The night was so heavy that no light could be seen, and at the darkest moment before dawn, the sound of cloud boards cut through the dark fog, echoing for a long time above the imperial city, endlessly.

Emperor, it's funeral.

The hundred officials knelt and waited outside the palace gate, all crawling on the ground, crying loudly.

Inside the Ganlin Palace, Zhang Nianling, the first assistant, held out the brocade box with the posthumous edict with his trembling hands, and slowly opened the lid of the box under the gaze of countless pairs of eyes. Concubine Chen Gui, who was about to faint from crying at first, covered her face with her handkerchief, and turned into a soft sob, her bright eyes staring eagerly at Zhang Nianling's movements.

Zhu Yunxuan lowered his eyes, the corners of his eyes were flushed red, his tensed face was particularly cold, and his hands under his large sleeves clenched into fists.

Zhang Nianling slowly unfolded the imperial decree, and said in a deep voice: "I have inherited the great cause of my ancestors with Feide, and it has been twenty or four years. The son Yunqiongqi is splendid, has made virtues of heaven, and is suitable for the throne of the emperor... The emperor is still in his old age, and it is appropriate to concentrate on classics. The king of Zhao is magnificent and handsome, and the group is unparalleled. He is the regent and supervises the country. The decrees that have been given will be implemented... The imperial edicts, both at home and abroad, will be known to the public."

Zhu Yunxuan pinched his fingertips deeply into his palm, biting his teeth hard.

The last word of Zhang Nianling fell, and there was silence for a moment in the hall. The next moment, someone helped the ninth emperor who was still ignorant and could only cry. The cabinet ministers headed by Zhang Nianling had already Kneeling in front of the little prince, he was about to meet the new prince.

Liang Zhen behind the crowd suddenly said, "Hold on."

Zhang Nianling immediately frowned, and reminded him in a deep voice: "If King Zhao has something to say, it's better to say it later."

"It's too late to be late."

Liang Zhen got up in a hurry and walked to Zhang Nianling's side. Concubine Chen angrily glared at him who had come to interrupt at this time. Liang Zhen ignored it and only asked Zhang Nianling, "Can I give this edict to Ben? Wang see?"

Zhang Nianling frowned: "What does King Zhao mean? Could it be that he suspects that the edict is forgery?!"

Liang Zhen said indifferently: "It's fake or not, you have to read it to know. Why is Zhang Ge so anxious? It seems that he has a guilty conscience."

Zhang Nianling was stunned for a moment, and then became furious: "It's a lie! Shu Zixiu wants to slander this old man!"

"Then show the widow to everyone to see." Liang Zhen's tone was not serious, but his attitude was very strong and unbearable.

Not only Zhang Nianling, but also the other two patriarchs who were also instructed to keep the will blushed. Wenchen cared about his own reputation the most, not to mention Liang Zhen suspected that they were still implicated in the crime of the nine clans.

The expressions of everyone in the hall changed, all kinds of inquiries and suspicions fell on Zhang Nianling and several people, and some of the clan princes took the lead and shouted: "In this case, the patriarchs will take this edict to us all. have a look!"

Zhu Yunxuan glanced calmly at the person who was speaking, who was a cousin of Emperor Zhaoyang and was named King Xian. These princes of the Zhu family, not counting those who went to the fiefs, there are no more brothers of Emperor Zhaoyang in the capital. Prince Xian is the closest relative to Emperor Zhaoyang among his peers, and he is very favored by Emperor Zhaoyang. Even when all the princes saw him, they would respectfully call out their uncle.

Zhang Nianling was so annoyed that he had to hand the edict to Liang Zhen: "King Zhao's eyes widened and he saw it clearly! The edict was written by His Majesty himself during his lifetime, but half of it is fake!"

Liang Zhen took it without changing his face, glanced through it quickly, and lowered his eyes: "It's a coincidence that this king also has a posthumous edict, which was also drafted by His Majesty during his lifetime. As for the content... I don't know if it is the same as this one. , Eunuch Feng was present when His Majesty wrote the posthumous edict, and the testimony that he and the king gave together, why not let Eunuch Feng read it."

Zhang Nianling was stunned: "How could there be another will! Why doesn't this old man know?! What do you want to do?!"

Liang Zhen calmly asked him: "Why does Elder Ge know that there is no other edict? I haven't read it yet, what is Elder Ge worried about?"

"you!"

There was an uproar in the hall, and everyone began to whisper to each other, Concubine Chen twisted the handkerchief in her hand and stared at Liang Zhen, but Liang Zhen didn't care, and reminded Zhang Nianling, whose face was already very ugly: "It's better to read the widow quickly. Well, in order to comfort the emperor's heart, it will also bring peace to the world."

King Xian shouted: "Read, read! Of course you have to read!"

No matter what other people were thinking, they all echoed: "Since there is still a will, of course you have to read it."

"That's right, that's His Majesty's will."

"Hurry up and read, what's the delay..."

Feng Sheng held out the imperial decree and began to read it slowly.

The content at the front is the same, but from the middle part, it is completely different.

"The emperor's fifth son, Rui Wang Yunxuan, is benevolent and filial to the heavens, and his virtues have been completed.

Before the edict was finished, Concubine Chen shouted out: "This is impossible!"

She staggered to her feet, struggling to grab the imperial decree in Feng Sheng's hands, and shouted gaily: "This is fake! This must be fake! You guys are so bold! You are trying to get the throne!"

Feng Sheng frowned and stepped back, shouting his grievances: "Niang Niang, you have a clear lesson! Even if you borrow ten thousand courage from slaves, slaves would not dare to do such a treacherous thing!"

Concubine Chen Gui's chaos, the frightened Zhu Yunqiong also burst into tears, Zhu Yunxuan pursed his lips tightly and said nothing, but he could feel that many eyes had turned to him, with fear, Suspicion and scrutiny.

Zhang Nianling trembled with anger: "Absurd! Absurd! You...you are so bold!"

Liang Zhen was still unhurried: "This is strange, the contents of the two wills are so different..."

"You must be fake!"

Several cabinet ministers shouted one after another, all of them blushing with anger and thick necks. Liang Zhen ignored them and said, "Since there are two completely different wills, let everyone comment together."

The two edicts were circulated in turn in the hands of many people. From the face of it, the handwriting on the two edicts was the same. They both came from the hands of Emperor Zhaoyang, and they were both stamped with jade seals, but the contents were quite different. really don't know how to draw conclusions.

Another patriarch behind Zhang Nianling argued: "That day, His Majesty summoned me to enter the palace, and when His Majesty wrote the edict in person, all three of me were present! How could it be fake! It's clearly King Zhao, you have ulterior motives and fabricated this other story. A widow intended to usurp the throne!"

Liang Zhen's expression turned cold: "Are you planning to usurp the throne? What dynasty is this king planning to usurp the throne? The edict is written with the fifth prince, King Rui ascending the throne. This king has no relationship with King Rui. he?"

Without waiting for the other party to refute, he added: "In fact, His Highness the Ninth Highness is the nephew of this king, and the mother concubine of His Highness the Ninth Highness, Concubine Chen Gui, is the cousin of the king, and the king shares the surname of Liang with her. If you want to help, the king should also help them. What's more, the edict in your hands was returned to this king as the regent and supervising the country, if this king really wants to conspire to usurp the throne, why should he let the regent not do it and go to work for the fifth highness who has no friendship?"

Concubine Chen Gui was furious: "Liang Zhen! You did it on purpose! How could you do such a thing! You—"

Liang Zhen looked at her coldly, and reminded in a deep voice, "Concubine Chen, be careful."

Touching his frosty gaze, Concubine Chen Gui was startled, and cold sweat broke out on her back for no reason. Thinking of something, her lips moved, but she didn't dare to say it again.

Zhang Nianling scolded angrily: "Shuzi dares!"

Liang Zhen immediately retorted: "Several patriarchs don't rely on being the head of the hundred officials, and they will be in unison, deceive the king, disrupt the court, and fake the imperial edict, which is equivalent to conspiracy. What do you want to do? Minister Gu Ming is not enough to satisfy you, and you still want to change the dynasty?"

"You—!" Zhang Nianling was so agitated by Liang Zhen's aggressiveness that he didn't mention it in one breath.

Everyone in the hall looks at me, I look at you, no one dares to take the lead at this time.

Liang Zhen looked at it coldly and asked everyone again: "Now that the two edicts are here, what do you think?"

No one dared to answer, Zhu Yunxuan looked at Liang Zhen who could also be calm and calm at this time with a complicated expression, and the feeling in his heart was even more complicated. Liang Zhen didn't look at him, and only confronted those cabinet ministers.

Zhang Nianling knelt down in front of Emperor Zhaoyang's corpse and cried bitterly: "Your Majesty! The old minister has gone through three dynasties, and he has always fulfilled his duties and is loyal to the emperor! The minister is worthy of the sky, and he is not ashamed of others! But now...now the minister But I can't keep this great Yanjiang Mountain for you! I have no face to live in the world, why don't I go with you!"

Liang Zhen said indifferently: "Elder Zhang Ge's words are too much. Is this cursing my Dayan Mountains and Rivers to be destroyed?"

This remark is really heartbreaking, that Zhang Nianling was so angry that he vomited blood on the spot, and the entire hall suddenly became a mess.

Amidst the chaos, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside, and the Imperial Guards surrounded the entire Ganlin Palace inside and out. Even inside the palace, through the blurred glazed windows, one could see the moving outside. The shadows and torches, and the faint sound of the sword coming out of the scabbard is even more frightening.

The commander of the Guards entered the palace, glanced at the situation in the palace, and respectfully asked Liang Zhen: "Your Majesty has passed away, I am afraid that there will be chaos in the inner palace, the lower official has ordered to strengthen the patrol and defense of the palace, and I also ask the prince to show him. ."

At that moment, the faces of the people in the hall became extremely delicate. It seemed that they remembered that when Emperor Zhaoyang was seriously ill, the soldiers and horses of the entire capital, including the imperial guards, had returned to the arrogant and indomitable man in front of him. The different surname Wang unified the order.

If he really wanted to usurp the throne, it would be a good idea to sit on the throne himself.

Zhang Nianling, who was already embarrassed, was even more angry when he saw this, and said angrily: "You asked these people to surround this Ganlin Palace...you...you are trying to force me to surrender! You can't even think about it! This old man is dead, and he will never die.I won't let you such a chaotic minister and thief get his wish!"

Liang Zhen narrowed his eyes lightly, and the last trace of patience in his eyes was exhausted.