Chapter 300 Determination
The night is getting deeper.
The candlelight in Chen He and Xiao Jingchi's room was the only warmth in this makeshift camp.
Elsewhere, the tent of Prince Yi Xiao Minglan had become an ice cellar.
Early the next morning, just as the sky was getting light, Xiao Minglan appeared in front of the tent of Crown Prince Xiao Jingyan with a cold look on his face.
"Your Highness, the downstream embankment is still weak in several places. I would like to inspect it again."
His tone was as respectful as ever.
Jamel Xiao raised his head from behind the clerk, his eyes falling on his face, but his usual gentleness and trust were gone.
That look contained a hint of scrutiny and a hint of distance.
"Thank you for your hard work, Prince Yi."
"But this matter is not urgent. You and I, brothers, should sit down and talk."
Jamel Xiao's voice was very flat, and no emotion could be heard.
Xiao Minglan's heart trembled.
He knew that the rift could never be healed from the moment Chen He fell into the water.
"Your Highness is right."
He lowered his eyes to hide the cold light in them.
Coming out of the prince's tent, Xiao Minglan's face was so gloomy that water could drip out of it.
When he returned to his tent, his confidant Mo Ying had been waiting for him for a long time.
"Your Majesty."
Mo Ying knelt on one knee, his voice very low.
"Our people report that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has sent spies back to the capital to investigate the official transfers you handled last year."
"Oh."
Xiao Minglan sneered, his knuckles cracking.
"I can't wait so soon."
"He thinks he can bring me down by investigating those old scores?"
Mo Ying paused and continued.
"One more thing."
"The maidservant named Guyu who is by Miss Shen's side has been hanging around the kitchen and the quartermaster's office these past two days."
"She... is asking for the details of the supplies we dispatched from the capital."
Xiao Minglan turned around suddenly, with a terrifying light flashing in his eyes!
Official transfers.
Material details.
Xiao Jingyan is in the light, Chen He is in the dark.
They joined forces!
This thought exploded in his mind like a thunderbolt!
"Chen He..."
He almost squeezed out the name from between his teeth, his heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand, causing him pain and anger.
"Are you really going to become my enemy for him?"
"Good, very good!"
The paranoia and madness in his eyes almost overflowed.
Can't wait any longer.
If he waits any longer, when he returns to the capital, he will have no chance of turning things around under the combined forces of Xiao Jingyan and Shen He!
The only way is to strike first!
"Mo Ying!"
He shouted sharply.
Mo Ying's body trembled, "Subordinates are here!"
Xiao Minglan took out a warm jade pendant from his secret pocket.
The jade pendant was only half, with half of a phoenix's wing carved on it. The patterns were intricate and extremely luxurious.
It is the token of the current queen, the phoenix pendant of the dragon and phoenix jade pendant.
"Take this token and travel day and night, returning to the capital immediately!"
"A secret meeting with three people!"
His voice was cold and resolute, and every word was tinged with blood.
"First, the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, Han Kui."
"Tell him that my mother has remembered his loyalty over the years. After this is accomplished, the position of Grand Commander of the Imperial Guards will be his!"
"Second, the military doctor, Sun Ming."
"Promise him the position of Assistant Minister of War! I command him to intercept all the letters sent by the Crown Prince to the capital! Not even a single carrier pigeon is allowed to fly into the imperial city!"
"Third, go see the Deputy Chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Qian De."
A cruel arc appeared at the corner of Xiao Minglan's mouth.
"Tell him that his mother needs someone who is truly caring and considerate in the palace. Only I can give him the position of Chief Eunuch of the Ministry of Internal Affairs."
He paused, murderous intent flashing in his eyes.
"Have Han Kui guard the palace gates. When that day comes, I will make the gates useless and allow me to pass through!"
"Have Qian De's men watch my father's bedroom for me! Any disturbance in the palace must be reported immediately!"
"Go!"
"Remember, if there's even the slightest mistake in this matter, you and I will be doomed!"
Mo Ying took the heavy half of the jade pendant and kowtowed heavily.
"Subordinates, I will not refuse even if I die!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he disappeared silently into the shadow of the tent like a ghost.
Inside the tent, candlelight flickered.
Xiao Minglan stood in front of the map, his eyes fixed on the towering palace city in the center of the map.
There was no longer any brotherhood in his eyes, only the madness of a desperate gamble.
Xiao Jingyan, Shen He...
You forced me to do this.
This world, this throne, and she can only be mine!
***
Beijing, the top of the Forbidden City.
Unlike the tense and solemn atmosphere in the disaster-stricken camp thousands of miles away, the palace was filled with dead silence.
Anning Palace.
The hall was filled with the finest ambergris, and it was warm and cozy.
A graceful woman in palace dress was holding a bowl of medicine in her hands and stirring it gently with a silver spoon.
She is Xiao Minglan's biological mother, Wan'er.
"My Lady, we can leave these rough jobs to the servants. There's no need for you to do it yourself."
The personal nanny said with concern.
Wan'er raised her head, revealing a well-maintained but haggard face.
The most shocking thing is the light scar that extends from the corner of her eye to her cheek, like an ugly centipede, destroying the beauty of her entire face.
"No problem."
Her voice was soft and hollow.
"Your Majesty's tranquilizing soup is the only one I personally brewed, so he can drink it."
She said she cared, but there was an unmeltable ice in her eyes.
emperor.
The man who ruined her life.
She would never forget how she entered the palace with great anticipation, but because of this scar, she was easily thrown away her position as a concubine, causing her to suffer humiliation in the harem.
If it weren't for Lan'er, she would have died long ago.
The entire royal family deserves to die!
She lowered her eyes and gently stroked a golden phoenix-holding-a-pearl hairpin on her bun with her slender fingers.
The phoenix's eyes are small rubies.
She turned the gem as if by accident.
With an inaudible "click" sound, a tiny secret compartment suddenly popped open on the golden phoenix's tail feathers.
She glanced outside the hall to make sure there was no one there.
The old nanny immediately understood and took a step forward to block the light from the door.
Wan'er quickly pointed the hairpin at the soup bowl and poured it out.
A wisp of colorless and odorless white powder fell silently into the soup and melted away instantly, leaving no trace.
Wither in a hundred days.
A strange poison from the Western Regions, it is colorless and tasteless when used in medicine and food.
At first, people will only feel occasional cold and fatigue.
In the middle stage, they will become listless, have slow judgment, be easily angered, and gradually neglect state affairs.
After a hundred days, the internal organs will begin to rapidly deteriorate, like an illness caused by overwork, and no medicine can cure it.
And this is exactly the result she wants.
She put the hairpin back on her head as if nothing had happened.
"Let's go."
"Go and give His Majesty some tranquilizing soup."
Imperial study.
Emperor Xiao Yuande was rubbing his swollen temples, looking exhausted.
"Your Majesty, Concubine Wan is here."
The eunuch reported.
"Let her in."
The emperor's voice was filled with a hint of impatience.
The queen walked in slowly, holding a soup bowl, with a gentle and appropriate smile on her face.
"Your Majesty, are you busy with state affairs again?"
"This is the soothing soup I made for you. I added the secret recipe from my hometown. It's perfect for relieving fatigue."
Xiao Yuande looked at the scar on her face, a trace of disgust flashed in his eyes, but he was immediately comforted by the tenderness in her words.
"You're so thoughtful."
He took the soup bowl and drank it all in one gulp.
Wan'er watched him drink it, and the smile on her lips deepened.
But that smile did not reach his eyes.
She controlled the dosage precisely.
What she wanted was not for him to die immediately.
She wanted him to be in the middle stage of "hundred-day withering" on the day Lan'er started the rebellion.
Fatigue, irritability, and poor judgment.
A useless emperor.
A prince who was sidelined.
Only then will her Lan'er be able to sit on that seat in the safest and most legitimate way!
Wan'er took back the soup bowl and bowed respectfully.
"Your Majesty, please rest well. I will take my leave."
Walking out of the imperial study, she looked up at the sky.
The sky is starting to get dark.
Lan'er...
Your mother has paved the final path for you in the palace.
This world, this throne...
Soon, it will all be yours.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
