While crying, Huan Mi rummaged through boxes and cabinets, and finally found Huan Changming's earring in an inconspicuous box.
"I found it! I found it..." Huan Mi held the box in both hands, knelt on the ground and presented it to Huan Changming, smiling ingratiatingly, "I found it, here you go..."
"It's filthy." Huan Changming didn't touch the box Huan Mi had touched. He picked up the pair of earrings and held them up to his eyes. Seeing the layer of dust on them, he said with disgust, "My things are none of anyone else's business..."
Upon hearing this, Huan Mi scrambled to his feet and ran outside in a panic.
There was a pool in front of her palace. In the past, when she humiliated Huan Changming, she ordered someone to throw Huan Changming into the pool, which almost drowned Huan Changming, who could not swim.
At that moment, several palace servants were guarding the pool.
Huan Mi suddenly remembered the time he had abused Huan Changming, and his steps involuntarily slowed down.
"Why aren't you running anymore?" Huan Changming's voice sounded softly behind her.
Huan Mi's face turned deathly pale. "No...you said you'd let me go..."
"I didn't say you couldn't leave, keep going."
Why are you afraid to go any further?
"Does this remind you of the time you had someone throw me into the pool and almost drowned me?"
"You were standing by the pond, watching me struggle and wail in the water. It must have felt great, right? I remember you were laughing so happily back then!"
"I feel quite happy now, why do you think that is, my elder sister?"
Before Huan Mi could even speak, two palace maids suddenly grabbed her from the left and right and forcefully pushed her head into the pool.
Huan Changming watched Huan Mi's struggle for a while. Normally, he would have found it enjoyable, but for some reason, the scene of Lu Pianpian vomiting blood and fainting in front of him a few moments ago kept flashing through his mind.
Huan Mi's shouting only exacerbated his irritability and boredom. He ordered the palace servants to spare Huan Mi's breath before returning to his own bedchamber.
Lu Pianpian was still lying unconscious on his bed. He angrily questioned the imperial physician, "Why isn't he awake yet? What happened to him?!"
The imperial physician replied tremblingly, "Your Majesty... this young master fainted due to a sudden surge of anger, coupled with his weak constitution and depleted blood and qi... Once he wakes up, this old minister will prescribe some medicine to replenish his strength..."
"After all that talk, you still haven't told me when he'll wake up! You quack, drag him away and behead him!"
"Your Majesty, please forgive me! Your Majesty, please forgive me! This old minister's sins do not warrant death, Your Majesty..."
Huan Changming ignored the imperial physician's pleas for mercy. Just as the imperial physician was about to be dragged out by the imperial guards and beheaded, the person on the bed slowly opened his eyes.
"woke up?"
Huan Changming quickly sat down on the edge of the bed. Lu Pianpian's eyes were fixed on him silently. Their eyes met for only a moment, but Huan Changming understood what Lu Pianpian was thinking.
He scoffed, "You can barely take care of yourself, and you're thinking about saving others?"
"Alright, Lu Pianpian, I'll give you this chance. Beg me, and maybe I'll take pity on that quack and spare his life."
Lu Pianpian clenched the blanket in her palm, then loosened it as if in resignation after a moment, "Please."
In the past, when Huan Changming and Lu Pianpian were together, Huan Changming was always the one in a weaker position, relying on Lu Pianpian for help. Now that their positions were reversed, Huan Changming suddenly felt a strange sense of satisfaction.
Even his agitated mood improved a bit. "Tell that quack outside that it was Young Master Lu who pleaded with me on his behalf, and that's how he was spared his life."
The imperial physicians' wails and pleas for mercy finally stopped, and were replaced by cries of "Thank you, Your Majesty" and "Thank you, Young Master Lu."
Huan Changming grew tired of listening and ordered him to be driven away. He then pulled Lu Pianpian out of bed and said, "Now that I'm the emperor, don't you have anything to say to me?"
Although he tried his best to hide his inner emotions, the hint of expectation in his eyes could not be concealed.
He seemed to be really looking forward to hearing something from Lu Pianpian.
Lu Pianpian was silent for a moment before asking, "How is Prince Li?"
"He's dead. He's already the late emperor."
Lu Pianpian's knuckles turned white from clenching her fists. After a long silence, she finally asked, "Why you?"
Why? It's Huan Changming.
Huan Changming was stunned for a moment, then suddenly grabbed Lu Pianpian's shoulders, forcing him to look at him, and said angrily, "So what if it's me?"
"It is I, this lowly and contemptible sinner, who has become the esteemed Prince Li! Not your beloved, high and mighty junior brother!"
"Lu Pianpian, do you hate me so much that I stole your junior brother's throne?"
A note from the author:
Completely ruined;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 32
The atmosphere inside the hall became deathly still.
Huan Changming's fingers tightened on Lu Pianpian's shoulders. His face was mocking, whether at Lu Pianpian or himself, it was unclear. "What? Did I hit the nail on the head? Now you have nothing to say?"
Lu Pianpian looked away from his face and said in an almost calm tone, "If my junior brother were to become emperor, he would never use such methods as you."
Huan Juntian will only fight for what belongs to him openly and honestly, and he will not complain even if he loses in the end.
In contrast, Huan Changming forced the emperor to abdicate and murdered him, used brutal methods to suppress the officials, and ascended the throne in the most shady way.
Huan Changming laughed out loud, "Even if Huan Juntian is good in your heart, the one sitting on the throne now is me, Huan Changming, not Huan Juntian!"
"With just one imperial decree, I can demote Huan Juntian to a commoner! He will no longer be the eldest son of the emperor, revered by the entire nation!"
"So what?" Lu Pianpian pried Huan Changming's fingers apart. "Even if my junior brother isn't a prince, his true nature won't change."
To Huan Changming, these words sounded like Lu Pianpian mocking his fickleness and saying he was inferior to Huan Juntian.
Throughout the country, countless people compared him to Huan Juntian. Huan Changming had also secretly resented the injustice of fate. Although they were both princes, Huan Juntian was as noble as the bright moon and gentle breeze, while he was so lowly that he was not even as good as an insect under Huan Juntian's feet.
He had resented and cursed before, but he had never felt as angry as he did at this moment.
Lu Pianpian compared him to Huan Juntian and even felt that he was inferior to Huan Juntian.
Realizing this, Huan Changming gritted his teeth in anger, "Lu Pianpian!"
Lu Pianpian didn't know where his anger came from, but she didn't want to stay in the palace any longer.
Lu Pianpian threw back the covers and got out of bed, heading towards the palace gate. Huan Changming grabbed her wrist, "Did I grant you permission to get out of bed?!"
Lu Pianpian tried to pull her wrist back a few times, but couldn't. "Let me go."
Where do you want to go?
Return to the prefecture, go to the border, find your senior and junior brothers; in short, you can't stay here any longer.
"Lu Pianpian, you want to tip off your junior brother, don't you?" Huan Changming pulled Lu Pianpian in front of him, looking down at the boy who was half a head shorter than him. "Do you think I'd be stupid enough to let you leave to help Huan Juntian and come together to deal with me?"
“You usurped the throne and forced the emperor to abdicate. Such a big thing happened that even if I didn’t tell you, my junior brother would have found out sooner or later.”
Huan Changming knew, of course, that this matter couldn't be kept secret, and that he and Huan Juntian would have a battle sooner or later.
All he wanted right now was Lu Pianpian's attitude. "Lu Pianpian, I'm giving you a chance... help me, or help Huan Juntian?"
In fact, Huan Changming already had the answer to this question, but he just couldn't help having a slight expectation for Lu Pianpian, hoping that Lu Pianpian could abandon Huan Juntian and lean on him.
Just as Lu Pianpian opened her lips to speak, a palace maid trotted in and said, "Your Majesty, Young Master Jing has come to request an audience."
"Announce!"
Jing Yi walked in from outside the hall and bowed respectfully to Huan Changming. "Your Majesty, I have persuaded some veteran officials to come and pledge their allegiance to Your Majesty. They are just outside the hall."
The morning court session turned into a bloodbath. Many officials, in order to protect the lives of their wives, children, and elderly parents, only verbally yielded, but in their hearts they were more resentful.
In just half a day, he has managed to convince some veteran officials to come and surrender, which shows Jingyi's ability.
"You've worked hard."
Huan Changming personally helped Jing Yi up, and Jing Yi smiled and said, "This is all a subject's duty."
Huan Changming nodded, glancing at Lu Pianpian behind him, "Keep an eye on him for me. I'm going to meet with those old ministers first."
"I obey the order."
Huan Changming left, leaving Lu Pianpian and Jing Yi inside the hall. Jing Yi bowed to Lu Pianpian and said, "Young Master Lu, how have you been?"
Lu Pianpian and Jing Yi had nothing to say to each other. Taking advantage of Huan Changming's absence, she planned to climb out the window, but was bounced back by a force just as her hand touched the windowsill.
“Ordinary houses could not possibly contain Young Master Lu. Fortunately, His Majesty has also received the assistance of a capable and extraordinary person. Otherwise, how could I, on my own, possibly keep an eye on Young Master Lu?”
Jing Yi approached Lu Pianpian with a gentle smile, "Speaking of which, we were able to wipe out the remnants of the party that opposed His Majesty overnight and assist His Majesty in ascending the throne. Young Master Lu deserves the greatest credit."
Lu Pianpian had no idea what was going to happen. "What are you trying to say?"
Jingyi said gratefully, "If it weren't for Young Master Lu stealing Lord Lu Zhong's token for mobilizing the military tally and the imperial seal from his home, how could we have so easily mobilized the Imperial Guards and the city's garrison, controlled the palace and its surroundings without lifting a finger, and even used the imperial seal on the edict of succession, allowing His Majesty to rightfully ascend the throne..."
"All of this is thanks to Young Master Lu."
Lu Pianpian stood stiffly in place, staring blankly at Jing Yi.
Jing Yi, however, seemed completely unaware of this. "His Majesty endured humiliation and had no choice but to disguise himself as a woman in the past. I suppose Young Master Lu was well aware of this. Otherwise, he wouldn't have used the pretext of bestowing a marriage as a cover to invite His Majesty to stay at the Lu residence, making it easier for us to accomplish our plan."
"However, now that Your Majesty has reverted to his male form, this marriage can be considered closed. From now on, Young Master Lu and I will serve in the same court and will surely become Your Majesty's right-hand men. Perhaps, a thousand years from now, our story will even become a legend of a ruler and his minister..."
Lu Pianpian didn't hear a single word of what Jing Yi said after that.
It turns out he was the culprit behind all this; he was the one who let the wolf into the house, starting with the arranged marriage...
All of this was a carefully planned scam by Huan Changming, and he was just a fool who was used and deceived.
A sudden, excruciating pain shot through the spot in his chest where his spiritual bone had been lost, a pain so intense that even the Herbal Skin-Controlling Grass could barely contain it.
Lu Pianpian clutched her chest, her face pale, and collapsed to the ground. Jing Yi tried to help her up, but Lu Pianpian pushed him to the ground.
Huan Changming walked in at that moment and witnessed Jing Yi being pushed down by Lu Pianpian. "Lu Pianpian, are you crazy?"
He helped Jingyi up, and Jingyi said through his pain, "Your Majesty, I'm fine."
"Let me, the Imperial Physician, take a look at you."
Huan Changming comforted Jing Yi a few more times, then turned to pull Lu Pianpian, who was still sitting on the ground. But as soon as his hand touched Lu Pianpian's sleeve, she dodged away in disgust.
"Get out..." Lu Pianpian's forehead was dripping with sweat. "Get out of here!"
"This is my palace, and no one has the right to order me to get out of here!"
Huan Changming was further enraged by Lu Pianpian's inexplicable anger. Lu Pianpian told him not to touch her, but he insisted on touching her anyway!