[Hanwu] Attack and retreat

Liu Che and Chen Xu came back with a group of people with great fanfare. They had no intention of guarding against the Queen Mother, and once they entered the city, they asked the guards at the city gate to inform Queen Mother Dou of their return.

White cloths were hung everywhere in the city to pay homage to the former emperor. Liu Che, dressed in plain clothes, rode his horse into the palace, and went to deal with the Queen Mother Dou alone.

Chen Xu did not enter the palace together, but instead went to an inn. "I asked you to notify those ministers, are they all here?"

"Chen Wu said everything has arrived."

"Hmm..." Liu Che's battlefield is inside the palace, and his battlefield is outside the palace. "My eloquence is not very good, I wonder if I can persuade these ministers."

"The son is humble."

Chen Xu entered his own inn, entered the wing room, and saw several ministers under the emperor sitting there.They are all old foxes now, but Chen Xu still clearly saw a trace of panic flashing in their eyes, although it was fleeting, it also showed that the emperor did not tell them about the fraudulent death.

"Are you safe?" Chen Xu smiled, and said to Chen San who was beside him, "Go make a pot of good tea, and bring some snacks."

"No need." One of the ministers immediately said: "The prince returned safely, and he should return to Princess Tao's mansion in Guantao. We still have important things to do..."

"What important matter can compare to the emperor?" Chen Xu blocked the door calmly. "As important officials of the court, if someone fakes an imperial decree, don't you care?"

"What?" The ministers were shocked, and then they seemed to think of something, and said again: "We don't know what you are talking about, what fake imperial edict? The emperor has passed away, and we have not seen any fake imperial edict." It was clear that he didn't want to stand on Liu Che's side. Even if Liu Che came back safely, there would be very few ministers in the court who could support him, who hadn't started his skills yet, right?

"The emperor's death was originally a false edict." Chen Xu sighed secretly in his heart, and said: "You know what the emperor's body is like, how could he die suddenly? What's more, it's the time when the prince is leaving the palace."

The heads of several ministers were buzzing from Chen Xu's first sentence.

"You mean... Your Majesty, Your Majesty, is he alright?" The expressions of several ministers suddenly changed, and the panic in their eyes was suddenly dispersed by a ray of hope.

"Yes." Chen Xu said: "The emperor knows that the queen mother wants to instigate rebellion, so he must be prepared."

"Wait a minute, how did you find out?" The minister wondered, "Didn't you go to the disaster relief with the prince?"

"Could it be the emperor's order?" Another minister said: "I think it's strange that the emperor suddenly sent the prince to rescue the disaster... Wait, didn't the prince also be killed?"

"Since I came back alive, what do you think?" Chen Xu nodded to the ministers, and motioned for them to sit down and talk slowly. "Now the queen mother thinks she is in power, and no one can shake her position. Should we think of a way?"

Several ministers were not satisfied with Chen Xu's wishes, they only asked: "Where is the emperor now?"

"The emperor is in a very safe place."

"Although the son came back alive, we have to doubt what the son said." Several ministers exchanged glances and said, "If you haven't seen the emperor, what you say will be in vain."

Chen Xu also felt that what he said was empty words, and without evidence, he could not explain anything, so he nodded and said, "After the matter is settled, the emperor will naturally appear."

"The funeral papers outside have been hung up for a few days." The minister said: "The jade seal is also in the hands of the queen mother. If the emperor really planned this, how will it end?"

"That's right, the most important thing is the jade seal. If the emperor had planned it...how could he hand over the jade seal to the queen mother?"

Because Empress Dowager Dou moved so fast, the emperor didn't even have time to put away the jade seal, so it was naturally found by Empress Dowager Dou after hiding it in the palace.But... "Didn't I say it before? Could it be that I am getting older and have a bad memory? The jade seal in the Queen Mother's hand is indeed a fake."

Several ministers looked at Chen Xu with the expression of "you blow it, you blow it again".

Chen Xu said: "The real jade seal is in the hands of the prince. The prince has gone to the palace to find the queen mother. If you still don't believe it, when the prince falls into the hands of the queen mother, the real jade seal will naturally become the queen mother's trophy."

"The prince is going to throw himself into the trap?" A minister sneered.

"The crown prince is naturally not alone." Chen Xu's sharp eyes swept over the faces of the people present, and said, "Could it be that you want to watch the queen mother kill the king and seize the throne, even your own grandson?"

Several ministers looked at each other here.

"If these are all true, the first thing the crown prince comes back is to find us. How can he go to the queen mother alone?"

"That's right, now that the prince has entered the palace, what can we do?"

"If the crown prince really does this, the queen mother will take all of you with her." Chen Xu said: "The queen mother has already known that the prince is safe, and has already made preparations. If the prince comes to you first, she will be caught on the spot and detained at will. A crime of murdering the emperor and secretly seizing the throne... The prince entered the palace first to stabilize the queen mother, and the queen mother will definitely concentrate on dealing with the prince."

"……and then?"

"Then we are going to save the prince." Chen Xu spread his hands. "The prince went directly to the palace to find the queen mother. There is only one way for the queen mother to get rid of the prince openly."

"Just to prove that the prince is a fake?"

"True or false, only the winner has the final say." Chen Xu said: "If the emperor who has no jade seal rushes into the palace now, the queen mother will use the same means, don't you think?"

It seems so reasonable, but... "How do we save the prince?"

"Do you really want to assist the prince?" Seeing that the ministers finally wavered, Chen Xu breathed a sigh of relief, then raised his chin, and said, "This matter is no small matter, if you hold the prince back..."

"You came to us, didn't you just want us to help?" One of the ministers smiled and said: "If what you said is true, the prince must have prepared his troops, after all, it takes a lot to rush into the palace. people."

Chen Xu didn't feel embarrassed when he was exposed, he just smiled and said, "Sure enough, Jiang is still old and spicy."

"If this is really arranged by the prince, what excuse do we old men have for not being with us to the end?"

The prince has always been mediocre, and they don't feel much. Although the prince has worked very hard in recent years and has gradually started to participate in politics, they always feel that the prince lacks something. Now it seems that the only thing missing is this vigorous and resolute way of doing things.

"During the disaster relief, the prince recovered a group of victims." Chen Xu explained: "The imperial army team that originally belonged to the prince has also been arranged to enter the palace as an internal response. We rushed into the palace under the guise of rescue, which is reasonable. And reasonable."

"What are you waiting for?"

Putting down Chen Xu and finally persuaded several ministers, and began to arrange the manpower to enter the palace without mentioning it. As soon as Liu Che entered the palace gate, he went straight to Weiyang Palace.Empress Dowager Dou was lying halfway on a couch, and Wei Zifu was chattering beside her, and he didn't salute Liu Che when he came in, but gave him a look without hesitation.

Liu Che said: "I'm really surprised to hear that the crown prince died."

"The prince is indeed dead. As for you... your head will fall soon." Queen Dowager Dou lazily said, "Pretending to be the prince is an unforgivable crime."

"Queen Dowager, calm down." Wei Zifu hurriedly comforted him: "The Queen Mother has just lost the emperor and the crown prince, and it's a time when I feel uncomfortable. Don't get mad over such a trivial matter."

Empress Dowager Dou nodded, and said to Liu Che: "Do you think that you entered Weiyang Palace smoothly because you pretended to be? It's just that I want to know who this fake prince is."

"The prince is very handsome. This person is much worse than the prince." Wei Zifu said: "I have been with the prince for so long, and I can't be more clear. Queen Mother, this person is definitely not the prince."

Liu Che watched the two sing along, and kept complaining in his heart.It's too late to raise your hand to lose him and the emperor to be happy, mad?What surprised her was yet to come.As for this Wei Zifu... what happened?Why didn't he know that he and Wei Zifu got along day and night?

"But I haven't seen it in a short time, and the queen mother is good at turning right and wrong." Liu Che retorted. "Father's obituary has only been posted for a few days, and he has already moved into Weiyang Palace. His heart can be seen."

"Bold." Wei Zifu waved his hand and pointed at Liu Che. "You pretended to be the prince and slandered the queen mother."

"I don't know who gave you the courage." Liu Che patted his robes and sat down on a chair beside him. "However, even the Empress Dowager will be punished if she falsely preaches the imperial decree."

The Empress Dowager stared at her immediately.

Liu Che showed the smile he learned from Chen Xu, looking pure and innocent, exuding a warm smell, but the words he said were enough to make people feel scared. "If you kneel down and beg for mercy now, I might make your faces look better."

"You!" Wei Zifu stared at Liu Che with wide eyes, but Empress Dowager Dou waved her hand to make Wei Zifu retreat behind.She herself sat up from the couch and looked at Liu Che.Liu Che rushed back in a hurry, his face was still tired, but his eyes were shining like stars.

Feeling Liu Che's different aura than before, the corner of Queen Dowager Dou's mouth also evoked a smile. "You think you are a prince?"

Liu Che raised his eyebrows.

"Hmph, if I say you are the prince, you are the prince. If I say you are not the prince, you are not the prince." Queen Dowager Dou patted the couch. "Come here, put this person in prison."

A group of people pushed the door open, but instead of arresting Liu Che, they all stood beside him.

Wei Zifu and Queen Mother Dou immediately felt the full malice from the guards.