empress Dowager, as if demanding an answer. "Between me and Wen Yishu, you know perfectly well who you care about most. Don't keep saying it's for my sake—"
"Ning'an," Emperor Zhaode frowned, interrupting her, "How dare you speak to the Empress Dowager like that?"
Princess Ning'an looked at him and smiled sarcastically: "Brother, haven't you understood what the Empress Dowager means? In her heart, I, her daughter, am far less important than Wen Yishu. She keeps saying how much she loves and pampers me, but for that slut Wen Yishu, she actually tried to hit me just now."
She slowly turned her head, asking in a questioning voice, "Your Majesty, how can I believe that I am your biological daughter?"
Emperor Zhaode remained silent for a moment, his eyes filled with a deep, somber light.
After a moment, he looked at the Empress Dowager and calmly asked, "Mother, is Ning'an your biological daughter?"
A hint of guilt flashed across the Empress Dowager's eyes.
She turned her head away and said stiffly, "I'm doing this for your own good. I don't want you to be all alone. Is that wrong?"
"But Wen Yishu has committed the crime of deceiving the emperor!" Princess Ning'an suddenly erupted, her voice sharp and high-pitched, as if she wanted to vent her emotions to the fullest. "Wen Yishu is a bastard! He has deceived me for more than ten years, deceived my brother for more than ten years, and raised three bastards under my nose, making me raise them as my own children. I even pleaded for them the titles of heir apparent and princess. He meets with sluts outside every month, and I have been kept in the dark all along!"
She pointed at Wen Yishu: "I haven't been able to conceive for over ten years, all because of this bitch's scheming! If I can't make her pay today, I'd rather kill myself!"
Standing to the side, Chu Yunjin saw Princess Ning'an lose control of her emotions, her face revealing uncontrollable sorrow and pain. She knew that what Princess Ning'an was suffering was not only the betrayal and deception of her husband, but also the harm from her own mother.
“Wen Jingyi is hoping for my death.” Princess Ning’an stared at the Empress Dowager, speaking each word clearly and calmly, “I heard with my own ears that Wen Jingyi is hoping for my death. Wen Shiyu said that they are not my biological children, that I have not treated them sincerely… Your Majesty, you keep saying you are doing this for my own good, but you just want me to die at their hands, don’t you?”
"Shut up!" The Empress Dowager's face turned ashen. "Ning'an, that's not what I meant at all!"
Princess Ning'an closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then turned to Emperor Zhaode: "Your Majesty, the crime of deceiving the emperor should be punished by slow slicing. However, for the sake of Wen Yishu and my sister as husband and wife, and Wen Shiyu and his family and my sister as mother and son, I cannot bear to see them suffer slow slicing. I beg Your Majesty to handle this matter impartially and have all five of them beaten to death outside the palace immediately! Let them, as a family of five, love each other on their way to the Yellow Springs and continue their previous life together."
After saying that, he knelt down, his attitude resolute and cold.
The Empress Dowager's face turned deathly pale, and she said sternly, "Your Majesty, you cannot do this!"
"Father." Yan Cang, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke, his voice as cold as iron, "If a ruler who deceives the emperor can be easily forgiven, where is the law of Yong Dynasty? Where is the dignity of the emperor? If you can forgive Wen Consort this time, will other ministers follow suit in the future? If you cannot forgive, how will you answer when the censors question you about why you treated him differently?"
"Yan Cang, shut your mouth!" the Empress Dowager roared. "You have no right to speak here!"
Yan Cang said calmly, "Please forgive my disrespect. This is where Father Emperor handles matters of state. The Empress Dowager is the one who should not be here and interfere with Father Emperor's decisions."
The Empress Dowager's face was ashen with anger, and she nearly tore the handkerchief in her hand to shreds. She looked down at the trembling Wen Jingyi and said coldly, "Jingyi, why don't you apologize to your mother?"
"Mother." Wen Jingyi trembled with fear and burst into tears. "I was wrong! I didn't mean it that way. Mother misunderstood me. I never wanted you to die..."
"And that vile woman!" The Empress Dowager pointed at Zhao Ying'er. "As Wen Changyan's concubine, she seduced the prince consort and instigated his three children to become estranged from the Princess. She is utterly shameless and deserving of death. Drag her out immediately and have her beaten to death!"
Zhao Ying'er was startled and suddenly looked up at the Empress Dowager. Meeting the murderous intent in the Empress Dowager's eyes, she felt a chill run through her body. Turning her head to look at Wen Yishu, who was kneeling on the ground with a deathly pale face, Zhao Ying'er trembled like a leaf.
Is the Empress Dowager trying to kill her to save Consort Wen and their three children?
if……
If she could exchange her own death for the lives of the four of them, she... she was actually willing...
Zhao Ying'er withdrew her gaze and slowly knelt down on the ground: "It is all my fault. I seduced the Prince Consort, and my crime is unforgivable. I beg Your Majesty to execute me and spare the Prince Consort."
Upon hearing this, Wen Shiyu, Wen Shijie, and Wen Jingyi all turned to look at her, their eyes filled with sorrow.
Mother……
The air inside the hall was cold and tense, filled with a chilling atmosphere.
Emperor Zhaode's gaze slowly swept over Wen Yishu, who lowered her eyes and remained silent. His gaze then swept over Wen Shiyu, whose face turned pale. His gaze then swept over Wen Jingyi, who was filled with fear and unease.
Emperor Zhaode calmly spoke: "Wen Shiyu."
Wen Shiyu quickly snapped out of his daze and bowed his head, saying, "Yes."
Emperor Zhaode asked calmly, "Do you think the Zhao family should be beaten to death?"
His tone was calm and indifferent, as if his anger had subsided.
But this question struck Wen Shiyu like a thunderbolt, leaving him dizzy and disoriented.
His face was deathly pale, and a look of struggle appeared in his eyes: "I..."
"Wen Shiyu," the Empress Dowager said coldly, "Zhao Ying'er seduced your father, causing all four of you to bear the blame for her crime. Doesn't she deserve to die?"
Zhao Ying'er looked up at Wen Shiyu: "It's my fault, I shouldn't have seduced the Prince Consort. I only ask... I only ask that my death can end all this sooner, and that the Prince Consort and the Prince can return to normal life. My death is nothing to regret."
Emperor Zhaode stared at Wen Shiyu: "Wen Shiyu, I'm asking you a question."
Wen Shiyu's face turned pale. He remained silent for a long while before lowering his head and uttering a difficult sentence: "The Zhao family... deserves to die."
Zhao Ying'er was startled, a sharp pain suddenly pierced her heart, and her lips trembled uncontrollably.
Although she was willing to die in exchange for the safety of her father and his three sons, she still couldn't help but feel heartbroken when those words came from her own son's mouth.
Emperor Zhaode stared at Wen Shiyu expressionlessly, his eyes suddenly turning cold.
"What a heartless bastard!" Princess Ning'an sneered. "To survive, you even abandoned the life of your own mother. All these years, I've been raising three beasts!"
Emperor Zhaode withdrew his gaze and spoke each word with the force of thunder: "Effective immediately, Wen Yishu and Princess Ning'an are officially divorced."
"Wen Yishu has deceived the emperor and disregarded imperial authority. Wen Shiyu, Wen Shijie, and Wen Jingyi are unfilial to their mother and have conspired to deceive the emperor. They shall all be flogged to death outside the palace. Execute them immediately!"
The air froze as soon as the words were spoken.
Prince Consort Wen almost collapsed to the ground.
"Your Majesty!" The Empress Dowager looked at him in disbelief, her face filled with shock and anger. "It's all Zhao's fault—"
"Mother, it is a fact that Wen Yishu deceived the emperor and showed contempt for imperial power." Emperor Zhaode's expression was solemn, and he was imposing without being angry. "They not only deceived the emperor, but also cheated and schemed against Ning'an for so many years. Whether it is to maintain the dignity of the royal family or to protect your daughter, Mother should not plead for them anymore."
The Empress Dowager's face turned deathly pale. She twisted the handkerchief in her hand tightly, her cheeks twitching from the overwhelming emotion.
After an unknown amount of time, she gently closed her eyes, her voice filled with a desperate resolve: "Your Majesty, I have something to say to you."
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