special!
Very special!
only-
There are always people who can't help but grumble in their hearts.
Zheng Qiao doesn't even care about his own father. There are even rumors among people in Geng State that when the old king of Geng State had a stroke and was in bed, Zheng Qiao took advantage of his position as the sick attendant and teamed up with the old king's queen (now the queen mother) to secretly kill the old king.
No one doubts the authenticity of this rumor.
There is no other reason, the power changes in Geng country have always been difficult.
Old tradition, old craftsmanship!
If even my own father is like this, why would I care about my master
What's more, Yan Xingning is just the master's son.
The relationship between so-called brothers from the same school is just like that.
There was a lot of talk outside, but none of it reached Zheng Qiao's palace.
Elsewhere, the eunuch led Yan An through many twists and turns, and finally arrived at an elegant flower garden with luxurious decoration and a new scene at every step.
The stone table in the octagonal pavilion is carved from jade.
Not long after he sat down, another eunuch brought over some exquisite pastries and a pot of tea with a strong floral aroma. Yan An took a quick look and realized that the pastries were all of the flavors he was used to, and even the temperature of the tea was the same, neither too hot nor too cold, just like before.
Yan An lowered his eyes and enjoyed the meal slowly and leisurely.
Only after he had finished half a cup of tea did he hear familiar footsteps from behind him. He stood up and was about to greet Zheng Qiao. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zheng Qiao waving his hand and saying, "Xingning, there is no need for us to be so polite."
Yan An: "Times are different now, etiquette cannot be abolished."
Zheng Qiao was not displeased when his words were refuted.
He knew the temper of this senior brother.
He seems gentle and easy to talk to, but in fact he is stubborn and opinionated.
Zheng Qiao lifted her skirt and sat down on the other side of the stone table. If the court officials saw this scene, they would probably take a long time to pick out the eyeballs.
He said, "Is your previous plan really feasible?"
Yan An: "It's good that the national seal doesn't fall into their hands. Are you going to send troops to suppress the two forces? Even if you want to, how much is left in the national treasury for you to fight? The same goes for the troops under your command. Your indulgence has fostered the ambitions of too many people. If you give them the military power at this time, the first person they will attack will be you."
Yan An was not willing to give civilian forces a "legitimate" title? But if he didn't do so, he would face a situation where he would be attacked from all sides. At this time, he could not indulge the military power to soldiers who had disloyalty and ambitions, and could only balance and suppress them!
Zheng Qiao pursed her lips and said nothing.
This scene could also make the court officials drop their eyes in shock.
It was always Zheng Qiao who scolded others like a grandson. No one dared to say that he did something wrong right away. Even if Zheng Qiao did something wrong, he couldn't be so blunt.
Only by playing deaf and dumb can you save your life and property.
However, Yan An is clearly an exception among exceptions.
Yan An asked with a smile: "Why aren't you talking?"
Zheng Qiao: “…”
Yan An's words were clearly a question to the court officials.
At this moment, the boomerang stabbed himself.
He said, "Xingning, you shouldn't come here."
Yan An asked back: "Why shouldn't I?"
"I know that my senior brother came out of seclusion to lead me back to the right path, but—" Zheng Qiao was rarely calm, without the abnormal and unstable moods of the past, without the frightening and stern look, this gorgeous face became even more stunningly beautiful, "I don't want to."
Yan An's eyes were sharp: "You don't want to?"
Zheng Qiao shivered subconsciously.
The palms of my hands were aching slightly.
When I made mistakes when I was young, the shadow of my senior brother's discipline is still there.
He took a deep breath, suppressed the fleeting fear, and said bluntly: "Xingning, I am no longer a junior brother who you can discipline with a ruler, nor am I a helpless hostage! I am the ruler of this land. The path I want to take is the right path!"
After saying this, he said helplessly: "Can't you just stay in your hometown and mourn for your master? Why do you have to jump out and wade into this muddy water?"
When Yan An heard this, a vein on his forehead twitched.
"You also know it's muddy water?"
Obviously, he was also provoked by Zheng Qiao's words. He was not angry at Zheng Qiao's rejection, but at his knowing and willful behavior - knowing that his actions would incur public outrage, but still doing it his own way. He knew everything, but he still did all the stupid things.
Yan An asked again: "Who muddied the water?"
Zheng Qiao said casually: "It's me."
Yan An: “…”
He knew that Zheng Qiao had changed a lot.
During the years of mourning in the hut, he had heard a lot about Zheng Qiao. Any normal person would curse at Zheng Qiao for his cruel methods. Yan An also complained and cursed at his father's grave, hoping that Zheng Qiao was deceived and did these things.
But he knew even more clearly that Zheng Qiao was not so easy to deceive.
If the rumors are true, he probably condoned them intentionally.
The more this happened, the more Yan An couldn't believe it.
He said: "Why is it so?"
How did Junior Brother Zheng Qiao become what he is now
How innocent are the people of Xin and Geng countries
Now that you have taken your revenge, why are you still unwilling to let it go
Yan An just wants to ask—
Why has it come to this
Zheng Qiao said calmly, "Human nature is evil, and I am an evil person in my bones. Even if I used to be a good person, it's still fake... Brother Xingning is not me after all, so there are some things that I can't empathize with."
"Wear it the same way you wore it before!"
Zheng Qiao suddenly said sternly: "I only indulged you a little because of our friendship as fellow disciples. Yan Xingning, don't overstep your boundaries!"
Yan An was slightly startled, and said in a gentle tone: "Please forgive me, my Lord."
Zheng Qiao hit a soft thorn and had no place to vent his anger.
He said: "As the king, I don't need anyone to tell me what to do. I just need to listen to my arrangements... If Master is still alive, it will be the same! Yan Xingning, we are brothers from the same sect, and I don't want your blood on my hands. But you are really ignorant - it's not impossible to save one more life!"
Yan An looked at him with heartache.
The person he felt most guilty about was probably this junior fellow apprentice.
If he and his father had been more resolute back then, and had found an excuse to take Zheng Qiao out to travel around, as long as they stayed away from the Xin Kingdom's royal family, perhaps they could have prevented those things from happening.
At least, the inappropriate title of "Nüjiao" cannot be applied to Zheng Qiao! But my father had a little fantasy about the integrity of the King of Xin State, thinking that the old King was still the wise and intelligent monarch when he was young, and no matter how bad he was, he still had a bottom line.
He is gullible.
The result is something no one wants to see.
Everything that happened afterwards proved that Zheng Qiao was indeed the legitimate heir of the Geng Kingdom royal family! Once the moral constraints imposed by the secular world were released, the evil beast with astonishing destructive power would be released.
Yan An knows that his junior brother has done countless wrong things, but he still hopes that Zheng Qiao can stop and return to the right path. It is never too late to mend the fold!
However, Zheng Qiao is not someone he can persuade now.
The biggest difference between Zheng Qiao and him is that—
The former believes that he is the ruler of the country and that ants have no right to judge whether he is good or bad. Even if they do judge, they should use him as the standard.
What he says is good is good, what he says is evil is evil, what he says is right is right, what he says is wrong is wrong!
All those who sing the opposite tune—
Damn it all!
It was because he saw through this that Yan An felt even more heartbroken. How could the humble, submissive, and even timid Zheng Qiao become so arrogant and ridiculous now? Now he was wantonly playing with other people's lives and taking pleasure in cruelty and bloodshed.
Disregarding the laws of nature, human ethics, propriety, righteousness, integrity, filial piety, brotherhood, loyalty and faithfulness!
Yan An rubbed his brows helplessly: "Okay, I know what's best for you. But can the king help me understand why you treat the princess like that?"
When the news came, he had just finished his mourning period.
Without thinking too much, I hurriedly packed my luggage and set off.
It was not surprising that Zheng Qiao hated other members of the Xin Kingdom royal family, but it was unexpected that even Wang Ji hated them so much and even murdered them. As Zheng Qiao's most trusted senior brother, he knew that Zheng Qiao had many unspeakable concerns when he was young, including Wang Ji.
His junior fellow apprentice liked that princess very much.
Zheng Qiao smiled and said, "I wonder what Xingning wants to ask."
Yan An looked at Zheng Qiao and felt it was unreal.
Zheng Qiao was surprised: "Didn't I say that people change? If I change, Wang Ji will change too. She used to be gentle and kind, and she treated me with respect. But that was in the past. I saw with my own eyes that Wang Ji, who used to not dare to step on even ants and would take care of injured birds day and night, killed a palace maid in a rage because she stole her new shoes."
Actually, there is nothing wrong with it.
The palace maids really deserved to die for doing this.
But after all, it’s just a pair of shoes!
Wang Ji had been favored since she was young. Not to mention a pair of shoes that she might wear once or twice and then never wear again, even if she wore different shoes every day and wore clothes that were worth the cost of ordinary people's years of chewing, it would be enough for her to wear for a lifetime! Why would a pair of shoes that she might not like cost someone her life
But outsiders didn't think Wang Ji was wrong.
That palace maid really deserved to die.
Zheng Qiao laughed again and said, "However, no one cares about such a small matter. People only remember that Wang Ji endured humiliation and endured heavy burdens. For the sake of the Xin Kingdom royal family, she dared not die and could not die! When I want her to die, she can die! There is no essential difference between what she did and what I did. Even if there is, it is a small evil and a big evil! What, a small evil is not an evil? Small evils can be ignored and forgiven, but big evils cannot be understood?"
Yan An opened his mouth and whispered, "No violation of the great principles."
Zheng Qiao asked back: "I don't care about minor matters, but do you think the lives of palace maids are just minor matters?"
Yan An said: "You know that's not what I meant."
Zheng Qiao calmed himself down.
Ever since he stopped suppressing his temper, his anger became increasingly difficult to control, even though he knew Yan An came here with the best wishes for him.
It’s the same old saying—
He doesn't need anyone telling him what to do.
Apart from the king, who dares to say that he is definitely right
Yan An also tactfully advised him to cultivate his character and control his temper.
Zheng Qiao flatly refused!
"I don't need it! In the past, I lived under someone else's roof and was bullied by others. I had to put on a smile and imitate that girl in the building to win a little favor and live like a human being. But now, I am the king! The people in this land have to live by my nose!"
He smiled in Yan An's disbelieving eyes.
"If they don't want to live, they can just die."
As the night grew darker, Yan An emerged from the palace.
When he looked back, he shuddered. At one moment, what he saw was not a beautiful palace but a ferocious beast.
Yan An sighed and whispered.
“Some things have to be done before you know them.”
How could he be worthy of his father's spirit in heaven if he didn't give it a try
If you can't -
At least you won't regret it.
That night, an urgent imperial edict of eight hundred miles was transmitted from the palace to all places.
For a moment, all forces were in an uproar.
It is completely unclear what Zheng Qiao is up to.
Although they knew that this decree might be a poison from Zheng Qiao, some people were inevitably shaken in the face of huge benefits. This was a great opportunity to take advantage of the opportunity to become more powerful and have their own troops!