There was a faint hint of struggle in Lao Zhou's eyes, and he finally let out a long sigh.
"That's all. Now that we've said it, we have nothing to hide. I just ask the prince to keep it secret and never tell anyone else about it."
"Don't worry, Old Zhou. I am not the kind of person with a loud mouth. If this matter had not been related to national affairs, I would never have mentioned this matter to you, Old Zhou. It was all for the sake of the imperial court."
"When a person dies, it is like a lamp going out. Let bygones be bygones."
"We can feel relieved now."
"During the banquet, His Majesty deliberately poured more wine into King Huainan, making him dizzy and unable to stay clear."
"Then they secretly left the palace together. His Majesty tricked King Huainan into inviting Concubine Jing, Deng Chan, who had not yet left the palace at that time."
"Under His Majesty's careful arrangements, the Queen was extremely drunk that day, so we don't need to say more about the rest."
"Your Majesty lives with Concubine Jing in the same room, but he doesn't even move a finger on her. All His Majesty wants is a name, a name that will prevent Concubine Jing and the King of Huainan from getting married."
"Later, under His Majesty's control, this matter gradually spread to the ears of the Queen Mother. Due to the royal family's face and some of His Majesty's push behind the scenes, King Huainan finally had no choice but to part ways with her and ended her marriage for an unreasonable reason. The marriage with Concubine Jing.”
Liu Mingzhi looked at Lao Zhou with a strange expression: "Are you sure that Ming Gong reluctantly gave up his love, rather than being forced to do so?"
Lao Zhouyi was stunned, and he smiled bitterly twice: "Oh, we don't have to joke about these things."
"Okay, I understand, please continue."
"His Majesty finally got his wish and made Deng Chan Concubine Jing. If it weren't for that chair, the brotherhood between His Majesty and the King of Huainan would be considered the better among the brothers in private."
"Out of guilt for King Huainan, His Majesty rewarded King Huainan with countless beauties, and named him King Cheng, allowing him to live in the capital permanently and never leave the vassal."
"However, the King of Huainan has been depressed since then. He hangs around brothels and bars all day long, drinking and causing trouble. In his early twenties, half of his black hair has turned gray, and his face is haggard and withered."
"Later, due to an accidental mistake... we can't tell you the specific circumstances."
"His Majesty secretly arranged the tryst between Concubine Jing and King Huainan?"
"What!"
"Doesn't this mean that He Zong may really be the bloodline of Duke Ming?"
Young Master Liu shook his arms and exclaimed in shock.
This is too bloody!
Lao Zhou looked at Young Master Liu's exclamation and shook his head silently: "My lord, please listen to me and continue, things are not what you think."
Liu Mingzhi nodded blankly: "You'd better make it clear once and for all, otherwise my heart will have to jump out. Let me just say, it's something that ordinary men can't bear. As a great hero, my father How could the Lord do such a thing!”
"It was a Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival outside the city. His Majesty arranged something that caused King Huainan and Concubine Jing to drink too much and have an affair."
"It's just that all of this is under the control of His Majesty. The one who has the happiness of human relations with King Huainan is just a palace maid. Naturally, the only one who can be close to Concubine Jing is His Majesty himself."
"After everything happened, under His Majesty's instructions and under the control of the palace ladies, a drunken affair became a fact."
"How could the two of them remember what happened after they woke up and mistakenly think that something unethical happened between them?"
"His Majesty knows everything about it. Maybe it's to lighten the burden on his heart, or it's something else I don't know."
"Your Majesty's original intention was to make King Huainan feel guilty because of this incident, so he would gradually forget about taking Concubine Jing and find a new love."
"Your Majesty originally planned to silence this matter completely, but unfortunately, Concubine Jing, whose belly had been silent all this time, actually became pregnant with His Majesty's dragon vein, He Zong, under this arrangement. "
"You don't need to tell me what happens next. You should understand what's going on?"
Young Master Liu nodded blankly: "From beginning to end, this was just a misunderstanding carefully arranged by my father. My father knew what was going on, but he couldn't explain it clearly. The more my father behaved like this, the more Ming Gong became. I thought He Zong was actually his flesh and blood,"
"Yes, His Majesty was unable to explain what happened, which caused a series of misunderstandings later."
"Ming Gong will naturally not publicize his one-night affair with Concubine Jing. After all, he always believes that He Zong is his flesh and blood."
Young Master Liu nodded with twitching lips. Thinking of Li Zheng's majestic appearance, an idea came to his mind.
Cruel people, cruel people.
In the calculation, even myself is included in the conspiracy, and I am also... alas...
I just pity Mr. Ming, I'm afraid he's still kept in the dark until now.
"Later, with His Majesty's acquiescence, things happened until the late emperor and the princes came of age, and it was time to compete for the position of prince."
"The King of Huainan was still King Cheng at that time, and he never left the capital. In addition, he always believed that Hezong was the culmination of him and Concubine Jing, so he became high-spirited, changed his decadent attitude, and became prosperous in the court. rise."
"And the best supporter of He Zong's fight for the crown prince's position is naturally inseparable from the support of King Huainan."
"He Zong was the most popular person in the court at that time. The late emperor was defeated one after another. Under the control of King Huainan, almost most of the civil and military officials in the court stood behind He Zong."
"However, these matters in the court could not be hidden from His Majesty's eyes and ears. Later, the incident of He Zong's promiscuity in the harem naturally happened."
"All the officials related to him were implicated. At that time, King Huainan was demoted from King Yizicheng to Jiangnan and became King of Huainan."
"Any official who has a relationship with He Zong will have consequences..."
"Even your mentor, I heard that his family was also implicated. He was demoted from a prominent family in the capital to Shu."
"Actually, His Majesty's favorite successor is not the late Emperor Li Baiyu, but Hezong Li Yunlong, who was repeatedly suppressed by him."
Liu Mingzhi was stunned for a moment and looked at Lao Zhou in surprise: "If that's the case, why is he doing this?"
"Alas... He Zong is too much like His Majesty. He is exactly the same as His Majesty in terms of temperament and methods. Moreover, because of the support of King Huainan and the officials, he acts a bit decisively and ruthlessly."
"Your Majesty understands in his heart that once Hezong succeeds to the throne, the lives of the late emperor, King Qing, King Jing, King Yun... and their brothers will surely be in danger."
"He Zong's temperament was too overbearing and ruthless. Your Majesty said that he might be a wise king, but he was destined to be a tyrant, so he chose his eldest son Li Baiyu, a prince with a gentle temperament and no less talent than He Zong, to inherit the throne. "
Liu Mingzhi couldn't help but recall the story of his daughter Xiaocutai telling him about the civil unrest in the capital.
When Li Yunlong broke through the city, he threatened Li Baiyu not to abandon the city at the cost of the lives of the people in the city, in case he was waiting to summon the northern Xinjiang army to come back and regain the throne.
There are hundreds of thousands of people inside and outside the capital. Liu Mingzhi cannot deny that Li Zheng has a good eye for people.
Compared to Li Baiyu, Li Yunlong has always been a bit crueler.
Liu Mingzhi smiled bitterly, remembering the words he persuaded Li Yunlong before he drank the poisonous wine to prevent him from leaving with resentment.
It was originally a white lie, but unexpectedly it turned out to be a true prophecy.
It turns out that in the eyes of his father, the best candidate to inherit the throne is really Li Yunlong.
I don’t know if this is considered unintentional or not.
Liu Mingzhi played with the tea cup in his hand with complicated eyes: "In other words, even now, Mr. Ming, who has lived in the clan's mansion for a long time, still thinks that He Zong is his flesh and blood?"
Lao Zhou nodded with complicated eyes.
"The King of Huainan is also a pitiful man, a pitiful man who suffered from the struggle for imperial power."
"But being born into the royal family, this should be his destiny. With the change of thrones in the past dynasties, there will always be a group of innocent people who have to sacrifice for the imperial power. This is a fact that no one can change."
Liu Mingzhi nodded silently.
Unexpectedly, the truth back then was so shocking.
Looking at Li Zheng's memorial tablet with complex eyes, Liu Mingzhi sighed quietly as he remembered what Lao Zhou had said before.
Sure enough, a good emperor is never a good person.
The things I did for the sake of the country and the country were simply...yes...
"So the whereabouts of the next prince Li Geng and the turmoil in the court may not be the work of Duke Ming?"
Lao Zhou frowned and shook his head silently.
"We don't know, but if there are traces to follow, the prince should be able to find out the truth!"
Liu Mingzhi nodded with complicated eyes, and then shook his head.
"I, the king, will do my best to fulfill my duty as a minister. As for the truth, we will only know it in the end."
"Lao Zhou, the matter has been made clear. I won't disturb you any more. We will meet again when you clear the house."
"My king takes my leave."
Lao Zhou gently stroked the fly whisk, closed his eyes and nodded.
"My lord, please go slowly. I'll see you off a short distance away!"
