Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors

Because the Crown Prince and these two noble concubines really had no reason to be involved together.

The Crown Prince had so many charming wives and beautiful concubines, there was absolutely no need to meddle with his father emperor's women. This behavior could not even be described as playing with fire; it was utterly suicidal.

It was impossible not to leak, and once leaked, it might be considered a more severe issue than rebellion.

Emperor Gaozu of Liang might tolerate his rebellion, but he might not tolerate him tampering with his most beloved concubine.

Therefore, Lord Qin's accusations were mostly slander.

But slander was the only tactic that could be used at that time.

Fragments of Lord Qin's memories began to appear in Li Hongyun's vision.

Lord Qin was not without other damning evidence against the Crown Prince; for example, previously, the Crown Prince had secretly recruited over two thousand rogue youths from Chang'an to form his private army, known as the Changlin Army, and he had communicated with the commander in Youzhou State, asking him to select three hundred elite cavalry to send to Chang'an.

The Crown Prince legitimately had his own armed forces, whether it be forming private soldiers or secretly allying with border generals, both actions were highly taboo and could even be viewed as rebellious acts.

However, when this matter was exposed, Emperor Gaozu of Liang merely called the Crown Prince over and scolded him.

And during the Seventh Year of Wude, the Crown Prince stirred up major news. Emperor Gaozu of Liang went to Ren Zhi Palace to escape the summer heat, leaving the Crown Prince in charge of Chang'an. As a result, the Crown Prince actually sent armor to Yang Wengan, stationed in Qingzhou State.

In ancient times, privately hoarding armor was a serious crime, almost equivalent to rebellion.

Yang Wengan had previously served as a guard in the Eastern Palace, directly involved in the establishment of the Changlin Army by the Crown Prince. Sending armor to Yang Wengan was undoubtedly an internal-external collusion to orchestrate a significant event.

The matter eventually leaked, and Emperor Gaozu of Liang, in a rage, summoned the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince, terrified and unsure of what to do, was even advised by his subordinates to simply rebel outright.

But after considering Emperor Gaozu of Liang, especially the vigilant and battle-scarred Lord Qin, the Crown Prince thought that rebellion was a dead end, so he went to submit an apology bearing a thorny stick.

Emperor Gaozu of Liang was so angry that he scolded him fiercely, and was even so enraged that he only allowed him to eat wheat bread that night. Yet even so, Emperor Gaozu of Liang ultimately did nothing to the Crown Prince.

On the other hand, Yang Wengan truly did start a rebellion in Qingyang, and before Lord Qin's troops even began to fight, hearing that Lord Qin was coming, his forces disbanded in disorder.

Yang Wengan was killed by his subordinates, and his head was sent to Chang'an.

Yet even so, the position of the Crown Prince remained as stable as Mount Tai, with no signs of wavering.

There are historical records stating that before Lord Qin set out against Yang Wengan, Emperor Gaozu of Liang had told him that after quelling the rebellion, he would appoint him as the Crown Prince and demote the current Crown Prince to Lord of Shu.

But regardless of whether this record was true or not, Emperor Gaozu of Liang clearly did not follow through.

This incident of the Crown Prince's rebellion seems suspicious, with two major points of doubt: first, the Crown Prince's rebellion was too childish, with terribly poor confidentiality, so easily exposed; second, from where did Yang Wengan gather the courage to rebel?

Thus, some people believed that Yang Wengan was likely a spy planted by Lord Qin, specifically to create such a rebellion incident, logically deposing the position of the Crown Prince.

But a careful analysis would reveal that even this theory was less likely.

The Crown Prince's rebellion was real; otherwise, he would not have gone to Emperor Gaozu of Liang to submit an apology. Such a rebellion, if not instigated by his own will, could not have been achieved merely through framing.

And Yang Wengan had indeed once been a person of the Eastern Palace, helpingthe Crown Prince form the Changlin Army.

Yang Wengan's rebellion meant certain death, a fact he must have been clearly aware of.

And considering he colluded with the Crown Prince in rebellion, he was obviously highly valued by the Crown Prince.

Then the question arises, if he truly was a man of Lord Qin, would he really forgo the Crown Prince's trust, the wealth and honor already within his grasp, to rebel and frame the Crown Prince, paving the way for Lord Qin using his own life, even risking his entire family's lives?

This explanation does not hold up unless Lord Qin possessed brainwashing technology.

Moreover, regardless of who instigated it, the act of sending armor to Yang Wengan was indeed done by the Crown Prince. Even if influenced by others, his intention to stir up a significant event was crystal clear.

Thus, this act of rebellion seemed foolish, and the most likely explanation was that both the Crown Prince and Yang Wengan were just that foolish. After all, in history, foolish acts of rebellion were not only present but prevalent.

In conclusion, after these several incidents, Lord Qin had reluctantly realized a fact.

That was, no matter how the Crown Prince courted disaster, he always came out unscathed.

Given that, for him to pose a threat to the Crown Prince, to truly find something that would sting Emperor Gaozu of Liang, his only option was "imprisonment in the palace."

Although Lord Qin did not have much decisive evidence, he successfully aroused Emperor Gaozu of Liang's suspicions.

Because the interactions between the Crown Prince and these two noble concubines were indeed too frequent.

Lord Qin had his own power base, the military group, from ordinary soldiers to commanders, all were absolutely loyal to him. Since the Crown Prince could not sway these men, he could only look in other directions.

And these concubines of the harem were indeed significant connections pursued by the Crown Prince.

As Lord Qin was often away fighting, he was not familiar with these concubines and had previously offended them during the Luoyang treasury incident. Meanwhile, the Crown Prince made frequent visits, sending precious treasures, and had not refrained from letting Zhang Jieyu and Yinde concubine whisper sweet words about him to Emperor Gaozu of Liang.

Thus, the Crown Prince's frequent visits to the palaces of these two noble concubines were genuine, and coupled with the continuous praise from these concubines at Emperor Gaozu of Liang's side, this indeed aroused suspicions in Emperor Gaozu of Liang that something might really be amiss.