xymnovel Chapter 147 The Golden Chest Alliance
Chapter 147 The Golden Chest Alliance
Chapter 147 The Golden Chest Alliance (Part Two)
The Taiyuan Marquis's residence appeared peaceful on the surface.
Zhao Guangyi sat upright in his study, anxiously awaiting news from Chen Tuan. His fingertips tapped incessantly on the tea table, his eyes filled with restlessness.
This matter concerns the position of heir apparent and his lifelong ambition; how could he possibly remain unmoved?
If Chen Tuan's words can thoroughly arouse Zhao Kuangyin's doubts, then Zhao Dezhao's position as crown prince will inevitably be in jeopardy, and he himself will be the one who ultimately wins!
"Judging from my elder brother's reaction just now, he must already be suspicious of Zhao Dezhao!"
Thinking of this, Zhao Guangyi's face flushed red. He could no longer contain himself and suddenly stood up, pacing anxiously back and forth in the study.
Just as he was lost in thought, hurried footsteps came from outside the study: "Your Majesty, a palace eunuch has arrived with His Majesty's decree!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Guangyi's eyes lit up instantly. He didn't even bother to straighten his robes before he strode out of the study and headed straight for the main hall!
Throughout the journey, Zhao Guangyi's smile not only did not fade, but instead grew even wider.
"The Emperor's decree at this time must be because Daoist Chen Tuan persuaded him to issue an order for a thorough investigation of Zhao Dezhao, which is why I was summoned to the palace!"
"The position of crown prince is already mine!"
With this thought in mind, he rushed to the main hall, and before the eunuch could speak, he bowed deeply and said urgently, "Your subject, Zhao Guangyi, receives the Emperor's decree!"
"His Majesty has decreed that Marquis Zhao Guangyi of Taiyuan be appointed—"
The eunuch unfolded the imperial edict with a blank expression: "—He is hereby dismissed from his post as Prefect of Kaifeng and transferred to Luoyang as Grand Commandant, to leave the capital within seven days—"
Dismissal from office? Leaving Beijing?
Upon hearing those words, Zhao Guangyi's face stiffened, and he was immediately stunned.
In the end, he was completely stunned, as if struck by lightning.
He raised his head blankly, unable to hear any of the eunuch's words, feeling as if everything was a nightmare and unreal.
The eunuch simply handed the imperial edict to him expressionlessly, saying in a flat tone, "Marquis of Taiyuan, accept the edict."
"The Marquis of Taiyuan?"
"Lord of Taiyuan, please receive the imperial decree!"
Only after the eunuch urged him repeatedly did Zhao Guangyi seem to be pulled back from his daze. He suddenly stretched out his trembling hands, which were so weak that he could barely hold anything, and snatched the imperial edict from the eunuch's hand like a madman. His breathing suddenly became rapid and heavy.
He stared intently at the vermilion imperial seal on the edict, scanning the words over and over again, his mind completely blank, with only a buzzing sound in his ears.
He finally understood.
It turns out that from beginning to end, the Emperor never believed in any witchcraft or sorcery, never believed Zhang Quhua's crazy talk, and never believed Chen Tuan's theory of celestial phenomena.
The words spoken in the Chui Gong Hall were nothing more than a test.
How ridiculous, truly ridiculous!
He acted as if victory was in his grasp, unaware that his elder brother had already seen through everything.
This imperial edict was not a punishment, nor a warning, but an expulsion!
The goal is to completely drive him out of the capital, the center of power, out of the emperor's sight, and out of this struggle for the throne, so that Zhao Dezhao can sit securely on the throne and ascend to the throne smoothly in the future!
"Brother Emperor—why?!"
A strong sense of resentment welled up in Zhao Guangyi's heart. He was clearly the emperor's closest younger brother, he clearly had the ambition to unify the world, and he was clearly the most suitable person to assist the emperor in achieving unparalleled success.
But why would the emperor entrust the future of his Song dynasty to a half-grown child rather than give him a chance?
"Brother, how could you be so cruel!"
Zhao Guangyi slowly closed his eyes, a feeling of utter despair instantly engulfing his entire body.
All the ambitions and plans of the past few days have vanished in an instant.
No matter how unwilling he was, he had no power to resist now that things had come to this.
My elder brother holds the power of life and death. If he dares to disobey the imperial edict, what awaits him will be a tragic end!
He had no choice but to accept it.
Zhao Guangyi slowly raised his head, his face drained of color, his eyes vacant as he stared at the eunuch, his voice hoarse like a broken gong: "Your subject—obeys the decree."
The eunuch saw him accept the imperial decree, said nothing more, and turned to leave.
After the eunuch left, Zhao Guangyi could no longer hold on. His legs gave way and he collapsed to the ground. The imperial edict slipped from his hand and fell to the ground. Its bright yellow color was particularly glaring in the dim hall.
After a long while—he was devastated, slowly got up, and walked back to his study in a daze, closed the door, and locked himself inside.
He just sat there quietly, without saying a word, staring blankly ahead, his eyebrows twitching slightly from time to time.
Resentment, anger, despair, and hatred—all sorts of emotions churned within me.
The flickering candlelight made his expression appear even more unpredictable. The man who was usually as gentle as a refined gentleman now had a face filled with resentment and unwillingness, making him look extremely creepy.
Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.
"My husband, my husband!"
The door was pushed open quickly, and Madam Fu floated in, her face beaming with undisguised joy: "Husband, my father has arrived in the capital! And he has already agreed—"
Halfway through her sentence, Madam Fu noticed Zhao Guangyi's unusual behavior. The joy on her face froze instantly, and she stopped in her tracks. Her heart tightened, and she cautiously stepped forward, asking softly, "Husband, what has happened?"
Zhao Guangyi remained silent, only slowly raising his head and giving her a blank look before extending a trembling hand to point to the imperial edict on the tea table.
Fu's heart sank, and she quickly picked up the imperial edict and hurriedly unfolded it to examine it closely.
As her gaze slowly swept across the words on the imperial edict, her face gradually turned deathly pale, her hands trembled slightly, and finally, she froze on the spot, her eyes filled with disbelief and astonishment.
"My husband—why did things turn out this way?"
"Heh heh—" Zhao Guangyi suddenly let out a bitter laugh: "One wrong step leads to another!"
Seeing Zhao Guangyi's utterly dejected appearance, Madam Fu suddenly snapped out of her daze. She gripped Zhao Guangyi's hand tightly, a resolute glint in her eyes: "Husband, you must pull yourself together! Things haven't reached the point of no return. Perhaps there is still a way to change His Majesty's mind and persuade him to retract his decree!"
Zhao Guangyi shook his head bitterly: "We've lost, we've already lost. My brother's mind is made up, and this imperial edict is the best proof of that. It's too late to change anything now."
"No! There's still a chance!"
Lady Fu said urgently, "Husband, have you forgotten that there is still someone in the world who can influence His Majesty's mind!"
""
Zhao Guangyi was slightly taken aback and subconsciously asked, "Who is it?"
"Mother!"
Madam Fu took a deep breath, a cold expression on her face: "Your mother has always doted on you the most. If she finds out that His Majesty intends to banish you from the capital, she certainly won't stand idly by!"
"Given your status as the Empress Dowager, if she insists on protecting you this once, even the most ruthless Emperor would not disobey her command!"
"After all, His Majesty has always valued filial piety!"