Jin Shengyu did not understand. “What is about to happen?” As she spoke, she moved to open the door, and Jiang Heng pulled her back.
“The Palace Command and the Iron Cavalry have started fighting! Outside, the battle cries shake the sky — it is like a full-scale battlefield, and it frightened the life out of me!” Seeing that Jin Shengyu was still reaching for the door, Jiang Heng gripped her firmly. “What are you trying to do? Everyone else is steering well clear of this, and you want to go closer for a look?”
Jin Shengyu found him an obstacle and shook his hand off with a sweep of her sleeve. She pushed the door open and looked outside, murmuring: “The Palace Command and the Iron Cavalry fighting? That cannot be right.”
She was a daughter of a military family, had loved practicing with swords and spears since childhood, and had no fear of weapons and battles. If anything, she was keenly curious to find out what was happening. So she grabbed a robe to drape over herself and made for the front courtyard, saying as she went: “If these two armies are truly fighting, then the realm is about to change.”
Jiang Heng was making desperate gestures of alarm. “It is a real fight — listen for yourself…”
Jin Shengyu tilted her head and listened. Beyond the walls, aside from the rolling thunder of hoofbeats, there did not seem to be much else.
She did not trust her ears and stepped forward. “Let me have a look. Most likely it is some minor skirmish… the court will be in uproar about it again tomorrow.”
Jiang Heng could not hold her back. He slapped his thighs in exasperation, but could not let her go alone, and so steeled himself and followed after her.
At the main gate, he had the gatekeeper open up. Through that thin crack, they peered outside. A large body of soldiers had just passed through — the air seemed to still carry the dust kicked up by the hooves.
Every so often another small mounted party came running past with torches. The two of them quickly pulled back, and only when everything outside had fallen completely still did they step over the threshold.
Standing in the street and looking in both directions, the northwest wind was blowing. Carried on it were sounds of swords, the clash of blades, and shouts — the situation did seem to be no simple matter.
Just then a night watchman came running past in great haste. Jiang Heng reached out and grabbed him, pressing him to tell what had happened. The night watchman trembled and said: “Does the Marquis not yet know — something terrible has happened!” He waved his hands about in a series of frantic gestures. “The Iron Cavalry broke through Vermilion Bird Gate tonight, killed all the gate officials, and then within moments occupied Chongming Gate and Baokang Gate — reckon the east and west city gates and the south are taken as well. If they push past Peace-Far Gate, they’ll be bearing straight down on the palace. The Iron Cavalry looks to be in revolt…” Then, realizing he had given away too much, he slapped himself over and over, spitting and cursing under his breath: “Curse this mouth, curse this mouth — this humble one was speaking nonsense. Marquis, please don’t take it as truth.” He tucked his watchman’s board under his arm and disappeared in a flash.
In the whole city, who had the keenest intelligence? The night watchmen, of course. They passed through every lane and alley and saw everything. Now they were not even beating their watch but fleeing home for their lives — proof that the situation had truly spun out of control.
Jiang Heng shuddered. “Duke Chuguo could wait no longer…” Then, as if waking from a dream, he said with sudden alarm: “But what about Si Si? She and Ji Fu are still locked up in the Side Gate. What if Duke Chuguo moves against them? That would be the end!”
At that moment, the father who was usually so timid suddenly produced extraordinary courage. He said: there was no way. “I have to go save them.” And then he was calling for the gatekeeper. “Bring my horse — quick!”
Jin Shengyu finally looked at him with genuine respect. “Marquis, outside there is fighting everywhere — it is not yet reached us here. If you go out, who knows what you’ll encounter.”
Jiang Heng could not think of any of that. He said: “Si Si and her husband are locked in the West Side Gate by the Bian River. Duke Chuguo will certainly not let them go. If I get there ahead of everyone and get them out, they will survive.” With that, he took the horse’s reins from the gatekeeper’s hands and did not forget to caution Jin Shengyu: “Go back inside quickly — blades have no eyes. Don’t frighten yourself.”
This was perhaps Jiang Heng’s most glorious moment as a father and as a man. With his daughter and son-in-law his sole concern, he had, in him, a spirit that did not shrink from the danger of death.
He swung into the saddle and spurred the horse forward. The Side Gate was by the Bian River, and he had to cross the Imperial Street and head east along the Baokang Gate passage. The Marquis’s residence was some distance from the busy streets, so it was still relatively calm. But once he passed Junyi Bridge, it was the bustling Bian River boulevard, the most famed of the capital’s never-dark nighttime districts — and that day was also the Lantern Festival, with crowds who had been out celebrating the night, now scattering in every direction as the horses charged through.
If hearing the night watchman’s account had still held some quality of unreality, now the full and terrible weight of the chaos could be felt directly. Weeping, screaming, flight — the sudden flash of blades — and blood… all of it tore away the surface of the capital’s seeming peace, exposing the festering truth beneath.
A mass of people rushing blindly toward him surged against him and startled his mount. The horse reared up on its hind legs and threw Jiang Heng off.
Fortunately his eyes and hands were quick — he grabbed a lamp post beside the road and kept himself from crashing headfirst. By the time he scrambled up, the horse had long since been swept away with the crowd. He could only rub his bruised behind and limp forward on foot toward the Side Gate.
Before long, his way was blocked again. Up ahead on the Xiangguo Temple Bridge, two sides were locked in fierce combat. He dared not go forward, and could only crouch to one side and watch.
The outcome seemed plain enough even from the equipment the two sides wore. The Palace Command was famously the wealthiest of armies — even their armor was the gleaming bright-armor kind. The Iron Cavalry were different. They needed no splendor, only practicality. Their armor was wrought of black iron, fitting around the torso and limbs like scales, and in motion they moved like a fighting machine.
There was a history to be told of these two armies as well. The Palace Command had originally been formed to escort the imperial procession and provide ceremonial guard. In truth, its greatest function was display — magnificent display. The Iron Cavalry, on the other hand, was a battle-hardened force, developed from the Imperial Forest Guard, which had always been stationed outside the inner city, defending against foreign invasion.
Put these two sides against each other in actual combat, and the outcome was immediately obvious. Even though the Iron Cavalry had entered the inner city without being summoned, which was treason carved in stone — the Palace Command could not stop them. And once they prevailed, whether it was treason or not would matter very little.
A whoosh of air — one of the ceremonial guards had his saber knocked from his hand, and it came spinning straight at Jiang Heng’s face. He ducked his head just in time, and the blade grazed clean past his scalp, leaving him drenched in cold sweat.
Without their weapons, the Palace Command soldiers were cut down like vegetables — not one was left standing. The Iron Cavalry then wheeled their horses and rode off toward the next engagement.
Only then did Jiang Heng crawl out from behind the bridge pillar. He oversaw the military affairs of Youzhou, but in terms of his nature, he was a civil official, and he had never seen so many dead. Stepping through that expanse of wreckage, his upper teeth knocked against his lower teeth, chattering continuously, until at last he was practically crawling on hands and knees across Xiangguo Temple Bridge.
He was nearly there. He strained to see ahead. He had been here before — following Sweet Water Lane straight north was Dinglu Monastery, and half a li further was the Bian River Side Gate.
Since receiving his enfeoffment, he had always traveled by carriage or sedan. It had been a very long time since he had moved about entirely on foot, and at this pace, with the need for speed, it felt as though every last scrap of his intestines had been jolted loose.
Just ahead… just ahead… Let the Iron Cavalry not have reached this place yet. Jiang Heng ran forward in stumbling lurches, and indeed there were only a few guards at the lane entrance, looking around in blank confusion — probably debating whether to make a run for it.
“Release them! Release them!” Jiang Heng seized the moment, shouting as he ran. “His Majesty has given the order — release Duke Weiguo! The situation outside is in chaos — no need to stay at your posts. Save yourselves!”
This was, without question, the most audacious thing Jiang Heng had ever done in his life — falsely invoking an imperial decree. But at this point, what use was there in following the rules? This was the simplest approach. No long arguments needed — it could make them open the gate. If later, when everything settled down, His Majesty were to hold him accountable, he would accept the consequences. The important thing was to save his daughter and son-in-law first.
The guards at the gate had already been at a loss as to what to do. Seeing a man in fourth-grade official dress, they assumed he truly had been sent from the palace to relay a message. Without a second thought, they placed the keys in Jiang Heng’s hand. “Much obliged, sir…” Several of them removed the weapon rack blocking the passage, and then vanished without a trace.
Jiang Heng could hardly believe his luck, and ran into the long passage, threw open the courtyard gate, and found Si Si and Li Chenjian standing right there in the courtyard. Si Si had clearly not expected him to appear. She exclaimed “Father!” in astonishment, then looked behind him — strangely, there was no one else.
Jiang Heng thought to himself: even I, your father, am a man of blood and courage — I just don’t show it. So he waved his hand and said: “There is fighting outside. The Iron Cavalry may break through here at any moment. I have come to save you — hurry, let us go!”
But Li Chenjian showed no panic at all. His gaze was sharp and measured, and he looked calmly out toward the passage.
And indeed: a mounted company carrying torches arrived in an instant, their advance fierce and unstoppable — unmistakably the Iron Cavalry.
Li Chenjian let out a cold laugh. It seemed Li Yuanjian was not, after all, going to let him go. He pulled Yun Pan behind him with one hand and drew his sword.
Jiang Heng’s tongue went numb with fright. He thought: disaster — he had come too late. They had no means of escape now. There was nothing else for it — fortunately he had picked up a blade on the road, and could at least put up some resistance.
At a moment like this, it is said one speaks from the heart, and so he turned to his daughter: “Si Si, I have wronged you in many ways over the years. Please do not hold it against your father.”
Yun Pan was not afraid to die, but hearing her father speak like this, tears welled up in her eyes.
The Iron Cavalry soldiers had no interest in lengthy exchanges. Their single objective was to take the lives of Duke Weiguo and his wife. So they entered the courtyard and raised their blades without a word.
A clang of steel — blade met blade, and a sharp crack rang out.
Yun Pan instinctively shut her eyes, fully expecting that blade to come slicing toward her — but instead she heard Duke Chengguo’s voice, fighting and shouting “Fourth Brother” at the same time.
Li Chenjian froze. He had not expected that at this most critical juncture, this elder brother of his would abandon the decisive confrontation with Duke Chuguo in the inner city and appear here.
Firelight lit up Duke Chengguo’s eyes. His face was streaked with blood, giving him the look of a specter. He said, his voice strained with anguish: “The Iron Cavalry had too many — the Third Master called on the old forces of the Tiande Army. I had made preparations, but I am still heavily outnumbered in strength.” Having already come this far, he had made up his mind to cut a path of blood for them to escape, and he gritted his teeth: “There are horses outside the passage. Take your wife and go first — I will hold them off.”
Li Chenjian looked at him. He knew that the human heart he had held out for so long, straining to see clearly, was finally revealed to him today. At the moment of being reduced to the final extremity, this man had not thought of protecting his own family first, but had come to save them instead. That bond was enough.
And so he did not do as Duke Chengguo said — he did not take Yun Pan and flee first. Instead he raised his hand and gave a single, decisive wave.
Very quickly, figures vaulted over the courtyard wall from outside the passage — it was Fang Gan at the head of an elite force. In moments, those Iron Cavalry soldiers had all been eliminated. He then turned and reported with cupped fists: “Commander, the Lulong Army, acting on orders, has moved to take all sixteen gates. By my reckoning, they should have entered Peace-Far Gate by now.”
Peace-Far Gate was the north gate of the inner city, just three li from the palace walls. Even if the Iron Cavalry attacked the palace, a counteroffensive could be mounted quickly.
Duke Chengguo was deeply astonished. He stared at Li Chenjian. Li Chenjian smiled and bowed: “I have had everything arranged for Big Brother. There is no need to worry even if the Palace Command suffered a setback — the Lulong Army will provide reinforcement.”
His foresight went far beyond anything Duke Chengguo had anticipated. He had not expected him to have established contact with the Lulong Army. Duke Chengguo recalled his wife’s words: treat a man with sincerity, and he will trust you and treat you with sincerity in return. Only now did he truly feel the weight of those words. Thinking about it — in terms of actual strength, he himself was the weakest. Unlike the other two brothers, he had never been sent to command troops in distant posts. At the critical moment, his backing was far weaker than theirs. After all that had happened, he finally saw it clearly: Ji Fu’s support for him had never been a matter of appearance. It was a wholehearted and devoted contribution, utterly sincere.
“Fourth Brother…” He could find no words. The hand holding his sword trembled slightly.
Li Chenjian’s sharp, clear eyes turned to him, still free of any shadow or grudge, and he said with earnest devotion: “I am willing to help Big Brother sweep the path clear and build an enduring foundation for the realm.”
In truth, at a moment like this, he could have abandoned him and gone to claim his own destiny. But in the careful deliberation of these past few days, he had come to this decision.
He himself was fragile in health. Even if he took that seat, he did not know how long he could sustain it. And that would set the realm ablaze in conflict — which would not be good for the country. And then… he turned back and looked at Yun Pan. She was watching him intently, his own reflection visible in her eyes. That woman who loved and trusted him so wholly, who had endured hardship alongside him — he did not want her to face a harem full of women in the years ahead. He did not want her to regret the choice she had made to share in his difficulties today. Let her keep this love forever — let her love him for the rest of her life.
He exhaled slowly and gave his order to Fang Gan: “You yourself escort my Lady back to the residence. Have the residence held secure. No retreat without my orders.”
Yun Pan called out “Ji Fu” in alarm and wanted to ask him why he was not returning with her. But the question was too foolish. In times like these, what warrior could leave his warhorse?
She understood his decision. She only urged him: “Take every care — please, please!”
He nodded. Then he turned to Jiang Heng and bowed. “Father-in-law, I leave Si Si in your hands.”
Jiang Heng had witnessed this series of events and had not yet come back to himself, having been a civil servant at peace all his life and utterly unaccustomed to the instantaneous turns of power. Called by Li Chenjian, he gave a start, and said: “Go do what you need to do. I will bring Si Si back safely.”
At ease now, he reached out and touched her cheek gently, and said in a quiet voice: “Wait for me to come home.” Then he buckled on his armor, picked up his sword, and stepped into the passage.
Yun Pan watched him disappear into the distance, her heart a tangle of confusion. It had, after all, come to the point of open rupture — no one would hold back against anyone now. Li Chenjian had settled the order, and someone had to decide the outcome, whether Duke Chengguo would be the one to ascend, or whether Duke Chuguo would strike first — that remained to be seen.
***
Back in the Hall of Heavenly Blessing, there were repeated entries of people coming to report. His Majesty lay half-reclined on his couch, listening to the updates from outside. His face wore a kind of numb calm.
The Empress Dowager sat to one side and let out a long sigh. “In the end, it has still come to this.”
It had been sensed long ago. His Majesty had planned for the second month to strip the two Dukes’ military authority — but that had come too late. The people within the palace had been scheming, and the people outside had long since run out of patience.
His Majesty’s concern was Li Chenjian, still locked in the Side Gate by the Bian River, and whether the Third Master would spare him. He had also been hoping Duke Chengguo could mount a rescue, but the ceremonial guards had been falling back position by position. It would not be long before the Iron Cavalry broke into the palace.
The head eunuch came in again to report the state of the fighting, his voice trembling: “Your Majesty — the Iron Cavalry met fierce resistance from the Left and Right Golden Guard at the Horse Market Street. But they broke through like a force of nature. The Left and Right Golden Guard could not hold them. The Iron Cavalry has now broken through the Morning Radiance Gate.”
His Majesty closed his aching eyes, waved him out, struggled to his feet, and walked to the brazier. He took the imperial decree from the box and slowly paced toward the fire pit, dropped it in.
The silk cloth caught and burned. Flames licked through the scorched characters, spreading and consuming everything, until the decree had been entirely swallowed up. His Majesty looked down and watched. He knew that leaving it behind would only be the greatest harm to the person named within it. Whether it fell into Duke Chengguo’s hands or Duke Chuguo’s, once they discovered the final chosen person was Ji Fu, neither would allow him to live. Only by keeping the position vacant could he give him the greatest protection.
He turned and looked toward the door, waiting for the next round of reports. News came quickly: the Iron Cavalry had broken through East Flower Gate and was advancing toward the inner palace.
A great edifice in collapse — he had never imagined the change of dynasty would come about in quite this way. It was truly lamentable. The Empress said: “Your Majesty, if you were to change the name on the decree now, it might offer you some protection.”
His Majesty shook his head. “Bow before these rebel traitors? Never. I would rather be destroyed along with this Hall of Heavenly Blessing than write that name on the decree.”
Once he wrote Li Yuanjian’s name on the decree, it would mean Yuanjian had acted in accord with heaven’s will and could not be called a traitor and usurper. In the historical record, there would be no line about him seizing the throne by force. To a man of letters, this was the last stand of a scholar’s integrity. Even at the cost of everything, he would not lower himself to beg before the enemy.
The Empress Dowager and the Empress heard him say this and acquiesced. In any case, they had both lived full and comfortable lives — it was enough. His Majesty’s health was worsening by the day; who knew how much longer he could sit on the throne. Without a son of his own blood to carry on the ancestral line — in the end, into whose hands the realm fell hardly seemed worth contesting.
The Empress helped His Majesty settle back onto the couch. The sounds of fighting outside were carried in on the wind, drifting into the Hall of Heavenly Blessing.
His Majesty’s thoughts turned to the palace attendants, and he said with sorrow and indignation: “Within the palace there are only people without weapons. Would those rebels truly slaughter all of them?”
Footsteps thundered, as though right there on the steps before the hall. The candle flames in the hall shook violently. The entire palace seemed to tremble.
The clank of armor, accompanied by the heavy fall of boots on the ground, finally crossed the threshold into the outer hall. In every heart a foreboding of despair rose — it has come… in the end, everything has come…
The heavy half-curtain was flung aside. A company of men strode into the inner chamber, then stepped back half a pace and knelt on one knee, bowing their heads. “Your servants came too late to protect Your Majesty — please grant us forgiveness.”
His Majesty, who had been lying in a daze, forced himself upright, and now saw clearly that those kneeling before him were not Li Yuanjian, but Li Yaojian and Li Chenjian. At once the tight cord within him slackened. “Rise… all of you, rise…”
Merciful heavens. The Empress and the Empress Dowager were overjoyed. The Empress Dowager wiped her tears and asked: “And that irredeemable Third Master — where is he now? Where is he?”
Duke Chengguo bowed and replied: “In answer to Her Highness — the Imperial Dragon Guard has taken him prisoner at the Hall of Purple Government. He is now in custody, awaiting Your Majesty’s judgment.”
Li Chenjian then acknowledged his own transgression: “Your servant, without having been pardoned by Your Majesty, left the restricted grounds on his own authority. I ask that Your Majesty mete out punishment.”
His Majesty looked at him — standing as always in the wake of Duke Chengguo, just as before — and understood that the two brothers must already have reached an understanding.
So be it, so be it… His Majesty shook his head. “You came out to put down a rebellion. Not only have you committed no offense — you have merit. My body is no longer fit to hold court. At the next court gathering the day after tomorrow, have the First Master preside in my stead.” He drew two rough, labored breaths and said: “As for Li Yuanjian — what is to be done with him is entirely for the First Master to decide. There is no need to ask me.”
Duke Chengguo felt the stone that had hung suspended in his heart finally drop into place. He understood the deep meaning in His Majesty’s words. He bowed his head, accepted the command, and said: “I comply.”
His Majesty raised his eyes and looked up at the deep recesses of the hall’s ceiling. He knew clearly in his own heart: from this point on, the realm had truly changed hands. Much as he regretted it, there was nothing to be done. Sometimes life simply did not proceed according to one’s plan.
A timely withdrawal preserved his own dignity. At the very least, he would come to a good end. If he had resisted further, to no purpose — perhaps tonight, from the shock alone, he would have “passed from this world.”