Chapter 126: The Blade Remains Sharp

"Your Majesty, the court officials are kneeling outside the palace gate and refuse to leave. More and more are arriving—officials from every department in the capital are gathering at the palace gate. What should be done? Your Majesty must decide!"

Qiu Defu hurried back to Taiji Palace to report the latest developments.

The court officials’ petition had grown larger and louder. Now, over two hundred officials had gathered. Qiu Defu faced the sea of kneeling officials and felt his scalp tighten, utterly at a loss. For the moment, he had no solution.

This matter was beyond his ability to resolve.

Only the Emperor could decide what to do.

Because the Senior Lord had wisely taken on the task, Emperor Taixing had briefly felt pleased. But before he could even relax, he heard this news—and his mood turned foul.

Seeing the commotion outside the palace gate grow, the Senior Lord, ever astute, promptly offered his resignation and quickly slipped out of the palace, determined to distance himself entirely.

"Absurd! After years of studying the sages, have you all learned nothing but to fill your dog’s bellies? Do you have any respect for your sovereign and father? How dare you? How could you dare to coerce me like this? This is a palace coup! It must be investigated thoroughly—down to the last bone! Someone is secretly plotting rebellion. Find them. You must find them!"

Emperor Taixing was furious.

Qiu Defu hesitated a moment, then whispered, "Your Majesty, should you not summon a few officials first, to make the courtiers outside disperse?"

Force against force will only lead to mutual destruction.

Better to let one side yield first, to ease the tension. Once the officials stop gathering outside the palace gate, other matters become manageable.

Whether to strike or to kill, neither can be done in broad daylight. Only by isolating and defeating them one by one is it the superior strategy.

Qiu Defu’s suggestion was the very voice of seasoned statecraft—a truly conscientious proposal.

But Emperor Taixing would not listen.

His mind was fixed on one thought: mass execution.

Anyone who dares to conspire and coerce the throne deserves extermination of nine clans—it still wouldn’t satisfy his rage. He swung his whip at the air, "I must execute a few ringleaders, so these officials learn fear. Where are the Embroidered Uniform Guards? Why haven’t they acted?"

"Your Majesty, please calm down!"

Qiu Defu’s heart raced. Once blood is spilled, the situation will spiral beyond control—exactly what the shadowy mastermind wants.

"Your Majesty, please, do not rage! The officials outside are mostly ignorant fools, duped by a few words into causing trouble. If others can deceive them, so can Your Majesty. I suggest you issue an edict: hold a grand court session on a chosen day, and let them speak their minds there. Even if they wish to impeach Minister Jiang, they must do so properly—not by coercing Your Majesty. This is high treason!"

Qiu Defu’s head hung nearly to his chest—he was risking everything to counsel the old Emperor.

Emperor Taixing’s reason seemed to slowly return. He scowled, "What is the Eastern Palace doing?"

Qiu Defu’s heart jolted. He answered honestly, "Your Majesty, the Eastern Palace has shown no movement."

"No movement?" Emperor Taixing sounded doubtful. "Send someone to check. No—you go yourself. Visit the Crown Prince. Ask him: what should be done about these officials gathering outside the palace gate? Also summon the other Imperial Princes. I have orders for them. Summon the two Chancellors. Summon the Minister of War..."

The restored Emperor issued a rapid stream of commands. Since the officials refused to let him pursue his Dao and immortality in peace, he would oblige them—by handling state affairs. He wondered whether the courtiers could bear the consequences of their coup.

Hmph!

Qiu Defu sighed inwardly. This time, many heads would roll.

The officials had forgotten how cruel and decisive the Emperor’s methods were. Such a large-scale palace coup was like a slap directly across his face.

The Emperor could not endure insult—he would repay it tenfold, a hundredfold.

"Mad! All of them are mad!"

The Senior Lord returned to Hou Fu and shouted. They’d staged a palace coup? This was gambling with their lives—too reckless.

The old Emperor was old, yes.

But not so old that his eyes had dimmed to the point of being easily deceived.

Playing at a palace coup? Beware you lose your own head.

"A pack of madmen! Do they think the Emperor’s blade isn’t sharp? Order this: from today, Hou Fu closes its gates to all visitors. No one, under any circumstance, is to be admitted. I am going to inspect the military camps. Anyone who disobeys my orders will not escape punishment."

The Senior Lord gave the order to the steward, and it spread swiftly through the entire household.

The Second Lord had some complaints, but upon hearing of the palace coup brewing outside, his forehead twitched—and he silently accepted the closure order. As for the Senior Lord’s plan to lead troops to Jinzhou to quell the rebels, he paid it no mind.

A few mere rebels? Easily crushed. The border troops lost before only because their commanders were incompetent, the city defenders cowardly and corrupt.

Once the imperial army arrives, the Jinzhou rebels will be routed in an instant—scattered like dust, annihilated.

The Second Lord had blind confidence in the imperial army. Many in the capital thought the same. Thus, when news came that the Jinzhou rebels had captured five cities in one month, the empire trembled—but the people of the capital remained calm, unmoved. The capital garrison hadn’t even stirred, yet some claimed the sky of Great Qian had been pierced—a ridiculous joke.

Others might treat it as a joke, but the Senior Lord would never underestimate the Jinzhou rebels.

Though he had left the military for years, he knew better than anyone what the capital garrison was truly like.

Could the capital garrison fight? Yes.

Could it fight a hard battle? That question demanded a massive question mark.

Corruption in the capital garrison was inevitable. Facing a sudden war, the Senior Lord had no confidence. Ignoring the chaos in the capital and the aftermath of the coup, he obtained the Emperor’s decree the next day and rushed to the capital garrison with his retainers and guards, determined to assemble at least five thousand troops to send to Jinzhou.

He would never go to Jinzhou alone.

A group of unruly soldiers—he could never control them without loyal troops at his side. This was one reason his predecessors had failed: they couldn’t command their own troops.

The palace coup had almost no effect on Tianlaomiao. The jailers carried on as usual—slacking off, gambling, doing what they always did.

Chen Guanlou made his daily patrol of Tianlaomiao as usual.

He specifically visited Cell 27 to see Li Shaoqing. "Court officials have gathered outside the palace gate, demanding the Emperor hold court and execute Jiang Tu. The Emperor seems to have conceded—he will hold a grand court session the day after tomorrow."

Li Shaoqing flipped through his book, not even glancing at Chen Guanlou. "Let them riot. Let them scream."

"Lord Li doesn’t seem surprised."

Li Shaoqing finally looked up from his book, fixing Chen Guanlou with a stare. "Does Senior Chen take such interest in court politics?"

"I want to know which officials will soon be thrown into prison—and how much money I can make from it." Chen Guanlou sounded thoroughly venal.