mutiny
At this time, Zhao Gou had also fled to Hangzhou. He had just settled down here and had not yet had time to catch his breath when a catastrophe quietly arrived.
One day, he sailed to Chuzhou. After reviewing the memorials, it was already three o'clock in the morning when he suddenly heard a commotion outside the cabin. In the dark night, he could see flickering lights, as if many torches were approaching.
He walked out of the cabin, but saw that the people surrounding the imperial boat were actually the imperial army guarding the emperor. All the soldiers were fully armed, holding swords in one hand and torches in the other, and looked at him with provocative expressions.
Zhao Gou glanced at everyone and said, "What do you want to do?"
When Miao Fu saw Zhao Gou, he still knelt down in front of him according to etiquette and shouted "Long live Zhao Gou" three times. Zhao Gou was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he saw Miao Fu looking up and glaring at him coldly, and loudly scolded him: "Your Majesty has favored eunuchs since you ascended the throne. You don't reward the military merits of the soldiers, but those favored by the eunuchs can get high positions. Wang Boyan, Huang Qianshan and others are incompetent and have harmed the country but have not been punished. Wang Yuan did not resist the enemy, but became a high-ranking official in the Privy Council because of his friendship with Kang Lu. I have made many contributions myself, but I can only starve in the remote mountainous area. But now, I have killed Wang Yuan and all the eunuchs in Kang Lu's mansion. Now I ask you to hand over Kang Lu, Lan Gui, Zeng Ze and other eunuchs. I will help you kill them, and then apologize to the three armies."
Kang Lu and Lan Gui were old eunuchs who had served Zhao Gou for many years. In their early years, they worked in the pavilion of Zhao Gou's mother, Concubine Wei. After Zhao Gou was crowned and moved out of town, they followed Zhao Gou to the Kangwang Palace as chief eunuchs. After Zhao Gou became emperor, they were promoted to the chief eunuchs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and were deeply trusted by Zhao Gou. Relying on Zhao Gou's favor, they behaved more arrogantly and did not take other people seriously.
Despite the soldiers' warnings, Kang Lu and Lan Gui shot ducks for fun while fleeing. After arriving in Hangzhou, they set up their tent in a prominent spot on the roadside to watch the Qiantang River tide. The soldiers could only stand by, starving, and watch them sit in their tents admiring the view, which thoroughly infuriated them.
This time, Zhao Gou promoted Wang Yuan, who was friends with the eunuch Kang Lu, to be a co-signer of the Privy Council, so Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan decided to take the risk to rebel against Zhao Gou.
After hearing the requests of Miao and Liu, the expression on Zhao Gou's face froze instantly. He did not agree immediately. If he agreed immediately, wouldn't it encourage the arrogance of Miao, Liu and others, and he would lose face as an emperor.
Zhao Gou forced himself to maintain his composure and said, "The eunuch has committed a crime and can be exiled to an island. You can return to the camp with the other soldiers."
Miao and Liu ignored them. "Today's events were orchestrated by me alone. No one else has anything to do with them. For the sake of the people of the world, I urge Your Majesty to kill all the eunuchs who are endangering the country. Otherwise, we will not leave."
Zhao Gou had no choice but to appease them, saying, "I know you are loyal and righteous men. I will now appoint your Miao Fu as the Qingyuan Army's envoy and commander-in-chief of the Imperial Camp, and Liu Zhengyan as the Weizhou Observation Envoy and deputy commander-in-chief. The rest of the officers and soldiers will be acquitted. What do you think?"
Miao Fu sneered at this and said, "If we are just looking for promotion, then we can just make friends with the eunuchs instead of coming here."
Zhao Gou's face turned red when he heard this. If he handed over the people around him because of the threats from Miao and Liu, who would take him seriously in the future?
The accompanying officials immediately advised: "Kang Lu is just a eunuch, why does Your Majesty care so much about him?"
Zhao Gou then ordered Kang Lu to be handed over to the rebels.
Kang Lu was then ordered by Liu Miao and the others to be beheaded, and his head was hung on the city wall facing Wang Yuan's head.
Seeing that Kang Lu was dead, Zhao Gou breathed a sigh of relief and ordered Miao and Liu to leave.
Unexpectedly, Miao and Liu became even more angry and said rudely: "Your Majesty, you should not inherit the throne. If Emperor Yuansheng returns, I don't know what you will do with him."
Zhao Gou was speechless when questioned in this way, so he ordered Prime Minister Zhu Shengfei to go downstairs to persuade him tactfully.
Miao and Liu claimed that Zhao Gou was incompetent in governing the country and that the Queen Mother Meng should be sent to take care of the government. Then envoys should be sent to make peace with the Jin people and welcome back the two emperors.
Zhao Gou immediately issued an order: "Empress Dowager Meng, please be merciful and listen to my administration. Together with me, you will handle military and national affairs."
Miao and Liu refused to accept the order, saying, "Your Majesty should not continue to sit on the throne. There is now a crown prince to be appointed, not to mention the precedent of Emperor Daojun abdicating the throne."
Empress Dowager Meng was invited out of the city to meet the rebels. Upon meeting her, Miao and Liu bowed deeply and said, "The world is in chaos and the people are suffering. We would like to ask the Empress Dowager to step forward and take charge of the government."
Meng said solemnly, "The current emperor is still wise, but he was misled by Huang Qianshan and Wang Boyan. Now they have been dismissed, and they have done nothing wrong."
Miao and Liu remained unmoved and still insisted on forcing Zhao Gou to abdicate and enthroning the crown prince as emperor.
Miao and Liu threatened to die, saying, "If the Queen Mother doesn't agree, we will both commit suicide on the spot. Then, there's no telling what the army behind us might do when no one is restraining us."
Upon hearing this, the Queen Mother shed tears and shook her head, still refusing to agree.
Zhao Gou sighed lightly, ordered his men to take out pen and ink, and wrote the abdication edict. Afterwards, he was forced to move to Xianning Temple, leaving only fifteen eunuchs to take care of him.
At this time, Liang Hongyu also arrived in Hangzhou. When she heard about the Miao-Liu mutiny, she immediately sent Qiu Feng to inform Han Shizhong, who was stationed in Yangzhou, to lead his troops to defend the king.
Qiu Feng galloped for a whole day and night, finally arriving in Xiuzhou. Upon seeing Han Shizhong, Qiu Feng collapsed to the ground in exhaustion, using her last bit of strength to speak: "General Han, Miao and Liu mutinied in Hangzhou, forcing the emperor to abdicate."
Han Shizhong immediately went over to help Qiu Feng up, let her sit at the table, and ordered someone to bring Qiu Feng a cup of tea.
"Your daughter sent you here," Han Shizhong said as he looked at Qiu Feng who drank the tea in one gulp.
"Yes, General, if you don't go quickly, my girl will have to go and save the emperor by herself." Qiu Feng said, looking into Han Shizhong's eyes.
"How can she go to rescue him alone?" Han Shizhong never expected that Liang Hongyu, a woman, would be so bold.
"Miss, you have your own way." Qiu Feng said and rode away.
Looking at Qiu Feng's receding back, Han Shizhong had not yet recovered from his daze. What kind of woman was this? She had just escaped from the mire of the brothel, but now she was caught up in the storm of war. He was becoming more and more unable to understand this woman. What he hoped more was that she would live a safe and smooth life.
After Qiu Feng left, Han Shizhong was afraid that Miao and Liu would become desperate, so he reorganized his troops and rushed to Xiuzhou to occupy the grain road, waiting for all the troops to arrive before taking action together.
After he arrived in Xiuzhou, he claimed to be ill and stopped moving forward, where he overhauled his war equipment.
Miao and Liu were shocked and frightened, worried that Han Shizhong would take the opportunity to cause trouble.
Someone advised them, "I see that Han Shizhong is particularly fond of a woman and has placed her in a mansion in Hangzhou. I'm afraid they have a close relationship. Why don't you use the woman as a hostage to force Han Shizhong to withdraw his troops?"
Miao and Liu were delighted when they heard this and said, "Quickly tie up that woman and bring her to me."
Liang Hongyu asked Qiu Feng to inquire about the residence where Zhao Gou was being held. She learned that Zhao Gou was sent to Xianning Temple for custody. She was about to go to Xianning Temple alone to rescue Zhao Gou, but she didn't expect that as soon as she went out, she was targeted by someone. She quickly walked to the depths of an alley and was knocked unconscious and sent here.
Liang Hongyu was tied up by Miao Fu's men and brought to Miao Fu.
Miao Fu looked at the kidnapped woman, who had a fair face, a graceful figure, and an extraordinary demeanor. He thought: With such a woman by his side, it is no wonder that even Han Shizhong, who was so brave and known as the "enemy of ten thousand men", could not resist the temptation of a beautiful woman. With her in his hands, Han Shizhong would surely be afraid to act rashly.
Liang Hongyu stared at the person in front of her and said, "Who are you and what do you want?"
Master Miao ordered his men, "How can you be so rude to a weak woman? Come and untie this woman."
Upon hearing this, the men immediately untied the ropes. Miao Fu walked up to her and said, "I know that you are someone General Han cares about, so I invite you to be his guest."
Liang Hongyu understood the meaning of his words. He was going to use her as a hostage to threaten General Han! This person must be Miao Fu.
So he said, "I suppose you must be General Miao. I heard General Han say that you were dissatisfied with Zhao Gou appointing Wang Yuan as Privy Councilor, so you stood up for the soldiers and forced them to abdicate. You are a righteous man!"
Miao Fu was shocked when he heard this and said, "General Han really said so."
Liang Hongyu said, "If I lie to you in any way, I will die a miserable death!"
Seeing that she spoke so confidently, Miao Fu almost believed it.
Liang Hongyu continued, "General Han has actually been harboring rebellious intentions for a long time, but he's just been lacking the opportunity. If the general is willing to let me deliver a letter to him, he will probably follow you."
"this……"
Seeing that Miao Fu still had doubts, Liang Hongyu continued, "General, if you don't believe me, you can send someone to go with me. You can also write a letter for me to give to General Han."
Liang Hongyu's words completely dispelled Miao Fu's concerns. He immediately wrote a letter and handed it to Liang Hongyu, and sent two soldiers to go with her.
Liang Hongyu rode her horse with the two soldiers to Xiuzhou. Halfway through, Liang Hongyu suddenly stopped. One of the soldiers asked, "Young lady, why don't you go?"
Just as he finished speaking, a sharp and shiny sword suddenly pointed at his throat. The sharp blade cut his throat, blood gushed out, and the man died instantly and fell off the horse.
Seeing this, another soldier immediately drew his sword, but was also killed by Liang Hongyu's sword.
After Liang Hongyu dealt with the two men, she immediately rode to Xiuzhou and asked Han Shizhong to come to the rescue as soon as possible.
Han Shizhong had received a letter from Miao and Liu the previous day, informing him that they had kidnapped Liang Hongyu and warning him not to act rashly, lest Liang Hongyu be killed. Unexpectedly, Liang Hongyu had escaped the next day. Hearing about her escape, Han Shizhong was even more impressed.
Liang Hongyu said, "If the general trusts me, please lend me a hundred soldiers first. I will go to Xianning Temple to rescue the emperor first, in case Miao and Liu become desperate and take the emperor hostage to threaten the general."
Han Shizhong was secretly surprised when he heard this and asked, "Are you sure, young lady?"
Liang Hongyu knew he didn't believe her, so she said, "If not, the troops supporting the emperor are already rushing to Hangzhou. If Miao and Liu become afraid and desperate, they will kill the emperor. The world will be in chaos. The Jin army will then invade our Song Dynasty like it's entering an empty land, and we will all become prisoners of the Jin army."
"General, why don't you let me give it a try?" Liang Hongyu looked into Han Shizhong's eyes and pleaded.
Han Shizhong felt that Liang Hongyu's words made sense, so he decided to let her give it a try and see what she was capable of.
So she selected a hundred elite soldiers to go with her first, while he reorganized his troops and rushed to Xiuzhou.
After Miao and Liu heard that Liang Hongyu went to Xiuzhou, Han Shizhong not only did not send a letter, but instead led his troops to Hangzhou immediately. Knowing that they had been tricked by Liang Hongyu, they could not help but feel extremely regretful and had to discuss their next course of action.
Most of the soldiers who followed them in the rebellion have already regretted their actions. Now they see that Miao and Liu were being fooled by a woman. They know that they are really stupid people. If they continue to follow them, they will only be killed as rebels. After their death, their families will also be implicated by them and looked down upon.
Someone stepped forward and suggested, "This mutiny was forced by a few eunuchs, not our own will. If we allow Zhao Gou to return to the throne, perhaps he will show some mercy. If we confront the loyalist forces head-on, it will be like hitting a rock with an egg, and we will definitely be strangled by them."
Miao and Liu felt that things had come to this point, and with their limited military forces they would definitely not be able to compete with Han Shizhong and his men. It would be better to do as he said and restore Zhao Gou to the throne.
They invited Zhu Shengfei and asked him to persuade Queen Mother Meng to write an edict not to pursue them. They would then restore Zhao Gou to the throne and asked Zhu Shengfei to tell Zhao Gou that they would go to apologize.
At this time, Liang Hongyu had arrived outside Xianning Temple. She quickly dealt with several guards and went to where Zhao Gou lived.
Zhao Gou was praying to Buddha with sincerity, hoping that the rebels would attack smoothly, but he saw a group of people breaking into the hall and killing the guards with their own hands. He was shocked. Could it be that Miao and Liu were going to get rid of him now?
Just as he was feeling anxious, he saw a woman in red dressed as a knight-errant kneeling down to greet him. "I am Liang Hongyu, a commoner, and I am here to take you back to the palace."
Before Zhao Gou could recover from his shock, he was taken to the Ruisheng Palace. After the woman said goodbye to him, she led her troops away.
Miao and Liu knew that they had committed a serious crime, so they were trembling with fear all the way to the Ruisheng Palace. When they arrived outside the palace gate, the sun had already set.
Unexpectedly, Zhao Gou was sitting in the main hall waiting. When he saw them, he said to them with a smile: "It's been a long time since we last met. How are you, my dear ministers?"
Upon hearing this, Miao and Liu were so frightened that they fell to their knees in front of the palace and begged, "We were blinded by greed and forgot that the emperor would spare our lives for the sake of our loyalty to the Song Dynasty for so many years."
Zhao Gou sneered and said, "You must be mistaken. I am the emperor."
Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan immediately took out the imperial seal, knelt on the ground and kowtowed respectfully, saying, "Please restore the emperor and preside over the overall situation."
Zhao Gou sneered again: "This seems to be against etiquette."
Miao and Liu had no choice but to lead all the officials to the Ruisheng Palace to pay homage to Zhao Gou and ask him to restore him to the throne.
After Zhao Gou was restored to the throne, he immediately rewarded those who had made contributions to the country.
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