You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 31 Secret Arrangements

After reading the contents of the fold-out booklet again, Zhou Chen smiled.

"Wu Ying, Wu Ying, since I ascended the throne, I have given you everything I could. Even the Empress Dowager has never had such power."

"But you're still not satisfied. You're obsessed with becoming empress. You're just like a snake trying to swallow an elephant."

"It's a pity that no matter how skilled you are in politics, you almost became someone else's knife."

Zhou Chen muttered to himself, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

If Zhou Chen hadn't transmigrated, Empress Wu Ying would have truly become someone else's tool.

I wonder what kind of scene it will be like then?
But despite his thoughts, Zhou Chen knew that there were no "what ifs" in this world, only results.

The current situation is that Zhou Chen, the emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, is still alive, so Empress Wu Ying and those who were plotting in the shadows will have to pay the price.

"Your Majesty, Commander Jinhe has arrived," the eunuch reported.

"Let him in."

"This humble general, Jin He, greets Your Majesty," Jin He said respectfully as he entered.

Zhou Chen closed the small folded document in his hand and placed it on the jade table. He looked up at Jin He and asked, "Have the missing generals of the Imperial Guard been replaced? Are the Imperial Guards still capable of serving?"

After the all-out rectification and purge half a month ago, not only did the two commanders Wu Qing and Wang Tong, as well as seven or eight senior generals, die in the Imperial Guard, but many of the middle-level generals were also purged.

If these generals' positions are not filled, then the 30,000 Imperial Guards will be like a bunch of headless flies, and Zhou Chen dares not use them lightly.

"Your Majesty, the missing general positions have been filled. They are all loyal and capable generals. As long as Your Majesty gives the order, none of the 30,000 Imperial Guards will dare to disobey."

Jinhe said in a firm and powerful voice.

Having learned from the previous lesson of the officials storming the palace, Jin He thoroughly purged all the lower and middle-ranking officers in the Imperial Guard this time.

Anyone with problems was executed, those who wavered were taken down, and those with weak will were demoted to soldiers.

The vacant positions were filled by generals from humble backgrounds who were honest and loyal.

Jin He dared to say that the generals who were replaced would obey the emperor's orders without question.

"Alright, from now on, issue my decree: those who enter the palace are not allowed to leave, and the Imperial Guards must never leave their armor or their swords, and must be in full battle formation and ready for orders." Zhou Chen looked at Jin He and gave the order directly.

Upon hearing this, Jin He's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he immediately bowed and said, "This subordinate obeys the order."

"Go!"

"Remember to keep it secret first."

Zhou Chen waved his hand.

Now, Zhou Chen only dares to use the Imperial Guards.

After all, the Imperial Guards had already undergone a thorough reorganization and cleanup.

Even if some escaped, they won't be able to cause any major trouble.

However, if other armies were used, such as the Twelve Divine Martial Guards guarding Luoyang outside the city, or even the Six Northern Guards under the Grand Tutor's command, Zhou Chen could not guarantee that he could command them as effectively as his own arms.

It's uncertain how many people's hands were involved.

Not long after Jin He left, Cao Zhengchun secretly entered the palace with the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." Upon entering the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu all bowed to Zhou Chen.

Zhou Chen glanced at the three of them and said calmly, "No need for formalities!"

It has to be said that Zhou Chen felt different about each of the three.

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, was gentle and refined, like a gentleman.

The Minister of War had become somewhat worldly and shrewd.

As for the Marquis of Might, he is like a century-old tree, standing tall and unyielding.

Previously in the imperial court, Zhou Chen didn't have much of a feeling about these three people because of the presence of all the officials.

Now, when they meet in private, Zhou Chen feels the deepest impact.

"The three of you are probably still wondering why I'm in such a hurry to secretly invite you to the palace!"

Zhou Chen looked at the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu and spoke. The three—the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu—exchanged glances.

They were indeed puzzled as to why Zhou Chen had summoned the three of them to the palace in such a hurry.

They were secretly invited into the palace by the three of them.

Could it be because of the memorials submitted by the officials?
Or has something happened in the four northwestern prefectures?
The three men—Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and Marquis Weiwu—were speculating in their hearts.

"Why don't you three take a look at this first?"

Zhou Chen didn't mince words with the three of them; he directly gestured for Cao Zhengchun to hand the small folded document to the three princes.

Filled with doubt, the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu read through the contents of the small memorial.

The three of them wore solemn expressions, their previous confusion and ease completely gone.

"Have you three finished reading? Do you have anything to say?" Zhou Chen glanced at the three of them.

The three—Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and Marquis Weiwu—remained silent.

The three of them dared not speak of such a matter lightly.

This is a matter that can have far-reaching consequences; if one is not careful, it could cause a major upheaval.

"Since the three of you ministers are unwilling to speak, then listen to the decree!"

Without hesitation, Zhou Chen issued dozens of decrees to the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu.

Then, the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu secretly left the palace with solemn expressions.

They arrived in a hurry, filled with doubt.

The departure was marked by a heavy atmosphere.

After watching the three leave, Zhou Chen said to Cao Zhengchun beside him, "Send people from the Eastern Depot to keep an eye on them, in case anything goes wrong."

Aside from the people who appear through the system's sign-in system, Zhou Chen doesn't completely trust anyone.

Especially matters like this, where one small change can have far-reaching consequences.

Even though the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian, the Minister of War, and the Marquis of Weiwu were all loyal and capable generals.

Zhou Chen also needed to be on the safe side.

……

Qingfeng Palace.

Empress Wu Ying sat on the phoenix chair with a grim expression, four or five teacups beside her already broken.

The palace maids and eunuchs around them knelt on the ground, all trembling.

Although they didn't know why the empress was so angry, they figured it must be related to the one in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

In fact, it is true.

In the past two weeks, Empress Wu Ying has used her undercover agents to try to sabotage Zhou Chen four or five times, but all her attempts have failed.

Not only did they fail, but these spies were also exposed, and naturally, they all died.

It should be noted that these spies were all carefully developed and arranged by Empress Wu Ying.

Unexpectedly, it broke so easily.

How could Empress Wu Ying not be furious?

That's not all. In the past two weeks, Cao Zhengchun, along with people from the Eastern Depot, has thoroughly cleaned the entire palace.

Eight or nine out of ten of Empress Wu Ying's spies and informants have been eliminated.

Empress Wu Ying's three years of painstaking efforts were all for naught, returning her to square one.

This is no longer as simple as just breaking bones.

Furthermore, Empress Wu Ying's people in the Imperial Guard were all purged.

It can be said that Empress Wu Ying's power in the palace has now diminished significantly and is no longer what it once was.

(End of this chapter)