fifth form

Chapter 3093 Exchanging a fake for a fake
After leaving the small hall area and passing through the Imperial Garden, you will enter the main hall area of ​​Weiyang Palace.

The journey wasn't long, but Wei Zifu was kept firmly within that section of the journey and never dared to cross the distance to enter the main hall of the front palace.

Of course, the women in the inner palace had little say in politics, and the same was true for the empress.

The Empress was rarely seen in the main hall of Weiyang Palace. Occasionally, she would come to visit with some tonics and then leave in a hurry.

Zhang Xuezhou glanced at the Jiaofang Palace in the distance, then looked several times at Wei Zifu's private quarters, before walking through the pavilions and finally standing at the main entrance of the palace.

Faintly, angry curses could still be heard coming from the half-sealed hall.

"Hey guys, who's acting so arrogantly inside?"

The angry shouts did not originate from the new emperor, nor from any high-ranking official. Zhang Xuezhou was quite curious as to who was so brave.

Although he was a "governor" with the authority to enter and exit the palace, Zhang Xuezhou's authority was limited to entering and exiting, rather than being able to freely insert himself into various places.

He could only enter the main hall when summoned or when he had important matters to report to his superiors; otherwise, he could only wait outside during court assemblies.

Zhang Xuezhou asked the guards responsible for opening and closing the door in a low voice.

"It was Guan Fu who caused trouble inside!"

"Wasn't he stripped of his official post and then forced to sell wine? How could selling wine involve Weiyang Palace?"

Li Guang, the head of the guards at Weiyang Palace, had already entered the hall. The remaining deputy commanders, who were already feeling a headache just looking at Zhang Xuezhou, could only agree to Zhang Xuezhou's request and give a brief introduction.

"I think he's just been a drunkard his whole life!"

The deputy commander responded in a low voice, indicating that Guan Fu's drinking would cause him to miss the important matter.

"Drinking?"

Zhang Xuezhou thought about the current brewing technology of the Han Dynasty and felt that it would be very difficult to drink this wine and cause trouble.

Distilled spirits have a high alcohol content and are transparent, while the wines currently brewed in the Han Dynasty are mostly mixed with grains, with a low degree of fermentation, and are more like rice with added flavor. If the rice residue in the wine is removed, the price will increase several times.

Eating wine as a meal was something only the high-ranking nobles in the Han Dynasty could do; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they lived in luxury.

Drinking and making mistakes is not shameful; some people even consider it elegant, believing that only wealthy people from the aristocratic class can do it.

But if a mistake is made in the imperial palace, then the level of the mistake is quite high, and no one would envy it.

"I heard that he threw a tantrum and got into a fight over the Prime Minister's marriage, and in the process, he accidentally let out the sword that Lord Dongfang was keeping!"

"The Prime Minister's wedding banquet?"

Zhang Xuezhou didn't pay attention to the second half of the content, which involved the Crimson Sky Sword. He knew about the Crimson Sky Sword and wouldn't care about a fake sword.

To Zhang Xuezhou's surprise, Prime Minister Tian Fen would actually hold a wedding banquet at such a time.

The thought of Tian Fen being in his fifties and his son being almost the same age as Zhang Xuezhou, and yet still holding a grand wedding at that age, left Zhang Xuezhou speechless. He felt that Tian Fen was indeed living a rather extravagant life, and that he definitely wouldn't be able to do such things when he was in his fifties.

"Which family did the Prime Minister marry?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"I heard it's the Prince of Yan's pearl, it's so beautiful!"

The deputy commander wiped his mouth with drool. Having never attended a wedding banquet, he whispered among himself, expressing his envy that Tian Fen had married a beautiful wife.

The fact that even the palace guards were talking about it suggests that Tian Fen's marriage was quite grand.

This is not a wedding banquet that should be held at a normal time, but if the problem of the stolen Crimson Sky Sword is solved during the wedding banquet, then this wedding banquet will be a meritorious and praiseworthy one.

"The Prime Minister is truly remarkable!"

Zhang Xuezhou offered a word of praise.

If what is recovered is the genuine Crimson Sky Sword, then Tian Fen's extravagant wedding banquet in pursuit of the thief is entirely worthwhile.

But what was actually lost was a fake Chixiao Sword, and Tian Fen's investigation and discovery of the thief is worth revisiting.

In such matters, whoever acts rashly will get into trouble, and the emperor in the court will be well aware of who has lost control of power and thus needs to be restrained.

As for Guan Fu involved in the incident, he may have stolen the sword, or he may have fallen into a trap. Guan Fu's roaring explanations could still be heard outside the main hall of Weiyang Palace, but in this situation, it was clear that whoever had the loudest voice was right.

After a moment, Guan Fu's voice lowered, turning into cries of pain and wails.

A short while later, the doors of the main hall of Weiyang Palace were opened, and Guan Fu, whose hands and feet were bound in shackles and who was also wearing a heavy crown, was carried out.

"Dongfang Cuo, I did not steal the sword!"

Guan Fu's gaze swept over Zhang Xuezhou, who was standing at the entrance of the main hall, and he gritted his teeth and growled in a low voice in defense.

"You must have mistaken me for someone else. My name is Dongfang Cuo!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded in response, but did not answer the question about stealing the sword. This left Guan Fu with his swollen, bleeding mouth wide open, his mind seemingly preoccupied with what Zhang Xuezhou's name was.

But he was quickly taken away by the imperial guards in handcuffs. Li Guang, who was in charge of escorting him, nodded to Zhang Xuezhou, his eyes still showing some wariness.

A seemingly simple theft case became complicated because of the extraordinary items lost, involving many people, including his cousin Li Cai, who almost got into serious trouble.

The imperial court was undergoing a strange process of change, and Li Guang was indeed somewhat wary of the potential consequences.

Back then, Zhang Xuezhou was just an insignificant little cultivator who, for some reason, became a guide in the Ten Thousand Mountains. The past events are still vivid in his mind, but the other party's strength and status have changed dramatically. In recent years, he has finally made a name for himself by choosing sides.

After regaining his composure, Li Guang smiled, a rare occurrence, and pointed towards the main hall.

"Congratulations on the return of the precious sword that Lord Dongfang has been protecting," Li Guang said with a smile.

"I failed in my duty to safeguard the Crimson Sky Sword, so I'll probably have to spend the rest of my life building a mausoleum in Maoling!"

Zhang Xuezhou sighed heavily. Li Guang, who was by the new emperor's side, was taken aback, as he had always been by the emperor's side and knew that Zhang Xuezhou was in charge of repairing Maoling.

Li Guang felt speechless, unable to find the words to express his dissatisfaction at being used as punishment for something that was already preordained.

"Your subject hereby reports Dongfang Shuo's protection of the sword..."

"There's no need to impeach Dongfang Shuo; I will punish him!"

The roaring Guan Fu was suppressed in the main hall, and some officials also stepped forward to impeach Zhang Xuezhou.

But this voice was quickly suppressed by the new emperor; it was silenced before it could even utter a sound. The other clever courtiers no longer dared to step forward.

The Empress Dowager in the court also remained silent, only instructing the court officials to speak if they had anything to say, and to end the court session if they had nothing to say.

Zhang Xuezhou waited for quite a while before seeing the court officials file out of the main hall, with people occasionally glancing at him.

Whether out of curiosity, goodwill, or vigilance, people displayed a variety of expressions.

However, Zhang Xuezhou, standing at the entrance of the main hall, was clearly not someone easy to talk to or be polite with. Once everyone had left, he would likely enter the hall to pay his respects.

The last courtier stepped out of the hall. Zhang Xuezhou stood near the door with this official, and the last official nodded to him before stepping into the hall.

"You've come at the right time! Come and take a look at this Crimson Sky Sword!"

Perhaps seeing Zhang Xuezhou peeking out from outside the main hall, the new emperor did not leave the main hall through the back door, but waited for a moment.

After the court officials left and the palace doors were closed again, the new emperor waved and drew the 'Crimson Sky Sword' that he had retrieved from Guan Fu.

"This doesn't seem to be our sword?"

When Zhang Xuezhou approached, the new emperor handed over the sword.

"The scabbard is real, but the sword is fake!"

Zhang Xuezhou touched the sword.

This sword is almost identical to the fake Crimson Sky Sword they lost; one with poor eyesight would not be able to tell the difference.

But Zhang Xuezhou's observational skills were so sharp that he quickly pointed out several differences when the new emperor only had a vague suspicion.

They lost a fake Crimson Sky Sword, and after recovering it, they found an even faker Crimson Sky Sword.