The surrounding grass stood tall, and drops of water pattered on the leaves before playfully sliding off. Vines nearby clung tightly to the fence, stretching upwards and thirsting for rain, seemingly insatiable and wanting more.
The moat surrounding the thick city walls gradually rose, looking as if it would overflow with just one more drop of rain, causing great anxiety on the watchers' faces. Only when a gentle breeze blew by did the swaying river finally overflow its banks, allowing the onlookers to breathe a sigh of relief.
At dawn, I see the red, damp spots; the flowers are heavy in Chengdu.
As dawn broke and the clouds dispersed and the rain stopped, it was a beautiful scene.
The emperor's word is law; once a promise is made in court, there is no possibility of it being changed.
The rebel army outside the city quickly received the imperial decree that Lingyan would be buried alive and that Gu Zhong would marry Chen Muxian in three days. They then presented Lingyan's head to the front of the battle lines. The leaders looked at each other in bewilderment. The "imperial advisor" they wanted to purge was no longer there. Could they simply besiege the capital on the grounds that the emperor had not issued an edict of self-reproach?
If they were to attack the city, they would be nothing short of traitors and rebels. Those aristocratic families who hadn't reacted or hadn't had time to participate could then use the pretext of coming to the capital to defend the emperor to reap the benefits. They might not even have warmed their thrones before those so-called royal armies overthrew them.
But with Xijing so close at hand, they were truly unwilling to give up. Moreover, even if they turned back now, they would probably not escape Gu Zhong's retribution later, leaving them in a real dilemma.
What made things even more difficult for them was that Gu Zhong sent wedding invitations to the heads of the leading aristocratic families, inviting them to the city for a banquet on their wedding day.
This is a blatant trap; should they accept or not?
To refuse would be disrespectful to the monarch, and would ultimately make one a nominal rebel.
It is likely that Gu Zhong will not act rashly due to concerns about his reputation, since they are acting in the name of supporting the emperor and have not yet crossed any lines.
Once she takes action, it will be to harm loyal and virtuous people, confirming her tyrannical behavior and truly giving the powerful families of the world a reason to punish her.
However, it cannot be ruled out that they might be sent into the city for nothing and captured by Gu Zhong, losing their lives and property.
A wedding invitation is worth more than a thousand lobbyists; the once-unified alliance was easily torn apart.
Some feared that prioritizing personal gain over righteousness and reputation would lead them to commit murder with the intention of mutual destruction, and thus backed down; others harbored a gamble, hoping to gain a reputation for loyalty and righteousness upon entering the city and make a temporary retreat, to be dealt with later; still others had made preparations in advance, plotting to force the emperor to abdicate in the city, fighting desperately for a sliver of hope, and history was naturally written by the victors.
Their only shared thought was that they could not retreat, and if necessary, they could also deter others and make ample bargaining chips to save their lives.
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Author's Note:
Since I can't accumulate 3000 points, I'm choosing to give up on the points QAQ
Read after me, pay attention to the key points, it's a sweet story!
Du Fu, "A Joyful Rain on a Spring Night" (Tang Dynasty)
Good rain knows its season, falling when spring arrives. It follows the wind into the night, silently nourishing all things. The country paths and clouds are all dark, only the lights of the riverboats shine. At dawn, look where the red is wet, the flowers heavy in Chengdu.
Du Fu, may Buddha bless you.
Chapter 26 The Imperial Tutor and the Crown Princess (Twenty-Five) (Starting with a reverse V)
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With several parties pulling in different directions, the three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Never before in history has an imperial wedding been so rushed and hasty. Fortunately, all the ceremonies had been prepared three years in advance, and even the wedding clothes had been sewn. If Emperor Gu had not suddenly passed away, the wedding would have taken place long ago.
The Six Departments of the Imperial Household Department now only need to take them out of the inner treasury and clean them.
"Do I look good in this wedding dress?"
For the first time, Gu Zhong took off her black ceremonial robes and put on bright red clothes. Looking at the blurry bronze mirror, she saw the wedding dress before her, which had been made by the world's top embroiderers over half a year.
The dragon and phoenix patterns embroidered with fine gold thread are so lifelike that they seem about to take flight. The finest silk fabric is incredibly smooth to the touch, softening Gu Zhong's imperial majesty and giving her a touch of feminine charm.
"Your Majesty is very beautiful."
Chen Muxian stood to the side and praised, his eyes filled with intoxicated amazement.
“What a pity…” Gu Zhong lowered his eyes, unable to discern the emotion in her eyes, or what she was regretting.
"Your Majesty, is it really necessary to do this on the wedding day?"
Chen Muxian then frowned and asked, seemingly dissatisfied with Gu Zhong's arrangements.
"Traitors and rebels should be punished, what's wrong with that? Even if they left a large army outside the city, do you really think they would attack the city?" Gu Zhong sneered.
"Blood at the wedding banquet is considered unlucky."
Chen Muxian was still very unwilling, whether he was worried that Gu Zhong's move would ruin his plans or he really didn't want his wedding to be stained with blood.
"At worst, we can just get another one later."
Gu Zhong said something indifferently, and Chen Muxian had no choice but to give up trying to persuade him.
"Indeed, these treacherous officials have arbitrarily slandered His Majesty's reputation, forcing the Prime Minister to take his own life to prove his innocence, thus severing the teacher-student relationship between His Majesty and the Prime Minister. His Majesty's anger is understandable."
This statement was incredibly harsh, yet the person who said it acted as if they knew absolutely nothing about it.
Gu Zhong took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to kill Chen Muxian on the spot. He simply looked at him with a sharp gaze and gave him a stern warning.
"This matter must not be mentioned again!"
"Yes... Your subject obeys the decree."
Chen Muxian was taken aback, then responded, as if he had finally confirmed something, and his whole body unconsciously relaxed.
The sun is shining brightly, the weather is perfect, and according to the divination by the Grand Diviner, today is an auspicious day for marriage.
Outside the city, chaotic troops surrounded the city, their banners fluttering in the wind, while inside, beneath the festive red hues, a sense of impending doom hung in the air.
The drawbridge over the moat was lowered to half its original height, allowing only people to climb up and cross using ladders. Archers on the city wall held their bows steadily, arrows aimed at the numerous camps.
The heads of several powerful families who had planned ahead had no choice but to abandon their idea of leading a large army into the city. Instead, they dutifully selected a team of skilled guards and reluctantly entered this dangerous place one by one.
Countless palace banquets have been held and many newlyweds have been welcomed in the imperial city of Xijing, but none have been as extraordinary as today.
Soldiers in armor stood in rows throughout the palace, the cold gleam of their steel mingling with the bright red hues specially laid out for the wedding banquet. The bride, dressed in a magnificent brocade robe embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, stood personally at the palace gate to greet her distinguished guests.
The auspicious hour has arrived, the palace gates are locked, and a banquet, marked by the sounds of swords and the chill of battle, has officially begun.
Only after the first arrow pierced the neck of one of the prey did the prey inside the cage realize what was happening, and they fought desperately in fear.
"Isn't Your Majesty afraid of incurring the wrath of the world?" asked one who harbored a侥幸心理 (a sense of wishful thinking).
"Haven't you already made me bear the brunt of all the infamy? What harm would a few more do?"
“Gu Zhong! Our army is poised to attack outside the city. If we cannot return unscathed, the entire Western Capital will be buried with us!” said one arrogant and defiant individual.
"It's alright. It's worth it to take you down to apologize to the master."
Some, without uttering a word, went straight for Gu Zhong, only to be stopped by the Xuan Ying Guards who descended from the sky.
Gunshots and swords rang out in the hall, and blood stained the crimson carpet even more vividly. Gu Zhong sniffed the faint scent of blood, looked at the chaos before him, and a pleased smile appeared on his lips.
As time passed, Chen Muxian, who had been standing calmly behind her, gradually became anxious.
"Royal Consort, are you still waiting for something?"
That smile blossomed even more alluringly, and Chen Muxian's heart skipped a beat. A sudden sense of foreboding arose, and his hand involuntarily fell to his waist.
"Your Highness is indeed waiting for this old minister!"
Just then, the tightly closed palace doors were forced open from the outside. A round-faced, familiar man with ruddy complexion and white hair led a squad of elite armored guards into the palace. The palace guards were no match for them and were forced to retreat in disarray, with more than half of them killed or wounded in no time.
"How could this be?!"
What's going on?
The noble families and rebellious officials, who had lost their guards and dared not move amidst the flashing swords, couldn't help but exclaim in shock, for this person was not part of their plan.
"Zuo Yingyuan? Patriarch Zuo, you really are not dead. The former Grand Tutor of the dynasty."
Seeing people who shouldn't be there, Gu Zhong wasn't as flustered as they were; instead, he remained calm and composed, as if he had known all along.
"As for the Imperial Consort, should I address you as Chen Muxian, or as Cheng Xiuzhu, the seventeenth son of the former Emperor Huang?"
"Since Your Majesty had already thought of this, why were the palace gates not guarded?"
Zuo Yingyuan, who should have died tragically in the Beiling case, stood perfectly fine in front of Gu Zhong, with the arrogance of a victor.
"Do you no longer want the Zuo family at all?"
Hearing Zuo Yingyuan's implication, it seemed the inner city of the palace had already fallen. Unexpectedly, a crack force was still hidden in the capital, waiting until today to launch its attack, taking advantage of the lax palace controls to force the emperor to abdicate.
Gu Zhong couldn't help but appear somewhat blustering, threatening him with the Zuo clan members.
"For the sake of our dynasty's great cause, what does it matter if we sacrifice our mere clan?"
Zuo Yingyuan remained unmoved and bowed to Cheng Xiuzhu with his hands clasped.
"You're really ruthless. Wasn't it your doing that the Northern Barbarians invaded back then? For the so-called great cause of restoring the country, you were willing to abandon the common people."
"It's their honor!"
Like the fanatical believers of the previous dynasty, they were no less than those ignorant masses who worshipped witch gods. Gu Zhong shook his head helplessly.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me."
The former prince, now at ease, once again donned his calm and gentle mask and, under Zuo Yingyuan's disapproving gaze, respectfully bowed to Gu Zhong.
He lightly touched his lips and whistled silently, but looked in surprise at Gu Zhong, who was still standing perfectly fine in front of him.
"What? Are you wondering why I haven't fallen yet?" Gu Zhong stood still, looking at him mockingly.
Cheng Xiuzhu's expression hardened, realizing that many things had already been exposed, and that Gu Zhong knew far more than he thought.
"Your Highness, the only solution now is to kill him."
Zuo Yingyuan slowly stepped onto the stairs, urging him on in a cold voice.
"Your Majesty, I originally did not want to kill you."
Drawing the soft sword disguised as a belt from his waist, Cheng Xiuzhu stabbed at Gu Zhong with incredible speed, his feigned tone even carrying a hint of genuine regret.
Gu Zhong didn't move an inch. When the soft sword was less than half an inch from her throat, the sword's momentum abruptly stopped. It wasn't that Cheng Xiuzhu was soft-hearted, but that someone had firmly pinched the sword with their fingertips.
With a flick of his finger, Gu Zhong sent the soft sword flying from her hand. Cheng Xiuzhu still stared in disbelief at the person beside her, gritting her teeth and saying, "Yun Zhong, you actually betrayed me! Don't forget, this person is your mother's killer!"
"Lord Chen, my mother is still alive and well, so where would such an enemy come from?" Yun Zhong's rough, hoarse voice was full of disdain.
It was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head. How could Cheng Xiuzhu not know that his move had been planned from the very beginning? Apart from the Prime Minister who had always made him wary and was willing to sacrifice himself for righteousness, who else could have orchestrated this?
Zuo Yingyuan also paused on the steps. He had heard of the formidable reputation of the maskless leader in the hands of the royal family. If he took another step closer, he feared he would be beheaded in the next second.
In response, a dense swarm of masked armored soldiers descended from the beams, capturing and killing the enemy soldiers in the hall. In the blink of an eye, the area was cleared, and swords were held to the necks of Cheng Xiuzhu and Zuo Yingyuan, and the situation reversed once again.