Wei Ruyan happened to be staying in the Cining Palace that day.
According to Chu Chenmu's plan, if the emperor died suddenly that day, Wei Ruyan would have to guard the empress dowager and wait for Chu Chenmu to enter the harem with his ministers so that the empress dowager could directly announce the decree to allow Chu Chenmu to ascend the throne as emperor.
"My prince! How could he die so suddenly? I want to go to Qingzhu Courtyard."
After the empress dowager fainted, she started crying when she woke up and insisted on going to Qingzhuyuan.
Wei Ruyan sat beside the bed and comforted her, "Your Majesty, please take care of yourself."
The Queen Mother struggled to get up: "The Emperor is dead, the old are sending off the young, what is the point of me living?"
Wei Ruyan held the Empress Dowager in place, "Empress Dowager, please don't get too excited. It's precisely because the Emperor is dead that the Empress Dowager must take care of herself. If the Emperor dies suddenly, the Empress Dowager will have to hold the Qingzhu Court accountable and appoint a new Emperor to succeed her."
When the empress dowager heard this, her mind instantly became clearer. She stared at Wei Ruyan with bloodshot eyes: "I haven't seen the emperor yet. Is the emperor really dead?" She couldn't believe that her emperor was gone just like that. It didn't seem real at all.
Wei Ruyan said confidently, "Empress Dowager, the Emperor is indeed dead. You must hold on and not grieve too much. You are the one who is needed to stabilize the court situation."
The Queen Mother calmed down a bit. She said, "I must see the Emperor's body before I can believe that he is really dead."
Wei Ruyan thought for a moment and ordered the palace servants, "How can the emperor's body be kept in a place like Qingzhu Courtyard? Come! Send the emperor's body to the Qianqing Palace."
She has not yet held the ceremony of being crowned as queen. It can be said that she has not officially entered the temple as queen, and the ministers in the court will not be convinced by her.
According to the original plan, the empress dowager must stay in the Cining Palace or the Qianqing Palace. Once Chu Chenmu arrives, she can force the empress dowager to immediately write an imperial decree to enthrone Chu Chenmu as emperor.
Wei Ruyan hated Yu Jinshu so much that she ordered, "Also, escort Concubine An and Yu Jinshu to the Palace of Heavenly Purity."
Yu Jinshu, your good days are over. I will cut your beautiful flesh into pieces three thousand times to vent my hatred.
Wei Ruyan smiled, and her smile was particularly unrestrained.
She was a little too proud of herself because the Queen Mother was still here.
The Queen Mother looked at Wei Ruyan and asked, "The Emperor has passed away, and you, as the Queen, can still laugh?"
Wei Ruyan realized that she had been careless. Thinking that although the old woman would not be able to remain arrogant for a few hours, she still had to beg her to issue an edict, she hurried to the empress dowager to explain.
"Empress Dowager, you must be too sad to see it wrong. I was not laughing just now. I was just hating Concubine An for having killed the Emperor."
The Queen Mother also wondered if she was seeing things. How could the Queen laugh at this time?
"My son died in Qingzhu Courtyard, and Concubine An deserves death. I must find out how the emperor died out of nowhere."
Wei Ruyan ordered the palace attendants, "Prepare the sedan chair and move to the Ganqing Palace."
But when Wei Ruyan brought the empress dowager to the Qianqing Palace, the emperor's body had not been sent there.
The eunuchs and guards who went to Qingzhuyuan to carry the emperor's body were all Chu Chenmu's men.
"Empress, Concubine An won't allow us to carry the emperor's body to the Palace of Heavenly Purity."
Wei Ruyan said coldly, "Yu Jinshu is so bold. You are also a bunch of useless people. If she doesn't allow you to carry her, you can just go and capture her. But you actually came here empty-handed."
The guards were terrified. "Empress, the Emperor's body is in Concubine An's chamber. There's a vicious dog guarding the door. If we approach, the dog will surely maul us to death."
The guard turned around and gestured, and six bodies were carried up, including two eunuchs and four guards with swords. Without exception, they were all killed by having their necks bitten.
Wei Ruyan was only a teenager after all, and she took several steps back in fear after seeing such a tragic scene.
She just hoped that Chu Chenmu would come to the palace as soon as possible.
"What kind of vicious dog is this? How could it be so powerful? With so many of you, can't you defeat a vicious dog?"
The guard said, "Empress, the Emperor is in his chambers. The windows and door are being guarded by that vicious dog. It's like a dog blocking the way, keeping ten thousand men at bay."
Wei Ruyan asked, "What about the musket?"
The guard frowned: "No muskets allowed in the palace."
Wei Ruyan thought to herself: It seems that we can only wait for Chu Chenmu to come.
The Empress Dowager was waiting in the main hall of the Palace of Heavenly Purity for the Emperor's body to be carried in. When she waited for a long time, she walked out and asked.
Wei Ruyan quickly invited the Queen Mother back into the main hall and patiently reassured her, "Queen Mother, the Emperor's body will be brought here soon. Please don't worry."
The Queen Mother was puzzled: "What happened?"
Wei Ruyan told the truth: "The guards said that Concubine An refused to allow the emperor's body to be carried away, and she even had a vicious dog guarding the door. That vicious dog killed six people."
The Queen Mother was even more puzzled: "Why is there a vicious dog in the palace?"
Wei Ruyan said, "I suspect the emperor was killed by a vicious dog."
The Queen Mother was so distressed when she heard this that she cried so hard that she fainted.
Wei Ruyan had no time to deal with the empress dowager at this time. She took a few people into the study where the emperor handled palace affairs and looked for the imperial seal inside. However, she searched the study thoroughly and did not find the seal.
At this moment, Qingzhuyuan.
Chu Zan was hugging Yu Jinshu and being intimate in the bedroom.
Dahuang looked back at them from time to time, with a very aggrieved look on his face.
It seems to be saying: Can you guys just be quiet? You are so affectionate in front of me, don’t you know I’m single?
But Chu Zan didn't care. He kissed Jinshu on the mouth again, then looked at Dahuang who was sticking out her tongue at him and made a few faces.
The emperor making a face!
Yu Jinshu found it very interesting, but it was too distracting!
However, they had to be careful not to make any noise, lest anyone hear the deceased emperor jumping around and playing naughty things in his bedroom.
Outside the imperial city, Chu Chenmu's 20,000 soldiers had gathered at the palace gate.
The guards of this palace gate were Chu Chenmu's men, and anyone who did not belong to him was killed by Chu Chenmu's men.
"Soldiers, obey my orders and follow me into the palace. When I ascend the throne, I will surely grant you promotions and honors."
Chu Chenmu's words made the 20,000 soldiers excited.
The palace gate opened, and thousands of soldiers led the way in. But before they had taken a few steps, the sound of arrows whizzed by, and one after another, iron arrows as hard as stone pierced their bodies.
"Oh no, there's an ambush."
Several ministers suddenly became panicked.
Chu Chenmu also realized that something was wrong, and quickly drew his sword, shouting, "Kill them!"
But as batch after batch of soldiers were shot to death by iron arrows, Chu Chenmu realized that it was impossible to enter the palace.
Several ministers turned their horses around in panic.
"Retreat quickly, the emperor's death is fake news."
The emperor must not be dead. If he was dead, why would there be so many archers ambushing in the palace?
But Chu Chenmu was unwilling to retreat like this, and kept shouting "Charge into the palace", causing heavy casualties among the soldiers.
One of his men was shot by an arrow and retreated, shouting: "King Xiang, we can't get into the palace, let's retreat quickly! As long as we have the green mountains, we will have firewood..." Before he finished speaking, he fell off his horse and died.
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