Beijing!
It has been more than a month since the late emperor passed away.
The body lay in state for forty-nine days, and the Imperial Astronomical Bureau selected three auspicious days for the burial.
Helian Jue directly chose the closest one.
The reasons are readily available: the weather is getting hotter and hotter, and even if ice is used, the body won't be able to be preserved.
After the farce of besieging the capital ended, Helian Jue then punished a group of collateral branches or small families who had been thrown out as scapegoats by the aristocratic families.
With a series of swift and decisive measures, the chaos in the capital was immediately brought under control.
Next came the burial and other related matters.
In fact, even if Helian Jue wasn't in a hurry, the officials and their female relatives who came to the palace every day to mourn and keep vigil would be overwhelmed.
They couldn't eat or sleep well, and they were forced to kneel and waile!
Even with cheat codes like ginger juice, no one could cry anymore.
Her voice was hoarse, she had lost a lot of weight, and she looked extremely haggard.
Finally, the late emperor was buried. Helian Jue personally carried the coffin, while the third prince, who was lame, the fourth prince, who was blind in one eye, and the young princes followed respectfully.
After leaving the capital, they arrived at the imperial mausoleum outside the city. The underground palace was opened, and the coffin of the late emperor was sent inside.
"Seal it off! If I pass away, bury me in a separate place, so as not to disturb His Majesty!"
As the late emperor's first wife, Empress Dowager Ashina had no desire to be buried with him in the same grave.
If we can't stand each other while we're alive, let's just bury each other separately after we're dead.
Besides, the late emperor had so many women. Putting aside everything else, Empress Xiao alone was enough to make Empress Ashina feel annoyed and hurt.
That is, the Great Zhou Dynasty abolished the practice of funerary sacrifice, and Empress Xiao became the Empress Dowager.
Otherwise, Empress Dowager Ashina would definitely have sent Empress Dowager Xiao to serve the late emperor in the underworld.
"What a pity!"
Looking at the woman who was an eyesore beside her, the last trace of affection that Empress Ashina had felt for her vanished without a trace.
Empress Dowager Xiao also said, "If I cannot disturb your dignity, I will be buried in another place."
have to!
The two empress dowagers, one the late emperor's first wife and the other his favorite concubine, refused to be buried with him even after their deaths.
As a "filial son," Helian Jue readily accepted good advice!
He ordered his men to lower the dragon-slaying stone, completely sealing the entrance to the imperial mausoleum.
With a thunderous roar, the sun set, and an era came to an end!
...
After nearly two months of turmoil, even those who were truly loyal to the late emperor were now somewhat numb.
Princes, members of the imperial family, nobles, and aristocratic families all felt a sense of relief as they gazed upon the majestic imperial mausoleum.
"Father, are you leaving just like that?"
The third prince remained expressionless for a long time before he reacted.
The heavy rain at Tangquan Palace was like a nightmare.
He lost a leg and became a cripple even his mother despised.
His most beloved father, the emperor, also passed away.
In this vast world, it seemed as if he was the only one left.
"Your Highness, it's time to return to the capital!"
Xiao Zixiu also looked weak, as if he had just recovered from a serious illness.
His face was sallow and his body was thin; his white mourning clothes were even hanging loosely on him.
He had lost his former vigor and the air of a model family, and instead appeared more weathered and bewildered.
Their Xiao family has always followed the Third Prince.
However, he never paid attention to Helian Jue, who was also a grandson of the Xiao family.
Xiao Zixiu also suffered "retribution" from Helian Jue, who sent him to Lingnan to serve as a military commander in the Prince's Palace.
Xiao Zixiu was resentful and bitter. Even though he was in the Yue Prince's mansion, he never thought of being loyal to his own nephew.
He also tried every means to return to the capital and refused to leave.
During the Tangquan Palace Coup, he took the lead and charged into battle for the Third Prince.
And what was the result?
The third prince became disabled, thus completely losing his chance to ascend the throne.
Helian Jue, however, descended from the sky and became the new emperor.
Xiao Zixiu's identity suddenly became awkward, as he still held the official position of Commander of the Yue Prince's Palace.
Xiao Zixiu and the entire Xiao family have become the biggest joke in the capital.
Fortunately, Empress Dowager Xiao was also honored as Empress Dowager because of her status as the emperor's birth mother.
Otherwise, the Xiao family will be completely ruined.
Even so, Xiao Zixiu suffered a severe blow to his body and mind, and it took him more than a month to muster the courage to leave his home again.
He chose the wrong path, and now he has to keep going, even if he has to crawl on his knees.
If he were to change his mind now and rush back to fawn over the saint, he would truly become a fickle and treacherous person.
Having made up his mind, Xiao Zixiu no longer hesitated. He moved closer to the Third Prince, supported the swaying body, and whispered a reminder.
"..." The Third Prince remained silent. Ever since he was injured and realized he was crippled, his habits had become severely distorted.
In less than two months, several eunuchs or palace maids who had been beaten to death had been carried out of his Prince Yan's mansion.
In fact, even Xiao Zixiu had been reprimanded by the Third Prince, but at most the Third Prince still had a shred of rationality and didn't beat him.
"Oh! Third Prince, putting on airs! You're no longer the most favored prince, but just a disabled county prince!"
The Third Prince was aloof and arrogant, which made some people dislike him, and they made sarcastic remarks about him.
The Third Prince didn't even need to turn around to see; he knew who it was just from the voice: "Fifth Prince, how dare you laugh at me? We're both equally bad!"
"Oh! No! It's not 'evenly matched,' it's 'completely flawed!'"
The Third Prince no longer pretended to be a gentle and refined gentleman; he launched into a barrage of sarcastic remarks at his arch-enemy.
Is the world flawed and imperfect?
The fifth prince instinctively reached out to touch the blindfold on his face.
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