Chapter 463 Prince Jin's Merit
Emperor Defeng's face was gloomy. "Zhao Shuning, you are so brave!"
"This subject deserves death."
Xiao Wanzhen sneered at her viciously, "You truly deserve to die! Father, please hand her over to me! If you don't kill her yourself, I will never be able to quell the hatred in my heart!"
Emperor Defeng refused. "You were wronged last time, and I will compensate you. But you are a royal concubine, how can you lower yourself to take up arms?"
Xiao Wanzhen was unwilling, but she didn't dare to act willfully in front of Emperor Defeng, so she had to shut up angrily.
Emperor Defeng spoke calmly, "Come here, take Zhao Shuning away and execute him on a later date. The rest of the traitors will also be arrested and executed. I want to show the world the consequences of those who dare to rebel against my authority."
When Zhao Shuning heard his own fate, his eyes moved slightly, and finally, he kowtowed calmly and admitted his guilt.
She was picked up by the imperial guards and dragged out, passing by Lu Zhiran.
Their eyes met briefly and then quickly separated.
Zhao Shuning thought, she lost after all. Why did she lose?
Lu Zhiran thought that if she put her mind on the right track, she would definitely achieve something, but unfortunately, her path went astray from the very beginning.
A night passed, and now it was already dawn, a ray of morning light shone into the hall.
Everyone suddenly remembered that today was New Year's Day.
The beginning of the new year should be the most relaxing and pleasant time, but no one here can relax.
There was a sound of footsteps approaching from afar, and Xiao Yanci strode in.
When the court officials saw him, they showed different expressions.
Xiao Yanlin stared at Xiao Yanci with his eyes wide open, with many emotions surging in his eyes.
How could he be so unlucky? Even with all the people I sent out, I still couldn't get rid of him!
I planned everything carefully, but failed at the last moment. I feel really unwilling to accept this!
Xiao Yanlin still hasn't figured out how Xiao Yanci managed to sneak into the city.
And all this is thanks to Prince Rui and Sun Muzhi.
At that time, they learned that the situation in the capital was different, so they made a prompt decision and decided to take a detour back to the capital.
Sun Muzhi remembered the token Xiao Baozhu gave him before he left. It was a gift from Prince Rui. He said that as long as he saw the token, he would help him with all his strength without reservation.
They decided to take a chance.
Sun Muzhi and Xiao Yanci led their elite troops, detoured from southern Yunnan to Shu, and found Prince Rui to ask for help.
Fortunately, they made the right choice.
Prince Rui rushed back to the capital in the name of attending a funeral, and Sun Muzhi, Xiao Yanci, and their elite troops successfully sneaked into the city.
After returning to Beijing, Prince Rui visited the princess's residence and brought Sun Muzhi and Xiao Yanci with him.
Xiao Baozhu and Lu Zhiran recognized the two of them at that time.
But they had no time to reminisce about the past; during that brief meeting, they only talked about serious matters.
We met in a hurry and parted in a hurry.
Everyone is secretly doing what they should do and dare not slack off at all.
Lu Zhiran arranged for the merchant company to prepare weapons and provide a hiding place for their personnel, so as to cooperate with the outside forces.
Xiao Baozhu was operating in the palace and had Concubine Rou and Emperor Defeng move in advance.
Even Xiao Wanzhen helped. She sorted out all the personal connections she knew and gave it to Xiao Baozhu. Among them, several spies left by Concubine Li also came in handy.
Until tonight, multiple parties worked together to launch a counterattack and finally reversed the situation completely.
Lu Zhiran and Concubine Rou quickly glanced at Xiao Yanci, their eyes filled with worry.
The heavy black iron armor on his body was still dripping with blood, and the knife marks on the armor were crisscrossed. The dark red blood stains formed mottled lines on the cold iron, and it was impossible to tell whether they were from the enemy or his own.
Is he injured?
Xiao Yanci knelt on one knee, his voice hoarse but steady.
"Your Majesty, I have fulfilled your command. All the imperial guards in the palace have surrendered! Those who stubbornly resist will be executed at the foot of the stairs!"
Emperor Defeng showed satisfaction on his face.
"Good! Prince Jin, you have done a great service this time!"
Xiao Yanci said solemnly, "This is what I, your son, must do. I will not refuse even if it means death!"
Soon after, good news came one after another, and the situation in the city and outside the city was also under control.
Xiao Yanlin originally ordered the Beijing Camp Cavalry, the Xishan Camp and the Tongzhou Garrison to encircle the "rebels", but time was running out and the Xishan Camp and the Tongzhou Garrison had not yet arrived.
The leader of the "rebels" was not King Jin Xiao Yanci, but Zhou Weihai and the leader of the Dragon Scale Guard Sheng Changming.
Sheng Changming, holding the imperial edict and token of Emperor Defeng, tried to persuade the cavalry to surrender, but to no avail, and the two sides engaged in battle.
Relying on their artillery, the cavalry thought they could defeat the rebels and achieve great success.
But no one expected that Sun Muzhi sent a big gun from the moat, also a cannon, and more than one.
With the support of artillery, the cavalry was defeated and soon surrendered.
Sun Muzhi said, "Your Majesty, these cannonballs were presented by Hengrui Trading Company. We are fortunate to have them, otherwise we would not have been able to win so quickly."
Emperor Defeng was overjoyed upon hearing this and praised Hengrui Trading Company highly.
Among the ministers, Xiao Yanheng lowered his head with a normal expression.
He had previously heard that Diannan and Xiao Yanci were accused of treason, and he knew there must be something hidden. Lu Zhiran had also written to him, asking him to investigate the Zhao family. By then, he was already wary of his eighth brother, Xiao Yanlin.
Not long after, the manager of the trading company came to report that several new artillery pieces had been purchased from overseas, and their power was far greater than before.
Xiao Yanheng immediately wrote a letter and ordered the steward to secretly send the firearm to southern Yunnan and hand it over to Xiao Yanci.
This move shows his position and choice.
This time, he returned to Beijing from his sealed territory, but he was delayed for several days because he took a detour through southern Yunnan to inquire about Xiao Yanci's situation.
Because he was weak and could not go to the battlefield, he could only use other methods to help him.
Fortunately, I was able to help in the end.
With the situation settled, Emperor Defeng smiled more, but at the same time, his body gradually felt tired.
But right now, there is still one big issue that has not been dealt with.
Xiao Yanlin knelt in front of Emperor Defeng, listening to the good news coming from all directions. His face turned pale little by little, and his heart was filled with complete despair.
He did not beg for mercy again, because he knew that no matter how much he defended himself, it would be in vain.
Emperor Defeng did not give him a chance to speak.
"The Eighth Prince has violated human ethics and plotted to murder his father and emperor. His crimes are unforgivable. He is hereby demoted to a commoner and sent to the Imperial Clan Court for strict custody. Considering that he is ultimately my flesh and blood, I grant him a length of white silk and a cup of pigeon wine, allowing him to choose his own end. After his death, he shall not be allowed into the Imperial Mausoleum, but shall be buried with commoner rites."
The emperor's voice was cold, without a trace of warmth.
Xiao Yanlin had expected this, but when he actually heard these words, his body still couldn't help but tremble slightly.
He originally thought that the return of his royal brothers to the capital would be his most glorious moment.
However, he didn't expect that the glory would only last for a moment, and he fell from a high place so tragically.
Emperor Defeng looked at the ministers in the hall again. All the ministers knelt on the ground and kowtowed, not daring to look directly at the emperor's words.
One old minister wept bitterly and pleaded guilty, "We were foolish and ignorant, unable to distinguish truth from falsehood, and easily believed the words of the treacherous and flattering people. As a result, we were blind and failed to see through the rebellious plot. Now that the emperor has returned to us, we realize the gravity of our sins. We humbly beg Your Majesty to judge us."
The other ministers followed suit and apologized.
Emperor Defeng glanced at the crowd calmly, "I know that you have been deceived and have done nothing of your own will. I will only execute the ringleader of the Zhao family and will not pursue the rest. However, you should all take this as a warning. If you make further mistakes without careful observation, I will not forgive you."
Upon hearing this, all the ministers breathed a sigh of relief, touched their foreheads to the ground, and sweat soaked through their heavy clothes.
"We bow down to thank God for His grace!"
"We, the ministers, will repent and repay Your Majesty for sparing His Majesty's life."
The war came to an end here.
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