Upon hearing this, Lin Xihe's heart clenched, and in an instant, the color drained from her face like a receding tide, leaving her deathly pale.
Her knees buckled, and she knelt down in terror, her whole body trembling slightly. She buried her head deeply, not daring to even breathe.
"I...have known Yu Zhi for many years and trust him the most. I have entrusted all matters in the south to him, and I have even given him special authority, allowing him to handle matters on his own before reporting back to me..."
Xiao Yugan spoke slowly, his voice low and deep. He sighed softly, his sigh filled with helplessness and melancholy.
He then continued, "I truly cannot understand why he would do such a thing. I have overcome countless obstacles to ascend this throne, and your father has always stood firmly by my side and supported me throughout."
Xiao Yugan's voice grew increasingly dejected as he spoke, and his emotions became more and more agitated. Unconsciously, he even changed his self-reference from "朕" (zhen, meaning "I") to "我" (wo, meaning "I").
"Xihe, I know you find it hard to believe right now, but take a look at these." Xiao Yugan said, reaching out to open the brocade box on the table.
Lin Xihe trembled all over, only daring to slightly raise her head, when she saw the emperor open the brocade box on the table, inside which were neatly arranged letters.
"You can at least recognize your father's handwriting, take a look."
Xiao Yugan's tone was still filled with an unyielding disappointment, which weighed heavily on the air.
Lin Xihe pretended to be flustered, stood up and stepped forward, reaching out with trembling hands to open one of the letters and read it.
Her heart sank the moment her gaze fell on the handwriting in the letter; the familiar strokes of the pen were indeed Lin Bin's.
She forced herself to remain calm and glanced at the contents of the letters. The first letter stated that Lin Bin intended to cede a city, even at the cost of sacrificing ten thousand soldiers, just to induce the imperial court to send more supplies.
"Father wouldn't do that, he wouldn't do that."
Lin Xihe's voice was choked with sobs, a mixture of fear and disbelief. She frantically dropped the letter in her hand, not daring to look at it again.
“I also do not want to believe it, but the irrefutable evidence is right before my eyes. So many letters are in your father’s handwriting, and they also bear your father’s private seal. Look at the date. At that time, Nanzhao had just occupied a city, and our side suffered more than 10,000 casualties.”
Xiao Yugan stood up and slowly walked to the side, looking at the pond not far away. The calm surface was disturbed by the wind, and at this moment, it was perhaps as turbulent as his heart.
"If he were still alive, I would love to ask him face to face why..."
Xiao Yugan's voice was filled with pain and resentment.
Lin Xihe frowned deeply, secretly thinking to herself that she wouldn't believe a single word this dog emperor said.
In her view, this scoundrel emperor was just trying to smear her father.
However, Xiao Yugan's next words struck Lin Xihe like a heavy hammer, making her heart tremble.
"I know you have traveled through countless hardships on your way back from Nanzhao. The people of Nanzhao have never seen Qinghuai, yet they know everything about his actions. I sent several groups of people to rescue him, but all of them never returned. Finally, one person managed to return by sheer luck, only to tell me that the martial arts used by those who tried to stop him were exactly the same as those used by the Shadow Guards I personally trained. At that moment, I realized that I had been spies planted in my inner circle."
Xiao Yugan narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing within them.
"In order to lower the enemy's guard, I deliberately spread the news of Gu Qinghuai's death, intending to continue my investigation in secret. But I did not expect that the defense of the Nanzhao border was as tight as an iron barrel. I suspect that perhaps the people around me are no longer clean, and that they know about my actions in advance and thwart them."
Xiao Yugan turned around, his gaze fixed on Lin Xihe, his eyes seemingly filled with countless tests and profound meanings.
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