Late at night, soldiers led by Lord Jiang entered the palace from a side gate. While walking along the smooth palace path, Lord Jiang's heart was beating fast.
He didn't even meet a single eunuch along the way. The closer he got to the Palace of Tranquil Longevity, the more uneasy Lord Jiang felt.
Suddenly, torches lit up on the surrounding rooftops, and rows of bows and arrows were pointed at Lord Jiang and his entourage. The Third Prince, hidden among the soldiers, felt his excitement vanish at once.
After a brief standoff, the gates of the Yangxin Palace opened. Zhou Defa walked in front, followed by the emperor and the crown prince. Zhou Defa shouted, "Surrender your weapons and we will not kill you!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the bows on the roof were fully drawn. Lord Jiang glanced to his right and rear, raised his knife, and said, "Go!"
The Emperor gave Lord Jiang a cold look. The Third Prince shrank back, trying to minimize his presence. The Emperor glanced at the soldiers before him, raised his head, and waved.
The next moment, the front row of soldiers rushed forward, but before they could take two steps, they were pierced by arrows. Arrows rained down from the sky like a torrential rain, and after a small number of them fell to the ground, the soldiers behind them dropped their weapons and knelt on the ground, begging for mercy.
Lord Jiang had been struck by three arrows and had already fallen to the ground, dead. The Third Prince, protected by his personal servant, fell to the ground, desperately trying to cover his face. He then covered his mouth, fearing discovery. But before he could regain consciousness, he was pulled out.
"The Third Prince has disobeyed the emperor and forced him to abdicate. His crimes are so heinous that he refuses to change despite repeated warnings. I will strip him of his status as a prince and demote him to a commoner. All the women in the Third Prince's household, except for his wife, will be imprisoned in the Iron Pestle Temple. All his staff, retainers, and servants will be executed."
After he finished speaking, the Emperor took one look at Lord Jiang, who lay on the ground covered in blood, and issued an order: "All the adult men of the Jiang family shall be executed immediately, and the youngest sons and female relatives shall be confined to slavery."
The grand dream of forcing the emperor to abdicate was shattered in an instant. The third prince roared like a madman: "Father, you are unfair! We are both princes, why do you only favor my eighth brother? I am also your son!" He cried bitterly as he spoke, seeming to be very sad.
The emperor just looked at the third prince coldly, and the third prince burst into laughter while crying. After laughing for a while, the third prince said dejectedly: "Father, the children are innocent, and the princess does not know my plan. Please treat them well."
After the words fell, the Third Prince looked deeply at the Emperor. He pulled the arrow from the servant and stabbed it into his own heart.
The emperor's expression suddenly changed. He took two quick steps forward and shouted, "Come here, imperial physician! Call the imperial physician!"
It was too late. The third prince pulled out the arrow, stabbed himself twice, and then died.
After all, he was his own son. Even if he was forced to abdicate, the emperor never thought of taking his life. Walking up to the Third Prince and looking at his wide-open eyes, the emperor stroked his face and helped him close his eyes. Turning his back to the Third Prince, he sighed deeply.
The Emperor, stumbling away, seemed to have aged ten years overnight. There were some gray hairs in his hair. Empress Jing'an embraced the Emperor, feeling a little uncomfortable.
She still hasn't accepted the ancient system of one wife and multiple concubines, but being in ancient times, she seems to have gradually assimilated. She no longer feels disgusted like she did at the beginning when she thought about sharing the same man with many women.
Now, she could actually comfort her husband sincerely, and her husband was sad because he had lost a bastard.
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