Ancestor worship
The emperor used to offer sacrifices to his ancestors in late spring, but this year due to the emperor's illness, the ceremony was postponed to midsummer.
The Queen and all the officials went with her, with the Imperial Guard leading the way, marching northward in a mighty procession.
The trees on both sides are lush and leafy, and the golden sunlight shines through the leaves, dotting the stone road, and the cicadas are chirping incessantly.
On the chariot drawn by four horses, dark grey gauze curtains were hung to block out prying eyes.
The Queen carefully helped His Majesty drink the medicine and then persuaded him to eat some snacks. As the bitter taste slowly filled her mouth, she smiled faintly and said, "Your Majesty will soon recover. You should rest more. Why travel so hard?"
Perhaps as he grew older, the emperor became more fond of sweets. He ate three snacks in a row without saying a word.
The Queen's smile did not fade. "The Crown Princess is pregnant, and the Crown Prince is calm and capable. Your Majesty should worry less."
When the palace maids heard such outrageous words, they all bowed their heads and hid in the corner, not daring to say a word.
The emperor finally raised his head and glanced at her, "Why do you always do these things?"
The empress's well-maintained face wrinkled slightly, and the fine lines at the corners of her eyes disappeared in an instant. The smile on her lips calmed down, and she met the emperor's gaze, "Could it be that the Crown Princess is not pregnant?"
"Whether it's true or not, it's all in the past." The emperor caught a glimpse of her angry expression and softened his tone. "Besides, the second brother hid the person. Now there's not even a trace of him. How can we be sure?"
The Queen shifted her gaze to the plate of lotus cakes. Her lipstick-coated lips, rosy red, opened and closed, but she couldn't help herself and said calmly, "Your Majesty is truly partial."
She had been married into the harem for more than twenty years. She had thought about letting things take their course, but she had also fought for it. On her way to the position of queen, she had few days of relaxation and had to worry about and plan for her children.
The imperial concubine was completely different from her. She had only been in the palace for twenty years, but her favor had lasted for a long time. Although she did not have the position of queen, she was a queen in reality.
The imperial concubine had only one son and one daughter, but the emperor suppressed the opposition of the previous dynasty and made the imperial concubine's son the crown prince.
In the past, the crown prince was assassinated. The emperor, without any investigation, punished all the princes in the palace with thirty strokes of the cane and confined them to a Buddhist temple for more than a month to chant Buddha's name and cultivate their minds. No matter how they explained, none of them escaped.
From that time on, the Fourth Prince Xiao Junhui became increasingly taciturn.
Now the Crown Prince is guilty of deceiving the emperor and has repeatedly shown partiality towards the Crown Princess. His words and deeds are nothing like those of a Crown Prince.
At this moment, the emperor pretended to be deaf and dumb, as if he knew nothing about it, and only punished him by kneeling for half a day. He was really biased.
The emperor listened to her talk about the past in silence for a long time before he sighed, "Things are different now."
How could he not hear the Queen's hint to depose the Crown Prince? But today was different from the past. The Crown Prince was powerful and his health was getting worse day by day. What could he do?
Furthermore, it is difficult to choose who can take on this burden.
The emperor and empress both remained silent and never mentioned it again.
It was not until the sun was high in the sky that we arrived at the imperial tomb.
The emperor, supported by palace servants, slowly got out of the car and looked up at the sky.
The sky is blue and the sun is not far away, but tomorrow is high in the sky.
He walked with a shaky step, supported by palace maids on both sides. He approached the towering forest of steles and slowly raised his palm, as if touching his brothers and sisters, his father, the emperor, and his mother through the cold stone steles. His slightly old face revealed a trace of nostalgia and regret.
He can come to worship this year, but it is not certain what will happen in the future.
The emperor covered his lips and cleared his throat, then, under the guidance of the palace servants, he kowtowed and paid homage slowly and steadily.
The Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince followed behind him, one cold and the other speechless, following the Emperor's movements and offering sacrifices together.
This is true for all civil and military officials.
With his head lowered, he could only see the wide sleeves of his own clothes. As he was about to kneel down, he heard the palace servants screaming, mixed with words about assassins, which stimulated everyone.
Everyone looked up and saw countless men in black leaping out from the shadows of the trees on both sides, swords in their hands pointing directly at the emperor.
The guards surrounding the emperor stopped people from fighting with swords.
In an instant, the silent imperial mausoleum stele forest area turned into a bloody storm.
Chaos spread among the officials, and the accompanying guards were fighting endlessly. Some of them were still sober and ran all the way to embrace the emperor and empress, comforting them in trembling voices.
Xiao Junbai strode forward, blocking his father and the empress, and looked around with his eyes slightly narrowed.
These death-defying assassins were extremely ruthless, their attacks going straight to the vital points. The guards who were scattered around protecting the ranks were moving towards this side.
The emperor was fine. Hun Dun's eyes swept over the prince and the ministers. He sighed almost inaudibly, leaned his back against the cold stone tablet, and said nothing.
The queen hid behind the stone tablet and watched coldly.
In a corner that no one noticed, the Fourth Prince Xiao Junhui disappeared.
Zhou Ruoyan was still wearing a black shirt, stained with some blood. Her face was hidden under the hood. Her panicked eyes were watery as she looked at Xiao Junhui who was approaching. She choked up and told him everything that happened in the palace.
Seeing her like this, Xiao Junhui knew that she had failed. He hugged her and whispered a few words of comfort to her. He gently kissed her forehead, held her hand, and told her to run far away and not come back.
Zhou Ruoyan raised her eyes, "Then you..."
Xiao Junhui pretended not to hear and ordered the servants around him to carefully escort the person away.
Zhou Ruoyan was carried and pushed by him, looking back every few steps, and then she left in a hurry.
Xiao Junhui took a deep breath and strode south.
At this time, the fighting in the imperial mausoleum had stopped. Even though these assassins were agile and skillful, they could not withstand the powerful and numerous guards.
All the officials breathed a sigh of relief, surrounded the emperor and asked about his well-being.
It was this time that Xiao Junhui caught everyone's attention, holding someone in his hand.
The man had a bruised face and nose, and was covered in dirt. His gray shirt was torn and covered in blood. His eyes were numb and lifeless. He let himself be carried without struggling.
Xiao Junhui casually threw the man aside and said, "Father, I saw this man acting suspiciously, so I went to capture him."
The man was thrown to the ground, screaming in pain. His eyes moved up along the official boots of the gentlemen and fell upon the cold face of the prince. He held his head and screamed in fear, then used his hands and feet to get up and run away.
But there are guards on high alert all around, so where can you run to get food?
The emperor stood up tremblingly, staring down at the man. His eyes swept over the crowd, his mouth trembling, and he was speechless for a long time.
The Queen had walked out of the Forest of Steles at some point, caught sight of the man, and asked in a cold voice, "Who are you, and why are you here?"
Unexpectedly, the man seemed to hear nothing and only kowtowed to the prince repeatedly, until his forehead was red and swollen, and bleeding profusely. He wept bitterly and wailed non-stop, "Your Highness, please forgive me, Your Highness, please forgive me!"
"I have already sent people here as per your instructions. I beg Your Highness to show mercy and spare my wife and daughter."
The man was crying and snotting, and he spoke with confidence and solemn oath.
Xiao Junbai stood beside the emperor. Upon hearing this, he only slightly turned sideways and saluted. "The assassin is still alive. Father, why don't you interrogate him together?"
The emperor rubbed his eyebrows and said nothing.
…
To the south of the imperial mausoleum are several villas. In the past, the emperor stayed here for a while when he offered sacrifices to his ancestors.
Now, you can take a break and eat some fruits and snacks to fill your stomach.
Civil and military officials gathered in groups of three or four to discuss the assassination.
It is true that the man captured by the Fourth Prince Xiao Jun Baihui ignored it and identified the Crown Prince, but only a few people believed it.
The prince's character and the way he conducts himself are witnessed by everyone in the court.
Of course, it doesn't bother these people. They just want to watch the fun and observe the internal fighting within the royal family. What's not to like?
Qi Qinghe arrived at this moment and was led by a palace maid to the prince's room.
Xiao Junbai heard the noise, opened the door, and without waiting for anyone to speak, he looked her up and down carefully. Seeing that she was safe and sound, his restless heart calmed down a little, and he hugged her into the house and sat down.
The teacup was handed to Qi Qinghe's mouth. He opened his mouth subconsciously, and the warm tea flowed down his limbs, making him feel more at ease.
Although she still has the habit of drinking some herbal tea in summer.
She told the story of what happened in the palace: Xiao Junqi was dead and Zhou Ruoyan was missing.
As he was talking excitedly, the letter fell from his sleeve and the beautiful handwriting came into view.
Xiao Junbai picked it up before her. He knew without asking that it was his mother's handwriting. He unfolded the letter and read it, and his frown relaxed.
Qi Qinghe touched her nose and said, "Mother misses His Highness very much."
Xiao Junbai nodded and said, "Rest here and don't run around."
The assassination of the emperor could not be concluded for the time being.
Qi Qinghe nodded obediently, holding the teacup and drinking tea slowly.
Not long after, a palace maid came to invite him. When she saw Qi Qinghe, she was stunned for a moment before realizing that this was the Crown Princess. She apologized repeatedly and asked His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to move aside.
After the footsteps faded away and the door closed, Qi Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief and rubbed his wrists.
The wound on his arm still hurt slightly, but fortunately the prince didn't notice it for the time being.
After working hard for half a day, her rumbling stomach didn't allow her to think too much and just told her to have some tea and a short nap.
Outside the half-open window, in the courtyard, the occasional fragrance of flowers wafts by, and the drooping branches and leaves are green.
Xiao Junbai walked along the green path and entered the simple meeting room.
In the conference hall, apart from the emperor who was sitting in the center, only a few old officials and the Fourth Prince Xiao Junhui were left among the civil and military officials.
The people kneeling on the ground with their hands and feet tied up were the ones who had identified the prince, named Xia Yue, and the only two remaining survivors.
"The prince has arrived." The emperor's hoarse voice slowly sounded, "Let's begin."
All the veteran officials present were shrewd men who had served in the court for most of their lives. They could tell whether something was true or false, and whether there was any falsification, at a glance.
The coarse cloth was removed from Xia Yue's mouth, and he couldn't help crying, "Your Majesty, please understand. I have told you everything I know. I really didn't know that the Crown Prince was going to assassinate Your Majesty."
"Shut up." The palace servant beside him kicked fiercely, "Whatever His Majesty asks, you answer. Are you going to say more?"
Xia Yue was kicked suddenly and cried out in pain, then nodded in agreement.
"My name is Xia Yue, and I'm from Tongzhou. Last year, when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince went to Tongzhou to investigate a case, I had the honor of meeting him. I thought His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was as upright and honest as the rumors said, but I never imagined that His Royal Highness would capture my wife and daughter and force me to do something despicable."
"It's in the deep mountains east of Tongzhou. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has gathered many young men under the pretext of mountain work. They are training in the deep mountains. There are also soldiers guarding nearby, so they can't escape even if they want to."
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has asked me to look after these people. As for what to do in the future, I will wait for news."
Xia Yue responded to the emperor's words and explained the reasons for the incident one by one. The correspondence, the silver and silver notes for supporting people, and the two people who had the courage to escape could all testify to this.
Several old ministers looked at each other, not quite believing it at first, but the man's words were sincere and there was no trace of pretense. The evidence was all there, and they were more or less shaken in their hearts.
Facing such accusations, Xiao Junbai's calm expression remained unchanged. "I also have these in my hands. Please have a look, Father and the others."
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