Free Web NovelChapter 384: Chapter 386: Coming with Ill Intent
Xianfei knew very well that with Li Hao’s strength, the chances of a successful rebellion were extremely low.
The most likely outcome was Li Hao dragging her and her maternal family to their deaths with him.
Logic told her that the most sensible thing to do right now was to tie up Li Hao and deliver him to the Emperor.
By doing so, she could not only save her own life but also prevent her family from being implicated.
But if she did that, she would have to sacrifice her only son.
Xianfei stared blankly at Li Hao, watching him kneel on the floor, crying and begging her.
He was the child she had carried for ten months and risked her life to give birth to. She had painstakingly raised him to adulthood.
’How could she send him to his doom?’
Li Hao’s face was streaked with tears. "Father Emperor has already abandoned me. You can’t abandon me too."
Xianfei’s heart ached for him, and her eyes gradually grew moist.
She knelt, reached out to pull her son into her arms, and hugged him tightly, comforting him in a trembling voice.
"I’m your mother. I will never abandon you.
Don’t be afraid. As long as Mother is here, no one can hurt you."
...
The defense of the Imperial Palace was jointly handled by the Flying Dragon Cavalry and the Yulin Guards.
Normally, both the Flying Dragon Cavalry and the Yulin Guards were under the Emperor’s direct command.
The difference was that the Flying Dragon Cavalry was only responsible for protecting the Emperor’s personal safety.
The Yulin Guards, on the other hand, were responsible for the security of the entire Imperial Palace, including tasks like guarding the palace gates and conducting daily patrols.
When the Emperor left for Yuqing Mountain, he took the entire Flying Dragon Cavalry with him. Now, only the Yulin Guards remained stationed in the palace.
Using the pretext of a suspected assassin in the palace, Li Hao urgently summoned the Commander and two deputy commanders of the Yulin Guards into the Imperial Palace.
But the moment the three of them stepped into the Imperial Study Room, they were ambushed!
Li Hao had already planted men in ambush inside the Imperial Study Room.
More than thirty experts surrounded the three men.
Even though the three were the Commander and deputy commanders of the Yulin Guards, all of them skilled fighters, they were still hopelessly outnumbered and were quickly captured alive.
Li Hao ordered his men to force daggers into the hands of the two deputy commanders, compelling them to stab their Commander to death.
Watching their Commander breathe his last, his eyes wide open in death, the two deputy commanders turned pale with fright.
Li Hao delivered his prepared lines, speaking coldly.
"I’ll give you two choices—
Either wait for Father Emperor to return and be convicted of murdering a court official.
Or, you can follow me. As long as I succeed, you will be richly rewarded in the future.
Which path will you choose?"
The two deputy commanders collapsed to their knees, their faces ashen.
’What other choice did they have?’
Murdering a court official was a capital offense.
Even if they were forced, who could prove it for them?
If Prince Dongyang insisted that they were the ones who killed the Commander of the Yulin Guards, they would have no way to defend themselves.
Rebellion was risky, but at least it offered a sliver of hope for survival.
In the end, the two could only bow their heads in resignation.
"We are at Prince Dongyang’s command!"
Li Hao immediately had them write and sign a document pledging their allegiance, and seal it with their thumbprints.
With this document, it would be useless even if the two wanted to go back on their word in the future.
Once the bow is drawn, the arrow cannot be recalled.
Once they had boarded this pirate ship, there was no turning back unscathed.
It was now the third watch of the night.
The rain had gradually lessened, but the sky remained gloomy.
Most people in the palace were still asleep, unaware of how much had transpired outside during the night.
Xianfei led the Yulin Guards to Biquan Palace.
The Empress Dowager was woken up and was in a very bad mood.
Just as she was about to lose her temper, she saw the Yulin Guards point the cold, glittering blades of their daggers at her.
The Empress Dowager froze, staring at them in disbelief.
"What do you think you’re doing?"
Xianfei curtsied respectfully.
"Assassins have entered the palace. To ensure the Empress Dowager’s safety, I would like to invite you to hide somewhere else.
Once the assassins are caught, I will naturally bring you back, safe and sound."
The Empress Dowager was no stranger to worldly affairs.
The moment she heard this, she knew something had gone wrong in the palace.
"I am going nowhere! I will stay right here in Biquan Palace!"
Xianfei gave an apologetic smile. "I’m afraid that’s not up to you."
At her signal, the Yulin Guards knocked the Empress Dowager unconscious and forcibly carried her away.
Seeing this, the palace maids and eunuchs of Biquan Palace were all trembling with fear.
Finally, a few nannies and Chief Palace Maids trusted by the Empress Dowager stepped forward to stop them, only to be cut down one by one by the Yulin Guards.
Blood splattered out, dyeing the grounds of Biquan Palace bright red.
The remaining palace maids and eunuchs didn’t even dare to breathe, allowing Xianfei to take the Empress Dowager from Biquan Palace.
After securing the Empress Dowager, all the Concubines of any notable rank in the palace were also forcibly taken away by the Yulin Guards and placed under centralized guard.
This, of course, included Hua Qingqing.
They were locked in Chaoyang Palace.
The place was originally a Cold Palace, and there was nothing inside.
The Concubines didn’t even have a clean place to sit, but they dared not complain. They could only pray silently in their hearts, hoping the Emperor would return soon and that the current crisis would be resolved quickly.
Li Hao now had the entire Imperial Palace under his control.
But that wasn’t enough.
Li Hao sent word to several senior ministers of the Central Secretariat, claiming there were urgent memorials to be dealt with, and summoned them to the palace overnight.
As it turned out, the senior ministers went and never returned.
They were imprisoned in the Imperial Palace.
Li Hao used all sorts of threats and promises, trying to make them switch their allegiance and serve him.
However, these old ministers were all men of integrity.
Faced with Prince Dongyang’s coercion, they slammed their heads on the ground, preferring death to submission.
Although Li Hao was furious, he couldn’t actually let all these old geezers die. He could only have them strictly guarded and planned to slowly wear them down later when he had time.
Right now, Li Hao had more important things to do.
He had to find a way to seize control of the Patrol Department and the Tiger Roar Camp.
The defense of Shangjing City was jointly managed by the Patrol Department and the Tiger Roar Camp. As long as he could control them, he would have the entire Shangjing City in his grasp.
Coincidentally, the second-in-command of the Patrol Department was Xianfei’s maternal uncle.
Xianfei had a way to persuade her uncle to side with them. The difficult part was the Tiger Roar Camp.
The Tiger Roar Camp was under the direct command of Prince Zhao, Li Ji.
Everyone in Shangjing knew what kind of person Li Ji was.
Even Li Hao himself knew it was impossible to persuade Li Ji to switch sides.
Their only leverage against Li Ji now was Princess Consort Zhao.
Hua Manman was sleeping soundly when she was suddenly startled awake by a violent knocking on the door.
She had just opened her eyes when Si Yun and Qing Huan pushed the door open and rushed in.
Qing Huan said anxiously, "Outside... there are so many..."
Si Yun spoke quickly, "There are many soldiers outside! They say they’ve come to arrest you."
Hua Manman frowned. "Why would they arrest me? I haven’t broken any laws."
Qing Huan: "They said... it’s the Empress Dowager..."
Si Yun: "They said the Empress Dowager wants to see you, but I have a feeling they don’t come in peace."
Hua Manman threw off the covers and got out of bed. "Take me to see."
