spend time

More than half a month has passed since the death of Emperor Taihe was sent out.

Officials and ministers who heard the news of the death went to the capital to mourn every day. The soldiers guarding the city gates had also passed the most shocking and sad time, and although they were wearing white mourning clothes, there was not much grief on their faces.

Song Yuan stepped forward holding the badge of the Prince of Nanyang's Palace and handed it to the city guard.

The city guard was a little arrogant at first, but when he saw the badge, he immediately bowed and said respectfully, "It turns out that the princess is coming to the capital. I will go to pay my respects to her now."

Princess Nanyang's reputation in the army was even greater than in the court. The important officials in the court were fighting for power and scheming against each other, but the generals were not so cunning and had a good impression of Princess Nanyang who had contributed all her resources and troops to help the border army win a great victory.

Song Yuan nodded slightly and led the city guard officer forward.

Jiang Shaohua had dismounted. She was tall among women, and compared with adult men, especially warriors, she looked slender and petite.

She was dressed in white, her face was sad, and she looked a little tired because of the haste of the journey: "General Wang, please don't be polite. Today, I am in a hurry to enter the palace. I will chat with you later when I have free time."

The generals defending the city were flattered and responded promptly. They turned around and waved their hands, ordering people to open the city gates immediately to allow the group of more than 200 people to enter the city.

Ta-da! Ta-da!
The sound of horse hooves suddenly rang out from inside the city gate, coming quickly from far away.

Jiang Shaohua frowned slightly and looked intently.

I saw dozens of horses galloping over, and the one leading them had a handsome face but looked haggard. It was Wang Jin, the secretary of the Central Secretariat.

"Princess," Wang Jin dismounted and saluted, "I am here to welcome you into the palace."

Wang Jin had obviously cried a lot in recent days, and his voice was hoarse and unclear when he opened his mouth.

Jiang Shaohua went to Beijing to attend the funeral and sent someone to the palace to deliver the message in advance. However, she did not expect that the palace would send Wang Jin to greet her.

Given Zheng Chen's temper, he didn't even come to the city gate to see her first.

Jiang Shaohua looked at Wang Jin and asked softly: "What is the situation in the palace now?"

She had been traveling for days, not having eaten or slept well, and was in a gloomy mood. When she opened her mouth, her voice was a little hoarse.

Wang Jin sighed softly, "It was a panic. The princess will know when she enters the palace."

Jiang Shaohua frowned and asked directly: "Who is responsible for the emperor's funeral? Is there anyone who cares about the government? Who is in charge of the palace?"

These three questions are more pointed and difficult to answer, each one more difficult than the last.

Wang Jin looked at Jiang Shaohua deeply and said, "The funeral will be handled by the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Household Department. The government affairs will be temporarily handled by Prime Minister Wang and Duke Anguo, and the person in charge of the palace is the Empress Dowager."

No wonder it's a mess.

Not long after Emperor Taihe passed away, while the coffin was still being held, the Imperial Clan Bureau and the Imperial Household Department jumped out to play a counter-operation with the Ministry of Rites. The head of the Imperial Clan Bureau was none other than Jiang Yi's father, the King of Gaoliang.

The important affairs of the court should have been handled by Prime Minister Wang, the head of all officials. Now Duke Anguo has also gotten involved, which shows how fierce the power struggle is.

As for the harem, it had always been under the control of Empress Dowager Zheng. Empress Dowager Li had relied on her son to barely fight back. Now that Emperor Taihe was dead, Empress Dowager Li's world had collapsed. How could she still be a match for Empress Dowager Zheng?
Jiang Shaohua continued to ask: "What are Zheng Chen, Li Boyuan and Jiang Yi doing?"

Wang Jin sighed: "Sheren Zheng and Sheren Li have been guarding the mourning hall, and the prince of Gaoliang is also in the palace."

After a pause, he lowered his voice and continued: "Recently, there are rumors in the palace that the emperor suddenly fell ill and died because a strong medicine was added to the decoction he took. Doctor Ji, who prescribed the medicine for the emperor, was locked up in the palace dungeon and tortured. Doctor Ji could not stand the torture and confessed that he was indeed instructed by someone to tamper with the medicine." Jiang Shaohua's face was solemn: "Who is the mastermind behind this?"

Wang Jin responded in a low voice: "Doctor Ji confessed that he was instructed by the Prince of Dongping."

"The Empress Dowager was extremely angry and has issued a strict order to block the news. She has also secretly sent people to capture the Prince of Dongping and his son."

"There are only a handful of people who know about this now."

Li Boyuan married Jiang Wanhua, the granddaughter of Prince Dongping. Once Prince Dongping and his son were involved in a major case of treason, the entire Li family would be implicated.

In order to stabilize the situation in the palace and the people's hearts, Empress Dowager Zheng suppressed her anger and kept it secret. Wang Jin learned this secret from Prime Minister Wang. Today, he took the initiative to come and welcome Jiang Shaohua into the palace, and as soon as they met, he told this confidential information.

Jiang Shaohua had to accept this favor: "Thank you, Mr. Wang, for tipping off."

Wang Jin sighed, "There are no real secrets in the palace. People have been in a state of panic these days. I suspect the Li family has gotten the news. Three days ago, the Princess of Dongping County said she was seriously ill and has not shown up in public. Li Boyuan has been depressed these days and rarely speaks."

Jiang Shaohua's mind raced, and he asked in a low voice: "Is there anything unusual about Jiang Yi?"

At this moment, Jiang Shaohua asked this question out of the blue, with a hint of meaning.

Wang Jin is worthy of being the heir raised by Prime Minister Wang. His expression did not change and he replied as usual: "The Empress Dowager has issued a secret order. Until the emperor's murder is investigated, all the close relatives of the Jiang family must stay in the palace and not leave. Jiang Yi has been staying in the palace, and there is nothing unusual for the time being."

In other words, once Jiang Shaohua entered the palace, he would be under house arrest.

From the perspective of Empress Dowager Zheng, this was a very decisive move.

However, for Jiang Shaohua, this is not good news.

Jiang Shaohua nodded slightly to indicate that he understood.

Wang Jin rushed out of the palace to meet him, and his most important purpose was to spread these two pieces of news. Now that his goals had been achieved, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It was not until this moment that Wang Jin noticed the young man standing behind the princess.

The young man was wearing plain clothes, and his handsome eyes and brows showed fatigue, which showed the fatigue from the long journey.

This young man was none other than Cui Du, the son-in-law of Princess Nanyang and the Earl of Changning, who was conferred the title by Emperor Taihe.

Wang Jin suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. He only had eyes for the princess just now, and had no time to care about anything else. Now that he thought about it, it was indeed not appropriate to whisper with the princess in front of Cui Du.

Cui Du, however, did not seem to mind at all. He took two steps forward and bowed: "Thank you, Mr. Wang, for coming to greet me and deliver the letter."

Wang Jin calmed himself down and returned the greeting: "Lord Changning is very polite. I wonder if Lord Changning will go to the palace with the princess."

Cui Du replied: "The emperor conferred the title of Earl of Changning on me, but I have never been able to go to the capital to express my gratitude. Now that I am in the capital, I must keep vigil for the emperor and see him off."

At this time, the situation in the palace is tense, and who knows how many huge waves will be set off. If Cui Du enters the palace together, if he encounters danger, the princess will have to split her attention to protect him...

Wang Jin glanced at the princess and silently swallowed his words. (End of this chapter)