The two of them were not very familiar with each other. Zhao Yuanrou had asked to see Zheng Xintong several times, but was turned away each time. Even when she went to "meet him by chance", the other party was lukewarm. But it was obvious that they both knew each other's intentions, so as soon as they met, they got down to business without much awkward courtesy.
Zheng Xintong told her bluntly that Chu Yuanchen had stockpiled troops in the capital without authorization.
Zhao Yuanrou was stunned for a moment, and immediately imagined countless possibilities in her mind, and then looked at her with a suspicious attitude.
Zheng Xintong let her watch impartially, saying, "My father judged that even if Chu Yuanchen had private soldiers, they would not exceed 10,000. At least not in the capital. This time, Xiao Shuo had Chu Yuanchen use his biggest trump card in order to overthrow my father. Now is the best opportunity. If we miss it, once Chu Yuanchen's 30,000 Zhenbei troops arrive, King Zhao will have no chance."
Zhao Yuanrou asked, "What about Mr. Zheng?"
What she meant was whether Zheng Zhongming would cooperate with them.
Zheng Xintong pretended not to understand and said with a smile: "My father has always been loyal to the emperor and patriotic."
She didn't say anything more to her. She stood up, brushed the hem of her skirt, and smiled gently: "Princess, my father only asked me to tell you so that King Zhao wouldn't suffer any loss. I don't know anything else."
"Whether it's good or bad, Princess should discuss it with King Zhao."
Zheng Xintong knelt down and left without waiting for her to see him off.
Zhao Yuanrou's face darkened slightly, and he clenched his right fist and tapped lightly twice on the armrest of the armchair.
Of course she understood what Zheng Xintong meant. The Zheng family would not take any action in this matter. As for whether Qin Wei was willing to take action or not, it was up to them.
The Zheng family wanted to push them to the front, hide behind, and reap the benefits. But even if Zhao Yuanrou understood, she couldn't calm down, the temptation was too great.
She had already obtained the blank imperial edict with the Queen Mother's seal, Prince Cheng had also won over some ministers who wanted to take advantage of the situation, and had also used the Fu family to make several low-ranking generals submit. The only thing she lacked was timing, and she really didn't have much time to wait.
Wu Anbo is about to return to Beijing. Once Wu Anbo comes back, the Fu family will no longer be ruled by Wu Anbo's wife. I'm afraid the whole plan will have to start over again.
Opportunities can only be encountered by chance.
Therefore, even if Zhao Yuanrou knew that Zheng Zhongming was using her, she could not resist this temptation.
She had waited too long.
For so long, no matter how hard she tried to fit into this world, everyone still relied on her status and position to criticize her, suppress her in every way, and did not give her any chance to stand out.
She didn't want to endure it anymore.
Zhao Yuanrou called a maid and said, "Go out and ask around. The lawsuit in Jingzhao Prefecture has been settled."
The maid obeyed the order and hurried out.
In addition to Zhao Yuanrou, many people in the capital were also paying attention to this case in Jingzhao Prefecture. Although this was just a murder case and was not worth their attention, Wang Qinghe was Zheng Zhongming's brother-in-law, and the Wang family was now sealed off by Dongchang.
Many people in Beijing knew about the feud between Xiao Shuo and Zheng Zhongming. It was nothing more than a struggle for power between the two powerful officials.
Xiao Shuo attacked Zheng Zhongming's maternal family and his wife's family, and thus gained a firm foothold, forcing Zheng Zhongming to temporarily leave the capital, making Xiao Shuo the most prominent figure at the time.
Now that the emperor has suffered a stroke, Xiao Shuo is in charge of government affairs, while Zheng Zhongming holds the power of the imperial guards. The two can be said to be competing against each other.
Everyone knows that they can't tolerate each other, and now, Xiao Shuo has taken the initiative to attack the Wang family.
As soon as the Jingzhao Yin's verdict came down, Wang Qinghe was beheaded, and everyone sighed, "As expected." Of course, Xiao Shuo would never let Zheng Zhongming go.
Many people were watching to see how Zheng Zhongming would respond, but Zheng Zhongming remained silent.
After the sentence of execution for Wang Qinghe was handed down, Xiao Shuo ordered a search of his house.
The Dongchang men, who had been waiting at the Wang family's house for a day and a night, immediately took action skillfully.
The whole capital city was shocked.
How many households have been raided by the Dong factories in the past one or two months?
They couldn't help but recall the time when Xiao Shuo first came to power, when the Caishikou was almost washed in blood, and the lingering smell of blood.
Everyone in the capital was in danger, and the court officials were even more focused on their duties. They were determined not to get involved in the affairs of the Wang family, but would occasionally mention it in private. The crime of murder did not seem to warrant the confiscation of property.
As soon as they finished speaking, they fell silent again, keeping their mouths shut.
Sheng Xingan was the same. He had no idea that his daughter was also in the hall that day. After she came back, she complained to Sheng Xiyan for a long time, saying that the Ministry of Rites had been doing more inexplicable work recently, and then said:
"The Minister certainly doesn't want us to be idle, or we might go out drinking with others and accidentally say something that might cause trouble for him."
"Ah, the Minister has good intentions."
"However, some people are clearly restless."
Sheng Xiyan couldn't help but chuckle: "King Zhao?"
Sheng Xingan stroked his beard and nodded, thinking that the young lady was simply too smart and had guessed it right at the first try!
Sheng Xiyan poured him a cup of tea and asked, "What happened to King Zhao?"
Sheng Xingan was almost flattered. Even though he had already drunk several cups of tea in the government office, he still drank most of it in one breath and said, "A phoenix just appeared in the sky above Prince Zhao's mansion."
"Phoenix?" Sheng Xiyan was just listening casually at first, but now he raised his eyebrows with interest.
Seeing this, Sheng Xingan continued, "Many people have gone to see the excitement. Some are spreading the news about the 'Phoenix Girl of Heaven' that happened in Zuolou that day, saying that Yun Yangzi's fortune-telling was effective."
Sheng Xingan was passing by a street near Prince Zhao's Palace on his way back from the government office and happened to see it.
They were now keeping their tails between their legs, fearing that they would be mistaken for Zheng family members and dealt with by Xiao Shuo, who was trying to establish his authority. However, Prince Zhao suddenly showed up on his own.
Sheng Xing'an naturally understood that Prince Zhao had been waiting for an opportunity, waiting for the Queen Mother to respond and Prince Zhao to take over the government with Xiao Shuo as regent. However, the inner palace of the former dynasty was all controlled by Xiao Shuo, and Zheng Zhongming had no hope at all for the so-called Queen Mother's decree. It was far less likely that Zheng Zhongming, who was in charge of the imperial guards, would have a chance to fight Xiao Shuo.
"Some people are saying that the emperor is seriously ill, and now the Phoenix Girl has come to the world again. Is this a message from heaven?"
Sheng Xingan sneered, "You are just playing tricks."
Sheng Xiyan said with a smile: "This phoenix trick, once is not enough, it comes a second time, although it is an old trick, but there are still people who fall for it."
The corners of her mouth curved, and she said with interest, "Father, let me go and see what's going on."
Sheng Xingan smiled and said, "Go ahead."
He was not worried at all that his daughter would suffer any loss. If something really happened, it was not certain who would suffer the loss.
Sheng Xiyan stood up, bowed, and walked out briskly. She also picked up Cheng Chuyu. There was such a lively scene to watch, so how could she not bring her along?
Cheng Chuyu specially asked someone to find an ordinary flat-head carriage from the mansion. The two smiled at each other, got on the carriage, and headed straight for Prince Zhao's mansion.
"Sister Yan, I just came back from the palace." As soon as she got on the carriage, Cheng Chuyu said happily, "Doctor Zhou said that Han Qianzhi's foot can be saved!"
"Really?!" Sheng Xiyan's eyes lit up, "What do you mean?"
After Wang Qinghe was convicted yesterday, the two guys who had been working hard all day and night went to catch up on their sleep, so she did not go to the palace.
In recent days, not only the Cheng family, but also the royal palace has been looking for famous doctors everywhere. As the saying goes, every profession has its specialties, and not all the best doctors in the world are in the Imperial Hospital. There have also been miraculous doctors among the people.
However, several doctors came and basically said something similar to the imperial physician. Now that she finally heard that the patient could still be saved, Sheng Xiyan couldn't help but be overjoyed.
"Doctor Zhou said that I need to use acupuncture every day and his ancestral ointment to wait until the spinal fracture heals and see how the patient recovers. He said he has a 30% chance of success."
Cheng Chuyu's brows were filled with joy. They had heard many words like "there's no hope" so even if there was only a 30% chance of success, it was enough to make her ecstatic.
Sheng Xiyan asked, "Is Doctor Zhou temporarily living in the palace now?" Seeing Cheng Chuyu nod, she said, "Then let's go over after we see the excitement." She planned to go and ask carefully.
Cheng Chuyu said happily: "I'll go with you."
As they were talking, the carriage had already turned several streets and arrived at Prince Zhao's palace.
Prince Zhao was the late emperor's favorite youngest son, and he and the emperor had a deep brotherly relationship. When the construction of Prince Zhao's Palace was underway, the late emperor and the present emperor moved the best things in the inner treasury to him. Prince Zhao's palace was one of the most luxurious in the capital, even the old-line royal family Prince Cheng's palace could not compare to it.
The palace occupied an entire street, and now the street was already tightly blocked by people who came to watch the excitement, and carriages could hardly pass through.
The phoenix cannot be seen from here, and it is not known whether it is blocked by the crowd or has disappeared.
Xigui was eager to try and said, "Miss, I will go down and ask around."
Originally, she came out to see the excitement, Sheng Xiyan agreed happily.
Xigui jumped off the carriage and waited until they had finished their scented tea and had snacks before she came back excitedly, her breath a little hurried.
Cheng Chuyu kindly handed her a cup of tea. After Xigui moistened his throat, he said, "Miss, the phoenix flew away one stick of incense away. I heard that they said that after the phoenix spread its wings, its body was a hundred feet long. It circled several times in the sky above Prince Zhao's mansion and even made a sound."
"The phoenixes were so loud that the chickens and ducks raised by the people nearby were all trembling with fear, and the hens stopped laying eggs."
Sheng Xiyan smiled and asked, "And then?"
"The phoenix nodded three times towards Prince Zhao's palace, as if it was kowtowing, and then disappeared."
Xigui's face said excitedly, "There's more! Someone mentioned that the phoenix appeared in the left building last time. It was said that the phoenix had already chosen a master, but the world has not responded yet. If Darong continues to ignore the will of heaven, he will probably be punished by heaven."
"Interesting." Sheng Xiyan leaned back in her chair, looking comfortable.
Speaking of Tianqian, Sheng Xiyan remembered an incident in her previous life, which was quite interesting when she thought about it now.
In the previous life, the temple was struck by lightning and caught fire.
At that time, she had actually already died, which is the later content of the novel.
Qin Wei and Zhou Jingxun fought for power and refused to give in to each other. Later, Taimiao was struck by lightning. Later, rumors spread everywhere in the capital that Qin Wei was not upright and that Taimiao's ancestors had punished him.
In the novel, Xiao Shuo hardly appears in the plot. All the words focus on how cruel and ruthless he is, how he appoints people based on personal connections, and how he kills loyal people unjustly, turning Darong upside down and making life miserable for the people...
In his previous life, Xiao Shuo really didn't care what would happen to Darong Tianxia. After all, all the people he cared about were gone...
However, Sheng Xiyan thought about it carefully later and Xiao Shuo should know that the jade pendant did not belong to the wife of Marquis Yongning.
He was more of a "flatterer" to Zhou Jingxun.
After he had almost destroyed the Darong empire, he actually had no attachment to the world anymore, so he picked up someone to continue stirring up trouble until the dynasty completely collapsed.
Sheng Xiyan's eyes were a little dazed. This was not mentioned in the novel, but she always felt that she could figure out Xiao Shuo's thoughts.
Because in her previous life, she also had nothing, was disheartened, and didn't want to make any changes. She just wanted to end her life early.
At that time, she used thunder to scare the wife of Marquis Yongning and Liu. In fact, she was also thinking of that incident. She knew that thunder would strike the ancestral hall because she had lived again. How did Zhao Yuanrou know that?
Sheng Xiyan then asked, "What else?" Her bright almond eyes were filled with the excitement of watching a play.
= Taoist Master Yun Yangzi also came. He wanted to enter the Zhaowang Mansion, but was persuaded by Zhaowang Consort. Yun Yangzi said that Zhaowang Consort was born with a phoenix destiny, but unfortunately she was trapped in a cage and could not show her talents. Otherwise, Dasheng would have prospered for a hundred years. Then he left with a sigh.
"Master Yunyangzi has many followers, and many people are relaying his words, which are becoming more and more outrageous." Xigui smiled and said, "It is said that Princess Zhao was born with the destiny of a phoenix, and she should rule the world."
Cheng Chuyu's eyes widened, then he blinked gently, and it took him a long time to utter, "Is she crazy?"
Sheng Xiyan covered her mouth and chuckled.
Cheng Chuyu felt a headache coming on: "Hasn't she thought about the consequences?"
"The consequences?" Sheng Xiyan laughed. "Based on my understanding of her, I'm afraid she really hasn't thought about it."
Zhao Yuanrou not only looked at everything from a superior attitude, but also felt that she was the master above all else, and that they should all prostrate themselves below her and beg for mercy.
She would be unhappy if they failed to do what she wanted.
So, she may not have really thought about the consequences.
In other words, she really felt that she was "born with the destiny of a phoenix to rule the world."
She calmed down and asked, "Where is Yun Yangzi now?"
Xigui shook his head and said, "I don't know, they didn't tell me, but just now many people followed Yun Yangzi. Do you want me to ask around?"
Xigui's little face was full of excitement. Sheng Xiyan was just about to ask her to take a look when suddenly there was a noise coming from the other side of the street. The noise became louder and louder, so loud that it seemed to lift the sky apart.
Sheng Xiyan opened the window curtain and looked outside, only to see another strange sight appearing in the sky above Prince Zhao's mansion. This time it was a white tiger, which fell to the ground and did not move. The people who were originally scattered in groups on the street crowded towards Prince Zhao's mansion even more densely.
The people around were all looking at the white tiger, which was lying there motionless, its white fur covered in blood.
Immediately afterwards, the fiery phoenix appeared in the air again.
"It's the Phoenix!"
"The Phoenix has come out again."
Many people on the street shouted out.
Sheng Xiyan looked at the phoenix carefully. It was actually different from the one she saw in the left floor that day. Moreover, the phoenix did not move, but showed a posture of spreading its wings and flying high.
Sure enough, those so-called chirping, nodding, circling and so on, were people trying to take advantage of the situation.
Looking at the people gathered in front of Prince Zhao's palace, one could faintly hear someone saying, "... Taoist Master Yun Yangzi said that the White Tiger is a star general, and a great general will fall in the Great Rong Dynasty."
As soon as these words came out, there seemed to be a lot more similar voices in the crowd.
The news spread quickly, and gradually, with eyes and ears seeing almost everyone saying that it was the Phoenix mourning for the fallen star.
Who will be the star general?
The news spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred, and was finally brought into the palace by Princess Cheng.
It was raining heavily outside, the sound of rain was accompanied by bursts of thunder. It was still daytime, but the sky seemed to have entered dusk.
The Queen Mother looked shocked. While twirling the beads, she said in a deep voice: "What else?"
Princess Cheng said in a serious tone, "Master Yunyangzi said that a star general is about to fall."
She wiped her eyes with a handkerchief, looking worried, and said, "Our prince is extremely worried, but he cannot enter the palace, so let me talk to you, the queen mother."
She showed a somewhat cautious expression, lowered her voice and said: "It is naturally good for that person to be in power. If Taoist Yun Yangzi's words really come true, the star will fall, and it will be a disaster for Da Rong."
The Queen Mother understood what she meant and joined her in saying, "That must be the case. Alas, what can we do? The Emperor is still ill."
Princess Cheng asked cautiously, "Empress Dowager, how long has it been since you last saw the Emperor?"
The Queen Mother was a little reluctant to say it.
She hasn't seen the emperor since he suffered a stroke.
Although she was free to come and go in the palace, she was stopped every time she wanted to see the emperor. Either the emperor fell asleep, or the imperial physician was doing acupuncture, or the emperor was in a bad mood and didn't want to see anyone. Anyway, she never saw him once. If she tried to force her way in, she would be persuaded or pulled away...
The days in the palace were really lonely, and basically no one came to see her. Occasionally, she wanted to see someone, but she would issue an oral order to summon someone to the palace. The reply she got was either that the person was sick or had fallen. She had no idea where so many disasters came from.
Even Wei'er and Zhao Yuanrou only came twice in total.
The Queen Mother sighed. If this continued, she would be driven crazy.
The Queen Mother said, "Since Heaven has given us a warning, we must not tolerate it any longer for the sake of the prosperity of our country. Come, Prince Muhammad and the Prime Minister."
She paused, then added, "And Prince Cheng."
Princess Cheng smiled a little.
The Queen Mother also smiled when she saw this. Now Prince Cheng is the most capable person around Wei'er. Although he can't help much in the court, he is the one who can help with money and connections. Prince Cheng must feel that his bet is worth it.
Cao Xi replied "Yes", winked at the eunuch serving beside him, and went out to do it himself.
The Queen Mother spoke a few more words to Princess Cheng, all of which were about the omen from yesterday.
As she was talking, her head started to ache again. She swallowed her saliva and asked the nanny beside her, "Where is my ointment?"
The young eunuch replied hesitantly, "The governor has ordered that the Ten Perfect Ointment be banned."
"How dare you." The Queen Mother said unhappily, "Now I need it. I don't know what Xiao Shuo is up to. I just let him take charge of government affairs, but he keeps thinking about one thing after another. Is the Ten-Perfect Cream good or bad? How could I not know!"
Now it is impossible to buy it in the whole capital. The last time Zhao Yuanrou came, she said that there were not many of the Shiquan ointment left.
The Queen Mother could actually see that something was not right in the palace. She couldn't see anyone she wanted to see, which was very unusual. However, when she thought of the Ten-Ingredient Cream, she could easily put aside all her doubts and the vague uneasiness in her heart.
Since the emperor has had a stroke, let him just have a stroke.
When the youngest son comes to power, he will be able to enjoy the Ten-Herb Paste to his heart's content.
For this, she can ignore everything.
The young eunuch replied "Yes" without changing his expression, and the maid who served the Queen Mother went down to get it.
The governor said that the Ten Perfect Cream should be banned, but whether the empress dowager listened or not, and whether to use it or not, was up to her own will. He just had to remember to say it once every time.
The sound of rain became louder and louder, the sky became darker, and several flashes of lightning flashed across the sky, casting a white light on half of the sky.
The nanny quickly brought the Shiquan ointment. The queen mother took a small spoonful as usual and felt refreshed and clear-headed. She couldn't help but praise it with Princess Cheng. Princess Cheng also echoed her. Her own palace had invested money in Linlang Pavilion. Xiao Shuo's ban was a huge loss. She was heartbroken, but the queen mother could say this, but she couldn't.
Soon, the Prime Minister and others arrived one after another.
The heavy rain came and several people were soaked. They couldn't use the Cining Palace to change clothes, which was really a desperate situation.
The Prime Minister was actually a little surprised that he could meet the Queen Mother smoothly. Some words could be implied but not spoken explicitly. The Prime Minister was not as naive as the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother might not be completely sober yet and was still in that dream of honor and glory. However, he could see that Xiao Shuo would not allow the Queen Mother to interfere in government affairs, and the same was true for Prince Li.
After the greeting, the Queen Mother sighed and talked about the folk rumors "she just heard" and Yun Yangzi's words about the star of generals falling. When she finished, she said worriedly: "Such an unclear omen is a warning from heaven to Darong. We can't ignore it. Darong is in need of military generals now. If a star of generals really falls, it will be a disaster for Darong." She sighed and said, "I just don't know who this so-called star of generals is."
"It can't be the King of Zhenbei," said the Queen Mother.
Prince Cheng chimed in and said, "Prince Zhenbei is in good health. Queen Mother, I just remembered something."
The Queen Mother looked anxious: "You tell me."
Prince Cheng said hurriedly, "Lieutenant General Wang of the Fifth Army Battalion of the Imperial Guards was sentenced to death by beheading by Jingzhao Prefecture the day before yesterday. Yesterday, the white tiger appeared to be dying, a sign of the star of generals falling. Could it be that the star of generals has fulfilled the fate of General Wang? Otherwise, it would be too coincidental."
The Queen Mother held the Buddhist beads in her hand and asked hurriedly, "What should we do? Has Wang Qinghe violated any law?"
Prince Cheng then told the story. The Prime Minister and Prince Li exchanged glances. They were a little confused about what the Queen Mother was going to do, so they didn't interrupt. After Prince Cheng finished telling the story, the Queen Mother said affirmatively, "I think this may be an injustice. It is precisely because of the injustice that God has issued a warning. This matter must be thoroughly investigated."