Chapter 486: Raise an army! Purge the court! (5k)

The sky was completely dark, and lanterns were lit, illuminating the pavilions and tiled houses of the Zhao Mansion.

Zhao Pan, who was sitting on the steps with her knees hugged, turned her head. The girl's beautiful eyebrows and eyes were as warm and white as jade under the light, and the sadness between her eyebrows made her look more pitiful.

"Can't sleep again?" Eugene Hua placed the lotus lantern in her hand on the ground and squatted beside her daughter. Because of this action, her plump buttocks were stretched into a round curve.

"Yeah, I miss my brother." Zhao Pan nodded and said softly.

The bright eyes like autumn water reflect the starry sky in the south.

"I don't know if my brother is okay now? Is he safe? Where is he?" Zhao Pan was in a low mood, and the Pekingese lying at her feet whimpered in agreement.

Eugene was silent.

Given the mother and daughter's current status in the circle of noble ladies in the capital, a lot of news can be quickly learned.

Naturally, this includes secrets such as the empress failed in her Fengshan ceremony and fled, and Zhao Duan accompanied her to protect her.

As female relatives, it goes without saying that I was worried and uneasy.

During this period, although the Zhao family seemed calm, in fact, the people were in panic. The servants in the mansion often talked privately, discussing that if His Majesty was gone, the Zhao family, which depended on the empress for its existence, would probably be destroyed soon.

"No," Eugenie said suddenly and forcefully:

"Your eldest brother will be fine. He has experienced countless dangerous situations in the past year, but he has always been safe and sound. This time, there will definitely be no accidents. Perhaps he is already not far from the capital and will be back in a while."

Zhao Pan stared at his mother's profile, and suddenly said:

"Mom, you're not the same as before."

Eugene, who had a delicate personality, smiled and blinked:

"Mom is growing up too. Women are like vines, and men are like trees. The bigger the tree grows, the stronger the vine will be. Even if the tree is gone one day, the old vine will never be the same as it was before."

From managing a small Zhao family to now being in charge of the huge Zhao Mansion, entertaining and greeting noble ladies from the capital all day long, how could Eugene Hua have made no progress?

Zhao Pan hugged his mother and buried his head in her magnificent chest:

"Mom, you are not old."

Eugene Hua smiled faintly and gently patted her daughter's arm, just like when she was little, coaxing her to sleep, looking up at the dim stars:

"Go to sleep. Our family has come this far, and it's not that easy to fall. Even if the rebels really break into the city one day, my mother and I will run south to find your eldest brother. We have overcome so many difficulties, so this little bit is not a big deal."

"Yeah." Zhao Pan said softly and closed his eyes.

The Pekingese at her feet also snuggled up to the girl and closed its eyes.

…

The night deepens.

Inside the inn, a dim light shone as Zhao Duan flipped through the documents sent by the Imperial Guards. His expression grew increasingly serious.

"Your Majesty, something is indeed amiss. From the clues, it seems the Li Clan has been restless since you left the capital."

The information sent by the Imperial Guards was extremely detailed and could not be obtained in a short period of time.

Zhao Du'an thought for a moment and realized that the empress had probably arranged a group of secret guards to hide in the city and keep an eye on the group of potentially unstable elements headed by the Li Party officials before she went south to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth.

Xu Zhenguan stood by the window, looking at the sparse stars peeking through the gaps in the clouds above the capital:

"Shouldn't you have guessed this long ago?"

Her expression was very calm, without much unexpected emotion:

"Put yourself in his shoes. If I were in Li Yanfu's position, I wouldn't miss such a great opportunity."

Zhao Duan's heart moved and he said:

"According to the intelligence sent by the secret guards, I'm afraid this group of people may cause trouble in the next few days."

Xu Zhenguan understood what he wanted to express and said calmly:

"Everything remains the same. I will enter the palace tomorrow morning and publicly return while the court is in session."

Even if waiting a few more days would allow these thieves to jump out, she would not wait any longer.

"Besides, with the intelligence we have now, we can eliminate a lot of parasites." Xu Zhenguan's voice was as cold as ice.

Zhao Duan nodded, but felt his right eyelid twitching slightly, and felt a little uneasy.

…

Imperial Court, Governor's Hall.

Ma Yan sat in the hall, working by candlelight.

He frowned, read the documents on the table again and again, and said without raising his head:

"Why didn't you report this news earlier?"

With a ponytail and teardrop moles at the corners of her eyes, the heroic Haitang sat in the hall, yawning softly:

"Lord Governor, the various halls have been busy lately, working in shifts. The city has been quite unstable lately. You should know that delivering this news has been very difficult."

Her face was full of fatigue, and Zhang Han and other detectives in the hall were no less exhausted.

These days, the entire imperial court is extremely busy. There are too many things to do, and late-night reports drag on until after the early morning every day. If they were not all warriors, ordinary people would have collapsed long ago.

Ma Yan raised his head and knocked on the table solemnly: "When it comes to the Li Party, there is no small matter. Let's forget about it this time. If there is a next time, you will be punished."

Haitang sighed and didn't dare to refute.

Haitang just got the information today that groups of people who looked like warriors were sneaking into the city from outside, and that they were suspected to be related to the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Not daring to delay, he immediately presented it to Ma Yan.

In the past, the imperial court should not have discovered this action so late, but due to the special circumstances recently, it was ignored.

"We need to continue investigating and collecting evidence on this matter. This is a sensitive period and His Majesty is not in the capital, so it is not a good idea to make a big move. I will personally ask Li Yanfu questions at the court meeting tomorrow." Ma Yan thought for a moment and made a decision.

Zhang Han, the king of facial paralysis, said, "Will it alert the enemy?"

Ma Yan glanced at him, his cold and thin face serious:

"Now is not the time to investigate and gain merit. Maintaining stability in the city is our top priority. I am doing this to scare the enemy."

The Ji Si at the lobby entrances in the hall were shocked:

"I understand!"

"Well, go back and rest." Ma Yan waved his hand.

Everyone left one after another, with Haitang staying behind. "Lord Governor, is there any latest news about His Majesty and Zhao Duan?"

Ma Yan glanced at her, as if seeing through his thoughts, and shook his head.

"The last time Eunuch Hai sent a message was seven days ago. The next one should be not far away. Good fortune will come to those who are lucky. Your Majesty and Zhao Duan will be fine."

"Yeah." Haitang nodded and left worriedly.

In this precarious time, wouldn't the people of Zhaoya Jinyi, who is the "slaughter knife" in the hands of the empress, also be in turmoil?

Nothing will happen? Ma Yan said it simply, but he couldn't quite put his finger on the confidence in his words.

…

…

The next morning.

The rising sun was blocked by dark clouds above, and the sky of the capital was pale.

For some reason, the entire city felt more depressing than usual.

In the inner courtyard of the Xiangguo Mansion, the concubine "Third Madam" walked out of the room and lectured the maids in the back house. One of the maids said:

"Madam, the eldest son has brought a lot of people to the front yard. They are murderous and I don't know what they are going to do."

The third lady glared at her:

"You are the maids in the backyard, so you should only take care of the affairs in the backyard and don't interfere in the front yard."

Given the scale of the Prime Minister's Mansion, each courtyard is an independent world with independent servants and clear responsibilities and powers.

The maid was so scared that she knelt on the ground and nodded repeatedly.

The third lady sighed, waved her hand to disperse the crowd, picked up the tray containing a clay pot of ginseng soup, and walked towards the study.

Last night, Li Yanfu secretly left the house through the secret passage and returned in the late night. He did not fall asleep and stayed in the study until dawn.

The third wife knocked on the door and said, "Master, it's time to drink the soup."

"Enter."

She pushed open the door with a creaking sound, and the pale light of the sky shone into the messy study.

Inside the house, Li Yanfu had not slept all night, but he was in high spirits, wearing a blood-red robe and a white jade pendant hanging from his waist.

At this moment, he was standing quietly in front of a small altar table at the corner of the study.

There was only an incense burner and a tablet for the Li family's ancestors on the table, and behind it was an ancient painting hanging on the white wall.

The painting depicts mountains and water. An old elk with majestic horns is walking in the mountains. Turning its head and looking back, it sees shadows in the jungle, as if there is a group of deer following it.

Li Yanfu lit the yellow incense in his hand, held the three yellow incense sticks with curling green smoke in both hands, and placed them into the incense burner.

"Master..." Third Madam Xiaoyue called softly.

Li Yanfu turned around. Today he did not look as old as before. Although he was old, his face was ruddy and there was a fierceness in his eyes, as if he had become ten years younger overnight.

Xiao Yue's heart moved, and her brows knitted tightly: "Master, have you taken medicine again?"

Li Yanfu is not a cultivator, but a mortal. At his age now, even if he does not pretend to be sick, he is still not as good as he was in the past.

But if you take the elixir, it can temporarily revive you and make you full of energy.

Li Yanfu glanced at her indifferently without answering. He walked to the table, sat down, picked up the spoon, and drank the soup mouthful by mouthful.

Xiao Yue didn't move. She clutched her skirt tightly with both hands. Suddenly, she knelt on the ground, raising her graceful face, but one full of anxiety.

"Master, think twice. If you leave the house today, there will be no turning back."

Li Yanfu paused, ignored him, and continued drinking the soup.

The concubine, who was known for her gentleness and understanding and was deeply favored by the Prime Minister, said sadly, "Master, you..."

“Bang!”

Li Yanfu suddenly threw the white porcelain soup bowl to the ground, shattering it immediately. The porcelain fragments mixed with the soup splashed all over Xiaoyue who was kneeling on the ground.

The latter looked terrified and trembling.

"Get out!" Li Yanfu lowered his head, his beard was stained with ginseng soup and was a little dirty, but he didn't care.

Xiaoyue sighed, stood up tremblingly, and walked out. Before stepping out of the door, she only said:

"I have prepared three feet of white silk in my room. If you... I will follow you."

After saying this, this low-key woman, who was not well-known in the capital, walked away with firm steps.

Li Yanfu sat quietly in the chair. After a long time, he slowly stood up and grasped the gorgeous, jewel-inlaid dagger on the table with his wrinkled right hand.

He straightened his back inch by inch, as if he had returned to the glorious days of the past.

This legendary old man, who came from an ordinary family in the Huai River and stepped onto the position of Prime Minister, who was second only to the emperor and above everyone else, walked out of the study, walked out of the backyard, and came to the front yard.

In the huge front yard, there was complete silence. Hundreds of warriors wearing red clothes, white ribbons tied around their heads, and swords on their backs stood silently.

They are both killers and retainers.

They are a group of killers that the Prime Minister's Mansion has spent a lot of effort to train outside the city over the past ten years and who only obey Li Yanfu's orders.

In the past, they would do some dirty work for Li Yanfu that was not allowed to be seen in public.

And now, this group of people disguised themselves as farmers and sneaked into the city in batches. They gathered here today for an event that will go down in history.

"Father! Everything is ready, announce it!"

Li Yinglong stood in front of the crowd. He was wearing a set of soft armor, looking excited and with fiery eyes.

Li Yanfu stood on the steps, his eyes sweeping across the pale sky, the square courtyard, and the resolute faces of hundreds of people in red in the courtyard.

The dangling right hand holding the dagger suddenly rose above the head.

Li Yanfu's neck veins bulged, his face flushed red, and his voice was like a wolf's howl:

“Rise up!!!”

Hundreds of retainers simultaneously drew their swords and raised them high, swords and spears forming a forest, stabbing towards the sky:

"Rise up!"

"Rise up!"

"Rise up!"

After a while, the main gate of the Prime Minister's Mansion opened wide, and Li Yanfu, wearing soft armor and riding a horse, led hundreds of retainers out and rushed towards the south gate of the imperial palace.

The Prime Minister's Mansion was not far from the Imperial Palace. Hundreds of people rushed along the streets like a tide of blood, running towards the Imperial Palace in the morning light under the horrified gazes of the people on both sides of the streets!

The people hid behind closed doors in fear, memories of the Xuanmen coup three years ago flooding back into their minds.

…

South gate of the palace.

On the top of the city wall, Wang Ye, wearing distinctive armor, was patrolling.

As an inconspicuous infantryman in the Yulin Guard, there was nothing worth writing about in his twenty-odd years of life.

If there was only one thing that could be said, it was probably that he and Zhao Duan were once in the same squad, and they were comrades-in-arms. They had a few drinks and played cards together.

At that time, Zhao Duan was just a quiet and good-looking soldier, and that was all Wang Ye's impression of him.

Until that winter three years ago, on the day of the Xuanmen coup, Wang Ye and Zhao Duan, soldiers of the Yulin Guard, fought against the rebels of the second prince Jianwen under the command of the commander-in-chief, and witnessed the empress's heroic feat of breaking thousands of troops with just a sword.

It was also at that time that Zhao Duan was unexpectedly favored by the empress. Two months later, he was promoted to Baima Prison, and rumors of an affair between him and the empress spread.

Wang Ye once tried to build connections, but he was kicked out by the Baiyi in Baima Prison before he even got through the door.

"Damn Zhao Duan! He disowns people when he's in power! What ability does he have? It's just his face. Pah!"

At that time, Wang Ye only dared to curse in his heart, but did not dare to show his teeth.

But since last year, Zhao Duan has made many great achievements and his status has been rising. Not only did he defeat Monk Tianhai with force, his literary talent made Han Banshan admire him more than him, and he even became the Junior Guardian, which is a dream come true.

Wang Ye's impression of Zhao Duan also changed from "lucky as hell" to "Your Majesty has a keen eye."

I often wonder why that taciturn and mediocre comrade was actually a pearl covered in dust, and I didn't realize it at the time.

only……

He also thought of the news that was circulating in the imperial guards: His Majesty was missing, Zhao Shaobao's whereabouts were unknown, and five rebel armies were attacking the capital... Wang Ye suddenly no longer envied Zhao Duan.

"It's better to live a miserable life than to die. What's the point of being so famous and powerful?"

"If he hadn't been chosen by His Majesty three years ago, he would at least be alive and well now, standing guard with me."

Wang Ye sighed and shook his head, very satisfied with his condition.

However, when he turned his head to look at the patrolling soldiers of Qianniu Guard and Jinwu Guard on the city wall, he couldn't help but frown, feeling that something was not right.

The brothers on duty with him today in the other two guards were replaced at the same time, and they were all replaced by faces he was not familiar with.

He had just started a conversation with the other person, but he had a cold face and looked at him with a hint of hostility, which made him very puzzled.

"Maybe it's because of my bad temper."

Wang Ye didn't think much about it, fumbled with the hilt of the knife, and looked out of the city.

Not long ago, the ministers who were going to enter the palace had all entered one after another, and now the long street outside the palace gate was empty.

Suddenly, Wang Ye was surprised to notice that a large group of people in red clothes suddenly emerged from both sides of the street in the distance, and they were very eye-catching.

Heading straight towards the palace.

He frowned, not knowing the situation, and subconsciously gripped the hilt of his knife. The group of people came very quickly, and the one leading them was a horseman. He looked familiar, but before he could see clearly, he caught a glimpse of the shining swords on the group of people in red.

Wang Ye's face suddenly changed!

Bringing weapons to attack the palace? This is a serious crime of treason!

Who are these people and what are they going to do?

Thinking of the recent news of the rebellion, Wang Ye's hair stood on end and he shouted loudly:

“Enemy attack!!!”

Immediately, he subconsciously grabbed the copper whistle on his chest and prepared to blow it to sound the alarm. However, the next moment, the expected scene of the defenders on the city wall using bows and crossbows to kill the bandits did not happen.

Instead, screams suddenly rang out around him.

That was the cry of his comrade in the Imperial Guard before his death.

"What's going on?" As soon as this thought came to mind, Wang Ye felt a chill in his throat and his body lost strength!

The copper whistle in his hand fell, and he turned his head in shock. He found in disbelief that the unfamiliar Qianniu Guard had cold eyes and attacked him from behind, thrusting a dagger into his throat!

A sneak attack came from the side, leaving no time to react!

"Rebellion... Rebellion..."

Wang Ye's body went limp and he fell from the top of the city wall, hitting the ground with a thud.

At the last moment before his vision became completely dark, the little man, whose life was coming to an end, finally saw clearly the appearance of the old man riding on a horse and rushing into the palace.

"The Prime Minister... plotting rebellion..."

The imperial guards in the city opened the city gate, and the heavy vermilion gate inlaid with rivets slammed open to both sides!

A long doorway appears.

Li Yanfu was on horseback, wearing soft armor and a helmet, with his gray hair sticking out in a messy pattern.

He raised his dagger:

"Purge the imperial court! Purge the imperial court! Anyone who obstructs this will be considered a traitor and will be killed without mercy!"

The retainers behind him drew their swords one after another and poured into the palace like a torrent, along the sides of his horse, passing through the Meridian Gate and heading straight for the side hall where the court meeting was held!

Everything went as smoothly as expected.

As long as Li Yanfu uses lightning-fast methods to control the ministers in the palace before the rest of the imperial guards can react, he can exercise the power of the cabinet and control this city with millions of people where the throne is vacant!

…

…

Inside the inn.

Zhao Duan took off his disguise mask, opened the door, and looked at the Queen of Yu, who was now dressed neatly, had also washed off her disguise, and restored her true appearance.

Xu Zhenguan no longer wore the low-key plain skirt, but instead changed into the golden dragon robe that had the blood stains already washed away.

As majestic as ever.

"Your Majesty, it's time to go to court." Zhao Duan said in a daze.

Xu Zhenguan looked at Zhao Duan, who had also taken off his green shirt and changed back into the official robes of the third-rank Crown Prince's Guardian, and smiled:

"Qing Zhao, follow me into the palace."

(End of this chapter)