The ministers begged me to ascend the throne

As Zhao Yao expected, when the news of him offering sacrifices to heaven and earth on behalf of the emperor spread, many people said he was unworthy. Many ministers thought that the emperor was sick and confused, and actually let the lowly King of Han offer sacrifices to heaven and earth.

The ministers in the court and the concubines in the harem could not accept Zhao Yao's offering sacrifices on behalf of the emperor. Although the emperor was resting, many ministers and concubines asked to see him.

In the harem, the ones who were most dissatisfied with this matter were Empress Xie and Concubine Rong. They both felt that Zhao Yao was not worthy of offering sacrifices to heaven and earth on behalf of the emperor unless all the princes died. In their opinion, their sons were the most suitable candidates.

The emperor had expected that Empress Xie and Concubine Rong would quarrel with him, so he simply refused to see them. Unexpectedly, the two of them knelt at the door and begged the emperor to take back his decision.

Sun Kui stepped forward to persuade them that if they did not allow the emperor to have a good rest and caused the emperor's condition to worsen, then they would be unforgivable.

Empress Xie and Concubine Rong could not afford this heavy crime, and dared not to make trouble with the emperor anymore, and returned to their own palaces obediently, but they could not swallow this anger. They thought of bullying Concubine Liang to vent their anger. Unexpectedly, the emperor issued an order that if anyone in the harem deliberately made things difficult for Concubine Liang, don't blame him for being rude.

Seeing that the emperor was defending Concubine Liang so much, Empress Xie and Concubine Rong were so angry that they smashed a lot of things.

At this time, Concubine Ying came forward to favor Concubine Liang and told everyone clearly that Concubine Liang was under her protection and no one could play tricks on her.

As for Concubine De, she was discovered poisoning Concubine Liang some time ago, and then she fell ill and was placed under house arrest in the palace.

Concubine De knew that her illness was strange, but she had no way to deal with it. She wanted to spread the news, but she was under surveillance and had no way to spread the news to her family. She could only lie in bed and watch her son and her family get into trouble.

After drinking the medicine, Concubine De sat weakly on the bed. She wanted to speak, but the people serving her were no longer the same people as before. Since she fell ill, all the people in her palace had been replaced. The people who had been with her before were gone, and it was obvious what would happen to them.

No one spoke in the entire Yishou Palace; it was eerily quiet.

Just then, footsteps were heard, followed by the voice of someone outside paying respects to Concubine Ying.

Hearing that Concubine Ying was coming, Concubine De's dim eyes lit up slightly. Since she fell ill, only Concubine Ying came to see her occasionally and talk to her.

In the past, she hated Concubine Ying the most, but she didn't expect that after she fell into poverty, only Concubine Ying came to see her.

De Fei knew that Concubine Ying was not really here to see her, but to make fun of her, but she didn't care. No one in the entire Yishou Palace talked to her, only Concubine Ying came and talked to her.

Concubine Ying walked into Concubine De's bedroom and saw her pale face, sitting very weakly on the bed. She sneered, "I think you won't be able to hold on for much longer."

"It's so cold, and you actually came to see me."

"I was just bored, so I came here to make fun of you." Concubine Ying enjoyed making fun of Concubine De. "I don't know if you can hold on until the day you reunite with your son."

When Concubine De heard this, her eyes suddenly became sharp and she asked anxiously, "What do you mean?"

"Don't you know what I mean? Haven't you been waiting for your son to succeed in his rebellion and then come to rescue you?" Concubine Ying said casually while drinking tea.

When Concubine De heard this, her face changed drastically, her eyes filled with shock and horror.

"you……"

"How should I know?" Concubine Ying chuckled, "Do you think your son's actions can be hidden from the emperor?"

Concubine De was horrified and trembling slightly: "The Emperor..."

"The Emperor is waiting for your son to fall into his trap." Concubine Ying said with a smile, "You must work hard and try to hold on until the day you can reunite with your son. I think you will meet your son soon."

Defei's breathing became rapid, and then her vision went dark.

Upon seeing this, Concubine Ying asked the palace maid serving Concubine De to pinch her philtrum to prevent her from fainting.

The palace maid moved skillfully and pinched Concubine De's philtrum hard, which made her wake up from her dizziness.

Concubine De gasped for breath: "You... Your Majesty..."

"Oh, by the way, there is one more thing I forgot to tell you. I was the one who reported you for what you did to Concubine Liang." Concubine Ying smiled gently at Concubine De, "I have been keeping an eye on you, and you really didn't let me down."

Concubine De's pupils suddenly widened, with a horrified expression on her face. She pointed at Concubine Ying and said, "You...you are...the emperor's..."

Concubine Ying kindly finished what Concubine De had not said: "Yes, I am the emperor's spy in the harem."

Concubine De: “!!!!”

Concubine Ying was very satisfied with Concubine De's reaction and said with a smile, "You didn't expect it."

Concubine De has always been smart. Now that she knows Concubine Ying's identity, she is horrified. She dares not think further, otherwise... it's too scary, the emperor is really too scary.

"Oh, by the way, since you are dying, I will kindly tell you one more thing." Imperial Concubine Ying propped her chin with her hand and said with a smile, "Liangpin is the emperor's favorite person. You can kill anyone else, but she is the one you want to kill. Do you think the emperor will keep you?"

Concubine De was full of disbelief: "Princess Liang?! How could it be her?" She had always thought that the Emperor's favorite woman was Miss Si, who looked exactly like Concubine Ying, and not Concubine Rong. She didn't expect it to be Concubine Liang.

She suddenly thought of how Liangpin was often picked by the emperor when she first entered the palace. After realizing this, Defei just found it funny and burst into laughter.

"The Emperor deceived everyone, isn't that amazing?"

"The Emperor really loves Concubine Liang." When Concubine De said this, her expression was filled with hatred, jealousy and anger.

"I didn't expect that."

"The emperor has made us all a joke." The biggest joke is Concubine Rong. When she thought that Concubine Rong didn't know about this and even thought that she was the emperor's favorite woman, Concubine De felt happy. "How does it feel to be a joke in the eyes of the man you love deeply?" Although Concubine De hid it very deeply, Concubine Ying could see that Concubine De loved the emperor in her heart, but she knew that the emperor didn't love her, so she pretended not to love the emperor.

The love deep in her heart was seen through, and Concubine De was shocked, "You...how did you know?"

"Which woman in the harem does not love the emperor? You are no exception." The emperor is handsome, capable, and the supreme ruler of the world. How many women can resist such a man?

"What about you? Don't you love the emperor?"

"It doesn't matter whether I love you or not." Concubine Ying was too lazy to discuss with Concubine De whether she loved the emperor or not. "Oh, by the way, there is one more thing I forgot to tell you."

Defei suddenly had a bad feeling in her heart.

Concubine Ying said very slowly: "You didn't ask for your son to go to Youzhou."

De Fei's heart instantly fell into an ice cellar, and a bone-chilling chill spread through her limbs. She was horrified: "What... do you... mean..."

Concubine Ying winked at Concubine De playfully and said, "It was the Emperor who asked you to take the initiative to ask to go to Youzhou."

Defei's pupils suddenly shrank, then everything went dark and she lost consciousness.

Seeing that Concubine De had fainted, Concubine Ying curled her lips in disdain and said, "You are so useless."

"My Lady, do you need me to wake her up?"

"Forget it, let her faint." Concubine Ying walked to the bedside and looked down at Concubine De who had fainted. "How long can her body hold on?"

"Don't worry, Imperial Concubine. We can still hold on for another month or two."

"That's great. Otherwise, it would be a pity that the mother and son couldn't be reunited." Concubine Ying gave the palace maid a few instructions and left Yishou Palace.

After walking out of Yishou Palace, the maid beside her asked, "Your Majesty, why did you come to see Concubine De?" The maid beside her did not follow her into Concubine De's bedroom.

"I'm bored." Concubine Ying said, "Concubine De has always been arrogant. She thinks she is smart and doesn't take anyone seriously. Now that she has fallen to this point, I have to come to see her and laugh at her."

"That's what the Queen said."

"The New Year is coming soon, and there will be another good show to watch."

"My lady, the road is slippery, please be careful."

At this time, in the Han Palace, Zhao Yao was learning the rules and etiquette of sacrifice. While learning, he regretted returning to the capital.

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and he will be on behalf of the emperor to offer sacrifices to the ancestors early in the morning. Fortunately, he will have nothing to do after the sacrifices. He will not be the host of the New Year's Eve banquet, as it will be hosted by the King of Dai and the King of Chu.

If he were asked to host the New Year's Eve party, he would definitely run back to Swamp House overnight.

After learning the rules and etiquette of sacrifice, Zhao Yao collapsed on the kang, motionless.

"Your Highness, are you okay?" Tongxi asked with concern while giving Zhao Yao a massage.

"Look at me." Zhao Yao complained, "Sacrificial offerings have so many rules and etiquette, it's really..." He sighed again, being an emperor is really not a human thing. He was right to resolutely refuse to be an emperor.

"Your Highness, just get through tomorrow and the day after tomorrow."

As they were talking, the King of Chu walked in. He asked Tongxi to leave while he gave Zhao Yao a massage.

"Fourth brother, how come you are so energetic?" Fourth brother is in charge of all the banquets during the New Year, which is not an easy job. "Aren't you tired?"

"Not tired, I'm used to it." In recent years, the King of Chu has hosted various banquets during the New Year every year and has long been accustomed to it.

Zhao Yao gave the King of Chu a thumbs up and said admiringly, "Great!"

"How are you doing in your studies? Will you make any mistakes during the sacrifice?"

"Even if you give me ten heads, I wouldn't dare make a mistake during the sacrifice." If he made a mistake during the sacrifice, he would probably lose his life.

"That's good." The King of Chu didn't say much. He still had things to do, so he talked to Zhao Yao for a while and then left.

Looking at the back of the King of Chu leaving, Zhao Yao sighed softly and said, "Fourth brother should know."

Tongxi asked hurriedly: "What does His Royal Highness the King of Chu know?"

"Knowing that I was hiding from him and Starling."

"Your Highness, it would be good if His Royal Highness the King of Chu knew about this."

"Yeah, it's good that Fourth Brother knows about it, so that I don't have to be caught in the middle." After Zhao Yao finished speaking, he didn't know what he was thinking about, his brows furrowed and his expression became serious.

Myna... I hope he is just overthinking it. (End of this chapter)