The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 260 You Think You're Alive, But You're Actually Dead

What does it mean to be granted ascension to the Pure Land of Buddha?
Shen Ye knew exactly what was going on.

This means that Songgotu was not rescued.

Did he just die?

However, if someone dies during a blessing ceremony, the Dharma King will inevitably have to say something nice, such as saying that So-hsiang has been granted ascension to the Pure Land of Buddha.

Otherwise, if he said that the gods and Buddhas hadn't bestowed blessings, wouldn't that make him, the Dharma King, seem incompetent? He wouldn't do something that would contradict himself.

Also, saying it this way would make Songgotu's family look better.

Upon hearing that Suo'etu had ascended to the Pure Land of Buddhism, everyone present showed strange expressions.

Algishan remained expressionless. Although he wanted to cry, he knew in his heart that this was not his biological father.

I really can't cry.

As for Fa Ke and the others, their faces showed genuine grief at this moment.

They may not have had a deep relationship with Songgotu, but Songgotu was, after all, the pillar and head of the Hesheli family.

His sudden disappearance gives people a feeling that the sky has fallen.

The Hesheri family will probably not have the same influence in the future, and their words will probably not carry as much weight.

and also……

Shen Ye, however, was more concerned about Mingzhu's reaction.

Mingzhu's expression was calm, and at first glance, it seemed as if neither joy nor sorrow could be discerned.

This kind of reaction seems quite normal.

However, upon closer inspection, Shen Ye felt that Mingzhu seemed to be experiencing a sense of shared sorrow, like a rabbit mourning the death of a fox.

Indeed, he had fought with Suo'etu his whole life, and it was inevitable that he would feel a sense of sadness upon suddenly hearing that his old rival was gone.

Of course, in Mingzhu's view, whether the news of his death was true or false was not that important.

"Your Highness, let's go see Prime Minister Suo first, and then report to the Emperor immediately!" Liang Jiugong said loudly.

He was able to sense Emperor Qianxi's attitude towards Songgotu.

Therefore, he had to report this news to Emperor Qianxi immediately.

He absolutely couldn't let anyone else steal the credit for this.

Of course, if the Crown Prince insisted on being the first to report to Emperor Qianxi, then there was nothing he could do.

After hearing Liang Jiugong's reminder, Shen Ye and the others did not dare to delay and quickly arrived at the prayer hall.

The chanting of sutras continues in the main hall where prayers are offered!
However, the Infinite Life Sutra, which was originally used for prayer, has been replaced by the Amitabha Sutra!
At this point, no one present paid any attention to the monks anymore.

Almost everyone's eyes were on Suo'etu.

Songgotu is dead!
He lay there motionless, completely unchanged from before.

The only difference is that his eyes are now closed forever.

"Your Highness, Your Excellencies, Lord Soetu has been received by the Buddha and is heading to the Pure Land!" The tall and imposing Dragon Elephant Dharma King said in a deep voice.

Looking at the corpse of Suo'etu, Shen Ye felt that he had achieved his goal.

Suppressing his excitement, he said calmly, "Your Majesty, you've worked hard."

"It is also a kind of liberation for Lord Songgotu to be able to enter the Pure Land."

At this point, he turned to the fourth prince, Yunzhen, who was standing to the side, and said, "Fourth brother, continue to arrange for people to guard Lord Suo'etu's body."

"Lord Mingzhu, Steward Liang, and I will report this matter to His Majesty."

Although Yunzhen knew that Suo'etu's death was somewhat suspicious, he was unwilling to get involved in such matters and immediately nodded in agreement.

When Shen Ye and his group arrived at Qianqing Palace, Emperor Qianxi was sitting in meditation.

In fact, he already knew about the death of Suo'etu's double. After all, the sound of the bell at Dajue Temple could not be kept from the Qianxi Emperor, who had many eyes and ears.

Emperor Qianxi sat cross-legged, his expression solemn, as if he were grieving for the death of Songgotu.

However, from Emperor Qianxi's expression, Shen Ye still felt that the emperor was filled with joy at the death of Suo'etu.

Shen Ye had observed Emperor Qianxi before and found that whenever Emperor Qianxi was happy, the corners of his mouth would involuntarily turn up.

The current Emperor Qianxi had a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth.

"My son, I pay my respects to my father!"

"Your humble servant Mingzhu greets Your Majesty!"

Following Shen Ye's bow, Mingzhu and Liang Jiugong also bowed to Emperor Qianxi.

Emperor Qianxi glanced at Shen Ye and gently waved his hand, saying, "Get up."

At this point, he turned to Mingzhu and said, "Through this prayer, I hoped that Suo'etu could stand up again."

"But I never expected that he would actually leave."

"It's such a pity."

Mingzhu understood Emperor Qianxi's feelings and knew what Emperor Qianxi needed at this time.

He knelt respectfully on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, even if I were to die ten thousand times, I would have no regrets because I am so highly regarded by you!"

"Your Majesty, I implore you to take care of your health and not let the matter of Suo'etu upset you."

"It is his blessing that he was able to enter the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss while praying for blessings."

Emperor Qianxi's expression softened considerably, and he said in a deep voice, "Although Suo'etu is dead, he has made contributions throughout his life."

"I will make sure his funeral is grand and glorious."

"Prime Minister, you will be in charge of handling Suo'etu's funeral arrangements."

"All officials in the capital must go and pay their respects!"

"In addition, all officials of the seventh rank and above must write a eulogy!"

"Although these memorial texts cannot be collected all at once, they must be burned for him when he is buried."

Mingzhu's lips twitched slightly.

He could hardly believe his ears. The Qianxi Emperor actually wanted him to arrange Songgotu's funeral—this was truly asking the impossible!

Soetu was his longtime rival!

Helpless, he dared not disobey Emperor Qianxi's orders.

He also sensed the deeper meaning behind Emperor Qianxi's order.

The emperor wanted to use this method to let the whole world know: Songgotu is dead!
Once Songgotu dies, those who were attached to him will immediately scatter like monkeys when the tree falls!

"This servant obeys the decree," Mingzhu said solemnly.

After making a few arrangements for the funeral, Emperor Qianxi said to Shen Ye, "It is a great pity that Suo'etu, who has made great contributions, died like this."

"Go and tell the Hesheli family to all mourn for Suo'etu."

Let us express our deepest condolences!

Making the entire Hesheri family observe mourning sounds very nice, but in reality, it means confining these people to the mansion for three years.

Three years later, even some of Songgotu's staunch supporters had mostly dispersed.

This seemed to be exactly what he had in mind, so Shen Ye replied without hesitation, "Your subject obeys."

Emperor Qianxi glanced at Shen Ye twice, sighed, and said, "You may all leave."

"I need some peace and quiet."

Shen Ye and Mingzhu walked out of Qianqing Palace together. Mingzhu glanced meaningfully at the palace gate, then said to Shen Ye, "Your Highness, His Majesty has given instructions, and this old minister dares not be negligent in the slightest."

"Now I will go to the residence of Suo'etu to preside over the funeral."

Shen Ye clasped his hands in a fist salute to Mingzhu and said, "Mingxiang, you've worked hard."

After Mingzhu left, Shen Ye looked around a few times and felt a sense of relief.

As the saying goes, a snake cannot move without a head. Now that news of Suo'etu's death has spread, those who originally followed Suo'etu's orders will probably seek their own way out immediately.

Some conspiracies involving Songgotu would be directly covered up.

Many things happen under this cover.

From now on, the name Songgotu will be synonymous with a dead man in the whole world!
Anyone who claims to be Suo'etu is either crazy or delusional!

The funeral of Songgotu was held in a very grand manner.

As a former Grand Secretary, organizing a funeral was a piece of cake for Mingzhu.

Emperor Qianxi's order caused countless people, including officials from the six ministries and nine departments of the capital, to flock to Suo'etu's residence to pay their respects.

For a time, it seemed to be incredibly beautiful!
However, some people sensed something was amiss during the worship ceremony.

For example, Algishan felt that those who were usually very respectful to him now had a more perfunctory look in their eyes, as if they were just going through the motions.

At best, it only maintains a superficially appealing appearance.

This action greatly angered Algiersen.

He suppressed his anger and secretly warned himself that his father was not dead. Once his father stood in front of these people again, they would all treat him with utmost respect.

He wanted to see these people weeping and wailing!

After three days of grand ceremonies, Algishan, who was exhausted, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He secretly entered the secret room while most of the family was resting.

There was plenty of food prepared in the secret room, so there was no immediate concern that Suo'etu would starve to death.

However, at this moment, Songgotu no longer possessed the composure he had when he suffered the stroke. Upon seeing Algishan, he angrily rebuked him, "Why are you only coming to see me now?"

"Do you wish I were dead?!"

"You wretched child, how dare you treat me with such disrespect!"

Upon hearing this reprimand, Algishan swayed, a trace of fear rising in his heart, and said, "Father, I have wanted to see you for a long time."

“But Mingzhu has been keeping an eye on things from the mansion. I’m afraid something might happen, so I haven’t dared to visit you.”

"But don't worry, the funeral is almost over now, and your son can come to visit you more often."

Soetu was taken aback and said, "Funeral? What funeral?"

"Your double is dead!"

"His Majesty values ​​you highly, so he has decided to have Mingzhu hold your funeral, and it must be a grand and magnificent one."

"Furthermore, not only are all officials of the seventh rank and above in the capital required to come and pay their respects, but officials of the seventh rank and above outside the capital are also required to write memorial texts for you."

"The memorial text from Zhili arrived around noon today, and it filled half a cart."

Upon hearing this, Suo'etu's face turned bright red.

He shouted angrily, "You wretch, are you brainless?!"

"Don't you know what they're trying to do?"

"They want everyone to know I'm dead."

Why didn't you tell me sooner?

As he spoke, Soetu slapped Algishan across the face.

In the past, when faced with his father's slaps, Algishan could only endure them; he really had no other choice.

But this time, just as the slap was about to land, he inexplicably swung his hand and grabbed Suo'etu's wrist.

"What...what are you going to do?" Soetu's voice grew increasingly stern, seemingly tinged with panic.

But for Algishan, after grabbing his father's wrist, a terrible thought suddenly popped into his mind:

I... am actually perfectly capable of resisting!

Although this person was his father, he... no longer had the ability to control his own destiny.

He is just his own father!

He was no longer the famous Suo'etu, no longer the Suo Prime Minister whose words could shake the surrounding area.

That Prime Minister Su is dead!
　The first update of the day is here! Thank you all for your continued support.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)