Chapter 514
It wasn’t because she and the Sixth Princess had such a close relationship. Rather, she was using it as an excuse. As long as there was any doubt about the part of the edict ordering Lan Xuan’er’s death, then even the claims that the throne had been passed to Lan Xuancheng could be false.
Hearing the pointed, loaded remarks from the others, the Second Prince’s expression darkened, and his eyes grew colder. “You don’t believe me? Elder Sister, why don’t you go ask Mother herself whether she truly passed the throne to me?”
The Eldest Princess couldn’t help tightening her grip on the exquisite riding crop in her hand. Her beautiful face turned icy as she glared sharply at her younger brother. “Lan Xuancheng, are you threatening me?”
Lan Xuancheng brushed at a speck of nonexistent dust on his clothes and clasped his hands behind his back. “What do you think, Elder Sister?”
Then he changed tack. “Mother has shown me such great favor by entrusting me with this heavy responsibility. I am, of course, filled with trepidation.”
He pointed behind him. “Mother is in the Anning Palace. Aren’t you afraid of disturbing her peace? You came here without first paying your respects to Mother, and instead brought baseless rumors to make trouble for me. Is that how a child should behave? Is that how a subject should act?”
The Fifth Princess stepped forward and linked her arm through the Eldest Princess’s. “Second Brother, naturally we will pay our respects to Mother. But right now, we are talking about Sixth Sister.”
She looked straight at the Second Prince. “Second Imperial Brother, everyone in the court knows that Mother dotes on Sixth Sister above all others. How could she bear to order her death?
“As for treason and selling out the country, do you have any actual evidence?”
Lan Xuancheng let out a mocking laugh. “Fifth Sister, if I remember correctly, among the six of us siblings, you and Sixth Sister have always had the worst relationship.
“And now you’ve come here to question me. Is this truly because of your deep sisterly affection?”
“Besides, I wasn’t the one who accused her of treason and betraying the country. It was written in the edict. Why don’t you go ask Mother, along with Elder Sister, why she was so certain?”
Lan Xuancheng refused to take the bait, and naturally, the Fifth Princess refused to take his. “So, Second Imperial Brother, you have no evidence, do you?”
“Second Brother, that isn’t fair. Normally, when Fifth Sister and Sixth Sister quarrel over jewelry, clothes, or Mother’s favor, those are merely childish squabbles.
“But this concerns life and death. Fifth Sister came to ask you about it precisely because they are sisters born of the same mother. You shouldn’t question her intentions.”
The Third Prince, who had the closest relationship with the Fifth Princess, stepped forward to defend her.
The imperial siblings stood before the palace, trading words one after another. The palace maids and eunuchs, the guards and ministers, and even the storm raging outside the palace all became mere background to their argument.
Yue Fuguang only learned from the system two days later that the Lan siblings had quarreled several times. In the end, because of the flooding, the Empress’s funeral was held as simply as possible.
Other than Lan Xuancheng, who was to ascend the throne, the other princes and princesses would depart for their fiefs later. Their departure was postponed until the torrential rain stopped. Lan Xuancheng had agreed to this mainly because the rain had continued for eight days, and the water in the streets had already risen above people’s calves. Even if he wanted to drive them away to their fiefs, they couldn’t leave.
As for Lan Xuan’er’s charge of treason, it was temporarily set aside due to insufficient evidence. After Lan Xuancheng ascended the throne, he would send people to investigate and deal with her accordingly.
However, the edict summoning Lan Xuan’er back to the kingdom had already been sent out.
“So, by keeping everything simple, Lan Xuancheng can ascend the throne sooner?”
[Exactly. Although everyone has already acknowledged him as the new ruler, the formal ceremony hasn’t been completed. Without the proper legitimacy, even sitting on the throne makes Lan Xuancheng feel uneasy.]
“What happened to Lan Xuan’er? Would Lan Xuancheng really let go so easily of the younger sister who poses the greatest threat to him? Somehow, I don’t believe it.”
A Crown Prince who had been deposed never ended well after the new ruler took the throne. Lan Xuan’er had even been personally named by the Empress as her successor. Would Lan Xuancheng really keep her alive?
[The incident happened less than three days ago, so Lan Xuan’er hasn’t yet received news of the Empress’s death. But just as you predicted, Lan Xuancheng has agreed publicly to punish her only after solid evidence is found.
[In reality, he has already secretly sent people to Great Yan. They plan to ambush and kill her on the way back.]
“He wants to dispose of Lan Xuan’er in secret, then pin the blame on Great Yan? Killing two birds with one stone!”
Seated outside the flying carriage, Feng Tang and Dai Yuxing exchanged a glance. Dai Yuxing had gradually recovered from the excitement of riding in a flying carriage for the first time.
He had begun thinking about how to get the news to the capital as quickly as possible. Great Yan was not going to take the blame for killing another country’s princess.
[There are people from Southern Yue behind Lan Xuancheng. They hope that Nanzhao will help Southern Yue tie down part of Great Yan’s army.]
“So they plan to use Lan Xuan’er’s death as a pretext to declare war on Great Yan? If they want to fight, they could just do it. Why go through all these twists and turns?”
[That’s Southern Yue’s plan. Whenever a war is launched, one needs a justifiable cause to calm the people at home, doesn’t one? Unfortunately, they never expected Lan Xuancheng to betray them once he had crossed the river. They had never encountered anyone who moved as quickly as he did.]
“What do you mean? Lan Xuancheng has other plans?”
[Master, Lan Xuancheng has also realized that Southern Yue is probably doomed this time. So he doesn’t dare confront Great Yan at all. He only wants to use Lan Xuan’er’s death to negotiate peace with Great Yan. He hopes that after Great Yan conquers Southern Yue, it will spare Nanzhao.]
Lan Xuancheng: Great Yan, once you’ve swallowed Southern Yue, you can’t eat me too, right?
“He… is rather clever! What a shame that all his efforts will be in vain!”
[Master, do you think he’ll end up like Gan Chengyuan, King of Cheng? Before he’s even had time to warm his seat on the throne, he’ll become the ruler of a fallen kingdom!]
“That’s true. But by then, their deaths will be recorded as deaths in office rather than ordinary deaths, and they’ll still have a page in the history books.”
Lan Xuancheng and Gan Chengyuan: If that’s the kind of place you’re offering us in the history books, you can keep it!
Suddenly, Cuizhu pointed down below and said to Yue Fuguang, “Miss, look! We’ve reached Feng City!”
Yue Fuguang had met up with the escort team in Xuzhou. Aside from Feng Tang, who remained with her, Dai Yuxing and Cuizhu had replaced the other two passengers in the carriage. The group then hurried all the way toward Feng City.
After eight consecutive days of rain, Feng City had become a vast expanse of water when viewed from above. The mountains outside the city were crowded with people, and even the high peaks were covered with refugees.
“Dad, when will the rain stop? I’m cold. I’m hungry!” A seven- or eight-year-old boy huddled in his thin father’s arms as the family gazed outside through the opening of a makeshift shelter.
“Soon. It’ll stop soon. Just hold on a little longer, Shanzai. When the rain stops, your mother will make you a nice hot meal.”
He pulled his son closer and didn’t forget to look toward his wife and little daughter, who were huddled farther inside.
“Wife, has our daughter’s fever gone down?” The only blanket they had brought with them had been given to their sick daughter.
They had assumed that, with the weather so hot, it wouldn’t be too cold even if it rained. Who could have imagined that the rain would grow more and more violent? The air was nothing but damp and cold.
Fortunately, they had brought a thin blanket up the mountain. It had been made only two years earlier, and his wife had been reluctant to ruin it, which was why they had brought it along. Now that their five-year-old daughter was sick, it had become her only protection against the cold.
“It’s gone down. Thankfully, you brought medicine up the mountain, or our daughter would have suffered terribly.” Their village had only one doctor, and no one knew where he was hiding from the rain now. Finding a doctor was simply impossible.
“Husband, do you think the rain will really be like the Divine Maiden said…?”
The woman’s face was full of worry. Beneath the dim shelter, she gazed sorrowfully at her sleeping daughter and the son clinging tightly to his father. The concern in her eyes quickly turned into tears, which fell drop by drop onto the damp earth beneath them.