Eleven days passed in the blink of an eye. The alliance finally broke through Jiamen Pass. That night, they celebrated with dancing and singing.
Seeing this, Huang Song and a few of his trusted advisors sighed.
"Those idiots. It took them eleven days to break through Jiamen Pass. I don't know what to celebrate …"
Huang Song was so angry that he pounded the table. The music from outside drifted in and drilled into his ears, causing him to be upset.
Feng Jue and the others looked at each other and smiled bitterly. What was the difference between the alliance and the mud?
"Tomorrow, the army will leave for Jiamen Pass. I just hope we can make it in time …" Feng Jue sighed.
Cheng Jing lowered his eyes and said coldly, "How can we make it in time? I'm afraid the imperial city of Chenzhou is already in danger … Damn it, these short-sighted people are still so smug. Who would dare to admit that they're greedy? Now, we can only pin our hopes on Liu Xi and Yang Jian and hope they can be fast enough. Even if we can't save the imperial city, we have to save His Majesty … "
Because the five kingdoms had only been established for a short period of time, coupled with the education of the aristocratic families, the scholars were not very loyal to the country.
Cheng Jing and Feng Jue were typical examples.
To them, the imperial family would be destroyed sooner or later, but not now.
The emperor of Dongqing was still around, and he could still control some forces. If the emperor was gone, the whole of Dongqing would be ruled by feudal lords. As for Huang Song, he needed to lay low and develop further. He couldn't live without the emperor.
Feng Jue sneered and said with obvious sarcasm, "I hope so. God bless Dongqing."
But God wasn't on Dongqing's side. The fate of the country was almost exhausted. No matter how hard they tried, they could only struggle on.
On the second day after the alliance broke through Jiamen Pass, they passed through the pass in high spirits. The imperial city of Chenzhou was in danger.
Ever since they moved the capital to Chenzhou, the emperor had planned to build the imperial city into another Shangjing.
However, the national treasury was empty, and Prince Changshou had taken the opportunity to interfere. Most of the silver had to be invested in the army.
Because there wasn't enough money for construction, the emperor and his concubines had to live in the temporary palace in Chenzhou.
Although it was a temporary imperial residence, it was no less luxurious than the Imperial Palace in Shangjing. The Emperor and his concubines could still live a befuddled and luxurious life. The Emperor did not need to care about the war outside. He only cared about his own enjoyment. He embraced beauties, drank wine, and enjoyed himself.
A luxurious life required the support of money, but how could he raise enough money for his extravagant spending?
The Emperor simply moved the secret practice of selling official positions and titles to the surface. Every official title was clearly marked at a price. The Emperor's table manners were ugly and shameful to the aristocrats.
The Emperor had three thousand beauties by his side, but the one he doted on the most was the former Imperial Noble Consort, the current Empress Huijun!
When talking about the Empress, many officials were filled with love and hate, gnashing their teeth in anger.
Why was it a love-hate relationship?
Because, as long as she was present, the Emperor's violent nature would be greatly restrained, and he would not easily draw his sword to kill.
Many officials were about to be executed by the Emperor. It was all thanks to Empress Huijun's plea that their entire families were spared from the death penalty.
Logically speaking, the officials had more or less received the Empress' kindness, so why did they still hate her?
When Empress Huijun was still the Imperial Noble Consort, she plotted to murder the previous Empress and seduce the Crown Prince, causing the relationship between the Emperor and the Crown Prince to fall apart. The father and son turned against each other, and the Crown Prince's entire family was stripped of their status, demoted to commoners, and died miserably!
As for the Crown Prince himself?
He was beheaded by the furious Emperor, and he died with his eyes wide open.
Not only was the Crown Prince murdered by Huijun, but the Second Prince, the Third Prince, and the Fourth Prince, Wuma Jun, were also murdered.
The Second Prince was found to have used witchcraft to murder the Emperor and Empress Huijun. His house was confiscated, and he was killed. His mother's family was not spared.
The Third Prince's presence was very weak, but his status was the most honorable. His mother was from a side branch of the Feng family, but she was found to have seduced his concubine's mother, caused chaos in the palace, and had sex with the Emperor's new favorite beauty in public. As a result, she was stripped of her status and demoted to a commoner.
As for the Fourth Prince, Wuma Jun, he did not end up well either.
One day, he ran out of his mansion in a drunken fit and passed out on the side of the road. His legs were crushed by a few passing carriages, and he was now a cripple.
Many imperial censors investigated and pointed the finger at Empress Huijun, but the Emperor was deeply infatuated with her and did not listen to them at all.
The court was in chaos, and everyone was panicking.
The Meng family of Cangzhou changed sides overnight. Prince Changshou, who was originally in a state of decline, made a comeback and defeated the Chenzhou army.
The Emperor drank until he was drunk, and Huijun spent all day with him. All the ministers who came to see him ate and went into seclusion.
Huijun was now seductive to the bone. She seemed angry and resentful, and her eyes were full of charm.
She said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, they are shouting outside again. Day after day, it's so annoying!"
"If Jun 'er doesn't like it, find a small eunuch and kick them out."
The Emperor touched Huijun's delicate, boneless hand with intoxicated eyes. At the mention of those noisy imperial censors, he felt a wave of irritation.
Bad news came from the frontline every day. It was fine if those ministers could not share his burdens, but they liked to meddle in the affairs of his backyard. So, he still liked to stay at Huijun's place. As long as he enjoyed her body, listened to her gentle voice, and enjoyed that moment of pleasure, he would be willing to die. How could he care about those officials outside who were babbling nonsense?
Huijun smiled. It was not an exaggeration to say that her smile could topple a city.
"Your Majesty, you'd better go out and take a look. If you continue to stay here, I'm afraid the ministers will criticize me again."
The more magnanimous she was, the more the Emperor hated the ministers.
The Emperor's eyes were fierce. "I won't go, I won't go. Let them kneel outside until they die. Both of them are useless. They can't share my burdens, and they make things difficult for me everywhere. If it wasn't for Jun 'er's pleas, they would have been beheaded long ago. Would they still be making noise outside? "
Huijun said considerately, "As the person who sleeps beside Your Majesty, how can I not understand the troubles in Your Majesty's heart? It's just that all the ministers are the pillars of the country. If something happens to them kneeling outside the palace, it will be one more crime to frame me … Alas … "
The Emperor felt sorry for her and wrapped his hands around her soft hands. His heart was full of relief.
"They misunderstood Jun 'er so much, but Jun' er still pleads for them everywhere … Unfortunately, the people outside are a group of ungrateful ingrates. How can they deserve Jun 'er's protection?" The Emperor frowned in his heart. He was increasingly disgusted with those ignorant ministers. "Jun' er is still the best."
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