In the second half of the palace, the Queen Mother's residence was also guarded.
A group of guards from the pro-military camp came with a fierce look, frightening the pampered eunuchs and maids into screaming.
Just when this extremely noble and peaceful place was about to be plundered by officers and soldiers, dozens of horsemen rushed over.
"stop."
Princess Zhaoyang rode up to the leading general and looked down at him indifferently.
"Who asked you to come here?"
When the general saw Princess Zhaoyang, he also put away his unruly expression and replied with clasped fists: "Back to Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I will follow your Majesty's orders to keep the attendants in the palace under guard elsewhere to prevent the prince from sneaking in and threatening the safety of the two saints...
"
Princess Zhaoyang narrowed her eyebrows and then said: "This is the residence of the Queen Mother. There is no rebellion. You can go elsewhere."
"But Your Highness Princess, this is Your Majesty's will. If..."
"If my father asks about it, I will go back in person."
"But……"
"Crack!"
A whip hit the general's face hard. He screamed and looked up, only to see that Princess Zhaoyang's face was extremely cold.
"I have said that there is no rebel here. If you can't decide, call He Lianxiong. I would like to ask him how brave he is to let you disturb the Queen Mother."
"……yes!"
Although the expression on the general's face changed, he did not dare to say anything more and left with his subordinates with a wave of his hand.
Seeing these uninvited guests leaving, Princess Zhaoyang got off her horse, straightened her appearance, and slowly walked into the Queen Mother's chamber.
Although there had been a commotion outside, it was quite quiet and peaceful inside the Queen Mother's chamber.
Except for the faint look of worry on the faces of the attendants, everything was as usual.
"Where is the Queen Mother?"
"The Queen Mother is playing the piano in the back."
Princess Zhaoyang came to the small garden at the back and saw the Queen Mother playing the piano in the pavilion.
She walked up to the Queen Mother and did not say anything to disturb her. Instead, she silently massaged the Queen Mother's shoulders.
After the song, the Queen Mother asked: "How is it outside?"
"Grandpa Huang and Brother Huang lost."
It was already expected, so there was nothing to ask.
"Does Grandma Royal blame me?"
Princess Zhaoyang suddenly became worried. She guessed that Emperor Ning Kang might force his way into the palace, but she did not inform the Queen Mother. It could be said that the two sides were not helping each other.
But at the last moment, she completely turned to Emperor Ning Kang to deal with the Supreme Emperor and the Crown Prince. She couldn't help but feel sorry for the Queen Mother who had always regarded her as her own.
The Queen Mother glanced at Princess Zhaoyang in surprise, and then understood what she meant.
Shaking her head, the Queen Mother pulled her to sit in front of her and sighed: "Why should I blame you? Since you chose to do this, there must be a reason for you to do so.
Speaking of which, I am very pleased. After all these years, I have not spoiled you. When the critical moment comes, you can still bravely shoulder your responsibilities as a royal child."
Princess Zhaoyang was surprised: "But Grandpa Huang lost, and Grandma Huang was put at a disadvantage after all. Grandma Huang was so kind to me, but I..."
The Queen Mother shook her head again, "You have been with me for so many years, don't you still understand me?
Why have I ever cared about this?
The struggle for power has always been a game between men, and it has nothing to do with you and me.
In my whole life, I am just a chess piece manipulated by others. I have never lived for myself for a day. I didn't live for myself before, and it will be difficult for me to live again in the future.
Therefore, whether your grandpa Huang wins or loses, it doesn’t make much difference to me, it’s just that we are all living in seclusion in this deep palace.”
After hearing this, Princess Zhaoyang admired the Queen Mother's free and easy indifference, but at the same time she couldn't help but feel a little heartbroken.
She quickly hugged the Queen Mother tightly and murmured: "Don't worry, Imperial Grandmother, Zhaoyang will definitely protect you, forever."
Hearing this, the Queen Mother smiled on her face, touched her head happily, and suddenly said: "When you came here just now, I saw a sad look on your face. I'm afraid you are not just worried about me, right?"
"Ah? I'm just worried about Grandma Huang..."
Princess Zhaoyang raised her head and buried her head again.
Seeing this, the Queen Mother sighed: "I heard from the palace people that the Supreme Emperor previously admitted in public that Jia Lian was his bloodline left behind?"
"Yeah." Princess Zhaoyang's voice was muffled.
"No wonder he objected to you being together in the first place."
The Queen Mother also looked a little sad, even a little regretful.
Speaking of which, the two juniors had nothing to do with each other at the beginning, but he fell in love with Jia Lian at first sight and tried his best to bring them together.
They didn't accept each other at first, but who knew that after going back and forth, after experiencing some changes and setbacks, they fell in love with each other.
Patting Princess Zhaoyang's back, the Queen Mother said: "Let him let go of the past.
You always have to look forward in life. The Wei family is also a famous family in the capital, and the young master of the Wei family is also a talented person. He behaves modestly and is not much weaker than Jia Lian.
In the future, when he becomes your consort, the two of you will support each other and live a harmonious and beautiful life."
When Princess Zhaoyang heard this, her eyes buried in the Empress Dowager's arms blinked.
How dare she confess to the Queen Mother that the reason for choosing Wei Ruolan in the first place was expediency, and secondly because Mr. Wei was frail and sick and looked like he would die at an early age...
"Ahem, that royal grandmother, I suddenly remembered that there are some important things to deal with outside...
I will leave some of my guards with the Imperial Grandmother. If the Imperial Grandmother needs anything, just ask them to come back to me, and I will definitely come back as soon as possible."
After saying this, Princess Zhaoyang slipped out of the Empress Dowager's arms, bowed hastily and ran away.
…
On the other side, Emperor Ningkang also walked out of the Emperor's chamber.
Originally, he thought that after defeating his father, he would have many things to say to the Supreme Emperor.
He would straighten his back and tell his father everything that he was right!
But when he actually did all this, he found that these thoughts had faded away.
Therefore, he did not stay in the Emperor's chamber for too long. There were too many things outside, waiting for him to deal with them.
"Your Majesty, the prince led his troops to fight back, but they were defeated by General Feng. Now the prince is fleeing north with the remaining soldiers."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! I will report back and forth before Emperor Ningkang returns to the palace.
It turned out that the Crown Prince heard that the Emperor was in danger and knew something was wrong. He immediately gave up entangled with Xie Jing and led his troops to rescue him.
After all, they were outnumbered and finally chose to flee to the north. Because the north of Tiewen Mountain was the direction where Emperor Ningkang's strength was weakest.
Emperor Ningkang stood on his horse, with a cold look on his face.
This time, he could have won beautifully without having to pay such a high price or leaving so many sequelae.
All this is because the prince rebelled against him in battle!
"Tianqu."
"The end will be here."
"You will lead the three thousand military guards to pursue the prince. We must capture the prince before he escapes from Tienwang Mountain."
"The final general's decree!"
"Father..."
The third prince suddenly came out of the queue, cupped his hands and said: "Father, the eldest brother has an extraordinary status after all, so it would be inappropriate to let Deputy Commander Tian capture him.
If the father can trust his son, he will let him go with Deputy Commander Tian.
I am willing to issue a military order, and if I cannot personally capture the eldest brother, I am willing to accept any punishment!"
Emperor Ningkang hesitated for a moment, but seeing the third prince's enthusiasm and desire to share his father's worries, he finally said one word:
"allow."
…
Just when the confrontation between the two saints of Tienwang Mountain came to an end, the capital also gradually became quiet.
Although in the capital, the army that is more loyal to the Supreme Emperor should be more numerous and stronger than the army that is more loyal to Emperor Ningkang.
However, because Emperor Ningkang had made appropriate arrangements, no copy of the Emperor's decree was allowed to flow into the capital.
As a result, although soldiers and horses such as the Xiaoqi Battalion were a little restless, they did not break out in violent resistance.
More people even really believed in the saying "the prince conspired to rebel" and thought that the Jin Yiwei and others were really just trying to capture the rebels.
And Emperor Ningkang's order to the military camp and Jinyiwei was only to control the entrance to the capital, and not to let a single soldier or horse out of the city.
If the other party does not violate the rules, they do not need to provoke him. They only need to wait for Emperor Ning Kang to return victoriously, and everything will be simple.
Therefore, after two days of running-in and competition, all parties have reached a delicate balance.
And in this balance, the hearts of wealthy families such as the Jia family gradually calmed down.
But he still just lives behind closed doors, not daring to go out and cause trouble.
But sometimes, if you don't go out to look for trouble, trouble will come to you.
From a house not far from the back streets of Ningrong, a large group of guards in uniforms poured out. Following them, there were also a number of "rebels" in their custody.
The faces of these Jin Yiwei all looked cheerful, as if they had been beggars for many years and suddenly made a fortune.
"These people look like dogs. They usually act aloof and condescending. But when they meet real brothers, they don't act like cowards. They explain everything honestly."
"No. It's just a pity that this is the last family ordered by the superiors. After this vote, it will be difficult for the brothers to get rich like this in the future."
He asked his subordinates to escort all the "rebels" back to the Zhenfu Division, but several leaders gathered together to discuss how to distribute the stolen goods.
Since he is against the party, his home must be ransacked and evidence of guilt must be collected.
Since it is a house raid, it is inevitable that a lot of property will be confiscated. However, it is not up to them to decide how much property there is. How much to report and how much to keep are all a matter of knowledge.
They clearly divided the stolen money with a tacit understanding. One of them suddenly laughed and said: "This area is the famous Gonghou Street. There are countless dignitaries living here. If brothers really want to make a fortune, I'm afraid they won't.
Chance?"
Everyone immediately understood what he meant, but they hesitated: "That being said, there are some people with powerful hands behind their backs. I'm afraid we can't afford to offend them."
"What are you afraid of? Let's just say that some traitors have escaped into their mansion and we want to go in and search them.
At this time, anyone who is smart knows how to avoid disaster by losing money... In this way, we don’t have to do anything serious and still get benefits, isn’t it a good thing?”
Everyone was excited after hearing this, knowing that there was only one chance like this, so they all agreed to vote a few more times.
Ningrong Back Street, Xue Family.
A large group of guards suddenly came in, and the Xue family's concierges, who had been prepared for it, hid in the door one after another.
The Jin Yiwei were not in a hurry. After setting up their formation, a commander personally came forward and knocked on the door: "The Jin Yiwei are ordered to arrest those who rebel against the party. Open the door. Open the door quickly!"
The door was locked with a loud bang. How could the Xue family's concierge who was hiding inside dare to open the door? He could only go in and report back to Aunt Xue in a hurry.
How did Aunt Xue know how to deal with these vicious Jin Yiwei? Her beauty suddenly turned pale, so she had no choice but to ask Xue Biao and the housekeeper to come forward.
After some "friendly negotiation", the Xue family finally understood that the other party was here to seek money.
Although Aunt Xue felt miserable in her heart, how dare she be accused of harboring traitors to the party. In fear, she could only prepare a box of money to send away these evil guests.
I don't know whether it was because the Xue family was famous, or because the Xue family was too easy to bully, but the guards took the money but didn't leave in a hurry.
"Sir, just now we saw five more rebels climbing over the wall and hiding in their house."
The commander received the loud secret report from his subordinates, and said to Xue Biao with a smile: "Young master, can you hear me? I don't blame the brothers for not giving me face, it is really that your family is too attractive to rebels.
This person is worth the same price, and these six people are naturally worth the price of six people. If I say this, Young Master may understand what I mean?"
"you……"
Xue Biao was young after all, and he had never seen such a scoundrel dressed in official attire.
The old housekeeper also said angrily: "Don't be too greedy! Our Xue family is not easy to bully. Our ancestors were the first-class founding officials of the country. The first-class Rongguo Duke and my family are also close relatives by marriage..."
Before the old butler could finish speaking, the commander kicked the old butler in the stomach and kicked him far away.
"He's just a run-down imperial businessman who has been removed from the list. Even the head of the family is still in prison. How dare you show off in front of me?"
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "If you are wise, just take out five boxes of equal amounts of money, and we will leave it at that.
Otherwise, don’t blame the brothers for being rude and going in to arrest the rebels.”
The Jin Yiwei all showed malicious smiles.
A century-old imperial merchant, or a century-old imperial merchant with no foundation in the capital. Where can I find such a fat sheep if I miss it?
"Da da da da..."
A large number of soldiers and horses came from the streets. The Jin Yiwei didn't pay much attention at first. It was not until these soldiers and horses surrounded them that their expressions changed.
"The Jinyi Guards are ordered to arrest those who rebel against the Party, who dares to interfere?" the commander stepped forward and shouted.
The army horses separated and one rode out.
"I am the patrol envoy of the West City Army and Horse Department. I received a secret report that there are rebels pretending to be guards in uniforms, oppressing good people, and committing extortion. I came here to arrest them.
If you do not put down your weapons, we will all be killed without mercy."
The commander of the Jin Yiwei's expression changed, but he immediately remembered his identity and couldn't help but sarcastically said: "When did the people from the Military and Horse Division dare to interfere with the affairs of the Jin Yiwei?"
The city patrol officer was riding on a horse, and the old god said: "Since my Marquis has been in charge of the Army and Horses Department, even princes and princes have not dared to cause trouble in our western city.
Therefore, don’t say that you are just a gangster pretending to be a gangster, you are the real royal guards, and if you dare to do evil in the West City, I, the patrolling envoy, will take it upon you."
"you……"
The commander of the Jin Yiwei was furious, but fortunately at this time, a clever young man stepped forward and whispered: "Sir, these are the people of Jia Lian, the Marquis of Zhenyuan.
I heard that this Jia and the Xue family are quite close, and they are probably here to protect the Xue family."
The conductor was stunned for a moment and finally came to his senses.
There is no official who has been working in the capital in recent years who has not heard of Jia Lian's name.
The Soldiers and Horses Division and the Imperial Guards looked down upon him, but Jia Lian was a person that no one in their command would dare to offend easily.
Because Jia Lian, like their commanders, could easily reach Tianting.
They just wanted money, but they never thought about seeking death.
Didn't they look at places like Jia's House and Liangfu? They didn't go to any of them, but they just picked some soft persimmons?
After glancing at the officers and soldiers of the Military and Horse Division, who were obviously several times more powerful than them, the commander of the Jin Yiwei gritted his teeth and said, "Let's go!"
He didn't believe that the other party really dared to "arrest" them.
The Zhongcheng Military and Horse Division, known as the strongest among the five major military and horse divisions, was personally defeated by their commander-in-chief and his troops the night before yesterday. Even the commander-in-chief Qiu Liang was beheaded.
If the other party is not sensible, they, the Jin Yiwei, would not mind taking this opportunity to massacre another army.
"You can leave, but the stolen goods will stay!" the patrol envoy said.
"you!"
The commander was furious and drew his sword.
The city patrol officer responded calmly, but the hundreds of soldiers and horses under his command showed their prowess.
"You have the guts, I will remember you. Brothers, let's go."
Seeing these dozens or hundreds of royal guards leaving in dejection, the patrol officer's eyes became dark.
The city patrol envoy of the Xicheng Military and Horse Division is not a permanent position, but is held by the four major commanders in turn.
Jia Lian has led the Xicheng Army and Horses Division for many years, and many of his close associates have been promoted. For example, the original commander Xie Jun was promoted to the Firearms Battalion. The vacancies he left naturally needed to be filled.
He is this lucky guy.
If it were in the past when he was dawdling in the Military and Horse Division, he would naturally not dare to offend the Jin Yiwei.
But now, with Jia Lian's support, the entire Xicheng Army and Horse Department is not too afraid of the Jin Yiwei.
The most frightening thing about the Jinyiwei is that they directly serve the saints.
But Jia Lian can also go to heaven to listen, and he is not afraid of being slandered by the royal guards.
What's more, protecting the two houses of the Jia family was an order left by the Marquis before leaving Beijing, and he would certainly not neglect it.
Seeing the vicious Jin Yiwei being driven away, the Xue family was extremely happy.
Aunt Xue even came out in person to thank the officers and soldiers of the Military and Horse Division.
However, the city patrol envoy and others left directly on the grounds that they still had patrol matters, without even taking the benefits Aunt Xue sent.
Are you kidding me? The Marquis has been very kind to them, and it is only natural for them to protect the Marquis' family members. If they want to take benefits in this way, wouldn't it taint their daring loyalty to the Marquis?