[Lightscreen]
[By the way, in Sima Guang's Sushui Records, he practically wrote "Wang Jien was Zhao Er's lackey" on his forehead.
Wang Jien led Zhao Guangyi into the inner palace. The Empress of Song was still asking through the door, "Is Defang here?"
Wang Jien replied, "The Prince of Jin has arrived."
Seeing there was no way to turn things around, the Empress of Song spoke plainly, "The lives of me and my son are entrusted to Your Majesty."
Zhao Da probably never expected that after he took the throne by pushing aside orphans and widows, his own brother would copy the exact same move.
So sometimes you really have to admit, history truly runs in circles.]
[Li Shimin: Zhao Da, don't be too angry. When the ruler is young and the state is unstable, such things are common. Brother to brother succession may even be your family tradition. Zhao Er may have overstepped, but it may not necessarily mean he intended to kill.]
Zhao Kuangyin shot to his feet.
Whether Candle Shadow and Axe Sound was real or not was still unclear. But if this official record was to be believed, his own younger brother had already planted his hands deep into the inner palace. That alone was enough to make Zhao Kuangyin explode.
"So bold. So bold!"
"You worthless thing, cozying up to eunuchs and filthy palace servants, and yet you dare to stretch your claws toward your own flesh and blood."
"If you want the throne, then fight for it on the battlefield. But using these dirty tricks, plotting in the shadows. You dare harbor the heart of wolves and dogs toward your own brother?"
His chest rose and fell heavily. His icy gaze swept across the hall. The inner attendant from earlier immediately understood, knelt, and moved to leave.
"This servant will go fetch Wang Jien at once."
Zhao Kuangyin's anger eased slightly.
"Spare his life for now. I will question him personally."
The attendant let out a breath of relief, kowtowed repeatedly, and hurried off.
The other attendants felt a strange sense of envy. Just a moment ago, that task sounded like hell. Now? Who would want to stay in this hall? Even Lord Zhao Pu had almost backed himself into the wall.
At the center of the hall, Zhao Guangyi listened to his brother's furious scolding and the rapid-fire orders. A sense of despair slowly crept in.
When he heard the words "heart of wolves and dogs," he finally twisted around and struggled to speak.
"Brother, brother to brother succession is not unheard of. This is for the continuation of Great Song. And even later generations did not say that your younger brother harmed Your Majesty. I beg you to see clearly."
Zhao Kuangyin felt his heart pounding in his chest. He sat back down, took a breath, and sneered.
"So you admit these three people, then?"
Of course, that could not be admitted.
Zhao Guangyi said, "Your servant brother only saw that Ma Shao was good with words. I never saw him spreading Heaven's will or deceiving others."
"As for Wang Jien, he was short of money in the palace, so your servant brother…"
Before he could finish, Zhao Pu cried out in alarm.
"Your Majesty, wait…"
Before Zhao Guangyi could even wonder why Zhao Pu shouted, he felt a fierce gust of wind from his left.
The next moment, his body spun, and he crashed backward onto the floor.
His nose burned. Something warm flowed into his mouth. A metallic, bloody taste spread across his tongue. He gagged, and something flew out of his mouth, clattered on the floor, and bounced twice with a crisp sound.
Two breaths later, Zhao Guangyi finally realized what had happened.
It seemed he had just spat out his own tooth.
He had seen how his brother beat people before. Back then, he even found the sight of broken teeth disgusting. He never imagined that when it was his own turn, it would hurt this much.
His head was still spinning. Through blurred vision, he saw his brother looking down at him with a cold, indifferent face.
This was a brother he had rarely seen since the founding of Song. This was the brother he knew well from the days when Zhao Kuangyin served as Palace Commander in Later Zhou.
The Palace Commander Zhao Kuangyin who made the entire army submit did not rely on smiling at civil officials or patiently swallowing insults.
He relied on real blades and real fists on the battlefield. He fought his way up with blood, merit, and ruthless decisiveness.
This expression of his brother had not been seen in fourteen years of Song's rule.
If Zhao Guangyi had not forgotten his brother's former might…
"Speak truthfully. Say it again."
Zhao Kuangyin's voice was short and cold. There was no smile left.
At this moment, Zhao Guangyi instead relaxed. Lying on the floor, missing two teeth, he let out a hoarse laugh.
"If it's like this, then what is there left to say?"
Zhao Kuangyin bent down, grabbed Zhao Guangyi by the front of his robes with one hand, and hauled him up. Their faces drew close.
"Brother to brother succession?"
"In Southern Han, Liu Hongxi colluded with Chen Daoxiang and killed his brother to seize the throne."
"In Later Liang, Zhu Youzhen joined with Yang Shihou to kill his brother Zhu Yougui and take the throne."
"You want to follow that path?"
"Then why not learn from Min Kingdom's Wang Yanbin, who faced his brother Wang Yanhao head-on on the battlefield and defeated him openly."
"Why don't you do it that way?"
Zhao Guangyi's head drooped heavily. He forced himself to raise it a little and looked into his brother's calm but burning eyes.
He said flatly, "It is nothing more than following what later generations say. Following your old example, brother. It is only a pity…"
Bang.
Zhao Pu, who had been holding his breath, heard the sound of fist hitting head with terrifying clarity.
Thud.
That was the sound of the Prince of Jin's body hitting the floor again.
Though he took another punch, Zhao Pu, who had once served as an aide to His Majesty, knew that two punches like this would at most leave someone dizzy or half-stunned. If the blow had landed lower, that would have been a killing strike.
Because of that, Zhao Pu actually let out a small breath of relief.
Zhao Kuangyin sat back down, thinking.
"If you truly believe in brother to brother succession… then what about passing the throne to Guangmei?"
Zhao Guangmei was their younger brother, the Duke of Tianshui. He was eight years younger than Zhao Guangyi and only twenty-seven this year.
Zhao Guangyi lay on the floor in silence. He neither knew nor wanted to answer.
"Then let us see how you treat Guangmei. If you treat him well…"
Hearing his brother's light, calm words, Zhao Guangyi suddenly felt a bit of strength return.
If there was a proper way, then even his brother would have nothing to criticize.
Zhao Pu, on the other hand, had no such hope.
He knew the Prince of Jin's character far too well now. Even if the Duke of Tianshui was treated well, what about Zhao Dezhao? What about Zhao Defang, whom the Empress kept mentioning?
Had Zhao Guangyi really forgotten what later generations would say about "persecuting the imperial clan"?
…
In Ganlu Hall, Empress Zhangsun sighed helplessly.
"Does Your Majesty not fear that Song, who is also watching from over there, may fall because of this?"
Li Shimin shook his head.
"Brotherly conflict is still for Song. In such matters, one should advise peace, to avoid lasting resentment."
That was what he said, but his face practically broadcast his disappointment at not being able to witness the full brotherly clash in person.
It left Empress Zhangsun even more helpless.
As expected, there was still no reply from Zhao Kuangyin. Li Shimin said he understood. Zhao Da was probably very busy right now.
After all, someone had colluded with eunuchs and reached into the inner palace. That was like touching the dragon's reverse scale. By itself, such behavior already counted as clear intent to rebel.
And judging from how smooth and decisive Wang Jien's actions were, what was recorded in the official history was probably just the tip of the iceberg. The Song palace was likely already riddled with Zhao Er's people like a sieve.
For a moment, Li Shimin could not help but think of certain things.
He quickly stopped himself.
Better not think about that.
Looking at Guanyinbi smiling at him with a hint of helplessness, Li Shimin suddenly realized something even harder and more important than conquering the Western Regions.
His children with Guanyinbi must truly cherish blood ties.
Brothers must truly treat each other as brothers.
Yes.
Truly brotherly harmony.