Wandering the Heavens

However, Wang Zhen's dream was too good. There was something more humiliating waiting for him. Yu Xian led the people out of the Forbidden City and came to the busy streets. There were already people from the Xuanwu Marquis's Mansion waiting with horses. Yu Xian tied Wang Zhen's hands, then got up, mounted the horse, and led Wang Zhen slowly towards the Northern Pacification Division.

People were pointing and talking along the way. Thanks to the many stories that Yu Xian had written over the years, everyone knew that there was a Duke of Xuanwu in Beijing who acted very boldly and recklessly.

And now he was riding a tall horse in front, holding a long rope in his hand, with the other end tied to the hands of an old eunuch. He was staggering forward behind Xuanwu Bo's horse.

"Why did Lord Xuanwu come out? Doesn't he usually stay at home?"

"Who knows! But once he left, something big must have happened in the court."

"Who is the person he is holding? Did he offend the uncle?"

"He looks like a eunuch from the palace! With that attire, he might be a eunuch!"

"Bah! It turns out to be a dead eunuch! Lord, you are too merciful. Such a person should be killed with a single blow. He goes out every day to bring disaster to the people."

"That's right. He deliberately harms the people and says it's the emperor's will. Such a person should be cut into pieces."

……

Not only was Wang Zhen sweating profusely at the moment, but even his crown had been lost because he had lowered his head to avoid the gazes of the people, and his hair was no longer bound and was scattered in disarray.

He suppressed the discomfort of sweat dripping down his skin and stared intently at the tall and slender figure riding a horse in front of him, wishing he could pounce on him and bite him to death.

The people of the entire Beijing city seemed to be less busy and gradually followed Yu Xian to watch the fun. When they were almost at the Northern Pacification Office, everyone realized what was going on and dispersed.

What happened? Who was that eunuch? Why was he paraded through the streets by the Duke of Xuanwu? I believe someone will soon write a story about it and spread it out. No matter how curious you are, you can't block the gate of the Northern Pacification Office. That would be a serious crime of treason.

If he was captured by the Five Cities Military Department, he would probably have to suffer a lot before he could get back. That's how those people who said that Prince Xiang wanted to be the emperor were dealt with, and the one who shouted for the arrest was the Earl of Xuanwu.

"Lord Xuanwu, let go of Eunuch Wang immediately, or don't blame the brothers of the Imperial Guard for being rude!"

After all, he is a godson. When Yu Xian and Wang Zhen arrived at the gate of Beizhenfusi, Ma Shun also brought people to surround Yu Xian after the people dispersed.

"Ma Shun, release Yu Qian and I will release Wang Zhen. Otherwise, I will cripple your godfather right here at the gate of the imperial prison!" Yu Xian picked up Wang Zhen.

"Don't even think about it. Yu Qian has offended Eunuch Wang, and he still wants to walk out of the prison. It's just a daydream!" Ma Shun's words were obviously ignorant of the immensity of the world.

"This imperial prison belongs to the Ming Dynasty, not Wang Zhen's. How dare you use public resources for personal gain!" Yu Xian seemed to have just learned about this.

"Hahaha, so what if he uses public resources for personal gain! Now that Eunuch Wang is deeply trusted by the emperor, Yu Qian actually doesn't follow Eunuch Wang's rules. What's wrong with us arresting him!" Ma Shun became even more arrogant.

"Wang Zhen, your godson doesn't seem to care about your life or death!" Yu Xian directly broke Wang Zhen's left arm.

"Hurry, hurry and let Yu Qian out!" Wang Zhen screamed in pain.

"Godfather, this..." Ma Shun was reluctant.

"Let him go!" Wang Zhen could no longer bear it.

"Look, your godfather knows more about current affairs than you do." Yu Xian said sarcastically.

Soon Yu Qian was taken out of the Northern Pacification Office by the Embroidered Uniform Guard and brought before Yu Xian, who also threw Wang Zhen to Ma Shun.

"Capture the traitors Yu Xian and Yu Qian!" Ma Shun helped Wang Zhen who had fallen on him and gave the order in a hurry.

Wang Zhen now just wanted to get rid of Yu Xian, the evil spirit, but he didn't know what price he would have to pay for Ma Shun's interference. His thirty guards were much stronger than Ma Shun's group of useless people, but they were beaten to a pulp with just a few punches and kicks.

The current development was not beyond Wang Zhen's expectation. Dozens of Jinyiwei were singled out by Yu Xian and lay on the ground in a mess. Yu Qian also didn't expect that this Xuanwu Bo, who looked weak and even a little thin, was so strong.

"You... don't come over here, I am the commander of the Jin... Jinyiwei!" Ma Shun held Wang Zhen with one hand and pointed a knife at Yu Xian with the other hand, stammering and saying something harsh.

“When Emperor Taizong appointed me as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, I was not as arrogant as you, Ma Shun, when handling cases. In those days, eunuch Sanbao made great contributions to the country and even guarded Nanjing, but he never behaved as recklessly as you, Wang Zhen.” Yu Xian rolled his eyes at the two men in front of him and left the gate of the Northern Pacification Office with Yu Qian, leading the horse.

"Godfather, I will cut Yu Xian into pieces!"

When Ma Shun saw Yu Xian leaving, his courage returned, but he didn't expect that Wang Zhen would be slapped hard in the face.

"When will you, Ma Shun, be able to be the master of our family?"

Wang Zhen, a great eunuch who was very popular in front of the emperor, wanted to blackmail the censor who had returned from his tour of inspection. Unexpectedly, he failed to extort a bribe and was scolded by the Duke of Xuanwu. With the help of someone with ulterior motives, this incident quickly spread throughout Beijing, and then spread to the two capitals and thirteen provinces through merchants and officials.

Given Wang Zhen's character, many people gloated over this incident, and some even went to that street to reminisce the atmosphere of that day.

Emperor Zhu Qizhen didn't think so. When his respected teacher was beaten by a nobleman, he immediately thought of avenging Wang Zhen and himself. People always say that you have to look at the owner before you beat a dog, not to mention that the person being beaten was his teacher. Yu Xian obviously didn't take him seriously.

He was about to issue an order to arrest Yu Xian, but before he could even write a draft, he was summoned by the Empress Dowager.

"Grandson sends his regards to the Imperial Grandmother!"

"The Emperor is here? Come and sit down!" The Empress Dowager felt her whole body was heavy. Even with the elixir that Yu Xian secretly presented to her, it could only provide relief for a moment.

"Thank you, Grandma Huang."

"Grandma asked you to come here to talk to her. If you think she's taking advantage of your age, just pretend you didn't hear anything."

The Empress Dowager knew that her grandson felt his wings were strong enough for him to fly on his own, but in everyone's eyes he was still very immature.

"My grandson dare not." Zhu Qizhen was busy going back to seek justice for Wang Zhen and even his words were perfunctory.

"If the Emperor has something else to do, please leave! The court's affairs are more important."

The Empress Dowager was very upset. The grandson she raised didn't care about her but was obsessed with a dead eunuch who brought disaster to the country and the people.

"It's nothing serious. It's just that Duke Xuanwu beat you yesterday. Your grandson wanted to stand up for you, and was about to order Duke Xuanwu to be imprisoned." Zhu Qizhen was now playing tricks in front of the old lady.

“Then do you know why the Duke of Xuanwu beat Wang Zhen, his servant?” The Empress Dowager deliberately raised the tone of the word “servant”.

"Grandmother, my grandson respects the teacher and never treats him as a slave." Zhu Qizhen hurriedly explained.

"After all, I am old, and the emperor has grown up. There are some things I have to say even if I have to take advantage of my seniority. When your father passed away suddenly, the whole Beijing was in an uproar, saying that an old woman like me would hand over the throne to Prince Xiang. I was very restless during that period. I am just an old woman whose husband and son have died. How could I decide who would inherit the throne of the Ming Dynasty?" The Empress Dowager's eyes were filled with tears when she thought of her deceased husband and son.

"Finally, I remembered what your grandfather, Emperor Renzong, had said, that when there was a major change in the court, the Duke of Xuanwu should be invited to come forward. It was because of the Duke of Xuanwu's presence that you were able to ascend the throne peacefully and the ministers were obedient to you. But after only a few years, you want to put him in jail. Aren't you afraid that the history books will say you are ungrateful?"

The Empress Dowager's words were serious, but they were ultimately no match for the importance of Wang Zhen in Zhu Qizhen's heart.

"But Grandmother, he humiliated me like this, it's clear that he doesn't take me seriously."