The emperor slowly closed his eyes and said, "You overestimated my patience, and I underestimated your energy in the palace..."
The eldest princess looked at the emperor panting and said: "I know, you have been giving me opportunities, in fact, I have been giving you opportunities, as long as you don't want to kill me, I simply... can't muster the courage to kill you... because in this life, I will I'm used to being behind you, and it's not easy to stand completely opposite you, I don't want to hurt you...so I never made a move."
"But you made me despair." Li Yunrui panted, and then smiled gently: "So kill me, if I live, I will definitely try my best to kill you."
"No one can kill me." The emperor said calmly, and then slowly tightened his hand. At this time, the knocking on the door outside Guangxin Palace stopped strangely, and a strangeness flashed in the eldest princess' eyes.
"You are my younger sister." The emperor suddenly stretched out his hand, stroked her cheek lightly, and murmured, "Even if you are very misbehaving, you are still my younger sister."
…
…
This was the last conversation between the emperor and the eldest princess in this world.
Then the palace gate of Guangxin Palace was smashed open by a few snow-like knives. After hissing and crisping, the palace gate collapsed. Next, under the arch guard of several tiger guards, walked into the Guangxin Palace.
"Emperor!"
Seeing the shocking scene in front of her, the queen mother screamed.
The eldest princess glanced at the emperor who was close to her with a somewhat absent-minded gaze, and found that after the emperor heard the scream, a self-deprecating smile appeared on the corner of the emperor's lips.
But I don't know who this smile is mocking.
One finger, one finger, gradually loosened from the princess's red neck, like the deadly poison ivy attached to a branch gradually weakening.
The emperor closed his eyes, took a long time to calm down his breath, then slowly withdrew his palms, turned back to his body, slightly adjusted his dragon robe that was messed up by the eldest princess, and greeted him expressionlessly. He hugged his mother, held her hand, and said softly: "Mother, let's go back."
The empress dowager's eyes stayed on the eldest princess who was slumped under the palace wall, stroking her hot and red neck, panting non-stop, trembling all over.
The emperor held the empress dowager's hand slightly tighter, and said softly: "Mother, let's go."
Although the words were gentle and expressed a kind of compromise, they were also full of irresistible majesty. The Empress Dowager's hands trembled again, and she said in a trembling voice: "Go back to the palace, hurry back to the palace."
The emperor suddenly stopped at the gate of Guangxin Palace, his face was as calm as ever, but his brows were slightly frowned, and he said: "I thought that all the people in this world are my people."
The expressions of the tiger guards who broke into the palace earlier froze.
Several winds rang out, and several tiger guards following the queen mother groaned miserably and fell into a pool of blood.
The emperor respectfully supported the Queen Mother's hand and left the Guangxin Palace.
The old eunuch Hong followed behind with his arms folded.
The palace gate of Guangxin Palace was closed again, and the princess's panting sound was also locked inside.
※※※
Today's court meeting was delayed by half an hour, and the opening of the gates of the Thirteenth City of Kyoto was also delayed by half an hour. This half an hour is enough for many things to happen in the palace, and it is also enough for the civil and military officials in the court to know roughly what His Majesty has done.
Therefore, no one dared to go to the imperial city after half an hour. All the ministers of the upper court obediently waited outside the gate of the imperial palace according to the original time.
It's just that the atmosphere in the room today is very weird, no one will gather together to discuss and chat, even small talk seems to be a sin. That deformed silence made everyone feel a sense of pressure.
Just before dawn, most of the influence of the eldest princess in Chaozhongjing has been wiped out, and some of the influences were even unknown to these officials in the past. The action came so quickly, the strike was so decisive, and the net was collected so cleanly, these officials felt a little cold.
It is said that it is the old black dog of the Overwatch Council who is in command in Kyoto.
Of course the officials knew how high the level of this incident was. However, standing in front of the imperial city and pondering their thoughts, they finally realized that this world belongs to His Majesty after all, not the world of the princes, let alone the plaything of the Eldest Princess. , as long as His Majesty wants to move someday, he will naturally clean up these people with ease.
It was only at this time that the officials returned to their usual awe of the man sitting on the dragon chair, and then they remembered that they seemed to have gotten used to His Majesty's silence over the years, and had forgotten His glory and great achievements.
It's just that officials can't just accept it in silence, because they don't know what will happen next at the court meeting. If His Majesty wanted to take advantage of this matter to carry out another major cleansing of the court, the elders of Zhongshu under the door were very worried about whether Qing's bureaucracy could afford such a storm.
Fan Tisi has arrested too many officials.
If another batch is caught, who will act for the court
And more people are guessing why Her Highness the Eldest Princess offended His Majesty and ended up like this. In any case, these officials could not guess the real cause of the incident, and naturally it was impossible to think of the bloody and gloomy scenes in the palace.
There was no news from the palace, and it seemed to be very peaceful.
…
…
The whip sounded and the jade sounded, and all the ministers lined up in the hall in turn, including the two great scholars Shuhu who were the first in the middle school under the door, and the ministers of various departments, and Fan Jian, the minister of the Ministry of household affairs, was also among them, but the one under the dragon chair Among them, there are already a few people missing.
These few people are probably in the Dali Temple or the Overwatch Council at this time.
The officials bowed their heads and entered, and after a moment of calm, they were surprised to find that there was no one on the dragon chair.
Shu Wu gave Hu Dashi a worried look. Although he didn't say anything, his eyes conveyed enough information. This old scholar has served His Majesty for many years, so of course he knows His Majesty's intentions and means. Since he said to postpone it for half an hour, it means that His Majesty must be sure to finish everything within half an hour.
With His Majesty's demeanor, he won't do things that he's not sure about, nor will he say anything.
It's just that half an hour has passed at this time, but he still hasn't gone to court. Could it be that the affairs in the palace have become so troublesome
At this time, the rain in Kyoto had already stopped, and the sky was glowing with red morning glow clouds. Although there was no heat, it was enough to make the witnesses feel warm. It's just that the ministers of the Qing Dynasty in the Taiji Hall were cold and nervous.
Following the eunuch's singing, the man in the dragon robe finally arrived late.
After Shan Hu long live, he spoke in order, handed in the memorials, and issued comments. All the procedures of the court meeting seemed so smooth and natural. On such a morning, no one dared to make His Majesty the Emperor angry.
Shu Wu raised his head and took a peek, and found that His Majesty the Emperor was sitting on the dragon chair with a calm expression, only slightly tired.
Any troublesome things must be done by someone. After all, the rules of the imperial court are here, and the responsibilities of civil servants lie. Two dignified ministers were suddenly arrested and imprisoned, three out of ten censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and two major bloody cases suddenly appeared in Kyoto.
Shu Wu sighed, and after apologizing to himself in his heart, he went out and slowly told what happened last night, and then respectfully asked for the oracle.
The emperor rested his jaw on the chair, and after a long silence, he slowly said: "The matters of the Overwatch Council are all according to my will, and these people are all in prison."
Shu Wu usually dared to confront His Majesty head-on, and sternly remonstrated, but he knew that it was just that His Majesty needed a slightly funny admonishment like himself, but today's matter was very serious, so he couldn't ask rashly. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva to moisten his dry throat due to nervousness, and said respectfully: "I don't know what Yan Shangshu and others have committed."
The emperor glanced at him, closed his eyes, and waved his hand.
Eunuch Yao had already taken out several memorials and files from the yellow silk box next to the dragon chair, trotted down the imperial platform, and distributed them to the senior ministers standing at the forefront.
Old guys like Shu Wu and Fan Jian certainly knew what was written on the memorial and the file, and they had already guessed it, but when they circulated it themselves, they still had to show expressions of shock, anger, and guilt.
Of course, the dossier is the result of the investigation by the Overwatch Council. Regarding the crimes of the ministers imprisoned last night, it cannot be clearer. The confessions are all there, and the witnesses and material evidence have been entered into the Dali Temple, completely biting those ministers It is impossible to give them any chance to stand up.
And the three expressions displayed by these ministers in the court are naturally to show His Majesty that they are shocked because they don't know anything about the crimes committed by the Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Yan Xingshu. As a colleague in the court, I am extremely angry at these sinners who eat the king's salary, but deceive the king and oppress the good people... As for the guilt, it is naturally because they have not been able to discover the wolfish ambitions of these sinners in advance for several years in the same dynasty. To be able to inform His Majesty in advance, to expose the ugly faces of these people, it is impossible to escape the crime of not knowing people, and it is hard work for His Majesty's Sacred Heart to judge... I can't help being a little ashamed of His Majesty, the court, and the people of Qing Kingdom.
These three expressions are fully done, but the emperor's expression is still faint, with self-mockery and mockery on the corners of his lips. The reason why he came to court today half an hour late is naturally because he wanted to appease his mother in the Hanguang Palace , but also to take care of everything in the palace.
Obviously, he didn't explain the reason for his anger to the empress dowager, but what was weird was that the emperor was not very disappointed that he could not erase the eldest princess secretly.
In addition to the three expressions among the officials, there is another expression, that is fear and fear.
The dossier was uploaded in the court hall, and four officials had already knelt down on the ground. These officials were also characters who had some connection with the eldest princess in the past, and they were inseparable from the matters involved in the dossier. When they saw the dossier, they immediately Know that your end has come.
These four ministers knelt in the Taiji Hall and kowtowed desperately, but they did not dare to shout for mercy, because they knew that what their emperor hated the most were those who shamelessly begged for mercy.
The emperor looked at the four ministers indifferently, and said: "The crime is not as good as the public."
The four ministers were shocked, as if they did not expect His Majesty to spare them so easily, and the joy after the shock made one of them slumped on the ground, speechless for a long time.
The emperor frowned and glanced at the man, but didn't say much.
…
…
The imperial study room after the court meeting. At this time, what is left is the real power center of the Qing Kingdom. Menxia Zhongshu, including the bosses of the six departments and three temples, are still sitting on the embroidered pier as usual, but today these big shots feel like they are sitting on the tip of a needle. , very sad.
Today there is no prince or prince to listen to the lecture, the ministers are guessing in their hearts, but they dare not reveal the slightest bit on their faces.
The emperor glanced at these people, and said slowly: "Some things, I can talk about in the court, and some things can only be said here, because you adults are the pillars of my celebration, and the family affairs of the emperor are also state affairs. , you must always know."
Everyone's hearts tightened, knowing that this was about the eldest princess, they quickly bowed forward.
"Yan Xingshu and others are just minions, and I won't kill them lightly." The emperor leaned halfway on the low couch, and said, "I won't make any big moves in the court hall. Forget it, just watch first."
At this moment, the dossiers held by the ministers are not the dossiers circulated in the court, but some real secrets, so the ministers no longer need to pretend those three expressions, because these three expressions are from their hearts. issued from the depths.
The eldest princess Li Yunrui betrayed Yan Bingyun, the leader of the Qing State Supervisory Council's secret spy stationed in Northern Qi!
Colluded with the Ming family, secretly organized pirates, and robbed the merchants in the inner warehouse!
Secretly envoy the Jiaozhou navy to slaughter the island!
Instigate assassins to assassinate court officials in the street!
…
…
Master Shu's fingers holding the file were trembling. Although these officials knew that the eldest princess was ambitious, they never expected it to reach this level, especially the four charges were too frightening. Back then when Nanqing was negotiating with Northern Qi, the people of Northern Qi suddenly threw out bargaining chips, which caught Qing by surprise and shocked the court. The arrest of the leader of Northern Qi's secret agents...was actually manipulated by the Eldest Princess
That event was so shocking back then that many ministers still remember it vividly, especially afterward there was another snowflake in the capital, and the words on the paper pointed directly at the eldest princess, and forced the eldest princess to leave the capital... Yan Bing Yun is now the leader of the Overwatch Council. This is something that all the ministers in the Imperial Study House are aware of. The ministers thought that it was just a verbal attack, but they didn't expect it to be true!
"This... this..." Shu Wu was filled with anger, but he couldn't say anything at all.
The investigation clauses in the dossier are too detailed and the context is too clear, so that even if these ministers don't believe it, it is very difficult, especially the witnesses for the last three charges are still in prison.
"There is a little thing called Junshanhui." The emperor closed his eyes and said, "It was made by Yunrui. Although Mr. Accountant ran away, he still got many people caught by the black cavalry. As for the assassination in the street …the two assassins are still in prison.”
Hu Dashi was a little calmer. Although he didn't know why His Majesty wanted to bring up the matter of the royal family on the table, he still asked sincerely: "Could it... be wrong? After all, it's all the investigation of the Overwatch Council."
This is very clear, and everyone understands it. If these serious crimes were really directed at the Eldest Princess, there would be no possibility of her Highness Eldest Princess making a comeback in the future Qing Dynasty. It is just that everyone knows that since Fan Xian took charge of the Overwatch Council, he has been with the Eldest Princess openly and secretly in the capital. In the south of the Yangtze River, it is a joy to fight to the death.
If the eldest princess loses power, then Fan Xian's faction will become the most powerful party in the court.
That's why Master Hu had some reminders.
The emperor said slowly: "The matter was indeed investigated by Fan Xian, but this young man will not do such petty tricks as framing... The assassin's confession and the pictures of the Jiaozhou navy generals are all there, and the account books are also there, as well as the Ming family's confession." It’s all out, so there’s no need to be suspicious anymore.”
Master Hu saw that His Majesty did not listen to his secret advice, and knew that His Majesty must have other plans in mind, so he replied silent.
"Fortunately, Yan Bingyun is not dead." The emperor suddenly opened his eyes, and said indifferently: "Otherwise, why would I face the people of the Qing Kingdom? Whether it is a son in the army or a spy from the Overwatch Council, they are all good sons who went through life and death for me in Daqing." , but was sold by the rich and powerful for their own selfishness, sold!"
He raised his voice and said disgustedly: "Disgusting..."
…
…
The imperial study room was quiet, and after a long time, the emperor said tiredly, "But Yun Rui is my sister after all, if you adults have any complaints, feel free to attack me."
As soon as this remark came out, all the ministers in the imperial study room knelt down on the ground in unison. They didn't even dare to say it, but they felt extremely weird in their hearts. With the status of the eldest princess, who would dare to force the emperor to use Qing law to punish her to death? It's just... Wouldn't it be better to deal with these things in the palace, why did His Majesty insist on telling himself that these people... had an attack? My God, where did this word come from, Your Majesty
"In order to avoid public discussion, the eldest princess Li Yunrui's title and land will not be removed." The emperor suddenly said, "Ren Shao'an!"
Kneeling at the back, Zhengqing Ren Shaoan of Taichang Temple quickly moved forward a few steps, his legs were trembling, and his heart was beating drums. Originally, the meeting in the Imperial Study Room was nothing to do with him. He had been suspicious and afraid before, only now did he understand , it turns out that His Majesty wants to respond to the order himself.
Taichang Temple manages the living, living and traveling of members of the royal family, and responds to court rituals.
"The minister is here."
"The eldest princess occasionally feels the wind and cold, so she enters the imperial courtyard in the west city to recuperate. Those who do not have the will are not to be disturbed, and those who disobey the order will be beheaded."
"It will be under the supervision of the Overwatch Council." The emperor paused, then slowly closed his eyes, and said wearily, "When all the embankments of Dajiang are repaired, let her come out."
"Minister... lead the decree." Ren Shaoan was so frightened that he was about to cry, thinking that the river is long, even if Yang Wanli can repair it, it will take hundreds of years, and the eldest princess at that time may have turned into a skeleton.