Gongsun Zhao looked at the lights inside and thought of the upright and tough old husband, who was working in the hall holding a candle. After silently blessing, he turned and left.
Guo Kai has not shown up yet, so the matter may have been leaked. Then visiting Zhang Dun again will only drag him into the water and will not help.
But Gongsun Zhao's departure does not mean that he gives up directly.
Now that he was back and decided to carry out such a major event as deposing the emperor, he did not consider his own safety. He came to a house near the palace with a clear goal, took out an internal official's clothes and put on a tongxing robe.
Waist badge inside.
This was the plan he drew up after secretly returning to the Kaifeng government office not long ago and reviewing the events that occurred during this period.
The clothes of the chamberlain were what Tong Guan's godson was wearing when he was killed, that is, they were ripped off from the dead body. Even though the house was the scene of the murder, there was still a slight smell left in it.
Gongsun Zhao didn't care about bad luck at all, he just wanted to seize the last opportunity.
Of course, if you don't know enough about the palace, the clothes and badges of the internal officials alone are not enough to get through, so he took a lot of documents as evidence, recording all the matters in the palace, and quickly read through them.
In the process of remembering, I thought that this case was investigated by my brother. During the period when I was away from Bianjing, fortunately, my brother served as a consultant and kept the efficiency of the Kaifeng government office at a very high level. Gongsun Zhao revealed
Joy and comfort.
Even though he left here and never came back, there were still people who upheld justice and made decisions for the people.
This is enough.
So next.
Disguising himself as an internal official, he sneaked into the palace and entered the Funing Palace where the Empress Dowager was.
Before, Empress Dowager Xiang did not know the true nature of the official family. In order to seize power, the official family dared to instruct Tong Guan to assassinate the Queen Mother.
So the purpose of Guo Kai's request for an imperial edict was to abolish the official family and establish a new emperor. If it failed, the situation of the Queen Mother, who was seriously ill, would naturally be even more dangerous.
But this is not an opportunity to win in danger. Once the Queen Mother is personally escorted out of the palace, it will be enough to show the true face of today's official family to the world!
…
"Guo Silang... Guo Silang..."
Outside the Funing Palace, Yang Jian and Lan Congxi each brought a group of cronies, squatting outside the palace, glaring at each other, and listening to the rising and falling shouts to the Queen Mother from inside.
Guo Kai was already cold. If Empress Dowager Xiang wanted to see him, she could only go to the master-servant meeting. The official outside the palace who was preparing to meet him was also determined to be Gongsun Zhao. With the new Kaifeng government judge Ding Run, he was enough to win.
In the eyes of this group of servants, this official promotion is very good. As long as Ding Run does not want to lose his position as a judge, he must kill Gongsun Zhao. The fellow disciples and brothers are much more familiar with each other than outsiders. What the official does is really
It’s about people making the best use of their talents.
But now there are still two questions:
The first point is that the secret edict that Guo Kai planned to take out has not been found so far.
Second point, what should I do with the Queen Mother in the palace?
The latter is more critical. If the Queen Mother is not dealt with, even if Guo Kai's secret edict is found, the Queen Mother can write another one, but it will still not help.
But if they really wanted to attack the Queen Mother directly, although they had transferred Ban Zhi's bodyguards, Yang Jian still didn't dare to do so, and Lan Congxi was even less willing.
It would be better for the officials to just avoid it and just let them do what they want.
What should they do with this evasive attitude?
If they really wanted to do the following thing, if even a little bit of news leaked out, the officials would definitely regard them as scapegoats and deal with them all.
But if you don't do anything, you will lose the favor of the officials. There are too many servants who want to get ahead, and there is no shortage of them.
"Guo Silang... Guo Silang..."
Empress Dowager Xiang's weak call came from the palace again. Yang Jian gritted his teeth, but had no choice but to do anything. Lan Congxi said, "You know, Yang knows that Empress Dowager Xiang has four confidants and six personal maids around her. Guo Kai is plotting rebellion.
These people are also involved, how should we deal with them?"
Yang Jian immediately understood that this was to remove all the people serving the Queen Mother. At that time, a bedridden old man would be ignored no matter how he called. Naturally, he would have a feeling that the sky was not responding and the earth was not working.
, enough to kill the vitality and lead to death soon.
Whenever the harem battle fails, the women in the cold palace are often treated like this, so they die particularly quickly. Now it is used on the Queen Mother to still force her to death, but the method of cutting the flesh with a soft knife will make people feel better psychologically after all.
Accept a lot.
Yang Jian and Lan Congxi decided to use this method: "Guo Kaigang died today. Don't do anything to the people around the Queen Mother. From tomorrow on, we will deal with two people every day. In less than ten days, the matter should be over..."
"Okay, let's do it!"
The two discussed some details, and then looked at the dark sky. They felt inexplicably frightened and shrank their necks: "Yang Duzhi has worked hard today! Everything Lan Ban said was to share the worries of the government.
!Tomorrow is Tianning Festival, Guan’s birthday, I have to get up early, let’s all go and rest..."
Leaving behind the necessary caretakers, the two eunuchs left separately with still uneasy feelings.
Except for the intermittent calls in the palace, everything seemed to be calm again.
Until a slight sound of footsteps sounded.
A slender chamberlain walked out of the darkness, his head lowered, but his steps were very firm, and he came directly to Funing Palace.
The guards left by Yang Jian and Lan Congxi were already drowsy. When they saw the visitor, they hurriedly stopped them: "Which palace are you from...ah!!"
The person who came was Gongsun Zhao. Without any nonsense, he struck out like lightning and hit the two chamberlains hard on the sides of their necks.
There were two sounds of falling to the ground without distinction, and then he struck preemptively, jumping in front of the other chamberlains who had not yet reacted, and launched an offensive.
When all the chamberlains guarding the palace were knocked down, Gongsun Zhao first reached for their clothes, ready to look for any ropes to bind them, but thought of the time it would take, and in addition, they were thieves who dared to harm the Queen Mother.
, Ning Yi responded, with a sharp look in his eyes, he clenched his fist and struck it down hard.
After dragging the body to the side, Gongsun Zhao entered Funing Palace. He felt that the process was much smoother than expected. Yang Jian and Lan Congxi transferred Ban Zhi's guards away. They originally had a guilty conscience, but now it was easier for him to sneak in. Next, as long as
The Queen Mother left with him, and with some cover on the way, there was still a chance of a counterattack and a comeback.
But when he actually entered the palace, Gongsun Zhao found that compared with before, the place was so deserted that it was almost unrecognizable.
In the huge palace, there were only about ten maids and servants. They looked pale and trembling, and they were frightened. Even when he broke in like this, they didn't react much.
Gongsun Zhao knew at a glance that these people could not count on him. He looked at the drowsy old woman on the couch, walked up to her and called out: "The Queen Mother! The Queen Mother! It's me, Gongsun Zhao!"
Under the nervous gaze of the palace maids, after calling many times, Xiang Queen Mother slowly opened her eyes and looked at him steadily: "Judge Gongsun...is that you? Have you received the secret edict from Guo Silang?"
Gongsun Zhao had made a guess before, but when he heard this, he was immediately convinced and whispered: "I have not received a secret edict. Instead, I just found a lot of internal servants monitoring the Queen Mother outside the palace. I am afraid that something unexpected has happened to the Governor Guo.
It is no longer safe in the palace, please leave the palace with the Queen Mother!"
Gongsun Zhao did not dare to waste time and quickly repeated: "Queen Mother, it is not safe in the palace. Please leave the palace with your ministers!"
Queen Mother Xiang's chest heaved violently: "That traitor, how dare you come and harm me personally? If I don't go out, I will be right here, watching him do those treasonous things!"
Gongsun Zhao's face changed. Now is the time to be angry. He urged in a bitter voice: "How can the Queen Mother's body of thousands of gold stand under a dangerous wall? The eunuchs in the palace tend to follow the influence and do anything to seek the appreciation of the officials.
, and as long as she leaves the palace and the Queen Mother explains the matter to the officials, she will be safe."
The Empress Dowager rolled her turbid eyes, half convinced: "You want to take me out... How do I know... are you colluding with that treacherous son..."
Gongsun Zhao said sincerely: "Queen Mother, if I conspired with the officials, why bother to tell the truth about the matter through Guo Shengshi? If I enter the palace dressed like this, once I am caught, it will be a crime of treason. I am already guilty of treason."
You risked your life and property! Queen Mother!!"
Queen Mother Xiang thought for a while, but finally shook her head: "Guo Silang... Where is Guo Silang... I want to see him!"
There is a difference between closeness and distance. Compared to Guo Kai, an old man who has served her all her life, Gongsun Zhao has a bad impression in her heart. She regretted when she was assassinated before, but she still did not change the displeasure deep in her heart.
Therefore, if Guo Kai said the same thing, the Empress Dowager would believe it, but if Gongsun Zhao said it, he would become suspicious.
"Queen Mother! I am loyal to the Song Dynasty and the laws of the court... This is the last chance!"
Gongsun Zhao had been worried about this situation before, but he knew that if Empress Dowager Xiang stayed here, she would definitely be killed. Unless she turned a blind eye, there was really no other choice.
But no matter how she tried to persuade her, she would always shake her head at the Queen Mother, and finally fell asleep again.
Seeing that he could not do it, Gongsun Zhao wanted to reach out and carry her on his back. The Queen Mother was shocked and immediately started struggling desperately: "Put me down! Put me down!"
The surrounding chamberlains and maids looked at it and gathered around tremblingly: "Bold minister, do you dare to be violent to the Queen Mother?"
Gongsun Zhao showed determination and prepared to knock the Queen Mother unconscious.
However, at this moment, a voice came from outside: "Where are the people? How dare they be lazy when guarding such an important matter? There is something going on inside, go in and take a look!"
Without saying a word, Gongsun Zhao immediately jumped out and took the lead.
But he entered the palace without a sword, and when he returned this time, his body was inevitably stained with blood.
Seeing that the palace servants were trembling, they stopped scolding and opened their eyes to the Queen Mother again: "Judge Gongsun, do you want to do me harm?"
Thinking of Ban Zhi's bodyguard in the palace, if there was no cooperation from the Queen Mother, he would not be able to get out no matter what, carrying an old woman on his back. Gongsun Zhao could only sigh deeply and bow down in front of the couch: "Your Majesty, don't you?"
I would like to follow you out of the palace, but after this, the officials will definitely not tolerate the Queen Mother. I can't do anything about the affairs in the palace. I can only create chaos when I leave the palace, so that the officials will focus on chasing down the minister!
"
Listening to that sad voice, not only the maidservants in the palace fell silent, but also the Empress Dowager Xiang couldn't help but be moved: "Judge Gongsun... you..."
But her lips trembled, and she didn't agree to go out after all.
After Gongsun Zhao finished speaking, he walked out quickly without any hesitation, and quickly disappeared into the dark night.
…
Yanfu Palace.
Zhao Ji did not sleep soundly, his brows furrowed from time to time and he whispered softly.
Suddenly, he straightened up abruptly, breathing heavily.
Meiji beside him quickly stood up, stroked his back with her delicate hands, and said in a soft and pleasant voice: "Guanjia, what's wrong with you?"
Zhao Ji murmured: "The nightmare is amazing... The nightmare is amazing... Fortunately, it's a dream... Huhu..."
Just as he was feeling lucky that what he had dreamed of had not happened, someone outside suddenly said: "Guan family, Yang Douzhi and Lan Yaban are asking for a meeting!"
Zhao Ji Tong Kong shrank and waved his hands to drive him away: "Stand back! All of you, stand down!"
The surrounding chambermaids, palace maids and the beautiful concubine on the bed all retreated, and then Zhao Ji said: "Call them in."
Yang Jian and Lan Congxi entered in a hurry, with frightened expressions on their faces. When they arrived in front of them, they fell to the ground with a thud: "Officials and slaves have failed in their responsibilities!"
Zhao Ji suppressed his uneasiness: "What happened?"
Yang Jian had a higher official position, so he could only speak first: "The thief Gongsun Zhao pretended to be a chamberlain, sneaked into the palace, killed the chamberlain who was looking after the Queen Mother, and even wanted to kidnap the Queen Mother. Fortunately, we tried our best to stop him and he gave up..."
Zhao Ji looked in disbelief at first, and then became furious: "How dare this thief dare to go deep into the palace? What is he going to do? If he can't get a secret edict, just take away the Queen Mother? It's against him! It's against him!!"
Lan Congxi said: "In the official family, the traitor Gongsun was discovered by Ban Zhi's guards when he left the palace. He was wounded and fled. Now that Ban Zhi has chased him out, do we need to march across the city to capture him?"
Zhao Ji was so angry that he took pictures repeatedly: "Of course! Don't wait until after Tianning Festival. Post those wanted notices tonight and send out all the forbidden troops to search the capital. Gongsun Zhao must be captured and killed without mercy!"
Lan Congxi accepted the order, and then said in a trembling voice: "After the Queen Mother was frightened, she called the officials to Funing Palace!"
Zhao Ji's face suddenly stiffened: "The Queen Mother summoned me, why?"
The two eunuchs lowered their heads and did not dare to answer, but the atmosphere of silence had already shown.
If some things are delayed any longer, the throne will be lost!
"How can...how can you do such a thing?"
Zhao Ji murmured, but thinking of the unbridled enjoyment in Yanfu Palace these days, the pleasure of being surrounded by everyone, and the supreme power that was about to be obtained, he suddenly burst into tears: "I don't want to, why do you have to force me?
Why are you forcing me?"
After wailing for a while, the official of the Great Song Dynasty stood up slowly and squeezed out a sentence through his teeth: "Go to Funing Palace!"