In a single night, the situation in this enormous empire had changed dramatically. The Crown Prince, who had already reached adulthood, was dead. His most competitive younger brother was also dead. Only the weak Prince of Zhou, Li Xian, and the thirteen-year-old Prince of Ji, Li Dan, remained.
Now that the Emperor had issued an edict to abdicate, Queen Wu's monopoly of power was unstoppable.
At the end of the fourth month, all the officials gathered outside Shangyang Palace, requesting that the Emperor appoint a new Emperor before abdicating.
However, the Empress was furious. Using the excuse of interfering with the Emperor's recuperation, she killed more than ten officials. She then ordered Shangyang Palace to be sealed, brazenly cutting off the Emperor's last connection with the outside world.
This was the first time the Empress had revealed her ferocious and iron-blooded methods since she took over the regency.
Before the aristocratic families and civil and military officials of Luoyang could react, the Empress issued a secret edict late that night, setting off for Chang An.
"… How long have you hated me?" The Emperor leaned weakly against the soft pillow, gazing at Queen Wu, who was sitting upright across from him, her palace attire trailing behind her.
Although the walls were tightly wrapped in luxurious blankets, the sound of wheels rolling over the ground and the whistling of soldiers galloping could still faintly be heard from outside the carriage window.
It was already late at night outside, but the glow of the night pearls made the carriage as bright as day.
The Empress' upper body was as straight as a javelin. A smile appeared on her wrinkle-free face, making her dignified and beautiful face even more charming. "Hate you?
No, never. I only feel gratitude towards Your Imperial Majesty. "
"Then why did you do such a thing?!
You hate that Madam of Han gave birth to Li Xian, hate that I doted on Madam of Wei. Otherwise, how could you have done what you did today?!
Poisoning your own son, causing the Prince of Yong's death, and even the Madam of Wei was you … "
The Emperor spoke in a hurry, coughing heart-wrenchingly. Queen Wu reached out from behind the table to pat his back, but the Emperor wretchedly waved her hand away. "Don't touch Us!"
Queen Wu smiled, unconcerned.
"What do you plan to do next? Force Us to yield to you, and then send Us down a cup of poisoned wine?
A heart of snakes and scorpions!
How could I have fallen in love with such a venomous woman like you? How could I have fallen in love with you? "
"Does Your Imperial Majesty believe that love turned to hatred?"
In the face of the Emperor's hoarse roar, Queen Wu was extremely calm. She even asked him back with interest.
"Isn't it?!"
"No," Queen Wu said with a smile.
The Emperor choked for a moment, only to hear her leisurely say, "The heart of an Emperor changes easily. Thunder and rain are all the grace of the Emperor. These are facts that I have seen clearly many years ago.
Therefore, the fact that His Majesty ordered the Lady of Han to give birth to a child, and even favored the Lady of Wei, Helan, is nothing to me … "
"Then why did you poison the Helan Clan to death?!" The Emperor raged.
"Because she is stupid."
Queen Wu shook her head in front of the Emperor's resentful and disbelieving eyes. She seemed to have a bit of pity in her voice. "In the depths of the palace, being ugly or bad is not a capital crime, but being stupid is.
As a woman, there's nothing wrong with her wanting to be the Empress. But trying to stop me from ascending Mount Tai is simply the height of stupidity. She doesn't even have one percent of her mother's intelligence … "
"From the beginning to the end, I've been chasing after that position. Whether it's infamy or fame, what I want is the power and glory of this generation.
This country will shake for me, and the country will change for me. I will leave my name in history like the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. I won't be the concubine of some Emperor or the mother of some Prince, but I will be the Emperor of the Nine and Five, and be promoted to the Imperial Ancestral Temple. I will leave my name in the history books with the surname of Wu! "
The Emperor gasped for breath. He wanted to interrupt her several times, but for some reason, he couldn't find the breath in his lungs. In the end, he trembled and roared weakly, "You … Stop dreaming!
Do you really think that the aristocratic families and civil and military officials will sit by and watch you take over the magpie's nest? Do you really think that the people in the world will watch a woman ascend the throne and become the Emperor?!
What a joke! "
"What is the Way of the Emperor?" Queen Wu said loudly.
The Emperor suddenly paused.
"Those who don't follow the Way of the Emperor will be killed.
The Way of the Emperor is free in history, free in the country, free in the battlefield, free in the people's hearts … "Queen Wu's voice softened. She said in a low voice," The Way of the Emperor has nothing to do with men or women. Just like how you and I are today, it has nothing to do with love or hate. "
Queen Wu stood up and walked towards the carriage door.
"Stop!"
The Emperor stood up shakily and shouted, "Even if you force me to abdicate, how can the people in the world obey you?
The Kings of Zhou and Ji are still alive, and you dare to ascend the throne openly?! "
Queen Wu looked back and smiled. Her red lips shone with a gem-like luster in the candlelight.
"That's my business."
Queen Wu closed the heavy carriage door with a backhand. The guards immediately stepped forward and locked the door with a click.
"Empress," Ming Chongyan bowed.
The carriage sped away, leaving the Luoyang City Gate far behind.
In front of them was a vast wilderness, and the night was as dark as ink. In the distance was the city of Chang An, which was swaying in the wind and rain.
"… Have you found them?" Queen Wu asked in a low voice.
"Yes."
"Where?"
"Qian Prefecture."
Queen Wu frowned and asked, "Why are they in Qian Prefecture?"
Ming Chongyan remained calm and did not answer.
Countless broken thoughts filled her mind. Queen Wu shook her head and threw them all out of her mind with the whistling night wind. After a while, she said, "Forget it.
Order Yuwen Hu to personally bring people to bring them back … It must be before the coronation ceremony.
Shan Chao is fine, but Xie Yun must be alive. Remember! "
Ming Chongyan bowed and disappeared into the night.
·
"We're leaving this place today," Shan Chao said.
When he said this, they were sitting by the window on the second floor of the Immortals' Loft. Xie Yun picked up a fresh vegetable with her chopsticks and shook it in the water to wash away the grease. After a while, she asked leisurely, "Why?"
The poison in his body had been completely removed, but his injured left arm had not completely recovered.
Shan Chao felt his pulse and knew that his meridians had been injured. The circulation of his internal energy was very stagnant. Even if he forcefully poured the purest internal energy into it, it would be useless.
The body of an internal energy expert was stronger than that of an ordinary person, but also more fragile. A small injury could cause irreversible effects on one's martial arts cultivation. This was also something that could not be helped.
Fortunately, Xie Yun no longer needed to rely on the spring water under the Dragon Binding Grass to prolong her life. As long as they moved, they could leave this small town at any time.
"Don't you want to go to other places?" Shan Chao asked, "Before we leave, I'll pour a few bottles of spring water for you to drink. It might be useful."
Xie Yun tapped Shan Chao with the tip of her chopsticks and commented with a simple word, "Stupid."
"…"
"The water source under the Dragon Binding Grass is called the Dragon Cleansing Spring. As the name implies, it has a strong absorption effect on poison. However, drinking it is useless.
In the early years, the Green Dragon Clan relied on this water source. However, the Dragon Binding Grass was inexhaustible, so the entire clan had to move to Liangzhou. My peers no longer know of the existence of the Dragon Cleansing Spring … "
Shan Chao asked suspiciously, "Then how do you know?"
Xie Yun paused for a moment and did not answer. She only smiled with a complicated expression.
Xie Yun was dressed in ordinary cotton clothes. Her hair was tied up with a white rope, and she was dressed like a commoner.
However, because of her high status, her every move had an indescribable feeling. Her words and actions were very prominent. No matter where she went, she was an existence that attracted a lot of attention.
Seeing that several groups of customers in the restaurant were repeatedly turning their heads, Shan Chao coughed and pointed at the cups and plates in front of him to attract Xie Yun's attention, "In that case, how about we bring some spring water to Liangzhou's Guan Mountain and visit your clan?"
"Why would we go to Guan Mountain?" Xie Yun asked dispiritedly.
"You've been in the capital for so many years. Don't you want to travel around?"
Xie Yun took a sip of tea and said, "I don't care."
Shan Chao was just about to say something to persuade her when he suddenly saw something and glanced downstairs.
He saw that on the other side of the busy street, two men in dark blue clothes had appeared at some point. Both of them were tall and clean-cut. They were holding a portrait and standing in front of the dessert shop, asking the waiter about something.
Shan Chao's eyes flashed with a trace of coldness, but when he turned back, he did not reveal it. He gently put the wine cup on the table, "I'll go pay the bill. Get ready to leave."
Xie Yun made a sound of agreement.
Shan Chao hurried down the second floor and blended into the crowd like a drop of water in the ocean. He silently walked towards the dessert shop across the street.
The two men did not manage to get anything out of the waiter. One of them was about to put away the portrait when the other gently tugged on his sleeve, indicating that he should look at something not far away.
Not far away, they saw a strong and sturdy figure walking with the crowd towards the market. Although his clothes were simple and ordinary, his steps were clearly different from ordinary people. Moreover, a corner of the hilt of a sword could be vaguely seen at the back of his waist, reflecting a dazzling golden light.
"— Huaihua Great General." One of the men said in a low voice.
The two men exchanged glances. The man with the portrait immediately turned around and went back to inform his companions. The other man immediately followed and followed Shan Chao from a distance.
Shan Chao quickly walked through the market. The bustling crowd of pedestrians passed by him. Children were jostling here and there, and the shouts of the peddlers rose and fell one after another.
He did not seem to notice that more and more people were following him. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he turned around and entered an inn in the middle of the market.
The follower stopped.
The leader put his hand behind his back and made a few silent hand gestures. Immediately, a dozen people spread out and surrounded the entire inn from the front door, under the windows, and in the back kitchen.
"Sir, would you like to have a meal or stay in the hotel?"
Shan Chao stopped in his tracks. Just as he was about to speak, a skinny but strong hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder. Then, a sharp dagger was pressed against his back.
"General Shan," someone behind him said coldly, "please come with us."
Shan Chao did not turn around. He smiled at the waiter who was at a loss and casually tossed him a piece of silver.
"Compensation."
The person behind him suddenly had a bad premonition.
However, it was too late.
The moment he finished speaking, Dan Chao turned around and stretched out his hand. The man only felt that his wrist holding the dagger was grabbed by an iron-like force. But before he could even make a sound, the sharp pain was accompanied by the crisp sound of bones breaking!
"Ahhh —"
He unsheathed his sword with golden carvings and a strong force rushed in all directions. The man and the utensils fell back together!
The guards shouted angrily, "Attack!" Then, they rushed into the inn from the front door and the windows.
With a clanging sound, the imperial sword was inserted straight into the floor. Dan Chao held the top of the sword hilt with both hands and looked around at the encirclement of the face paint. He said faintly, "Let's go together, hurry up."
·
At the same time, outside the Immortals' Loft.
Xie Yun paid for a donkey cart and gave an address. As if she didn't see the chaotic market behind her, she went out of the city along the bluestone road.
The trees at the foot of Mount Fulong were green. The sunlight shone through the trees and cast colorful spots of light on the ground.
The donkey cart stopped outside the city gate. Xie Yun thanked the peddler who drove the cart and walked along the mountain road for a while. Gradually, there were sparse farmers and smoke on the roadside. Cows and sheep were grazing not far away. It was a small farm in the suburbs.
He didn't go into the farm. Instead, he went around two miles and followed the stream into the back mountain of the village. He stopped in front of an open space in the shade of the mountain.
It was a small, dilapidated courtyard. Because of the erosion of wind and rain, half of the courtyard wall had already collapsed. Green grass climbed up the steps along the path. Birds chirped and made nests on the roof of the thatch. The mouth of the well was full of green moss.
There was a gray tombstone in the courtyard.
Xie Yun turned a blind eye to the luxurious horse carriage parked on the mountain path not far away and the dozen guards guarding outside the courtyard with their swords drawn and bows bent.
His face was calm and even a little indifferent. His footsteps were steady and unhurried. Under everyone's anxious gaze, he walked into the small courtyard and stood in front of the tombstone.
Yuwen Hu put the three incense sticks in the fruit plate, straightened up, and patted the mud on his knees.
"How have you been, Commander Xie?"