Zhurou

Chapter 276: Ashes

When Zhao Mingzhi woke up, it was only half light, but the place around him was empty.

The palace guard heard the noise and came over with a lantern. Seeing her half-leaning and looking down at the bed beside her, he whispered, "The prince consort left at the end of the morning hour. Before he left, he specifically instructed the maids not to disturb Your Highness's sleep."

Zhao Mingzhi nodded and was about to get up when he suddenly felt a chill on his fingers. His fingertips touched something hard in the quilt. He lifted the quilt and saw that it was a jade pendant.

The jade pendant had a simple long string tied to it, with a letter wrapped around it, lying between the pillow and the bed, as if it had accidentally fallen off the pillow.

Zhao Mingzhi took it and opened it, and found that it was indeed left by Pei Yong.

The letter only said that the wind was strong and the snow was heavy, and Wei Chengyan would lead his troops soon. The two of them had to go out and take care of some trivial matters today, and might not be back in the evening. He also carefully told her when to practice boxing and when to take a nap, and that she didn't need to wait for him at night. He also asked the kitchen to prepare some hangover soup, and told her to drink another cup after waking up.

After receiving the letter, she washed up and had her meal, then went to the study to look through the documents sent from Minzhou, and compared them with the list of agricultural officials in the south that she had asked Liu Neiquan to send last time, intending to select a few suitable people.

Various materials piled up like mountains. Zhao Mingzhi was busy all morning. He took a short nap in the study at noon, and then continued to read. When he finally finished, it was dark. He felt empty in his stomach, so he just had a simple dinner.

After working at her desk all day, she felt a little tired even though she was young. She sat back and relaxed for a while. Just as she was about to go back to her room to wash up, she saw Cong Moxiang rushing in from outside to report that two eunuchs had come to the palace.

As soon as the attendant led the person in, the eunuch in front knelt down and said, "Your Highness, there is an urgent letter from the north. His Majesty asks you to enter the palace as soon as possible."

When Zhao Mingzhi heard the word "North", he thought it was a letter from the Northern Dynasty. In fact, he had already had some idea in his mind, but when he calculated the time, it was actually irrelevant. He just felt strange, and immediately prepared the horses and harnessed the carriage, and did not care about anything else. He changed his clothes and was about to go out, but he heard someone outside reporting that another messenger from the palace had come to convey the emperor's order.

The second eunuch who came in bowed and said hurriedly, "Your Highness, His Majesty has said that it is too snowy outside. Please wait until the snow stops before entering the palace."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Mingzhi went out to see. Sure enough, the snow was falling heavily and rapidly, and the wind was howling. The snow-covered dead tree trunks in the yard were blown out of shape, and some were broken and fell down. It looked like it was not suitable for travel.

She knew that her brother was not the type to make a fuss. If it wasn't urgent, he would never send someone to summon her so early in the morning. The princess's residence was not far from the palace, so she was unwilling to wait any longer. She just responded and walked out without stopping.

The journey, which usually only took a cup of tea, took Zhao Mingzhi and his convoy more than half an hour to travel in the snow.

When Zhao Hong arrived at the palace, he received the news and went out to meet her. He saw Zhao Mingzhi coming with an umbrella, with snowflakes on her coat and hair. He forgot what he wanted to say and said in annoyance, "I didn't realize that the snow was so strong..."

Zhao Mingzhi shook his head, folded the umbrella and handed it to the eunuch who followed Zhao Hong out. He took a few steps forward, took his brother's hand and walked into the hall.

She had only taken a few steps when she felt Zhao Hong's hand was slightly cold, and his palm was still damp, so she squeezed it hard, tilted her head and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"

Zhao Hong calmed himself down and was about to speak, but when he turned around, he saw the servants of the princess's mansion coming up from behind, panting, to take the umbrella from the eunuch. So he shut up again, pulled Zhao Mingzhi forward a few steps into the hall, and whispered again: "Sister, there's a letter from the north, Zhao... The emperor, the emperor fell off his horse and died!"

Zhao Mingzhi stopped immediately and was unable to react for a moment.

Zhao Hong continued, "Heavy snow has been falling along the way to the north, cutting off the roads. The delegation is still halfway along the way and has not yet entered Xingqing Prefecture..."

There was a strange sense of confusion in his tone, yet also a sense of relief.

Zhao Mingzhi exhaled slowly and asked, "What happened? When did you fall off the horse?"

Zhao Hong turned around and looked to the side.

Only then did Zhao Mingzhi realize that there were three people standing in the hall.

The leader immediately replied, "The emperor fell off his horse on the thirteenth day of last month. Although I rode as fast as I could, I was detained by the Northern Dynasty for many days on some pretext. There was also continuous snowstorm along the way, making the roads difficult to pass. That's why I only managed to come back now to report the news."

Zhao Mingzhi turned to the man and asked, "Why did the emperor fall off his horse for no reason?"

The man hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "I heard from Mr. Cui that the snow had been swept that day, but somehow a small area at the door was frozen over. It was originally covered by dirt and could not be seen. It just so happened that the emperor passed by that place, and the horse slipped and got startled. He was caught off guard and fell off the horse."

"Is there no doctor to see you?"

"The snow was too strong and the road was difficult to walk on. Although we called a doctor, it took more than half an hour to come and go. The doctor fell when he got off his horse and had a bloody head. He fainted on the spot and his leg was broken. We had to find a new doctor. By the time the new doctor arrived, the emperor was only breathing in but not out."

He looked like a bereaved mother, but he kept talking: "After hearing about it, Xingqing Prefecture immediately sent a famous doctor to see him. Before the doctor arrived, the emperor had already passed away. It was too late to treat him. They said that he injured his internal organs when he fell, but in fact, his stomach was already full of blood..."

Seeing that he answered in such detail, Zhao Mingzhi couldn't help but ask, "Did you see it with your own eyes, or did you hear it from someone else?"

"When the emperor fell off his horse, it was Mr. Cui who was serving him. I was not there, but his fall was witnessed by many people. It is definitely not fake!" the man said hurriedly.

"The Emperor is an expert archer and horseman. Even if he startled the horse, he would have a way to deal with it. How could he fall off the horse?"

"I really don't know about this matter. I just heard a lot of discussion among others. They said that they received a letter the night before, knowing that the court would send an envoy to redeem the emperor. The emperor was very happy. It happened that Mr. Liao got the fairy wine from the south for the first time, so he quickly brought it to the emperor. That night, the emperor invited his attendants to a banquet, with poetry and wine, and they didn't go to bed until three o'clock in the morning. Who knew that someone came the next morning and said that the Queen Mother of the Northern Dynasty had summoned him."

"Not long after I left the house, I fell off my horse."

The man paused at this point, then continued, "The Northern Dynasty is always arrogant, and the people who came repeatedly urged us to leave. Everyone in the tent was afraid that if they left too late, they would be dissatisfied and cause something bad. Besides, they were about to return to the capital, so they didn't want to cause any more trouble. Therefore, even though the emperor was still drunk, he still went out, and his legs were still a little shaky when he walked..."

"If we want to find out the reason, I'm afraid it's because the Northern Dynasty was too hasty, which led to such a disaster!"

……

As soon as the messenger left, seeing that there was no one around, Zhao Hong said to Zhao Mingzhi, "Sister, this person left so suddenly, could there be some other reason?"

Zhao Mingzhi said: "The delegation never entered Xingqing Prefecture. No matter what the reason is, it has nothing to do with our dynasty. As long as we finish the matter, it won't be too late to investigate the rest of the trivial matters later."

It is a matter of life and death, especially since the one who died was the emperor emeritus.

Now the Great Jin Dynasty is not the same as before, and the Northern Dynasty is not the same as before. Even if it is just a gesture, it cannot be let go. Zhao Hong nodded, but his face showed a little embarrassment, and whispered: "I was like a headless fly before, I don't know why, but my sister came, my mind seems to have come back a little - I sent someone to summon the two officials to the palace, but the wind and snow are too strong, and I don't know when they can arrive..."

Zhao Mingzhi was startled, turned his head to look at the clepsydra in the corner, and said, "There are always a lot of things going on. The palace will be closed soon. In the middle of the night, the two families braved the snow to enter the palace. If they were seen by outsiders, I'm afraid there would be rumors."

Zhao Hong suddenly came to his senses and hurriedly sent someone out of the palace to pursue the previous order.

……

The news that the retired emperor had fallen off a horse and died quickly spread, causing an uproar in the court and the country.

The two governments argued for half a day before they reluctantly decided to send envoys north, ordering the delegation to discuss with the Northern Dynasty how to bring the coffin back to the capital. As for where to place the coffin and where to build the tomb, they would have to wait until the coffin was brought back to see whether the retired emperor had given any instructions and whether the attendants had any secret orders.

After arguing for a whole day, they finally broke up for a while and Zhang Yi felt exhausted.

He walked out of the Chuigong Hall and was blown by the cold wind outside. He felt dizzy and shrank his head subconsciously, but saw a person standing at the corner. It was Yang Ting.

The latter waited for him to come forward, without saying anything, just raised his chin, motioning him to turn around.

Zhang Yi looked carefully and saw that everyone else had left the room, except for two who stayed behind: Pei Yong and Sun Chong.

The two men stood in front of the emperor's desk, and there was Princess Zhao Mingzhi sitting behind the curtain, apparently still discussing matters.

As the attendants closed the palace door, the scene inside could no longer be seen. Zhang Yi stood there, his heart slowly sinking.

The emperor is too young to distinguish between good and evil. Moreover, he has been in power for a long time and has a stubborn character. If the emperor emeritus is kept at a distance, although it will be difficult for him to return to the court, he can serve as a check and balance.

Now that the person has died in Xingqing Prefecture, although this has eliminated future troubles, good and bad are interdependent. It will be even more difficult to control this young one in the future.

What's more troublesome is that I have been jumping too high and making too much noise these days, and I'm afraid that these two siblings have already held a grudge against me.

Zhang Yi was feeling annoyed but he didn't show it on his face. He nodded towards Yang Ting and walked forward without saying anything.

The two walked for a while, and Yang Ting suddenly said, "A while ago, Deng and Jun Prefectures sent us criminal cases. I heard the Ministry of Justice discussing privately that His Highness has been suppressing them and not releasing them. Not only that, he also ordered the two prefectures to seal up all the important case files from the past year, and to arrange for people to inspect them in the spring. Do you know the reason?"

Zhang Yi suddenly perked up, smiled, and said, "Why are you asking me about the Ministry of Justice? Even if you don't ask Deng Sheng, there are other people to ask. How can I, a member of the Privy Council, know?"

Countless thoughts had already crossed his mind, but he did not say any of his guesses out loud. He only thought secretly: Deng and Jun states have always been close to Jingzhao Prefecture. Could it be that they were specially chosen by Zhao Mingzhi to establish his authority?

After all, the emperor has passed away, and when spring comes, Pei Yong should return to Jingzhao Prefecture.

Although she is a princess, a strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake. Once she goes to the northwest, no matter how many soldiers she brings, they will not be enough to fill the gaps in Pei's teeth.

Yang Ting smiled, said no more, just bowed, and left.

Zhang Yi stood alone in the cold wind, with snowflakes hitting his face. It was cold and painful, but his heart suddenly became excited.

He did not care about the darkness and returned to the yamen at night. He immediately sent people to the Ministry of Justice to inquire, but as expected, no one could explain anything. In the end, they only copied out a few volumes of documents. After studying them for several days, they still could not get to the point.

……

No matter how undercurrents there were in the previous dynasty, it still had nothing to do with the princess's mansion.

At noon that day, Pei Yong came back from the West Camp, simply changed his clothes, and went straight to the study without asking anyone.

Sure enough, when I entered the room, I saw Zhao Mingzhi half-leaning on the couch and taking a nap.

Pei Yong walked closer with light steps, and seeing that she tilted her head and shoulders with a scroll of documents in her hand, he put his hand on her shoulder, slowly brought her into his arms, then held her legs, slowly laid her flat, and covered her with a thin quilt.

Zhao Mingzhi was sleepy, with his eyelids half open. He smelled a familiar breath, muttered a few words, and fell asleep again.

Pei Yong waited until her breathing became regular before he took the file and brought it to the desk. He found a bookmark to mark it. Just as he was about to close the book, he saw the first four words on the page were "Li's Escort Agency". After a pause, he read on and found a case file about a conspiracy to seize property in a certain place. The mastermind was Fu, and the accomplices were a number of thieves.

Originally, Mr. Fu wanted to rob my aunt's property with others, but when they were transporting the property and the women, they were stopped by the escort from the Li Escort Agency halfway and were rescued. However, the old lady had a dispute with Mr. Fu on the way and somehow injured her head. Many guards and maids died, and a girl was missing.

All the criminals in this case have been arrested, except Fu, who claimed that he had no intention of harming anyone, but was deceived and instigated by the bandits. After the old lady woke up, she also said that she was not the mastermind, and she regretted her confession halfway and wanted to turn herself in, but was stopped by someone, and another thief came out to answer for the crime.

The county government reviewed the case several times and sentenced the defendant to death by hanging according to the law because there were too many deaths and injuries, the case was also a crime committed by relatives, and it had a great impact. However, because the old lady came forward, the case was not considered a crime committed by relatives.

He had known about this matter for a long time and had already made arrangements, so he was not surprised. He put the case file back on the desk. Just as he was about to turn around, he suddenly saw a seal with red ink on the side, which meant that the cases in this batch would be temporarily shelved until the inspection by the Ministry of Justice. He was stunned for a moment, thought for a while, and sighed again.

The Northern Dynasty was defeated and refugees were slowly returning to their homeland. The north was initially pacified and the court was already discussing a general amnesty.

If everything had gone according to plan and the case had been sent to the Ministry of Justice, and it happened to be an amnesty, then the man surnamed Fu would most likely have been acquitted. However, with Zhao Mingzhi's pressure, when the Ministry of Justice had recovered after the New Year and did a retrial, even if it wasn't a crime committed by relatives, it would have been difficult for him to get away with it.

He turned around and took a look, seeing that Zhao Mingzhi was sleeping soundly, he slowly left the outer room, took out a secret report sent from the north from his arms, lit a fuse to burn the secret report, and threw it into the incense burner in the corner.

As the flames jumped, the words "fodder", "soaked in wine", "salt water" and so on on the paper were swallowed up bit by bit, turning into ashes, never to be seen again...

I've been procrastinating for too long, and my hands are tired. I've filled in most of the gaps, but there are still some that I can't fill in, so I can only leave them blank. I've been writing stories for so many years, and everyone has been very tolerant of me, but I've never been able to give a good follow-up reading experience.

The story of Ningning and Pei Yong ends here for now. A friend asked me about the new article. The new article has been published. It is a light-hearted food article. You can search it by clicking the author's avatar. I am sorry to ask, if you have extra recommendation tickets, can you give me a few? Hehe~

Thank you for your company all the way. I wish you good health, a happy life, and everything goes well~