Chapter 1166 Rumors
In the morning, the first rays of light appeared on the horizon.
As soon as the gates of Peking were opened, people were already lining up to leave the city.
Normally, the city gate wouldn't be too crowded at this early hour, but starting from the past two days, patrols in the city have been stepped up, and even leaving the city is much stricter than usual. Everyone has to be questioned, and their vehicles have to be inspected.
So, long queues formed at the city gate early in the morning.
Soon the sun came out.
The city gate was illuminated, and one could see anxious expressions on the faces of the people queuing up. Teahouses on the street were also set up, and the people sitting in them drinking tea looked leisurely, chatting and talking about everything.
At this time, a carriage slowly drove up from the avenue.
The carriage was spacious and comfortable, and one could tell at a glance that the person sitting inside must be either rich or noble, so people on both sides of the avenue stepped aside. However, when they got closer to the city gate, the people there were queuing, and they really couldn't step aside.
The carriage stopped.
An old and steady voice came from the carriage: "What's going on?"
The attendant sitting in the front of the carriage looked ahead and said, "Duke, it's the people coming and going at the city gate who are checking and questioning them."
"oh?"
The people inside stopped talking.
The attendant jumped down from the carriage and said, "Please wait a moment, my lord. I will go and tell them right away."
Obviously, the goal was to get past these people and leave the city early.
"Hey," the person in the car said, "Don't be anxious, we are not in a hurry."
“…”
"Besides, let's not argue anymore at this time."
The servant was a little surprised when he heard this, and stared at the carriage with wide eyes, where even the curtains were not moved.
Then he said, "Yes."
So the carriage followed the team in front, moving forward little by little, and just moved next to the teahouse.
Inside the teahouse, a few people who looked idle were bragging.
After chatting about all sorts of things for a while, someone suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Do you know that Prince Ning is dead?"
Someone nearby said, "Who doesn't know this?"
"Then do you know who killed Prince Ning?"
"He was rebelling, so who else could have killed him? Of course, the emperor ordered it."
"You're wrong," the man said mysteriously, leaning forward and saying, "I tell you, it wasn't the Emperor who ordered him to be killed. It was the Emperor himself who killed him!"
"What?!"
Everyone was stunned.
Someone immediately said, "How is this possible? They were brothers. Even if rebellion is a serious crime, the emperor can't kill his own brother with his own hands."
The man sneered and said, "You don't understand this. It wasn't rebellion that put Prince Ning to death. Think about it, a few years ago, Prince Jing also rebelled on the border of Yongzhou, but he's still imprisoned. The emperor didn't kill him for all these years. Why was Prince Ning executed just a few days after he was captured when he rebelled this time?"
Everyone was also interested at this moment, and hurriedly asked, "Why, why?"
"Because—"
The man looked around, then put his hand to his mouth and said in a low voice, but just loud enough for everyone to hear, "Because the banner under which Prince Ning rebelled this time is - orthodoxy."
"Orthodox? What do you mean? Isn't the emperor orthodox?"
"That's right. Even if the emperor's throne was seized, he is still the son of Emperor Gao."
The man said, “That’s the problem.”
He lowered his voice and said, "I heard that on the first day the emperor moved the capital, during the sacrifice at the grand altar, Prince Ning proposed that the emperor was not born to the late Empress Chen."
"What?!"
There was an uproar all around.
Everyone opened their eyes wide, staring at the man in disbelief. The man continued, "This time, Prince Ning rebelled and was killed. It is said that this is also the reason. There are reports from Changqing City, Hecheng, and the court that the current emperor is not only not the son of the late Empress Chen, but he is not even a high--"
At this point, the owner of the teahouse came over and said, "Don't talk nonsense, or you'll get your head chopped off!"
The man sneered: "What are you afraid of? Now everyone knows about this."
"Really?"
"If you don't believe me, go into the city and see for yourself; people are talking about it everywhere."
"Who said this? Is it credible?"
"I heard that it was spread from the court. Otherwise, how would we know that Prince Ning was killed by the emperor himself?"
The man described it vividly, and the people around him were skeptical and talked about it.
A gentle breeze blew, causing the curtains on the car windows to sway continuously.
At this moment, a hand stretched out from inside and pushed the curtain down. Although the curtain was pushed down, it could not cover up a light laugh coming from inside the car.
The team in front finally began to move, and the carriage also drove forward.
After a while, the carriage arrived at the city gate. When the soldiers guarding the city saw the carriage, they realized that an important person had arrived and hurriedly surrounded it.
"Who's in the car?"
"Get out of the car and be inspected."
The attendant sitting on the carriage was furious when he heard this. He said, "How dare you! Do you know who is in the carriage?"
One of the soldiers guarding the city was relatively young and didn't know the seriousness of the situation. He said directly, "Who cares who you are? We've been ordered to check here. No matter who you are, get out of the car!"
"you--"
Just as they were about to quarrel, an old voice came from the carriage: "Don't make trouble."
Everyone looked up and saw that the curtain of the carriage was lifted slightly by a hand, revealing a wrinkled face. It was Duke Chengguo Wu Yingqiu!
"Duke?!"
When the soldiers guarding the city saw him, they were stunned and knelt down hurriedly: "Greetings, Duke."
"No need to be so polite."
Wu Yingqiu looked at them with a smile and said, "Do you want to check me?"
The soldier was also straightforward. He knelt on the ground and said, "Please forgive me, Duke. We have been ordered to guard the city. Anyone entering or leaving the city will be checked."
The attendant beside him immediately flew into a rage, pointing at him and angrily shouting, "How dare you even check the Duke's carriage? Do you know that during Prince Ning's rebellion, the Duke's meritorious service in protecting the Emperor was so great that even the Emperor praised him and granted him free access to the Imperial Palace? The Duke even has free access to the Imperial Palace, and how dare you, a mere city gate guard, question him?!"
The soldier's face turned red after he was rebuked by him.
At this time, the leader of the guards came forward and said with a smile, "Everyone knows that the Duke is loyal and righteous. We can't find anyone else who can lead us to him. Let him go, let him go!"
Everyone hurriedly backed away.
Wu Yingqiu said with a smile: "Then I will leave. If there is the person you are looking for in this carriage, you will not be able to find him."
The leading soldier said with a smile: "The Duke is joking."
Only then did Wu Yingqiu lower the curtain.
The carriage swayed as it passed in front of those people, and soon disappeared outside the city gate.
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