Tears suddenly welled up in the old woman's cloudy eyes, but she forced herself to remain calm. "Everyone knows that the eldest princess gave birth to a little princess..."
Huan Juntian asked, "Then why are you crying?"
The old woman recalled the scene in her memory of that innocent, exquisitely beautiful face, yet how it ruthlessly pushed the palace servant into the well. She tightly gripped the Buddhist prayer beads in her hand, saying, "I am grateful to my former master; I lost my composure for a moment."
Huan Juntian said in a deep voice, "You dare to lie even in front of Buddha and God? Aren't you afraid that Buddha will be disheartened?"
After returning to China, the old woman entered a Buddhist monastery, devoting herself to cleansing the sins of the Lord. Upon hearing Huan Juntian's words, the Buddhist prayer beads in her hand suddenly broke, falling to the ground with a clear sound.
The old woman was already in tears, choking back sobs as she said, "That child isn't normal... he's a madman..."
Qu Surou asked, "Who?"
"The child the eldest princess gave birth to for the Prince of Li..." the old woman sighed with her eyes closed, "He is not a princess, he is a prince."
"Why didn't you tell me about something so important!" Wu Yao was shocked and then enraged. "That bitch even lied to me!"
Qu Surou and Huan Juntian were both taken aback. Huan Juntian then asked, "Why did you conceal your identity?"
The old woman said, "If he were a prince, he probably wouldn't be alive today."
If a princess can only barely survive like this, imagine how much more bloodshed she would face if she were a prince, who would have the right to compete for the throne.
Of all the princes under the Prince of Li, only Huan Juntian remains, and Huan Juntian is currently leading a large army in Xiye.
Wu Yao suddenly looked at Huan Juntian and instantly realized, "This bastard, so he was after the throne from the very beginning..."
Even he was used! He foolishly promised Huan Changming the position of queen, he was completely played!
Huan Juntian looked at Qu Surou and said, "Senior Sister, I can't let him marry Senior Brother."
Lightning flashed and thunder roared in the night sky above the capital, signaling an approaching storm.
In preparation for his wedding the next day, Huan Changming was sent back to the palace by the Lu family.
His cold palace remained empty, and the gloomy, dark feeling was all too familiar to him.
He walked methodically through the dark hall. Suddenly, a window was blown open by the wind, and Mu Lingzi sat by the window. "The capital's defenses are weak and vulnerable. According to reports from Jing Yi's men planted by Huan Juntian, Huan Juntian has already ventured alone into Xiye and is confronting Wu Yao. All the imperial guards in the palace have been mobilized by Jing Yi using the Li King's edict. The entire capital is now under our control."
Huan Changming walked to the bronze mirror, which was about half a person's height, and looked at the stunningly beautiful girl reflected in it, saying, "Let's do it."
Mu Lingzi didn't even look up. "Tonight is indeed the best time to make a move."
"Proceed according to the original plan. You and Jingyi must not make the slightest mistake." Huan Changming tilted his head, and the girl in the mirror tilted her head as well. "Because I have been waiting for this day for a long time."
"knew."
Mu Lingzi disappeared into the night with the wind, and he silently closed the two windows.
The hall was plunged into darkness again. Huan Changming flicked his finger at the candlestick, and the candle flame lit up in the air.
Huan Changming's slender fingers brushed against the blue flower on his left earlobe, and the flower emitted a faint light before fading away.
At the same time, the girl's figure in the bronze mirror began to change. Her body was slowly lengthened, her slender limbs became longer, her weak arms became wider, her facial features became more defined, and her features lost their softness and gradually became sharp.
And on that slender, flat neck, there was an unusually prominent Adam's apple.
These are characteristics that only men should possess.
The slender and beautiful girl in the mirror was gone, replaced by a tall, imposing young man with a sharp and compelling aura and exquisitely beautiful features, yet showing no trace of femininity.
Huan Changming moved a little closer to the bronze mirror, reached out and touched the face of the unfamiliar boy in the mirror, and smiled at the boy. The boy returned his smile with a wicked and arrogant one.
Huan Changming opened his lips, his voice low and somber, and said to himself in the mirror, "Long time no see."
Tomorrow is the wedding day, but Lu Pianpian tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep for a long time.
He sent a letter to his master, inviting him to attend the ceremony, but he didn't know if his master would come.
He wondered what his junior sister in the palace was doing at this moment.
Is she, like me, tossing and turning, unable to sleep because of tomorrow's wedding?
Lu Pianpian hugged the quilt embroidered with mandarin ducks playing in the water, her mind filled with images of her junior sister in her red wedding dress the next day, gazing at him with a dreamy smile.
He hugged the blanket tightly, unable to fall asleep even more.
Tomorrow's junior sister will surely be the most beautiful bride in the world.
A note from the author:
Let's congratulate Lu Pianpian on her wedding tomorrow and her new fiancé!
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 30
At dawn, the courtiers of Li Kingdom filed into the Golden Palace, awaiting King Li to begin the morning court session.
The hall was completely silent. After a moment, a palace servant announced, "His Majesty has arrived!"
All the officials in the hall bowed their heads and knelt, saying, "Welcome, Your Majesty!"
Huan Changming, dressed in a black imperial robe and wearing a dark gold imperial crown, slowly walked towards the dragon throne.
He raised his hand and gently stroked the dragon pillar on his arm, a triumphant smile flashing in his deep, dark blue eyes.
He turned around, and below him knelt a dark mass of people, all bowing their heads in submission to him.
A satisfied smile appeared on Huan Changming's lips. He truly loved the feeling of holding power in his hands and having people submit at his feet.
He waved his sleeve and said, "All of you, rise!"
The ministers were all too familiar with the King's voice. Led by the old ministers, the faction suddenly scrambled to their feet, pointed at the unfamiliar young emperor on the dragon throne, and demanded, "Who are you? How dare you sit on the dragon throne? Aren't you afraid of being executed along with your entire family?"
"Where is His Majesty? Where is His Majesty?"
Jingyi walked in from outside the Golden Palace, his posture upright, holding an imperial edict respectfully in both hands.
Upon seeing this, Prime Minister Jing Yuan rebuked him in a low voice: "You fool, what do you think you're doing in front of the palace?!"
Jing Yi bypassed him and walked up to Huan Changming, who raised his hand to signal him: "Read it."
He nodded, turned to face the assembled officials, and unfurled the imperial edict, reading aloud: "By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The Ninth Prince Changming is of upright character and exceptional intelligence. He is hereby appointed Crown Prince. This is the imperial decree."
"Ninth Prince? Your Majesty, what Ninth Prince?!"
"The ninth one is clearly only that disgraced concubine, the Ninth Princess..."
"A guilty concubine?" Huan Changming chuckled softly. "Now that I have ascended the throne, my mother is naturally the Empress Dowager, who enjoys the highest honor. How can there be talk of her being a guilty concubine?"
He pointed at the minister who had called his mother a guilty concubine, "Take him away and rip out his tongue."
"Outrageous!" Jing Yuan saw Huan Changming's blue eyes, the kind only found among alien races, and he understood everything. "Huan Changming, you actually concealed your identity as a prince, deceiving the emperor! Today you even dare to usurp the throne and commit treason. With such wolfish ambitions, I will report to His Majesty and have you sentenced to death!"
Jingyi frowned and reminded him, "Father, be careful what you say. The late king has already passed away."
Upon hearing this, the court officials in the hall were all greatly surprised.
The old ministers, who prided themselves on their loyalty and righteousness, stepped forward one after another, shouting, "It must be you, you despicable and treacherous scoundrel, who has imprisoned His Majesty! Hand over His Majesty at once!"
"If we do not see His Majesty today, we will not acknowledge you as a treacherous usurper!"
"Where are the Imperial Guards? Quickly seize this fraudster and restore order to our Li Kingdom!"
A scream came from outside the hall; the minister who had spoken out of turn had his tongue cut out.
Huan Changming looked down at the loyal ministers below who wished they could tear him apart and devour him, and suddenly snapped his fingers.
A bloody head fell from the sky and landed right in the arms of Prime Minister Jingyuan.
Jingyuan held the head in his arms and looked at it. Li Wang opened his eyes wide in horror and met his gaze.
"Your Majesty...Your Majesty..." Jing Yuan's blood boiled with grief and indignation. He suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood and fell unconscious.
"Father!" Jingyi rushed over to catch Jingyuan, whose head fell into the crowd. When the ministers saw that it was Prince Li, they burst into grief and weeping.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty—"
"You wish to see the late Emperor? I have granted your request." Huan Changming rested his chin on his hand on the dragon throne and questioned them calmly, "Today is the first day of my ascension to the throne. Your wailing and howling, my beloved ministers, do you not take me seriously?"
"You traitorous scoundrel, you murdered the late emperor and forced him to abdicate! As long as I live, I will never acknowledge you as my king!"
Upon hearing this, Huan Changming looked at Jing Yi with amusement, "That's why I said long ago that a broken imperial edict cannot silence these loyal and righteous men."
Jingyi, concerned for his father's safety, asked, "Your Majesty, may I...?"
"Someone, take Jing Xiang away and have the imperial physician take good care of him."
Jingyi was finally relieved. "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"Jingyi, you are the son of Prime Minister Jing, yet you have betrayed your country to the side of a traitorous minister! This is utterly rebellious!"
Huan Changming stood up, drew a sword from the imperial guard beside him, walked down from the high platform, and came to the old minister who had rebuked Jingyi. "Well said, very well said."
"My heart is utterly loyal, heaven and earth bear witness, the sun and moon shine upon it! Even if I die by your sword today, you traitor, I will never bow down to you!"
He closed his eyes and presented his neck to Huan Changming for him to deal with.
Huan Changming suddenly threw his sword to the ground, clapped his hands, and sincerely praised, "Lord Li is such a loyal minister, a rare find in this world. If I were to kill Lord Li, how would I be any different from that ruthless tyrant who kills without blinking an eye?"
Hearing Huan Changming say this, Li Mou thought that the other party was trying to win him over. "Hmph, no matter how sweet your words are, I will never work for you. You villain, you'd better give up on that idea!"
"What a pity, what a pity," Huan Changming lamented. "Lord Li is such a loyal minister, I certainly cannot touch him. But... perhaps there is still room for maneuver for the more than one hundred people in Lord Li's household?"
Li Mou's eyes widened suddenly. "You...you scoundrel, what are you trying to do!"
Huan Changming said kindly to him, "I heard that Lord Li had a daughter late in life and loves her very much. She is only a day old now, but she is already the apple of Lord Li's eye. If something were to happen to her by accident... it would be such a pity."
Li Mou's face immediately turned ashen. He was willing to die for the country and the nation, but if his daughter was implicated, he would have no face to face even in the underworld.
Huan Changming smiled as he watched fear gradually fill the face that had been so defiant just moments before. "Lord Li, have you thought this through?"
"If you want to be a loyal subject, I will let you go back to your residence and will not hinder you in the slightest."
Li Mou looked at the young emperor before him in horror.
This person has been lying low in the cold palace for many years, and his situation is even worse than that of the lowest-ranking criminal slave in the country. However, he has still managed to survive until now. For this reason, he even went so far as to change his appearance, hide his male identity and disguise himself as a woman, and climb step by step to the current imperial throne.
Who knows what kind of cunning and scheming they possess?
Now they can even seize his weakness, forcing him to waver.
This person, so skilled at winning hearts and minds, actually impressed Li Mou.