Xie Ming

When bad news arrived from the inner palace, Qin San'er, acting on the king's orders, rushed to deliver the message to the palace.

Ma Shiying, taking advantage of the situation, acted arbitrarily, even targeting eunuchs, and clearly also implicated Qiu Weizhen in his schemes.

Qin San'er then darted away like the wind.

In the cabinet's warm room, Ma had already gained a great deal of power, and he had no choice but to offend the Grand Secretary.

Then, turning back, Ma Shiying continued to make pronouncements and deliver his speeches.

"See that?"

"Your Excellency!"

"No time to dawdle."

"From this moment on, welcome Zheng and kill Xiao. Tonight, right now, we must begin."

"If we delay, everything will be ruined!"

"That's how it is."

"Later, you will personally write a letter stating that His Majesty is seriously ill and has entrusted Xiao with the care of his son."

"We must set off immediately and travel south under the cover of night."

"If we delay even a moment, His Majesty may not be able to continue."

A sly glint flashed in Ma Shiying's eyes, and he gave another dismissive snort.

"Humph!"

"Xiao Jingchuan!"

"This young man will surely be tempted when he hears that this is a request to entrust his son to someone else."

"In the past, when His Majesty was ill, it was always you, Grand Secretary, who drafted the imperial edicts on his behalf."

"Now, it is written in your own handwriting, and Eunuch Wang has also approved it with red ink."

"I don't think that brat will be able to see through anything in the short term."

"hehe."

"So and so."

"If we can trick him into returning to the capital before our scheme is exposed..."

"Heh, then we can ambush the axemen in this city and kill this brat on the spot."

"With military power under control, the great cause can be accomplished!"

Ma Shiying paused here, rubbing his hands excitedly.

"Of course, to get to this point, right now, we must find Liu Wenbing and Gong Yonggu, the two commanders of the Imperial Guards, as soon as possible. Only by conspiring together can we be on the safe side."

"With these two generals, we will immediately blockade Hangzhou."

"This strategy is perfect." He was boasting and talking to himself.

"Our move is called 'luring the enemy into a trap'!"

"Moreover, that's not all."

"It is imperative to impose martial law on the entire city of Hangzhou as soon as possible."

"All the family members who came with the Duke of Jingguo should be placed under close guard and protection as soon as possible."

"Uh"

"There's more, yes."

"And then there's the most troublesome commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Qiu Zhizhong, that kid surnamed Qiu."

"He and the man surnamed Xiao are cut from the same cloth."

"This child cannot be allowed to live either."

"Tonight, oh tonight, we must all be arrested and imprisoned together."

"The entire Imperial Guards in the city are on standby at their offices. We will arrest them all, one by one."

"Hmph, just in case, we can't even let a rat out of the city."

Having devised his plan, Ma Shiying, looking pleased with himself, finally let out a sigh of relief.

It was as if everything was already in their pocket.

Feeling somewhat elated, I continued to speak with emotion.

"Xiao Jingchuan, Xiao Jingchuan."

"Those who command armies and whose achievements overshadow their rulers throughout history have never had a good ending."

"Only by excluding you can we all be truly safe, huh? Hehehe."

Stroking his beard, Ma Shiying smiled at his enemy.

Qiu Weizhen was forced to board the ship at this moment, and it was clear that no amount of persuasion could change his mind.

Helpless, with no other choice but to take the risk, I had no choice but to accept my fate and leave everything to destiny.
The floating clouds disperse, and the bright moon shines upon us.

Reunion and happiness, today is the most important.
In the shallow pond, mandarin ducks play in the water, their red plumage and green canopy contrasting with the blooming of twin lotus flowers.

Pairs of lovers, affectionate and tender, the garden breeze blows towards the beautiful flowers, filling the world with sweet love.

It is a sad and lamentable situation.

Fleeting glimpses, a grand dream all for naught. When will the flowers bloom in their full glory?
When has the moon ever truly been full?
Written on the 14th day of the eighth month of the second year of the Hongguang reign, on the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Tragic news came from Hangzhou. Zhu Cilang was only sixteen years old, full of ambition, but fate did not grant him a long life; he suffered from a long-term illness that could not be cured.

He was overcome with grief and anger, and the loss of his brother was a double blow. He coughed up blood and died in the Northwest.

Suddenly, the emperor passed away, and the situation in the court changed abruptly.

That night, in the warm room of the inner chamber of the palace's front courtyard, Ma Shiying devised a treacherous plan in the face of danger.

They are in cahoots with the king, colluding with each other both inside and outside.

The court officials, having been in charge of the Southern Party affairs for nearly a month, have been manipulating things and, on a rainy night, they coerced Qiu Weizhen into a coup.

Outside the city, they colluded with Zheng Zhilong, the general of Fujian, to rise up and move north.

In such a chaotic situation, whether the northward-bound army was driven by the Hongguang Emperor's own will is obviously no longer so important.

The result is clear: Ma Shiying seized power amidst the chaos, and this is now a fact.

Subsequently, at the beginning of the Yin hour, the Imperial Guards began to move within the city.

Liu Wenbing and Gong Yonggu, both under the influence of Ma Shiying, secretly plotted and, by the fourth watch of the night, ordered the imperial guards in the city to strictly seal off the four gates of Hangzhou in the east, west, south, and north.

The soldiers, clad in armor, wielding spears, drawing their bows and nocking arrows, stood ready for battle.

Before long, under the cover of night, they had surrounded the city like an iron barrel, preventing anyone from leaving or entering.

Not only that.

Subsequently, the situation within the city escalated even further.

Following Liu Wenbing's orders, a unit of the Imperial Guard dispatched over a thousand patrol soldiers, who immediately surrounded the temporary Jinyiwei headquarters in the east of the city with great fanfare, torches, and spears.

Under the cover of night, the Imperial Guards were gathered throughout the city to arrest them.

For a time, the eastern part of the city was in chaos and unrest.

Qiu Zhizhong, who held the position of Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was arrested in the guard's headquarters.

There was no explanation from above; they simply gave a death order to take him to the Imperial Guard prison.

crackling and popping—

"Go! Hurry up!"

"What are you looking at? Move!" (The guards were arresting people.)
"Hey, you Imperial Guards, look around! This is the Embroidered Uniform Guard! Don't you want your heads?!"

Seeing that the commander had been arrested for no reason, the Imperial Guards in the garrison made a fuss, forming groups of three or five, and forcibly pushed the Imperial Guards soldiers, demanding an explanation.

However, since things have come to this point, all efforts are in vain.

"Hey, look how cocky you are."

"What? The Embroidered Uniform Guard can't be touched?"

"Damn it, today we've caught you Imperial Guards."

"Let's see who dares to find fault?"

"Anyone who resists arrest will be killed without exception."

"What a shame."

In the past, the Embroidered Uniform Guard acted domineeringly, and even the guards dared not provoke these living devils.

It's hard to say whether anyone has ever suffered injustice or been wronged by this Embroidered Spring Blade.

Now that the once-coveted prize has turned into filthy mess, naturally some people are eager to kick it while it's down.

Once the group was detained, they were immediately taken out of the guard post.

Yao Luwen, a battalion commander of the Imperial Guards who was leading the team on orders, was already standing in front of the government office.

He heard everything clearly as they went down to the inner room and started shouting.

I simply refrained from commenting or getting involved due to my position.

"Commander, the commander has been captured. According to Lord Liu's instructions, I must immediately escort this important criminal to the prison."

He had just been cursing at a minor officer, who, relying on some connection with Lord Liu, spoke arrogantly.

"Cough, cough cough cough cough—"

Upon hearing this, Yao Luwen coughed incessantly, appearing sickly.

"Uh, Yao, Commander Yao, you must have caught a cold."

"Sigh, look how rushed this is, they didn't even pick a better time."

"It's that kind of urgent situation where you have to drag someone out of bed in the middle of the night."

"If all else fails, we'll inform Lord Liu on your behalf later."

"You go back first, wait for us to come back and tie it for you."

"Don't worry, nothing will go wrong."

It's hard to tell whether the young man is genuinely concerned about his boss's illness or is simply trying to seize power and curry favor.

Anyway, I'm easygoing and don't take things too seriously right now.

(End of this chapter)