C348 The Heartless Emperor's Heart

Helian Yuan Chen reached out his jade-white palm and stroked his chest with a smile that was not a smile, "What, can't you say, or do you have nothing to say? After so many years of silent night in meditation, you still have not mastered the correct path, and have instead been possessed by a devil? "

The blood on Xu Jingzi's chest seeped through his shirt, gradually dyeing the white brocade red.

Helian Yuan Chen swept his gaze across with a gentle smile that caused his hair to stand on end, "All these years, I developed a heaven's will. Back then, Imperial Concubine Zuo was born in the Xiang Fu family and was as fond of buddhism as her beloved daughter."

"Your Majesty …" "Your majesty!" Xu Jingzi's breath finally calmed down as he struggled to kneel on the bed, "Listen to this official's explanation, don't listen to rumors with ulterior motives!"

Helian Yuan Chen nodded his head, "I have never believed in rumors, but... You can't possibly make This Emperor not believe your eyes either, right? " He quickly reached out and ripped open Xu Jingzi's clothes, revealing the wound that was still oozing blood.

"Even if this Emperor is unable to ascertain the root of the illness or the injury, he is still able to identify it!"

He took out a pair of scissors from his bosom and threw them on the bed in front of Xu Jingzi, "My beloved official, Xu Xiang helped me ascend to the throne more than twenty years ago, and I have also promised that I would help him become an extremely powerful official. All these years, the Helian Imperial Family has never gone back on their promise to the Xu family.

Xu Jingzi didn't dare to say anything and just kowtowed with all his might.

When Helian Yuan Chen saw his expression, he sighed again, "On behalf of the empress, I should give my beloved one a way out no matter what. Speak."

Xu Jingzi's heart turned cold. Judging from his tone, he didn't know much. Was he going to say it or not, how much should he say?

"If I don't tell my beloved one, I might not have the chance to talk about it in the future."

"This subject... Your subject deserves to die a thousand deaths... In the past, when Imperial Concubine Zuo was at the Residence of Zuo, she and this subject had a very close relationship. Later on, she … After entering the palace, this subject gave up on this thought. Unexpectedly, a few days ago, I was invited by my imperial concubine, saying that there was an important matter that she wanted to discuss with me, so I was forced to attend to it. There's a lot of friction, she... "She accidentally used scissors to injure this subject …"

When Helian Yuan Chen heard his words, he could not help but smile: "Has Xu Aiqing finished what she wanted to say?"

"Yes, yes. This subject's words are true. Back then, I only looked at your Imperial Consort from a distance. Later … and he has never left the pavilion. " Xu Jingzi didn't expect the Emperor to believe his words. He could only bet on the power of the Xu family in the imperial court, making it so that the emperor would not fall out with them.

Helian Yuan Chen nodded. "I still have a lot of trust in the character of my beloved official."

With a warm smile, he patted Xu Jingzi's shoulder twice more. This time, he brushed past Xu Jingzi like a feather, then stood up and left.

Xu Jingzi stared at him blankly. When he walked out of the room, the blood that he had swallowed gushed out of his throat and onto the sheet covering his chest.

After leaving the Prime Minister's Residence, he returned to the Imperial Palace in a grand and majestic manner. However, no one knew that the Emperor had already changed his clothes and only brought a few of his close servants to head to the Royal Mountain's Cloud Realm Temple.

Today was not the day to pay respects to Buddha. The Cloud Realm Temple was not a place where ordinary people could visit, so it was exceptionally quiet.

Helian Yuan Chen entered the temple from the side door. There was a monk wearing a monk's cassock that came to greet him, but he was no longer the same monk from last time. After he saw the ceremony, he led the group to the backyard of the old Imperial Consort Zuo's rendezvous and introduced them to a pilgrim's meditation room.

In the meditation room, there was a woman kneeling with her head bowed. She was holding onto a bun, and her body was trembling.

"Mrs Liu, raise your head."

While trembling, Mrs Liu raised her eyes to meet Helian Yuan Chen's eyes, which were still smiling from beginning to end.

This handsome man had a pair of long, narrow eyes that were as rarely seen as a fox's. Most of the time, his eyes revealed a smile, but his lips that were as thin as steel revealed a trace of a kind smile.

After an unknown period of time, Helian Yuan Chen came out of the meditation room. His usual smile had also disappeared and was replaced by a layer of faint haze.

In another meditation room, Helian Yu walked out with his hands behind his back.

Helian Yuan Chen did not say anything. He looked at the plum trees in the yard that had already sprouted early spring green, but his eyes were clouded with gloom.

The courtyard was very quiet. The imperial guards had long surrounded this area, and even the monks of the temple were not allowed to approach it. He and Helian Yu were opposed to each other, so he did not plan to hide in the meditation room and speak in secret.

The truth was that the depression in his heart had reached its peak, and he couldn't even breathe smoothly anymore.

"Yu'er, did you already know about this?"

Helian Yu didn't respond. He faced his gaze and suddenly asked, "Can royal father really answer this son's question?"

"Yes."

"royal father has never loved mufei in his heart, right?"

This question did not fit Helian Yuan Chen's current predicament at all. He was stunned by the question. After a long while, he asked, "Why do you ask this?"

"I'm just curious as to why royal father would value that imperial jade hairpin and why he would fall in love with Imperial Concubine Zuo if he had no true feelings for her."

After a long while, his lips curled into a faint smile as he said with a cold smile, "Yu'er, you are the crown prince and the future ruler of the Northern Chu Country. Father has never taught you some things, but today, I will teach you this: as the emperor, using emotions is taboo, but you can't be heartless."

A look of confusion surfaced in Helian Yu's eyes. It was better to not answer this question, which only added to the confusion in his heart.

There must be affection for the people of the world, love for the heavens and earth. However, there are some sentiments that would spoil the great cause of an emperor. Helian Yuan Chen looked at the green spot on the Plum Tree and a faint smile gradually appeared on his face.

"I love Imperial Concubine Wu Yu and I love Imperial Concubine Zuo. However, that is only because they understand their own status and don't touch my bottom line … Alright, let's return to the palace."

Actually, Helian Yuan Chen very rarely lectured Helian Yu directly. He had already said too much just now.

"Father, there are some things that you might not be clear about."

Helian Yuan Chen raised his eyebrows. Xu Jingzi and Mrs Liu had already given him an excessive surprise. Could it be that Helian Yu still had some kind of heavy hammer that he hadn't hit yet?

"After my mufei died, her corpse didn't rot. It's said that the Face Setting Bead was just a poisonous substance that contained cinnabar and mercury, causing her to look as if she was alive. She died from chronic poisoning."

A ripple appeared in Helian Yuan Chen's eyes. As expected, he was not shocked.

"I heard that when she was still alive, she heard rumors in the palace that she took the Cold Food Powder when she was eating. That kind of thing contains a tiny bit of poison, so she took it as much as she did. But this is still not the cause of death. Before she died, the empress brought the empress dowager over to urge her to eat hot food, and she died without a cure. "

"Who did you hear that from?"

"Someone who should have died, but hasn't." Helian Yu could not speak of the matter of Imperial Concubine Zuo begging him for help.

"..." "Jing Nan?"