All Hail Cousin Brother

However, since he had caused trouble in Zhejiang, the dog emperor’s anger was directed at the corrupt officials in Zhejiang.

Yu Zongshen had joined forces with the Qingliu of Zhejiang to reorganize the government wantonly and seize the dirty money. It also made the dog emperor feel that there were benefits so that the Xie family could be safe.

However, this was not a long-term solution.

Xie Jingliu laughed silently. His laughter was a little desolate. “The treasury has always been deficient. They either have designs on the commoners and want to plunder their wealth, or have designs on the merchants. Today, there is a man-made disaster. If they have designs on the commoners, how can the Xie family protect themselves? Everything our Xie family does for the Imperial Court and the commoners isn’t self-preservation, but self-destruction.’

Even if the Xie family lost all their wealth, would the Imperial Court believe it?

It was just that desire was difficult to satisfy.

Yin Huaixi continued, “The emperor’s body is poisoned and he hasn’t been to court for a few days. All the Daoists in the Heavenly Hall have been ‘invited’ into the Chenggan Palace. Concubine Lan of the Lanyi Palace will temporarily be in charge of the phoenix seal and manage all the matters in the palace.”

He deliberately emphasized the word “invited”.

The secrets revealed were so secretive that it was terrifying.

Xie Jingliu’s expression suddenly turned solemn. Not to mention the Xie Residence, even the capital did not reveal any news from the palace. The emperor was obsessed with Dao techniques. Not to mention not going to court

for three to five days, he could even stay away for half a month or even three

to five months. Who would have thought that there was actually such a hidden turbulence?

Yin Huaixi sighed slightly. “The emperor won’t be able to survive the new year. On the surface, Concubine Xu is imprisoned, but the Xu family is powerful.

Concubine Lan is in charge of the harem and is deeply trusted by the emperor.

The Empress of the Central Palace has been sick in the palace for a long time. The Fourth Prince is not lowly and is hiding his strength. The battle for the position of heir will cause a bloodbath in the palace.”

Xie Jingliu understood the deeper meaning. “The Empress and the Fourth

Prince…”

He suddenly understood the crux of the matter.

There wasn’t a son in the Central Palace and the Fourth Prince’s biological mother had died in childbirth. In the future, when the Fourth Prince ascended the throne, the current Empress Dowager would be the Empress Dowager.

This dynasty valued legitimate wife and elders.

The first wife was always prioritised.

The Ning Clan had been destroyed, but as long as the daughter of the Ning Clan was forever the first wife, the influence of the Ning Clan would never really disappear.

Madam Ning was the same as the Zhenguo Marquis Residence. They were both old nobles from the time of their great ancestors and had very powerful forces in the army. Looking at the old generals in the court, how many of them had been promoted by Duke Ning in the past?

While Concubine Lan and Imperial Concubine Xu were fighting to the death, the Empress of the Central Palace had already secretly gathered her strength.

Yin Huaixi nodded. “If I’m not wrong, the Zhenguo Marquis Residence is the descendant of the emperor. If they support the fourth prince’s ascension, then the fourth prince will be legitimate. The second and third princes will become rebels. This suits the position of the Zhenguo Marquis Residence’s royalists.” He had heard Yu Youyao mention it before.

Yu Youyao would have married into the Zhenguo Marquis Residence at the age of 14 and died at the age of 17.

At that time, Song Mingzhao was already the Marquis of Zhenguo and had power over the court.

Thinking about it, Song Mingzhao was only in his early twenties. Even if the Zhenguo Marquis Residence supported a new emperor, it wouldn’t be his turn to be in the limelight.

If Song Mingzhao had obtained a scholarly title in the earlier exam, he could have given his support to his chosen heir. Besides, they are descendents of the imperial family. With the wealth of the Xie family, it would have really been like a mantis chasing after a cicada but not knowing that an oriole is behind wanting to eat it. In the end, he would have won this battle for the throne.

The Xie Residence would have died in Song Mingzhao!s hands.

All of this made sense.

There was a reason why he had such a guess.

If Song Mingzhao wanted to nurture Yu Youyao into a medicinal catalyst, he wouldn’t be able to get past the Xie family.

Once there was news that Song Mingzhao was involved in shamanic matters, the Zhenguo Marquis Residence would be destroyed. Song Mingzhao would definitely not leave any future trouble for himself. Eliminating the Xie family was his first step.

Only by making Yu Youyao lose all her backing could she be at his mercy.

At the thought of this, Yin Huaixi frowned.

It was just an absurd nightmare. M/hy was he inexplicably concerned?

Every time he thought of what had happened to Yu Youyao in her nightmare, his heart would be filled with pain.

Xie Jingliu frowned. “The situation in the harem is actually already so serious. What about the vassal lords?”

HE was really sharp. Yin Huaixi smiled and said, “The capital is in chaos. It’s time for the vassal lords to rebel. It’s only logical to raise an army and start a proper war.”

Xie Jingliu was a little shocked. “How can you be sure that the vassal lords will definitely rebel? Not to mention that the three camps of the capital have more than 100,000 elites guarding them, and 50,000 imperial guards surrounding the palace. The total number of troops in the capital is close to 300,000. This is the most elite army of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Moreover, you, King Yue Fei, are in the north. Can you really stand by and do nothing?”

All these years, why hadn’t the vassal lords made a move?

On one hand, the capital’s troops were strong, but on the other hand, they were afraid of the hundreds of thousands of You soldiers in the North.

The 500,000 You soldiers were summoned to the capital to coordinate with each other. They could advance and defend against external enemies, and they could retreat to help the capital. Therefore, before King Li of Zhou, the North did not have any vassal states. In order to prevent the North from becoming a problem, the Imperial Court often changed the generals guarding it.

The reason why the emperor was at ease with King Li of Zhou.

It was because in the past, King Li of Zhou was not important. His only use was his status as a prince. It was a natural deterrent to the generals guarding the North.

The reason why the emperor was at ease with Yin Huaixi now.

It was because Yin Huaixi’s crippled leg made him weak and easy to control.

King Yue Fei was deeply indebted to the emperor. The vassal lords were crazy to rebel.

Yin Huaixi said casually, “If they don’t rebel, we’ll force them to rebel!”

Xie Jingliu held his breath. “What do you mean?”

Yin Huaixi smiled faintly. “Do you still remember that three years ago, the

King of Liang sent his heir into the capital without an edict?”

Xie Jingliu gasped. He was the one who had sent this news to the capital. How could he not remember? From that time, he knew that the King of Liang would rebel sooner or later.

In the past few years, the Xie family had already cut off all business dealings with the southern border. Some of the businesses under their name had also been transferred from Fujian and they focused on the northwest.

It was just in case.

Yin Huaixi chuckled. “Our emperor is suspicious by nature. He can’t even tolerate his brothers who risked their lives for him.. Do you think he can tolerate a vassal lord overstepping the emperor’s authority and letting King Liang off so easily? Do you think anyone had the ability to vouch for a vassal lord in front of the emperor at that time?”