queen's captive gl

At three quarters in the afternoon, the news that Emperor Xixi fainted suddenly in the imperial garden spread like wildfire in the palace.

The three or five batches of imperial physicians were called into the palace, and they were in a hurry, until at dusk five batches had come.

The emperor's complexion still didn't improve. He seemed to be suffering from a sudden illness or a sudden cold. His pulse was fast and slow, his abdomen was distended. If the cause cannot be diagnosed, there is no way to start, let alone jump to conclusions.

Throughout the afternoon, Emperor Xixi hadn't shown up since he fainted and was carried back to the palace. He didn't even summon the courtiers who had important matters to report.When the king of a country falls ill, whether it is a minor illness or a serious illness, it is a serious matter. On the surface, he dare not say anything, but secretly there are all kinds of suspicions... Suddenly, the harem is in chaos, from the empress dowager to the emperor's bedroom After sitting in the town, the gossip was suppressed.

At night, all the palaces in the imperial palace lit up the palace lanterns, and the lights in the Hall of Mental Cultivation were the brightest.

Aunt Su came out from the inner hall, met the empress dowager's questioning gaze, and shook her head gently.

The emperor, who had always been in good health, suddenly passed out, and his condition worsened at an uncontrollable speed. The empress dowager had already guessed that something was wrong.Like tonight's incident, the Empress Dowager Bushi who has gone through three dynasties also experienced it twice, and quickly calmed down, concentrating for a while, and ordered: "Immediately seal the palace, no one can come in and out, and strictly order the news to spread."

Aunt Su took the order, it's a big matter, so she went to do it immediately.

At this time, Sun Yan, the most famous imperial doctor of the imperial hospital, came out. His face was pale, his eyes were sad, and he was about to bow to the empress dowager with his back bent. How could the empress dowager be constrained by these things at this time? Xuli, "The imperial physician doesn't need to be too polite, how is the emperor's condition?"

Sun Yan didn't seem to hear the words, and maybe he was exhausted. He knelt down on the ground and said in a trembling voice, "Queen Mother, the emperor has a strange disease. I'm afraid it's already..."

The Empress Dowager couldn't wait to hear his intermittent speeches but didn't dare to make a final conclusion, so she walked quickly into the inner hall.

The group of doctors, maids and eunuchs in the inner hall had already knelt on the ground. Seeing the Empress Dowager driving in person, they knelt on the ground and moved to make way.

In just one afternoon, the ninety-five-year-old on the dragon bed was so pale that there was no trace of blood, and his skin looked haggard. If he hadn't looked closely at the abdominal cavity that was still slowly rising and falling, and his eyes were half-opened, he would have thought that he had just seen it. It was a corpse.

"Queen Dowager," Sun Yan, who followed in, knelt heavily on the ground again, "I checked the emperor's dragon body for no external injuries. , Even the emperor’s recent food and use have been inspected one by one, and the source of the poison has not been found, and the ministers have never seen such a strange phenomenon!"

The Empress Dowager's heart trembled, she was not unfamiliar with this symptom.

This is a drug refined from the highly toxic Jianxue Fenghou. It is colorless and odorless. Once it enters the body, it disappears without a trace. The poisoned person eventually died of heart failure.This poison came from a foreign land, and it is rare in the Central Plains. Her own son Emperor Xiaoyi was also poisoned by this poison 20 years ago.

The current group of imperial physicians were rearranged after Emperor Xixi came to power, so it's not surprising if they don't know!

"The Ai family knows that you have tried your best, so get up and wait outside the hall first, no matter who asks, you can't talk about it."

"Yes, Empress Dowager!" If all the doctors were granted amnesty, and they couldn't even find out the cause of the emperor, what else could they say.

The empress dowager waved everyone away and sat on the edge of the bed.Once upon a time, she also sent away her husband and relatives like this, but today's situation is different.

"Back then you poisoned the first emperor with the same poison, and finally blamed it on a congenital genetic disease." The empress dowager said with a sigh, "Don't be dissatisfied. If you hadn't done it before, how would you have ended up like this today!"

Although Emperor Xixi couldn't move his body at this moment, he could clearly perceive everything in the outside world. Hearing what the Empress Dowager said, no matter how hard he struggled and exerted himself, his yellowed eyes widened, he could no longer speak, and could only listen to himself. The sound of heavy breathing became faster and faster.

He has been occupying the throne for 20 years, and he has made countless calculations, defending left and right, but he did not expect that once he was plotted against, no matter the imperial power or military power, he would be unable to save his life.

In his life, he has become a woman and lost a woman!

"You didn't expect it either!" The empress dowager smiled sadly, and sighed again, "The Ai family watched you grow up, and once treated you as their own, but you, for the sake of an emperor, did not hesitate to mutilate your siblings, kill you My dear son! Now that your retribution has arrived, you should have experienced a thing or two of my son's pain back then."

In the end, the grief on the Empress Dowager's face was uncontrollable. The long-cherished wish for many years was finally fulfilled, but there was a kind of sadness in her heart that she couldn't bear for a while. They were all close relatives of the royal family, and they finally ended up like this. No matter how much you hate, you will still feel guilty at this moment, ashamed of your dead husband!

After another half hour, Emperor Xixi stared wide-eyed, his pupils gradually dilated, and finally let go unwillingly.

The empress dowager took one last look at him silently, her expression returning to the original one.

"Queen Mother!" Aunt Su had come back, glanced at the body on the dragon bed, with no expression on her face, and presented a small note to the Queen Mother, "This is from the maid of the Luanfeng Palace. You have seen it for yourself."

After the empress dowager opened the note, her eyes narrowed slightly, she nodded with a happy expression, "It turns out that she has a candidate in her heart!"

Aunt Su didn't think about what the Empress Dowager said, and there was an urgent matter right now, "His Royal Highness is outside the palace at the moment, with some personal attendants, clamoring to come in to pay his respects to the Emperor, but fortunately, the slaves asked someone to stop him Come on, if he insists on breaking in, I'm afraid he won't be able to stop him for long!"

"He's not the prince yet, so he dares to be so arrogant?" The empress dowager frowned, "Have all the guards in the harem been arranged?"

"Due to limited time, we can't replace all of them, but at least half of them have been replaced, and the Hall of Mental Cultivation is guarded by the general himself, so the Queen Mother can rest assured."

The Empress Dowager nodded.She has lived in the palace for most of her life, and she still has some contacts in her hands. If the emperor dies, it will not be difficult to restrain the harem with her phoenix seal and majesty.

Although the eldest prince Feng Zhaohua does not have the status of a prince, as the eldest son, he still has the privilege of coming and going freely in the palace.Hearing the news from the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the afternoon, he didn't take it seriously at first, his old man is always strong, what big trouble will happen if he faints!Afterwards, the doctors from the entire imperial hospital came here almost all over, and the Hall of Mental Cultivation did not let anyone go, and no one in the palace could find out what happened. He guessed that things were not that simple, so he brought people over.

When he rushed to the outside of the hall, he saw a group of doctors kneeling on the steps, all dejected and silent, no matter how he roared and threatened, he would not say a word, but the weeping expression betrayed them.

Feng Zhaohua felt joy in his heart, could it be that the old man is really dying?

As the eldest son, although he does not have the title of prince, he has respected his son since ancient times, and the future throne will be his.After waiting outside the hall for a while, Feng Zhaohua was very anxious, and then he remembered that if any prince came earlier than him and went in to see his father, there might be changes.

After thinking about it, he clamored to go in to see the emperor, what was going on inside, he had to see it with his own eyes to be at ease!

"Bold, who is making noise outside?" Aunt Su sternly stepped out while supporting the Empress Dowager with her right hand.

In the harem, most of the time, Aunt Su's words represent the empress dowager's words, and with her long experience in the palace, those noble lords have to respect her three points.Aunt Su yelled in a loud voice, but there was complete silence on the spot.

At this time, not only the eldest prince was waiting outside the palace, but also the queen, and some concubines led the young prince to rush over. They all saluted when they saw the empress dowager coming out.

The empress dowager's expression was dignified, more solemn than before, and there was nothing wrong with it. Ren Feng Zhaohua couldn't guess what was going on inside for a while, and couldn't help being impatient, "Grandma, my father fell ill. Beside him..."

"You don't even listen to the words of the Ai family, what kind of filial piety can you show?" the empress dowager scolded, mercilessly.

"Grandson dare not, grandson is just... just worried about the father!" Feng Zhaohua couldn't grasp what was going on inside, and the empress dowager couldn't offend him, so he hurriedly explained.

The empress dowager narrowed her eyes, and glanced at everyone present from the corner of her eye, "The weather has been dry and hot lately, and the eldest prince is inevitably a little upset and overly nervous. Come, send His Highness the eldest prince back to Guangyang Palace to rest!"

The person who ordered the empress dowager at the scene was an infantry general. He received the empress dowager's order to enter the palace in the afternoon. He was to guard the safety of the harem. He was a general with the title of general. He had also held some duties in the palace and held the empress dowager's order. However, it is not difficult to pick out the guards who obey your orders from the 1 Janissaries.He was originally a member of the empress dowager's natal family, and he was more loyal to the empress dowager than the emperor. As long as he was the empress dowager, no matter whether he was a prince or a prince, he would still carry out orders.

And the entourage brought by the eldest prince is only mediocre, and it is an order from the empress dowager, how dare he really resist!

"Grandma Huang! Grandson didn't mean to offend. I was really anxious because I cared about the dragon body of my father..."

Everyone saw that His Royal Highness was directly driven away by the Empress Dowager, and saw a group of guards walking around him. There were so many people, and they executed it neatly and mercilessly. The others didn't dare to make a sound!

The empress dowager looked at the queens, concubines and princes below her steps, sighed for a long time, and told about the sudden death of Emperor Xixi tonight.

Empress Si stood there in panic, neither happy nor worried, and there were no tears streaming down her face, and she couldn't believe it.After the former empress was abolished, she entered the palace only five years ago. She gave birth to two little princesses and no prince. What kind of mother-child relationship is there!Now that the emperor dies, no matter who succeeds her, her status will only be promoted.

And those concubines wept with the little prince, court ladies and eunuchs, as well as the imperial physicians who had already known the result, but how many of them really wept for Emperor Xixi's death, I don't know!

At that time, in the spring of the 20th year of Xixi, Emperor Xixi passed away due to illness in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. There was no crown prince registered and no will left. The empress dowager was the last person to meet the emperor. It is said that Emperor Xixi left an oral order.

The collapse of the emperor, no matter for the harem, the court, or even the Great Chen, is a shocking event.The imperial palace has entered into a state of complete blockade, fearing that something will get out of control and cause an irreparable situation. When the morning dawns, the empress dowager will officially declare the world and establish a new monarch.

On such a night, no one in the palace is destined to sleep.

"Princess!" Niyiyi quickly walked into the wing room outside the Luanfeng Palace. As soon as the news of the emperor's death came out, people in the palace panicked, but she saw the master calmly, leaning on a soft chair to read a book.

Feng Wuyang looked at the night outside the window, before the night passed, the night was still long.

"Nowadays there is no leader among the dragons in Dachen, and there must be one person who will ascend to the throne of God." Niyiyi asked the words that had been on her mind all along, "Princess, have you ever thought about ascending the throne as emperor?"

Feng Wuyang was a little startled, and didn't answer her right away, but closed the book, put it back on the shelf of the bookcase, and picked out a pamphlet from it.

In this less than a moment, Ni Yiyi felt that a long time had passed, and when she was so anxious that she almost beat her chest and stomped her feet, the princess turned to face her eyes, "I asked sister Ni three questions, and we will come back later Say it."

"Excuse me, princess."

"Why does sister Ni think that I should be emperor?"

"Since ancient times in China, there has been no shortage of princesses who inherit the throne. Princesses are talented, calm in dealing with things, and have the heart to protect the country and love the people. If they can be emperors and govern with generosity, they will surely help the world and the people."

"If I were emperor, how many people in the court would support me?"

Niyiyi was slightly taken aback.

This is the difference between the Jianghu and the court. In the Jianghu, maybe force can solve everything, but in the court, it is about strategy, connections, and political capital.

After being silent for a long time, Ni Yiyi said: "The princess comes from the lineage of Emperor Xiaoyi. She has a pure blood and a distinguished status. Who dares to say that she has no qualifications to inherit. In the palace, the princess has the empress dowager, the army has the generals who rule the country, and there is the world in the rivers and lakes." The First Pavilion, Fengyun Villa, the King of the Southern Realm and the father and son generals of the Mu Mansion will definitely support you, isn't this capital enough to hold down all the officials in the court?"

She answered this remark very cleverly, and it seemed reasonable.

Feng Wuyang kept smiling and remained silent. After she finished answering the second question, she said: "As a king, one should conquer the world with benevolence, rule the world with virtue, and strengthen the world with etiquette. I can't even do the first point. If I What I did today was only to seize the throne, so what is the difference from the emperor's uncle back then? It is beyond my power to play tricks in the court and give advice!" Without waiting for Ni Yiyi to speak, he asked the third question, " If I can find someone who is more suitable than me to be called emperor, would Sister Ni be willing to help me in the future?"

"Impossible!" Ni Yiyi categorically affirmed without even thinking about it, and analyzed them one by one, "The first prince is cunning and cunning, the second prince is weak and incompetent, the fifth prince is mentally retarded, the ninth prince is brutal, and the other little princes are too young. , Dachen’s political situation is now in a period of turmoil, if you ascend the throne in a troubled world, it will be a waste of time!”

"Sister Ni ignored the Tenth Prince!"

"The tenth prince?" After being reminded, Ni Yiyi recalled, "You mean the tenth prince who was thrown into limbo by Emperor Xixi together with his biological mother, and was stripped of his family status. He is only... twelve or thirteen years old. Strictly speaking, he is no longer a prince."

"Because Xiaosheng's birth date and the emperor's horoscope contradicted each other, he was declared by the previous high priest to be the reincarnation of a disaster star, with the fate of overcoming his father, so he was scruples, and he found a reason to punish his biological mother. Sheng has also been thrown into the cold palace. Although his identity has been abolished, blood is thicker than water, and Xiao Sheng is a descendant of the Feng family after all."

Niyiyi looked at the serious expression of the princess, it seemed that she really planned to support the tenth prince who was born unlucky, but this was slightly different from her expectation, the person she hoped to help was the princess!

She did not make this decision hastily.When she was in the southern border, she once talked about this issue to Gong Ziling, who was supposed to know the princess best. Gong Ziling said at the time, "Wuyang was taught by the empress dowager since he was a child, and he was taught by virtuous and famous ministers. The political skills are not weak. When she grew up, she lived in Mufu. The old man taught her the way of military science, and Wuyang was even better at it. She was no worse than her. In our free time, the two of us would fight against sand dunes and stones. In the play, the winners and losers are evenly divided. Ziling only recognizes such a princess with independent thinking and firm will, with a gentle and martial arts strategy."

However, they did not realize that the princess herself has no ambition to become emperor!

Niyiyi pondered for a moment, then said: "Princess, I also ask you three questions, and we will talk about other things later, how about it?"

Feng Wuyang pursed her lips and smiled, "Sister Ni, may I ask?"

"How much does the princess know about the Tenth Prince?"

"I don't know much about it." Feng Wuyang said truthfully, got up and pushed open the east window of the house. The palace lights outside were bright, and the breeze blew the shadows of the branches. At that time, he was only a four-year-old child, but he was very proud. In the winter, he would rather drink ice and snow than ask those snobbish palace maids and eunuchs! Out of sympathy, I begged Aunt Su to take care of him in the harem. As for the mother and son, later Grandma Huang also arranged for him to come to Ci'an Palace every now and then, so as to impart knowledge."

"After so many years, when the tenth prince was still young, how can the princess judge that the tenth prince has the talent to inherit the great line?"

"Because I believe in Grandma Huang and Aunt Su." When Feng Wuyang said this, his eyes shone with a different kind of light, "Sister Ni, you don't need to answer me right away, you can tell me after you meet Xiaosheng!"

"How can a son who has been stripped of his clan status be placed in the ranks of princes with status to win the submission of all the court officials?"

"It's not difficult to help Xiaosheng regain his identity," Feng Wuyang said with a relaxed look on his pretty face, "In fact, all the princes, including the eldest prince, have no status and no real power. As a result, the princes have been strictly ordered to have personal relationships with all the officials over the years, lest they seek the throne. As for the eldest son, since the generation of the father, he has begun to use the prince's own benevolence, virtue, and ability to choose an heir. A direct heir. Since this is the case, except for their age differences, everyone’s starting point is almost the same. If Xiao Sheng has the empress dowager’s personal support and the emperor’s dying words, who would dare not follow?”

"But..." After asking three questions, Niyiyi still couldn't convince her, so she couldn't help being a little discouraged, "It's too risky for the princess to do this! Why don't you—"

"We don't have much time, so there's no need for extra problems!" Feng Wuyang knew what Ni Yiyi wanted to say, "Da Chen has never had a female emperor ascend the throne since the founding of the country, and those old courtiers are pedantic and old-fashioned, how can they easily submit to a woman? The court will only fall apart, if we can't concentrate on dealing with Queen Mobei, what chance do we have of winning?"

Niyiyi frowned and remained silent.

The princess' concerns are not unreasonable, for the sake of the overall situation, and to avoid civil strife.The last sentence reminded her that their purpose was to stop the Mobei army from advancing towards Dachen's territory. If they can save Dachen from the fire and water this time, what does it matter who is the emperor?On the contrary, she seemed to have lost her composure. When the supreme power was in front of her eyes, whether as a subordinate or as a friend, she hoped that the person who ascended the throne would be the princess.

She has been lost before she is in the center of power, let alone these children who were born in the royal family!

After thinking about it, Niyiyi's eyes became much clearer, she cupped her hands to Feng Wuyang and said: "Everything is done according to the princess's instructions, I don't know what the princess plans to do next?"

I don't know when, maybe after returning to the palace, Feng Wuyang's autonomy became stronger, and Ni Yiyi gradually took Feng Wuyang's words and decisions as orders, but the relationship between the two as friends and masters became somewhat inexplicable , but changes within reason.

Feng Wuyang looked out of the window, "We have already done what we should do. If we can get through the night safely, we will wait until dawn to see if Grandma Huang can overcome all difficulties and send Xiao Sheng to the throne!"

"If the Tenth Prince can successfully ascend to the throne, then because he is still young, a regent will have to take charge..." Ni Yiyi raised her eyebrows at this point, "The power is in the hands of the empress dowager. Which one is sent to be regent, this person must not be too bad!"

Feng Wuyang smiled, her demeanor was extremely charming, "Grandma Huang has a great mind, she has far-reaching thoughts, she is worried about the world's worries, and she has a firm will that is different from others. If she is in control of the court, who among the officials dare to speak out?" No word, the soldiers also have confidence in fighting on the front line."

Niyiyi was about to say something, but was interrupted by a loud noise from outside.

The voice came from the east gate. Looking out of the window, they saw the flames of explosives bursting out. The two of them felt tense, and the worrying thing still happened.

At this moment, a palace lady ran in with a panicked expression, before she could catch her breath or salute, she hurriedly said: "Princess, something is wrong. Also, blasted the palace gate and broke in!"

Feng Wuyang was stunned for a moment, "How many people are here?"

"Returning to the princess, I heard that from Wu Shangdao to the east gate, there was a dense mass of people. I can't count how many people came, and they defeated the imperial army in one fell swoop. At least... there must be 3 or [-] people!"

"1000 to [-] troops?" Feng Wuyang thought for a moment that even the mansions of the prince's mansion and the marquis' mansion in Beijing are only [-] to [-] people according to the law, and even if they add up, they are no more than [-] people.Where did this army come from? If it came from outside the capital, why was it stopped outside the gate of the palace?

Ni Yiyi also had this concern, she met Feng Wuyang's eyes, and the two started walking out at the same time.