Chapter 483 A Court Meeting in the Capital

Chapter 483 A Court Meeting in the Capital

Chapter 483 A Court Meeting in the Capital (5k)

"So, are we going back to Beijing to stabilize the situation?"

In the courtyard, the wind blew across a large sheet on the clothesline. Zhao Duan sat on a stone bench and raised his eyebrows.

Xu Zhenguan sat opposite him. He put down the teacup with his slender fingers and nodded, saying, "This is the best outcome."

Zhao Duan was not surprised because the current situation was within his expectations to a certain extent.

According to the original plan, the empress successfully ascended the throne and could safely deal with the "martial arts competition" that was supposed to take place "next year".

It can also deter the Eight Kings, and there is a high probability that they will give up resistance, accept the reduction of their power, and resolve the hidden dangers in a gentle way.

However, the Fengshan ceremony failed, and the eight kings were fighting for the throne. It should have been the beginning of a new chapter of competing for the new emperor, and the layout of the Shenlong Temple was also successful.

Unfortunately, the empress ascended to heaven again, which was unreasonably caused a series of chain reactions.

Now a large number of masters under Xuanyin have been killed and the main temple of Shenlong Temple is about to be destroyed. The Eighth King is in a dilemma and can only continue to rebel with no way out.

As for Xu Zhenguan, although he successfully advanced, he looked back and saw war everywhere and the situation was deteriorating.

It can be said that in the chess game of Yu State, none of the parties achieved their goals and had no way out. They could only go down one path and fight for a win or loss under a weak balance.

"With your majesty's current level of cultivation, it will not be difficult for you to stabilize the situation after returning to the capital. The eight kings' original plan to rush to the capital first has failed. It is very likely that they will form alliances with each other and adopt a new strategy of separatist regimes." Zhao Duan analyzed calmly.

Zhenbao is stationed in the capital, and any of the Eight Kings who invades the capital will be killed.

After all, when it comes to life and death, the so-called agreement naturally doesn’t count.

Therefore, the best strategy for the eight kings was to "besiege but not attack", form alliances with each other, first swallow up the territories of the State of Yu, and then establish their own regimes.

When the imperial court is left with only a solitary piece of territory, they only need to join forces to block the flow of supplies in and out, and the capital will fall without a fight.

By then, the empress will be in name only.

Perhaps there is no need for fighting, as the morale within the court would be low and everyone would lose the will to resist, similar to the Three Kingdoms period, during which the last emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Emperor Xian of Han, died.

In that situation, Zhenbao could not bear the pressure from his ministers and voluntarily abdicated.

Even if they are in a stalemate and the throne exists in name only, to a certain extent, the Eight Kings have already won.

Similarly, Zhao Duan suspected that if the imperial court successfully defeated the various rebel forces in the next war and the winner was completely determined, the old bald donkey Xuan Yin might still tear up the agreement.

But at least now, when both sides have a chance of winning, no one wants to overturn the chessboard directly... because this is a pure lose-lose situation.

"Yes, so the most urgent task is to return to the capital and stabilize the situation. Only when I am still here will the locals have the will to resist. The reason why all places surrendered at the sight of the enemy is largely because there is no leader in the capital."

Xu Zhen nodded, his tone serious, then turned to worry:

"Besides, I suspect that after so much time has passed, the capital may have changed."

Change? Yes, in many cases, a city is not breached from the outside, but collapses from the inside.

Given the military strength of the capital, it is impossible for the rebels to invade in a short period of time, but if there is a problem internally, it is hard to say what will happen.

"In this case, there is no need to waste time. We should set off immediately." Zhao Duan stood up, patted his head, and said:

"There are some spoils of war here. My scrolls can no longer fit. Your Majesty, please help me store some of them."

As he spoke, he pulled out a cloth bag from nearby, which contained various weapons, magic tools...all of which he had obtained by touching the corpses.

This is a harvest!
Xu Zhenguan raised his eyebrows and smiled: "Do you like these?"

After she finished speaking, she gently brushed her fair hands on the ground. A flash of light appeared, and a pile of various magical instruments, weapons, pills, and talisman papers appeared on the ground...

Hiss...are these all newly captured? Are there still so many enemies blocked by the disciples of Tianshi Mansion outside?

Speaking of which... after I return to Beijing, I must personally thank Lao Zhang. I cannot lose the basic human relationship...

And, Lao Zhang is so kind? He sent someone to rescue me. I feel like he has some ulterior motive... Zhao Duan was surprised and delighted, rubbing his hands.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at the "imperial husband" who seemed to have never seen the world and reminded him:
"I want to give you all of these. But I want to remind you, be careful not to be greedy. You don't need too many miscellaneous magic tools, or even martial arts techniques and spells now. The correct way of thinking is to be precise and single-minded."

Zhao Duan calmed down and nodded seriously:

"Your Majesty said so."

Before, he fought with Tian Hai and defeated him easily. It seemed easy, but in fact it was only for a short time. At the same time, he had to support himself and Pei Niannu, which consumed a lot of internal energy.

In other words, he is now strong in both magic and martial arts, and the destructive power he can unleash in a short period of time is astonishing, surpassing his peers.

The drawback is that it is not long-lasting and cannot fight a protracted war.

"With Pei Niannu around, I only need to collect talismans for her to use, and I can concentrate on martial arts. But every time I use Pei Niannu, my body will be drained..."

Zhao Duan pondered:
"So, what I should pursue is a short-term burst of power, rather than mastering more methods. Zhenbao reminded me to avoid greed and distraction, and to focus on one thing. This is the reason."

Seeing him deep in thought, Xu Zhenguan continued:
"After we return to the capital and stabilize the situation, I will take you to see the next scene of the Martial God Picture."

The third scroll after "Martial God Picture" and "Six Chapters Sutra"? Zhao Duan asked curiously: "What is that?"

Xu Zhenguan smiled and did not explain:
"It's hard to describe it in a few words. Once you've seen it, you'll know it."

Zhao Duan was stunned and became more curious about the third scroll left by Old Xu.

However, the most urgent thing was to return to Beijing as soon as possible. Zhao Duan got up and packed his bags. He looked up at the mansion where every corner was left with traces of the battle between the two men, and for a moment he felt a little reluctant to leave.

Xu Zhenguan twirled the teacup with his fingers and asked suddenly:
"By the way, what is your relationship with Zhang Yanyi? I'm helping you like this, but you're not secretly colluding with the Tianshi Mansion behind my back, are you?"

Zhao Duan's forehead was covered with sweat. He turned around to face the empress's smiling eyes and forced a stiff smile:
"Your Majesty, please listen to my explanation..."

……

……

Huai River Road.

Near a dock, the "Jiancheng Army" armed to the teeth was a huge crowd, looking extremely oppressive.

Prince Jing Xuwen walked out of a house at the dock with a gloomy face.

He was not wearing armor, but rather a rather noble purple robe. Standing outside the door was a general under his command, who bowed and said:

"Your Majesty, the last time the remnants of Fengshan appeared was here. Unfortunately, they have moved away and we were unable to capture them."

Prince Jing nodded, not surprised.

The so-called "Fengshan remnants" naturally refer to Mo Chou, Sun Lianying and his party.

"This group of people are guarded by experts, and they can also mobilize local shadow guards to support them along the way. It is indeed difficult to catch them." Prince Jing sighed softly, with a little regret in his eyes:

"What a pity. If we had known that these stray dogs could do such things, we should have paid the price and kept them in Jiancheng Road from the beginning."

Not long ago, the ship that Prince Jing was on was blocked by a bunch of sunken ships in the narrow canal and was forced to anchor early and go ashore.

As a result, the army's progress toward the north was hindered, and the reason for this was the work of Ning Zechen, the governor-general of the Grand Canal.

"He's a ruthless character who drilled boats to block the river. It's a pity that I can't use such a person." Prince Jing felt a little regretful.

On the side, the prince Xu Jinglong said earnestly:

"Father, don't blame yourself. The false emperor was on the run at that time, and you sent all your experts to hunt her down. It was not enough, and you had no time to deal with these small fry. It was also a wise move. A few obstacles are not worth mentioning compared to the great cause."

Prince Jing's expression eased slightly, and the corners of his lips rose:
"Now the five rebel kings are rushing to the capital, all thinking that whoever enters the capital first will have the upper hand, but that's not the case. Xue Shence is in charge of the capital, commanding the army. No matter who goes there, it will be difficult to take it down if they attack by force. Only by cooperating inside and outside can the city be broken."

After a pause, he said, "By now, the Li family should have arrived in Beijing."

Xu Jinglong smiled and said, "I think it should be these few days."

Prince Jing nodded slightly:

"As long as we succeed, the capital will not fall into the hands of others. As long as we take steady steps, we can achieve the throne."

Xu Jinglong said: "It's a pity that Yunfu Mu Wang used means to slow down our march. This time we will travel by land, which will be much slower and more difficult."

Prince Mu... Xu Wen snorted coldly. Among all the princes, Prince Huai'an and Prince Lingnan were not worth worrying about. Prince Chen had no ambition. Prince Heng of Qingzhou had ambition but was actually a fool. Princes Yanshan and Hejian were both controlled by the border troops.

Only Prince Mu of Yunfu poses a threat to him. Apart from him, the missing empress is still a major concern.

"Now that we have joined forces to start an army, Prince Mu will remain an ally before the imperial court falls. The most important thing right now is the empress." Xu Wen said.

The words trailed off.

Outside the dock, behind the dense crowd of soldiers, there were sounds of trumpets and the sound of hurried horse hooves.

That was the clarion call of extremely urgent intelligence in the military.

Prince Jing and his son were shocked and turned their heads to look back, only to see a large group of soldiers carrying the Jiancheng army flags and cutting a path apart, like inky black sea water, splitting it to the left and right.

A cavalryman whipped his horse, dismounted, and ran to the front. The cavalryman knelt on one knee and raised a military report above his head with both hands: "Your Majesty, an urgent report from a secret agent!"

Could it be... that the action of hunting down the empress has yielded results?
Prince Jing's eyes lit up, he grabbed the envelope with his big hand and tore it open quickly, and an urgent message filled with dense handwriting came into view.

Xu Jinglong observed curiously and felt a pang in his heart.

Prince Jing's face suddenly turned pale, then gloomy, and his tall body staggered slightly, as if struck by a bolt of lightning. "Father!"

"Your Majesty!"

A group of rebel confidants around were shocked and rushed forward to help.

Prince Jing bit his lips tightly, took a deep breath, and his expression returned to normal. He looked like he just couldn't stand steadily, and looked around at everyone coldly.

After confirming that his gaffe had not attracted the attention of other soldiers nearby, he managed to say:
"Follow me back to camp!"

As the commander-in-chief, he must never lose his composure in public and shake the morale of the troops.

……

The group turned back to a large camp set up nearby. The moment Xu Wen stepped into the tent, he suddenly staggered, covered his chest with his hands, and spurted out a mouthful of blood!
"Father!" Xu Jinglong was stunned, and the other core officials of Prince Jing's Mansion were also trembling in their hearts.

What kind of news could make the prince, who was sure of victory, so angry that he vomited blood? !
"Don't make it public, the king is fine."

Xu Wen spat out a mouthful of blood, but felt much more relieved. With the support of the prince, he sat upright in the camp and handed the secret military report in his hand for everyone to read.

Soon, all the officials and generals in the camp changed their expressions!
Urgent report from the front:

The three parties that hunted the empress all died tragically, with no one surviving. The empress was suspected to have entered the realm of heaven.

God!

"How can it be?!"

"There must be something wrong. The fake emperor failed in his Fengshan ceremony and was seriously injured. There must be something fishy about this information!"

"For such a major event, how could the spy do it without a purpose?"

There was an uproar.

"Silence!" Prince Jing slammed the table and suppressed his restlessness. His face was unusually calm as he said:
"Send an order. First, quickly send someone to contact the Law God Sect to verify the authenticity. If it is true, then say that the king wants to see the 'Law God'."

"Second, send this information to King Mu and other kings. If this is true, invite King Mu to meet at Huaishui."

"Third, block the news and strictly prohibit leakage. If there is any spread among the troops, kill it immediately."

"fourth……"

As orders were issued one after another, the officials and generals in the tent calmed down and responded in a hurry.

Soon, Xu Jinglong was the only one left in the tent. His voice was trembling, and his face was no longer proud: "Father, is she really a celestial being? Then don't we..."

"Waste! Even if you are a god, what do you have to fear?" Prince Jing's eyes were as fierce as a tiger, like a hero who would rise up alone in desperate situations, showing his sharp white teeth:
"If you were a god, you would be able to rule the world. Wouldn't the throne of the dynasty have long been in the hands of my Xu family? Xu Zhenguan...Okay, very good. The uncles can continue playing this game with you. Who will win or lose is still unknown!"

A bit of madness appeared on his face, and he looked towards the capital:

"You'd better return to Beijing quickly, otherwise, hehe..."

Outside the big tent, Princess Lu Yan'er walked out of the next tent and looked at the large group of Jiancheng Dao officials who were running out of the tent in a hurry, as if they had lost their parents, and seemed to be thinking about something.

……

……

Beijing.

It was another cloudy day. The sky in the capital had been gloomy recently. The mood of the people in the city was as heavy as the clouds above their heads, as if a storm was brewing.

In recent days, news about the empress's disappearance and the princes from all over the country rising up in arms and marching into Beijing has spread like wildfire in the city. At first, the imperial court tried its best to suppress it.

However, as more and more news came out, with the help of people with ulterior motives, the rumors penetrated into the upper class circles in Beijing almost everywhere. The relevant rumors eventually became unstoppable, spreading from top to bottom and into the streets and alleys.

Early in the morning, in the Grand Tutor’s Mansion.

Dong Da was dressed in a plain blue shirt, standing respectfully outside the hanging flower gate of his grandfather's back house, waiting.

When he saw Dong Xuan, who was already in his 80s and wearing the robes of a university scholar, coming out, he hurriedly said:
"Grandfather, the car is ready. I will take you to the palace."

Grand Tutor Dong still looks the same as before, majestic and dignified, with the demeanor of an imperial teacher.

However, if you look closely, you will find that the old man's eyes are bloodshot, and although his face is made up, he still can't hide his fatigue.

Grand Tutor Dong has been in poor health these days, so Dong Da, the eldest grandson, has been given the responsibility of taking care of his grandfather when he travels.

"Well, let's go."

Grand Tutor Dong nodded slightly, and with the help of Young Master Dong, he walked out of the Grand Tutor's Mansion and got on a carriage of decent specifications.

Rushed towards the palace.

During the period when the empress was away, the important affairs of the court were presided over by the Xiuwenguan headed by Dong Xuan, and today, the palace would hold a "court meeting" in the absence of the emperor.

There was at least one similar court meeting every day these days, but most of the time, they were small court meetings within the imperial party.

Today, the scale is a little bigger.

The carriage rumbled along the streets of the capital. Master Dong used his wrinkled hands to lift up the shaking curtain and looked outside.

In the early morning, the streets were far less bustling and lively than before, and a sense of unease was brewing.

People walking on the road were all in a hurry, as if they were worried about something. The restaurants and theaters were deserted, but outside the rice shop there was a long queue.

"Is the price of food in the city still rising?" asked Grand Tutor Dong with a frown.

Mr. Dong, who was in the same car, respectfully replied:

"In the past few days, the price has changed almost every day. Not only rice, but other scarce items have also skyrocketed in price."

Although Mr. Dong has an ordinary appearance, he is actually quite capable and can answer these questions fluently.

"Shouldn't the government step in to stabilize grain prices and crack down on hoarding?" the Grand Tutor continued to ask.

"…Reporting to grandfather, if the government hadn't taken action, the current prices would probably have increased more than this." Dong Da was silent for a moment and said.

Master Dong sighed softly and closed his eyes.

The people in the city have already smelled the bloody scent of war, and those who took the first step to take action are the more well-informed dignitaries in the capital.

He believes that this is just the beginning. If the situation continues to go unchecked and panic brews, the first thing to be paralyzed will be the private economy.

"What are those people doing?" The carriage turned the corner.

Master Dong noticed that there was a noisy argument coming from the teahouse, but the windows and doors were closed so the sound could not be heard clearly. There were also scholars coming in and out nearby.

Dong Da hesitated and said, "It should be the scholars who are discussing the situation. My grandson is in the Imperial College, and almost everyone is talking about it these days."

"Nonsense!"

Master Dong was annoyed, his expression was filled with anger:
"Scholars gathered in teahouses to discuss the court affairs. Isn't that causing panic? What about the government? Why didn't the officials stop them?"

Dong Da said bitterly:
"Grandfather, let's not talk about the fact that many of the scholars here are sons of wealthy families. The clerks below don't dare to provoke them. Even if they dare, they are short of manpower at the moment.

These days, the city is in chaos with gangs led by the Red Flower Society causing a surge in cases. The police and runners are not enough to handle these cases and there is really no one to deal with this kind of thing."

Master Dong was speechless, groaned, and did not get out of the car to stop him. He whispered:

"This should also be the responsibility of the imperial court."

Young Master Dong remained silent.

The carriage drove all the way and finally arrived at the palace.

And stopped outside the Meridian Gate.

When Grand Tutor Dong took a step, pushed open the vermilion door, and entered the side hall used for today's court meeting, he heard the court officials in the main hall talking among themselves, and everyone's face was full of anxiety.

"Humph!"

Master Dong coughed loudly, attracting everyone's attention and the noisy voice stopped.

Inside the palace.

Yuan Li, Li Yanfu, Ma Yan...all the ministers of various ministries and other important officials were present and looked over.

The scholars of Xiuwenguan, led by Han Zhou, also stood in the hall.

"The Grand Master is here!"

"Greetings, Grand Master!"

"Be quiet..."

Under the watchful eyes of all court officials, Dong Xuan, the Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy and the contemporary imperial tutor who was in charge of all affairs in the capital at the empress's order, walked through the crowd step by step, came to the seat reserved for him, and sat down gently.

Yuan Li, Li Yanfu and others took the lead and took their seats one after another.
——Since it was not a formal court meeting, there were many chairs placed in the hall.

After all the ministers were seated, Grand Tutor Dong spoke calmly:
"Tell me about the situation."

(End of this chapter)