"Your Royal Highness is joking," Zheng Yuanqing said to the Fifth Princess with a slight curl of his lips. "What could Your Royal Highness have done to wrong me? There's no need for an apology."
"No, it's not like that."
Noticing the coldness in her brother's eyes, the Fifth Princess's face paled slightly. But she still mustered the courage to continue, "Brother, Mother Concubine and the others were muddle - headed. I hope Brother... "
"Just leave," Zheng Yuanqing said coldly to the Fifth Princess, thinking she was going to plead for her maternal family. "There's no need to say these redundant things to me."
During countless days and nights, when he was suffering and lost, what were these people doing?
When they saw that he had no hope of ascending the throne, they even defected to the Crown Prince, causing him so much trouble. When he was sent to the border as a pawn, they even tried to assassinate him to show their loyalty to the Crown Prince.
Zheng Yuanqing would never forget these things.
He was never a kind - hearted person.
"No, Brother!"
The Fifth Princess hurriedly chased after him and said, "You must be careful."
Zheng Yuanqing was stunned.
After saying that, he watched as the Fifth Princess ran back into the room.
He stood there for a long time, unable to come back to his senses.
...
The palace banquet was held on a cloudless day.
Meng Ruyi got up early to wash and dress. As soon as she went out, she saw Song Huaizhi waiting for her.
"Brother Song," Meng Ruyi was overjoyed. Her face was filled with undisguised anticipation and happiness.
She would be able to go home soon.
They were invited as disciples of Mr. Lin. When they entered with their invitations, they saw many acquaintances sitting there with hard - to - read expressions on their faces. They glanced at each other.
[AAAAAA Is this going to be the grand finale! I'm so excited AAAAAAA]
[Yu Yu looks so beautiful today! She's wearing my favorite dress! My daughter has grown up wuwuwuwu]
[It's so exciting! There are many people lying in ambush outside the capital now, and the Crown Prince is about to make his move]
[Sure enough, Zheng Yuanqing is such a poor thing]
Meng Ruyi lowered her eyes and fell into deep thought looking at the comments.
Why was Zheng Yuanqing so unlucky?
This time, the emperor pretended to be ill to make the Crown Prince act, and he chose this banquet of Zheng Yuanqing's. These father and son were quite in sync, both choosing this moment to make their moves.
However, the emperor probably didn't expect that the Crown Prince would actually dare to strike hard, and Zheng Yuanqing also planned to wait for the prey to come into the trap.
The banquet began. The emperor arrived late. A curtain was drawn around his seat, and intermittent coughing sounds came from behind it from time to time, making the people present look more and more nervous.
Seeing that Song Huaizhi still looked calm, Meng Ruyi couldn't help but lean over and whisper, "Aren't you nervous at all, Brother Song?"
Song Huaizhi turned to look at Meng Ruyi. There was a faint look in his eyes, but when their eyes met, there was a hint of a smile on his face. "No, I'm not."
"But I'm looking forward to it."
Song Huaizhi added slowly, "After all, a fool like the Crown Prince only needs to wait for him to jump into the trap by himself."
"...... Cough cough cough."
Meng Ruyi was still a bit nervous. So when Song Huaizhi mentioned the Crown Prince, she subconsciously looked around and saw Shangguan Xue sitting not far away. When Shangguan Xue saw her, she gave her a gentle and genuine smile.
Shangguan Xue was no longer as fake as before, but her face looked a bit haggard. Wearing a blue dress, she seemed much thinner.
Meng Ruyi silently sighed in her heart.
Only after the emperor was seated did the banquet truly start.
"All my dear ministers, rise."
Without even lifting the curtain, the emperor said to the people kneeling on the ground outside, "Today is a good day for my Third Prince."
Everyone looked at each other in surprise.
Meng Ruyi's heart skipped a beat.
No way. Is this dog emperor so eager to pull Zheng Yuanqing out as a scapegoat?
The Crown Prince didn't come.
Realizing this, the people present who didn't know the truth immediately showed shocked expressions.
Was the Crown Prince disfavored by the emperor? Then does it mean...
Realizing this, the rest of the people subconsciously glanced at their acquaintances and then looked at Zheng Yuanqing sitting on the stage with an unchanged expression.
Zheng Yuanqing sat there calmly, with a faint look on his face.
"The Third Prince has made great contributions this time, so I intend to..."
Before the emperor could finish his words, a furious male voice suddenly came from the door. "Wait!"
Meng Ruyi and Song Huaizhi looked at each other.
Zheng Yuanjia had come.
Zheng Yuanjia was standing alone at the door, followed by a team of armored guards. His expression was cold, and the long sword in his hand glinted coldly.
"Father, why didn't you invite me today to celebrate for my younger brother?" Zheng Yuanjia curled his lips into a sarcastic smile and continued, "Could it be that Father really wants to make my younger brother the Crown Prince?"
The people present were greatly shocked.
Meng Ruyi and Song Huaizhi calmly whispered to each other below.
"Why does Zheng Yuanjia seem so confident?" Meng Ruyi whispered curiously. "He looks calmer than the emperor."
The faint warmth on his ear made Song Huaizhi suddenly stunned for a moment before he whispered back, "Zheng Yuanjia thinks the emperor's health is poor, and now more than 30% but less than 50% of the imperial guards in the capital city are in his hands."
"No wonder."
Meng Ruyi watched as Zheng Yuanjia had drawn out his long sword. His face was cold, and his smile was sarcastic. "Father, why are you forcing me like this?"
"All I want is to live in peace. Is that wrong?" Zheng Yuanjia laughed loudly and pointed the tip of his sword at Zheng Yuanqing. "What talent does he have that makes you abandon me?"
Only then did the emperor lift the curtain, revealing a healthy and cold face.
Zheng Yuanjia looked at him. After a long time, he suddenly smiled and said, "I knew you were fine."
"Tsk tsk tsk," Meng Ruyi couldn't help but sigh and complained to Song Huaizhi, "But he'll be in trouble soon."
Zheng Yuanjia had acted quickly and brutally. He had secretly poisoned the emperor last night. The emperor still looked fine now, but he might only have three to five days left.
In these three to five days, it would be enough for Zheng Yuanjia to secure his position. He would deal with Zheng Yuanqing on the charge of harming the emperor. So Zheng Yuanjia didn't hesitate to strike a fatal blow to the emperor who had doted on him for more than a decade.
Thinking of the emperor's plan, Meng Ruyi thought that these two father and son really deserved to be related. Zheng Yuanjia was indeed raised by the emperor himself. Their ways of doing things were surprisingly similar.
The two most noble father and son in the world were in a standoff. The people present were so anxious that beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads, worried that they would be the next ones to lose their heads.
"Father must have been bewitched by the Third Prince. He even wants to act against the Crown Prince, endangering the stability of the country," Zheng Yuanjia said after giving the emperor a deep look. "I'm here today to purge the emperor's side."
"Crown Prince," the emperor finally spoke and said to him, "Do you really have to do this?"
Zheng Yuanjia was so confident that he didn't worry about anything else. Hearing this, he just smiled and said to the emperor, "Father is joking. I'm just purging the emperor's side. There's nothing wrong with that."
He raised his hand and was about to give an order.