"Haha." He Jingheng sneered: "The palace has been abandoned, so where is the Dingguo Palace?"
"Prince." Xu Yuan sighed, "I know you have resentment in your heart, but you have to plan for the future! Do you want them to bear the reputation of being guilty for the rest of their lives?" His eyes fell on Shang Ruoyi, "What do you think, Princess?"
Shang Ruoyi smiled and said, "Of course you can go back to Beijing, but it depends on how you go back."
"What does the Crown Princess mean?"
Shang Ruoyi waved her hand, and Yuntian walked in front of Xu Yuan with a tray.
"This is······"
"Master Xu will know it at a glance."
Xu Yuan picked up a few pieces of paper on the tray and looked at the contents on them with an increasingly serious look.
By the end, his hands couldn't stop shaking.
"At Qijing Pass, 17,000 soldiers died."
"Ordered his subordinates to exterminate the Ling family."
"Colluded with Shangnian to frame Zhongliang."
He read it out word for word.
Every word is heart-wrenching.
"Is this true?"
He Jingheng nodded: "At first I was also very shocked. I asked myself countless times if I had done anything wrong to offend His Majesty. But now I think it's just that our Dingguo Palace has been more meritorious than the emperor, and the emperor is afraid of it."
Xu Yuan closed his eyes and said nothing.
"If you want us to return to Beijing, this is the only way."
"What road?"
"An edict of self-criticism." He Jingheng's expression was firm, and he said in a cold voice: "Unless he issues an edict of self-criticism, I will announce everything he has done to the world. At that time, if Jiang Xiao wavers, it will not be the business of our Dingguo Palace."
Hearing this, Xu Yuan just sighed, and Shang Ruoyi looked at him with a calm expression.
It would be hard for anyone to accept that the emperor they had always trusted and the monarch they thought was wise was actually a villain who listened to the slander of treacherous villains and framed loyal officials.
"That's all." He stood up and turned to walk back. His figure seemed a little hunched, and he looked a little more decadent than when he came. "This old minister will draft a letter and ask you to send it back to the capital in eight miles."
Zheng Qi and others didn't expect to go back so soon. He walked to Xu Yuan and asked, "Did He Jingheng receive the order?"
Xu Yuan looked at him and thought about the contents of the letters, one of which was written by Zheng Qi himself. He was furious and shouted, "Come on! Tie up Zheng Qi for me and take him back to the posthouse and keep him under strict guard!"
Zheng Qi was shocked when he heard this: "Xu, you dare to detain me! Do you know who I am? I am a second-rank official, the same level as you! What right do you have to detain me?"
"Second-rank official?" Xu Yuan sneered, "I think you are the last one to be appointed as the second-rank official. For all the things you have done over the years, let alone dismissal, I am afraid that even your entire clan will be in danger."
Zheng Qi was startled, no longer as arrogant as before, and his voice trembled a little: "You know everything?"
Xu Yuan was too lazy to talk nonsense with him. He waved his hand and several guards came forward and tied him up. Zheng Qi didn't dare to say a word.
Xu Zimo watched his uncle's thunderous methods from the side and couldn't help but feel secretly happy that his uncle was busy dealing with these things and didn't have the energy to scold him.
"Xu Zimo." Xu Yuan said in a deep voice, "We are both young. Look at He Jingheng, and then look at yourself. You always act like a good-for-nothing. If you could make your father less worried, he wouldn't complain to me all day long."
Xu Zimo felt dizzy after hearing what he said, but he didn't dare to refute at all.
Three days later, an urgent letter from eight miles away was delivered to the imperial study. Not long after, the sound of porcelain breaking was heard in the imperial study.
These days, even the morning court sessions have been put on hold.
He Lingsheng and He Lingqi took turns asking to see him but were both turned away.
No one knows what happened.
Emperor Tianshun sat in front of the desk, looking at the testimonies with bloodshot eyes. Every single one of them was committed by him.
But where did he go wrong?
Since he was still the crown prince, his father had warned him not to let anyone threaten his position. The Dingguo Palace was more powerful than the master, so what was wrong with punishing him?
Late at night, he walked to the temple, where there was a big tree. He squatted on the ground. At this time, a dead branch fell down.
The eunuch behind him was about to pick up the dead branch, but he heard him say, "Bring it here."
"yes."
He took the dead branch, squatted on the ground and started digging.
Soon, a red box revealed its lid.
He dug faster and faster, and after a while he dug out the box intact.
When the box was opened, several jars of wine were found inside.
Without asking for his help, he carried the wine back to the study and closed the door again.
Eunuch Zhang was so anxious that he jumped up and down at the door. After a while, he ordered the eunuch to go to Fengyi Palace to invite the queen.
Emperor Tianshun opened the jar of wine, and the clear aroma of wine filled his nose. He was drunk before he even drank it.
"At the beginning, I buried this with you."
That was when he had just inherited the throne. In order to express his gratitude for their brotherly love, he and He Yuwen hid wine under this tree.
They grew up together, and although they were not blood brothers, they were better than blood brothers. I never thought that they would take the step of turning swords against each other.
He held the jar of wine, took a big gulp, wiped the wine from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve, and looked at the shiny fabric on his wrist.
yes! There is a difference between the ruler and the minister. In the beginning, I shouldn't have become brothers with anyone. This peak of the universe is lonely.
At this time, the alcohol gradually took effect on him, and he became a little unclear. In his hazy consciousness, a familiar figure slowly appeared in front of him.
"Yuwen." After he finished speaking, he laughed softly: "I didn't expect to see you. I thought I could see the fairies in the sky when I was drunk, but it turned out to be you."
"The Emperor is drunk."
"Yes! I'm drunk." He smiled: "The last time I was drunk was before I ascended the throne. You told me that no matter what, you would never betray me. Dingguo Palace will always be a sharp sword for me."
He Yuwen said nothing, but just listened to him quietly.
"But you didn't do it. You broke your promise." Emperor Tianshun's eyes were bloodshot and he gritted his teeth and said, "I trusted you so much, but you betrayed me! You even set your sights on my throne! Don't you deserve to die?"
"I have never coveted the throne, and neither has the Dingguo Palace." He Yuwen whispered, "If the Dingguo Palace wanted to rebel, the world would have changed hands long ago. Would it be your turn to sit on the throne?"
"Nonsense! You clearly want to replace me! The soldiers of the court recognize you instead of me. I clearly asked you to return to the court, but you are disobeying my orders. What else can this be but treason?"
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