You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 17 It seems my trip was in vain.

"The Emperor's will?"

"I do not believe that His Majesty would issue such an edict."

"I want to see the Emperor. I want to see who is behind this plot against me."

"If you can't produce irrefutable evidence, don't blame me for being impolite."

Empress Wu Ying glared menacingly at Zhao Gao.

Empress Wu Ying knew, of course, that this was the Emperor's will.

Otherwise, even if Zhao Gao, a mere eunuch, had the greatest courage, he wouldn't dare to forge such an imperial edict.

but.

Even if it's the Emperor's will, solid evidence is still required.

You must know that Empress Wu Ying was no ordinary person; she was an empress who ruled the world.

If a simple verbal edict could so easily imprison her, the empress who ruled the world.

That's far too frivolous.

"Your Highness, please don't make things difficult for me. The entire Qingfeng Palace is now sealed off by Commander Jinhe and the Imperial Guards. You can't get out."

Zhao Gao wore a bitter expression, subtly hinting at Empress Wu Ying.

He didn't want to offend the powerful empress, but he also dared not go against the emperor Zhou Chen's wishes.

Since Zhou Chen has already ordered Empress Wu Ying to stay at home and Qingfeng Palace to be sealed off, wouldn't it be asking for trouble if he were to go and deliver a message to Empress Wu Ying again?

Empress Wu Ying also understood Zhao Gao's meaning.

Who is Jinhe?

Those are die-hards who only recognize imperial decrees and refuse to acknowledge anything else.

With someone like this sealing off Qingfeng Palace, without an imperial decree, let alone the Empress, even the Empress Dowager would probably be powerless.

Wei Zhong, who was standing nearby, realized what was happening and immediately pulled Zhao Gao aside, whispering, "Zhao Gao, what exactly is going on?"

"Didn't we already discuss everything? How did this sudden change happen?" Wei Zhong looked at Zhao Gao with an unfriendly expression.

They had secretly met before, and it was something they had clearly already discussed and agreed upon.

But now such a huge change has suddenly occurred.

Wei Zhong couldn't help but suspect that Zhao Gao was behind this.

Zhao Gao shook his head; "I don't know what happened either. This was a sudden order from the Emperor, and it has nothing to do with me."

"I have already delivered His Majesty's decree, so I will take my leave now."

After saying this, Zhao Gao hurriedly left Qingfeng Palace.

He had completed his mission of delivering the imperial decree, so the rest was up to the Imperial Guards and had nothing to do with him.

If Her Majesty the Empress wishes to see the Emperor, she should go to see the Commander of the Golden Crane!
Zhao Gao didn't get involved in these troublesome matters.

After Zhao Gao left, Empress Wu Ying looked directly at Wei Zhong; "Wei Zhong, what happened? What did Zhao Gao say?"

As the empress, Wu Ying could not question Zhao Gao in detail.

But Wei Zhong and Zhao Gao had secretly met, which was a good opportunity to inquire about something in private.

“Your Majesty, Zhao Gao knows nothing about it either. He only said that it was a sudden order from the Emperor,” Wei Zhong said, bowing.

is it?

Empress Wu Ying narrowed her eyes and sat back down on the phoenix throne.

The anger on his face had long since vanished, replaced by calm contemplation.

She was indeed furious when she heard the decree, but she remained mostly calm.

For people in high positions like them, anger is just a facade; composure and calmness are what truly lie within.

She didn't completely believe Zhao Gao's words, but she didn't completely disbelieve them either.

It was obvious that Emperor Zhou Chen considered Empress Zhang De to be the prime suspect.

Most importantly, Zhou Chen wanted to use this incident to weaken or eliminate her power as empress.

There's just no conclusive evidence yet. If there were, it wouldn't be as simple as just imprisonment and blockade.

Thinking of this, Empress Wu Ying looked at the palace maid Wan'er beside her; "Wan'er, find an opportunity to leave the palace and let the general and the others deal with it!"

Since Zhou Chen has made his move, there's no reason for her, Wu Ying, not to accept it.

If they want to eliminate Wu Ying's power, she, Wu Ying, will not sit idly by and wait for her doom.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Wan'er bowed.

Empress Wu Ying then looked at Wei Zhong; "Wei Zhong, I'm leaving the affairs of the palace to you. The Emperor should stay in bed."

Although Empress Wu Ying did not say it explicitly, Wei Zhong already understood what she meant.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, this servant understands." A glint of light flashed in Wei Zhong's eyes.

Although the palace appears to be under the control of Emperor Zhou Chen, Empress Wu Ying actually wields considerable power within it.

Take the Imperial Guards for example. Even if the Golden Crane is replaced, it's still the same old thing in a new guise. Empress Wu Ying's influence in the Imperial Guards remains significant.

It's simply impossible to completely seal off Qingfeng Palace.

Empress Wu Ying nodded; "Go and tell the Imperial Guards outside that I wish to see the Emperor."

If an imperial edict were to be issued to imprison the empress, it would be unreasonable for her not to react at all.

Empress Wu Ying knew that Zhou Chen would not see her at this time.

But she still wanted to let Zhou Chen know through the Imperial Guards that she, the Empress, wanted to see him.

……

Heaven Prison.

The place where the Great Zhou Dynasty imprisoned serious criminals.

None of the people imprisoned here are simple.

In a prison cell, Zhou Chen looked at Grand Tutor Yan Hua kneeling before him and said coldly, "This is what I ordered the Imperial Guards to investigate. Take a look for yourself."

Zhou Chen tossed the small folded document containing the records that Zhao Gao had found onto Grand Tutor Yan Hua.

Grand Tutor Yan Hua picked up the small folded document, opened it, and glanced at it.

The above content did not cause Grand Tutor Yan Hua's expression to change much.

Clearly, Grand Tutor Yan Hua had known all this for a long time.

"This old minister is guilty." After reading the contents of the memorial, Grand Tutor Yan Hua prostrated himself on the ground and said.

Zhou Chen saw this and his face turned extremely angry. "I came to the prison not to hear you say you are guilty. Don't you have anything to say to me?"

Zhou Chen was burning with anger.

He believed that Grand Tutor Yan Hua should understand what he, the emperor, wanted to hear.

However, Grand Tutor Yan Hua still used the excuse of being guilty to brush him off, as if he didn't know what the emperor was supposed to do.

Grand Tutor Yan Hua remained silent.

He understood perfectly well what Zhou Chen wanted to hear, but he couldn't say it, nor did he dare to.

Pulled around and moved the whole body.

As a minister left behind by the late emperor, he was not exactly a loyal subject, but he did not want to see the court in turmoil.

Perhaps this is what they mean by the irreversibility of the tide!

"It seems my trip was in vain." Seeing that Grand Tutor Yan Hua remained silent and did not intend to speak, a cold glint flashed in Zhou Chen's eyes.

Without saying anything more, he turned and walked out of the prison.

If a high-ranking official like Grand Tutor Yan Hua, who has weathered countless storms, is determined not to speak, there is nothing that can be done about it.

This old fox has seen through the ways of the world and understood human nature.

They knew the pros and cons, understood the situation, and wanted to find a breakthrough by exploiting this type of person.

Unless they want to.

Otherwise, there is no solution.

(End of this chapter)