Outside the palace gates, a group of court officials, who were at odds with Zuo Zhen and others, were holding banners against the empress's rule.

On the surface, it's an act of rebellion against Shen Jiao, but what they're really thinking is hard to say, as you can't see into someone's heart.

Among them were civil officials, military officials, and a group of passionate and excited common people. How great were their life ideals and pursuits?

No, not at all, not even a little bit. After all, joining in the fun doesn't cost money.

Because of the dark-faced guards stationed outside the palace gates, everyone kept a safe distance and dared not take another step forward.

They're here to engage in intellectual debate, not to get beaten up.

Several civil officials present had already written lengthy essays on benevolence and righteousness. They stroked their beards, exchanged smiles, and were determined to condemn Shen Jiao, the wicked concubine who had tricked the imperial seal into giving up the country.

Unexpectedly, instead of Shen Jiao and Wang Fu, they were escorted by imperial guards to the prison.

The civil officials' expressions changed drastically, and they exclaimed in surprise, "What are you doing? What is this all about?"

"Why are you arresting me!"

One man, extremely stubborn, turned to those he had lured there to support him and said, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, everyone! I don't believe the Demon Queen would dare to kill us!"

"Everyone, don't go! Please don't go! Wait for us to get out!"

"Enough with the nonsense!" The imperial guard kicked the man, who immediately fell flat on his face, knocking out a front tooth and bleeding profusely.

Upon seeing the blood, the men not only stopped talking, but they all became completely obedient.

Everyone: "..."

Damn it, those who could curse got arrested, are they going to leave or not?

**

These individuals who spearheaded the disturbance have some connection to the former Crown Prince Ji Xiao.

One was his distant maternal uncle, surnamed Zhao; another was his distant maternal uncle's maternal uncle, surnamed Liu; and yet another was the father of the late former crown princess's childhood sweetheart, surnamed Zhang.

In short, although the relationship isn't particularly close, they are related by blood, and if you think about it carefully, they are all family.

Ji Xiao's stronghold in Qibei Mountain had long been wiped out by the tyrant's troops, but because Shen Jiao was captured at the time, the matter was not spread due to concerns for her reputation.

The former crown prince's cronies stationed in the capital, who planned to coordinate from within and without, were extremely careful and cautious when communicating with Qibei Mountain. Sometimes, they would only have the opportunity to send a letter once every six months.

That's why I didn't notice anything amiss even though I hadn't received a reply for three months.

The three families had already discussed this privately and believed that this was the best opportunity to overthrow the tyrant. Although they couldn't contact Ji Xiao, they were confident that their master would definitely not let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

If they can take the lead at this critical juncture, they might be granted the title of prince or prime minister in the future.

Thinking of this, the three immediately decided to take the lead in giving the new queen a hard time!

To everyone's surprise, while the show of force was indeed given, the target was completely reversed.

The news of the men's imprisonment quickly reached the Zhao, Liu, and Zhang families, who immediately gathered together.

The man, his face flushed with anger, kept shouting, "Is there no law anymore? Is there no law anymore?"

The royal prison was not for ordinary criminals; anyone who went in faced certain death.

When her family members were captured, the woman panicked and kept asking, "Is there any news from the master? Why can't we get in touch with him? I told you to wait and wait, and now look what happened! You should have listened to me and waited."

"Alright, alright, sister-in-law, what do you know, you're just a woman? Stop talking, what's the point of saying this now? You're just making things worse." The speaker was the second son of the Zhao family. He was muscular, and when he frowned, he looked quite fierce.

Sure enough, as soon as she spoke, her sister-in-law dared not utter another word.

The second son of the Zhao family, with his fiery temper, slammed his fist on the table and roared, "We are all bound together anyway, we share the same fate, if one of us prospers, we all prosper, if one of us suffers, we all suffer. Anyone who has the guts, come with me to demand our people from that new empress!"

It was good that someone took the lead. The families who had been frightened were now fully energized and shouted, "Let's go! We need people!"

"The master of the house is imprisoned in the imperial jail, what are you yelling about!"

"Everyone be brave, don't be afraid. Anyway, the tyrant is not here, and the lord must be on his way. Why should we be afraid of a little girl like her? Don't be cowards, hurry up and go, all of you, go."

**

The three families arrived in a grand procession outside the palace gates, attracting the attention of passersby. They chattered and made a lot of noise, but no one paid them any attention.

The second brother of the Zhao family only knows how to bully people with his big body. He is incredibly stupid when it comes to speaking. All he can say over and over is, "Is there no law?" "Is there no justice?" "Everyone come and see! The Empress can just lock people up like this!"

The thief cried "stop thief!"—this was truly shameless. The onlookers clicked their tongues and showed expressions of disdain.

However, no matter how much the second son of the Zhao family argued and made a fuss, the closed palace gates remained completely silent.

After nightfall, the cold wind blew on their faces like a knife, making the three families shiver and their teeth chatter.

"Zhao's second son, why don't we go back first and come back tomorrow? It's too cold, really too cold."

The second son of the Zhao family immediately shouted angrily, "Get out! Why are you leaving? Can't you see she's too scared to come out? Hold on a little longer, and victory will be ours."

"The journey to the royal city in the Qibei Mountains is long and arduous. Perhaps the heavy snow has blocked the mountain passes, which is why our lord is late. Maybe our lord's banners will arrive in the royal city early tomorrow morning!"

Everyone agreed that this made perfect sense; perseverance leads to victory.

The next morning, at the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), the palace gates opened. The second son of the Zhao family hadn't slept all night; his snot was frozen, and his eyes were bloodshot from staying up all night. He had been waiting for this moment.

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