Chapter 184: The Grand Empress Dowager, Turning on Herself

Deep within the imperial palace.

After a brutal blood battle, the dust settled, and victory and defeat were decided.

The Grand Empress Dowager, an elderly woman who had long dwelled deep in the palace, over eighty years of age.

This spring, as warmth returned, she received the joyful news that Zhou Jinyu had given birth to a prince, and the old woman had become a great-grandmother.

Thinking of this!

The old woman felt warmth in her heart and conceived the idea of sewing tiny shoes for her infant grandson herself.

For over half a month, she worked tirelessly, her needle and thread weaving a sole dense and tightly stitched.

She sacrificed her afternoon nap time, pouring all her heart into these tiny shoes.

Chen Sanzhong had advised her several times, but could not stop her; the Grand Empress Dowager was elderly and could not withstand such strain.

At this moment!

The Grand Empress Dowager picked up the first of the finished tiger-head cotton baby boots, still in rough shape.

Slowly, she cast it into the charcoal brazier.

Flames roared, and in an instant, it turned to ash.

Only then did the old woman slowly walk out of Cining Palace.

She had not stepped beyond that sealed threshold in ten years.

A host of eunuchs and palace maids cried out, "The imperial carriage departs!"—daring not to delay!

Eunuchs and maids surrounded her like clouds, guards stood in rows, yet could not hide the faint sorrow on the Grand Empress Dowager's face.

Empress Zhou Jinyu, dressed in brocade finery, walked closely beside the Empress, radiant, still graceful at over thirty, her skin like congealed fat, radiating the gentle dignity of a mother to all under heaven and quiet inner joy.

Because the Grand Empress Dowager had won, she had bet correctly again.

She had bet on the Second Prince becoming lord of the realm, and had become Empress of Daqing.

Now she had bet correctly on the Grand Empress Dowager again.

Beside Zhou Jinyu stood Tuoba Hongyan, the Northern Wind prince.

Tuoba Hongyan stood tall, yet a faint, barely perceptible unease lingered in his brow.

The sudden palace coup, years of comfort, had made this once-bloodthirsty Northern Wind warrior anxious, increasingly clinging to life.

Especially!

He had learned that Lu Chen had entered the capital, and his unease deepened.

The long palace corridor felt endless.

At this moment!

Lu Lu hurried from the direction of Longzong Gate, his battle armor still damp, its splattered bloodstains bearing witness to the battlefield's cruelty, his entire aura radiating a chilling, heart-stopping lethality.

His appearance caused the surrounding young eunuchs to turn pale with fear and scatter.

Today's palace had become a hell on earth; the sounds of slaughter had not ceased since dawn.

Palace maids whispered among themselves, speaking of corpses littering the streets outside, adding to the growing panic.

Everyone was afraid.

Lu Lu strode forward, knelt on one knee, and called out loudly:

"Your Imperial Grandness, I pay homage!"

"General Lu, rise."

The Grand Empress Dowager lightly raised her hand from within her palanquin; her voice was soft, yet carried undeniable authority.

Lu Lu looked up, their eyes met, and he saw the Grand Empress Dowager's weary face, stirring complex emotions within him.

Time spares no one; this Empress, who had witnessed the rise and fall of dynasties, could not escape time's grasp.

He spoke solemnly to the Grand Empress Dowager:

"The palace situation has largely been stabilized, but inexplicably, the Emperor's secret Yu Lin Army remains missing."

Having finished,

He lowered his gaze slightly, as if awaiting further instruction from the Grand Empress Dowager.

Zhou Jinyu heard this and curled her lips into a cold smile; she had long understood the Emperor's schemes.

"The Emperor consorts with those great clans, thinking them docile lambs, unaware they are truly wolves and tigers."

Her words revealed profound insight into the struggle for power.

"As for the Yu Lin Army, it is merely the Emperor's self-deception; the true controller has never been the Emperor himself."

Lu Lu, though harboring suspicions, said nothing, only listened in silence.

"Most of the palace's Jin Wu Guards have been eliminated; several Shumishi have secured the palace gates with their troops; the situation is gradually stabilizing," Lu Lu continued.

"Yet, over a thousand elite Jin Wu Guards still hold out in..."

"Is the Second Prince in the Southern Study?"

"No, the Emperor is currently in Fengtian Hall."

At the mention of Fengtian Hall, the old woman sighed.

There, the sacred hall of Daqing, revered by generations of emperors as the place where ancestors were worshipped.

"Set course for Fengtian Hall!"

With the command, the procession moved slowly forward.

Along the way, Zhou Jinyu's cheeks flushed crimson, like spring peach blossoms.

Beside her, Tuoba Hongyan grew increasingly agitated, his fear harder to suppress.

He clenched his teeth and finally spoke:

"Grand Empress Dowager, honored aunt, Hongyan suddenly suffers severe abdominal pain—I must go to the privy."

The Grand Empress Dowager remained silent; Zhou Jinyu gently waved her jade hand and said:

"Hurry and return; the palace is in chaos—be careful."

Tuoba Hongyan departed as instructed, feigning pain; once their attention shifted, he quietly altered his path and slipped swiftly into the shadows of the palace gate.

Finally!

The Grand Empress Dowager's phoenix palanquin came to a steady stop before Fengtian Hall.

"Lower the palanquin."

The eunuch beside the palanquin's voice, thin and trembling with tension and awe, hurried forward and gently lifted the golden curtain.

Seeing this, the Grand Empress Dowager's eyes trembled slightly, a faint trace of sorrow flashing through them.

In the past, at this moment, there had always been that familiar, loyal figure—Chen Sanzhong—waiting respectfully by her side.

Today, his absence made this weathered old woman feel a deep ache in her heart.

"Grand Empress Dowager?"

Lu Lu, seeing her state, softly called out, his tone filled with concern.

"I am fine."

The old woman came back to herself, slowly stepped from the palanquin, and fixed her gaze on the hall—both familiar and strange.

Fengtian Hall loomed tall, its gates tightly shut!

Around it, Jin Wu Guards stood in gleaming armor, spears in hand, the atmosphere heavy with dread.

Fewer than a thousand Jin Wu Guards remained to defend; outside, five thousand troops had already surrounded them.

The Jin Wu Guards had never expected the city gate captain to launch a covert attack, leaving them severely weakened.

The Yu Lin Army's aid never arrived.

They could only fight as cornered beasts!

Zhou Jinyu stepped forward and asked Lu Lu:

"General Lu, is the Emperor still inside the hall?"

Lu Lu nodded heavily and replied:

"The Emperor has held out alone inside for over an hour."

"His demeanor suggests final resolve; though our troops are brave, we dare not act rashly, fearing for the Emperor's safety."

Hearing this, the Grand Empress Dowager understood the hidden meaning. If the Emperor perished here, Lu Lu and the generals would face severe retribution from those who followed.

This matter concerned the Son of Heaven; no carelessness or negligence could be tolerated.

Therefore!

All waited here, hoping for her arrival, awaiting her decision.

The old woman looked again at Fengtian Hall, her thoughts swirling.

She knew the Second Prince had always been ambitious, always resourceful.

But why rush?

The reins of power will still be yours in the end.

Allying with Northern Wind only serves to make you a bridegroom; you seek to help unify Daqing.

Yet you lured Lu Chen to the Western Depot, plotted to kill Chen Sanzhong, forged the golden arrow to annihilate the Western Depot—you crossed the old woman's line.

Chen Sanzhong, such a loyal servant.

Chen Sanzhong was ready to sacrifice his life to save Lu Chen's.

The old woman's emotions surged.

"Second Prince, do you truly torment an old woman on the brink of death?"

Zhou Jinyu hurried forward to support the Grand Empress Dowager, fearing she might collapse from emotional turmoil.

(End of chapter)