Chapter 15 Father-daughter conversation
Zuo Xiang walked into the study humming a little tune. When he saw his daughter's face flushed and worried, he couldn't help but want to vomit blood. If that thief were not a prince, I would definitely skin him alive.
The Prime Minister Zuo sat on the chair and said softly: "Ruoxi, can you tell what happened today?" After drinking tea, he waited for a while and didn't hear an answer. He looked up at his daughter, and when he saw her, he still looked lost. , looking worried about gains and losses, the anger that had been suppressed with difficulty came out again, and the angry left prime minister put down the tea cup hard.
"Clang!" A sound of clinking porcelain woke up Meng Ruoxi. She looked at the source of the sound and saw her father glaring at her with a look of hatred on his face. There was an extra person in the room. Meng Ruoxi jumped, "Ah! Father, how long did you come here? You didn't even know to call me when you came in."
Meng Ruoxi's words made Zuo Xiang feel powerless and exhausted! Zuo Xiang said feebly: "I came in a long time ago. What were you thinking about just now? You were so lost in thought."
"I was thinking about that boarding..." Meng Ruoxi realized that she had said the wrong thing and immediately fell silent. Just thinking about that little thief, why does my heart beat wildly? !
"Hmph! What a curse, what a curse! I have raised you in vain, and you are confused just because of his sweet words?!" At this time, the left prime minister no longer knows what words can be used to describe his mood. Anyway, It’s just a mixed bag of flavors.
"I, I didn't..." The guilty voice gradually became quieter after being exposed by his father.
"Forget it, just let everything go. Don't mention him anymore. Tell your father what happened today. You can sort it out and then tell him what you think about it." Zuo Xiang was not thinking about the topic of that man. The discussion continued, and then he asked the questions he had asked when he came in.
When Meng Ruoxi heard the question asked by her father, she also gathered her mind, sat upright and began to think deeply.
"Ever since my daughter was raped by that little thief..." After saying this, he realized that he had said the wrong thing, his face flushed slightly, and he lowered his head shyly. When Zuo Xiang heard the word "little thief", it sounded harsh to him, but he really couldn't get angry now, because he didn't dare to get angry, and he was afraid of being angry again. If something happened to him, his daughter would Who is going to make the decision for him when he is being bullied by that villain?
Meng Ruoxi looked at her father secretly, and saw that his expression did not change much, so she continued: "My daughter, let's sort it out from the main hall first. My daughter just wanted to seek death, and she did not participate in it and did not know about it. "As he said this, he secretly looked at his father again, and saw that he was concentrating on drinking tea, and he breathed a sigh of relief unconsciously.
"My daughter remembers that the third prince was the first to take the initiative, saying that he wanted to punish the fourth prince. Then at this time, the second prince came out and asked the emperor to kill the fourth prince and break off the engagement with me. Then the fourth prince came out to propose marriage to me. After hearing this, his daughter wanted to seek death, but was stopped by the fourth prince. The daughter then begged the emperor to marry him. When the emperor saw that the eldest prince also came out to plead, he agreed to the matter, but not only did he not He promised to reward the fourth prince and even directly deprived him of his inheritance rights."
"Well, then you can analyze it further." Zuo Xiang put down the tea cup and asked.
"Well... the first one should be the third prince who jumped out to make an attack. Although it was right to make an attack at that time, the emperor had already asked his father about it, so it would not be appropriate to come out now. On the contrary, people would be suspicious of him. There are ulterior motives.
The eldest prince and the fourth prince stood together. The eldest prince wanted to take this opportunity to acquire troops and weaken the power of the second prince. In this way, not only would his power be the largest, but the eldest prince could also gain a firm foothold in the Ministry of War. From now on, he would maintain The delicate balance will be disrupted.
The third prince's attack should be to remove a threat. After all, the imperial concubine stands behind the fourth prince. In recent years, the imperial concubine has been secretly planning and developing power for the fourth prince. Now there are many emperors in the court. Although the imperial concubine has no important ministers, she is still a force that cannot be underestimated.
It is understandable that the second prince made things difficult for the fourth prince and withdrew from the emperor because of emotions and reasons. "Meng Ruoxi had a bitter look on her face, and she thought of that man's ruthlessness and his unkindness.
"Hey! You! I only saw one, but not the other. Didn't you see the tricks of the people behind the scenes?! Didn't you see the main purpose?!" The left minister was a little unhappy when he saw his daughter being so stupid, although I can see most of it, but I'm still very unhappy. Why is my daughter, who was so smart before, so stupid now? Could it be the sequelae of hanging himself?
Meng Ruoxi bit her lower lip and said aggrievedly: "Please give me some advice, father."
"I'm afraid what happened today was planned by the third prince, or it might be planned by the adviser behind the third prince! No matter who it is, the ultimate goal is to kill you and the fourth prince!" The words of the left prime minister were like a depth bomb, dreaming Ruoxi's mind was filled with shock. She really didn't see that the purpose of the conspiracy behind it was to kill her.
"The third prince must have been planning this for a long time. It is probably the third prince's fault that the fourth prince came to your room last night. The fourth prince was caught and raped in bed. Not only will your innocence be humiliated, but it will also make me I became so angry that I lost my mind and my judgment on the whole matter, and then concluded that I would go to the emperor to ask for an explanation.
When the emperor learned about this, he must have punished the fourth prince in order to appease my anger. After the second prince found out, he must have been furious and put pressure on the emperor, forcing him to execute the fourth prince and then break off the engagement. You are a woman with a strong character. You will definitely seek death and take the opportunity to destroy the alliance between me and the second prince, although I have never stated that I will stand with the second prince.
If the emperor can't bear to execute the fourth prince, he will punish the fourth prince in order to appease my anger, but it will also make me unwilling. The loss of my beloved daughter will create a rift between me and the emperor, and then take the opportunity to eat away at my love. power, so that the third prince can increase his bargaining chips for the future throne. When the fourth prince came out afterwards, it would be difficult for him to develop his own power, and it would even lead to the disaster of killing.
No matter whether the fourth prince dies or not, as long as the fourth prince is caught and raped in bed, the second prince will break off the engagement with you for the sake of his own face, making the second prince completely lose his wishful thinking. And if you die, although the second prince can no longer get the support of his father, he can still eat away at his father's power with the third prince.
This is the conspiracy behind it. Although the plan is clumsy, it is not a vicious plan. It can not only eliminate a competitor, but also make the second prince's wishful thinking come to nothing. It can also increase the bargaining chip for himself to ascend to the throne in the future.
In fact, it did develop according to the third prince's plan. I just didn't expect that someone would take advantage of it. Guess who that person is? "
"Could it be?" Meng Ruoxi pondered for a moment and thought of a possibility, "It can't be...the fourth prince, from a profit perspective.
The eldest prince basically got nothing. He originally thought that the emperor could agree to one of the conditions proposed. Who would have thought that the emperor directly understood the eldest prince's intention and directly deprived the fourth prince of his inheritance rights. Let the eldest prince's plan fail.
The third prince's strategy was not completely successful, but it could eliminate one competitor. It can also be said that something has been gained.
On the surface, the second prince lost me and did not get the chance to encroach on the power above the court, but he could accept the elimination of a competitor.
Although the fourth prince only received a favor from me and your father, from the perspective of punishment, it seems that he was scolded, but in fact it was the emperor's protection in disguise, which allowed him to escape from the competition for his legitimate son. No matter who is in power in the future, he can keep his name. Then in order to keep him away from the imperial power, the person in power will definitely reward him with a fief and let him retire there. Therefore, he must be the one who benefits the most. "After careful analysis, Meng Ruoxi pursed her lips and said slowly. At this time, Meng Ruoxi felt a chill on her back. She didn't expect that the disciple who likes beauties had such a plan.
"Well, it's good. Indeed, the emperor's punishment today was obviously intended to protect the fourth prince. It seems that the rumors are true. The emperor loves this youngest son the most. Fortunately, you are not too stupid. You can see the person behind it. Confrontation?" Meng Ruoxi said: "Please give me father's advice."
"The person who pulled the trick is indeed the fourth prince, or to be precise, the person behind him. However, in the past few years, the fourth prince has never taken the initiative to recruit advisers. Only the imperial concubine has cultivated power secretly. You also know that the imperial concubine is because of Dali. She got married just after a marriage, so she must be very scheming. The imperial concubine grew up with the princes and princesses of Dali Kingdom since she was a child. She was all handed over by a teacher, so she must know some imperial power skills."
Meng Ruoxi was a little stunned by what Zuo Xiang said, and said in disbelief: "No wonder the fourth prince is so mischievous, and even staged a ridiculous attempt to rob a civilian girl, but it was also dismissed lightly. . It turns out it’s because the emperor needs the imperial concubine to check and balance others." Meng Ruoxi had only one thought in her mind, and she really couldn’t look down on anyone.
"Yes, the emperor has a very big plan. We will talk about this later. Let's deal with the matter at hand first. Let's continue to talk about the fourth prince... who should be the imperial concubine. Not only did he use the general's trick, but he also used the bitter meat trick. The two strategies are in harmony with each other. Only by combining can we solve this matter completely.
After the fourth prince returned to the mansion, he probably told the whole story to the imperial concubine, and realized that someone was behind the whole incident. The imperial concubine asked the fourth prince to see the emperor immediately, but she knew that the emperor was angry and would not see her. The fourth prince, so let the fourth prince take the initiative to come and plead guilty. In this way, even if the emperor is ruthless, the queen on the side will give the emperor a step up in order to take care of the royal family's face.
When the fourth prince met the emperor and knew that the second prince would break off the engagement for the sake of face, as long as the second prince revealed the matter of breaking off the engagement and asked the fourth prince to take the initiative to take responsibility for the emperor, and then propose to marry him, this would not only solve the problem for the fourth prince. The situation can also shatter those people's wishful thinking.
But what I didn't expect was that the imperial concubine had just started her own counterattack, and you committed suicide by hanging yourself, putting the imperial concubine at a disadvantage. The sudden change also left the imperial concubine a little helpless. But I didn't expect that the fourth prince actually saved you, which made the imperial concubine confirm her original plan.
The fourth prince who was waiting finally saw the emperor. Unexpectedly, the third prince was still too immature and could not calm down. He jumped out in advance, making everyone present suspicious of the third prince. Then the second prince came out to break off the engagement and commit suicide. The timing of these appearances was so abrupt that everyone confirmed what they were thinking. The whole thing was that the third prince and the second prince were causing trouble behind the scenes.
The second prince asked the emperor to grant the death of his younger brother, and proposed to the emperor to break off the engagement with you, which made everyone see his ruthlessness. This is also the reason why my father has always disagreed with the marriage between the two of you. If you marry someone to collect evidence and get caught, you may be killed. "
Meng Ruoxi now finally knew the reason why her father had always refused marriage. She couldn't help but darken her eyes. It turned out that her father had long known about his ruthlessness and unrighteousness. Although she only contacted him for her own purposes, she couldn't deny it, but she was really right. He was moved, and now that he saw his true feelings clearly, he was still a little sad.
Zuo Xiang sipped his tea and raised his eyes to see his daughter's eyes. He was very pleased. It was good that he could use this incident to let his daughter see how ruthless and ruthless the second prince was. Although the overall situation was too twists and turns, the result was acceptable. . He took another sip of tea to moisten his dry throat and continued.
"Although the third prince jumped out in advance, it does not affect the overall situation. In addition, the second prince's push and encouragement can speed up the progress of the entire plan.
At this point, the confrontation between the two people behind the scenes can only be a draw.
But unexpectedly, at this time, the imperial concubine used a trick to get rid of the enemy. Since the rice has been cooked, she will marry you directly. It will also give the fourth prince a good reputation and let outsiders know that although the fourth prince is a dissolute man, But there is love and righteousness, you can correct your mistakes when you know them, and you dare to take responsibility. At this point, basically as long as the emperor agrees, the core point of the entire poison plan can be completely destroyed. Turn passivity into initiative, so that the Third Prince's advisers no longer have a chance to take advantage of them.
The imperial concubine told the fourth prince's plan to ask him to marry you, which made the third prince's adviser feel a little uncomfortable. However, seeing your refusal and actively seeking death, the third prince's adviser breathed a sigh of relief. Continue to observe the development of the situation. This also made the imperial concubine fall into a passive state again, but fortunately, the fourth prince did not disappoint the imperial concubine and saved you again. At the same time, it also made the imperial concubine worried. The imperial concubine was not present at the time and could not inform the four princes. Whatever the prince did next, he had no choice but to let things develop.
Your performance convinced everyone of your rejection. But what no one expected was that after the Fourth Prince rescued you, you would change your mind and directly agree to the Fourth Prince's proposal.
The third prince could no longer jump out and take the initiative to stir up trouble at this time, otherwise he would put himself on the bright side and completely lose what he could still get by hiding in the dark. At this time, he could only count on his ally, the Second Prince.
But he did not expect that the second prince would not speak out until the end, and until the eldest prince's plea came out, the emperor saw the pros and cons clearly and directly agreed to the marriage. However, in order to protect the fourth prince, he specially punished him so that he could save his life. Opportunity.
Although you and the fourth prince did not die at the end of the matter, it was not a serious problem, because this was a ploy to test the waters, to find a way out, and even though the third prince had been suspected, after all, he was hiding behind the scenes and was not There will be too much loss. "Meng Ruoxi was so frightened by the conspiracy behind this that she broke into a cold sweat, and her back was already soaked. At this time, the autumn wind passed by, her body trembled slightly, and her whole body was cold, but her heart was even colder.
"To put it bluntly, I am just a chess piece. Whether it is the third prince's adviser or the fourth prince's mother-in-law, they are all using me to play games. The only difference is that one wants me to die and the other wants me to live." Meng Ruoxi felt a little sad at this time, the most ruthless emperor's family was nothing more than that.
The Prime Minister Zuo took a deep look at Meng Ruoxi. His daughter's previous aloofness and pride disappeared now. Her daughter was now a little discouraged. He noticed the change in Meng Ruoxi's mood and was afraid that she would never recover. After thinking about it, I want to say something to cheer up my baby girl and regain her previous confidence.
Meng Ruoxi seemed to see her father's worry, smiled at him, and said: "Father, I'm fine. Being used as a pawn this time has made me see that there is someone else. I just married the second prince and took the opportunity to collect evidence. The plan was ruined by the fourth prince, so I’m just a little unhappy.”
Seeing that Meng Ruoxi had regained her previous self-confidence, Minister Zuo said with great satisfaction, "It doesn't matter, I'll try to leave everything to my father in the future. Since the plan has failed, I can just be the fourth prince's wife with peace of mind. Since he no longer has The right to inherit the throne, this is good, it can prevent you from accidentally being exposed. Although your previous plan is feasible, my father really doesn't like you taking risks. You acted too recklessly this time, so I didn't think about your death. Who will avenge you? Do you want me to avenge you as a father?!" Looking at the blame on Zuo Xiang's face, Meng Ruoxi knew that she was too reckless this time, so she stood up and bowed to apologize.
Zuo Xiang said again: "I hope the fourth prince can help you in the future, otherwise, I have no choice but..."
"What? You don't really have a crush on that deceit, do you?" Zuo Xiang asked displeasedly when he saw his daughter biting her lower lip, frowning, looking a little unbearable.
"No, he saved me twice today. After all, he is my savior. Wouldn't it be too vicious if he did that?"
After hearing Meng Ruoxi's words, Zuo Xiang smiled happily and said: "Yes, you must not do anything stained with blood. In that case, what is the difference between you and him? And what are you thinking about? What? As a father, I want to say that I have no choice but to find another way for my father."
"Thank you, father." Meng Ruoxi breathed out a relieved breath.
"Then when will father be ready to take sides?" Meng Ruoxi asked a question she had always had.
"What happened this time also allowed my father to see these princes clearly. Needless to say, the second prince is unkind and unjust. He is embarrassed to be useful. He can only serve as a general, not a commander. He is the same as his grandfather, the old general. Not even close.
The third prince is too impatient but calm. Even if he can go far in the future, he will not go too far.
The fourth prince thinks that there is no need to say more and can be excluded for now. However, his feelings for you do not seem to be fake. They should be true feelings. Moreover, it seems that the emperor intends to protect the fourth prince.
The eldest prince has been valued by the emperor since he was a child, and he is also the emperor's most optimistic. Originally, he had the most support in the court, so his father has always remained neutral and is afraid that he will be doomed in the future.
What happened today made my father see the strategy and vision of the eldest prince. Although the eldest prince did not get what he wanted in the end, what he showed today also made everyone realize that the eldest prince and the fourth prince are standing together. The emperor intended to protect the fourth prince. "
"Ruoxi understands." Ruoxi agreed with a whisper.
While the two were talking about today's events, the imperial concubine looked worriedly at Bi Yuntao, who had his mouth slightly open, eyes dull, and a look of despair on his face. He was anxiously waiting for the doctor. Suddenly, his nose itched and he sneezed. Then he couldn't stop, one after another, without giving any time to breathe, and he almost lost his breath.
