novelSusiti Chapter 152 The Golden Chest Alliance
Chapter 152 The Golden Chest Alliance
Chapter 152 The Golden Chest Alliance (Part Six)
At the Prince of Wugong's residence, Zhao Dezhao was preparing to board a carriage to head to the Imperial Guard camp.
This is a matter of great importance, and he needs to conduct a second screening of the people Jing Si has selected to ambush Zhao Guangyi!
Otherwise, if word got out and reached Zhao Kuangyin's ears, he couldn't be sure how the loyal and righteous Zhao Kuangyin would react.
Some things are better left undone, but once you start doing them, you have to go all the way!
Just as he was about to board the carriage, he saw Zhang Dejun running towards him, panting, waving and calling out, "Your Highness! Your Highness, please wait!"
Zhao Dezhao frowned slightly. He could tell from Zhang Dejun's urgent tone that he had something very important to tell him.
He immediately stopped and, when Zhang Dejun ran up to him, he let Zhang Dejun into the carriage without saying a word.
"What happened?"
"Your Highness—Prime Minister Zhao asked me to tell you that Empress Dowager Du is critically ill, and there has been an emergency at Qingshou Palace. He requests that you come to the palace immediately; there is no time to delay!"
After catching his breath, Zhang Dejun quickly recounted everything that had happened at the Qingshou Hall.
Zhang Dejun was unaware of the specifics of what had happened, but when Zhao Dezhao heard the words "Fu had entered the palace to pay homage to the Empress Dowager when she was critically ill," his face instantly darkened.
Indeed, once a fool is in a high position, he will always attract ambitious people to flock to him.
"It seems the Golden Chest Alliance—maybe it really is true?"
He muttered to himself, subconsciously recalling one of the three great mysteries of the early Song Dynasty: the Golden Box Alliance!
"Passing the throne to the younger brother, then back to the nephew? How many years of brain thrombosis would it take to come up with such a way of passing the throne?"
""
He treated the supreme throne like a pastry, passing it down from generation to generation, believing that he could ensure no one was wronged and that he could create three empress dowagers, making everyone happy.
It was his father who was in charge. If it were Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of Han, or Emperor Taizong of Tang, they would have even beheaded Zhao Guangyi in front of Empress Dowager Du!
A thought flashed through Zhao Dezhao's mind, and his expression turned serious. He knew that if this matter was not handled properly, it could very well allow Zhao Guangyi to rise from the ashes again!
Thinking of this, Zhao Dezhao immediately instructed Zhang Dejun: "Go to Kunning Palace immediately and invite the Empress Dowager to Qingshou Hall on the pretext that she is seriously ill."
This arrangement was intended to have Empress Wang, who favored him, act as a troublemaker. Zhao Kuangyin was always sentimental and doted on Empress Wang. With Empress Wang present, no matter what unexpected events occurred, she would at least be able to say a few words.
"Yes, sir!" Zhang Dejun didn't dare to delay. He accepted the order, got off the carriage, and hurriedly ran towards the palace.
After Zhang Dejun left, Zhao Dezhao ordered Lu Duoxun, who was accompanying him, "Take my seal and go to the Imperial Guard Camp immediately. Order Jing Si and Cao Bin to immediately reorganize the Imperial Guard and be ready to obey orders at any time."
"Then, I went to find Shi Shouxin and Li Chuyun and told them that I was in trouble and needed their help."
Li Chuyun returned from Yangzhou a few days ago and is now serving as the Commissioner of the Southern Court of Xuanhui and Deputy Privy Councilor, overseeing all the inner departments and the register of the three classes of eunuchs. Among military officers, he can be considered the number one after Zhao Pu.
Although Shi Shouxin has relinquished his military power, his son Shi Baoxing is currently the garrison commander of the north gate of Kaifeng. If he can get Shi Baoxing's help, his eight hundred personal guards can enter Kaifeng directly!
It's unlikely to be a coup.
But if things really can't be salvaged, he has no choice but to take drastic measures!
Right there in Kaifeng, right under Zhao Kuangyin's nose, Zhao Guangyi was killed!
He knew that this behavior would inevitably displease Zhao Kuangyin, but once Zhao Guangyi died, his father would have no other choice. Even if he was displeased, he wouldn't kill his own son, would he?
At most, he would only be exiled.
"Here you are!" After receiving the seal, Lu Duoxun quickly got out of the car and left.
After completing this series of arrangements, Zhao Dezhao issued the order for the carriage to proceed to the palace.
At that moment, he was not actually sure whether the changes Zhao Pu mentioned in the Qingshou Palace were the so-called Golden Chest Alliance.
But since the Fu clan secretly approached Empress Dowager Du, and Zhao Pu specifically sent Zhang Dejun to deliver the message, it means that Zhao Pu must have realized that the Fu clan's plot was very likely to be detrimental to him!
Since that's the case, Zhao Dezhao won't hold back any longer.
Perfect, we can catch them all at once!
Meanwhile, inside the Hall of Longevity, Empress Dowager Du slowly opened her eyes and saw Zhao Kuangyin kneeling before her bed. A glimmer of light appeared in her cloudy eyes, and she weakly beckoned, "All of you may leave. Your Majesty and Secretary Zhao can remain here—"
The palace maids and eunuchs who were serving them quickly left the Qingshou Hall, leaving only the three of them in the bedroom.
Zhao Kuangyin knelt before the bed, holding Empress Dowager Du's slightly cold hand, his eyes reddening. Zhao Pu, who entered later, also knelt before Zhao Kuangyin.
Beside him, he looked at Empress Dowager Du with a complicated expression.
In his heart, she was actually an extraordinary mother.
He remained calm during His Majesty's Chenqiao Mutiny, and remained unperturbed by His Majesty's overwhelming power. He even saw through the true nature of power that countless emperors and generals could not comprehend.
Zhao Pu still remembers what Empress Dowager Du said when His Majesty successfully staged the Chenqiao Mutiny and ascended the throne: "I have heard that it is difficult to be a ruler. The emperor's position is above all the people. If the country is governed well, the emperor's position will be respected. Once the country is lost, even if one wants to be a commoner, it will not be possible. This is my worry."
It's a pity that such a wise woman has done something so foolish.
He actually pretended to be critically ill!
Zhao Pu sighed softly to himself.
His insight was incredibly sharp, and unlike Zhao Kuangyin, he wasn't easily swayed by concern. He remained calm at all times, which is why he noticed the anomaly the moment he stepped into the palace.
If the patient is critically ill, why is the imperial physician not present?
Recalling the word "talisman" that the maid had just mentioned, Zhao Pu already had a vague guess in his mind:
It must have been after Zhao Guangyi's downfall that Lady Fu deliberately approached the Empress Dowager, hoping to use the Empress Dowager's favor towards Zhao Guangyi to persuade His Majesty to rescind his order to expel Zhao Guangyi!
Ironically, Empress Dowager Du actually dared to agree!
Zhao Pu sneered inwardly, but his face remained expressionless as he quietly observed from the side.
As expected, after all the maids had left, Empress Dowager Du took a breath, turned her head with difficulty, and weakly asked Zhao Kuangyin, "Xiang'er, do you—do you know why you were able to obtain this empire?"
Hearing his mother's extremely weak voice, Zhao Kuangyin could only weep bitterly, tears streaming down his face, but he choked up and couldn't utter a single word.
"What are you crying about!"
Empress Dowager Du suddenly raised her voice, then coughed a few times before calming down and saying, "I have lived for sixty years, which is a long life. What is there to cry about!"
She gently patted Zhao Kuangyin's hand and asked again, "Tell me, do you know why you were able to gain the throne?"
Seeing his mother's insistence on asking this question, Zhao Kuangyin had no choice but to suppress his grief, wipe away his tears, and reply according to his filial piety: "Your son was able to gain the empire because of the virtues accumulated by my parents and the blessings of our ancestors—"
"wrong!"
Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Du shook her head in displeasure and immediately said, "The reason you were able to gain the throne is because Emperor Shizong of Zhou allowed a child to rule the country!"
"If the Zhou dynasty had a capable ruler, would the world still belong to you?"
Zhao Kuangyin was slightly taken aback, not expecting his mother to say such things again.
Zhao Pu, standing to the side, narrowed his eyes slightly, realizing that he had underestimated Zhao Guangyi.
This isn't about protecting oneself.
This is plotting to become the crown prince!
As expected, Empress Dowager Du coughed twice, sighed softly, and said weakly, "I know my days are numbered, but before I die, I am still worried about the ancestral temple of the Zhao clan, fearing that the Zhao clan will follow in the footsteps of the Zhou dynasty!"
"The fall of the Zhou dynasty was due to the lack of a capable ruler. I know that you favor Zhao'er as your heir, and that is why I have been unable to sleep day and night."
"How can the foundation of a nation be entrusted to the body of a mere child?"
"Zhao'er is still young. If he becomes the crown prince, he could easily bring disaster upon the ancestral temple and cause the Zhao family's dynasty to perish!"
As she spoke, Empress Dowager Du, with an unexpected surge of strength, gripped Zhao Kuangyin's hand tightly, stared at him, and said in an unyielding tone, "Therefore, if my Zhao family's empire is to last for a thousand generations, after your death, the throne will be passed to your younger brother Tingyi. After Tingyi, it will be passed to Wenhua (Zhao Guangmei)! Only after Wenhua's death will the throne finally be passed to Zhao'er!"
"With such a vast expanse of land and such a large population, establishing a mature ruler as heir is truly a blessing for the nation and its people!"
She spoke those last two sentences with extra force, and after she finished, she coughed violently, her chest heaving, as if she were about to pass away.
Zhao Kuangyin stood frozen in place, his expression shifting several times!
He never imagined that what his mother wanted to tell him on her deathbed would be such a thing!
This is too arbitrary!
Zhao'er is already twelve, while I am in my prime. How could my mother know that when she passed away, Zhao'er would not have grown up yet?
Moreover, judging from Zhao'er's current abilities, she is more than capable of being a ruler who maintains the status quo!
Moreover, he had just made up his mind to make Zhao'er his heir after the imperial examination, but his mother suddenly made such a request. This was truly—
Zhao Kuangyin opened his mouth, but seeing his mother coughing so painfully, he felt as if a thorn was stuck in his throat, and all his words were stuck there.
This is his mother, his biological mother! The one who carried him for ten months, gave birth to him, and raised him with great hardship!
He had already wronged his father once back then.
Must I fail my mother again today?
Zhao Kuangyin took a deep breath and was about to speak when two voices fell almost simultaneously.
"Your Majesty, I humbly believe this is inappropriate."
"Your Majesty, I also think it is inappropriate."
Empress Wang, dressed in plain palace attire, coughed slightly and gently covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief as she slowly stepped into the hall, her gaze calm yet firm as she looked at Empress Dowager Du on the couch.
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