bestfiction Chapter 439 Please enter the urn
Chapter 439 Please enter the urn
Upon hearing King Qi's shout, the soldiers froze, their movements halting in mid-air as they looked at each other, unsure of what to do.
Although Yun Shang's soldiers were loyal to Emperor Wenjing, they hesitated when the Prince of Qi held the abdication edict.
The bloodstains on Yun Shang's silver armor made his snow-white skin appear even more striking.
He raised his eyes, his gaze steadily landing on the imperial edict held high by Prince Qi, his voice clear and cold: "His Majesty is still in his prime, and has never expressed any intention to establish an heir or abdicate. Prince Qi, you think you can convince us with just this one edict? I'm afraid that won't work."
"Perhaps the Emperor was forced by you. This edict is hard to verify; it may be a forgery by the Prince."
King Qi's face darkened, and he looked at Yun Shang as if he were looking at a dead man.
A cold smile played on his lips as he glanced at the imperial edict in his hand. "This edict was written by my father himself and bears his seal. Yun Shang, are you perhaps planning to disobey this decree?!"
Yun Shang remained unmoved, blood still dripping from the longsword in his hand, its tip gleaming coldly, reflecting the chill in his eyes: "Your Highness, this matter is of great importance. The imperial seal and handwriting alone are insufficient to dispel doubts."
“Without His Majesty’s personal decree, we, as his subjects, would never dare to rashly serve Your Highness as our master. We beg Your Highness to bring the imperial edict and come with us to meet His Majesty for a face-to-face confrontation. If it is truly His Majesty’s will, Yun Shang will accept his punishment and kneel down to kowtow to the new emperor.”
These words were spoken neither humbly nor arrogantly, and the soldiers, whose hearts were already wavering, leaned towards Yun Shang's side once more.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Li Zhuoyue, who was standing next to King Qi, couldn't help but frown.
I should have killed Yun Shang first!
His lips tightened, and he stepped forward. "Yun Shang, you are openly challenging the authority of the new emperor! Now that the abdication edict has been issued, it is a foregone conclusion. If you continue to delay, aren't you plotting rebellion?"
The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere, which had eased slightly, instantly became tense again.
The soldiers of King Qi's faction immediately gripped their weapons, assuming a ready-to-attack stance.
The deputy general behind Yun Shang couldn't hold back any longer and whispered, "General, if the Prince of Qi is indeed holding an abdication edict, we might be punished if we resist..."
Yun Shang remained calm, showing no sign of tension or anxiety, and said indifferently, "If Your Highness's edict is of legitimate origin, why should we fear your request for verification from the Emperor?"
King Qi's face was tense, and his eyes were about to spit fire.
He said, word by word, "Yun Shang, do you really intend to oppose me?!"
King Qi spoke these words through gritted teeth; if his gaze were truly piercing, Yun Shang would likely be riddled with holes by now.
Yun Shang's eyes didn't even waver as he calmly said, "Your Highness misunderstands. I am loyal to the Emperor and the royal family. How could I possibly oppose Your Highness?"
The implication of these words is that King Qi is disloyal and unfilial.
King Qi could not possibly fail to understand the deeper meaning behind it. He glared angrily at Yun Shang, veins bulging on his forehead.
This person can always easily provoke him.
Seeing the Prince of Qi's anger, Li Zhuoyue worried that he might lose his temper and quickly whispered, "Your Highness, since reasoning with him is futile, we can only..."
The King of Qi exchanged a glance with him and immediately understood the meaning behind his unspoken words.
In the past few days, only his troops have been secretly mobilized in Shengjing City. No other troops in the city have been seen to make any unusual moves. Even if Yun Shang has people under his command, the number is probably not too large.
Having thought of this, King Qi no longer hesitated and nodded to Li Zhuoyue.
Li Zhuoyue understood immediately, took out a cigarette from her bosom, and shot it towards the pitch-black sky.
In an instant, the red smoke burst open in the sky, the blinding red light like a hideous wound tearing through the silent night sky.
King Qi glanced at her before turning his gaze away, his cold eyes falling on Yun Shang again. "Yun Shang, actually, I admire you quite a bit."
"Therefore, I will give you another chance. If you are willing to be loyal to me in the future, I will forgive all your previous offenses."
"As long as you give the order, these soldiers will lay down their weapons and submit to me. After I ascend the throne, I will certainly treat you well. You will have high positions, generous salaries, wealth and honor, and everything you could want."
Yun Shang remained calm, as if he had not heard the King of Qi's words. He slightly turned the long sword in his hand, and drops of blood from the blade fell to the ground, staining a small patch of stone red.
"I appreciate Your Highness's kindness, but..."
"I am paid by the emperor and I am loyal to him. I am only loyal to the emperor."
King Qi's face instantly darkened. Without further hesitation, he raised his hand and commanded, "Move..."
However, no sooner had the words left his mouth than a series of hurried, heavy footsteps sounded from outside the Hall of Longevity, followed by a large influx of soldiers. King Qi immediately recognized them as his own men!
His expression froze, and he abruptly looked at Yun Shang, "Where did these people come from?!"
"Your Highness, Prince Qi," Yun Shang looked at him, a hint of pity in her eyes, "don't you understand even now?"
"His Majesty was prepared all along; tonight he is luring you into a trap."
The color drained from the King of Qi's face.
He instinctively clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white, and squeezed out a few hoarse words from his throat: "No...this is impossible!"
Yun Shang said calmly, "Your Highness may wish to take a closer look at the imperial edict."
King Qi was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Without waiting for Yun Shang's reply, he eagerly opened the imperial edict. He carefully read through the abdication edict, confirmed that the contents were correct, and was about to look up when he caught sight of the imperial seal below, and his pupils suddenly contracted.
He knew the patterns on the imperial seal all too well, but in his anxiety just now, when he forced his father to write the abdication document, he only glanced at the seal and did not notice anything unusual.
Or perhaps he never considered that the imperial seal might be fake.
Because the imperial seal was obtained from Xie Shifu.
King Qi stared intently at the imperial seal, his hand trembling uncontrollably.
“This…this seal…” King Qi’s eyes were bloodshot as he stared fiercely at Yun Shang.
Yun Shang kindly finished his sentence for him, "Your Highness Prince Qi, the imperial seal is fake."
"The Emperor ordered the most skilled counterfeiters in the capital to make this fake imperial seal, which took a month to complete. It was designed to lure unruly individuals into a trap."
"His Majesty had long anticipated that the aristocratic families harbored rebellious intentions."
Upon hearing this, King Qi swayed as if he had been struck by a heavy hammer.
A storm raged within him, a mix of anger, regret, and resentment that nearly drove him to madness.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked like he had gone mad.
After a long while, he suddenly burst into maniacal laughter, his laughter filled with sorrow: "Good, what a clever trick to lure the enemy into a trap!"
He considered himself the oriole, but little did he know that he was the cicada!
He was actually manipulated by his father and the powerful families!