Evil of all ages

Chapter 272 I'm Not the Only Victim

Xu Yunxue's words were like a huge stone thrown into a calm lake, causing the water to surge and ripple.

For a moment, the civil and military officials in the hall were whispering among themselves, creating a great commotion.

Even Di Qingtian, who had come to watch the spectacle, felt a slight ripple in his usually calm heart upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words.

Gao He's brows furrowed even more, but he didn't speak, his eyes deep and unreadable.

"Your Majesty, your joke is not funny at all."

Li Xuanqing thought the Empress Dowager was joking.

After all, the Empress Dowager controlled the government and wielded immense power, able to do whatever she wanted. How could such a person become someone else's plaything?

Moreover, this is the imperial palace, which is not only heavily guarded, but also overseen by the supreme master of the Li imperial family.

Who would dare to be so audacious as to come to the palace and treat the Empress Dowager like a plaything?
"Given the current situation, do you think I still have the mind to joke with you?"

Xu Yunxue sneered and asked in return.

Upon hearing this, Li Xuanqing's expression, which had been relaxed, darkened.

"Empress Dowager, do you know what you're saying?"

Li Xuanqing was still somewhat skeptical, but he was afraid it might actually be true.

If this is true, then the dignified Empress Dowager is nothing more than someone else's plaything.

If the whole world knew about it, it would be a huge scandal for the Li imperial family.

Moreover, he was able to treat the Empress Dowager as a plaything.

She is definitely a more difficult person to deal with than the Empress Dowager.

Even those he didn't want to provoke.

"I am a proud person. Even if I lose, there is no need for me to tarnish my reputation and become a laughing stock for the world."

Xu Yunxue liked the effect when she saw the civil and military officials in the main hall go from whispering amongst themselves to increasingly loud discussions.

Even if there are a few exceptions in the crowd.

Gao He remained expressionless, as silent as an old fox.

Di Qingtian had a flash of inspiration, as if he, as a detective, understood everything.

He didn't say a word from beginning to end, truly acting like a spectator.

Shen Zhonghe's eyes remained unchanged, as if he were just there to make up the numbers and had no interest in anything.

……

Who is he?

Seeing that the Empress Dowager was no joke, Li Xuanqing wanted to know who had the audacity to treat the Empress Dowager like a plaything.

"I do not know who he is. Apart from his eyes, I have never seen his true face."

"However, the only ones who can leave me helpless are either extraterrestrial demons or ghost kings."

"Which one is it? If you have the guts, send someone to investigate."

"I almost forgot, that's not the main point I wanted to make."

"What I want to say is that I am not the only victim in the palace."

"Both Consort Ouyang and your birth mother are!"

His words stirred up a huge wave of discussion, leaving everyone who heard them in a state of unease.

"You're talking nonsense, that can't be true."

When Li Xuanqing heard that his birth mother was involved, how could he possibly accept it?

"Whether I'm talking nonsense or not, you can verify it yourself and you'll know."

"However, when you go to your birth mother to verify this, she will never admit it."

"It's easy to ask Consort Ouyang for confirmation. There's no need to ask her; you can tell just by looking at her walking posture."

"The fact that the late emperor never favored her means that she was still a virgin."

"But she is no longer."

“Just find any experienced Taoist priest to observe her gait and determine if she is a virgin. That would prove whether I am lying.” Xu Yunxue saw that Li Xuanqing’s expression had become quite interesting because of her words, and she smiled.

No matter how mature a fifteen-year-old emperor may appear on the surface, he still couldn't hide his true feelings when he heard about this.

"Guards, the Empress Dowager is tired. Take her away from me."

Under normal circumstances, the emperor would not kill the nominal empress dowager.

But Xu Yunxue's situation is different; she is a demon queen, and killing her would give the world an explanation.

He had planned to do that too, but Xu Yunxue dragged in such a huge scandal, even involving his biological mother.

If he kills Xu Yunxue without thoroughly investigating the matter, he will be suspected of murder to cover it up.

This made everyone in the world doubt whether Xu Yunxue was telling the truth.

There really was such a person who treated the Empress Dowager as a plaything, as well as the other two most honored women in the palace.

He was the emperor. If his birth mother was in this situation, not only would he not be able to accept it, but he would also become a laughing stock in the world.

Xu Yunxue originally wanted to commit suicide, but she inexplicably wanted to see what would happen next. She couldn't control her life, but she could commit suicide anytime she wanted.

She did not resist and allowed the emperor's men to take her away and place her under house arrest.

When Li Xuanqing saw the people from the Eastern Depot taking Xu Yunxue away, he turned to look at the civil and military officials who had come with him to force the emperor to abdicate.

First, he said a lot of nice things, never forgetting that it was the ministers who helped him overthrow the wicked empress, and crediting everyone for their contributions.

After saying the nice things, he warned the courtiers that the empress's words were just sorcery and should not be spread.

If anyone spreads this, their entire family will be executed.

After issuing the warning, Li Xuanqing waved for the officials to leave, leaving only Gao He and Di Qingtian.

Leaving the two behind, he first looked at Di Qingtian.

He hoped that Di Qingtian, the world's greatest detective, could help him find out who was treating the Demon Queen as a plaything—was it an extraterrestrial demon? Or a ghost king?

At the same time, he also wanted Di Qingtian to give false testimony in his name as a detective, saying that everything the Demon Queen said was false.

Di Qingtian didn't indulge the young emperor and made up an excuse, saying that he had made a mistake while practicing his martial arts.

I need time to rest and recuperate; there's no time to confirm whether the Empress Dowager was referring to an extraterrestrial demon or a ghost king.

As for using his detective status to fabricate evidence for him, he refused.

Although Li Xuanqing was displeased when Di Qingtian refused, he did not show it.

He knew that Di Qingtian was an outstanding person, and outstanding people are like wild horses. Taming a wild horse is never an easy task.

Moreover, although he seems to have taken back power from the Empress Dowager, in reality, he still doesn't have the final say in the court.

Whether he has the final say depends on Prime Minister Gao's approval.

Now he is forced to rely on Prime Minister Gao.

It would be almost impossible for someone like him to tame a wild horse like Di Qingtian.

However, he was not in a hurry. He would first gradually take back power from Prime Minister Gao before slowly considering other matters.

Seeing that Di Qingtian intended to leave, he could only wave Di Qingtian away.

He was left alone with Prime Minister Gao, and he pretended to be very dependent on Prime Minister Gao, talking to him about everything.

When it was mentioned that the Empress Dowager was under house arrest, Xu Yushu was dismissed from his position as Minister of Revenue.

The unconscious Xu Yushu was sent to the South City Prison to keep his younger brother company.

Although the former Minister of War, Lü Busheng, was one of their men, he had already been sent to the Southern City Prison by the Demon Queen. They couldn't possibly snatch food from the tiger's mouth in front of the Ghost King.

They abandoned the idea of ​​rescuing Lü Busheng.

Now that the two important positions of Minister of Revenue and Minister of War are vacant, Li Xuanqing hopes that Prime Minister Gao can select suitable candidates.

He will take over these two important positions.

After discussing many matters, he left almost all the issues to Prime Minister Gao and went to find his birth mother alone.

At the same time, he also sent an experienced Taoist priest to Consort Ouyang's side.

(End of this chapter)