Love Lock

Chapter 294 My Vast Empire
An unnamed rage burned within Da Shisan's chest.

He couldn't stand by and watch Consort Ru be humiliated, yet he couldn't just barge in. Just as he was caught in this dilemma, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from the courtyard gate.

A young eunuch rushed into the courtyard in a panic and headed straight for Li Zhongxin, the chief eunuch who was standing in the courtyard.

Da Shisan pricked up his ears and vaguely heard words like "emergency" and "Imperial Guard".

Li Zhongxin's face turned deathly pale instantly, but he looked at the tightly closed palace gates, rubbing his hands hesitantly, clearly indicating that the matter was urgent and he dared not disturb them rashly.

The thirteenth prince's eyes darted around, and a plan formed in his mind. He bent down, picked up a small pebble from the ground, aimed it at the young eunuch who had just entered the courtyard, and flicked his wrist—

"Ouch!" The little eunuch cried out, clutching the back of his head, drawing the attention of the surrounding guards.

"Who goes there!" Li Zhongxin shouted sharply, his shrill voice particularly jarring in the courtyard.

Da Shisan calmly stepped out of the shadows and knelt on one knee to pay his respects.

"Reporting to Steward Li, I just saw a stray cat dart by. Fearing it might disturb His Majesty and the Empress, I intended to shoo it away, but my hand slipped and I missed."

He kept his head down, but he could feel Li Zhongxin's suspicious gaze sweeping over him.

Just then, the palace gates opened, and Emperor Jing appeared at the door with a gloomy face, his voice filled with obvious anger: "What's all this commotion?"

Li Zhongxin was wondering how to alert Emperor Jing when he saw him come out, so he quickly bowed and reported.

"Your Majesty, an urgent military report has arrived from the Imperial Guards of the Front Palace! This servant is hesitating whether to..."

"Insolence!" Emperor Jing roared. "Military matters are urgent; how can we allow them to be delayed?"

He turned and glanced at Consort Ru inside the house, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes, but he still strode towards the courtyard gate, "Prepare the carriage to return to the palace!"

Upon hearing the urgent military news, Da Shisan's fingers, hidden in his sleeve, involuntarily twitched.

He had been lying low in the palace for many days, and finally the time had come when he could be put to use.

Emperor Jing's imperial carriage hurriedly turned around and returned to the Golden Palace. He bit his lip and decided to follow.

Since they were all dressed as palace guards, he became bolder, keeping his head down and blending in quietly at the back of the accompanying guards.

Outside the Golden Palace, the winter sun lazily shone on the white marble steps, but it couldn't warm the dozen or so imperial guards kneeling on the ground.

They were all junior officers in the Imperial Guard. It was impossible for all of the thousands of Imperial Guards to come to the Golden Palace to pay their respects to His Majesty, so their respective officers had to act as representatives.

Their armor was askew, their appearance disheveled, and their faces stained with dried blood; they trembled like a flock of crows battered by a downpour.

Da Shisan noticed that one of the men had half a withered leaf stuck to the sole of his boot, which he must have brought back from Wulipo during the retreat.

"Raise your head." Emperor Jing's dragon-patterned black boots stopped in front of the Imperial Guards at the front, his voice as cold as ice.

The soldier had just raised his pale face when Emperor Jing grabbed his chin.

"Why are my Imperial Guards behaving like stray dogs? Get them all inside!"

After speaking, Emperor Jing strode into the Golden Palace, and the Imperial Guards didn't dare to breathe. They got up, lowered their heads, and followed him into the hall.

After the chief eunuch Li Zhongxin went in, the door of the Golden Palace creaked shut.

As the guards stood a short distance outside the palace gate, Da Shisan, under the guise of adjusting his helmet, quietly moved half a step towards the crack in the door.

Although the carved wooden doors of the Golden Palace were tightly closed, the gaps between the door panels were quite wide, and intermittent sounds kept leaking out from the gaps.

"Your Majesty, please understand!" A voice, trembling with sobs, suddenly erupted in the hall. "When we reached the Wulipo official road, Lord Shen's carriage convoy was right in front of us. Commander Zhang read out the imperial edict, but Lord Shen refused to accept it."

The speaker seemed to be interrupted by something, and then a chaotic murmur arose in the hall.

"The commander ordered a battle with Shen Daohong's convoy. Just as we were about to charge, shouts of battle came from the hillside. A large army was lying in ambush on the mountain."

"Yes, Your Majesty. Firecrackers were still going off in the valley, and then we saw our men fall off their horses one by one."

"The commander has also been killed in action? We dare not linger and must retreat immediately."

……

As the Imperial Guards described the scene, the noise inside the hall grew increasingly louder.

"Shut up! Speak one by one!" Li Zhongxin's shrill voice pierced the noise.

Hearing the clanging of armor, Da Shisan imagined the Imperial Guards kowtowing repeatedly inside the palace.

When the description of "bang bang bang like firecrackers" was given, Da Shisan's pupils suddenly contracted.

This sound sounds a bit like an M16.
Could it have been Ninth Brother and his gang who did it?
Oh dear! What a pity.

I wasn't even there.

"Wow--"

At that moment, the sound of porcelain shattering exploded, followed by a muffled thud as the imperial desk was struck heavily.

"Aim Sixteen! It must be Aimu Sixteen!" Emperor Jing's roar shook the doorframe. "Besides that traitor Zhao Zun, who else possesses such a divine weapon?"

The hall erupted like a swarm of wasps, with cries of "Your Majesty, please calm down!" mixed with chaotic discussions.

"Is Wulipo really that close to the capital? Could it be that Zhao Zun has already reached Wulipo?"

"What should I do?"

"No way? It's only been a few days. Even if we marched at full speed, we wouldn't have reached Wulipo!"

"And whose army was that at Wulipo?"

……

Da Shisan's heart skipped a beat. He seemed to have heard Emperor Jing mention "Aimu-16" just now. Was it the M16 they used?
Da Shisan took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down, and then secretly peeked through the crack in the door.

"Silence! Silence!" Li Zhongxin pounded the wall with his whisk.

When the hall fell silent again, Emperor Jing's voice suddenly became unusually clear: "How many troops have they sent?"

"Your Majesty..." the Imperial Guard stammered in response, "The whole mountainside is filled with shouts of battle and the sound of firecrackers. I... I don't know how many people there are."

A sudden, deathly silence descended.

Through the crack in the door, Da Shisan saw Emperor Jing slump back onto the dragon throne, the gold-embroidered dragons flickering in the candlelight.

"Very well, very well indeed." Emperor Jing's voice suddenly became eerily calm. "Su Ce's body is barely cold, and the commander of the Imperial Guards has already fallen in battle. Shen Daohong has fled with his family, and the Eastern Ming Empire..."

The sound of Emperor Jing's gilded armor scraping against the imperial desk was sickening. "My beloved ministers, who should I send to meet the enemy now? Do I, the Emperor, have to lead the expedition myself?"

Li Zhongxin immediately stepped forward to pledge his loyalty, his whisk trembling in his hand like a withered leaf in the wind: "Your Majesty, this old servant is willing..." "You can't even climb onto the saddle!" Emperor Jing kicked over the gilded incense burner, the ash falling like snowflakes. "Is this my throne? Is this my vast empire?"

Da Shisan wanted to laugh, but real guards were standing a short distance away, so he didn't dare to.

He bit down hard on the soft flesh inside his lip, trying to suppress his laughter, the taste of rust spreading on his tongue.

Although the palace had taken measures to keep quiet, various legends had already circulated about how Emperor Jing ascended to the throne.

The thirteenth prince didn't want to concern himself with those matters, but Emperor Jing's mere lust for Consort Ru disgusted him. Therefore, he found it quite amusing to hear Emperor Jing lamenting his own throne.

"boom!"

Another piece of porcelain shattered on the Golden Palace, the flying shards hitting the vermilion threshold, startling the thirteenth prince so much that his eyelashes trembled.

He subtly shifted half an inch to the side while adjusting his clothes.

"Your Majesty, you are wise!" At this moment, a centurion of the Imperial Guard suddenly suggested, "Shen Daohong's desertion in the face of battle is indeed a heinous crime, but the battle at Dongguan cannot be delayed! Although I am not a member of the court, I just want to remind you that the former Marshal of Dongguan, Li Jianyong, is also retired at home..."

Former Dongguan Marshal Li Jianyong?

Emperor Jing was taken aback.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze sweeping across the centurion's dark face like a knife.

"Marshal Li?" Emperor Jing's voice was deep, as if it came from a very distant place.

He did indeed recall this person—the old marshal who had been replaced by Emperor Qianlong.

In my memory, Li Jianyong was always taciturn, but he had a pair of eyes that could see right through people.

After all the civil and military officials had left the court, Li Zhongxin felt it was his responsibility to remind Emperor Jing: "Your Majesty, Marshal Li is nearly seventy years old now, I'm afraid he may not be able to..."

"Difficult what?" Emperor Jing slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly. The teacup on the table jumped, splashing out a few drops of dark red tea.

But soon after, he sighed again.

Li Jianyong is more than ten years older than Shen Daohong, and is now at least over sixty years old.

No wonder he agreed without a word when the former emperor replaced him; at his age, he really should be enjoying his retirement at home.

Li Jianyong's age is one thing, the key issue is that the court has no one else capable. Even an old man in his sixties must be reinstated and sent to Dongguan to defend against the enemy.

He glared at Li Zhongxin, his tone cold and hard: "You lackey, have you forgotten that 300,000 troops from Dongguan are pressing in, and Zhao Zun's vanguard has already reached Wulipo! Does the court still have any room for choice?"

Li Zhongxin immediately knelt on the ground, his forehead pressed against the cold gold brick: "This old servant misspoke, Your Majesty, please forgive me!"

Emperor Jing ignored the trembling Li Zhongxin and instead stared at the centurion: "What is your name?"

"Your Majesty, my name is Chen Kui, and I am a centurion in the Left Battalion of the Imperial Guard." Chen Kui knelt on the ground, his voice no longer filled with the panic he had just displayed.

“Chen Kui…” Emperor Jing pondered the name, his gaze deep. “Since the commander of the Imperial Guards has been killed in action, I hereby promote you to the new commander of the Imperial Guards.”

"Thank you... thank you, Your Majesty!" Chen Kui was overjoyed and flattered. He knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.

He himself never expected that recommending a marshal who was retired at home would earn him the appreciation of Emperor Jing and make him the commander of the Imperial Guard, bypassing the position of centurion.

The thirteenth brother, who was eavesdropping outside the door, also sneered. He felt sorry for the fallen Imperial Guard commander. His body was still warm, and someone else was already being promoted.

"Chen Kui!" Emperor Jing suddenly shouted, "Go immediately and invite Marshal Li into the palace for a meeting!"

Chen Wu accepted the order and stood up, his armor clanging loudly.

Just as he turned to leave, Emperor Jing added, "Tell him that it was I... it was I who invited him to come out of retirement."

These words were spoken very softly, yet they made everyone in the hall hold their breath.

As soon as Chen Kui pushed open the heavy palace door, a gust of cold wind rushed into the room, causing the candlelight to flicker violently.

The wind lifted a corner of Emperor Jing's dragon robe, revealing a dark red lining underneath.

Emperor Jing seemed to suddenly remember something, and turned to another Imperial Guard, "You, take a detachment and return to Wulipo immediately. You must find out the origins of that ambush force. If it truly was Zhao Zun's vanguard..."

He paused, his brow furrowing even more. "Don't alert them, report back immediately."

As the two imperial guards left one after the other, the emperor saw the worried look on the emperor's face as the palace doors opened and closed.

He stood by the pillars outside the hall, his heart filled with anxiety, his hands already damp with cold sweat.

He knew that the army of Zhao Zun, the King of Cangzhou, had not approached the capital. The so-called ambush on the Wulipo official road must have been a commotion caused by Da Jiu and his men.

Faced with the invasion of the Eastern Ming Empire, the imperial court actually wanted to reinstate the old and frail former Eastern Gate Marshal Li Jianyong!
He had to find a way to inform Da Jiu and the others of both messages immediately, but he was currently impersonating a guard on duty and couldn't leave!
How to do?
Da Shisan bit his lip, his clever mind racing.

He suddenly clutched his stomach, his face contorted in pain, and cried out, "Ouch, ouch..."

Da Shisan caught a glimpse of the captain of the guard walking towards him out of the corner of his eye, and he lowered his head and shouted even louder.

"Ouch... Ouch..."

"Insolence!" the captain of the guard hissed, his hand already on the hilt of his sword. "His Majesty is right here in the hall. What are you yelling about? Don't you want your head?"

Thirteen, his back hunched, said in a tearful voice, "Captain... my stomach hurts terribly, I'm afraid there was something wrong with the steamed buns this morning... please let me go to the outhouse. Ouch..."

The captain of the guard stared at him suspiciously for a moment, then nervously glanced back at the tightly closed palace doors.

The sound of Emperor Jing's furious voice came from inside, which startled him.

"Go, go, go and come back quickly!" the captain of the guard waved his hand impatiently. "If you delay your duty, you'll lose your head!"

"Thank you so much, Captain!" Da Shisan bowed repeatedly, clutching his stomach as he scurried away.

After turning around a palace wall and confirming that no one was following him, Da Shisan immediately slipped and hid behind a rockery.

He pulled a sleek black walkie-talkie from his pocket and pressed the call button.

"Ninth Brother, Ninth Brother. Please respond if you hear me!" He lowered his voice and spoke very quickly, "Urgent military intelligence! The Eastern Ming Empire is invading. The Emperor has decided to reinstate Marshal Li Jianyong to assist in defeating the enemy at Dongguan, or even lead the army personally. In addition, the Emperor mentioned 'Aim Sixteen'..."

A hissing sound came from the other end of the walkie-talkie, followed by a deep male voice: "Roger that. Be careful."

Just as Da Shisan put away his walkie-talkie, he suddenly heard footsteps coming from the other side of the artificial hill. His heart nearly stopped, and he quickly buried himself deeper into the shadows.

"Strange, I clearly saw someone coming this way..." came a eunuch's high-pitched voice.

Da Shisan held his breath, feeling cold sweat trickling down his back.

Just then, a rapid tolling of bells suddenly came from the direction of the Golden Palace—

That was a signal to convene a meeting of civil and military officials!
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