Jinling has four levels of city walls, one for the palace city, one for the imperial city, one for the main city, and one for the Guocheng.
The imperial city was about six miles long, but its actual scope was also limited. Nearly half of the area was dug out by the Chu Palace in the center and north. There were many royal Taoist temples, banquet pavilions, and courtyards where the palace maids lived and the guards and soldiers stayed.
, as well as the Six Ministries and Government Offices, with many densely packed buildings, which is often said to be the location of the outer court.
From Chongfu Temple to the Houzhai Yasha of Shangshu Province, you only need to pass through two narrow lanes.
Although the military uniform hidden in the Taoist temple was put on over the skirt, there were still big flaws in the figure, the cover was tight and the heat was extremely hot, but at this time the dusk had arrived, and the attention of the guards and soldiers was all over.
While guarding key places such as the Palace City, the Nine Gates of the Imperial City, and the Chongwen Hall, they walked all the way. Except for two old officials of low rank in the alleys who were observing the movements on the left and right for them, they did not meet anyone else.
.
Qingyang didn't even know that apart from the secret agents of the Tangyi Secret Service within the various bureaucracies, he didn't know if there were any personnel from Han Qian who had been hiding in the imperial palace over the years.
Listening to the sound of drums in the palace city, the search in the palaces has just begun. The imperial city should be mainly blocked at the moment, and the comprehensive search will lag behind. Qingyang, Yunpuzi and the others walked into the Shangshu Province without any danger.
Living in a vacant government office, there is no need to worry that people from Cishou Palace or assassins sent by them will find them first.
Two Anzi were left to replace Qingyang, while Yun Puzi and the others waited and watched. Qin Wen first rushed to Chongwen Hall to see Shen Yang.
At this moment, Qingyang was still full of anxiety. Apart from letting go of her extravagant hopes that Bin'er might ascend the throne, she didn't feel that her situation at this time was really safe.
Qin Wen went to see Shen Yang at this time. There was no doubt that neither he nor Yun Puzi would take the initiative to reveal their identities, and Han Daoming, Han Daochang and Han Qian who were far away in East Lake had no direct evidence to reveal the second prince's life experience.
, let alone let the Han family be involved in the Queen Mother's affair and become the target of public criticism, right?
In that case, the Gyeonggi Bureau will only become more chaotic.
From this point of view, Lu Qingxia and the others' conspiracy to establish the second prince as the new emperor still has a great chance of success.
If Shen Yang, Yang Zhitang and others were deceived and really chose to support the establishment of the second prince as emperor, as the "toffee" she would have to live in the palace with Bin'er again. Wouldn't it be possible for Lu Qing to die at any time?
The poisoning of Xia and others?
Thinking of this, Qingyang's heart sank to the bottom, and she even wanted to tell Yun Puzi that she didn't want Bin'er to become emperor, but only hoped that the Han government and Tangyi could do their best to prevent Lu Qingxia's plot from succeeding.
Even if Huang E's son ascends the throne, she and Bin'er may still have a chance to live in peace for the rest of their lives, right?
"Logically speaking, Queen Huang's son has the best chance to ascend the throne," Yun Puzi saw Qingyang frowning and thought she was struggling with the current complicated situation, so she said, "However, Lu Qingxia committed a vicious attack at this time.
, it is impossible to just sit back and watch the throne fall into the hands of others - as the saying goes, when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman will benefit. As long as Qin Wen can persuade Prime Minister Shen, Yang En and King Shou will support the eldest prince, and Tang Yi and Han
The government is secretly helping, and the chance of the eldest prince is definitely not low - we still have to be patient and wait for news from Mr. Qin..."
"I hope everything will be as Taoist Master Yun said." Qingyang said quietly. He didn't know whether the man hidden behind the scenes could really trust him. After thinking about it, he couldn't help but wonder about the circumstances under which Yang Yuanpu was assassinated and why he was assassinated.
No defense at all?
Although the relationship was not deep, she even chose to separate when misfortune came, but she was still favored by Yang Yuanpu after living in the palace for these years. After being together as a couple, she calmed down from the shock, but she couldn't help but feel some sadness in her heart. , sitting there in a daze, hugging Bin'er who still didn't know what happened...
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"That cheap maid from Qingyang was not in Changxin Palace, so she took the eldest son of the emperor out of Chongfumen one step ahead?"
No matter how much chaos was caused by the Changyang Courtyard fire and the assassins' intrusion into Chongwen Palace, the mechanism of banning guards in the inner palace was not paralyzed. Even with Shen Yang, Yang Zhitang and others, they ordered that the guards in the outer imperial city be removed. The pro-military troops were transferred into the palace city, and the defense and supervision of the inner court were strengthened several times.
The corridors between the palaces and courtyards were filled with guards, generals, eunuchs, and palace maids who were watching each other. Every move they made was watched by countless people. When the eunuchs in the Ministry of Internal Affairs were ordered to move around, they also had to guard their relatives. The generals and generals are with them at all times and are not allowed to act alone.
Some concubines were not aware of the situation and did not pay enough attention to the prohibition. They thought that there would be no problem in asking the people around them to go out to inquire for information. Instead, they called a dozen eunuchs and maids who came out without permission to inquire about information. , were regarded as assassin accomplices and were innocently executed or arrested.
Under such high pressure, it took Yao Xishui a long time to learn that the assassins sent out had not succeeded in killing Princess Qingyang and the eldest prince in Changxin Palace. When she heard the news, she couldn't help but feel a little panicked in her heart. Thinking that something went wrong in such an important part, I didn't expect Qingyang to run so fast.
As the Palace Supervisor of the Weaving Bureau, Yao Xishui's status in the inner court is second only to that of the Imperial Attendant, but at such an emergency moment, she is not allowed to move around without permission.
However, this order does not work even if the Queen Mother holds the edict in her hand.
At least before breaking up with Shen Yang and the others and directly fighting for control of the Imperial Guard Army, if you want to have unimpeded access to the palace and the imperial city, the decree requires the Queen Mother and the nominal Guard Army commanders Chen De, Shen Yang, and Yang Zhitang It will only work if someone signs it.
At present, Yao Xishui can only stay with Chun Shisanniang and others, accompanying Lu Qingxia to stay by the Queen Mother's side.
After receiving the report, Yao Xishui suppressed the panic in his heart, pretended that nothing happened, walked into the inner hall, and whispered to Lu Qingxia the latest situation.
Lu Qingxia looked calm. At this time, Yang En and Zheng Chang, the two political ministers, had just been secretly brought into the palace. In the inner hall of Chongwen Palace, everyone had just learned that the imperial concubine and the eldest prince were missing. information.
Not only was there no one alive or dead in Changxin Palace, but in the entire palace, the guards and soldiers could not find any trace of the imperial concubine or the eldest prince.
After a while, Lu Qingxia seemed to be unable to bear the depressing atmosphere in the inner hall, so he stood up and walked to the sleeping hall at the back;
Inside was the body of Yang Yuanpu.
Yao Xishui and Chun Shisanniang followed Lu Qingxia and walked into the dormitory.
It was no secret that the three of them stayed together, and no one else had any intention of following them into the dormitory to see Yang Yuanpu's dead body.
Queen Mother Wang Chan'er looked at it suspiciously and didn't ask anything. She just looked at the pool of blood solidifying in the hall.
Chongwen Hall is divided into three levels: an outer hall, an inner hall, and a dormitory hall. In addition to the corpse of Yang Yuanpu in the dormitory hall, there were only two old eunuchs standing in the corner looking after the candles.
"Han Qian is deployed in the imperial city, and the secret agents in the palace are finally out at this moment..." Lu Qingxia frowned slightly and exhaled.
"That bastard who walked out of Chongfu Gate when the incident happened - Yun Puzi's traitor is really Han Qian's secret child." Yao Xishui said with great hatred.
At the critical moment, she couldn't imagine anyone else besides Yun Puzi who could convince Qingyang and the eldest prince to escape from Changxin Palace without hesitation at the critical moment. And she had several times over the years. They suspected that Yun Puzi had a problem, but Yun Puzi covered it up no matter what.
Why doesn't she feel resentful when I call her now?
"If Yun Puzi is really Han Qian's secret agent, and they know so many of our secrets, wouldn't they have guessed all our plans by now? If Yun Puzi is asked to bring the Wang family and the eldest prince to meet Han Daoming... "Thinking of this, Chun Shisanniang's heart started beating wildly.
"Why are you panicking?" Lu Qingxia glanced sharply at Chun Shisanniang and whispered, "Even if they know that the second prince is the son of the Queen Mother and Han Jun, so what? Their words are hard to win people over, and he can't believe them. We will not reveal this secret easily. You must know that Shen Yang, Yang En, and Yang Zhitang have one last choice, which is definitely not what they are happy to see..."
"Madam, are you saying that Shen Yang, Yang En, and Yang Zhitang will choose to support King Xin if they have no choice?" Yao Xishui suppressed the shock in his heart and asked.
Lu Qingxia nodded and said: "If this situation really happens in the end, both Xiangbei and Tangyi will suffer losses, and Han Qian's purpose of being eager to escape and lead his troops into the Hehuai River to participate in the war will be completely ruined, and he can only sit down in the end. Watch the Mongolians capture Hehuai and Guanzhong. Do you think Han Qian would be happy to see this?"
"Should I find an opportunity to have a secret conversation with Han Daoming?" Yao Xishui asked.
Since we can confirm where Han Dao's bottom line is, especially since the second prince beside Wang Chan'er is of Han family blood, it is also certain that Han Qian and the Han family will not even be able to directly expose the mystery of the second prince's life experience with the Li family.
Since everyone was on the defensive, Yao Xishui felt that there was still a possibility of negotiating with Han Daoming, which would probably lead to them giving up their plan to plot Shu.
"Yun Puzi may not bring Qingyang and the eldest prince to see Han Daoming..." Lu Qingxia said with a slight frown.
"Why?" Yao Xishui asked in confusion, "Isn't it because Qingyang and the eldest prince fell into the hands of Han Daoming that this bargaining chip can be used?"
"Do you know how many secret weapons Han Qian deployed between the inner court and the outer court? I'm worried that the Mongols forced us to take action, but they actually fell into Han Qian's trap..." Lu Qingxia sighed lightly.
"Ah..." Yao Xishui and Chun Shisanniang looked at Lu Qingxia in shock. They couldn't believe everything she said, or they couldn't imagine that Han Qian's calculations and layout were so deep.
"You guys keep an eye on Shen Yang, Yang En - no matter how many secrets Han Qian has, as long as they don't want Huaidong fishermen to benefit, the court to fall apart, and the Mongol people to be proud, they can only pass a few "The extremely key figures are pushing the situation in Gyeonggi to develop into the situation they want," Lu Qingxia ordered, "and even if we have to negotiate with Han Daoming, we have to wait until we have the situation under control..."
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As a minister, Qin Wen was qualified to enter and leave the palace, although his rank was not as good as that of the ministers and ministers of various courtyards, let alone the ministers of various ministries.
Princess Qingyang, Yun Puzi and others hid themselves in the Shangshu Provincial Office, and he rushed directly to Chongwen Hall.
At this time, the night was dark and the weather was extremely hot and muggy.
From Chongyang Gate to Chongwen Hall, the square, corridors, palace gates, the generals of Wuxiang Army on the left and Wuyi Army on the left and right, all stood guard in every corner clearly, staring at each other vigilantly.
The emperor was assassinated and his remains were burned beyond recognition by the fire. Several corpses lay on the ground in the Changxin Palace, while the concubine and the eldest prince were missing. It is unimaginable that the assassin could be so easy without the help of the guards or the internal affairs of the province.
to infiltrate and make such a big move.
At this time, everyone may be an enemy. If you don't keep your eyes open and stare at each other, you may not even know how to die.
There were several times more lanterns lit in the corners of the eaves and courtyard than in the past, illuminating everything inside and outside.
Huang Lu, Guo Liang, and Zhang Han each stood in front of the eaves of the palace with a dozen of their trusted followers and highly skilled guards.
Huang Lu was quite relaxed, he looked careless, and no one suspected that there was anything wrong with him at this time; there was no need for the Huang family to do this, especially since Huang Hua himself was still serving as the ambassador of comfort in Yueyang at this time.
Guo Liang and Zhang Han stood on each side, guarding each other.
Although it was speculated in advance that it was unlikely that Guo Liang and Zhang Han were directly controlled by Lu Qingxia, Qin Wen couldn't help but beat his head at this moment. Or, in other words, were any of their subordinates secretly bribed and controlled by Lu Qingxia?
Qin Wen climbed up the steps, and each of the three parties sent a sergeant to search him, but they did not stop him from entering the main hall.
The outer hall was also brightly lit, and there were eunuchs above the level of ministers and officials of the Academy who had accompanied the political officials into the palace. Han Duan was also standing in the outer hall - Han Daochang stayed in the Academy outside the palace. Qin Wen
He has no direct contact with the Han government and does not yet know Han Daoming's arrangements.
The hall was extremely hot and stuffy, and everyone could only stand. The official uniforms were thick and heavy, and beads of sweat were falling from their foreheads.
Only the older eunuchs and officials who couldn't bear it sat down in the corner with a small brocade dumpling to rest.
Han Duan didn't know Qin Wen's true identity. When he saw him coming in, he glanced at him without saying a word. Instead, his eyes rolled on the faces of other officials.
Obviously Han Duan and other core figures in the Han government are waiting to lure the snake out of the hole. The situation in front of them is also expected to be secretly carried out by Cishou Palace, but who else among the generals of the Manchu Dynasty is involved with Cishou Palace or directly involved in this assassination case?
, now we are definitely observing in secret
, a good opportunity to seize more secret affairs.
Qin Wen also looked at everything secretly.
Without permission, Qin Wen could only walk into the outer hall. He stood opposite Han Duan and glanced towards the inner hall.
The inner hall is heavily curtained, and you can't see where Yang Yuanpu's body is. Standing in the outer hall, you can only see Shen Yang, Yang Zhitang, Du Chongtao, Zhou Bingwu, Han Daoming, Zhang Chao, Zheng Yu, Zheng Chang, Yang En, Li Changfeng, and Chen Dezai.
They sat in two rows in front of the imperial case.
Unable to see the scene behind the case, Qin Wen guessed that it was only the Queen Mother Wang Chan'er sitting there. He didn't know how she felt sitting in front of the body of her biological son. But it was just like this. She could sit there.
In the Chongwen Palace, people like Shen Yang, Yang Zhitang, Yang En and others would never trust her and doubt her, right?
At this time, Xue Ruogu, Zhang Feng and two other officials came in from outside and called the eunuchs guarding the corridors of the inner and outer halls to go in and report.
"What's going on?" Qin Wen walked to the stern-looking Xue Ruogu and asked.
"Several maids in the Changxin Palace were stabbed to death, but the Wang Guifei and the eldest prince were nowhere to be seen. The palace attendants and guards on duty at Chongfu Gate today all said that they saw the Wang Guifei's car driving to Chongfu when they were walking through the water in Changyang Palace.
We visited Chongfu Temple and saw the envoys from Chongfu Palace coming in and out. We just rushed to Chongfu Temple and saw the carriages from Changxin Palace, but the Wang Guifei, the eldest prince, Yun Puzi and others were nowhere to be found." Xue Ruogu
said.
Nowadays, all affairs in the palace city and the imperial city are handled by one or two civil servants and military generals from different factions, who monitor each other.
As for the palace eunuchs and maids from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, except for those who were servants and above, all were summoned to the Chongwen Hall for questioning. The lower-level palace eunuchs were all put under centralized custody first, and were interrogated one by one by the Imperial Guards and Military Department together with the Yushitai, Dali Temple, and the Criminal Department.
Qin Wen thought to himself that among the six or seven thousand people, the day lilies would be cold after the interrogation was over, right?
He did not see Zhang Ping and others. Presumably Zhang Ping, Jiang Huo, Anji Xiang, Chen Ruyi and other eunuchs should be in the inner hall or the inner dormitory. It was just because of the angle that he could not see it for the time being.
"Has the assassin been caught?" Qin Wen asked.
"Three people were killed on the spot. They were all Mongol warriors. However, how they got in has not yet been found out," Xue Ruogu said. "There is no unusual movement among the various departments, right?"
"There's nothing unusual outside - oh, by the way, I have a secret to report to the prime minister, but I can't let others see anything unusual." Qin Wen whispered to Xue Ruogu.
Xue Ruogu glanced at Qin Wen and nodded. After waiting for a while, he and Zhang Feng went in to report the results of their search of Chongfu Temple.
"You all claim that not even a fly can enter the palace. Now the assassins have broken in, His Majesty has died, Empress Li has been burned beyond recognition by the fire, and two living people have not been found. There are still two people in the imperial city?
I don’t know how many assassins there are, but all of you are just eating shit!” Wang Chaner roared uncontrollably and angrily scolded Xue Ruogu, Zhang Feng and others for their incompetence, “Tonight, even if I dig the city three feet, I still have to show up.”
, you must see the corpse after death, otherwise, you all go home and don’t be embarrassed here!"
There was a moment of silence, or the people in the inner hall were discussing something, but the outer hall could not hear it.
After a while, Shen Yang and other ministers came out.
In the current atmosphere, no one came forward to ask what was going on.
Shen Yang, Yang Zhitang, Yang En, Chen De, Li Changfeng and others stood in the main hall. Their eyes scanned everyone's faces for a long time before they ordered Guo Liang, Zhang Han, Huang Lu and the guards around.
All the Du Yuhou were called in - Du Yuhou, the bodyguard and pro-army officer, was already a senior general in the army, and the factions were complicated. It was not Guo Liang, Zhang Han, Huang Lu or Chen De who was nominally the commander-in-chief and deputy commander of the bodyguard pro-army.
Li Changfeng has complete control.
Qin Wen didn't see Li Xiu, but looking at Chen De, there was nothing unusual about Li Changfeng's expression. What was more, he looked heavy and had an unconcealable panic in his eyes, facing the evil situation in front of him.
It's normal to think about it. Before Lu Qingxia took action, he really had to convince Li Changfeng and Li Xiu to directly participate in the assassination. Li Changfeng and Li Xiu would never sit back and watch Li Yao be assassinated.
This has nothing to do with family affection.
If their ultimate goal is to establish the second prince as the new emperor, then Li Yao, as the legitimate mother of the "second prince", will naturally become the "empress dowager" under Wang Chan'er, the "empress dowager" after the new emperor ascends the throne.
Li Changfeng and Li Xiuzhen wanted to participate in the conspiracy. How could they sit back and watch such an important bargaining chip be destroyed by Lu Qingxia?
At the end of the day, Li Changfeng and Li Xiu are still used as pawns by Lu Qingxia.
As for Li Pu, he is not qualified to enter the imperial city at this time.
Looking at Zhou Yuan and Xu Jing who were among the crowd, their eyes were full of vigilance, and they were obviously involved in the conspiracy. Qin Wen couldn't help but look at Han Daoming, and he could also see the solemn look in Han Daoming's eyes.
The current situation was too chaotic. Qin Wen could not confirm that the situation would develop as they expected, and he had no chance to communicate directly with Han Daoming at this time, so he could only wait and see what would happen.
After a while, Li Xiu, Zhang Feng, Zhong Yanhu and other princes from the capital, accompanied by the three bodyguards and generals Guo Liang, Zhang Han and Huang Lu, walked into the main hall. Shen Yang looked at them and the many officials and officials guarding the outer hall. Waiting for the eunuch, he said in a deep voice:
"Before the thorough search of the Imperial City is completed, all officials will move the officials and palace attendants to the Zhengshi Hall to wait for orders. During the special period, all orders in the Imperial City that are not issued by the Zhengshi Hall are arbitrary orders. Those who hold them are those who rebel and enter and exit without authorization. They are also rebelling against each other. The Queen Mother is very sad and wants to stay in Chongwen Palace to keep vigil for His Majesty. If there is another trouble with the guards..."
"General, I will obey the order..." Shen Yang's words represented the will of the ministers, guards and military commanders as well as the Queen Mother who had not left the inner hall at this time. Guo Liang, Zhang Han, Huang Liu and all the princes of the capitals all expressed their compliance in unison. .
"The Queen Mother asked Chen Hou to stay in Chongwen Hall." Lu Qingxia came out and said.
Chen Denai is the only living relative of the Queen Mother Wang Chaner, and he is also the nominal commander-in-chief of the bodyguards.
Before the assassin was arrested and His Majesty was newly deceased, it was reasonable for the Empress Dowager to order Chen De to stay in Chongwen Palace to accompany the mourner. There was no reason for anyone to say otherwise.
Although Qin Wen was worried that it would not be a good thing for Chen De to stay in Chongwen Hall, he saw that Han Daoming only hesitated for a moment and did not raise any objection. He also knew that it was not appropriate for them to raise objections now, so he still had to be patient and wait and see what happens.
