vrcanaries Chapter 377 Plot
Chapter 377 Plot
"Bastard!"
Queen Ji kicked over the wash basin that Miaoyun was lying on in front of her, and the water in the basin splashed all over her.
Unexpectedly, at the morning court today, the emperor stripped Xu'er of his prince status and demoted him to the Prince of Anchang!
She only just learned the news at this moment!
Miao Yue, who was standing beside her, glanced at Miao Yun sheepishly and said cautiously, "Your Majesty, this happened early this morning. The Emperor was forced to demote the Third Prince to the rank of Prince of Anchang. I saw that you had been recuperating all day and were in a good mood after waking up this afternoon. I didn't want to disturb your good mood, so I didn't tell you..."
Miaoyun, who was soaked all over, glared at her fiercely, feeling unsatisfied.
Miao Yue didn't say it earlier or later, but just said it when she was helping the empress to wash. Isn't it obvious that she will get herself into trouble as well?
The queen didn't notice the two maids flirting with each other. Her eyes were bloodshot and she gnashed her teeth in hatred. She gripped the smooth back of her hand tightly on the armrest of the chair, and two blue veins popped out.
She said viciously, "Does the Third Prince know the news? How is he today?"
"Third, Third Prince has been smashing things in Chengqian Palace all day. I heard... I heard that in the afternoon, he even killed a eunuch..."
When Empress Ji heard this, the veins on her temples began to throb. She closed her eyes and supported her head, feeling a severe headache.
She suppressed her surging blood and anger, "Change my clothes and set up a posture in Chengqian Palace."
Miao Yue trembled, "Mother, your Majesty... In the evening, the Prince of Anchang summoned the Marquis to the palace. He just arrived now. I'm afraid he won't have time to see you if you go..."
Slamming the armrest, Empress Ji angrily said, "He only wants to see Si Luan? How can he not even see me, his mother? Si Luan is not an outsider. Hurry up, I will also go and see Xu'er!"
Ji Bozhou was indeed not an outsider, and the Third Prince did not treat him as an outsider.
At this moment, he was sitting on a chair in Chengqian Hall, watching the third prince crying and talking about his desire to die and leave the palace after being demoted to a prince. He felt a little annoyed.
"Your Highness, please stop crying. We need to discuss this matter carefully. We can't just sit there and wait for death. If this continues, this time I'll be demoted, and next time I don't know what kind of fatal method will be used!"
Because his father's health had not yet recovered and his own condition had not yet recovered, Ji Bozhou actually never went to court after his title was restored.
He had originally planned to wait until his face returned to normal before bringing up the matter of making the third prince the crown prince, but he had not expected that Jiang Xing and the newly returned General Lu would act so quickly!
He had learned of the events of the morning court session that Lu Xuan had been appointed First-Rank General of the Conquering Enemy Army and, at the same time, Duke of Anguo, commanding 60% of Daliang's military power. Fortunately, he later requested a thorough investigation of the fifteen-year-old case in court, which saved him from having his military power taken away.
But what he was worried about today was the old case from fifteen years ago.
He thought that the old case fifteen years ago that Lu Xuan was talking about was the death of Lu Siyu. He felt lucky at the time because it was the emperor who killed him after all, and it could not be traced back to his Ji family.
Who would have thought that what he said in the court was to thoroughly investigate the people who had been hunting him for the past fifteen years!
These days, he looked through many volumes of secret letters left after his elder brother's death, and only then did he discover that the deaths of Lu Xuan and Lu Annian from the Duke's Mansion were actually the work of his father and elder brother!
If this is discovered, they will be aggressive. In order to hold on to the military power and not give it to Lu Xuan, there is no doubt that he will use the Ji family to take the blame.
Wouldn't that mean that the title he had just obtained and his goal of reviving the Ji family would all be ruined?
No, absolutely not!
It seems that the most important thing at the moment is to protect the third prince. Only by protecting him can the Ji family survive!
The third prince wiped his tears, and because of the pain somewhere, he stood up in a frog-leg posture and limped to his side.
"Uncle, please think about it for me. It seems that the emperor father will not give me the throne. But now I feel that whether it is a demotion or a death, these things seem to be beyond the control of my mother and me!"
His eyes flashed with anger, and he said viciously, "Even with Jiang Yan in that state, he couldn't bear to let him step down from the throne. He also said that he didn't like Lu Siyu and only loved the Queen Mother and me. What he said is all bullshit, all fake!"
"Now the emperor's uncle has returned with General Lu. He has only been back for one day, and he has promised them to demote me to a prince. So many times before, I arranged for a few people to join the imperial guards, or to enter the Eastern Palace, or even to be with my father. When did he ever say anything?
This time, I just arranged for someone to be the county magistrate, but I was criticized so harshly! My uncle is right. If I continue for a few more days, I am afraid I will threaten Jiang Yan and take his life! "
He looked around frantically, his eyes uneasy and erratic: "No, I can't just sit there and wait for death."
Grabbing Ji Bozhou's hand, the Third Prince looked at him eagerly, "Uncle, how much silver does the Ji family have left? Is it enough to bribe the five governors of the Beijing Camp right now?"
Ji Bozhou's eyes trembled fiercely, and he felt helpless. He then explained to him earnestly, "Your Highness, the five left governors are the core ministers around the emperor. Silver alone is not enough. Silver can only buy them a peaceful life, but it can't buy them risking their lives for you!"
He swallowed, a little hesitant. "Besides the silver, they also have to promise them higher positions and generous salaries in the future. They are already at the top of the military ranks, so how can they improve further? Besides, the silver they want is not a small amount..."
"What should we do?" The third prince was dejected.
Ji Bozhou was about to answer when he caught a glimpse of an elegant figure coming in from outside the door.
"Empress!" Ji Bozhou stood up and saluted.
When the Third Prince saw Queen Ji coming, his curious expression immediately turned into impatience. He snorted coldly and turned his head away in an instant.
"What are you here for?"
When Empress Ji saw the third prince's red and swollen eyes and his legs that were not closed together, her eyes turned red.
With a hint of resentment, he said, "What can I do? Mother is naturally worried about you! Are you feeling well today?"
"Can I get better? Does this look like Father wants me to get better? I think he just wants me dead!"
Two drops of tears immediately fell down Empress Ji's smooth face. She quickly wiped them with a handkerchief, but her voice was a little choked: "What's the point of talking about death? Your father dares to do it! If he wants you to die, then I will die in front of him!"
"He left me and Yi'er, an orphan and a widow, alive in this world, and if he doesn't protect us, we'll just be bullied!"
Seeing his mother and son like this, Ji Bozhou sighed, "Sister, there's no need to make such a bad plan. Your Highness and I were just discussing how to save our lives and break this situation."
Upon hearing this, Empress Ji's eyes trembled slightly. She sniffed and hurriedly reached for his hand, "Si Luan, now that father can't wake up, Xu'er really can only rely on you. As long as he can ascend to that position in a natural way, no matter what you need, I will cooperate with you!"
After all this time, her heart had become numb with pain.
The emperor really cared about the Lu family and demoted Xu'er to a prince when he had just been injured and had not yet recovered.
This is clearly pushing the child into a desperate situation!
Look at what he has done to the Ji family these days, and then look at his current attitude towards the Lu family. There is really a world of difference. It turns out that the Lu family is more important in his heart!
I really have to take action, otherwise myself and my two children will be stripped to the bone!