Chapter 80 Death
Against the backdrop of the sky, a man with white hair and beard sat by the wide-open window, staring blankly at the swirling snowflakes outside.
He heard soft footsteps outside the hall. He turned around and saw a young woman standing outside the door, looking at him with worry in her eyes.
"Weize, come here."
Upon hearing his voice, the woman quickly stepped forward, frowned, and first pulled down the curtains before saying, "Father, be careful not to catch a cold."
Her father is getting on in years, and his health has been deteriorating in recent years. She sees this and finds it hard to express her feelings.
"I know my own body best," Emperor Zhongzong said nonchalantly, frowning. "Back then, your mother and I set off for the northern frontier on a snowy day."
Zhong Cong immediately knew that he was about to tell him his parents' love story again.
She gave a bitter smile and asked helplessly, "Didn't Mother say that she wanted to travel all over the country with you after you turned fifty?"
The emperor gave her a look that said, "You're hopeless."
“Your mother scolded me and questioned me, saying that in such cold weather, I could stay at home and sulk, while poor people could only suffer.”
Zhong Cong almost applauded his mother's words.
When you're going through a rough patch, having someone by your side is a rare and precious thing.
She may not have such luck, but for Zhong Cong, this was not what she wanted most in the first place.
The emperor had already turned his head away. He was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "As for you, if you were to ascend the throne, you should have an heir."
Their family really does have a lineage to inherit the throne.
Zhong Cong had already come up with a plan, and calmly said, "Choose from good families, and after the offspring are born, keep the son and remove the father."
She hadn't even considered the idea of her being a Crown Princess or not.
"oops--!"
A startled cry suddenly rang out from under the sky, and someone shouted in panic, "Why has Lord Zhao fainted?!"
"Absurd! Utterly absurd!!" someone shouted hoarsely, his beard trembling and his whole body shaking with anger.
Several colleagues beside him shook their heads as they watched his excited expression.
Can't they tolerate this? How could these battle-hardened officials get upset over such a small change?
These people not only grasped the concepts faster than ordinary people, but they even began to consider the possibility of cultivating a few young, handsome, and talented men...
After hearing these words, Emperor Zhongzong didn't even raise an eyebrow, just as he had asked the question but didn't care about the answer: "You know what you're doing. Don't follow your great-grandfather's example. He's a bad example. Remember to choose a good successor before you die."
Zhong Cong: "..." Although she knew this was her father's concern for national affairs, why did he say it so harshly?
His great-grandfather's glorious deeds were, of course, often mentioned by his father. Zhong Cong felt his ears were about to fall off, so he simply replied, "Your subject understands."
Emperor Hong'an raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhou She beside him.
He found these words extremely unpleasant to hear, but he couldn't refute them.
Zhou She was thinking the same thing: This really can't be blamed on me, Your Majesty, you will surely be laughed at by future generations!
In fact, Zhong Cong had some premonition at this time, feeling that the emperor was giving him instructions for his death.
After all, the emperor had been seriously ill since the sixteenth year of the Jinghua reign. The imperial physicians had repeatedly diagnosed him with the illness, saying it was caused by the lingering effects of his military campaigns in his youth, coupled with his poor mental state.
Then the emperor abruptly changed the subject, asking her a question that caught her completely off guard, a question that Zhong Cong had never expected the emperor to know.
People started speculating again.
"Are you planning a rebellion?" They said this so casually, as if it were as if they had just spent two coins on groceries that day.
"How could that be!" someone immediately retorted. "This is the Crown Prince, and besides, the Emperor is seriously ill. What reason would she have to dig her own grave?"
There was one more thing he kept to himself, which he didn't say: Don't assume everyone is as stupid as you!
"So he drugged the emperor?" This question has been the subject of much discussion.
But what the sky said was:
Emperor Zhongzong asked Zhong Cong, "Where did your brother go?"
Everyone was startled.
Alright, so that's where it was. You couldn't resist taking action after all, huh?!
Zhong Cong had no idea that her father knew about this. She had assumed he was too ill to manage external affairs, as he was preoccupied with his life in the palace.
King Jungjong's question startled her for a moment, and she immediately realized that lying was pointless. So she quickly betrayed her brother: "Shin-ge told me that people are always trying to get close to him, and he feels that it is ambiguous and is unhappy."
With a half-smile, King Jungjong asked, "So the two of you put on a grand show?"
I'm sure everyone has guessed it by now. Due to his personal status, Zhong Huang found it extremely difficult to extricate himself from the power struggle.
As for Zhong Cong, although her relationship with her younger brother was relatively good, she couldn't stand constantly having to resolve crises from him. It was useless, but annoying.
The two of them discussed it and said: "Alright! Looks like dying is better!"
Duan Mingyuan breathed a long sigh of relief.
The siblings' love was so touching that it was the first time in his life he had been moved by the harmony and affection within the royal family.
Of course, whether the granddaughter will eventually be connected with the royal family is unknown. But for Duan Mingyuan, a family that values kinship is better than one that is belligerent and bloodthirsty.
He couldn't help but think of a certain royal family from the previous dynasty, and suddenly shuddered.
Although Zhong Huang fled, Emperor Cheng still maintained close contact with his younger brother after ascending the throne. However, this incident cast a small shadow over Zhong Cong, but presumably, she wouldn't care.
It's just being unfairly blamed, isn't it? Everyone's been made a scapegoat before!
Zhou She also felt that she wouldn't care.
Achieving the goal is a good thing; perhaps Zhong Huang also sensed a crisis and had no choice but to flee.
Who hasn't heard of someone being crowned with a yellow robe? Gu Jingshan even dared to drape the dragon robe over him. Zhong Huang is someone who thinks he can't beat his elder sister—but come on, when he gets caught up in the fight, he won't be left out when it's time to lose his head!
This time, both of them were truly satisfied.
In the winter of the seventeenth year of Jinghua, Emperor Zhongzong passed away after leaving behind his will. Before his death, he called Zhong Cong into the palace. According to records, he did not give a long speech, but simply patted her hand and said, "You have your own insights. As long as you always remember to stand on the side of humanity, you can confidently and boldly do what you want."
Zhong Cong wept silently, his head bowed to his desk. The emperor's last words were: "I've gone to find her."
After the words were spoken, a long silence followed under the sky, as if the father and daughter could be seen through the thin words on the sky.
The Third Prince gazed quietly at the sky. The pattern on the sky remained unchanged, still showing the scene of the father and daughter's conversation.
When his father passed away...did he have this same loving care for him?
The Third Prince was originally very certain, but now he is no longer so sure.
Funeral music drifted from the sky, its sound slightly stirring, rising and falling with the music.
Emperor Zhongzong died at the age of fifty-two and was posthumously honored as Emperor Wu. During his seventeen years in power, both civil and military achievements of the Jinghua reign reached new heights. Emperor Zhongzong, with his magnanimous and discerning character, embodied the wisdom of the era.
Admittedly, there were mistakes and regrets during his reign. But after his death, even those who disliked him had to admit that Emperor Zhongzong bore the heavy responsibility of maintaining the stability of the empire, and his importance and uniqueness were irreplaceable.
After his death, from Jinghua to Xianqing, the new emperor will face new challenges. Let's look forward to the next episode, the Ning Dynasty Emperor!
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