vrcanaries Chapter 111 The New Emperor Passes Away
Chapter 111 The New Emperor Passes Away
The new emperor committed tyrannical acts several months after taking office. He even planned to raid the Qi residence and give Miss Qi to the young master of the Lu family as a concubine. Wang Qin could no longer tolerate this and he killed his nephew directly, thus clearing out the family.
After Wang Qin finished his work, he set off. Before leaving, he wanted to see Qi Wan, but since it was still dark, he woke her up from her warm bed as she might catch a cold.
Wang Qin gathered the dark yellow cattail-patterned fox fur coat he was wearing and decided, "I will go as soon as possible and come back to propose marriage to Ah Wan."
He left Feiyang behind, "You stay in the capital, take those other people with you, and obey the orders of Wu Yi and her master."
"Yes, master." Feiyang saluted.
The brothers lined up to pat his shoulders and say goodbye, whispering, "Take good care of our mistress."
"Our master values her very much."
"The future happiness of our master depends on you."
……
Fei Yang's round face had a serious expression, and he nodded heavily, "I know."
It was still early, Feiyang followed the convoy reluctantly to see them off.
On a cold winter day, the morning light gradually swallowed up the darkness.
The light of dawn began to illuminate the earth, making the vast snowfield look picturesque.
In this quiet moment, the winter morning begins to reveal its beauty.
Feiyang sent his master outside the capital and watched the convoy leave and disappear into the mist.
The palace was filled with the sound of endless bells: one, two...ninety-nine.
"Ah, the new emperor has passed away?!"
As the funeral bell rang ninety-nine times, people in the entire imperial city fell into panic.
The civil and military officials were on their way to court in their official uniforms. When they heard the death bell ring, they stood there in shock, looking up in the direction of the palace. After the bell stopped ringing, one official said, "Oh no, His Majesty is gone." The officials rushed to the palace.
Early in the morning, the concubines in the harem were getting up and dressing up. They all hoped to appear in front of the emperor in the most beautiful posture.
However, at this moment, the funeral bell rang, breaking the tranquility and expectation.
After hearing the bell, all the concubines stopped what they were doing, stood outside the palace with disheveled hair, expressions of horror on their faces, and looked towards the direction of the palace where the emperor lived.
Some concubines didn't even have time to finish their makeup, some only drew an eyebrow, some only painted half of their face with rouge, and some were completely bare-faced. But no one cared about these details at this time, their hearts were filled with fear and confusion.
The queen also heard the bell. Her face turned pale and tears instantly welled up in her eyes.
She howled in despair as she ran towards the Huiqing Palace where the emperor was resting, crying all the way, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what should I do?"
When she arrived at Huiqing Palace, she saw chaos in the palace, with maids and eunuchs running around in panic. The queen saw the emperor lying motionless on the bed, so she threw herself on the bedside and cried, "Your Majesty..."
All this happened so suddenly that everyone was caught off guard. No one expected that the emperor would suddenly pass away just two days before New Year's Eve.
This sudden change shocked everyone and they were unable to accept this cruel reality.
At this time, the palace was filled with officials standing inside and outside, all listening quietly to the queen's wailing, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, wake up."
The prime minister looked towards the inner hall with a solemn expression. If Qi Ze, who was familiar with him, was present, he would definitely see the relief in his uncle's eyes.
As long as Wang Qin was alive, the prime minister felt at ease.
Prince Qin would not tell anyone, including his family, about the secret of his family cleansing.
The officials' hearts sank to the bottom of panic. The emperor was really dead, and he died just before the New Year.
They didn't feel very sad, but rather felt very scared in their hearts.
This is because, when a new emperor comes, the ministers change. If a new emperor comes, the current official position may not be kept. Maybe it is like Qi Lu, who was favored by several emperors, and this emperor took away Qi Lu's military power as soon as he came to power.
Among these officials, the one with the most complicated emotions was Lu Fengyun.
He saw that the power that was about to be in his hands and the beauty in his arms were all gone with the death of the emperor.
Lu Fengyun gritted his teeth, clenched his hands into fists, and said unwillingly: "I must find a way to get everything I want. I have paid so much for the royal family."
Empress Lu cried and asked with sobs, "How did your majesty leave?"
Eunuch Ren knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, His Majesty favored three concubines last night and was so tired that he vomited blood. Later..."
Empress Lu held her head, trying hard not to faint, "The imperial physician said."
Doctor Yuan stepped forward and knelt down to report, "Your Majesty has been taking aphrodisiacs. I advised you not to take them before. Your Majesty said that it was given by Concubine Zuo and it has always been effective."
Doctor Yuan was telling the truth. He could have kept it a secret, but who told the emperor and the Zuo family to attack the people of Qi Mansion? He was the son-in-law of Qi Mansion. How could he miss this good opportunity to take advantage of others?
When Empress Lu heard this, she flew into a rage and shouted, "Capture the evildoer named Zuo."
The Left Concubine came hurriedly with a group of concubines. After hearing this, she said loudly: "Queen, this is not credible."
In fact, Concubine Zuo also knew that her niece had indeed given the emperor aphrodisiac.
Concubine Zuo announced in public, "The Imperial Concubine is pregnant."
Empress Lu was shocked, "How come I didn't know about this?"
"Your Majesty knows." Concubine Zuo said loudly without blinking. After all, no living person could confront a dead person.
Shangshu Wu was very afraid that Zuo Tongling and his ilk would gain further power, as he would face dismissal if that happened.
Shangshu Wu looked at the Prime Minister, and when he saw the Prime Minister looking at Empress Lu, he understood what the Prime Minister meant.
Minister Wu stepped forward and whispered to Empress Zuo, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Guard is now in the hands of Zuo Xing, and the deputy commander is also Zuo Xing's man. If you push them too far, they will stage a coup."
Empress Lu calmed down and asked in a low voice: "What do you think we should do?"
Minister Wu suggested, "Use Prime Minister Pei to appoint the new emperor first, and then use the new emperor to nominate your people to lead the imperial guards."
Empress Lu thought this was an excellent idea.
Empress Lu announced to everyone: "Prime Minister, you will be in charge of the emperor's funeral."
"I obey your command." Prime Minister Pei stepped forward and bowed to receive the order.
An official from the Zongzheng Temple came out and asked, "Your Majesty, there is no money in the court, and there are still two days before the New Year. Do you want to keep the emperor's body until after the New Year?"
A palace servant whispered to Empress Lu: "Your Majesty, it is unlucky to keep the body during the New Year."
The Queen naturally knew this, and she couldn't make up her mind, so she asked, "What do you think we should do?"
Who dares to make the decision on such a big matter? Everyone remained silent and did not express their opinions.
Empress Lu hesitantly suggested, "Why not move the body to the imperial mausoleum tomorrow?"
"But your majesty's underground palace has not yet been built." said an official from the Zongzheng Temple.
The emperor had only been on the throne for a short time and had no money, so there was no sign of the underground palace.
Empress Lü said: "Put the late emperor's coffin in the rear hall of the imperial mausoleum."
Still no one among the officials expressed their views.
Queen Lu was a little anxious. If no one supported her, then nothing would go smoothly.
At this time, Minister Wu gave her an idea, "Your Majesty, now all officials obey the Prime Minister's arrangements, so you need to discuss and reach a deal with the Prime Minister."
"Transaction?" Queen Lu asked in surprise.
In order to gain the attention of Empress Lu, Shangshu Wu spoke his true feelings, "Yes, Madam, if there is no sufficient temptation of benefits, who will help you wholeheartedly?"
Empress Lu looked at Minister Wu gratefully and said, "I will make sure the new emperor uses you well in the future."
Then, she shouted, "I want to discuss important matters with the Prime Minister!"
"Please come in, my lady."
After the Prime Minister saluted Queen Lu, the two walked into the main hall together. After sitting down, they began to talk in a low voice.