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The palace looks like the most mysterious place, but in fact it is the place where the most secrets cannot be hidden. Every moment, countless pairs of eyes with different thoughts converge on this place, paying attention, peeping, and speculating... ..
That night, in the most secret study rooms of the mansions of the imperial capital Nanjing, people who could make the city of Nanjing tremble with a stomp of their feet whispered something solemnly to their trusted advisers... ... ...
It was a dark and silent night, with only the rain falling all night long, and there was no sign of clearing up. When the day dawned, the sky was still rainy and gray... ...
Lingbo can't cross the Hengtang Road, but I watch as the fragrant dust leaves. Who will spend my golden years with me? The moon bridge and flower garden, the locked windows and red doors, only spring knows where it is.
Flying clouds slowly drift over the evening sky, and I write a new heartbreaking poem with my colorful pen. How much idle worry do I have? A field of tobacco, a city full of catkins, and plums are yellow when it rains.
The plum rain season has arrived. Nanjing is shrouded in misty rain. The osmanthus trees on the street are drooping their branches, soaked in rain. When a gust of wind blows, the mist and rain are blown away. In the ordinary alleys, the sound of flower sellers in the early morning can be heard, echoing...
Huang Lianshan, the commander of Yebushou, wore a bamboo hat and a raincoat, and rode a warhorse with a few followers through the deserted Imperial Street in the early morning. The puddles on the street were splashed by the bowl-sized horses' hooves, and then quickly leveled... ...
With the Meridian Gate in sight, Huang Lianshan pushed up his hat, revealing a face as gloomy as the sky after rain, and arrived in front of the Outer Five Dragon Bridge. He quickly dismounted, threw the reins to his followers, and quickly walked up the bridge to the Meridian Gate.
The majestic and solemn Daqin Palace was silent in the mist and rain, giving people a heavy pressure. Huang Lianshan took out his jade token of the commander of Yebushou and passed it in through a small hole.
In the past, even in the middle of the night, as long as he handed in this badge, he would be quickly received by the emperor.
But what about this time
Huang Lianshan doesn’t know, he really doesn’t know.
He had also thought about planting spies in the palace. But after Yan Gaofei was demoted and he and He Ningzong were fined their salaries and titles, they had been walking on thin ice. They were on the edge of an abyss and dared not have the slightest hope of luck.
He felt a little regretful.
With a heart as heavy as lead, he stood quietly under the Meridian Gate, looking like a sculpture in the rain.
Is the news that leaked last night true? What happened to the emperor? What does the abnormal situation in the Imperial Hospital mean
Huang Lianshan knew very well that although he controlled a huge and formidable organization, once a shocking mutation occurred, he, and even the entire huge organization he controlled, would be nothing, and would probably be worse than a battalion commander with 500 soldiers.
Huang Lianshan was waiting, every minute and every second was so difficult, and he felt more and more uneasy.
Maybe it's okay. There was no movement in the residence of the father-in-law Yang Tinglin last night. Huang Lianshan was sure that no one from the palace had visited the residence of the father-in-law.
The prince... ... ... The prince is still in Jiangyin, and there has been no urgent decree to summon him back to the capital... ... Thinking of this, Huang Lianshan felt a little relieved.
He looked at the small hole on the Meridian Gate, then walked down the Outer Five Dragon Bridge, called one of his trusted followers aside, and said in a barely audible voice: "Zhang Ji, you will lead a team of people to Jiangyin immediately. Remember, keep your whereabouts as concealed as possible and protect the prince in secret. If there is any news, I will inform you as soon as possible."
"My Lord, is the situation really that bad?"
"You don't need to ask too much or think too much about this. As the saying goes, it's better to be prepared. Just do as I say."
"Yes, sir."
Today was not a regular court day, and officials from various ministries usually went to their respective offices to do their work. But after Huang Lianshan stood there for a while, he found that many officials came to the Meridian Gate, waiting for the palace gate to open. Sima An, Lu Zhenfei, and Li Yuan, three cabinet ministers, usually sat in the cabinet in the southeast corner of the palace city, so it was normal for them to come here to wait.
But then Huang Lianshan found that Yang Tinglin, Liu Boquan, Meng Ke, Liu Meng, Li Guo, Di Zhongxing, Bai Tie, Ma Yongzhen and other important civil and military officials had all come. Even Qin Liangyu, who seldom went out due to her old age, also came in a carriage.
Huang Lianshan failed to enter the palace for an audience with the emperor before these people, and he felt even more uneasy. Did the emperor no longer trust him, or was it really that... The more Huang Lianshan thought about it, the more uneasy he felt.
However, Huang Lianshan did not dare to be arrogant in front of these big guys who had rushed over. He went up to them one by one to bow and greet them. Everyone just responded lightly with a very serious expression.
When the time came, the two huge palace gates were finally opened on time. Looking inside, one could see the majestic Purple Palace, solemnly bathed in the mist and rain, on the other side of the Inner Five Dragon Bridge with white marble dragon carvings. Behind the Purple Palace, the endless palaces were stacked layer upon layer, one after another, all faded by the mist and rain into silhouettes like an ink painting.
Everyone had been to the palace countless times and seldom took a look at the Daqin Palace. But today, everyone, including Huang Lianshan, could not help but subconsciously re-examine this solemn and majestic imperial palace.
"Your Majesty has issued an order to summon Commander Ye Bushou to the Jianjia Palace for an audience!"
The eunuch shouted loudly from the Meridian Gate. Sima An hesitated for a moment and walked towards the southeast corner where the cabinet was located. Other ministers asked the eunuch to report to the emperor and request an audience.
Li Yuan had a complicated expression. He hesitated for a moment, then gave up his request for an audience. He held an umbrella and hurriedly chased after Sima An in the rain.
Huang Lianshan was secretly pleased. He ignored everyone and hurried to the Jianjia Palace at full speed...
In the Jianjia Palace, Qin Mu still didn't know what happened in the capital last night. He woke up early, yawned, drank a sip of the Mingqian Longjing tea brought by Li Xiangjun, and then sat on the imperial chair and closed his eyes to rest.
Huang Lianshan followed the eunuch and bowed as he entered the Jianjia Palace. The first thing he saw when he entered the palace was the imperial desk. The emperor closed his eyes, and the lingering ambergris made his face vaguely blurry. Huang Lianshan, who had just relaxed a little after being received by the emperor, could not help but feel anxious again.
"Your Majesty, I, Huang Lianshan, pay my respects to the Emperor. Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long, long live the Emperor!"
"Stand up, what brings you to see me so early in the morning?"
Huang Lianshan glanced at him quickly again, then bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, I dare not hide anything. Rumors spread in the capital last night that Your Majesty was in poor health. This is a serious matter, so I had to report it to Your Majesty early in the morning."
Qin Mu was stunned at first, then wanted to laugh, but then he thought something was wrong. Liu Zongzhou and Huang Daozhou were both in their sixties and seventies, and it was not their first time to serve in the court. They should know that the emperor's health condition was top secret and could not be disclosed easily. Moreover, how could they dare to spread it rashly when the condition had not yet been confirmed
If it wasn't Liu Zongzhou and Huang Daozhou, how did the news of his illness spread? Was there any shocking conspiracy
"Have you found the source of the news?"
"Your Majesty, it was already three o'clock in the morning when I received the news. In such a hurry, I have not yet found out where this rumor came from."
Huang Lianshan repeatedly emphasized that this was a rumor, and the emperor did not look like he was seriously ill, but he also knew that some diseases could not be seen from the surface, and the abnormal situation in the Imperial Hospital could not be false.
More importantly, the emperor's health condition was the top secret of the state, especially when the Qin Dynasty was just established and the princes were still young. Once the emperor's health was in trouble, the entire empire would surely fall into turmoil. In this case, even if the emperor was really ill, he would try his best to conceal it, and even, if his body allowed, deliberately show up more often to reassure the people of the world.
From this perspective, Huang Lianshan was not sure just by looking at the emperor's expression, but he certainly couldn't ask directly about such a thing. It would be stupid to ask the emperor directly, "Are you sick? How many heads do you have to chop off?"
"Go check it out immediately and get to the bottom of it as soon as possible."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Check! Huang Lianshan secretly made up his mind to use this opportunity, even if it meant taking some risks, to secretly find out whether the emperor was ill or not as soon as possible.
After Huang Lianshan hurriedly left, Qin Mu looked at the list of people who came to see him today, and then ordered the eunuch to summon Qin Liangyu to the audience first.
After giving the order, Qin Mu's brows suddenly frowned. Yesterday he was just pretending to get rid of Huang Daozhou and Liu Zongzhou, but it seemed that this matter had been taken advantage of by someone.
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.(To be continued..)
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