Xuanxia

Chapter 762: A True Look
Hua Wuying was not the only one in the dungeon.

In the dark cell, Zhao Hao was playing with the straw mat out of boredom.

After a period of time, he became so thin due to hunger that his face became pale and his eyes were dull.

The cells in the prison were never locked. Each person had a large luxurious adobe-style suite. However, he had already walked through the cell and the interrogation room outside, but he could not find anything interesting. He was bored to the point of panicking.

At this moment, there was a loud bang of a huge stone mechanism outside, followed by a sound of footsteps.

Zhao Hao's eyes lit up.

Not long after, a man dressed as a secret envoy of Mingjian Pavilion came over, holding a tray in his hand. On the tray was a small bowl with only a steamed bun in the bowl, which smelled faintly of pickled vegetables.

Without saying a word, Zhao Hao jumped up on the spot like a grasshopper, flew over, snatched the steamed bun with pickles, and began to eat it voraciously!

"Oh my god, is the prince of Xishuo so hungry?"

The emissary laughed and said, "They abuse you like this?"

"Are you new here?"

Zhao Hao didn't even raise his head, just ate madly, and said angrily: "Fucking Fu Qingzhou, he actually said he would charge me for food?! When did Mingjian Pavilion become so poor? He only gave me steamed buns and pickles! Fucking abuse!"

"People are right."

The emissary said calmly, "During the last siege of Jiang Baichuan, many people from Mingjian Pavilion died, and I don't know how much pension was paid. There were so many more refugees in the Central Plains a few days ago, and the national treasury also spent a lot of money. Right now, the court is in a financial crisis."

"Your Xishuo Palace is so rich, what's wrong with charging you some food expenses?"

Zhao Hao had eaten most of the steamed bun in just a few bites. Hearing that the secret envoy's tone was not right, he raised his head in confusion.

The light in the prison was dim, and he could not see the person opposite him clearly.

Seeing him like this, the emissary smiled and walked to the oil lamp on his own initiative: "Look, look carefully."

Zhao Hao's eyes widened, and he didn't swallow the steamed bun in his mouth at all.

"I……"

He tilted his neck back, and finally swallowed the steamed bun with all his might, then he knelt on one knee and bowed deeply: "Your Majesty, I am Zhao Hao, your Highness!"

The secret messenger who delivered the meal turned out to be Emperor Zhao Yuan!
"Oh, you recognized me."

Zhao Yuan grinned and said, "Cousin, we haven't seen each other for a long time."

Zhao Hao then raised his head and said helplessly: "Your Majesty, what are you doing?"

"I came to see you. It's too troublesome for me to come to the Hell. I might as well go incognito."

Zhao Yuan walked leisurely to the straw mat and sat down, patting the mat: "Don't be so restrained, sit together."

How could Zhao Hao dare to disobey? He sat down next to Zhao Yuan.

"Cousin, I know everything about you."

Zhao Yuan said leisurely: "Your father, my uncle, King Xishuo, is planning a rebellion."

"Impossible, there must be a misunderstanding here!" Zhao Hao immediately gritted his teeth and refuted, then lowered his head and sighed: "Alas, actually... I don't really understand what's going on here."

"I still remember that many years ago, the Emperor's uncle took the two of us on an outing."

Zhao Hao leaned lazily against the wall and said slowly, "At that time, I thought he was so annoying. He had to reason with me about every little thing. But when I grew up, I felt that the principles he talked about were still useful."

"But why?"

He tilted his head to look at Zhao Hao: "Why would he do this? Is it because I... am not good to King Xishuo?"

Zhao Hao lowered his head and said nothing.

"In fact, King Xishuo has done a lot of things over the years, and I know them all."

Zhao Yuan said calmly: "He is very popular in Xishuo, and has nurtured many extraordinary people in the martial arts world. He himself is also obsessed with cultivation and has close relations with many martial arts sects..."

"Not only that, last year you also helped your father to bring the Xingyun Chamber of Commerce under your wing. The financial strength of the Xishuo Palace has reached a new level. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is now as wealthy as a country."

"According to Dayan law, the prince's mansion can only have a maximum of 3,000 private soldiers, but my cousin, your family has a full 50,000 private soldiers."

He sighed, "I don't care about these things."

Zhao Hao lowered his head even lower.

"Why not?" Zhao Yuan said to himself, "Because everyone knows that the emperor's uncle is a person who knows and follows ancient rituals. The people love him and the officials praise him. The relationship between me and the aristocratic families has always been at odds, and the emperor's uncle has often been the mediator..."

"Your Majesty, stop talking." Zhao Hao interrupted him and said in a hoarse voice: "If my father... really did something wrong, the court should do what it should do."

"Tsk."

Zhao Yuan glared at him and said, "Cousin, are you confused? Did I run into the prison in the middle of the night just to talk to you about what the court should do?"

Zhao Hao exclaimed "Ah" and raised his head.

"You've been smarter than me since you were a kid."

Zhao Yuan frowned and said, "You really don't understand, what am I here for?"

"..."

Zhao Hao said helplessly: "You want me to fight my father with you."

"Not only that." Zhao Yuan blinked: "Did Fu Qingzhou tell you that he suspected... that 'lord' was actually my father?"

Zhao Hao was shocked: "What? He told you all this?"

"You're talking nonsense!" Zhao Yuan said angrily, "How could he not tell me about this?!"

Zhao Hao smiled bitterly: "Well, then we two brothers share the same pain."

Zhao Yuan rolled his eyes at him.

After a long while, he said helplessly: "But I really don't understand what's going on with my father."

Zhao Hao blinked.

"I know what you want to say."

Zhao Yuan said slowly: "Is it possible that Fu Qingzhou guessed wrong? Of course it's possible, but since he told this through the secret letter from Mingjian Pavilion, then this matter is estimated to be a sure thing..."

"Let me tell you something, my father passed away very early. I was very young and didn't even understand much. If you say there was any father-son relationship, that's bullshit."

Zhao Hao smiled awkwardly.

Only the emperor can say this, not the prince.

"but."

At this moment, Zhao Yuan suddenly changed the subject and became serious: "The late emperor and the prince conspired to rebel. This matter is absolutely serious and we cannot talk about feelings."

Zhao Hao's face darkened.

"Your Majesty, I know what you are going to say."

He said helplessly: "King and subject, father and son, king and subject come before father and son."

"That's right." Zhao Yuan said solemnly, "Although this matter is extremely absurd, if they really want to turn Dayan upside down, I cannot agree to it."

"Over the years, although I cannot be considered as an accomplished scholar or military commander, I have worked hard to govern the country. The entire Dayan has never been so peaceful and tranquil."

As he spoke, his tone was already filled with a hint of murderous intent: "No matter what the situation was with my father, he is dead. I watched him being buried with my own eyes, and his body is still in the imperial mausoleum. Whatever it is now, it is definitely not my father."

"As for the emperor's uncle, whether he has been bewitched or has gone astray, we must not watch this happen."

Then, Zhao Yuan said in a deep voice: "Of course, we can't just listen to what others say."

"Ok?"

Zhao Hao's eyes lit up: "Your Majesty, what do you mean?"

The gloom on Zhao Yuan's face disappeared, revealing a smile: "Do you want to go and see it in person?"

"!!!"

Zhao Hao's pupils trembled: "You want to go to the Xuanmeng Ceremony?!"

"go."

Zhao Yuan grinned, revealing his white teeth: "Hearing is not believing, seeing is believing! Don't you want to see it with your own eyes and ask it in person?"

"..."

Zhao Hao was silent for a moment, and a fierce look flashed across his face: "Okay! Let's go and see for ourselves!"

(End of this chapter)