Chapter 155 The Last Wish
Following the emperor's command, as everyone turned around and looked into the distance, and as Huo Gannian was eagerly waiting with a premonition, he saw a man in white clothes stained with blood, riding a horse and flying towards them from afar.
Yun Chen rode the wolf-slaying colt into the air, with great vigor and vigor, and rushed straight into the Sky Palace.
She rushed forward, jumped off her horse, knelt in the hall, held up two bloodstained account books, and said loudly:
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you! Here are the accounts of all the bribes that Yu Yangji, the head of the Yu family, has paid to officials in the imperial court over the years! All the accounts are included in it! This is what my master risked his life to get from the Yu family! Your Majesty, please review it!"
Xiao Ze took the account book and looked at Yun Chen's bloodstained mourning clothes. He couldn't help but tremble in his eyes and asked in a low voice:
"Jiang Ming..."
Yun Chen held back his tears and said, "Master is gone."
A trace of loneliness flashed across Xiaoze's face. He sighed and presented the account book to the emperor.
The emperor seemed to have just recovered from his daze. His eyes left Yun Chen's white clothes stained with blood, and he did not look at the account book. He just said:
"Show it to the Prime Minister."
After Ni Kun flipped through the account books, the emperor asked:
"Are the people I killed today different from those recorded in the account books? Are there any omissions?"
Ni Kun said respectfully, "No one was missed."
As soon as these words were spoken, there was a sigh in the hall, and no one knelt on the ground anymore, begging the emperor not to kill loyal people.
It turned out that the accounts of Yu Yangji's bribes to court officials over the years were not only kept by Yu Yangji, but also by the emperor.
None of those killed today were in vain.
But if Yun Chen had not appeared with the account book, the emperor’s eternal reputation would have been in jeopardy.
Everyone finally realized that this palace banquet was actually a "mopping up" operation that the emperor had planned long ago, an act of righteousness that disregarded his own reputation as the Kaiyuan Emperor of the Nan Kingdom.
The emperor stood up, holding onto the throne, and scanned the entire audience, speaking with authority and majesty:
"I kill treacherous officials, even without evidence. Their crimes are contemporary, but their merits will be remembered for generations to come. How can I let a few historical pens hold me back when the people depend on me?"
What a great crime in this era, but a great achievement for future generations!
What a founding emperor who would rather bear the infamy for thousands of years and only care about the people of Nan Kingdom!
The emperor raised his voice again and shouted:
"Pass on my decree—appoint the Princess as Supreme General Jili! Cao Fang as Deputy General! Lead 40,000 troops to the western suburbs to quell the rebellion! Then, thoroughly investigate the remaining traitors and bandits! Severely punish those who have colluded with us! Punish the rebels! Purge the imperial court!"
Nan Lijun was shocked and bowed down to express his gratitude, but then he looked at Huo Gannian and hesitated to speak.
The emperor naturally saw through his daughter's thoughts and said earnestly:
"You will be the one to confer titles on your subjects from now on."
Understanding what the emperor said, Nan Lijun nodded heavily, took a deep breath, then stood tall in front of the hall and said loudly:
"I appoint Huo Gannian as the Grand Commander of the Patrol Division! He is to personally investigate the Yu family's case of treason and bribery. Confiscate all property belonging to the Yu family! If anyone resists, execute them without mercy! I grant you the right to execute first and report to the emperor later!"
After giving the order, Nan Lijun habitually looked at the emperor's expression, just like thousands of times before, trying to gain a hint of approval from that cold and majestic face.
It’s a pity that Nan Lijun won’t get it this time.
As if all his strength was finally exhausted, the emperor staggered and fell headfirst from the high dragon throne.
As everyone exclaimed, Xiaoze pounced over and caught the emperor with his back.
Before falling completely into a coma, the emperor issued three imperial edicts.
The first imperial edict stated that all things in the world must die after they are born. This edict ordered that national mourning should be simple, not extravagant or tragic, that mourning and sacrifices should not exceed three days, that marriages and funerals should not be prohibited, and that people's lives should not be disturbed.
The second imperial edict designated Princess Jin as the crown prince of the Eastern Palace, regent for ten years, and Prime Minister Ni Kun as her assistant, leading the Beijing army to assist in the administration.
The third one was a secret decree, which was handed over to Prime Minister Ni Kun for safekeeping and would be announced to the world when the time was right.
As soon as the three imperial edicts were issued, there was crying inside and outside the palace.
The older people still remember how the emperor was so grief-stricken that he vomited blood and fainted when the empress passed away, and how the whole country mourned him for thousands of miles, and how mountains and fields were opened up and farmland were destroyed to build the imperial mausoleum.
But now that it’s here, it can’t be simpler.
Looking back, he didn't remarry for twenty years. What a romantic man he was.
Look at the prosperous Nan Kingdom that he created, creating a vast territory, allowing the people to live and work in peace and contentment, and its strength made other countries dare not invade...
Only at this moment did people say that this was a good emperor.
Perhaps it is because people always have a natural fear of death, and only when a person is about to die do they remember all the good things about that person, and then they feel sad for him, feel sorry for him, and feel extremely sad.
Inside the Dragon and Phoenix Palace, the imperial doctors knelt on the ground in a crowd, ordering people to make soup and deliver medicine, making their final effort.
The palace gates were wide open, and the palace gardens were filled with weeping courtiers and palace maids kneeling.
Nan Lijun knelt at the front, holding the imperial edict in his hand, tears streaming down his face.
She didn't even know whether she was sad because the emperor was about to die, or angry because after all her scheming, she only got a "crown prince and regent".
Just a regent! Another ten years!
Only ten years! And he even asked Ni Kun to assist him in governing! He even gave him the third secret decree for safekeeping! He even gave him command of the Imperial Guards, responsible for guarding the palace!
Judging from today's bloody palace banquet, the emperor clearly knew who the Yu family's accomplices who were disrupting the government were, but he let the leader, Ni Kun, go!
Why was he so wary of his own daughter? Leaving Ni Kun behind to bring disaster upon her?
Nan Lijun really didn't understand why.
She wanted to ask Huo Gannian, but the guy in the back row was only concerned with looking back at Yun Chen, his mind not on her at all.
There was crying all the way until the evening when everyone's legs were stiff from kneeling and they could not cry out but could only wail. Finally, the emperor woke up.
Nan Lijun, despite the severe pain in his knee, took a step forward and asked anxiously:
"Did Father summon me? Does he want to see me?"
She wanted to ask the emperor in person what was going on.
But Xiaoze shook his head, indicating that he did not want to summon Nanlijun.
Nan Lijun glanced at Ni Kun with hatred, gnashing his teeth and unwillingly asking, "Do you want to see the Prime Minister?"
Xiao Ze still shook his head and searched among the people kneeling on the ground. Finally, his eyes fell on Yun Chen and said:
"The Emperor summoned Yunchen to an audience."
Everyone looked at each other.
Nan Lijun stared at Yun Chen in disbelief. On his deathbed, why didn't the emperor see her, his own daughter, but instead wanted to see a mere guard? Was this some kind of power transfer that she didn't know about?
In full view of everyone, Yun Chen stood up nervously. When she passed by Huo Gannian, she felt him quickly hold her hand.
Yun Chen looked over quickly and quietly, and Huo Gannian secretly made a gesture in his sleeve, meaning that there were guards there and told her not to worry.
She was surprised. The palace was heavily guarded, and even a nameless fly couldn't get in. How could Huo Gannian get such a guard in?
She looked at him in confusion, only to see his calm expression. He winked at her comfortingly and mouthed:
"I am your guard."
Yun Chen felt at ease and followed Xiao Ze into the hall.
She saw that the dim hall was empty, with only the emperor lying alone on the huge dragon couch.
Yun Chen approached, and the dim candlelight was projected on the emperor's dry and pale face, which was already exhausted.
She knelt down respectfully and kowtowed.
The emperor slowly opened his eyes and took a long time to focus his gaze on her face.
After looking for a moment, the emperor spoke weakly:
"Child...can you...help me with something..."
Perhaps he had never heard an emperor ask for help so humbly in his life. Xiaoze couldn't help but raise his hands to cover his face, crying silently for a while, then quickly wiped away his tears and pretended to be calm.
Feeling uncomfortable after being infected by Xiao Ze, Yun Chen kowtowed again and choked up:
"Your Majesty, please give me your orders. I will not hesitate to die!"
The emperor pleaded, "I would like you to... wear white clothes for once... just let me... take a look..."
Yun Chen was stunned for a moment, and instantly understood what the emperor meant. Without waiting for Xiao Ze's signal, she immediately responded loudly and quickly rushed into the side hall to change clothes.
She took off her blood-stained mourning clothes and put on an exquisite and expensive white brocade dress with blue patterns embroidered on the edges.
It was exactly the same as when we were in the Dongyan Palace.
She skillfully tied her hair, drew a few strokes on her eyebrows with a brush, then rushed to the desk and took out a brush dyed with blue ink, and lightly painted some faint blue on the whites of her eyes.
Then, she took a deep breath, adjusted her mood, gathered her composure, and walked towards the bedroom step by step.
From afar, Xiaoze saw the figure in white clothes as white as snow, coming gracefully, just like the empress in her memory dressed as a man, and time seemed to have gone back to twenty years ago.
Yun Chen walked into the bedroom, mustered up his courage, and called out in a trembling voice:
"emperor."
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