good season

Outside Wuji Temple, a group of nobles sat in their respective carriages. They had just been terrified when two groups of imperial guards were locked in a fierce battle. One of Princess Jia'an's male favorites got out of his carriage to check on the situation, but was used as a shield by one of the groups and died a gruesome death.

Fortunately, apart from this male favorite, there were no major casualties in the other residences. At most, some attendants or guards suffered minor injuries, but none of them were in mortal danger.

When Xiao Zhen arrived, he saw Princess Jiayi being held in Xiao Fuma's arms and being gently coaxed, and Princess Jia'an holding a male concubine, grieving for the deceased male concubine.

Xiao Zhen couldn't bear to look directly at her, so she turned her back and searched for Zhao Shiqing's figure in the crowd.

He knew the girl's temperament. Although he had told her not to come, she would definitely come anyway. However, the girl valued her life and would not act impulsively or take risks. Therefore, even if she knew that her family's murderers were inside the temple at this moment, she would not rush in.

As she often said, she was the only one left in the Shi family, and her life was very precious.

There are many ways to take revenge. One is to charge into battle and risk your life for another, and another is to beat a dog when it's down.

Zhao Shiqing definitely chose the latter option.

The next moment, Xiao Zhen saw Xia Dachuan, and Xia Dachuan saw him too, jumped up and waved to him.

Xiao Zhen strode over: "Where are the Eldest Princess and the County Princess?"

Xia Dachuan pointed to a large tree not far away: "It's up there. The princess said that the view from up there is wide and the scenery is exceptionally beautiful."

Xiao Zhen looked over and first saw sunflower seed shells falling from above. Then, he saw a mother and daughter sitting in the tree eating sunflower seeds.

Xiao Zhen smiled silently.

He didn't disturb their enjoyment of the spectacle, and instructed Xia Dachuan, "Protect them well."

Zhao Shiqing and Wan Ruyi finished all the melon seeds they had brought and were a little thirsty. Just as they were about to ask Xia Dachuan to throw them a water bag, they suddenly heard an exclamation: "The crow! The crow has appeared again!"

Zhao Shiqing was overjoyed. The gift she had prepared for that scoundrel Xuan had arrived.

Dark clouds loomed overhead above Wuji Temple.

Blood flowed like a river in the temporary sleeping quarters of the retired emperor.

The assassins who came to the mountain gate were ranked among the top thirty. However, one man could not fight against many others. After a fierce battle, only three people remained by Master Shan's side.

The members of the mountain sect are not usually in the capital. It was only because Emperor Yongjia summoned the newly appointed mountain master that the mountain master brought his disciples to the capital and thus caught up with today's "grand event".

Nowadays, the position of the mountain master is rotated every five years among the three branches. The newly appointed mountain master has not yet settled into his post. He originally thought this was a golden opportunity, that he had rendered meritorious service in protecting the emperor and could gain the emperor's approval. Perhaps his branch could then be like the eldest branch of the main branch in the past, and thus be able to hold the position for good.

But to his utter surprise, not only was there no hope of protecting the emperor, but the core members of the sect suffered heavy casualties, and even his own life was in danger.

Master Shan was also regretting it, regretting that he shouldn't have come to protect him.

Just then, the light in the hall suddenly dimmed, and the Duke of Wei, who was directing the battle, shouted loudly, "Crows! Crows are covering the sky!"

Whether they could see it or not, everyone craned their necks to look outside. Unfortunately, those inside couldn't see it, but that didn't stop them from knowing what was happening in the sky.

The Duke of Wei was extremely excited. The last time he was this excited was when he successfully proposed to the Yu family. He was so excited that he did more than twenty somersaults. More than twenty years later, the Duke of Wei was excited again. This time, he saw the legendary divine crow warning!
He missed seeing it with his own eyes last time, and he regretted it for three whole years!

"mysterious!"

"cheap!"

Thousands of crows circled in the air, forming two enormous characters with a well-trained posture.

玄！
cheap!
As we all know, the current emperor is named Zhao Xuan. Therefore, the character "Xuan" has become a character reserved for the emperor and must be avoided by everyone in the court and the public. Not only "Xuan", but also characters such as "Xian", "Xuan", "Xuan", and "Xuan" are no longer used. Instead, "Xuan" is replaced by other characters. For example, Xuanming Temple has been changed to Wenming Temple.

It is conceivable that the sudden appearance of the character "Xuan" at this moment refers to only one person: Emperor Yongjia, Zhao Xuan!

The huge "贱" (meaning cheap or despicable) character that followed was even more astonishing.

Xuan is the emperor, so how lowly is he? A lowly person? A lowly life? A lowly race? A lowly person? A lowly person? A lewd person? A lowly person? A despicable person? A lowly person? A lowly person?

In short, anything related to this character is devoid of good words.

These crows didn't appear out of nowhere; they flew in flocks, passing through the city gates and the streets and alleys of the capital, all the way here.

The people of the capital had long witnessed the miracles of the crows. Like the Duke of Wei, they waited three years and finally saw so many crows in the capital once again.

Crows flew in the sky, and people chased after them on the ground. Some rode in carriages, some rode on horseback, some rode in sedan chairs, but most ran or walked. Young people and old people alike carried children, and some even carried their elderly mothers on their backs.

Wuji Temple was not remote. Before they even arrived at Wuji Temple, they saw those two earth-shattering characters.

The little schoolchild loudly proclaimed: "Xuan, Jian!"

The adults next to him quickly tried to cover his mouth. Good heavens, how could you just casually utter the word "xuan"?
But many more people pronounced those two characters correctly, and some even patiently explained them to those who couldn't read: "Xuan is the name of the current emperor, and as for the 'jian', it means the 'jian' of a lowly person!"

The people were even more terrified: "Is this a warning from Heaven? Is the Emperor?"

The two unspoken words became the trembling of the lips.

A girl's light and melodious voice came from above: "Whether it's good or bad, it's a miracle, it's a warning from heaven!"

Yes, whether it's good or bad, it's a miracle, that's what a miracle is!
Heaven will let them know that the emperor is a despicable person!
The old woman, clinging to her son's back, wailed, "Heavenly Lord, I have finally witnessed a miracle! I can die in peace now!"

The people finally realized what was happening and knelt down, bowing repeatedly to the two characters in the sky!

The once wealthy and powerful Feng family mansion is now deserted. As soon as the news of the grandson's death arrived, the Imperial Guards surrounded the Feng mansion. The Feng family members have not come out for many days. Even the news of Feng Jiahe's death was brought in by the Imperial Guards.

Countless crows flew over the Feng residence. A servant ran to report the news. Feng Ke was helped out by his two sons. He was trembling and looked as if he had aged twenty years in just over ten days.

"The crows are flying towards Wuji Temple. I wonder why?" said the third master of the Feng family.

Feng Ke smirked: "Wuji Temple, huh? Haha, the capital city is probably about to change!"

A glimmer of hope appeared in the eyes of the third master of the Feng family: "Father, is this a chance for us?" Feng Ke sighed: "The retired emperor and Zhao Guanyue live in Wuji Temple. If I'm not mistaken, Zhao Guanyue must be a descendant of Emperor Xiaokang. I never expected that Emperor Xiaokang still had descendants. I never expected this. This is indeed a chance. The new emperor will not go on a killing spree after his ascension to the throne. Perhaps our Feng family can also preserve a few bloodlines."

Meanwhile, in the Zizhu Temple in a corner of the capital, Feng Yalan was mending clothes when a familiar voice rang out from outside: "Sister Feng, Sister Feng, come out quickly!"

Feng Yalan put down her needlework, pushed open the door and went out, just in time to see a flock of crows flying over the courtyard.

"Why are there so many crows?" she wondered, recalling the crow warnings from a few years ago.

The young nun exclaimed excitedly, "Something big must be happening in the capital! I can't wait! I really want to follow these crows and see what's going on!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a cat meowed in his ear.

Both of them brightened up and looked over at the same time. It turned out to be the white cat that often came by.

Ever since it guided the fat cat last time, the white cat has often come to freeload, but unfortunately there is no meat in the Taoist temple, so all it can eat is simple food.

"Little White, are you hungry?" The little Taoist nun bent down and picked up the white cat, only to find a purse hanging around the cat's neck.

She exclaimed in surprise, took off her purse, and found a letter inside, addressed to both of them.

"This was written by Xiaoluo. He is my cousin from my uncle's family. I heard from the elder sister who serves the Princess that my cousin is now the grandson of the heir. I never expected that my cousin would want to take me away. Sister Feng, my cousin said that you can leave here with me. Sister Feng, let's go together, okay?"

Because of her strong destiny according to the Eight Characters of Birth, the young Taoist nun was disliked by her family since childhood. She thought she would spend her life in the Taoist temple, but now her cousin wants to take her out. She is very happy. Her cousin is now the grandson of the heir apparent and will be a prince in the future. As long as he speaks, no one in the mansion will dare to object.

Feng Yalan bit her lip lightly, recalling the various events of her past life in her dream, and fell into deep thought.

In that dream, her brother-in-law, the Third Prince, sat on the dragon throne, her sister, Feng Jiahe, became the Empress, and her father, Feng Ke, became the Grand Tutor.

However, their good fortune was short-lived. The Feng family was falsely accused and convicted, and Feng Jiahe was deposed and died in the cold palace.

The men of the Feng family were executed in the street, the women were reduced to government slaves, the aunt committed suicide in prison, and she, the widow, was spared death because she was a married woman, and continued to live the life of a living dead.

However, the new emperor's throne was not secured by the destruction of the Feng family. Of the original eight kings, very few remained, and the king of Northern Yan, who was not of the same surname, became a thorn in the new emperor's side. He set a trap and killed the king of Northern Yan, plunging Northern Yan into chaos.

Before the new emperor could even celebrate, the Crown Prince of Northern Yan opened the country's gates, and the Tartars launched a massive invasion. The Tartars marched all the way to the capital. The new emperor received advance warning and, before the Tartars arrived, secretly abandoned the city and fled, leaving behind only a few concubines he didn't want to take with him and who were out of favor, as well as the city's residents.

The Tartars wreaked havoc in the city, committing acts of arbitrariness, burning, killing, raping, and looting, leaving the streets soaked with blood again and again.

In the face of national destiny, human life is the most insignificant thing.

Not wanting to die in humiliation, she set herself on fire before the Tartars could rush in, dying in the house that had imprisoned her for half her life.

Feng Yalan looked in the direction the crow had flown away and prayed silently. Although she couldn't know what the crow had gone to do, she believed that something big must have happened in the capital. So much had changed in this life. She hadn't married Yang Shengqiu, and she hadn't experienced the pain of losing a child.

She has already changed her own destiny, so this time, she hopes that the fate of the nation can also change. Only when the fate of the nation changes can the people live in peace and prosperity and not suffer the trampling of the Tartars.

Has the fate of the nation changed?

When Emperor Yongjia heard the Duke of Wei utter those two words at Wuji Temple, he did not believe it.

His legs moved uncontrollably toward the door. At the Duke of Dingguo's command, the Imperial Guards made way for him and let him out.

Emperor Yongjia walked out of the main hall. Standing outside the hall were the Imperial Guards, their armor gleaming and ready to go. He even saw the Embroidered Uniform Guards, but standing at the front was not Lu Qian, but Li Qing, whom he hadn't seen for many days.

Emperor Yongjia suddenly turned around, only to find that there was no one behind him!
Even the empress, with whom he had shared a bed for many years, did not come out with him.

Emperor Yongjia raised his head and saw those two words!
The Duke of Wei did not lie to him; the crows had indeed displayed those two words.

One is mysterious, the other is cheap!
Emperor Yongjia was sweating profusely; for the first time in his life, he felt fear.

He felt no fear when he led the King of Wu to the capital, no fear when he killed Emperor Xiaokang, no fear when the retired emperor revealed his true identity, and no fear when he fought against overwhelming odds in the palace. But now, he is afraid. He is truly afraid!

He had countless lives on his hands. He never believed in ghosts or gods. If ghosts really existed, Emperor Xiaokang would have come to take revenge on him long ago, and he would not have been able to secure his throne.

The last time crows covered the sky, he was shocked but not afraid. He thought it might just be a coincidence. After all, it was obviously impossible for human beings to make countless crows form a single character.

But this time, when he saw the character "玄" (xuan) and another character "贱" (jian), he believed that there might really be ghosts and gods in this world.

The ghosts and gods were clearly on the side of the retired emperor and Zhao Guanyue.

why?
Is it because of his background?

Because he is not a legitimate descendant of royalty, even the gods and spirits are no longer on his side.
Countless thoughts flashed through Emperor Yongjia's mind. It shouldn't be like this. It shouldn't be like this. He was a born king. He would become a wise ruler for all time. This throne would be passed on to his descendants. This Great Yong Dynasty was his and his descendants'. As for the retired emperor and Emperor Xiaokang, they were both his defeated opponents and could never rise again.

Emperor Yongjia shook his head vigorously. "That's not how it is. Something must be wrong. Why is this happening? Where exactly did things go wrong?"
It was Jiayi who hid Zhao Yuan; it was the Liang Prince's Mansion that didn't fight the Xiao family; it was Xiao Zhen who actually survived.

Emperor Yongjia's mind was in complete chaos, like a tangled mess. Suddenly, a young girl appeared before him. She seemed familiar, as if he had seen her before. Yes, he remembered, this was Princess Nanyang.

Oh, and she has another identity: she is the adopted daughter of the old King Liang.

"Tie him up!" the girl ordered, and two guards pounced from behind, skillfully tying up Emperor Yongjia.

Emperor Yongjia never dreamed that one day he would be bound hand and foot and become a prisoner.

Just as he was about to reprimand her, the girl leaned close to his ear and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "See those crows? I called them here."

Do you see those two words? I had them written.

Do you know why Princess Jiayi and Prince Consort Xiao didn't die? I saved them!
Do you know how the news of your plot to murder the Emperor Emeritus was leaked? It was my eagle that overheard it.

Do you know how the Emperor Emeritus knew you were a bastard? I told him!

Do you know who I am?

My surname is Shi, from the Shi family of Zhuxitang, Qinglu County!
My surname is also Zhao, the Zhao of Zhao Yuncai, the former King of Liang! (End of Chapter)