amaotonovel Chapter 383 Trespassing in the Zen Temple
Chapter 383 Trespassing in the Zen Temple
King Qi harbored deep hostility towards Zhao Yi because the Imperial Tutor favored Zhao Yi, and he feared the Imperial Tutor's influence and worried that the Imperial Tutor would support Zhao Yi's ascension to the throne.
After they returned to Northern Qi, he sent people to secretly monitor Zhao Yi's every move. When they saw Zhao Yi openly and covertly fighting with the Lin family, they stopped and reaped the benefits.
Who would have thought that the Emperor would actually side with the Prince Xian, not only giving him the opportunity to make meritorious contributions, but also granting him real power.
This posed a great threat to him, and he had to get rid of the wise king first.
To prevent the wise king's power from growing too strong, making it difficult to overthrow him later.
Now Consort Shu has been banished to the Cold Palace, and Prince Xian has gone to his fiefdom.
The emperor then began to support Zhao Yi in order to counterbalance him.
His first thought was to eliminate Zhao Yi and then incite the civil and military officials to request the establishment of a crown prince.
In his mind, no one could resist the allure of imperial power.
Zhao Yi was no exception.
But Chang An said that Zhao Yi had no interest in the throne.
King Qi looked at Zhao Yi, who was pinned against the wall without any resistance, and felt extremely complicated. He went straight to the point: "I will help you get your mother's remains and escort you back to the Great Zhou."
Zhao Yi pushed the King of Qi away and straightened the wrinkled fabric on his shoulders: "What is your purpose?"
"You withdraw from the struggle for the throne." King Qi paused, then said, "If you don't intend to return to the Great Zhou and want to compete for that position, my brother and I will each rely on our own abilities."
Zhao Yi raised an eyebrow when he saw the sinister look in the King of Qi's eyes.
The King of Qi was not very bright, impulsive, easily angered, and ruthless. Yet, this very man readily believed the words of his advisor, Chang An. Despite clearly not believing that he had no ambition to seize the throne, he still listened to Chang An's advice and negotiated cooperation with him.
Zhao Yi casually pushed the brush washer on the table to the ground: "Tell me, how do you plan to help?"
King Qi looked down at the shards that had splashed to his feet, then looked up at Zhao Yi, who had an indifferent expression, and revealed his plan in detail.
"Prince Yu will arrive in the capital tomorrow, and the Minister of Rites will host him. The Emperor will summon Prince Yu the day after tomorrow, at which time all civil and military officials will enter the palace."
"I'll arrange for someone to set a fire near the temple to lure away the monks guarding it, and then sneak in to retrieve your mother's remains."
"Anyway, Father is a heartless man. How could he possibly tell which bone is your mother's and which isn't?"
"On the day of Prince Yu and Guangning's wedding, I will join the ministers to request the establishment of a crown prince. Father Emperor will not have the energy to deal with you, so you and your husband can disguise yourselves as wedding party members and leave."
“You set fire to the temple, disturbing the peace of Buddhism and committing a sin.” Zhao Yi sighed softly. “The Prince Xian has been ousted. His Majesty has no other sons besides you and me. My relatives and the Princess Consort’s relatives are all in the Great Zhou and have no interest in the throne of the Northern Qi. You really didn’t need to take this risk.”
“If something goes wrong and His Majesty becomes disappointed in you, then it will be a loss.” Zhao Yi politely declined, “I appreciate your kindness, but I will think of another way.”
King Qi's face darkened when he saw that Zhao Yi didn't believe in his abilities: "You wait and see."
After uttering these words, King Qi left, suppressing his anger.
Zhao Yi watched quietly as the King of Qi disappeared through the door. Knowing the King of Qi's temperament, the more he was denied, the more eager he would be to prove himself.
-
The following day at noon, Prince Yu arrived in the capital of Northern Qi.
According to the original plan, the Minister of Rites was to receive Prince Yu today, and then he would stay at the Four Barbarian Inn. However, the Emperor of Northern Qi suddenly changed his mind and summoned Prince Yu that very day.
This time, instead of inviting all civil and military officials to the palace, only Prince Qi, Zhao Yi, and a few key ministers were summoned to a banquet in the Taiqing Hall to entertain Prince Yu and a few envoys.
Zhao Yi encountered the Prince of Qi at the palace gate. The Prince of Qi had droopy eyelids and a gloomy expression, seemingly unhappy because the actions of the Northern Qi Emperor had disrupted his plans.
King Qi noticed Zhao Yi and was about to say something when he saw the officials at the palace gate, so he entered the palace without saying a word.
Zhao Yi followed behind the King of Qi at a leisurely pace.
The two arrived at the Taiqing Hall one after the other.
The Northern Qi emperor arrived at the Taiqing Palace earlier than ever before, subtly sensing the discordant atmosphere between the Qi King and Zhao Yi.
The news that King Qi had stormed into the Ministry of Rites to cause trouble for Zhao Yi yesterday had already reached his ears.
He understood the King of Qi's temperament and knew that the King was clearly using this as an excuse to deliberately provoke Zhao Yi.
The Northern Qi emperor was pleased with this and looked at Zhao Yi with an even more amiable expression.
Seeing this, the King of Qi became even more determined to send Zhao Yi back to the Great Zhou.
At this point, all the officials had arrived, bowed, and taken their seats.
Prince Yu led several envoys in and bowed to the Emperor of Northern Qi: "The envoys of Great Zhou pay their respects to Your Majesty."
"No need for formalities." The Northern Qi Emperor looked Prince Yu up and down, a smile appearing on his face. "The Great Zhou Emperor sent you a thousand miles to welcome Guangning, which shows how much he values the alliance between the two countries. Northern Qi and Great Zhou are now even closer than brothers. Today is a family banquet, so you don't need to stand on ceremony."
Prince Yu spoke gently: “My father sent me as an envoy to Northern Qi for two reasons. First, it shows the importance of the marriage alliance between the two countries. Second, it is to fulfill my aunt’s last wish, as well as the wishes of my father and the people of Great Zhou, and to welcome my aunt back to the country.”
The Northern Qi emperor glanced at the silent Zhao Yi, his brows furrowed: "You've come to take Yi Zhen back to the country?"
“That’s right.” Prince Yu repeated, “My father ordered me to personally bring my aunt back to her homeland.”
The word "personally" is extremely subtle, seemingly conveying the idea that Zhao Yi does not need to return to the Great Zhou.
"Yi Zhen is my Imperial Consort, who bore me children. She should naturally be buried in the Northern Qi imperial mausoleum. How can she be returned to the Great Zhou?" The Northern Qi Emperor said coldly, "Is the Jing'an Emperor so confused?"
The atmosphere in the main hall instantly became solemn.
At this moment, Eunuch Liu came out from a side door, leaned close to the Northern Qi Emperor's ear, and whispered, "Your Majesty, someone has trespassed into the temple where the remains of the Imperial Concubine are kept."