Chapter 475 Twenty years later, her son still came to stop him...
"Pass the order down! Three days from now, I will hold a coronation ceremony in the Hall of Supreme Harmony! Announce to the world that I, Zhao Chengyu, will once again ascend the throne and rule over the Eastern Jin Dynasty!"
"Yes! Your Majesty!" Qing Mogu knelt in unison, unable to conceal their excitement. "Congratulations, Your Majesty! Long live our emperor!"
Zhao Chengyu waved his hand, signaling them to stand up. His gaze fell again on Zhao Yunci who was slumped in the chair, and a hint of disdain flashed in his eyes.
"As for you, my 'good nephew,' I will temporarily inconvenience you to stay at Jingxin Mountain Villa. After I ascend the throne, I will find you a beautiful place with clear waters and mountains for you to live out your remaining years."
He turned around and strode out, ready to personally oversee the enthronement arrangements.
He carefully placed the abdication edict in his arms, as if it were the most precious treasure in the world.
The stone door of the secret room slowly closed, isolating Zhao Yunci inside.
When the footsteps faded away completely, Zhao Yunci slowly opened her eyes, without any trace of the dejection and despair she had just felt.
He slowly sat up straight, a faint yet mocking smile on his lips.
He stretched out his hand and gently brushed across his cuff, where there seemed to be a barely noticeable trace of ink.
"Uncle, oh uncle, this game has only just begun," he whispered to himself, a gleam in his eyes. "What you think is the end is only the prologue I have set for you."
He knew that Gu Junze's troops had arrived.
But the chess pieces he has deployed are more than just Gu Junze.
Undercurrents have long been surging inside and outside the capital.
Three days later, in the capital of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, in the Hall of Supreme Harmony in the imperial palace.
Today's palace is decorated with lights and colors, but it also exudes a solemn and murderous atmosphere.
The troops from Qingmo Valley replaced most of the imperial guards and guarded every corner of the palace city.
Zhao Chengyu was wearing a brand new dragon robe and a crown on his head. Surrounded by the people of Qingmo Valley, he walked step by step towards the dragon throne in the Pilgrimage Temple.
Waiting to receive the homage of all officials, he had been longing for this moment for more than 20 years.
The auspicious time has arrived, and the ceremonial officer is about to loudly announce the start of the ceremony.
Sudden--
“Woo—woo—woo—”
The sound of urgent trumpets came from outside the city, penetrating the palace walls of the imperial city.
Immediately afterwards, the earth seemed to begin to tremble slightly, and the sound of thousands of horses galloping came from far away.
The smile on King Zhou's face froze instantly. He turned his head sharply and looked towards the outside of the city. "What's going on? What's the commotion outside the city?"
"Your Majesty, this sound... is like a marching army!"
Almost at the same time, smoke rose into the sky from the southeast, northwest and south directions within the imperial city.
"Wolf smoke! It's a wolf smoke!" someone exclaimed.
King Zhou's pupils suddenly shrank, and a strong sense of unease rose in his heart.
He never expected that Gu Junze's movements would be so fast!
What frightened him even more was that there was actually an insider in the city that he didn't know about!
"Report! Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened!" A Qingmo Valley disciple tumbled and scrambled, "Outside the city... a large army has appeared outside the city. The banner... the banner is the Pingzhou Army! Leading them is Gu Junze!"
"What?!" King Zhou's face changed drastically, and his hands under his dragon robe clenched into fists.
The coronation ceremony he had carefully planned, the moment he had been looking forward to for decades, was interrupted at the last minute!
"Gu Junze!" He uttered the name with gritted teeth.
Twenty years ago, Anyang stopped him. Twenty years later, her son is trying to stop him again...
Outside the capital, dust was flying.
Gu Junze was wearing armor and sitting upright on his warhorse, with the endless Pingzhou army behind him.
"Listen up, soldiers in the city! The man before you is Zhao Chengyu, the traitor who led the Five Kings Rebellion!"
"He used the alias Qingmo Valley Master to disrupt the government and deceive the people. Now he's even forcing the emperor to abdicate and attempting to usurp the throne!"
"The late emperor treated you well. How could you aid the tyrant and associate with the rebels?"
"Now, this general, under the secret decree of His Majesty, leads a great army to purge the emperor's court and punish the rebels! Those who abandon the dark and join the light will be forgiven! If you stubbornly refuse to repent and continue to resist, you will be executed without mercy when the city is broken!"
Gu Junze's voice was like thunder, echoing inside and outside the city walls.
On the top of the city wall, many former imperial guards showed hesitation and wavering expressions on their faces when they heard this.
King Zhou heard it clearly and was so angry that he trembled all over: "Rebellion! They are all rebelling! Capture Gu Junze for me! Capture him!"
However, although the people around him in Qingmo Valley were still loyal, they had lost hope in the face of the powerful army outside the city and the smoke signals inside.
At this moment, in the Qingmo Valley camp.
A high-ranking deputy valley master, who was usually trusted by Zhao Chengyu, suddenly shouted, "Valley Master! No, Zhao Chengyu! Don't try to deceive us again!"
When these words were spoken, everyone was shocked.
Zhao Chengyu suddenly looked towards the deputy valley master, his eyes filled with disbelief, "Left Protector! You... you dare to betray me?!"
The man known as the Left Protector sighed softly, "Zhao Chengyu! Twenty years ago, you murdered loyal and honest people, even your brothers..."
"We joined Qingmo Valley to uphold justice, but we didn't expect to be used by you and become your tool to usurp the throne!"
He pulled something out of his bosom and held it high. "Everyone, please look! This is the abdication decree signed by His Majesty Zhao Yunci that day!"
Everyone's eyes were focused, and they saw that on the edict, in addition to Zhao Yunci's signature and the imperial seal, there was indeed a small area blurred by ink in an inconspicuous corner.
The Left Guardian said loudly, "Your Majesty has long anticipated that you would resort to this method!"
"This ink stain is the secret code agreed upon between Your Majesty and us! It proves that this edict was signed under duress by you, and not by Your Majesty's own will!"
"Your Majesty never gave up! He endured humiliation and dealt with you just to wait for this day, to wait for the arrival of General Gu's army, and for loyal men like us to restore order!"
The truth is revealed!
It turns out that Zhao Yunci's "cooperation" and "decadence" in those days were all disguises!
Not only did he contact Gu Junze, he also secretly instigated some of the senior officials of Qingmo Valley to rebel!
King Zhou always thought that he was a hunter who planned and planned, but he didn't know that he had already stepped step by step into the trap carefully woven by Zhao Yunci.
"No... Impossible!" King Zhou staggered back a step.
The business he had worked hard to build for decades, the plans he had carefully planned for decades, all failed at the last moment when they were about to succeed!
"Ah——!" King Zhou let out an unwilling roar.
His eyes were bloodshot and his expression was crazed. "I am the one chosen by Heaven! I am the Emperor of the Eastern Jin Dynasty! You traitors! I will kill you! Kill all of you!"
Just as King Zhou was falling into madness, a figure suddenly appeared on the tower of the south gate of the imperial city.
Zhao Yunci was wearing a bright yellow dragon robe and holding a jade seal high in his hand!
"All officers and men, listen to my orders! The traitor Zhao Chengyu is rebelling against the emperor and plotting evil!"
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