Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

"My lord, urgent report! Minzhou, Suiyang, Fengxian, Ningzhou, Fangyan and other places are all being harassed by foreign barbarians..."

As Li Hong's birthday approached, Fu Chang'an was preparing to inspect the venue with He Yong to ensure that there would be no unexpected events on the day of the banquet when he received urgent military intelligence from various places.

Fu Chang'an has received quite a bit of this kind of local intelligence during this period.

It wasn't that he deliberately concealed the news; rather, shortly after receiving these battle reports, he received news of the recapture of lost territories, the defeat of foreign invaders, and a great victory.

He could only remain silent about this, considering it nothing more than a pirate raid, a harmless act.

However, this was the first time that multiple places had received urgent messages from the same place at the same time, which made Fu Lin'an feel that something was unusual.

He had a feeling that this incident was not so simple. The key was that he discovered that almost all the fortresses along the southern coast of Wuzhao had been attacked, and they were getting closer and closer to Jiankang, the southern capital.

This panicked Fu Lin'an.

But the thought that the next day was Li Hong's birthday made him realize that if he submitted these local memorials at this time, who knew if Li Hong would be so furious that he would change his head?

"Why not keep it a secret for a few more days, and wait until His Majesty's birthday banquet is in full swing before submitting it?"

The idea had barely formed in his mind when he quickly realized it was inappropriate. After much deliberation, he decided to discuss it with He Yong.

Upon hearing this news, He Yong was so shocked that his eyes widened.

"Lord Fu, you are playing with fire! Such important intelligence, why didn't you present it to His Majesty sooner? You have quite the nerve!"

Upon hearing He Yong's words, Fu Lin'an became extremely anxious: "Lord He, His Majesty's birthday banquet is just around the corner. If His Majesty were to see these memorials on such an important day, wouldn't it spoil his mood?"

He Yong: "But you can't just keep this a secret. His Majesty hates being lied to. Do you remember Prince Feng? He was so close to His Majesty."

Are you still not familiar with the case of someone who was sent to a harsh and desolate place beyond the Great Wall for secretly selling a respectable woman without the Emperor's knowledge?

You think His Majesty punished him because he was angry at him for selling slaves privately? Wrong! It's because His Majesty asked him for the truth and he didn't tell you! You!

Fu Lin'an panicked immediately. Over the years, relying on Li Hong's favor, he had repeatedly done many outrageous things behind the emperor's back.

If he angered Li Hong and was exiled to the harsh, cold lands beyond the Great Wall, his future would be completely ruined.

"Lord He, you must help me! What should I do now?"

Upon seeing this, He Yong immediately asked, "Where are those urgent reports? Bring them here so I can take a look."

Fu Lin'an immediately led He Yong into his inner palace and presented him with a box of memorials regarding the coastal attacks.

He Yong immediately flipped through the document and read it quickly. Then, he frowned and said, "Something's not right."

Fu Chang'an: "Lord He, something's not right?"

He Yong said, "All the memorials say that foreign barbarians have invaded, but they don't specify which foreign barbarians. Don't you find that strange?"

Fu Chang'an said, puzzled, "Perhaps they are pirates."

He Yong sneered: "Lord Fu, do you think that mere pirates can break through many of my fortresses along the southern coast?"

In my opinion, most of these memorials are turning a tragedy into a celebration. It's clear that foreign barbarians looted the coast and then withdrew voluntarily, yet these local officials are using this as an excuse to claim credit.

Fu Chang'an was shocked: "How could this be?"

He Yong opened another book, his pupils contracted, and he looked at Fu Lin'an in disbelief.

Fu Chang'an felt a sudden unease under his gaze: "What's wrong, Lord He? Is something amiss?"

He Yong pointed to the memorial and replied, "Lord Fu, this is a memorial sent by the monk Qinlin ten days ago."

The entire Huizhou military camp and the outer vassal camp were wiped out; Governor-General Suo Yin and Huizhou Prefect Zhao Qingshan were killed in battle.

You didn't report such important news? You're really courting death!

"what!"

Fu Chang'an was shocked and quickly opened the book to take a look.

"Oh no, I'm doomed!"

Upon seeing the contents recorded above, Fu Lin'an felt dizzy and almost fainted.

Fortunately, He Yong caught him in time.

"Lord Fu, you've gotten yourself into trouble."

"Lord He, tell me, what should I do now?"

He Yong thought for a moment, then quickly spread out all the memorials and examined them carefully.

After a long silence, he closed his eyes and sighed, "Haizhou has probably already fallen into the hands of foreign barbarians."

Fu Chang'an: "How is this possible? Haizhou..."

Halfway through his sentence, Fu Chang'an suddenly shut up and carefully checked the memorials and reports. He then discovered that all the memorials about the coastal areas being harassed by foreign barbarians had arrived, but Haizhou was missing.

He Yong said with a dejected look, "If I'm not mistaken, this so-called foreign barbarian force is none other than the army of the Chu state."

"What? The State of Chu!"

Fu Chang'an's face was filled with disbelief.

"That's impossible. Chu is in the east. Even if they arrived, they couldn't have done it so quickly."

He Yong shook his head: "No, I have personally seen the ships of the Chu Kingdom. They do not need manpower or wind power; they can sail on the sea on their own using only those devices called steam engines."

Come to think of it, only the Chu fleet had the capability to harass coastal areas so quickly.

Fu Chang'an: "So what should we do now?"

Just as He Yong was about to speak, Qian Feng suddenly barged in from outside the door, looking very aggressive.

"Lord He, Lord Fu, since you are both here, I have some important news to tell you. Did you know that Haizhou has been occupied by the Chu fleet?"

He simply tossed a secret letter onto it.

"Take a look for yourselves. This is intelligence sent by my friend in Haizhou. The Chu Kingdom is serious this time. Their Empress has come in person!"

Upon hearing this, He Yong hurriedly opened it to take a look.

Upon closer inspection, his earlier guess was confirmed.

"Brother Qian Feng, thank you very much."

He Yong immediately put away the secret letter and turned to leave the inner palace.

Fu Chang'an hurriedly chased after him: "Lord He, you..."

He Yong replied, "Please rest assured, Lord Fu. I will speak with His Majesty tomorrow."

……

The next day, as soon as the hour of Chen (7-9 AM) passed, gongs and drums resounded throughout the Forbidden City, and flowers were laid on the ground.

The entire city of Shengjing was bustling with activity. Today was Li Hong's birthday, a grand occasion that was held annually, and everyone had to kowtow towards the Forbidden City.

Three cannon salutes were fired in unison, a total of 68 shots, signifying that Li Hong had reached the advanced age of 68.

Immediately afterwards, all the officials who had been waiting outside the palace gates entered the palace one by one to congratulate Li Hong on his birthday, at the call of the eunuchs.

From the side hall of the palace gate, foreign celebratory delegations also entered in an orderly manner.

The entire imperial city was packed with people, creating a lively and bustling scene.

On the Bauhinia Square, the imperial guard had already formed the four characters "Long Live the Emperor" with a sea of ​​people, while the palace maids around them each carried a silk handkerchief, gently swaying back and forth.

Li Hong got up at dawn, first paying respects at the ancestral temple, and then offering incense to the late emperor. The entire ritual took two hours.

Now, he finally sits on the high platform of Wanfulou, receiving the worship of officials and people from all nations.

"Long live my emperor! Long live!"