Chapter 290 Should a Dead Man Become the Crown Prince?
The Imperial Study.
Xiao Yunheng knelt at the lower end, his back straight, without uttering a sound.
Emperor Xuanzhao's expression was cold as he threw the secret memorial in his hand at Xiao Yunheng.
"Look what you've done! Embezzling disaster relief funds from the imperial court, and now you're colluding with the Helan tribe!! You've completely disgraced the imperial family!"
Emperor Xuanzhao was so angry that his chest heaved violently. Still feeling unsatisfied, he picked up the teacup beside him, but then stopped and smashed it at Xiao Yunheng's feet.
He initially thought the Crown Prince was exaggerating, but after sending people to investigate, he discovered that Xiao Yunheng had actually done such a treasonous thing.
"What else do you have to say?!"
Xiao Yunheng lowered his eyes and remained silent for a long time before saying in a low voice, "Your Majesty, I know my crime and beg for punishment."
They didn't refuse at all and accepted everything.
Emperor Xuanzhao pinched his brow, feeling a headache coming on. "Why did you do this? Have I wronged you in some way?"
Xiao Yunheng kowtowed heavily, "Your Majesty has shown me great care and affection, how could I dare to harbor the slightest resentment? It's just that I was truly frightened, and in my confusion, I made these mistakes..."
"With me here, what do you have to fear?" Emperor Xuanzhao asked in a deep voice.
"I fear that one day His Highness the Crown Prince will discover my identity and will kill my mother and me. I have done all this only to protect myself. If His Highness the Crown Prince cannot tolerate me then, I can take my mother and flee to the borderlands to seek refuge with the Helan tribe, and never return..."
“Nonsense,” Emperor Xuanzhao scoffed, his anger subsiding slightly. “I will not allow such a thing to happen.”
"Your Majesty also hopes for a long and prosperous reign, but as the heir apparent, the country will eventually be handed over to him. Without Your Majesty's protection, my mother and I will be at the mercy of others and be scorned and ridiculed by the world. It would be better to stay away from this place of trouble."
Xiao Yunheng's face showed a sorrowful expression, "A person of my status is inherently unacceptable to the world."
Emperor Xuanzhao looked at Xiao Yunheng and sighed heavily, "So be it, in the end it is I who have wronged you all."
"This is a one-time thing. If I find out about it again in the future, I will not tolerate it. Do you understand?"
Xiao Yunheng's lips curled up almost imperceptibly, and when he looked up, his expression had changed to one of deep gratitude. "Yes, Your Majesty, I know my crime, I dare not do it again."
But then Emperor Xuanzhao's majestic voice rang out, "Tomorrow I will issue an edict to allow you to inherit the title. After so many years, the Prince of Xiang's mansion should have a true master."
The color drained from Xiao Yunheng's face instantly.
“No,” he murmured, crawling on his knees to Emperor Xuanzhao’s side. “Father, I am your son. I do not want to inherit the title!”
Emperor Xuanzhao looked down at Xiao Yunheng from his high position.
He watched him grow up from a young age.
Compared to Xiao Xuanyou, who was given high expectations and strict discipline, he poured all his fatherly love into Xiao Yunheng and never dared to be too harsh on him.
He was supposed to inherit the title when he was eight years old, but he broke his leg and has been delayed until now.
Now Emperor Xuanzhao is also aware of this.
If Xiao Yunheng is not allowed to inherit the title, he may take advantage of his favor and start to have other ideas. If the country is unstable, how will I face the ancestors of the Xiao family?
"Yunheng, you should know that your identity can only be that of the son of the deceased Prince Xiang," Emperor Xuanzhao's tiger-like eyes narrowed slightly. "Once exposed, not only will the entire court be in uproar, but your mother will certainly be cursed and despised, and condemned by thousands. Do you want her to die?"
"Father, I dare not!" Xiao Yunheng, his face pale, clutched at his robes. "I only wish to fulfill my filial duty to you..."
"You must not call me that again. You are my nephew, so you can naturally fulfill your filial duties," Emperor Xuanzhao said with a look of pity in his eyes, helping him up from the ground. "This matter is settled then."
Xiao Yunheng knew that Emperor Xuanzhao was a man of his word and dared not disobey too much, so he could only nod and say, "Yes, but please forgive me for a while, Father. My mother has not been well recently, and I really have no mood to take care of things. Let's wait until my mother recovers."
"How is her health?" Emperor Xuanzhao asked with a sigh.
Xiao Yunheng looked worried. "My mother has been a vegetarian for many years and has never had a good appetite. The imperial physician said that she has been depressed and uncomfortable for a long time. He has already prescribed a medicine to treat her."
"A few days ago, a foreign country presented several thousand-year-old ginseng plants as tribute. Please take them with you before you leave."
"Yes, thank you, Your Majesty."
Just as Xiao Yunheng was about to take his leave, Emperor Xuanzhao called him back.
"Remember, Xiao Xuanyou's position as crown prince will not be changed. If you have any other thoughts, don't blame me for disregarding our past relationship."
Xiao Yunheng's expression hardened, and he respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will keep it in mind and never forget it."
When Xiao Yunheng came out of the imperial study, his face was as dark as the bottom of a pot.
The Emperor's intention in allowing him to inherit the title was to completely eliminate any possibility of him vying for the throne with Xiao Xuanyou.
Will the position of Crown Prince remain unchanged?
He gave a cold laugh.
What if Xiao Xuanyou dies? Are we going to let a dead person become the crown prince?
*
The Northern Garrison Command was heavily guarded.
Lu Yuan sat at the head of the table, his black flying fish robe with python patterns faintly visible in the shadows, making his gloomy eyes appear even colder and more stern.
"You failed to handle the Ministry of Works embezzlement case properly, allowing Wan Cang to exploit the loophole. Go down and accept your punishment. If you commit the offense again, you will no longer need to wear this uniform. My Northern Garrison Command does not support useless people!"
The three kneeling below trembled with fear, their breathing becoming shallow, and they didn't even dare to beg for mercy.
However, the punishments within the Embroidered Uniform Guard were extremely harsh. They had made a mistake this time and needed to receive one hundred lashes. After receiving all of them, they would probably be bedridden for several days.
Ye Qi, who was standing to the side, wanted to plead for mercy, but he hesitated and dared not utter a word in the face of his angry boss.
"What, are you waiting for me to invite you?" The air pressure around Lu Yuan was so low it was suffocating.
“Boss, all of us brothers are injured as well,” Ye Qi said, forcing himself to speak. “A hundred lashes would probably kill us. Please reduce the number of lashes for the sake of our brothers’ redemption.”
Lu Yuan gave him a cold look. "If everything can be redeemed with good deeds, what's the point of punishment? Or do you want to take the whipping for them?"
Ye Qi immediately shrank back and dared not speak again.
Just kidding, who would dare to mess with the boss at this time?
We can only hope our brothers have the best of luck.
At this moment, someone came in, but seeing Lu Yuan's cold appearance, he didn't dare to speak and whispered a few words to Ye Qi.
Ye Qi's eyes lit up, and he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Our savior has arrived.
He walked up to Lu Yuan and said, "Boss, someone is looking for you. You'd better go and see them now."
Lu Yuan stroked the embroidered spring knife at his waist, his voice as cold as frost, "Who is it that requires my personal attention..."
"It is Princess Qinghe."
Lu Yuan paused, then gave Ye Qi a warning look, "You've got some nerve."
"Your subordinate wouldn't dare!" Ye Qi immediately begged for mercy, knowing when to stop.
Lu Yuan was too lazy to argue with him and got up to leave.
Before leaving, he left behind the words, "The punishment for the disciplinary whipping will be halved, and this will not be repeated."
The three kneeling men looked at each other, wondering why their leader had suddenly shown mercy and let them go.
Ye Qi patted them on the shoulder, "Quickly tell me, thank you, Princess Qinghe."
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