GBP Chapter 915 The Causes of the Past
Chapter 915 The Causes of the Past
After hearing this, Zhang Ping'an further confirmed: "So the one in the palace now is really the Second Prince in disguise?"
Li Mingxuan smiled and said, "Didn't you already guess? Besides the Second Prince, who else could impersonate the Crown Prince and ascend the throne at this critical juncture?"
Moreover, besides Abbot Yuantong, he would need the help of many others to accomplish this, the most important and crucial of whom was the King of Qin!
Seeing Zhang Ping'an deep in thought, Li Mingxuan shook his head slightly.
His tone carried a mixture of worldly wisdom and sarcasm: "We people are just too well-read, so we're also too shrewd. Sometimes, even when the facts are right in front of us, we still doubt whether they're true."
“I’m not doubting, I just really don’t understand why the Prince of Qin would help the Second Prince. They don’t seem to have much interaction. His Highness the Crown Prince is the rightful heir. Shouldn’t the Prince of Qin be rescued and allowed to ascend the throne?” Zhang Ping’an voiced his doubts.
"Moreover, when the Second Prince rebelled, it was he and Cui Ling who helped the late Emperor quell the rebellion."
"Hehe, it's no wonder you think that way. You still don't fully understand the ins and outs of these royal affairs. Is it possible that the Second Prince's rebellion was just part of their plan? Don't you think the late Emperor died too suddenly?"
Zhang Ping'an's expression changed upon hearing this: "You mean......"
Li Mingxuan waved his hand to interrupt: "This is just my guess. I don't have any evidence. I just feel that everything is too coincidental. I left early on the day I led my men into the capital because of my intuition, which is why I avoided disaster."
After saying that, he continued, "Furthermore, the Second Prince is now a dead man in the eyes of the world, executed by the Imperial Clan Court. So how did he escape from the Imperial Clan Court in the first place? Who helped him escape? And how did they manage to cover it up so quietly after his escape? Each and every one of these things is not so simple!"
Zhang Ping'an guessed, "You mean, the King of Qin also secretly helped?"
"Maybe more than that. Perhaps the Crown Prince was also brainwashed by them back then, which is the same as the current imprisoned Emperor's intention. Oh, he wasn't imprisoned back then, that happened later. After I escaped, I contacted an inside agent in the Imperial Clan Court and learned that the Crown Prince had secretly visited the Second Prince before he escaped!"
"Why?" Zhang Ping'an frowned.
“His daughter is the Crown Princess, who is now the Empress. As a member of the imperial family, he has no reason to help outsiders.”
“Speaking of this, we have to mention the grudges between the late emperor, the Prince of Qin, and my former master, Bai Chao,” Li Mingxuan said slowly.
"The three of them grew up together and all came from poor families. They weren't even from proper farming families. Their village was full of old eunuchs who had been released from the palace and were living there in peace. Most of these old eunuchs had some money. People without roots were not welcome anywhere. They were ridiculed, suppressed, and looked down upon. They couldn't even go back to their hometowns."
Fearing being destitute in old age, most people would buy young boys from human traffickers to raise as a precaution in their old age.
That's how the three of them came to be. The only one who was a little lucky was the late emperor. His father was the first boy in the village to be bought, and after he grew up, he got married and had him. So his family was the happiest and most harmonious.
Logically speaking, people like this would spend their entire lives toiling in the mud, but because of one person's existence, their fate was drastically changed.
Zhang Ping'an understood immediately; he had heard about these things before: "You're talking about Eunuch Wei from the previous dynasty, right?"
Li Mingxuan nodded, "That's right, it was him! At that time, he already had great power in the harem and was trusted by the old emperor of the previous dynasty. I don't know what method he used, but he persuaded the old emperor to send the late emperor, Prince Qin, and Bai Chao to the palace to be the princes' companions. That's how they had their ups and downs and rose to the top of the world!"
I once overheard Bai Chao mention, when he was drunk, that the three of them had a very close relationship when they were young. He said that if it weren't for the Prince of Qin's betrayal, Zhou Ziming wouldn't have been able to seize the throne so easily. Therefore, I think this man must feel some guilt towards Bai Chao. As Bai Chao's only bloodline, it's normal for him to let the Second Prince off the hook.
Zhang Ping'an disagreed after hearing this and said in a deep voice, "The Prince of Qin has risen to where he is today, second only to the emperor. He cannot possibly act solely based on personal feelings. He must have other thoughts about the Second Prince impersonating the Crown Prince to ascend the throne."
“Yes,” Li Mingxuan nodded, and poured himself a cup of tea to soothe his throat.
"I haven't finished yet! Now that Zhou Ziming and Bai Chao are dead, he's the only one left out of the three. And he's always been subservient to others. For someone who can betray his brothers, his ambitions are definitely more than that!"
So I guess he probably wanted to use this incident to secretly blackmail the second prince, and use the emperor to command the feudal lords.
As for the empress, to outsiders no one would know she was an imposter, so she's still the empress. It's no loss to him; what difference does it make whether he changes her or not?
At this point, Li Mingxuan suddenly paused and sneered, "Now that I think about it, I even suspect that when the late emperor sent people to hunt me down, the person who saved me was arranged by the Prince of Qin. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to go to Shandong with Shui Sheng and the others so smoothly and live peacefully for so many years."
After listening to all this, Zhang Ping'an had a general idea of what was going on. "You really know too much. Putting everything else aside, the wealth left behind by Bai Chao that you control is enough to make people drool."
He hesitated for a moment before asking, "When the late emperor hunted you down, was it because he knew you were a trusted confidant left behind by Bai Chao? Or was it for some other reason? Things probably aren't that simple!"
“Now that things have come to this, I have nothing to hide from you,” Li Mingxuan said, standing up and patting Zhang Ping’an on the shoulder.
He continued, "Back then, I was entrusted by Bai Chao to help deliver a message to Mao'er Hutong in the capital. He said that an old friend would come to collect it. I never expected that this old friend would be the new emperor."
Fortunately, I was cautious and opened the letter on the way. Considering that he saved my life and had treated me well over the years, I still went to the capital. However, I did not deliver the letter myself, but sent someone else to wait for me in Maoer Hutong.
Despite being so cautious, the new emperor Zhou Ziming still managed to find me, which led to the pursuit and assassination attempt.
As for the contents of the letter, one thing was about the Second Prince's origins; another was about the treasure map and key; and the last was about changing his fate through a life-altering act. Hmph, rather than a letter, I think it's more accurate to call it Bai Chao's curse upon him!