She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Chapter 502 Assassination of the Northern Qi Emperor

This period of history was far too distant for the Northern Qi emperor.

So long ago, he had long forgotten about it.

To this day, he deeply regrets having sent Emperor Jing'an back to the Great Zhou in order to take Yizhen into his household.

Otherwise, if anyone were to become emperor in the Great Zhou Dynasty, they would not dare to give the Prince of Zhenbei a high position.

They might even listen to the words of treacherous officials and find any pretext to punish the entire family of the Prince of Zhenbei.

If that's the case, how could Northern Qi have been defeated?

The Northern Qi emperor looked displeased: "Why are you bringing up these old stories?"

Initially, Consort Shu was jealous of Yi Zhen's deep favor with him, and repeatedly told him that Yi Zhen was a foreigner and must have ulterior motives, and would not treat him sincerely.

However, at that time he was still infatuated with Yizhen and did not take Consort Shu's words to heart.

But he hoped that Yizhen would take the initiative towards him, like Consort Shu did everything she could to please him. So when Consort Shu targeted Yizhen, he turned a blind eye and waited for Yizhen to come to him for help.

Unfortunately, Yizhen died without fulfilling his wish.

She lowered her noble head before him.

Consort Shu smiled and said, "I was just reminded of the scene, which is why I mentioned it."

The Northern Qi emperor, preoccupied with the remnants of the previous dynasty, did not dwell on the topic with Consort Shu any further.

“You love osmanthus flowers, and every year you would bring your palace maids to pick many osmanthus flowers, dry them, and make them into sachets and pastries. I remember there is an osmanthus tree here that blooms all year round, and it just so happens to be in bloom now.” The Emperor of Northern Qi casually pointed to an osmanthus tree in the courtyard, his tone unusually gentle: “I think you will be very happy to see the osmanthus flowers.”

Although Consort Shu coveted power, she also harbored feelings for him; otherwise, she wouldn't have competed with the other concubines for his affections.

In order to extract information about the remnants of the previous dynasty from Consort Shu, he inevitably had to say a few things that Consort Shu liked to hear in order to please her.

In the past, Consort Shu would have loved to hear the Northern Qi Emperor say these things; she would have been delighted and, more than anything, deeply moved.

Because the Northern Qi emperor was busy with countless affairs of state and had three thousand beauties in his harem, he still remembered her preferences.

This means that the Northern Qi emperor had feelings for her.

But now that she's come to her senses, she realizes how ridiculous she was to have been so infatuated with a man's true feelings, especially the true feelings of an emperor.

In the depths of the palace, this is the most useless thing.

“My maternal clan has failed Your Majesty’s favor. They dare to disregard the laws of Northern Qi only because they rely on the fact that I am deeply favored by Your Majesty. Your Majesty, out of consideration for our past relationship, has shown leniency towards me and has not pursued my crimes further.”

"Your Majesty's favor has been betrayed. I have no face to see you and should atone with my death. But I am thinking of Heng'er and have no choice but to live on and watch him marry and have children."

"I never dreamed that Heng'er would die such a violent death."

“He came to see me the other day and told me that Your Majesty has finally taken notice of him and is showing him the care of a loving father. He has even sent him to wipe out the remnants of the previous dynasty. Once he has eliminated your greatest threat, you will surely look at him with new respect.”

He also said that he had reached the age of twenty and should no longer cause you any worry. He should share your burdens and strive to become the best son in your heart.

"But he died, unable to rid you of this major threat, and unable to become the best son in your eyes. How unwilling and regretful he must have been."

"I harbor resentment towards you, resentment that you failed to protect him. I came to see you today to question you: Do you even consider him your own son? If you do, why did you put him in such a precarious position, and why did you send him to annihilate the former dynasty's forces, ultimately causing his death with your own hands?"

"But...but..."

"No matter how many mistakes I have made, Your Majesty will never blame me. On the contrary, he still cares about my preferences."

With tears streaming down her face, Consort Shu said heartbrokenly, "You are so loyal and devoted, would you really kill our Heng'er?"

When Consort Shu mentioned Prince Xian, the Emperor of Northern Qi saw hatred in her pained and desperate eyes.

Now, all that remains in her eyes is bewilderment and confusion.

He took out a handkerchief and wiped away the tears from Consort Shu's eyes: "Heng'er is not dead. Someone deliberately sent you the message to sow discord between you and me. If you had listened to them, you would have fallen into their trap. But it seems that you did listen to them and insisted on having the guards deliver the message to you."

At this point, the Emperor of Northern Qi looked helpless and said understandingly, "As Heng'er's mother, it's inevitable that you would be thrown into a panic upon suddenly hearing the bad news about him."

Consort Shu understood the implied meaning behind the last sentence: she was clearly implying that she had been misled by the remnants of the previous dynasty and had rashly begged to see him. He, understanding her maternal instincts, did not pursue the matter of her inappropriate behavior.

They killed her son and then expected her to be grateful to him.

It's really ridiculous.

Consort Shu dug her nails deep into her palms, using the pain to suppress the intense hatred that was about to erupt.

She never imagined that, even in this predicament, the Emperor of Northern Qi would still be deceiving her.

If she hadn't seen her son's head, she probably would have believed him.

"Is Heng'er really not dead? Why would they lie to me?" Consort Shu asked doubtfully. "I am just a concubine who has been banished to the Cold Palace and has no value to them."

Consort Shu's words undoubtedly convinced the Northern Qi Emperor that someone was secretly passing messages to her.

Seeing the Consort Shu's doubtful expression, he tenderly embraced her: "They knew my feelings for you, they used you, lured me to you, and then killed me... um..."