Chapter 35: Conspiracy

Chapter 35: Conspiracy

Back then, it happened suddenly.

At the time, Cheng Pohu had not yet laid down his armor and was still stationed at the northern frontier.

In recent years, the border had grown increasingly stable, with virtually no major conflicts. Cheng Pohu used his lingering old wounds as an excuse to request permission to return to the capital, and fortunately everything went smoothly—the Emperor granted his request at once.

But even so, by the time he returned to the capital, everything had already been settled.

His former close friend had long since fallen to the executioner's blade, and the Duke of An's lineage, which had enjoyed imperial favor for years, had crumbled to dust.

Following the execution of the Duke of An's entire household, the Annanzhou Army was swiftly divided up, and all those connected to the Duke of An's lineage were implicated—some beheaded, some demoted.

For a time, the capital was in a panic.

Not only that, but hot on its heels came the Emperor Consort's death and the Crown Prince's deposition.

The capital grew even more fraught with anxiety, with everyone fearing for their own safety and treating the matter as taboo.

Everyone took it for granted that the Emperor Consort and the Crown Prince must have suffered their fate due to their connection to the Duke of An—after all, the Emperor Consort was the Duke of An's eldest legitimate son, and the Crown Prince was born of the Emperor Consort.

The Duke of An had rebelled, so the Emperor Consort and the Crown Prince were inevitably implicated.

But was that the real truth?

The Old Duke clenched his jaw, his cloudy eyes suppressing a complexity of emotion that left Cheng Yi shaken.

"Wrong. Everyone got it wrong."

Cheng Yi couldn't help but ask, "What was wrong?"

"The order was wrong."

Cheng Yi shuddered as the Old Duke continued.

Back then, he had returned to the capital under the pretext of illness. Though he had long since learned the tragic news of his friend's rebellion and his household's execution, he simply could not believe that his bosom friend of many years would commit such a crime of high treason.

From his understanding of his old friend, Gongsun Yude, though somewhat arrogant and overbearing, was a genuinely loyal minister. He was loyal to Great Yao and to the Emperor.

There was no way he would rebel.

Furthermore, Gongsun Yude's eldest legitimate son was already the Emperor Consort, and his grandson was the current Crown Prince. Though he had stepped down from active duty, the Annanzhou Army remained firmly under his control.

With all this, he already held power that overshadowed the entire court and beyond. He only needed to wait a few more years for the Crown Prince to ascend the throne, and the Gongsun family's imperial favor could last for decades, even a century.

With all that, what reason would he have to rebel?

Moreover, when Gongsun Yude allegedly rebelled, he had actually brought only a little over three thousand men—he hadn't even taken that elite force famous throughout the land.

In addition, at the time of the incident, his family members were all still in the Duke of An's residence, having not been evacuated beforehand.

If he truly intended to rebel, why wouldn't he have made preparations beforehand?

So hasty, so careless—didn't it reek of suspicion everywhere?

Thus, the more Cheng Pohu investigated, the more suspicious it seemed, until he discovered that before the Duke of An's rebellion, a major event had unexpectedly occurred within the palace—something those outside the palace knew nothing about.

This was a secret of the imperial court. Because the matter was grave and involved the royal family's reputation, those who knew of it—aside from those who had been silenced permanently—all treated it as taboo.

Cheng Yi couldn't help but feel deeply curious. These imperial secrets were things he hadn't even known in his previous life.

"Before the incident, there were rumors that the Emperor Consort was having an affair with a guard, and the Emperor caught them in bed together."

The Emperor flew into a rage, executing the guard on the spot, and in his fury, placed the Emperor Consort under house arrest.

However, according to reports, that guard was the Emperor Consort's childhood sweetheart, and the two shared a deep bond. Unable to bear his death, the Emperor Consort actually requested to be deposed, wishing to die alongside him.

When the Emperor learned of this, his fury burned even hotter. The two had a violent argument, and afterward, the Crown Prince was also summoned to the palace.

There were rumors that the Emperor suspected the Crown Prince's paternity and wanted to perform a blood test to verify kinship.

But what the result was, Cheng Pohu never learned to this day.

What followed, however, was the Crown Prince's deposition, and only then did the Duke of An rebel and the Emperor Consort die.

Even with some preparation, Cheng Yi hadn't expected the truth to be so mind-blowing.

Wasn't it said that the Emperor and the former Emperor Consort were deeply devoted to each other as a couple?

According to legend, the two had grown up together from childhood, with their betrothal personally arranged by the late Emperor. The fact that the current Emperor had smoothly ascended the throne was inextricably linked to the Duke of An's support.

After taking the throne, he had unhesitatingly elevated him to Emperor Consort, and from then on, the two lived in perfect marital harmony, deeply devoted to one another. When the Emperor Consort gave birth to the eldest prince, the Emperor overruled all objections to directly name him Crown Prince—his protective intentions needed no explanation.

Cheng Yi recalled that the court historians recorded the Emperor Consort died of illness, and the Emperor was so grief-stricken that he lingered every night in the Emperor Consort's chambers, and could only fall asleep on the bed the Emperor Consort had slept on.

Moreover, it wasn't until eight years after the Emperor Consort's death that the Emperor elevated a noble consort to Empress—the current Empress Wang.

For the sake of the Emperor Consort, the position of Empress sat vacant for a full seven years, something rarely seen in all of history.

This showed how deep the Emperor's feelings for that Emperor Consort truly were.

And so, to this day, the people still recount the beautiful love story between the Emperor and the former Emperor Consort.

Yet now it was said that the Emperor Consort had committed adultery with a guard and was caught in the act of adultery by the Emperor.

Though Cheng Yi didn't believe in so-called royal affection, hearing such a truth still left him feeling disillusioned.

Seeing his expression, the Old Duke sighed and remarked:

"So-called royal bonds—whether familial or romantic—cannot withstand even a single blow."

Cheng Yi felt inexplicably struck by those words.

"Grandfather, you are most clear-sighted."

"Hmph~" The Old Duke let out a smug snort. "Otherwise, do you think our Cheng family could have survived to this day?"

Cheng Yi's heart tightened—was there something else he didn't know?

Back then, upon uncovering this, Cheng Pohu had a bad premonition in his heart.

Before he became Emperor Consort, Cheng Pohu had met him a few times. That child was steady and had a sense of propriety—there was no way he would do something so foolish, and the entire affair reeked of suspicion.

The moment the Emperor Consort fell into trouble, the Crown Prince was deposed—so swiftly it was startling. Then the Duke of An rebelled and was swiftly executed along with his entire household.

The whole sequence flowed with silky smoothness, as if everything had been orchestrated.

Cheng Pohu keenly smelled the stench of conspiracy.

Their new emperor seemed kind and caring toward the people, but in truth, he was a treacherous man. But underneath that friendly face, he was cold-blooded and ruthless. Would a guy like that ever let anyone else's power get bigger than his?

No way. Not a chance.

When your achievements outshine the emperor, you're in serious danger.

History is full of examples like that.

Cheng Pohu had a hunch about what was really going on, so he stopped digging.

Not long after, he asked the emperor to let him step down, saying his old war injuries wouldn't heal, the border was peaceful, and he just wanted to enjoy his retirement.

He quickly split up his military power among a few old generals in the army—not including his eldest son.

That emperor was a total hypocrite, so of course he put on a show of begging him to stay, but Cheng Pohu could tell the guy was actually relieved.

The emperor's stiff attitude suddenly loosened up.

His heart was heavy, but he kept a firm look on his face, and he even pretended he was worn out from all those hard years up north, saying that at his age, all he wanted was to kick back and enjoy his old age.

Only then did the emperor "grudgingly" agree to let him retire.

Maybe worried that two highly respected dukes falling one after another would raise questions, the emperor didn't give the 200,000-man Northern Defense Army to someone else—he handed it right to Cheng Pohu's eldest son, Cheng Jiyuan.

That way, the emperor got to look all generous and kind.

Look at how "graciously" the emperor treated Duke Zhenguo! A veteran who'd risked his life for Great Yao deserved such royal treatment.

Wasn't the emperor's kindness such a blessing for the whole country, for the people, and for every official, civil and military?

Yeah, right. How ironic.

Cheng Pohu had a feeling that if he didn't give up his command, he'd be the next Duke of An—and it wouldn't just be his life on the line—it'd be the whole Cheng family's.

So he had to do it.

Over the years, he'd kept a lower and lower profile, he didn't even report his eldest son's repeated military successes up north. All he wanted was for the Cheng family to live in peace.

Cheng Yi listened, his face darker and more serious than ever.

So basically, the Duke of An's "rebellion" was probably a huge conspiracy, and the guy behind it was probably the one sitting on the dragon throne right now.

Or maybe the mastermind was someone else—like, who benefited the most from all this?

The Wang family, that's who.

After the Duke of An fell, the Wang family shot up fast, and a few years later, Consort Yang became the empress.

So the Wang family was a very likely suspect too.

But even if it was the Wang family, the emperor must have at least quietly approved—or even pushed things along behind the scenes.

These people... they really deserve to die.

The Duke of An—a legendary war god—had risked his life for Great Yao for decades, defending the country and backing the emperor, only to end up like that.

Wasn't that both tragic and infuriating?

These people were even more disgusting than maggots.

The Old Duke couldn't help feeling sad as he talked about it.

Once the birds are all gone, the bow gets put away; once the clever rabbit is dead, the hunting dog gets cooked.

He'd been loyal to Great Yao, loyal to the emperor, but even he could feel his heart turn cold and bitter.

Great Yao had never been short on loyal ministers and brave generals, but if they were loyal to a rotten, stinking royal family, and devoted to an emperor who tossed his people aside once they were used up—was that kind of emperor really worth giving everything for?

Cheng Yi's dark eyes grew even more determined.

The Old Duke seemed to hit a sore spot, and his cloudy eyes got a little wet.

The way he looked at Cheng Yi was full of sorrow.

"Yi'er, you must remember: throughout history, when someone's achievements outshine the emperor, it's always been a death sentence. No emperor will ever allow another to stand above him."

"Grandfather knows you are a man of ambition. I am both proud and worried for you. Our Cheng family has already become a thorn in that man's side, a splinter in his flesh. The slightest misstep could be magnified without limit, plunging the entire family into irredeemable ruin."

"The Duke of An is our warning."

The Old Duke's already aged eyes grew dimmer. He ought to have been a vigorous old man, yet years of suppression and forbearance had reduced him to this.

Cheng Yi's heart tightened. He looked at his grandfather's stooped back and the deep, unshakable sorrow in his eyes, and he hesitated.

Should he shatter the last shred of his grandfather's resolve?

Forbearance would only invite greater oppression—never the other side's mercy.

Cheng Yi thought it over and decided to speak. Since he had long made his choice, this path was not his alone—it was the road the entire Cheng family would walk.

"Grandfather, do you know why my martial arts have advanced so rapidly? Why I changed my mind and agreed to the betrothal? And why I asked you to warn Uncle—do you know why I have changed so greatly?"

The Old Duke shuddered. He stared fixedly at his grandson before him—the child he had watched grow—yet at this moment, his eyes seemed utterly foreign.

This grandson, who ought to be spirited and bright-eyed, now bore a look in his eyes that was cold and profound, utterly at odds with his age.

This was not the look of a seventeen-year-old youth, but rather that of an old man who had weathered countless trials and witnessed endless schemes—so calm it sent a chill down one's spine.

The Old Duke's heart suddenly ached. He reached out, as he had when the boy was small, to ruffle his hair, but faced with those eyes, his hand froze mid-air.

What had this child endured? A single year—just one—what could have changed him so?

"Grandfather, I had a dream—a long, vivid dream."