eurekapd Chapter 879 Who is outside the palace? !
Chapter 879 Who is outside the palace? !
To Li Che, the palace under his feet was both familiar and unfamiliar.
In his memory, the distant Hall of Mental Cultivation was where the late emperor would review memorials daily; the Xuanzheng Hall in the center was where officials held court meetings; and at the deepest point, the Hall of Eternal Life, where Emperor Qing finally ascended to heaven...
Every palace, every pavilion, every blade of grass, every tree, were once part of the original owner's childhood life, and were saturated with complex royal grievances.
However, now that he has once again set foot in this forbidden area, his state of mind is completely different.
In the past, he was the prince here and a chess piece on the chessboard of power.
And today, he is the only master here, the chess player!
The night watchman walked in front to clear the way for His Majesty the Emperor, while Li Che followed calmly behind, and behind him were Wang Sanchun, Chen Pingzhi, Yang Xuan and other ministers who followed the Emperor.
Those who were left far behind were the officials who had just surrendered outside the imperial city.
These ministers originally thought that since Li Che allowed them to accompany him, this hurdle would be overcome.
As long as he is cautious and fulfills his duties in the future, he may be able to continue to gain a foothold in the new dynasty and maintain his wealth.
However, once they entered the imperial city, they were horrified to discover...
At some point, a fully armed Fengtian Army soldier quietly followed behind each person.
The soldiers, with their hands on the hilts of their swords, followed them silently one step away, neither urging them nor communicating.
The civil servants couldn't help but feel a chill down their spines and broke out in a cold sweat.
They immediately understood that things were far from over.
The new emperor's trust in them was far from being easily gained by simply saying "Long live the emperor."
The establishment of a new order will inevitably involve bloodshed. Soldiers will bleed on the battlefield, and naturally, people in officialdom will also bleed.
Li Che walked confidently on the palace road, his eyes scanning the surroundings.
The imperial city before him was far different from what he remembered, appearing rather messy and desolate.
Emperor Wenchu fled in a great hurry and only had time to take away the gold and silver jewelry that were easy to carry. Many heavy ornaments and utensils were casually discarded on the roadside.
The gorgeous palace lanterns were tilted, and precious porcelain fragments and scattered books were everywhere.
Li Che frowned slightly and bent down to pick up a book.
Looking closely, I saw the words "Zuo Zhuan" written on the cover.
Li Che couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth. He even dared to throw the "Spring and Autumn Annals" around randomly. Isn't he afraid that Lord Guan will come looking for him?
He patted the dust off the book and said to the people around him, "Be careful, pick up the books when you see them, and don't step on them."
There must be many rare books in the palace's collection. These are the most precious treasures and much more valuable than gold and silver jewelry.
Everyone quickly agreed and then began to watch their step.
Those ministers who had just surrendered were even more careful. If they came across half a page of book or a piece of bamboo, they would carefully put it into their arms.
He was afraid that if he made a mistake, the soldier behind him would chop him down with a sword.
The palace was in a state of extreme desolation, with most of the eunuchs and palace maids having fled.
Li Che only saw dozens of palace maids and eunuchs, who were kneeling trembling on both sides of the road, with their heads buried very low, not daring to make any sound.
Li Che glanced at them, without much emotion in his heart, and had no intention of making things difficult for them.
The two palace upheavals were both games between bigwigs. What could they do?
These low-ranking palace servants were nothing more than duckweed in the turbulent tide of power shifts, and could only go with the flow and struggle to survive.
His eyes swept across the kneeling crowd, finally stopping on a man kneeling in the front, who was dressed in the attire of a low-ranking eunuch.
He raised his hand and pointed, saying, "Bring him here."
Two night watchmen immediately stepped forward, pulled the eunuch out of the crowd without any explanation, and brought him in front of Li Che.
The eunuch was so frightened that he was almost dragged over.
As soon as he arrived in front of Li Che, he immediately prostrated himself on the ground.
"I know you," Li Che interrupted him before he knelt, "You used to work in the imperial kitchen, right?"
Upon hearing this, the eunuch froze, then banged his head loudly: "Your servant... Your servant Shan Chao from the Imperial Kitchen pays homage to His Majesty! Long live His Majesty! Long live His Majesty..."
"Alright." Li Che frowned slightly, "Just stand up and answer. I'm not used to looking at the back of people's heads when asking questions."
Although Li Che's voice was not loud, Shan Chao was still frightened.
He stood up tremblingly, his legs still weak and his waist unable to straighten up. He could only half-bend his body, not daring to look Li Che in the eye.
Li Che looked at his quail-like appearance and asked directly: "Tell me, what is the situation in the palace now?"
Shan Chao was about to kneel down and report as usual, but then he remembered the emperor's order and had to hold back.
"Your Majesty, the palace is in chaos... The late emperor passed away suddenly, leaving behind more than twenty concubines."
"Your Majesty...although the false emperor was on the throne for a short time, he took in many daughters from aristocratic families because of his connections with them."
"When the false emperor fled, he only took a few of his most favored concubines with him; the rest remain in their respective palaces."
"To sum up, there are now more than 30 concubines in the harem..."
After saying this, Shan Chao secretly raised his eyelids, glanced at Li Che very quickly, and then quickly lowered them.
There was a hidden meaning in his words, pointing out that there were more than 30 concubines in the harem, and his meaning was self-evident.
Since she is a concubine, she must be good-looking. Even if she is not stunningly beautiful, she is still young and beautiful.
If a king is lustful, he will naturally select and bring her into the palace. This kind of thing is not uncommon in history.
Li Che is such a great man, how could he not hear the hidden meaning?
However, he looked down on these sisters-in-law and stepmothers. Not only were they involved in complicated political backgrounds, but they also lowered his status.
He immediately said:
"Propagate my decree: All former concubines in the harem who have homes to return to will be repatriated immediately, provided with travel expenses, and allowed to return home."
"Those who are homeless or unwilling to return home will be sent to the Imperial Women's Temple outside the city, where they will be ordained as Taoists, chanting sutras and praying for the late emperor, and thus end their remaining lives."
He paused, then deliberately added, "Anyone who is repatriated and wishes to remarry in the future, their family and local authorities shall not prevent them for any reason."
This way of handling the matter was considered to be the most benevolent and just way possible. It not only preserved the dignity of the royal family, but also gave those women a chance to survive.
After the death of the previous emperor, even though Li Che ordered the concubines who had no children to be buried alive with him, no one could find fault with it. Instead, it showed that Li Che was a filial son.
When the officials heard what Li Che said, they all felt relieved.
To judge a person, you should observe his words and actions.
A person's character can be seen from what he does.
His tolerance towards these concubines showed that the new emperor was not a cruel and vicious person, but rather quite kind.
This is different from the reputation your Majesty had when he was the King of Feng, and it is also a good thing for them.
Shan Chao was stunned for a moment after hearing this, then he reacted and wanted to kneel again: "Your Majesty is kind and virtuous, this servant..."
"I told you to stand!" Li Che's tone became heavier, with a hint of impatience.
Shan Chao was so frightened that his face turned pale and he almost fainted. He was only able to stand steadily with the help of the night watchman beside him.
The expressions of the other officials changed again: Your Majesty is... a little moody.
Li Che saw it and felt helpless.
The eunuchs in this palace have undergone two major changes. Those who are capable and courageous have either died an untimely death or have already escaped.
Most of the remaining ones are mediocre and timid people like Shan Chao, who are not capable of any important role.
It seems that Huai En must be transferred from Feng State as soon as possible to support the situation in the palace.
"How many eunuchs and palace maids are left in the palace now? What's the situation everywhere?" Li Che continued to ask.
Shan Chao tried to calm down and replied, "This servant... This servant hasn't had time to make a detailed count, but most of the palace servants from various palace departments are here."
"There should still be some personal servants left in the harem for the concubines, but they are afraid of your majesty's majesty and dare not come here."
Li Che nodded, stopped asking him, and turned to look at the crowd behind him: "Where is Feng Gong?"
Feng Gong immediately trotted out from the team upon hearing the voice, bowed and replied, "Your servant is here!"
Li Che ordered: "The East Factory will temporarily take over the internal affairs of the imperial palace and immediately start to count and investigate all remaining eunuchs and palace maids."
"Anyone with bad intentions, dirty hands, or unknown origins will be cleared out and dealt with according to the law."
"If the palace is short of staff, we will recruit people with clean backgrounds and reliable records from the public to fill the positions. We will get the palace's affairs running as quickly as possible and restore order."
"Yes!" Feng Gong bowed and accepted the order promptly.
After arranging the affairs of the inner palace, Li Che continued to move forward.
Not far ahead is the Xuan Zheng Hall, which symbolizes the country's highest power center.
However, just as he reached the steps of Xuan Zheng, a shrill and crazy laughter suddenly came from deep inside the hall!
“Haha…hahaha…hahahaha!”
The laughter echoed in the empty palace complex, sounding particularly harsh!
"Escort!"
The guards beside Li Che suddenly changed their expressions, drew their swords from their waists, and instantly protected Li Che in the center.
Generals such as Wang Sanchun and Yang Xuan rushed forward, weapons in hand, staring intently at the hall.
Li Che's face showed no sign of panic. He raised his hand to signal everyone to calm down. He turned his gaze to the frightened Shan Chao standing aside and asked calmly:
"Who is that person laughing so loudly in the hall?"
Shan Chao couldn't speak at all, he even had difficulty breathing, and his face turned red.
At this moment, the laughter in the hall stopped abruptly.
A hoarse voice came out clearly from the hall:
"Who's outside the door?
Then, without waiting for anyone to answer, the people inside the door burst into laughter again.
Everyone looked at each other, and then they heard the man's voice suddenly become majestic:
"I am the Emperor of Daqing!"
"Since you are meeting the Emperor, why don't you kneel?!"
"Kneel down!!!"
This earth-shattering statement frightened the officials so much that they lowered their heads and wished they could bury them in the ground.
Shan Chao had already collapsed to the ground, his teeth chattering, unable to utter a complete word. He could only stare at the Xuan Zheng Hall with terrified eyes.
Only Li Lin had a serious expression on his face. He walked over to Li Che and said, "Sixth Brother, why does this voice sound like Seventh Brother's?"
Li Lin didn't need to remind him, even though the voice was crazy and distorted, he had already recognized it.
The person in the palace was the one deposed by Emperor Qing and imprisoned for many years...
The one who had already been eliminated from the power struggle—King of Shu, former Crown Prince, Li Huan!