Too high to reach

Chapter 405 The Final Chapter
"How did this happen?" Mo Yi was startled.

I thought she was beaten in prison...

"Today... the Crown Prince got a chance to strangle me." Mo Yuan sniffled. "He knew I had tipped him off... If the Crown Princess hadn't desperately stopped him, my neck would probably have been broken... Yi Yi..."

Mo Yuan said sadly, "Looking at your belly reminds me of the Crown Princess. When I entered the manor, she was pregnant. So, I watched her belly grow day by day, and she gave birth. The baby Wei Ge'er was born... terribly ugly... bad hair, and a blue birthmark on his buttocks..."

I'm fine, so I often go to keep him company. He changes every day... The Crown Princess is afraid he'll develop bowlegs, so she wraps them tightly in cloth. Every time she opens the cloth, he stretches and yawns frantically...

Back then, I would play the xun (a type of ancient Chinese wind instrument) for him. He loved listening to it and would dance with joy.

When I was little, I especially hoped that my mother would give me another brother, so that he could pass the imperial examinations, become a high-ranking official, and then support me... Yi Yi, I beg you, please go and ask the Prince, okay?"

“This matter is not as simple as you say.” Mo Yi shook his head. “It’s not just about two lives… What is Vigor, the man you mentioned?”
The Crown Prince's legitimate son!

Do you know what this means? It means that throughout his life, he will encounter people with ulterior motives who will manipulate him to achieve their own goals.

Therefore, there will be events like overturning Li Huan's case and supporting Wei Ge'er to ascend the throne. This will bring great and prolonged instability to the court, the emperor, and the people. Even if he has more children, the same thing will happen!

The prince once told me: "In my younger days, assassination attempts against me never stopped. The empress and the crown prince understood this principle! But they lacked the ability to carry it out, which is why they are now prisoners! 'Cut the weeds and eliminate the roots,' do you understand this principle?"

Mo Yuan blinked for a long time; this was completely out of her mind!

"We can hide them, fake their deaths or something, who would know?" She was still not giving up.

"How much effort would that require? Is it worth it for Your Highness to do something like this, considering he is a descendant of the Crown Prince? Besides, you'll never be at ease with him, you'll always be on guard..."

Mo Yuan understood this principle, but when she thought of the little one she had held, she couldn't get over it and started to cry.

……

This case itself is actually quite simple to judge; it's just a small matter. The more troublesome part is the people and events that have come into play…

The emperor finally regained consciousness, was able to get out of bed, and was able to eat.

Seeing that he seemed to be in good spirits, Li Jing threw the case file at him.

"Father, please take a look at these testimonies."

The past was too painful to recall. The emperor knew his body couldn't withstand the sorrow and hatred, but he still couldn't help but open the book to read it.

And so, those old stories resurfaced: Consort Dong enjoyed the emperor's favor exclusively, and her temperament was eccentric. Not only palace maids and eunuchs, but even princes and princesses had died at her hands…

The Emperor recalled that woman, cold and alluring. Her eyes were large and curved. Unlike the small mouths of ordinary beauties, her mouth was not small, but it was bright red without the need for lip rouge.

Her smile is like a gentle breeze and a light drizzle.

When he gets angry, he's like a thunderstorm.

When they're desperate, they'll even lay a hand on themselves...

But, for some reason... now when I think back on it, I still can't understand why I became so addicted to it.

Indeed, some people came to her crying, saying that the Imperial Concubine had killed her daughter's princess for no reason.

But they didn't even ask or investigate...

Therefore, if the Empress doesn't take action soon, she may not be able to save her two children.

Thus, Empress Dowager Qian and Empress Jiang, acting with a mix of ambiguity and composure, calm and ruthless yet incredibly smooth, carried out all of this...

It's all because of my indulgence... He fell backward again.

Li Jing helped him up. "Father, it's not all bad news. There's some good news too. Look, who is this?" He pointed.

Beside him stood a boy of about thirteen or fourteen.

She was growing taller, and her looks weren't particularly outstanding. But those eyes… dark and bright, they looked… very familiar!

Who does it look just like...? Who is it?
"Who? Who is he? Those eyes..." The Emperor's eyes widened suddenly, "Ming, Ming'an?"

Li Jing smiled, "Father has good eyesight! Anian, come here and pay your respects to your imperial grandfather!"

Liu Nian, dressed in a school uniform, respectfully stepped forward and knelt down. "Grandfather, I am the posthumous son of Crown Prince Li Yuan! My uncle named me Liu Nian and arranged for me to live in the Liu family. Now, by my uncle's order, I come to acknowledge my ancestry and return to the clan!"

The Emperor stared blankly at him, then at Li Jing. His mouth moved for a long time, but he couldn't utter a single word…

The case has been clarified, and the verdict has been delivered...

Empress Jiang: executed by slow slicing.

Empress Dowager Qian: She was confined to the backyard of the palace and spent her life cleaning toilets and washing clothes in exchange for scraps of food.

Crown Prince: Castrated and sent to the eunuch retirement home to serve those eunuchs who had no family and no clothes to wear in their old age.

Princess Yu'an: Sent to the Northwest military camp...

The Crown Princess and her consorts, along with others, were given poisoned to death.

Empress Jiang, the maternal relative of Empress Dowager Qian, was beheaded and exiled... Ninth Prince Li Pu was demoted to commoner status and his entire family was exiled. Fourth Prince Li Yun was confined to guarding the imperial tombs for his entire life.

Even the young girl Qian Xiangqing and Qian Nianzu met tragic ends...

Other individuals involved received their due punishment.

In the imperial prison, Mo Yuan, draped in a black cloak, came to see the Crown Princess.

The Crown Princess was confined to a private room, with poisoned wine placed before her, and there was still no news of her child…

When he saw Mo Yuan, his eyes lit up: "How is it?"

"There is only one way..." Mo Yuan leaned closer to the Crown Princess and said a few words.

The Crown Princess nodded without hesitation. There was pen and ink on the table; she left a letter for her two children.

Then, her children were brought in; her daughter, a ten-year-old girl, was holding her younger brother in her arms.

"You're almost ten years old now. Your mother has found a path for you. Listen to it yourself. Are you willing to walk it?"

She spoke softly, and the little girl paused for a moment after listening. Finally, she nodded in agreement.

The Crown Princess took a hairpin from Mo Yuan's hand and said to her daughter, "Don't let resentment and bitterness ruin the life you've earned so hard!"

After saying that, he slashed his hand across his daughter's face. Blood flowed down, and the little girl trembled in pain but didn't utter a sound.

The Crown Princess hugged her tightly... for a while, then let go. She lifted the swaddling clothes and took her son's little hand.

Without hesitation, she bit down on her son's right little finger!

A deafening wail erupted...

"Go! Take good care of your younger brother!" The Crown Princess had blood at the corner of her mouth. She turned to Mo Yuan and said, "I will never forget the kindness you and the Empress have shown me!"

These things... were all within people's expectations.

But what followed was earth-shattering...

"The Crown Prince's son is still alive!"

"Having lived in the Liu family all this time... how could such a thing happen?"

"I know, I know, Madam Liu dislikes him very much!"

Even Grand Secretary Liu was unaware of this! Such a shrewd and experienced man was terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat and chasing after Liu Yue, yelling, "You little beast, why didn't you tell me!"

Liu Yue's wife, Madam Hu, was so frightened that she fell ill.

Then came another earth-shattering piece of news: the Emperor appointed Li Nian, who had just returned to the imperial family, as the Crown Prince!
They bypassed Li Jing! There was no crown prince! They directly had an imperial grandson!

"How is this going?"

"Does His Majesty truly despise Prince Qi?"

"Alas, for whom did King Qi toil so hard?"

"All that work for nothing!"

"No, no, no! King Qi is a man of great righteousness! If he wants to be the crown prince, who can stop him?!"

Everyone, except Mo Rushan, complained to Mo Ruhai for a long time...

Only Mo Yi remained calm. She was making baby clothes with her maid, preparing for childbirth.

After discussing it for a while, everyone realized that they hadn't seen any sign of the new crown prince at all...

The Emperor was recuperating from an illness, and the Prince of Qi was overseeing the state.

The Crown Prince... Where is the Crown Prince?

Li Nian did not return to the Liu family to bid farewell, nor did she formally enter the palace. Instead, she led a group of several dozen people to go on a journey to study and travel. Accompanying her were about ten companions of similar age, including Mo Bao.

Li Jing gradually seized control of the court, and no matter what the emperor thought, he had no power left.

That day, Li Jing was writing in the imperial study when he heard, "Your Highness! Our Empress is about to give birth!"

He was overjoyed, threw down his pen, and strode home...

It's finished.

I wanted to write something more engaging, but… the kitten is dying, and my heart is filled with anxiety. The writing is quite messy. I'm sorry, this is really hard to control.

The doctor suggested euthanasia, but she's still conscious and can still eat; I just can't bear to do it...

There will also be a few extra chapters, detailing the fates of several characters...

Thank you all for your support along the way. My heartfelt thanks!
(End of this chapter)