My house was confiscated and I was exiled. I emptied the emperor's warehouse and fled.

Eastern Capital, Imperial Palace.

Yu Zhenzhen took the bowl of soup from the palace maid and served the emperor, who was half-lying on the couch, to drink it mouthful by mouthful.

Suddenly, a young eunuch poked his head in from outside the door, looking anxious. Eunuch Gao, the chief eunuch waiting beside the emperor, saw him and quietly withdrew.

Not long after, Eunuch Gao came back trembling, knelt on the ground and presented the military report, his voice sad and sorrowful: "Your Majesty, urgent news came from the capital, Qin Junyi occupied the capital... and declared himself king."

"What did you say!" The emperor sat up in shock, knocked over the soup bowl in Yu Zhenzhen's hand, and took the military report with trembling hands.

When he opened it, his eyes suddenly turned black and his body collapsed.

"Your Majesty!" Yu Zhenzhen screamed and went forward to support him.

Eunuch Gao shouted outside, "Quick! Call the imperial physician!"

After saying this, he stepped forward to appease the emperor, and the scene was in chaos.

Without waiting for the imperial physician to arrive, the emperor grabbed Yu Zhenzhen's hand tightly, his eyes bloodshot, "Go and send someone to arrest the entire family of Duke Xuan."

"Yes!" Yu Zhenzhen stepped out of the hall and ordered the imperial guards to pass on the order.

Soon, nearly a thousand people in the family of Xuan Ping Hou's father, Duke Xuan Guo, were thrown into prison.

For a time, the prison in Dongdu was overcrowded.

Similar to the previous downfall of the Qin family, in prison, Duke Xuan's family was criticized by the clan members. The Duke's wife angrily retorted: "If it weren't for my son's efforts for the family's interests, how could we have come to this point step by step?"

"Come on! It was you and your wife who firmly opposed his marriage to that woman, and even used the Queen Mother to pressure him. It would be fine if you just suffered the consequences, but why did you implicate us innocent people!"

"Innocent? If it weren't for the Queen Mother, how could you enjoy the treatment of the in-laws?"

Duke Xuan's face darkened as he shouted, "Stop arguing! We should ask the Queen Mother for help right now!"

As soon as the words were spoken, the tribe members suddenly quieted down, leaving only the woman's suppressed sobbing and the children's crying.

They still have to rely on the power of the direct branch for help, and they can't offend them too much.

At the same time, the empress dowager received the news and hurried to the emperor's bedroom, but was stopped outside by eunuch Gao: "Empress Dowager, the emperor is ill and has gone to bed. Please wait in the side hall."

"Get out of the way!" the Queen Mother shouted.

Eunuch Gao looked embarrassed and said, "Empress Dowager, the imperial physician has ordered that His Majesty needs to rest. Why don't you return to the palace first? As soon as His Majesty wakes up, I will have someone inform you immediately."

"I want to see the emperor now!"

Just as the two were refusing to give in to each other, a cold voice came from the room: "Eunuch Gao, the Queen Mother is of a respected status, you'd better not stop her."

Eunuch Gao was stunned when he heard this. The maids beside the Queen Mother took the opportunity to separate him and escorted the Queen Mother into the hall, heading straight for the dragon bed behind the screen.

Yu Zhenzhen came out from beside the screen and bowed, "Your servant greets the Queen Mother."

The empress dowager glanced at her and walked to the dragon bed without stopping. Looking at the emperor with his eyes closed, she believed that the emperor was really asleep and not avoiding her.

She tucked in her quilt, walked to the outer room, and said angrily, "Shufei, I heard that it was you who ordered the arrest of my family."

"Your Majesty, please understand. I am only conveying the emperor's will. If you don't believe me, you can ask Eunuch Gao or other palace maids who were present at the time." Yu Zhenzhen replied calmly.

"I didn't say I didn't believe it, but there must be something hidden. I need to meet Duke Xuan and understand the whole story to avoid being wronged."

"You have to tell His Majesty this. I can't help you."

The Queen Mother was furious: "You!"

Then, she suppressed her emotions, dismissed the palace servants, and asked in a low voice, "I know your ability. If you help me this time, I will definitely reward you handsomely in the future."

Yu Zhenzhen was unmoved, "Empress Dowager, it's not that I won't help, but treason is a serious crime that will punish all nine generations of your clan. I really can't do anything."

"Ping Ge'er turned against the Qin family because of you..."

"Please be careful with your words, Empress Dowager!" Yu Zhenzhen's face was tense, and she glanced in the direction of the dragon bed. "I have long forgotten the past and my heart is entirely devoted to Your Majesty. You cannot just throw dirty water at me casually."

After saying this, without waiting for the Queen Mother to get angry, she leaned close to her ear and said, "If you keep biting me like this, the Duke Xuan's Mansion will only die faster."

The Queen Mother looked horrified and slapped him hard.

But before it landed on Yu Zhenzhen's face, she grabbed him in mid-air: "Empress Dowager, I am no longer the helpless and weak woman who was bullied by others. If you want to punish me, please ask the emperor first."

"Cough cough cough..." A weak cough sounded from the inner hall.

Yu Zhenzhen let go of his hand, walked quickly to the dragon bed, pressed the emperor's cough acupuncture points, and said anxiously with a bit of panic and surprise: "Your Majesty, how do you feel?"

The emperor's chest heaved violently and he was speechless for a moment.

Yu Zhenzhen asked someone to serve tea and fed him a few sips. Only then did the emperor recover and patted her hand, "I'm fine."

After he finished speaking, he turned to the Queen Mother, his eyes instantly turned cold, "Mother, Zhenzhen is in charge of the six palaces and is as respected as the Queen. Even if she is wrong, you must not abuse private punishment."

The Queen Mother immediately cried out in grievance: "I didn't commit lynching!"

"That's better." The emperor coughed again and struggled to sit up.

"Mother, I have some important matters to attend to. Please go back first."

The Queen Mother said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, there must be something going on with Brother Ping..."

"The inside story?" The emperor interrupted her, his anger rising again, "He opened the city gates and personally welcomed the Qin family army into the city, what inside story can we talk about!"

"How could this be?" The Queen Mother turned pale with horror.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't save her grandson.

Having experienced countless changes in the court and the harem, she immediately made a difficult and decisive decision - to cut off her own arm.

She straightened her body, looked at the emperor firmly, and said in a sonorous and powerful tone: "Your Majesty, Brother Ping has long broken with the Xuanguo Mansion. What he is doing now is unknown to the Xuanguo Mansion, and it has nothing to do with it. I hope you can see clearly and let the Xuanguo Mansion go."

A sinister and malicious smile suddenly appeared on the emperor's face, and he responded coldly: "Release him? Queen Mother, don't you know that he has committed a heinous crime that will punish all nine generations of your clan!"

There was an unquestionable majesty in his voice, but the empress dowager still argued and persuaded the emperor to change his mind.

"If we punish them severely, I'm afraid most of the ministers in the court will be implicated. Now is a time of great turmoil and unrest, and we really can't withstand such a violent upheaval. Not to mention weakening our own strength, which is exactly what Qin Junyi wants."

The last sentence made the emperor curl his fingers suddenly and fall into deep thought.

The Queen Mother said, "Think carefully first and don't act impulsively."

After saying that, he took the nanny's hand and left.

The emperor looked at her back with a gloomy look in his eyes, and suddenly turned to Yu Zhenzhen: "My beloved, what do you think?"

Yu Zhenzhen said calmly, "Your Majesty, as you know, I have an old grudge with Duke Xuan and his wife, so I'd better not talk about it."

The emperor liked her frankness, and his expression immediately brightened: "I believe you can distinguish between public and private matters."

Yu Zhenzhen just chuckled and said nothing, shaking her head to refuse, then concentrated on massaging his body.

Seeing that she really didn't want to talk, the emperor stopped forcing her and asked, "Then, my beloved concubine, what do you think Qin Junyi will do next?"

Yu Zhenzhen's hand paused slightly, her mind racing, and after a moment she said, "I think there are two possibilities. One is to use the capital as the center, recruit troops, and consolidate the territory. The other is."

Having said this, she suddenly stopped, looking hesitant.

"But it doesn't matter."

"Second, integrate the army and point the sword to the east."

The emperor's face suddenly turned ugly again.

Originally, Qin Junyi alone was enough to give him a headache, and now the King of Pingnan and the Queen of Xuanping had defected, and the allied forces against Di were recaptured by him, and the troops around him had expanded to more than 200,000!

If Qin Junyi were to attack Dongdu in one fell swoop...