Chapter 21 The Prince's Failed Rebellion
Yao Qingwan looked at Zhang Xiaojia in front of her. She was covered in dust and wind, but her beauty was not affected at all, and the scars on her face did not leave any trace.
"Stand back, everyone stand back."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
Yao Qingwan chuckled: "You don't dare tell the emperor? Prince Jing is here to force the emperor to abdicate?"
Zhang Xiaojia sighed and said, "In fact, even if He Fei forces the emperor to abdicate, what impact will it have on me? If He Fei succeeds, I will be the queen. If He Fei fails, the emperor will definitely not kill him, nor will he kill me. When I was a child, I called His Majesty daddy. Just based on this, I will still be the county lord, the Lin'an county lord. At worst, I can go back to Lin'an. I will still be rich and powerful, and my life will not be bad no matter where I live."
Yao Wanqing whispered with resentment, "There was a girl who lost her mother at a young age. She lived cautiously under her stepmother's roof, spending eighteen years in fear. Unexpectedly, fate suddenly favored her. She married into the royal palace and became the wife of a prince. The prince loved her very much. The following year, she gave birth to a legitimate son, and life seemed full of hope.
However, life is unpredictable. Five years later, a cousin with a strong family background entered the palace and became the prince's concubine, quickly capturing his undivided favor. Faced with this sudden change, the girl chose silence and retreat, burying the warmth of the past deep within her heart. But fate showed no mercy. After the concubine gave birth to her children, her son became frail and sickly, ultimately stripped of his status as crown prince. She, too, was forgotten by the prince, exiled to a remote village.
She spent the last days of her life in that lonely and desolate village, her heart filled with endless sorrow and resentment. Less than a year later, she passed away in endless sorrow and despair.
Zhang Xiaojia interjected, "The concubine was promoted to princess in less than a year, and her son inherited the title of prince. The son of the former princess was given the title of county prince due to her guilt."
Yao Wanqing suddenly looked up at Zhang Xiaojia with disbelief in her eyes, "You're back too..."
Zhang Xiaojia knew that the emperor was watching and listening.
“When I was fifteen, I had a dream, a dream that shook my soul.
You may only remember the sadness and grief in that dream, but I, in that brilliant dream, witnessed how the prince, as the emperor's strongest arm, helped the emperor usher in a glorious era - the lost territories in the north were returned to the territory under the banner of the Great Zhou, the Western Liao and Tubo surrendered, and the lands south of the desert of the Liao and Jin Kingdoms also fell into the embrace of the Great Zhou.
At that moment, the actual territory of our Great Zhou stood proudly on the vast land of 9.6 million square kilometers!
In this dreamlike Great Zhou, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, granaries were full, and the world was at an unprecedented peace. The country prospered, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and all nations came to celebrate this great era.
Even more exciting is that the Great Zhou has ushered in a new era of education, with temples of knowledge known as "schools" springing up like mushrooms after rain. There, not only are there passionate men pursuing knowledge, but countless women are bravely stepping into this ocean of wisdom. Their figures shine brightly in these girls' schools, radiating a dazzling light!
Zhang Xiaojia was deeply intoxicated by that dreamlike world. She continued, "This dream is so beautiful that it makes me intoxicated. How I long for it to become reality. And you, the only variable, miraculously ascended to the throne of Queen." The coma of her aunt and He Fei made everything seem to have changed, yet it seemed as if nothing had changed.
You remain as naive and foolish as in your dreams. Your son is destined to have no chance of becoming Crown Prince. As a mother, you have demonstrated generosity and virtue, but when your son was only three years old, you sent him to the front yard, failing to fulfill your responsibility to protect him. This was your first mistake. Your second mistake was even more foolish: you bribed the prince's confidants and planted spies.
In this life, you remain the same. When I learned that you had allowed the eldest prince to enter the Imperial Court at the age of three, I concluded that you would bribe the Deputy Envoy of the Ministry of Martial Virtue. When I expressed this suspicion, you actually had the audacity to bribe him.
I knew you were finished! What kind of a figure is the Wudesi? They're the emperor's eyes and ears, and you dared to cross that line. I've seen foolish people, but I've never seen anyone as foolish as you.
However, I still have to thank you, because your stupidity has brought my dream back to its original track.
Is this dream real? Will the world really be like the one in the dream?
After seeing you, I feel like this might actually be possible.
In the dream, my only regret was that the prince had another woman. But now, this regret no longer exists, the prince belongs to me alone.
Yao Wanqing was so angry at Zhang Xiaojia's words that her blood boiled and she spat out a mouthful of blood.
"You also instructed Wude Sishi to do things. Why do you blame me?" she asked angrily.
Zhang Xiaojia sneered, "Because I asked the Wudeshi Envoy to do this to ask the Emperor if I could do it. My only mistake in the dream was that the child was frail and sickly, unable to inherit the throne, while my child took the throne. I don't regret it, but I also gave him the title of Prince as compensation."
"He can become a prince by virtue of being the eldest son, not by your charity!" Yao Wanqing retorted.
"You're dreaming!" Zhang Xiaojia sneered. "The laws of the Great Zhou prohibit hereditary succession. The son of a prince can only be a county prince. My son was able to become a prince because of my aunt's will, because the emperor is filial and wants to fulfill my aunt's wish. It's also because the prince is the emperor's biological brother, and I used to call the emperor daddy when I was a child. This kind of affection is something you can't understand."
Yao Wanqing suddenly laughed: "Do you know why the prince brought people to the palace?"
Zhang Xiaojia interrupted her and said, "Because you told the prince that the late emperor left him a will that ordered him to become emperor, so in your dream you will definitely fall out of favor. The prince doesn't want any real power at all. He just wants to be a dandy prince. He took me on a lavish tour around the Great Zhou Kingdom. In my dream world, every time the prince took me out to do something, he would complete it quickly, but he would drag his feet and refuse to come back to report. He took me everywhere to play, and he wished the emperor would not give him a job."
"You're talking nonsense. That prince just wants to be the emperor."
"Because you drugged my aunt and the prince, the prince wants to kill you before he turns into a living dead. You thought that just because you called the nanny to tell me and asked me to seduce the emperor, you still think that I will act according to your plan in order to survive! He Fei is my life. If you dare to touch my life, I will definitely kill you.
What's so good about being an emperor? You get up earlier than the chickens and sleep later than the dogs, toiling away day after day. When you finally get the urge to leave the palace for some fresh air, the imperial censors, like clairvoyants, immediately jump out and point fingers at you, scolding you. They tell you that as a son of heaven, you should set an example and not leave the palace for pleasure. Your Majesty's earnings, your aunt secretly gives to me and the prince. If you don't do your job well, you're a tyrant; if you lose your temper, you're a tyrant. If you try to favor a woman, the imperial censors will accuse you of being too even-handed.
He Fei said that only two people can get the Living Dead disease, one is my aunt and the other is him. My aunt won't ruin his reputation. He should pretend to be weak and sick, saying that he is going to various places in Da Zhou to find a miracle doctor for treatment, but in fact he is taking me out to travel. Anyway, my aunt will give us money. "
When the Wude Envoy heard what Zhang Xiaojia said, he stole a glance at the emperor and immediately lowered his head. His Majesty's face turned black. All his money was given to the prince and the county lady by Concubine Chen!!!
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