My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 199 The Death of the Young Emperor

"It's rare that you two have such a mindset. If you really want to enter the Buddhist order, then go to Yongning Temple."

Empress Dowager Hu believed her and reassured her, "His Majesty is someone I've watched grow up since he was a child. He's not such a heartless person. He will spare your lives."

He helped the two up and personally wiped away their tears with a handkerchief, saying, "Since you are going to meet His Majesty, you must pay attention to your appearance."

"Someone is coming!"

He summoned a palace maid to tidy them up. Although his eyes were still a little red and swollen, he had regained his handsome appearance.

Empress Dowager Hu was extremely pleased to see this, but she also knew that now was not the time to do anything.

He then sent his personal maid to deliver his message to the young emperor.

"We must invite His Majesty here."

When Empress Dowager Hu was instructing the maids, she did not notice the joy that flashed in the eyes of Xu He and Zheng Yan. Taking advantage of Empress Dowager Hu's inattention.

Zheng Yan gave Xu He a wink, and Xu He immediately hurried towards Jiafu Hall, then quickly returned to the Buddha statue.

After exchanging a glance, the two knelt before the Buddha statue and made a devout prayer gesture.

It's as if they've already adapted to a life of monastic seclusion, eating simple meals and burning incense and chanting Buddhist scriptures.

When Empress Dowager Hu saw this, she not only did not stop it, but was extremely pleased.

Xu He and Zheng Yan are both handsome and have very likable personalities. If she were to really send them away from Luoyang, she would actually feel a little reluctant.

Let them stay at Yongning Temple in Luoyang. If she misses them too much, she can go to Yongning Temple to see them under the pretext of going out to burn incense and worship Buddha, killing two birds with one stone.

I do not know how long it has been.

A series of hurried footsteps sounded outside Jiafu Hall.

soon.

The young Emperor Yuan Xu then appeared before everyone. With a cold face, he bowed to Empress Dowager Hu and said, "Greetings, Mother."

He immediately stared intently at Xu He and Zheng Yan, making no attempt to conceal his murderous intent!
If eyes could turn into blades, these two would have been torn to pieces by the young emperor long ago!
Empress Dowager Hu waved her hand, dismissing everyone and ordering them to wait outside the hall.

Zheng Yan and Xu He rushed to the young emperor, knelt down, kowtowed, and cried out in repentance, “Your Majesty! We know we were wrong. Please dismiss us from our official posts, select other virtuous ministers, and allow us to enter the Buddhist order to serve the Great Wei, the Empress Dowager, and Your Majesty!”

Yuan Xu's attitude showed no sign of softening. He sneered, "You only know to cry and repent when you're about to die? What were you doing before?"

"Your Majesty, their attitude is so sincere, why should you be so bothered by it?"

Empress Dowager Hu spoke up in their defense, attempting to exonerate the two men.

But the more she spoke, the angrier Yuan Xu became, and the more furious he became!

"These two traitors have wreaked havoc on the court, causing widespread resentment among the people. The empire passed down from our ancestors was almost destroyed. Such heinous crimes, can they be forgiven simply by saying that they know they have repented?"

"With rebels rising up everywhere, what does it have to do with these two?"

Yuan Xu laughed maniacally, glaring angrily at Empress Dowager Hu. "So, Mother, are you implying that my failure to govern with virtue is entirely my fault, leading to this state of affairs?"

Empress Dowager Hu was speechless for a moment.

Since ascending the throne, the young emperor has been nothing more than a mascot.

Most of the affairs of the court were controlled by Empress Dowager Hu. If anyone were to be held accountable, she would be the biggest culprit.

Zheng Yan and Xu He immediately spoke up.

"Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, all the faults are mine. Your Majesty is not at fault, nor is the Empress Dowager."

“Since His Majesty is unwilling to pardon our sins, we are unwilling to live a life of dishonor in this world.”

"However, we two have served the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty for many years, and we still have some affection for each other. We dare to request that we drink a cup with Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager to fulfill our friendship. Afterwards, you may kill or torture us as you please, and we will have no complaints!"

Say it.

Xu He got up and went inside the hall to bring back a wooden tray with four wine cups and a pot of wine on it.

After personally filling the cups with wine, the two men took two of the cups, drank them in one gulp, and then bowed and kowtowed again, saying, "We beseech Your Majesty and Empress Dowager to grant our request!"

Empress Dowager Hu was heartbroken. She quickly picked up a cup of wine and drank it all in one gulp. Her eyes were red and her voice choked with emotion as she said, "How could it have come to this? How could it have come to this?"

Yuan Xu watched coldly for a while, remaining unmoved.

Empress Dowager Hu could no longer hold back and rebuked them, "Though they have made many mistakes, they at least rendered meritorious service in dealing with Prince Yuan Yi of Jiangyang. Does Your Majesty not even consider this small favor? Would I possibly harm Your Majesty?"

Yuan Xu remained silent.

He picked up the glass, and there was nothing unusual about the wine inside.

Seeing the tragic expressions on Xu He and Zheng Yan's faces, he no longer had many concerns and drank the wine in one gulp.

"Your Majesty is right. You two have also rendered meritorious service to me, but your merits and demerits cannot be compared. The crimes you two committed are unforgivable! It would be impossible to appease public anger if you were not executed!" "But rest assured, I will only execute you two. Your families will be treated well. I will ensure that you two will not be without descendants, but that your family bloodlines will continue."

Xu He and Zheng Yan wept with joy and immediately kowtowed, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your divine grace!"

Seeing that the two were determined to die, Empress Dowager Hu quickly said, "I hope Your Majesty will consider the bond between mother and son and allow them to spend one last night with me."

Yuan Xu was overjoyed and about to speak when a piercing pain shot through his chest.

He looked up at Xu He and Zheng Yan in disbelief.

But he noticed that the two men had strange smiles on their faces, as if they had succeeded in their evil scheme, and a sweet taste rose in his throat. Yuan Xu could no longer hold back.

He spat out a pool of blood.

Upon seeing this, Empress Dowager Hu turned pale with fright and stood frozen in place, completely bewildered.

The young emperor, however, clung tightly to Empress Dowager Hu's shoulders, glaring at her angrily, "Mother...you...you are so cruel."

After saying that, everything went black and he collapsed to the ground.

Empress Dowager Hu, who was stunned, seemed to have come to her senses and was about to scream when Zheng Yan quickly covered her mouth. Xu He also turned around and came to the entrance of Jiafu Palace.

"His Majesty and the Empress Dowager have important matters to discuss. You may all move to a safer distance!"

After driving away all the palace maids and imperial guards, Xu He returned to Jiafu Palace.

Zheng Yan has already appeased Empress Dowager Hu.

After the initial panic subsided, Empress Dowager Hu glared angrily at the two men and said sternly, "How dare you two... how dare you!"

Xu He and Zheng Yan immediately knelt before Empress Dowager Hu, tears streaming down their faces, and explained, "Your Majesty, how could we possibly have any disloyal intentions? We were born subjects of the Great Wei, and we will die ghosts of the Great Wei!"

"It was only because His Majesty was forcing us too far that we had no choice but to act this way in order to protect ourselves. Moreover, we do not want the Empress Dowager to be imprisoned again."

Empress Dowager Hu sneered repeatedly, "Poisoning His Majesty and still claiming no disloyal intentions? Are you going to kill me next?!"

"Empress Dowager! Why do you also misunderstand us like His Majesty did?"

“We two are truly thinking of the fate of the Great Wei! Your Majesty insists on sending Erzhu Rong south with your troops. If Erzhu Rong does what Dong Zhuo did, will this country still belong to the Great Wei? What will become of the Empress Dowager and the women in the palace? Does the Empress Dowager not know?”

“Even if Erzhu Rong does not do what Dong Zhuo did, His Majesty will still use Erzhu Rong to cause bloodshed in the court. At that time, our deaths will be nothing to regret, but the Empress Dowager will be imprisoned again, just like when Yuan Yi was in power. We cannot bear to see the Empress Dowager, who has worked hard for the country and the people of Wei for half her life, end up like this!”

"If the Empress Dowager does not believe us, she only needs to say one word, and we will immediately smash our heads against this Buddha statue to pay for His Majesty's life!"

Seeing that Empress Dowager Hu's attitude seemed to have softened.

Zheng Yan immediately pressed his advantage, "If we really want to say what ambitions we have, our ambition is that we don't want to die like this, we can't bear to leave the Empress Dowager, and we only want to serve the Empress Dowager every day. Does the Empress Dowager not have any feelings for us at all?"

Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Hu was extremely shocked, and her face and eyes softened.

She was, after all, a woman, and she couldn't bring herself to be ruthless towards the two men who had "entered" the depths of her heart, even though they had poisoned her only son right in front of her.

The problem lies in the fact that Yuan Xu's bond with her as a mother and son was too shallow.

These days, with their constant infighting, their relationship has plummeted to rock bottom.

"Having caused such a huge disaster, how will we handle it if the news gets out?"

"Your Majesty, please rest assured!"

Zheng Yan quickly put on a smile, got up and went to Empress Dowager Hu's side, coaxing her in a coquettish manner, "We were prepared!"

"The palace maids and guards who previously served Consort Pan have all been taken into custody by us. No one knows that Consort Pan gave birth to a daughter for His Majesty. The Empress Dowager can now imprison Consort Pan and then announce that His Majesty died suddenly, allowing his son to ascend the throne to stabilize the situation!"

"To place a baby girl on the throne?"

"If neither of us speaks out, and neither does the Empress Dowager, who else could know? When it can no longer be hidden, the Empress Dowager can choose another person from the imperial clan to be the emperor. During this period, the Empress Dowager should appoint relatives and friends and completely control the court. Even if it is exposed in the future, there is nothing to fear!"

Xu He added.

"We two are willing to give up our official positions, we only ask that the Empress Dowager allow us to stay in the palace to serve her day and night!"

"Our hearts are as clear as day!"

"Empress Dowager, there is no time to hesitate! We should immediately send men to arrest Consort Pan and her daughter, then summon Prince Yuan Hui of Chengyang to the palace, make all necessary preparations, and control the officials before announcing His Majesty's death and arranging the new emperor's ascension to the throne at the court assembly."

"This matter must be resolved quickly. Then, in the name of the new emperor, we should issue an order strictly for Erzhu Rong to lead his troops back to Xiurongchuan. In this way..."

"Only when the court is stable can we rest easy in Luoyang."

"As for what happens next?"

"If the rebellion is not quelled, the Empress Dowager can discuss the matter with Erzhu Rong again, but with the current situation in the court uncertain, we must not allow Erzhu Rong to enter Luoyang!!"

(End of this chapter)