The imperial guards retreated in a hurry. Two or three minutes later, a middle-aged man in a red official robe stepped over the threshold and strode over.

The man was about fifty years old, with a beautiful long beard, a thin face and a seldom-smiling appearance. His eyes were deep and serious, as if they contained cunning and majesty as vast as the sea.

Deng Wenhan, courtesy name Jinglun, was the uncle of Zhao Shun, younger brother of Empress Dowager Deng. He held the first rank in the palace and served as the Grand Secretary of Hongtu Palace, in charge of the central government. He was the most powerful official in the Southern Dynasty.

The dignified and restrained middle-aged official glanced at the dancers dancing in the hall, frowned slightly, and said coldly, "Back off!"

The sound was not loud, but it made the dancers in the hall feel like frightened birds. They lowered their heads and retreated to the sides, holding their breath in fear.

Zhang Yuanqing sat in a lazy posture and said loudly, "Prime Minister Zheng is here. Someone, set the table and serve wine to Prime Minister Zheng."

Deng Wenhan said coldly with a sullen face: "Your Majesty, you just died in the line of duty for the assassination of Longtu. Longtu was trying to keep you safe, but you sang and danced, drank and had fun in the palace. Isn't this disheartening to me, your subjects?"

Zhang Yuanqing picked up the wine glass and drank it, saying unhappily, "All the land under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people in the world are his subjects. My family is loyal to the royal family and the Southern Dynasty. Zheng Longtu died for me and deserved it."

He acted as if he was saying, "I am the emperor, and it is only natural for you to die for me." Brother Hongji and Jiang Jingwei at the side put themselves in Zheng Wenhan's shoes and thought about it for a moment, and they felt their fists harden.

Zheng Wenhan's eyes were stern. He knew Zhao Shun's character very well. He took a deep breath to calm down the sternness in his eyes. His tone was still low: "There was an assassin lurking in the palace to murder Your Majesty. It was Longtu's fault. It was only natural that he died because of this. Now that the assassin has not been caught, Your Majesty must not be careless."

"Tell me in detail what happened after Longtu took you to hide in the side hall last night."

His tone was more commanding than respectful. Zhang Yuanqing sat in a casual manner, but his heart was tense. He said with an impatient expression, "Prime Minister Zheng is so boring. He disturbed my interest."

"Last night, Commander Zheng took Lian to hide in a side hall. Soon, the roof leaked and rain appeared, revealing a black-clad assassin. Commander Zheng took the initiative to intercept the assassin to protect Lian. Unexpectedly, the assassin was so powerful that he sucked Commander Zheng dry with just one move."

"I rushed out of the side hall to ask for help, and when I turned around, I saw the body of Commander Zheng."

Zheng Wenhan narrowed his eyes. "I heard from the imperial guards that you and Long Tu entered the side hall for half a quarter of an hour, and the assassin killed Long Tu with just one move. What did Long Tu say to Your Majesty before the assassin appeared?"

Tsk, the truth seems to be revealed.

If this performance is not good, the assassins will launch a large-scale attack at night. Zhang Yuanqing had expected this in the morning. From Zheng Wenhan's perspective, the assassin killed his son Zheng Longtu in an instant, but Zheng Longtu and the emperor stayed in the side hall for a full quarter of an hour. During this time, Zheng Longtu, who had already intended to do something wrong, had plenty of time to act, and might have already exposed the Zheng family's ambitions.

Zhang Yuanqing's thoughts turned quickly, but he still looked lazy: "My three beauties wanted to assassinate me. I was very angry and scolded Commander Zheng in the side hall. Commander Zheng asked for some information about the assassins."

Among the three beauties, only Lady Wan was a spy arranged by the Zheng family, the other two were not. It was reasonable for Zheng Longtu to ask for details about the assassins.

Zheng Wenhan looked thoughtful. Through his emotional feedback, Zhang Yuanqing knew that the shrewd and calculating minister did not believe him. Sure enough, he heard him ask, "Your Majesty, do you know where the three assassins came from?"

Zhang Yuanqing frowned as if recalling something. "Miss Chu was the first assassin. She said she wanted to avenge the dead soldiers. Wang Geji said she wanted to get rid of me, the tyrant, for the sake of the people of the world. Prime Minister Zheng, tell me, am I a tyrant?"

Revenge for the dead soldiers, Zheng Wenhan seemed to think of something, his pupils shrank slightly. He pondered for a few seconds, did not answer Zhang Yuanqing's words, and asked again, "What did Lady Wan say?"

Zhang Yuanqing shook his head. "Concubine Wan didn't say anything. She came up and almost stabbed me to death. Humph, this bitch I favored so much, but she wanted to plot against me. I will kill all her clans."

Zheng Wenhan's expression remained unchanged, but Zhang Yuanqing clearly sensed from his emotions that he was relaxed and no longer tense.

Obviously Zheng Wenhan believed his words and believed that Zheng Longtu was gathering information during that quarter of an hour.

The Concubine Wan arranged by the Zheng family did not reveal the truth. Suddenly, Zheng Wenhan asked: "I found a pill in the side hall. What is this? Was it left by the assassin?"

Zhang Yuanqing was waiting for him to ask this, and said in astonishment

"Pills? What pills? Oh, I remember now. Those are the detoxification pills that Commander Zheng gave me. They can cure all kinds of poisons, so I won't be afraid of poisonous insect bites."

This was to mislead Zheng Wenhan, making him think that Zheng Longtu was trying to trick the emperor into taking a poison pill. Anyway, Zheng Longtu was already dead and there was no evidence.

Noticing that Zheng Wenhan's mood had completely calmed down, Zhang Yuanqing said impatiently, "Prime Minister Zheng, if you have nothing else to do, please leave and stop disturbing my pleasure!"

Zheng Wenhan hesitated for a moment, bowed, and turned to leave. When he stepped over the threshold, he heard Zhao Haoshun's loud laughter behind him, calling

"My dear ladies, please continue to play music and dance!"

Waste! He sneered in his heart.

dusk.

After running around outside for half a day, Brother Hongji returned to the Summer Palace, while Concubine De and Madam Ya came to the Summer Palace in the name of "serving in the bedroom". They closed the palace door, lowered the curtain, and conspired deep in the bedroom.

"The details of the Shenrui Army have been found out. They were indeed the army of the Southern Dynasty, but they were completely destroyed sixteen years ago." Brother Hongji said.

Zhang Yuanqing sat cross-legged on the couch and smelled an unusual scent. The annihilation of the entire army should not transfer hatred to the emperor.

"There is indeed a reason!" Brother Red Chicken pulled over a small stool and sat down. "A year ago, the Northern Dynasty assembled an army of 100,000 to march south and conquered cities and strongholds just like now. It only took three months to advance the troops to a hundred miles away from the capital of the Southern Dynasty. At that time, the Queen Mother Zheng was still in power. In a rage, the Queen Mother dismissed more than a dozen officials from the Ministry of War and posted notices in various county governments to allow local tyrants to recruit soldiers and horses, and especially allowed the people in various places to resist on their own!"

"As soon as this decree was issued, the wealthy began to recruit soldiers and train them to protect themselves, or to invest in loyal and good people to resist the invasion of the Northern Dynasty. The refugees who lost their homes responded in large numbers. A man named Wu Xin rose up in this context and formed a powerful army."

"This Wu Xin is the descendant of a famous general. His family has produced three successful candidates and two generals. His generation declined, but the family tradition of learning is still there. He is good at commanding the army and using troops like a god. In the early days, he accepted donations from local tyrants, and in the later days, he surrendered to the Southern Dynasty and received financial support from the court. In just four years, he drove the Northern Dynasty back to the northern border."

"The army of 100,000 was badly defeated. Most of the elite troops of the Northern Dynasty were killed on the battlefield. Wu Xin wanted to lead his troops north to pacify the Northern Dynasty in one fell swoop and put an end to the century-long war between the Northern and Southern Dynasties. However, the court ordered the troops to withdraw..."

At this point, Brother Red Chicken slapped his thigh in regret and said, "I thought this kind of plot that makes people curse only appeared in TV dramas, but I didn't expect it to appear in the dungeon as well."

"The court is either worried that Wu Xin will establish himself as king with his own army, or the treasury is empty and they are in urgent need of recuperation."

Zhang Yuanqing urged: "Keep talking."

"The court issued twelve edicts in succession, ordering Wu Xin to return to the capital, but Wu Xin disobeyed the order and continued the Northern Expedition. The court cut off his food supplies. As I said just now, Wu Xin was good at commanding the army and would never rob the people. He could not march north without money and food, and he was unwilling to withdraw his troops, so he led a group of his own troops back to the court to persuade the court to support his Northern Expedition." Brother Hongji sighed.

"In the end, he died in the capital. The court gave the reason that he died of illness. His soldiers did not believe it and gathered together to cause trouble. As a result, most of them were beheaded, some were dismissed, and some were imprisoned."

"The main force that stayed in the North was ambushed by the Northern Dynasty army not long after. The elite troops were either wiped out or fled."

"What a cultured speech, just like listening to a book!" Jiang Jingwei was surprised. There were also many cultured people who were good at reading and nitpicking among the fire masters.

Brother Hongji said honestly: "These are all told to me by the military officials. I am just relaying them."

"So, I was hated by everyone in the house." Zhang Yuanqing sighed and covered his tears. "I was only eight or nine years old back then. What does this have to do with me?"

"That was the Queen Mother's fault!"

"You are still playing the role of Queen Mother." Concubine De (my aunt) glanced at him and analyzed, "The elite troops of the Divine Sharp Army have all been lost. They are unable to enter the palace to assassinate the new emperor. After their lust for beauty gave them an opportunity, in this case, the combat power of the Divine Sharp Army is at most saints, and there will be no master. If they can survive 72 hours, there will be nothing to worry about."

"No!" Zhang Yuanqing shook his head. "The plot line is so rich and seems to be a cry for justice. Based on my experience of going through high-difficulty dungeons many times over the years, the side story of the Divine Sharp Army cannot be so simple. This is a Domination-level A-level dungeon. One of the main enemy soldiers has only a saint as combat power? It's not realistic."

"So what do you want?" Brother Hongji and Jiang Jingwei asked in unison.

With two mouths to speak, Xie Lingxi and others don't have to ask Zhang Yuanqing any more questions.

Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a few seconds and said, "Concubine Wan has been with the Queen Mother since she was young. She is a warrior trained by the Queen Mother. She should know a lot of the Queen Mother's secrets. She is much older than me. She should be more sensible and sensible when dealing with the Shenrui Army."

He looked at his teammates and said, "We have successfully concealed the truth from Zheng Wenhan today and have just experienced an assassination attempt. We should be safe tonight. We will discuss leaving the city tomorrow. After dinner, Li Changshi, go and summon Concubine Wan to sleep with you."

The storyline of the Shenrui Army is difficult to follow once you leave the palace. Brother Hongji bowed.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

After dinner in the Summer Palace, the sky was already dark and the lights were on. Brother Hongji led the two "palace maids" Xie Lingxi and Jiang Jingwei out of the palace and walked in the magnificent building that looked like a fairy palace.

Brother Hongji was walking and suddenly said, "Where's Guan Ya? Where's Guan Ya? She's also a swordsman, maybe she's in the army. I haven't seen Sun Miaomiao either!"

Xie Lingxi looked at Brother Hongji and asked, "Why are you so concerned about Brother Yuanshi's girlfriend? You mentioned Guan Ya several times today."

Brother Red Chicken sneered, "There are only women here. Jingwei is not very smart. You and the Queen have too little experience in high-difficulty dungeons. Xiaoyuan is a taciturn person. The Palace Master of Stop Killing has a weird personality. I feel very insecure."

"It would be nice if Sun Miaomiao and Guan Ya were here, but they haven't come since Yuanshi's poem was circulated for so long!"

Jingwei was not convinced: "My dad said I am the smartest in the family!"

"Is your mother a fire master?" Xie Lingxi asked.

Jingwei shook her head!!

"This shows that your father is a bad boy!" Xie Lingxi commented.

Jingwei was at a loss, "Why?"

"Because in your father's heart, your mother is not a family member." Xie Lingxi said.

Jingwei walked forward silently without saying anything. After a few seconds, she and Brother Red Chicken reacted at the same time and said angrily: "How dare you mock our Fire Master."

Inside the bedroom, Concubine Wan looked at Concubine De on her left, then at Madam Ya on her right, and finally looked at Zhang Yuanqing's sturdy figure and performed an elegant concubine's salute.

"Your Majesty, I am here to serve you in bed!"

Zhang Yuanqing said in a friendly manner, "Concubine Wan is here, please take a seat."

Brother Red Chicken brought a small board.

Zhang Yuanqing kicked him away, and Brother Hongji ran outside and brought back a large wooden carved chair weighing more than 20 kilograms.

Zhang Yuanqing said in a friendly manner, "Please sit down, Concubine Wan! Concubine Wan, have you heard of the Shenrui Army?"

Concubine Wanyi looked at Concubine De on her left again, and then at Madam Ya on her right.

Zhang Yuanqing smiled and said, "Just tell me, these three beauties are the loves of my life, and I wish I could visit them every day."

Xiaoyuan and the palace master smiled coldly.

Does your girlfriend Guan Ya agree with what you said? Brother Hongji couldn’t help but complain!

"Your Majesty, why did you suddenly ask about the Shenrui Army..." Concubine Wan, who was as tall as a small meat mountain, asked, "I have already investigated it. Lady Chu is an assassin sent to the palace by the Shenrui Army."

Zhang Yuanqing did not hide anything.

Concubine Wan suddenly realized: "So that's how it is. The Shenrui Army wanted to take revenge on the Queen Mother, but the Queen Mother has been in seclusion for a long time, so they have no chance, so they targeted Your Majesty."

Part of the reason was that Zhao Shun was too stupid and killing him would benefit the country and the people. Zhang Yuanqing thought that Concubine Wan's answer told him that this assassin did know some secrets.

"The Divine Sharp Army has always been a concern of the Queen Mother for many years. Since Your Majesty asked me, I will tell you directly!"

Just as Concubine Wan said this, her expression suddenly changed and she turned her head to look outside the palace!

Almost at the same time, Zhang Yuanqing, the Palace Master, Xiao Yuanhong, Brother Ji and the three beauties all looked outside the palace.

In the night.

The heavy and orderly footsteps were approaching rapidly, and a large number of people were heading towards the bedroom.