Chapter 444: Grandson is still a grandson
"If he's Liu Yan, then who is the leader of the White Lotus? And who is Jia Cong? Is this the information you've found for me?" The retired emperor suddenly flew into a rage. "You, the commander of the secret guards, have you forgotten what you're supposed to do? If you can't even verify a single piece of information, what use are you to me?"
"Your Majesty, I speculate that the leader of the White Lotus Sect is the son of the late Crown Prince," the man in black said respectfully. "I have questioned many people, and within the entire White Lotus Sect, including several other elders, only Wen Xing addresses the leader as 'Master,' rather than 'Leader.'"
"I've investigated and found out that Wen Xing is the most loyal to the late Crown Prince. It's no exaggeration to call him a life-long warrior. After what happened back then, everyone thought Liu Yan was dead. But now that he's still alive, there must be a reason. It's very likely that he's secretly protecting the late Crown Prince's son."
"Moreover, the only person who could gain Liu Yan's loyalty could be the former crown prince or his bloodline."
"What about Jia Cong?" the retired emperor demanded angrily. "Back then, the late crown prince entrusted his orphan to Daishan. Whether it's his age or the people involved, it's almost certain that Jia Cong was the child the late crown prince entrusted to Daishan. Now you tell me there's another son of the late crown prince. Who is Jia Cong then?"
The man in black was silent for a moment, then whispered, "Your Majesty, the late Crown Prince's power was already immense back then. Even the secret guards couldn't verify the number of his loyal followers and confidants. So, how could the late Crown Prince's methods be easily discovered by others? Could Jia Cong's identity have been a scheme used by the late Crown Prince to conceal his true identity?"
"In this way, even if someone investigates, they will eventually focus on Jia Cong. The real son of the former crown prince has already escaped under the protection of Liu Yan."
"You mean, Jia Cong isn't the son of the late crown prince? He's not of my royal bloodline?" At this moment, the emperor felt like he had given his whole heart to a scumbag, only to find out in the end that he loved someone else...
The biggest reason why he was so caring and close to Jia Cong was because he believed that Jia Cong was his own grandson, the son of the former crown prince. Moreover, he felt a little guilty about the former crown prince's affairs, which is why he took good care of this grandson, even going so far as to suppress Emperor Longxing several times.
And now, these bastards told him that he had given his heart to the wrong person? This wasn't his grandson? How could the emperor accept this?
"I have a hypothesis, but I dare not confirm it yet. Moreover, Jia Cong is extremely skilled, and the Jia Mansion is guarded by his personal soldiers. Without Your Majesty's order, I dare not alert the enemy."
"Hurry up and tell me!" The emperor threw the teacup in his hand at the man in black.
The man in black didn't move an inch even as the teacup shattered on his head. "Your Majesty, do you still remember an incident in Prince Qi's mansion after the incident?"
Before Emperor Longxing ascended the throne, he was conferred the title of Prince of Qi. The old stories of the Prince of Qi’s Mansion were naturally things that happened during the time of Emperor Longxing.
"There was a great riot that night, and the King of Qi's second son was lost in the chaos. We searched for him later, but couldn't find him."
The Emperor opened his eyes wide, a moment of shock. He had been on the throne for decades, and he had seen all sorts of storms and waves. But this time , it really made him feel dizzy.
First, a son of the former crown prince appeared out of nowhere, and now a son's legitimate son appears ?
Although the man in black didn't say anything more, how could the retired emperor not understand what he meant? Jia Cong, whom he thought was the son of the late crown prince, was not the son of the late crown prince, but the legitimate son of Emperor Longxing?
"Okay, okay, they are all my good sons!" said the emperor gritting his teeth.
"One of you played a trick of replacing the prince with a cat for me, and the other pretended to be confused in front of me. If you are really the prince I chose, if you are really the emperor I chose, I really underestimated you."
How could the emperor still not understand at this point? He was being tricked by his two sons.
The former Crown Prince hadn't mentioned it back then, and the retired Emperor hadn't quite understood it before. The Empress and the Longxing Emperor's attitude towards Jia Cong was truly bizarre. Even if the monarch and his subjects were close, they were still monarchs and their subjects. How could they be so close? But how many times had Jia Cong lived in the palace? He treated him like his own home, even staying at Fengzao Palace, and the Longxing Emperor ignored him.
Originally, he thought that it was because Jia Cong had saved the emperor twice and made great contributions to Daqian, so Emperor Longxing showed him favor. But now think about it, Jia Cong is the biological son of Emperor Longxing and the Queen. If Jia Cong stays in the palace, isn't it just like living in his own home?
And to say that his good son and daughter-in-law did not know Jia Cong's true identity would be a huge lie.
"Get out! Find the leader of the White Lotus Sect!"
"Dai Quan!" The retired emperor roared towards the outside of the hall, "Tell the emperor to come to see me immediately, right here!"
Emperor Longxing had expected Dai Quan's arrival. Since the retired emperor knew Wen Xing's identity, it was impossible for him not to guess the identity of the leader of the White Lotus Sect. Then, the retired emperor would certainly be confused about Jia Cong's identity. Putting all these things together, it would not be difficult to guess Jia Cong's true identity.
So, when Dai Quan came over, he was already ready and waiting.
As Dai Quan entered the Daming Palace, he saw the retired emperor sitting with a gloomy face.
"Your son greets you, father!" At this point, Emperor Longxing calmed down. Even if he knew, what would happen? Just because he's your legitimate son doesn't mean he's your grandson. Besides, having another grandson out of nowhere isn't a bad thing, right?
"Dai Quan, you go out and guard the gate yourself. No one is allowed to approach the hall within ten feet. Otherwise, you will be killed without mercy!"
When Dai Quan saw that the father and son wanted to fight one-on-one, he ran out immediately.
When the palace door was closed, the retired emperor suddenly sneered, "You are indeed my good son. Do you think I am old and confused and will not live for many more years? So you treat me as a fool?"
"Your Majesty, I don't understand what you are talking about!"
"You don't understand?" The retired emperor laughed in anger. He pointed at the Longxing Emperor and said, "Emperor, look up at me and tell me in person, who is Jia Cong?"
Emperor Longxing sighed softly, raised his head and looked directly at the Grand Emperor, then spoke slowly, "Your Majesty, your guess is correct. Jia Cong is not your eldest brother's son as you thought, but your son's legitimate second son whom I lost all those years ago! Your eldest brother was so shrewd that he separated me from my legitimate son for sixteen years. Your Majesty knows what hopes I had for this son."
"But, I have been unaware of his life or death for sixteen years! Now, my son, my father's grandson, has returned!"
"His name should have been Li Xi, not some bullshit Jia Cong! He should have been my biological son, my father's grandson, not a bastard of the Jia family!"
