Tang Dynasty: To win Yang Guifei, they asked Emperor Xuanzong to die.

"What? Your Highness, you can't go to see the Emperor! The Emperor must be furious right now. If you go, you'll only provoke him further, and things will likely turn out badly!" Guo Ziyi was eager to please Li Mao and tried to stop him repeatedly.

Even if everyone else suspected Li Mao, Guo Ziyi wouldn't.

He was promoted by His Highness himself; without His Highness, he wouldn't have become a general. He is wholeheartedly devoted to serving the country, as is His Highness. How could he possibly attempt to assassinate the Crown Prince?

During his time with Li Mao, Guo Ziyi discovered that Li Mao, the Prince of Shou, was actually quite detached from worldly affairs. As long as he wasn't pressured by power, he didn't really crave it; he just preferred to run his own horse ranch and live a quiet life with the woman he loved.

However, the circumstances prevented Li Mao from achieving his goal.

Li Mao has already sacrificed so much for the Tang Dynasty, yet he is still being doubted.

How could Guo Ziyi not feel sorry for him?

Li Mao replied, “Ziyi, don’t be anxious. If I don’t go when Father summons me, it will make me seem guilty. I have a clear conscience. Even if he summons me ten times or tortures me severely, I will not have done it.”

Although Li Longji's personality became increasingly violent, he couldn't have lost his mind and killed his own son without any evidence, could he?

Under Guo Ziyi's worried gaze, Li Mao went to the main courtyard where Li Longji was once again. The atmosphere in the courtyard was very different from when they first arrived. People had to be searched to enter and leave, and the garrison troops of Xianyang City had been specially mobilized to act as guards, protecting Li Longji in layers.

Li Longji was terrified by the assassination attempt on the crown prince and feared that it would soon be his turn.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty." Li Mao entered the room and knelt down immediately.

Li Longji remained silent, his eyes fixed on the Xuan paper on the table, seemingly writing or drawing something.

It was the same before; Li Mao bowed, but Li Longji ignored him.

This time, Li Mao did not get up on his own initiative, but remained kneeling to see who would lose their temper first, him or Li Longji.

Half an hour later, Li Longji finally spoke: "Prince Shou, Li Mao, do you know your crime?"

They actually wanted to convict him outright!

Even though Li Mao had long been disappointed in his adoptive father, he still couldn't help but feel indignant. So, all the risks he had taken to protect the empire for his adoptive father were just something Li Longji could so easily frame?

It was just a small action made by an assassin before his death that made Li Longji feel that he was guilty.

Ridiculous, really ridiculous!

Thinking about it, Li Mao actually chuckled.

Upon seeing this, Li Longji flew into a rage: "How dare you! How insolent!"

Since things had already come to this point, Li Mao simply stopped pretending.

He abandoned his usual obsequious demeanor and looked up at Li Longji.

He said slowly and deliberately, "For so long, I have devoted myself to protecting the Tang Dynasty and rescuing my father and the Crown Prince. I have risked my life for them. Even if I have not made any great contributions, I have certainly worked hard. Yet my father has become suspicious of me because of the words of an assassin."

"Since that's the case, whatever Father Emperor says goes. Kill me or torture me, it's all up to you!"

Of course, Li Longji couldn't just kill Li Mao on the spot; he still needed to maintain his father's image. That's why Li Mao dared to provoke the authority of the emperor in front of him.

"You!" Li Longji was indeed very angry, but he did not kill him.

Instead, he said coldly, "You keep saying you're doing this for the Tang Dynasty, but you're also a member of the Li family, of my blood. The reason you're fighting so hard to protect it is probably so that after assassinating the Crown Prince, you can usurp the throne and seize control of the Tang Dynasty."

Li Longji has quite the imagination; Li Mao was both amused and exasperated by him.

“Father, Father,” Li Mao chuckled, emphasizing each word, “Father, do you only see me guarding the country, but do you not see me humbling myself before the bandits just to rescue you all?”

It would have been better if these words hadn't been mentioned, because as soon as they were, Li Longji's expression changed drastically.

He threw the cup on the table directly at Li Mao.

The scalding tea spilled all over him, but Li Mao stood tall and refused to back down.

Li Longji gritted his teeth: "How could I know whether you risked your life to infiltrate the mountain stronghold to save me and the Crown Prince, or to save Xianglan, who is considered your confidante and who fled all the way from the stronghold back to Xianyang?!"

Why are we talking about orchids again?

Li Mao was caught off guard by Li Longji's unpredictable thinking.

He quickly realized that the old man was disrespectful to his elders and coveted his son's wife. He felt that he was just like him, and although he had presented Xianglan to his father, he was actually secretly having an affair with Xianglan.

"So the reason why Father Emperor suspected me time and time again was because he didn't believe that my saving Father Emperor was both a matter of loyalty and filial piety. Instead, he thought that I saved Father Emperor on the side for the sake of Xianglan, a woman?"

Li Longji remained noncommittal.

Li Mao laughed heartily: "If that's the case, why should I be the last to rescue Xianglan? If that's the case, I can just take Xianglan, who's already drunk with the bandits, away that very night, and the two of us can run away together, ignoring Father Emperor and Crown Prince. Wouldn't that be better!"

"That's because you still want to gain fame and reputation, and want to take advantage of being the savior of me and the Crown Prince to obtain power!" Li Longji said, but he knew that his words were far-fetched.

If Li Mao wanted to kill him and Li Heng, he had many ways to do so; he didn't have to resort to assassination.

but……

He still felt that Li Mao was highly suspicious. Ever since Consort Wu Hui died, and Li Mao refused to send Yang Yuhuan to the palace to serve his father, the emperor, he had become increasingly displeased with his son.

The former favor is gone, replaced by mutual loathing.

Li Mao said, enunciating each word clearly, "I suppose Father Emperor sometimes knows that his harshness towards me is unreasonable. I don't understand why, despite my utmost filial piety and willingness to sacrifice everything for you, you always side with others when someone slanders or falsely accuses me? Could it be that I am not your biological son?!"

Upon hearing this, Li Longji was so angry that he gasped.

If Li Mao is not his biological son, it means that his favored Consort Wu Hui has been cuckolding him for many years. How dare Li Mao talk such nonsense?

"you you you you……"

Li Longji's fingers trembled as he pointed at Li Mao, unable to utter a word for a moment.

Just as Li Longji was about to reprimand his unfilial son, someone announced: "Your Majesty, Eunuch Gao Lishi has arrived in Xianyang at top speed and has just entered the gate. Does Your Majesty wish to see Eunuch Gao?"

In just a few days, Gao Lishi actually came all the way from Chang'an.

Li Longji was quite angry with his son, but at this moment he suddenly felt somewhat comforted by Gao Lishi's appearance, and hurriedly said, "Please come in quickly!"