Li Zhu could tell that Xiao Meiren didn't seem to be lying, but you can know a person's face but not their heart. Who knows if she might be a person who is good at deceiving others?
"If someone suddenly walked up to you and told you that the parents who raised you for over twenty years were not your biological parents, would you believe it?"
Li Zhu replied calmly.
Seeing that Li Zhu still refused to believe her, Xiao Meiren raised her head, lost in her memories, and then sighed.
"I didn't want to bring this up, after all, it's a painful memory. Do you know that back then, the world was in chaos, war was raging everywhere, and the royal family was like a stray dog, gradually withering away in the overwhelming tide of history..."
After Luoyang was captured, the rebel army actually massacred the city, but instead of using water, they used the blood of countless civilians. The massacre lasted for three days and three nights, leaving nine out of ten houses in Luoyang empty.
Faced with the ravages of war, everyone could only flee. I wandered to the Liao Kingdom and was rescued by the Liao royal family. At that time, you were not yet born, and your pregnant mother was rescued by Li Qi...
However, no one expected that Li Qi's defeat would be caused by a woman. Just then, Nangong Qing and her mother went into labor at the same time. Although Li Qi fought desperately, they still got separated during the retreat...
In the midst of war and chaos, the maid abandoned Nangong Qing's son to save her own life. In her panic, she decided to escape alone. Perhaps heaven took pity on you, for your cries amidst the chaos attracted the maid's attention. To cover up her mistake, she brought you back to Nangong Qing's side and lied, claiming that you were Nangong Qing's lost child...
So you are not Nangong Qing and Li Qi's child, but the posthumous son of the previous emperor, and the only hope for the restoration of the kingdom. Now Li Qi wants to use you to gain the full support of Xiliang. Once the world is stable, you will be abandoned, and your life or death will be of no threat to Li Qi at that time..."
Listening to Xiao Meiren's detailed and convincing explanation, Li Zhu actually believed her for a moment...
If, as Consort Xiao claims, he was the posthumous son of the previous emperor, then many things might make sense…
Why did his adoptive father dislike him? Why was the crown prince sent as a hostage? Why did the twin who claimed to be his brother look nothing like him?
The only thing Li Zhu didn't understand was that if his father, who was willing to suffer defeat rather than retreat, did it mean that the two of them had a good relationship? So why was his mother only a concubine?
Combining the information he received from his mother, many pieces of news overlapped, but his mother told him that his father disliked him, perhaps because too many brothers had died trying to save him, and his existence would remind his father of that painful past…
Most importantly, he had been so useless before that his father felt the sacrifices of his brothers were not worthwhile…
He glanced at Xiao Meiren, and from her eager gaze, he knew she was waiting for his response. However, he couldn't possibly believe Xiao Meiren's side of the story; he felt there were too many loopholes in her words…
If his cheap father had known all along that he wasn't his biological son, but rather the posthumous son of the previous emperor, he could have killed him when he was young. Why keep him around to give the remnants of the previous dynasty something to look forward to?
In particular, the move of appointing himself as crown prince was an extremely risky move. If he successfully ascended the throne, wouldn't that be equivalent to the restoration of the previous dynasty?
Even if sending him to Xiliang is purely a death sentence, the plan will only succeed if he actually dies. What if he doesn't die? If the people of Xiliang use him as a weapon, and use him as a banner to rally the former dynasty's old subordinates, wouldn't that be shooting themselves in the foot?
Li Zhu took a deep breath, then looked calmly at Xiao Meiren and said...
"Your scheme to sow discord is utterly clumsy. If I were you, I would never reveal my identity as a remnant of the previous dynasty. However, considering how beautiful you are, I can let you leave. But don't bring up my past again; such a lie is easily exposed, there's no need to waste your breath..."
Seeing that Li Zhu didn't believe her, Xiao Meiren became somewhat anxious. She hadn't expected Li Zhu to be so stubborn and not believe her at all...
"Brother, you are the only prince of the previous dynasty. Are you really going to just let go of your father's hatred like this?"
"Consort Xiao, please watch your form of address. And you must understand one thing: even if I am the son of the former emperor, his revenge has already been taken by Li Qi. Now I am the Crown Prince. What difference does it make whether I am the son of the former emperor or the new Tang emperor? In any case, I am destined to ascend the throne..."
Li Zhu spread his hands and said nonchalantly, "It doesn't matter who his father is anymore. As a transmigrator, he has no attachments, so why should he worry about his background?"
"Brother, stop fooling around. The appearance of the Xiliang Iron Cavalry this time is of great significance. I think Li Qi must have promised some special conditions, and you are very likely one of the important conditions. Once you go to Xiliang, your life and death will be out of your own hands..."
Li Zhu looked at Xiao Meiren with some surprise, not expecting her to have such strong deductive abilities; she spoke as if she were actually there...
"Little brother, I know you don't want to believe me, but I'm telling the truth, and I would never harm you. Everything I've done is for you. Whatever decision you make, I'll support you..."
Xiao Meiren's words greatly shocked Li Zhu. This kind of selfless help was hard for Li Zhu to refuse. After all, he also wanted to survive in this chaotic world and achieve his own great cause. He definitely didn't simply want to be a 'wise ruler,' definitely not...
"Brother, I think Li Qi sent you this time to politely decline the marriage proposals from the Liao and Baiyue kingdoms..."
"hey-hey…"
Li Zhu chuckled awkwardly. This reaction was tantamount to telling Xiao Meiren the answer. However, Li Zhu felt a little embarrassed. If what she said was true, wouldn't he be forced to marry his own sister?
"Little brother, do whatever you want. With your big sister here, you'll never be in danger..."
Xiao Meiren's words touched Li Zhu somewhat, but he remained rational and did not lower his guard because of her words. Who knew if she had any ulterior motives? There is no such thing as kindness or hatred without a reason in this world...
"Well, thank you very much then..."
Li Zhu stopped resisting and chose to acquiesce. His immediate priority was to figure out his own background, otherwise he wouldn't be able to determine Xiao Meiren's ultimate goal. Given her intelligence, he was worried that she might unknowingly set a trap for him...
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