The ministers begged me to ascend the throne

Chapter 556 Killing and Punishing the Heart

In the Prince of Han's palace, Zhao Yao lay on a hammock, basking in the sun and taking a nap.

The secret guard suddenly appeared in front of him and said respectfully: "Your Highness, the King of Dai and the King of Yue committed suicide."

When Zhao Yao heard this, he sat up suddenly, his face changed drastically and he asked, "When?"

"A moment ago." The secret guard said, "He hanged himself."

Zhao Yao sat on the hammock and asked solemnly, "Who did they meet before they died?"

"No one has seen it."

"No one has seen it before?" Zhao Yao frowned and asked suspiciously, "Are you sure they haven't seen anyone before?"

"I am sure." The secret guard continued, "Since the King of Dai and the King of Yue were imprisoned, no one has gone to see them."

"No one saw them, why did they hang themselves?" Zhao Yao thought to himself: Myna must have seen King Dai and his men, otherwise they would not have hanged themselves.

"They wrote suicide notes, saying they were ashamed of the emperor and that they had no face to live in this world."

"Suicide note? Did they really write it?" Zhao Yao asked again, "Where did Myna go today?"

"His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei has been at the Ministry of Justice and has not left today." The secret guard reported, "His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei has not left the capital in the past few days."

Zhao Yao frowned, his expression thoughtful: It is not necessary for Bage to go to see Lao Er and the others in person, Bage can send someone to meet them. With Bage's ability, it is not impossible to avoid anyone noticing.

However, if it wasn't for the Eighth Brother himself telling them, the Second Brother and the others wouldn't believe it. Only if the Eighth Brother himself told the Second Brother and the others the truth about the rebellion, would the Second Brother and the others be unable to accept the truth and commit suicide.

It must be a starling.

Myna has the ability to meet Lao Er and the others without telling anyone.

Sure enough, the starling would not let the second brother and the others go.

Zhao Yao had previously guessed that the emperor would not order the beheading of the King of Dai and the King of Yue, but would demote them to commoners and then lock them up, just like deposing the crown prince. Sure enough, his guess was correct.

After that, he guessed that the King of Wei would not let the King of Dai and his men go. However, he did not know when the King of Wei would take action. He originally thought that the King of Wei would kill the King of Dai and his men on the second or third day after they were imprisoned. But the King of Wei did not do so.

Zhao Yao thought that the King of Wei might want to wait until he got married and left the capital before taking action against the King of Dai and his men. He did not expect that the King of Wei would choose to take action at this time.

The King of Dai and the King of Yue have been imprisoned for twenty days. Now is a good time to commit suicide. Myna has calculated the time very well.

Mynah bird really has a plan for everything.

The secret guard heard Zhao Yao sighing and asked, "Your Highness, what should we do next?"

Zhao Yao came back to his senses, waved his hand and said, "This matter has nothing to do with us, so we shouldn't get involved."

"Yes, Your Highness." The secret guard saluted and then disappeared in front of Zhao Yao.

Zhao Yao sat on the hammock with a very complicated expression.

Tongxi came over with tea and saw Zhao Yao sitting in a daze on the hammock. He asked with concern, "Your Highness, what's wrong with you? Did you have a nightmare?"

Zhao Yao took the teacup, raised his head and drank the tea, then said calmly, "Old Two and Old Nine are dead."

"What?" Tongxi screamed, then realized that his voice was too loud, so he lowered his voice and said, "The King of Dai and the King of Yue are dead?"

"Yes, dead." Zhao Yao lay back on the hammock and said with an obscure expression, "He committed suicide by hanging himself."

"Hang themselves?" Tongxi asked in horror, "Why would they hang themselves?"

"They feel ashamed of their father and have no face to live in this world anymore." Zhao Yao added, "That's what they wrote in their suicide note."

After hearing this, Tongxi sighed and said, "I didn't expect that King Dai and the others would..." It seems inappropriate to say that evil will be punished at this time.

"Go to Bage's house and tell him I'll come over for dinner tonight." Zhao Yao said, closed his eyes and continued his nap.

"Yes, Your Highness."

In the evening, Zhao Yao went to the Prince of Wei's mansion. At this time, the Prince of Wei had not returned yet. He waited for a while in the Prince of Wei's mansion before the Prince of Wei returned.

The King of Wei was slightly surprised to see Zhao Yao in his study, then asked with a smile: "What happened today that caused His Royal Highness the King of Han to come?"

"I came to have dinner with you." Although Zhao Yao was sitting in the study of the King of Wei waiting for him, he did not look through his things. He lay on the couch in the study, crossed his legs, and read the new storybooks published in the capital.

King Wei looked at Zhao Yao deeply and said, "You are here to see me because of the death of the second and ninth brothers, right?"

More than two hours ago, the news that the King of Dai and the King of Yue had hanged themselves had reached the capital. All the civil and military officials in the court and the common people in the capital knew about it.

Zhao Yao didn't expect the King of Wei to be so direct. He was slightly stunned, and then admitted: "Yes, I did come to you for their death."

The King of Wei sat down opposite Zhao Yao and, without waiting for Zhao Yao to continue asking, he took the initiative to admit, "I did it."

Zhao Yao was surprised and not surprised to hear the King of Wei's answer. He stared at the King of Wei blankly, and after a while, he laughed and said, "My dear, I didn't expect you to be so direct."

"You came to me, doesn't that mean you have guessed that I did it? Why should I deny it?" King Wei chuckled and said, "Besides, there is no need to deny it."

"You told them the truth about the rebellion?" Zhao Yao asked again, "You also told them that the emperor knew about their rebellion a long time ago, but did not stop them."

"Almost." What the King of Wei said to the King of Dai was more heartbreaking than what Zhao Yao said, which made the King of Dai unable to accept the truth. They chose to hang themselves in grief. "The second son regretted his rebellion very much. He thought that his father didn't kill him because he loved him and couldn't bear to kill him. He still had hope in his heart that he wouldn't be imprisoned for long and would be released by his father, and then he could continue to be the King of Dai."

Zhao Yao said: "He has always been so naive."

The King of Wei played with the teacup in his hand and smiled playfully: "I told him that he was just a pawn in his father's heart. If his father really loved him, he would stop him from rebelling. The reason why his father didn't kill him was because his father didn't want to be called cold-blooded and ruthless again. After all, he once made great contributions to the Great Zhou." "Myna, your words are really heartbreaking." Zhao Yao thought to himself, if he were the King of Dai, he would not be able to accept the cruel truth.

Since childhood, the King of Dai has been deeply loved and valued by the emperor. When the deposed crown prince was still alive, the King of Dai was at his peak, and even the deposed crown prince had to stay away from him. The King of Dai always thought that he was the emperor's most beloved son and that he would be the crown prince. As a result, the King of Wei cruelly told him that the emperor's love and value for him were all fake, and he just wanted to use him. How could he accept this?

"That's exactly what I wanted." King Wei said with a smile, "They didn't disappoint me and hanged themselves."

Looking at the King of Wei who was smiling calmly in front of him, Zhao Yao felt his scalp tingling for a moment. However, he did not show it on his face.

"When are you going to meet the second brother and his friends?"

"That day when I came back from Concubine Liang's place with you, I went to the other courtyard."

"So early?" Zhao Yao thought the King of Wei had passed away the day before yesterday, or the day before yesterday, but he didn't expect that the mynah brother had passed away ten days ago. "Then why didn't they hang themselves at that time?"

"I haven't figured it out yet." King Wei smiled nonchalantly, "We have to give them a few days to figure it out. This will only make them more and more desperate, don't you think?"

Zhao Yao: “…” Myna’s grasp is so accurate, and so ruthless.

"You think I shouldn't kill them?"

Zhao Yao did not answer the King of Wei's question, but asked: "Does the emperor know?"

The King of Wei did not answer directly, but asked: "Do you think father knows?"

Zhao Yao: Father knew, but he didn’t stop it.

“My father…” No matter what, Prince Dai was once his most beloved son. Could it be that his father’s love for Prince Dai was all fake?

King Wei saw what Zhao Yao was thinking and said gently, "Father is also a human being and a father. He is not as cold-blooded as you think, otherwise he would not have spared the lives of the second son and the others."

"Then why did he..." not stop you from killing Lao Er and the others...

Zhao Yao didn't finish his words, but King Wei knew what he wanted to say.

"I am going to kill the second brother and the others, and Father cannot stop me."

This sentence was very simple, but Zhao Yao could hear the profound meaning behind it.

"Myna, you really have a deal with the Emperor."

The King of Wei was not surprised that Zhao Yao had guessed it. He nodded and admitted generously: "Yes, I have a deal with my father. This time, the rebellion of the fifth brother was planned by me, and my father didn't know about it at first."

"I guessed it." Although Zhao Yao had expected this a long time ago, he was still shocked when he heard the King of Wei say it himself. "What other deal did you make with my father?"

The King of Wei smiled meaningfully and said, "It's better if you don't know."

Zhao Yao wisely did not ask further, "Eighth Brother, you planned for Old Five to rebel just to get rid of those three? If that's the case, Father probably wouldn't make a deal with you."

The King of Wei said, "The Xiongnu."

"It is indeed the case!" Zhao Yao had expected it. "My dear brother, Lao Er and the others have been crippled and imprisoned. They should not pose any threat to you. Why did you want to kill them?"

King Wei raised his eyes to look at Zhao Yao, "Do you really think they are no threat? You forgot that they are in the army. As long as they are alive, those people in the army will follow them and wait for them to turn the tables."

Zhao Yao didn't say anything.

"Tenth brother, you should not underestimate the prestige of the second brother in the army and his reputation among the people. Even if all the soldiers who supported him are dead, he once made great contributions to the Great Zhou, and the people of the entire Great Zhou know it. In a year or two, the people will remember his contributions, sympathize with him, and pity him. He can use this to pretend to repent and then leave the other courtyard."

Zhao Yao felt that even if the King of Dai and his men were released after a few years, they would still be no match for the King of Wei.

"I won't let them live any longer."

Zhao Yao suddenly asked, "Just like the deposed crown prince, he can't live either, right?"

"Yes, he cannot continue to live." The King of Wei had a cold face and a very cold tone. "Even if he is deposed and imprisoned, there are many people in the court and among the people who support him."

It was just as he expected.

Zhao Yao looked at the King of Wei, opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but he hesitated to speak.

The King of Wei saw what he wanted to say but hesitated to say, "I promised you that I would spare the life of the fourth brother. I will spare him when the time comes."

Zhao Yao was not embarrassed when the King of Wei saw through his thoughts. Instead, he said with gratitude, "Thank you, Brother Bah."

"Do you think I'm cruel?"

Zhao Yao looked at the King of Wei and did not deny it. Instead, he said honestly, "Yes."

King Wei looked at Zhao Yao's clear and honest eyes, his heart softened and his expression became gentle.

"I am a sinister and cruel person, you know that."

"My dear, I don't mean to blame you." Zhao Yao felt that there was no need to kill the deposed crown prince and the King of Dai, but he was not the King of Wei, and he could not use his principles to demand the King of Wei. Besides, what qualifications or position did he have to blame My dear?

"Aren't you afraid of me like this?" King Wei asked lightly, but his hand holding the teacup suddenly became stronger.

"I'm afraid of what you might do, but you wouldn't do this to me."

Seeing the trust in Zhao Yao's eyes, the King of Wei felt relieved and smiled: "You are my only brother in this world, and I will never treat you like this." In the King of Wei's heart, he only has two relatives, one is Zhao Yao and the other is Concubine Liang.

Zhao Yao smiled brightly: "I know, so I'm not afraid of you." He knew that Bage was sinister and vicious, and had a deep mind, but he was not afraid. Because Bage would not use these on him.