Chapter 123 The Prince Huai's mansion opened at dawn...

Chapter 123 The Prince Huai's mansion opened at dawn...

The Prince Huai's mansion was bustling with activity from early morning. Red silk was hung everywhere and servants were busy at work. Although the scale of the wedding was slightly lower than that of Consort Guo back then, the liveliness was no less than that.

Even the emperor, empress, and concubines in the palace sent eunuchs to deliver congratulatory gifts, which was quite a show of respect.

The Chen family's wedding procession set off from their villa outside the city at the auspicious hour. The procession, consisting of several hundred people, arrived in a grand procession. Although the bridal sedan chair was carried by only four people due to etiquette, it was decorated with extraordinary splendor.

But what was even more eye-catching was Consort Chen's dowry. Those boxes were much larger than the usual dowry chests, carried by four people, and it was clear that they were quite heavy.

The dowry, carried by 108 bearers, along with those who led the way, carried lanterns, held umbrellas, played music, protected the sedan chair, and distributed congratulations, stretched for two streets and still couldn't be seen from the end.

Seeing this spectacle, the onlookers were all amazed. The grandeur of this merchant's daughter's wedding was indeed extraordinary.

However, some people in the crowd seemed to be watching the spectacle, but their eyes were mostly fixed on the sedan chair carriers.

After an incense stick had burned, the guard clasped his hands and reported to Qin Ji: "Your Majesty, although those people tried their best to conceal themselves, the rhythm of their breathing, the lightness or heaviness of their steps, and their instinctive physical responses were all difficult to completely hide. They were undoubtedly all top-notch experts."

"Hmm, you may leave." After dismissing the guards who were conducting the final reconnaissance, Qin Ji instructed Wei Sa, who was standing to the side, "Wei Sa, place three elite squads in the Princess's courtyard to ensure that everything is safe there."

"Yes. Your subordinate has made all the arrangements." Wei Sa clasped his hands in response. In fact, the master had already given instructions on this matter, but he was only bringing it up again because he was really worried.

"Let's go." Qin Ji straightened his clothes and strode out to the Prince Huai's residence.

He couldn't afford to be late for tonight's grand spectacle, a combination of the Feast at Hongmen and the Xuanwu Gate Incident. He also had his own plans for tonight—a dramatic rescue of the emperor.

"Qin Ji!"

As soon as he stepped out of the room, he was embraced by a soft, fragrant body, causing Qin Ji, whose stern expression had been completely ruined, to quickly adjust his demeanor and put on a gentle look.

"I've arranged everything, don't worry." He then whispered in Xiao Yan's ear, "Have you remembered everything I told you before? Although the chances are slim, in case... you have my seal, take your men and leave the capital immediately, go back to Jiangzuo to reorganize the forces we left there, and then head towards Yunzhou..."

"I understand, I understand, Master, please stop chanting." Xiao Yan hugged the person in front of her tightly, raised the corners of her mouth and gave him a big smile: "There's no 'what if.' Since we were able to come here, it's destiny. Go, be careful and act cautiously."

"Um"

As dusk fell, the house was filled with guests.

The banquet at the Second Prince's residence was held in the main hall of the palace. Li Fang looked extremely happy, dressed in a bright red wedding robe, going from table to table to offer toasts, his smile as perfect as if it had been painted on.

However, the wedding banquet at Prince Huai's residence today seemed unusually strong and intense. After several rounds of drinks, many guests were already drowsy and passed out. In particular, several princes who had been repeatedly toasted by Prince Huai were almost completely incoherent.

Gradually, although the area around the main hall remained noisy, the perimeter of the Prince Huai's mansion became eerily quiet. The number of patrols increased silently, eventually enveloping the entire mansion like an iron barrel.

Meanwhile, Prince Huai, Li Fang, who should have been in his bridal chamber, appeared in a dark alley outside the mansion, completely covered by a black cloak. There were already men waiting in the alley.

Almost simultaneously, sparks fell from various parts of the capital. In the dry winter air, even these tiny sparks were enough to ignite a large fire in the houses and on the firewood. The patrolling soldiers were quickly drawn to the chaos.

In the hidden alleys where no one was paying attention, people dressed in the uniforms of palace guards kept gathering and rushing towards the imperial city.

The Emperor is staying at the Wanxiang Palace, which belongs to Consort Shu, in the Imperial City tonight.

"I wonder what that Chen family girl is like, whether she can win Fang'er's heart. His household is still lacking in offspring. It's all Your Majesty's fault. If you had been willing to bestow a marriage between Fang'er and the Xie family girl back then, he wouldn't still be without a principal wife. If there were a principal wife above, I, as his mother, wouldn't have to worry about these things." Consort Shu sighed, looking out of the palace with her back to the Emperor.

She seemed like just an ordinary mother worried about her son, chatting idly with the child's father, but no one noticed that her eyes, as she looked out the window, still occasionally flashed with a hint of panic, despite her best efforts to conceal it.

"Sigh! Children have their own destiny. The enjoyment of marriage comes from mutual affection, just like we did back then, didn't we?"

The Emperor's words were tender, even suggesting a desire to relive the good old days with Consort Shu. Unfortunately, his increasingly aged face and his cloudy eyes, which held a dark and suspicious look, made Consort Shu neither want to nor dare to look him in the eye.

"My beloved concubine, tonight... you seem to have been unable to face me," the Emperor's weak and somewhat light voice suddenly sounded from behind. But it was just this one soft sentence that made Consort Shu freeze. In the cold night, she felt a dampness on her back in that instant.

Inside the south gate of the imperial city, Li Fang and Guo Chengye encountered less resistance than expected. The guards on duty almost collapsed after a few exchanges. After passing through a passageway, they would reach the inner city of the imperial city.

When Li Fang stood in front of Wanxiang Palace, his hands were covered in cold sweat.

Even with a group of elite soldiers led by Guo Chengye following behind him, and even though everything seemed within his grasp, he still felt a trembling urge to leave immediately.

"Your Highness, only this final step remains. Once you obtain the decree of succession, you will be the master of this empire tomorrow." Guo Chengye's voice carried a hint of seduction.

Gritting his teeth, Li Fang adopted his usual demeanor as a wise ruler and finally pushed open the door with a forceful push.

But the sight behind the door made him turn deathly pale.

His elderly father, the emperor, sat calmly and almost coldly at the head of the table, while his mother, Consort Shu, lay on the ground, her fate unknown.

Apart from the emperor and his concubines, the shop was filled with the emperor's personal guards, all clad in armor and armed with weapons.

What lay before them was a scene designed to lure the enemy into a trap.

"You've come. Second son, on your wedding night, why are you here?" The emperor's aged voice rang out coldly, carrying a hint of malicious malice in his tone.

Years of ingrained instinct made Li Fang want to kneel down, but he didn't.

Although the scene inside the hall had nearly scared him to death, he still retained his rationality.

So he neither retreated nor knelt down to beg for forgiveness. Instead, he said to the emperor, "If you had been prepared, you wouldn't have waited for me here in person. At this moment, you are probably just playing the empty city ploy with your son."

After many years as father and son, he still had some understanding of his father, the emperor. It is said that a wise man does not stand under a dangerous wall, and as an emperor, his father valued his life more than anyone else.

The emperor's expression remained unchanged, but several of his personal guards were already showing signs of strain.

"Father, you have always said that I am your most valued and beloved son. In the past two years, your health has been deteriorating, and I am often worried about you. The imperial physicians have also repeatedly said that Father should rest and recuperate. How about I share your burdens from now on?"

Li Fang spoke eloquently, but his grip on the sword remained firm.

He forced his wildly beating heart to pound and took a step forward, followed by the people behind him. The guards stationed inside the hall instinctively took a step back.

With just this one step, the emperor, who had been maintaining his composure, was now filled with nothing but anger and dejection.

"I have always valued you, yet you are unwilling to even wait a little longer?"

Judging from these words, the Emperor had not yet received any news of the disastrous defeat in the North, nor did he recognize that the person following the Second Prince was Guo Chengye.

"He really is too old." The thought flashed through the Second Prince's mind.

"Father, please use the ink and the seal." Li Fang had no intention of explaining the ins and outs of everything to his elderly father. At this moment, he only wanted to obtain the edict of succession as soon as possible.

Just then, a series of dense and orderly footsteps sounded, and the torches illuminated the originally dim outside the hall as if it were daytime.

Everyone looked toward the light. They saw that the rooftops of the palaces were densely packed with archers.

And Prince Cheng, who should have been attending the Second Prince's wedding banquet and being controlled by his men in the Prince Huai's mansion, actually appeared here.

Faced with the overwhelming force of the archers, everyone panicked for a moment.

"Li Hui, you..." Li Fang was interrupted before he could finish speaking.

"Father, I have led the Imperial Guards to your rescue!" After shouting this, Qin Ji waved his right hand, and arrows rained down like a dense storm.

Qin Ji had no interest in engaging in drawn-out, back-and-forth conversations; he simply wanted everything to end smoothly and quickly tonight.

The next day, when the guests of the wedding banquet were woken up by being splashed with water in the Prince Huai's mansion, they realized that the world had been turned upside down overnight.

Last night, all of them fell into King Huai's trap, and after eating the spiked food and wine, they fell into a deep sleep and were completely unaware of what was happening.

Last night, King Huai led his troops to force the emperor to abdicate, and these people were originally his hostages.

Fortunately, Prince Cheng was quick-witted. After receiving the Empress's plea for help, he led his men into the palace that very night to quell the rebellion. They executed the traitor Guo Chengye and others before the palace, while the ringleader, Prince Huai, was killed by a stray arrow.

Although the chaos was brought under control, the emperor was so enraged that he vomited blood on the spot.

After reluctantly entrusting the heir to Prince Cheng in the presence of the Empress, he fell into a coma.

Three days later, the emperor died, and Consort Shu committed suicide.

Another day, the capital received an urgent report that the northern border had suffered a major defeat, and the northern barbarians had carried out a large-scale massacre and looting in the four cities before leaving triumphantly.

General Guo Wei, fearing punishment, led his Guo clan members from the northern border and the remnants of his personal guards to flee into the grasslands.

The court was filled with indignation. Prince Cheng, entrusted with the mission in a time of crisis, hastily ascended the throne, and the following month, he made his wife his empress.

The following year, the Dingbei Army was reorganized.

Two years later, the Empress assumed regency, and the Emperor personally led an expedition, annihilating the remnants of the Guo clan on the grasslands. He also led the Heavenly Thunder Child to severely damage the northern barbarian tribes, thus stabilizing the borders.

Later on, the people of Daqi discovered that their country seemed to change every day and undergo a major transformation every year.

I don't know when it started, but there's more food available to fill our stomachs. Salt, which used to be gray and bitter, has become pure, white, and cheap. Wool fabrics, especially warm ones, have become popular on the market.

It seems that without us even noticing, many wonderful things that we've never seen before have been added to our daily lives, including our clothing, food, housing, and transportation.

Life seems to have gotten better and better without us even realizing it.

(over)