If Nangong Yi still felt that the previous events were under his control, the arrival of the Queen completely shattered his luck.
The weight of the empress and the imperial concubine is different. No matter how noble the imperial concubine is, she is still not as noble as the empress. The empress is the original wife and is almost considered half of the emperor, so what she says is much more credible.
The queen glanced at Lan Shuang and nodded, then looked up at Nangong Yi. Their eyes met and everything had changed.
She and Nangong Yi were childhood sweethearts, having known each other since childhood. She was very content and happy to marry him. She had seen marriages without love, and she felt even luckier, so she tried her best to help him, support him in ascending the throne, and clear obstacles for him. Unexpectedly, in just a few years, she became an obstacle to him.
Before she opened her mouth, she shed a tear. This tear was not shed for Nangong Yi, but because she felt that her sincerity was not worth it.
"Your Majesty, ask yourself, have I ever wronged you? Has the Sun family ever wronged you?"
The queen gritted her teeth, hatred gushing out.
"You're trying to get your beloved woman to give birth to a firstborn son... Oh, that's not right." The Queen laughed at herself. "I've been deposed now. When she becomes the next Queen, her child will be the legitimate eldest son, unrivaled and noble. I'll just be a stepping stone to be thrown away after use."
"What beloved woman?"
"Who else could it be? Isn't Concubine Xiao the only one who has good news in the harem recently? Although she had a miscarriage..."
This statement woke the ministers up and they suddenly realized what was going on.
"Do you know why His Majesty treats all the concubines in the harem equally but no other concubines are pregnant? It's because His Majesty put abortive ingredients in the medicine he gave us. As long as he doesn't want us to have children, we will never have children in this life." The queen took a deep breath and held back her tears.
"The reason I was deposed was all part of his plan. He has long disliked the Sun family. You heard what the imperial concubine said just now. If Nangong Yi had really followed his original plan, our Sun family would have been the scapegoat. He would have led the Sun family and the Zhenguogong Mansion into a fight, and when both were defeated, he could eliminate them in one fell swoop."
"Your Majesty is so cunning and calculating," the Queen said angrily. "All of us are pawns in your hands, but you never imagined that these pawns would one day turn against you."
Nangong Yi really didn't expect this. If he had thought of it, he would not have spared the queen's life, but executed her early, and there would not have been so many waves.
"Such a headstrong, selfish, and ruthless emperor, do you still want to follow him? Especially since you have a daughter in the palace. Do you really think your daughter will ever rise to prominence? Who knows if she won't become another pawn of his, die young, and become a burden to the family?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the hall, which had been bustling with discussion, suddenly became quiet, and you could hear a pin drop.
This kind of deathly silence makes people feel uneasy.
"Your Majesty, don't you want evidence this time?" Lan Shuang added, "All the doctors in the Imperial Hospital are waiting in the side hall. All the prescriptions they wrote are recorded and cannot be falsified."
The hands behind Nangong Yi tightened and loosened, loosened and tightened again.
After a while, he suddenly let go of his hand and laughed out loud, making everyone's hair stand on end.
Lan Shuang frowned. Is this guy crazy?
Unexpectedly, Nangong Yi suddenly said, "So you said so much just to force me to abdicate?"
He bent his fingers and blew a whistle, with murderous intent in his eyes.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew in the hall. Amidst the flickering candlelight and intertwined shadows, a group of men in black appeared silently in the hall.
Lan Shuang was stunned. This didn't make sense. The palace had been surrounded by their soldiers for a long time. They couldn't get in at all unless they were already here.
But Nangong Yi couldn't possibly predict what they were going to do, unless...
"Xiao Baba, help me see if there is any secret passage or dark room here."
888 also became serious, "Host, please wait a moment, scanning is starting——"
"Scan completed. There are secret passages in all four corners of this palace. The royal guards are hiding in them. The underground in the middle of the hall is empty. The royal guards' headquarters is inside."
Lan Shuang thought to herself: As expected, this scum really values his life, even holding a banquet in a place like this.
She immediately turned around and told Jiang Lusheng the news.
Jiang Lusheng nodded. "It's okay. No matter how powerful the secret guards are, two fists can't beat four hands. If we lure them out, we can catch them all in one fell swoop."
With his assurance, Lan Shuang felt relieved. She turned to look at Nangong Yi, "Why, knowing that the truth will be revealed and there's no way to clear it up, are you just going to kill us?"
"I don't want to do this either, but you forced me to do this." Nangong Yi looked at the man in black who suddenly appeared, and his tense nerves relaxed, turning into another inexplicable excitement.
"I am the emperor. Do I need to explain to you what I want to do or who I want dead?"
He raised his hand and said fiercely, "Except for the imperial concubine, no one will be left alive!"
The man in black bowed to him, turned around and surrounded Lan Shuang and the others from all directions like a snake.
Jiang Lusheng pulled out the soft sword from his waist and handed it to Lan Shuang, "Is it okay?"
Lan Shuang took it and weighed it, "No problem."
She pulled the queen over and said, "Stand behind me."
The queen looked at her in panic, and the next moment the two sides started fighting.
Lan Rong was a martial arts expert and was well prepared. He took out a whip from his waist and swung it vigorously, clearing a space in front of him.
Jiang Lusheng was as graceful as a startled swan, moving nimbly among the men in black, and wherever the wind from his palm passed, a cloud of blood was raised.
The ministers were terrified and ran out of the hall immediately. No one paid any attention to Nangong Yi.
Most of the people in white robes gathered around Lan Shuang and escorted them out of the hall.
Every time someone tried to launch a sneak attack, Lan Shuang would flick her soft sword and force the person back.
"Stop them!"
Nangong Yi shouted from behind.
The attack of the men in black became more and more fierce. Two of them protected Nangong Yi and said, "Your Majesty, go first."
The secret passage can only be entered but not exited, so they can only go out through the palace gate.
However, when they finally got out with great difficulty, countless arrows were instantly aimed at them.
Lan Shuang shook off the blood on the soft sword, stepped forward and confronted Nangong Yi, "Nangong Yi, have you forgotten that the army hasn't left Kyoto yet?"
Nangong Yi looked at the dense array of arrows and instantly understood, "Have you already instigated a rebellion in the army?"
"Do we still need to instigate a rebellion?" Lan Shuang found it quite amusing. "Lan Rong is the general who led them through bloody battles, and he is their brother who has been through life and death with them. And you—are the tyrant emperor who can't distinguish between loyalty and treachery and who slaughters innocent people indiscriminately. Everyone knows what the choice is."
Nangong Yi's face turned pale. "Where are my Imperial Guards and Embroidered Uniform Guards?"
"Well, the commander of the Imperial Guard has been taken under control, and the Imperial Guard has also been replaced. Now, the entire palace is under our control. Nangong Yi, surrender."
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