Chapter 644: The Change of Regime
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The northern wind blew fiercely overnight, and the entire capital was draped in mourning attire. In the Chongzheng Hall, the sound of palace maids weeping could be heard, accompanied by the solemn tolling of funeral bells.
Waking up from her sleep, Mingzhu saw Donghui and Su Momo kneeling solemnly by her bedside and asked, “You’re here. What about Su Mei, Xia Lu, and Xia Xue?”
“Su Mei is injured and is currently recuperating in Guangming Hall,” Donghui replied, glancing at Su Momo. “As for Xia Lu and Xia Xue, Su Momo witnessed it firsthand, so she should tell you.”
Su Momo, with a slightly harsh expression, revealed a trace of sorrow, “Xia Lu is dead. She was shot by that legless woman with a poisoned needle. Xia Xue is currently guarding that woman, so she can’t come to see you, Your Highness.”
Mingzhu’s heart sank, her nose tingling, tears almost streaming down her face. She held back, struggling for a long time before she could hold back, and said hoarsely, “Where is that woman now?”
“She’s also in Guangming Hall,” Su Momo’s small eyes flashed with fierceness. “This old slave originally wanted to kill her, but Wangfei said she probably knew the whereabouts of the Imperial Consort, so the old slave was told to capture her alive. Besides, the old slave also thought that killing her like this would be too cheap for her, so the old slave let her live.”
Mingzhu sensed from Su Momo’s tone that Jiang Shanshan’s situation must be dire. Thinking of Imperial Consort Min and Huayang Wangfei, she felt a headache. “Wasn’t she interrogated?”
Donghui replied, “She refused to speak, no matter what torture was used. She only agreed to talk if you were present.”
Mingzhu got up from the bed. “Then let’s go.”
The palace servants immediately brought clothes to help Mingzhu dress. The clothes were the ones she wore when she was a young girl. Although they had been hastily modified by the palace servants overnight, they were still a bit short. Fortunately, with Yuwen Bai’s death, everyone was in mourning attire, so wearing a coarse cloth cloak outside was passable.
Mingzhu was in excruciating pain all over her body, especially when she moved her head. She looked in the mirror and saw a large bruise on the right side of her neck, which was probably left by Yuwen Cong when he knocked her unconscious. Unable to contain her anger, she cursed, “Don’t fall into my hands, or I’ll tear you apart.”
Mu Gugu happened to come to see her and frowned when she saw Mingzhu preparing to go out. “The palace is still in chaos, and you’re like this. What are you planning to do? Imperial Consort Min and Huayang Wangfei naturally have people searching. You won’t be of any help. Just stay and rest.”
Mingzhu just shook her head. She didn’t want to stay in the palace for long and wanted to finish her tasks quickly so she could go back to hug Zhuang Zhuang and see her family. And her father, when she was kidnapped by Yuwen Cong before, she heard Empress Dowager Min and her son talking about her father being besieged and escaping to Changxin Palace. She had asked Sang Shen before, and Sang Shen said her father had left the palace again. But she still felt uneasy and wanted to see him with her own eyes to feel reassured.
Mu Gugu pulled her aside and whispered, “Great Empress Dowager is currently talking to County Prince Yanping. Why don’t you go and take a look?”
Mingzhu smiled. “Thank you, Mu Gugu, but what should I do there?”
Mu Gugu looked very frustrated. “I just don’t want you and the Great Empress Dowager to end up irreconcilable. Maybe if you go and persuade her, she might change her mind…”
“That won’t happen.” Mingzhu said confidently. “But Mu Gugu, don’t worry. At critical moments, the Great Empress Dowager has always protected me. I remember that. If you really care about me, arrange for a warm sedan chair for me. I’m in so much pain.”
Mu Gugu quickly arranged for someone to set it up and placed the warm sedan chair in front of Mingzhu. As the sedan chair passed by the main hall of Changxin Palace, Mingzhu lifted the curtain and looked out, only to see Fu Zifei standing alone outside the hall door, peeking inside. Presumably, she was spying on Yuwen Guang, so she disdainfully let the curtain fall.
As they walked, as Mu Gugu said, everywhere was chaotic. The snow on the road hadn’t been cleared, the flowers and trees were destroyed, and there were still heavy blood stains in many places. Some palaces still showed traces of being burned and attacked, although no bodies were visible. Occasionally, a few palace servants could be seen, all dressed in mourning clothes.
Donghui proudly said, “The Wangfei didn’t see the scene last night. Even calling it purgatory wouldn’t be an exaggeration. Many palace servants were running around like headless flies. It was all thanks to Your Highness. After being ordered to handle the mourning, arrangements were made for the palace to be cleaned up, followed by ten decrees issued in a row, which led to the current situation.”
Donghui proudly said, “Wangfei, you didn’t see the scene last night. It was like hell, with many palace attendants running around like headless flies. It was thanks to our Highness, who, after being ordered to take charge of the funeral, organized a cleanup and issued ten consecutive orders. That’s why things are as they are now.”
Su Momo added, “Wangfei, you probably don’t know this, but his Highness was previously blocked outside the capital. Those fools thought he couldn’t get in, but our Highness suddenly brought out some big machines. With those machines, elite soldiers attacked the city walls and, with the help of Yue Guo Gong and others from inside, managed to control the capital and smoothly entered the palace.”
Mingzhu felt her blood surge with excitement. The big machines Su Momo mentioned must be the giant ballistae that Ban Jian had developed. As for the elite soldiers using those big machines to scale the city walls, they must have been modified ballistae capable of launching stepping hooks. She then understood what Yuwen Chu meant when he said he couldn’t come to rescue her; he had been intercepted outside the city, making it impossible for him to come to her aid.
However, despite this, their side had not suffered significant losses, thanks to his usual careful planning and preparation, which prevented them from being overwhelmed when the crisis struck.
In the distance, someone was shouting loudly, and others were screaming and shouting chaotically, mixed with cries, making it very chaotic. As the saying goes, when the emperor changes, there will surely be someone who suffers. Mingzhu instinctively didn’t want to get involved too much and ordered the palace servants carrying the sedan chair, “Go around, go that way.”
However, when she tried to avoid it, someone wouldn’t let her go. A person came running and stumbled, falling in front of her soft sedan chair, clinging tightly to its edge and refusing to let go. “Ying Wangfei, Ying Wangfei, Sixth Sister-in-law, please save my mother! I’ll do anything for you, anything!”
It was Princess Kangning.
Mingzhu lifted the curtain of the sedan chair and looked at Princess Kangning before her. She had lost all her usual elegance and nobility. She wasn’t wearing a cloak or a shawl, just a simple, plain-colored brocade jacket, which was torn with the inner silk exposed. Her skirt was dirty with mud and bloodstains, her hair disheveled, and her eyes red and swollen, filled with panic and pleading.
Princess Kangning clasped her hands together, begging sorrowfully, “Sixth Sister-in-law, Sixth Sister-in-law, I have never done anything against you. My eighth brother is already dead. Please, spare my mother.”
Mingzhu looked into the distance and saw, not far along the corridor, several palace attendants dragging the crazed Consort Xiao. One was pulling her hair, another was twisting her arms, one was stepping on her, and another was slapping her hard. Consort Xiao could not resist and could only cry out loudly, her appearance exceptionally pitiful.
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