RPAGF Chapter 288 Life and Death Decision
Chapter 288 Life and Death Decision
Chapter 288 A Choice Between Life and Death
Wang Wenzhou couldn't bear to see the beautiful girl cry, so he quickly licked away Tian Xiuying's tears and comforted her, "Baby, baby, don't cry. I'm not the kind of guy who would abandon you after you've done your bidding. Don't worry, I'll marry you!"
Tian Xiuying cried even harder, "Wang Wenzhou, you heartless bastard! I am the Emperor's Noble Consort, and you have ruined my reputation! You want to marry me? If the Emperor finds out about this, not only will you not marry me, but my entire family and your entire clan will be executed!"
Wang Wenzhou said irritably, "Baby, stop crying. It's not like this is your first time sleeping with a man! Why are you crying? Your young lady, Yuanyuan, didn't cry the first time! I am the Vice Minister of Rites and the heir of the Earl of Xinjian. You, a maid who sleeps with men, becoming my concubine is not a bad thing for you!"
"Waaah..." Tian Xiuying sobbed uncontrollably, pleading in her heart for this bastard to finish quickly and pretend nothing had happened. That heartless scoundrel, drunk as a man, doesn't even care about his life!
Wang Wenzhou was drugged, making him incredibly powerful. An hour later, he was drenched in sweat, but he continued to fight.
Tian Xiuying stopped crying. She had resigned herself to her fate and treated it as a dream, as if nothing had happened when she woke up.
After so much time had passed, Wang Wenzhou gradually sobered up. He kissed Tian Xiuying, and perhaps because he was sobering up, he could smell a very fragrant scent on her. Wow, Wang Wenzhou chuckled inwardly; this girl was actually a stunningly beautiful woman with a lovely body odor.
With a loud bang, the door was suddenly kicked open.
"Damn! Which idiot is it?" Wang Wenzhou turned around and quickly said with a smile, "Brother Zhu, what brings you here? Don't worry, please close the door from the outside. I'll come find you after I'm done with my work."
"Waaah..." When Tian Xiuying saw Zhu Youjian, she immediately covered her face with her hands and burst into tears.
"Hmph!" Zhu Youjian's face turned ashen. He snorted coldly and turned to walk out of the room.
Wang Wenzhou pried Tian Xiuying's hands off and said with a smile, "Baby, baby, don't be shy. That's my buddy, the current emperor, Zhu Youjian."
Tian Xiuying was taken aback for a moment, then asked, both amused and exasperated, "Wang Wenzhou, do you really not know who I am?"
"You mean, 'Emperor'? Stop kidding!" Wang Wenzhou said with a laugh, "Baby, you want to play role-playing games? Fine, today I'm the Emperor, and you're my beloved concubine!"
"Bang!" Zhu Youjian kicked the door open again and entered the room. This time, he was carrying a drawn sword.
Zhu Youjian's eyes were red as he looked at the man and woman on the bed, feeling like crying but unable to shed a tear.
One reason was that he entrusted Wang Wenzhou with an important task and promised that once Wang Wenzhou pacified Liaodong, he would be granted the hereditary title of a prince of a different surname. For over two hundred years, the Ming Dynasty had never granted such a title. Zhu Youjian once told Wang Wenzhou, "If you do not betray me, I will not be your husband," a statement that truly came from the bottom of his heart.
Zhu Youjian (Emperor Zhu Youjian) greatly admired Wang Wenzhou. Firstly, he was eager to recognize Wang's talent; secondly, Wang's personality and mannerisms were quite novel to him—he had never met anyone like Wang before. Wang always addressed him as "Brother Zhu" without regard to rank, and although Zhu Youjian didn't acknowledge it, he genuinely treated Wang as a brother.
Right now, this guy is riding on top of his beloved concubine, having sex...
Consort Tian was Zhu Youjian's most beloved woman.
It was not Zhu Youjian's original intention to make Zhou the empress; rather, it was his sister-in-law, Empress Yi'an, who insisted on making Zhou the empress. Since Zhu Youjian had just ascended the throne at that time, he did not want to offend his sister-in-law, so he had no choice but to agree.
Zhu Youjian was still very unhappy. He specially renamed Yongning Palace, one of the Eastern Six Palaces, to Chengqian Palace and gave it to Consort Tian to live in, as compensation for Consort Tian not becoming empress.
Consort Tian was the most beautiful woman in the palace and possessed unparalleled artistic talent, repeatedly displaying extraordinary abilities that made Emperor Zhu Youjian favor her greatly. When Consort Tian played the flute, Emperor Zhu Youjian praised her performance as "splitting rocks and piercing clouds."
Once, Zhu Youjian was riding a horse at the archery range when he heard that Consort Tian was also skilled in horsemanship and hunting. He ordered her to mount, and Consort Tian's elegant riding posture drew praise from everyone. Zhu Youjian was amazed by Consort Tian's literary and martial talents and asked Empress Zhou, who was present, why she was unfamiliar with these skills. Empress Zhou calmly replied, "I am a Confucian scholar and only know sericulture and weaving. Who taught you how to play?" Her answer filled Zhu Youjian with suspicion, so he questioned Consort Tian about where she had learned it. Consort Tian replied that she had been personally taught by her mother. Emperor Sizong then summoned Consort Tian's mother, Lady Xue, to the palace, where she played the piece "Chaotian," dispelling everyone's doubts and further increasing Zhu Youjian's favor towards Consort Tian.
Seeing Zhu Youjian's ferocious expression, and even more terrifyingly, the gleaming sword in Zhu Youjian's hand, Wang Wenzhou asked in a panic, "Brother Zhu? What's wrong with you?"
"I will kill you two, you adulterous couple!" Zhu Youjian charged forward, sword in hand.
The main reason why Zhu Youjian personally executed Wang Wenzhou was that he was really afraid of losing face. How could he let the guards know that his beloved concubine had slept with Wang Wenzhou?
Wang Wenzhou, naked from the waist down, jumped off the bed and grabbed Zhu Youjian's sword-wielding hand, asking inexplicably, "Brother Zhu, are you drunk? What did I do to offend you? You want to kill me? Fine! Have you also taken a fancy to this beautiful girl in bed? Fine! Since we're good brothers, you give me Yuanyuan, and I'll give you this baby!"
Tian Xiuying didn't even bother to put on her clothes. She jumped off the bed, knelt on the ground, and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I deserve to die. I beg Your Majesty to grant me a cup of poisoned wine and leave me with a whole corpse."
"Pfft..." Wang Wenzhou was stunned. Damn it! I slept with Zhu Youjian's girl! That's it, I'm doomed! Any man who gets cuckolded will hate the adulterer to death.
"Brother Zhu, please let me explain!" Wang Wenzhou grabbed Zhu Youjian's hand tightly and said in a serious tone.
"Wang Wenzhou! Wang Wenzhou! How have I treated you? I trusted you so much, and yet you..." Zhu Youjian couldn't finish his sentence; it was too humiliating and too humiliating!
"Go to hell!" Zhu Youjian punched Wang Wenzhou in the face, trying to push him away, but Wang Wenzhou held onto his sword tightly.
Emperor regicide? Wang Wenzhou's mind raced as he considered his options. If he killed Zhu Youjian now and fled back to Hanshan, even if he succeeded, the Ming Dynasty wouldn't fall immediately; Zhu Youjian would be dead, and a new emperor would rise.
Whoever becomes emperor will surely gather a large army to fight Wang Wenzhou to the death.
Although Wang Wenzhou possessed some military strength in Hanshan, and was somewhat confident he could gather a group of followers to rebel and conquer the land, he was no match for the imperial court. Of course, he could also seek refuge with Gao Yingxiang, who was, after all, his father-in-law.
Given Wang Wenzhou's understanding of historical trends, he might be able to save Gao Yingxiang's life. In that case, a few years later, it would certainly be Gao Yingxiang, not Wang Wenzhou's brother-in-law Li Zicheng, who would have captured Beijing.
Wang Wenzhou was in a dilemma. If he didn't kill Zhu Youjian, he feared he wouldn't even be able to escape the capital if he rushed out now. To escape the capital, he had to kill Zhu Youjian so he could escape in the chaos. But once he killed Zhu Youjian, no matter where Wang Wenzhou fled, the Ming army would surely follow him, eager to kill him.