On the day the empress ascended the throne, my body was hung at the city gate

Chapter 50 Calling a deer a horse, the changes in the Xuanwu Gate
June [-]th, ninth year of the Great Zhou Calendar.

Xuanwu Gate, the only way for ministers to go to court, is closed.

It was dawn, and it was a bit more chilling than before.

A cruel drama of father and son killing each other is being staged in the Jinluan Palace.

"Father, I have found a good horse and I am offering it to you today. I hope your father will like it."

At this time, the Great Zhou Dynasty had just been unified. The old Emperor Wu granted amnesty to the world and announced on the same day that the second prince Wu Ming would be crowned prince.

The third prince Wu Mingfeng knew that his prestige and qualifications were far inferior to that of his second brother.

Now that his father had spoken in person and promised the second prince the position of Prince Wu Ming, he had completely stopped thinking about it.

But at this moment, a eunuch named Zhao Gao appeared to offer him a good plan.

As long as the second brother is here, this position will never be his turn, but what if the second brother is gone?

"Zhao Gao, hurry up and bring me the bloody horse I prepared for my father."

Wu Mingfeng pretended to be angry and scolded Zhao Gao beside him.
After saying that, a feminine-looking eunuch came over holding the bloody horse he was talking about.

This horse has a double horned head and body, and is dotted with plum blossoms.

Anyone with long eyes can tell at a glance that this is a deer.

"Feng'er, do you know what you are doing now?"

The old Emperor Wu suppressed the anger in his heart and asked in a deep voice.

"Patricide and usurping the throne, no matter which dynasty or generation it is placed in, is a treasonous act that will last forever."

"Father, you are amazing and noble."

When Wu Mingfeng heard this, the smile on his face did not diminish.

"Of course I can't compare with you. Do you know how long I have been preparing for this position? How long have I waited? Just because I am your third son."

"I was born a few hours later than my second brother, so I missed this position. It negates all my efforts. I don't accept it. I just want to sit at the top step by step!"

Behind him, Zhao Gao nodded with satisfaction as he watched Wu Mingfeng's impassioned speech.

"It just so happens that all the ministers are here today, so let everyone come and recognize me."

"Tell me, is this a horse or a deer?"

Come on, Wu Mingfeng pointed at a minister next to him who had a knife on his neck.

Looking at the naive sika deer in Zhao Gao's hand, although the minister wanted to say something fair, the murderous rebels around him were not for show.

After hesitating for a while, he gritted his teeth and replied.

"Your Majesty, the third prince is right, this is... a horse!"

then.

Wu Mingfeng pointed at another person again.

"You answer, is it a deer or a horse."

Suddenly being called by name, the minister was so frightened that he was covered in cold sweat.

"Your Majesty, the third prince is right, this is clearly a horse."

The smile on Wu Mingfeng's face became even bigger.

"It's too troublesome to ask one by one. Let's do this. Among the officials, those who think it's a horse will stand to the left, and those who think it's a deer will stay put."

After Wu Mingfeng finished speaking, he motioned to the personal guards who were present to control the officials and raised the silver sword in their hands.

The officials still didn't understand what this meant, so they quickly started to take sides.

Within a few breaths, everyone stood on Wu Mingfeng's left hand side.

After all, at this time, if you take a step slowly, your head will have to be moved on the spot.

"Father, you are old and it's time to hit the road."

Wu Mingfeng acted like a winner, and Zhao Gao served him a glass of poisonous wine at the right moment.

The old Emperor Wu's hands were trembling, and he looked at the third son he had raised with his own hands, his eyes filled with regret.

"Feng'er, you can't sit firmly in this position."

"Someone will kick you off."

"Hahaha, if Father, you are talking about the second brother, don't worry, I will send the second brother down to see you soon."

Wu Mingfeng laughed even more wildly.

"By the way, I almost forgot. There is also eldest sister. You, the old man, love your eldest sister the most in your life. Let these two brothers and sisters go down to accompany you on this road to hell."

"Well, in order to seek power and usurp the throne, Gu Changsheng, the surnamed lord, committed a treacherous act and killed the late emperor and the prince one after another. As a last resort, I had no choice but to take action and finally save the great Zhou Dynasty from the fire."

"It's written like this in the history books, what do you think, father?" The old Emperor Wu just looked deeply at Wu Mingfeng, said nothing more, picked up the poisonous wine on the table and drank it all in one gulp.

"His Majesty is dead!"

Seeing this, Zhao Gao gave a loud shout.

Suddenly, the imperial guards who had been waiting outside the hall door rushed in.

As for the remaining civil and military ministers, they were so frightened that they collapsed to the ground.

"Congratulations, third prince, after today, you will be the emperor."

Apart from the arrangements in the Jinluan Palace, Wu Mingfeng had already sent people to ambush the Xuanwu Sect's subordinates. He only had to wait for the second brother to appear to completely eliminate the hidden danger.

As a prince, how could Wu Mingfeng have no idea about the throne?
It's just that above him, there is an orthodox heir, Prince Wu Ming, and a distinguished surnamed candidate with outstanding achievements, and Gu Changsheng, who is attached to the Great Zhou Dynasty. Why can't he get the throne?
Therefore, under Zhao Gao's persuasion, Wu Mingfeng planned today's coup.

The most ruthless imperial family.

In front of this supreme power, all brotherhood is just a cloud.

"Don't worry, when I become emperor, you will be the number one hero."

At this time, Wu Mingfeng was completely dazzled by the joy of being emperor, with an excited smile on his face.

"The second prince is here!"

With a loud announcement, a cruel smile appeared on his lips.

The door of Xuanwu Gate slowly opened.

"Shoot arrows!!"

Without giving the other party any chance to react, Wu Mingfeng gave the order directly.

In an instant, it was like a volley of locusts shooting out of the sky.

Arrows, densely packed like crows, fell overwhelmingly.

"Pfft!"

Blood flowed horizontally, and screams were heard.

In just the blink of an eye, Xuanwu Gate was filled with corpses and blood flowed into rivers.

"Hahaha, finally dead, finally dead! From today on, I am the prince, and I am the new emperor."

Wu Mingfeng looked up to the sky and laughed like crazy.

"Long live Your Majesty!"

Zhao Gao knelt at his feet and shouted loudly.

All the civil and military ministers also followed suit and prostrated themselves.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, His Majesty."

They all kowtowed, their faces filled with endless flattery.

"King Fengtian is waiting!"

Another announcement sounded.

"What, why is he here!"

Wu Mingfeng's face, which had been so complacent just now, suddenly changed unpredictably.

Before he could clean up the blood all over the floor.

The heroic figure with a resolute face appeared in everyone's field of vision, giving a clear view of everything that happened in front of Xuanwu Gate.

At the same time, Wu Mingyue, who had received the news and came to greet Gu Changsheng, also appeared at the other end of Xuanwu Gate.

"Sister, Gu Changsheng wanted to rebel. He killed his father and his second brother."

Wu Mingfeng was the first to speak, pointing at Gu Changsheng and shouting sharply, as if he was frightened.

There were countless dead bodies on the ground that were still warm and miserable. Among them, Wu Mingyue saw her second brother who refused to die in silence.

"Siege!"

Gu Changsheng just looked at this scene indifferently, opened his thin lips lightly and uttered two words.

"Boom...!"

The next moment, the entire Xuanwu Gate instantly turned into a purgatory.

The Royal Forbidden Army led by Wu Mingfeng and Wu Mingming and the "rebels" led by Gu Changsheng used Xuanwu Gate as the initial battlefield and began a battle for power that was destined to go down in history.

Historical records refer to the Xuanwumen Incident.

(End of this chapter)