Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 405: It's Nice to Cool Off on Tianmu Mountain

The rain was no longer heavy. A light carriage, escorted by more than a dozen knights, was speeding along the Imperial Street of Lin'an.

Recently, because the emperor was attacked and the prime minister was killed, coupled with the heavy rain tonight, the lights in Lin'an, the city that never sleeps, have become much sparser, and there are almost no pedestrians on the streets.

In the car, Zhao Que sat lazily, with the window half rolled up, looking at the lights flashing outside from time to time.

The imperial edict issued by the two palaces did not specify the purpose of summoning the ministers at this time.

But what else could be the purpose of opening the gates of the Forbidden Palace and urgently summoning ministers in the middle of the night when it was raining heavily?
The Goose King, who was always out of touch, knew very well that the emperor had passed away.

When I went to the palace to pay my respects before, the news that came out was that the emperor's condition had improved. Now it seems that those were all rumors deliberately spread in order to reassure the people.

Zhao Qu sighed softly. It was so late, and he was called out from the beauty's bed and entered the palace in the heavy rain.

Although he was not in a bad mood when he woke up, he was still not feeling well.

Why would they summon me to the palace so late? Isn't it to discuss the establishment of a new monarch?

The corners of Zhao Qu's lips curled up in sarcasm. Love, romance, and beauty are leisurely, but why do mediocre people worry about them?

He leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes and dozed off.

When the official died, he unexpectedly discovered that he did not feel sad at all.

Perhaps, people who play games are a little disillusioned with the world deep down.

He and Zhao Gou only saw each other a few times throughout the year. When they did, he would test his academic performance, lecture him on some great principles, or punish him by making him copy books...

However, melancholy is always inevitable.

……

Commander-in-chief Mo Long braved the wind and rain and hurried back to the palace. He put on his armor and stationed on both sides of the palace gate with Yang Yuan.

Several prime ministers and ministers have already entered, making the atmosphere even more tense.

The imperial dragon guards on both sides, as well as Mo Long and Yang Yuan, all had white silk wrapped around their waists. The people were still unaware of the situation, but everyone in the palace was already in mourning.

Suddenly, a eunuch with a white belt around his waist came in a hurry and announced the decree: "The two palaces have ordered Yang Yuan, the imperial guard, to lead a whole army to guard the Chuigong Palace."

Mo Long looked at Yang Yuan with some envy.

Everyone could guess that the two palaces summoned ministers to the Chuigong Hall overnight to discuss the establishment of a new monarch.

Yang Yuan, who directly led troops to garrison in the Chuigong Hall to ensure the smooth transfer of imperial power, made an indelible contribution to the emperor's service.

After hearing the imperial edict, Yang Yuan had some vague guesses in his mind, and he quickly agreed, selected a team of people, and led them to the Chuigong Palace.

In the military system of the Song Dynasty, fifty people formed a team, and two teams formed a city, which means one hundred people.

As Yang Yuan was leading his team toward the Chuigong Hall, two men in straw raincoats came from behind.

Yang Yuan looked back and asked in surprise, "Your Majesty?"

Zhao Qu took a closer look and recognized it was Yang Yuan.

Zhao Yu was a little confused and said in astonishment: "Erlang? As I recall, aren't you working in the Imperial City Department?"

Yang Yuan: "...Privy Council."

Zhao Yu suddenly said, "Oh, yes, yes, the Privy Council. Why... are you here?"

Yang Yuan said, "The Empress has appointed me to be temporarily transferred to the Imperial Dragon Guard to await your orders."

Appointed by the Queen?

Zhao Yu thought for a moment and understood what the queen was thinking.

Although Wu was a virtuous queen, she was more partial to him, the child she raised.

Zhao Yu secretly sighed, looked at Yang Yuan, and asked worriedly: "Now that you have entered the Palace Front Department, will you still take the exam for the top scholar?"

Yang Yuan said: "Take the test, I am just temporarily transferred."

Zhao Yu nodded and said happily: "Okay, we still have to take the exam to become a Jinshi."

If Zhao Que gets along well with someone, he will treat him well with all his heart.

Zhao Yuan and he were both descendants of Taizu Zhao Kuangyin, but by their generation, the lineage had already been passed down for seven generations.

How close are you to your relative who has the same father as you six generations ago? I'm afraid you are not as close as a classmate or a colleague.

The same is true of Zhao Qu and Zhao Yuan.

However, seeing that he got along well with Zhao Yuan, he was really nice to her, and the same was true for Yang Yuan.

The Song Dynasty valued culture over military power; even the Privy Council and the Ministry of War were always controlled by civil officials.

Military generals like Yang Cunzhong temporarily controlling the Privy Council was only an exception in a special period and could not last long.

Zhao Yu knew this very well.

No matter whether the person in power was his adoptive father Zhao Gou, his elder brother Zhao Yuan, or himself, as long as the situation stabilized, the first thing he would do was to transfer Yang Cun Zhong from the position of Privy Councilor.

The military generals already lead the troops in the Three Yamen. If they also control the Privy Council which has the power to mobilize troops, who can guarantee that the scene of killing the king like slaughtering a dog as in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period will not happen again?
Moreover, without a major war, it would be very difficult for a military general to be promoted. If Yang Yuan wanted to go higher and further, he had to choose the most correct path.

If they go any further, they will go their separate ways.

Zhao Yu waved to Yang Yuan and was about to leave with the eunuch when Yang Yuan suddenly asked, "Will the king's villa at the foot of Tianmu Mountain be completed this year?"

"Ok?"

Zhao Yu didn't understand why he suddenly asked about this.

Zhao Yu understood as soon as his mind changed.

He looked at Yang Yuan deeply and said, "The villa will be completed this year. When the time comes, I will invite Erlang to visit with me."

After he said this, Yang Yuan understood.

Yang Yuan clasped his fists and bowed. When he looked up again, Zhao Yu had already walked away with the young eunuch.

……

Outside the Chuigong Hall, the imperial guards stood in a solemn manner.

In the Chuigong Hall, the two palaces sat side by side behind a pearl curtain. Two prime ministers, a privy councilor, and six ministers, a total of eleven people, sat on both sides.

The hall was very depressing, with only the occasional sound of someone picking up a teacup and gently wiping the tea leaves.

Empress Dowager Wei and Empress Wu had already expressed their intention that the emperor had passed away and a new ruler must be appointed, and all the important officials in the court had also expressed their opinions.

Those who supported the enthronement of Prince Pu'an Zhao Yuan included Privy Councilor Yang Cunzhong, Minister of Rites Qu Mo, Minister of War Cheng Zhen, and Minister of Works Hou Keyi.

Those who supported the enthronement of Enping County Prince Zhao Ju included the Right Prime Minister Wanqi Xie, the Minister of Personnel Tan Yingwen, the Minister of Revenue Xizhe, and the Minister of Punishment Zhang Fangxun.

Four votes to four.

There are still three people who have not expressed their opinions: the Queen Mother, the Empress, and the Left Prime Minister Shen Gai.

Wanqi Xie was a little surprised. Shen should be a peace advocate, and Prince Pu'an's pro-war tendency has long been known to everyone. Could it be that Old Shen wanted to vote for Prince Pu'an?
Or did he want to cast a decisive vote at a critical moment in the hope of gaining the gratitude of the new emperor?

However, Prince Enping Zhao Ju was raised by Queen Wu. Which one would Queen Wu support more?

And Empress Dowager Wei..., the old lady was a person without any ideas, and she had a very good relationship with Empress Wu as mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.

Besides, she was going to become the Grand Empress Dowager soon, and it was impossible for her to have conflicts with the Empress Dowager.

In this way, the position of the new king is clear, and Shen Gai's vote is actually not that important.

Shen Gai was indeed a little hesitant.

From a standpoint, he certainly tends to favor Zhao Qu.

But... Zhao Yu does not have the qualities to be a king.

He was frivolous and unrestrained, and he didn't look like an emperor even when he wore the dragon robe. If he were to sit on the throne, it would probably become a nightmare for the Song Dynasty, right? Although Zhao Yuan advocated war, he was young and energetic, so it was not surprising that he had this idea.

Emperor Taizong was once a staunch advocate of war, but after realizing the gap in strength between the enemy and us, didn't he change his mind?
The late emperor had also advocated a northern expedition to bring back the two saints, but didn't he have to face reality in the end?

With us, the prudent old ministers around, Zhao Yuan would not act recklessly even if he ascended the throne.

But Zhao Yu is... hard to say...

Shen Gai was indeed a little hesitant.

In fact, each of these ministers is a smart person. When they come here, they know why they are here.

Therefore, they not only carefully considered their own positions, but also calculated the number of votes that the two adopted sons of the emperor could get.

According to Shen Gai's calculations at the time, before the two palaces and he expressed their opinions, Zhao Yuan could only get three votes from Privy Councilor Yang Cun Zhong, Minister of Rites Qu Mo, and Minister of Works Hou Keyi.

The Minister of War Cheng Zhen had always followed Qin Hui, so he should have been a staunch advocate of peace (surrender).

However, Minister Cheng actually voted for Zhao Yuan, which surprised Shen Gai.

The result was originally a foregone conclusion, and his vote was insignificant, so he didn't think too much about it.

It’s different now. Although the two palaces are likely to prefer Zhao Ju, if he also votes for Zhao Yuan, the empress dowager and the queen who finally express their opinions may not necessarily choose Zhao Ju.

After all, she is a woman in the deep palace, what opinions can she have?
The superiority and inferiority of the foreign officials have already been determined, so they might change their minds.

In this situation, it is crucial to decide who Shen should support.

Empress Wu said, "Now each of the ministers has his support, and the situation is evenly divided. Mr. Shen, what do you think?"

Faced with the current good situation, Queen Wu actually wanted to express her position immediately, and she also supported Zhao Yu.

However, she and Empress Dowager Wei were the hosts of this meeting to establish the emperor. It would be unfair for her to express her opinion before others finished voting.

Although she was more emotionally inclined towards her adopted son Zhao Yu, she was really trying hard to be a virtuous queen.

But Empress Dowager Wei didn't care who it was. Seeing that half of the ministers supported Brother Yu, and Prime Minister Wanqi Xie and the Heavenly Official also supported Brother Yu, she couldn't help but said, "Brother Yu is smart and clever. I also think that Brother Yu is more suitable. What do you think, Mr. Shen?"

Shen Gai was already wavering, but the scale in his heart was slowly leaning towards Zhao Yuan.

It was really because Zhao Que had done too many absurd and out-of-line things. Shen Gai felt that a dignified and stable emperor, even if he had some flaws in his foreign stance, would be more beneficial to the Zhao Song Dynasty.

But at this time Empress Dowager Wei expressed her position first, and the balance in Shen Gai's heart inevitably tilted towards Zhao Yu again.

If the two palaces clearly support Zhao Qu, my vote will actually be of little use, so it would be better to support Zhao Qu as well.

In this way, if the new emperor did something absurd, he, as the prime minister who supported him, would be more qualified to advise the emperor.

Thinking of this, Shen Gai cupped his hands and said, "This old minister believes that the Prince of Enping can be the emperor."

Empress Wu felt relieved and said happily, "In that case, Zhang Dayong, go and ask Prince Enping to come to Chuigong Palace."

"The slaves obey the order."

Zhang Quwei, who was standing in attendance on His Highness, knew that the new emperor of the Song Empire had now been determined.

Zhang Quwei quickly left the Chuigong Hall and headed straight for the Jiying Hall where Enping Prince Zhao Yu was.

Zhang Quwei trotted past the Huangyi Hall where Prince Pu'an Zhao Yuan was staying and hurried to the Jiying Hall. As soon as he entered the hall, he slid down to his knees and said, "Your servant Zhang Quwei pays respects to the king."

Just as Zhao Qu picked up the tea, he saw Zhang Quwei sliding in front of him.

Zhao Yu's eyes suddenly widened.

"Zhang Quwei."

"The slave is here!"

Zhang Quwei quickly took two more steps on his knees, and he was almost about to retract his claws and stick out his tongue, his flattering attitude was obvious.

This is because Zhao Gou had just passed away, and he really couldn't kowtow to Zhao Yu and say, "I congratulate your majesty, congratulations to your majesty!"

Otherwise, he could do even more shameless things.

Zhao Qu said: "Get up, stand up."

"Yes!" Zhang Quwei quickly agreed and stood up.

Zhao Qu said: "Come here, come closer."

Zhao Yu bent down and touched Zhang Quwei's knee. Zhang Quwei asked in confusion, "What are you doing, Your Majesty?"

Zhao Qu was surprised and said, "I thought you had a knee pad on your knee, but it turns out you didn't. That's really hard for you."

Zhang Quwei was stunned for a moment, then he realized that Zhao Yu was mocking him, and his old face suddenly turned red with embarrassment.

However, the person in front of him is the future owner of this palace, so even if someone spits on him, he can only greet him with a smile.

Zhang Quwei said awkwardly, "Your Majesty, you are joking. I am here on the orders of the Queen Mother and the Empress to respectfully invite Your Majesty to move to the Chuigong Palace."

Zhao Yu glanced at Zhang Quwei and asked, "Has Prince Pu'an left yet?"

Zhang Quwei was stunned and said, "The two palaces only ordered me to invite the king, but they didn't invite Prince Pu'an."

Zhao Yu spread his hands and said, "Prince Pu'an is not going. If I go, who shall I meet?"

Zhang Quwei was surprised and said, "I don't understand what the king is talking about."

Zhao Yu said, "You don't need to understand. Just report this to the two palaces. Just say that it won't be too late for me to go after Prince Pu'an goes to Chuigong Palace."

How could Zhang Quwei not understand since he was able to trick Zhao Gou into treating him as his confidant?

As soon as Zhao Yu opened his mouth, he understood what Zhao Yu meant.

But he really couldn't imagine that there was someone in this world who would refuse the throne that was right in front of him.

Does Zhao Qu also want to be an "emperor"?

Is there really someone in the world who doesn't want to be an emperor?

Zhang Quwei looked at Zhao Yu in silence, hoping that he had misheard.

Zhao Yu said, "Hurry up and tell the two palaces that Prince Pu'an has arrived at the Chuigong Palace. It won't be too late for Zhao Yu to go later."

"Yes, yes, slave, go right now."

Watching Zhang Quwei leave in panic, Zhao Qu leaned back lazily on his chair and said to himself, "If I become the emperor, I can't be the free and easy king. Why should I become the emperor?

If I become the emperor and still can be the free and easy king, I am afraid I will be criticized by thousands of people. Big brother, you should bear this burden!"

Zhang Quwei hurriedly left Jiying Hall and ran back to Chuigong Hall.

When passing by Huangyi Hall, Zhang Quwei suddenly had an impulse.

Prince Enping has made it clear that he does not want the throne. What if I go into the Huangyi Hall now and invite Prince Pu'an to go to the Chuigong Hall with me?
I haven't asked for permission from the two palaces yet, nor have I informed the ministers. This move is somewhat...but the risks are great, but the rewards are also great.

In this case, once Prince Pu'an ascends the throne, he will have to protect our family's position and continue to favor us no matter what.

Even though Prince Pu'an hates me to the extreme.

The emperor is clear about rewards and punishments, and he must have this attitude.

However, the benefits and risks of speculation turned over in his mind several times, and ultimately he did not dare to be clever.

Zhang Quwei took a reluctant look at the Huangyi Hall, but hurried back to the Chuigong Hall.

Yang Yuan stood in front of the Chui Zuo Hall with a knife in his hand, watching Zhang Quwei leave in a hurry and return in a hurry without bringing Zhao Yu back.

Yang Yuan already understood in his heart.

The new emperor is in the Huangyi Hall, and the wise king is in the Jiying Hall.

This summer, he can go to Ewang Villa in Tianmu Mountain to escape the heat.

(End of this chapter)