Broken Jade - Chapter 140

Chapter 140

Sheng Zhaoning issued three secret orders in quick succession, commanding her agents to investigate at once.

The Ministry of War mobilized its personnel, dispatching swift riders to the passes of every prefecture to gather military intelligence.

However, before any news arrived regarding the movements in Liangzhou, a memorial came from the Censorate.

During the morning court session, Censor Xu Fu stepped forward and declared, “Your Majesty, Wei Heng, the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, intends to rebel. The evidence is conclusive. I implore Your Majesty to investigate!”

Every official in Taihe Hall was stunned.

Wei Heng’s brows drew together. He looked back at the man standing in the center of the hall, his gaze sharp and searching.

No one would believe such an absurd accusation.

Sheng Zhaoning’s expression darkened. She strode out before the assembled officials and rebuked him coldly, “Lord Xu, you stand before the imperial court and His Majesty. How dare you fabricate such lies and spout such outrageous nonsense!”

Clutching her ivory court tablet, her eyes razor-sharp, she was about to request a thorough investigation and demand that Xu Fu be punished for making false accusations.

Just then, a commander of the Yulin Guard rushed in to report.

“Your Majesty, the private troops of the Crown Prince’s Guard Battalion have surrounded the Imperial Palace!”

The announcement sent shock waves through the court, and the officials erupted into an uproar.

No one believed the Crown Prince would rebel. As long as the emperor remained on the throne, Wei Heng was the undisputed Heir Apparent, destined to become the next emperor.

But now, faced with the news that the Imperial Palace had been surrounded by the Imperial Guard Camp, doubts inevitably began to creep in.

Xu Fu immediately continued, “Your Majesty, I possess written correspondence between the Crown Prince and the Imperial Guard Camp, as well as his secret order commanding them to surround the palace. Each is irrefutable evidence!”

On the dragon throne, the Emperor of Wei’s breathing grew ragged as he panted with rage.

Naturally, he did not believe Xu Fu.

No one understood Wei Heng’s character better than he did.

He would never harbor the slightest suspicion toward Wei Heng.

What truly enraged the Emperor of Wei was Xu Fu’s attempt to frame the Crown Prince.

Here in the imperial court, right beneath the steps of the dragon throne, Xu Fu had dared to frame the Crown Prince in public!

His audacity knew no bounds!

The Emperor of Wei immediately began considering who might be directing Xu Fu from behind the scenes and what their true objective could be.

After all, the frame-up was far too crude to withstand scrutiny. It was riddled with flaws, and even the most cursory investigation would expose the truth.

Why cause such an enormous commotion merely to tell a lie that could be so easily disproved?

The cost far outweighed any possible gain.

Sheng Zhaoning was contemplating the exact same question.

Xu Fu’s claims were completely fabricated. A simple investigation would reveal whether they were true or false.

Why, then, had he done this?

And what about the Imperial Guard Camp? The only Bronze Tally capable of mobilizing the Crown Prince’s personal troops was in her possession. Who else could have ordered the Imperial Guard Camp to surround the Imperial Palace?

She slowly lowered her eyes, connecting every recent anomaly in her mind.

Scattered clues, countless in number, began converging into a single picture.

A horrifying possibility gradually took shape in her mind.

Sheng Zhaoning snapped her head up, her pupils trembling.

“Your Majesty, seal the city gates at once!”

At last, she understood why Xu Fu had chosen today to make his accusation!

Liangzhou had remained quiet for so long because Prince Zhenbei had merely been waiting for the right pretext to march his army south.

Now, with Xu Fu suddenly accusing the Crown Prince of rebellion before the entire court, and the Imperial Guard Camp indeed surrounding the Imperial Palace…

Prince Zhenbei could march his army into the capital under the banner of rescuing the emperor!

Liangzhou was too far away. If his forces had only begun marching south now, they could never arrive in time.

That meant Wei Chengjun had planned this long ago. Liangzhou’s troops had already been secretly advancing south. By some unknown means, they had seized control of the local authorities in every prefecture along their route and intercepted all reports bound for the court.

His army might already be nearing the Capital!

The assembled officials had yet to understand why Sheng Zhaoning had suddenly called for the gates to be sealed, but after only a moment’s thought, the emperor grasped the danger. Cold sweat instantly drenched his body.

The Emperor of Wei shot to his feet and shouted down the steps, “Yulin Guard, send the order! Seal the city gates!”

“Have the Ministry of War dispatch troops at once! Mobilize forces from the neighboring prefectures and bring them into the Capital City!”

The Yulin Guard acknowledged the order and galloped away.

The officials of the Ministry of War hurriedly withdrew from court.

Sheng Zhaoning no longer cared for courtly etiquette. She turned and strode out of the hall.

She held the Bronze Tally that commanded the Imperial Guard Camp. At this moment, she alone had the authority to deploy its private troops beyond the Imperial Palace.

Sheng Zhaoning seized a horse from a soldier of the Yulin Guard stationed outside Taihe Hall, swung into the saddle, and raced toward the palace gates.

The emperor watched everyone depart. A surge of foul air welled up inside him and struck his heart and lungs.

Blood sprayed from his mouth-

“Your Majesty!”

The assembled officials cried out in alarm, and chaos instantly erupted.

Wei Heng’s eyes trembled. He rushed forward to support the Emperor of Wei and shouted in panic, “Summon the Imperial Physician at once!”

Taihe Hall descended into turmoil.

Outside, dark clouds blanketed the sky as lightning flashed and thunder rumbled.

A violent storm was brewing on the horizon.

……

Several swift horses thundered down Mingxi Street, racing all the way toward the city gates.

“Close the gates!”

“His Majesty’s verbal decree! Close the gates!”

Beneath the darkened sky, the Yulin Guard soldiers shouted at the top of their lungs.

When the soldiers at the gate saw that the newcomer was the commander of the Yulin Guard, they did not dare delay. They immediately sprang into action and sealed off the gates.

“Quick, bar them!” one of the soldiers shouted.

Everyone put their strength into pushing the massive gates shut.

Suddenly, one of the soldiers seemed to spot something. He froze mid-motion.

“Look! Who are they?” he exclaimed, pointing in shock at the dense black mass closing in from beyond the walls.

The man beside him followed the direction of his finger, and his pupils contracted sharply.

In the distance, dust billowed into the sky, blotting out everything in its path.

The earth trembled. Hoofbeats boomed like war drums as an army rapidly approached the Imperial City.

Only one thought remained in his mind.

A great upheaval was coming to Capital City!

“Seal the gates immediately! Prepare for battle and send word to the Imperial Palace!”

The military report from the city gates soon reached the Imperial Palace.

The Emperor of Wei had already suffered a violent attack brought on by rage in Taihe Hall. When he heard the news from the gates, he began vomiting blood uncontrollably and promptly lost consciousness.

None of the officials had expected the crisis to unfold so quickly. No one could fathom when Prince Zhenbei had managed to bring his army all the way to the city walls!

The officials hurried out of the Imperial Palace, none daring to linger.

The Imperial Palace was in utter chaos. Palace maids and eunuchs packed their belongings, preparing to flee.

The Twelve Guards of the Imperial Guards were fully mobilized and dispatched to defend the city gates to the death.

By the time Sheng Zhaoning arrived with the Imperial Guard Army, the forces from Liangzhou had already reached the gates.

Dark clouds smothered the sky, and the gale howled. It was as though the heavens had been split open, unleashing deafening peals of thunder.

Sheng Zhaoning stood atop the city wall, facing the wind as her robes snapped violently around her.

The gale lashed her face. Her eyes were cold and still as she gazed down from the wall.

A dark, ruthless gaze rose to meet hers with overwhelming force.

Like a sharpened sword, it pierced straight into her eyes with unerring precision.

Sheng Zhaoning swayed as an intense sense of suffocation surged through her.

Outside the city, a man sat astride a tall black horse. He wore black armor with a muted sheen, and a chilling aura of slaughter surrounded him. His abyssal gaze seemed intent on swallowing her whole.

Wei Yi.

She was seeing him again.

Two years later, he had returned at the head of an army to lay siege to the Capital.

Sheng Zhaoning had never imagined it would all happen so suddenly.

The vast, black tide of soldiers surrounded the Imperial City.

Her gaze swept across the people below, one by one, and familiar faces entered her sight.

Wei Yi, Wei Chengjun, Chi Zheng, Chi Yu, Han Xu, Shadow Seven……

So many former comrades and old friends who had once fought shoulder to shoulder with her now stood beyond the city walls.

No one could ever have imagined that one day, they would find themselves so completely opposed.

Only a single wall separated them, yet they stood on opposite sides.