Chapter 40 I Will Kill You!

Ten miles outside Bianliang City, a shade canopy had been erected early in the morning.

An exceptionally elite imperial guard stood watch, keeping the distant onlookers and commoners at bay.

By this time, nearly a thousand people had gathered here.

However, the majority remained outside the canopy, with only Li Yu, Lady Zhou the Younger, and a few other members of the Southern Tang royal family inside.

After they arrived and had waited for about half an hour, Zhao Dezhao, tasked with the reception, finally appeared with the corresponding officials.

The reason for the delay was not that Zhao Dezhao had lost track of time, but rather that it was intentional.

Li Yu was a ruler of a fallen state. He had surrendered only after Jiangning City was breached and he had reached the end of his rope, rather than capitulating from the very beginning.

Naturally, there was no reason for Zhao Dezhao to be waiting here for him ahead of time.

Making him wait for a while before the welcoming emissary of the Great Song arrived—this was the treatment he deserved.

Had Li Yu surrendered without a fight, the treatment would naturally not have been like this...

"The Marquis of Defying Mandate, Li Yu, pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Led by the master of ceremonies, Li Yu stepped out from the pavilion and bowed to Zhao Dezhao, his demeanor exceedingly respectful.

Seeing this, the crowd of Southern Tang surrendered officials behind him, such as Xu Xuan and others, mostly let out a collective inward breath of relief.

Truth be told, quite a few of them had been harboring anxieties beforehand, fearing that their former sovereign—now the Marquis of Defying Mandate—accustomed to supreme luxury since childhood, would, upon facing the ruin of his state and arriving in the Song Dynasty in the humiliating guise of a surrendered subject, fail to restrain his temper and cause a major incident when confronted by the Song welcoming party.

Witnessing Li Yu's attitude now, they all set their minds at ease.

They felt they had simply been overthinking things earlier.

Their former sovereign's personality was indecisive and weak; he was a master at composing poetry and lyrics, but utterly devoid of any talent for governing a state or managing affairs.

Things having reached this pass, how could he possibly have the audacity to make any unwise moves at a time like this?

As a result, just as their hearts settled back into their chests, Li Yu dealt them a devastating critical hit!

Those with slow reactions had not yet realized what had happened.

But those with quick wits, such as Xu Xuan—the very same capable minister from Jiangnan who, two months prior, had served as an envoy to the Great Song and left Emperor Zhao Kuangyin of Song utterly speechless, ultimately prompting the emperor to unapologetically declare the famous maxim: "How can one allow others to snore soundly on the side of one's couch"—

At that exact moment, felt a buzzing in their heads and a wave of dizziness wash over them.

The look he cast at Li Yu was as if he had seen a ghost!

What on earth was their former sovereign doing? Had writing poetry and lyrics fried his brain?

Was that something that could be said out loud?

And to say it on an occasion like this!

Subconsciously, he wanted to quickly speak up, smooth things over, and salvage the situation.

Yet, the words died on his lips, and he swallowed them back down.

First, the mess Li Yu had stirred up with that single sentence was simply too colossal; he wanted no part in the ensuing karma.

Second, their state had already perished, and the man before him was no longer the Lord of Jiangnan, nor his sovereign, but merely the Marquis of Defying Mandate of the Great Song.

Moreover, he himself was also someone who had surrendered to the Great Song; the lord-vassal relationship no longer existed.

There was no longer any need to protect him at every turn, let alone risk one's life to defend him now.

If the man was bent on courting death and stirring up this disaster, then let him bear the karmic consequences alone!

Zhao Dezhao was stunned, his heart skipping a beat.

The title of Crown Prince was something he desired above all else in his dreams.

Yet, in ordinary times, he almost never heard it, and certainly no one had ever addressed him as Crown Prince to his face.

Not to mention on such an important occasion, in front of so many people, addressing him directly as Crown Prince.

Yet, at this moment, Li Yu had called him precisely that.

"The Marquis of Defying Mandate has spoken incorrectly; I am not the Crown Prince."

Li Yu looked somewhat startled, then hastily and sincerely acknowledged his mistake: "This humble subject was addled, assuming Your Highness to be the eldest imperial son of the Great Song at present, and thus subconsciously took you for the Crown Prince. I beseech Your Highness to forgive me."

Li Yu repeatedly begged for forgiveness, his attitude remarkably sincere.

"You must engrave this firmly in your mind, and never commit such confusion again in the future!"

Zhao Dezhao reminded Li Yu with a solemn expression, his tone carrying a warning.

Li Yu nodded repeatedly in acknowledgment, indicating that he had firmly committed it to heart.

This storm appeared to have vanished just like that, suppressed by Zhao Dezhao.

Most of the people from the Southern Tang side who had realized what was going on also let out a breath of relief.

Yet, the breath in Xu Xuan's chest did not release.

He felt that this matter should not end so easily.

The struggle for the imperial succession had always been a supreme taboo; one misstep would invite heaven-shattering disaster and roll heads on the execution ground!

And yet now, Li Yu, the ruler of a fallen state, had arrived in Bianliang in the guise of a surrendered subject, and before even entering the city, had taken the initiative to provoke this very issue.

Regardless of whether it was unintentional or deliberate, it was simply impossible for the matter to be brushed aside so lightly.

Someone would keep a record of this; all of this was karma, all of this was a debt waiting to be collected!

Following this, true to his word, Li Yu committed no further blunders; he behaved with utmost obedience, and his etiquette in every aspect was impeccably executed.

Everything proceeded smoothly.

After a round of corresponding ceremonies, Li Yu entered Bianliang City in the company of Zhao Dezhao.

The streets of Bianliang were overflowing with people, and cheers shook the air.

Naturally, they were not welcoming Li Yu, but rather celebrating the victory of the Great Song.

This land had suffered turmoil for far too long; the common people cared little about who sat on the throne, having long since grown weary of war.

What they desired was a stable life.

Now, that seemingly endless war was drawing to a close.

With the realm about to be unified, how could they not rejoice?

...

Inside the Wansui Hall, Zhao Kuangyin, attired in imperial robes, looked upon Li Yu—who, accompanied by Lady Zhou the Younger, now styled as the Lady of Zheng, was paying him grand homage—and felt quite pleased at heart.

Even the dark cloud brought by the numerous pieces of intelligence he had received from Li Cheng dissipated considerably at this moment.

Watching Li Yu, who after performing the rites did not dare to meet his gaze and trembled with fear, Zhao Kuangyin could not help but recall what Li Cheng had told him regarding Li Yu's ultimate fate.

He was actually to be poisoned to death by his own third younger brother on his very birthday.

Such a man, devoid of grand ambitions, who indulged solely in composing poetry, seeking pleasure, and knew nothing of statecraft—cut from the same cloth as Meng Chang of Later Shu—was someone he could not even tolerate; his magnanimity was truly too narrow.

Such a person, if given quarters in the Hall of Virtuous Scholars and allowed to live, what harm would it do?

However, upon subsequently learning what Li Yu had said to his own newly arrived family member in front of everyone that very day, Zhao Kuangyin suddenly understood why the man would eventually meet his death.

As for this Li Yu, one truly hardly knew whether to call him courageous or simply ruined by excessive book-learning.

A person who appeared so incompetent and cowardly actually dared to utter such earth-shattering words and pull off such a stunt.

His own third younger brother must be hopping mad by now, right?

...

"Scoundrel! Wretch! Filthy beast! Son of a bitch!

A ruler of a fallen state, who knows nothing of talent aside from penning a few verses of poetry, actually dares to utter such words and pull off such a stunt?

Truly, he has no idea how the word 'death' is written!"

Just as Zhao Kuangyin had imagined, upon returning to his residence, Zhao Guangyi, who had exercised restraint for a long time, finally erupted.

Here, he sent his most heartfelt greetings across the distance to Li Yu as a congratulatory gift for Li Yu's housewarming upon moving into the Hall of Virtuous Scholars.

"Son of a bitch! I will surely kill you!"

After cursing for a while, Zhao Guangyi made his vow.

These words were spoken almost through clenched back teeth.

What made Zhao Guangyi unhappy was far more than just this.

When court session convened the very next day, his beloved elder brother handed him an even greater surprise!