Chapter 303: Imprisoned in the Cold Palace, No Way Out Unless Dead
"So you knew, so you've always known!"
Wei Jinxiu's eyes were red, and her smile was uglier than crying, as if she was crazy: "But you have been pretending hypocritically for more than 20 years... pretending that you don't know, pretending to treat Yu'er as your own child, Xiao Dingyuan, you really make me sick!"
The moment her son committed suicide, Wei Jinxiu went completely crazy. She no longer had any scruples or struggles. She was pressed to the ground and turned to smile at Emperor Jiaping with an extremely creepy smile.
"Do you still think you're so powerful and in control? In fact, you're just a pathetic creature!
Even if you have been hypocritical for more than 20 years, what's the point? I have never taken you seriously and never kept you in my heart. You are not even as good as a finger of Xiao Dingheng. Xiao Dingyuan, you are not even as good as a hair of his! "
"Haha... you probably don't know yet, but your beloved Concubine Xu doesn't love you either. You were born to raise someone else's child. You raised Yu'er for Ding Heng, and even raised the daughter of my subject Xu Zhong. Hahahaha..."
Empress Wei smiled with immense satisfaction: "You may not know this yet, but the beloved Xiao Bi you hold in your palm is not your own flesh and blood. She is the daughter of Concubine Xu and her adopted brother Xu Zhong!"
Oh my god!
Thinking of the last time she ran into Xu Zhong and Concubine Xu having an affair in the palace, Shen Ning was shocked.
It turns out that those two even had a child?
But the palace has maids who check the bloodline of all royal heirs, and the bloodline of all royal heirs must be checked after they are one hundred days old.
Xiao Nanyu is the son of Emperor Jiaping's elder brother and has royal blood. In addition, Emperor Jiaping deliberately concealed the matter, so it is not surprising that he was able to hide it. So how did the Tenth Princess hide it?
The person who checks the bloodline is under the jurisdiction of the Queen, so, did the Queen conceal it for Concubine Xu and Xu Zhong?
No wonder, no wonder Concubine Xu, with the support of the Xu family, never had the intention of supporting the second prince to seize the throne.
It turns out that someone has such a fatal handle on his head!
Chen Ning was filled with shock and subconsciously looked at the Second Prince Xiao Nanyong beside her. She saw that he looked horrified and confused, with red eyes.
"Tsk, actually, you didn't have to raise someone else's child. Not long after the Tenth Princess gave birth, Concubine Xu deliberately took her to the Huguo Temple. Xu Zhong designed to cause chaos and wanted to take his daughter away. He was worried that they would be discovered during the bloodline check... He also wanted to raise his and Concubine Xu's daughter as his own. It's a pity that I found out, hahahaha..."
Empress Wei glanced at Shen Ning beside Emperor Jiaping and smiled maliciously, "I had Shen Xiuhe use his own daughter to trick Xu Zhong away. By the time Xu Zhong found out, it was too late. I got the evidence that the Tenth Princess was not a Dragonborn and arrested Xu Zhong..."
At this moment, Shen Ning finally understood everything that had happened.
The baby girl who was abducted eighteen years ago was just an insignificant pawn in other people's conspiracy to fight for power. The queen wanted to get hold of Xu Zhong and Xu Fei's handle, so she sent the baby girl away as an emergency measure.
Later, Xu Zhong found out that the baby girl was not his daughter, so he threw her away...
Chen Ning, who should have grown up in luxury, ended up in the home of the gambling addict Shen Danian in Pingning, and began her miserable life after her fate was changed!
These things had nothing to do with her originally, it just happened that she was born in the Huguo Temple and happened to be about the same age as the Tenth Princess.
In this way, they became victims of the struggle for power and profit.
At this moment, Shen Ning's heart was filled with sighs, helplessness, and deep hatred. She hated these high-ranking people who were so high and mighty that they trampled on the lives and livelihoods of others... Queen Wei casually sacrificed the baby girl and probably turned around and forgot about it.
But what she changed was a person's life.
The girl who should have been raised in the care of her mother became a poor and ignorant village woman in the mountains, and her life from birth to death was filled with misery and sadness.
Wei Jinxiu's face became more and more pleased as she spoke: "Xiao Dingyuan, how does it feel to raise a child for someone else? Besides, do you think you have won?
Xu Zhong has only lived as Xu Ran in this life... Now that he knows I've lost and his affair with Xu Ran can no longer be concealed, guess what he'll do? Hahahaha... Xiao Dingyuan, you haven't won yet..."
"No one loves you, no one is sincere to you, you will always be alone!"
Wei Jinxiu's face was almost distorted, filled with intense excitement and madness. "You've always wanted to praise your son, but unfortunately, Old Seven doesn't care about you as a father. He was poisoned by a Gu, and after the Gu was cured, he can smell the Gu whenever he gets close to it. Guess, I poisoned you... Does your Old Seven know about it?"
"Hahaha... He watched you get poisoned and the court in turmoil with cold eyes, deliberately allowing Yu'er and I to fight for the throne. He wanted to leave us no way out and make us fall heavily when we reached the highest point. He even took advantage of you, his father!
Xiao Dingyuan... Tell me, as the supreme ruler, what have you lost today?"
Shen Ning pretended to be dead, but the more she listened, the more frightened she became.
It's not that she didn't notice something was wrong, but she never thought about it that way.
No wonder Xiao Nanchen left Beijing so easily this time and didn't explain much to her... because he had already arranged everything!
For the first time, Shen Ning had directly felt the invisible and indistinguishable sword lights and shadows in the struggle for power.
That was no less terrifying than blood and slaughter...
Emperor Jiaping seemed to have heard it, but also seemed not to have heard it. He just looked quietly at his wife who was lying on the ground with tears and a crazy look on her face.
His calmness seemed to sting Wei Jinxiu even more. She stretched out her hand and pointed at the Jiaping Emperor, cursing him: "Your wife is unvirtuous, your concubine is unfaithful, and your son is unfilial... You are so cruel and heartless that you killed Dingheng. You are destined to be a widower and lonely..."
Every word seemed to be poisoned, filled with deep hatred, and even Shen Ning, a bystander, was shocked.
At this time, Emperor Jiaping finally spoke: "Jinxiu... I just didn't expect that you would hate me for so many years..."
He slowly turned around, removed the pillow from the couch, opened the secret compartment on the dragon couch, and with his fingers trembling slightly, he took out a letter.
"You thought I killed your brother, didn't you? Even though I told you many times that I didn't, you never believed me..."
Emperor Jiaping handed the letter to Shen Ning and signaled Shen Ning to give it to the queen.
Shen Ning was somewhat helpless, but she could only reach out to take it, then stood up and walked to the Queen, without saying a word, she placed the letter on the ground in front of her.
Emperor Jiaping waved his hand and said, "Let her go."
The secret guard who was holding Wei Jinxiu loosened his hand, and almost immediately, Wei Jinxiu struggled to grab the letter.
It had been so long that the paper had turned yellow and became a little brittle. Wei Jinxiu immediately became cautious and opened the letter tremblingly... She was excited at first, but then she was stunned and couldn't believe it. Later, she kept shaking her head and muttering.
"Impossible, impossible... Impossible, he wouldn't do this to me, no, impossible, impossible..."
Emperor Jiaping's face was pale and frail. He spoke quietly, "My brother and I were never as incompatible as outsiders thought. We argued, and he was angry at me for not fighting, but we were brothers... This was the last letter he wrote to me before he died..."
Emperor Jiaping took a breath and continued, "He said he fell in love with a girl from the Mongolian grasslands and wanted to marry her as his principal wife. He also asked me to grant him Liaodong as a fiefdom after I ascend the throne so that the girl wouldn't have to travel too far from home..."
My brother has always been unruly and reckless. Everyone says he will threaten my position as crown prince and that he has evil intentions... but I never believed it..."
"I have always believed in him. He is my elder brother. He told me to learn how to be a good emperor and he would keep the borders safe for me."
"He died in battle, and I was sadder than anyone else... When you fainted from grief, I knew you were pregnant."
Emperor Jiaping seemed to be running out of strength and had to rest after saying a few words.
"I killed the imperial physician who took your pulse and didn't want anyone to know that you were related to him... Jinxiu, you must recognize his handwriting and know that I didn't lie to you."
"No, no, no..." Wei Jinxiu screamed as if she was going crazy.
Emperor Jiaping said in a gloomy voice, "It was I who was engaged to you. I have thought about fulfilling your wish, but you have my brother's blood, so how can I let you marry someone else? You said you wanted Yu'er to be the crown prince, and I agreed. My brother died defending my country, and I am willing for his child to be the emperor..."
After a moment of silence, Emperor Jiaping raised his eyes and said, "But Jinxiu, no matter what, it was you who broke the engagement first. From the beginning to the end, I have never done anything to let you down... I just didn't expect that you would hate me so much.
It's also my fault. I was so self-righteous and took it for granted that I wanted to protect you. I was afraid that you couldn't stand your brother's change of heart, and the baby in your belly was unstable at that time..."
"Jinxiu, your son is gone. It was you who led him to his death step by step... You hate me, but we still have a son. I won't kill you. From now on, there will be no more love between you and me."
After saying this, Emperor Jiaping closed his eyes and sighed deeply: "I will imprison the deposed Queen Wei in the cold palace and will not let her out until she is dead."
In one sentence, Wei Jinxiu's possibility of leaving the cold palace was completely cut off.
She cannot be released unless she dies. In other words, even if a new emperor ascends the throne, he cannot pardon her. Unless she dies, she will have to spend the rest of her life in the cold palace...
At this moment, the sound of armor colliding was heard outside.
Wei Fuhai's shrill voice echoed outside the palace: "Prince Ding has arrived."
Then came Xiao Nanchen Bing's deep and cold voice, still filled with murderous intent: "Your son requests to see your father."
Empress Wei lay on the ground, twitching and crying hoarsely. Emperor Jiaping raised his eyes and said, "Come in."
Shen Ning raised her eyes and saw Xiao Nanchen walking in with a blank expression on his face, his armor covered in blood. He seemed to be filled with murderous aura.
Xiao Nanchen also saw her, then paused, and then, without any warning, turned around and walked out.
Emperor Jiaping also frowned suddenly, not knowing why.
After walking a few steps out of the hall, Xiao Nanchen took off his armor, which was almost soaked in blood, with a cold face and threw it to Chi Xiao, wiping the sticky blood on his face with his cloak... Seeing the eighth prince Xiao Nanying running over with great joy, he pulled him over and stripped off his outer robe without waiting for Xiao Nanying to shout "Seventh Brother".
Xiao Nanying was shocked: "Seventh Brother, Seventh Brother, what are you doing? Ah, Seventh Brother, don't do this..."
Shen Ning couldn't see the situation outside and didn't know what was happening. She only heard the strange noises. But the next moment, when Xiao Nanchen came in again, she knew.
The man who had been armored and blood-soaked, brimming with murderous intent just a moment before, had transformed himself, even changing his clothes... Aside from his slightly disheveled hair, he was dressed in a dark blue brocade robe, looking regal. Nothing at all suggested that he had just stormed into the palace from Yongding Gate...
Emperor Jiaping looked at Xiao Nanchen expressionlessly and sneered.
"Oh……"
The entire capital was trembling that day...
Whether it was the rumbling sound of explosions or the shouting and horse hooves in the streets, the people of Kyoto, who were used to a peaceful life, were frightened to death.
Everyone hid in their homes and dared not show their heads. Only when dusk fell and the noise outside died down did the people come to their senses.
The first person opened the door to peek, and then the second, the third...
Voices began to be heard in the remote alleys, but the main streets were still deserted.
Xu Ya had been trembling with fear since Xie Yuncheng left the night before. She was uneasy all night and hadn't eaten or drunk anything... When she heard a noise outside, she didn't dare to go out and peeked out through the crack in the door.
A few familiar-looking thugs walked by quickly, carrying bulging bags on their backs, risking their lives to take advantage of the chaos to make a profit.
In such chaos, some shops on the street will be affected. These gangsters, who want to make a fortune by taking advantage of the situation, will get the upper hand and go out to rob people.
"It's so fucking scary. So many people died!"
"I think there's someone familiar here..."
"That's right, the one we saw in the alley who always liked to wear a red cape. Did you see that? His head was chopped off in half."
"Hurry up and go, this money is enough for us to live for a few years..."
Xu Ya's whole body began to tremble. If she hadn't held onto the door, she would have collapsed to the ground.
Xie Yuncheng often wears a red cloak. He often comes here, and those gangsters may have seen him.
Moreover, before he left last night, he gave her some gold and silver jewelry, saying that if he didn't come back, she could make a living on her own.
One night and one day passed, he...
Xu Ya walked in and out of the yard several times like a lost soul. After a long time, she came out again wearing a black cloak, holding a bag full of gold and silver jewelry, and walked out of the yard tremblingly.
Xie Yuncheng was cleaning up the battlefield when someone ran up to him and whispered something. He paused and asked again, "Did they lock the gate and leave? Did they take the bag with them?"
After getting a positive answer, he curled the corners of his mouth.
It's not surprising. He was the one who took advantage of her in the first place. She had always been trembling around him like a quail... It was normal for her to want to leave.
It's just that he was a little stupid as always. At this time, he ran away as soon as the chaos was over. He was willing to risk his life to escape from him!
After muttering a few curse words, Xie Yuncheng turned around, mounted his horse, and headed east of the city...
He knew that the way he got Xu Ya was dishonorable.
At the beginning, he did have some intention of taking advantage of her because of her beauty... He liked her, and she happened to be desperate, so it was okay to keep her by his side as a joke.
But after spending these days together, Xie Yuncheng actually began to fall in love with her.
Xu Ya was a concubine's daughter and had lived cautiously since childhood. She was always well-behaved and polite to him. He didn't know how much sincerity was in her obedience, but he enjoyed it and liked her.
However, it seems that a forced melon is not sweet...
Xie Yuncheng originally thought of finding someone to secretly send her to a safe place, and to repay the affection he had shown her over the past few days. However, he did not expect that before he reached the east of the city, he suddenly heard a familiar voice.
Xu Ya cried out in shock: "Let me go, I'll give you all the money, all of it... Let me go!"
When the man who was dragging her into the dark alley was chopped to death by Xie Yuncheng, Xu Ya almost thought she was seeing things.
After confirming that it was indeed Xie Yuncheng in front of her, she cried and rushed over...
Xie Yuncheng didn't expect to see her here.
If someone wants to escape from the east side of the city, they shouldn't be heading this way...
"They said you were dead, woooo, your head was split in half, woooo..."
"I'm so scared. I'm afraid your body will be burned together with the others, leaving nothing behind..."
"I took the money you gave me and tried to find someone to collect your body, but I couldn't find anyone. I, wuwuwu..."
Xie Yuncheng was a little stunned. He looked down at the woman in his arms, whose face was covered in black and gray and looked miserable. "So, you came out to find me?"
Xu Ya was still crying: "You are not dead..."
Xie Yuncheng suddenly smiled. He pressed her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. "With you thinking about me, how can I bear to die?"
Xu Ya shook her head: "Run quickly! They say General Xie has been arrested for rebellion. Here, this is the silver you left for me. Run quickly."
Xie Yuncheng looked at the bundle she was holding tightly in her arms, paused, and asked her: "What about you, do you want to escape with me, a traitor?"
Xu Ya sobbed and shook her head: "I will drag you down..."
"I just want to ask if you are willing?"
Xu Ya was lifted up by his waist, her heart terrified and confused, but when she met Xie Yuncheng's serious eyes, she held back her tears and nodded vigorously: "Yes..."
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