Chapter 472: Destiny (2)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
For the sake of the marriage between the two countries, Rong’er had ignored him for a few days, even though their wedding date was approaching.
In a few days, it will be the day of his wedding with Rong’er…
He was simply overwrought, afraid that something would happen in the last few days.
Sometimes, Chu You couldn’t help but think about the reason why Xiao Shoufu and the others had been persuading him to marry into the State of Yue. Did they think that without the State of Yue, he, Chu You, wouldn’t be able to do anything!
Xiao Shoufu didn’t show it on his face, but his eyes turned cold bit by bit. He was quite unhappy.
During this period of time, he had also seen through Kang Wang. Kang Wang was headstrong and self-opinionated. He was also indulging in romantic relationships and was inferior to the indecisive former Emperor.
If not for the fact that their family really had no other choice, if not for the fact that the late Emperor only had the Emperor and Kang Wang, they really wanted to change to someone else.
Suppressing his mixed feelings, Xiao Shoufu took a deep breath and stabilized his emotions.
He slowly stroked his goatee and suddenly changed the topic. “Emperor Taizu was wise all his life, but in his later years, he did a muddle-headed thing.” “Does Your Highness know?”
Xiao Shoufu looked at Chu You steadily, his eyes as deep as the sea. Indeed, in the next moment, the impatience on Chu You’s face faded a little.
Chu You raised his eyebrows. He was more or less curious by Xiao Shoufu’s shocking words.
Everyone said that Emperor Taizu was wise and mighty, and no one had ever dared to label him as muddle-headed. If Xiao Shoufu’s words were to be spread outside, it would be disgraceful!
“Please guide me, Grand Secretary,” Chu You said patiently.
Xiao Shoufu didn’t want to leave someone hanging. He continued to stare into Chu You’s eyes and said, “Emperor Taizu mentioned crippling the Crown Prince in his later years.”
The one who crippled the Crown Prince was naturally the deceased Emperor.
“…” Chu You couldn’t help but be shocked. His eyebrows twitched,twitched and he couldn’t help but think: Who did Emperor Taizu want to give the throne to when he crippled the Crown Prince back then?
Emperor Taizu had ten sons, and the late Emperor was the eldest legitimate son. The youngest son was Prince Chu Chi. As his parents had a special fondness for their youngest son, could it be that Prince Chu Chi was the one he was referring to?
Chu You’s eyes narrowed as he pondered. He heard Xiao Shoufu, who was sitting at the bottom, say a name calmly.
“Eldest Princess Feng Yang.”
Xiao Shoufu’s voice was as light as the wind, but to Chu You, it was like a clap of thunder on the ground.
What?! Chu You was really shocked, and his eyes widened slightly.
Seeing his reaction, Xiao Shoufu became calm instead. He picked up the teacup and took a sip before slowly talking about the past 30 years ago.
“Emperor Taizu used to prioritize capability over birth order, without paying much attention to the distinction between legitimate and non-legitimate sons. However, due to the Yong Cheng Mansion incident, Emperor Taizu made up his mind to establish the principle of legitimacy. As a result, he appointed his eldest son as the Crown Prince.”
“But in his later years, Emperor Taizu became muddle-headed. In the 29th year of the Heaven Calendar, he proposed to abolish the Crown Prince and give the position to Feng Yang, despite the objections of the court officials. Emperor Taizu even kept saying that Feng Yang was also a legitimate child.”
“…” Chu You looked at Xiao Shoufu in surprise.
Back then, Emperor Taizu’s prestige in the court was extremely high. It was almost to the point of an area where one person’s words went. The people even regarded him as a god and a believer. If he insisted on establishing Feng Yang, then why…
As if he could tell what Chu You was thinking, the corners of Xiao Shoufu’s lips curled into a cold smile. He sighed and said, “Fortunately, Emperor Taizu is a human. No matter how unparalleled his achievements, how wise and divine he is, he can never win against fate.”
“That year, the Red Deity of the North invaded our Great Jin Dynasty on a large scale. The State of Yue of the South was also restless, and both sides attacked us from the front and back. If it was replaced at this time, it would only cause the court to be unstable and the hearts of the people to be in turmoil.”
“A year later, it wasn’t easy for him to calm down the Red Deity and defeat the State of Yue. Not long after, Emperor Taizu fell sick again and never recovered…”
After that, 30 years later, Emperor Taizu passed away.
Before Emperor Taizu died, he didn’t change the crown prince.
Speaking of this history, Xiao Shoufu’s expression was solemn.
Chu You was also infected by this solemn mood and vaguely felt a sense of fate.
It was the will of the previous Emperor to ascend the throne!
It turned out that even the wise and mighty Emperor Taizu couldn’t avoid a ten-thousand-year-old muddle-headed fate. In the end, he couldn’t withstand the heavens!
“Sigh!”
After a moment of silence, Xiao Shoufu sighed faintly. “However, Emperor Taizu is still too biased towards Eldest Princess Feng Yang. Although he didn’t manage to replace her, he still gave Emperor Taizu’s handwritten letter to the Eldest Princess.”
As soon as he said this, Chu You’s expression changed again. He asked involuntarily, “…Is it really with Aunt Feng Yang?”
Before the late Emperor died, he was still thinking about Emperor Taizu’s handwritten letter. He suspected that Feng Yang had taken the handwritten letter. Chu You knew this, but in the past, Chu You felt that it was useless for Feng Yang to take the handwritten letter.
Xiao Shoufu nodded and said, “After Emperor Taizu passed away, ‘Emperor Taizu’s handwritten letter’ disappeared. The previous Emperor had asked the Eldest Princess about the handwritten letter a few times, but the Eldest Princess had always been domineering. She refused to admit it and even scolded the previous Emperor…”
At this point, Xiao Shoufu looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated.
He raised his hand and made a gesture. His servant was very good at reading him from his body language, and immediately left the main hall.
Chu You could tell that Xiao Shoufu had something important to discuss, so he got the attendant to leave the hall and guard the corridor outside.
Only the two of them were left in the room. The shadows of the trees outside the window shone through the window into the hall, and a solemn atmosphere naturally filled the room.
Xiao Shoufu locked his eyes on Chu You’s and said seriously, “There was something else that happened back then that many people didn’t know about.. Your Highness probably doesn’t know either, right?”