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◎Qingyang stabbed the prince of Yong in the heart with a sword.◎
It was more than twenty miles away, so no matter how strong the blood was, it could not be blown to the imperial tomb by the strong wind.
The Ministry of Rites and the Taichang Temple had already arranged in advance when the imperial procession would arrive at the mausoleum, how they would rest after arriving, and when the memorial service would begin. Even the Emperor Qingyang only had to follow the instructions of the Minister of the Taichang Temple, and he could focus on remembering the late emperor without having to worry about complicated etiquette.
Prince Yong has been living near the imperial mausoleum. He went to wait outside the mausoleum early this morning. When the imperial procession arrived, Prince Yong knelt down and saluted the emperor, empress dowager, and noble concubine, and said a few simple polite words. Then Prince Yong stood behind the emperor's niece and on the left of his eldest nephew, Prince An Qin Hong. Although they were both princes, he was the uncle after all, and his position was more senior than Prince An.
The order of the sacrifices was that the emperor and empress sat side by side in the center, followed by the male clan members on the left, the empress dowager and the noble concubine with their female relatives on the right, and after the clan members came the civil and military officials headed by the two prime ministers and the three dukes.
The eldest son-in-law Fu Kui was a clan relative. He stood shoulder to shoulder with Qin Liang behind the four princes, while the children stood alone in another group.
There is a complicated set of kneeling and bowing rituals to commemorate the late emperor. Before the ceremony began, Qin Liang had been secretly observing Zhang Su in front of him and Fu Kui beside him.
Zhang Su, the Empress, always stood with the Emperor, several steps away. He didn't tend to look around in such situations, so Qin Liang couldn't see Zhang Su's face. Fu Kui, however, had been with him since leaving Beijing. Qin Liang clearly noticed Fu Kui's frequent glances and his quick avoidance, as well as his subtle movements of pressing his chest.
What is Fu Kui pressing? It must be the hidden weapon he is going to use to assassinate Qin Bing!
Qin Liang was irritated by Fu Kui. He was a military officer who had been to the battlefield, but he was not as calm as Yong Kang. Fortunately, the emperor was walking in front and more than a dozen important ministers were walking behind and they could not see Fu Kui's little movements. Otherwise, how could Fu Kui's guilty look and little movements be hidden from those who were interested?
When Qin Liang secretly criticized and despised Fu Kui, Fu Kui also noticed Qin Liang's dissatisfaction with him.
Fu Kui just felt confused!
They had to get up early to travel today, so he and Yongkang started preparing at Chou time. Fu Kui was a military general and didn't mind a long day of hard work. Unexpectedly, before leaving, Yongkang called him to the inner room and stuffed him with the purple jade flute that the late emperor had given her, saying that after the ceremony, Yongkang wanted to play a song for the late emperor alone in front of the imperial mausoleum. However, Yongkang was afraid that she or the maid accompanying her would accidentally drop the purple jade flute while paying her respects, so she asked Fu Kui to keep it for her.
Fu Kui knew about this purple jade flute. When they were first married, Yongkang often showed off this purple jade flute, which seemed to have been handed down from the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. After the emperor's death, Yongkang actually played several mournful songs on it. So Fu Kui was very sure that if he dared to clumsily break the purple jade flute today, he would not only be divorced by Yongkang, but he might also be beaten and imprisoned!
Although it was a hot potato, facing Yongkang's trusting eyes, Fu Kui could not refuse. He had to show an expression of gratitude as if he was proud to serve the princess, and carefully kept the purple jade flute close to him.
After handing over the purple jade flute, Yongkang also reminded him that she had said some harsh words when she visited Deng in the twelfth month, and Qin Liang might try to trip him up, so he should be careful. Although Fu Kui didn't believe Qin Liang would dare to act recklessly today, he still remained vigilant towards Qin Liang along the way.
A prince from a royal palace and a princess's husband, each with their own thoughts, the ceremony began.
"kneel!"
From the emperor and empress to the civil and military officials, everyone knelt down and then kowtowed towards the imperial mausoleum following the voice of the Minister of Rites.
Prince Yong closed his eyes and banged his forehead heavily on the neatly laid bluestone slabs in front of the imperial mausoleum. The sound was so loud that Qin Hong, who was silently crying beside him, was distracted and glanced at his uncle. Seeing tears on his uncle's face, Qin Hong's tears flowed even more violently when he thought of the deep brotherly love between his father and uncle, which was a mixture of care and beatings.
King Yong didn't know what his nephew was thinking. He was filled with guilt towards his elder brother.
He understood the deep meaning behind the advice his elder brother gave him several times before his death. His elder brother was afraid that he would rebel against his niece and that the uncle and niece would kill each other.
Prince Yong has lived for most of his life, and the person he respects the most is his eldest brother. He would not argue even if his eldest brother asked him to die. However, his eldest brother was wise all his life, but became confused in his old age. He actually wanted to leave the kingdom that the two brothers had fought for with blood and sweat to his niece, and to leave it to the offspring that her niece would bear for the Zhang family!
This was something King Yong could not tolerate. He would rather suppress his son's ambition to compete with his eldest nephew for the throne and support his eldest nephew to sit on the throne!
Although this would go against his elder brother's last instructions, Prince Yong still had to do what he had to do. As for his little niece, Zhang Jie and his son should be killed, but the little niece did not have to die. The eldest nephew was not so cruel, and he would also find a way out for the little niece. He certainly could not do it for the emperor or princess, but he could imprison the little niece in a mansion. Although she could never go out again, he could ensure that the little niece would have enough food and clothing for the rest of her life.
Everything has been arranged for his sons. If everything goes well, he won't have to do anything. If not, his eldest and second nephews will have to stop his sons and Fu Kui from assassinating Zhang Su and capturing his youngest niece alive. Then Prince Yong can just stop his two nephews.
Thinking of this, King Yong, who had completed one kneeling and three kowtows, stood up with everyone else and repeated the second kneeling and kowtow.
The new commander of the Imperial Guard, Fan Huaizhong, and the new commander of the Imperial Army, Xue Ye, did not kneel. Instead, they each led a team of personal guards to guard the civil and military officials on both sides. Fan Huaizhong and Xue Ye stood at the two ends of the open space between the Emperor and Empress and the four princes, empress dowagers, and noble concubines in the second row.
The kneeling officials had neither the time nor the opportunity to keep an eye on where the two commanders were looking. Including Qin Liang, they were unaware that the two commanders' hawk-like eyes were fixed on them, father and son, and Fu Kui.
When the Minister of Rites presided over the last kneeling ceremony, and when the Emperor and Empress led the clan members and civil and military officials to stand up straight, a clear and loud sound of whistling arrows suddenly came from the west side of the imperial mausoleum. Qin Liang's heart beat faster. This was the signal that He Jinglei had led the cavalry to arrive, and it was also the signal for him and his brother Deng Kun to take action!
While everyone was looking west, Qin Liang raised his right arm, which contained a hidden arrow, and aimed it at Zhang Su's back in front of him!
At the same time, Qin Liang's reminder to Fu Kui to "take action" and Fan Huaizhong and Xue Ye's roars of "protecting the emperor" sounded almost at the same time!
As Qin Liang shot out his sleeve arrows, Qingyang and Zhang Su quickly moved to the left and right to avoid the hidden weapons that might hit them. Just as Fan Huaizhong strode out to protect the emperor firmly behind him, Zhang Su, who knew who was going to assassinate him, and Xue Ye had already rushed towards Prince Yong and his son like two cheetahs.
None of this had occurred to Qin Liang, yet he still shouted loudly that he would execute the Crown Princess's followers in accordance with the late emperor's will. Meanwhile, Yong Kang fiercely rebuked Prince Yong and his son for forging the late emperor's will and plotting rebellion. As their voices reached everyone present, Qin Hong, Qin Bing, and Qin Ren remained stunned as Prince Yong and Qin Liang engaged Zhang Su and Xue Ye, respectively. On the military side, Deng Kun and Deng Tai first attacked Zhang Jie. Following Qin Liang's command, Wang Fei, Deputy Commander of the Northern Camp, who had been tied to Prince Yong's boat, also attacked Zhang Jie, along with several other Northern Camp commanders who had come to pay their respects.
But military officers such as Lu Zan, Hou Wanzhong, Meng Changhe, Cheng Zhixu, and Xue Yanzheng also reacted quickly. They were all loyal to Emperor Tianqing. Deng Kun and his brothers went to attack Zhang Jie, the father of the Queen. Obviously, the fault lay with Deng Kun and his brothers. So before Qin Liang and Yong Kang could speak, Lu Zan and his gang went to help Zhang Jie fight Deng Kun and his gang. After Emperor Tianqing personally convicted Prince Yong and his gang of rebellion, these military officers became even more murderous.
The poor civil servants, especially the elderly Yan Xizheng and Dai Lun, were of no help at all. They had no choice but to surround the Empress Dowager, the Noble Concubine and other royal women and children in the center. Soon a team of personal soldiers rushed over to firmly protect these relatives and civil servants.
The rebels were Prince Yong and his son. Qin Hong and Qin Bing, the two involved in the plot, were too shocked to react quickly. When the chaos in front of them brought them back to their senses, Qin Bing was furious. He asked his eldest brother to escort his youngest brother, who was useless and might even be taken hostage, to the Queen Mother. He helped Zhang Su to attack Prince Yong, cursing as he did so: "This is the imperial mausoleum! You dare to rebel under our father's nose? We don't have a beast like you in our Qin family!"
Prince Yong was just 52 years old, and his might was still there. He had nearly died several times on the battlefield, and it was not too difficult for him to deal with the two younger ones, Zhang Su and Qin Bing, at the same time with a short knife he had hidden in advance. When Prince Yong heard what Yongkang said, he knew that his son's plan to bribe Yongkang to support his nephew was not feasible. When he found out that the 5,000 cavalrymen his son had transferred were actually the troops under Zhang Jie of the West Camp, and He Jinglei of the North Camp had become a prisoner tied up, Prince Yong understood that there was no way for the father and son to survive today.
It's destined to be a dead end, what else is there to say?
But even if he died, King Yong did not think he was wrong. Even if he died, he wanted to die for a good cause and leave the Qin family's kingdom to his nephews!
Prince Yong didn't want to kill his niece, but at this point, he had no choice but to take his niece with him so that the throne could return to his nephews, any nephew would do!
A knife cut Qin Bing's arm, and King Yong rushed towards Qingyang, who was protected by Fan Huaizhong, with red eyes.
Qin Liang had been subdued by Xue Ye and Fu Kui. Zhang Su, Qin Bing and a team of personal soldiers who had arrived earlier were all trying to stop King Yong. However, a famous founding general who was determined to die, especially a great general who had made many military achievements with his bravery and fearlessness, could not be easily trapped even by the personal soldiers of the Imperial Guard and the Imperial Army.
Zhang Su snatched a long sword from his personal guard, and joined forces with Qin Bing and Xue Ye to stop Prince Yong three steps away from Fan Huaizhong.
Fan Huaizhong still wanted to protect the emperor and hide behind him, but Qingyang did not retreat anymore. He pulled out the sword from Fan Huaizhong's waist and stood tall and motionless.
She looked at Uncle Wang, who was stopped a few steps away but still stared at her as if she was the criminal who had exterminated the Qin family.
Qingyang's heart is not made of stone. She remembers how Uncle Wang loved her when she was a child. Although Uncle Wang had no patience, he loved to hold her in his arms and lift her onto his shoulders to let her sit on them.
Qingyang also remembers his father's head full of white hair and the warmth with which he recalled the old days between the two brothers.
Why is Father so worried about Uncle Wang?
In addition to not wanting his younger brother to go down a dead end, the emperor also didn't want his son, who was the rightful successor to the throne, to have to endure the torture of killing his blood relatives and bear the cruel reputation of killing his uncle, right?
Even if it was Uncle Wang who rebelled, fratricide would be fratricide, and no wise ruler would want to be involved in such a thing.
Qingyang must be a wise ruler, but she doesn't care that her uncle Wang has to give her such a cruel reputation.
She was only twenty years old. If nothing unexpected happened, her reign was destined to be a long one. In addition to her uncle, she also had an older sister, three older brothers who were emperors, relatives who held military power, nephews and nieces of the royal family, and younger generations from her in-laws' families.
Who can guarantee that there won’t be a few more of these people who want to pull her down as the empress?
No one can guarantee that, not even Qingyang can, and she won't always think the worst of her relatives and friends because of this caution.
But she wanted to let these relatives and friends, including officials and people all over the world, know what kind of emperor she was.
Two fists cannot beat four hands. No matter how brave Prince Yong was, Zhang Su, Qin Bing and Xue Ye were no ordinary men. Without Fan Huaizhong taking action, the knife in Prince Yong's hand was knocked out, and his coarse cloth robe was stained with blood due to the scars.
Because of his uncle's identity, even if Zhang Su wanted to kill Prince Yong directly, he couldn't. The life of his uncle should be decided by the emperor.
When Prince Yong injured his knee and had to kneel on the ground, Zhang Su and the other two gave up their seats to the emperor.
Deng Kun's party had already been captured by Zhang Jie, Lu Zan and others. As Prince Yong knelt on the ground, the war in front of the imperial mausoleum ended completely. Everyone's eyes were focused on the emperor who was walking towards Prince Yong with a long sword in his hand.
Not far away, Qingyang soon stopped in front of King Yong.
Prince Yong looked up at his niece, whose plain clothes couldn't hide her royal nobility, but whose features still vaguely retained the shadow of her childhood. Prince Yong smiled and said with full energy, "Lin'er, don't blame your uncle. Of all the children, your uncle actually likes you the most, it's just..."
Before he could finish his words, Qingyang thrust his sword into his heart. As Prince Yong stared in disbelief, the Queen Mother covered her mouth in horror, Yan Xizheng's eyes widened, and Zheng Ge'er trembled all over, Qingyang held the sword steady, looked down at Prince Yong, and said, "My father has long said that you are not worthy of calling me Lin'er."
Blood was oozing from the corners of Prince Yong's mouth, and his chest felt as if it were pierced by thousands of arrows. He was in so much pain that he couldn't speak. He turned his head with difficulty and looked at the imperial mausoleum in front of him.
Qingyang didn't draw his sword. He watched indifferently as Prince Yong breathed his last and fell to the ground with his eyes wide open. "Carry him out and wipe away all the blood he left here."
This man is not worthy of being her uncle, nor is he worthy of desecrating her father's resting place.
The personal guards acted quickly and took away all the rebels, dead or alive. Qingyang took Zhang Su back to where they had just stood and signaled with his eyes that the Minister of Rites should continue to preside over the ceremony.
The north wind blew, and the solemn and rich music of the memorial ceremony sounded again at the imperial mausoleum, as if nothing had happened except this memorial ceremony.
【Author’s words】
In fact, there was nothing wrong with Qin Liang’s plan, but he underestimated Yongkang and even more so Qingyang.
100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow~
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