Crown Princess Palace
The Crown Princess used a pair of scissors to cut the window decorations. When she was done, a servant girl suddenly charged in and shouted, "Niangniang, something bad has happened. Steward Li and the servant girls that niangniang released have all been beaten to death."
"Clang!" The scissors cut his finger and fell from his hand. Blood dripped on the window, dyeing it scarlet.
Side hall
Several Imperial Guards stood guard, draped in cloaks. At this point in time, the cold wind was piercing to the bone, yet the Imperial Guards stood as still as nails. Pei Zi Yun stood in front, with the Lady Attendant behind him. Snow fell onto Pei Zi Yun's cloak.
"Perfected One!" When the guards saw Pei Zi Yun, they all bowed and greeted him. Pei Zi Yun entered the hall and saw that several beast furnaces were burning brightly. It was snowing outside and the cold was piercing to the bone. Inside the hall, he could only wear a thin layer of clothing. It was very warm.
Pei Zi Yun was led by a serving maid into the hall. At this point, the Grand Princess was waiting for him. She was dressed in a thin robe, and a serving maid was carrying a mink fur coat beside her.
Pei Zi Yun laughed. Indeed, no matter what era it was, people's love for beauty would never change.
"Have you found out who the traitor is?" The Eldest Princess asked.
"I've investigated everything." As Pei Zi Yun spoke, the female official stepped forward and approached the Grand Princess. She then whispered to her that this female official was sent by the Grand Princess.
When the Grand Princess heard this, she stood up in surprise, "The Crown Princess is involved? She is the Crown Princess and the future Empress. How could this happen? "
Pei Zi Yun then turned to the Grand Princess, "The Crown Princess should be fine. Based on what you've said, she is the Crown Princess and the future Empress. If something happens to the Crown Prince, do you think she can escape?"
"But the Crown Princess has been childless for a long time, and the Crown Prince's situation is not very good. These servants want to retreat and collude with outsiders."
"You're right. The Crown Prince is stubborn. No matter what, she's the Crown Princess. How could he not be close to her? These things can no longer be investigated. I will talk to the Crown Prince. "The Eldest Princess sighed.
"I understand." The Crown Prince pushed the door open and entered with his Concubine. The cold wind blew in from outside as everyone bowed.
"You guys continue speaking. I'll listen as well." The Crown Prince said, looking a little startled.
The Grand Princess then changed the topic, "Your plan to lure the snake out of its hole isn't bad at all. You've solved many hidden dangers. At the very least, King Lu's spies won't be able to find out any news from the Crown Prince's palace."
"This was planned by the Eldest Princess. If it wasn't for the Eldest Princess, how could it be so easy? These people have been hiding in the Crown Prince's Residence for too long and they have many connections. It's hard for the residence to investigate. " Pei Zi Yun laughed and said, "However, this is just to lure the snake out of its hole within the mansion. There are other ways to lure the snake out of its hole outside the mansion. It's just that this involves politics."
These words were directed at the Imperial Concubine. The Inner Palace was not allowed to interfere in politics. Although the Crown Prince had not ascended the throne, the rules of the Imperial Concubine were the same.
When Liang Di saw that they were talking about politics, she stood up and said to the Crown Prince, "Crown Prince, the harem is not allowed to interfere in politics. This concubine shall take her leave."
Seeing that the Imperial Concubine knew the rules, the Grand Princess nodded her head. The Crown Prince then pulled the Imperial Concubine's hand and said, "Imperial Concubine, it's very cold outside. You've always been intelligent, why don't you listen and give me some ideas. If you catch a cold outside, my heart will ache. Besides, you're pregnant with the dragon seed. Just listen, I will not blame you."
The Crown Prince spoke softly, as he held the Imperial Concubine's hand, refusing to let go. The Imperial Concubine struggled to get up, but was pulled back down by the Crown Prince.
"Be obedient." The Crown Prince spoke. The Imperial Concubine's body had softened, as she sat quietly by the side.
The Grand Princess saw that the Crown Prince didn't allow the Imperial Concubine to leave the mansion and frowned. The Crown Prince then looked at Pei Zi Yun and asked, "The bigger picture, does it involve outside the mansion? Tell me about it, and let me understand. "
Pei Zi Yun stood up, "This will require the Crown Prince to take some risks."
'Could it be that we're going to lure the snake out of its hole like today? That's a good plan, tell me about it. " The Crown Prince waved his hands, a look of satisfaction on his face. With a famous scholar by his side and a beautiful woman in his arms, he was able to command the empire and settle all disputes. This feeling was great. The Crown Prince thought to himself.
"Crown Prince, during the lantern festival, are you going to represent the Emperor and the people to express your gratitude?" Pei Zi Yun asked.
"If there aren't any problems, then yes. My father hasn't been feeling well recently, and I have to share his burdens." The Crown Prince replied.
"What if the Crown Prince meets with an assassin? What would happen then? "As soon as Pei Zi Yun finished speaking, the three people in the hall were shocked.
The Grand Princess stood up and shouted, "No way."
The Crown Prince frowned, "What Zi Yun means is, you want me to set up an assassination? Who would be lured out? I feel that this would alert the enemy. King Lu would probably lie low and not come out of his cave. "
"Crown Prince, Grand Princess, please hear me out. The assassination is only the first step." Pei Zi Yun spoke slowly.
"What?" The Crown Prince frowned.
The Imperial Concubine gently pressed on the Crown Prince's hands. The Crown Prince then realized that this was just a suggestion. Whether he used it or not, it was up to him, "Tell me everything."
"The Crown Prince has his own guards, and the assassins are arranged by us. Even if they were arranged by us, they wouldn't be able to get within twenty steps of the Crown Prince."
"This is just a precaution, and won't hurt the Crown Prince."
"Actually, luring the snake out of its cave isn't a real assassination. As long as there's a reason, and some commotion, that's enough." Pei Zi Yun spoke plainly.
"But what's the point? I can't even see how to lure the snake out of its cave. "The Grand Princess asked, as though she was surprised by Pei Zi Yun's suggestion.
"Of course there is. Crown Prince, Grand Princess, how many generals can your men deliver this to?" Pei Zi Yun walked to the table and wrote down a few words.
"King Lu's order: This is an urgent matter. I order you to send ten soldiers to protect the Crown Prince."
When Pei Zi Yun finished writing, he handed it over to the Crown Prince. Seeing the script, the Crown Prince was astonished. He looked at it once and didn't understand what it meant. He then looked at it again, and was puzzled.
The Grand Princess stood up and looked at it in shock. The Imperial Concubine was deep in thought. She couldn't interfere in politics, and thus didn't speak a word. She was extremely cautious in front of the Grand Princess.
Seeing that the Crown Prince didn't understand, Pei Zi Yun spoke plainly, "During the lantern festival, King Lu will be in front of the Emperor. Since I've killed so many black robed guards, I shall send someone to use their uniforms to deliver this message to the generals in the capital city. Let's see how many of them respond. If the Crown Prince and Grand Princess have men with King Lu, then it would be perfect!"
"Mobilize the troops? I'm sure these generals wouldn't do such a thing. "The Crown Prince's expression was solemn as he spoke.
"Of course we can't mobilize the troops directly. That would be too obvious. But what about the soldiers in the palace? That's what the order means. There's a high chance that someone will respond to it. Then we'll be able to distinguish who's close and who's distant. We'll be able to lure King Lu out. "
"Besides, during the lantern festival, the generals won't be able to locate King Lu. At such a crucial moment, some will hesitate, and some will retreat. But as long as one or two of them follow the order, it will become a fact."
"Regardless of how they respond, it's for the safety of Your Highness. Or perhaps they're King Lu's henchmen. The Crown Prince was assassinated, and the generals responded to King Lu's message. What does this mean?" Pei Zi Yun spoke plainly as he raised his pen.
"Now that things have come to this, it doesn't matter if the message is real or fake. It doesn't matter who's the instigator. Just the fact that they responded to King Lu's order is a grave matter. This would expose King Lu's hidden power and influence." The Grand Princess finally understood what was going on. She looked at Pei Zi Yun in fear, "Even if King Lu isn't guilty, just this alone would make my brother unable to tolerate it. The officials wouldn't be able to tolerate it either."
Pei Zi Yun laughed and didn't speak immediately. In actual fact, this plan was learned from a certain Emperor. That Emperor was suspicious of the Crown Prince, and thus forged a message from the Crown Prince to the soldiers. Eventually, the soldiers obeyed the order and caught the Crown Prince in the act.
If the Emperor wanted to play this trick, it would be even more difficult to defend against it.
"However, the Emperor would be shocked, and might not believe it completely. I believe that King Lu wouldn't be so easily killed. However, even if this was forged by an outsider, the generals would still respond to King Lu's message. The Emperor would be shocked, and the officials would be even more shocked. Once this happens, it wouldn't just be the Emperor's problem."
"King Lu, at the very least, would be stripped of his title and become a Canton Prince. At the very least, he would have to spend some time in seclusion, right?"
"The few generals who responded, would at least lose their official positions or even be sentenced to death?" Pei Zi Yun paced back and forth under the watchful eyes of the crowd, "This plan of mine is to lure the snake out of its hole. It's not unreasonable at all, although it's somewhat sinister. However, as long as everyone thinks about it calmly, they will naturally understand."
"The pus cannot be allowed to rot inside. It has to be squeezed out. If we don't squeeze it out now, when the critical moment comes, King Lu will raise his arm and call for the generals to respond with a hundred thousand soldiers. At that point, the Emperor would be in deep trouble. Even if the Crown Prince had the Edict, so what? Thousands of soldiers would enter the Imperial City, and everything would be a mess. I'm afraid that not only the Crown Prince, even the Emperor wouldn't have a good ending. In the worst case scenario, the entire world would be in chaos. "
"Now that the pus has been squeezed out, King Lu's position in the army would be uprooted."
"Furthermore, if he wasn't in cahoots with King Lu, he would have passed this message to the Crown Prince and the Emperor. Even if it was to protect himself, he wouldn't have responded to the Crown Prince's order. Hence, he wouldn't have killed the wrong person."
"Everyone who responded to King Lu's order has been dealt with. Even if there were some people who didn't manage to squeeze out the pus, if they didn't respond to King Lu's order, would King Lu still trust them? And would they still feel that King Lu trusted them? "
"Yes, we knew that this message was fake. However, they didn't know that this was their true reaction. If King Lu doesn't feel disappointed, wouldn't they feel guilty too?"
"With both sides doubting each other, King Lu would find it hard to control the entire army."
"The way of a sage is to look at one's actions and not one's heart. Since King Lu doesn't have the ability to cause trouble, he is the Crown Prince's good brother, and the Emperor's good son. This is the Crown Prince's sincere intention to protect King Lu."
"Such a heart is worthy of the Emperor, worthy of the Emperor, worthy of the country, and worthy of the ancestors."
Hearing Pei Zi Yun's words, the Crown Prince couldn't help but stare at him in shock. As Pei Zi Yun spoke, his hands continued to draw. A ferocious tiger descending the mountain had been completed. This ferocious tiger was filled with killing intent as it charged down the mountain. Its eyes were bloodshot, as though it was about to devour its prey.
The Crown Prince came to his senses as he spun around several times before saying, "Wonderful! This drawing has been done perfectly. When the ferocious tiger comes out of the mountain, someone will definitely die. Luring the snake out of its hole is even more wonderful. "
As he spoke, he nodded his head and clenched his fists. His face was flushed with excitement as he hammered his fist, "Alright, let's do it this way."
"If this succeeds, I shall confer you the title of True Sovereign!" The Crown Prince shouted out. Hearing these words, the Grand Princess had a look of worry on her face.
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