The main hall was in an uproar. The crowd had split into two factions: one on Fupei's side and the other on Heshen's side.
Qingyu looked at the fat, bloated chief minister and chuckled softly, "Oh, so this is Heshen, the biggest corrupt official in the Qing Dynasty!"
She then slowly walked into the hall, giving Heshen a cold glare.
Heshen did not restrain himself because of Qingyu's arrival. Instead, he looked back at Qingyu with a mocking smile and said, "Your Majesty, this is the imperial court, not a place for a woman from the inner palace like you."
"Who do you think you are?" Qingyu retorted without any politeness. Looking at Heshen's greasy face, which was full of fawning, she felt disgusted and wanted to vomit.
Perhaps because Qingyu was not favored, Heshen still did not take her seriously and continued to mock her: "I may be worthless, but it is an ancestral rule that the empress should not interfere in politics. Does Your Majesty wish to defy the rules, interfere in court affairs, and follow in the footsteps of Empress Lü Zetian?"
Qingyu wouldn't fly into a rage because of his words. She chuckled and said, "Unfortunately, I don't have their intelligence and ambition, and neither do you."
"You..." Heshen was speechless after being confronted, and then asked, "What brings Your Majesty the Empress to court today?"
Now we're finally getting to the point.
Qingyu did not answer him immediately, but instead asked, "Lord He, if your mansion were to catch fire right now, would you wait for the servants to report it before ordering them to put out the fire, or would you order the servants to put out the fire first?"
"Of course, we should put out the fire first. If we wait for your orders, the mansion will be burned down." Heshen replied without hesitation. Only after he finished answering did he realize that he had been tricked by Qingyu, and he hurriedly covered his mouth.
"Heh!" Qingyu sneered, "As expected, as long as it doesn't involve their own interests, they can remain indifferent."
Her expression turned serious, and she no longer spoke kindly to Heshen, saying, "You can't even wait for the fire to start, do you think the people of Tibet can wait?"
"minister…"
Before he could finish speaking, Qingyu raised her voice and said to the ministers who had just refuted Fupei, "If you insist on waiting for the Emperor's reply before sending troops, I might as well grant your families a trip to Tibet first, so that they can enjoy the beautiful scenery of Tibet."
"Your subject dares not..."
Apart from Heshen, all the court officials knelt down. Sure enough, they only knew the pain when the rod was on their own bodies.
"So you no longer object to the prince's immediate expedition?" Qingyu asked, raising an eyebrow.
The courtiers nodded like chickens pecking at rice. "Your Majesty the Empress is right. The people are the most important, and we cannot delay for even a moment."
Hearing that they no longer objected, Qingyu nodded in satisfaction.
But Heshen, as Hongli's number one sycophant, would not agree so quickly. He angrily pointed at Qingyu and said, "Your Majesty, if you want to die, no one will stop you. But if you do this today, when the Emperor returns, he will be furious and it will surely bring disaster to others. We don't want to die yet."
Qingyu smiled calmly, showing no fear of his accusations. She simply stared at him coldly and said, "I will bear all the consequences. It has nothing to do with the prince, let alone you. When the emperor returns, you can say that I insisted on doing this and that you have done your best to stop it."
Upon hearing this, Fu Pei immediately shook his head. As a grown man, how could he blame a weak woman for this?
Just as he was about to speak, the quick-witted Heshen preemptively said, "Since the Empress has said so, then we shall obey the Empress's decree."
"Good!" Qingyu nodded in satisfaction, then raised her chin and solemnly instructed Fupei, "I want you to prepare the army and depart immediately without delay!"
"Yes!" Since that was the case, Fu Pei could only accept the order.
Having achieved her goal, Qingyu left the court with satisfaction.
When she returned to Kunning Palace, Yongji had been waiting for her for a long time. As soon as she returned, Yongji asked anxiously, "Well, did Heshen and those old ministers agree?"
Qingyu nodded slightly.
Seeing this, Yongji finally breathed a sigh of relief. He stepped forward, took Qingyu's slender hand, and praised her, "Your Majesty is truly amazing. Your sixth uncle argued with them all morning but still couldn't persuade them. You succeeded as soon as you went."
Qingyu smiled helplessly. She knew that making this decision would have serious consequences. Looking at Yongji, she wanted to say something, but didn't know how, since Yongji was still so young.
But Yongji seemed to know what was on her mind, and he knelt down and said, "Your subject has one more thing to ask of Your Majesty."
"What is it?" Qingyu asked gently.
Yongji raised his eyes and said, "Your Majesty, I humbly request that you allow me to go to the battlefield with my sixth uncle."
Qingyu was slightly taken aback, "You..."
This is such a coincidence, and that's what she thought too.
Although the battlefield is blind, everything is straightforward, much better than the intrigues and schemes in the palace.
Moreover, she has interfered in politics today, and if Yongji does not leave, he will definitely be affected by her.
"Your Majesty, please grant my request. I have grown up now," Yongji pleaded earnestly, assuming that Qingyu's silence meant she disagreed.
Looking at her well-behaved and sensible son, Qingyu nodded.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Yongji stood up happily. "Your son will go and tell Sixth Uncle to wait for me."
After saying that, he quickly left.
Watching Yongji's retreating figure, Qingyu smiled with a sense of relief.
After Yongji left, Qingyu sat in the main seat, thought for a moment, and then asked Rongyun to grind ink and write.
Once the ink was dry, she put the note into an envelope and instructed Rong Yun, "After the Emperor returns, you must personally go to Tibet and deliver this letter to Yongji."
She needs to be fully prepared, otherwise the mission will fail.
Rong Yun didn't understand, but she nodded and accepted the envelope.
Just as she finished doing these things, there was a knock on the door.
Immediately, an aged voice rang out, "Your Majesty the Empress, the Empress Dowager requests that you go to Cining Palace alone."
Qingyu knew what it was about, of course. She didn't say much, but nodded and said, "I understand. I'll change my clothes and go right away."
He turned around, walked to his bedchamber, and randomly picked out a piece of clothing.
Rong Yun's heart was pounding. She was very worried. While helping Qingyu put on her clothes, she asked, "Why does the Empress Dowager only want you to go alone?"
Qingyu remained unfazed and smiled faintly, saying, "It's nothing, it must be about my trip to court today."
She knew that this Empress Dowager was not Zhen Huan and could not possibly have so much foresight. Her visit there was nothing more than an attempt to punish her.
However, since I've already decided to go, I won't regret it.
After Qingyu finished dressing, she went out with the old woman at the door and headed towards Cining Palace. Rongyun was left alone, pacing back and forth in the room with worry.
As soon as he stepped into the palace gate, he saw the Empress Dowager sitting in the main seat, her face gloomy and her eyes sharp as she stared at him.
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