pappabearbooks Chapter 5540 Entering the palace to quell the chaos
Chapter 5540 Entering the palace to quell the chaos
Chapter 5540 Entering the palace to quell the chaos
As dawn broke and the sky brightened, the rain intensified.
Fang Jun looked up at the Chengtianmen gate tower, raindrops dripping from the edge of his straw hat, blurring his vision slightly.
He raised his hand: "Shoot another letter of surrender with an arrow. If the palace gates do not open after an incense stick has burned, then attack the city. At that time, Helan Sengjia will be the first to be executed for treason. The rest of the guards will be stripped of their household registration and exiled to the frontier for their crimes of collusion with the rebels. They will not be pardoned!"
"Here!"
The letter of persuasion to surrender was quickly written, and Sun Renshi personally tied it to an arrow shaft, drew his bow, and shot it onto the city wall.
Fang Jun gave another order: "Soldiers, prepare to attack the city and put some pressure on the city walls."
The civil and military officials had been in the palace for a long time, but no news had come out yet. This showed that the situation in the palace had not changed because of their intervention. Li Jingye was stubborn and went down a dead end. Who knows what other changes might occur.
He now regrets ordering Wang Fangyi to abandon Xuanwu Gate and launch a fierce attack on Taiji Hall. The sudden change in the palace last night was not unexpected; it was clearly premeditated.
Neither His Majesty nor Li Jingye may have acted alone; it is highly likely that someone else was involved.
Whether they were nobles or members of the imperial family, it was highly possible that they could deceive everyone and send even more people into the palace.
Thus, Wang Fangyi would face an enemy several times his size.
Since the Empress and the Crown Prince cannot escape through Xuanwu Gate, Wang Fangyi will inevitably take them with him. If they were to plunge headlong into the rebels' encirclement, the consequences would be unimaginable...
"Here!"
Dozens of heavily armored soldiers quickly assembled at the front of the formation, each holding a large shield, while more than ten others carried gunpowder packets sealed with oiled paper, ready to blow up the palace gates.
……
On the city tower, Helan Sengjia paced back and forth around the table, his heart as restless as an ant on a hot pan. He had only recently taken up his post as the garrison commander of Chengtian Gate, merely a watchdog for the emperor, so how had he suddenly been drawn into a massive vortex concerning the very survival of imperial power?
He was just a figurehead as the son-in-law of the Tang Dynasty royal family. He couldn't even control his own wife's promiscuity. How could he have any ambition to participate in such a power struggle?
But now they are caught in a dilemma at Chengtian Gate, and it is impossible for them to stay out of it.
I just hope that all the troubles in the palace will end soon...
A trusted guard ran up from the horse path inside the palace gate, panting heavily. The news he delivered was like a thunderbolt, leaving Helan Sengjia dizzy and terrified.
He asked incredulously, "His Majesty...has passed away?"
The soldier said, "Not only that, but the news has already spread throughout the palace that His Majesty was poisoned."
Who could poison His Majesty?
"I heard it was the Crown Prince who did it."
"Bullshit!"
Helan Sengjia, of course, did not believe it: "The Crown Prince has always stayed in the Eastern Palace. This time, when he entered the palace to attend to His Majesty, countless eyes were watching. Afterwards, he angered His Majesty and was imprisoned in Wanchun Palace. On what grounds could he instruct someone to poison His Majesty?"
The soldiers couldn't explain it either: "But that's definitely what's being said inside the palace now."
Helan Sengjia clutched his forehead, his head throbbing with pain. If time could be reversed, he would rather die than give up his post as the guard of Chengtian Gate.
He was clearly being used; those who supported his appointment to this position are very likely the real culprits who poisoned His Majesty…
Now that His Majesty has passed away and the palace is in turmoil, the Crown Prince's life is hanging by a thread, and Li Jingye wants to enthrone the young prince; outside the palace, Fang Jun personally leads tens of thousands of troops to the city gates, ready to storm the palace at the slightest provocation. He, a small palace gate guard, is caught in the middle, suffering from both sides, and the slightest mistake could lead to his annihilation.
Another soldier ran in from outside with a letter, shouting, "General, another letter has been shot up from below the city!"
Helan Sengjia was exasperated. He took the letter, opened it, and became even more agitated and uneasy.
After pacing around the desk twice, torn between his options and caught in a dilemma, news arrived from the palace again: Li Jingye, in the Taiji Hall, was forcing the ministers to depose the crown prince and establish a new heir, and had already killed Yan Qinli and Tang Jian...
Helan Sengjia gasped.
Who were Yan Qinli and Tang Jian? One was a great Confucian scholar of the time, and the other was a nobleman of the court. Both were top figures in their respective circles. One can imagine the earth-shattering impact that would follow.
How could Li Jingye dare to do that?
Hoping to reach a quick consensus within the palace and end the chaos is no longer an option. The deaths of Yan Qinli and Tang Jian have completely shattered any possibility of reconciliation, and both sides are bound to fight to the death.
He must make a decision now.
Should they side with Fang Jun, open the palace gates, and send in the army to quell the chaos?
Or should we stick with Li Jingye and the remaining forces of the imperial clan behind him and fight one last time? Perhaps we can also gain merit by following the emperor and rise to prominence.
This question doesn't need to be pondered for long, because the answer is obvious.
Now that Fang Jun has already made it clear that he is ready to enter the palace to quell the rebellion, and the Left and Right Imperial Guards are completely under his control, and the Left and Right Imperial Guards and the Left Martial Guard are all holding back, there is no need to question who will win or lose.
The reason for the hesitation is simply that they are unwilling to give up.
But what can you do when faced with life and death, success and failure, no matter how unwilling you are?
At the very last moment of the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Helan Sengjia grabbed his helmet, put it on his head, and led the way out of the city tower, down the ramp to the inside of the palace gate. With a wave of his hand, he shouted, "Open the gate!"
"Here!"
The gatekeepers also breathed a sigh of relief. A palace coup had nothing to do with them anyway; what benefit could they possibly gain from who won? On the contrary, angering Fang Jun and facing a fierce attack from the Left and Right Imperial Guards could very well lead to their defeat and death…
Squeak—!
The heavy Chengtian Gate slowly opened as its hinges turned.
The soldiers peering through the slowly opening door saw the densely packed, fully armed Imperial Guards standing motionless in the rain, their imposing presence, their helmets and armor exuding a sense of oppression rarely seen from the city tower.
At the sound of military orders, the vanguard slowly moved towards the palace gate, their armor clanging and their movements as steady as a forest.
Helan Sengjia stood on one side of the gate, watching squads of heavily armored infantrymen march through the archway in perfect unison, the sound of their boots striking the ground rhythmic and awe-inspiring.
Only when Fang Jun rode in and came into view did he step forward two steps, kneel on one knee, and loudly proclaim, "This humble general, Helan Sengjia, greets the Grand Commandant!"
Fang Jun pointed with his riding whip and said to his personal guards, "Seize this man and detain him for now. We'll deal with him later!"
Helan Sengjia's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly asked, "Why is the Grand Commandant acting this way?"
In his view, he opened the palace gates because he had influenced Fang Jun's orders. Once Fang Jun completely quelled the rebellion in the palace, he would have accomplished a great feat, at least qualifying as "opening the city gates and surrendering."
The result was not only fruitless, but they also wanted to arrest and imprison him...
The nearby gate guards were also dissatisfied and rushed forward to surround Helan Sengjia. It wasn't that they wanted to risk their lives to protect him; they were all responsible for guarding Chengtian Gate and were in a superior-subordinate relationship. If Helan Sengjia was guilty, how could they escape?
It's a lose-lose situation; everyone loses.
Fang Jun, however, did not take it seriously. From his horseback, he warned in a deep voice: "Last night, there was a dramatic change in the palace. All those involved must be investigated. Helan Sengjia is in a crucial position guarding Chengtian Gate. If you disregard my military orders, you will be immediately arrested, taken outside Chengtian Gate, and beheaded as a warning to uphold military discipline!"
The soldiers of Chengtian Gate trembled in fear and took a step back in unison, not daring to utter a single word.
Helan Sengjia's face was flushed red, and he still wanted to explain himself, but Fang Jun was already impatient. He waved his hand and said, "If this man says anything more, knock out all his teeth before locking him up!"
Helan Sengjia: "..."
Seeing the menacing look on Fang Jun's face as several bodyguards rushed up beside him, he quickly shut his mouth.
Upon entering Chengtian Gate, the soldiers of the Left and Right Jinwu Guards quickened their pace and split into three groups. Led by Cheng Wuting and Sun Renshi, they jogged towards Guiren Gate on the east side and Nayi Gate on the west side, while Fang Jun personally led one group to enter the palace through Jiade Gate and Taiji Gate, heading straight for Taiji Hall.
Cheng Wuting led the Left Jinwu Guard through Guiren Gate and then north into Gongli Gate. After occupying the Menxia Province and Hongwen Hall, their troops advanced directly to Wude Gate. Sun Renshi led the Right Jinwu Guard through Nayi Gate and into Anren Gate, sweeping through the Zhongshu Province and Sheren Academy. They then rushed north into the Inner Court from the Qingming Canal inside Jiayou Gate, and circled around the Chengqing, Baifu, and Qianqiu Halls from west to east to Liangyi Gate, separating the Inner Court from the Outer Court.
As they advanced, they encountered several groups of fleeing soldiers and rebels, all of whom collapsed at the first contact. The Left and Right Imperial Guards completely took control of the situation within half an hour of entering the palace. Only a thousand or so rebels under the command of Li Jingye gathered on the north side of Taiji Hall and continued to besiege the Xuanwu Gate garrison.
Fang Jun rode straight into the Taiji Gate, dismounted in front of the Taiji Hall, and first ordered his troops to block the entire Taiji Hall. Then, after more than a hundred well-equipped soldiers rushed up the white marble steps and into the Taiji Hall to completely wipe out the rebels and occupy the entire Taiji Hall, Fang Jun climbed the steps, took off his raincoat and discarded his straw hat, and went straight into the hall.
Numerous civil and military officials, both high and low rank, followed closely behind...
Upon entering the hall, the sound of wailing filled the air. The twenty-odd officials of the third rank or above who had entered the palace earlier were kneeling on either side of a bed in the center. Two corpses and their heads were placed to one side, still bleeding profusely. The hall was filled with a strong stench of blood.
Fang Jun entered the palace with his sword and shoes, approached the wooden bed, gazed at Li Chengqian's remains for a long time, finally sighed, and knelt on the ground as if pushing down a mountain of gold and a jade pillar, remaining silent.
More than a hundred officials, both high and low, followed closely behind. Upon seeing the tragic scene in the Taiji Hall and the Emperor's remains, they were first terrified and confused, then wailed incessantly, their cries deafening.
Who could have imagined that such a sudden change would occur in the Taiji Palace, with His Majesty passing away and important officials falling in the line of duty?
If not handled properly, it will not only cause a subversive change in the power center of the court, but may even spread the turmoil to the entire empire!
Disaster!
Fang Jun knelt on the ground and mourned for a moment, then stood up, one hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist, looked around at the ministers in the hall, and said loudly: "His Majesty's death has caused grief throughout the country, but the most urgent task is to stabilize the situation and rectify the court. It is not too late to cry after everything is stable!"
The wailing subsided a little, a statement that stirred something in many people's minds.
Such a calamity would inevitably have far-reaching consequences, and countless people would be implicated. Losing their official positions would be the least of their worries; many would be exiled, banished, or even have their entire families wiped out...
The imperial power structure is bound to be reshaped. Someone will fall out of luck and leave a vacancy, so someone else will naturally have to take over.
Everyone was deeply saddened by His Majesty's death and wished they could take his place, but they waited until the redistribution of power was completed before paying their respects to His Majesty's spirit...