Chapter 547: The Bustling Capital

Jinghua.

Inside Yangxin Hall.

Xie Tianyao watched the chessboard before him in silence. As he placed a piece, the complex board suddenly stirred with wind and clouds, the roar of tigers in the forest, and the flash of blades and shadows in a fierce confrontation.

At this moment.

Sitting opposite Xie Tianyao was none other than the Imperial Observatory Chief, Yuan Qingming.

Facing Xie Tianyao's gloomy, water-like expression, Yuan Qingming dared not be the least bit presumptuous and sat with rigid decorum.

No one knew what this temperamental old Emperor was thinking right now. But conversely, everyone knew what the old Emperor was thinking right now.

"Has it begun?"

Xie Tianyao laughed heartily and asked.

"Your Majesty, it has begun..."

The Grand Eunuch replied in a low voice from behind.

Xie Tianyao raised an eyebrow and looked at Yuan Qingming with a smile: "How does Minister Yuan think this battle will turn out?"

Yuan Qingming looked miserable. At a time like this, you ask me how this battle will turn out? In the entire Longyan Dynasty, who doesn't know that today at Yang'an Pass, it is six thousand against fifty thousand? Who would bet on Governor Liu? More importantly, what does the Emperor mean by this?

He knew exactly what would happen at Yang'an Pass, yet he did not stop it?

This matter itself was quite profound.

One must know that Xie Tianyao's love for the late Zhai Qing'er was incredibly deep. Xie Chan was the biological flesh and blood of him and Zhai Qing'er, so naturally, he should have treasured her like a precious jewel. This could be seen from the fact that he bestowed upon Xie Chan the title of Longyang Princess.

Yet now...

He watched his own daughter fall into a trap, yet he did not lift a finger to save her?

What is the Emperor's will?

This is the Emperor's will!

The Emperor's will is unfathomable!

No one could guess his thoughts!

"Your Majesty, this..."

Yuan Qingming was drenched in cold sweat.

This was already a dead game; how could it be turned around?

Xie Tianyao leaned over the desk and laughed: "Do you know why I am like this? Why?"

His eyes suddenly turned cold: "Because I want to see what kind of existence that thousand-year Emperor Star truly is! I want to see if the Heavens can truly surpass my will! I want to see if I can defeat the Heavens, can I!"

By the time he finished, he was almost roaring.

Yuan Qingming knelt on the ground, not saying a word.

What could he say?

He believed in the art of Geomancy and the study of celestial phenomena. But he could not say that the Emperor's will was not greater than the Heavens. Xie Tianyao, with his extreme personality and temperamental nature, cared most about his own reputation, his own ability, and his own political achievements.

He believed that he was the greatest existence in this world.

He did not want to die!

He had never wanted to die!

Yet his body was constantly aging, decaying, and withering by an irresistible force.

And so he hated.

He hated this Heaven, he hated this Earth!

He had always tried to break through the limits of human lifespan through various immortals and pills. To this day, he still did not want to give up.

He wanted to defy the Heavens!

So, what did that so-called thousand-year Emperor Star matter?

What did his own biological daughter matter?

If she were to die in this struggle, wouldn't that mean that the will of the Heavens could also be completely defeated?

Yes.

Why not?

He could do it!

He would defy the Heavens and change his fate!

Starting with Xie Chan!

"Of course, if the third one doesn't show any mettle this time, then there's nothing to be done, hahahaha!"

Xie Tianyao laughed as if he had gone mad.

At this moment.

Daming Palace in Jinghua.

In front of a luxurious palace, several palace maids and eunuchs ran back and forth, creating a very tense atmosphere.

Inside the hall, a graceful and noble woman who looked very young sat in the center. She wore a noble consort's robe, and her fingernails were kept very long. At this moment, she was holding a pure white Persian cat in her arms; the cat was so plump that at first glance, one might mistake it for a ball of meat.

"Your Ladyship, it has already begun over there..."

An old eunuch ran over and chuckled.

"Has it begun?"

This was the current noble consort, Dong Guifei, named Dong Qian, the daughter of the Guanzhong aristocratic Dong Family. Back when Xie Tianyao was fighting for the throne, the Dong Family had silently supported him from behind. Therefore, after Xie Tianyao gained power, he promised the Dong Family a position as a noble consort. The funny thing was that at the time, the Dong Family had no daughters of the appropriate age, and it was only years later that Dong Qian was born, so she was a woman destined to be a noble consort from birth, with an extraordinary status.

The concubine system of the Longyan Dynasty, besides the Empress who served as the mother of the world, consisted of the Four Consorts: Noble Consort, Virtuous Consort, Pure Consort, and Worthy Consort. Then there were the Nine Concubines, such as the Bright Ceremony, Bright Countenance, and so on.

As the top-tier leader of the Dong Family, Dong Qian had been groomed since childhood to serve the interests of the family.

Therefore, within this inner palace, she never ceased her open and covert struggles with Empress Zheng Fu.

This Dong Qian was quite capable; when she married Xie Tianyao, he was already over fifty, yet she managed to conceive and give birth to a son for him after just one night of favor. This son is now the Eleventh Prince of the Longyan Dynasty, only eight years old this year.

"Your Ladyship, this is a golden opportunity!"

"Indeed, Your Ladyship, opportunity knocks but once! You must act decisively!"

A group of people were urging her from the side.

Dong Qian frowned slightly: "Of course I know this is the best chance to strike at Zheng Fu, but if I were to go wailing and howling to the Emperor now, wouldn't I be a laughingstock to the world, making it look like we want to cling to the coattails of that Prefect Liu?"

The old eunuch said with a mournful face: "Oh, my Lady, why are you still hesitating at a time like this! This is precisely the moment for a feint to the east while attacking in the west! Everyone in the world knows that Prefect Liu and Longyang Princess are bound to die this time!"

"Since they are people destined to die, what does it matter if we give them a little face?"

"Once that Prefect Liu is dead..."

"And then we make a scene to confirm the Third Prince's crime of patricide..."

"Your Ladyship, it is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity, a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity!"

Dong Qian's eyes lit up as she listened, and without further ado, she quickly smeared her noble face to look disheveled, then led a group of palace maids and eunuchs straight to the entrance of Yangxin Hall, kneeling down and refusing to rise.

"Your Majesty, today when I thought of the Yang'an Pass incident, I could neither eat nor sleep!"

"The Third Prince is headstrong and acts foolishly; as his aunt, I truly do not wish to watch him walk down a path of no return..."

"Your Majesty!"

"In the prosperous age of Longyan, an Empress should serve as a model for the world, not possess the heart of a jealous woman without a shred of tolerance. How can one who cannot welcome Longyang Princess into the capital speak of manifest benevolence? Thinking of how Longyang Princess has been wandering outside since she was young, I am filled with sorrow..."

"Your Majesty!"

Things became lively now.

Noble Consort Dong Qian arrived first.

Soon, the entire inner palace received the news.

Following her, the Virtuous Consort, the Radiant Consort, the Wise Consort, the Nine Concubines, and the Court Ladies all arrived.

As the saying goes.

When a wall is about to collapse, everyone gives it a push; when a drum is broken, everyone beats it.

Since your Xie Ling dared to take such a risk, we dare to impeach him! After all, isn't that how these inner palace struggles always go?

Do you think you can win just by killing Prefect Liu and Xie Chan?

Dream on!

"Your Ladyship, Your Ladyship, we..."

Inside Kunning Palace.

Zheng Fu was trembling with rage, her hand already itching to find a target for the horsewhip she held.

"These sluts, a bunch of sluts!"

"They are all sluts!"

Zheng Fu gritted her teeth and asked in a fit of pique: "What does Lord Zhu say!"

The servant replied: "Your Ladyship, Lord Zhu said nothing... He only said, only said, to wait and see how things develop."

"Crack!"

Zheng Fu brought her whip down, trembling with rage: "Wait and see, wait and see? At a time like this, he tells me to wait and see? As the Minister of Personnel, what is he good for!"

She suddenly felt.

That she had fallen into a desperate situation of total isolation.

With Xie Ling's collapse in Liangzhou this time, having gambled away all the assets of those wealthy families, these people knew that Xie Ling could effectively announce his withdrawal from this struggle for the succession.

Yes.

He no longer had a chance.

He was now like a mad dog, seeing if he could catch Prefect Liu before he died, bite him hard, and then both would perish together.

Facing this final madness of his.

Even Zhu Zhen had begun to prioritize his own safety.

Realizing all this, she slumped down, her gaze vacant.

"No, that's not right, we still have a chance!"

"We still have a chance, don't we!"

Suddenly, Zheng Fu jumped up again, her eyes bloodshot as she roared: "The Emperor also knows about this, but he didn't stop it. Why? Why? He wants to see if the Third Prince still has a chance; it must be that, it must be that!"

"Quick, quick, go find Lord Zhu for me, go find him!"

"Yes..."

Jinghua today.

People coming and going.

It was truly lively.

Only at this moment.

No one expected.

That all this liveliness was single-handedly manufactured by Prefect Liu.

Likewise, it would soon be ended by his own hands.

Ending along with it would be the fates of Empress Zheng Fu and Xie Ling.