vrcanaries Chapter 258 Please, Your Majesty, be called Crown Prince! Who is the pawn?
Chapter 258 Please, Your Majesty, be called Crown Prince! Who is the pawn?
"Clang-"
Lu Minxuan staggered backward, knocking over the incense burner behind him, scattering ashes all over himself.
He stared in disbelief at his father, at the ministers who were usually so respectful to him, and at the court he had once thought was impregnable…
Suddenly, he smiled.
The laughter was shrill, like the cry of an owl.
"Good...good 'at least it can save the Great Liang from destruction'!"
He surveyed the crowd, his eyes filled with mockery and resentment: "So, you're going to trade my life for your own safety?!"
"Your Highness, this is for the sake of the Great Liang..."
At this moment, another senior official stepped forward, his eyes slightly narrowed, and said meaningfully:
"Moreover, I have also heard that Your Highness was able to capture Prince Rui so accurately because you received information from an inside agent of the Great Yu."
Without this information, Prince Rui's whereabouts are so secretive; how could he have been captured so easily? In truth, this whole affair was due to Your Highness's negligence; no one else is to blame.
Upon hearing this, many ministers exchanged glances.
They all knew who this "insider" was—the royal family of Dayu, the family that secretly sided with the crown prince.
Lu Minxuan stood in front of the hall, his face ashen.
He gritted his teeth and said, word by word, "Does Minister Zhang mean that I am wrong?"
"I don't dare."
Zhang Yue bowed, but his tone remained unyielding:
"Your Highness is indeed responsible for the calamity caused by negligence. Why did the Wang family leak Prince Rui's whereabouts to Your Highness?"
They've cultivated their influence in the Great Yu court for a century; how could they not know the risks involved? In my opinion, they're simply using Your Highness as a pawn!
“Lord Zhang is right.” The Minister of Rites, who had been silent all along, also spoke up, sighing, “Your Highness has made a mistake in this move…”
“You…you guys!”
Crown Prince Lu Minxuan staggered backward, his face deathly pale.
At the same time, he was filled with regret.
Yes... why did he listen to Wang Xu's nonsense back then?
Because of greed.
The thirteen cities of the North—what a bountiful land they are!
If he can be captured, his prestige in the court will be unmatched.
His father was getting old, and his younger brothers were eyeing him covetously. He needed this merit to solidify his position as crown prince.
Moreover, Wang Xu spoke with absolute certainty—that the Great Yu was in turmoil, and that the eldest prince, Li Zheng, was more than happy for Prince Rui's death and would never come to his aid.
Once Prince Rui is captured, the Yu royal family will be hesitant to act rashly and will have no choice but to cede territory and sue for peace.
Everything has been planned out.
The only thing I didn't expect was... Li Wudao would suddenly appear!
Because of one boy, the whole game was lost!
"Father..." Lu Minxuan knelt on the ground, his voice trembling, "Your son... Your son is also doing this for the Great Liang..."
He stared at the figure on the dragon throne, his voice hoarse:
"Father! Do you want your son to die too?! I have expanded your territory and rectified the court for you all these years. I have worked hard for you even if I have not made any great contributions! How can you bear to see me like this..."
"I cannot bear it."
Lu Siyuan suddenly spoke, interrupting him.
The emperor of Liang closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, his eyes were bloodshot: "But I am the emperor of Liang!"
He turned away, no longer looking at the crown prince, his voice extremely hoarse:
"Issue the imperial decree—tomorrow at noon, escort Crown Prince Lu Minxuan...to the Great Yu."
"Furthermore, a letter of apology shall be drafted to return the twenty-three cities of Dayu that have been seized over the years, and to cede fifty more cities in the northern border, including Yun, Shuo, and You... In this way, we shall apologize to the new emperor of Dayu."
"......"
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
The pro-peace ministers all knelt down in obeisance.
The hardliners wanted to say something more, but Lu Siyuan glared at them and shut them up.
He knew that this decision would bring shame to the Great Liang and disgrace the imperial family.
But he knew even more clearly that if he didn't do this, the Great Liang would perish.
"Father! You can't do this!"
Lu Minxuan's face changed drastically, and he collapsed to his knees, roaring loudly.
Lu Siyuan's eyes were filled with complex emotions. "Xuan'er, if you make a mistake, you have to..."
Before he could finish speaking, Lu Minxuan angrily interrupted him, shouting:
"Your Majesty, please call me Prince!"
Lu Siyuan had his back to him, his shoulders trembling slightly.
After a long silence, he waved his hand, his voice utterly exhausted: "Take him away."
Two golden-armored guards stepped forward and helped up Lu Minxuan, who was limp as a rag doll.
"Father! Father!"
The mournful cries faded into the distance, eventually disappearing into the night outside the palace.
There was deathly silence in the court.
Many ministers lowered their heads, not daring to look at the emperor's expression.
Lu Siyuan stood there, his shadow stretched long, very long in the candlelight.
Suddenly, he swayed.
"Your Majesty!" Lu Cong quickly stepped forward to help him up.
Lu Siyuan waved his hand, pushed him aside, and walked back to the dragon throne step by step.
When he sat down again, he seemed to have aged ten years in an instant.
"You may all leave." He closed his eyes, his voice as soft as a sigh, "I... am tired."
The officials bowed silently and filed out.
As they walked out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, many people looked at each other with complex emotions in their eyes—a mix of relief, lingering fear, and a sense of shared sorrow.
They knew that from this night onward, the fate of Daliang had changed.
The Crown Prince's residence was deep in the night.
Lu Minxuan slumped on the floor of the study, surrounded by broken wine jugs and torn documents.
His clothes were disheveled, and his eyes were empty, like a puppet whose soul had been taken away.
"The Wang family... Wang Xu..."
He muttered to himself, his eyes gradually becoming bloodshot.
Yes... it all started when Wang Xu approached him.
The head of the Great Yu royal family secretly infiltrated the capital of Great Liang five days ago and presented a "grand gift"—
The accurate whereabouts of Prince Rui and his wife, and the sincerity of Guan Chengze, the border general.
"Your Highness, as long as we capture Prince Rui, the thirteen cities in the northern border of Great Yu will be within our grasp."
Wang Xu laughed like a fox at that moment.
What did he say then?
"Very well! If this succeeds, I will guarantee your Wang family will enjoy endless glory and wealth in Daliang!"
Looking back now, it seems so ridiculous.
Wang Xu wasn't helping him at all; he was using him!
They used his ambition as the crown prince to kill him with a borrowed knife!
But he himself, like a fool, eagerly jumped into the trap.
"Hehe...hahaha..."
Lu Minxuan suddenly laughed, a shrill laugh like the mournful cry of a night owl.
He recalled his triumphant spirit when he commanded his troops, his smug satisfaction when he captured Prince Rui, and the sycophantic faces of the ministers in the court…
It turns out that from the very beginning, he was just a pawn on someone else's chessboard.
To think that he, the dignified Crown Prince of Liang, was actually outmaneuvered by a destitute head of a powerful family... How ridiculous!
Just then, a guard cautiously reported from outside the door:
"Your Highness... Lord Wang Xu requests an audience, saying... he has important matters to discuss."
Lu Minxuan's laughter stopped abruptly.
He slowly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and a ferocious smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
"Perfect timing, let him in."
The sound was eerily calm.