The Daoist acolyte who fetched water from the river returned and hurriedly explained upon seeing the scene, "Don’t panic, it’s just sleeping medicine. This older brother caused trouble all the way, and Master had no choice but to drug him and bring him along."
Madam was overwhelmed with emotion, how could she remain calm upon seeing her son in such a state?
What was her restraint over the years for? If her son could only end up , how could she continue living?
"No more, I’ve changed my mind!" Madam rushed to Yu Jizi, pleading tearfully, "Please let us go, we have changed our minds. Release my son, from now on, whether we live or die, it will have nothing to do with you."
You Jiang stared blankly at Madam and Yu Jizi, his mind a complete blank, unsure of his mistake.
"Madam, what nonsense are you talking about?" Yu Jizi said indifferently, "You are the true lineage of the Imperial Family, the Emperor had passed the throne to the third prince, aren’t you clear about this? If you regret now, weren’t those who died for you all those years ago dying in vain, making you a sinner through the ages?"
"No..." Madam’s face was streaked with tears, she shook her head and said, "So many years have passed, I no longer think about those things. Who cares who becomes the Emperor, what does it have to do with me? I just want Jin Yi to live well, even if he has to hide for his entire life..."
"Madam!" Yu Jizi’s expression darkened, showing rare impatience as he said, "I’ve told you, I will keep him safe, he will not die. He will not only survive, but he will also overthrow Jin Moning and become the Emperor to avenge his father. We’re close to success, as long as he helps me complete that task, soon all your long-awaited hopes and wishes will be fulfilled."
"But he does not wish to, we’ve always been forcing him to do things he doesn’t want to."
"He just hasn’t seen the light yet; when he does, he will thank me. Children, their thoughts are never long-term," Yu Jizi said with a faint smile.
"Madam, there is no turning back for you now," Yu Jizi spoke softly, "What you need to do now is to stay honestly in the Prince Residence in Xining and wait. One day, the truth about the past will come out, and then you can return to the Imperial Palace openly."
You Jiang stood beside the carriage, feeling indescribable strangeness in his heart.
Why did he have to do this?
They had underestimated the Emperor’s strength back then, knowing they would fail, they initially planned to fight to the death.
But then Yu Jizi appeared, telling them that dying in battle meant nothing.
It was better to place themselves in a dead-end situation to preserve strength and wait for an opportunity.
He even calculated that Jin Moning still had over a decade of an Emperor’s fate left; rebelling now would not affect him and only increase casualties.
Indeed, the intelligence they had received at the time confirmed this; they couldn’t touch him, Jin Moning was just waiting for them to rebel, which would give him the perfect excuse to eliminate them all at once.
So, they followed Yu Jizi’s advice, sacrificed one prince to save another.
Originally, the third prince and the fifth prince competed over who should go, eventually settling it by drawing lots.
The third prince drew the lot to die, Yu Jizi then suggested a way to ensure the princess and the Young Prince would survive, but the cost...
His thoughts were interrupted, Yu Jizi had left the crying Madam and approached the carriage.
"You Jiang, you are a clever man, you should know that only by listening to me do you have a hope. Madam is emotionally agitated, please go and console her."