CH 73.2

Chapter 73.2 – Everyone Was A Chess Piece

In the end, this could more or less be counted as having my revenge.

Qi Yang didn’t say that sentence too early at all. News of rebellion came from the capital that night.

It was said that another battalion of soldiers came from the capital rushing towards the Circular Mound Altar palace, intending to force the Emperor to abdicate. But those soldiers disappeared before everyone’s eyes without even seeing the palace’s gates.

Many people went to bed early in the evening, and only felt the change the next day.

The Emperor finally appeared in front of everyone again, looking energetic and with a healthy complexion. How did he even look close to having had a serious illness?

Only then did everyone realize that everything had been planned by the Emperor. Those officials who took the opportunity to spread the news to the capital and those who were close to the Third Prince sweated out profusely, afraid that they would return to the capital not in carriages, but in prison carts.

Fortunately, the Emperor did not arrest people on the spot. He just announced the Third Prince’s treachery to the public, and ordered an immediate return to the capital. In the end, the group that went for the sacrificial ritual were delayed around three to four days, and finally returned to the capital with a strong momentum.

The ancient and magnificent capital looked the same as usual, but whether it was just an illusion or not, everyone kept feeling that the air was filled with blood.

The group that went for the sacrificial ritual returned to the city – usually, they would disperse after arriving at the capital, but this time it was obvious that no one dared to leave.

All the royal family members and officials were taken directly to the palace. Shortly after entering the palace gates, a prison cage could be seen from afar, located in the open space outside of Xuanzheng Hall.

The person inside was the Third Prince – he had been captured alive. He could be seen huddled in the corner wearing light armor, as the cold winter wind made him shiver a bit. His long bundled hair was slightly scattered, and his originally bright silver armor seemed to have been dimmed by the stain of depression.

Seeing the Emperor and his officials coming, the Third Prince looked a little excited. He quickly sprang up from the ground, but just as he was about to rush to the edge of the cage, he seemed to have thought of something and timidly stopped.

The Emperor walked to the cage and stopped half a zhang1 away, “I’ve really underestimated your ambition!”

When the Third Prince saw the Emperor behaving so casually, he became so afraid that he hung his head down, not daring to say anything.

The Emperor was extremely angry. Seeing the Third Prince behaving like this, he held back his anger and suddenly stepped forward, kicking the Third Prince inside the cage to the ground. He already planned for this, so it wasn’t the Third Prince’s ambition that was the cause of his anger, but because of the loss that this disaster had brought to the capital.

The military force in the capital were roughly divided into three – the royal guards protected the palace, the brave cavalries patrolled the capital, and another 100,000 men guarded the capital’s suburbs.

What the Emperor never expected was that although he had been on guard, all three groups were involved in the rebellion. Before even mentioning the impact of this matter and the fears it brought the Emperor, just the loss from the rebellion alone was enough to make his heart bleed.

The Third Prince was kicked over and over, but he didn’t dare to cry out in pain. He only returned to his sense just now, and began pleading for mercy.

But how could the Emperor spare him. With a flick of his long sleeves, the Emperor simply took one step and walked away. After just two steps, he turned back and asked, “Who tempted you into rebelling? Who’s the general of the three armies that got in touch with you?”

Hearing those words, the Third Prince’s eyes flashed blankly, the suddenly lit up. “It’s the aide, it’s the aide in my Mansion. Royal Father, you have to believe This Child. I did not have any intention to rebel. It was all that aide’s clever words that bewitched me, and I ended up doing something wrong before I noticed it…”

He thought that the Emperor was giving him a way out to save his life. Unexpectedly, hearing his evasive words that could not grasp the point at all, the Emperor became so angry his head hurt. Finally, he walked away without saying what to do with the Third Prince.

Seeing this, the palace guards were afraid of going forward, and the accompanying officials also avoided the cage, as if they were afraid of going near it.

The Third Prince was also confused when he saw the Emperor leave, and cried out for mercy. Unfortunately, all he had were just more excuses, and there weren’t even a shred of the information that the Emperor wanted to ask. In the end, his voice that was begging for mercy could only drift away in the cold winter wind.

Qi Yang and Lu Qipei looked at him from a distance, then ignored him. When Qi Yang saw how despondent the Third Prince was and remembered her previous life, she had a complicated feeling in her heart.

He was so fully of energy in the previous life, but now he was so despondent. In the end, all of them were just pieces on the chessboard. None of them were better than the others.

Sensing Qi Yang’s worries, Lu Qipei held her hand and squeezed it slightly, reminding her to come back to her sense.

Qi Yang, however, had already collected her emotions. Feeling Lu Qipei’s movements, she turned around and smiled at her.

The two people looked at each other with natural intimacy, as if they were not disturbed by the current situation. Their calm and relaxed appearance fell into the eyes of the person who was interested in it, calming the doubts and fears in their heart.

The surging undercurrents returned to calm.

The Third Prince’s plea for mercy was useless. His rebellion and intent to send troops to the palace completely angered the Emperor. After being blown by the cold win outside Xuanzheng Hall for a whole day, he was finally sent away with a glass of poisoned wine.

The Third Prince’s death was undoubtedly related to the previous dynasty. Many of the Third Prince’s men were implicated – they were either banished from court of imprisoned, and many of them fell into a panic.

All of these had nothing to do with Qi Yang. After all, princesses didn’t have the right to participate in politics. Occasionally, someone desperate for help would come to her, but she would close her doors and ignore them. It could be said that she did a thorough job of staying out of the matter.

But these were stories for later. Right now, the two finally came out of the depressing palace. Lu Qipei suddenly took Qi Yang’s hand and smiled at her. “Okay, we are finally back. It’s time to move!”

Qi Yang was stunned, then her brows and eyes relaxed. She looked at the gloomy sky again and said, “Alright, let’s move tomorrow.”

Author notes:

Qi Yang (sighing): Looking at Third Royal Brother’s end, my back feels a little cold…

Lu Qipei (positively): Don’t be cold, don’t be cold, I’ll cover you!

Qi Yang (…): My prince consort is supposed to be naïve and innocent, and needs me to protect her. But why does something seem wrong?

Lu Qipei (blinking): I’m just covering your back, what’s wrong? After saying that, she patted the bed.

Translator notes: