The ministers begged me to ascend the throne

Chapter 564: Cooperation with the Xie Family was a conspiracy from the beginning

Many years ago, Empress Xie had a headache problem. The pain was not severe at first, but gradually became more and more serious. Just a few years ago, when her headache came, she could not get out of bed and her consciousness was groggy. Every time she had a headache, she had to lie in bed for ten days or half a month to recover.

As the headache became more and more severe, Empress Xie's spirit became worse and worse, her complexion naturally became worse and worse, and her face began to gradually become old and haggard.

Empress Xie was most concerned about her appearance, because her appearance was not outstanding among the concubines in the harem. The only advantage she had over other concubines was her youth. However, over the years, due to headaches, she was no longer young, and her only advantage was lost, which was a great blow to her.

In the past few years, in order to maintain her youthfulness, she did not hesitate to eat folk remedies, such as eating placenta and deer fetus. Later, she heard that eating human placenta could maintain a youthful appearance, so she spent a lot of money to buy human placenta to eat.

Because she ate too many human and animal placentas, her whole body exuded a strong smell of blood. Even the Zhaoyang Palace was filled with the lingering smell of blood. In order to remove the bloody smell on her body and in the house, she had people light incense in the house, and it was a particularly strong-smelling incense.

During those years, the emperor gradually stopped going to Zhaoyang Palace because he knew that Empress Xie was eating the placenta.

Eating various placentas did not restore Empress Xie to her former youth. Seeing that the effect was not good, Empress Xie was anxious and angry. At this time, the magic pill appeared. Empress Xie regarded it as a life-saving magic medicine, and it did not disappoint her. Not only did it cure her old headache, but it also made her younger and younger.

Looking at her increasingly younger face in the mirror, Empress Xie was very happy and could not live without the magic pill. Later, the emperor issued an order to ban the magic pill, but Empress Xie still secretly ate it.

Empress Xie didn't care whether the magic pill would drive people crazy or not. She only knew that the magic pill could make her younger and more beautiful. To her, nothing was more important than her becoming younger.

After the magic pill was destroyed, Empress Xie could no longer get a new one. She could only divide the remaining magic pill into several portions. Even so, the remaining magic pills could not last long. She didn't want to become old again, so she frantically searched for medicine to replace the magic pill.

King Jing knew that Queen Xie was dependent on the magic pill. If she was not allowed to continue taking the magic pill, she would really go crazy. In order to stabilize Queen Xie, King Jing asked someone to make a fake magic pill and lied to Queen Xie that the effect of the medicine was similar to that of the magic pill.

Empress Xie believed it, but the fake magic pill only had a nourishing effect, and did not relieve headaches or make people younger. Before the Chinese New Year, Empress Xie's headache came back, and it was more serious than before. She stayed in bed for more than a month before she gradually got better.

After the New Year, Empress Xie was in much better spirits, but her appearance did not become younger again. She looked ten years older than before taking the magic pill. She had to put on heavy makeup every day to cover up the wrinkles and aging on her face.

After the failure of the rebellion of the King of Dai and the King of Han, Empress Xie's spirits improved. Afterwards, Concubine Rong died of illness, and Empress Xie was relieved and naturally became much better. However, after Zhao Yao left the capital with the Princess of Han, Empress Xie's spirits became worse and worse.

The reason why Empress Xie did not go crazy in the past few months was because she had been drinking the tranquilizing soup. The tranquilizing soup she drank was different from the tranquilizing soup that the imperial physician usually prescribed. This was the tranquilizing soup that the Southern Wei people got from foreign countries. Drinking it could calm people's moods and tempers in a short period of time.

After Zhao Yao and Xiao Siyun returned to the Swamp House, King Wei stopped letting Queen Xie drink the tranquilizing soup. Queen Xie's spirit became worse and worse, and her temper became worse and worse.

Just a few days ago, Empress Xie started talking nonsense, especially at night, when she screamed wildly that she saw ghosts.

In order to comfort Empress Xie, King Jing specially invited the Taoist priest from the most famous Taoist temple in the capital to come to the palace to exorcise ghosts. The Taoist priest also gave Empress Xie talismans and instruments to suppress ghosts, which made Empress Xie quiet for a few days. But, just a few days ago, Empress Xie said she saw a ghost again. She saw Xie Wan turned into a ghost and came to her to take her life.

Before, I saw ghosts at night, but after that, I could see them even during the day.

After seeing ghosts every day, Empress Xie became more and more crazy, and the nonsense she spoke became more and more scary. When she was mad, she told in detail how she killed Xie Wan, the former empress. Not only this incident, she also told many things she had done in the past.

When it was learned that the former queen was murdered by the old wife of the Duke of Zhenguo and Queen Xie, there was a great storm in the court and the harem.

The late queen was a virtuous queen. The ministers, concubines, and even the common people all respected her. When the late queen passed away, the ministers, concubines, and the common people were all very sad. It can be said that the whole country was sad.

Now they know that the late queen was killed by her own stepmother and biological sister. How can the ministers, concubines and people accept this?

The emperor immediately ordered a thorough investigation, and soon the results came out, just as Empress Xie had said. The emperor was furious and issued an order to depose Empress Xie.

The ministers did not oppose the emperor's dethronement of the empress. In fact, before the emperor dethroned the empress, the ministers took the initiative to suggest that the emperor dethrone Empress Xie.

Afterwards, another minister reported to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion and requested the emperor to conduct a thorough investigation of the Mansion.

The emperor ordered the Prince of Wei and the Supreme Court to conduct a thorough investigation of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion.

The King of Wei and the Imperial Court acted quickly, and within three days they had discovered many evil things done by the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion. At this time, another minister reported the King of Jing. The Emperor again asked the King of Wei and the Imperial Court to investigate the King of Jing, and indeed they found many things.

The title of the Duke of Zhenguo was revoked, and those who committed crimes in the Xie family were beheaded, exiled, or imprisoned. Although King Jing committed many crimes, his crimes were not punishable by death, so he was demoted to a county king and returned to his fiefdom.

The reason why the emperor did not demote Prince Jing to a commoner was because of Empress Xie and the help the Xie family had given him in the past.

King Jing returned to his fiefdom safely and did not die in an accident on the way back.

Empress Xie, no, she is no longer the empress. Xie Yi was banished to the cold palace. The emperor did not kill her. If he had directly ordered poisoned wine or white silk, or a dagger to be given to her, it would have been too easy for her. Letting her live madly is the best punishment for her.

In fact, Xie Yi was not crazy for all twelve hours, she would occasionally regain consciousness.

That day, Concubine Ying brought her maids to the cold palace to visit the crazy Xie Yi.

At this time, Xie Yi was sober. When she saw Concubine Ying coming, she looked very calm, which was different from what Concubine Ying thought. Concubine Ying thought that when Xie Yi saw her, he would be angry and yell at her like a madman.

Concubine Ying bowed to Xie Yi and said, "Greetings, Her Majesty the Queen."

Xie Yi sneered: "You are here to provoke me on purpose."

When Concubine Ying heard this, she was slightly stunned, then smiled and said, "I didn't expect you to see through it." After that, she looked at Xie Yi carefully from head to toe, "I see that you are very sober now, not crazy at all."

Although Xie Yi was banished to the cold palace and lived in a shabby house, her hair was combed very neatly, her face was very clean, and her clothes were not wrinkled. She straightened her back, raised her chin slightly, looked at Concubine Ying with a proud look, and said nothing.

Concubine Ying didn't expect Xie Yi to be reduced to this state, but still so proud and arrogant. At this time, she still had the demeanor of a noble lady from an aristocratic family.

"Are you used to living in the cold palace? Are you still afraid that the late queen will come looking for you?"

Hearing the words "former queen", Xie Yi showed a look of disgust on his face.

"I'm waiting for her to come and claim my life."

Not seeing any fear on Xie Yi's face, Concubine Ying felt a little bored.

"Why do I feel that you are smarter now than before?" She originally thought that Xie Yi would become even crazier after being banished to the cold palace, but unexpectedly, she became calmer.

Xie Yi looked straight at Concubine Ying with sharp eyes, "Who are you?"

Concubine Ying didn't expect Xie Yi to ask her this question. She was stunned for a moment, then she smiled and said, "I am Concubine Ying."

“You have no family background and no children. It is impossible for you to be favored for so long just because of your face that looks like that woman.” When the emperor brought Concubine Ying back to the palace, everyone thought that she would not be favored forever and that the emperor would get tired of her sooner or later. However, they did not expect that she would always dominate the harem over the years and even stepped on Concubine Rong for a few years.

Concubine Ying winked at Xie Yi and said, "It is because I have no family background and no children that the emperor can dote on me without worry."

Xie Yi was slightly stunned when she heard this. After a while, she laughed at herself and said, "So that's it." She wanted to tease Xie Yi, but she didn't expect Xie Yi to not go crazy. Concubine Ying felt very bored, so she stood up and said, "I'm leaving. I'll come back the next time you go crazy."

"I want to see the emperor." Xie Yi suddenly said.

"You want to see the emperor?" Concubine Ying asked with a smile, "Do you think the emperor will see you?"

"Tell the emperor that I still have something to say about Xie Wan."

This actually piqued Concubine Ying's interest. She looked at Xie Yi with interest, "Are you going to tell the Emperor that you didn't kill the late Queen?"

Xie Yi said nothing more and turned away, no longer looking at Concubine Ying.

"Interesting." Concubine Ying held the hand of the palace maid and left the cold palace.

"Your Highness, are you really going to tell the Emperor what she just said?" The maid said, "I think she is lying to you."

"I'm curious." Concubine Ying said with a smile, "I'll help her convey it." Life in the harem was too boring, she had to find some fun for herself, otherwise she would be bored to death. "Let's go to the imperial study."

Concubine Ying really went to the imperial study and conveyed Xie Yi's words to the emperor without changing a word.

After hearing this, the emperor did not rush to the cold palace to see Xie Yi, but waited until he had reviewed the memorials before going.

Concubine Ying asked to go with him, and the emperor did not refuse.

The emperor went in to see Xie Yi himself, leaving Concubine Ying and Sun Kui behind. Concubine Ying thought she could stay with the emperor and listen to Xie Yi's talk about the late queen, but she was turned away by the emperor.

Seeing that Concubine Ying looked angry, Sun Kui lowered his head and tried hard to hold back his laughter.

Concubine Ying tiptoed to the window and put her ear to it to eavesdrop.

Sun Kui pretended not to see it. In fact, he also wanted to eavesdrop, but he didn't have the courage of Concubine Ying.

Inside the room, the emperor sat down on the worn but clean couch.

Xie Yi knelt below.

"What do you want to tell me?" Although the emperor's tone was cold, there was no expression of impatience on his face.

"Your Majesty, Xie Wan doesn't love you." When Xie Yi said this, a smile of revenge appeared on his face. "She once told me in person that she doesn't love you, and she can only be your good queen." This is what she suddenly remembered two days ago. At that time, she was still young and went to the palace to accompany Xie Wan. She deliberately asked Xie Wan if she liked the emperor. Xie Wan didn't answer at that time. She thought Xie Wan was shy and was very angry at the time. Later, she heard Xie Wan tell the maids around her that she didn't love the emperor, and she didn't dare to love the emperor. All she could do was to be a good queen.

When she heard this, she had just woken up and was in a daze. After that, she forgot about it. It was only two days ago that she remembered it when she dreamed about it.

The emperor saw the malice in Xie Yi's eyes and chuckled, "Do you think I care whether she loves me or not?"

This sentence froze the smile on Xie Yi's face. She said in disbelief: "You don't care?"

"I don't care." The emperor shook his sleeves, "Do you know why you are inferior to Xie Wan in every way?"

Xie Yi hated to hear such words, especially when they came from the emperor. Her pale face showed an angry look, and she roared: "I am not inferior to her. I am the legitimate daughter, and she is a lowly concubine's daughter. She is not as good as me."

"Xie Wan is smarter than you, and has more self-awareness than you." The emperor supported his face with his right hand and looked at Xie Yi with amusement, "Xie Wan knew that I didn't love her, so she wisely chose to be a good queen."

"You don't love Xie Wan, you lied to me, you obviously loved her so much... She died, and you stopped court for her. It's impossible for you not to love her." Xie Yi still remembers the emperor's sad look after Xie Wan's death.

"Although I don't love her, I respect her very much." The emperor really respected the late queen and felt that he owed her something. "Do you think she didn't know that you poisoned her?"

Xie Yi's expression changed drastically, "What do you mean?"

"When Xie Wan was seriously ill, she discovered that you had drugged her. In order to protect you, your mother, and the Zhenguo Mansion, she chose to conceal it and made it invisible to me." The emperor said, "Before Xie Wan died, she did not ask me for anything. The only thing she asked me was to marry you."

"Impossible!" Xie Yi screamed, "You lied to me!"

"If it weren't for Xie Wan, I wouldn't marry you as my next queen." The emperor at that time did not think of marrying another daughter of the Xie family as his next queen.

"No, I'm the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo. You can't not marry me." Xie Yi's expression became ferocious. "If I wasn't young, it would be me who married you, not that bitch Xie Wan. I should have been your empress."

"The reason why I agreed to marry Xie Wan was because she was an unfavored concubine." The emperor looked at Xie Yi with a mocking look and said indifferently, "If it were you, I would never agree to the marriage, let alone marry you."

"Impossible!" Xie Yi couldn't accept this fact, "I am the legitimate daughter of the Xie family, why don't you marry me?"

"Because you are the daughter of the Xie family." The emperor sneered, "I agreed to the marriage with the Xie family not because I needed the support of the Xie family, the head of the aristocratic families, but to deal with the aristocratic families in the future." When the Xie family proposed the marriage, the Zhao family had already conquered most of the country. Although Zhao Yao needed more weapons and food at that time, the Zhao family could succeed in the end without the support of the Xie family.

The Xie family originally proposed to help the Zhao family because they saw that the Zhao family was about to succeed, otherwise why didn't the Xie family cooperate with the Zhao family in the beginning.

Xie Yi didn't seem to understand what the emperor meant. She asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

The emperor patiently said again: "Agreeing to marry into your Xie family is to deal with the aristocratic families in the future, and the Xie family is the leader of the aristocratic families."

Xie Yi, who was not very smart, understood the emperor's meaning this time. With a bang, these words were like a bolt from the blue. Her mind went blank and her face was filled with horror.

The emperor continued slowly, "What the late emperor and I hate most are the aristocratic families. How could we want to cooperate with the Xie family, the leader of the aristocratic families, and become relatives?"

Xie Yi's body trembled slightly, and his eyes were full of fear as he looked at the emperor.

"The purpose of cooperating with the Xie family is, first, to paralyze the aristocratic families and make them think that our Zhao family is willing to marry into an aristocratic family, so that they will feel that it is profitable and that our Zhao family is the same as all the previous royal families. The second purpose is to eliminate all the aristocratic families."

Xie Yi collapsed to the ground, his body shaking even more violently.

"Xie Wan is smarter than you. Not long after she became queen, she knew my intention, so she chose to be a good queen." The emperor walked to the side of Xie Yi, looking down at Xie Yi who was limp on the ground, his tone cold and full of sarcasm, "Of course, the main reason I agreed to marry you to Xie Wan was because you were stupid. With Xie Wan as a good example, you will be a good queen and help me manage the harem. Also, when you have children, you will not be satisfied with Xie Wan's son being the crown prince, you will want your son to be the crown prince."

The emperor continued, "Your brother values ​​Xie Wan's son and insists that her son be the crown prince. He doesn't want your son to be the crown prince, and you hate him for not helping you. You will deal with your brother yourself without my intervention."

Xie Yi's face became paler and paler, and the fear in his heart became stronger and stronger.

"For you and your son, you can sacrifice your brother, and even the Xie family." The emperor said, with a happy smile on his face, "You have done a good job over the years, which makes me very satisfied."

Xie Yi raised her eyes and looked at the emperor as if he were a monster. Her lips trembled as she stammered, "You... this... all of this was... planned by you..."