Hearing these words, Shangguan Yaohua's heart was stirred up; he really wanted to tell the truth. But when he thought about it carefully, Prince Fu was an experienced and astute man, who knew whether he was being tricked or not? If he fell into the trap, it would not be worth it.
Xuan Shuang's intention was for him to tell the truth to Prince Fu, to bring this matter to the surface, and to resolve it quickly. But inevitably he was greedy for life and afraid of death; in order to leave a way out for himself, it would be better for him to conceal his identity that could not be exposed. Raising his head decisively, he said, "Child does not dare to deceive Yifu. Before I entered the Palace, I have never seen Lu Daren even once. Perhaps there is some resemblance between us, he missed his beloved disciple so much that he mistakenly recognized me. Child has explained to him over and over again, unfortunately this misunderstanding has not been cleared up. As for the rumors outside, child has also heard several sentences, but they are not worth mentioning, they are all fabricated by people with ulterior motives. They are jealous that child's origin was originally unknown, but because of the Death Severing Chop, I was able to reach the heavens in one bound; therefore, they created rumors and created trouble, trying to maliciously harm me. The innocent knows they are innocent, these words must not be heard. In short, Yifu, you are the one who understands child's character the best; how can I be the descendant of a rebel, the head of a bandit? I hope Yifu will believe that child's real origin is thrown on the ground and cannot be found for half a day. It is exactly the same as what I reported to you that day, I do not dare to speak nonsense. "
Prince Fu raised his eyebrows; he stared at him several times and said, "Is that so? Then why don't you repeat what you said at that time to me? "
Usually when people lie, even if the first lie is perfectly fabricated, by the second or third time, or perhaps after a long time, the memory will be mixed up and the words will be contradictory. For this reason, forcing someone to repeat it over and over again is the easiest way to distinguish the truth from the lie. Under Cao Zhenyan's supervision, Shangguan Yaohua had already memorized the entire story by heart; naturally he was not afraid, he opened his mouth and said, "Child was born in a merchant's family, my father's earliest business was a small business …"
He repeated the story word for word, but there were many details that even Prince Fu could not remember clearly. His answer was watertight and there was no fault to be found. He sighed and said, "If that's the case, then that's for the best. But you also know that everyone in the palace is ready to make a move. They are all waiting for an opportunity to pull others down from their high horse. Now that you've easily become a young prince, who knows how many princes and young masters will be jealous of you. Their most powerful weapon will be to use this against you. Now that you're able to explain it to me so well, I hope that in the future, you won't let other people have a handle on you. Otherwise, he would never be able to make a comeback. I'll believe you one more time. But if you find out that what you said is not true, don't blame me for not giving you a chance to come clean today. "
Shangguan Yaohua nervously bowed his head and said, "Child … will remember." But in his mind he suddenly had a flash of inspiration, "Go ahead and investigate, I'll let you investigate! Anyway, the Chen Manor's people are all dead. Let's see what you can ask a bunch of ghosts. I'll give you that! "
Prince Fu quickly changed the topic and said, "Yao Hua, let's not talk about your past for the time being. Let me ask you again, I remember you once said that in this palace, who are the two people who are on par with this prince? " Shangguan Yaohua said, "It's the Esteemed Prince Hao Ge … and the Prince Regent … What, does Yifu plan to attack them one by one?"
Prince Fu nodded and said, "That's right. Although these two people have never been on good terms, in terms of seniority, they are still members of the imperial family. No matter how this prince tries to win them over, they are still outsiders. If they realize that the situation has changed and join hands in advance, it will be very disadvantageous to this prince. Thus, only by setting up a thorough defense in advance can we be prepared to avoid any mishaps. However, if I only think about it from one person, the scope is still a bit narrow. That's why Yifu really wants to hear it. Do you have any unique opinions? "
Shangguan Yaohua thought for a moment and said, "I can't say that I have a unique opinion. It's just a crude and humble opinion. Please don't laugh at me, Yifu. In terms of military strength, the three of you can be considered a tripartite balance of power in the imperial court. However, in terms of power distribution, in the end the Prince Regent is still a notch ahead. Even when the Emperor is handling political affairs, big and small, he has to go through him first. He is called the 'Uncrowned Emperor'; this title is not something that can be casually given. Perhaps when the Emperor hears it, he will be dissatisfied, but if he really wants to deal with him, he will have the heart but not the strength. He can only open one eye and close the other. Child is just stating the facts, I hope Yifu won't blame me. "
Prince Fu laughed and said, "Your analysis of the current situation is very correct! Why should I blame you? It's not that this prince is not open-minded, my ears only listen to good words. That's right, just like you said, even if the tripartite balance of power is a tripartite balance of power, it is still unavoidably flattering me. Under the balance of power, I am still the weakest. This can't be helped, who told me to be a Han? Under the rule of the Manchus, even if my talent is higher, even if I received the late Emperor's appreciation, I still cannot be entrusted with an important task. However, the weak can defeat the strong, the soft can subdue the hard, it's not like I have no chance of winning. When ordinary people handle matters, they often bully the weak and fear the strong, avoiding the strong and bullying the weak. But I don't follow suit. The Esteemed Prince is too impulsive and reckless, it's not easy for him to accomplish great things. On the other hand, this prince has been fighting with the Prince Regent for many years, both openly and covertly, but I have never been able to gain any advantage over him. Therefore, the reason he is able to control the important matters of the imperial court is because he has some ability. This is also very good, the stronger the opponent, the more enjoyable it is to defeat them. Now that this prince is trying out the great blade, I will use him as the first testing stone. Originally, he was indeed very formidable, but recently, he has developed a weakness. Once a strong person has the slightest bit of carelessness, it is often easy for others to take advantage of the situation. "
Shangguan Yaohua's heart trembled. For the first time, he felt that this old fox was not as foolish as he originally thought. Recalling the boast he had made at that time, "Fiddling with him a few times is as easy as blowing off dust." He was indeed exaggerating. He laughed dryly and said, "Forgive this child for being slow-witted, but the Prince Regent has always been smooth and sly. He has been at the heart of the struggle for many years, yet he has never made the slightest mistake. This child is even more unable to see where his weakness lies. Even if he used to be with the current Empress Dowager … now he is still … it's just that … "Speaking of these obscure words, he could not help but stammer. This fact was the biggest taboo in the Palace. In front of Prince Fu, who was unclear whether he was friend or foe, he could not say even half a word wrong.
Prince Fu said, "No, no, this matter involves the Empress Dowager's reputation and integrity. On top of that, the Emperor's unspeakable secret is also involved. If this matter is exposed, it will be a scandal in the Palace. The important ministers above will definitely use their authority to pressure the Emperor. We simply cannot use this matter to coerce the Emperor. That's why this prince is magnanimous and let him off. Now we have concrete evidence. Do you know about his adopted daughter? "
As soon as the Shangguan Yaohua mentioned Cheng Jiaxuan, he was filled with indignation and disdain. With a cold snort, he said, "Oh, it's her? I know! It's that stinky girl who pretended to be a masked female demon. Holding the Residual Shadow Sword, she went to various major sects to commit crimes, to assassinate the Sect Leader. I heard this was also the Prince Regent and the Noble Consort Yun's conspiracy. In order to incite enmity between the Upright Sects and the Demonic Cult, they wanted to use both sides to kill each other, so that each side would suffer a great loss of vitality, and thus the Imperial Court would become the only power. They are indeed jackals of the same tribe! Although this plan is not bad, it is really wicked. It's a pity that that girl is so good-for-nothing. All day long she only knows how to shamelessly pester the Seven Evil Spirits. Even I feel disgusted when I see her shameless appearance. The Prince Regent is an ambitious and ruthless character of his generation, yet he ruined his own clean reputation for this kind of daughter! "
Prince Fu said, "Whoever she wants to pester, this prince doesn't care. Such a young girl, it's not strange for her to have a soft spot for any man. Actually, in this matter, I was inspired by you. Go and investigate her past as soon as possible, then report back to me. In my opinion, there is a high possibility that she is also a rebel thief's descendant. With this identity, she won't be able to run away. Let's just randomly fabricate a few crimes for her, saying that she sneaked into the Palace to seek revenge by killing the Emperor. When the time comes, I want to see how the Prince Regent will deal with this unexpected disaster. "
At this moment, Shangguan Yaohua suddenly had a strange feeling. He kept saying that he hated Cheng Jiaxuan, but when he thought about it carefully, it wasn't so. It was nothing more than teasing a little sister to get along with her. As soon as he thought that she would be harmed to death, he couldn't bear it.
Even he himself couldn't explain this kind of mutual affection that arose at first sight. The only thing he could clearly conclude was that no matter what kind of feelings he had for her, it was definitely not the love between a man and a woman. He said, "Yifu, do you really want to start with her? However, she is only a chess piece of the Prince Regent. He doesn't care about the life and death of this daughter. Using her to threaten the Prince Regent won't work … "
Prince Fu said, "Admittedly, he doesn't care about this daughter herself, but he can't ignore the influence she will bring. If there really is a problem, the Emperor won't let it go easily. He has long been dissatisfied with the Prince Regent for being above him in every aspect and being restricted by the Emperor's authority. This time, this Prince has provided him with an excuse to smoothly resolve the pressure on his head and personally govern. He should be grateful to me. "
Shangguan Yaohua couldn't refuse anymore, so he said in a low voice, "This child will obey Yifu's orders." Prince Fu's face had a sincere and earnest expression, saying, "Yao Hua, this Prince has a high position and power, but I don't know why, but I don't have a son. Now that I recognize you as my adopted son, my heart is often gratified. Especially since you are more sensible than other youths of the same age. This Prince hopes that I can properly nurture you. "Shangguan Yaohua's mouth responded, but his mind had already wandered off to who knows where.
In the following period of time, everyone in the Palace secretly made their own arrangements, but on the surface, they were still able to maintain the facade of a calm pool of water. Dorgon then proposed to Shunzhi to ask a shaman to perform a ritual to exorcise evil spirits. Although Shunzhi was unwilling, he also didn't want his Imperial Palace to be wantonly judged by those who pretended to be gods and devils. However, Xuan Shuang was indeed his most beloved son among all the Princes. Looking at him acting crazy every day, although he himself didn't feel anything, in the eyes of outsiders, especially those close to him, he was very pitiful. After thinking it over, he couldn't think of a better way, so he handed this matter over to the Prince Regent.
Dorgon was extremely diligent, and within a few days, he found a group of shaman masters from who knows where. Cheng Jiaxuan and the others supported Xuan Shuang to the plaza in front of the Snow Song Palace. They set up an altar, drew a spell formation, and asked him to sit on a chair in the center. Xuan Shuang was quite obedient today. He didn't make a fuss, and would obediently do whatever he was told to do. However, his eyes were dull, and it seemed that he had no spiritual energy left. His arms also hung limply by his side. Shunzhi saw Xuan Shuang like this and felt pity in his heart. He really hoped that today's action would have some effect.
Before the ritual officially started, Cheng Jiaxuan still stayed by the chair to accompany him. In the past, Xuan Shuang's mind was clear. Every time he talked about love with her, she always looked down on him like a child. When his attitude suddenly changed and he became extremely cold to her, she tried her best to regain his friendship. To break up with a friend for the sake of love, that would be an extremely painful thing in the future. People have a heart that worries about gains and losses, and often, it's only after they lose something that they can truly see its value. Unfortunately, it's already too late.
Xuan Shuang sat on the chair, listening to the deafening sounds of gongs and drums. He pouted and complained softly, "Humph! It's so noisy! "
Cheng Jiaxuan hurriedly tried his best to comfort him, "It's precisely because you have to beat it louder that you can intimidate and scare away the evil spirits. You … you don't have to be nervous, I'll always be with you. Even if … you don't want to see me … there's nothing to be afraid of. It'll be over in a while, trust me. "
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
