Demoness, where are you Fleeing to?
Chapter 472 - 376: Sea King’s Time Management_1

Chapter 472: Chapter 376: Sea King’s Time Management_1

During the ongoing First Hope Dachao, inside a palace named Hongqing Palace on the southeast corner tower of the Forbidden City, which is also known as the Nan Palace of the Forbidden City.

A middle-aged man in a nine-designed dragon robe with white hair stands, hands behind his back, in a corridor, looking northwest.

He is the Zhengtong Emperor, the True Emperor Yu Qizhen of the Jin Dynasty. Ever since he was captured at Tumu Fort and then released by the Meng Wu people, he has been under house arrest here by his brother, Jingtai Emperor.

At this moment, Yu Qizhen’s eyes are filled with anger, hatred, humiliation, and unwillingness.

"Is it already beyond redemption? Is the position of the Crown Prince, my son, lost for good this time?"

"Yes, ever since the Jade Qilin incident, the Crown Prince’s reputation in the court has plummeted. The scholars appointed by Gao Gu and Shang Hong in the Inspectorate are powerless due to the fire incident. Many people from the Hanlin Academy have also changed their attitude towards the Crown Prince. Some have even voluntarily offered to resign from their positions in the Zhanshi Government."

Surprisingly, the speaker is a figure formed of mud and sand standing outside the wooden railing of the corridor. Its limbs and body are intact and it appears to be dressed in a Feiyu Suit, but since it is formed from mud and sand, its color is indistinguishable; its facial features are also blurred, making it impossible to see its face clearly.

It bows slightly and says, "The Crown Prince has decided to withdraw to advance. First, to save his reputation, and second, to leave some face for the pseudo-emperor—"

BANG!

The True Emperor Yu Qizhen suddenly swings his fist and strikes it heavily against a nearby beam, sending wood shavings flying.

"Bastards! I knew that dog Yu Qiyu would go back on his word. Is the Empress Dowager and all of you just going to watch as my son is deposed?"

After the massive defeat of the Jin Dynasty at Tumu Fort, he was captured by Yexian and taken to the prairie. Jingtai Emperor Yu Qiyu managed to gain the Cabinet’s support by promising to appoint Zhu Jianshen as the Crown Prince, which allowed him to ascend the throne with the support of Minister of War Yu Jie and others.

But less than ten years later, his brother started harboring thoughts of changing the heir to the throne.

The figure made of sand and mud seems to be afraid, bowing slightly, "The Jingtai Emperor has been in power for twelve years, and his influence in the court is firmly established. Now with the support of Li Xuan, who is in control of the Confucian public debate, the chips in our hand are like an insect trying to stop a chariot."

Yu Qizhen’s face twists and his cheeks bulge, making him appear unusually ferocious, "The Earl Chengyi Mansion! Li Xuan, huh?"

After a long while, he lets out a heavy sigh and calms down, "Given the current situation, have I lost everything?"

The figure made of mud and sand looks up in surprise at Yu Qizhen. He seems surprised that Yu Qizhen today has such composure.

"The Demon Master means for you to hold your horses. The game is not over, it is too early to determine victory or defeat."

He speaks in a hoarse voice, "Yexian will not just watch as the Jingtai Emperor becomes secure on the throne, and the Jinque Palace will also not allow Li Xuan to continue disrupting the Heavenly Dao. These are our helping hands. Besides, the General Zhenshuo and Commander of Datong, Marquis of Wuqing, Liang Heng, will soon be transferred to Beijing."

"Liang Heng?" Yu Qizhen frowns, "He is a general under the Jingtai Emperor, highly trusted by the Jingtai Emperor. His arrival in Beijing will only exacerbate the situation."

But the figure made of mud and sand laughs, "Liang Heng is indeed a trusted general of the Jingtai Emperor, but that does not mean he cannot be used by us."

......

About a quarter of an hour later, the figure made of mud and sand has turned into dust and disappeared without a trace.

Yu Qizhen’s face has completely calmed down, with all the various emotions of surprise, anger, hatred, and joy that had been on his face earlier vanished without a trace.

At this moment, a dignified and graceful woman in a plain skirt comes out from the side of the corridor. She seems to be blind, feeling her way along the railing as she walks. Yu Qizhen sees this and actively steps forward to hold her hand.

"Zi Tong, why didn’t you let someone accompany you?"

"I knew Your Majesty was in a secret meeting. I didn’t dare to have anyone accompany me."

The woman in the plain skirt sighed slightly, a hint of concern in her eyes, "Your Majesty, those who are willing to help you may not necessarily have good intentions. Do you really have to contend with your second brother? To be honest—"

She pauses, "Your second brother is a kind-hearted person. If he were at all ruthless, you and I would have been dead a long time ago, and Shen would not have lived to this day."

"A kind-hearted person? And then he’s so kind-hearted that he locks me and you up in this tiny place in Nan Palace, where we can’t see the sun?"

Yu Qizhen scoffs coldly, looking up at the sky and then at the patch on the woman’s garment, "Am I not aware that joining hands with those people is akin to making a deal with the devil? But after all, I’m not resigned to it."

He opens his eyes wide, a fierce fire burning in his gaze, "I was once captured and taken to the prairie, my life and death hinging on Yexian’s whim. After I returned to Beijing, my life was in the hands of Yu Qiyu. I don’t want to live like this anymore—"

※※ ※※

When Li Xuan walked out of the Wu Gate, the look in the eyes of the civil and military officials when they looked at him had changed again.

Previously, the vast majority of them respected his identity as the Hufa of Neo-Confucianism, and were more curious about him in addition.

But at this moment, in addition to respect, they also felt fear and awe.

However, Li Xuan’s side had become particularly noisy.

Whether civil or military, anyone who could speak to Li Xuan would come over and greet him, making small talk and showing their face in front of him.

"This boy is remarkable!"

Deputy Minister Gao Gu emerged from the left gate with a solemn and helpless look on his face, staring at Li Xuan: "The onslaught in the court today is like a surging tide, so overwhelming that it leaves me no room to breathe."

He was well-prepared for today’s First Hope Dachao. Although he could not turn the tide, he was confident that he could minimize the losses as much as possible.

But Li Xuan started from small matters, exerting power from places they never expected, gradually gaining momentum. By the time he impeach Duke Yansheng, a storm had been stirred up, rendering his prepared tactics entirely useless.

In today’s political struggle, Li Xuan had also displayed his prestige and influence in the court.

"The Empress Dowager is too rushed to provoke a character of this caliber at this moment."

"I did not know beforehand that this man was so prickly and ruthless."

This was Daxueshi Shang Hong from Zuochun House. He also walked out from the left gate, saying with a bitter smile: "This young man is the Hufa of Neo-Confucianism, and has feelings for Princess Changle, Yu Hongchang. No wonder the Empress Dowager and the Crown Prince were anxious."

The real issue was that after the Empress Dowager sent him to the Dali Temple jail, Li Xuan walked out of there unscathed.

"This matter is very tricky." The person who said this was Jishizhong from the Ministry of War, who followed the two Daxueshi with a concerned tone: "If we let them continue investigating the cases of the Dali Temple and Duke Yansheng, we can’t predict the consequences."

Previously in the court, the Crown Prince showed his humility by voluntarily stepping down, and played a three-time decline-and-acceptance game with the Jingtai Emperor.

The Jingtai Emperor tried to retain him several times, and only after the Crown Prince declined three times, he verbally abolished the Crown Prince and conferred the title on Prince Yi.

But Li Xuan did not stop there. He shifted his attention to the Inspectorate, taking the several cases of the Dali Temple and Duke Yansheng as his starting point, accusing the Inspectorate of negligence and even covering up for the Kong Family and the Dali Temple.

Gao Gu furrowed his brows, but in the end, he could only sigh lightly: "Let’s wait until after the New Year, there may be a turn of events by then."

Li Xuan was unaware that the cabinet deputy minister was discussing him. It took him two hours to finally finish entertaining everyone and walk out of Chengtian Gate.

Next, he had to go to Shanwei House for a banquet, hosting the officials who had greatly assisted him in the court.

However, as soon as Li Xuan had stepped out of the city gate, he saw the lady-in-waiting by Yu Hongchang’s side.

"Princess Changle has asked me to relay a message to Earl Jingan."

Perhaps the confrontation in the court today made this woman realize Li Xuan’s status. When she saw Li Xuan again, she was no longer snobbish and cold as she was on Longhu Mountain. She smiled and said: "The day after tomorrow is New Year’s Eve. The princess hopes that Earl Jingan would come to the palace and accompany her to celebrate her birthday."

She looked at Li Xuan with profound meaning in her eyes: "It’s your birthday that day too."

Li Xuan knew that he and Yu Hongchang shared the same birthday, in the same moment of the same hour, on the same day, in the same month, of the same year.

But he hesitated: "Must it be in the palace? Could Hongchang come to my mansion instead?"

Li Xuan thought of Xue Yunrou, Luo Yan, and Yue Qianqian. On such a holiday, he couldn’t just leave these girls unattended at the mansion, could he?

"Princess Changle can’t leave the palace on New Year’s Eve." The lady-in-waiting shook her head slightly, her eyes revealing a hint of something different: "The princess said she will give you a surprise that you can’t imagine."

A surprise?

Hearing this, Li Xuan instantly became spirited. Then he hesitated: "When will it be? I won’t be free after the Hour of You (7:00 PM)."

"The palace will be locked after the Hour of You on New Year’s Eve." The lady-in-waiting laughed: "So it would be best for Earl Jingan to come early."

In her mind, her task was just to invite Li Xuan into the palace. Whether he could leave after the Hour of You was none of her concern.

Li Xuan thought this was manageable: "Okay, tell the princess that I’ll certainly keep the appointment."

Not long after sending off the lady-in-waiting, he encountered Xue Yunrou who was waiting outside the palace for an audience with the Emperor.

At this moment, Xue Yunrou also brought up New Year’s Eve: "Xuan, how do you plan to spend New Year’s Eve night?"

"Of course, in the mansion by holding a banquet to celebrate New Year’s Eve together." Li Xuan answered naturally: "By the way, everyone will celebrate my birthday."

"What fun is that?"

Xue Yunrou blushed and looked away: "On New Year’s Eve, I just want to spend it with you. On your birthday, I prepared a surprise for you."

Another surprise?

Li Xuan couldn’t help but feel tense. He asked carefully: "When will that be? Yunrou, you know I’m busy with official duties. On New Year’s Eve night, I’ll be busy. I might not be free before the Hour of You."

"Of course, after the Hour of You." Xue Yunrou looked back at Li Xuan strangely: "Do you still remember that day at Xuanwu Lake? I have always regretted it. I want to dance for you again, and then we’ll drink and enjoy the view together. This time we’ll meet at Shicha Sea."

Li Xuan immediately sighed in relief. He thought to himself: it’s indeed not convenient to do that kind of thing during the day.

"Okay!" Li Xuan agreed succinctly.