King Jing had only met Zhu Xue once. In a fit of rage, he had tortured Zhu Xue, who then revealed some of the circumstances before being minced into meat paste. Therefore, although he had been imitating Zhu Xue, whether the imitation was accurate and recognizable to those who knew Zhu Xue was uncertain.
Just now, he had also been observing closely. Yan Maoqing had met Zhu Xue and harbored slight doubts earlier. However, the matter of counter-possession was too bizarre, and most people would not consider it. Thus, Yan Maoqing's doubts were fleeting.
Moreover, he did bear some resemblance to Zhu Xue, otherwise, the matter of impersonation and possession would not have occurred. Zhu Xue and Yan Shifan likely thought of replacing him because of this. Therefore, as long as he was careful enough, there should be no major issues.
In addition, he was seventeen at the time, while Zhu Xue was twenty-three or twenty-four, a significant age difference. He remembered that Zhu Xue was already very mature, whereas he was still childish. Now, he was also twenty-four, and his demeanor had changed considerably. Especially in the past few years, feigning madness had been very taxing. Although he was twenty-four, sometimes when he looked in the mirror, he appeared no younger than thirty, with some signs of aging at his temples. Furthermore, Yan Shifan and others had not seen Zhu Xue for many years. Even if they had interacted back then, due to Zhu Xue's special status, they would not have associated too much...
Therefore,
King Jing felt that this method of counter-impersonation should be feasible.
However,
He could not speak too much, and he could not see Yan Shifan in the short term...
With this thought,
He immediately smiled and said,
"Lord Yan, what else can I say? Suffering? Hahahahaha..."
He suddenly let out a few wild laughs, then said in a hoarse voice,
"Damn it, damn it, haven't I suffered enough? Hahahahaha..."
Yan Maoqing was startled and felt a chill down his spine. He thought: This person is half-crippled. He just said a few lucid words and is now suffering from his inner demons...
He observed him carefully for a moment. Thinking that this person was his only hope, he did not get angry. Instead, he patted his shoulder with sympathy and said in a deep voice,
"Zhu Xue, we all know you've suffered. If you need to vent, then vent... Huh? Now that your hard times are over, don't dwell on it too much. Rest up, and you'll be fine after a while, okay?"
*Whoosh~*
He looked at the white clouds rapidly passing overhead in the courtyard, sighed deeply, and said,
"I'm returning to the capital. Take care of yourself. You know what you need to do."
Having said that,
He strode out of the Tianxiang Tower without looking back.
King Jing then slumped onto the ground, falling off the chair with a thud. His heart pounded uncontrollably, unable to suppress his grief...
Hahahahaha~~
Wuwuwuwu~~~
He suddenly wailed and cried, then laughed wildly, and then cried again...
After an unknown amount of time,
He felt utterly drained. His upper clothes were soaked, and there was a large patch of tears on the ground. He crawled to the corner, struggled to lean against the wall, and muttered,
"Yan Shifan, oh Yan Shifan, if I don't skin you alive, I'll be letting you off..."
Scene after scene flashed through his mind.
He recalled the past and how terrified he had been by Yan Shifan's malicious swap scheme. He had also seen through the changes in the Great Ming Dynasty over the past twenty years more clearly than anyone else.
The saying "one turnip, one hole" implied that if the Great Ming Dynasty was a field and officials were the turnips in it, then for people like the Yan family, occupying a hole was all that mattered. Whatever the method, the goal was to use their own turnip to fill the hole. Whether there was a turnip in it originally was irrelevant; even if there was, they would just pull it out and discard it...
He, King Jing, was such a turnip in Yan Shifan's eyes.
However,
The method of pulling out this turnip was extremely venomous and destructive. It was akin to forcibly inserting a new turnip into an old one. The torment inflicted upon this old turnip could well be imagined. It must have been the most tragic, cruel, and dark sorcery since the dawn of time...
He, Zhu Zaizhen, had become the most tragic person in history.
If he had been choked to death by Zhu Xue back then, it would have been extreme suffering. But after killing Zhu Xue in retaliation, he could not even return to being himself. He had to pretend to be mad for seven years, and then continuously pretend to be Zhu Xue... What could be said about that? It was ten times more tragic than death...
Therefore,
He now had only one thought, like fire churning beneath the earth.
That was—
Endure, endure slowly, wait slowly,
Pretend, continue to pretend, pretend until the final day.
At that time,
He would slaughter all the Yan family members! No! He would even leave a few alive. As long as he was alive, he would seek revenge every day...
As for the Emperor, that smelly Taoist father,
His hatred for him was no less than his hatred for the Yan family!
What nonsense about "kings do not meet kings"?
It was precisely because of the smelly Taoist's "kings do not meet kings" that he had ended up in this state!
After being enfeoffed as a prince at the age of four, he had never seen this person again. He had only made a tiny mistake, and the Emperor believed outsiders and confined him. When someone came to harm him, the Taoist did not even know? So many people in the princely mansion had been replaced, and no one intervened...
It was clear that,
He was also a scoundrel!
When he controlled the world, he would give him a posthumous title of a foolish ruler!
Why not call him "Ming Youzong"?
Or "Ming Yangzong"?
...
The capital,
Jianji Hall,
The platform, dusk.
Yu Wang, who had become the Crown Prince, had never felt so terrified as he did now. Chen Yiqin, standing before him, had also developed much white hair overnight. Yin Shidan and Fan Yingqi, standing behind him, had also lost their former spirited demeanor.
Zhang Juzheng's official document used the phrase "By order of the Crown Prince overseeing the state." Not long after the news spread, this Jianji Hall, once the central hub of the empire, suddenly lost its brilliance and became a place of little importance... As for him, the Crown Prince, he had instantly become a puppet...
Why was this?
Why did His Majesty conceal this from him and have Feng Bao go and speak to Zhang Juzheng?
In this way,
This black pot was firmly stuck on his head, and he could not shake it off. Who else could it be if not him, his son! Master Chen was right, this order must have come from him personally... Because there are no unfilial sons in the world, only unfilial fathers...
At this moment,
Gazing at the setting sun filling the sky, the palaces and towers suddenly appeared eerie and terrifying.
He sighed deeply and said leisurely,
"Master Chen, should I go to the Yuxi Palace to confess my guilt..."
Chen Yiqin replied calmly,
"Your Highness the Crown Prince, there is no need... You are still overseeing the state. That has not changed..."
He said this to consider the Crown Prince's feelings and to hint that he should realize that the most urgent matter was to issue an additional imperial decree to Jiangnan, taking responsibility for the situation himself. However, this Yu Wang was so terrified of the Emperor that he was completely disoriented. As the Grand Secretary, and now in charge of the Privy Council, how could he say anything more directly?
At this moment, Yin Shidan stepped forward, bowed, and said,
"Your Highness, your humble servant believes that Your Highness need not confess. You could now issue a clear imperial decree to Jiangnan, stating that the Japanese feudal lords are in internal conflict and that Japanese pirates may return at any time, ordering all units to strengthen their coastal defenses..."
Hmm,
Chen Yiqin felt gratified. Yin Shidan was a talented individual. During this period, he had been assisting him in the Privy Council, handling all matters in an orderly fashion, and many of his proposals were to the point. His words just now were also very appropriate. Issuing such a decree would dispel the world's misunderstanding and make them believe that the Crown Prince controlled the military power. Otherwise, with the populace restless, it would be truly difficult to manage. And His Majesty, by resorting to such a tactic, was most worried about the world believing there was discord between father and son.
Yu Wang nodded and said magnanimously,
"Zhengfu, I think this proposal is feasible. You draft the decree, and Bozhen, you consult with him as well..."
The two immediately accepted the order.
Yu Wang paced forward a few more steps. Yin Shidan and Fan Yingqi had already entered the hall, so he turned back and said,
"Master Chen, I have a question for you. You may answer it or not..."
Chen Yiqin sighed and thought: The Crown Prince is about to act up again... Why think so much? Father and son are one, and His Majesty also has his difficulties.
With this thought,
He couldn't help but feel ashamed. In his life, he had lacked experience. He hadn't expected Yan Song and his son to be so ruthless. He had naively believed that these two would have no other intentions, at most just restoring their original interests. But the result was that they were indeed rebels and traitors...
Even so, if he had noticed this during the approval process and had Tan Lun dispatch troops to suppress it earlier, things might not have escalated to this point...
With this thought,
He bowed deeply instead, apologizing,
"Your Highness, this old servant begs for forgiveness for his senility..."