knife

Chapter 600 Only a Swift Victory
Xiong Shoucheng's legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground. He struggled several times but couldn't get up. He could only support himself with his hands and crawl to the two children who were lying on the ground.

Xiong Kuo is dead.

From the outside, there was nothing wrong with Xiong Kuo lying on the ground. He seemed to be asleep, but his face was a little pale.

But the person wasn't breathing.

The other child lying next to Xiong Kuo was from the Xiang family, and his condition was exactly the same as Xiong Kuo's.

Xiong Shoucheng looked up at the other two children, who were huddled together, trembling, one of them holding chopsticks.

If it was poisoning, how could two people be poisoned while the other two were perfectly fine after eating the same food?

"No one here is allowed to leave! No, no, no, seal off the palace!" Xiong Shoucheng roared.

Regardless, Xiong Shoucheng had served as Grand Secretary for several years.

Or perhaps he lacks the shrewdness and ruthlessness to get things done.
But they are by no means lacking in knowledge.

The Great Chu was already in a state of turmoil.

Danyang and Yong'an were attacking each other.
One side claims that Jiang Qian is a demonic witch who murdered the late emperor and plotted treason.

The other side says that Xiang Ying plotted to usurp the throne, and that the Xiang clan would replace the Xiong clan.

The two sides engaged in a heated verbal battle.

These mutual accusations are actually baseless; they're all just empty words.

Jiang Qian is the Holy Maiden of the Demonic Sect. She poisoned the late emperor. To ordinary people, this is a very fantastical thing, and most people probably don't believe it.

In fact, most people believe another version of events: that Xiang Ying and Xiong Yi were unwilling to let the Empress Dowager hold power, so they launched a coup and overthrew her rule.

In the end, such matters are usually resolved by force. Whoever wins the fight and achieves final victory will have the victor write the facts.

Calling black white, and the dead alive;

The writing style is masterful and elegant.

No one will say much about it.

Over time,
What is fake then becomes real.

What is real can also become fake.

But now, it's different.

The young emperor is dead!
He died in the heavily guarded palace.

Who was the biggest murderer of the emperor?
With the help of several guards, Xiong Shoucheng managed to sit down on a brocade stool.

Staring blankly at Xiong Kuo lying on the ground, tears streamed down her face again.

He had feelings for the child.

Just moments ago, a living, breathing person was following me around, answering my questions; now, that person is a cold, lifeless corpse.

He simply couldn't accept this fact. Xiang Ying and Xiong Yi also couldn't accept it.

Na Wei, of course, found it even more unacceptable.

Could it be that his daughter has become a widow before even getting married?
The room was dead silent.

The guards outside didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

"His Majesty died of poisoning!" The imperial physician was trembling all over.

"Do you need to tell me that?" Xiang Ying said with a dark face, "Three eunuchs and two palace maids committed suicide in the palace. Although we haven't found any clues about Ren Bao or any connection between them so far, there is no doubt that His Majesty's death is related to them. I just want to know how His Majesty was poisoned!"

Xiong Kuo's poisoning is too strange.

"This method of poisoning is truly unbelievable. I only heard my master mention it many years ago when we were chatting. And the only family in Changchun Valley outside the pass who knows this method is Changchun Valley!"

"Li Dachui!" Xiang Ying roared to the sky.

"How exactly did they do it?"

"The food His Majesty eats every day is actually problematic; it's been laced with other substances. However, each of these substances, individually, is non-toxic and even beneficial to the body, so the palace's poison testing methods can't detect it," the imperial physician explained. "But after His Majesty has eaten it for several days in a row, the residue from these substances accumulates in his body, immediately producing a reaction that transforms into a deadly poison."

"Why are the people who did the food tasting unharmed?"

"The eunuchs who tasted the food for three days weren't the same person; they changed every day!" Xiong Shoucheng gritted his teeth. "Xiang Yun has been with the Emperor for the past three days, eating and sleeping together, so she was also poisoned. Xiong Chao and Zhou Zhe didn't come yesterday, so they escaped. If this poisoning method came from Changchun Valley, then it must be related to Li Dachui, and the person who ordered the poisoning is naturally Jiang Qian, that poisonous woman, actually doing such a thing to a child!"

"The emperor is dead, what should we do next?" Na Wei said in a deep voice. "My daughter can't marry a dead man!"

Xiang Ying glanced at him and said, "That general said your daughter would be the empress, so she will definitely be the empress. If this emperor dies, then another emperor will be installed. That's all!"

Xiong Yi took a deep breath and said, "This matter must be kept absolutely secret during this period. Not a single word can be leaked out."

“The problem is, even if we don’t say anything, they will definitely spread the word that His Majesty has passed away and will falsely accuse us of the murder. If the Emperor cannot come forward, wouldn’t that confirm their claim?” Zhou Zheng said.

"Emperors rarely showed their faces in the past!" Xiang Ying said calmly. "It's normal for them not to show their faces now. Anyone who dares to spread rumors should try to see if their neck is tough or their knife is sharp! The court only needs to refute these rumors through normal procedures. As for His Majesty, he's just a child, it's normal for him to get sick sometimes. In the coming days, Shoucheng will continue to enter the palace as usual!"

Xiong Shoucheng nodded silently.

"Then the conquest of Yong'an must be accelerated. We must resolve the issues of Yong'an and Ruyin County as quickly as possible. As long as we win this battle, His Majesty's death due to illness will not be a big deal, and we can calmly establish a new emperor!" Xiong Yi said.

"That's exactly right!" Xiang Ying said, "We can make more concessions to He Zudao. If we agree to let him win this battle, we can give him Yong'an and Ruyin. If he is willing to publicly submit to our Great Chu, we can even make him a king!"

"I'm afraid this matter can't be kept from him!" Zhou Zheng said.

"Now he has no choice but to stand with us, so there's nothing to worry about in telling him the truth!" Xiang Ying said. "I believe that knowing this will actually make him more cooperative with us, because he knows very well that if we can't hold on, he'll be the first to fail! As for the strategist..."

Na Chuan nodded: "Three days later, 30,000 Southwest Wolf Soldiers will set off from Lujiang County to launch an attack on Ruyin."

"Xiang Zhuang will lead 20,000 elite troops to fight alongside you, and with He Zudao's army, you will have nearly 80,000 troops to attack Ruyin," Xiang Ying said. "I will lead another 20,000 troops straight to Yong'an, and Chen Yan will gather all the available naval forces to cooperate with me. In this battle, we must defeat the enemy with lightning speed!"

"I'm in Danyang, providing support from the center. Zhou Zheng is in charge of all logistics. Zhou Zheng, at this point, there's no need for any appeasement or winning people over. Everyone only has two choices: either fully support us or become our enemy!" Xiong Yi rarely revealed a murderous aura.

(End of this chapter)