98. Disaster Brews Within the Imperial Court's Path to Power

After returning from the imperial mausoleum, Fu Xun fell gravely ill, causing great alarm to Consort De. Upon hearing the news, Crown Prince Fu Lancheng personally went to Huayun Hall to visit him.

“Xiao Ba, are you feeling better?” Fu Lancheng reached out to feel Fu Xun’s burning forehead.

“Fifth Brother,” Fu Xun murmured groggily as he opened his eyes, “I dreamed that Fifth Sister-in-law had returned.”

Fu Lancheng’s expression froze, and tears streamed down his face in an instant. Fortunately, no one else was around; otherwise, witnessing the Crown Prince in such a vulnerable state would have been truly shocking.

“Xiao Ba, once you recover, Fifth Brother will tell you a secret, alright?”

Comforted, Fu Xun finally drifted back to sleep.

Since the onset of winter, the affairs of the court had been unceasing. Fu Lancheng had been working day and night without rest, but even he was not superhuman.

Especially on the eve of the Minor Festival, a guard from the imperial mausoleum reported that Empress Zhao Su’s tomb had suddenly caught fire. Fu Lancheng immediately left behind his documents and troops and rushed to the tomb.

Less than a day after the Crown Prince left Guangling City, travel was restricted both inside and outside the palace walls, including Chenghua Palace. Cheng Hewei brought Pei Jinghong to live with her, and after two days of waiting anxiously for news, they learned that Fu Lancheng had been captured by rebel forces at the mausoleum, his fate uncertain.

It was the nineteenth winter of the reign of Duke Cheng. On the night of the Minor Festival, Prince Qi, Fu Yuán, launched a palace coup, besieging the imperial palace. The entire city was thrown into panic, and rumors spread wildly.

That evening, soldiers suddenly stormed into the Eastern Palace. The leader reported, “The rebels are attacking the palace. The Eastern Palace is likely to fall. Ladies, please be careful and evade.” Before he could finish, he was struck through the throat by a sword.

Shocked, Cheng Hewei had no time to react and hurriedly entrusted the trembling Pei Jinghong to Lu Zhirou. “Arou, protect—Miss Pei Er.” That was all she could call her now.

Lu Zhirou, who had always feared bloodshed, did not cry this time. She quietly grasped Pei Jinghong’s arm tightly, afraid she might break free and fall to the rebel swords.

Cheng Hewei and Qing Yu drew their swords to shield them, and under the cover of Nurse Wu and Xi Yue, they clashed with Wen Zhi’s troops and managed to escape the deadly chaos.

Pei Jinghong, who had seemed dazed and foolish, suddenly opened her eyes wide and clearly called out, “Qing Yu, Awei, Qing Yu, Awei…” Though she had lived in the capital for some time, she had never called their names so clearly. At this critical moment, it was as if her lost soul had returned to her.

Lu Zhirou, overjoyed and astonished, held her tightly, tears soaking Pei Jinghong’s shoulder, unwilling to let go.

“Prince Qi commands that Miss Pei Er must be found. Cheng Hewei, it’s best you confess now to save us trouble,” sneered a tall, stern-faced guard from the Prince Qi’s mansion, looking down at Cheng Hewei and Qing Yu, who were pinned to the ground.

Cheng Hewei, a daughter of a military family, despised petty men who stirred chaos at a time of upheaval. Spitting, she retorted, “Zhou Hui, if you have the courage, kill me and see if my uncle will let you off.” Zhou Hui had once served under Duke Cheng Jingyun but was expelled from the northern army for drunken misconduct before defecting to Prince Qi.

“Hahaha, Cheng Hewei, you provoke me? Cheng Jingyun is far away in the northern border competing with Daxiang; he has no time for Guangling’s affairs,” Zhou Hui gloated.

“That’s impossible! Daxiang has always been on friendly terms with our Great Yi. Stop spreading lies to unsettle people,” Cheng Hewei scolded fiercely.

Zhou Hui sneered and pressed, “Tell me where Pei Jinghong is, and I’ll spare your life.”

Cheng Hewei stubbornly spat out two words, “In your dreams,” then glared mockingly at Zhou Hui. She knew he dared not kill her; she was merely provoking him, enjoying watching him furious.

“Cheng Hewei, do you think I’m afraid?” Zhou Hui’s eyes blazed with anger as he pressed his sword to her neck, though he dared not go further. The Prince Qi only wanted Pei Jinghong alive and had forbidden harming Cheng Hewei.

Cheng Hewei sneered coldly, “So it was your doing that set fire to Empress Dowager’s tomb? The Crown Prince rushed to the mausoleum and hasn’t returned yet. But the Emperor still remains in the palace. Does Prince Qi intend to commit patricide and regicide?”

“Prince Qi is neither legitimate nor the eldest. Even if he seizes the throne, the Fu clan will never recognize him. Then all the lords of the realm will rise against him. Zhou Hui, when the Crown Prince escapes, we’ll settle scores in autumn. You should consider your fate—whether to be quartered by horses or torn apart by blades.” She knew Fu Lancheng’s ruthlessness; he would leave no loose ends.

Zhou Hui’s face darkened but he laughed arrogantly. “Cheng Hewei, what a sharp tongue! But I’m not swayed by your taunts. You think the Crown Prince has a backup plan, but Prince Qi already knows the true identity of Miss Pei Er. If he reveals both her identity and the Crown Prince’s schemes to the Emperor, do you think His Majesty will trust the Crown Prince? Will he entrust his realm to a usurper?”

Cheng Hewei’s gaze faltered. “What do you mean?”

Zhou Hui laughed heartily, clearly satisfied. “The Crown Prince never told you? Miss Pei Er is actually Pei Zhaojin, heir to the Marquis of Wujing. There are no twins; the Crown Prince fabricated that to deceive the Emperor.”

Cheng Hewei felt as if struck by thunder, collapsing to the ground, her heart shattered. Why did they all know but never tell her? Suddenly she turned to Qing Yu, her face twisted in agony. “You know, don’t you? Qing Yu, you know! Pei Jinghong is A-Zhao! Isn’t that right?” She felt she was losing her mind.

Qing Yu knelt silently as Cheng Hewei raved. “Lady Liang, please calm down. Don’t believe the rebels’ words. It’s their provocation.” She herself was shaken, though she didn’t show it.

But Cheng Hewei had lost all reason, laughing and crying uncontrollably. Qing Yu’s words did not reach her ears, nor did Zhou Hui’s subsequent questions.

Though the Crown Prince never explicitly confirmed it, she and Lu Zhirou had long suspected Pei Jinghong was Xu Guiyi. Yet she remembered Xu Guiyi telling her that Pei Zhaojin had indeed died and that she was his full sister.

But Zhou Hui just said there were no twins; there had only ever been one Pei Zhaojin. Xu Guiyi was he, and Pei Jinghong was he. And she had been foolishly kept in the dark, shedding tears until her heart burned out.

Meanwhile, Prince Qi was conducting a massive search for Pei Jinghong within the city, unaware that Fu Lancheng had already led his troops beneath Yongding Gate, initiating the battle for the imperial city.

The Crown Prince entered from the north, leading thirty thousand royal troops with unstoppable force. Within half a day, they had seized control of half the city.

Night deepened. Under the winter moon, Jiuhua Gate was chillingly silent. Fifty thousand rebel soldiers stood poised, their eyes like specters thirsting for blood.

Prince Qi Fu Jinning quietly closed his eyes. After a moment, he raised his head and said coldly, “Tell me, if my father hears that my troops are at the city gates, what will he think?”

Beside him, Nangong Mingchen’s tense expression relaxed slightly as he smiled calmly. “Three days of siege have left the palace’s Wen Litings fighting like trapped beasts. Your Highness commands fifty thousand troops; breaching Jiuhua Gate will be but a moment’s work. Why not ask His Majesty yourself?”

The biting wind howled, snowflakes swirling. Prince Qi’s breath froze and shattered in the air like torn silk. “Mingchen, all my life I have done everything to fulfill my father’s expectations, right or wrong. Yet he will pass the throne to Fu Lancheng. If I am unworthy, is Fu Lancheng fit to be emperor? Tonight, I will ask my father if he regrets not choosing me.”

With a sharp clang, Prince Qi drew his sword and glared ahead. “Kill! Kill! Kill! Break into the palace! Tomorrow, those who succeed will be founding heroes!”

The rebels roared their battle cries, echoing into the sky.

Suddenly, a howling wind brought the clashing of swords and shields. Prince Qi’s face turned pale as he looked down the long street to see another force arriving. Surrounded on all sides, he bellowed, “Who dares block my path to the throne?”

Then arrows rained down as soldiers clad in Kirin army armor emerged, aiming their bows at the rebels.

His loyalists panicked. “Your Highness, we are trapped like fish in a barrel!”

“What now, Your Highness? Please command!” Zhou Hui’s face was grim but he stayed composed.

“Panic? I have fifty thousand troops! Soldiers, tonight we carve a bloody path through this chaos!” Prince Qi’s voice rang out just as a cold laugh arose from the crowd behind him.

“Hahaha! Third Royal Brother, such arrogant words!”

“Fu Lancheng?!” The Crown Prince was the true heir; the feudal princes were mere subjects. For Prince Qi to name him so openly was to admit his own rebellion.

“You were dead in the mausoleum! How are you here?” Prince Qi could not believe it. Hadn’t Fu Jingchu taken troops to the tomb to ambush Fu Lancheng?

Fu Lancheng rode forward leisurely, smiling. “I left the mausoleum without hindrance. Perhaps Third Royal Brother overlooked some detail?”

“Enough nonsense! Seize Fu Lancheng! I’ll reward a marquis’s title!” Prince Qi grew anxious. Fu Jingchu’s failure to intercept must mean something had gone wrong.

He issued the order, but most troops did not move. Only a few guards drew their swords, while the majority remained still, doubting their prince’s command.

“What are you doing? Didn’t you hear me? Kill Fu Lancheng, and I’ll grant a marquisate!” Prince Qi shouted desperately, but no one answered.

Realizing something was wrong, he turned to see Nangong Mingchen beside him, whose faint smile nearly unseated him.

Nangong Mingchen sat calmly astride his horse, torch in hand, and laughed long and clear. “Forgive me, Your Highness. Tonight’s game ends here. I cannot accompany you any further.”

“Why?!” Prince Qi nearly wept. He had suspected Fu Jingchu’s betrayal and even mutiny among his men, but never Nangong Mingchen!

“Why!!! You are Nangong! You are family! We are family!” Prince Qi screamed, his former regal composure shattered, replaced by raw desperation.