February 1st, 2:15 pm.
Nalan Yunzhi sat upright on the golden throne, looking down upon the civil and military officials below.
Last night, the Crown Princess gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. This morning, the court was particularly lively. Ministers gathered in groups of three or five, whispering to each other.
Some discussed the purple light that filled the sky and the golden light that shone brightly during the birth of the Crown Princess, declaring it a sign of great good fortune; others debated what name the child should be given to embody this auspicious sign; and still others debated whether to seize the opportunity to establish the Crown Princess as the Crown Prince, thereby stabilizing the court and reassuring the people. Of course, other factions were also stirring, unable to contain themselves.
As everyone knows, although the current emperor has many children, neither his daughters nor his married sons have ever given birth to a single son. Now that the Crown Princess has given birth to two children in one pregnancy, one can imagine the status of these two little princes in the emperor's heart. Naturally, they are treasures more precious than gold nuggets.
At this time, Fu Ling, the director of the Imperial Observatory, stepped forward, holding a tablet and admonishing the emperor: "Your Majesty, the birth of twins, a boy and a girl, by the Crown Princess is a sign of good fortune from heaven. To stabilize the country and reassure the people, I suggest that the Crown Princess be made the heir apparent."
Upon hearing this, Nalan Yunzhi nodded slightly and said, "Minister Fu, your words make sense. Once the name of the young lady is decided, I will issue an imperial decree to confer the title upon her."
"Your Majesty is wise!" Fu Ling kowtowed.
After deciding to make the young princess the crown prince's granddaughter, Nalan Yunzhi announced a series of rewards and reforms to celebrate this auspicious occasion. She hoped that these measures would make Laifeng Kingdom more prosperous and powerful, and the people live and work in peace and contentment.
"If you have the documents, please submit your report. If you don't, please leave the court!"
As the sound of the ceremony from the Imperial Household Department rang out, the morning court session at the Laifeng Kingdom's palace was nearing its end.
"I have a report to make!"
General Ouyang Yiqun glanced leisurely at Feng Cailan in front of her, then stepped out of the military officer team with a jade plate in hand, walked to the center of the Golden Palace, and bowed to the leader.
"Oh, I wonder what Lord Ouyang wants to report?"
Nalan Yunzhi glanced towards the East Palace from time to time. She was anxious to see her granddaughter and grandson, so she was a little impatient with this troublesome minister.
"Your Majesty, I want to impeach the current general Feng Cailan!" Ouyang Yiqun said in a resounding voice.
Her voice was like thunder, and every word was sonorous and powerful, echoing in the Golden Palace, as if to wake up the entire court.
When the court officials heard this, their reactions varied. Some were surprised, some showed smug smiles, and more remained silent, waiting for the emperor's decision.
Ouyang Yiqin's words were like a sharp sword, pointed directly at Feng Cailan, the great general of the dynasty. Her eyes were full of provocation, as if she had already seen Feng Cailan being punished by the emperor.
Feng Cailan, the person involved, remained calm, her eyes deep and cold, difficult to read. She stood quietly at the head of the generals, motionless, as if waiting for something.
Sitting upright on the throne, Nalan Yunzhi glanced at Ouyang Yiqin, then at Feng Cailan, and then slowly said, "Lord Ouyang, I wonder why you want to impeach General Feng, and do you have evidence to prove that General Feng is guilty?"
Ouyang Yiqin's lips curled slightly as he bowed to Nalan Yunzhi again and said, "Your Majesty, last night at midnight, when the Crown Princess was about to give birth, General Feng Cailan unexpectedly led 5,000 soldiers to block the palace gates. Eighty percent of the ministers in the court witnessed this."
Ouyang Yiqin glanced at Feng Cailan with a smug look, then revealed an expression of deep sorrow and continued to impeach her, "Your Majesty, Feng Cailan has taken upon herself the power of the army and has blocked the palace gates without authorization. I have reason to suspect she has ulterior motives, perhaps trying to seize this opportunity to force the emperor to abdicate. After all, the Crown Princess is her niece! I believe that such disloyalty should not be allowed to continue. Feng Cailan should be severely punished to serve as a warning to others!"
After saying that, Ouyang Yiqun knelt down and kowtowed to Nalan Yunzhi above him, looking like a loyal minister who was thinking about the emperor and the court.
Nalan Yunzhi gave Feng Cailan, the leader of the generals, a meaningful look and said leisurely, "Lord Feng, do you have any explanation for this matter?"
"Your Majesty, this is indeed the case." Feng Cailan stepped out from the ranks of military commanders, bowed to Nalan Yunzhi, and spoke slowly, "Last night, the Crown Princess and the Princess were about to give birth, and my husband asked me to personally escort several of the stable men into the palace. Upon hearing that an assassin had attacked the Eastern Palace, I was concerned for the safety of the Crown Princess, the Princess, and the Phoenix Child in her unborn child, so I temporarily transferred two groups of soldiers from the eastern suburbs of the city to help capture the assassin."
Feng Cailan glanced at Ouyang Yiqin out of the corner of her eye, paused slightly, and continued, "I only ordered the soldiers to intercept the assassins outside the palace. In total, over 200 assassins were captured. No one set foot inside the palace. It was just a routine operation to encircle and suppress assassins. How can you say that they are treasonous and are forcing the emperor to abdicate? General Ouyang is slandering me with his lies. He deserves death."
As Feng Cailan finished speaking, the ministers in the palace reacted in different ways. Some agreed with Feng Cailan's statement, while others supported Ouyang Yiqin's point of view. For a moment, the court began to discuss the matter lively again.
At this moment, a resounding voice broke the whispers of the civil and military officials, "Your Majesty, I think there is nothing wrong with General Feng's move. At a critical juncture, extraordinary measures must be taken. If you stick to the rules and regulations and miss the opportunity to catch the assassin, I am afraid that the capture of the assassin will become even more difficult." Prime Minister Situ Luoyun stood out from the head of the civil officials and affirmed Feng Cailan's decisive action.
"Well, I already know about the assassin. The defense of the capital area does need to be strengthened." Nalan Yunzhi nodded slightly, put the matter aside, and scolded Ouyang Yiqun.
After announcing his retirement from court, Nalan Yunzhi specially kept Feng Cailan and asked her to go with him to the East Palace to visit Mu Lige and the two imperial grandchildren.
…
That night, in the capital of Laifeng Kingdom, at the City God Temple in the north of the city.
Wenpan Meng Lishi sat at a desk at the entrance of the City God Temple, busy registering the ghosts who had died recently and came to report.
However, when he looked at the endless team in front of him, his handsome eyebrows couldn't help but frown slightly.
"Lord Wenpan, the ghosts tonight are all the assassins from the East Palace last night." A ghost messenger next to Meng Lishi saw the puzzled look on Meng Lishi's face, so he explained.
"Yes." Meng Lishi nodded in understanding, and then asked the ghost in front of him: "Name, age, place of origin, cause of death..."
What Meng Lishi didn't expect was that when he registered the cause of death of these ghosts, he wrote the name "Left Bank" hundreds of times.
Meng Lishi was busy for a long time before he registered the identity information and cause of death of thousands of ghosts one by one, of which 70% died under the sword of Zuo'an.
On the second day of February, at midnight, Meng Lishi, after finishing his work, came to the Yixia Garden in the East Palace.
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