The Red Mansion Big Liar.

Chapter 768 Making a prompt decision
Hot Spring Villa, meeting room.

"According to what Brother Zhou said, His Majesty passed away at the hour of Si today?"

Zhang Yunyi looked at Zhou Xianzu, who was smiling in front of him, and became more alert.

Although he was not in the city, the death knell this morning spread throughout the capital, and Quyuan Zatan naturally also received the information.

Although we knew that the emperor was dying, the timing of his death was too coincidental.

Zhang Yun逸 couldn't help but suspect that this was a series of tricks set by the emperor.

First, sacrifice Concubine Wu to let me relax my vigilance, then lure me into the city and trap me...

Ambush and kill in one fell swoop.

Zhou Xianzu's arrival inevitably reinforced this suspicion.

"Yes, yes, yes! His Majesty's funeral ceremony cannot do without you, the Minister in charge of the inner court."

Zhou Xianzu heard the doubt in Zhang Yunyi's tone and changed the subject, "However, His Majesty has just passed away, and the court is in need of people. Duke Wei still needs to take care of his health. It won't be too late to pay homage to His Majesty after you have recovered."

After he said this, Zhang Yunyi not only did not let down his guard, but became even more vigilant.

He no longer hesitated and immediately shouted outside: "Someone come!"

"Sir!" The guards who were waiting for orders at the door immediately rushed in.

"Tie up Minister Zhou for me!"

"Yes!" Several guards immediately stepped forward, like wolves and tigers, grabbed Zhou Xianzu's arms and pressed him to the ground.

Then, they brought ropes from outside and tied Zhou Xianzu up tightly.

Zhou Xianzu was caught off guard by this sudden change. His face turned pale and he said in a trembling voice, "Brother Zhang...you...you are..."

"Of course, I am following His Majesty's will!"

Zhang Yunyi turned around and took out the secret decree brought by Concubine Wu from under the desk, unfolded it in front of Zhou Xianzu and said, "Brother Zhou, you should recognize that this is the handwriting of His Majesty!"

If this was the emperor's conspiracy, then even if Zhang Yun逸 followed Zhou Xianzu's words and refused to shirk his responsibility, he would have no room for maneuver.

As the saying goes, if you don't make a decision when you should, you will suffer the consequences.

Rather than waiting for the emperor to take the initiative, it is better to take advantage of the situation and strike first.

The emperor wanted to use a series of tricks to lure him into the city, but this secret decree gave him a legitimate excuse to enter the city in order to purge the court.

At that time, firearms were not good at fighting encounters. With the troops he had, he was not strong enough to fight the Eight Guards in the field.

But it is more than enough to defend the city.

Regardless of whether the emperor's death was faked or not, as long as they broke into the palace and had this secret decree, the fake would become real.

However, protecting yourself is one thing, and breaking into the palace is another.

The reason why he showed the secret decree in front of Zhou Xianzu was to use Zhou Xianzu's reaction to make the guards believe that he was carrying out the emperor's will.

So that you can devote yourself more wholeheartedly.

He believed that even if Zhou Xianzu was acting in cooperation with the emperor, the emperor would not tell him the existence of this secret decree.

Because, whether from the perspective of consolidating the imperial power or from Concubine Wu’s words last night, the emperor would not allow Zhou Xianzu’s family to dominate the world.

Zhou Xianzu had no idea that he was being plotted against by Zhang Yun逸.

Seeing the handwriting and content on the secret decree, he did not doubt it and immediately collapsed to the ground, muttering to himself: "How...how could it be..."

His expression made his guards feel more excited.

Seeing that Zhou Xianzu did not question the authenticity of the secret decree and was very cooperative, Zhang Yunyi pretended to be calm and said, "The prince is young, so how can Your Majesty not be on guard against the interference of foreign relatives in politics?"

At this point, he suddenly had an idea and waved his hand at the guards. After the guards left, Fang changed the subject and said, "We are colleagues and have known each other for a long time, but it is difficult to disobey the emperor's order..."

Zhou Xianzu seemed to have grabbed a life-saving straw. His bound body twisted like a river shrimp, and he struggled to his feet, begging, "We are brothers. Now that His Majesty is gone, as long as Brother Zhang... Lord Zhang, the Duke can help me conceal this edict, I will follow your lead in the future."

He changed his name three times in a row, as if he was afraid that Zhang Yunyi would hesitate, and quickly added: "I know that the Duke is the most loyal and righteous, and I dare not let the Duke go against the will of the emperor. I just need to hold back for now, and then you can see how I perform in the future."

Seeing Zhang Yunyi silent and in a dilemma, Zhou Xianzu quickly said, "Even if the Duke has helped Concubine Wu in disguise, she has no leverage in the Duke's hands. People's minds have changed, but my brother and I are the ones who have changed their minds. With this secret decree, my brother and I will definitely bow down to the Duke and obey his orders!

The prince is still young, and with the help of the queen and my younger brother, the Duke will surely be even more powerful. "

“Alas!” Zhang Yunyi sighed. “We have known each other for a while, and I really can’t bear it. But, although you are saying nice things now, this will has been exposed to you. You can’t be on guard against thieves for a thousand days. What if I let you go this time…”

"No! No! Don't worry, Duke. I swear to heaven that I will never..."

"Swear?" Zhang Yunyi sneered, "Brother Zhou, do you think I'm a three-year-old child?"

"I...I, if the Duke doesn't believe me, I will resign immediately..."

Even though he was unwilling, as long as he could save his life and at least he still had the status of the king's uncle, Zhou Xianzu had no choice but to compromise and sacrifice his pawn to save his king.

"Resign? You did resign, but what about the queen? You just said that the prince is young..."

"This……"

Although they could save their lives temporarily, if the queen couldn't be saved, then the Zhou family would really become lambs to be slaughtered.

Zhang Yun逸 might not kill all of them, but Concubine Wu, who has gained power, might not let the Zhou family go.

If he sticks his head out, he will be killed; if he hides his head, he will also be killed. Zhou Xianzu couldn't help but hesitate.

I thought I had reached a dead end, but unexpectedly, Zhang Yunyi's tone slowed down and he sighed, "We are all parents. The prince is young, and I don't want the queen to be separated from her children... unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless I take charge of the Imperial Guards and the defense of the capital, and drag Elder Gu and the others into this!"

Zhou Xianzu thought Zhang Yunyi was testing his sincerity, and hurriedly said, "The Imperial Guards and the Eight Guards of the Capital will be handed over to the Duke..."

Then he asked in confusion: "How do you drag it?"

Zhang Yunyi stopped keeping the secret and said patiently, "Since His Majesty is gone, it should not be difficult for the Empress to get the imperial seal, right? Just give it to them... then the law will not hold everyone responsible, and everyone will have weaknesses, so they can just get away with it..."

At this point, he suddenly glared at Zhou Xianzu and asked, "Could it be that His Majesty is not dead, and Brother Zhou is lying to me?"

"How could it be!" Zhou Xianzu hurriedly said, "The concubines and the adults in each palace went to the Yangxin Palace to kowtow, how could it be fake?"

In fact, seeing Zhou Xianzu's frightened attitude, Zhang Yun逸 couldn't help but wonder, could it really be such a coincidence?
He didn't want to judge from Zhou Xianzu's words whether the emperor's death was fake or real.

After all, we have seen a lot of scenes like makeup and body doubles on TV in our previous lives.

Instead, he tried to understand the situation in the palace.

Zhang Yun逸 felt more relieved when he learned that the concubines and ministers had already kowtowed.

Even if the emperor really faked his death, even if he put on a complete show, he still gave himself the opportunity to make it look real.

After asking for some details about the ministers entering the palace to pay tribute, Zhang Yunyi said, "Brother Zhou, please be patient. Let me go and prepare."

At this point, Zhang Yunyi looked at Zhou Xianzu and said meaningfully: "I hope Brother Zhou won't let me down when the time comes!"

"No! No!" Zhou Xianzu assured hurriedly.

Zhang Yun逸 then called for his personal guards, but he did not untie Zhou Xianzu immediately. He only left a few people to continue guarding him. He then left the conference room, rode on his Flying Rabbit, and headed straight for the military camp not far away with the remaining personal guards.

……

(End of this chapter)