The imperial study was very quiet, so quiet that Pei Luoan's heart began to race. He could almost hear the sound of his own heartbeat accelerating, each time more frightening than the last.
He placed his hands on his knees and lowered his head, not daring to move.
He had been kneeling like this since he entered the room. His father above did not call him to stand up, nor did he speak to him...
"The death of the former Crown Princess... is it really related to Ji Youran?" Pei Luoan finally heard the question.
“Father… I… I really listened to the Crown Princess at that time. She said she wanted her cousin to come and take care of her. She said she wanted to keep her cousin. I didn’t want to do that, but the Crown Princess even argued with me, saying… that she didn’t want anyone else to get close to her, that she and Ji Youran were real sisters, and then she said… and then she said…”
Pei Luoan's tears fell and he cried bitterly.
At this point, he no longer dared to hope that the emperor would not associate it with him. No matter who it was, after hearing about such things, the first thing they would think of was the accident in the Eastern Palace.
"So... you didn't even investigate... and just left that woman behind?" The emperor looked coldly at his kneeling son, his face full of disappointment.
He also carefully nurtured this son. At the beginning, he had no other ideas but to let the prince succeed to the throne and train the prince to be an elder brother who is friendly and respectful to his brothers, and can take care of his younger brothers in the future. However, he did not expect that this son would disappoint him more and more.
He was wrong from the beginning...
"Father... the Crown Princess was in such a state at that time, I... I... it was really hard for me to refuse. Then the Crown Princess begged me... saying that this was her only wish. I... how could I bear to let her die like this... I... had no choice... I didn't think too much about it."
Pei Luoan cried.
"You didn't expect it?" The emperor snorted coldly, "There are so many things you didn't expect! You didn't expect one before, and you didn't expect another after that. The same thing happened in the Prince of England's palace. Why did the King of England know about it, but you knew nothing about it? Could it be that you are actually indifferent to your Crown Princess?"
"Father... I... have a deep bond with the Crown Princess. For so many years, the only person I wanted to marry was the Crown Princess. How could I not care about her? It was just that I was injured at the time, and that woman was good at pretending. She pretended to make the Crown Princess devoted to her, forcing me... I agreed..."
Pei Luoan cried out in grievance.
At this time, he had no intention of hiding these things from Ji Youran. Even if Ji Youran was still useful, she was dead now. What use was a dead person
The only use is to take the blame.
All the problems can be blamed on Ji Youran. Thinking this way, it would be good if Ji Youran died. At least she would have an excuse to shirk responsibility in front of her father.
"Was the Crown Princess really being held hostage at that time?" The Emperor asked coldly, half-closed his eyes.
"I don't know... I still don't know whether the Crown Princess was willing or was deceived by that woman. Father... I... I failed in my duty. I am sorry to the Crown Princess... If I knew that she was really coerced by this woman, I would cut her into pieces."
Pei Luoan gritted his teeth and said hatefully, pressing his fists hard against his knees.
He really thought so, and he really wanted to do it. If Ji Youran was still in front of him at this time, he would definitely cover this woman's mouth without saying a word, and then have someone skin her alive.
Pei Luoan even felt that if it weren't for Ji Youran, he wouldn't have fallen to such a point now. If Ji Youran hadn't seduced him again and again, he would not have let her enter the East Palace, let alone let her look after Ji Hanyue, which led to Ji Hanyue's death under Lord Linyuan in the end.
He used to believe Ji Youran's statement, thinking that Ji Hanyue jumped to Linyuan Pavilion because she didn't want to live anymore, but now... new doubts arose in his heart.
Can Ji Youran really tolerate Ji Hanyue? What if she has a malicious heart and wants the position of Crown Princess
Thinking of this, he became even more grief-stricken, "Father... that woman... that woman... I hate her so much..."
His expression and feelings at the moment were all reflected in his mind. He really hated Ji Youran at this moment. He felt that without Ji Youran, he and Ji Hanyue would not have come this far, and it was even more impossible for them to end up in a place where everyone suspected them. It was all because of Ji Youran.
It’s all because of this woman Ji Youran. He and Ji Hanyue were obviously a good couple and they really wanted to be together.
He had thought about his marriage a long time ago. This marriage was not only the idea of his mother and father, but also his own. He really liked Ji Hanyue and wanted her to be his crown princess. He even felt that if Ji Hanyue was his crown princess and would be his queen in the future, he would have the same deep affection for her as his father had for Queen Yuan.
Even if he had three thousand concubines in his harem, the only one he truly cared about was Ji Hanyue.
But why did things turn out like this now? Not only did Ji Hanyue die, but he was also in a difficult position. All of this was Ji Youran's fault. It was all Ji Youran's...
Hearing the sound of his teeth gritting and almost losing his composure, the emperor's expression was still not good. "Since it was only the Crown Princess's intention at the beginning, then why did you favor Ji Youran alone later, and even let her take away the Crown Princess's dowry and force the people in the Crown Princess's mansion? Were you not able to get hurt at that time?"
If what happened before the Crown Princess' death could be attributed to Ji Youran's pretending, then what happened after the Crown Princess' death was not just Ji Youran's problem.
The emperor is also a man, and he doesn't think that Pei Luoan's promise to Ji Youran is just a promise to the Crown Princess.
"Father... I was always thinking about the Crown Princess at that time, and I completely ignored the affairs of the mansion. I thought Ji Youran would be able to handle this kind of thing well. When the Crown Princess was around, she always assisted her and managed the affairs of the mansion well, and never made any mistakes. I didn't expect... I didn't expect that she would be like this..."
Pei Luoan was the one who knew nothing about anything. Before coming here, he had thought that the problem was all on Ji Youran. Now, the mixture of true and false, half-truth and half-lies seemed more like the truth.
In the end, he actually fell to the ground and cried.
The emperor's eyes fell coldly on his son. If this kind of thing happened only once, he would think it was an accident. It sounded like it really was an accident, but what if it happened one after another
He is the emperor, and there are sometimes accidents one after another in the harem, and often at this time, they are rarely real accidents...
"Do you think I have wronged you?" The emperor's voice was solemn after a storm.
"Father, I dare not. I just feel that... ever since the Crown Princess married into the East Palace, there has been an invisible hand that has been controlling the fate of me and her. When I was happiest, I experienced great sorrow. If Father and Mother were not here, I would have to be filial to them. At that time, I would have been willing to follow the Crown Princess."
"The relationship between me and the Crown Princess is unique. Father knows how I happily married her, but in the end... in the end... she was gone. She actually left me alone. Only heaven can tell how much I love the Crown Princess. As for her words, and the people she wants to protect, I am wholeheartedly devoted to her. I only hope that when I see her again in the underworld in the future, I will be worthy of her."
Pei Luoan said this in a tearful voice, and then kowtowed three times to the emperor.
Each of his blows landed heavily on the bluestone floor tiles in front of him: "Father... your son... your son is unwilling to give in!"
After only three words, Pei Luoan's forehead immediately became bruised and swollen. He slammed heavily on the floor tiles in front of him, revealing a sense of determination, "If your father does not believe me, please sentence me to death. I am willing to accompany the Crown Princess now, so that the Crown Princess can see my intentions and understand my heart. If there is an afterlife, I would rather be an ordinary couple with her, living a simple life, without anyone calculating, and without anyone forcing me."
After Pei Luoan kowtowed, he covered his face and burst into tears.
The emperor's gaze fell coldly on Pei Luoan. Pei Luoan's expression was genuine. It could be seen that he was in great pain, to the point of having lost his former dignity. It was obvious that Ji Hanyue's death had really hurt him.
But he still found it hard to believe. His eyelids drooped and he stared at his son in front of him, without commenting. Regardless of whether the matter was true or not, Pei Luoan was really nice to Ji Youran at the beginning. He had also paid attention to the behavior between the two of them. At that time, Ji Hanyue had just died, and Ji Youran was taking care of the prince, which silently indicated that the two of them had a good relationship and were very familiar with each other.
But now... Pei Luoan's last few words mean that someone is trying to assassinate him
And someone took advantage of this...
The emperor was silent for a long time before he said, "This matter will definitely cause a stir in the court. What do you think will happen?"
"Please make a wise decision, father. I... will do as you wish." Pei Luoan wiped his tears and said, his words were very nice, but he had to be nice. At this time, he had no other choice. He just hoped that his father would still consider his mother's face and his own face. After all, this matter would not amount to deposing the crown prince!
I did it in secret at first and erased all traces afterwards.
Pei Luoan has already guessed that the censors will be in a state of panic tomorrow and that's why he is in a hurry to go to the palace to apologize to the emperor.
It would be better to make things clear now than in the court. At least now there are only him and his father in the imperial study. Tomorrow will be different. When they go to the court, who knows which faction these people belong to, or whether they are still in a wait-and-see stage. As the crown prince, he cannot lose face.
"Then let's talk about it tomorrow." The emperor leaned back and said in a heavy and slow voice, "Go back to the palace first and inquire about the Crown Princess' affairs. If there is anything suspicious, deal with it first. The Crown Princess's affairs cannot be sloppy. I don't care what you think. I only know that Ling Anbo is an important minister of the country, and the Crown Princess is also the daughter-in-law I chose in the first place, the most legitimate daughter-in-law."