History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 460 The Monarch and His Ministers Break Off Their Relationship
Before Zhao Zhi even reached the Shiqian Hall, she saw that the Imperial Guards were on high alert, with twice the usual number. Yuan Yao bowed to her from a distance, and she asked, "Why are you on guard here, Commander?"

When a change occurred in the palace, the position of "Leader of the Left and Right" was supposed to be the one to protect the emperor closely, but strictly speaking, this place was outside the Shiqian Hall.

Yuan Yao replied in a deep voice, "It was His Majesty's order."

Zhao Zhi didn't ask any more questions. She turned the corner of the palace wall, and Prince Rencheng appeared, clearly waiting for her on purpose.

Yuan Cheng coughed lightly first.

Zhao Zhi understood, and with just a wave of her hand, the guards on both sides stepped aside, none daring to disobey her.

Yuan Cheng quickly reminded him: "Two things... Prince Xie killed Wang Xian and sent his head here. When the late emperor was seriously ill, it was Yuan Yao and Prince Xie who attended to him together."

Zhao Zhi understood: "His Majesty also suspects Yuan Yao, which is why he transferred him away?"

“I suspect so.” Prince Rencheng cautioned, “Also, Prince Xie will definitely send more than just Wang Xian’s head. Be careful in dealing with him later.”

Zhao Zhi nodded.

The two entered the main hall.

Prince Yuan Yu of Jingzhao and Prince Yuan Huai of Guangping stood to the left of the emperor, while General Yang Daye stood to the right. The guards in the hall were all sons of the imperial family and meritorious officials, all young and strong, including Xi Jiao.

The emperor's face was grim. He glanced at Zhao Zhi and Yuan Cheng, but said nothing.

This means that more ministers are coming.

Sure enough, a short while later, Prince Qinghe, Yuan Yi, entered the palace with General Yuan Chang of the Northern Army and Governor Yuan Shouxing of Xuzhou.

These two ministers from the imperial clan, let's start with Yuan Shouxing. He was known for his intelligence from a young age, but unfortunately he had a feud with Wang Xian in his early years, which is why he was always serving in local positions.

Yuan Chang's resume is remarkable! He not only led troops to repel the Rouran invasions several times, but also managed the affairs of the old capital before and after the relocation of the capital. Later, he pacified the north and followed Emperor Xiaowen on the southern expedition. He has accumulated many military achievements! Now, in addition to serving as the General of the Northern Army, Yuan Chang also serves as the Prefect of Hanoi Commandery.

The imperial court's most extensive horse breeding grounds covered the entire Hanoi region!
Zhao Zhicai returned to the capital, not understanding what the sudden appearance of Yuan Shouxing and Yuan Chang meant. However, she noticed that Prince Rencheng gave Prince Qinghe a disapproving look. It was clear that Prince Qinghe had secretly carried out the order to recall Yuan Shouxing and Yuan Chang to the capital, and Prince Rencheng, who was in charge of the court discussions, was unaware of it.

If the Prince of Rencheng did not receive the news in advance, then his daughter, Wei Yao, was very likely unaware as well, and was also suspected by the emperor.

The last minister to arrive was Yuan Yu, the Prince of Guangling. Judging from the dirt and wrinkles on his clothes, he had gone to climb over the wall again tonight.

The emperor was angry that Yuan Yu was not capable of being trusted, but he was also the least wary of him, so he summoned, "Fourth Uncle, come to me."

"Yes." Yuan Yu lowered his head and listened to the order. Even in such a serious situation, he still held a grudge. When he pushed his nephew Yuan Yu aside, he deliberately stepped on the other's foot.

The emperor glanced at his ministers and explained why he had summoned them tonight: "The Grand Tutor has sent me more than ten serious crimes committed by Wang Xian, the Prefect of Xiangzhou. Wang Xian has already been executed, but the Grand Tutor is furious and wants to punish Wang Xian's entire clan. However, since the criminal law was amended in the sixteenth year of the Taihe era, the severe punishment of exterminating three clans cannot be easily carried out. Therefore, I have summoned you here to review Wang Xian's crimes and discuss a method that will satisfy the Grand Tutor and strike a balance between leniency and severity."

After saying that, he pointed to the documents on his desk and ordered, "Zhao Zhi, show them to them."

Since all matters of state are now under the jurisdiction of Prince Rencheng, Zhao Zhi could not hesitate and had to hand it over to Prince Rencheng first.

Yuan Cheng read it carefully, the candlelight illuminating the beads of sweat that were gradually forming on his forehead.

The document first mentions that Wang Xian was arrogant and domineering. Ostensibly a royal physician, he secretly colluded with displaced people and bandits, turning them into spies to monitor officials, and used the emperor's power to frame virtuous ministers...

What worried Yuan Cheng was not these crimes, but rather Wang Xian's subsequent confession. While at the old palace in Pingcheng, Wang Xian, along with the white-clad guard Zhao Xiu, bribed the eunuch "Shuang San Nian," who served Emperor Xiaowen, resulting in the deposition of Empress Xiao Feng and the restoration of Empress You's favor with Emperor Xiaowen, allowing her to seize the position of Empress. The document further stated that Empress You's power enabled her to take advantage of Emperor Xiaowen's southern campaign to send a sorceress into the palace to cast a spell, causing Emperor Xiaowen to fall seriously ill and ultimately die.

Therefore, Wang Xian's crimes are so grave that his entire clan should be exterminated!
Sweat dripped into Yuan Cheng's eyes. He thought, let alone the scheming Wang Xian, even the foolish Zhao Xiu would never dare to take it upon himself to bribe Shuang San Nian and form an alliance with Empress You.

There is only one possibility: this secret matter was assigned by the current emperor, Yuan Ke, back then!

In other words, on that night in the twentieth year of the Taihe era, the knife that Empress You extended towards Empress Wenzhao Gao Zhaorong was stained with Yuan Ke's sins.

The memorial recorded not Wang Xian's crimes, but the Emperor's crimes of harming his mother!
Yuan Cheng further speculated that all the officials who read the documents tonight might become pawns in the power struggle between the emperor and the Grand Tutor.

No, a scapegoat!

"Minister of Works," the emperor urged Yuan Cheng. Yuan Cheng snapped out of his reverie.

Prince Yuan Yi of Qinghe, who was standing next to him, reached out to take the document.

Yuan Cheng hesitated for a moment, then did something that shocked both the emperor and his ministers!
The Secretariat.

During the day, Wei Yao handled government affairs in the Xibai Hall, and could only spare time at night to decide on the memorials submitted by the various departments.

The moon hangs high, the wind blows low.

The sound of footsteps broke the tranquility.

"Minister of State, please come with us to the Shiqian Hall." The people who came were all guards, some of whom Wei Yao knew, and some were strangers.

She put on her official hat and asked as she walked, "What happened?"

"I don't know."

There were two guards outside the office, one of whom was Xi Jiao. With so many people around, Xi Jiao could only remind her, "The road is dark, Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, please be careful."

Arrive at the Qian Hall.

As soon as Wei Yao stepped across the threshold, she heard the sound of objects breaking, followed by the screams of her attendants and eunuchs.

Wei Yao took three steps at a time and saw the emperor lying on the couch. She immediately pushed aside the crowd and stood in front of the couch.

Fortunately, Imperial Physician Cui was there and quickly administered acupuncture, which slightly restored the emperor's pale complexion.

"What's wrong? What has caused His Majesty to fall ill with worry?" she asked sternly.

The emperor awoke, tapped her sleeve twice on the side of her robe draped over the couch, and said, "Wei Yao, stay."

After the guards had all left, Yuan Ke sat up and asked, "Did you know that Yuan Xie sent Wang Xian's head to me?"

Wei Yao knelt down with a thud and admitted, "Your subject knows."

“My Shiqian Palace and Taiji Palace are now exposed like sieves,” Yuan Ke sneered.

Wei Yao immediately defended himself: "I dare not plant spies in the Shiqian Hall or Taiji Hall! When the Grand Tutor sent something to Your Majesty, I dared not fail to investigate. That is why I checked the items sent when the postman entered the palace gate and found only a head and a memorial."

Every moment of silence felt like a crumbling mountain crushing down on Wei Yao.

"Get up." Yuan Ke sighed, pointed to the imperial desk, and said, "Yuan Cheng tore up the memorial, but he can still piece it back together. After you finish reading it, I will ask you questions."

"Yes." When Wei Yao stood up, she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, removing the sweat from her eyes. When she put her hand down, no one could tell whether the watery eyes in her reddened eyes were tears or sweat.

Although the memorial was in pieces, it was not too difficult to piece it together. After piecing it together and reading it, Wei Yao immediately guessed the general reason for the emperor's relapse... Through Wang Xian's confession, the Prince of Pengcheng found out the emperor's past relationship with Empress You. Once the Prince of Pengcheng spread the contents of the memorial, the emperor would be unable to shake off the suspicion of murdering his mother.

The Prince of Pengcheng's actions clearly indicate that he intends to break ties with the Emperor!

Wei Yao then pondered that if the emperor wanted to retaliate, he should first declare that the Prince of Pengcheng had committed a serious crime!
The Prince of Pengcheng was always cautious and made no mistakes, so the only explanation was a false accusation.

The most effective and quickest way to frame someone is to make the Prince of Pengcheng commit the same crime... murdering a close relative of the royal family!
The prince whom the emperor would choose as a "discarded pawn" must have a reputation for virtue and goodness.

One must hold a high official position and have prestige in the imperial court.

So the candidate is... Prince Qinghe, Yuan Yi?
However, a catalyst is still needed to make this happen.

Yuan Ke approached and took out another scroll of documents from the side of the desk.

Wei Yao took it and unfolded it. After seeing the contents clearly, she almost bit the flesh in her mouth to pieces.