Chapter 264 My real name is Nangong Qingyu
The situation in the Dai Viet Imperial City changed overnight.
The rebels who poisoned the emperor have been found out, and the emperor has personally ordered their arrest.
All civil and military officials were in a panic.
No one knows how many people are implicated in this matter, and they are even more afraid that the emperor will take this opportunity to eliminate dissidents.
There were cries, shouts and curses in the Xiuwang Mansion and the Feng Mansion. The Jinyiwei and Yulinwei, dressed in flying fish uniforms, with swords hanging from their waists, looked cold and murderous.
During the arrest, the streets were empty and quiet, and the people didn't even dare to watch the excitement along the way.
Defei was dragged out of Ganning Palace by the Yulin Guards, and her two ten-year-old sons were not spared.
The beautiful lady in her thirties was now crying with her hair disheveled and her hairpins tilted, crying out for justice, "I didn't do it! Your Majesty, I am innocent! I am devoted to Your Majesty, how could I have murdered Your Majesty! I didn't even know that the box of lip balm was poisonous! It was the Queen who harmed me, it was the Queen who framed me, Your Majesty—!"
In front of Gan Ning Palace, a masked young man in black clothes stood tall, watching everything coldly.
Behind him, the Yulin Guards were holding the Queen Cui and her confidants who had just been brought out from Kunning Palace, and they would be taken to the Sky Prison later.
Cui is already over sixty years old. In the past few years, her hair has turned silver and she has aged very quickly. She looks dispirited.
Hearing Concubine De's crying, she raised her eyes woodenly and slowly looked around.
The sunlight coming down from the sky was like frost and snow, feeling cold against my skin.
This palace, its high walls, and the beautiful garden scenery in March seem familiar and unfamiliar at this moment.
She had been here for decades, and in the first few decades she had treated that man wholeheartedly, obeying him and following his lead, thinking that he could see all her efforts.
Now I realize that it was all just her own assumption.
She had done so much for him, and even chose to let him go at the last moment of the confrontation, but he was unwilling to even trust her.
The beauty is trapped in the palace, half of her life is glorious, and half of her life is a joke.
"Escort her to the Heavenly Prison and await your punishment!" The young man's indifferent and cold voice brought her back to her senses, and the Yulin Guards immediately pushed her towards the Heavenly Prison.
After becoming a prisoner of a country, she stumbled on the white jade ground. Those who had to kneel down when they saw her in the past now had a condescending look on their faces, and their eyes were full of pity when they looked at her.
Cui burst into tears and laughed.
The corridor of the sky prison was long and dark. Winter had just passed, and the air in the prison was still filled with the musty smell that had fermented in the cold winter, which was nauseating.
The prisoners were pushed into the iron cage and the door was locked.
And this is just the beginning.
In the next few days, a new wave of prisoners were sent to the prison every day, all of whom were senior officials of the first and second ranks in the imperial court.
Those of lower ranks were sent to the Dali Temple.
Conspiring to murder the emperor is a heinous crime, and anyone who is even slightly involved in it will be caught.
Nearly half of the officials in the court were implicated, almost causing the Dali Temple to be overcrowded.
The sun was covered in dark clouds in Changjing, and the sun could not penetrate the haze.
…
Mid-March.
At night, Chengqian Palace.
The palace was brightly lit.
Emperor Hong De sat on the bed, his complexion looked much better than before, and he could even suppress his cough.
"Captain Wei, you have been investigating the conspiracy for me during this period of time and have made great contributions. When this matter is resolved, I will definitely reward you well." After drinking the medicine handed to him by Miao Ping, Emperor Hongde showed a slight smile on his face.
He felt that his health was improving, and he felt more relaxed day by day in the past few days.
The imperial physician said that perhaps the poison was almost wearing off.
He, Hong De, is the true emperor, blessed by the dragon's spirit, so how could he be killed by evil spirits and monsters!
Wei Li stood before the dragon bed, bowing his head. "Serving the Emperor is my duty as a minister. I dare not take credit for it. I only hope that the Emperor will recover soon and be able to govern the country!"
"Very well, I'll leave it to you to seek your blessing." Hong De smiled, his eyes fixed on the young man beside the bed, a dark glint in his eyes. "Now that all the traitors have been apprehended, I want to try them first and determine their guilt. They poisoned me with the intention of regicide; such a crime warrants the extermination of all nine generations of the clan. Furthermore, the dragon tablet I bestowed upon Commandant Wei must be taken back first, to prevent the remaining stubborn old ministers from complaining and tarnishing his reputation by opposing Commandant Wei."
Miao Ping stood beside the emperor with his hands hanging down, looking at his nose and thinking about his heart, not daring to say a word.
Holding the dragon medal in hand is like the emperor himself. On that day, the emperor was ill and unable to do anything. He was so angry that he just wanted to kill those who were plotting rebellion on the spot, so he gave the dragon medal.
Now that the dragon's health has improved, given the emperor's temperament, he will naturally not allow the dragon token to continue to be held in the hands of a young general.
The emperor is the most powerful person in the world and he loves power so much that he does not allow anyone to share his power.
However, it is an honor for Wei Duwei to be awarded the dragon medal in this matter. It represents the emperor's respect for him, and his official career will be smoother in the future.
What you give is what you return, there is no loss.
Miao Ping's mind raced, but the expected answer did not come. He looked up in surprise and looked at the young man.
But the young man straightened his hunched back without knowing when. His eyes were as dark and deep as cold stars, and there was a very faint curve at the corner of his mouth.
It seems like a smile, but also like sarcasm.
When Miao Ping saw this, his heart almost stopped in fear.
Captain Wei looks even bolder than those who plotted treason and murdered the king. He will surely anger the emperor!
"Your Majesty, although your health has improved slightly, illness comes and goes like a mountain. For the sake of Your Majesty's health, I suggest that you continue to recuperate in your bedroom. Don't rush and work hard, lest your condition worsens by accident. Wouldn't that be counterproductive?" The young man met the emperor's gaze, opened his thin lips lightly, and said calmly.
His attitude was as casual as chatting with someone he met on the street. The weather was very nice today.
As expected, the emperor's expression suddenly changed drastically, "Wei Li, how dare you!"
The emperor was furious and the chief eunuch was so frightened that his legs went limp, but the young man still stood straight, as unyielding as a pine or bamboo.
"Your Majesty, why are you so angry? I'm thinking of you. After all, your illness isn't a common one that the imperial physician can treat. You've been poisoned by an incurable poison. If there's no cure, how can it be cured?" The young man chuckled as he lowered and raised his eyes. "It's just a last gasp of life."
Emperor Hongde's rage intensified, and then, as if realizing something, his expression froze. "...How did you know I was poisoned by an incurable poison?"
The young man chuckled again, his amusement shifting from the corners of his mouth to his eyes, then fading into cold sarcasm. "I was the one who poisoned you, how could I not know? Bei Qingfeng, six months after the poisoning, your five organs will fail. There's no cure. The Emperor will linger on his sickbed for months, finally dying unwillingly like a parasite."
"Impossible! Impossible! You don't even have the chance to poison me!" Hong De roared, he didn't believe it.
After Wei Li returned from Yanmen Pass, he had only summoned him three times during his tenure! The other party had no chance to poison him!
Wei Li raised an eyebrow and said calmly, "Do you remember the time the Emperor summoned me to the Hall of Supreme Harmony? Miao Ping brought you tea, and when you ordered me to remove my mask, you placed the tea on the coffee table. That's when the poison was administered." Wei Li slowly approached the dragon bed, raising his hand and slowly removing the mask from his face. "I also gave the Queen the poison, but unfortunately, she relented in the end. I anticipated this and had already taken action. As for that box of lip balm, it was indeed a gift from the Empress to Consort De. However, the lip balm wasn't originally poisonous. I mixed the poison in after I got my hands on it."
After he finished speaking, the mask peeled off his face, revealing the handsome yet cold face of the young man.
He leaned over and told Emperor Hong De, "My real name is Nangong Qingyu."
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