After bathing, the two of them hugged each other and fell into a deep sleep.
At dawn the next day, they were awakened by a hurried knock on the door. Outside, Yan Gui said, "My Lord, His Majesty has urgently summoned you!"
The hazy tiredness dissipated, and Huo Wuyou hurriedly got up to change his clothes: "I'm going to the palace, you go to sleep first."
…
Hall of Eternal Life.
Facing Huo Wuyou, Jiang Xu, and Shen Qingwei, the emperor threw the military report on the table: "Last night, there was an urgent report that the Ge family had already raised an army at Yueling Pass. Fortunately, I had already asked Shen Chiyan to be on guard in advance."
"Uncle is wise," Huo Wuyou said. "The Ge family forced my uncle to execute Prince Gong, intending to influence the emperor's will. When they failed, they rebelled. This is truly treasonous."
Huo Wuyou's words satisfied the emperor. He nodded and said to Shen Qingwei, "This time, thanks to your father, I will not treat you and your son unfairly after the rebellion is quelled."
Shen Qingwei quickly bowed and said, "I thank you for your grace."
After a moment's silence, the emperor suddenly called out, "Wuyou."
"uncle."
"Have you heard any rumors recently?"
Huo Wuyou lowered his brows and closed his eyes: "Some words are unbearable to the ears. I dare not listen to them."
The emperor sneered, "You dare not listen, but I have heard it all. They all say that I secretly ordered the murder of your father and brother, and that I am a tyrant who cannot tolerate meritorious officials and repeatedly persecutes military generals."
Huo Wuyou's face was displeased, and he said indignantly, "This is completely groundless and out of the blue. Someone must have spread it intentionally. The best course of action now is to suppress it as soon as possible, to prevent this kind of nonsense from misleading the public and causing the ignorant people to believe it and tarnish my uncle's reputation."
The emperor observed Huo Wuyou's expression with half-closed eyes, but could not find any flaws in it. After a moment, he said, "It's just a rumor, nothing to be afraid of."
Suddenly, he changed the subject: "On the contrary, who leaked the news about the New Year's Eve banquet? Until Noble Shun's madness is cured, there will be no trace of it."
Huo Wuyou remained silent. That night, after Ge Yuanhui broke into the Linhua Palace, the palace was in chaos. The people he arranged had already destroyed the note that had been sent out. Now that Ge Yuanhui had gone crazy again, there was no way to investigate the matter further.
After Huo Wuyou and Shen Qingwei left, the emperor left Jiang Xu to help handle government affairs. His health was deteriorating and his energy was getting lower and lower. Without someone to help him, he would have no time to handle affairs.
In short, after Huo Wuyou returned to the Lin'an Marquis Mansion from the palace, he relayed today's conversation to Xue Zhiyi.
Xue Zhiyi pondered for half a day before saying seriously, "It's time for us to take action."
As a result, the rumor that should have been suppressed became even more rampant. Not only that, a new rumor was even spread -
Not only did Prince Sheng take the blame for the murder of the Huo family father and son on behalf of the emperor, but Prince Gong also took the blame for the murder of Duke Dingguo and his wife on behalf of the emperor. The person who actually poisoned the couple was the emperor.
For a time, the whole city was in an uproar.
…
About two months later, it was March.
As the spring breeze blew into Huajing, the good news from Yueling Pass arrived as expected.
Because General Shen Chiyan had made arrangements in advance, the Ge family's mutiny was just a fight of trapped beasts and was quickly quelled.
The emperor was very pleased and conferred the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery on Shen Chiyan.
The Ge clan members in Huajing also faced a reckoning. Not only were Ge Hanzhang's close relatives executed, but all the other branches were also demoted to slavery.
It is a pity that the once glorious family collapsed overnight.
The emperor was increasingly busy with post-war affairs and had no time to spare, so he promoted Jiang Xu to be the Minister of the Central Secretariat to assist him in handling important matters.
When Huo Wuyou returned home, as soon as he stepped into the bedroom, Su Yue made a shushing gesture. Qiu Yun explained in a low voice: "My Lord, the Madam just fell asleep for a while."
Huo Wuyou nodded, motioned for the two of them to go out first, and then he slowly walked into the house.
It was afternoon at this moment. Xue Zhiyi was lying on the beauty couch in front of the window, fully clothed, with only a blanket covering him. He was breathing evenly and his brows were relaxed.
He smiled slightly and sat down beside the couch: He slept soundly.
It was a little chilly in early spring, so he tucked the blanket around Xue Zhiyi and didn't disturb him.
The afternoon was long and leisurely. When Xue Zhiyi woke up again, he yawned and turned over. In his sleep, he felt someone gently tap his head: "Finally, you woke up."
Huo Wuyou just smiled and said, "It's almost dark."
Xue Zhiyi suddenly got up and realized that it was already evening: "Have I slept for so long?"
"Isn't it?" Huo Wuyou said, "I was in the room taking care of some business, and two of the lights burned out, but you didn't seem to want to wake up at all. Didn't you sleep well last night?"
Rubbing his neck, Xue Zhiyi shook his head: "No, maybe it's spring sleepiness."
She didn't feel tired recently, but she was particularly sleepy, especially in the afternoon, when she wanted to take a nap right after lunch.
She asked Huo Wuyou, "Ever since the rumors about Gu Shichong were spread last time, His Majesty doesn't seem to have taken any action."
Huo Wuyou sat down next to her on the low couch. "But now that the Ge family has been eliminated, even though many ministers in the court have petitioned for the release of Prince Gong, His Majesty has not taken any action."
The Ge family rebellion has been quelled, and it is hard to say whether Gu Shichong is still guilty of poisoning Duke Dingguo and his wife.
"Your Majesty's suspicions never cease," Xue Zhiyi said. "He fears rumors and always suspects that Gu Shichong spread them himself. The more the ministers speak up for Gu Shichong, the more wary His Majesty becomes."
She lowered her eyes: But she felt that it was not enough and she had to increase the amount.
…
However, before they could take action, bad news arrived from Yueling Pass: the Ge family was defeated, and seeing no way back, in order to retaliate against Dayong, they secretly opened the city gate, giving the Northern Di people an opportunity to take advantage. Now the Northern Di have broken through the pass and entered, and Jiangzhou is in danger.
Huo Wuyou was summoned overnight, and the emperor asked him to bring reinforcements to support immediately.
It was still dark, and the stars and the moon were still shining in the sky. Xue Zhiyi had no time to tidy up, so he just tied up his hair hastily and saw off Huo Wuyou, who was ready to go, outside the city gate.
Her face was solemn. The incident happened suddenly, and she had no time to give too many instructions. She could only suppress her loneliness and said seriously: "Huo Wuyou, if you dare to die, wait for you and me to meet in the underworld."
Huo Wuyou's eyes moved slightly and he held her in his arms.
He believed that she was capable of such a thing, just like his parents, who would follow him to the afterlife with such determination.
A warm kiss landed on Xue Zhiyi's forehead, and he smiled softly, "Madam, I dare not disobey your words."
Watching Huo Wuyou leading his troops away under the stars and moon, Xue Zhiyi felt empty and uncomfortable in his heart.
Yan Gui was kept by Xue Zhiyi, waiting for her orders. Sui Yunlang was also kept by the emperor in the Imperial Medical Bureau to serve and could not go with him.
Perhaps because she was worried about someone, she didn't sleep as soundly as she did in the past few days. Although she was still sleepy, she had many dreams for no reason and even her appetite was poor.
The battle situation at Yueling Pass was critical. Shen Chiyan had just finished suppressing the rebellion and his troops had not yet recovered. The Northern Di people broke in like this. It was unknown how long they could hold out and whether they could hold out until reinforcements arrived.
Shen Qingtang was even more worried about this, and often came to talk to Xue Zhiyi to temporarily relieve his depression.
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