Qin Yining’s body was heavy, so naturally she wouldn’t make things difficult for herself in such matters. She immediately curtsied to express her thanks.
“Why are you standing there stunned? Quickly help your wife up.” Li Qitian didn’t even let her finish her bow before urging Pang Xiao, his tone intimate as if they were blood brothers.
Pang Xiao smiled and acknowledged, simply jumping down from the carriage to easily lift Qin Yining and place her on the carriage, then sat down beside her.
The carriage was very spacious, with plenty of room even for four people.
Li Qitian sat properly in the main position, conversing quietly with Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu along the way, not neglecting Qin Yining during this time.
Qin Yining could see that after being forced to expose her own forces, Li Qitian no longer treated her as a minister’s wife, but truly regarded her as a capable lieutenant like Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu.
Soon, the group successfully entered the palace gates.
Qin Yining couldn’t help but lift the window curtain to look outside.
In the dark night, the red palace walls and floor tiles still bore traces of dark brown stains, and there were even corpses of palace servants and guards lying on the ground that hadn’t been cleared away in time.
The wooden wheels rolled over the silent palace path, making sounds. Because of the dark surroundings filled with the smell of blood, everything seemed eerie and sinister.
The imperial palace had always been a place where resentment accumulated.
“Yining, don’t look.” Pang Xiao embraced Qin Yining’s shoulders and straightened her body.
At this time, except perhaps for Li Qitian, none of the other three people in the carriage felt comfortable. Such casualties might be insignificant in Li Qitian’s eyes—he might even think it was quite worthwhile to only lose these people to regain the throne. In fact, this strategy that Qin Yining and Pang Xiao had devised together was indeed the method with the smallest cost to regain power.
However, seeing with their own eyes the brick walls and ground stained red with blood, and as for Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu, seeing with their own eyes that trusted followers who had once served at their sides had died in such a power conspiracy rather than truly shedding blood on the battlefield—the pain in their hearts was something others couldn’t understand.
“Your Majesty.” Outside the carriage, Huzi said, “The Empress is currently in the Empress Dowager’s palace. Should Your Majesty go to the imperial study first, or first pay respects to the Empress Dowager at Ci’an Palace?”
Li Qitian looked at the sky, thought for a moment, then said: “Naturally we should first pay respects to the Empress Dowager.”
“Yes.” Huzi commanded: “Proceed to Ci’an Palace.”
The carriage traveled along the palace path toward Ci’an Palace.
The guards stationed at the entrance of Ci’an Palace, seeing a spacious and magnificent carriage slowly approaching surrounded by guards, all came forward to bow.
A clever eunuch stepped back a few paces, turned and ran to report to the Empress Dowager, shouting joyfully: “Empress Dowager, Empress, His Majesty has returned!”
The Empress Dowager was currently guarding a silk lamp, taking a cold cloth handed by a palace servant to apply to her eyes, which were swollen like peaches from crying. Hearing this, she stood up excitedly, nearly knocking over the palace lamp.
“What did you say! Is it truly His Majesty! If you dare deceive the mourning family, the mourning family will take your life!”
“This servant dare not lie—His Majesty has truly returned!” The little eunuch was so frightened he fell to his knees with a thud.
The Empress had already stood up, supported by palace servants as she walked toward the hall entrance, tears continuously swirling in her eyes.
His Majesty had returned! It was truly him!
The Empress had never lived through such a heart-stopping day in her entire life—first being nailed shut in her own palace by Prince Li, who said he would starve her to death without food or drink. If her mental strength hadn’t been so firm, she might have despaired and committed suicide on the spot. Who would have thought that after gritting her teeth and persevering, before she could even implement the several survival methods she had conceived in her mind, Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu’s subordinates had stormed into the palace that very night to rescue her.
The Empress’s heart was full of gratitude toward Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu. She now understood clearly that when His Majesty was trapped in the underground palace, only Ji Zeyu was willing to make such efforts, staying on the mountain and vowing not to come down until His Majesty was rescued.
From the Empress Dowager’s scattered words, the Empress also learned that Qin Yining’s visit to the palace today was to help His Majesty deliver a message.
Combined with the imperial palace now being retaken and His Majesty returning safely to the palace.
Who was right and who was wrong, who was treacherous and who was evil, was already evident.
Without Ji Zeyu and Pang Xiao, she and the child in her womb would probably have only faced death. Could she have counted on a mother-in-law who was so frightened she lost control of her bladder and was extremely selfish to save her?
The Empress’s gaze darkened as she supported her waist and walked outside.
Moving faster than her was the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager, who had previously been so frightened her whole body went weak and her legs trembled, now walked with the wind, moving as agilely as a young eunuch.
“My son, my son is safe!”
The Empress Dowager excitedly rushed to the entrance of Ci’an Palace, just in time to see Qin Yining being helped down from the carriage by Pang Xiao, followed by Ji Zeyu jumping down gracefully, and finally Li Qitian descending majestically with the support of his two ministers, stepping on a footstool.
“My son!”
The Empress Dowager opened her arms and rushed over, embracing Li Qitian: “My son, you’re trying to kill your mother! I thought you had already… already… If you hadn’t returned, your mother wouldn’t want to live either!”
The sorrow and grief accumulated over many days all burst out at this moment. The Empress Dowager cried so hard that even the guards were moved.
The Empress supported her belly and stood not far away, watching all this, yet finding it somewhat laughable.
Was the Empress Dowager treating everyone as blind?
Did she worry about her son? Perhaps she did worry. But her son’s life wasn’t as important as her own life, wasn’t as important as her maternal family’s glory. Now she was putting on this act, making people find it ridiculous.
Li Qitian smiled and patted the Empress Dowager’s back: “Mother Empress, this son has returned safely. You should be happy—please don’t be sad anymore.”
The Empress Dowager patted Li Qitian’s back and pinched his arm: “My son has lost weight. Lost so much weight!”
Li Qitian smiled: “For Us to preserve Our life is already precious. Mother Empress, don’t cry anymore.”
“Yes, Empress Dowager.” The Empress smiled and stepped forward: “His Majesty and the two worthy brothers have all worked hard. Why don’t we sit down and talk about what happened after the separation?”
Hearing the Empress’s way of addressing Ji Zeyu and Pang Xiao, Li Qitian immediately felt they were truly of one mind. Looking at the Empress’s belly, which seemed even larger than in his memory, he nodded with satisfaction: “Zitong is right. With the deep night and cold weather, it wouldn’t be good if Mother Empress caught a chill. Let’s go inside and talk.”
The Empress Dowager had no choice but to nod, supported by Li Qitian as she sobbed all the way into the hall.
Qin Yining and Pang Xiao walked side by side at the back. The night wind had dispersed much of the heavy smell of blood, but Qin Yining’s senses were sharp—what she had seen along the way, mixed with the heavy smell of blood, still made her feel stifled inside.
Pang Xiao embraced her shoulders, saying tenderly in a low voice: “Are you uncomfortable? Later I’ll have someone find a room and let Bingtang and Ji Yun attend to your rest. With your current condition, how can you endure staying up all night?”
Qin Yining was indeed somewhat tired. Looking at the sky: “It’s alright. I still want to stay by your side—it’s safer.”
Pang Xiao agreed: “What you say is true. The palace isn’t completely safe either. Persevere a bit longer—once we resolve things, we can rest at ease.”
Qin Yining smiled and nodded.
Just as Li Qitian and the others were discussing recent developments in the capital with the Empress Dowager and Empress, Prince Li and Marquis Qingyang were at Prince Zhongshun’s mansion, inspecting the situation there.
The great fire had just been extinguished. The charred, broken walls emitted green smoke, with some places still vaguely showing their original outlines.
Charred corpses were placed on the ground, many burned and shriveled to the point where one could only tell they had once been human.
Before Prince Li and Marquis Qingyang lay a male corpse with a charred body but relatively intact facial features. Seeing Li Qitian’s familiar face half-burned and lying there stiffly, Prince Li almost burst out laughing.
Li Qitian was dead! All these people in Pang Xiao’s mansion had been buried with him—truly satisfying!
This way, his ascension to the throne would be legitimate! He was originally Li Qitian’s cousin. In times of crisis, entrusted by the Empress Dowager to oversee state affairs, with the Emperor’s death, who could say anything against his inheriting the throne? Moreover, with the current tense court situation, he believed that his ascension would give court ministers a backbone, and everyone would be willing.
Then he would arrange for the Huben Army to rescue Tianmen Pass, drive those Tatar barbarians out of Great Zhou, and his position would be even more secure!
Thinking of this, Prince Li pressed his lips together, gritting his teeth tightly, forcing a grieved expression as he instructed those beside him: “Handle these corpses. Carry this one out—we’re going back to see the Empress Dowager.”
“Yes.”
His trusted subordinates moved efficiently. They ignored the other corpses and temporarily didn’t concern themselves with those burned beyond recognition. Finding a wooden board, they only carried out “Li Qitian’s” corpse.
The sky was dim. Prince Li and Marquis Qingyang walked silently through the prince’s mansion that had become scorched earth, both in very high spirits.
Who knew that when they reached the main gate, Prince Li and Marquis Qingyang saw quite a few ministers’ sedan chairs and carriages heading toward the imperial palace.
The area around the prince’s mansion had many neighbors who were court officials.
Looking at the sky, it was nearly time for morning court.
But as the one overseeing state affairs, how did he not remember arranging court today?
Marquis Qingyang asked in confusion: “Did Your Highness arrange morning court today? Didn’t you say that with His Majesty’s incident and many court ministers injured, court would be temporarily suspended for recovery?”
Prince Li was also confused: “This prince indeed arranged for recovery.”
“Strange. I’ll go ask.”
Marquis Qingyang was about to chase after a carriage ahead when Prince Li grabbed him.
“You can’t ask like that.” Prince Li gave a look to someone behind him, and the attendant immediately understood and went to inquire.
Only then did Prince Li say: “This prince was entrusted by the Empress Dowager’s edict to oversee state affairs. Would this prince not know about court matters? If you ask like that, wouldn’t you be telling others that this prince knows nothing?”
Only then did Marquis Qingyang understand, laughing somewhat awkwardly: “I was anxious for a moment.”
Prince Li rolled his eyes and said no more.
Soon, the attendant returned quickly, saying in a low voice: “Your Highness, it’s said that all the ministers received instructions. Today’s grand court assembly proceeds as usual.”
“This prince is right here—whose instructions did they receive?” Prince Li narrowed his eyes. Could it be that old witch? Who would have thought that the Empress Dowager, who acted like a coward in front of him, would actually have such methods?
Author’s Note: Mother is still sick and hospitalized + foolish author has a cold with inflamed tonsils, lymph nodes, and eyelids again. I’ve lost the will to live. Updates haven’t been strong these past few days—sorry everyone!