Mountain and River Festival 205. Citizens plead for mercy in front of the palace gate

It was definitely no small matter that the king of a country disappeared in the palace in broad daylight. Needless to say, the entire capital and the imperial palace were under strict security and house-to-house searches were carried out. The people in the palace who knew the inside story were even more panicked.

The Empress Dowager, who had been living in the harem for a long time and no longer involved in worldly affairs, also came out, and so were the Empress and Consort Liu. The commander of the imperial guards, the chief eunuch who served in front of him, and Prime Minister Liu, who had been summoned by the Emperor before, all knelt on the ground. The Empress Dowager frowned and shouted angrily, "The Emperor disappeared in the middle of the day, what are you all doing?

Food?! What's the point of the royal family keeping you around? "No one dared to argue, they could only beg for mercy. Among them, Prime Minister Liu felt that he was the most innocent. He just wanted to see the emperor to discuss some things. What did the emperor's disappearance have to do with him? Just because he was the last person the emperor saw before he disappeared, he naturally couldn't get away with it.

"Investigate it carefully! Make sure to rescue the emperor safely! As for your lives, wait until the emperor comes back!" The queen mother ordered coldly, and everyone agreed. After venting her anger, the queen mother looked at Prime Minister Liu who was kneeling on the ground and asked: "Prime Minister, what did the emperor say to you when he last saw you?" Prime Minister Liu said: "Your Majesty, we just discussed some court

There is nothing special about political affairs." The Queen Mother could see through Prime Minister Liu's perfunctory words, her eyes darkened and she said coldly: "Tell me in detail." Prime Minister Liu hesitated for a moment and said: "The Emperor was furious because of the morning court, but he didn't say anything important. He just said that we will discuss it again at the morning court tomorrow." It's not that Prime Minister Liu deliberately hid anything from the Queen Mother.

, but the treatment of the Xu family is top secret. As long as the emperor has not issued an order, it must not be revealed, otherwise it will be troublesome for their Liu family.

The Queen Mother looked at Prime Minister Liu with some suspicion, but Prime Minister Liu allowed her to look at him calmly and sincerely. How could an old fox who had been in the court for his whole life let others see his flaws when he really wanted to hide something?

Finally, the Queen Mother just waved her head in frustration and dismissed everyone. After watching everyone leave, the maidservant beside the Queen Mother asked carefully, "Queen Mother, what do you think of the Emperor's affairs..." The Queen Mother closed her eyes and rested, and said calmly, "I have long retired to the harem, so I don't have the time to care about so many things. These matters are taken care of by the Empress and the court officials. Where is Prince Li now?" The maidservant asked,

The maid whispered, "After His Royal Highness Prince Li and the Emperor reached an armistice, he promised to return to the capital this year to celebrate the Queen Mother's birthday. Calculating the time, His Royal Highness Prince Li should be on his way by now."

The Queen Mother nodded, "Very good, send a message to Prince Li and ask him to come to the capital as soon as possible. Also, didn't Prince Li say that the girl he left in the capital... Ye Ying, is pregnant?"

The nanny nodded and said, "The Queen Mother is right. Concubine Ye gave birth to a son for His Royal Highness Prince Li, and the child is almost one year old now."

"Send someone to look after it." The Queen Mother ordered, waving her hand to let the nanny go. Thinking of her two sons, the Queen Mother's face darkened. Others said that she was lucky. She was the only one who gave birth to two children in the harem of the previous emperor, where it was difficult to have children. The eldest son even became the king of a country, and she became the Queen Mother because of her sons. But who knew that she was lucky?

The eldest son was suspicious by nature, and even her biological mother was on guard, fearing that her power would be too great and threaten him. If not, she would be content to be a queen mother, and why would she plot against the emperor with her youngest son? She seemed to be extremely honored in the palace these years, but in fact, it was just for the sake of appearance. The emperor would occasionally

If she contradicted her own mother, she would not be able to get any rights in the harem. How could the queen mother, who had been engaged in intrigue and scheming all her life and thought that she could go smoothly from now on, be willing to do so?

After bidding farewell to Concubine Liu, the Queen returned to her palace. Her calm face showed a trace of worry and confusion. She waved to the maids and nurses behind her to leave, and then she opened the door and walked into her bedroom. After entering the room and looking at the quiet room in front of her, the Queen walked to the table and sat down, saying lightly, "Come out."

After a while, Feng Zhiyao came out from behind the curtain of the Feng bed and looked at her quietly. The queen frowned, and Feng Zhiyao said without waiting for her to speak: "I'm here to get something and leave immediately." The queen was startled and asked in confusion: "What?" Feng Zhiyao said: "A white jade box that Mo Jingqi gave you eight years ago for safekeeping." The queen pondered for a moment, raised her head and looked at him and said: "Did you capture the emperor?"

"Yes." Feng Zhiyao admitted, "Do you want to call someone to arrest me?"

The Queen stood up and walked quickly to him and said, "Kidnap the king of a country? You are too bold! Now the capital and the palace have been completely blocked. Let's see how you are going to deal with it!" Feng Zhiyao raised his sword-like eyebrows and smiled lightly, "If I can get in, I can get out. Besides... Mo Jingqi's life is still in my hands." The Queen glared at him angrily and shook her head, "Have you never used your brain in all these years following Prince Ding? Do you think everyone really hopes that the emperor will return safely? I'm afraid many people wish you could kill him."

"I really wish I could kill him!" Feng Zhiyao said hatefully.

"Nonsense!" the queen scolded in a low voice, "It was definitely not Prince Ding's idea to kidnap the emperor. What are you going to do this time?" Feng Zhi paused and said, "I am taking the order from the princess to get the blue sky flower."

"Bi Luo Hua?" The Queen frowned. She didn't know much about medicine, so she didn't know what Bi Luo Hua was used for. She looked at Feng Zhiyao unhappily and said, "Since Princess Ding sent you back, it must be an important thing. Can't I help you find it by sending a message? Are you happy that there is such a big fuss now?" Feng Zhiyao snorted and said, "If there is no fuss, no one will be able to find it. Mo Jingqi values ​​Bi Luo Hua very much. For so many years, even the person who gave it to him and his most trusted Concubine Liu didn't know about it. How could he tell you? Moreover, if you find out the whereabouts of Bi Luo Hua and let him know, you can't get away from it." The Queen sighed helplessly and asked, "So you know where Bi Luo Hua is now?"

Feng Zhiyuan nodded, "Mo Jingqi said he gave you something half a year ago. A white jade box. Do you remember it?"

The queen lowered her head and thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "I remember, wait a minute." She turned and walked into the room, and soon she came out holding a beautifully carved white jade box. She handed the white jade box to Feng Zhiyao and asked, "But this?" Feng Zhiyao took the box and opened it carefully. There was indeed a light green peony-like flower inside. It looked like jade, but when you touched the petals, you could clearly feel its softness and the faint strange fragrance. The flower had been picked for a long time, but it showed no signs of withering and dying, just like a jade flower. Feng Zhiyao compared the approximate appearance and shape of the Biluo Flower that Mr. Shen had told him about in his mind, and concluded that the white jade box in front of him did contain the legendary Biluo Flower.

The queen whispered, "Take the things, return the emperor as soon as possible and go back to the northwest." Feng Zhiyao put away the box, looked at the queen deeply and said, "Do you really want to stay in this palace for the rest of your life?" The queen smiled faintly and said, "Where else can I go if I don't stay in the palace for the rest of my life? Go quickly, be careful." Feng Zhiyao stared at her, "Aren't you afraid that I will kill Mo Jingqi?" The queen shook her head and smiled faintly, "You won't do that. It won't be good for Ding Wangfu if the emperor dies now. Although no one has spoken yet, there must be a lot of people in the court who suspect Ding Wangfu. If the emperor really can't come back, no matter whether it was done by Ding Wangfu or not, those people will still put the blame on Ding Wang in the end."

Feng Zhiyao snorted in dissatisfaction but had to admit that what the queen said was true. He turned around and said, "I'm leaving!"

The queen nodded, "Be careful on your way." Feng Zhiyao walked a few steps, turned back and said with a smile, "Do you know what your emperor did? He wanted to confiscate the Xu family!" The queen was stunned, and when she came to her senses, Feng Zhiyao had disappeared. She could only sigh, and a bitter smile appeared on her beautiful face.

With Mu Qingcang secretly escorting them, Feng Zhiyao was also an expert. Even though the palace was heavily guarded, they still walked out without any panic. The two returned to the place where Mo Jingqi was hidden. Leng Haoyu was sitting in the room, staring at Mo Jingqi and waiting for news. Seeing them come in, Leng Haoyu quickly stood up and asked, "Did you get the things?" Feng Zhiyao raised the box in his hand and said, "I got it, but whether it is real or not needs to be confirmed by the emperor himself."

Mo Jingqi's face was gloomy, and he said, "You have already taken the things, what else do you want?" Feng Zhiyao smiled and said, "I am a very suspicious person. I heard that this blue sky flower is not only a panacea, but also a miraculous medicine for healing wounds. Just a little bit can make the wound heal immediately. I wonder if it is true?" Mo Jingqi was stunned, staring at the dagger in Feng Zhiyao's hand and said, "What do you want to do?" Feng Zhiyao showed him a malicious smile and said, "Of course, ask the emperor to try the effect of this blue sky flower. We spent so much effort to get something, if it is a fake, wouldn't it be a joke?"

Mo Jingqi gritted his teeth and said, "I guarantee this is true!"

Feng Zhiyao shook his head and said, "The emperor's guarantee is worthless." Without hesitation, his subordinate stabbed Mo Jingqi's shoulder with a knife. Mo Jingqi screamed and blood gushed out. Feng Zhiyao's eyes flashed with a trace of pleasure. He happily pointed at the blue sky flower in the white jade box with a knife and said, "How do you use this? Ah, it seems that you have to use a knife to scrape off the medicinal powder. Such a beautiful flower will be worthless if you scrape it off. Let's try scraping the bottom." Mo Jingqi hurriedly said, "You can't use a dagger. The blue sky flower must be kept in a jade box to preserve its medicinal properties. It must also be cut with a jade knife."

"Oh, thank you for your advice." Feng Zhiyao put away the dagger, put the blue sky flower back into the box, and said to Leng Haoyu: "Do you have the golden sore medicine? Give him some."

Leng Haoyu raised his eyebrows, silently took out the golden medicine and casually sprinkled some on Mo Jingqi's wound. Mo Jingqi's face turned pale with pain, staring at Feng Zhiyao fiercely and said, "I will never let you go!" Feng Zhiyao sneered, "Instead of threatening us, you might as well think about how you are going to return to the capital. As far as I know, there are many people who don't go back like you. It is said that the Queen Mother has sent someone to send a message to Prince Li, asking Prince Li to come to the capital as soon as possible. It seems that our emperor is also a person who is not loved by his father and mother."

"You!" Mo Jingqi was hit in the sore spot by him, but he could do nothing as he was under someone else's roof.

Feng Zhiyao had no interest in Mo Jingqi's mood. He put away the blue sky flower with satisfaction and raised his chin to Leng Haoyu and said, "He is handed over to you for disposal. Don't rush to send him back, lest we cause trouble before we leave." Leng Haoyu smiled and said, "Are you worried about me doing the job? Go and do your thing." Feng Zhiyao nodded, glanced at Mo Jingqi and smiled, "Since the emperor is so cooperative, how about giving you a piece of news for free?"

Mo Jingqi looked at him coldly, obviously not believing that he would be kind enough to give him any news.

Feng Zhiyao didn't care and smiled, "This is the news about the emperor's trusted and beloved minister, Mr. Tan. It is said that Mr. Tan's original surname is Lin, and his given name is Yuan. He is a descendant of the royal family of the previous dynasty. Your Majesty, what do you think Lin Yuan's wish means? It can't be that he wishes for a long reign and a long life, right?" After saying that, Feng Zhiyao laughed loudly, turned around and walked out, leaving Mo Jingqi's face changing from blue to white.

Feng Zhiyao took Biluohua and retrieved the imperial edict left by Emperor Taizu from the place Su Zuidie mentioned before his death, and then disappeared quietly in the capital. Except for those close to him, outsiders didn't even know that Feng Zhiyao had returned to the capital. Leng Haoyu was not polite either. He locked Mo Jingqi in a small dark room for three whole days. It was not until the morning of the fourth day when he heard that Prince Li was about to enter the capital that he had someone put the sleeping Mo Jingqi in a cloth bag and threw him at the city gate when it was still dark in the morning. From beginning to end, Mo Jingqi didn't even know where he was tied to. And whether it was Feng Zhiyao, Leng Haoyu or Mu Qingcang, it was obvious that Mo Jingqi couldn't remember them, so this time he suffered a loss in vain.

Under the strange looks of the crowd, Mo Jingqi returned to the palace in a rage. He didn't care about the concubines and court officials who came to greet him, and angrily issued several imperial decrees. The first was to hunt down the thieves who dared to kidnap him, regardless of death or injury. The second was to thoroughly investigate all the court officials who had close relations with Tan Jizhi and Tan Jizhi's movements in recent years, and bring Tan Jizhi to justice. The third was to search the Xu family of the Xu family in the capital, the Xu family in Yunzhou, and the distant relatives in Mount Li. Immediately arrest the entire Xu Yushi family and throw them into the sky prison. "

The first two edicts were reasonable, but the third one stirred up a hornet's nest. Prime Minister Liu had just walked out of the palace gate with the imperial edict and the officials and guards who were in charge of confiscating the property, when he saw a commotion at the palace gate. Hundreds of scholars knelt on the ground and cried out in unison for the Xu family. Prime Minister Liu looked around and saw that there were actually many people who were already officials in the court. Although he had known that the Xu family was the leader of the world's literati, Prime Minister Liu had not expected that they would be so popular. It had been less than half an hour since the emperor's edict was issued, and so many people were kneeling in front of the palace. If it was a few more hours later, who knew what would happen. He could not help but feel jealous and hateful. He unfolded the edict in his hand and read the imperial edict at the palace gate. Then the emperor's golden rules could not bury these scholars, and they all refuted it.

In fact, it is not that these literati are fickle, but the emperor's decree is really hard to convince the public. It did not make it clear what the Xu family had done wrong, nor did it say who had done it. Originally, it did not matter whether the emperor's decree could convince the public, because basically not many people dared to disobey the emperor's decree. But the bad thing is that the influence of the Xu family is too great. The Xu family has produced many great Confucian scholars from generation to generation. Even if they cannot be called the most holy teachers, they can be said to be the teachers of most of the literati since the founding of the Chu State. However, there is a very strange kind of literati. They seem to be very soft, unable to lift their hands or shoulders, but sometimes the pride in their bones is surprisingly hard and stubborn. When Prime Minister Liu saw so many people kneeling in front of the palace gate, he knew that things were going to go wrong. The guards following Prime Minister Liu were helpless. Although it was easy for them to deal with these scholars, they could not just touch them. Without the emperor's order, who would dare to touch so many scholars? If so, I'm afraid that half of the country would be in turmoil.

Looking at the people kneeling on the ground in front of him and kowtowing and begging for orders, Prime Minister Liu had no choice but to send someone back to the palace to report to the emperor.

Mo Jingqi was so angry that he almost fainted when he heard the guard's report. He didn't care about the injury on his shoulder and hurried to the palace gate with Concubine Liu. The people in this world are divided into scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans, and scholars are the first. To put it bluntly, the country has been governed by these scholars in all dynasties. If something goes wrong with this group of people, the country will be doomed soon. When Mo Jingqi arrived at the palace gate, it was only two quarters of an hour, and the number of people at the palace gate had more than doubled from the hundreds just now, and it seemed that more people were joining them.

Seeing the emperor come out, the kneeling crowd became even more excited, and shouted one after another, "Please have mercy, please be fair, the Xu family is wronged," etc., making Mo Jingqi, who was already a little weak due to the fear of the past few days, feel dizzy.

"What's going on?!" Mo Jingqi said angrily.

A young man kneeling in the front shouted: "The Xu family has been loyal to the Great Chu since the founding of the country. The ancestors of the Xu family have been teaching and educating people and cultivating talents for the Great Chu. May I ask what crime did the Xu family commit that warrants the confiscation of all their property?"

Mo Jingqi choked for a moment, and his anger grew even stronger. "Xu is guilty of treason, and deserves death! As citizens of the Great Chu, you dare to plead for these traitors?"

Another person in the crowd raised his head and said, "Where is the evidence that Xu is guilty of treason? Your Majesty, please show us!"

Hearing this, all the people kneeling in front of the palace gate shouted, "Your Majesty, please give us your instructions." The meaning was clear. If the emperor could really produce evidence of the Xu family's treason, then they would have nothing to say.

What evidence did Mo Jingqi have? Even the charge he initially gave to the Xu family was not treason. It was just that when these scholars made trouble, Mo Jingqi was so angry that he didn't care about other things and only put the most serious charge on the Xu family. Moreover, if it was said that the Xu family colluded with Prince Ding, the reputation of Prince Ding's mansion among the people was not inferior to that of the Xu family. I'm afraid there would be a lot of trouble.

"How dare you! You guys leave immediately, I will forgive your crime!" Mo Jingqi said.

"Xu is innocent, please judge for yourself, Your Majesty!" These people dared to come to the palace gate to ask for their lives, so how could Mo Jingqi retreat with just two words? The palace gate was in an uproar, and even many ordinary people came in one after another after hearing the news, almost surrounding the entire palace gate. This made it even more difficult to take action.

"Your Majesty! What crime has the Xu family committed that your Majesty wants to confiscate the Xu family?" Just as the noise was going on, a loud voice was suddenly heard, and the crowd made way for them. The old Duke Hua, with his hair and beard all white, came forward with a group of people. Mo Jingqi's face was as black as ink. He stared at the old Duke Hua who was walking like a dragon and a tiger, and cursed him in his heart as an old immortal. Duke Hua came forward, lifted up his clothes, knelt on the ground and said: "The Xu family is loyal and righteous, and Mr. Qingyun is famous in all countries. I don't know what crime the Xu family has committed to make the emperor so angry. Please give me your instructions." Following behind him were some upright officials in the court, and even some powerful members of the royal family and some old ministers of the previous emperor who had been given free time at home. They were all people who had a good relationship with Mr. Qingyun and the Xu family. They all echoed in unison, demanding a clear answer from the emperor.

Mo Jingqi angrily attacked, "The Xu family is plotting treason! Is Duke Hua going to protect these traitors?"

Duke Hua raised his head and said loudly: "If Xu is really plotting treason, I am willing to be a vanguard and personally arrest him and let the emperor punish him. But Your Majesty, where is the evidence?"

Mo Jingqi said: "The Xu family is the maternal ancestor of Mo Xiuyao's wife Ye Li. Mo Xiuyao now occupies the northwest and seems to be an enemy of the imperial court. Shouldn't the Xu family be copied?"

Duke Hua refused to give in and said loudly: "Whether Prince Ding is an enemy of the imperial court is still unknown, but everyone in the world can see clearly that the Xu family has never had close contact with Prince Ding's mansion, and has never said a good word for Prince Ding. It is really hard to convince the public that the emperor wants to confiscate the Xu family, which has cultivated countless talents for the Great Chu, just because of Prince Ding!"

"Duke Hua, you are so insolent!" Mo Jingqi's chest kept rising and falling, and he pointed at Duke Hua and couldn't say a word for a long time. Concubine Liu, who was standing on the side, quickly reached out to support him. Mo Jingqi took a few deep breaths and was about to speak. Suddenly, a eunuch's somewhat sharp voice came from the palace gate, "The Queen Mother is here! The Queen is here!"

Before he could look back, a loud announcement came from the other end of the street, "Grand Princess Fuxi has arrived! Grand Princess Zhaoyang has arrived!" As if God didn't think Mo Jingqi was busy enough, just as he saw the carriages of Grand Princess Fuxi and Grand Princess Zhaoyang approaching slowly, a sound of horse hooves came from another street, and the suspect was none other than Prince Li, Mo Jingli, who had not returned to Beijing for a long time. Mo Jingli jumped off his horse and walked quickly to the palace gate with his men, arriving earlier than the Grand Princess.

"I have met my brother, the Emperor, and I pay my respects to my mother." After completing the ceremony, Mo Jingli stood up and said with a smile, "Why is the palace gate so lively? What are my brother, my mother, my sister-in-law, and so many others doing?"