A rebellious minister forced me to be a foolish king

Chapter 598: Broken Dream
The current emperor, Yuwen Yu, has always been gentle and honest, but he stubbornly protects Yuwen Huaibi's virginity and keeps him alive. He does his best to protect this fourth brother who is not loved by his father and mother both inside and outside the court. In this family, only the eldest brother hopes that he will be a worry-free Duke of Lu.

However, no matter how kind-hearted the eldest brother was, he was also tough inside, which aroused the fear of the regent minister Yuwen Hu. So Yuwen Hu ordered the imperial chef to poison the food and drink, just like he had killed his third brother, as if he were crushing an ant, and openly poisoned his eldest brother.

That year, the seventeen-year-old Yuwen Huaibi knelt in front of his eldest brother's sickbed. Yuwen Yu, who was poisoned and critically ill, dictated a will at the bedside, passing the throne to his fourth brother, Yuwen Yong, the Duke of Lu.

From then on, Yuwen Huaibi became the third puppet emperor of the Northern Zhou Dynasty.

He had no foundation in the court, was the least favored, and was taciturn. But after his elder brother died, his eldest sister-in-law's infant nephew became his first child. This was the only thing Yuwen Huaibi could decide for himself.

The seventeen-year-old Yuwen Huaibi sat on the dragon throne that fell from the sky with great trepidation. He felt that the nine-dragon top above his head was not a canopy for the king, but a guillotine hanging over his head. If he was not careful with his words or actions, the guillotine would fall and chop off his head.

Yuwen Huaibi knew very well that he was not worthy of his position. The only reason he could sit in this position today was because his several older brothers, the emperors, were killed by powerful officials. If he did not obey, he would suffer the same fate.

From then on, he walked on thin ice and was careful in what he said and did every day.

These things were heard by Hua Xu, but not by the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace until the year she reached her 15th birthday. At that time, everyone wanted to send their sons to him, but they brought up the old matter again, saying that he had forced his favor on a maid in public, and had a son with her, and then helped the maid become the Queen of Zhou.

The world is determined to beat him to death and call him a dissolute man.

She even tried her best to force Yuwen Huaibi to follow the example of Yuan Baoju and Tianmu Khan of the previous dynasty and marry a Turkic princess as her queen. Then she wanted to force him to marry someone else again.

On the wedding night of the emperor and empress, Yuwen Huaibi escaped. He had planned for a long time and took his confidants to the Huaxu Imperial Capital Shenqi Mausoleum overnight to come to her, hoping to consummate the marriage with the girl.

But she didn't love herself and was unwilling to choose him.

Over the years, Yuwen Huaibi watched Yuan Wuyou grow from a baby in swaddling clothes to a beautiful girl. Even after she went to Huaxu, he would visit her every one or two years, for fear of missing her if she suddenly grew up and changed her appearance and he would not be able to recognize his little girl.

During the first ten years or so, there was naturally no love between the two of them. Instead, there was a family relationship. Yuwen Huaibi did not dote on his parents or have harmonious relationships with his brothers. Now Yuan Wuyou's father was also killed by the powerful official who killed his brother. The two of them completely sympathized with each other and became grasshoppers suffering on the same rope. He simply gave her all his fatherly love and brotherly kindness.

All he relied on was waiting for her to grow up, fulfill the marriage contract legitimately, and give him the golden body. Yuwen Huaibi kept his body and heart pure just to be the wife of the crown prince. Even if he could not be the father of the country, he could still get the protection of the former empress. However, all his hopes for survival were shattered at this moment.

It turned out that his child bride didn't love him at all, and didn't even want to use him as a concubine. It turned out that she had already raised a group of little boys of all kinds in Huaxu to accompany her to grow up, preparing to take them into the harem as male favorites.

What made him most sad, angry and desperate was that these little boys mocked others for being old and ugly, and wanted to be with young girls.

Yuwen Huaibi had waited for more than ten years, but the old boy aged prematurely. He looked like a dignified peony, keeping people away. But he was a pure and abstinent lotus, withering before he bloomed. Even though he became the emperor and the queen, he never had a wedding night and kept his virginity, leaving it to her, but at this moment, it all became a joke.

It's ridiculous that he is self-righteous, wishful thinking and overestimating his own abilities.

But he had been emperor for seven or eight years, and had been able to survive for seven years under the hands of the regent Yuwen Hu, who had killed two emperors in a row. He had already tempered his mind, which was as noble as the bright moon, into one full of thorns and filled with murderous intentions.

Yuwen Huaibi thought she was the only pure land in his heart, and his last bit of kindness and bright moonlight were all left for her. But she didn't want him anymore.

Then don't blame him for throwing away his hopeless ideas, smashing the pure white moon, using the pieces to sharpen a knife, and stabbing it into her heart.

He wanted revenge! Since she didn't love him anymore, he would make her taste the suffering he had suffered. From now on, there would be no more sun and moon shining together in the world. He wanted her to sink into the filthy and chaotic world with him. He wanted her to die with him! - Three years ago, Chang'an.

A wedding invitation was sent to Huaxu. It was written by Yuwen Huaibi, the King of Zhou, inviting the crown prince Yuan Jixiao to witness his ceremony of establishing the empress. The date was also chosen well, as the wedding day of the emperor and empress was his birthday.

The crown prince Huaxu then brought generous gifts and personal guards to congratulate the King of Zhou on finally bringing back the Turkic princess he had been seeking to marry for many years as his queen.

But he was stopped outside the Qingqi Gate by a young ceremonial officer.

The ceremonial officer had a handsome face, but his court dress made him look even thinner. He wore a black hat and a sable feather brush on his head. He opened his mouth and said:
"Chengnan Feng Diewei has been waiting for Your Highness here for a long time on behalf of the Emperor."

Feng Diewei then said: "Love will kill you. You still have Huaxu to go to, but Yuwen Yong only has Chang'an."

"I just want to keep the appointment and see him one last time, and put an end to our old friendship and obsession."

"You can't go see him."

"Why? Was this his decision or yours?"

"The Prime Minister was furious when he learned about this. The Emperor did not want to marry the Turkic princess, so he secretly sent you a letter with the intention of eloping with you. If the Prime Minister had not stopped him in time, wouldn't the Emperor have become a rare laughing stock in history for eloping with someone on the day of the coronation ceremony? Do you know how the two brothers above the Emperor died? Do you want to kill the Emperor?"

Facing the accusations and questions from his old friend, the young crown prince, dressed in gorgeous clothes and dignified, tried hard to hold back his tears and suppress his heartache:

"As long as I leave Chang'an and give up Yuwen Huaibi, will you let him go?"

"The Prime Minister promised our Emperor that as long as you don't become a demon concubine and let him give up this idea, he will take good care of His Majesty. But... His Majesty doesn't agree."

"Okay, I'll go now." As she said that, the little girl took out a white jade porcelain bottle from the sleeves of her gorgeous dress embroidered with dragons and phoenixes and handed it to him.

"This is what he wanted. Please convey it to him, sir."

Then, the girl, who was not yet of marriageable age, turned and left.

At night, the Huaxu envoy's carriage left in a mighty procession, with a head full of osmanthus and ginkgo leaves. In front of them was a wide and empty road, heading back to the distant Huaxu in Western Shu. Behind them was the bustling city, with thousands of lights in Chang'an celebrating reunion.

It was the middle of August in the autumn, and the bright moon was shining on Chang'an. The former young master of Chang'an had already boarded the carriage heading west and was on his way.

Inside the palace, after Yuwen Huaibi had planted the chastity poison for her, he happily waited at the Qingqi Gate in his wedding dress for half the night. When she didn't show up, he learned from the on-duty commander of the Sixth Guard, You Wu Bo Minglong, that the envoy of Huaxu had just left the city... The princess of Huaxu broke her promise again and abandoned him as her concubine.

That year, the full moon was in the sky, and it was Yuwen Huaibi's birthday. He left his bride and queen alone in the empty room, took a few of his cronies with him, and rode out of the city.

I only wish I could catch up with the freedom that his heart desires, and catch up with his dream of Huaxu.