Upon hearing Su Mu mention Mu Jin, Su Yi's eyes slowly turned fierce, and his hands, hidden under his sleeves, unconsciously clenched. But in an instant, his expression returned to calm, and he still wore his usual arrogant and unruly smile.
"You also said that Mu Jin and Third Brother divorced. Oh, no, it's that Third Brother was divorced by Mu Jin. This was only because you considered Mu Jin's kindness to the people of Dongyue."
"Now that Mu Jin has returned to the General's Mansion and resumed her role as the General's daughter, how can she be considered my sister-in-law? Besides, what business is it of these idle and good-for-nothing officials who I associate with?"
Hearing Su Yi's arrogant words, Su Mu frowned even more. He looked at Su Yi, a hint of disappointment and helplessness flashing in his eyes.
Su Mu knew that Su Yi was a stubborn person, and once he made up his mind about something, it was difficult to change it. This personality trait came from his mother and from himself.
However, Su Yi was the heir to the throne that he had chosen. Even though he had promised Su Yi's mother that he would let Su Yi live a carefree life and stay away from the struggle for imperial power, he had paved the way for Su Yi in the past few years. So how could he be allowed to fight with others?
Normally, Su Mu could ignore Su Yi's dissolute and unruly behavior and travel the world with him, or he could ignore the rumors that Su Yi frequented brothels and played around in the world.
What's wrong with men being a little philandering? If those ministers dare to talk about Su Yi in this way, he can make them get rid of all the concubines and maids in the inner quarters. Why should they, who are already married, have a large number of wives and concubines, but instead criticize Su Yi, who has not married and had children?
But this time it was different. The minister wanted to impeach Su Yi for disregarding human ethics, for having an overly close relationship with his sister-in-law, for even embracing and kissing her in front of the people, and for riding in the same carriage out of the city and not returning until midnight.
"Mu Jin told me that she saved your life, and I have already rewarded her. You don't need to associate with her because of this life-saving grace. After she returns home, I will not ignore any difficulties she may encounter. You should not associate with her in the future."
Su Yi scoffed, "Do I need these ministers' approval to associate with whomever I want? That's ridiculous. Whether I'm with Mu Jin or not is my own business and has nothing to do with anyone else."
Su Mu retorted angrily, "You really intend to be with that Mu Jin? She's been married before, and it was your third brother she married!"
Su Yi scoffed, "If I love someone, I don't care who she was or what she did."
"You~you~you!" Su Mu was furious at Su Yi's words.
"But she seduced you?"
Su Yi smiled lazily: "If she were willing to seduce me, I would be lucky. It's just a pity that she looks down on me because I have the surname Su, and she hates me to the extreme. I had to go through a lot of trouble before she would even look at me."
Su Mu's eyes flashed with anger, his chest heaving rapidly, but seeing Su Yi's stubbornness, he knew that beating and scolding would be useless, and he used a lot of strength to suppress his anger.
"Are you eyeing her father, Marquis Muwei, as the Grand General Protector of the Nation, hoping to use his military power to pave the way for your future? Let me tell you today, I have never intended to give this throne to anyone else. If you want this throne, I can give it to you right now!"
Su Yi burst into laughter upon hearing Su Mu's words.
Su Mu couldn't stand Su Yi like this: "What are you laughing at? Did I say something wrong?"
As Su Yi smiled, the smile slowly faded from his lips, and a dark cloud crept into his pupils. He clenched his fist and looked at Su Mu.
"Do you think I would do what you did, seizing the throne by deceiving women and relying on my maternal family's influence?"
"How dare you!"
Su Mu slammed his hand on the desk, causing the teacup next to it to knock over and shatter on the floor with a loud bang.
Hearing the commotion inside, Jinzhong, the eunuch standing outside the hall, hurriedly went inside, only to be yelled at by Su Mu to get out.
Su Yi scoffed: "What are you angry about? Did I say something wrong? Or did I touch a sore spot? Back then, you clearly had a harem of wives and concubines. After learning about my mother's identity, you maliciously approached her, saying that you were still unmarried and would only love my mother for the rest of your life."
"It's a pity she was young and naive, and listened to you, a seasoned lover, and secretly pledged her life to you, becoming pregnant with me and Muxue. By the time Grandfather found out, it was too late. He could only help you seize the throne of Dongyue."
“My mother only found out that you had a large number of wives and concubines after she returned to Dongyue with you. She realized that she had been deceived. Those women would come to her every day with different tricks to annoy her, which caused my mother to become depressed and give birth prematurely, ruining her health. She left me and Muxue a few years later and died with resentment.”
Su Mu sat on the dragon throne in front of the palace, Su Yi's words deeply wounding his unknown past.
His slightly red eyes glistened with tears, and in an instant, the tears flowed like a burst dam, wetting his cheeks. Those past events were like countless heavy stones, pressing down on him so much that he could hardly breathe.
"Stop talking! I beg you to stop talking. Before I met your mother, I also thought that women in this world were nothing more than objects for men to vent their loneliness. Until I met your mother, she was so beautiful that it seemed unreal. I couldn't bear to touch her, but I couldn't help wanting to get close to her."
"I know that with your mother's personality, if she had known from the beginning that I had other women and had children with them, she would never have given me a second glance. At that time, there were plenty of people who would have been willing to give anything to win her smile."
Su Mu closed her red, tear-filled eyes, her lips trembling slightly as she said, "I cannot bear to watch her fall into someone else's arms, smile at someone else, cry at someone else, belong to someone else! I can only deceive her into being with me."
Su Mu suddenly opened his eyes, stood up, looked at Su Yi, and said anxiously.
"But I promised to treat your mother well, and that the position of Empress would only belong to her, and I have kept my promise. After I had your mother, I never had any other women. She didn't want the position of Empress, so I left it vacant. No matter how the ministers petitioned and submitted memorials, saying things like 'a country cannot be without an heir for a day,' as long as your mother didn't want it, no other woman could sit in that position."
Su Yi glanced at Su Mu and sneered, "What's the use of saying so much? Can it bring my mother back to life? You've not only wronged my mother, but also my grandfather. He entrusted my mother to you, which meant he entrusted everything to you, but how have you repaid him?"
"Don't tell me again that your throne belongs to me. I've never cared for that position!"
After finishing his sentence, Su Yi, not wanting to waste any more words with Su Mu, turned to leave.
Su Mu hurriedly called out to Su Yi: "Yi'er! Listen to me, if your mother were still alive, she would not agree to you being with Mu Jin, who was married to your third brother."
Su Yi stopped and slowly turned around, looking at Su Mu with eyes full of hostility, and said slowly, "You are not worthy to mention my mother."
After saying that, he strode out of the Zichen Palace, leaving Su Mu alone to slump back onto the dragon throne, where she wept tears of unbearable pain as she reminisced about the past.
At this moment, not only Su Mu shed tears of unbearable pain, but also Su Muxue, who was hiding outside the Zichen Palace, listening to her father and elder brother's conversation word by word.
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