"But," Ruyi changed the subject, "if they have an insider in the palace, they wouldn't need so many people."

The emperor looked at her, with stars shining in his deep eyes.

"Your judgment is good."

He nodded, "So, you want General Yao to come down first, then send the enemy up, open the city gate and let the enemy in."

"Then, take back control of the city defense forces, block the city gates, and trap these people who have fallen into the trap in the city, and capture them all in one fell swoop?"

Ruyi nodded, "This is not difficult to do."

"The difficulty lies in the guarding situation here in the palace."

Ruyi knew nothing about this, "These still need to be properly arranged by the emperor."

She said, bowing.

The emperor nodded, turned around and said to the person behind the screen, "Go and prepare. Ask Concubine Duan to pray for the late emperor for a month. She is not allowed to leave the temple."

Someone left behind the screen.

Looking at the emperor's reaction, Ruyi had a very strange intuition: the emperor was on guard against the third prince.

Not only is there prevention, but there is even control.

She didn't know whether her entry into the palace tonight really had any effect, and she had no way of guessing.

The emperor looked at her and asked, "You look haggard, are you worried about this?"

Ruyi shook her head, "It's because I'm anxious to practice."

"Ruyi has been in the harem for many years and has hardly moved. Now that the amount has suddenly increased, it is inevitable that she will be a little uncomfortable, but it's okay. Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty."

The emperor nodded and said, "If you want to wear the crown, you must bear its weight. I believe that after two years of hard work, you will surely amaze the world."

This is the best compliment I can give you.

Ruyi cupped her hands, "Ruyi will definitely live up to the emperor's expectations."

"Well, let's go to the side hall and rest for a while. Although this matter is dangerous, it is not too difficult."

The emperor's tone was steady. He glanced at Eunuch Qian and said, "Take Ziwei Fuxing to sleep for a while."

"Girl please!"

Eunuch Qian stepped forward and saw that Ruyi looked particularly amiable.

When they reached the side hall, he smiled and said, "Miss, you have the emperor in your heart. It can be said that the emperor's love for you is not in vain."

Ruyi heard this and said hurriedly: "Ruyi relies entirely on the emperor's protection."

"You have this intention, that's the best."

Eunuch Qian smiled and said, "Have a good rest. It's not that easy for those people down there to go up to heaven."

Ruyi nodded and got on the bed.

Yes, the emperor abolished the prime minister and set up a cabinet. At the same time, he was testing the crown prince, the second prince, the third prince, the fourth prince, and even the fifth prince.

How could he be unprepared?

But right now, chaos is probably inevitable.

But after all, she was really tired.

Even though it was an unfamiliar place, she closed her eyes as soon as she touched the pillow and fell into a deep sleep.

In the imperial study, the emperor was somewhat envious of her.

After all, she wasn't in a position where she could sleep whenever she wanted.

But he can't.

Now is a critical moment, and he estimates that it will take another month to complete the major reshuffle of the court.

"Perhaps, the court and the imperial examinations should be opened to women."

The emperor looked at Li Xiangyi and said, "Ye Hongzhuang was wasted back then. Now... Northern Qi is weak and needs everyone's efforts to develop the situation. I hope to use talents and put aside prejudices."

All Li Xiangyi could do was kneel down before him, "Your Majesty is wise, all the women in our dynasty will be grateful to you, and the people will be grateful to you too!"

Emperor Wu of Northern Qi had more than just means and strategies.

And have a broad mind.

Li Xiangyi was willing to be the high priest because he was impressed by his personal charm, otherwise he would not have kept him.

The emperor looked out the window at the dark night and took a deep breath. "It doesn't matter whether they are grateful to me or not. This life will eventually become a passing cloud, but I... still hope to do something."

“Maybe, this is what it means to be human.”

The imperial study fell silent.

After a long while, he spoke again, "The highest palace is also the deepest hell. My dragon throne is shining with golden light, but underneath it, the blood and heads of countless people are floating."

"I am at the peak, and also at the abyss."

"This place is both heaven and hell."

Li Xiangyi pondered over his words and suddenly understood why he had such a broad mind, because he saw through the word "human".

Yes, he was the most outstanding disciple of the previous generation in Prajna Hall.

Soon, General Yao arrived.

He was in his fifties, with some gray hair. He knelt down as soon as he entered the room, "Your Majesty! I am guilty, please punish me!"

He also never expected that when the whole city was under martial law, the city defense forces responsible for security would actually go and assassinate Ziwei Fuxing. What's the difference between this and slapping the emperor in the face?

When the news came, he felt that he was doomed.

"Have you found out who they are and when they joined the army?"

The emperor was much calmer than him. He almost didn't respond to him and asked questions directly.

General Yao almost cried when he heard this.

"I checked. He joined the city defense army two years ago!"

"At that time, there was a bandit problem in the mountains outside the city. I was ordered to go and suppress them. On the way back, I don't know why my horse got scared and went crazy, and threw me off the mountain. I had to stay at home for half a year because my leg was broken."

"During this period, there were about 200 people who joined the bandit suppression. The ones who went out tonight are part of this group!"

Everyone has records, so it’s not difficult to check.

But it’s not that simple!

General Yao lowered his head and admitted his defeat dejectedly: "The person came in at this time, because there was only this one personnel change in these years, but the time shown in the records was delayed by eight months."

Eight months later, he recovered from his injuries and took office.

After checking the documents at that time, I thought it was just a routine matter to expand the staff, but I didn’t expect that such a big landmine was buried!

"It is my fault for not conducting a thorough review!"

General Yao put his head on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, I apologize and ask for a demotion!"

Upon hearing this, the emperor glanced at the door of the side hall and then exchanged a glance with Li Xiangyi.

Sure enough, the enemy was targeting the city defense forces.

General Yao was a man of upright character. Before he could say anything, he asked to be demoted.

As soon as General Yao left, the city defense forces fell directly into the hands of the enemy.

"You get up first."

The emperor motioned him to stand up and said, "Tell me, who recruited these people? No matter what is written in the document, I want to know what really happened."

General Yao thought for a moment and said, "This matter... was done by Wang Deshun. He was the one who was responsible for expanding the manpower at the time, but I don't know whether he obeyed orders from others."

He stood up shakily, feeling a little confused.

The emperor doesn’t seem to be very angry?

And call him up?

Upon hearing this, the emperor ordered Eunuch Yuan, "Go check this Wang Deshun, mainly to see his relatives and associates."

Eunuch Yuan nodded and went out to make arrangements.

The emperor looked at General Yao and said, "Don't be too nervous about this matter. Next, I need your cooperation. I will have to bear some pain for you."

General Yao was somewhat stunned, "Your Majesty, please speak!"

For a moment, it was unclear whether the emperor was being euphemistic in expressing his intention to punish him, or if he really had other intentions.

When the emperor finished telling him what he needed to do, General Yao was stunned and surprised. "Your Majesty means that someone is planning a mutiny?"

How can this be tolerated?

"I have already noticed this, just act it out."

General Yao knelt on one knee, "I obey your order!"

The emperor waved his hand and ordered someone to take him away. "General Yao was derelict in his duty and allowed the city defense army to assassinate Ziwei Fuxing. You can escape the death penalty, but you can't escape the punishment of life!"