"By the providence of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims...Mr. Chu is a virtuous and kind-hearted woman, both beautiful and intelligent...I hereby invite her into the palace and confer the title of Consort Chu...I decree this."
The hall was so silent that you could hear a pin drop, and the candlelight was swaying and twisting in the wind.
The eunuch delivering the imperial edict felt his scalp tingle from being stared at, but he still looked at Xihe with a dry smile: "Empress Chu, His Majesty has longed for you for a long time. When you enter the palace, he will definitely... uh." He fell to the ground with a bang, his eyes staring at the night sky.
Fang Qinglin put away his sword, looked at everyone, and smiled gently: "Please continue."
Everyone present was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter and raised their glasses to drink: "Yes, yes, come on, let's drink!" The whole hall was filled with laughter and no one took it seriously.
In his heart, he could not help but complain: Is this old emperor crazy? How dare he humiliate the Lord and Fang Wuxia?
This imperial edict not only did not mention that Chu Shishi had already been married, but also ignored Chu Shishi's ability to drive out the Tatars and fight against Luo Cheng and Cui Pingyang. A mere Concubine Chu wanted to bring her into the palace. She really thought highly of herself.
It was already a light punishment for Fang Wuxia to kill only the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict. Just wait, this matter is not over yet.
-
The next day, the news that the emperor had decreed that Naxihe be his concubine spread quickly, and it was also known to everyone in the court and the country that Fang Qinglin had beheaded the eunuch who delivered the decree with a sword.
Some ministers in the court were so angry that they beat their chests and stamped their feet, cursing which idiot came up with this idea? Do you think they can't die quickly enough?
There were also those who were conceited and disdainful. No matter how capable Chu Shishi was, she was still a woman. Why would she be unhappy about entering the palace and enjoying wealth and glory? If His Majesty issued an imperial decree, she would be so overjoyed.
Your Majesty is indeed wise. He surrendered their powerful enemy without any effort!
However, one day passed, then two days passed, and Chu Shishi still did not enter the palace. Instead, the people's complaints grew louder and louder.
"What are those people making a fuss outside?" Jingzhao Yin asked angrily. The noise was so loud that it hurt his ears.
The constable came in and replied, "Your Excellency, the people outside the gate think that the taxes are too heavy and they can't make ends meet. They are dissatisfied, so..."
Jingzhao Yin threw his brush and said, "What a bunch of unruly people! I think they're just living too well and looking for trouble! Arrest them all!"
The constable went out in response. After a while, the noisy sounds outside the mansion gate disappeared. The Jingzhao Yin's frown finally relaxed. He sat on the armchair and picked up the pen again, writing slowly.
Unexpectedly, the matter was not over yet. Within two days, more people came to beat drums to complain and demand an explanation.
The Jingzhao Yin was very angry and detained the person again. However, a few days later, someone else... The people were outraged and the situation became more and more serious, even a riot broke out, and several people died.
At this moment, the people in the capital city instantly exploded and knelt outside the Meridian Gate to beg the emperor to intervene.
The old emperor waited for a long time but still did not see Xihe enter the palace. He was already filled with anger. Upon hearing this, he directly issued an order: "Behead him."
The old minister could not bear it and advised: "Your Majesty, in the past two years, natural disasters and wars have continued throughout the country. The people are unable to make ends meet and have no surplus grain to hand over. Why not wait a little longer..."
The old emperor suddenly glared at him, his eyes devouring him, and the old minister was speechless.
The old emperor's eyes were gloomy: "I say, chop it off!"
The old minister frowned instantly. With Your Majesty like this, how can the people live?
He opened his mouth to speak again, but the Left Prime Minister said with a smile, "Your Majesty, please do not be angry. This matter is due to the Jingzhao Yin's negligence. I will let him atone for his sins."
The sun was already shining directly above people's heads outside the Meridian Gate. The scorching sun made people dizzy and shaky.
At this moment, the palace gates finally opened. The people were startled and looked over expectantly, only to see a eunuch holding a whisk walk out. He stood not far from them and covered his nose with disgust. "Your Majesty has decreed that these unruly people have evil intentions and intend to rebel. Kill them."
The people who just wanted an explanation were shocked and their faces turned pale.
"Eunuch, we are wronged. We are just ordinary people. We are not rebelling. We are just unable to make ends meet due to the heavy taxes. That is why we come to see Your Majesty."
"Yes, yes, sir, please understand, we are all good people, we..."
"Why don't you do it?"
At the command, the constable with a sword at his waist stepped forward with a serious face.
He grabbed a few of the people who were shouting the loudest, dragged them onto the stage like dead dogs, took a look below, and chopped them down with his knife.
Gululu, a huge head rolled down from the stage, and blood spread all over the ground.
It was silent outside the Meridian Gate, and the scorching sun was getting increasingly scorching.
The people stared at what they saw with their mouths open in disbelief.
The father-in-law snorted coldly: "If you make trouble again, this will be the end!"
He glanced at this group of lowly people with disdain, turned around and left, flicking his whisk.
"Damn you, you dog official! I'm going to fight you!"
With a loud shout, a man in the crowd suddenly rushed forward.
The eunuch was startled and hid behind the guard in panic, pointing at him and saying, "Quick, kill him!"
“…”
It is said that on that day, blood flowed like a river outside the Meridian Gate and there were wailing sounds.
Xihe looked at the news in his hands and his face darkened. This group of people were becoming more and more excessive.
Liu Yurong was equally furious: "They simply don't treat the people as human beings! The taxes are so heavy every year, and this year they're going to increase them by 10%. Aren't they forcing the people to die? They killed so many people just for asking for an explanation. Do they have any humanity left?"
Chen Yunzhuang was thoughtful: "I think their move might be targeting us."
Everyone looked at her. Shen Yunzhuang frowned. "Your Majesty didn't accept the old emperor's order some time ago. It's obvious that the two sides have torn their relations apart and struggle is inevitable. Although the old emperor is confused and the Ming Dynasty is in chaos due to internal strife, there are also some smart people. Perhaps the increase in taxes is just to deal with us."
Although Chen Yunzhuang is a woman, her wisdom and strategy are no less than men's, and she is Xihe's right-hand man.
Everyone's expression changed instantly: "This old emperor is so cunning! Your Majesty, should we wait any longer? Or why not just attack the capital?"
Everyone in this room had long been dissatisfied with the old emperor, not to mention that the old guy wanted the monarch to be his Chu concubine! Bah, they weren't even dead yet, and they dared to attack their monarch's main thing, simply not taking them seriously.
He was rubbing his hands in anticipation, wishing he could rush into the palace and kill the old emperor right now.
Xihe glanced at the excited crowd and shook his head: "No rush, the time is not right yet."
Everyone was immediately dismayed, but the emperor had his own ambitions and would definitely not let the old emperor get away with it.
In the following days, the world was divided into two. Xihe occupied the entire west and southwest, and the old emperor still occupied most of the fertile and rich land. Both sides temporarily kept their troops in place.
Xihe had experience, so everything developed in an orderly manner. However, the old emperor's side was increasingly in chaos, with uprisings constantly occurring.
Another spring, Xihe just came back from the fields, and was talking to the old farmer in charge of agriculture and sericulture while walking. A big black dog with smooth fur ran away and near happily, and a subordinate hurried over to hand her a piece of letter: 'The old emperor is in danger, several princes are fighting for power, and Wu Yan attacked the city gate at night.'
Xihe smiled and looked up at the sky: The time has come.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
