After returning to the palace, Luo Shaoyuan was filled with remorse. He realized he had neglected the third prince for years, but the prince had kept him in his heart, stirring up feelings of guilt.
Eunuch Li, who had always served by Luo Shaoyuan’s side, noticed his displeasure and cautiously asked, “Your Majesty, why the sighs? Shall I summon Concubine Wang to cheer you up?”
Luo Shaoyuan shook his head, saying, “No need. I just think that Chenyu, this child, is quite good. If the throne were to pass to him, he would be a suitable candidate.”
Eunuch Li nodded with a smile, saying, “Your Majesty, you’re right. Prince Chenyu, the third prince, is filial and caring. He always keeps you in his thoughts. Just recently, he personally went to the kitchen, saying that although the Spring Fountain Palace is nice, the dampness is too heavy. He asked them to add some Job’s tears to your morning porridge to dispel the dampness. Such thoughtfulness, even servants can’t compare.”
Hearing this, Luo Shaoyuan’s heart stirred even more, feeling that the third prince was indeed good.
Just as the two were talking, a small eunuch hiding by the window sneaked away and ran towards the direction of the eldest prince’s chamber.
Bai Su learned some information from 555. He knew that recently, Luo Chenyu had been taking some actions. Feeling inferior in this aspect, Bai Su didn’t participate, knowing that if Luo Chenyu needed help, he would ask directly.
As for the eldest prince, Bai Su was happy to let him know these news. The more he did, the more mistakes he would make. If he really became desperate, they could deal with him once and for all.
“What? Father really intends to let Luo Chenyu inherit the throne?”
The eldest prince stood up with bloodshot eyes, glaring fiercely at the small eunuch in front of him, as if he would strangle him at any moment.
The small eunuch, seeing the eldest prince’s expression, quickly knelt down trembling and said, “Yes, yes, it’s true. This servant heard it with my own ears.”
“I see, you may go.”
The eldest prince took a few deep breaths before letting the eunuch leave. He couldn’t believe that Luo Chenyu could be so capable. Despite all he had done in his life, he couldn’t stop him. Father had even set his sights on him earlier, actually wanting to name him the crown prince. How could he tolerate this?
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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After receiving the urgent report, the Duke of Hengguo rushed over. Learning that the emperor intended to make Luo Chenyu the crown prince, his expression became grave.
The Duke of Hengguo was the eldest prince’s maternal grandfather, so naturally, they rose and fell together. Especially recently in court, it was obvious that the power of the third prince was growing stronger. What was even more frightening was that most of those supporting the third prince were capable but previously neutral courtiers.
The conflict between the two sides had long been irreconcilable. If Luo Chenyu really ascended to the throne, their entire Hengguo Duke’s Mansion would be in trouble.
Thinking of this, a hint of determination flashed in the Duke of Hengguo’s eyes. Hearing the eldest prince’s decision, which could be considered treasonous, he gritted his teeth and finally agreed. In times of war, desperate measures must be taken. After all, whoever sat on that throne would be the master of the entire East Huahua Kingdom.
In the following days, the eldest prince’s faction suddenly became quiet. The empress dowager was careful to please the emperor in the harem, which seemed to improve the emperor’s mood. These days, both the eldest prince and the empress dowager looked much better.
Recently, the empress dowager would send some snacks to the emperor’s side every day, seemingly trying to win his favor. On this particular day after court, she came to the emperor’s chamber and said she had personally made crystal cakes and snow pears with rock sugar, hoping the emperor would taste them.
The emperor, seeing the empress dowager beautifully dressed, thought of her past tenderness and smiled, inviting her to stay. Shortly after, the eldest prince also came to visit.
Luo Shaoyuan raised an eyebrow upon hearing the announcement below, “You mother and son seem to be in sync.”
The empress dowager smiled gently, “It’s only natural for the prince to inquire about Your Majesty’s well-being and pay respects.”
Today, the eldest prince appeared obedient, and together with the empress dowager, they delighted Luo Shaoyuan, who even enjoyed several pieces of crystal cake sent by the empress dowager.
After eating the pastries, the empress dowager took a bowl of snow pears stewed in rock sugar, reportedly made by her personally, and presented it to the emperor. Just as he was about to take it, news came from below that the Concubine Xian had arrived.
Upon hearing the arrival of the Concubine Xian, the empress dowager’s brow immediately furrowed, and Luo Chenyu also felt a chill. But they were plotting something important today, and they couldn’t let the emperor notice anything unusual, so they gave the empress dowager a meaningful glance, urging her to restrain herself for the time being.
After bowing to the emperor, the Concubine Xian greeted the empress dowager and the eldest prince with a smile, saying, “I didn’t expect both sister and the eldest prince to be here. It’s quite a coincidence.”
After exchanging a few pleasantries, the Concubine Xian had a palace maid present a bowl of plums to Luo Shaoyuan, saying, “Your Majesty, I’ve brewed some plums and found them quite delicious. So I hurriedly sent them for Your Majesty to taste.”
The emperor nodded and saw the Concubine Xian personally bringing the plums over. He noticed her solemn attire today, but also her delicate armor on her hand, which he glanced at a few more times.
Seeing this, the Concubine Xian smiled and said, “I saw this set of armor at Concubine Wang’s sister’s place before. Although it’s just silver and not valuable, the craftsmanship is exquisite. I just wore it for a few days.”
Luo Shaoyuan, hearing the Concubine Xian’s words and thinking of Concubine Wang, felt even more relieved, “You sisters have a good relationship.”
The Concubine Xian said a few more playful words, then turned to see Luo Shaoyuan about to eat the snow pears stewed in rock sugar. She quickly spoke up, “Your Majesty, is this made by Sister Empress Dowager? Your Majesty is truly blessed. Sister’s craftsmanship has always been excellent. But I heard that adding plums to the snow pears stewed in rock sugar gives it a unique flavor. Would Your Majesty like to try?”
Luo Shaoyuan, hearing the Concubine Xian’s gentle words, naturally wouldn’t refuse her kindness. He saw the Concubine Xian pick up a plum with chopsticks and put it into the snow pears, but unexpectedly, her long armor on her hand accidentally dipped into the soup.
Concubine Xian exclaimed, “Oh!” and quickly withdrew her hand, only to see her silver armor instantly turn black. She cried out in shock, “Your Majesty, my armor! There’s poison in this bowl!”
Luo Shaoyuan, seeing this, turned pale with shock and glared at the empress dowager, but saw her biting her lip and stepping back, without a word.
The eldest prince, seeing the poisoning attempt exposed, gritted his teeth, then heard a whistle from outside the door, immediately calming down. With a sneer, he called out loudly, “Come in!”
As soon as his words fell, dozens of armed guards rushed in from the main gate, surrounding the entire chamber. The eldest son of the Duke of Hengguo controlled the palace guards, whom the Duke had instructed to preemptively move a large number of originally stationed guards here, intending to force a palace coup.
Inside the room, Eunuch Li shouted, “Quick, protect His Majesty! Protect His Majesty!”
However, no matter how he shouted, there was no response from outside.
Luo Shaoyuan, seeing the situation, understood everything.
“Rebel! You traitorous son!” The emperor trembled with anger, pointing at the eldest prince and the empress dowager standing in front of him.
The eldest prince had planned to drug the emperor first, then use an antidote to coerce him into issuing a decree, providing extra assurance. But who would have thought things would unravel so quickly? The emperor hadn’t even drunk the poison. But it didn’t matter now; outside, his own men had successfully surrounded the area.
“Father, you’re getting old, it’s time to abdicate and enjoy your retirement,” the eldest prince said with a smile on his face. Luo Shaoyuan felt a deep hatred in his heart at the sight of the eldest prince’s smile. He didn’t expect Luo Bojian to be so ambitious, daring to go this far. He was so angry that he almost vomited blood. He stepped forward to slap the eldest prince, but before he could, his own son kicked him to the ground, and a nauseating sweetness rose in his throat.
Eunuch Li hurriedly supported the emperor, looking at the eldest prince in horror.
The eldest prince seemed to have lost his patience. He directly took out a prepared decree from his sleeve and said to the emperor, “Father, I’ve prepared the decree. You just need to stamp it with the imperial seal. Rest assured, after I ascend the throne, I will ensure you live out your remaining years in peace!”
Luo Shaoyuan, with red eyes, looked at Luo Bojian. He didn’t want to compromise, but he also knew that he had no way to refuse now.
With Eunuch Li’s support, the emperor stood up tremblingly, about to take the jade seal, when he heard the sound of battle outside, reigniting hope in his eyes.
Before long, someone rushed in, shouting, “Bad news! Bad news! Your Highness, Prince Zhong and the Third Prince have stormed in with soldiers!”
“How could this be? How did they know?” The eldest prince panicked, but before he could react, the door of the room was broken open. Luo Chenyu rushed in with a long sword, followed by Bai Su and the seasoned generals of the Bai family. The guards in the room were no match for them.
Luo Bojian quickly drew the sword from a nearby guard and ran towards the emperor, intending to grab him as a hostage. But Bai Su immediately threw his red tassel spear, which pierced through the eldest prince’s arm, causing intense pain.
The eldest prince fell to the ground in unbearable pain, and the empress dowager let out screams of panic.
Luo Bojian knew he had failed, failed miserably, even more so than in his past life. What awaited him would surely be a death sentence.
Pitiful thing. Lowkey wanted emporer to suffer more 🤣
+1 he should have vomited more blood and tortured a little bit more
Thanks for the update 🥰
Thank you for your translation 💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
Wow the eldest prince is so dumb and dull, no amount of rebirths is able to help him ascend to the throne =_=