I have suffered enough in my previous life, my cousin will never marry me

Chapter 172 Abdication

After sending Qin Chulin back to his residence, Ji Yuan, thinking of Wanwan's safety, did not dare to rest for a moment and immediately went to the palace to report back.

She must complete the task Wanwan asked her to do as soon as possible before she can return from the Gu family.

After entering the palace, he was led by palace servants to the imperial study, where he saw the emperor with a gloomy face, engrossed in reading memorials.

Ji Yuan knelt down respectfully, and as soon as he finished bowing, the emperor angrily threw the memorial in his hand in front of him.

"Ji Qing returned to Lin'an on the same road as Ji Yunze. Why didn't you keep a close eye on him? How could he even have the time to submit a memorial impeaching the Prince of Yongning?" the emperor said with great dissatisfaction.

Ji Yuan picked up the memorial and glanced at it; it was one that had just been submitted to the palace.

"The Prince of Yongning colludes with the Duke of Rong?" Ji Yuan sighed. "How could that be? Everyone knows that the Gu family and the Prince of Yongning's mansion are sworn enemies. How could they collude?"

"It seems that you and I have both misjudged the people," the emperor sighed regretfully. "I have heard that the northern invaders have already sent 700,000 troops south. If the court cannot unite to resist the enemy at this critical juncture, the land of Daye may be destroyed in my hands."

"I do have a plan," Ji Yuan said, knowing that this was the best time to persuade the emperor. "Why don't we discuss with the Empress Dowager first and have the Mu family army retreat to Xiling Pass to garrison and cultivate the land? This would give the Yongning Prince's Mansion some room to maneuver."

Thinking of the Mu family army, the emperor sighed helplessly: "How could I not want to protect this force? It's just that the Empress Dowager has long regarded it as a thorn in her side, and I'm afraid she won't agree."

"The situation is critical. If we cannot persuade the Empress Dowager and the Prince of Yongning's Mansion to turn hostility into friendship, Lin'an will surely face a catastrophe."

Ji Yuan pondered for a moment, then forced himself to speak: "This old minister has another plan. I request Your Majesty to abdicate and welcome the Empress Dowager to the throne. In this way, the court will surely be of one mind."

"Ji Yuan, what nonsense are you spouting?" the emperor roared in fury. "You want me to hand over the empire built by the Fu family to a mere woman? How can I face my ancestors then?"

With a livid face, the emperor walked up to Ji Yuan and kicked him hard to the ground: "Is this the chief minister I personally promoted?"

"Your Majesty, this old minister resorted to this desperate measure precisely for the sake of the eternal stability of the Great Ye Dynasty."

Ji Yuan earnestly advised, "As long as Your Majesty is willing to abdicate and then pursue a peace treaty with the Northern barbarians to stabilize the situation, Your Majesty will still have a chance to restore the dynasty. In the current situation, Your Majesty's concession is not necessarily a bad thing. If we wait until the powerful relatives of the Gu family force Your Majesty to abdicate, then it will be too late to reverse the situation."

The emperor, his eyes filled with sorrow, staggered and slowly paced back and forth: "Things have already come to this point. If we want to welcome Prince Yongning to Lin'an, it will only make the Gu family even more resentful of me."

Thinking about the marriage alliance, the emperor suddenly had a bright idea: "The marriage alliance strategy can indeed temporarily alleviate the conflict with the northern bandits, but Prince Yan has been demoted, and Prince Qi's two older daughters have been executed. Where are there any suitable daughters of the imperial clan now?"

Ji Yuan kowtowed and said, "This old minister is willing to share Your Majesty's worries. Your Majesty has bestowed a title upon my eldest daughter, and she is deeply loved by Your Majesty. This old minister is willing to send Princess Tongyang to the northern border for a marriage alliance."

"Are you talking about your Wanwan?" the emperor said with a sigh. "You old fool, you're really heartless. She's your eldest daughter, how could you be willing to send her to the northern border?"

“Your Majesty, if this old minister had not volunteered to send the princess to the northern border for a marriage alliance, I fear that others would have advised Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager against it.” Raising his eyes to look at the emperor, Ji Yuan answered truthfully, “I dare not deceive Your Majesty. It was my daughter who volunteered to go to the northern border.”

The emperor immediately became interested, helped him up, and asked with great interest, "Ji Qing, what exactly are you up to? Quickly tell me the truth."

Ji Yuan smiled and said, "This old minister knows that Your Majesty is determined to recover the northern border. If our Great Ye Dynasty is united, we can fight against the northern barbarians. However, the time is not ripe yet. If we can adopt the policy of marriage alliance and take the initiative to show weakness to the northern barbarians, we can buy some time. Once the internal troubles are resolved, Your Majesty can then launch a full-scale northern expedition."

Thinking about his daughter's plan, he continued, "Your Majesty, if you can take the initiative to abdicate and protect yourself, there will be people in Lin'an who will stop the Empress Dowager from ruling. Once a coup is triggered, Your Majesty can issue an edict to order Prince Yongning to come to the capital to defend the emperor. In this way, Your Majesty can return to the capital and completely take control of the government."

"The Prince of Yongning has come to the capital to defend the emperor?" The emperor immediately fell silent.

Although he was still under someone else's control, he would rather let Fu Mingchi take over Lin'an. With Fu Mingchi's talent and skills, he would surely be able to realize his lifelong wish and re-establish the Fu family's rule.

After a moment of contemplation, the emperor immediately bit his finger, wrote a blood edict, and handed it to Ji Yuan.

"I am willing to heed Ji Qing's advice and abdicate," the emperor said with a firm gaze. "I hope that Ji Qing will deliver this blood-written edict to the Prince of Yongning."

Having said that, he led his personal eunuch straight to the Cining Palace.

As he watched the emperor leave the imperial study, Ji Yuan held the blood-written edict, tears streaming down his face.

"Your Majesty, this old minister will certainly live up to your trust and will help Your Majesty to bring peace to the world as soon as possible."

After putting away the blood edict, Ji Yuan walked out of the imperial study, looked at the azure sky, and thought to himself, "Wanwan, you must wait for your father to take you back to the manor."

Inside the Cining Palace, Empress Dowager Gu leaned against a soft couch, staring languidly at a secret letter in her hand.

A moment later, she suddenly looked up at Zhou Fuhai and asked in confusion, "Zhou Fuhai, what is the purpose of this Princess Qi Ning? Why would she advise Princess Tongyang to go to the northern border for a marriage alliance?"

Zhou Fuhai smiled faintly: "Princess Qi Ning's thoughts are not hard to guess. I have heard that she has an only daughter who greatly admires Prince Yongning. How can she allow that cousin from the Duke of Rong's mansion to take her place?"

"I see." Empress Dowager Gu nodded happily: "Our Great Ye Dynasty is currently beset by internal and external troubles. If we can get the northern invaders to retreat without fighting through peace talks, it would be the best possible strategy."

No sooner had she finished speaking than a servant came in to report: "Your Majesty, His Majesty requests an audience."

Thinking of how increasingly troublesome the emperor had become these days, Empress Dowager Gu's expression immediately darkened, and she said in a cold tone, "Please invite the emperor in."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Fuhai personally went out to greet the emperor, and soon he was seen leading the emperor in.

Deviating from his usual behavior, the emperor suddenly knelt down and, feigning panic, loudly pleaded, "I beg Your Majesty to take charge of the court and preside over the overall situation."

Empress Dowager Gu and the palace servants were all stunned.

"Your Majesty, what trick are you playing now?" Empress Dowager Gu asked, puzzled.

The emperor looked ashamed: "Your Majesty, I am incompetent. Since assuming power, I have accomplished nothing. Now, the northern invaders are pressing in, and I am heartbroken. I am willing to abdicate and beg Your Majesty to take charge and turn the tide."

Empress Dowager Gu was secretly pleased, but she calmly rebuked him, saying, "How can this be allowed? I am but a woman. The Emperor's actions are an attempt to frame me."

"Please, Mother, do not refuse. Otherwise, the ancestral temples and the state will be destroyed in my hands, and I will not be able to atone for my sins even if I die a hundred times."

The Emperor said in a firm tone, "In order to ensure that the Empress Dowager and the court are of one mind, I am willing to persuade the Princess of Tongyang to go to the northern border for a marriage alliance. I also ask the Empress Dowager to allow the Mu family army to retreat to Xiling Pass to cultivate land and resolve the conflict with the Yongning Prince's Mansion."

Empress Dowager Gu roughly guessed the emperor's thoughts. He knew he couldn't protect his confidants and wanted to abdicate to preserve the Mu family army and the Yongning Prince's Mansion.

Ever since Prince Qi and Prince Yan disappointed her, she had long harbored the idea of ​​taking their place, and now this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

However, she was still worried about the Yongning Prince's Mansion. At this critical juncture, she couldn't let that scoundrel Fu Mingchi ruin her good deed.

After glancing silently at the letter on the table, Empress Dowager Gu's brows slowly relaxed, and a plan came to her mind.