Chapter 247
The casualties among the Cheng family exceeded half, a situation that could have been quietly swept under the rug. After all, accidents happen, and no one would bother investigating further. However, unlike the incidents involving the Pei and Wang families, this time someone directly reported the matter to the capital.
Even more shocking was that the accused person was none other than Yuan Ye.
The fact that the current Crown Prince was accused of massacring his maternal family spread rapidly before the case could even be brought to trial.
Yuan Ye had barely learned about the tragedy befalling the Cheng family and was still unclear about the details when he was unjustly blamed.
In the court, the Fourth Prince’s faction concentrated their attacks on this point, claiming to have witnesses. These witnesses were the children of the Cheng family, who had inadvertently heard that the assailants were people of the Crown Prince. They were unaware of the power struggles and, persuaded by those willing to help seek justice for their relatives, were naturally misled into becoming witnesses.
Prime Minister Li didn’t understand the conflict between Yuan Ye and the Cheng family, but after Chu Lishu told him about it, he realized it was the perfect opportunity to bring down the Crown Prince. He immediately seized upon it.
Yuan Ye naturally denied the accusations since it was his extended family involved, and the motive seemed unreasonable. It would only make sense if he were insane. Moreover, the testimony of children was inherently unreliable and difficult to be deemed credible.
The man seated on the Dragon Throne grew increasingly impatient with the dwindling commotion below. Everything seemed too coincidental, leading him to realize that someone was plotting against Yuan Ye. With only Yuan Ye and the Fourth Prince left by his side, and one more child yet unborn in Concubine Xu’s womb, he couldn’t afford to let Yuan Ye come to harm again. Otherwise, it would mean letting one faction become too dominant.
The Emperor’s gaze shifted towards the increasingly influential Prime Minister Li. He suddenly noticed that most of the courtiers were speaking in favor of Prime Minister Li. With Concubine Mei in the harem and Prime Minister in court, without the constraints of the Three Major Families, if he were to lose Yuan Ye, he would be at the mercy of these powerful figures.
Was it that they gradually grew their ambitions, or did they always possess such grand ambitions?
As he delved into his thoughts, the Emperor couldn’t suppress the urge to cough, his health truly deteriorating, but he couldn’t afford to let others notice, otherwise controlling the court would become even more difficult.
Yet, the more he tried to suppress it, the more it backfired.
Suddenly, a bout of coughing interrupted the clamor of the crowd. The coughing was so loud, as if he could cough up blood at any moment.
The noise startled everyone into silence. All eyes turned to the Emperor, filled with worry, suspicion, and calculation. This scene only fueled the Emperor’s desire to explode in anger.
“Enough! Bickering like this, is this the royal court or a marketplace?” the Emperor reprimanded, his voice low and commanding.
“Your Majesty, as a humble servant, I also don’t want quarrels. I want to believe in His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, but this matter has spread widely. If we do nothing, won’t we be the subject of ridicule among the people?”
“Ridicule? Who’s ridiculing? I suspect it’s Prime Minister Li who wants to see me the subject of ridicule. It seems Prime Minister Li doesn’t want to believe me. He’d rather this matter be pinned on me. But I’ll say it again, I’m innocent. I have a clear conscience.” Yuan Ye’s face was filled with resentment, portraying himself as wronged.
The Emperor, with a stern expression, asked, “Do any of the esteemed ministers have proposals for dealing with this matter?”
At this moment, the Minister of Justice stepped forward. Minister Luo, an elder statesman from both dynasties and an old friend of Mr. Cao’s, had just discussed this matter with Mr. Cao yesterday and received his advice.
He proposed, “Without substantial evidence, it’s difficult to convict, but it’s also impossible not to investigate. After all, the people are watching. I suggest Your Highness remain calm and composed, and demonstrate willingness to cooperate with the investigation. This is the quickest way to restore Your Highness’s innocence.”
Prime Minister Li immediately chimed in, “Indeed, Your Highness. It’s just a simple inquiry. As long as Your Highness is innocent, everything will be fine soon. It’s just a matter of not attending court for a while. There are no major issues in the court recently, so Your Highness can rest assured.”
Yuan Ye glared angrily, panting heavily, feeling completely suppressed.
How could he be reassured? Not attending court at such a critical time could be fatal. In a few days away from court, his own supporters could be quickly eliminated by the other side. But in the current situation, it was impossible to leave unscathed.
At this moment, he suddenly realized that without the strong support of the Cheng family, his own forces would not be able to withstand the onslaught of the Fourth Prince’s faction. The thought made Yuan Ye feel increasingly anxious.
“Your Majesty, I am also deeply saddened by the tragedy that befell my maternal family. I am innocent in this matter. Are you saying that every time someone unjustly accuses me, I should just accept it? That would be grossly unfair to me,” Yuan Ye said, his eyes reddening, displaying a profound sense of indignation. Naturally, there were people in the court who supported him.
The Emperor nodded and continued, “Three days for the investigation. The Crown Prince can cooperate with the inquiry. Although he cannot attend court, his movements will not be restricted.”
Upon hearing this, Yuan Ye realized that he still had his freedom, giving him the ability to fight back.
“Your Majesty, this is highly inappropriate. What if… cough cough… This is not out of mistrust, but rather concern that others may worry about whether the Crown Prince would take advantage of the situation to destroy evidence or fabricate false testimony.”
Yuan Ye felt the urge to curse at the cunning old fox, but restrained himself. “But what if someone takes advantage of my inability to act and fabricates false evidence against me?”
Prime Minister Li immediately adopted a look of helplessness, as if Yuan Ye was simply being evasive.
In the end, the Emperor issued the order that Yuan Ye was not to leave the Eastern Palace but was not restricted from communicating with the outside world.
For Yuan Ye, this arrangement was acceptable, but Prime Minister Li could see that the Emperor was already starting to protect Yuan Ye, which meant he was wary of them. Perhaps they had been too hasty in their actions. However, Prime Minister Li couldn’t understand why the Emperor would want his nephew to stay in the position of the Crown Prince for an extended period. As far as Prime Minister Li was concerned, the Emperor only had one child left, the Fourth Prince, so surely he would want to secure the throne for him. Despite the concessions made by them, the Emperor still hadn’t made a move. He couldn’t possibly be really committed to keeping his promise.
However, that didn’t matter; they still had other cards to play.
Upon returning to the Eastern Palace, Yuan Ye flew into a rage, especially when he saw Jing Rouyin. He immediately began to assault her with punches and kicks. She could only protect her abdomen, fearing for her unborn child. However, she was forced to reveal her pregnancy in the midst of the chaos. Their confrontation was interrupted by the arrival of Empress Dowager Cheng.
With the destruction of the Cheng family, Empress Cheng could no longer remain silent. Tears streaming down her face, she approached Yuan Ye and demanded answers.
It was their first meeting since her miscarriage, and she wasted no time in delivering a resounding slap across his face.
“Beast, tell me, was it you?”
Yuan Ye, his face swollen from the blow, glared fiercely at Empress Cheng as he held his cheek. “No! Why would I do such a thing? What benefit would it bring to me?”
“Who knows? Perhaps you thought the Cheng family was useless and feared they would hinder you? Haven’t you spared not even your own brother?” Empress Cheng erupted in anguish, her body wracked with torment, her mind consumed with distress. Upon hearing the dreadful news, she had lost all composure.
“Heh, you have the nerve to say such things to your own son?”
“How do I not have the nerve? Didn’t your maternal grandfather tell you? You and this child share the same parents. Why haven’t you repented?” Empress Cheng screamed hoarsely.
“I don’t want to!” Yuan Ye shouted back even louder, “I could have been the Emperor’s legitimate child. I could have been rightful. Who wants to be the bastard brother? I am Yuan Ran’s brother! Only Yuan Ran is my true brother!”
Empress Cheng laughed provocatively, “But didn’t you also hate Yuan Ran? Hate that he took away someone else’s attention, hate that he shone too brightly overshadowing you. What now? Suddenly feeling brotherly love?”
“That’s not it,” Yuan Ye’s expression immediately twisted. Who wouldn’t want the best? Compared to his other brothers, he would rather be Yuan Ran’s brother, so he could feel superior to others.
“Yuan Ye, with the fall of the Cheng family and the loss of this child, even though you are the Emperor’s legitimate son, you will never be officially recognized throughout your life. Now, both the Emperor and the Empress Dowager prefer the Fourth Prince. Do you understand what this means? We are doomed! Doomed! How can you still not understand? How… How did I give birth to such a stupid child?” Empress Cheng broke down in tears as she spoke.
As a nominal empress, one without real power, and one who could never openly stand by her man’s side, if she couldn’t even secure the position of her son as the heir, what future could she possibly have?
“Sobbing like this is so annoying! I haven’t lost yet!” Yuan Ye couldn’t stand pessimistic remarks or being told he couldn’t do something. He rudely pushed away Empress Cheng. “You’ve given birth to a clever child before, why didn’t you let him live? If you had been willing to inform Yuan Ran back then, he wouldn’t have died, and you wouldn’t be crying here now.”
Empress Cheng immediately stopped crying, as if struck by lightning, and she reached out as if to strike him, but Yuan Ye blocked her. This action caused Empress Cheng to fall to the ground. She was stunned. She refused to admit this. She thought that without Yuan Ran, her life would be smooth sailing, but she still ended up in this situation. Yuan Ye was the one she had raised, yet he treated her like this.
Yuan Ye looked at Empress Cheng’s pale and shocked face, feeling somewhat uncomfortable himself. He turned away and left. “Go back to the palace. Don’t come looking for me unless it’s necessary. I’m busy.”
Eventually, Empress Cheng had to be carried out. By then, she had lost consciousness, and her body was in an even worse condition after this ordeal.
Before three days had passed, the Fourth Prince narrowly escaped poisoning in the palace. Fortunately, it was discovered in time by two of his study companions, preventing any harm. Additionally, poison was found in the food presented to the Emperor, traced back to the Eastern Palace. Enraged, the Emperor launched an investigation, only to discover that the perpetrator originated from within the Eastern Palace.
Yuan Ye had been tirelessly trying to prove his innocence, but he hadn’t anticipated that the Prime Minister Li and his faction would take another approach. They directly accused him of not intending to prove his innocence at all but rather of giving up hope and resorting to treason, attempting to assassinate the Emperor and the Fourth Prince to secure the throne for himself.
Even if he were truly innocent, he couldn’t withstand the repeated accusations. Now, Yuan Ye finally felt a sense of being unable to explain himself and being at the end of his rope.
Chu Lishu’s move was aimed at forcing the Emperor to suspect Yuan Ye of harboring treacherous intentions, thereby preventing the Emperor from intentionally favoring Yuan Ye to maintain a balance of power. After all, what the Emperor feared most was a rebellion by his princes.
This was already the limit of what they could do. Even if they couldn’t definitively prove Yuan Ye’s guilt, the best outcome would be to depose him as the Crown Prince.
But even Chu Lishu hadn’t anticipated that someone would step forward at this moment to deliver a fatal blow to Yuan Ye.
Even Lin Qingyang, who knew the original plot, was unaware of this development.
Jing Rouyin received another secret letter. Shortly after, she took the initiative to come forward and exposed Yuan Ye’s involvement in the arson and murder, revealing every detail, including who carried out the deeds.
While it was true that Yuan Ye had ordered the actions, the extent of his involvement was uncertain.
With this revelation, arrests were made, confessions were coerced, and the evidence was laid bare. There was no room for denial anymore. This incident’s emergence directly increased the credibility of the poisoning case.
The Emperor was finally touched at his sore spot, erupting in anger and denying Yuan Ye any chance to defend himself.
Yuan Ye was deposed as the Crown Prince and confined to the Zongren’s residence, accompanied only by the deranged Third Prince. This sent shockwaves through the court, reshuffling the power dynamics once again. The faction supporting the Fourth Prince reveled in their triumph, as there seemed to be no one left to oppose them.
Jing Rouyin visited Yuan Ye, surprising him with her audacity. Enraged, Yuan Ye attempted to charge at her, only to be restrained by Jing Rouyin’s guards, leaving him staggering in frustration.
“Slut! You’re a slut!” yelled Yuan Ye hoarsely. He hadn’t expected that the one stabbing him in the back would be Jing Rouyin. “What good does this do for you? Don’t forget, you’re my Crown Princess.”
Jing Rouyin chuckled coldly. “Yuan Ye, didn’t you used to enjoy hitting me? Well, how does it feel now? Who’s the one getting hit?”
“Just for that?” Yuan Ye said incredulously.
Jing Rouyin’s expression turned fiercely intense in an instant. “I am of the Phoenix fate! Who are you to strike me? What right do you have to hit me? You’re despicable! Yuan Ye, you forced me, and yet you treat me like this. You deserve to die!”
“Hahaha, I forced you? It was always you who enticed me. Phoenix fate? You’ll never have the chance again in your life!” Yuan Ye laughed maniacally.
“Who said that?” Jing Rouyin suddenly smiled, placing a hand on her belly. “As long as the one inside my womb is the future emperor, I will still be the Phoenix. Perhaps this is my true destiny.”
Yuan Ye stared at Jing Rouyin’s belly in disbelief. Finally, he understood why Jing Rouyin dared to betray him. She was pregnant. The Emperor and the Empress Dowager would naturally favor her. As long as she gave birth to royal blood, her position would remain secure.
Seeing that Yuan Ye understood everything, Jing Rouyin spoke softly, “Stay here with peace of mind. I will take good care of our child. I will make sure he doesn’t turn out like you, I will raise him like Yuan Ran, after all, that’s the only way to become a true emperor.”
Yuan Ye was too furious to even catch his breath, roaring as if he wanted to rush forward, but Jing Rouyin had already turned and left.
On the other side, upon hearing that Empress Cheng had once again spat blood, the Empress Dowager, rarely leaving the palace, went to visit her. The matter involving Yuan Ye did not implicate Empress Cheng, as she had been bedridden all this while.
Upon seeing the Empress Dowager, Empress Cheng hurriedly pleaded to see Yuan Ye and spoke up for him. After all, she wasn’t foolish. If Yuan Ye was finished, she would be too.
“Queen Mother, that child already knows his identity. How could he possibly harm Your Majesty? It must be Concubine Mei and her faction plotting against him. You have to believe me, Queen Mother!”
The Empress Dowager sighed. “At least what Jing Rouyin said is true. Yuan Ye indeed had a hand in harming the Cheng family.”
Empress Cheng had already heard about it. She didn’t know what to do and could only shake her head tearfully, pleading with the Empress Dowager to save Yuan Ye. “Queen Mother, we’ve been together in the palace for the longest time. You can’t just ignore me!”
“The Emperor’s health has been poor lately, and he has become increasingly suspicious. If I were to advise him, it might backfire,” the Empress Dowager said with a compassionate expression. “All you can do is take care of your health. How long do you think you can hold on like this?”
Empress Cheng continued to tightly hold onto the Empress Dowager, pleading incessantly, but the Empress Dowager kept refusing, which seemed extremely cruel to Empress Cheng.
Seeing that Empress Cheng was not listening, the Empress Dowager could only excuse herself and prepare to visit Yuan Ye. After all, he was her grandson.
“Queen Mother!” Empress Cheng was furious when she saw her about to leave, abandoning them. “If it weren’t for you and the Cheng family forcing me back then, I wouldn’t have ended up in such an embarrassing situation. Both Yuan Ye and I could have been legitimate, but it’s because of you all that I ended up like this. And now you don’t care about me anymore?”
The Empress Dowager’s expression turned slightly cold. “You’re right. It was my fault. I shouldn’t have allowed you into the palace when I knew about your affection for Prince Ning. But that was also because your Cheng family refused to relinquish power. To me, whether you, a Cheng family daughter, were important or not didn’t matter. I was only concerned about the inheritance of the Great Zhou. It was the greed of your Cheng family that forced you into the palace. If it weren’t for me supporting you, advocating for you, and helping you lie, you wouldn’t have been able to live so comfortably for all these years. Yet you don’t even appreciate it. Instead, you blame me now. You’re truly unworthy compared to your sister!”
Upon hearing this, Empress Cheng became even more enraged. “You speak of helping me, but why did you then betray me afterwards? You caused discord between Prince Ning and me. To force me to prove my loyalty, he made me personally kill my sister! Do you know how many nightmares I’ve had because of that?”
“Don’t paint yourself as the victim. You were only seeking the affection of your beloved man. But I am different from you. Everything I’ve done has been for the sake of Great Zhou, for the Yuan Dynasty. I have no regrets.”
With that, the Empress Dowager stormed off, sweeping her sleeves behind her.
While the Empress Dowager was rarely away from the palace, Chu Lishu and Lin Qingyang had already infiltrated Ren Shou Palace.
Ning Ziheng had been serving by the Empress Dowager’s side since childhood and had heard some rumors about prophecies, but he didn’t know the details. Those who accidentally learned the contents of the prophecy were all executed, and others remained silent.
However, Ning Ziheng had once glimpsed the Empress Dowager hiding a document within a Buddha statue. If there was indeed an extremely important prophecy document, it was most likely the one he had seen.
If you love what Ciacia is doing, then consider showing your support by supporting a cup of coffee for her at Kofi. If you can’t wait for the next release chapter, subscribe to advanced chapters membership on her Kofi to get access to up to 10 chapters!
