Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

Inside the hall, Wu Zhao narrowed her eyes slightly, and her gaze swept across the officials in the hall like a knife. Looking at those officials who forced her to abdicate, a sneer appeared on the corner of her mouth:

"Okay, okay! I never thought you would collude with Li Junxian to surround the palace and force me to abdicate!"

Her voice was not loud, but every word was as cold as ice, piercing the ministers' hearts.

"In that case, let Li Junxian lead the troops in!"

She swung her sleeves violently, and her robe fluttered, displaying the majesty of an emperor. "I want to see if he dares to go along with you!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall exploded.

Ministers loyal to the Empress and those who were neutral stepped forward to offer their advice:

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!" The Minister of War fell to his knees with a thud. "Li Junxian led his troops to surround the palace. This is a serious crime of treason! If we let him in, the consequences will be disastrous!"

"Your Majesty, I implore you to immediately mobilize the Imperial Guards to quell the rebellion!"

The Dali Temple official's hair and beard stood on end as he glared at Pei Yan and his followers: "These traitors and villains should all be executed along with their entire clans!"

"Your Majesty!" the elderly Minister of Rites trembled as he leaned on his cane. "I, this old minister, am willing to guarantee with my life that General Li has been deceived by a traitor! Your Majesty, I beg you to investigate!"

"Your Majesty, you must not let Li Junxian in. Otherwise, he will lead his troops to force his way to the palace, and we will be powerless to resist."

"Your Majesty, although you trust Li Junxian, this moment is different from the past. Please think twice!"

Amidst all the voices of advice and remonstration, only Prime Minister Di Ying remained silent.

He stood at the head of the civil servants, with his eyes lowered, as if he was oblivious to the coup before him.

Seeing this, Pei Yan's eyes flashed with pride, and he gave Di Ying an approving look.

It seems that his words of persuasion just now have worked, otherwise why would Di Ying remain silent?

As long as Di Ying remains neutral, the empress will lack strong supporters.

"His Majesty!"

Pei Yan turned to face Wu Zhao, his voice filled with the calmness of someone confident in victory: "Do you think General Li will still listen to you? Even if you let him in, he will still object to you revealing Princess Xiuning's identity!"

"As everyone knows, General Li listened to you entirely because he trusted you, but now you are actually going to reveal Princess Xiuning's identity and betray the Great Zhou Dynasty!"

"General Li, as a military commander, how can I listen to you again?"

Wu Zhao snorted coldly, ignoring Pei Yan's provocation and shouting directly to the outside of the palace: "Come here! Summon Li Junxian to see you immediately!"

She wanted to see who Li Junxian would listen to today!

The commander of the imperial guards guarding the palace gate did not dare to delay and immediately sent someone to pass on the order.

Soon, the heavy palace door slowly opened with a creaking sound.

Li Junxian, dressed in military uniform and with a long sword at his waist, strode into the palace with a team of elite soldiers.

"Take charge of the four gates of the Imperial Palace." He solemnly ordered his deputy general, "No one is allowed to enter or leave without my order!"

After finishing his instructions, he walked towards the Golden Palace alone.

Today's matter is of great importance, and he dare not be negligent in the slightest.

When Li Junxian appeared at the entrance of the palace, everyone's eyes were focused on him.

Holding a sharp sword, he walked steadily to Pei Yan's side and saluted Wu Zhao, who was not far away.

"My lord, see your majesty."

"General Li is so brave!"

Wu Zhao sneered: "You are leading troops to surround the palace, are you planning a rebellion?"

Li Junxian remained silent and just stood there quietly.

Pei Yan saw this and smiled smugly: "Your Majesty, it's already this late, so stop struggling. Now that General Li has led his troops into the palace, you have no chance of winning!"

He paused, then pretended to be magnanimous and said, "Of course, if you are willing to withdraw your order now, I can ask General Li to withdraw his troops immediately."

"Really?" Wu Zhao sneered, "It's come to this. Do you think there's any chance of redemption between you and me?"

Pei Yan was confident of victory at this moment and was not afraid of the empress's power at all.

He straightened his back and said proudly, "How difficult is this? As long as Your Majesty changes his mind, I am willing to offer my head!"

This sentence was said with great force, showing his determination to sacrifice his life for the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Wu Zhao looked at Pei Yan steadily, with a complex emotion flashing in her eyes.

To be honest, she admired the loyalty of the old minister in front of her.

But unfortunately, she had already decided to incorporate the Great Zhou into the State of Chu. This was the trend of the world and could not be stopped by human power.

Even if she agreed to Pei Yan's request, given the current situation of the Chu State, it would be easy to take over the Zhou Dynasty.

She just didn't want to see war in the Great Zhou Dynasty, so she agreed to Chu Ning's request.

Only in this way can she and the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty achieve a win-win situation!

"Master Pei!"

Wu Zhao's voice suddenly softened: "If you turn back now, I can spare your life."

Pei Yan laughed loudly upon hearing this: "Your Majesty, it's already this hour, and you're still saying such things?"

He looked around at the ministers who supported him and Li Junxian standing beside him, and said confidently:

"Today's events are a foregone conclusion. You should abdicate!"

"In that case!" Wu Zhao suddenly interrupted him, a strange light flashing in her eyes: "Then I will also reveal my trump card."

Pei Yan sneered disapprovingly: "Your trump card is nothing more than the two thousand cavalrymen of the Emperor of Chu, but they are now trapped in the military camp in the city and have no idea about the news here. Even if they come,

He pointed to the fully armed soldiers outside the hall and said, "Even with the defense line set up by General Li, they can't break in!"

"is it?"

Wu Zhao curled her lips into a mysterious smile: "Then we'll see whether General Li listens to me or to you, Master Pei!"

Pei Yan laughed heartily: "General Li will naturally listen to me!"

He turned to look at Li Junxian confidently, but suddenly felt a chill on his neck - a sharp sword with a cold glow was already on his neck!

All the civil and military officials in the court were in an uproar!

Pei Yan turned his head in disbelief, only to see Li Junxian standing there with a sword in his hand, his face expressionless, the tip of the sword firmly against his throat.

"General Li... General Li?"

Pei Yan's voice began to tremble: "What are you doing? Didn't we agree on this..."

"Master Pei!"

Li Junxian finally spoke, his voice as cold as ice: "You underestimate His Majesty."

He shook his wrist slightly, and the sword tip drew a bloody mark on Pei Yan's neck: "From the beginning to the end, I am your Majesty's man."

At this moment, the entire Golden Palace fell into deathly silence.

The ministers who had just been clamoring to depose the empress now looked pale, and some even collapsed to the ground.

Prime Minister Di Ying, who had been silent all this time, finally raised his head at this moment, and a look of understanding flashed in his eyes.

Wu Zhao slowly stood up from the dragon throne and looked down at Pei Yan, whose face was ashen. "Lord Pei, do you still think I have no chance of winning?"