Gao gave birth to a child. Jingniang came to the palace to report to Guo Shao. Guo Shao was surprised to hear the news and asked: Is it a boy or a girl
The two were in the back room, and the walls around them were covered with notes and maps, and there was no one else. But Jingniang still said in a low voice: I gave birth to a little girl.
After hearing this, Guo Shao asked again: Is Madam Gao okay
Jingniang remained calm and said lightly: "It's not her first time giving birth. How difficult is it for a woman to give birth for the second time? Besides, Lu Xiaoniang, who is proficient in medicine, is there. She gave birth without much trouble."
Guo Shao felt relieved after hearing this, but he then thought that Fu Lilian had given birth to a child for him with his wives and concubines, and he was there with them; Gao, on the other hand, was pitiful, not only did she give birth secretly in a separate courtyard, but the child was about to be taken away.
Guo Shao sighed and paced back and forth by the wall. He thought that Gao was just a widow and her husband had died many years ago. Now that he was the emperor, no one could do anything to them even if they acknowledged him.
However, Guo Shao recalled Gao's unhesitating attitude when he met her last time. He calmed down and thought that the times were different. Although the ethics and morals at that time were not as strict as those in the Song and Ming dynasties, it was still a serious matter to be unfaithful to women. Adultery was still a serious crime. If Gao was proven to be unfaithful to women, it would be very uncomfortable to be insulted behind her back.
Moreover, there is the status of sworn brotherhood. In ancient times, sworn brotherhood was also very important. When Zhao Kuangyin and Jingniang swore brotherhood, he would not have paid so much attention to influence; the sworn brotherhood at that time was completely different from the ambiguous relationship of later generations, where people would call each other brother and sister at will.
Guo Shao finally made a decision and turned to Jingniang and said: Bring the child to the palace and keep it secret.
Jingniang said: Your Majesty, don't worry, I will handle this matter well.
Guo Shao's daughter was first taken to the mansion to stay for a few days and find a wet nurse. Then she was sent to the palace and given to Yu Lian to raise.
The rumor was that Guo Shao had gotten a servant pregnant in his mansion and sent her remaining child to Yulian to raise. However, rumors soon spread that the emperor doted on Yulian so much that the child was given to her by someone else.
Regardless, Guo Shao was certain that the child was his biological daughter and that she was a princess. He even personally named the child: Guo Jinsuo, and gave the child a golden lock that he had made himself as a gift.
The two sons were also named. Guo Shao couldn't think of any good names, so Li Yuaner's older son was named Guo Kui, and Fu Ermei's legitimate son was named Guo Gui.
Soon after, he issued an order to prepare for the ceremony of conferring titles on his empresses and concubines, conferring Fu Ermei as empress, Li Yuaner as noble concubine, Yulian as concubine, and Yang Yue'e as concubine of virtue. Guo Shao treated his wives and concubines well, and the few wives and concubines he had before ascending the throne were all the highest-ranking concubines in the harem; the structure of the harem was also quietly changing.
Taking advantage of this, Guo Shao issued an edict, announcing to the world that starting from the next year, the reign title would be changed to Xuanren.
Guo Shao was not in a hurry to make Jingniang a concubine, because he still wanted Jingniang to help manage the affairs of the Privy Council. It was unusual for women to participate in government affairs, but it was not rare. There were many female officials in various periods of the Tang Dynasty, especially during the reign of Wu Zetian. If she was a concubine, it would be even more inconvenient. In order to give Jingniang a legitimate status, Guo Shao asked her to take the seal of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Prior to this, the Privy Council had already hurriedly sent spies to Jinyang in the Northern Han Kingdom to investigate the truth.
Many people were sent this time, dozens in total. Several of them were specifically responsible for secretly investigating the whereabouts of Zhao Kuangyin. Ma Bin was the leader of these people. He was a low-level military officer in Kaifeng Prefecture who was directly transferred to the Privy Council to work.
Because the Great Zhou had no signs of using force at this time, Jinyang City was too easy to sneak into. The Northern Han government did not seem to be too defensive against spies, so Ma Bin and his men came disguised as merchants and only paid money at the pass and the city gate. Money and silver worked very well here, and as long as they paid taxes, they could pass through unimpeded. However, there were too many checkpoints for collecting taxes and too many government offices that extorted money.
Zhao Kuangyin's position in the Northern Han Kingdom was not high, but he was originally a famous person. Ma Bin and others found out that his residence was very convenient, so they found a place to live nearby and sent people to contact the leader of the spies sent to Jinyang.
Their superiors ordered them to find a business as a cover and just keep an eye on Zhao Kuangyin's whereabouts.
Ma Bin didn't wait for a few days before he soon became interested. He discussed with his subordinates: the court has issued a bounty order, and Zhao Kuangyin's head is worth millions of taels of gold and fertile land. Now the huge benefits are right under our noses, why don't brothers take action
The subordinates were a little afraid at first: Everyone knows that Zhao's head is valuable, but he is still alive and well, which may not be easy. Besides, the superiors did not ask us to assassinate him, so would we be punished for acting on our own initiative
Ma Bin said disapprovingly: "Northern Han is the enemy of Great Zhou, and the bounty cannot be posted in Jinyang. Besides, ordinary people can't do such a thing, and even if they succeed, they are afraid that they won't get the money and won't live to spend it. But this matter is not difficult for us, we are already doing a life of risking our lives.
As everyone discussed it, they became more and more excited. They envisioned the wealth and fortune they would have after they succeeded, and they would be able to spend all their money on food, drink, whoring and whoring. They soon reached a consensus and decided to take Zhao Kuangyin's head back to ask for a reward, and then divide the reward money.
Ma Bin and his men immediately made a plan. They first prepared bows and arrows, and then prepared salt and lime to prevent the head from rotting too quickly and becoming unrecognizable. One person drove a carriage to a tavern near the street corner to drink and wait; the others set up two stalls outside the Zhao residence to sell pancakes and vegetables. As soon as Zhao Kuangyin came out, they shot him with bows and arrows, then cut off his head and ran into the alley; after meeting up with the carriage at the tavern, they quickly took a carriage to get out of Jinyang City before the government officials were dispatched.
They were well prepared, but they didn't get a chance for a long time. Zhao Kuangyin lived in seclusion and rarely went out. Once a carriage came out, but they couldn't be sure whether the guy was in the carriage. And there were more than a dozen warriors in armor and armed with sharp weapons around. Ma Bin and others didn't dare to take action, because they estimated that their people could not beat the dozen warriors in armor and armed with military weapons, and their fighting power was much stronger than those few people who only had a few weapons.
However, the difficulties did not discourage Ma Bin from his idea. When he thought about the happy days of living a life of luxury in brothels and wine shops, he could no longer control his desire.
Ma Bin decided to change his strategy and climb onto the roof alone in the middle of the night, climb into Zhao Kuangyin's residence, and quietly inquire about the situation and find out which room Zhao Kuangyin lived in. If there was a chance, he would do it before dawn so that he could get out of the city as soon as possible; if there was no chance, he would go another day.
The risk is huge, but Ma Bin is no longer willing to turn back.
He said: Most of the houses in the Zhao Mansion have hard hip roofs. If you climb up from the edge, the roof can bear one person. It's late at night, everyone is asleep, as long as you are careful, nothing will happen. Even a thief can do it.
Everyone saw that he had a calm expression and spoke in a very conscientious manner, and their thoughts were not much different from his.
That night, the moon was dark and the stars were sparse, which was a good opportunity. A group of people came out of their residence, holding a wooden ladder, and walked through the alley in the dark. Ma Bin put a short sword on his belt, put a bow and arrow on his back, took the wooden ladder, and said in a deep voice: You stay here to meet me, I will be back soon.
He first stretched his head out to look at the street. The long street was dimly lit, with a few lanterns emitting cold lights. If it weren't for the faint sound of dogs barking in the distance, it would have looked like a ghost town. There was no one on the street, and curfew had already been imposed.
Ma Bin carried the wooden ladder and walked out along the wall. He then looked around, crossed the street, and came to the back of Zhao's house. This house did not have a wall, but a yard surrounded by houses. Without saying a word, he put the wooden ladder next to a tiled house, tried it, and then climbed up carefully.
He quickly climbed onto the roof without making any noise. He then groped for the ridge of the roof, using his hands and feet to slowly crawl to the other side. When he reached the edge, he took the bow and arrow from his back and held it in his hands, lying on the edge of the roof to observe. The yard was very quiet, and no one was seen.
Ma Bin felt relieved, so he put away his bow and arrow, climbed back along the same path, and took the wooden ladder. This made some noise, and because it was too dark, a tile fell down with a bang. Ma Bin was frightened and held his breath, so he didn't hear the sound. He continued to carry the ladder, bent over, and walked over with one hand on the ground and the other hand on the ladder on his shoulder.
After slowly and carefully setting up the ladder, Ma Bin climbed in quietly along the wooden ladder, feeling both nervous and excited.
As soon as his feet touched the ground, he suddenly heard a whirring sound, and then the surroundings suddenly became bright. He immediately broke out in a cold sweat, and when he looked back, he saw several strong men in armor standing there coldly, holding crossbows in their hands.
Ma Bin suddenly felt like he had fallen into an icy cave.
A tall and strong man said: It's not easy to get in.
Ma Bin:
Come, hand me your weapon first, the strong man said coldly.
Ma Bin had no choice but to obediently hand over his bow and arrow and dagger. Then a man came over with a rope and tied his arms behind his back, and stuffed a piece of cloth in his mouth.
Ma Bin was taken to a room, and when he entered, he saw Zhao Kuangyin, a dark-faced man dressed neatly, sitting there drinking tea. Zhao Kuangyin said: I have long noticed you sneaking around, but I didn't do anything to you. It's good that you can show off your little tricks in front of me. If I could fall into your hands, I would have died eight or ten times. We are now living under the eaves, so it's not good to make a statement before we are sure, so we have to wait and see.
The tall and strong man next to him said: There are five of you in total, so wait outside now.
Ma Bin's mouth was blocked, so he couldn't speak or do anything.
The man said: "No one can escape now, just tell me where the others are so that we can suffer less. We don't need to make a big fuss, what do you think?"
Ma Bin felt hopeless and knew he was going to die, so he didn't nod and just stayed there motionless.
The man humphed and said, then we have no choice but to hire more people.