Chapter 87: Rebel forces

"Hahahahahaha—"

Wen Qing had only just finished speaking when Yang Zhuofei's near-maniacal laughter rose from behind the group. As it turned out, the imperial guard from just then had been hasty, and had only bound her hands and feet, but hadn't stuffed a cloth into her mouth. Now, having received this news, Yang Zhuofei believed even more so that Jiang Changbai wouldn't live for long, and so had laughed loudly, causing the gazes of the group to turn back and fall on her. As she laughed, Yang Zhuofei said, "Ah, you foolish girl—did you think that, as long as you confined this princess in the Palace, everything would be well? Did you believe that, as long as you were Emperor, you'd look down on the world with a thousand hands and a thousand eyes, and that you'd know all the matters of this world? Now that this princess' people have breached the Palace, you won't be able to stay on the Imperial much longer; it would be better for you to take off that dragon robe—"

With a smack, Yang Zhuofei's voice stopped in an instant. As it turned out, Chang Jiaye had been close to her, and with a great stride, had rushed over to slap her. A scarlet hand-print appeared suddenly on her fair face. Yang Zhuofei, refusing to back down, wanted to keep letting out abuse, but the next moment, her mouth was stuffed with the cloth Chang Jiaye had pulled off herself, and could only grunt indignantly.

Yang Zhuofei had assumed that the people outside were ones brought by Han Yu.

The truth was, there really was some connection with Han Yu. As it turned out, Wu Dongmu's daughter, Wu Lianyi, was close with Han Yu, and though their statuses were disparate, their relationship was one of friends. When Prince Yu's manor fell into ruin, Wu Lianyi, fearing that Han Yu would be in hard straits, had wanted to bring her into her own home, and offer refuge.

Yet this matter had run into Wu Dongmu's opposition, as he felt that one less problem was better than one more, and, more than that, he feared Jiang Changbai turning her attention on the Wu residence because of it. Wu Lianyi had only received permission after begging Wu Dongmu for a long while, and only on going to look for her had she learnt that Han Yu had disappeared.

Wu Lianyi was sharp, and in an instant, realised that there was something deeper at play, and had hurried to explain the matter to Wu Dongmu. Ever since Liu Zihe had fallen from power, Wu Dongmu hadn't been able to sleep at night, fearing that, one day, he himself would be implicated as well.

But he also knew that Han Yu was one of the most favoured people by Yang Zhuofei's side; as soon as she'd disappeared, this matter had turned suspicious, and Yang Zhuofei's circumstances were probably quite dire. And, as long as Yang Zhuofei or Liu Zihe couldn't stand the pressure and said something, then he would most certainly bear the worst of it.

There was a blade when he extended his hands, and a blade even when he pulled his neck in. And, with Wu Lianyi fanning the flames by him, only then did Wu Dongmu toss off the cowardice in him, and bring his personal forces to rush into the Imperial Palace.

If these people were to revolt, they wouldn't be able to succeed, but when appearing suddenly in the Imperial Palace, they'd caught the imperial guards unawares.

The previous dynasty had been a mess of fighting and killing, yet Jiang Changbai, who was in the Rear Court, was calm as if having long since expected this. She merely unhurriedly directed the imperial guards to bring Wen Qing into the hall, and then waved to indicate almost two thirds of the imperial guards. "You all, go to the Cining Palace to stand guard."

"Your majesty!" The imperial guard acting as the leader was baffled. "What about here?"

"We have our own plans," Jiang Changbai said, not a trace of panic on her face. "If anything happens to the Empress Dowager, We will hold you accountable!"

"Understand!" The imperial guards didn't continue insisting, and turned, rushing towards the Cining Palace.

Chang Jiaye was still standing by Shen Yanyi's side, as if having been struck by this suddenly situation, and for a moment, she didn't know what to do. She was still dazed when she saw Jiang Changbai wave a hand at her, and hurriedly but confusedly walked to the middle of the hall with Jiang Changbai.

"Our words just now were a bit severe; do you resent Us?" Jiang Changbai pulled Chang Jiaye to sit down, her tone friendly.

Chang Jiaye had never encountered such a tactic before; even when Jiang Changbai had still been a princess, she'd never treated her so. For a moment, she stammered, only shaking her head.

"This is beyond Our control as well," Jiang Changbai said, sighing, some helplessness emerging on her face. "We didn't treat Yanyi poorly, yet she colluded with Yang Zhuofei, coveting Our title as Emperor. Just now, We were dizzied by our anger; after all, We feel that you all are Our trusted confidants."

Chang Jiaye, hearing this, fell to her knees, and said resolutely, "Your majesty has been kind in recognising this subject's worth; this subject will most certainly go to all lengths for your majesty, no matter the cost!"

Jiang Changbai blinked, and rose from the soft couch to help Chang Jiaye to her feet. "The matter of Wu Dongmu's rebellion is urgent, and the only one by Our side whom We can trust is you. We know your martial skills; take Our token of authority, and go to Meng Daosheng in the barracks in the outskirts of the capital, and order her to immediately bring forces to defend the Imperial Palace."

"Understood!" Feeling she'd been received a great duty, Chang Jiaye kowtowed and was about to leave.

But before she could go further than a few steps, she was halted by Jiang Changbai's call. "Wait a moment."

"Does your majesty have further orders?"

Jiang Changbai knew that, for each moment she hesitated, the danger increased, so she grit her teeth and tossed aside her reason, and allowed her feelings to make the choice for her. "When coming back, go to the Regent's residence, and give the token to the Regent."

"Understood."

Only now did Chang Jiaye leave.

Watching Chang Jiaye's figure retreating with quick steps, a slight bitter smile appeared on Jiang Changbai's face. Usually, she was incredibly on guard towards Song Juguang, and even the people she'd brought along to the court would receive suppression. Who would have imagined that, when encountering such a situation, she'd have to ask for help from her.

Actually, Jiang Changbai had long since known that Yang Zhuofei was colluding with Wu Dongmu and Liu Zihe and the others in secret about the position of Emperor. It was just that she hadn't had the chance to catch them all entirely, and hadn't imagined that that, even when under the secret monitoring of her people, they'd still managed to gather up forces and break into the Imperial Palace.

It was lucky Jiang Mingyou was already dead, Jiang Changbai thought. If Jiang Mingyou were still alive, it really would have given these people legitimacy.

In the shadows were no one could see, Jiang Changbai's inner garments had already been soaked with sweat.

She knew that right now wasn't the time for regret, and she ordered her mind and walked to the courtyard. Most of the imperial guards she'd just brought had already gone to the Cining Palace, and only a dozen remained here now. Jiang Changbai's gaze swept over the people before her, and, in a blinding moment, she unexpectedly felt that she had returned to Prince Ling's manor, and the people before her were the guards of Prince Ling's manor of then. Outside were the rebel forces about to break into the city; but the only difference was, the day the city had been breached, the leader of the rebel forces had been Song Juguang.

Jiang Changbai's gaze involuntarily cast onto Shen Yanyi, bound and kneeling on the ground; the day the city had been breached, she'd been in Prince Ling's manor as well. Who could have imagined that with the passage of time now, she'd fallen into such a state.

Jiang Changbai indicated Shen Yanyi and Yang Zhuofei. "Take them inside; the rest of you, hide yourselves in the courtyard, and make it seem as if no one lives here."

"Understood."

In fact, the palace that Yang Zhuofei had been imprisoned in had long since been abandoned, and having been intentionally arranged, when these dozen or so people were hidden away, it was as if no one was there. As long as they were to delay things, delay until Meng Daosheng brought the soldiers to the Imperial Palace, everything would be solved as easily as bamboo splitting under a knife.

Chang Jiaye had left in a hurry, and no one paid further mind to the bit of rope held, in this moment, in Shen Yanyi's hand, which could easily undo the binds on her.

Outside the Rongtai Gate, at this moment it was a blood-soaked scene. The imperial guards carried long dao, their features determined and unwavering. Most of these people had been selected from within the Cangwei army, and had all gone through the experience of true combat on the battlefield. As a result, though their numbers were far fewer than their opponents, they still didn't retreat a single step, aggressive in their bearing, and usually it would take two rebels to be able to barely combat a single one of them.

With the exchange of blows between the two sides, the battle was a back and forth. The sound of blades clashing was incessant; Chang Jiaye, hidden in a concealed place, watched it all with a detached gaze.

The Palace walls were high and smooth; in order to climb over them and cross to the other side was a fantasy. But all the gates of the Imperial Palace had imperial guards at battle. The gate had already been narrow, and adding on the flash of blades, it was a space with even less of an ability to come or go. Chang Jiaye thought for a long while, and felt that the only chance to leave through the gates was to take advantage of the chaos.

But when she reached the Rongtai Gate, she was at a loss; there were countless people here, the blades attacking indiscriminately, and she couldn't find a way out at all. Reason told her that she had to wait a while longer, wait until they were tired by the fight, and a crack would naturally open up that she could slip through.

But she knew that she couldn't wait. Getting to the barracks int he outskirts of the capital took time, and Meng Daosheng ordering troops would take time as well, and as for the troops setting out to the Imperial Palace, that would take even more time. And every moment that passed, the danger her majesty was in would increase a degree.

The matter of whether Chang Jiaye was injured was trivial; Jiang Changbai's safety was paramount. Having thought this, Chang Jiaye grit her teeth, and rushed directly towards the gates.

When people obstructed her, she wrested away a blade and hacked at them. Peoples' weapons cut at her, cutting her armour apart, and even her skin was split, but she didn't pay it any mind, only acting as if she didn't know as she raced outwards.

Chang Jiaye didn't know how many times she'd swung her blade along the way, nor how many blows she'd sustained. In the end, she rushed out of the Palace gates, and, in her daze, she saw a horse.

It was the one that Shen Yanyi had ridden over. The horse seemed to have been startled as well, and it was cowering in a corner. It didn't know why the people before it were exchanging blows, nor did it know why its owners hadn't come to take it away, and could only hide. Seeing someone rush at it from a distance, it raised its hooves and let out a neigh, as if wanting to scare the person. But it wasn't a deterrent.

But once Chang Jiaye came closer, the horse, surprisingly, stopped its neighing, as if having recognised her. Four legs, after all, were faster than two, and without even thinking, Chang Jiaye cut the rope, mounting the horse, and rushed towards the outskirts of the capital.

Horse, oh horse, run quickly, run even a bit more quickly, and perhaps you can save your master's life. Chang Jiaye couldn't pay any mind to her own wounds, and could only let the blood flow. She was thinking about, after she'd saved her majesty, and brought this horse, perhaps she could argue for a lenient treatment for Shen Yanyi, and let her avoid exile, and remain in the capital.

She disappeared in a flash of dust.

But at this moment, Song Juguang, who was on Jiang Changbai's list of names to ask for aid, was aloft, watching everything with detachment.

Song Juguang was someone who believed in fate. She knew that Jiang Changbai was the destined Emperor, and so didn't spare any pains to assist her to the position of Emperor. But she knew that every person's life had a fixed tribulation, and this fixed tribulation was one that others couldn't meddle with; they could only rely on themselves to get through it.

And this life-threatening battle with the enemy was Jiang Changbai's fixed tribulation.

Though her expression was detached, Song Juguang involuntarily grasped the folding fan in her hand more tightly.

At this moment, the Rear Court was at the brink of life and death. Some gate had lost its guards, and rebel forces had slipped in, allowing them to rush into the Palace. By chance, the first of them rushed into the palace that Yang Zhuofei had been held captive in, and recklessly pushed the door open, and the Emperor, wearing her bright yellow dragon robe, was sitting upright in the hall.

Even that rebel soldier was a bit shocked. Actually, she hadn't wished to throw away her life for Wu Dongmu, but unluckily for her, her parents both worked in his residence, and even if she were more unwilling, she had to follow his orders, and even if she didn't want to risk her life, she had to.

She'd originally wanted to sneak in and find a remote palace to hide in, and wait for the chaos to settle, and then think of a new solution depending on who won and who lost, but she hadn't imagined that the first door she pushed open would be the door to where the Emperor was hiding.

No matter how she hid, she couldn't hide away.

The eye-watering light wormed its way in through the crack in the door, and Jiang Changbai, seeing a rebel soldier suddenly appear before her, was startled as well, and without thinking, drew the dagger from her breast, intending to meet her head-on. She'd even had Xun Zhu sent to the Cining Palace, and at this moment, the only people in this room were her and the two bound others.

But before she'd managed to pull the dagger from its sheath, she saw a figure rush towards the rebel soldier ahead of her. As it turned out, Shen Yanyi had exerted herself to get rid of the bindings on her, and, grabbing the dagger she'd had prepared to deal with Yang Zhuofei, had rushed towards the rebel soldier.

The two rapidly began to grapple with each other.

Even if she hadn't wanted to fight, that rebel soldier had to fight; perhaps because the resources of Wu Dongmu's residence truly were just average, she actually fought back and forth with Shen Yanyi. The imperial guards who'd been ordered to hide came back to themselves and rushed forward as well, and in a few moments, they subdued her.

The rebel soldier was dragged out, yet Jiang Changbai insisted on Shen Yanyi being left behind. Shen Yanyi's abdomen had a wound that had appeared who knew when, and the blood gurgled as it rushed out. Presumably it was from when the rebel soldier had stabbed her in the tussle just then.

Shen Yanyi extended a hand towards her abdomen disbelievingly to feel about, and when she raised her hand again, she looked at the scarlet on her hand dazedly.

"Is this, this minister going to die?"

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