Chapter 401: Killing the Father and the King
The night was originally slightly hot,
However, because of Shang Yang's words, Zhao Hua felt a thin layer of chill on his back.
Killing his father and his king, plotting to usurp the throne...
This was also what the Queen Mother suspected at that time.
Before her death, the Queen Mother told Zhaohua that she had always suspected that Xiao Jingheng's accession to the throne was not glorious.
As for the succession, the late emperor originally intended to choose the fourth prince Xiao Jingxuan, born to the empress dowager. Unfortunately, Xiao Jingxuan contracted smallpox not long after leaving the palace and setting up his own residence. Eventually, under the "careful care" of Xiao Jingheng, he unfortunately died.
After Xiao Jingxuan's death, the late emperor still did not pay attention to Xiao Jingheng, but instead paid special attention to the fifth prince Xiao Jinglian [Prince Rui].
But for some reason, Xiao Jinglian caused a huge mess over such a small matter as salt management, which led to the rampant smuggling of salt in the Qi Dynasty, causing the people to suffer bitterly, and he also lost the trust of the emperor because of this incident.
Not long after that, the late emperor passed away suddenly.
Later, the imperial edict was brought out, which stated that the late emperor wanted the third son Xiao Jingheng to ascend the throne.
When the late emperor was alive, he treated Xiao Jingheng coldly.
Therefore, when seeing this will, all the civil and military officials in the court had objections to this matter.
But when the late emperor made his will, there were people around him who could testify.
Therefore, no matter how confused the civil and military officials were, they had to kneel down and worship the new emperor and submit to Xiao Jingheng.
At this moment, Zhaohua couldn't help but think of the Queen Mother's last smile before her death.
It was the bitter smile that appeared on the face of the Queen Mother when she sang "Who told you, the crow, to occupy the Phoenix's nest? Who told you to press forward step by step and make all kinds of plans?" in the poem "Wang Jiang Ting".
The Queen Mother lived in the palace all year round, and Xiao Jingheng only maintained a superficial closeness with her.
Even though the Queen Mother had sharp ears and eyes, it was difficult for her to know the truth about many things.
But Shangyang is different.
She had been hiding beside Xiao Jingheng in disguise since he was in the mansion.
Shang Yang seemed innocent and harmless, but he was actually very thoughtful. Maybe she had discovered something. After Zhao Hua came to her senses, she looked at Shang Yang and asked in a low voice,
"What do you want to say?"
A hint of coldness flashed across Shang Yang's eyes, and the smile lines at the corners of his lips became more and more obvious.
"You may not believe it, but I have seen the late emperor's will. It was a will that was completely different from what the civil and military officials in the court had seen."
She met Zhaohua's shocked gaze and said lightly:
"On the night when the late emperor passed away and his will was announced to the world, Xiao Jingheng drank a lot of wine and got drunk, not knowing whether he was happy about getting the throne or sad about his father's death. At that time, he had not yet been crowned as queen or married, and I was the only one who took care of him in the palace.
Xiao Jingheng was usually very cautious. His study was always locked and he never asked the servants to clean it. He was the only one who had the key. But he didn't expect that I had secretly made a mold and carved an identical key.
That night, I heard him snoring in his study, and knowing that he was drunk, I took out my key and sneaked in.
She paused and raised her eyebrows at Zhao Hua, "Guess what I saw?"
Zhao Hua shook his head silently, and Shang Yang's tone changed to a teasing one, and he continued with a sneer:
"I saw him drunkenly lying on the table, with a scroll of imperial edicts next to him. I saw that it was clearly written on the edict, 'The fifth prince Jinglian, who is benevolent, filial, wise, and virtuous, should be made the crown prince. When he passes away, he will succeed the throne. All the civil and military officials at home and abroad should work together to help me achieve my goal.'" [This edict has always been regarded as a trophy by the perverted Xiao Jingheng. At the end of Chapter 280 and the beginning of Chapter 281, Xiao Jingheng burned this edict when he had planned everything and could deal with Prince Rui.]
"Prince Rui?" Zhao Hua pondered, then shook his head slowly and said, "But the late emperor's will was seen by all the civil and military officials in the court. How could it be fake?"
Shang Yang smiled, "Anyone who is determined can always copy the handwriting. It is not difficult to make it lifelike."
Zhao Hua was still puzzled. "In all dynasties, after the emperor made a will, it would first be handed over to the eunuchs for temporary custody. The next day, the court officials of the first rank of civil and military officials would be called to witness it together, and then it would be sealed in wax in a secret place. Only when the emperor passed away would the will be taken out. How could such a complicated process be faked?"
'Pop'
The crisp sound of the candle wick bursting seemed to echo in the silent night.
Shang Yang took the silver pole from Zhao Hua's hand and removed the blackened candle wick. As the warm light flickered, a thick layer of shadow gradually covered her brows.
"The late emperor passed away in a hurry, and died almost immediately after he signed his will. Therefore, there were only three people who witnessed the late emperor signing his will. They were the former eunuch Feng Yuhe, the important military commander of the Grand Council Zhou Kangwei, and... the Minister of the Imperial Guard, Ning Baichuan."
Zhao Hua is very familiar with these three names.
Needless to say, Ning Baichuan was a great general who was highly valued by Xiao Jingheng and helped him conquer foreign countries and achieve great achievements.
Feng Yuhe was a eunuch who had followed the late emperor for nearly thirty years. Like Jiang Deshun today, he was the most respected eunuch in the imperial city.
As for Zhou Weikang, this person also has some connection with the Song family. After Xiao Jingheng ascended the throne, he made use of Zhou Weikang. For a long time, Song Shicheng was eager to curry favor with him, a favorite of the emperor. Therefore, this name Zhaohua was often mentioned at home.
Shang Yang saw Zhao Hua was silent for a long time, knowing that she was thinking about this matter in her mind, so he simply brought the topic to the fore.
"Not long after Feng Yuhe announced the late emperor's will, he 'died for his master' and followed the late emperor. After Xiao Jingheng ascended the throne, he made use of Ning Baichuan and treated Zhou Weikan well, but what was the result? Hehe~"
She joked and laughed.
"In the third year of Qiyuan, Zhou Weikang fell to his death after getting drunk. Not long after that, Xiao Jingheng even abolished the Military Affairs Office. As for Ning Baichuan, we all know how the Ning family father and son died tragically."
Yes, the three people who witnessed the late emperor's will that day,
One died for his master, one died suddenly, and one was beheaded. All of them were extinct.
If you look into the details of this matter, it is enough to make people terrified.
Xiao Jingheng is now in power and has such drastic measures. Even if the ministers of the previous dynasty have doubts, they have to protect themselves and pretend to be deaf and dumb.
After hearing what Shang Yang said, Zhao Hua almost blurted out,
"So... after the late emperor made the will, did the eunuch Feng Yuhe secretly tell the emperor about this? And then the emperor promised Ning Baichuan and Zhou Kangwei huge benefits to trick them into joining forces to kill the emperor, forge the will, and seize the throne? The Ning family..."
Zhao Hua murmured to himself, and the confusion in his heart gradually cleared up.
No wonder......
No wonder even though the Ning family no longer posed any threat to Xiao Jingheng's kingdom, Xiao Jingheng was still unwilling to let them live.
The so-called rebellion, from beginning to end, was nothing more than a dead end tailor-made by Xiao Jingheng for the Ning family...
Shang Yang looked at Zhao Hua's slightly dazed expression, and his smile contained a hint of deep satisfaction.
"So, Song Zhao, you have to understand one thing. The eunuchs around the emperor can be the emperor's confidants, or they can be... a knife stabbing the emperor."
[The social animals work overtime, today is one and tomorrow is three. (＇`)Comparison】
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