The goose-feather heavy snow was flying in the sky, and the sky and the earth were vast. The green wheat seedlings in the ground were also bent down by the snow. They bent down. There was already an inch of thick snow on the ground, and the only remaining ones were left. Every bit of green is covered.
There is also a layer of snow piled on the bare trees all over the mountains and plains.
Fortunately, Kaifeng Mansion belongs to the north, and most of the leaves on the trees have fallen cleanly.
"Officer!" Minglan looked at Wang Zhong with a worried expression.
Wang Zhong patted Minglan's hand and said, "Don't worry, even if something unexpected happens in the court, your life will not be in danger for a while."
Minglan knew what Wang Zhong meant. Even if there was a real mutiny in the city and the royal flag was changed at the top of the city, the superiors would always need people to maintain the normal operation of various departments of the court.
Fortunately, Minglan didn't know about Lao Zhu's glorious history, otherwise, she would have been worried to death.
In just one Hu Huaiyong case, Lao Zhu killed more than 20,000 people, and there were also Huaixi nobles like Lan Yu who followed him through life and death, expelled the Tartars, and brought down the world. Lao Zhu did not hesitate to kill. Although these Huaixi nobles brought their own fault for being soft-handed, Lao Zhu was famous for his cruelty and ruthlessness even in thousands of years of history.
However, the Queen Mother was not Lao Zhu, and Zhao Zongquan did not have Lao Zhu's domineering and courageousness, and they did not have Lao Zhu's prestige among the government, the public, and the army.
Wang Zhong left, mounted his fast horse, and hurried to the city with only Yu Chuer.
The gates of the city are still under martial law, and all people entering and leaving need to be carefully checked, and all carriages and horses must be turned over and inspected carefully.
However, the people outside the city may not know about such a big noise last night, but the people living in the city have heard the noise more or less. How dare they run around now? They wish they could lock the doors and windows of their homes. Yes, completely cut off all contact with the outside world.
Especially early this morning, news came out that there were rebels in the city last night and assassinated many court officials. There were even assassins in the palace. Last night, the Queen Mother issued an order to mobilize troops from the western suburbs camp to seal the city. Lock up those rebel assassins.
Ordinary people dare not go out anywhere for fear of being implicated.
Even the people outside the city, who originally planned to go to the city to visit relatives or do other things, turned around and went home after hearing the news about the assassins, without any hesitation.
These days, the common people have learned a lot. No matter what kind of rebels or assassins they are, I can't hide when I go home. If I can't afford to offend, why can't I hide?
Now is the New Year's Eve. Every household has prepared enough firewood, rice, oil and salt for the New Year. Even if they really don't go out for ten days and a half, it doesn't matter. If they tighten their belts a little more, they won't be able to survive for a month or two. .
Wang Zhong walked through Chenzhou Gate, turned all the way north to Baokang Gate, bypassed Daxiangguo Temple, went straight to Yu Street, went to Nanxun Gate, and entered the palace directly.
In the Daqing Hall, all the officials of the fifth rank and above from the capital have gathered here. Empress Dowager Cao is sitting at the top, with civil and military officials on both sides.
"Madam, Wang Zhong, the direct bachelor of Longtuge, has arrived and is waiting outside the hall!"
Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Cao immediately waved her hand and said: "Xuan!"
"Xuan, Wang Chong, the direct bachelor of Longtuge, comes to the palace to see you!"
In the eunuch's unique male duck voice, Wang Zhong stepped into the palace.
Walking quickly to the front of the palace, Wang Zhong discovered that there were more than a dozen familiar faces missing among the civil and military officials.
Arriving at the palace, Wang Zhong bowed his hands and asked, "I'm here to see you, my dear lady! I'm late, please forgive me!"
Gu Tingye, Xiao Duan, Empress Dowager Cao's elder brother and younger brother, together with a group of military attachés, stood on the west side of the hall. On the east side were all civil servants, including Sheng Hong and Chang Bai.
Empress Dowager Cao raised her hand and said: "Okay, now is not the time to adhere to these false etiquette. Last night there was a rebellion in the city. Assassins entered the palace to assassinate. All the officials and the queen were killed. However, the court cannot be without a master for a day. The most important thing now is , is to support the new emperor to ascend the throne, stabilize the court, and arrest the rebel assassins, so you should make up your mind quickly."
Wang Zhong immediately raised his head and looked at Empress Dowager Cao with a shocked expression.
Before Wang Zhong could react, among the civil servants on the east side, Lu Wenhuan, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, immediately stood up: "The sixth prince is your majesty's legitimate son. Now that your majesty is assassinated, according to etiquette and law, the sixth prince should inherit the great treasure!"
As soon as Lu Wenhuan finished speaking, someone jumped out to object: "Although the sixth prince is a direct descendant, he is only one year old and is still in his infancy. He can't even speak. Although the third prince is not a direct descendant, he is the elder among all the princes." , is now ten years old, I think that the third prince should inherit the throne, which is the most appropriate way at the moment."
"Although the Third Prince is older, he is a concubine. Now that the Sixth Prince is still here, how can a concubine prevail over a direct descendant." But there are also some rigid people who don't know how to adapt, and they insist on clinging to the word "concubine" or refuse to let go.
After a while, the two sides started to quarrel. You said something to me, but no one would give in to the other.
Zhao Zongquan has six sons in Xixia, two of whom were born early. The eldest son Zhao Ceying died in Yangzhou. Now the eldest son is Zhao Ceyong, the third prince born to Concubine Liu Guifei. The sixth prince was born to Empress Shen last year, but he has not yet been weaned. .
Those who insisted on the succession of the sixth prince were mostly officials from the Ministry of Rites, Taichang Temple and the Admonition Academy. Most of these people clung to etiquette and were mostly rotten scholars. The number of people who insisted on the succession of the third prince was obviously more. Their reasons were also very charged. Now that the sixth prince was only one year old, who knew whether he could grow up safely. After all, Emperor Jiayou's five sons all died young, and none of them lived past the age of ten.
These officials in the court today are basically those who stayed from the Jiayou Dynasty, and there are very few new ones. They are naturally aware of these past events. Most of the people in the court today have basically experienced the rebellion of King Yan.
"enough!"
Seeing that the quarrel between the two parties became more and more intense, and no one was convinced by the other. It was as noisy as a vegetable market. Queen Mother Cao, who was sitting on the jade steps, finally couldn't hold it in any longer and interrupted sharply.
"The sixth prince is too young, let's take the third prince!" Empress Dowager Cao made the final decision directly.
"My eldest wife, no! My concubine..." Lu Wenhuan wanted to fight again, but Empress Dowager Cao was obviously impatient and immediately scolded: "Lu Wenhuan, is this the time to fight for these things? How about you? He is also a third-grade official, and he can’t even distinguish between priorities?”
Lu Wenhuan immediately knelt on the ground: "Wei Chen knows his crime!"
Those officials who originally wanted to argue with Lu Wenhuan also gave up their efforts.
"Shilang Lu, now that you are the most respected person in the Ministry of Rites, please come up with a charter!" Empress Dowager Cao ordered directly.
Lu Wenhuan said: "I would like to express my gratitude to you, my eldest empress, to issue an order to establish the third prince as the crown prince. Let the third prince send me to the official family for the last time as the prince. After twenty-seven days, I will ascend the throne and proclaim myself the emperor and inherit the great treasure!" "
Seeing Empress Dowager Cao and Lu Wenhuan singing harmony, Xiao Duan wanted to say something, but Gu Er grabbed him and shook his head at him.
Xiao Duan was filled with anger and had no place to release it. He glared hatefully at the Queen Mother Cao who was sitting on the dragon throne. The anger in his eyes seemed to burn the Queen Mother Cao.
It was hard to watch Queen Mother Cao and Lu Wenhuan finish their double act.
After the prince was selected, the old eunuch beside Queen Mother Cao shook the fly whisk in his hand and shouted to withdraw from the court.
After leaving the main hall, Gu Er pulled Xiao Duan over.
"What's going on? Where is Mr. Han?" Wang Zhong asked impatiently.
Gu Er looked around and said, "This is not the place to talk. Let's talk after we get out!"
The three people hurriedly left the palace. In the carriage, Gu Er and Xiao Duan said one after another: "Your Majesty and the Queen were both killed. Huang Wenwu and Yang Qun died fighting in the palace. Only Liu Xian survived. None of the guards and palace people are alive."
"The Prime Minister of Han was also killed, as well as Xu Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites, Liu Shangshu of the Ministry of War... a total of eighteen people. Their families were also slaughtered, leaving no chickens or dogs."
"Hiss..." Even if it was Wang Zhong, he couldn't help but take a breath of cold air and turned his head to look in the direction of the palace. If this woman becomes ruthless, she will really have nothing to do with a man.
"Previously, before you came, the eldest lady had already issued an edict. The positions of ministers of various ministries would be filled by the ministers on the left and right in turn. The ministers would also be temporarily held by Mr. Yang, Cao Wenxuan would take over as the privy envoy, and Liu Xian would take over the throne. Former Commander-in-Chief..."
Wang Zhong said: "So Liu Xian has turned to the Queen Mother?"
Xiao Duan gritted his teeth and said: "If this were not the case, how could the Queen Mother recommend the third prince to the throne! This villain, your Majesty has no trust in him."
Gu Er said: "The families of all the leading generals in the court are also detained in the palace."
"Where does she have such courage?" Wang Zhong said with a shocked look on his face: "Isn't she afraid that the clans in the world will raise troops to serve the king?"
"The most elite military forces in the DPRK are the Tokyo Forbidden Army, the Hebei Forbidden Army and the Western Army. But now that there has been such a big change in the DPRK, if the Liao and Xixia people know about it, I am afraid they will take action again. The Hebei Forbidden Army and the Western Army are both You can't do anything without permission. Now half of the Tokyo Forbidden Army is in the hands of the Cao family. Liu Xian has obviously betrayed him a long time ago. How can it be so easy to raise troops to serve the king!"
As he spoke, Gu Er said with a solemn expression: "Now she is confusing right and wrong and blaming everything on the rebels! We have no evidence to prove that she did all this."
"Where is Shen Congxing?" Wang Zhong suddenly asked.
Xiao Duan shook his head and said: "Missing!"
Wang Zhong asked again: "Are you sure you are missing?"
"According to the reports from my brothers, Brother Shen was killed from the Weibei Hou Mansion last night, and then he fled to an unknown location, and his whereabouts are still unknown."
Wang Zhong looked at Xiao Duan and said, "With such a big move last night, your people didn't receive any information in advance?"
Xiao Duan shook his head and said: "They acted too covertly and too suddenly. By the time I knew it, it was already too late!"
Xiao Duan said with a look of remorse: "If we had known about their plot earlier, Your Majesty and Your Majesty would not have..."
"Xiao Duan, I can't blame you for this!" Gu Er'an said to Xiao Duan, "It's because the enemy is too cunning!"
Xiao Duan, a tough guy who never shed a tear even after his arm was broken, now burst into tears and asked in a tearful voice: "Brother Gu, what should we do now? Are we going to let that old witch dominate and be free and easy?" Are you comfortable?"
"Of course not!" Gu Er's eyes flickered, and his expression changed uncertainly.
Wang Chong hurriedly advised: "Zhong Huai, don't be impulsive!"
"Don't worry, I know!" Gu Er said.
"Xiao Duan, you first contact your old department, as many as you can contact, and collect as much information as possible in the city and palace!"
"I'm going right now!" Xiao Duan stopped the carriage, got out of the carriage, and left with his cronies.
Wang Zhong looked at Gu Er: "What are your plans!"
Gu Er sighed and said helplessly: "What else can we do! Even the official family is dead, now we can only take one step at a time."
Wang Zhong said: "Do you think it will be the next Wu Zhao?"
Gu Er was stunned and looked up at Wang Zhong. Their eyes met. Gu Er didn't know how to answer Wang Zhong's question.
Gu Er wanted to say that it shouldn't be the case, but the bloody facts before him now told him that what Wang Zhong said was not unreasonable.
"In the past, the officials gave in step by step and even handed over all the power of the government to the hands of the Queen Mother. They just wanted to imitate Zheng Zhuanggong. However, the officials underestimated the Queen Mother's ruthlessness and decisiveness, and underestimated the prestige of the late emperor and the Queen Mother in the court. Underestimating the Queen Mother’s ability and ambition.”
"The late Emperor was in power for forty years, and the Queen Mother sat in the position of Queen for more than thirty years. In the first two years, the Salt and Iron Department was reorganized, the price of salt was controlled, and sea salt was popularized. At that time, the Queen Mother was in charge, not the officials. , the officials and people below are grateful for the Queen Mother's kindness, not the official family."
"But these are not the reasons why she killed the officials and the queen!" Gu Er said excitedly: "And Mr. Han and the others! How innocent!"
Wang Zhong also sighed and said with emotion: "Yes, how innocent! But what can we do? The one who holds the power now is the Queen Mother! You also said just now that half of the imperial guards in Beijing are in the hands of the Queen Mother. Half of those officials are on the side of the Queen Mother. What happened to those who tried to persuade the Queen Mother to return the government to the officials?"
"Things shouldn't be like this!" Gu Er shook his head and said, "Things shouldn't be like this!"
"The imperial power is supreme. One word from her can determine the life and death of you and me, and the life and death of millions of people!" Wang Zhong spread his palms and helplessly laughed at himself: "What if you and I only have this kind of martial arts? Can we?" So what if you can take the general's head in the midst of thousands of troops? Now we can't just watch!"
"So what does glory and wealth mean? In the end, you are not just a piece of fish on someone else's chopping board. You can flatten it if you want to, and make it into a round shape if you want!"
"Zhong Huai!" Wang Zhong closed his eyes and sighed again, then opened his eyes and looked at Gu Er, saying from the bottom of his heart: "I'm tired! I'm really tired after such a day!"
"What do you mean?" Gu Er was startled and looked into Wang Zhong's eyes in surprise and asked.
"First there were two kings fighting, then King Yan rebelled and forced the palace, and then the officials and the Queen Mother fought for power! Now..."
"Intrigues, intrigues, life and death... I'm really tired of these days."
Wang Zhong's face showed a bit of loneliness: "Now that I think about it carefully, the happiest time I have lived in the past twenty years was actually the days when I was young, studying and practicing martial arts with my master, and helping my elder brother farm and fish. "
(End of chapter)
