The most tragic drama in life

  Wu Minghao rushed into the palace, bumping into Empress Dowager's sedan chair. The empress was taking a stroll with her beloved cat in her arms and saw him hurrying over, so she had Liu Gonggong call him over.

  "Imperial son, where are you off to? You're all sweaty!" Empress He took the beloved cat from the palace maid and used a handkerchief to wipe his sweat.

  Wu Minghao passively let her wipe him clean before saying: "I, your son, have something to discuss with the Emperor, I'll go and come back later to accompany the Empress!"

  Just as she was about to retire, Empress He grabbed her hand and said: "Your father the Emperor has just taken his medicine and gone to sleep. He instructed that no one is allowed to disturb him! The Empress Dowager is going out of the palace to visit your third imperial brother, why don't you accompany the Empress Dowager instead?"

  As soon as the Emperor fell asleep, Wu Minghao's face couldn't hide his disappointment. After a moment of thought, he accompanied Empress He to the Third Prince's residence.

  On the way, seeing that Empress He was in a good mood, he tentatively asked: "Your Majesty, I have something to ask for your help, I wonder..."

  "Oh, you didn't mention mom just now and I couldn't remember, but now that you've mentioned her, I recall something I wanted to talk to you about!"

  Empress Dowager Zhao interrupted him, saying excitedly: "That day at the birthday banquet, you saw Guo Shangshu's daughter Guo Mei perform the water sleeve dance, what did you think of it?"

  Wu Minghao was interrupted and looked somewhat displeased, his face sinking as he said: "Nothing! I have something to discuss with the empress dowager, it's..."

  "How could I have missed that? Such a tall and handsome man, dancing so well, with a great figure, and looking very beautiful. Most importantly, he is knowledgeable and reasonable, gentle and kind... the more mother looks at him, the more she likes him!"

  The Empress seemed to have not noticed his gloomy face, and interrupted him again as he was lost in thought, smiling from ear to ear: "Those women that day, the Dowager Empress had already taken a liking to her, let's find an auspicious day in a few days' time to propose to you on her behalf!"

  "Empress Dowager!" Wu Minghao was furious: "I've already said it, apart from Xiao Congrong, I don't want anyone else to be the queen! That's right, what I wanted to tell you is about the Xiao family. I don't believe the Xiao family are traitors..."

  "Shut up!" Wu Minghao was stopped by Empress He before he could finish speaking. She suppressed her smile and glared at him with a furious expression: "Do you have any evidence to prove that the Xiao family is not treasonous? The one who arrested and interrogated them is your elder brother, are you saying he wronged good people? The one who authorized your elder brother to handle the case is your father, are you implying that your father is blind?"

  A string of questions left Wu Minghao speechless, and after a long while, he said sullenly: "I'm worried that the eldest prince will avenge himself privately, framing an innocent person like Zhou Qin!"

  "You..." Empress He was so angry that she pinched his face and scolded him, "This conversation ends here, if you go out and spread rumors, the empress dowager will not support you!"

  Wu Minghao said unfairly: "It was originally a fact, how could it be so coincidental that Zhou Qin had an accident and the Xiao family was reported for treason..."

  "Slap!" The Empress Dowager gave him a slap in the face and scolded fiercely: "Shut your mouth, are you still afraid of living a comfortable life? Even if you have evidence to prove that it was your eldest brother who did it, you'd better pretend not to know! Is the Xiao family important or is your life important? Your eldest brother has the support of the Duke of Zhou's party behind him and has taken control of the Imperial Guard, and he has won the trust of your father the Emperor! At this time, let alone a Xiao family, if he wants your life, it can be done without anyone knowing. What do you have to fight against him?"

  Wu Minghao didn't expect his loving mother would hit him, covering his face in confusion.

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  The Empress Dowager saw his wronged expression and knew she had gone too far, so she softened her tone and patiently advised: "Your eldest brother's backer is the wealthy and powerful Guo family! Your father, the Emperor, is ill, and Third Brother is severely injured... If he's not careful, he can completely take his place... Do you want to push him to this point before you're satisfied?"

  "I... didn't think so much!" Wu Minghao admitted with a guilty conscience.

  The empress heaved a sigh, stroked his bruised face and advised: "You're right to worry about the Xiao family, but you can't be so rash. Without solid evidence, people will think you're jealous of talented individuals and that you're speaking out of spite. You're a child of the imperial family, not an ordinary person, you need to be more careful and think things through clearly before speaking!"

  "But I'm worried about Rongrong, you don't know how those people tortured her, it broke my heart to see it!" Wu Minghao sincerely expressed his true feelings.

  "The Empress knew, the Empress was also a veteran, how could she not know your true heart for Rongrong, otherwise she would not have agreed to let her enter the palace!"

  The Empress Dowager patted him and smiled: "Mother will let someone go to the Heavenly Prison to instruct, letting your elder brother not make things difficult for her, okay?"

  "Thank you, Empress Dowager. I'll have my son thank her for me!" Wu Minghao finally cracked a smile on his face and followed the Empress to get off the sedan chair and enter the Third Prince's residence.

  The third prince Wu Mingyuan was stabbed in the chest by a sword and almost reached his heart. He lay on the bed to rest, hearing that Empress He had arrived, he hurriedly wanted to get down from the bed, but was stopped by Empress He, who scolded: "Your own mother and son, what's with all these formalities! Your mother won't think it strange to see you like this!"

  Wu Mingyuan let He Donghui, who was serving beside him, take his place and bow, instructing: "Xiao Hui, it's hard for Mother to endure the heat on such a hot day. You personally go and brew some cool tea for Mother to relieve her summer heat!"

  He Dongxi bid farewell and left, Empress He praised Wu Minghao: "Look at your imperial sister-in-law, how virtuous she is. When marrying a princess, you should marry someone like her, knowledgeable, gentle and virtuous..."

  Wu Minghao didn't like it and said the room was too hot, so he went out for some fresh air and left.

  The empress watched him leave, then composed her smile and stroked Wu Mingyuan's chest, saying pitifully: "You've suffered, this hot weather is hard on you!"

  Wu Mingyuan smiled: "Let the empress dowager worry about this, this sin can still be tolerated... I'm just worried about that old marquis..."

  "Don't worry about this, he has already been reunited with his family!" Empress He smiled slightly to stop him from saying anything more.

  Wu Mingyuan furrowed his brow, still looking worried: "Has it been figured out where he went during those days when he left?"

  "He's stubborn and won't speak... Don't worry, there are ways to make him talk!"

  The Empress Dowager touched his sword wound and said with a pained heart: "The Empress Dowager will not let your blood flow in vain! She will definitely seek justice for you!"

  Wu Mingyuan forced out a smile and asked tentatively: "I heard that Xiao Congrong was beheaded today, was he?"

  "She's still of some use, I begged a personal favor from your father the Emperor, and let her reunite with her family first, sparing her life!"

  The Empress smiled slyly: "Not beheaded, but the crime is not reduced, your fifth brother was heartbroken and came to plead with me just now!"

  Wu Mingyuan's face turned gloomy, Wu Minghao had never taken Xiao Congrong's feelings seriously, after all, the person Xiao Congrong cared about was him!

  But since Xiao Zongrong retired, Wu Minghao has become a bit unscrupulous. Not only did he go to deliver a wheelchair for her, but also forced the empress dowager to let her enter the palace to participate in the selection of concubines. Although she was a woman he didn't want himself, being remembered by his own brother like this, he couldn't say he had no ideas without lying!

  Looking at him, Empress He sighed and scolded in a tone of "hating iron for not becoming steel": "Don't tell me you're also heartbroken and regretful? She did save you, but she also harmed your child. The pros and cons cancel each other out, you don't owe her anything anymore! Don't have any guilty thoughts. The Xiao family's betrayal wasn't caused by you, whether she lives or dies is not up to you, why not let it go? Dong Hui is a good queen, don't make her sad...

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  "I know... I'm not in pain..." Wu Mingyuan's words were somewhat insincere, and Empress He comforted him for a few sentences before returning to the palace. When He Donghui brought tea back, only Wu Mingyuan was left lying on the sickbed.

  "Come on, husband, have some tea!" She poured tea for Wu Mingyuan and served him calmly before returning to the house.

  Lian Mei came in and told He Dongxue what the empress and Wu Mingyuan had said earlier, and He Dongxue's face got worse with each passing word. It seemed that Wu Mingyuan still hadn't forgotten Xiao Congrong!

  "Miss, is it Old Master Xiao they're talking about?"

  Although Lian Mei knew she shouldn't ask, as a confidant of He Dongxue, she couldn't hide her curiosity and blurted out the question.

  He Dongxiu glared at her with a hint of blame, but couldn't help his own speculation, nodding and saying: "It should be! Xiao Lao Houye has been missing for several days, and it's said that no one knows where he went. He must have fallen into the hands of the Empress Dowager!"

  "That Xiao family's traitor... " Lian Mei didn't finish speaking before He Dongxiu covered her mouth: "Do you want to die? Is this something we can discuss?"

  She glanced around and pinched Lianmei's face, saying: "Don't mention this again!"

  Lian Mei nodded and asked again when she withdrew her hand: "Is Xiao Congrong going to die this time?"

  He Dongxiu raised an eyebrow, seemingly careless in saying: "That's not necessarily true, doesn't the Xiao family have a golden pardon? Old Master Xiao wants to use it to save Xiao Congrong, and even if the Emperor wants to, he can only pardon her of all crimes!"

  Lian Mei burst out laughing: "Miss, you're silly! Why would Old Master Xiao save Xiao Congrong? Not to mention her notorious reputation, even if the fortune teller said she's destined to be childless, Old Master Xiao wouldn't save her. If he saved her, the Xiao family line would be cut off! In my opinion, Old Master Xiao should use the Golden Token of Reprieve to save a grandson instead, that way the Xiao family would at least have some hope for an heir!"

  When Lian Mei mentioned that Xiao Congrong had no children, He Dongyue felt a little guilty. Lian Mei didn't know, but she was very clear that this matter was actually her suggestion to bribe the Dafang Temple's Fahzheng Master to write a fake fortune-telling paper for Xiao Congrong, all of which were false words, and it was an important means to make Wu Mingyuan resolute and break off the engagement with Xiao Congrong!

  Master Fa Zheng is highly respected and his judgments are usually reliable, earning him the deep trust of the imperial family. If Shu Zongruo had no children, would Wu Mingyuan, who might become the crown prince, want a woman like this to be his princess or even empress?

  He Dongxi worried for a moment, then thought it through. She knew that Fa Zheng's edict was fake, and Xiao Lao Houye didn't know either. Who would place the hope of passing on the family lineage on a woman who couldn't give birth? If she were Xiao Lao Houye, she could only use the Golden Card of Amnesty to exchange for a grandson. Xiao Zongrong would definitely die!

  He Dongxi originally didn't put Xiao Congrong in his eyes, and the vigilance was all because of what happened after Xiao Congrong came to the Wangfu to ask for leave on his own initiative that day.

  After Xiao Congrong left, a maid came to report to her about the incident between Xiao Congrong and Zhou Qin on the street. When she heard that Xiao Congrong had actually framed Zhou Qin by throwing away her jade pendant, she suddenly became vigilant. She couldn't help but think that she was guilty of being a thief, so she told everything about framing Xiao Congrong that day, thinking that Xiao Congrong would never wake up from her coma and would definitely die. But unexpectedly, Xiao Congrong survived and even staged this scene, making her feel like Xiao Congrong was using this incident to tell her that she knew all about what she had done!

  With her understanding of Xiao Zhen, revenge is her personality, so she has been nervous, knowing that with a broken leg, she can't do anything to herself, but still worried about her revenge!

  。

  It can be said that Xiao Congrong is not dead, and she will not let her guard down! This is one thing, another thing is Wu Mingyuan's attitude. After being scolded by Old Master Hou, he seemed to slowly remember the good things about Xiao Congrong. Sometimes when sitting, he would stare blankly into space, his handsome face looking gloomy.

  One time he got drunk and pulled her hand, asking: "Why don't you call me Brother Yuan anymore?" What's more, after being driven away by Xiao Zongrong, he still went to see her at the Yu family's large courtyard, disregarding his identity.

  The scout returned to report that he had actually told Xiao Congrong that as long as she begged him, he would allow her to continue being his concubine and bear his children... He had either forgotten that she couldn't have children or didn't believe the imperial edict; she was even more terrified because she couldn't figure out which one it was!

  Anyway, all of this made He Dongxi both angry and hateful. Wasn't she enough? What was so good about that shameless woman Xiao Zongrong that she had been thinking about her all along?!

  So even if Xiao Congrong doesn't die this time, she absolutely can't tolerate her being alive. Only by getting rid of her can she sleep soundly!

  The most painful thing in life is to be separated from loved ones by death, but what's even more heart-wrenching than that is being a martial general with exceptional skills, yet being powerless to protect one's own family, and having to watch helplessly as they are humiliated, with tears streaming down one's face and unable to do anything about it...

  This refers to Xiao Lideng, who was wrongly imprisoned in the heavenly prison and subjected to torture and interrogation. Faced with unfounded charges, he had a body of martial arts skills but could not defend his innocence.

  Looking up, his father who had already retired and was enjoying a carefree old age was dragged into this disaster; looking down, his grandson who was still in swaddling clothes suffered the hardships of prison - four generations of ancestors and descendants together suffering in prison, how could he not be heartbroken!

  What made him even more miserable was the female relatives of Xiao Fu, who were dragged away by Wei Chang, not to mention being humiliated and then paraded in front of his cell, this shame made him almost bite his steel teeth to pieces.

  In just two short days, the severe punishment did not break him, but this inhumane psychological torture nearly drove this seasoned general to the brink of madness!

  A head of black hair turned white overnight, making even the slightly humanized prison guards avert their eyes in dismay, and feel a pang of sorrow in their hearts. Is this really the final outcome for the pillar of the Wu household, the greatest war god of his generation?

  Xiao Lidie would not go mad, his family and children were all in prison, they did not die, how could he bear to be alone.

  Just as a soldier, he didn't die on the battlefield, but died in the intrigue of fighting for power and profit, how can he be at peace.

  He glared with bloodshot eyes, bearing the heavy punishment imposed on him, gritted his teeth and refused to sign.

  A gentleman can be killed but not humiliated. He wants to live a life of integrity, loyal to the country. He admits that betraying the enemy and the country is impossible. He would rather suffer and live than die in shame.

  The eldest prince did not preside over the trial himself, but instead delegated his younger uncle, another brother of Empress Dowager Cixi and Minister of Justice Zhou Pei, to preside.

  Zhou Pei and Xiao Lid had a personal vendetta. In the past, when Xiao Lid was a general, Zhou Pei served as his vanguard officer. However, due to his greed for wine, he got drunk and missed a crucial military opportunity, leading to him being punished by Xiao Lid's military law. He received thirty military lashes and was expelled from the army camp. Later, thanks to the intercession of Duke Zhou, he was reassigned to another army camp, where he established military achievements and gradually rose through the ranks.

  He had been holding a grudge against these thirty military officers for a long time, and was frustrated that Xiao Lide had always been favored by the emperor and couldn't find an opportunity to take revenge. Now that he had caught the chance, it was only natural that he would seize the opportunity to take revenge!

  What Wei Chang did was naturally reported to him, but he pretended not to know and indulged them in doing what they wanted, just thinking of waiting for the right time to take it out to humiliate Xiao Lideng. The general, of course, understood the general best, knowing what would be the most effective way to destroy Xiao Lideng.

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  Having suffered a psychological blow, the physical torture was inevitable. The branding iron and clamps were child's play. Zhou Pei had been holding his breath, and all the cruel punishments he could think of were brought out, determined to subdue the two old men of the Xiao family in both spirit and flesh!

  The execution chamber has become a hell on earth, constantly staging the most tragic dramas of life. Except for those who are about to be executed, all the spectators and listeners cannot help but hate themselves for being born in this world, wishing they had died early or not witnessed this heartbreaking scene that makes one's hair stand on end!

  Xiao Congrong didn't know if she was lucky or not, because her leg was broken and Wei Chang wasn't interested in her. Several times he went to humiliate the female servants, but none of them were her.

  She shrank into her own corner, looking at the desperate and stunned expression of the humiliated woman who had returned, those disheveled hair, bloodstains that pierced her eyes.

  Although she is not a real Xiao family member, her heart hurts and bleeds with anger, wishing she had superpowers to destroy this hellish place and rescue the innocent woman.

  At this time, what she hated most was her legs that couldn't move, leaving her with a body full of anger and nowhere to vent it!

  Her patience was wearing thin, and she secretly vowed that if Wei Chang's dog-like paws dared to reach out to those two underage nieces, she would risk her own life to fight him to the death...

  Death is preferable to loss of freedom; rather than watch evil happen and be powerless to stop it, she would die to put an end to violence.

  This day has finally and inevitably arrived...

  These days are windy holidays, and daily updates will be 10,000 words, or two chapters. After work resumes, normal updates will resume, with no less than 6,000 words per day. Hope for more understanding and support, thank you!

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