Chapter 505 — Palace Coup

Cui Yijun's words left the Crown Prince visibly shaken.

True, Ji Yong was not on duty today, but since the afternoon he had been at the Eastern Palace discussing Yellow River governance with the Crown Prince, who, on account of this year's floods, had listened with uncommon attention; even when the palace keys were turned for the night, the two were still talking with great zest, and Cui Yijun had simply told the eunuchs to keep a room for Ji Yong in the side chamber. When the commotion broke out at the Qianqing Palace in the dead of night, it was Ji Yong, too, who urged the Crown Prince to go to the rescue.

Ji Yong, with a rare show of embarrassment, said, "This waist tablet is a forgery! I had it made by a master craftsman after Song's own."

The Crown Prince and Cui Yijun were struck dumb.

As though afraid they would not believe him, Ji Yong handed the tablet to Cui Yijun.

Cui Yijun had only ever seen Song's tablet; as for telling true from false, he truly had no idea how it was done, let alone in such circumstances. Smiling, he returned the tablet to Ji Yong. "To my eye it looks exactly like the real thing—it even fooled the Jinwu Guard." Inwardly, though, he grew all the more wary. "Why would you forge Sir Song's tablet?"

Ji Yong gave a sheepish laugh. "Song Yan and I have a private grudge. I meant to make trouble for him, so of course I couldn't let anyone notice the tablet was flawed!"

The Crown Prince and Cui Yijun exchanged a glance.

Ji Yong called Song by his bare name at every turn, plainly at odds with him—and yet they now depended on Song Yan for their protection.

Cui Yijun smiled. "What grudge is this? Shall I play the peacemaker?"

"No, no," Ji Yong said awkwardly. "Only a small matter."

Cui Yijun could not press him further.

The Crown Prince said, "The Jinwu Guard shields the forbidden palace, and its charge is grave. Jianming, how could you do such a thing?"

Ji Yong hastily bowed his head. "Your servant knows his crime! Never again."

Seeing this, the Crown Prince softened his voice. "Still, we owe you thanks today—without you, we would never have known that something had gone wrong at the Qianqing Palace."

Whether or not Ji Yong was the Prince of Liao's man, whether or not a great pit lay waiting for him ahead—once he resolved to come to the rescue, he was already inside it. Standing outside the Qianqing Palace gate would not have spared him.

He drew a deep breath and walked into the Qianqing Palace with steady steps.

The false eunuchs had fallen back to the Kunning Palace, and corpses lay scattered across the Qianqing Palace. Song Yan stood before the palace gate drenched in blood, his expression harried. Seeing the Crown Prince come in, he hurried forward, made his salute, and blamed himself. "Your Highness, it is all my negligence—I let men pass themselves off as eunuchs and slip inside..."

The shambles, like a scene from hell, and the thick reek of blood on Song Yan nearly turned the Crown Prince's stomach.

Wang Yuan came scrambling and tumbling over, wailing, tears and snot running together. "Your Highness, save His Majesty, quickly! The Prince of Liao has taken His Majesty hostage!"

The Crown Prince had long since guessed it, yet hearing Wang Yuan speak aloud the name buried at the bottom of his heart, he still froze for a moment.

Cui Yijun called softly, "Your Highness."

The Crown Prince came back to himself.

This was his chance to establish his authority!

Forcing down the churning in his breast, he consoled Song Yan gently. "You may command the Jinwu Guard, but what happened here is not your doing. Are you wounded? Cui Yijun has an excellent wound salve—have him look at you."

Song Yan did not stand on ceremony. He thanked the Crown Prince with respect, stripped off his robe, and let Cui Yijun dress the gash across his back where the flesh gaped open, saying to the Crown Prince, "Now that the palace is locked, the good thing is that no one from outside can get in for the moment. The bad thing is also that no one from outside can get in. His Majesty and the Prince of Liao are both in the Kunning Palace. The Prince of Liao dare not harm His Majesty—otherwise, even if he were so fortunate as to take the throne, the princes garrisoning the provinces would never let the matter rest. The danger lies outside. The Prince of Liao is no reckless man; if he dared to risk himself alone, he must have prepared thoroughly. My fear is that the Divine Machine Battalion and the Five Barracks Army have been deceived by him and will come in under the banner of 'clearing the sovereign's side.' What must be done at once is to find a way to send men out to scout, and to lead the Five Cities Garrison in holding the city gates; next, to make contact with the Grand Secretary Liang of the Grand Secretariat, so that Your Highness and Lord Liang may decide together what is to be done. I will hold this place, and with the Jinwu Guard find some way to get His Majesty out. If instead we keep everything hidden, not only will those outside be panicked and ripe for trouble, but the Prince of Liao will twist black into white, cast Your Highness as cruel and faithless, and shake the very foundations of the realm!"

His words were tactful; in truth he was telling the Crown Prince to set aside the Emperor's life or death for now and quickly gather the Grand Secretariat ministers to proclaim the Prince of Liao's treachery—lest the Prince kill the Emperor and then turn about and claim the Crown Prince had plotted rebellion. With the Grand Secretariat ministers' endorsement, even if the Prince of Liao produced a testamentary edict from the Emperor, he would be a usurper, a traitor whom all men might strike down. And as for the Emperor's safety, Song Yan would carry that blame himself.

Ji Yong curled his lip in secret.

This black-hearted, rotten-livered Song Yan, urging the Crown Prince to kill with a borrowed knife while wearing the air of a man open and honorable, serving his country and his people—no wonder the fellow, several years younger than himself, already commanded the Jinwu Guard.

It seemed his own skin was still too thin.

The Crown Prince, however, was deeply stirred.

If Song Yan held this ground and the Prince of Liao, driven to desperation, truly killed the Emperor, then as the Jinwu Guard's chief commander charged with the Emperor's protection, at the least he would lose his office and be thrown into prison; at the worst, his life and his whole household's would be forfeit.

Yet he had to admit that under such a crisis, only by following Song's counsel could he contend with the Prince of Liao.

He clenched his teeth. "Yantang, rest assured—while I stand, you stand."

Song Yan's face fell. "Your Highness, among the Five Cities Garrison there is a man named Jiang Yi, transferred over from the Divine Machine Battalion. You might send him with your handwritten order to the Divine Machine Battalion—at the very least it may divide them and leave them unable to move. If the Five Barracks Army turns, the Five Cities Garrison can shut the gates and hold out three to five days on its strength; by then word will have spread, and the Western Hills camp and the other garrisons will surely come to the sovereign's rescue."

The Crown Prince nodded again and again. "I will send for Jiang Yi at once!"

Song Yan fastened his collar gravely, took up his blade, and led the Jinwu Guard toward the Kunning Palace.

Ji Yong said quickly, "I will go and inform the Grand Secretaries on duty."

The Crown Prince gave a grave "Mm" and said, "You must find Lord Liang!"

By night no one might walk the inner palace at will, but in an emergency a word could be passed through the gates.

Ji Yong took the Crown Prince's handwritten order and hurried off to the Gate of Flourishing Ancestors.