The Slender Waist-Chapter 406 - 293 Impending Chaos_2

Tang Shaogong’s eyebrows slightly furrowed as he glanced at her, his tone even, "Does Her Highness truly believe that there are people who would exhaust their care for the throne, dying only after they have done all they could?"

Li Sangruo felt as if she had been struck by lightning, and cold sweat flowed uncontrollably.

Her heart was filled with air, jealousy, and anger, but she didn’t truly want to fall out with Pei Jue, nor had she ever thought that someone as loyal as Pei Jue would actually betray the Imperial Court and commit such treacherous acts...

"Has the Empress Dowager done something wrong? Has the Empress Dowager done nothing at all?"

Tang Shaogong glanced at her and turned to ask Chen Xi.

"Where is the military token?"

Chen Xi, shaking and fumbling, bowed his head and presented it with both hands.

"At that time, the General handed it to Duan Weixiao, who refused to accept it. The General threw the military token to the mud, and I, being in a dilemma, had no choice but to pick it up..."

Li Sangruo was overjoyed, "Bring it here, present the military token to the Empress Dowager."

With the military token, one can command thousands of troops and horses.

With the military token, one can possess real, absolute authority.

With the military token, she and her son could become the true rulers of the Great Jin Dynasty, and no longer have to act based on anyone else’s mood...

Li Sangruo was almost trembling as she reached out to receive the military token.

A hand reached out, stopping her.

Tang Shaogong took the military token from Chen Xi’s palm, glanced at it, and put it into his own hand.

"Your Highness, rest in bed. I will go find the General and hope to resolve this crisis."

Li Sangruo was astonished.

In Tang Shaogong’s eyes, besides coldness, there was also disdain.

As if he were looking at an ignorant, foolish woman.

Li Sangruo staggered, watching him leave, then looked again at her empty palm, stunned for a moment before collapsing beside the couch, deflated.

Sitting alone, her body ice-cold, tears rolled down.

She felt wronged, humiliated, and even more filled with hatred.

She was the regent Empress Dowager; she could tolerate Pei Jue showing her disdain, but what was Tang Shaogong? How dare he treat her with such indifference?

Why, why them...

A servant girl offered a hand warmer, but in a fit of rage, Li Sangruo threw it to the ground with a clap.

"It’s so hot, do you want to burn the Empress Dowager to death?"

The servant girl knelt on the ground.

Li Sangruo coldly wept in silence.

"Get out! All of you get out!"

One may sit atop the highest seat of honor, but without the ability to control everything, one can only end up as a decoration and a puppet.

She was the regent Empress Dowager, only a mother to a three-year-old child.

She was her son’s support, and her son was also her support. But in the end, she had to lean on Li Zongxun, rely on Pei Jue...

Thoughts rose and fell, her fate never in her own hands.

If she didn’t want to sit and await death, she needed to have something tangible in her grasp.

In the past, she wanted to hold onto Pei Jue, but now...

What should she do?

-

The sky was covered with rolling dark clouds, as if a storm was approaching.

Puyang Jiu was preparing to treat Feng Yun, just as he was lifting his medicine chest, Puyang Li called out to him.

"Ah Jiu, come here." Puyang Li sat behind a wooden desk, his face showing a trace of fatigue.

Puyang Jiu walked over, only then noticing that the cup in his father’s hand held not tea but liquor.

"Father, what’s wrong?"

Puyang Li pursed his lips tightly, his gaze fixed on her without saying a word.

"Father?" Puyang Jiu grew anxious, "Wangzhi is waiting for me to treat my sister-in-law’s illness. Do you have any instructions, old man?"

Puyang Li slowly set down his cup, rested his hands on his raised knees, and through the haze in his eyes, a faint glimmer betrayed a thousand words, yet he sighed with only one breath.

"You’ve grown up and have your own decisions to make. As a father, I should not say too much, but in these hard times of turmoil, one wrong step from you or me, and it’s an irredeemable disaster." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Puyang Jiu was stunned, "Father, are you saying..."

Puyang Li did not respond.

After a moment, he finally said, "For generations, our Puyang family has practiced medicine, not coveting power or involving ourselves in court politics, which has kept our descendants prosperous and our lives free from peril. I do not wish for you to become a minister or general or seek fame and fortune, but only hope you lead a stable life as a physician..."

Puyang Jiu fell silent for a moment before bowing his head respectfully.

"Father, I have no desire for power or profit, nor any ambitions above my station..."

"Yet, my son, you are already in the vortex of it all, without even knowing."

Puyang Li stared at him unwaveringly.

The events of today struck like a warning bell, forcing him to make decisions concerning the livelihood of his clan.

"Father intends to resign from his position and retire, returning to Pingcheng to farm. Once you return, we will pack our belongings and leave."

"Father..." Puyang Jiu was dumbfounded.

Even if one were to resign and return to farming, was there such a need for haste?

Puyang Li closed his eyes for a brief moment and sighed lowly, "Great chaos is approaching, my son must take great care. The fate of over a hundred members of the Puyang family rests upon your single thought."

Puyang Jiu set down his medical box and knelt before Puyang Li, bowing his head in a solemn kowtow.

"Rest assured, Father, I understand it all. I shall spend my life practicing medicine and doing good and will not dabble in the schemes of power."

Puyang Li gave a bitter smile, waved his hand, and said, "Go ahead."

His young son was unaware of the brutality and bloodshed involved in the power struggle.

Murders happen without bloodshed, and countless people become victims.

Between Li Zongxun and Pei Jue, a trap had been set, and even if they did not come to blows tonight, conflict was inevitable in the coming days. And being caught in the middle might bring harm to the entire family.

He had to go.

The sooner the better.

-

Pei Jue did not linger in the council hall; he took the unconscious Feng Yun back to Chunmeng Hall.

By the time Tang Shaogong arrived with reinforcements, Chunmeng Hall was already under heavy guard.

Tang Shaogong requested an audience with General Pei at the gate, only to be turned away by the gatekeeper.

"There’s no General here, sir, you’ve got the wrong place."

Pei Jue refused to meet with Tang Shaogong, nor would he take up the military token again.

With this, the token became a hot potato.

Impossible to return, and yet holding on to it is burdensome...

Nobody knew what Pei Jue was thinking.

Xinzhou City fell into darkness under the overcast sky, eerily quiet.

"Refusing the military token, does he truly intend to break with the Jin Court and resist openly?"

"Pei Jue has no treacherous intent; it is the Jin Empress Dowager, ignorant and jealous, who cares not for the bigger picture and forces him into defiance."

"With over twelve thousand Beiyong Army soldiers stationed around Xinzhou, if Pei Jue really had rebellious intentions, why not strike amidst the chaos? What is he hesitating for?"

"What’s the point of holding onto a Jin Empress Dowager? The true master of Jin is in Central Capital, a three-year-old child on the Golden Throne Hall."

"A dishonorable quest for power, with the timing not yet right."

"I’ll wager Pei Jue will certainly rebel."

"I guess Pei Jue won’t rebel."

Under the cold moonlight, Chunmeng Hall was silent, and on the Imperial Boat at Zhu River’s ferry, Xiao Cheng and Chunyu Yan sat opposite each other drinking, watching the pale moon flit through clouds, engaging in worldly discussions and lofty talks, not yet aware that fate’s course was quietly shifting that night, and history was on the verge of turning a new page...