Jiuxi

Chapter 862: 860 [Ding Hui's Fury]

According to common sense, Queen Mother Xu should be calmer now.

The cavalry of the Ruishi Camp easily broke through the defense of the East Gate. This was an unexpected accident, but it did not mean that the situation had collapsed.

No matter how powerful this cavalry is, even if they are invincible in field battles, tens of thousands of Beijing troops cannot trap them, and they still cannot threaten the safety of the imperial palace in a short period of time. After all, the palace is large enough to stop the cavalry from trampling, and the more than 10,000 imperial guards under the command of Shen Yulai will not be easily killed by 3,000 people.

More importantly, Lu Chen himself is still in Duancheng Palace, with a large number of guards inside and outside.

But the moment she heard what Shen Yulai said, Empress Dowager Xu's heartbeat quickly became intense. She had a vague intuition that all her plans would be in vain.

Shen Yulai did not take a step, but more than ten guards were already walking towards Lu Chen.

The atmosphere in the hall was extremely tense.

At this time, Li Tianrun took off his sword and raised it to the side. Li Bingxue immediately stepped forward, unsheathed his long sword, and exuded a murderous aura that instantly shocked the guards.

Queen Mother Xu was furious when she saw this and asked coldly, "Duke Wei, are you going to rebel too?"

Li Tianrun raised his head slightly, and his old but deep voice reached the ears of everyone in the hall: "Queen Dowager, I have worked hard for the Great Qi in my life, why do you insult me ​​with such bad words?"

Empress Dowager Xu was choked immediately.

All civil and military officials were silent.

Li Tianrun's short words shocked everyone. Looking at the Duke of Wei, who was once majestic and vigorous but now looked thin and frail, they couldn't even utter a word of doubt.

Judging from historical records, Li Tianrun's loyalty and achievements are worthy of being enshrined in the Taimiao.

Empress Dowager Xu secretly said angrily, "I didn't mean to insult you, but I don't know what the Duke meant by this."

Li Tianrun said solemnly: "Queen Mother, I just think that Duke Qin should be given a chance to speak."

Queen Mother Xu said with great disgust: "He has sent 3,000 cavalrymen from the Ruishi Battalion to threaten the palace. Is he still a loyal minister of the Great Qi? What's wrong with me having him captured?"

Lu Chen finally spoke up and said, "Lord Shen, has the Sharp Warriors invaded the palace?"

Shen Yulai was in a state of conflict, his lips moving.

Xiao Wangzhi turned around and looked at him, saying sternly: "Lord Shen, every word you say now concerns the safety of the Great Qi State. I advise you to tell the truth!"

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Shen Yulai said with some difficulty: "The Ruishi Battalion is temporarily parked outside the Hening Gate. The army is in strict order and has not violated the palace. The commander Ye Jitang said that he was ordered by Duke Qin to escort the witness into the palace and had no intention of rebelling."

Lu Chen nodded, then looked at the high and mighty Queen Mother Xu, and said solemnly: "Queen Mother, from half a month ago when the Minister of Revenue Jing Qingshan questioned that I sent someone to assassinate Ding Hui, until this moment, the attacks and slanders against me have continued. From the beginning to the end, I have patiently defended myself and did nothing wrong. Now I want to clear my grievances, and I have no choice but to let the Sharp Warriors escort the witnesses into the palace. If the Queen Mother must frame me for the crime of regicide and make the late emperor unable to rest in peace, then you can order the guards to forcibly kill me in front of all the civil and military officials."

Empress Dowager Xu clenched her hands and subconsciously looked at Li Shizhi. At this time, she had to seek help from the mastermind behind the scenes.

Li Shizhi's face was gloomy and he shook his head slightly, obviously wanting Empress Dowager Xu to make a desperate attempt and kill Lu Chen by force.

Empress Dowager Xu's heart sank. She could understand Li Shizhi's eyes. The problem was that this decision was too difficult.

Just as Lu Chen said, no matter how many clues and evidences unfavorable to him appeared before, he could stand calmly in the hall. But now he is not given a chance to speak?

Can Empress Dowager Xu stop the gossips of all the civil and military officials in the court?

When had the women in the harem ever experienced such a scene?
Lu Chen felt more and more at ease, and said loudly: "Prime Minister Xue, Prime Minister Xu, Yao Xiantai, and all the nobles in the court, don't you want to know the truth about the assassination of the late emperor? Are you still loyal subjects of Da Qi?"

After hearing this, Xu Zuo said solemnly: "Your Majesty, since Duke Qin has another clue, I think we should let the witnesses into the palace, so that we can clarify the truth of the regicide case!"

Xue Nanting hesitated for a moment, but finally bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I second your motion!"

"I second the proposal!"

Imperial Censor Yao Chong followed closely behind.

Dozens of court officials came out almost at the same time to agree.

But still more than half of the officials did not move.

In the almost suffocating atmosphere, Queen Mother Xu slowly sat back and said indifferently: "Mr. Shen's family."

"Chen is here!"

"Bring in the so-called witness outside, and have someone notify Han Zhongjie to call in a portion of the Imperial Guards to cooperate with the Imperial Guards inside and outside the palace to keep a close eye on the 3,000 cavalrymen."

"The minister obeys the order!"

Shen Yulai strode away.

"Queen Mother!"

Minister of Personnel Li Shizhi could no longer hold back, and said with a sullen face: "Empress Dowager, Lu Chen, Xiao Wangzhi and others have clearly shown their rebellious intentions. How can we let them do whatever they want? If we don't take down these traitors now, it will be too late to regret it!"

Minister of Rites Hu Jingwen, Minister of Revenue Jing Qingshan, Minister of Punishment Yang Jing, Hanlin Academician Chen Chun and more than ten other ministers immediately said in unison: "Please, Queen Mother, make a prompt decision!"

When this momentum came, Empress Dowager Xu's heart suddenly tightened. She knew that her greatest bargaining chip now was that she could still mobilize the imperial guards. At the same time, the imperial guards and internal guards in the palace were under the control of her confidants. The problem was that Li Tianrun forcibly interrupted her decision, and the attitudes of the two prime ministers and many court officials shifted again, which made her at a loss as to how to make a decision for a moment.

Before Empress Dowager Xu could speak, Xu Zuo said sternly, "You are so impatient, are you feeling guilty?"

Li Shizhi responded pointedly: "Prime Minister Xu is still favoring the traitor who killed the emperor at this time. Is this what you call loyalty to the emperor?"

Just at this moment, a crisp voice rang out, interrupting the confrontation between the two important ministers.

"Duke Qin just wants to prove his innocence. Why don't you agree? Why are you arguing?"

The ministers were startled and looked up, only to see the five-year-old Crown Prince Li Daoming looking at them innocently, his face full of confusion. Queen Ning quickly stood up and apologized to Queen Mother Xu: "The Crown Prince was reckless for a moment, please forgive me, mother."

Empress Dowager Xu's face looked extremely ugly, but she was not in a position to say anything bad.

The left prime minister Xue Nanting finally made up his mind and said, "Your Highness is right. Even a criminal has the right to defend himself. Moreover, at present, we only have Jin Qiaolan's confession and no other evidence. Other clues are even more ambiguous. Queen Mother, I think it is better to take a look at the evidence provided by Duke Qin."

Empress Dowager Xu was exhausted both physically and mentally, and just nodded slightly.

Li Shizhi looked at the most noble woman in the Great Qi Dynasty and suddenly laughed at himself.

"Fools are not worth consulting with!"

This was the only thought in his mind at the moment.

He knew that Empress Dowager Xu was not the late emperor, and was not even as good as Li Zongben. Not to mention her decisiveness in killing, she couldn't even see through such an obvious layout.

But he had no better solution.

Even though he had been infiltrating over the years and had mastered a lot of secret powers, and even controlled the brave camp of the Beijing Army through Yuan Xingqin, and secretly helped two confidants to control a part of the imperial guards, he was unable to drag Shen Yulai into the water, which meant that he could not truly control the palace, and had to join forces with Empress Dowager Xu and use her to dispatch Shen Yulai in the name of righteousness.

He knew Shen Yulai's character very well. He would not collude with foreign officials, nor would he disobey the Queen Mother's order.

This plan may not be perfect, but Shen Yulai's subsequent performance proved that Li Shizhi's judgment was very accurate. It was not difficult to deal with such a loyal minister who lacked his own opinions, but how could Li Shizhi have expected that Empress Dowager Xu would make such a big mistake.

In his plan, he would use Empress Dowager Xu to kill Li Zongben first and then deal with Lu Chen. During the whole process, he could hide under the surface as much as possible, and then with the help of Empress Dowager Xu, he would seize power both inside and outside the country, and then take the next step when he had all the power in the court.

Although he joined forces with Queen Mother Xu to commit regicide, he would not be impatient to reveal his rebellious intentions. From the beginning, he had never thought of openly rebelling.

In short, he wanted to follow rather than usurp.

But he did not expect that Empress Dowager Xu was so despicable. Her so-called reputation for virtue now seemed to be just a reputation she had gained by chance under the protection and guidance of Li Duan.

When faced with a life-and-death situation, the lady's stupidity and weakness were clearly revealed.

But at this time Li Shizhi could do nothing. Xu Zuo had obviously set his sights on him. In addition, it was impossible for him to give orders to the guards in front of everyone without going through Empress Dowager Xu, so he could only watch Shen Yulai personally bring the witness mentioned by Lu Chen to Duancheng Hall.

Everyone looked intently, and when they saw the witness's face clearly, the court officials' expressions were very interesting.

The person who came was actually Ding Hui, the governor of Dingzhou, who was seriously injured and unconscious after being assassinated!

But the dusty Ding Hui stepped forward step by step, and shouted with a sad face: "Your Majesty, I am late!"

Lu Chen's brows couldn't help but twitch.

Fortunately, Ding Hui did not forget his duty. He wiped away his tears and bowed to Queen Mother Xu, saying, "Your Highness, I, Ding Hui, pay my respects to the Queen Mother!"

Empress Dowager Xu knew who had sent someone to assassinate Ding Hui, but now that everyone was watching, she could only consider, "Mr. Ding's family, aren't you in Dingzhou?"

Ding Hui's eyes were slightly red, and he said angrily: "Your Majesty, I was ordered by the late emperor to go to Dingzhou, but I didn't know there was a thief hiding beside me! Chen Zhaochang, one of my staff members, has been working beside me seven years ago. I didn't expect that he was a spy planted by the Minister of Personnel Li Shizhi. As soon as I arrived at Gushucheng, Dingzhou, he teamed up with the assassins sent by Li Shizhi to kill me quietly and then put the blame on Duke Qin! Fortunately, I was lucky enough to survive, otherwise how could I return to the capital and expose the true face of this wolfish ambition!"

The officials were in an uproar.

Empress Dowager Xu looked at Li Shizhi helplessly.

When Ding Hui told the truth in grief and anger, Lu Chen had been cleared of much suspicion.

Among all the previous accusations and suspicions against him, the assassination of Ding Hui was very crucial. If he was really so bold, it would be natural for him to kill the governor first and then the king. The root cause lies in the conflict between Lu Chen and Li Zongben.

Li Shizhi took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "Master Ding, please don't talk nonsense. What do the Chen Zhaochang and the killer you mentioned have to do with me?"

"I know you won't admit it!"

Ding Hui turned around and glared at him, gritting his teeth and saying, "But it doesn't matter. Even if you don't admit this, do you admit that you have cultivated your followers in the court?"

"Do you admit that you wantonly provoked the late emperor and Duke Qin to quarrel?"

"Do you admit that you fanned the flames and instigated Guo Congyi and others to rebel?"

"Do you admit that you planned to frame the former Right Prime Minister Zhong Cheng?"

"Do you admit that they secretly joined forces with the aristocratic families to covet the imperial power?"

Ding Hui let out a series of roars, causing Li Shizhi's face to turn blue.

At this time, most of the court officials looked at Li Shizhi with shock and doubt.

Ding Hui said sternly, "Even if you deny all this, do you really think you can deceive everyone and fool them? I, Ding Hui, am not a good person, but I am loyal to you. I have been working like a slave for you for more than ten years. You actually want to kill me, so let's go our separate ways and perish together!"

He pulled out a stack of letter papers from his bosom and said angrily, "These are the evidences I have secretly kept for more than ten years. They are all evidences of your evil deeds and your misconduct in the government. Open your eyes and let me see clearly!"

Under the gaze of all the civil and military officials in the court, Ding Hui threw the papers hard, and they fluttered down like snowflakes.

Li Shizhi's eyes were as dark as a knife, and his hands were shaking slightly uncontrollably.

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

In the dead silence, Lu Chen turned his head and looked at Li Shizhi, clapping his hands and saying calmly: "I really didn't realize that Minister Li was so well hidden. There are so many heroes in the court, but no one could have discovered your deliberate plan in advance, and you almost succeeded. I have always been puzzled as to why the late emperor was so suspicious of me. Now I know that you were the one who distorted right and wrong and made slanderous accusations. From this, I can conclude one thing -"

"Li Shizhi, you are the culprit of regicide and treason!"

(End of this chapter)