Funing Hall, the emperor's bedroom. Zhao Zhen sat slumped behind the imperial eucalyptus, like a dying old man, with a hunched body. The huge palace was surrounded by a deep sadness and pain.
When Wei Chen entered the palace, he saw this scene. He could not clearly see the expression on Zhao Zhen's face, but he could deeply feel the aura of sadness emanating from Zhao Zhen's body.
As the Xuandemen fire broke out and the rebels entered the palace, the rebellion officially came to light. More and more news about the rebellion finally began to reach Funing Palace.
The King of Yan rebelled; the Xiaoxiong and Xiaomeng armies rebelled; Rongxian, the deputy commander of the Palace Front Division, rebelled; King Yong, Princess Yong and their children entered the palace at night under the imperial edict and were killed by King Yan; the rebels had Entering the palace from Xuande Gate, they burned, killed and looted along the way, and now they were approaching Funing Hall... The news became worse and worse, making Zhao Zhen exhausted physically and mentally, and he slumped down behind the imperial eucalyptus in a daze.
After Wei Chen saw the ceremony, he reported to Zhao Zhen how he noticed the strange behavior of the guards around the Hanlin Academy, realized something was wrong, and then arrived at Funing Hall.
Zhao An, who was kneeling beside him, felt increasingly regretful and ashamed after listening to Wei Chen's story. Being able to plan so carefully, this rebellion was definitely not caused by haste, but had been planned for a long time. As the Imperial City Secretary, he had so many spies under his command, but he was not aware of it... This violated the trust of the officials. , even if he has ten heads, he won’t be able to chop them off.
However, Zhao Zhen was on the verge of despair at this time and was in no mood to scold Zhao An for his incompetence. Zhao Zhen slammed the inkstone on the imperial eucalyptus to the ground, and cursed loudly: "Zhao Zonghan, this traitor, if I had known today, I should have deposed him as the prince!" Zhao Zhen suffered such a sudden change, and his mood was unavoidable. Out of control, when Wei Chen saw this, he quickly tried to persuade him in a slow voice: "Your Majesty, it's useless to scold him now. The most urgent thing is to find a way to bring in reinforcements to rescue him!"
"Yes, yes, yes, we have to find someone to save him!" Zhao Zhenjing woke up from a dream at Wei Chen's suggestion, and his eyes regained their brightness, and he murmured to himself: "Zhao Zongquan of Yuzhou is the closest to Bianjing! "As he said that, Zhao Zhen lifted up his silk robe embroidered with yellow dragons, tore off a large piece of silk without mercy, spread it flat on the royal eucalyptus, then bit his finger cruelly and covered it with blood. The imperial edict was written on the silk.
In desperation, Zhao Zhen ignored the pain in his fingers and used his fingers as a brush to write quickly.
Wei Chen didn't need to look closely to guess that the content of this blood edict must be to make Zhao Zongquan the crown prince and let him lead troops to serve the king.
In fact, there are hundreds of thousands of forbidden troops stationed around Bianjing City, and the western suburbs camp alone has 50,000 elite soldiers, but Zhao Zhen did not take them into consideration at this moment.
Wei Chen understood Zhao Zhen's mood. King Yan's rebellion, Rongxian's betrayal, and King Yong's death made Zhao Zhen unable to trust any of Bianjing's troops at this moment. Even Zhao Zhen's most trusted Dianqiansi had rebelled. Who could guarantee the western suburbs? Wouldn’t Daying rebel?
There might only be one chance to ask for help, and Zhao Zhen didn't dare to gamble. That's why he went to Zhao Zongquan of Yuzhou for help.
Even though Zhao Zongquan usually remains quiet, he has actually attracted Zhao Zhen's attention for a long time. If Zhao Zhen were asked to rank his candidates for the throne, Zhao Zongquan would only be ranked after King Yong and King Yan.
This is because King Yong and King Yan have been in Beijing for many years, and each has a large group of supporters in the court. Their foundation and reputation far exceed that of Zhao Zongquan.
In terms of personal preferences alone, Zhao Zongquan's ranking in Zhao Zhen's heart will only be higher. Because Zhao Zhen felt that Zhao Zongquan's personality was very similar to his own when he was young, as low-key and reserved, as easy-going and easy-going.
Therefore, after deciding to make King Yong the crown prince, Zhao Zhen sent a secret edict to Zhao Zongquan. In fact, it was Zhao Zhen who felt regretful.
Now that King Yong is dead and King Yan has rebelled, Zhao Zongquan has become Zhao Zhen's number one heir and his first choice for help.
Not long after, Zhao Zhen finished writing the blood edict. He was already weak, but now that he had shed so much blood, his face became even paler, and his whole body felt a little shaky.
Seeing this, Wei Chen no longer cared about the etiquette of a monarch and his ministers, and quickly stepped forward to support Zhao Zhen, pressing the wound on his fingertip to stop the dripping blood.
Zhao Zhen tried his best to smile and nodded towards Wei Chen. At this moment, Zhao Zhen suddenly thought of the scene when he selected Wei Chen as the number one scholar in the Golden Palace, and he was filled with emotion.
The strong wind knows the strong grass, and the rough waves know the sincere minister. Now apart from Zhao An, the old Hutu, only Liu Yuanlang, whom I personally appointed, is still with me.
Thinking of this, Zhao Zhen couldn't help but feel a little comforted in his heart, and his spirit, which was a little sluggish due to excessive blood loss, was lifted.
Zhao Zhen looked solemnly and opened a small, square box on the royal eucalyptus, and took out something from it.
This object is made entirely of copper, about half the size of a palm, and has the shape of a lifelike tiger. It has been cut open from head to tail, leaving only half of it.
This is the tiger symbol that symbolizes the military power of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Zhao Zhen wrapped the tiger talisman with a blood edict and held it in his hand. He looked at the dozens of maids and chamberlains crawling in the palace and asked, "Who is willing to come out of the palace to ask for help for me?" This question was like the god of death beckoning, and everyone was afraid. Unable to avoid it, they invariably curled up their necks and lowered their heads.
Zhao Zhen couldn't help but shake his head when he saw this. Normally, he was too generous to the people around him, and in fact he lost the majesty that an emperor should have. But now he really wants these people to work for him, but none of them are willing to take the lead.
"Your Majesty, I would like to give it a try!" Just when Zhao Zhen was frowning, he suddenly heard an excited voice ringing in his ears.
Zhao Zhen was immediately overjoyed. He looked up and saw that it was Wei Chen beside him who was taking the initiative to invite him. Someone was willing to risk his life to deliver the edict, which was originally a great thing, but when Zhao Zhen looked at Wei Chen's young face, he suddenly couldn't bear it.
If Wei Chen stayed with him in the palace, given his current reputation among scholars, King Yan might not do anything to him.
But if Wei Chen was caught by King Yan's people when he went out to ask for help with the blood edict, then Wei Chen would definitely die.
Zhao Zhen looked at Wei Chen and asked, "Wei Aiqing, you have to think carefully. This is a narrow escape. Do you really want to go?" Wei Chen looked determined and unmoved.
"Wei Chen is willing to go!"
"Okay!" Zhao Zhen looked at Wei Chen with even more admiration, and immediately handed all the tiger talismans and blood edicts to Wei Chen's hands.
Wei Chen reached out to take it, but Zhao Zhen paused his hands and said solemnly: "The destiny of the country and the country of the Great Zhou Dynasty rests on Aiqing's shoulders alone. Aiqing must take care of herself!" Wei Chen nodded heavily, originally The blood edict that was fluttering in his hand seemed to be heavier than a thousand pounds at this moment.
Zhao Zhen turned his head and looked at the old chamberlain Zhao An who was still kneeling in the palace. He sighed helplessly and said in a deep voice: "Zhao An, you have been in the Imperial City for thirty years, and the snakes and rats in Bianjing City say you You know better than anyone else that I want you to try to get Wei Aiqing out of the palace and make meritorious deeds. Is it possible for you to do it?"
"Old slave, you obey!"
