Crowned by the Treacherous Big Shot

Princess Wanping said, "I’ve heard about Prime Minister Xun’s matter. I know it’s not entirely the Governor Mansion’s doing that brought him down; it was my father who secretly supported it. My father also wanted to get rid of him."

Meng Qianqian asked, "What does the Princess wish to inquire about?"

Princess Wanping paused, "Are the charges against Prime Minister Xun true? Is it a case of ’when the birds are gone, the good bow is cast aside; when the cunning hare is dead, the hound is boiled’? Or is it personal enmity?"

Personal enmity?

If it were a case of ’when the birds are gone, the good bow is cast aside; when the cunning hare is dead, the hound is boiled’, it might barely make sense.

But the Supreme Emperor is not such a person.

Meng Qianqian took a few steps forward, knelt on one knee, and looked steadily at her, "Princess, the Supreme Emperor is a wise ruler."

Princess Wanping asked, "Meng Xiaojiu, how much do you know about my father?"

Meng Qianqian asked puzzledly, "Princess, what do you mean by this?"

"Nothing."

Princess Wanping lowered her eyes.

Meng Qianqian saw that she had something on her mind, "Princess, if you trust Little Nine, Little Nine is willing to listen with an open heart."

Princess Wanping remained silent.

After a long while, as if making a significant decision, she said softly, "When I was very young, there was a rumor in the palace that my mother and Prime Minister Xun had a close relationship."

Meng Qianqian was startled, could such a thing be true?

Princess Wanping recalled, "My mother passed away the second year after my brother was made the Crown Prince. At that time, I had just turned eight, my brother was five. I remember my mother’s health was fine, but suddenly she fell ill, and no one was allowed to visit her. Shortly after, she passed away from illness."

"Some say that she was secretly executed by my father because he discovered her affair with Prime Minister Xun and suspected my brother to be Xun’s illegitimate child. The reason my father did not depose my brother from his position as Crown Prince was because Xun was secretly contending with my father."

"My father wished for King Chu to inherit the throne, but do you know why King Chu’s household registration was kept outside the palace? Didn’t my father tell you it was because King Chu’s mother did not want to bring her son back to the palace?"

Meng Qianqian said, "Yes."

Princess Wanping said, "What I heard was that my father was always cautious of Prime Minister Xun, fearing that King Chu might fall victim to Xun’s schemes, so he raised his son at the border. But unexpectedly, Xun discovered it, and for the sake of my brother’s throne, Xun secretly eliminated King Chu’s entire family, removing the biggest obstacle to his throne."

Meng Qianqian furrowed her brows.

If the Crown Prince was Prime Minister Xun’s own son, why would Xun send Lu Yuan and Luo San to infiltrate the Crown Prince Mansion?

Lu Yuan had always been protecting the Crown Prince, while Luo San... although he incited the Crown Prince against King Chu’s family, he neither betrayed the Crown Prince afterward nor used the incident to blackmail him.

The Crown Prince died of fright, not by Prime Minister Xun’s assassination.

This means Prime Minister Xun never intended to take the Crown Prince’s life.

He was using the Crown Prince, but on another level, he was also tempering the Crown Prince’s ruthlessness.

To become an Emperor, one must not be too soft-hearted.

But the Crown Prince happened to be too soft.

The Supreme Emperor wanted to protect King Chu and have him inherit the throne, but King Chu’s entire family perished in the power struggle.

Prime Minister Xun wanted the Crown Prince to become as decisive as King Chu, but it backfired, and the Crown Prince died from his ’well-intentioned’ efforts.

If all this is true, then it is truly regrettable.

Soon, Meng Qianqian shook her head, this is too absurd.

Did Princess Wanping’s few words make me imagine so much?

After experiencing many intrigues and schemes, any absurd speculations can arise.

"Princess, how much of what you said is believable?"

Princess Wanping said, "I don’t know, you can consider it as a story you heard."

At this moment, the wedding concierge’s urging sounded outside, "Princess, the auspicious time has arrived! We must go to fetch the Prince Consort!"

Princess Wanping gently stood up.

The wedding concierge and female official entered.

The female official held Princess Wanping’s hand, "Princess, it’s snowing outside."

"Mm."

Princess Wanping nodded slightly, assisted by the female official, she took graceful steps, and the room was filled with a glow.

Meng Qianqian watched her back intently.

At the moment she crossed the threshold, Princess Wanping suddenly stopped, turned her head slightly, and glanced back with the corner of her eyes, "Meng Xiaojiu, today’s story, I only told it to you alone."

Meng Qianqian smiled, "Little Nine was just so struck by the Princess’s beauty that I momentarily lost my senses and forgot to listen to the Princess’s story."

Princess Wanping looked at the silent, heavy snow falling like goose feathers, "That’s truly a pity, for I am too lazy to tell it a second time."