bestfiction Chapter 209 Won
Chapter 209 Won
The old emperor had been in power for so many years that he was living as he pleased.
Whether it's a treasure or a beautiful woman, you can get it as soon as you want it.
He hadn't longed for anything like this in a long time, and now, listening to the noise outside, his hope was rekindled.
Whoever comes, he will reward them handsomely as long as they can deal with these treacherous officials.
Zhang Zhongyi wanted to be a powerful minister who could control the emperor and command the feudal lords, but he did not do as he wished.
Even if he could only pass the throne to the twelfth son, he would still give the position of regent to someone else.
Zhang Zhongyi also heard the commotion outside and immediately frowned, sending someone to investigate.
As soon as the man stepped outside, he saw a gray-clad man covered in blood rushing towards him.
"Your Excellency, Chen Kuo, a member of the Eastern Depot, has betrayed us."
The combined forces of the Five City Garrison and the Prince An's mansion failed to intercept Prince An's men.
Zhang Zhongyi frowned immediately. "The Undying Army can't hold out?"
"We can't hold on. Those people know the characteristics of the Undead Army and only attack the head."
"Your Excellency, please make a decision soon."
Winning over the Imperial Guards and raising soldiers under the old emperor's nose was no easy task.
Zhang Zhongyi could only muster three or four hundred regular soldiers; the rest were the Undying Army controlled by江湖人士 (jianghu figures).
The so-called Undying Army are those zombie-like Gu people who don't need to be raised or trained in advance.
All you need to do is have someone ingest the Gu worm and control it with a bell a few hours before it's needed.
The reason why the Second Prince's men and the Imperial Guards suffered such a crushing defeat was because they did not understand the characteristics of these living dead.
The swords and blades struck without the opponent's awareness, and they immediately began to bite and bite. This psychological factor alone deterred them from fighting back.
Whether it's a fight or a war, it's all about fighting spirit.
Who wouldn't be afraid of a man-eating monster? Defeat was inevitable.
However, the people from the Eastern Depot and Jin Zekang knew in advance that these zombies were just puppets controlled by insects, so they naturally faced little pressure in the fight.
Zhang Zhongyi is truly despicable.
Young men from several villages around Beijing were attracted by the high-paying job offer and spent a whole morning digging a large pit on a barren mountain on the outskirts of Beijing.
They had no idea that the large pits they dug would eventually become their burial ground, and that the porridge they had eaten at noon had been laced with Gu worm eggs.
As the sun sets and the insect eggs hatch, strong men are transformed into mindless puppets.
They mechanically followed the bell into a secluded courtyard, where they stood there blankly, like wooden or clay sculptures, waiting.
Batch after batch, group after group, in just two days, the surrounding villages lost more than 600 able-bodied men.
But since it had been agreed that the job would last for three days, no one found it strange or reported it to the police.
Those people's families were waiting for them to bring back money to support their families, unaware that their husbands and sons had already lost their lives.
The old emperor's eyes lit up when he heard that his fourth son was alive and had even brought people to rescue him; he displayed a morbid excitement.
Having come this far, Zhang Zhongyi was unwilling to give up. With a command, everyone charged toward the old emperor.
At least grab a hostage; even if he dies, he'll take someone down with him.
The remaining 20-odd members of the Dragon Guard also rushed forward, and the sounds of swords clashing rang out again. Zhang Zhongyi and the old emperor looked at each other across the fighting crowd.
If you ignore their age and unattractive appearances, they really do have that love-hate relationship vibe!
No matter how skilled the Imperial Guards were, they couldn't withstand the sheer number of opponents. Just when the old emperor thought he was going to die before Prince An arrived, a voice that gave him immense peace of mind appeared.
With a loud clang, Supervisor Xiao made his dazzling entrance.
Even though the beautiful eunuch beside him repeatedly used corpses as weapons to smash a group of people, it couldn't diminish the brilliance of Supervisor Xiao.
Both the old emperor and Zhang Zhongyi seemed to want to glue their eyes to Xiao Yuan's face, while Jiang Xinyu, who had been dominating the battlefield, became nothing more than a background character.
Indeed, a person's reputation precedes them.
Even if Jiang Xinyu smashed five or six corpses with a single swing, it wouldn't be as captivating as Xiao Yuan taking them down one by one with a single slash.
The old emperor's address of "Minister Xiao" was so sincere and heartfelt, conveying three parts joy, three parts grievance, and four parts grief and indignation.
It's comparable to Xu Xian's cry of "My wife" when Bai Suzhen was imprisoned in Leifeng Pagoda.
It's comparable to the cry of the Cowherd from the angels when the Seven Fairies were captured.
Jiang Xinyu couldn't help but shudder. With a sudden burst of strength, she crushed the corpse's leg.
Zhang Zhongyi was not to be outdone.
However, his use of the name Xiao Yuan was squeezed out through gritted teeth, and anyone who heard it knew that he had a blood feud with the owner of this name—the one who killed his father and stole his wife—and that the other party had at least killed half of his family genealogy.
The emotions were incredibly rich.
It gives the impression that if he were locked up with Xiao Yuan, he would simply devour the other person raw without even eating the pancake.
We're currently fighting here, and Jin Zekang and the people from the Eastern Depot have also arrived.
Knowing that all was lost, Zhang Zhongyi drew his knife, intending to slit his own throat.
Without thinking, Jiang Xinyu threw a corpse over, which accurately smashed the knife and gave Zhang Zhongyi a hard slam on the ground.
It was quite a coincidence that the corpse she casually grabbed turned out to be the Second Prince's.
So now the son-in-law is on top and the father-in-law is on the bottom, and the two are kissing.
Jiang Xinyu silently took a step back to minimize her presence. She really didn't mean it; it could only be said that the two of them were destined to be together.
The old emperor's heart finally settled down when he saw his fourth son step in.
At this moment, he couldn't think of questioning why his son's leg had healed without reporting it, nor did he have time to question Xiao Yuan about faking his death.
All he wants to know now is whether he has any other living offspring.
Of course, before the fourth prince knelt down and kowtowed to him, calling him "Father Emperor," he thought the boy was also planning to stage a coup.
Fortunately, Kang'er was still filial. He didn't have a litter of animals; only his second and third sons were bastards.
Jin Zekang helped the old emperor sit down to pat him on the back and repeatedly told the young eunuch to quickly find the imperial physician, behaving like a good son.
The old emperor held his hand, tears streaming down his face, unable to tell whether it was the joy of surviving a calamity or the sorrow of losing a bunch of sons.
The sky was already turning a pale white, and the intense joy, sorrow, and thrills of the past half-night seemed to have drained the old emperor of his vitality.
The imperial physician's face was grave, and he dared not utter the words "exhausted and dying."
The old emperor seemed to sense it himself, and called Xiao Ling over to retrieve something from the hidden compartment by the bed in the side hall.
That was a heart-protecting pill, used by emperors throughout history to prolong their lives when they felt their time was near.
It can instantly stimulate a person's vitality, but only for a little over an hour, just to arrange important state affairs and determine the successor with the ministers.
It can be said that only the successor chosen by the emperor himself and all his ministers is the least likely to be criticized.
Those who ascend to the throne through other means will always have people questioning the legitimacy of their position, and for several years or even more than a decade, there will be restless individuals.
Jin Zekang begged the couple to come over early, which was also for this reason.
It seems Jiang Xinyu is quite reliable when it matters. I'll send him two top-quality erotic books as a thank you gift.
Jiang Xinyu: I feel guilty. Actually, it's just that your dad is lucky and it happened to be a coincidence. I had long forgotten what I promised you.
Jin Zekang wanted not only power but also a good reputation to become the regent.
He was a prince who had been granted the title of king in advance and should not have had the right to inherit the throne. Although no one said anything about his ascension to the throne under the current circumstances, it still aroused suspicion.
You might as well bring it up yourself.
The only adult prince, who was confident of victory, refused the throne and was willing to assist his younger brother, just to show that he had no ambition and that the rebellion had nothing to do with him.
Is he filial?
Isn't that noble?
Isn't that admirable?
He himself felt that he was bathed in Buddha's light.
If that brat dares to lay a hand on him in the future, the royal family will condemn him to death, and the ministers will all call him a tyrant.
I, Jin Zekang, am a loyal minister, a filial son, and a truly good person!