The state banquet began at the end of the You hour. The palace was decorated with lights and colors. The goods produced in one day were also very detailed, thanks to Concubine Mei's proper command.
The Imperial Household and Concubine Mei get along very well, and now the chief steward of the Imperial Household has gotten used to reporting to Concubine Mei on all matters, big or small. Although Concubine Yi is a noble concubine, now the palace follows Concubine Mei's lead, and even the Emperor seems to have acquiesced.
Since Concubine Mei had no family to rely on, the emperor was naturally at ease in using her.
In the eyes of the emperor, Concubine Yi used to be a well-behaved person, but ever since he fell ill, he had noticed Concubine Yi's little thoughts. Moreover, gradually, some rumors about Concubine Yi and the deposed prince reached the emperor's ears. Although the emperor did not confirm them, he must have had some resentment in his heart.
There is no smoke without fire.
Therefore, at the state banquet tonight, he asked Concubine Mei to sit next to him instead of the noble Concubine Yi.
The Night King was also ordered to lead people to patrol around the imperial city tonight. As a general and a prince, he should have attended the banquet tonight, but the emperor sent him out.
It can be seen that what the Night King did during his tenure as Grand Marshal was not quite what he wanted.
The dinner had just begun, and the emperor hadn't even had time to say a few polite words when he saw the Night King and his men coming in.
The emperor frowned. Didn’t he ask him to just patrol outside tonight
The Night King walked straight over, and Eunuch Lu walked down, "Night King, weren't you patrolling outside? Why are you here?"
Ye Wang said softly, "Eunuch, I have something to report to the Emperor."
"We are entertaining foreign guests tonight. If it is not an important matter, why not talk about it tomorrow?" said Eunuch Lu.
Ye Wang said: "Very important."
Eunuch Lu hesitated for a moment, "Please wait a moment, Lord Ye. I will return to the Emperor first."
The sudden appearance of the Night King made everyone a little nervous, because everyone knew that his main task today was patrol.
After listening to Eunuch Lu's report, the emperor said, "Let him come over."
Eunuch Lu waved to the Night King and asked him to come over.
Because the dinner hadn't officially started yet, everyone's eyes were on the Night King.
Prince Qi also felt a little sad. The relationship between Da Zhou and Bei Mo was so tense now that his personal safety would actually be threatened.
So, although he seemed to be drinking his tea calmly, his eyes were always fixed on the Night King and the Emperor.
When the Night King walked over, the Emperor stood up and the two of them entered the inner hall.
After the Night King entered, he whispered in the emperor's ear: "Your Majesty, General Zhang discovered during his search today that something unusual was happening in Jiaohe Residence in the east of the city. Someone has hidden a large number of bows and crossbows there."
The emperor was suddenly shocked. Bows and crossbows are weapons. In the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the sale of weapons is prohibited, and private transactions are also prohibited.
"Has the person been captured?" asked the emperor.
"The man was not caught, but the crossbow was pulled down."
"How come they didn't catch him?"
"That was a temporary storage warehouse, and it was guarded by someone. When General Zhang led people to search, the man sneaked away. General Zhang immediately sent people to chase him, but the man entered..." When the Night King said this, he stopped and looked at the emperor hesitantly.
The emperor knew something was wrong, so he asked, "Where did you enter?"
Ye Wang said: "General Zhang said that he chased the man all the way and found that he entered the Nan Huai Palace."
The emperor was stunned for a moment when he heard this, "Really?"
"I was not at the scene. I was patrolling the Imperial City. General Zhang came to report it personally, so I came in to report it to Your Majesty. Please decide whether to go in and search."
The emperor thought for a moment and said, "Send Mr. Zhang home to see me."
It's not that he didn't completely trust the Night King, but he was close to Murong Jie, so there was no telling what he would make up.
Eunuch Lu went out to inform General Zhang, who was waiting outside the palace for news about the Night King.
General Zhang was summoned in and the Night King was left outside.
The Night King stood outside the curtain and smiled coldly.
After a while, General Zhang came out.
The Night King asked, "What does the Emperor say?"
General Zhang said, "The Emperor said to think about it and asked me to wait here."
The Night King said calmly, "Just wait."
The emperor asked General Zhang about it and found out that it was true. He was very angry.
Eunuch Lu was left in the hall with a gloomy face.
"Your Majesty, General Zhang is still waiting for your decision." Eunuch Lu said softly.
The emperor said, "I knew that this old man would not be content, but I didn't expect that he would start to stir up trouble only a short time after the death of the noble concubine."
Eunuch Lu asked, "Could it be that the man accidentally stumbled into Prince Nan Huai's mansion?"
"An accident? If Old Eight doesn't show up tonight, is he really ill?" The emperor sneered, "I'm afraid not. Don't forget, the imperial physician said that taking croton can also cause severe diarrhea."
"So what is His Majesty going to do? Is he really going to search Prince Nan Huai's mansion?"
The emperor waved his hand, "No, even if we search, we won't find anything."
"But isn't there always someone guarding it?"
"If the man who went in was really his, he would have become a servant in the mansion now. What else can you find out?" the emperor said coldly.
Eunuch Lu nodded, "Indeed."
The emperor narrowed his eyes and thought for a moment. "You must immediately convey my decree, saying that he is indispensable for tonight's state banquet. Let him attend. If he is seriously ill, just carry him in."
Prince Qi will leave the capital tomorrow. If someone has ulterior motives, tonight is a good time to take action, so he has to keep a close eye on Prince Nan Huai.
Eunuch Lu received the order and left.
The emperor asked the Night King to intensify patrols, and General Zhang took out the bows and crossbows and put them back into the armory.
However, when General Zhang arrived at Jiaoheju, he found that all the bows and crossbows had been stolen, and many of his men were seriously injured, but none of them lost their lives.
This is a serious matter. Who could injure the imperial guards and move the bows and crossbows away in such a short time
General Zhang immediately ordered the city gates to be blocked and then went to report to the emperor in person.
When General Zhang entered the palace, the Emperor was already forcing a smile, because Eunuch Lu went to invite Prince Nan Huai, but Prince Nan Huai still feigned illness and could not come. Eunuch Lu offered to carry him into the palace, but Prince Nan Huai fainted.
Eunuch Lu knew that he was pretending to faint, but he could not force him, so he had to return to the palace to report to the emperor.
How could the emperor feel good? But with foreign guests present, he could only force himself to smile.
When the emperor saw General Zhang coming, his face froze.
General Zhang walked straight to the emperor and whispered in his ear, "Your Majesty, the bows and crossbows have been taken away, and the imperial guards are injured."
The emperor was so angry that he slammed the table, shocking Prince Qi and the ministers, who all looked sideways, wondering what had happened.
Zi'an and Zhuangzhuang looked at each other and pretended to look at the emperor in surprise.
The emperor suppressed his anger, smiled and pressed his hand, "It's okay, everyone continue drinking, I have some things to deal with."
He stood up and went back to the inner hall, and General Zhang followed him in.
The emperor could not hold back his anger, and when he entered the inner hall, he shouted, "Didn't I tell you to send someone to guard it? Who has the ability to snatch the crossbow from the imperial guards?"
General Zhang knelt down and apologized, "Your Majesty, please calm down. I have indeed ordered people to guard them, but the enemy has many people and they are very skilled in martial arts. I have asked the imperial guards and they seem to be from the martial arts world. They are very skilled in martial arts and are very organized. The imperial guards are short of manpower and cannot resist them."
(End of this chapter)