Read Novel Full Chapter 1219: Chapter 188: Eighth Brother Seems to Be in a Hurry
Chapter 1219: Chapter 188: Eighth Brother Seems to Be in a Hurry
The Li Family’s massacre could not ultimately be concealed from Prince Chu.
Although Prince Chu had long anticipated that Emperor Yong’an would not spare the Li Family, when he truly learned of their annihilation, the heavy blow was unbearable. His health had never been good, and this incident left him bedridden.
The witch doctor had previously told Zhao Yao that even with proper care, Prince Chu would at most live another decade or so. Now, Prince Chu had fallen ill again, and he’d be fortunate to live even a few more years.
At this moment, Prince Chu leaned against the bed, his face pale and bloodless, weakly comforting Zhao Yao, “Tenth brother, I’m still holding on, aren’t I?”
“Fourth brother, how can you say you’re well in such a state?” The realization that Prince Chu hadn’t long to live was a heavy blow for Zhao Yao, too. “It’s all my fault.” The way fourth brother had deteriorated was all his fault.
“It’s not your fault. Even if you’d tried to bring Grandfather and the others to the Swamp Prefecture, they wouldn’t have agreed.” Prince Chu replied, “I said before he wouldn’t spare my family.”
Zhao Yao, eyes red, grasped Prince Chu’s pale, weak hands tightly. “It’s all my fault.” Eighth brother was truly too ruthless, sparing fourth brother’s life only to let him live and watch his family come to ruin. For fourth brother, living alone might be more painful than dying with them. He begged eighth brother to spare fourth brother, not expecting that living would be more painful for him.
“Tenth brother, it’s not your fault. It’s because I lost to him that my family perished.” Prince Chu said sorrowfully, “It’s my fault, my skills do not match others’. “
Seeing Prince Chu’s face streaming with tears, Zhao Yao hurriedly comforted him, “Fourth brother, it’s not your fault, it’s mine…” What he feared most now was fourth brother losing hope and not wanting to live anymore.
Prince Chu, too weakened, lost consciousness after speaking with Zhao Yao for a while.
Zhao Yao tucked in Prince Chu’s blanket and withdrew.
Tong Xi, who was guarding the door, quickly asked, “Your Highness, is Prince Chu alright?”
Zhao Yao shook his head and said, “No, I’m worried fourth brother won’t hold on.”
“What… what should we do?”
“I don’t know, either.” Zhao Yao thought that if he were in fourth brother’s place, he might not want to live on, either.
Seeing Zhao Yao almost falling apart, Tong Xi asked with concern, “Your Highness, are you alright?”
Zhao Yao waved him off without speaking, stumbling back to his courtyard.
Once back in his courtyard, Zhao Yao asked Tong Xi to bring him wine.
Worried about Zhao Yao, Tong Xi quietly went to find Princess Han.
Princess Han personally made two dishes to accompany the wine and drank with Zhao Yao.
Zhao Yao started by silently drinking, not saying a word. Xiao Siyun didn’t speak either, quietly accompanying his drinking. After a while, Zhao Yao finally spoke, “In those years, when fourth brother and eighth brother fought for the throne, I did not intervene, nor did I help either, because they were both good brothers of mine. If I helped one, I would betray the other.” At this point, Zhao Yao paused, not continuing.
Xiao Siyun gently said, “Your Highness, you did not do anything wrong.”
“I also think I did nothing wrong, but seeing what happened to fourth brother now, did I truly do no wrong?” Zhao Yao said, eyes filled with confusion. “I had the capability to save fourth sister-in-law and the Li Family, but I didn’t act.”
“Your Highness, if you had helped Prince Chu, then you would have wronged the Emperor,” Xiao Siyun said gently. “If Prince Chu succeeded, do you think he would spare eighth brother?”
“Fourth brother would have spared eighth brother, would not have killed eighth brother’s family,” Zhao Yao said. “Fourth brother wouldn’t have eradicated them completely.” But eighth brother would.
“Your Highness, if you really had intervened and helped Prince Chu win, sparing eighth brother, do you think eighth brother would have been grateful to you?”
After thinking for a moment, Zhao Yao said, “No, eighth brother would likely hate me.”
“Your Highness, this is a struggle between fourth brother and eighth brother; it has nothing to do with you,” Xiao Siyun said. “I know you’re deeply saddened, but it’s not your fault, not something you caused.”
Zhao Yao said no more, continuing to drink. After a while, he said again, “I don’t understand why eighth brother is so ruthless? Why is he so aggressive and extreme?” The events of the past few months made him feel that eighth brother was anxious, eager to clear all obstacles at court.
“Your Highness, the Emperor must have his considerations.”
“He knew that exterminating the entire Li Family would earn him the reputation of a tyrant, but he still persisted in annihilating them on false charges. He wanted to use the Li Family to establish authority, but there was no need to destroy them entirely — he could have killed some and spared others, thus meeting his goals while leaving himself leeway.” Zhao Yao found that ever since Prince Wei ascended to become Emperor Yong’an, his intelligence seemed to have diminished greatly. Before becoming emperor, Prince Wei was meticulous, considering ten steps ahead; though his means were ruthless, he was not excessively aggressive. After ascending, he seemed to have lost patience, acting rashly and with extreme methods.