allonlinenovel Chapter 173 The Queen Who Used as a Shield in a Good Pregnancy Novel (23)
Chapter 173 The Queen Who Used as a Shield in a Good Pregnancy Novel (23)
Half a month has passed in a flash.
For the past two weeks, Leyan has been living a carefree and comfortable life.
This world is unlike any other. Ignoring the underlying factors, she was born at the top. She was the queen of a country and received the emperor's complete "favor." Apart from the emperor who was above her, no one could surpass her.
Of course, the emperor who had been pressing down on her had already been deposed by her. The one who was replaced now, thanks to the years of training by the late emperor and Li Yanxiu, only knew how to bow down to her and had no other thoughts.
Like Wen Songzhi and Ruan Ruan, none of them could compete with her.
If it were her previous life, she would probably be wandering around the world right now, getting passed around from one person to another.
Thinking of this, Leyan liked this world even more.
What pleased her even more was that it seemed as if fate was on her side.
She didn't even need to set out to clear the original owner's name or reveal the truth about the emperor's childlessness; someone had already done it for her.
It was neither Wen Songzhi nor Ruan Ruan, nor Ying Yi, but the only two surviving sons of the late emperor who guarded the tomb, the Ninth Prince and the Tenth Prince.
They were born in the same year, and were both ten years younger than Li Yanxiu, the seventh son of the late emperor, and were only twenty years old at the time.
In the year Li Yanxiu ascended the throne, the two, who were only fifteen years old, were spared because they had not participated in the struggle for the throne. However, they were both sent to guard the tomb of the late emperor.
For the past few years, they have kept to their place and dared not harbor any rebellious thoughts, hoping only that their ruthless seventh brother would spare them.
But unexpectedly, he still couldn't escape the clutches of the poison.
The Ninth and Tenth Princes were furious. The two brothers had been obediently guarding the imperial mausoleum. At the tender age of twenty, they didn't even dare to have a woman, for fear of attracting Li Yanxiu's attention. And what was the result?
Suddenly a group of people rushed to the imperial mausoleum, saying that the emperor had summoned them back to the palace.
They followed the journey back to the capital with great anxiety, but on the way they were given a drug that would kill their offspring, and they even encountered several assassination attempts aimed at crippling their legs.
Anyone with eyes can see who orchestrated this. How could they not hate Li Yanxiu for his ruthless and merciless actions?!
The two brothers, filled with intense hatred, escaped and ran right into the remnants of the Third Prince's faction, who had just fled the capital and were preparing to continue their covert operations, eke out a living, and wait for an opportunity to avenge their master, the Third Prince.
When these two groups clashed, they immediately joined forces to rebel and kill Li Yanxiu.
The first thing their alliance did was to spread the word that Emperor Li Yanxiu was born childless.
The Ninth and Tenth Princes were also incredibly ruthless, spreading the news that they had been innocently given a drug that would prevent them from having children, supposedly because the Emperor disapproved of their ability to have offspring.
Their reputation doesn't matter; the important thing is to ruin Li Yanxiu so they can get revenge.
This bombshell news shook not only the capital but the entire country.
Whether they were ordinary citizens or high-ranking officials, everyone was privately discussing whether the matter was true or false.
Considering that Li Yanxiu had not had a child in eight years of marriage, most people began to believe the rumor.
After people became skeptical, many began to doubt the idea that the empress was a jealous woman and infertile. They wondered whether it was the emperor or the empress who was infertile.
The Ninth and Tenth Princes kept a close eye on the public's reaction after the news was spread. Seeing that many people were focusing their attention on the Empress, the two brothers discussed it and decided to add fuel to the fire.
Regardless of whether it was true or false, they speculated about Li Yanxiu with the most malicious intent, and spread the news that "the emperor is a hypocrite, his exclusive favor to the empress is just an empty name, and his real purpose is to set up a shield and pin the blame for his childlessness on the empress."
The two brothers had no idea that their guess was absolutely correct; Li Yanxiu's thoughts were indeed that vicious and disgusting.
The two were also discussing whether to sneak into the palace to see if they could win over the Empress. If they had another ally, wouldn't it be much easier to deal with Li Yanxiu?
Ninth Prince Li Yanming thought it was worth a gamble: "As long as we can make the Empress believe us and make her feel that she has suffered for so many years for no reason, all because of Li Yanxiu, do you think she will turn her love into hatred and hate Li Yanxiu to death?"
The Tenth Prince, Li Yanli, was somewhat disapproving: "I think it's very unlikely that she'll be on our side. After all, the Empress is second only to the Emperor. Even if she feels she might be being used, she shouldn't be able to give up everything she has, right?"
"Moreover, Ninth Brother, don't forget that the Empress comes from the Sun family. With that old scoundrel Sun Feng keeping her in check, even if our guess is true, and the Empress is indeed a shield, the Sun family won't let her do anything to resist."
Li Yanli sincerely believed that they didn't need to take the risk.
All they need to do is hide in the background, use the Third Prince's men to stir up trouble, and then find a suitable opportunity to deliver a heavy blow to Li Yanxiu.
Li Yanming still thought it was worth a try, but seeing that his younger brother disagreed, he remained silent for a while and then gave up on the idea.
"Fine, I'll listen to you."
Changing the subject, he added, "In another day, we will be heading to the capital. When we meet Li Yanxiu, we should both be on guard, as we don't know what tricks he might pull against us."
The news that the emperor was childless and a hypocrite has spread far and wide. Li Yanxiu must already know about it and is definitely investigating the real culprit behind the scenes. He may even have already suspected the two brothers. Therefore, after entering the capital, they must be careful and patient in order to save their lives.
Li Yanli nodded solemnly: "I know, Ninth Brother. I understand the principle of 'where there's life, there's hope.'"
Otherwise, he wouldn't have stayed with Ninth Brother all these years, quietly guarding the tomb in that desolate place.
Li Yanming smiled with satisfaction, raised his hand to pat him on the shoulder, and then said nothing more.
The carriage continued its journey, and they were getting closer and closer to the capital.
Imperial Palace, Weiyang Palace
Le Yan removed the ancient book from her face, leaned forward slightly in surprise, and looked at Wen Songzhi who had come to report, her voice filled with astonishment: "You said someone was behind the scenes spreading the news that the emperor has no heir?"
The slightly raised tone of her voice fully expressed Le Yan's shock upon hearing this. She truly did not expect that someone would spread the news that Li Yanxiu had no children, and even guessed Li Yanxiu's malicious intentions with uncanny accuracy, spreading them out as well.
It should be noted that Wen Songzhi was unaware that Li Yanxiu had been given a drug that would prevent him from having children. Those who did know, such as her, Ruan Ruan, Gao De, and Ying Yi, would not tell Wen Songzhi.
The other three, without her authorization, would not arbitrarily release such important matters concerning her to the world.
So there's someone behind this.
Le Yan carefully searched the plot of the novel about getting pregnant, but did not find any suspicious characters in it.
She frowned slightly and gestured to Wen Songzhi: "Tell me about this from beginning to end again."
Wen Songzhi simply did as he was told. When he mentioned the Ninth and Tenth Kings, Yueyan felt as if he had been enlightened.
She raised an eyebrow and smiled, "I'm afraid it's either the mastermind behind this or those two young princes."
If she wasn't mistaken, the sudden recall of Li Yanming and Li Yanli to the capital, and their subsequent administration of a drug to prevent them from having children, must have been orders issued by Li Yanxiu in a fit of rage after his third leg was cut off.
The two innocent princes, who had suffered such an ordeal, would certainly not let it go, so it must have been they who spread those rumors.
As for why this wasn't mentioned in the book...
Li Yanxiu in the book wasn't useless either.
He didn't ruin his career, and he even got a pregnant wife. Why would he bother ruining his two well-behaved younger brothers?
"Hiss!" Le Yan blinked a little embarrassedly. So, it seemed like it was her fault again?