Chapter 148: Arriving at the Capital, the Emperor Passes Away

Chen Mo took the Tiger Tally from the wooden box; the Tiger Tally was crafted from Ink Jade and carved with exquisite detail.

This Tiger Tally could not only mobilize the Yulin Guard within the palace, but most importantly, it could also control a portion of the Palace City's Array.

It was precisely because of this that the Tiger Tally could not be forged.

The style and carvings could be faked, but the array within it could not.

Chen Mo accepted the Tiger Tally, and the Palace Attendant who had come to deliver the Imperial Edict bowed deeply and silently departed.

Sun Shouren and Lu Chuan also gathered around, their expressions looking quite grim.

They also realized that the current Emperor's sudden urgent summons for Chen Mo to enter the Capital, and only under the Crown Prince's orders, meant that something major was bound to happen.

"Foster Father, Uncle Lu, the Emperor has given orders; I must lead five hundred Yulin Guard to rush to the Capital at full speed," Chen Mo looked toward the two of them and said in a deep voice.

"Very well, I will have my soldiers quicken their pace later and try to reach the Capital as fast as possible to rendezvous with you," Sun Shouren said after a moment of contemplation.

Since there was an Imperial Edict, Chen Mo could not defy it; furthermore, Sun Shouren could vaguely sense that the current Emperor seemed to have some intention of entrusting the orphan to his foster son.

If that were truly the case, being able to enter the Capital first and assist the current Crown Prince in ascending the throne would be a monumental merit; even being enfeoffed as a marquis would not be excessive.

After all, since ancient times, no merit has been greater than following the dragon.

In any case, Chen Mo should reach the Capital first to understand the situation, and they would follow closely behind.

If something truly major were to happen, these twenty-six thousand garrison troops could also play a significant role.

"Pass on my order: all Yulin Guard are to leave their armor behind and travel light," Chen Mo commanded in a loud voice.

There was still a long way to go, and it was impossible for the Post Stations along this route to have enough horses for them to change.

Under these circumstances, traveling light and relying on their own legs to run would be much faster than riding horses.

The five hundred Yulin Guard prepared themselves, discarding the vast majority of unnecessary baggage, with each person carrying only essential dry rations.

Every single Yulin Guard was the elite of the elite, and regardless of their strength, all possessed Martial Dao cultivation.

At this moment, marching at full speed, they could cover over two hundred li a day; traveling by day and resting by night, at this speed, they could reach the Capital in another eight or nine days.

This was still Chen Mo considering the long distance, rather than a short-range raid.

Otherwise, if they truly ran at full speed for a day and night, even five or six hundred li would not be a problem.

But after running those few hundred li, the Yulin Guard would find it difficult to maintain combat effectiveness, let alone be able to walk the next day's journey.

As they rushed at full speed, the closer Chen Mo got to the Capital, the more he realized something was wrong.

The Capital, along with the several Guard Cities surrounding it, had already begun to impose martial law one after another.

Moreover, this period of martial law was relatively long, and on the roads coming and going, one could no longer see travelers or merchants.

The gates of the Guard Cities were tightly shut, and the Yulin Guard could not enter to resupply; finding a village, they bought some sweet water and dry rations from the villagers to fill their stomachs, and Chen Mo continued to lead the Yulin Guard on their way.

As he drew closer to the Capital, Chen Mo used his Blood Qi to stimulate his eyes, observing the scene of the Capital from afar.

Outside the Capital, many temporary military tents had been pitched; these tents did not belong to the garrison troops, and judging by their style, they carried a strong flavor of the Border Army.

A large number of Border Army troops were stationed near the Capital; no matter what the matter was, eight or nine times out of ten, it was not good.

After running for about another half an hour, Chen Mo heard the rolling sound of horse hooves vibrating and looked carefully.

In the distance, someone was driving a carriage at high speed, and the most crucial thing was that this carriage was one he had seen before; it was the imperial style used in the palace, pulled by four horses, and moving extremely fast.

The person driving the carriage was a woman with a stunningly beautiful face, her complexion like hibiscus and dripping with charm; beneath willow-leaf eyebrows, her eyes contained a murderous aura, her skin was as fair and delicate as snow, and her figure was even more voluptuous and slender.

However, this was not the key point; what attracted more attention was that the woman was wearing a full set of black phoenix robes and a phoenix crown on her head.

This was attire and jewelry that only an Empress was qualified to use, and generally speaking, even an Empress would not wear them casually; they were only used on important occasions.

Wearing such clothes and jewelry, this woman's identity was already obvious; it was none other than the current Empress, the mother of the Great Gan nation!

But Chen Mo found this somewhat hard to accept; before he had even arrived, he had considered that something major must have happened within the Capital.

Upon arriving near the Capital and discovering that many Guard Cities were under martial law, he felt even more that something was wrong.

At this moment, even if someone told him the Emperor had already passed away, he would not be the least bit surprised.

But now, this matter was a bit too big!

The Empress of Great Gan, the mother of the nation, was galloping out on horseback while the Capital was already under martial law.

What kind of situation could have occurred within the Capital to lead to such an event!

Unless someone wanted to seize control of the government and usurp the throne, and had to eliminate the Emperor and Empress first, such a situation could likely not happen.

The Crown Prince was not yet fifteen years old; even if he ascended the throne, the power would not be in his own hands, but would have to follow the orders of the Empress Dowager.

As long as the Emperor was not yet fifteen, the Emperor's edicts were far less effective than the Empress Dowager's edicts.

And without a doubt, controlling a seven or eight-year-old child was far easier than controlling the current Empress.

Therefore, if someone truly wanted to seize control of the government and usurp the throne, then eliminating the current Empress was an extremely necessary step.

Otherwise, Chen Mo truly could not figure out why the Emperor and Empress would need to flee from the Capital at this time.

"Everyone, follow my direction and rush at full speed; do not stop until you see me," Chen Mo ordered in a loud voice, his figure already charging forward like an arrow released from a bowstring.

In just a fleeting moment, he arrived in front of the imperial carriage.

Empress Xu had been driving the horses at full speed, and seeing Chen Mo's figure suddenly appear, she could not help but be stunned for a moment.

But she did not stop the carriage and continued to gallop at full speed.

"Your humble servant, Xuanwu General Chen Mo, pays respects to the Empress," Chen Mo followed closely beside the carriage and bowed.

Hearing his words, Empress Xu then pulled on the reins to slow the horses down.

A head also poked out from inside the carriage; it was none other than the First Prince Zhao Renmin, whom Chen Mo had previously saved, and who was now the current Crown Prince.

The Empress fleeing the Capital with the Crown Prince was a matter of the utmost importance; Chen Mo now had no doubt that someone truly wanted to plot a rebellion and usurp the throne.

Since that was the case, the Emperor must have already passed away.

It seemed that during this time, many things had happened in the imperial court that he did not know about.

"General Chen!" Zhao Renmin saw Chen Mo and immediately revealed a smile, appearing exceptionally happy.

The last time he left the Capital and was hunted by thieves all the way, it was Chen Mo who had saved him.

Facing a situation similar to the last time, seeing Chen Mo again, he instinctively felt a sense of security.

"Your subject was outside suppressing the Demonic Path and is not well-informed about the situation in the Capital. What exactly happened in the Capital, and why must you, Empress, take the Crown Prince out of the city?"

As the carriage stopped, Chen Mo, wearing a look of confusion and bewilderment, hurriedly pressed for an answer.

Empress Xu did not answer immediately; instead, she looked Chen Mo up and down before squeezing out a smile and asking, "How is your strength? The Imperial Guards you led outside, have they returned with you?"

"Replying to the Empress, your subject's strength can be called top-tier in the world. Besides me, another five hundred Yulin Guards will be able to arrive shortly.

Furthermore, the twenty-six thousand Imperial Guards under my command will be able to return in half a month at the latest."

Chen Mo's tone was frank; he had not added a single drop of water to his words.

Now that he had broken through to the Innate Realm, even if he were to actively expose his cultivation strength, it would no longer be a problem.

Even if a top-tier Innate Expert of the current age wanted to kill him, if Chen Mo could not win, he could at least run away.

Hearing that there were still five hundred Yulin Guards nearby, Empress Xu finally let out a rare sigh of relief.

Moreover, seeing Chen Mo made her feel somewhat more at ease.

She knew Chen Mo's strength; in the Postnatal Realm, he was absolutely unique. As long as he did not encounter an Innate Expert, his strength could be called invincible.

With him at her side, plus the five hundred Yulin Guards, she could finally be guaranteed a night of stability, and she would no longer have to flee in such a wretched state.

"Do you know that after the peace talks between the two countries, the Emperor intended to first eliminate the Demonic Path and then suppress the Alien Races to ensure the stability of our Great Gan, and for this, he even went on a personal expedition?"

Empress Xu sighed softly, a flash of sorrow in her eyes.

Yet, coming from an extraordinary background, even at this moment, even while sitting in a carriage, she still maintained the demeanor of an Empress, inadvertently revealing an elegant and noble aura.

"To sever the Heavenly Luck of the Alien Races, the Emperor used his own body to bear the national destiny of Great Gan, shattering the dragon veins of the Alien Races.

However, shattering the dragon veins requires enduring the backlash of heaven and earth, and bearing the boundless Heavenly Luck of Great Gan is no easy task. Even though he was the Son of Heaven, he suffered severe injuries.

Therefore, after returning from the campaign, the Emperor's condition worsened day by day until he passed away several days ago."

Chen Mo stood to the side, listening quietly, his brows furrowing deeply at this moment.

Because this matter was very wrong. The Emperor's cultivation strength was extraordinary; as a Houtian Consummation Realm Martial Artist, his vitality was far superior to that of ordinary people.

There were only two possibilities for his injury: either he died on the spot, or he was severely injured and kept alive by force.

Even if the injury were severe, as long as he did not die at the time, then by relying on the power the Imperial Clan could mobilize, even if he could not be fully cured, he could at least have been kept alive for a dozen years.

Yet he died after returning, which was very strange.

Moreover, Chen Mo had some understanding of this Son of Heaven and knew he was by no means a person who would covet merit and advance recklessly. If he did this, he would either have left a contingency plan to ensure the Crown Prince could ascend the throne steadily.

Or he believed that doing this would at most result in injury and that it was impossible for him to lose his life.

But he died nonetheless, and there was something too suspicious about this.

However, it must be said that what the current Emperor did was truly admirable.

Originally, he only felt that the current Emperor was never stingy with rewards for his subordinates, and following him, he would never be treated unfairly.

Yet he had not expected that this Son of Heaven would have such a side. As the master of a country, it was already quite remarkable that he was willing to lead a personal expedition.

Not to mention that he secured hundreds of years of stability for the world; such a great merit was beneficial to the state and the people.

For a Son of Heaven to achieve this, one could not just call it qualified; it could be called excellent.

This one act alone was enough for him to leave a heavy, colorful stroke in the history books.

In the three hundred years of the Great Gan Empire, there had been twelve Sons of Heaven in total; those whose achievements could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Zhao Huaili were probably only the Grand Ancestor and the Grand Ancestor of this dynasty.

"Before the Emperor passed away, he left an edict that should have passed the throne to the Crown Prince.

However, the Prince of Pingxi, Zhao Huaifeng, who returned with the Emperor, privately destroyed the edict, wishing to install the Third Prince, Zhao Renpin, as the New Emperor.

He even wanted to imprison the two of us, mother and son, which is why I seized the opportunity to escape from the Capital."

Empress Xu said a lot in one breath; the words were not long, but the information contained within was massive.

Chen Mo had once heard his foster father speak of the Prince of Pingxi, Zhao Huaifeng. He was the Emperor's cousin and also of the Imperial Clan; strictly speaking, he also had the qualifications to inherit the throne.

Of course, the prerequisite was that Zhao Huaili's lineage had to be extinct; otherwise, if he were to usurp it directly, the Innate Martial Artists of the Imperial Clan would certainly take action to punish him.

Because if everyone were to usurp the throne directly like this, it would bring too much slaughter to the Imperial Clan.

Chen Mo could roughly guess his plan. The Third Prince was younger, and most importantly, he did not have a sufficiently powerful maternal clan.

Empress Xu came from the Wu Zhou Xu Clan, which was a top-tier great family not only in Wu Zhou but in the entire world. The clan not only had an Innate Martial Artist sitting in command but even a Golden Core Ancestor.

If Zhao Renmin were to sit on the throne and Empress Xu were to become the Empress Dowager.

Then, if he wanted to control the court, it would be extremely difficult. The Xu family would do everything in their power to make him return the government to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor.

Conversely, the Third Prince's maternal clan could only be considered a very small family, and there was not even a Post-Heaven Martial Artist within the clan.

Not to mention that the Third Prince was young enough; he was only four years old now. Letting him ascend the throne would be truly too easy to control.

As for his mother becoming the Empress Dowager after he ascended the throne, compared to Empress Xu, who had a powerful maternal clan, the Third Prince's mother would be much easier to control.

If Chen Mo were the Prince of Pingxi, he would probably choose to do the same.

And to do this, the Crown Prince might still have a slim chance of living, but he would be imprisoned for life.

Empress Xu absolutely had to die no matter what. It was no wonder she had to leave the Capital now; remaining there would be truly too dangerous.

And after supporting the Third Prince to ascend the throne, the Prince of Pingxi would have plenty of ways to make him die without heirs; find a Qi Refiner to refine a pill for him to take, and the problem would be solved.

By then, his own lineage would have a logical reason to inherit the throne.

This plan could not be called meticulous, but it was worth the risk; the temptation of the throne was simply too great.

"Please rest assured, Empress, Crown Prince. The Emperor showed me kindness, and your subject will certainly do his utmost to repay the Emperor's grace."

Chen Mo bowed and immediately stated his position.

In terms of sentiment, the Emperor had indeed treated him quite well, and he ought to repay it.

In terms of reason, he had secured hundreds of years of stability for the world with his own strength, only to have his descendants cut off by others; that would be too chilling.

Moreover, if this matter succeeded, he would truly have the merit of supporting the new ruler, and the rewards he would receive would certainly not be small.

Furthermore, Chen Mo was clear about one thing, which was that his foster father was truly loyal to the Emperor.

Given his personality, if he were to learn that the Prince of Western Pacification intended to install the Third Prince, it would be impossible for him to do nothing.

And as his foster son, it was impossible for me to watch him wade into these murky waters alone; since this matter had to be done sooner or later, it would be better to strike first.

"Rise, beloved subject!" Empress Xu's breathing was rapid, her tone slightly agitated.

The Emperor had passed away, and she had fled in haste with the Crown Prince; to say she was not nervous or panicked along this journey would naturally be impossible.

Now that they had fled to this place, and finally a subject had clearly declared his intention to stand on her side, how could she not be elated and stirred?

Most importantly, with Chen Mo, a powerhouse of the Martial Dao, guarding them, the safety of the two of them could finally be guaranteed for the time being.

"Before coming here, this subject received an imperial edict from His Majesty, commanding me to enter Jing and take orders directly from the Crown Prince. Your Highness, what should we do now?"

Chen Mo cupped his hands and asked, though he knew that asking was a waste of time.

Zhao Renmin was only eight years old; what kind of decision could he possibly make?

But the necessary procedures still had to be followed, so that it would be easier for him to act afterward.

(End of this chapter)