Your Majesty is wise.
This was Ning Yunzhao's favorite phrase, and also the phrase the emperor loved to hear the most.
However, at this moment, the four characters that once delighted the emperor now felt like a sharp blade cutting through.
Your Majesty is wise.
Your Majesty is wise.
The emperor's vision went black, and he fainted.
Ning Yunzhao seemed to be startled.
"Your Majesty!" he shouted loudly, lunging forward to shake the emperor's shoulders, his expression filled with grief. He turned his head towards the hall entrance and shouted, "Protect the emperor! Someone, quickly! Protect the emperor!"
His voice was clear and resonant, filled with power from sorrow and anger, breaking through the tightly closed hall and crashing outward.
Protect the emperor…
Miss Jun looked at him with a somewhat complicated expression.
What was happening now seemed even more unbelievable than when she woke up to find herself as Jun Zhenzhen.
Ning Yunzhao had already extended his hand to lift the emperor onto his back, looking at Miss Jun.
"Quick, Miss Jun, let's go."
His tone was tense yet solemn, as if they were truly protecting the emperor.
Without waiting for Miss Jun to respond, Ning Yunzhao pointed at the Qingshan Army.
"You fellows, send the Empress Dowager back to the palace first," he said, kicking open a screen to reveal a hidden door behind it.
Without stopping, he pointed at Lu Yunqi.
"Imperial Guards, seize him."
Seize him?
Miss Jun looked at Lu Yunqi.
Suddenly, Lu Yunqi bent down and picked up a few scattered crossbow arrows from the ground, holding them up.
The Qingshan Army immediately stepped forward to shield Miss Jun, pointing their swords at Lu Yunqi.
Lu Yunqi's hand fell, but the arrows were not pointed outward, they were pointed inward.
With a thud, four or five heavy arrows pierced into his chest, and blood instantly gushed out, dyeing his robe, which originally only had specks of blood, into a crimson sheet.
He…
Miss Jun's eyes slightly narrowed.
He thudded to the ground, disappearing from view.
All this happened swiftly and seamlessly.
This was how it was supposed to be…
"Protect the emperor!"
The shout crashed against the hall doors, echoing throughout the entire Imperial City.
Noisy footsteps rushed from outside, the hall doors burst open, and Imperial Guards rushed in, with more troops from the Imperial City Office approaching in the distance.
Seeing the scene inside the hall, the Imperial Guards turned pale.
"Protect the emperor!"
"Quick, seize them!"
Ning Yunzhao's voice continued to echo.
The Imperial Guards looked at the emperor, whom Ning Yunzhao was carrying on his back, shielding him with his hands, then at the Qingshan Army pointing their weapons at Lu Yunqi lying on the ground. Instinctively, they moved in unison.
Groups of Imperial Guards surged forward, pointing their weapons at Lu Yunqi, surrounding Ning Yunzhao and the emperor.
......
...…..
Squads of government soldiers galloped through the streets. In today's capital, the movement of troops caused the most apprehension. The citizens were anxious, worried that the Jurchen people were attacking again.
But these troops were not heading for the city gates; they were heading towards the imperial palace.
Wasn't the Qingshan Army stationed to guard the imperial palace? What was happening over there?
As long as the Jurchen people weren't attacking, it was fine. Nothing was a bigger threat than the Jurchen siege now, so the citizens breathed a sigh of relief while whispering curiously.
Indeed, people like Ning Yan, who had experienced the Jurchen siege, felt this way too. They thought that fighting the Jurchen people and shedding blood together during the siege had been the most shocking experience of their lives.
But what was this scene before their eyes?
"What is going on?"
Standing in the hall, looking at the blood-stained floor and bodies strewn everywhere, Ning Yan and the others couldn't find their voices.
Fortunately, most of these officials had personally defended the city and witnessed bloody scenes, so they didn't faint or vomit now. But nonetheless, each of them was trembling, looking disheveled.
Although they asked what was going on, they actually already understood what it was.
Even if this was their first time witnessing it, they had read about it countless times in history books.
A palace coup.
This was a palace coup!
There was no doubt that this was a palace coup. The key question was, who was the mastermind behind the coup? What was their target?
"Your Majesty!"
Ning Yan was the first to rush towards the screen.
The other officials stumbled over the bodies, following closely behind.
Ning Yunzhao knelt aside, revealing the emperor lying behind him to the officials.
The emperor's eyes were still open. His eyelids fluttered as Ning Yan and the others approached.
"The emperor is still alive!" a delighted official shouted.
As long as he's alive, they could figure out what had happened.
But the next moment, they noticed something wrong with the emperor's condition.
"The emperor can't speak or move!" the official shouted in a changed tone.
Those present felt their hearts sink. They turned their gaze to Ning Yunzhao, to Miss Jun, to the Qingshan Army, to Lu Yunqi, who lay on the ground with arrows in him, and to the strangely beautiful corpse of Eunuch Yuan Bao, with a parasol stabbed into him.
It was up to them to explain what had happened.
They were the direct witnesses of the palace coup, their identities and relationships were intertwined and complicated. Who was the real mastermind, what were they plotting, and most importantly, whose words could be trusted?
...…
...….
"It wasn't a coup."
Ning Yunzhao's voice echoed in the hall.
"It was an internal fight between the eunuch and Lu Yunqi."
All eyes fell on him. Ning Yunzhao looked angry, pointing at the chaos everywhere.
"Eunuch Yuan and Lu Yunqi were fighting for power, battling within the palace."
Their open and hidden conflicts were indeed somewhat known. The emperor had become increasingly trusting of Eunuch Yuan, and there were frequent disputes between the eunuchs under Eunuch Yuan and the Jinyiwei. Additionally, there were rumors of drunken eunuchs boasting that Lu Yunqi would soon be working under Eunuch Yuan.
In the eyes of the court officials, Eunuch Yuan and the Jinyiwei were like two fierce dogs. They were more than happy to watch them fight each other.
Unexpectedly, the two vicious dogs would bite so fiercely.
Everyone's gaze fell on the ground, at the dead eunuchs and the heavy crossbows scattered around, then looked at the arrows on Lu Yunqi's body.
They even used the military's heavy crossbows; this brawl was truly ruthless.
But...
"With the emperor present, how dare they?" a minister exclaimed coldly.
Yes, the key issue is the emperor.
And if it wasn't a conspiracy, how could the emperor have ended up like this?
"Look at the wound on the emperor's neck!" another minister cried sharply, with a look of horror and anger.
Everyone looked down; they had all changed into light spring robes, and after the earlier tussle and pulling, the emperor's clothes were askew, exposing his neck, where a bruise and swelling were very obvious.
This was clearly caused by external force...
No one knew who was the first, but eyes turned to Miss Jun standing aside, then more people looked at her.
It wasn't unheard of for emperors to be injured; once, an emperor was almost strangled by palace maids.
Strangling an emperor certainly has its reasons, either hatred or grievance.
Among these people, Miss Jun had the greatest grievance with the emperor.
After all, she was interfering in state affairs, arguing with the emperor about the crown prince's succession.
And here there was also the Qingshan Army... her people.
The eyes fixated on Miss Jun became sharper, and quite a few officials began to move.
"I did it," Ning Yunzhao said, extending his hand while briefly touching the emperor's neck again.
Him?
Ning Yan's expression grew darker.
Perhaps because he saw Ning Yunzhao here, he had hardly spoken since entering the palace.
He didn't know what to say, and whatever he said was bound to be questioned.
Once again, everyone's gaze turned to the emperor's neck, indeed seeing that the handprint matched Ning Yunzhao's hand.
Did Ning Yunzhao also have a grudge against the emperor?
He didn't have a grudge against the emperor, but he did have old scores to settle with this Miss Jun...
So are they in cahoots?
"You're overthinking it," Ning Yunzhao said calmly, withdrawing his hand. "The emperor is ill."
Ill?
The people present were stunned.
"Why do you think the emperor hasn't seen you?" Ning Yunzhao said. "That's because the emperor was ill at the Imperial Mausoleum."
What?
The court officials looked at each other.
True or false?
"If he's ill, why not summon the imperial physician?" a court official frowned and asked sharply.
"Because the emperor believes the threat of the Jurchen people still exists, and if it were known he was ill, it would upset the populace, giving the Jurchen people an opportunity," Ning Yunzhao said straightforwardly, with a composed demeanor.
That explanation seemed to make sense...
"In recent days, the emperor's condition has worsened, so he decided to secretly return to the imperial palace and had me, in the name of the Empress Dowager, invite Miss Jun," Ning Yunzhao continued, glancing at Miss Jun aside.
This explanation also made sense, as everyone knew of Miss Jun's excellent medical skills.
But...
"However," Ning Yunzhao's voice suddenly rose, startling the ministers in the hall.
Ning Yunzhao angrily pointed to the dead eunuchs on the floor and Lu Yunqi, who was surrounded by the Qingshan Army and Imperial Guards.
"These two traitors, taking advantage of the emperor's grave illness, fought and shocked the emperor, thankfully, Miss Jun was here to treat him in time..."
He looked stern and mournful.
"Fortunately, his life was saved, but the emperor..."
After saying this, he knelt, bowing before the emperor.
"I am guilty, I am incompetent."
If it's like this, he truly isn't much at fault...
But, is this affair really so?
It sounded logical, yet unbelievable.
"Miss Jun," an official looked at Miss Jun, eyes narrow, voice cold. "What illness does the emperor have?"
If it is an illness, there should be a name for it.
With a name, people can treat it properly.
Whether it's a real illness or a fake one can also be distinguished.
The gazes in the hall once again focused on Miss Jun.
Miss Jun looked calm.
"Heavenly Paralysis," she said.
Heavenly Paralysis? Is it a disease she just made up? Several young officials wondered, as scholars, they had read medical books, but had never heard of such a disease.
They prepared to inquire further but noticed the expressions of the four older officials change.
"Heavenly Paralysis?" Ning Yan said.
Although it was a question, his tone did not contain skepticism, more like confirmation.
"It really is Heavenly Paralysis?" another official said loudly.
This was not a questioning, but surprise.
"How could the emperor also have Heavenly Paralysis?" More officials exclaimed in confusion.
They were surprised not by the name of the disease, but that the emperor had it.
Does everybody know this disease?
The young officials were somewhat shocked; were they too ignorant?
Also, "also?"
The word "also" naturally implied that someone else had suffered from this disease.
Who was this other person?
Miss Jun turned to look at the emperor lying down.
"Yes," she said with a deep gaze, "the emperor, like the former Crown Prince, suffers from Heavenly Paralysis."
...
.....
(Today's update)