Qiang Jin Jiu (Author : Tang Jiuqing 唐酒卿)

Chapter 47 : Power Struggle

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Terrified, Li Jianheng kicked that human head away with his leg shaking. He no longer cared about keeping up appearances. Right this moment, he wanted so much to shrink into the Dragon Throne. There was a roaring in his ears as he watched the fresh blood soak through his robe. It felt as though someone was strangling him by the throat; for a long time, he could not utter a single word.

Shen Zechuan kneeled on one knee and said with a severe countenance, "Don't be afraid, Your Majesty. The assassin has already been executed. This humble subject was late in coming to your protection. For this sin, I deserve death!"

Li Jianheng's limbs seemed to be paralyzed as he struggled with the effort to grasp hold of the armrests of the throne and shift his gaze from the corpse to Shen Zechuan's face. He almost choked with sobs as he grabbed Shen Zechuan's sleeve and said, "Not late... not late at all! You... Lanzhou, you've done well! I, I almost..."

"Summon the Imperial Physician!" Ignoring the bloody corpse, the Empress Dowager hurried over. She held Li Jianheng's hand and called out softly to him, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty?"

Li Jianheng was still in a panic from the fear. He swallowed his saliva with some difficulty and hastily pulled out his hand from the Empress Dowager's palms to grasp Shen Zechuan's sleeve tightly. He pleaded, "Stay here. Lead the Imperial Bodyguards and remain here to protect me!"

"The Imperial Bodyguards are His Majesty's guards." Shen Zechuan said without blinking an eye. "For His Majesty, the Imperial Bodyguards will willingly brave through fire and water. This humble subject will immediately escort Your Majesty back to Mingli Hall."

Everyone at the banquet was still badly shaken. Xue Xiuzhuo took a few steps forward and said sharply, "Arrest and detain everyone from the Imperial Food Service, Court of Imperial Entertainments, Imperial Bakery, and Imperial Winery. To think there is an assassin hiding among the Son of Heaven's personal attendants. All those involved in the arrangements of the inner palace eunuchs and guards' defenses must be held accountable!"

"Who is in charge of patrols tonight?" The Empress Dowager asked.

The banquet hall fell silent. Xiao Chiye bowed and said, "To reply Your Majesty, it's this subject."

The Empress Dowager did not pursue further. Instead, she looked at Li Jianheng, as did the other officials.

For this eunuch to be someone from the Imperial Food Service, he first had to have a clean family background and a clean history. The time he entered the palace, the services and offices among the Twenty-four Yamens he had worked in, and even which inner palace eunuchs he had been on good terms with in the past, all had to be investigated. Not only that, even the people he came into contact with had to be checked and recorded in the official files. Xiao Chiye was responsible for the guards' defenses. He was supposed to vet all these matters thoroughly before the Feast of A Hundred Officials. The assassin had walked in through his layers of defenses. There was no way he could escape responsibility.

With his lips pale as he dripped cold sweat, Li Jianheng said, "Take the eunuchs of the various services into custody first. I..."
Before he could finish his words, he fainted.

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Tonight was destined to be a sleepless one. Li Jianheng was lying unconscious in the inner room. The Imperial Physicians gathered in a group, while the Empress Dowager listened to their diagnosis behind the hanging curtain once more. Hai Liangyi waited on the side, as instructed explicitly by the Empress Dowager.

Han Cheng led the Imperial Bodyguards to stand guard with their swords under the eaves, while the court officials kneeled outside. The night of Yuanchun was incredibly cold. Many elderly officials were already shivering from the freezing cold, hanging on with their sheer will alone.