After the Queen Mother finished speaking, she said, "Lin Shoufu, what do you think?"

Lin Shoufu smiled and said, "Empress Dowager, how can you take rumors in the market seriously? They are just some petty tricks. Wang Qinghe's crime was determined by Jingzhao Prefecture. There are witnesses and evidence. There is also a personal complaint from the victim. I have also read the files and there is nothing unusual. He deserves to be beheaded for killing someone. Your Majesty, don't be deceived by rumors in the market."

Prince Li then said, "Yes. Queen Mother, I heard that you have been suffering from a severe headache recently. It is better for you to have a good rest. With Governor Xiao watching over you in the court, nothing will go wrong."

He almost told the Queen Mother to stop interfering in other people's affairs.

Both Prime Minister Lin and Prince Li are extremely satisfied with the current court. All memorials submitted will be approved in a timely manner and will never be accumulated. Xiao Shuo has been powerful for a long time and no one dares to play tricks in front of him. The court officials do not even dare to fight with each other and only think about how to get things done.

With the current court situation, he would be willing to work for a few more years before retiring.

Therefore, the Queen Mother should just enjoy her old age and stop wasting time.

The Queen Mother looked a little embarrassed, but she tried not to get angry and said, "I am worried about the great prosperity of the country."

Lin Shoufu said nothing and pretended not to hear.

Only Prince Cheng said worriedly: "Master Yunyangzi also said that if we ignore the will of heaven, we will be punished by heaven."

"Your Highness, you are worried too much." Lin Shoufu said, "Your Majesty, if there is nothing else, I will take my leave first."

He had a lot of things to do. It was raining so hard and he was running around, which was quite tiring.

"Your Highness, Your Highness the Queen Mother!" At this moment, a palace maid ran in from outside in a hurry, panting and shouting, "The Imperial Ancestral Temple, the Imperial Ancestral Temple was struck by lightning."

The Queen Mother stood up suddenly and said in disbelief: "What did you say?!"

Prince Cheng was filled with astonishment and blurted out, "Heaven's will... has come true!"

The Queen Mother's face became increasingly ugly. She covered her chest with her hands, swayed, and then fell straight down.

"Mother! Mother!"

There was chaos in the Cining Palace.

The rain got heavier, accompanied by bursts of thunder, and crackling raindrops fell on the eaves.

It was a big deal that the Taimiao was struck by lightning. Not only was it struck, but a side hall of the temple also caught fire. The fire was extremely large. Fortunately, the Taimiao was guarded by imperial guards all year round, and it rained heavily, so the fire was put out in time.

Within just one day, almost everyone in the capital knew about this incident, and the people were in a panic.

Afterwards, without getting out of nowhere, the people were all talking about the fallen star general being Wang Qinghe, who would be beheaded at Caishikou tomorrow afternoon.

"If the star of the general falls, then... is Da Rong in danger?"

Even though there have been great prosperity, great disasters and minor misfortunes in recent years, the people all want great prosperity and long-term peace, and do not want war and chaos. Many people have discussed going to Caishikou to see if the government will know that it is a warning from heaven and will not execute people. This is how the "sparing lives" in operas is performed.

Or go and beg for mercy?

Whenever a beheading was performed, people would come to watch.

On the day of Wang Qinghe's execution, there was an endless stream of people coming, almost surrounding the execution ground in Caishikou. They talked a lot, pointed fingers, and talked about the rumors that had been going on for days, their hearts beating wildly.

At this time, Wang Qinghe was escorted up.

After Wang Qinghe had been in jail for a few days, he looked even more dusty, with a scruffy beard and a haggard face, and even more sinister.

His arms were tied behind his back and he was forced to kneel on the execution ground without saying a word.

There were two yamen runners standing guard.

When they saw him coming out, the people started to make even louder noises:

"I heard this is the White Tiger General."

"What crime did he commit that he should be beheaded?"

"If it was really chopped off, God would definitely blame us. The lightning that struck the temple was a warning from God!"

These words gradually spread among the crowd, and the surging crowd was filled with commotion and anxiety.

Sheng Xiyan sat in the carriage, holding a telescope, looking far away, taking in everyone's expressions and actions. Then she shifted her gaze to Wei Xiu and Chi Yu standing in the crowd. They arrived early and stood at the front.

Chi Yu curled his lips sarcastically: "He just follows the crowd. How can someone like Wang Qinghe be considered a star general? If all the star generals were like him, Darong would have been finished long ago."

"No." Chi Yu snorted, "Darong is finished. The world is unfair and the law has ceased to exist. What's the point of keeping such a court? No wonder bandits are rampant and the people are living in misery."

"Brother Yu." Wei Xiu called him softly.

Chi Yu looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the crowd that had been squeezed together suddenly separated to the left and right. A Taoist with an immortal look walked out of the crowd holding a white whisk. His clothes were fluttering, and he looked like he was about to fly away on the wind. However, his face was filled with endless sadness, as if he had not been able to become an immortal because of his pity for the world.

Wei Xiu said: "Brother Yu, this is probably Yun Yangzi."

Chi Yu nodded and narrowed his eyes slightly. After the incident of the Phoenix Girl the day before yesterday, he also went to inquire about this Yun Yangzi. It was said that he was a master of Taoism, and it was he who gave Princess Zhao the fate of "Heaven's Destiny Phoenix Girl".

As for how he attained enlightenment, the story is a bit weird. It is said that he is very accurate in fortune-telling and can tell at a glance whether it will be a bloody disaster or unexpected wealth. Similarly, he is also very good at fortune-telling, and his fortune-telling is almost always effective. With just a few words of advice, he can help people avoid disasters and misfortunes. Even the elixir he refines can bring the dead back to life. He has many followers in Beijing.

Whether it was the Phoenix last time or the Phoenix this time, he was the first to stand up.

"Master."

"Master, you are here too."

"Master, is the star general General Wang?"

As soon as the people saw him, they came forward to ask questions, each with a sad face full of worry.

Yun Yangzi did not directly say "yes or no", he sighed and said: "Poverty is just a matter of appearance."

Although he didn't say anything, this sigh seemed to carry endless meaning.

Yun Yangzi walked to the front, his eyes full of compassion silently staring ahead, and he sighed again.

His sigh was like a hot stone being thrown into a pot of water, which immediately began to boil over and over again.

"There must be injustice!"

I don’t know who shouted first in the crowd, but then countless voices followed.

"The time is almost up."

Yunyang raised his hands, and when the surroundings calmed down, he counted on his fingers and said thoughtfully: "Things should be able to turn around."

His voice was silent, but the people standing around him heard it clearly. Soon, all the people guarding the execution ground heard it, and the news spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred. Before they knew it, the news had spread to "Master Yun Daozi said that the general star is blessed by heaven, and the general star will not fall. Anyone who harms the general star will be punished by heaven."

The prison officer glanced at the long pole standing on the execution ground. The reflection had already appeared, and it was almost three quarters past noon.

The executioner held the machete in his hand, while Wang Qinghe knelt on the ground. He sneered, and the sneer turned into a wild laugh.

The execution ground was filled with his laughter and the words, "This general is innocent!"

Two soldiers held his shoulders and made him lower his head. They also pulled his hair, which was scattered on his shoulders, to the side of his shoulders, exposing his neck.

The sound of galloping horses could be heard in the distance, and Wei Xiu said, "Here they come."

King Zhao Qin Wei rode over on horseback. Before he arrived, he spoke first: "Wait a minute. The Queen Mother has ordered that Wang Qinghe's case should be re-examined!"

As soon as the executioner raised his knife, the executioner's beheading card was caught between his fingers, and he didn't have time to throw it out. The people were all shocked and thought: Is this a comedy come true?!

Before they could be surprised, Qin Wei had already dismounted and said with a breath in his mouth, "The Queen Mother has decreed that Wang Qinghe's case was wrongly convicted and should be re-examined."

Along with Qin Wei, there also arrived important officials of the court such as Lin Shoufu, Prince Li, and Zheng Chongming.

Chief Minister Lin originally did not want to pay attention to this matter, but yesterday the Imperial Temple was struck by thunder and there was quite a controversy about this in the court. Chief Minister Lin personally asked Xiao Shuo for instructions and got Xiao Shuo's consent before coming to take a look today.

Jingzhao Yin was also sitting on the scaffold. He stood up, clasped his hands, and said with embarrassment, "Your Highness, Prince Zhao, we have all the evidence in Wang Qinghe's case..."

King Zhao only said, "I just heard clearly from Wang Qinghe that he is innocent. Lord Chen, if the evidence is really conclusive, why don't you let him finish his words?"

King Zhao said to Wang Qinghe, who was kneeling on the execution ground, "Deputy General Wang, I am here on the orders of the Queen Mother. If you have any grievances, you can tell me in detail and I will make the decision for you."

Wang Qinghe's eyes flickered slightly.

During the three days he was in the Jingzhao prison, his brother-in-law only bribed someone to pass him a note, but he never came to see him in person. The note told him that he would find a way to save him. Therefore, even though he had not seen his brother-in-law until just now, Wang Qinghe was still convinced that he would not die.

He looked at Zheng Zhongming, who was standing side by side with Lin Shoufu. After receiving his look, he immediately shouted loudly, "This general is innocent! It was Chu Yuanchen who deliberately killed people to keep a secret. This general is innocent!"

His shouting caused a roar.

King Zhao said expressionlessly, "Go on."

Wang Qinghe raised the corners of his mouth, his eyes looked gloomy, yet there was a kind of carefree recklessness.

Even if no one told him what to do, he knew that it was useless to argue whether to kill or not, and the only thing he could do was to throw away the handle in his hand, and he only had one handle in his hand.

He said in a stern voice: "Chu Yuanchen has been amassing troops in the capital without authorization, and his plot was discovered by this general when he was suppressing bandits. In order to keep the secret, Chu Yuanchen killed people to silence them. Not only did he kill thousands of imperial guards, he also tried to silence me."

Wang Qinghe raised his head suddenly and shouted: "The Jingzhao Yin and the Zhenbei King are colluding to put me to death! This general will not accept it!"

He opened his mouth and said: "I have been in the imperial army for many years and have suppressed countless bandits. Now I am going to die for no reason. I do not accept this."

The onlookers were suddenly in an uproar, and the voices of doubt that had been suppressed just now rang out again.

Star general!

Lieutenant General Wang is indeed a rising star.

"Re-examination! Re-examination!"

I don't know where the noise came from, more and more voices gathered together and turned into two words.

The prison officer looked at Jingzhao Yin, who also looked a little ugly and gloomy, and said nothing.

King Zhao glanced around at the increasingly excited crowd, with almost no emotion in his heart.

Zhao Yuanrou's strategy was effective. She had completely aroused public anger. From now on, she just had to move forward step by step. After today, he might really be able to use this momentum to ascend to the throne of regent. However, he did not feel the slightest joy in his heart. Instead, he was as cold and calm as an outsider, even a little sad.

He said expressionlessly, "In my opinion, this case should indeed be reviewed. Jingzhao Yin, what do you think?"

Jingzhao Yin hesitated for a moment, but before he could answer, the people around the execution ground shouted together, "Retrial! Retrial!" The sound was deafening.

Jingzhao Yin was getting a little restless.

Things have gotten to this point, and if there is no proper ending, he is afraid that nothing will come of it.

He subconsciously looked around, wanting to see if the Jinyiwei would come out to maintain the situation, but there was no one around except the runners from the Jingzhao Prefecture and the Five Cities Army.

The expressions of the Prime Minister and others also looked a little ugly.

Wang Qinghe pushed away the guards who were holding him, stood up slowly, and laughed wildly: "Chu Yuanchen has accumulated troops without authorization, he deserves the death penalty..."

"What did you say to me, my king?"

A nonchalant voice sounded from the crowd, accompanied by a faint smile.

Chu Yuanchen walked over leisurely. He was dressed in black, with a jade crown on his hair, holding a long sword in his hand. There was a smile on his face, and his peach blossom eyes were slightly raised. There was an overwhelming pride in his sparkling eyes, which made people afraid.

His appearance brought silence to the surroundings. Jingzhao Yin heaved a sigh of relief and felt as if he had been pulled out of the water, his whole body cool.

Chu Yuanchen chuckled nonchalantly and said, "I seem to have heard you say something about me."

"Chu Yuanchen!" Wang Qinghe sneered, "You..."

Before he could finish his words, Chu Yuanchen raised his sword and struck him on the back of his knees with lightning speed. Wang Qinghe was unable to dodge and felt pain in his knees. He just stood up but fell to his knees with a thump. His arms were tied behind his back and he could hardly control his balance. He fell to the ground like he was prostrating himself.

Chu Yuanchen stood in front of him, one was as heroic as a god of war, while the other was as humble as a grass.

The common people were also somewhat hesitant at this moment, they had all seen with their own eyes Chu Yuanchen carrying the coffin back, and watched him defend the two vassal kings. In their hearts, Chu Yuanchen was a heroic god of war who killed so many people that Beiyan dared not invade.

If Chu Yuanchen had not come, all wind directions could be easily affected. When Chu Yuanchen stood here, it was as if there was light on his body, which could easily attract everyone's attention.

The people's shouting also began to subside.

"Wang Qinghe." Chu Yuanchen chuckled and said, "Who gave you the qualifications to stand and speak in front of me?"

"Have you forgotten that you are a death row inmate?"

"If you have anything to say, just kneel down and talk. There's no rush."

Each word he spoke was clear and calm, with an inexplicable pressure. In front of him, not to mention the kneeling Wang Qinghe, even a noble like King Zhao seemed much weaker than him.

"Chu Yuanchen." Wang Qinghe looked up at him with all his strength and said through gritted teeth.

Chu Yuanchen said calmly: "Since you want to review it, let's review it slowly."

He winked and someone brought up an armchair. Chu Yuanchen sat down on it, resting his chin on the armrest with one hand, and said with a smile, "Since it's a retrial, there's no need to go to court. Prime Minister Lin, what do you think?"

Lin Shoufu looked thoughtful. He looked at the people surrounding the execution ground and nodded silently: "Since the Queen Mother has objections to this case, let's hold a public trial."

Yun Yangzhang sighed softly, shook his head and said, "The bloody aura of the Zhenbei King is too strong, ah."

Chu Yuanchen laughed: "If there was no bloody aura on me, would Beiyan have relied on the Taoist's tricks to defeat the North and escape? Or, does it mean that the border of Dayong has been stable and peaceful because of the Taoist's fortune-telling? It's simply a joke!" His whole body was filled with domineering aura.

Yun Yangzi was speechless for a moment, and said somewhat embarrassedly: "That's not what I meant."

Chu Yuanchen leaned back and said, "Then let's have the trial."

Holding a trial openly on the execution ground was unprecedented in Darong's history of more than a hundred years since its founding.

Qin Wei stood aside, feeling a little uneasy because Chu Yuanchen was too calm.

He believed that someone must have told him that Wang Qinghe had accused him of stockpiling troops without authorization, but he remained so calm. Was it because he was confident that he could turn the tables?

Qin Wei's eyes darkened.

Logically speaking, I should have stopped here, but...

Qin Wei suddenly asked, "King of Zhenbei, Wang Qinghe accused you of secretly hoarding troops and killing people to silence them. What do you say?"

Chu Yuanchen laughed and said, "Kill someone to silence him? I want to kill you, do I have to wait until now? You were captured by me, and if I want to silence you, there are plenty of opportunities. You said that I have accumulated troops. With troops in hand, why should I be afraid of you?"

Wang Qinghe knew that this was his only chance, so he said without hesitation: "I led 3,000 imperial guards to suppress the bandits. If you didn't have your own troops, how could you have taken me down?"

This is indeed true.

Even though Chu Yuanchen was a famous general, he could not defeat an army of thousands alone.

After hearing this, Prime Minister Lin frowned. Apart from the imperial guards, no one in the capital was allowed to hoard private soldiers. Hoarding soldiers was a capital crime, and even Chu Yuanchen was no exception.

Today it is still the Dayong Dynasty, and as a vassal king, Chu Wuchen always has to act pretentiously.

Unless Chu Yuanchen is openly plotting rebellion!

Lin Shoufu thought of the 30,000 Northern Frontier Army troops still on the road, his heart pounding, and he said, "Your Majesty, this must be a misunderstanding..."

He wanted to smooth things over. The emperor had already suffered a stroke and would no longer target the vassal kings. Otherwise, why not give up the rebellion? Darong could not stand the internal turmoil.

Due to the long years of war, the male population suffered serious losses. Minzhou was now in chaos without a fight because of the rampant pirates. People in various places were so hungry that they had to eat tree bark. It was even more common to see nine out of ten houses empty.

If the King of Zhenbei rebelled and Darong started another war, not only would the country be destroyed, but the people would also suffer heavy casualties.

Even if we have to fight, we can do it in a few years...

Zheng Zhongming didn't want to make a big deal out of a small matter, so he said coldly, "Does Lin Shoufu want to protect Chu Yuanchen?"

What he meant was that if he was not deliberately covering up the matter, he had to make it clear.

Zheng Zhongming still wanted to push King Zhao to the front, so he only mentioned it once and did not continue, but just winked at Wang Qinghe.

"Chu Yuanchen!"

Wang Qinghe understood what he meant and shouted, "You don't need to explain anymore. I saw it with my own eyes. You are hiding your own soldiers and plotting something bad!"

Chu Yuanchen just smiled and said, "What if there is none?"

Wang Qinghe said, "You said that I was guilty of murder. Murder is usually only carried out in the autumn. Chu Yuanchen, didn't you secretly intervene to silence the accused?"

Chu Yuanchen winked, and Mo Jiu behind him took out a document and presented it to the Prime Minister.

Chu Yuanchen said calmly, "This is an official document. On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the emperor asked me to mobilize 30,000 northern frontier troops to station in Beijing. I just sent 3,000 troops ahead."

Go first?!

Zheng Zhongming's heart skipped a beat.

He ignored it.

No. It can't be said that he ignored it, but he didn't get any information!

There is definitely a difference between marching an army of 30,000 people and marching an army of 3,000 people. 3,000 people can march quickly, and they can get from the northern border to the capital in a month by galloping. But the problem is that these 3,000 people came silently.

Zheng Zhongming concluded that Chu Yuanchen had hidden private soldiers because he did not detect any troops entering the capital. So, how did Chu Yuanchen do it? ! How did he do it!

These are three thousand people, not three individuals. How did he make three thousand people march silently?

This not only requires everyone to obey orders, but also requires wholehearted trust and obedience to the general. If it were the imperial guards, it would be absolutely impossible to do it!

Zheng Zhongming's face changed drastically. He made a wrong move and was afraid that he would lose the game.

He probably couldn't save Wang Qinghe.

The Prime Minister read the document presented by Chu Yuanchen, nodded secretly, and handed it to Prince Li, then Zheng Zhongming, and the inner cabinet...

The march did not mean that three thousand men could just go wherever they wanted. Every time they arrived at a state, they had to produce documents and have them stamped by the government.

This document has all the stamps of various prefectures along the way, and it records three thousand cavalrymen.

The officials of each state would write the date after stamping the document, and judging from the time, it coincides with the time when Wang Qinghe said he was "buried".

Lin Shoufu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Regardless of whether Chu Yuanchen really had private soldiers or not, at least on the surface, he could produce evidence. Even if it was just a cover-up, it meant that he had no intention of breaking up with him for the time being.

After Chu Yuanchen and the others had read the copy, he smiled and said, "My Zhenbei Army just arrived, and I went to meet them. I accidentally saw someone secretly mobilize the imperial guards and hide them in a valley. There were a total of 30,000 imperial guards hidden in the valley. I thought something was fishy, ​​so I went to check it out, and found that it was Wang Qinghe, so I arrested him."

"General Wang, what do you think?"

"Those imperial guards are hiding in the valley north of Qingming Mountain. You are guilty of mobilizing the imperial guards without permission, Lieutenant General Wang. Do you think it is unjust to have your property confiscated and your head beheaded..."

"So, General Wang, the person who mobilized the imperial guards was not you..."

Chu Yuanchen spoke word by word, but Wang Qinghe interrupted him by shouting, "I plead guilty!"

Zheng Zhongming clenched the jade ring tightly.

Wang Qinghe said: "I plead guilty. I killed Wei Xiu's entire family. I also secretly mobilized the imperial army to encircle and suppress Chu Yuanchen to vent my personal grudge!"

His gaze passed Chu Yuanchen and fell on Zheng Zhongming who was sitting there. Zheng Zhongming had a heavy expression on his face and nodded to him imperceptibly.

Wang Qinghe lowered his head: "I plead guilty!"

The people all around were in an uproar, and all their anger was completely shattered at this moment.

At this moment, someone shouted, "Look! White Tiger!"

Everyone raised their heads when they heard the sound. Suddenly, a white tiger appeared in the air above the execution ground. However, this white tiger had no blood on its body, nor did it look like it was dying. Instead, it raised its head with a majestic look, as if it was roaring at the sky.

"The White Tiger was about to die the day before yesterday, and Taoist Master Yun Yangzi also said that the star of the general was about to fall. Now that Deputy General Wang has confessed his guilt, how did the White Tiger come back to life?"

"Could it be that the star general is not Vice General Wang?"

Chi Yu's eyes flickered slightly, and he continued, "Stockpiling troops privately is a capital crime. When the King of Zhenbei was accused of stockpiling troops privately, Baihu was on the verge of death. Now that the crisis has been resolved, Baihu is alive. Could it be that..."

He deliberately did not finish his words. As soon as he finished speaking, people immediately took over:

"The King of Zhenbei is the star general!"

Now, I can figure it all out!

"Yes, yes! I told you long ago that the only possible general of the Great Rong Dynasty could be the King of Zhenbei!"

"Who is this Wang Qinghe? I've never heard of him!"

"Master Yun Yangzi's calculations are so accurate. It turns out that the general is in danger!"

…

“Look!”

The white tiger in the air gradually dissipated, and at the moment it completely disappeared, a green dragon suddenly appeared. It seemed as if the green dragon was transformed from the white tiger, and the scales on its body showed some white, already looking like it was soaring into the sky.

"Dragon……"

"Turning a star into a dragon, could this be..."