Jiaojiao is getting married, and the male leads fall for her and fight over her.

Chapter 292 Helping Li Yi ascend to the throne

Pei Dongzhou merely wanted to use this method to eliminate the possibility of Pei Nanzhou ascending the throne. Even though he had no concrete evidence, emperors are all prone to suspicion. Today, he exposed Pei Nanzhou's ambition to Emperor Jinglong, leaving an indelible thorn in the emperor's heart.

Pei Nanzhou thought that with the Crown Prince's downfall, he would have a chance to ascend the throne and then steal his cousin away.
He would never allow such a thing to happen unless he died.

When Pei Nanzhou learned what had happened at the Crown Prince's palace, he was so angry he almost laughed.

To avoid suspicion, he didn't go to the palace to join in the fun, but he never expected Pei Dongzhou to pull this stunt on him.

Pei Dongzhou really knows how to ruin his plans.

He was indeed responsible for Li Hong's poisoning. He didn't want Li Hong dead, but Li Hong's position as crown prince blocked his path. To remove this obstacle, he only needed to cripple Li Hong.

In this way, if Li Hong were to step down from his position as crown prince, he would have the opportunity to become crown prince himself.

He was still oversimplifying things. Pei Dongzhou's few words could very well cause him to fall out of favor with Emperor Jinglong.

To be honest, he never regarded Emperor Jinglong as his biological father. In his eyes, Marquis Pingyang was more like his father.

But Emperor Jinglong was the emperor, and therefore of use. In order to obtain Shen Shuyi, he had no choice but to acknowledge his ancestral lineage.

Now things are different. Pei Dongzhou's few words have left a deep impression on Emperor Jinglong. In addition, Xia Nianchu's pawn may also be useless, so his future path may not be easy.

He should have realized earlier that Pei Dongzhou was his biggest obstacle and should have transferred Pei Dongzhou away first. Unfortunately, it's too late to regret it now.

However, no matter how hard Emperor Jinglong investigated, he could not find any concrete evidence. He could not have left any witnesses or physical evidence regarding the poisoning of Li Hong. This could only remain an unsolved mystery.

As long as Crown Prince Li Hong is deposed, he will still have a chance to ascend the throne in the future, so there is no need to rush.

The most urgent task is to talk to Xia Nianchu and prepare her mentally.

Xia Nianchu had just received the message from Pei Nanzhou's people when Emperor Jinglong arrived.

She calmed herself down. This wasn't a big deal. Even if she knew that her encounter with Emperor Jinglong wasn't accidental but rather something she had orchestrated, she still had a chance to smooth things over.

She stepped forward to greet the emperor as usual, but Emperor Jinglong only looked at her coldly, making her feel uneasy: "Why is Your Majesty looking at me like that?"

Emperor Jinglong remained silent, his expression indifferent.

Seeing this, Xia Nianchu leaned against him and asked timidly, "Did I do something to displease Your Majesty?"

"Speak, was the day you met me outside the palace a pre-planned event?!" Emperor Jinglong looked at Xia Nianchu with a sharp gaze.

Xia Nianchu's legs trembled, and she knelt down in fright: "This concubine..."

Emperor Jinglong slammed his hand on the table: "Tell me the truth!!"

Upon hearing this, Xia Nianchu's eyes welled up with tears: "It's...it's definitely not a coincidence. I spent a fortune to buy the news that His Majesty would be leaving the palace. But...but it's a fact that I've long admired His Majesty, and it's a fact that I want to enter the palace. Although the method I used was wrong, my love for His Majesty is genuine..."

Emperor Jinglong sized Xia Nianchu up and down, considering the truthfulness of her words: "Chonglou?!"

Could it be that she had already been in cahoots with Pei Nanzhou, and that's how she learned of his departure from the palace and orchestrated the chance encounter?

“Chonglou is an organization that gathers all the information in the world. I… I spent a full three thousand taels of silver to buy the news that His Majesty was leaving the palace.” Xia Nianchu’s eyes darkened. “I know I was wrong, but it’s true that I admire His Majesty. Does His Majesty stop loving me just because I spent money to buy His Majesty’s whereabouts? His Majesty clearly said that no matter what I look like, His Majesty will be happy.” Emperor Jinglong looked at Xia Nianchu with complicated emotions for a long while: “My beloved consort isn’t lying?!”

“If Your Majesty does not believe me, you can go to Chonglou to verify; all the information there is recorded.” At this point, Xia Nianchu suddenly sensed something was amiss. “Why would Your Majesty accuse me of lying?”

In fact, Pei Nanzhou wasn't stupid; why would he directly give her the information? Pei Nanzhou had already made thorough preparations and wouldn't let Emperor Jinglong find out anything wrong with her relationship with Pei Nanzhou.

Chonglou is indeed a place that exists, and there are indeed records of her buying information about Emperor Jinglong there. Pei Dongzhou thought that this would confirm that she and Pei Nanzhou were colluding, but he thought it was too easy.

In fact, Pei Dongzhou's true intentions were not what Xia Nianchu thought at all.

His real purpose was to make Emperor Jinglong suspicious of Pei Nanzhou, so that when Emperor Jinglong established a crown prince, he would not easily bestow the title upon Pei Nanzhou.

Even if Li Hong were to step down as crown prince, Pei Nanzhou would not be able to easily become crown prince, and that would be enough.

If he can find a suitable candidate to be the crown prince during this period, he can shatter Pei Nanzhou's dream of becoming emperor.

Shen Shuyi watched as Pei Dongzhou listed all the princes.

Apart from some princes who were still minors, the remaining adult princes could be counted on one hand.

One of the princes had a mother of low status who was not favored by Emperor Jinglong. After being granted the title of prince, she went to her fiefdom and was not allowed to return to the capital without an imperial edict.

The other is Crown Prince Li Hong, whose position may now be in jeopardy.

Then there's Pei Nanzhou, the illegitimate son, who was only added to the royal family's genealogy this year.

The remaining two were Li Yi and Wei Wang, who had just come of age this year and whose talents were mediocre, and were not valued by Emperor Jinglong.

In fact, two other princes died young; if they had lived, they would have had a chance to compete for the position of crown prince.

Shen Shuyi watched from the side and couldn't help but chuckle at Pei Dongzhou's furrowed brows: "Cousin, don't worry too much. Things will work themselves out..."

Pei Dongzhou grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap, leaving Shen Shuyi speechless.

Until Pei Dongzhou kissed her, giving her a passionate kiss, and while she was still dazed by his kiss, Pei Dongzhou suddenly released her, his gaze intense, and said, "Does Madam think that Li Yi has the potential to become a wise ruler?"

Shen Shuyi: ? ? ?

Seeing her silly look, Pei Dongzhou chuckled: "I think it's feasible."

Shen Shuyi was dumbfounded: "Is Cousin Prince serious?"

Do you really want to help Li Yi, that playboy, rise to power?
"Doesn't Madam think Li Yi is very suitable to be the Crown Prince? An emperor doesn't need to be too affectionate, and Li Yi is not a good-for-nothing. He just likes beautiful women too much and indulges in pleasure. In essence, he is actually quite capable."

However, everyone's attention was focused on Li Yi's womanizing and fickle nature, and no one ever regarded him as a rival.

By supporting Li Yi to the throne, they can also catch Pei Nanzhou off guard.

In short, he felt that Li Yi had a chance to become the crown prince.

(End of this chapter)