The emperor would rather have a

Chapter 130: Lady Huarui (Two in One)

Zhao Jili never thought that there would be a day in his life when he would have to run away in fear.

Xingzhou is thousands of miles away from Chengdu, but it took him only three days and two nights to get there. Driven by the desire to survive, the potential that people unleash is truly amazing.

He ran so fast that all his trusted aides were left behind, and Zhao Jili fled to Chengdu alone.

Because he was in a hurry to travel and had no time to take care of himself, Zhao Jili looked haggard and his clothes were dirty, looking very embarrassed.

If he didn't carry the seal proving his identity, no one would believe that he was the imperial envoy. Otherwise, how could the emperor's close minister act like a refugee?
After being interrogated again at the city gate, Zhao Jili was able to enter Chengdu smoothly.

The news that Zhao Jili, the military supervisor of the front-line camp and the guest envoy appointed by the emperor himself, had escaped alone spread like wildfire, and soon rumors spread inside and outside Chengdu.

The people all thought that the Zhou Kingdom was invading on a large scale and the enemy army was about to reach Chengdu, just like when Tang Zhuangzong Li Cunxu destroyed the Former Shu Kingdom. For a time, the people of Shu Kingdom were in panic.

Zhao Jili rode home at full speed, and without saying anything to his family, he immediately ordered someone to prepare toiletries. He wanted to clean himself thoroughly before going to the palace to report to the emperor about the war on the front lines.

But before Zhao Jili could start washing, a eunuch came with a group of soldiers and said that the emperor wanted to summon him to the palace.

Zhao Jili said with an embarrassed look on his face, "It's very rude to appear before the Emperor in this state. Could you please allow me to take a shower and change clothes first... I'll be there quickly and won't waste a moment."

The eunuch shook his head and said, "We are here on His Majesty's orders to invite Zhao Kesheng to the palace immediately. His Majesty is so anxious to see you, it must be because you have important military and national affairs to discuss. Zhao Kesheng should just come with us. It won't be too late to wash up when we get back."

Zhao Jili had no choice but to be half-invited and half-dragged by several soldiers to the palace. When he walked into the meeting hall, many people inside looked at him sideways.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"

Zhao Jili was nervous. He took a few steps forward with his head hung, then fell to the ground and shouted loudly.

Sitting on the high throne was a man in his forties with fair skin and a plump appearance. He was none other than Meng Chang, the emperor of Shu.

Meng Chang's expression was rather grim. He said calmly, "Zhao Qing, what has happened to bring you to this state of disarray?"

"This this……"

Zhao Jili had been traveling non-stop and was exhausted. In addition, he was frightened. When he was suddenly asked this question, his mind went blank and he didn't know how to answer.

Privy Councilor Wang Zhaoyuan angrily shouted, "Zhao Jili, His Majesty is asking you a question! What is the situation on the front lines?"

"Your Majesty...your Majesty..." Zhao Jili was so anxious that he began to stutter. After a long while, he managed to utter, "Your Majesty, I really don't know."

Meng Chang's expression grew increasingly gloomy, and he said coldly, "I sent you to the front lines to supervise the battle, and you don't know anything?"

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I remember now!"

Feeling the emperor's anger, Zhao Jili trembled with fear. His brain was working wildly out of fear, and he immediately remembered what he had forgotten.

He quickly said, "The Zhou army has captured Weiwu City and completely wiped out our troops stationed in Tangcang Town. Even the reinforcements sent by Weiwu Jiedushi Wang Huan were defeated."

"The Zhou army is advancing towards Qingni Ridge. Upon receiving this urgent report, I dared not delay and immediately rushed back to report to Your Majesty on the battle front."

Frightened, Zhao Jili confessed everything he knew. However, he didn't dare to say he had escaped. Instead, he found an excuse to report on the war.

"What a personal tribute to Your Majesty!" Wang Zhaoyuan snorted coldly, "Then do you know who the Zhou army's vanguard commander is?"

"Ah?" Zhao Jili's expression suddenly froze.

This question really stumped him, because when Gao Yanchou informed him of the battle situation on the front line, he was only concerned about where the Zhou army was fighting and did not pay attention to who the Zhou army's vanguard commander was.

Wang Zhaoyuan didn't give Zhao Jili a chance to make excuses. He immediately scolded him, "Do you think others don't know you came back secretly? Envoy Gao has already sent someone to rush back to the front line from Xingzhou City, 800 miles away, and they arrived half a day earlier than you."

"Zhao Jili, you actually deserted the battlefield and missed the opportunity to fight. Do you know your crime?" Wang Zhaoyuan shouted, his face tense and quite creepy.

He and Zhao Jili had always been at odds with each other, and now that the other party had brought disaster upon himself, how could he let him go easily?

Hearing this, it was clear that he was being murdered. Zhao Jili immediately started cursing, "Wang Zhaoyuan, you are taking revenge for personal gain. You are abusing your power for personal gain. You, you..."

Zhao Jili was shocked and angry, and was so angry that he spoke without thinking.

"Enough!" Meng Chang said angrily, "Zhao Jili, you really disappoint me!"

"I am wronged, wronged..."

Zhao Jili knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly. Soon, blood oozed from his forehead. He wept and said, "Your Majesty, my loyalty is evident! It is the soldiers on the front lines who are unwilling to fight for Your Majesty that have allowed the war to deteriorate to this point."

"I, your Majesty, have entrusted me with this important task. I dared not delay a moment and rode at full speed to Xingzhou. However, upon arriving, I learned that the Zhou army had already passed Fengzhou City and was approaching. I am truly helpless!"

Seeing that his sophistry was useless, Zhao Jili simply played the emotional card and put all the blame on the Shu army soldiers on the front line.

At this moment, Wang Zhaoyuan stepped forward, saluted, and solemnly declared, "I believe Zhao Jili must be severely punished. Your Majesty entrusted him with the power to make decisive decisions on the front lines, yet he abandoned his troops and fled back to Chengdu. This is a crime."

"His actions have caused panic within Chengdu and beyond. The people all believe the Zhou army is about to attack Chengdu. If this rumor spreads to other prefectures and counties, it will be detrimental to public stability. This is his second crime."

"And what he just said, he put all the blame on the soldiers on the front lines, while he himself fled for his life. I'm afraid the soldiers will be disheartened when they learn of this. Furthermore, the Zhou army is at its peak, and I'm worried that our soldiers will lose the will to resist. This is the third crime."

As soon as he finished speaking, many ministers immediately came out to echo him, calling for the death of Zhao Jili.

Many people usually dislike this guy, and now that Wang Zhaoyuan has taken the lead, everyone will naturally be happy to see it happen and join in adding insult to injury.

Zhao Jili looked around and saw that no one spoke up for him, which made him feel hopeless.

"Zhao Jili, you truly deserve to die!" Meng Chang lost all his dignity and cursed, "Come here... take him outside Chongli Gate and behead him in public!"

Suddenly, several palace guards came quickly, grabbed Zhao Jili's arm, and dragged him out.

"Your Majesty, please spare my life, spare my life..." "Wang Zhaoyuan, you filthy bastard, you will not die a good death..."

Zhao Jili was so frightened that tears streamed down his face. He no longer cared about his demeanor. His cries for mercy and shouts for mercy mixed together as he walked further and further away... until he completely disappeared.

After dealing with Zhao Jili, everyone turned to discuss the war on the front line.

Privy Councilor Wang Zhaoyuan spoke first, "The commander of the Zhou army's invading camp this time is still Fengxiang Jiedushi Wang Jing, but the Zhou emperor has also sent Li Yi, the cavalry commander of the Palace Guards, to lead several thousand infantry and cavalry soldiers as the vanguard."

Meng Chang frowned and said, "I heard that Li Yi married the Zhou Queen's younger sister last month?"

"Yes, that's the person."

Wang Zhaoyuan nodded and continued, "It is said that Li Yi was born the son of a household slave. He killed the Han general Zhang Yuanhui in the Battle of Gaoping, and assisted the Tianxiong Army Jiedushi Fu Yanqing in repelling the Liao reinforcements at Xinkou."

"He earned the Emperor's appreciation and was promoted from a lieutenant colonel to the rank of Inner Palace Guard Commander. After the Emperor, unable to capture Jinyang, returned to Tokyo with the Imperial Guards, he appointed Li Yi as the Inspector General of the Armies, responsible for the rectification of the Imperial Guards. He was subsequently promoted to the rank of Palace Guard Commander." Wang Zhaoyuan bowed and saluted. "In my opinion, Li Yi, the vanguard commander of the Zhou army, is highly trusted by the Emperor, and he is also his brother-in-law. His status within the Zhou Imperial Guards is second only to Li Chongjin and Zhang Yongde."

"The Emperor of Zhou has sent them to attack our dynasty, and he definitely has some serious plans. I believe the most urgent task is to mobilize a large force to block the Zhou army's vanguard at Guzhen, preventing them from taking advantage of the opportunity to advance into our heartland. Furthermore, we should mobilize troops from Qinzhou and Xingzhou to jointly attack the Zhou army, forcing them to retreat north of Fengzhou City, thus relieving the siege of Fengzhou City."

"At the same time, we secretly sent envoys to Han and Tang to ask them to send troops to attack Zhou together."

Meng Chang praised him, "My dear minister, you are truly as talented as Zhuge Liang. You can clearly explain the situation in a few words and even devise a response plan... Unlike Zhao Jili, a drunkard who only talks big but has no real talent. I was so lucky to have valued him before."

Wang Zhaoyuan quickly said a few humble words, and then everyone expressed their views. After some discussion, they finally decided on the next arrangements.

Li Tinggui, the commander of Pengshengkonghedu and the governor of Baoning, was appointed as the leader of the northern army, Lu Yanke, the governor of Wuning, was appointed as the deputy general, and Zhao Chongtao, the governor of Kesheng, was appointed as the military supervisor.

The three of them jointly led 6,000 troops to rush to the aid of Xingzhou.

Gao Yanchou, the commander-in-chief of the Left Guard Holy Infantry, continued to serve as the commander-in-chief of the front-line camp and immediately sent troops from Xingzhou City to Qingniling to build a defense line.

At the same time, the Privy Councilor Wang Zhaoyuan was sent to the Qin and Feng fronts to serve as the supreme commander of all the troops and be responsible for arranging and mobilizing troops.

Just as the ministers were discussing the war plan, two brocade curtains appeared on the side of the throne where Meng Chang was sitting, and a eunuch in the small door behind him quietly left the door.

……

The sun had mostly emerged from behind the clouds, and the sunlight shone brightly on the inner gardens of the imperial palace.

After leaving the meeting hall, the young eunuch Zheng Asan trotted all the way to the inner courtyard. As a close confidant of Lady Huarui, although he did not hold a very high position, no one in the palace dared to offend him easily.

Along the way, many eunuchs and palace maids took the initiative to greet him, but he just nodded absentmindedly.

The corridor in the inner courtyard is as spacious as a pavilion, but its length is astonishing. The railings on both sides are carved with cloud patterns and decorated with tung oil and gold edges. It is very exquisite and luxurious, extending all the way to the Xuanhua Pool at the east gate.

Eunuch Zheng Asan walked hurriedly across the arch bridge over the artificial canal, and then through a winding stone path covered with rockery, and finally a shimmering expanse appeared before his eyes.

The Xuanhua Pond was originally named Maha Pond. It originated in the Sui Dynasty. It was a large pit left behind when King Yang Xiu of Shu took soil to build a city. The landscape was formed after it was filled with water.

Because a foreign monk saw it, he said: Mahagovira.

But in the Hu language, Maha means big and Gongbila means dragon. They said that this pond was vast and there was a dragon, so it was named Maha Pond.

During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, when Wang Jian, the founder of Former Shu, built a new imperial palace, he incorporated the Mahachi Pond into the palace garden and renamed it Longyue Pond.

After Wang Yan ascended the throne, he expanded the imperial palace, added fresh water to Longyue Pond, and renamed it Xuanhua Pond. He built palaces, pavilions, and towers around the pond, which stretched for ten miles.

After Emperor Meng Chang of Shu ascended the throne, he was fat and afraid of the heat, so he built a crystal palace on the Mohe Lake. He used nanmu for the pillars, agarwood for the beams, coral for the windows, and jasper for the doors. The walls were not made of bricks and stones, but inlaid with colored glaze that was several meters wide.

From afar, a colorful palace appears on the water, sparkling in the refraction of sunlight.

Even though he could see it every day, Zheng Asan couldn't help but marvel in his heart. Who would have thought that there could be such a luxurious creation in the world... However, now was not the time to appreciate the beautiful scenery. Zheng Asan walked quickly along the corridor.

At this time, in the glittering palace, two young women sat opposite each other, one in her twenties and the other only seventeen or eighteen years old.

Li Erniang sat upright on the couch. The light reflected from all around was a bit dazzling, and she couldn't help but raise her hand to block it slightly.

In fact, she didn't like this palace very much. Sometimes it was too luxurious and looked tacky.

What's more, it's early summer and the sunlight is a bit scorching during the day. Although it's not too hot to sit here, the reflected light everywhere is really annoying... It's okay to come here to cool off at night.

Lady Huarui was very pretty, with a lazy look on her face. When she saw what Li Erniang did, she covered her mouth and chuckled.

"In the past, when I asked my sister to come to the palace to practice the piano with me to relieve my boredom, we always went to the Qinle Palace in the south. Your Majesty never goes there on weekdays, and I was not worried about your sister being caught by your Majesty."

Madam Huarui's voice was very soft and sweet, making people's hearts tremble. "But His Majesty has been busy with government affairs recently and hasn't come here for several days. So I took the liberty of bringing my sister here to enjoy the scenery."

She continued, "I also think the sunlight here is a bit glaring. But I really like the pearls and treasures here. They are soothing to look at, and the surrounding scenery is also beautiful, so I can tolerate this minor flaw."

Li Erniang put down her hand and whispered, "His Majesty dotes on the Imperial Concubine and specially built this Crystal Palace for you. No woman in the world can compare to you."

Madam Huarui was silent for a moment, then said quietly, "When His Majesty first had this Crystal Palace built, I was just an insignificant maid in the palace."

After hearing this, Li Erniang was stunned and wondered: Could it be that the rumor is false?
Madam Huarui didn't want to dwell on this matter, so she changed the subject and said, "I heard that my sister is going to marry the second son of Han Jixun, the governor of Xiongwu. I'd like to congratulate her first, and I'll have someone send a generous gift."

Li Erniang sighed softly upon hearing this, but she still forced a smile on the surface and said, "I thank the Imperial Concubine!"

She was actually quite resistant to this marriage. Han Jixun's second son had visited her several times, and she had observed him from the dark. He was not only big and strong, but also had a somewhat rough temperament. It was obvious that he was a man of little knowledge.

Li Erniang had a very bad impression of him... However, it was a marriage arranged by the family. Her mother could tolerate her occasional willfulness, but when it came to such a major matter concerning the family's interests, she would never leave her any room for choice.

At this moment, the young eunuch Zheng Asan hurried into the palace. When he looked up and saw Li Erniang there, he swallowed back the words he was about to say.

Madam Huarui said, "That's fine. Madam Li Er is not an outsider. If you have anything to say, just tell her directly."

Zheng Asan then began to recount what had happened in the court.

Li Erniang sat aside and listened quietly. When the Zhou army's vanguard commander Li Yi was mentioned, a trace of emotion inexplicably appeared on her face.

Madam Huarui was puzzled after hearing this, "Who is Li Yi, the vanguard commander of the Zhou army? How can he be so powerful... There's not a single general on the front lines who can stop him?"

Zheng Asan quickly told Lady Huarui what he had heard from Wang Zhaoyuan about Li Yi's origins.

Madam Huarui couldn't help but sigh softly, "No wonder His Majesty always says that the Central Plains is full of strong men. I never thought that a man who was born a servant could become a general in his early twenties. This man must be a vicious and evil person."

"General Li is not what the Imperial Concubine thinks..."

Li Erniang didn't know why she wanted to speak up to defend Li Yi, even though they had only met twice.

Seeing Madam Huarui looking at her with a puzzled expression, she quickly said, "Last year, I followed the merchant caravan to the capital of Zhou and stayed there for a while. I once saw the Zhou vanguard commander Li Yi from afar..."

After a while, an eunuch came to report that the emperor was going to the Crystal Palace to look for Lady Huarui.

Li Erniang said goodbye hastily, then followed the palace maid out of the imperial city. When she got into her family's carriage waiting outside the palace, her heart was still pounding.

It wasn't until she returned home that she calmed down.

However, when she lay in bed at night, a thought came to Li Erniang's mind: If the Zhou army really conquered Qin and Feng, the heroic governor Han Jixun might not be able to return...

Then maybe there would be room for improvement in her marriage with Han Jixun's second son?

(End of this chapter)