Commander Zhang held his blade to Emperor Tai’an’s throat, with the crazed desperation of someone at the end of their rope. “Have your people retreat and let us leave the palace!”

Even surrounded by elite Imperial Guards armed with bows and crossbows, with the Emperor in hand, there was still a chance to escape.

As long as they escaped the palace and fled the capital, there would be a way to survive.

“Has Commander Zhang thought about his family?” Commander Yang asked.

Pain flashed through Commander Zhang’s eyes, and his voice grew even colder and harder. “Enough nonsense—move aside!”

Having come this far, how could he still care about his family? Fortunately, he had sent one son south ahead of time, at least preserving a thread of his bloodline.

“Commander Zhang is truly heartless.”

Commander Zhang sneered. “Even if I release the Emperor, could I be pardoned? Stop wasting words and clear the way!”

Commander Yang’s gaze was piercing as it swept over those following Commander Zhang. “And you? Do you also want to follow Zhang Ze down this path of no return? If you lay down your weapons and confess now, the Emperor is merciful—at least your crimes won’t extend to your families for those of you who were deceived and misled. But if you continue causing chaos with Zhang Ze, your crimes will be unforgivable.”

These words made the Imperial Guards following Commander Zhang exchange glances, their resolve wavering.

Worried his subordinates would be swayed, Commander Zhang hastily shouted, “Don’t listen to his flowery words! If we really lay down our weapons and confess, only death awaits us! The Emperor is in our hands now. As long as we work together, we can definitely use this to escape!”

“Is that so?” A low voice pierced through the ink-black night and fell upon Commander Zhang’s ears.

Commander Zhang froze.

This voice was so familiar, so authoritative—exactly like the voice he had heard countless times before.

He jerked his head down to look at the Emperor Tai’an he held in his grasp.

Emperor Tai’an’s head hung powerlessly, a picture of critical illness.

The Emperor was still in his hands!

Having confirmed the situation, Commander Zhang should have felt relieved, yet instinctively he felt intense unease.

This unease reached its peak when torchlight illuminated that stern face.

“Your Majesty?” He looked down in bewilderment, checking his hostage once more, and clearly saw the critically ill emperor.

Those following Commander Zhang stirred with agitation.

How could there be two emperors?

Emperor Tai’an stood still with Commander Yang and Commander Li flanking him on either side as guards. In the firelight, the emperor’s face was clearly visible. Though his illness was hard to conceal, his spirit and vitality were incomparable to the person Commander Zhang was controlling.

“What, what is going on?” Commander Zhang was thrown into confusion.

Commander Yang sneered. “Zhang Ze, open your eyes wide and look clearly—this is the Emperor!”

“Impossible! Then who is he?” Commander Zhang pushed his hostage forward and opened his eyes wide to look by the lamplight.

It was a face identical to Emperor Tai’an’s—no, there was still a slight difference. This face was lifeless and severely emaciated. He had thought this difference was due to weight loss distorting the features.

“Cough cough cough.” The person in Commander Zhang’s grasp suddenly coughed twice, raised his previously half-lowered head, and stared straight at him. “Want to know who I am?”

Commander Zhang’s pupils dilated tremendously.

It had changed—the voice had changed!

No, wait—this person hadn’t spoken much before!

The voice sounded somewhat familiar to him. Because he was too shocked, his mind went blank, and he couldn’t immediately recall who the voice belonged to.

Not leaving everyone puzzled for long, that person raised his hand and tore off the mask as thin as cicada wings.

Removing the mask so forcefully would cause considerable damage to the skin, yet he seemed to feel nothing—he didn’t even furrow his brow.

“Eunuch Wang!” Many people exclaimed.

Commander Zhang was also shocked.

The person they had been treating as the Emperor all along was actually the seal-keeping eunuch Wang He, who had suddenly fallen seriously ill a few days ago!

Looking again at Wang He’s height and facial structure that differed little from Emperor Tai’an’s, Commander Zhang completely understood.

From the moment news spread that the seal-keeping eunuch Wang He had contracted a serious illness, the one lying on the sickbed in Qianqing Palace wasn’t Emperor Tai’an but Wang He.

From the very beginning, this had been a trap to lure them in, and now they had all become live turtles trapped in the jar!

Realizing this, Commander Zhang’s face turned deathly pale, leaving only despair.

“Still won’t confess?” Emperor Tai’an asked expressionlessly.

What sounded like a casual question fell like a massive stone on the hearts of those rebel soldiers.

They looked at each other, and someone’s hand loosened, their long blade crashing to the ground.

The floor tiles were cold and hard, producing a crisp sound.

This collision seemed to break through some kind of shackles. Soon there was a clinking and clanking as these Imperial Guards scrambled to discard their weapons.

Commander Zhang knew the situation was lost. His legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground.

The seal-keeping eunuch Wang He, whom he had been holding all along, swayed and toppled to one side. Someone immediately supported him and brought him to Emperor Tai’an’s side.

“Your Majesty—” Wang He struggled to bow, but Emperor Tai’an stopped him and ordered someone to take him to see an Imperial Physician.

The night wind picked up, cutting across faces like a cold blade. The treasonous Imperial Guards knelt in a dark mass, creating a suffocating silence.

In this quiet, Emperor Tai’an looked toward the dumbstruck Prince Ping.

“I didn’t expect that when I saw Elder Brother again, it would be under these circumstances.”

Prince Ping came to his senses as if from a dream, pointing at Emperor Tai’an. “You, you even schemed against Mother!”

A sorrowful expression appeared on Emperor Tai’an’s face as he said lightly, “I merely fell ill.”

When he fell ill, all the demons and monsters came out, and even Mother couldn’t restrain herself.

They say there are no fathers and sons in the imperial family. In reality, it’s even more cruel—in the imperial family, there are not only no fathers and sons, there are no mothers and sons either.

Having reached this point, Prince Ping knew he had no way to survive. His face contorted as he glared at Emperor Tai’an. “Your eldest son was deposed, and your newborn youngest son is sickly and probably won’t survive. Even so, you’d rather adopt other nephews than ever consider returning the throne to me. How can you be so selfish, so ruthless!”

Emperor Tai’an suddenly lost interest in the conversation and waved his hand. “Seize Prince Ping!”

A group of Imperial Guards swarmed forward. Prince Ping struggled and shouted, “Release me! I am the emperor! I am the true Son of Heaven!”

Emperor Tai’an closed his eyes, turned, and walked outside, coming face to face with Consort Zhuang who was hurrying over.

“Your Majesty, what happened?” In the darkness, Consort Zhuang’s expression was anxious, her cloak not even properly fastened.

Seeing it was Consort Zhuang, Emperor Tai’an’s expression eased somewhat. “My beloved consort heard the commotion?”

“The young prince suddenly cried, and a young eunuch from Yungui Palace went to Yuhe Palace to ask for my instructions. On the way, he discovered a group of Imperial Guards…” Consort Zhuang belatedly realized something. “Your Majesty, weren’t you ill—”

“We’ll discuss these matters later. You should return to Yuhe Palace first.” Emperor Tai’an hesitated, then added, “Send someone to check on Yungui Palace. If the young prince is unwell, summon an Imperial Physician.”

“Yes.” Half nervous and half relieved, Consort Zhuang hurriedly departed with a belly full of questions.

Emperor Tai’an stood quietly for a moment, then lifted his foot and walked toward a certain palace.

His illness hadn’t actually recovered yet. The palace was so vast and so dark—he didn’t know how long he walked before finally arriving.

It was Cining Palace, the Empress Dowager’s bedchamber.

The palace servants guarding the entrance all bowed when they saw Emperor Tai’an arrive. Some were secretly nervous, while others knew full well what was happening.

In the sky, even that pitifully thin crescent moon had disappeared, leaving pitch darkness everywhere.

A matron at the Empress Dowager’s side came out. “Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager requests you to enter.”