Chapter 46: Bringing the Corpse to Meet Emperor Qing

At this moment, the battle for the throne has not yet begun, but the tragic events have already happened.

Li Chengyun was extremely ruthless and his methods were extremely cruel, which was rare.

Everyone inside and outside the court was shocked when they heard the news.

Li Chengyun had the guts to kill the deposed Crown Prince. Who else in the capital could escape his clutches?

If I had not stood by Li Chengyun, would I have also been charged with this false crime and died?

Just when the government and the public were shocked.

Li Chengyun, the second prince, and the eldest princess have quietly entered the capital.

They carried Li Chengqian's body and slowly walked towards the palace.

"Brother, I want to take the body of this traitor and present it to my father to report this matter. I hope you will go with me."

Li Chengyun suggested softly.

Li Chengze did not refuse, nodded slightly, and said:
"I think it would be more appropriate for me to go with you."

"Let's go before our father together, explain our situation in detail, and apologize for our crimes."

Li Chengyun shook his head slightly and said with a smile:

"Second brother, what you said is wrong. It is not an explanation, nor is it an apology. It is a request for reward."

"How can I not ask for a reward from my father for killing these traitors and protecting the peace of Kyoto?"

Li Chengze couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart when he heard this.

Isn't this an attempt to compete with my father?
However, at this moment, he and Li Chengyun were already on the same pirate ship, so he could only pretend to be surprised and nodded in agreement:
"You are absolutely right, brother. I was confused for a moment."

"Li Chengqian is a traitor. We will punish him and receive a reward."

"By the way, will my aunt also come with us to meet the emperor?"

The princess was silent for a long time. When she heard Li Chengze's question, she shook her head gently:

"I just got slightly injured outside, so I won't go. I'll go back and recuperate for a few days before talking."

Li Chengyun nodded slightly and said:
"Aunt, please take care of yourself. I will visit you again after you recover."

Li Chengze did not force it, he understood it in his heart.

The eldest princess had not been involved in this matter from the beginning, so it didn't matter whether she came or not.

Before leaving, the princess quietly approached Li Chengyun's ear and whispered:

"After you leave the palace, come to me at night. I have something important to discuss with you."

Upon hearing this, Li Chengyun readily agreed.

Then the eldest princess left gracefully.

……

Li Chengyun and Li Chengze entered the palace with the prince's body.

When he heard the news on the way, he knew that Emperor Qing was currently handling state affairs in the main hall.

The two of them then quickly carried the body to the main hall.

When they arrived outside the main hall, Li Chengyun ordered people to place the prince's body and sent someone inside to inform.

Then, he and Li Chengze walked into the solemn hall side by side.

After entering the hall, Li Chengyun looked up and saw Emperor Qing buried in writing.

He couldn't help but curl his lips slightly.

They had met Emperor Qing many times in the past, but had never seen him handle government affairs, let alone write in front of them.

This action obviously expresses some kind of dissatisfaction.

Li Chengyun was unhappy, but he did not show it. He bowed and said:

"My son, I pay my respects to my father!"

Li Chengze wanted to kneel down and kowtow, but when he saw Li Chengyun like this, he felt awkward for a moment, whether to kneel or not, and he just stood there in a trance.

In the end, he did not kneel down, but followed Li Chengyun's example, cupped his hands and said:
"My son, I pay my respects to my father!"

Emperor Qing seemed to have just noticed the two people coming. He looked up with a hint of surprise and asked:

"What important matter has brought you two here?" He seemed to be unaware that the prince had passed away.

Li Chengyun lowered his head slightly, a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, but there was a bit of sadness in his tone:

"Your Majesty, I am reporting to you that I just went with my second brother to see off my third brother. We were thinking of our brotherly love and that we would not be able to meet again in the future, so we wanted to spend more time with him."

"I didn't expect that my third brother was so cruel. He first lied to me and my second brother to the pavilion, and then secretly summoned assassins to kill us both."

"If that's all, I have no complaints. I just think there is a rift between brothers."

"However, because the third brother was deposed as the crown prince, he felt resentful and colluded with the treacherous officials of Northern Qi to plot a rebellion. His evil ambitions are obvious."

"My son and I were heartbroken when we saw this! My third brother has cut himself off from the world, is disobedient and unfilial, and is plotting treason. Although I have advised him many times, he is still stubborn and refuses to change his ways."

"He even threatened to storm the palace and commit treason! I had no choice but to stop you, brother."

"Alas, I never thought that I would accidentally kill my third brother. This is truly an unintentional crime on my part."

"However, there is solid evidence that my third brother is plotting a rebellion. There may be treacherous officials in the court colluding with him. I hope that father will be able to see through this!"

Li Chengze also lowered his head. After listening to Li Chengyun's words, he secretly exclaimed:
"How can you talk nonsense so expressionlessly!"

"Except for the fact that you killed Li Chengqian, is there anything else you said that is true?"

"Speaking of luring him to the pavilion, judging from your previous behavior, you didn't seem to be deceived. Instead, you seemed to be going with the flow and taking advantage of the situation."

However, Li Chengze swallowed his saliva and agreed:
"What Sixth Brother said is basically true."

"My third brother has indeed colluded with the treacherous officials of Northern Qi and is plotting a rebellion."

"If it weren't for my sixth brother and Grandmaster Huang, I would have died on the spot today."

After hearing what the two said, Emperor Qing remained silent, his face extremely gloomy.

He knew that what Li Chengyun said was mostly nonsense and fabricated.

After the two of them finished speaking, he said expressionlessly:
"Sixth Brother, you did a great job."

"Li Chengqian colluded with Northern Qi and committed treason. He deserves death."

"You have done nothing wrong, and you have performed a great deed this time. I wish to reward you handsomely."

"Tell me what you want, I will try my best to satisfy you."

Hearing Emperor Qing's calm tone, Li Chengyun sneered inwardly.

He knew that he had made his father feel wary, but this was exactly what he wanted.

Just now he lied and put all the blame on Li Chengqian, just to further anger Emperor Qing.

Therefore, he didn't care about Emperor Qing's cold attitude, but added more enthusiasm to his tone:

"I don't need any reward. This is all my job."

"My third brother has committed a crime against you. I know that your father must be heartbroken. However, I beg you not to be sad."

"I am a loyal son and will be filial to you in the future!"

His words were sincere, like those of a loyal minister and a filial son.

If he hadn't lowered his head with a hidden smile on his face, no one would have been able to see through his true feelings.

Although Emperor Qing did not see Li Chengyun's expression, he could vaguely sense that he was extremely proud.

He suddenly laughed and said:
"Well, you are truly my good son, and a loyal subject of Daqing."

"But rewards are still inevitable."

"Tomorrow's grand court meeting will be held. You and your second brother must both come. I will definitely reward you and will never let your loyalty go to waste."

"I still have some trivial matters to attend to, so please leave first."

Li Chengyun looked respectful, bowed again and said:
"My son, please retire."

Li Chengze also bowed.

In a moment, the two of them left the hall.

Emperor Qing watched the two people's backs gradually walk away until they completely disappeared from his sight.

His smiling face suddenly turned cold, and he ordered in a deep voice:
"Send Chen Pingping to see me!"

Upon hearing this, the eunuch quickly retreated to pass on the message.

(End of this chapter)