Hearing Li Rong calling him, Li Chuan hurriedly threw away his sword and ran towards Li Rong.
"Sister," Li Chuan's eyes were filled with anxiety and excitement, "Why are you here?"
"Rong'er?"
Shangguan Yue was also at a loss: "Why are you..."
"Su Rongqing is waiting outside the city with his troops, waiting for Chuan'er to kill the king." Li Rong said calmly, "Mother, you and Chuan'er should leave the palace immediately. I'll be here."
"Su Rongqing is outside the city?"
Li Chuan couldn't understand: "Why did he mix so much into it?"
"Don't worry about this. Mother, hurry up and leave."
"What about you?" Shangguan Yue responded quickly, "You are alone in this palace?"
“That won’t work.”
Li Chuan decisively rejected it.
"Then let's go together."
Li Rong smiled. After hearing this, Li Chuan finally agreed. He became happy and said, "Okay, let's go together."
As he said this, he went to pull Li Rong.
He was holding Li Rong's hand which was shaking all the time, and Li Rong looked at him quietly.
He was actually much taller than her, but in front of her, he seemed like a child.
He pulled Li Rong out of the bedroom. Before leaving, Li Ming called him, "Li Chuan."
Li Chuan paused, and Li Ming said coldly: "The chance I gave you still counts. As long as you are willing to destroy the Shangguan family, I can give you the Yulin Army."
Li Ming said this and started coughing lightly.
He looked very bad, but he still stared at Li Chuan: "If Su Rongqing unites with the noble families, you will not be able to win with the troops they have. Since you are unwilling to kill me, I can still treat you as my son. Come back," Li Ming stretched out his hand, "I will give you the country."
When Shangguan Yue heard this, a trace of fear flashed across her eyes. Li Rong looked up at Li Chuan, waiting for his decision.
Li Chuan looked at the world outside the palace gate. He thought for a long time and said softly, "No."
"Li Chuan!"
Li Ming got anxious for a moment and started coughing rapidly: "You are crazy!"
"Father, I don't want to kill you, nor do I want to hand over my sister and mother to my own life and death."
Li Chuan found it a bit difficult to speak. Li Rong stood beside him. She did not deliberately suppress her emotions. She looked up at Li Chuan, looking at her younger brother.
In the past, she would regard Li Chuan's indifference to gains and losses as a woman's kindness, but when she put aside those deliberate calculations and looked at Li Chuan as a sister, she suddenly felt that her brother was a very, very good person.
He is just young and he doesn't understand yet what is right and what is wrong.
Li Rong reached out her hand and held Li Chuan. At the moment she held him, Li Chuan was suddenly stunned. He turned his head to look at Li Rong. Li Rong smiled and said, "Go on."
"I," Li Chuan said harshly, "I may not be a qualified crown prince, nor a qualified king."
He looked into Li Rong's eyes and couldn't help but tear up.
“But I don’t want to be like you.”
"I think," Li Chuan took a deep breath, "I want to be a good person, I want to protect my family, I want to find someone I like to be with, I want to do what I like, and I hope not to harm any life."
"I want to be indecisive, I want to be innocent, I want to be kind, I want to be indifferent to gains and losses."
"Li Chuan you idiot!"
Li Ming yelled and cursed. Li Chuan took a deep breath and said, "You can curse me. It doesn't matter. You never liked me anyway. But whether you like me or not, father," Li Chuan gave him a last look, "I don't want to kill you. It will dirty my heart."
After Li Chuan finished speaking, he pulled Li Rong along.
He felt like a bird being untied from its string.
Although it was a matter of life and death, I felt happier than ever before.
He held Li Rong tightly, leaned on her, and walked out.
After walking out of the bedroom corridor, Li Rong stopped in her tracks.
There were soldiers everywhere, and the closest one was Li Rong's shadow guard.
Li Rong stopped walking, and Li Chuan felt a little confused: "Sister?"
"Chuan'er," Li Rong looked at him, "Are you willing to give the world to me?"
"Sister?" Li Chuan didn't understand what she was saying. Li Rong clasped her hands in her sleeves and smiled, "I don't like to make wedding dresses for others. If I can protect Huajing for you this time, can you give me this world?"
"Sister," Li Chuan looked at Li Rong and smiled, "I know you don't trust me, but I still have to tell you."
"I became the crown prince for my mother, the Queen Mother. If my sister wants the world, I will give it to her. I am not suitable for this place. I will destroy myself and perhaps harm others in this place."
"Then," Li Rong stared at him, "if one day, I am the king and you are the minister, is that okay?"
"Why not?" Li Chuan seemed to find it funny. Shangguan Yue frowned, "What are you guys still talking about? Hurry up and leave."
"Yes," Li Chuan finally remembered, "Sister, I will protect you and mother..."
Before he could finish his words, the guard hit Li Chuan from behind and knocked him unconscious. The guard supported Li Chuan, and Shangguan Yue looked horrified and asked anxiously, "What are you doing!"
"Mother, I can't leave."
Li Rong said calmly, "I want to pretend that Chuan'er is in the palace and not arouse Su Rongqing's suspicion. You take Chuan'er out."
"But you are a girl..."
"I can." Li Rong interrupted her. She looked at Shangguan Yue steadily, "If you don't leave now, no one else can leave. Mother, let's go."
Shangguan Yue stared at Li Rong. She didn't say anything, but Li Rong already knew her answer.
Li Rong turned around and walked towards the bedroom. When she pushed the door open and entered the hall, she saw Li Ming panting on the dragon couch.
He seemed to be in great pain, panting all over. Li Rong bent down and raised the sword. Li Ming looked at Li Rong raising the sword, panic in his eyes. Li Rong approached Li Ming with the sword in hand. Li Ming clenched his fists and pretended to be calm.
Li Rong raised her sword and pointed it at Li Ming's face. She looked at him intently.
After a moment, she was a little surprised: "You are afraid of me."
"I don't have any."
"You are not afraid of Chuan'er, you are afraid of me, why?" Li Rong looked at him. She saw fear in his old eyes. She lowered her head and smiled, put away the sword and threw it aside.
"You think I'll kill you, but he won't."
"Isn't it?" Li Ming said coldly, "You are different from him."
Li Rong sat on the edge of the bed without saying a word. Li Ming relaxed for a while and seemed to be feeling better. Li Rong stood up, went to the side to fetch some water and handed it to Li Ming.
Li Ming didn't dare to drink, and Li Rong knew what he meant. She comforted him: "Don't worry, it's easy for me to kill you now, there's no need to poison you."
After hearing what Li Ming said, he froze for a moment. Li Rong sat down and gave him some water.
Li Ming drank some water and felt much better. Li Rong helped him lie down and covered him with a quilt.
"What are you going to do?" Li Ming stared at her. Li Rong thought for a moment and said, "It's nothing. It's the last minute. I don't want to argue with you. I've never taken care of you before. I'm taking care of you for the last time. Don't be too grateful."
Li Ming said nothing. He looked at Li Rong who had covered him with the quilt. Li Rong thought for a moment and asked, "Where is Concubine Rou?"
"I let her and Prince Su escape."
Li Rong nodded, but she was not angry. She sat at the bottom of the steps while Li Chuan lay on the couch. After a long while, he whispered, "Didn't you leave the palace? What are you doing back here? Are you here to die for Li Chuan?"
"It's not like I'm going to die. I'm still pretty smart. I'm here, so I have a better chance of staying alive than him."
"You didn't kill me because you were afraid that Su Rongqing would use regicide as an excuse to harm you?"
"Is there a big difference between attacking the imperial city and regicide?" Li Rong felt that Li Ming was a little bored at the moment. She leaned against the bed and chatted idly after a while, "Actually, I don't understand what you are fighting for."
"You want to suppress the noble families and the Shangguan family, but can't you see that Chuan'er and you have the same intention? What's the point of trying so hard to destroy him? Besides, the Li Cheng that Concubine Rou has now is a fake. Are you willing to pass the throne to a fake?"
"You don't have to slander Cheng'er," Li Ming said coldly, "I won't believe you."
"I knew you wouldn't believe it. If I die, you can go out and verify it yourself this time."
After Li Rong finished speaking, she felt the ground was a little cold, so she got up, found a stool, moved it over, and sat next to Li Cheng.
He moved a small table, put some tea on it, sat down comfortably, hugged the heater.
Li Ming watched her busying herself, and when she sat down, Li Rong continued, "You haven't answered my question just now."
"He is Shangguan's child," Li Ming said coldly, "It is impossible for him to be truly separated from you. He can't even do anything to you now. When I am gone, do you still expect him to do anything?"
Hearing this, Li Rong couldn't help laughing.
Li Chuan didn't just use violence. He was much more ruthless than Li Ming.
Li Ming seemed to be furious when he said this: "My two sons, Li Chuan was a good boy, but you made him useless. And you, I loved you so much, but you..."
"What about me?" Li Rong turned to look at him. "I love you so much," Li Rong looked at him, "but you only want to marry me to the worst husband, and ask me not to interfere with your interests, and keep me aside in everything."
"Hua Le, you are in great pain, but what about me?"
"Isn't my love for you enough?" Li Ming shouted angrily.
"Do I respect you any less than Hua Le does?"
She had never questioned Li Ming like this before.
Like an ordinary daughter.
Li Ming was stunned. Li Rong looked at him and said, "I am Shangguan's daughter. Does that mean I am not your daughter?"
Li Ming didn't say anything. Such questions seemed to make him feel embarrassed.
Li Rong paused for a moment and laughed: "Forget it, let's not talk about these unhappy things with you. Let's talk about something happy. Anyway, tomorrow, either I die, or..."
Li Rong didn't say anything else. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "It doesn't matter anymore. Father," she raised her hand and placed it on her belly, as if she had thought of something happy. "I have a child, and you will be a grandfather soon."
Hearing this, he almost said "bullshit", but seeing Li Rong's happy expression, he stopped the word.
He looked at Li Rong intently, and Li Rong smiled at him, "Father, this is my first child in more than 50 years."
"Fifty years?"
Li Ming frowned: "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Li Rong smiled and said, "I'll tell you a secret. In fact, I have lived two lives."
"You're crazy!" Li Ming showed a look of shock, but Li Rong was not surprised. She said slowly, "I know you don't believe me, so I just said a few words to you. When I said you were confused, I meant that you didn't understand Chuan'er at all. Do you think he is a coward? Doesn't he want to wipe out the aristocratic family? No, he turned out to be much more ruthless than you."
Li Rong calmly recounted everything Li Chuan had done, and Li Ming listened quietly.
At first he showed disgust, thinking that Li Rong was deceiving him, but as she talked, he actually started to ask questions. All the details were there, without any flaws.
The two of them asked and answered each other, and the lights in the palace were lit.
Pei Wenxuan followed Zhao Chongjiu and ran quickly in the suburbs. It wasn't long before he realized something was wrong.
He winked at the people around him, and the guards suddenly sped up their horses and stopped in front of Zhao Chongjiu. Zhao Chongjiu was a little surprised: "Sir?"
Pei Wenxuan pulled the reins behind him and said coldly: "Where are you trying to trick me?"
Zhao Zhongjiu was shocked. He didn't expect Pei Wenxuan to react so quickly. Pei Wenxuan was concerned about Li Rong and shouted, "Where is His Highness?"
Zhao Chongjiu pursed his lips, and after a long while, he spoke: "In the palace."
"What is she going back for?"
Pei Wenxuan was stunned. Zhao Chongjiu dismounted from his horse and handed him a letter with both hands.
"Su Rongqing may have a total of 30,000 soldiers ambushed in Huajing. Your Highness is stalling for time in the palace to send the Crown Prince out. I am afraid that you are also imprisoned, so I let my subordinates coax you out."
Pei Wenxuan heard this, tightened his grip on the reins, and stared at the letter in Zhao Chongjiu's hand: "What is this?"
"His Highness said that he would give you the letter when he arrived at the inn."
Pei Wenxuan got the letter, opened it, and saw Li Rong's handwriting.
Her handwriting carries the skeleton of his handwriting, because after they got married, she followed his handwriting for a year.
In this life, she seemed to have picked up this habit again.
There was only a short line of words on it, just like Li Rong's usual habit, brief and to the point.
But this time she didn't tell him about the plan or the battle situation.
In this last and most important letter, she gave him only one sentence.
"My dear, you love me more than your life, and I am happy with it."
"Leave a message: Li Rong."
Pei Wenxuan held the letter, and for a moment, he felt tears rising into his eyes.
He lowered his head, seemingly at a loss as to how to adjust his mood. Zhao Chongjiu said cautiously, "Sir, His Highness is also thinking about the overall situation..."
"Who did Su Rongqing contact?"
Pei Wenxuan folded the paper and put it into his sleeve. Zhao Chongjiu was stunned for a moment, then gave his name.
After Su Ronghua's message was passed to Shangguan Ya, Shangguan Ya had conveyed all of it to him. Pei Wenxuan nodded and called out to someone beside him, "Tong Ye."
"Sir."
"Find the families of these families. If they leave the city, hunt them down directly. For those in the Huajing Mansion, place people around their mansion. Tomorrow morning, they will lead troops to surround the palace, and the number of soldiers stationed in the mansion will decrease. Bring people to capture them."
"The Wang and Su families will bear the brunt of the attack. As for the rest, we will capture as many as we can find."
"No, sir," Tong Ye was a little anxious after hearing this, "You will be cursed for doing this in the future."
"Do as you wish."
Pei Wenxuan said this and rode back.
Li Rong's letter was still in his arms, like a piece of charcoal, burning in his chest.
She seldom expressed her feelings in her life and had hardly ever said anything to him. He was always worried about gain and loss and was always uneasy.
But when she put her feelings before him, he wished she would always be superior.
He didn't need her to say that.
Because when others say love, it is a love word.
Only this silly girl, if she says she loves you more than her life, would really be willing to exchange her life for yours.
Pei Wenxuan rode his horse all the way into the city.
The city of Huajing was in complete chaos, and the people were fleeing frantically towards the outside of the city. Pei Wenxuan had no way of riding his horse in, so he could only squeeze into the crowd and rush in with all his strength.
As he squeezed through the crowd, he saw Shangguan Ya, disguised as a peasant woman, and Su Ronghua, squeezing out of the city. There was also a young man with an unconscious woman on his back, leading his "mother" and trying to squeeze out.
Shangguan Ya, Su Ronghua, Lu Feibai, Li Chuan, Shangguan Yue, everyone was here, except Li Rong.
They looked at each other in the air and seemed to have entrusted everything to each other.
Shangguan Ya and the crowd squeezed out of Huajing, and Pei Wenxuan struggled to enter Huajing. Not long after the two met, the gate of Huajing slowly closed, and Pei Wenxuan heard the cries of the people all day long. He walked on the long street, looking up at the dark sky.
Snowflakes fell from the sky. Pei Wenxuan looked up at the Beiyan Tower in the distance, put his hands over his chest, took a deep breath, and then ran towards the princess's mansion.
After squeezing out of the city, Su Ronghua immediately wiped the dust off his face and said anxiously: "I will go and tell my cousin about the situation. Don't worry, and don't show off."
"I know."
Shangguan Ya nodded: "Thank you for your help."
Su Ronghua responded. He was about to say something when he saw Lu Feibai standing behind Shangguan Ya.
He paused for a moment, then smiled and raised his hand, saying, "Take care."
After saying this, without waiting for Shangguan Ya's response, he quickly turned around, jumped on his horse and left.
Shangguan Ya watched Su Ronghua walk away, and Lu Feibai walked behind her.
"Reluctant?"
"Um?"
Shangguan Ya turned around upon hearing the voice and said hurriedly, "Let's settle the prince first and have someone contact Xun Chuan to see where he is. Count the troops outside. I can't accompany Your Highness," Shangguan Ya said calmly, "but I have to save her."
While Huajing was in chaos, Li Rong and Li Ming were chatting leisurely.
The servants would knock on the door from time to time to report the situation to Li Rong, and Li Rong would dispatch the troops.
She transferred all available defenders to the palace. Li Ming understood what she meant by listening to her actions: "It seems that you are planning to fight to the death in the palace."
"Not really."
Li Rong smiled and said, "If you are bound to lose, just surrender."
"Women have no backbone."
Li Ming mocked, but Li Rong didn't care: "Where were we talking about just now? Oh, the reform of the aristocratic families failed. Why? There are too many local tyrants. It's easy to deal with the Su family and the Shangguan family, but it's much more difficult to deal with the local gentry. They are too small and there are too many of them. If you don't fight them, what can you do with them?"
"So Chuan'er's decree is not only too hasty, but also difficult to implement."
"He wants to uproot it," Li Ming thought, "but the aristocratic families have been entrenched for so many years. If he wants to uproot them in such a short time, he will only bring about his own destruction. However, if Daxia is destroyed by him, and he fights for a few more years and completely kills the aristocratic families, maybe the next dynasty will be different."
Li Rong laughed softly, "I always feel it's too cruel."
"Cruel?" Li Ming sneered, "You're probably afraid of death. Neither you nor I want the Great Xia to be destroyed. That's human nature."
"Father is right." Li Rong thought and asked, "But I still don't understand what the human heart is."
After saying this, Li Ming also fell silent. When Li Rong talked about that person, she couldn't help but smile: "Pei Wenxuan always told me that behind power is the human heart. He said that I don't understand the human heart. If I understood it, I would be a good leader."
"You really don't understand." Li Ming's eyes were a little cold.
"If your past life was really like what you said, if you understood human nature, you wouldn't force Chuan'er like this, nor would you force yourself like this. This palace is like forcing a person to become a ghost, and then the ghost thinks that this is how the world is, and then forces others."
"In fact, you had two options back then. Either you compete with Chuan'er. If more people join in, the rules can be changed. But this option is too difficult, so you didn't choose it. You would rather sink into the swamp and then pull in those who haven't entered yet."
"Rongrong, ordinary people follow the rules, regardless of the reasons, and only look at the results."
"But for the superior, his rules are not to be followed, but to be used."
"So, he has to look at both the result and the reason. As a superior, only if you know why people make mistakes can you use tools to restrain them. Just like Pei Wenxuan and Chuan'er's early Northern Expedition," Li Ming laughed, "If torture could prevent people from being greedy, then their Northern Expedition would not have failed. Only if you understand when a person will be greedy and when he will be a good person, can you have effective rules."
"Pei Wenxuan is right. After power," Li Ming chuckled, "it's the human heart. As for me," Li Ming sighed, "I just understood it too late."
Li Rong looked at Li Ming quietly. A servant came from outside to remind her, "Your Highness, it's almost time for the morning court session."
Li Rong heard this and nodded.
Li Ming looked at her and said, "Are you really going to do the whole show? Are you going to go to court for him?"
"I've never sat on that golden phoenix chair," Li Rong smiled, "sitting on it once is also an experience."
Li Rong said, standing up and saying, "You should get some sleep first. I'm leaving now."
Li Ming didn't say anything. Li Rong turned around and walked out. Li Ming stared at her back. Just before she left, he suddenly asked, "Why do you think Li Cheng is fake?"
"Su Rongqing told me," Li Rong answered frankly, "and, has the emperor ever seen the doctor who treated him? Concubine Rou contacted Su Rongqing and other noble families. If Li Cheng is real, why is she so anxious? Which of those noble families is not a jackal, tiger or leopard? Can't we use huge profits to seduce them?"
Li Ming was silent. Li Rong walked out of the bedroom and went to her original palace.
She burned incense and bathed, put on the bright red ceremonial dress with gold edges worn for sacrifices, combed her hair into a high bun, and then walked towards the main hall.
It was still dark at this time, and Fulai held the palace lantern for her and led her to the main hall.
The hall was completely empty. Li Rong had never seen it so empty before. She looked up at the high seat in front of her. Fu Lai respectfully presented her with an imperial decree: "Your Highness, this is what His Majesty wrote just now and is given to Your Highness."
Li Rong turned around and looked at the imperial edict in front of her. She took it and opened the contents.
The words "Princess of the Regent State" caught her eye. She stared at the contents for a long time before she lowered her head and smiled, "What is he doing? Does he believe what I said?"
"If it were any other day, I would not believe it," Fulai smiled, "but today, Your Highness, His Majesty might be willing to believe it. Besides, His Majesty's life and death are in your hands now, so you don't have to lie to him."
After hearing what Li Rong said, she looked at Fu Lai and asked, "Who do you belong to?"
"This old slave is naturally loyal to the eldest master."
Fu Lai did not shy away from the question: "But if there are some things that would benefit Your Highness, then I will naturally say them."
Li Rong said nothing. She thought for a moment, took the imperial edict, and said gently, "Go back and take good care of him. I'll sit here alone for a while."
Fu Lai saluted respectfully and then stepped back.
Li Rong was the only one left in the hall. She looked up at the golden throne and slowly walked up to it.
She walked across the aisle, stepped onto the soft cushions, and touched the smooth armrests of the golden throne.
The handrail is as cold as jade, making people feel an indescribable lingering feeling.
Then she turned around and sat down gently.
She sat here for the first time, and then she discovered.
It’s so high and so cold here.
The time for the morning court session was approaching, and Pei Wenxuan also deployed people at the gates of the Wang and Gu families.
He didn't know what was happening outside, and now he only knew what was happening inside Huajing. Li Rong withdrew the guards at the city gate in advance, and Su Ronghua took over the city tower and closed Huajing.
The Su family had already evacuated, but the Wang and Gu families felt that Huajing was safer and did not evacuate, so they left people to guard it.
But Huajing had already been closed, and they guessed that Li Chuan's men were all in the palace, so they relaxed their guards.
Su Rongqing did not sleep all night, and everyone else stayed up with him.
"My cousin will be here at dawn." Su Rongqing said calmly, "Including the people from all the adults, we have a total of 30,000 available. The inner palace has been sealed off, but news has been leaking out. The morning court has not been cancelled. I'm afraid Li Chuan will announce his accession to the throne at the morning court. If he dares to announce it, Your Majesty will almost..."
Su Rongqing glanced at everyone and said, "We are doing this in a legitimate way, and it cannot be considered as treason."
"However, before the garrison that my cousin and Lord Wang have mobilized arrives, there are no more than 10,000 troops in the city. I hope you will not hide your strength, otherwise it will be difficult to attack the imperial city. If we go to the morning court, we are afraid that we will be controlled."
"Don't worry," Gu Zichun said immediately, "Since we have formed an alliance with Lord Su, we will not hide anything. This matter is about life and death, so it will be fine."
Everyone responded one after another, and Su Rongqing nodded.
It was almost time for the morning court session, and everyone headed for the palace together. Pei Wenxuan watched them dispatch the family soldiers, and then waved his hand: "Go."
At the hour of Mao, the palace was brightly lit, and ministers entered the palace one by one in black court robes with red edges, seemingly no different from any other day.
It snowed at night, and the snow made a crunching sound when they stepped on it, making the palace especially quiet. The ministers also lost their usual habit of talking to each other, making the sound of the snow being torn into pieces even more obvious.
They stood at the entrance of the hall, listening to the rustling sound of the wind and snow.
The emperor did not come out of the inner palace today. He seemed to have been waiting in the main hall early, and the ministers did not find it strange.
As the eunuchs' loud shouts of "Enter the palace" echoed throughout the square, the palace doors opened one by one.
Su Rongqing stood at the head of the ministers, holding a tablet in his hand. As the palace door creaked, he slowly raised his head.
Then he saw that behind the palace gate, two rows of bronze vertical palace lanterns with Vermillion Bird beads were moving towards the top of the hall. On the golden throne at the end of the hall, a woman wearing a bright red dress with gold edges, a high bun and gold hairpins, looked at him calmly.
They stared at each other silently across the entire hall. After a long time, Li Rong slightly opened her red lips and uttered two words in a cold and arrogant manner.
"Kneel down."