Chapter 341: I Will Be Buried with My Brother

Chapter 341: I Will Be Buried with My Royal Brother

Yet even so, Lu Minghua was under strict imperial orders not to leave the capital without permission. Every mid-afternoon, he was required to bring the Yongning Marquis's son born outside marriage, who had been placed outside the household, into the palace for an audience with the emperor.

The so-called audience consisted of kneeling outside the Ganlu Hall to pay respects, without even catching a glimpse of the emperor before being ushered out by the palace eunuchs.

It was called imperial grace, but in reality, it was nothing but house arrest under close watch.

After the turmoil in the northern frontier, the emperor's suspicions deepened daily.

With the Yongning Marquis leading more than a hundred thousand troops, the emperor could only feel at ease by holding onto the Marquis's two sons.

Any observant official could see this truth, yet no one dared to speak of it.

Recently, the emperor's temper had become as volatile as gunpowder.

Anyone who had ever had the slightest connection with the Xie family became the target of his wrath.

No one was happier than the Duke, who had coincidentally been "assassinated."

While other officials trembled on their knees, the Duke lounged leisurely on a recliner, basking in the sun.

While other officials endured tongue-lashings about "loyalty," the Duke enjoyed seasonal fruits while delivering his own lectures on "love" to Gu Huai.

Imperial spies made regular visits to the Duke's residence.

Every day, they could see the Duke, his head wrapped in soft cloth, wielding a horsewhip and lashing out at Gu Huai, who had conveniently lost his voice—even going so far as to capriciously torch Gu Huai's Qishan Courtyard.*

*Qishan Courtyard: A significant location within the Duke's estate, mentioned elsewhere in the text.

Gu Huai rushed into the blazing fire like a man possessed, only to emerge clutching fistfuls of ashes.

Then, refusing food and drink, he sat amidst the ruins and began painting.

His paintings were chaotic—grotesque figures, neither fully human nor spectral—and once finished, he set them ablaze.

In the end, the shadow guards arrived at an astonishing conclusion.

Regardless of the truth behind the assassination attempt, the Duke and Heir Gu’s madness was undoubtedly real.

Thus, the guards reported this finding to the Emperor.

The Emperor, skeptical yet intrigued, intended to test them further, but new unrest flared in the northern territories once more.

As the Yongning Marquis’ army approached the Northern Frontier Army’s encampment, the latter revealed their ultimate gambit.

Crown Prince Heng.

The only son of Emperor Jingxiang, Xiao Heng.

Years earlier, when the palace fell into chaos, it was officially proclaimed that Emperor Jingxiang had died suddenly, while Crown Prince Heng perished in a fire. With the imperial line seemingly extinguished, Prince Kang ascended the throne.

Now, Xiao Heng had returned.

The throne could tolerate only one true claimant.

Xiao Heng’s existence made Emperor Xiao Yao’s rule precarious as rotten ice.

The moment his years of dread became reality, Xiao Yao felt a perverse clarity, as if the dust had finally settled.

A boy just past his teens, an old man with hair and beard gone white, a woman who’d lived secluded in Changning Palace, seldom seeing outsiders—even the rebellious troops in the north who showed no respect for royal authority—they’d never pose a real threat.

Just the Northern Frontier Army?

He still had the armies of the southern and western frontiers, as well as the eastern naval forces.

Besides, the current Northern Frontier Army was nowhere near as strong as it used to be.

This time, it was his chance to solidify his grip on the throne.

The palace eunuchs and court officials picked up on the emperor’s strange change in mood.

Not rage, but a wild, almost manic joy.

They couldn’t make sense of it.

Changning Palace.

"Aunt."

Xiao Yao carried two jars of vintage wine, their jars still caked with dirt from decades of burial.

"These were buried by Father Emperor beneath the osmanthus tree in the Eastern Palace the year my brother the Emperor was born."

"Three jars were buried—one opened for his wedding, another for the first Mid-Autumn Festival after his ascension, now there’s just this one left."

Then, he gently shook the jar in his right hand, his smile fading, replaced by a bitter jealousy.

"This jar was buried by my brother the Emperor and you the year Xiao Cheng was born."

"My brother followed Father Emperor's example and buried three jars."

"Who would have thought that Xiao Cheng and Shu Yuan's engagement cost us one?"

"Aunt, you and my brother always said you treated me like your own son. So why did Xiao Cheng have what I didn’t?"

"You and my brother could’ve buried one for me too."

"Today, which jar would you like to drink first, Aunt?"

Xiao Yao's eyes were bloodshot, his words slurring like a drunk’s, yet there wasn’t a trace of alcohol on him.

Empress Dowager Xie silently finished reciting a prayer for the departed before lifting her gaze numbly. "Is this my last drink before the chopping block?"

"Of course not." Xiao Yao placed the wine jar on the small altar's only table, then rose and retrieved an intricately carved box from a hidden compartment beneath the shrine, opening it with practiced ease.

A clump of dirt, dark with blood, was revealed inside.

Next, Xiao Yao turned the golden Buddha statue in the corner shrine, and with a dull thud, a hidden door creaked open in the wall. Behind it lay a narrow chamber veiled by a red cloth.

Reaching out, he yanked the cloth away, revealing dozens of ancestral tablets.

They belonged to the Xie family members who had perished in the palace coup.

"Did you really think I didn’t know about Changning Palace's hidden compartments and secret chambers?"

"I was raised by you, Aunt."

"For nearly four years, I looked the other way, allowing you to worship the Xie family in Changning Palace, to offer incense and burn paper money for them—just to give you something to cling to."

"Why can't you see what I have done, Empress Dowager?"

"You can't put spilled milk back in the bottle—Empress Dowager is of the Xiao family now, no longer of the Xie. The fall of the Xie Clan does not affect your wealth and honor."

"With Xiao Cheng dead, I can honor you as a mother."

"Empress Dowager, why cling to delusion?"

Xiao Yao gazed at the rows of ancestral tablets, his eyes inscrutable.

Empress Dowager Xie let out a scornful laugh. "We dare not regard an incestuous snake who lusted after Our husband as a son."

"Xiao Yao, do you agree?"

"Your thoughts truly made Emperor Wencheng sick to his stomach."

Emperor Wencheng was a visionary ruler.

A rightful sovereign naturally ruled all under heaven.

To be coveted by the younger brother he had raised with his own hands—it was enough to sicken Emperor Wencheng.

"Empress Dowager."

Xiao Yao traced his fingers over the tablets, indifferent. "These words won't provoke me."

"To the victor go the spoils."

"Four years ago, I won."

"The Xie Clan fell, the Chu Clan was exiled, and the court was cleansed."

"I've searched for Xiao Hang for four years—at last he emerges from hiding."

"This time, I will win again."

"When I die a hundred years from now, shall I arrange in secret for me to be buried with Imperial Brother?"

"Would you care to join us, Empress Dowager?"

"As for whether it’s disgusting—Imperial Brother has been dead for over a decade. He can no longer tell me himself."

"Years ago, Imperial Brother once said that if I erred, he would point it out directly and urge me to correct it."

"Because Imperial Brother never spoke, it means I was not wrong."

Ice filled Empress Dowager Xie's veins—she couldn’t even bear to glance at him.

"If you mean to kill me, then dispatch me quickly."

"We have no lingering regrets."

The Xie Clan had reclaimed the northern marches and could protect themselves.

Once Hang Er revealed himself, men of honor and loyalty from across the land would flock north to swear fealty to the true heir.

In time, they would clear the Xie name, and vengeance would be exacted.

The only pity was Lu Mingchao, who had plunged into the unknown.

Lu Mingchao chose honor over life, and Yan'er will likely mourn her for life.

"I won't let the Imperial Sister-in-law die."

"I intend to make the Imperial Sister-in-law witness Xiao Hang's head hanging from a flagpole like Xie Er's, pecked by birds, denied peace even in death."

"For as many days as I searched for him, his corpse shall be exposed for that many days."

"You've only yourself to blame for meddling—despite such dire circumstances, you still managed to spirit Xiao Hang away undetected."

"The Emperor betrays his country."