Lu Anyuan above did not seem to be in a hurry to use the Queen Mother as a bargaining chip. He just slowly asked about a seemingly unrelated past event.
Xu Yixing saw that the emperor in front of him finally no longer looked like a clay figure, and the hand hidden in his wide sleeves moved.
What’s going on? Why did Lu Anyuan say that so calmly? Could it be that... this was done by the Queen Mother?
Xu Yixing closed his eyes tightly. Only now did he feel how good it was to have two people supporting him. Otherwise, he would definitely be in a state of panic.
But she was more worried about herself! The emperor had brought her here because he was clearly worried about Lu Anyuan, fearing he would take the opportunity to rebel and use her as leverage. But after hearing the secrets, would the emperor still let her leave the palace alive?
"The emperor has been poisoned... I naturally know that." The Queen Mother's voice was not panicked or emotional. She paused and immediately turned her attention to Lu Anyuan: "Could it be that you, the rebellious son, did this? Good, good, you are so bold!"
The emperor sneered softly and seemed to shake his head with a feeling of regret.
"Then my grandson will ask again, how did Second Brother escape from the outer palace when he was plotting rebellion? How did he get to Fourth Brother's house? And how did he know the secret passage to Prince Cheng's mansion?"
"What do you want to say?" The Queen Mother's voice was a little sharp, but from underground it sounded like a spent force.
Could it be that the Queen Mother was also involved in the incident? That would easily explain how Lu Chiyan escaped from the outer palace. After all, it was Prince Cheng who was in charge of the search of the outer palace.
Prince Cheng… Xu Yixing pondered this title in his mind and realized that he had ranked him as the least suspicious at the time. Now it seems that he was wrong.
"My grandson also wants to know, when you said you accidentally gave spoiled sugarcane juice to us grandchildren all those years ago, was it really unintentional?"
Xu Yixing's heart trembled. Oh my god, such a question was asked. It seemed that both the emperor and Lu Anyuan were planning to completely break off relations with the empress dowager today.
The Queen Mother above was silent. It was unclear whether it was because she was stumped by the question or because she felt there was no need to say more to the rebel.
The cloth on Xu Yixing's mouth had been struggling all the way and was now loose, but she still didn't speak rashly because she already knew why the emperor was waiting in this damn place.
Sure enough, there seemed to be a sound from above, that Lu Anyuan was about to take the Queen Mother away. The Emperor turned around, and just as he raised his hand, a man walked quickly from the inside of the passage: "Your Majesty, Prince Cheng led his troops into the secret passage and has been captured."
Xu Yixing saw that the emperor's hand, which had just been raised, froze in mid-air. He let out a heavy breath from his nose, and with a wave of his finger, the people around him immediately lifted the coverings, and all the soldiers hidden in the passage rushed out and poured into the Yian Hall above.
Only then did Xu Yixing notice that the iron plate used to isolate the opening of the secret passage was wide open, leaving only a thin layer of carpet covering it. No wonder the sound was so obvious.
The Tibetan soldiers rushed into Yian Hall and ran into Lu Anyuan who was holding the empress dowager in one hand and preparing to withdraw with a knife in the other. Before he could react, the empress dowager shouted first.
"All soldiers, step forward and capture the traitor!"
Lu Anyuan reacted immediately, thinking that these were the Queen Mother's hidden troops. He was about to command them to fight, but he caught a glimpse of a half-exposed metal token hidden on the waist of one of them. He had an idea in his mind and loosened his hand holding the knife.
"Who are you? How dare you hide in Yi'an Palace and refuse to tell the truth!"
After pretending to shout this, he turned around and saw his father dressed differently behind the screen.
"Alas!" The emperor sighed heavily, attracting all eyes. Then, in just a few breaths, the dozen or so rebels brought in by Lu Anyuan were all killed, and the sound of fighting was heard outside the hall.
Lu Anyuan avoided the emperor's gaze slightly, but saw someone following behind his father. His hair was messy, and a wet cloth stained with saliva was tied around his neck. Who else could it be but Yixing?
But he didn't move. Without his father's order, he still wanted to play the role of a rebel.
When the Empress Dowager saw the Emperor emerge from the secret passage, her expression was as if she had seen a ghost, her eyes widening in fear. However, she hesitated for a moment, not allowing her time to think about the situation in the palace, and could only speak instinctively:
"The Emperor is here, you traitor, why don't you surrender immediately!"
A person climbed up from a corner. It was Nanny Han, who was still half alive. "Emperor, Emperor! The traitors are rampant. Please rescue the Queen Mother!"
"Alas." This was the emperor's second sigh after emerging from the tunnel. "Prince Xiaoyi, put down the knife."
The emperor's voice was neither happy nor sad, like a sentence from a book. Hearing this, Lu Anyuan felt as if he had heard a sound of the universe. He loosened his grip and put the knife down heavily, even throwing it far away as if to show some goodwill.
As soon as he put down the knife, he was immediately controlled by the masked guards, one on his left and one on his right. Now he was facing Xu Yixing, with a half-transparent screen between them. The situation between the two was as funny as looking in the mirror.
The empress dowager's body was out of control and she swayed forward a few times, but she insisted on not falling down. Instead, she managed to steady her steps and was supported by Nanny Han, who looked seriously injured.
No matter how stupid she was, she could now see what the emperor's appearance here meant.
He could only put justice first and let the people in the palace hear clearly to avoid hurting himself later: "Emperor, I'm fine. This villain took advantage of the chaos to break into the palace and tried to kidnap me and force the emperor to abdicate, but fortunately he failed. Today, every guard in the palace will receive a reward!"
Xu Yixing was standing behind the emperor and could just see the expression on the empress dowager's face. She spoke passionately, but it was obvious that no one in the room was moved by her words except Nanny Han. It seemed like she was just talking to herself in a monologue.
"Alas!" The emperor sighed again, and even Xu Yixing could sense the deep sadness that enveloped him. He walked gracefully to the first seat where the empress dowager usually sat. Although there was no blood on the floor, it was still a little messy.
The emperor, as if oblivious to the filth, took his seat with airs. The situation inside the hall was that of a dozen masked men, two holding Prince Xiaoyi and two holding Princess Xiaoyi. The empress dowager stood in the center of the hall, supported by Nanny Han, her slightly cloudy old eyes fixed on the sky, unsure of what the men were up to.
"Bring him up." The emperor spoke in a deep voice. Xu Yixing only heard a sound coming from the tunnel beside him. He turned his head to look and saw Prince Cheng in heavy armor trapped like a dumpling, being pushed up.
"Yin'er!" The Queen Mother staggered a few steps, wanting to get closer to Prince Cheng, but Xu Yixing was over there, and she didn't want to go. She could only stare at her own son, and seeing that he was in a state of distress but not injured, she felt a little relieved.
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