Madam, please listen to my explanation.

Chapter 97 Today is the day of the Emperor's wedding.
Early in the morning, Xu Xinnian bathed and changed his clothes, dressed neatly, and adjusted his jade belt and black gauze hat in front of the bronze mirror.

Today is His Majesty's wedding day, so we cannot be careless.

Of course, it could also be a memorial day.

I pushed open the door and stepped into the courtyard.

Xu Xinnian unconsciously raised his arm to shield his eyes.

Why is the sun so scorching today? It's almost blinding.

With a grumbling in his heart, Xu Xinnian took a few steps forward, when suddenly, he was startled.

Suddenly, a blinding golden light descended from the sky and landed near the stone table in the courtyard.
Hiss. What kind of demon is this?

How dare you stir up trouble in Kyoto? Aren't you afraid of being instantly annihilated by a bolt of lightning?
Just then, the golden light in front of me softened a bit, at least it was no longer dazzling.

In the blink of an eye, it transformed into human form and sat down.

Even though Xu Xinnian considered himself to have lived most of his life and was used to many things, he still couldn't help but feel a little frightened at this moment.
He stared intently and saw the figure formed by the golden light, its features becoming clearer and clearer.

He just sat there, yet he seemed to possess an aura of authority that commanded respect from all under heaven!
The moment he saw that face clearly, Xu Xinnian immediately raised his clothes and knelt heavily on the ground.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!!!"

He devoted himself to assisting the other party for more than 20 years, from a novice scholar to the head of all officials.

Even if Xu Xinnian mistook his own wife for someone else, he would never mistake the other person for someone else!

The late emperor, Zhao Wuji!

Thinking back on everything along the way, tears welled up in my eyes without my noticing.

"Hahaha, I am now nothing more than a mere remnant soul. There is no need for such a New Year's celebration!"

"Get up quickly, come here, and sit with me."

Xu Xinnian quickly got up, gently wiped the corner of his eye with his sleeve, and sat down next to the other person as instructed.

"Your Majesty, what exactly is going on?"

Zhao Wuji's face, which was neither real nor fake, showed no expression; only his voice and demeanor remained unchanged.

His tone sounded somewhat weary:

"I lament the impermanence of time and my declining health. Therefore, I intend to borrow the imperial dragon energy to attempt to break through the barrier between heaven and man."
Unfortunately, in the end, all their efforts were in vain, and their godson took advantage of the situation.

Haha, I won't tell you what happened next, you can probably guess.

Isn't it just the same old stuff about imperial families? It's always been the same throughout history; let's not even talk about it.

Xu Xinnian sighed.

That's true, nothing new to say.
Although he was a civil official who knew nothing about martial arts, he did know one thing.

Throughout history, emperors have possessed the destiny of a nation, and their breakthroughs in martial arts are far more difficult than those of ordinary people!
His Majesty has devoted his entire life to secretly cultivating to the peak of the sixth rank, which is already a rare feat in the world.

Moreover, there is the barrier between heaven and man that has troubled the entire world for hundreds of years.
"Alright, it's New Year's Day, let's not talk about that. Let's play some chess together."

As dawn broke, the servants of the Xu family gradually began to get busy.

They were very curious; on such an important day, why was the master up so early?
A person runs into the yard and plays chess against themselves?
Xu Xinnian wisely refrained from mentioning the current political situation and the princes, and instead chatted with the other party about the past.

The two were both teacher and friend, and had been companions for many years.

Xu Xinnian was absolutely certain that the person in front of him was no one else in disguise, but the real Emperor Zhao Wuji!

Although it's unclear what the other person's current state means.

But upon seeing each other again, he was ultimately delighted.

Snapped!
After he placed his piece, no one on the other side made a move for a long time.

He looked up in confusion, and saw that the golden figure on the stone chair opposite him had faded to the point of being almost invisible to the naked eye.

"Your chess skills remain impeccable even in the new year; it is I who have become rusty."

"From now on, I should continue to assist Ruoxi well."

Xu Xinnian sat there for a moment, stunned, before silently getting up.

He tucked his hands into his sleeves and looked up at the sky.

His figure inexplicably seemed somewhat lonely, as if he had aged more than ten years in an instant.

He reached out and summoned his trusted aide, whispering a few words in his ear.

Xu Xinnian didn't linger any longer and strode towards the carriage that had been waiting for him.

"Let's go, let's enter the palace!"
-
"Commander Gao, please rise."

Outside the city, the cavalry force of several thousand men could not possibly all enter.

An Qing dispatched two groups of men to follow Lin Sanlang's orders, to serve the princess and escort Qi officials and hostages.

The group of heroes, who had quelled the rebellion, followed behind His Highness with their heads held high and chests puffed out.

Zhao Ruoxi, however, looked unusually pale.

She looked at the man who was shakily getting up and frowned, saying:
"Is there no one else waiting for me here besides you?"

Gao Cheng looked terrified, completely unaware of what the other person was saying, and thought that His Highness was blaming him for having too small a entourage?

In that case, the other party is, after all, the late emperor's most beloved princess and the current emperor's half-sister, and indeed deserves a greater pomp and circumstance.

The problem is that I wasn't aware of this beforehand!

Even he just happened to be patrolling the city gates and happened to bump into it.
"Your Highness, today is His Majesty's wedding day. All the guests arrived yesterday, and most of the Imperial Guards are patrolling various places to maintain the security of the capital!"
"This humble official thought Your Highness had been delayed on the journey and that your return date was unknown, which is why I was unprepared. Please punish me, Your Highness!"

As he spoke, Gao Cheng was already drenched in sweat.

"Never mind, this is none of your business. You may leave."

Zhao Ruoxi frowned.

I've caused such a commotion at the gates of Kyoto, why hasn't that Xu guy shown up yet?
Could it be that he's having a good time somewhere?
Gao Cheng felt as if he had been granted a pardon and was about to leave when he heard the princess call out from behind him again:
"Wait!"

"Your Highness, please give your orders!"

"What have Zhuang Yuning of Mingjing Si and Miss Yun Ci of Yuanhua Lou been doing lately?"

Gao Cheng looked terrified, his heart nearly leaping into his throat!

broken!

What the head of the Mingjing Bureau does is solely up to His Majesty; it's not his place to interfere.
Not to mention the top courtesan of a brothel
Your Highness is clearly using this as an excuse to take your own life!
Gao Cheng suddenly knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly.
"Your Highness! I am terrified!"

Did you not see that just now, the Minister of War was executed without batting an eye?
After all, he was a ruthless character who would order the massacre of an entire city at the slightest provocation.
Gao Cheng had already foreseen that he would soon be beheaded and displayed to the public for his poor performance in guarding Kyoto! He raised his head and looked at the woman in front of him with an innocent expression.

Heaven have mercy! During the coup, I remained loyal to my duty from beginning to end and did not participate in it!

Zhao Ruoxi's eye twitched.

I just asked casually, why are you acting like you're being wronged?
The problem is that you have a huge face, a wide mouth, and a thick beard. This tearful look is really disgusting!
"Lord Gao, there's no need for that. Please rise."

Ignoring the other person, Zhao Ruoxi turned around and returned to the carriage.

Outside the city, An Qing led his troops to withdraw two miles away, and under the pretext of rest and recuperation, they set up camp on the spot.

He had already made plans to immediately send his troops into Kyoto should the situation change!

With that guy surnamed Xu around, I don't think I need to worry too much about how to get my five thousand men into the city.

Looking at the busy soldiers in the temporary camp, An Qing rubbed his chin, feeling that something was missing.

"Deputy General Xu, come here."

"Have!"

An Qing took out a bag of loose silver and handed it over: "The brothers are exhausted from the long journey. Take a few men and go into town to buy some good ingredients. I'll treat you tonight!"

"General, you are wise!!!"

The soldiers were overjoyed, and even the speed at which they set up camp increased significantly.

Just as Vice General Xu was about to accept his orders and leave, he heard the other person lean closer and whisper:

"Take this opportunity to shout a few times near Zhuque Lane, saying that An Qing has returned. Girls will surely rush out of their homes to follow you out of the city."
Go! "
-
"Is that Princess Ruoxi in the carriage? What a pity we arrived too late; we couldn't see her face clearly."

"I saw him at the city gate just now. He was so dashing and heroic, just like the late emperor."
"Truly a hero capable of wiping out the Great Qi! He's far superior to some others."

Shut up! Are you out of your mind?

The carriage swayed and rocked, and more and more people gathered on both sides, the noise of which annoyed her greatly.

Not right.

Even though Xu Jinhuan often seemed to be a womanizer, he never wavered when it came to matters of principle.

They haven't shown up yet.
Could something have gone wrong?

Unable to see the person she longed for day and night, her hands unconsciously fiddled with her clothes.

Just outside the carriage, a somewhat familiar voice came.

"Chang Wei, Minister of War, pays respects to Your Highness Ruoxi!"

Chang Wei was a third-rank martial artist, and his roar, imbued with a bit of his own energy, immediately silenced the entire street.

"parking."

Zhao Ruoxi lifted a corner of the carriage curtain and finally remembered the identity of the person she had briefly met at the Iris Pavilion.

"Lord Chang, there's no need for such formalities. It's been a long time. Please come inside the carriage for a chat."

Chang Wei was flattered and quickly followed instructions to get into the carriage.

The people on both sides of the street all turned their heads to look.

He had just beheaded the Minister outside the city and then invited the Vice Minister to ride in the carriage with him.

The intricacies involved here are hard not to ponder.

His Majesty's path to the throne does not appear to be honorable.

This was something that almost everyone in Kyoto knew about, but out of fear, no one dared to mention it.

However, recently, as His Highness has shone brightly in the West, many rumors have sprung up like mushrooms after rain.

As soon as Chang Weigang entered, Zhao Ruoxi immediately erected a barrier of divine sense.

"Lord Chang, has something unexpected happened?"

She knew that this Lord Chang had already been taken under the wing of the lecherous man.

However, there is absolutely no reason for the other party to appear here at this time!

Unless there is some compelling reason for coming.

Zhao Ruoxi's heart skipped a beat. Never before had she felt such anticipation that she was overthinking things.

"Your Highness, something did happen. Just the night before last, Mr. Xu was arrested."

Seeing the person opposite him suddenly change his expression, and feeling a palpable killing intent in the carriage, Chang Wei quickly said:
"Your Highness, please do not worry! Although he has been arrested, the Master has already sent word to me that he and Miss Zhuang are unharmed, so there is no need to concern yourself. Just proceed according to plan."

Chang Wei thought that after saying this, the other party would feel at ease.

Unexpectedly, the temperature inside the carriage was even lower than before.
"It's good that he's still alive."

Zhao Ruoxi's tone was icy cold.

"Your Highness, you must be tired from your journey. Please rest well. I will take my leave now."

Just as he was about to slip away, the other person seemed not to have heard what he said at all.

"Minister Chang, you just said that he is safe and sound with everyone?"

"Miss Zhuang, are you Zhuang Yuning from the Mingjing Division?"

Chang Wei immediately felt a cold sweat break out on his back.

"Perhaps this humble official has... has... misremembered?"

Zhao Ruoxi quickly calmed down.

That's it.

This is not the time to dwell on these things.

In any case, it's good that everyone is safe.

"I understand. Thank you for your help, Minister Chang."

"Your Highness, you flatter me! This humble official shall take his leave!"

Once again, only Zhao Ruoxi remained in the carriage. She rubbed her forehead and said softly:

"Let's go, let's go to the palace quickly."

"Today is the day of my elder brother's wedding."

(End of this chapter)