Zhou Ye, His Master, Stands Up for Him

After an incident like that, the hunt naturally could not go on.

Zhou Ye took Wei Mingxiu into a carriage and covered him with a blanket. Seeing that the boy's breathing was weak but even, he breathed a sigh of relief. When he looked up, he saw Wei Zeyu following his every step.

"Your Highness, are you worried about the sixth prince?"

"Mm..." Only when he heard Zhou Ye address him did Wei Zeyu approach cautiously. He reached out a finger and poked the unconscious Wei Mingxiu ever so lightly, as if afraid of hurting him.

"Junior Preceptor Zhou, will Sixth Brother wake up and play with me again?"

"He will wake up." Zhou Ye stroked the top of Wei Zeyu's head and said, "But he's very weak right now, and he needs someone to watch over him and keep bad people from hurting him. Your Highness, could you help me watch over him for a while?"

Wei Zeyu liked not only Wei Mingxiu, but also Junior Preceptor Zhou, who was clearly a powerful martial artist yet treated him so gently.

So he nodded vigorously and said, "Mm."

Only then did Zhou Ye feel reassured enough to leave Wei Mingxiu in his care.

Then he climbed down from the carriage and strode toward the "stage" over there.

After all, since Wei Mingxiu had carefully set this stage, now that the boy's part was over, it was time for Zhou Ye, his master, to stand up for him.

He would never let Wei Mingxiu suffer those injuries for nothing!

Just as he approached Wei Zhao, he heard hoofbeats in the distance.

Zhao Guofeng and Feng Chenyi had brought back the arrows from along the route.

Feng Chenyi dismounted, placed the arrows on the ground, and said to Wei Zhao, "Your Majesty, these are the arrows Lord Zhao and I found! We need only compare them with the arrows in the third prince's quiver to learn the truth!"

Zhao Guofeng's face was dark. All the way back, he had tried both persuasion and threats, but Feng Chenyi had guarded the arrows closely and refused to let him touch them.

Now he could not even plead on Wei Chengye's behalf!

But just as he was fretting, Wei Zhao waved a hand and said, "There's no need to compare them. Take them all and burn them! And the horse carcasses too. Burn them all! No one is to mention this matter again!"

Zhao Guofeng froze. Only then did he notice Imperial Physician Li treating Wei Chengye's injuries not far away as the prince screamed. Seeing the expressions on the faces of those around them, he immediately guessed that Wei Zhao had already settled the matter.

From the look of things, Wei Chengye had been punished, but he would not be put to death.

Clearly, His Majesty still doted on Wei Chengye and favored the Zhao Family!

Having realized this, Zhao Guofeng finally felt the weight lift from his heart.

He immediately picked up the arrows and said, "As Your Majesty commands. I'll burn them at once!"

Wei Zhao waved his hand again and said to the Imperial Guards who had captured the five deathsworn, "And these villains! They dared to harm a prince of Great Wei. Execute them on the spot!"

"Yes!"

No sooner had the words been spoken than heads fell.

Now everyone understood what Wei Zhao meant.

He intended to destroy all the evidence and silence the witnesses for good.

Zhou Ye and Empress Feng exchanged a glance.

They nodded.

Zhou Ye stepped forward first and bowed to Wei Zhao. "Your Majesty, when I took the sixth prince to the carriage just now, I heard him say a few things in his delirium."

"His words moved me, but I don't know if I should repeat them."

Wei Zhao was ordering his men to clear away the bodies. Hearing this, he looked over with a frown and asked, "What did Mingxiu say?"

Zhou Ye simply made everything up, raising his voice slightly as he said, "While the sixth prince was unconscious, he wept and called out the name of his birth mother, Noble Lady Qin."

His voice grew somewhat choked as he said, "The sixth prince wept and said that life in the inner palace was hard for him. With no mother to love him, he suffered every kind of grievance and bullying. He wondered whether, if he too had a mother by his side, he might have been spared today's calamity..."

He spoke with such heartfelt sincerity.

Anyone who heard him would be saddened, and anyone who saw him would be moved to tears.

Empress Feng discreetly pinched her own thigh. The pain reddened her eyes, and she promptly became one of those shedding tears.

She walked up to Wei Zhao and echoed Zhou Ye, "If what Junior Preceptor Zhou says is true, then the sixth prince is truly pitiful..."

"I saw how happily he usually played with Yu'er and thought he wasn't living badly. Only after what happened today did I learn how miserable his life has been since he lost his birth mother. It truly pains my heart."

As she gently dabbed the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, she made a request of Wei Zhao. "Your Majesty, although I am not the sixth prince's birth mother, I hold the position of empress and am thus the nominal mother of all the princes."

"The sixth prince is still at an age when he needs love and care, and he has suffered such a grievance. So I beg Your Majesty to let me adopt him and raise him as my own. That way, he can grow up in peace and safety, and we can also give an account of today's events to him and to his birth mother, Sister Qin, in the underworld!"

Wei Zhao frowned immediately after hearing her out.

How could he fail to hear that Empress Feng was taking this opportunity to bring Wei Mingxiu under her wing?

She wanted to make Wei Mingxiu her puppet and use him to help her contend for the throne!

He had thought that once he made Wei Zeyu a fool, Empress Feng and the Feng Family would abandon that idea. But clearly, Empress Feng still harbored it!

She had even made perfect use of today's events, presenting her case in a way that left him no choice but to agree!

In an instant, Wei Zhao connected all the thoughts in his head.

He had known it: Wei Mingxiu was still young. No matter how clever he was, he could not have devised such a perfect scheme to harm his third brother.

But with Empress Feng pulling strings behind the scenes, it was a different story!

No wonder Wei Zeyu had pointed north, and no wonder Empress Feng had stepped forward just as he was about to shield Wei Chengye!

So this whole thing had been a trap set by Empress Feng from beginning to end, all so she could obtain Wei Mingxiu as a puppet and contend for the throne under a legitimate pretext!

At that moment, Wei Zhao felt he had seen through everyone.

He could not help sneering inwardly, finding Empress Feng's scheming laughable.

After all, if he could make a fool of Wei Zeyu, he could naturally deal with Wei Mingxiu as well.

Even if Empress Feng wanted to raise a puppet, she would never raise him to be crown prince, much less the next emperor who could wrest power from him!

At that thought, Wei Zhao believed the power of life and death was still in his hands, so he did not argue with Empress Feng. Instead, he tenderly wiped away her tears and said, "My heart ached when I heard what Junior Preceptor Zhou said just now. Now that you've asked to care for Mingxiu, how could I refuse?"

He took Empress Feng's hand, turned to the ministers over there, and said, "Today, I decree that Mingxiu shall move into your separate residence. Take good care of him, and don't let him suffer any more grievances."

"But caring for Yu'er is already tiring enough for you. With Mingxiu there as well, it will be even harder on you, Empress."

"I don't mind the hard work." Empress Feng met his gaze, both of them hiding knives in their eyes.

Yet on the surface, they seemed deeply in love.

"From now on, I will raise Mingxiu as my own son and see that he grows into a pillar of the state, so that he may help ease Your Majesty's burdens."

With that exchange, the matter was considered settled.

Zhou Ye and Wei Mingxiu's true goal had been achieved.

Zhou Ye breathed a sigh of relief and gave Empress Feng a grateful look. Then he turned and walked briskly toward Wei Mingxiu's carriage.