Chapter 489 The Return of the Empress (6k)
The shouts of killing in the Meridian Gate Square disappeared, and only the cold, salty wind rushed in from outside the open door of the palace.
Zhao Duan stood on the bright stone tile floor with a smile. Beside him, the majestic and graceful empress looked at Li Yanfu with indifferent eyes.
At this moment, the entire hall fell into a deathly silence, and all sounds seemed to be extracted and blocked.
Immediately, about ten heartbeats later, the crowd suddenly erupted in exclamations like a stormy sea, accompanied by looks of astonishment appearing on the faces.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty!?"
"Zhao Duan!?"
As if Li Yanfu had been hit hard, the metal helmet that covered his gray head was covered with wrinkles, and his majestic face suddenly became pale and bloodless.
The first thought was that it was impossible, but Xu Zhenguan's eyes were so familiar.
Those are eyes that no one can disguise and fake.
It was the cold gaze of the first female emperor of the Yu Kingdom.
He will never admit his mistake.
"Your Majesty..." Master Dong's face at the back of the crowd was dull, and he couldn't understand why the Empress and Zhao Duan, who had been missing for a long time and were supposed to be trapped in the Huaisui Road according to the intelligence, would appear on this occasion.
He blinked hard, blinked again, and wiped it in the air with his hand, as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
"Zhao Duan...Your Majesty..."
On the side, Yuan Li was also stunned, staring at the emperor and ministers entering the hall, his heart almost skipped a beat.
At this moment, he turned to look at Dong Xuan. After seeing the confusion and disbelief on the latter's face, he realized that today's scene was not a drama arranged in advance.
So...
Your Majesty is out of danger? When will you return to the capital? How to break out of the siege?
"Your Majesty..." Ma Yan's slender face showed a rare expression of excitement. He was the first among the ministers to react.
Because before the palace door opened, he felt the fluctuations of the God of War Qi in his body. This was the natural reaction of inheritors of the same lineage when they felt the Empress' divine consciousness sweeping through the hall.
But despite this, the shock and surprise in his heart were still no less than anyone else's.
"You...you are...your majesty?!" Li Yanfu subconsciously took a few steps back, and the winning smile on his face disappeared: "No...impossible...you can't appear here..."
< br>
Zhao Duan smiled and said:
"It's strange what Li Xiang said. Your Majesty is so blessed, why can't you escape safely? You, on the other hand, are really impatient. Your Majesty is still alive, so you jumped out in a hurry. Oh, Mr. Qing, haha, I'm curious, you guys Helping the 'great loyal minister', who is the emperor? ”
Li Yanfu opened his mouth, his eyes avoided Xu Zhenguan, and suddenly looked outside the palace gate and above the square.
"No need to read it, Prime Minister Li," Xu Zhenguan said calmly:
"The rebels outside the palace have all been put to death. The rebel Li Yinglong has been killed by Zhao Qing himself."
At this time, everyone in the hall noticed that on the Tai'a sword in the Empress' hand, red and hot blood was dripping from the tip of the sword to the ground along the blood groove.
Outside the palace, the huge square was filled with rebels who had fallen to the ground dead. At this moment, the Imperial Guards who came to rescue were kneeling on the ground, as if worshiping.
All this is like a repeat of the Xuanmen coup three years ago. However, the soldiers and horses in Li Yanfu's hands were far inferior to Xu Jianwen's.
The chaos caused was not as big as the Xuanmen coup in the past.
"Yinglong is dead..."
Li Yanfu staggered, as if someone had hit him hard with a sap. Li Qing next to him subconsciously supported him and panicked: "Chief...what should I do..."
Li Yanfu's face turned pale and he wanted to speak, but couldn't say a word.
There was only one thought in his mind:
It’s over!
All is lost!
If the Empress was really seriously injured and her cultivation level plummeted, he could still give it a try with the help of these masters.
But the scene that happened now, although it is difficult to explain, is tantamount to announcing the disastrous failure of this child's play palace coup!
Suddenly, without any warning, Li Yanfu snatched the knife from Li Qing's hand, pointed the tip of the knife at his heart, and stabbed hard with both hands!
Not good... This old Yinbi wants to commit suicide... Zhao Duan's expression changed slightly. Even he didn't expect that the defeated Li Yanfu would be so decisive!
Shouldn't the villain say a few words at this time? Or a desperate fight? Or begging for mercy and life? What does it mean to commit suicide without saying a word?
"Ding!" However, when the Zhen Dao was about to stab, he was hit by an invisible force.
Li Yanfu's wrist was suddenly paralyzed as if there was an electric shock, and the sword flew out with a whoosh, fell to the ground, spun around several times, and stopped at Zhao Duan's feet.
"Clan leader!" Li Qing screamed, arriving late.
"Prime Minister!?" Li Party officials who participated in the rebellion and more than a hundred disciples in the palace also exclaimed in surprise.
Xu Zhenguan's cold voice echoed in the hall: "Li Yanfu, you want to die so easily, do I nod?"
Li Yanfu collapsed to the ground, as if his strength had been drained. At this moment, two lines of turbid tears burst out of his eyes. He tremblingly broke away from Li Qing's support, knelt on his knees and hands, his forehead touched the ground, and his whole body fell to the ground, trembling. Channel:
"Your Majesty... I... I... am... guilty!"
Like the straw that broke the camel's back.
As Li Yanfu confessed his crime, the officials who were members of the Li Party in the palace and took sides knelt down on the ground like dumplings, with the same expression of admiration:
"I...are guilty!"
When the hundreds of red-clothed disciples saw this, they realized that there was no point in resisting. The weapons in their hands dropped to the ground with a clanking sound, and they knelt down in silence.
Li Qing stared blankly at the clan leader on the ground. This descendant of the clan who came to Beijing from the Li family in Huaishui, a thousand miles away, seemed to have finally accepted this fact and slumped on the ground silently, as if he had lost his soul.
"Click!"
Suddenly, there was a clear sound of the floor tiles breaking, and Kong Wu, who had been fished out from the death row by Li Yanfu, stepped on the floor of the hall to pieces.
Without any hesitation, he pulled out an afterimage and ran towards the outside of the palace!
He wants to escape!
He still didn't believe that the empress had truly recovered her fighting power, so he was lucky and believed that if he fought desperately, he still had hope of escaping from the palace!
"Where did this idiot come from..." Zhao Duan's eyelids twitched and he curled his lips. The Golden Crow flying knife in his sleeve fell from his palm, and he was about to draw the knife.
But I heard Zhenbao beside me calmly say: "You don't need to do anything."
The Tai'a Sword in the Empress's hand whizzed out, tearing the air with a majestic sword and pulling out a turbulent white airflow.
Kong Wu, a veteran warrior in the world, ran out of the hall, jumped up, and was about to climb up the palace to escape. He suddenly groaned in mid-air, lowered his head in disbelief, and saw the sharp sword tip piercing his chest.
Then, the Tai'a sword forcefully opened a gap as big as the mouth of a bowl in his chest, smashing his internal organs.
"Poof!"
Kong Wu's corpse fell to the ground. On the corpse, a pair of dead eyes were still looking steadily outside the palace wall in the direction of freedom.
No one in the hall knew what happened to Kong Wu, but at this moment, no one cared.
When everyone in Li's party fell to their knees, the officials from the imperial court finally came to their senses.
"Your Majesty...I respectfully welcome your Majesty back to the palace!"
The octogenarian Grand Master Dong was overjoyed, tears flashed in his eyes with excitement, and he was about to kneel down.
Yuan Li, Ma Yan, ministers of various ministries, Lu Zhi and other ministers also woke up as if from a dream, showing the joy of surviving the disaster, and greeted him loudly.
The four serving female officials also smiled with deep surprise.
"Master, there is no need to be polite." Xu Zhenguan raised her hand to support her. Dong Xuan and other ministers could no longer kneel down. Facing these ministers, a smile finally appeared on her face:
"While I was away from the capital, thanks to the hard work of the Grand Master and the ministers to maintain the situation, I was almost injured by the traitor. This is my dereliction of duty. Fortunately, it is not too late."
"Your Majesty..." Grand Master Dong burst into tears. The majestic Imperial Master was so happy that he burst into tears at this moment.
Yuan Li and others are doing better. At this moment, they are full of questions. They want to find out what happened and what the empress and Zhao Duan have experienced. But at this moment, it seems that this is not the time to ask these questions.
"You sirs must have a lot to say, but the most urgent task right now is to deal with the rebellion of the Li Party." Zhao Duan reminded with a smile.
Everyone quickly said yes and did not dare to be rude to colleague Zhao Duan.
"What Zhao Qing said is absolutely true," Xu Zhenguan suppressed his emotions, straightened his face, and said outside the palace:
"Come here, take these rebels into custody in batches, especially Li Yanfu. I will never allow them to die without opening their mouths."
Outside the hall, the generals of the Imperial Guard who had arrived rushed into the hall and hurriedly responded.
Xu Zhenguan said again:
"The commanders of the Yulin Guard and the Huben Guard listened to the order and immediately disarmed and controlled the two battalions involved in the rebellion. They cleaned up all remnants of the rebels inside and outside the palace. Anyone who resisted will be killed without mercy!"
"The general obeys the order!" The two commanders broke out in a cold sweat, fearing that the empress would be held accountable for their dereliction of duty, and they were eager to show off.
Xu Zhenguan said again:
"After Ma Yan heard the order, he immediately left the palace and led the imperial edict to arrest Li Dang's rebels outside the palace. In particular, he eradicated the thieves who kidnapped and controlled the families of the ministers in the palace. There was no need to interrogate them and they were killed immediately after arrest."
< br>
Through her spiritual consciousness, she had already heard the previous conversation in the hall. If not, she would not have been able to kill the rebels first and then enter the hall.
Ma Yan's heart was surging, as if he had returned to the day of the Xuanmen coup, clasping his fists:
"My lord, obey the order!"
He immediately turned around and ran out. When he passed by Zhao Duan, he glanced at him, slightly surprised, and faintly noticed that Zhao Duan's state seemed different from before.
Zhao Duan responded with a bright smile.
Not too many people were involved in this rebellion. The leader of the Li Party and the rebel commander were both dead, and the rest were just shrimps. In his opinion, it could be put down in half a day at most.
……
……
In a moment, armored imperial troops swept out of the four gates of the palace like a torrent and began to quickly kill the remnants of Li's party.
Zhao Mansion.
Eugene Hua nervously stuck to the door of the house with her daughter. At this moment, the main door of Zhao's house was closed tightly, and the mother and daughter could only look out through the crack in the door.
Behind them, the servants in the mansion were wandering far away, and the atmosphere was solemn and depressing.
The place where Zhao Mansion's mansion is located is an area where officials and officials gather in the city. Those who live nearby are either rich or noble.
Not long ago, the servants came to report that a group of unidentified killers had appeared nearby. They walked through the streets and alleys and broke into the residences of several important officials of the court. There were even sounds of fighting and screams.
Suspected criminals broke into the house.
Eugene Hua was horrified and quickly ordered the door to be closed. The servants and guards were holding sticks and long knives in their hands, holding their breath and being on guard.
Fortunately, those killers had clear goals and were not coming for the Zhao family.
But in this inner city area, there used to be patrols by officials, so how could there be any bold gangsters? No matter how stupid and sweet Eugene is, he realizes that something is wrong and is afraid that something big will happen in the court.
Just when the family was feeling uneasy and the seconds seemed like years, suddenly a large number of cavalry roared towards them on the street outside. This time, the people who came were all wearing familiar imperial imperial robes.
They rushed into each mansion with ferocity, quickly took control of the situation, and captured and killed the men arranged by Li Yanfu.
"Open the door, open the door quickly!" Eugene Hua's eyes lit up and he hurriedly ordered.
Zhao Pan quickly removed the door bolt, and when the courtyard door opened, Eugene Hua stepped out of the threshold in a few steps, waved his hand and shouted to the group of Jinyi: "Zhang Jisi! But what happened?"
The stepmother recognized Zhang Han, the detective of Mudan Hall, who led the team, and knew that he was a colleague of Dalang.
Zhang Han heard the shouting, left his men to do things, dismounted and walked over, trying hard to squeeze out an ugly smile on his paralyzed face:
"I've met the Zhao family's mistress and the Zhao family's little sister."
Zhao Pan held the Pekingese dog in his arms and said weakly: "You don't look good when you smile, you look fierce, so you'd better stop laughing."
Zhang Han: "..."
This girl... Eugene Hua glared at her daughter angrily, then smiled: "Zhang Jisimo has to take it seriously, this child can't speak."
Read the error-free version in 6Ⅹ9ⅩBookⅩ! 6Ⅹ9 Shuyiba publishes a novel for the first time. Liujiu Book Reading
Zhang Han coughed lightly and expressed that he didn't mind:
"It doesn't matter. A big event did happen in the city. Prime Minister Li Yanfu led his troops to launch a coup, and the blood flowed in the palace."
"Ah?!"
The mother and daughter were stunned, and their faces turned pale at the same time.
Zhang Han panted heavily and continued:
"But fortunately, His Majesty and Zhao Shaobao arrived in time and put down the chaos. We are now ordered to wipe out the remnants of the rebels. You hide in your homes and don't come out for the time being. It will be safe when the traitors are completely wiped out."
"You said Dalang is back?" Eugene Flower ignored other content and captured the key words.
Zhao Pan's autumn-like eyes also lit up, staring at him with burning eyes.
Zhang Han nodded and maintained his cold male attitude:
"Yes. Your Majesty and Zhao Shaobao both look well and have no injuries on their bodies. They are now in charge of the overall situation in the palace. I guess they will come home when they are done."
Dalang is back...he is fine...Eugene Flower is overjoyed.
Brother is safe... I knew it... Zhao Pan smiled with two pear dimples on his cheeks.
……
Imperial College.
Dong Da did not enter the palace with his grandfather today. Instead, he followed his grandfather's order and silently recorded in the Imperial College who were openly talking about and spreading news about the rebel siege.
The Lord Jijiu has already issued repeated orders. At this critical moment, scholars are strictly prohibited from spreading panic and disturbing people's hearts.
However, a group of scholars still go their own way, as if their courage has become stronger now that His Majesty is gone.
"If only Brother Zhao is still in the capital, how dare you do this?"
Dong Da was walking in the Imperial College, listening to a group of students gathering and discussing in the distance, his face looked ugly.
The destructive power of the King of Hell against scholars is all-round, including both the deterrence of force and the psychological trauma - this trend has been particularly significant since Mr. Zhengyang surrendered to Zhao Duan in the capital.
Suddenly, the sound of horse hooves was heard outside the gate of the Imperial College. Dong Da looked back in surprise and saw a large number of people in brocade clothes roaring towards him like wolves and tigers. He ignored him and rushed directly into the pavilion in front of him.
"What do you do?"
"This is where scholars are, and we all have great reputations. How dare you...ah!"
The students who publicly spread panic shouted a few words, only to be met with a rain of fists. After a while, they cried for father and mother and were taken away in chains.
"Miss Haitang? What does this mean?" Dong Da looked confused, his eyes lit up, and he walked towards Haitang who was leading the team.
Haitang had heavy dark circles under her eyes because she had stayed up late and worked overtime recently, but now her face was rosy and she was in high spirits, as if something happy had happened.
"Master Dong, it's nothing. I'm just arresting people under orders," Haitang said with a smile. "There are some descendants of Li Party officials and gang members in the Imperial College. His Majesty said that they must be swept away."
"That's it..." Dong Da suddenly realized, and immediately froze, "Wait, you said... Your Majesty?"
"Yes," Haitang said with a smile:
"Li Yanfu led troops into the palace and launched a coup, but His Majesty and Zhao Duan arrived and quelled the rebellion.
Accident? I was also surprised. I don’t know when Zhao Duan entered the city. There was no movement at all, but it was in line with his usual style. He was always elusive and did things that ordinary people could not do. ”
Dong Da listened blankly, his mind went blank: "Brother Zhao...has he returned to Beijing?"
……
……
This morning, similar scenes were staged across the city.
Due to the surrender of Li Party officials, many arrests became easier, and because "things are done in secret," there were not many core members actually involved in this small-scale coup.
After Xu Zhenguan regained control of the capital, arresting him was ten thousand times easier than dealing with Kuang Fu She.
now.
In a warm-colored palace filled with seats, the emperor and his ministers sat together.
Xu Zhenguan sat on the dragon chair, accompanied by Zhao Duan, and the other ministers who were not involved in the rebellion sat below.
"This is probably the situation."
Zhao Duan spoke calmly, picked up a cup from the tray in the hand of the palace maid next to him, and drank water to moisten his throat.
Just now, he succinctly recounted his experience of escaping back to the capital with the empress after Feng Chan failed.
Of course, some of the passages where the emperor and his ministers were in embarrassment were skipped by him using the Spring and Autumn style of writing.
As for the three days and three nights in which the two men were engaged in constant gunfire, they naturally would not mention it. Zhao Duan only said that His Majesty had backup plans and finally succeeded in breaking through.
Although he also wanted to say something...but he was worried that if he said anything, he would be beaten to death by the embarrassed Zhenbao.
"Is this such an experience..." After hearing this, all the ministers expressed their astonishment.
Yuan Li was the first to speak:
"Your Majesty, your majesty has come a long way and stepped into heaven. Now you have returned to Beijing and you have taken another step forward. It is gratifying and congratulatory."
No, you can also blow hard in this situation... Zhao Duan twitched the corners of his lips, feeling that this old man's licking skills were probably not as good as his own when he was younger.
Xu Zhenguan shook his head and said:
"Although I am already a heavenly being, with the blessing of dragon energy in the capital, I am almost invincible. But now there are wars everywhere, and the feudal kings in various places are rebelling. Outside the capital, without the blessing of dragon energy, I am still just a new heavenly being, not a mysterious person. Print opponent.”
Is that so... The ministers looked at each other, they didn't understand anything about cultivation.
Zhao Duan coughed lightly and said succinctly:
"In short, it is not the time to celebrate yet. Although His Majesty has returned, the rebellions in various places will not disappear immediately. The elimination of Li Yanfu will only eliminate the disobedient people in the court. Next, how to defeat those rebellious vassals as soon as possible and regain them Losing land is the first priority.
Of course, the good news is that the rebels will not continue to attack the capital in the future, and will most likely turn to one side. In other words, in the next half of the game, they will be the defending side, and we should counterattack. ”
Grand Master Dong nodded. He had recovered from the joy. Although he was a little tired due to great sadness and joy, he still thought clearly:
"What Zhao Shaobao said is that the worst time has passed. Next, the court should spread the news of His Majesty's promotion to heaven and being in the capital as quickly as possible to stabilize people's hearts.
At the same time, Your Majesty should issue an edict to label today’s rebels as treasonous ministers...
Humph, the banners these rebels are flying now are because they have entered the capital to serve the king, and they are of royal blood, so the court officials in the places along the way surrendered so quickly and without any burden. As long as they are designated as rebels, the local officials and generals will take care of themselves. Try to stabilize the situation. ”
His words sounded a bit bookish, but Zhao Duan agreed.
As long as they are classified as rebels, then if the local officials want to surrender, they will have to consider whether they will be infamy for thousands of years, or even implicate the family due to disloyalty.
Zhao Duan analyzed rationally:
"Based on the current situation, King Yanshan in the north is blocked by Luo Ke, who is in charge of Beicheng, and Duke Tang Guogong leads the border troops to suppress King Hejian on Xiping Road in the west. After all calculations, the only two serious troubles are King Jing and King Mu. A rebel army.
Now that Privy Envoy Xue has gone south to garrison Linfeng, as the news of His Majesty's return spreads, the situation will most likely be temporarily stabilized. ”
The Minister of the Ministry of Finance suddenly said:
"Zhao Shaobao must not forget the Qingzhou Army outside the city."
The Minister of War snorted coldly:
"King Heng was ambitious and talented, so he thought that he could invade the capital after instigating a rebellion against the military government in Qingzhou. Before His Majesty didn't come back, the capital camp couldn't attack the royal family and keep them out of the city. Now that your majesty has returned, he no longer has any worries. With the capital camp The force is enough to repel the enemy.”
Yuan Li suddenly reminded:
"Everyone, don't be careless. Although the Qingzhou army is not as powerful as the two rebel armies of Jiancheng and Yunfu, they can attack the capital when they advance, and retreat back to Qingzhou. It is easy to defeat, but I am afraid that the thieves will not be killed. Once King Heng leads the army What should I do if the army retreats to Qingzhou?
If the Beijing camp goes deep into Qingzhou, how will reinforcements be sent once the troops are in danger of being sealed? You know, the soldiers and horses of Linfengdao are not enough to fight against the two rebel armies at the same time!
But if the Qingzhou soldiers cannot be wiped out, once they retreat, they will always be a threat to the capital. They can also form an alliance with King Chen of Binhai Road, which may become a serious problem. ”
This... The Minister of War is at a loss for words. The Qingzhou soldiers are not strong, but they are indeed a trouble that is difficult to deal with.
Zhao Duan sat next to the empress and said nothing, but suddenly an idea came to his mind:
Speaking of which, after such a long time, I wonder how the mass production of new firearms in Shenji Camp is going...
If it is already available for use, perhaps it would be a good choice to use the soldiers and horses of King Heng of Qingzhou to test the power of the new firearms in this era.
"Okay, we don't have to worry about the Qingzhou soldiers today, we can discuss it tomorrow." Xu Zhenguan said:
"The top priority is to resolve the turmoil caused by the Li Party's rebellion within the government and the public. Those fallen officials are important positions and need to be filled with people to ensure the normal operation of the court center.
In addition, according to the instructions of the Grand Master, Xiu Wen Guan drafted an edict against rebellion and quickly reported it to various places, labeling the rebels as treason. At the same time, the monks affiliated with Shenlong Temple and martial arts warriors from the Qingshan line of Donghai were wanted all over the world. It's time to tell the world that I'm back. ”
All the ministers stood up one after another and held their hands: "I obey the order!"
Xu Zhendian nodded and waved, and the ministers turned and walked out.
Zhao Duan also stood up, and when he wanted to go home, he was suddenly stopped by the empress:
"Zhao Qing, I almost forgot something and I need you to deal with it."
"What?" Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment.
Xu Zhenguan's eyes were calm: "Eradicate the Shenlong Temple. After today, there will be no Shenlong Temple in the capital!"
(End of chapter)