Her guards

Chapter 190 The Marquis's Surprise

"This is a surprise I have prepared for the Marquis..."

"Your Majesty, the Grand General is away in the field and cannot return to the capital without an imperial edict. How can you treat this so lightly! Chai Du, you have abandoned your post without authorization, a heinous crime!"

“Father, I did not desert my post; I was ordered to escort the Xuan Tie Sword.”

"you……"

"My lord, for the sake of border stability, my second brother has not returned home for five years. This year is your birthday, and I wish for your children to be reunited with you."

“Father, it was because I missed you and Mother that I wrote to His Majesty to express my feelings. He came up with this method on his own initiative. Please don’t blame His Majesty. I know that if I told you, you would not have agreed.”

When Chai Du suddenly appeared and presented the precious sword, the Marquis of Yichun was not overjoyed, but instead angry. The atmosphere in the hall quieted down, and the guests present understood what was going on through the conversation between the emperor, the Marquis of Yichun, and Chai Du.

The general commanding troops stationed at Chaidu cannot return to the capital at will.

However, General Chai's status is different from that of other generals; he is treated like family. As long as His Majesty is willing, it is not a big deal to recall him even if he has not attended court.

So several senior officials advised, "My lord, don't be in such a hurry; it's a joyous occasion."

The Emperor spoke again: "My lord, I ordered General Chai to guard the sword. The sword has been delivered, and he will return today without staying in the capital."

Chai Du hurriedly replied, "Yes, Father, my horses are ready and waiting outside the palace."

Let's go right away.

Marquis Yichun's expression softened slightly.

The eunuchs, observing his expression, quickly brought over the prepared wine cups.

Chai Du knelt on one knee, took down the wine bag hanging from his waist, and poured out a cup of wine.

“Father, this is wine that I brewed myself while I was stationed at the border,” he said. “It’s to celebrate your birthday.”

Marquis Yichun gave his son a deep look, then looked at the emperor, and sighed: "You all—next time you must not be so frivolous."

The emperor and Chai Du hurriedly agreed in unison.

Marquis Yichun then took the wine cup from Chaidu, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

"it is good."

"Congratulations, Lord Marquis."

People around gathered around to join in the fun. The old lady of Yichun Marquis rushed over to help her son up. Looking him up and down, her eyes were blurry with tears. Chai Yuan and the men, women, and children of the Chai family also gathered around, calling out "Father," "Second Uncle," "Second Uncle," and so on. The atmosphere in the hall became lively again.

"Your Majesty and General Chai can be considered to be entertaining their parents in colorful clothes."

"Your Majesty must never do such a thing again."

"Rest assured, my lord, I know what I'm doing."

The people in the hall said again that the emperor had once again made a guarantee to the Marquis of Yichun. Chai Du removed his armor, solemnly kowtowed to the emperor and empress, and then took his seat at the Chai family's banquet.

The King of Donghai and Princess Heisei happily came to see their uncle. Chai Du was very pleased to see them and presented the King of Donghai with the gifts he had prepared, a bow and a young eagle to Princess Heisei.

Princess Wuyang looked at the falcon that Princess Heicheng was carefully holding on her arm with envy.

Other people's uncles would send fun gifts, but her uncle would send a bunch of annoying scoldings or headache-inducing books.

"Mother," she couldn't help but whisper, "I'll also go and pay my respects to General Chai. Perhaps he..."

Give her a gift.

As she spoke, she turned her head and saw Consort Li holding a wine cup, seemingly lost in thought.

"Mother," she called softly.

Consort Li looked at her, clearly not having heard what she said.

"Mother, should I go and pay my respects to General Chai?" Princess Wuyang asked in a low voice.

The Empress must have been frightened by the Empress's reprimand. In the past, she would have urged the Consort to curry favor with the Chai family.

Having faced such danger with the assassin, and hearing that the Empress had returned to continue the banquet, her mother insisted that she also return to participate, just to support the Chai family.

Consort Li looked at her, a strange smile appearing on her lips.

"Perhaps, it's not necessary," she said softly.

What do you mean, "maybe it's no longer needed"? Princess Wuyang was taken aback and was about to say something when several imperial guards strode in from outside the hall.

"Your Majesty, we have apprehended a suspicious person among those attending the banquet," the head guard said in a deep voice.

These words instantly silenced the lively hall.

……

.......
Those attending the banquet had already speculated that the dead palace maids and eunuchs were imposters, not belonging to the palace, and must have been infiltrating from outside.

Although those attending banquets in the imperial city must undergo strict checks, the sheer number and diversity of people makes it easy for assassins to infiltrate.

"assassin?"

Chai Du, unaware of the matter because it was hidden in the cabinet, asked Chai Yuan. Chai Yuan whispered something to him, and Chai Du looked surprised, then frowned. "...How could the imperial city be managed like this?"

"The affairs of the capital are none of your concern. Just take care of the border troops." Marquis Yichun interrupted him, his expression stern. "Also, you can leave now."

Chai Yuan couldn't help but say, "Let Second Brother sit a little longer..."

Before he could finish speaking, the emperor silenced the commotion in the hall and asked in a deep voice, "Who is it?"

The head of the guards nodded, stood still, and looked around the room. The guests were all a little nervous, and their eyes soon fell on one person.

"Grand Chancellor Xia An," the head of the Imperial Guards said in a deep voice, "you submitted a list to the banquet with one coachman and one servant, but a third person was found in the Imperial Garden claiming to be your servant."

All eyes in the hall were fixed on the Grand Secretary, and more imperial guards surrounded the old minister.

Grand Secretary Xia An, still holding a wine cup, looked shocked: "This old minister indeed only brought two people with him. This third person must be an imposter."

A guard threw his waist token in front of the Grand Secretary: "This belongs to your family."

"Your Majesty, the waist token can always be stolen!" the Grand Secretary shouted.

The head of the Imperial Guards gestured again: "Bring the man up."

Two imperial guards dragged a man in and threw him in front of the Grand Secretary.

Others around also looked over, because the person was lying on the ground, and they could only see that he was wearing a blue servant's robe, and his figure and hair made it clear that he was a middle-aged man.

"Your Majesty—" the Grand Chancellor said, kneeling, "I absolutely did not instigate any assassins."

These words startled everyone in the hall; the Grand Secretary's words were not right.

Shouldn't you first check on the servant, then declare that you don't know him, and then cry foul?

The Grand Secretary skipped these two steps and went straight to protesting his innocence.

Was the Grand Secretary frightened? Or... was this servant truly a servant of the Grand Secretary's household?
The emperor had obviously thought of this as well, and slammed his hand on the table: "Xia An! Why did you bring people into the imperial city without permission!"

Xia An knelt on the ground: "Your Majesty, I had absolutely no intention of assassinating you. The assassin has nothing to do with me."

He didn't answer the questions, he just made excuses.

The emperor grew even angrier and stood up: "Guards—"

“Your Majesty,” the servant lying on the ground suddenly spoke, “I am not an assassin, but I know why assassins come to the palace.”

The hall fell silent once more, and everyone's gaze turned to the person on the ground.

The servant slowly knelt up and said, "They have come to kill Miss Yang Luo, the daughter of Duke Ding'an."

There was an uproar in the hall.

The assassins have entered the palace, not to assassinate the emperor, empress, or powerful figures, but to kill a Miss Yang.

Yes, indeed, Miss Yang did encounter an assassin, but everyone thought it was a coincidence that the assassin just happened to be there and Miss Yang was unlucky enough to run into him.

"My lord, my lord!" Lady Ding'an couldn't help but shake Duke Ding'an. "What, what's going on...?"

Duke Ding'an stared blankly: "I don't know what's going on, but I know something bad is going to happen."

Chai Du couldn't help but ask Chai Yuan again, "Is Miss Yang the one you mentioned earlier..."

This time, the Marquis of Yichun did not stop him, but seemed to be lost in thought.

But Chai Yuan was unable to answer, because the emperor had already angrily rebuked him.

"What nonsense are you talking about!"

The kneeling servant suddenly raised his head: "I am not talking nonsense. Miss Yang is a survivor of the murder in Baima Town. Her mother died, and she escaped, but those people still came to kill her!"

The hall erupted in commotion again, with many people standing up and staring in shock at the servant.

He said, "Your subject?"

A servant certainly cannot call himself a subject!

Is Miss Yang a survivor of the murder in Baima Town?
The murder case in Baima Town?
One of the people standing nearby suddenly shouted, "Ah—"

He pointed to the kneeling servants who had raised their heads.

"Ji Ying!"

Ji and Ying!
With this shout, more people in the hall reacted and looked at the servant.

Although he was away on patrol, Ji Ying was originally a court official and knew many people in the court, so he recognized them instantly.

It really is Ji and Ying!
That Ji Ying who is said to be dead!
Ji Ying looked at the emperor, bowed and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, your guilty subject Ji Ying has come to confess his sins."

The surrounding noise made it difficult for Marquis Yichun to hear clearly, and there was no need for him to listen anymore.

He looked at Ji Ying, who was bowing and kowtowing.

Actually, this was the birthday gift the emperor sent him.

(End of this chapter)