Chapter 214 Demolition of the Buddhist Temple
When the news reached Tongming Palace, Huo Jinchi was having a secret conversation with ministers in the study.
The people he was talking to were Qinchai and Shen Che who had just returned from their journey to the west.
After hearing the news, Xu An looked at the tightly closed palace door and sweat broke out on his forehead.
The Emperor had ordered that no one should be disturbed in any matter, but he was not sure whether this "anything" included Concubine Xi's affairs.
Seeing him hesitate, Xiao Dezi, who was standing by, became anxious, so he stepped forward and said, "The matter of Concubine Xi cannot be delayed. I am willing to share the worry with Master. Let me go in and try."
"Are you doing this for me?" Xu An was not stupid, but since Concubine Xi was in power now, he had to curry favor with her, so he didn't say anything.
He warned: "This is no joke. If you listen to something you shouldn't, you could lose your head."
"But if something really happens to Concubine Xi, we might be in danger of losing our lives." Xiao Dezi said quickly.
Xu An naturally knew what was going on. He waved his hand and asked someone to bring a copper kettle of hot water. "If it works, you'll have a bright future. If it doesn't, I'll ask the emperor to hold your head. But you can't stay here any longer. Whether it succeeds or not depends on your luck."
Xiao Dezi took the copper pot and smiled at him, "Master, don't worry, I have always had good luck."
"Go quickly!" Xu An pushed him.
Xiao Dezi pushed open the palace door without much hesitation.
Although he said so, who wouldn't value his life? So he deliberately made the sound of opening the door very loud to interrupt the conversation inside and avoid hearing anything he shouldn't hear.
Hearing no sound from inside, he deliberately increased his pace, walked forward and pushed open the door again.
"What?"
He suddenly barged in, and Huo Jinchi's expression was indeed very ugly, and even the two servants and Shen Che looked at him with unfriendly eyes.
The disclosure of their secret talks would be a matter of life and death for them.
Xiao Dezi said in a steady voice, "Your servant is here to add water for the Emperor and the others." As he spoke, he deliberately raised his eyes to glance at the Emperor.
It is impossible for the emperor not to see that he has something to report. Whether it succeeds or not depends entirely on whether he is willing to listen to his report.
If the Emperor doesn't want to listen...
Xiao Dezi tightly grasped the handle of the copper kettle. He didn't know what was going on with his sister. There were too many ways in the harem to prevent anyone from dying but to make people's lives worse than death.
If the emperor doesn't want to listen, he can just shout it out in the palace. The emperor will never ignore his sister!
As expected, Huo Jinchi's eyes narrowed slightly when he looked at him, but the people in front of him knew him, and he also knew these people. If it wasn't for something really important, they wouldn't dare to intrude like this.
"Hurry up!" he shouted coldly.
Xiao Dezi immediately breathed a sigh of relief, walked quickly forward, and whispered the matter in Huo Jinchi's ear while pouring tea.
After listening to this, Huo Jinchi frowned and said, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"
He stood up and said to the people in the hall: "Wait here, I will be back soon!"
After saying this, he walked out of the study without looking back. Xiao Dezi wanted to follow him, but looking at the ministers in the hall, he had to stop and pour water and tea for them one by one.
The emperor actually left them behind during the secret talk, which was unbelievable for several people, and they couldn't help but be curious.
He also saw that Xiao Dezi was the emperor's confidant, so he couldn't help asking him:
"Father-in-law, what happened?"
This matter might not be hidden from these people, but the news could not be leaked from his mouth. Xiao Dezi just shook his head, "It's not a big deal. The adults, please wait for a while. If you have anything, just tell me."
After he finished speaking, he couldn't help but glance at Shen Che, the person in the palace who had the most connection with his sister.
In less than a year, this former leader had become much more mature. His facial lines had become more profound, and his handsome features had become sharper, like a sword that had just revealed its edge.
Xiao Dezi quickly lowered his eyes and left the hall.
Shen Che did not miss the look he gave him, and pondered inwardly.
Why is he looking at me? Could it be...
Shen Che thought of those eyes as bright as the morning stars.
——
When Huo Jinchi led his men to the Ninghe Palace, the palace was completely silent. His heartbeat was slightly irregular. He flicked his sleeves, waved away the palace maids who came forward to greet him, and walked straight into the palace.
He stood in the main hall and looked around, and immediately saw Yun Qin kneeling in the middle of the small Buddhist hall in the west room.
There was a stool in front of her, her wrist hanging in the air, holding a pen and copying something. If that were all, there was no cushion under her knees, and she just knelt on the cold blue bricks.
The west room had its windows tightly shut, but was lit with the strong smell of sandalwood and thick smoke. Yun Qin's slender figure was shrouded in it, and it was difficult to see clearly.
He had only been in for a while when he heard the woman cough twice.
Huo Jinchi gritted his teeth, walked straight in, and pulled Yun Qin up.
The woman seemed to be startled and screamed. She rubbed her eyes which were red from the smoke and seemed to have just seen him clearly. Just as she was about to ask a question, she started coughing again.
Huo Jinchi hurriedly pulled her out. When they reached the door, the lattice door of the east side room finally opened, and the Queen Mother came out and shouted:
"Where are you taking her?"
The woman coughed so hard that she couldn't even straighten her back. Touching the bony spine on her back, Huo Jinchi felt a pang of pain in his heart.
He leaned over and picked her up. He looked sideways at the empress dowager, but did not answer her question. Instead, he loudly ordered Xu An: "Xu An, go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and ask Zhang Huaide, is my palace so poor that we can't even afford to burn good sandalwood?"
"If you don't want his head anymore, just chop it off and send it to Shanglinyuan for composting!"
The Queen Mother knew that these words were meant for her. She was angry and annoyed. She swayed for a moment before being supported by Madam Sun. She pointed her finger at Huo Jinchi and said, "You, you, you rebellious son!"
Huo Jinchi still looked at her with cold eyes, "The Queen Mother is obsessed with practicing Buddhism, bowing every day, which is harmful to her body. I feel deeply uneasy and can only persuade her to stop it."
Then he shouted coldly, "Tear down the Empress Dowager's Buddhist temple!"
"You, you dare!" The Queen Mother also shouted, "Let's see who dares to move!"
"Take action!" Huo Jinchi remained unmoved and looked outside the hall.
The imperial guards who came with him immediately stepped forward, stopped the empress dowager, and walked into the Buddhist hall.
Of course they didn't dare to smash or destroy anything, but they took out the incense burner, futon and other items inside.
When a golden statue of Guanyin was brought out, the Queen Mother nearly fainted. She held onto Grandma Sun's hand tightly and shouted at Huo Jinchi who was standing outside the palace, "Aren't you afraid of retribution for being disrespectful to the Bodhisattva?"
Huo Jinchi looked at the queen mother across the imperial guards. His eyes had returned to their usual calmness, and so had his voice. "Don't worry, mother. You have been cultivating merits before the Buddha every day, and your karma has long been eliminated. How could you suffer retribution?"
His light words made the Queen Mother feel as if struck by lightning. She looked at Huo Jinchi with wide eyes, and retreated repeatedly with the help of Grandma Sun. Finally, she fell down on the couch, looking like a wolf.
"My queen!"
There was also a trace of pain in Huo Jinchi's eyes, but he did not go forward to comfort her. Instead, he hugged Yun Qin and turned away.
The imperial guards in the palace also quickly withdrew, leaving the room in silence and chaos.
In the Buddhist temple, only the lingering smoke of sandalwood lingered for a long time.