The imperial concubine often came to visit the emperor, as comfortable as she was in her bedroom, sitting cross-legged on one side of the chair, and the palace maids put their own tea, incense burners, fans, beads and other small items on the tables next to them, and then withdrew one after another. During this period, the emperor stood like a guest.

The imperial concubine is like the queen mother, and few people still doubt this.

Zhang Youcai and Tong Qing'e also left the room. The Imperial Concubine would talk to the emperor alone every few days, and everyone had already gotten used to it.

The imperial concubine sat in a daze for a while, letting the tea on several tables gradually cool down, and said softly: "Did she notice something?"

"Can someone rumored the news? The ministers were not reliable either." Han Ruzi sat on a round stool a few steps away. This was the first time he saw the imperial concubine showing disconfidence.

The Imperial Concubine seemed to have not heard it, and after a while, she looked at the emperor, "Secretary? It is possible, but the person the Empress Dowager suspected was His Majesty."

"Me?" Han Ruzi was surprised.

"Well, she asked me to come here to test it and see if His Majesty knows one thing."

The imperial concubine did not say anything, but Han Ruzi had guessed what she said, "I know, the Empress Dowager sent someone to take my mother away. No one told me on his own, so I had to inquire myself."

The Imperial Concubine nodded, "That's because I don't want His Majesty to worry too much. So his Majesty has another channel to contact the outside of the palace."

"Don't you tell the Queen Mother about this?"

"I have to tell her."

"Why?" Han Ruzi stood up. The Empress Dowager was just suspicious, and there was no need to take the initiative to explain the truth.

The imperial concubine stared at the emperor, "The Empress Dowager has already aroused suspicion, and the best way to eliminate suspicion is to give her a result."

Han Ruzi was stunned.

"If the Queen Mother thought she had killed a conspiracy, she might put aside her suspicion and recall the Grand Tutor Cui Hong back to the capital."

"Is it necessary to wait for Grand Tutor Cui to come back? You can first remove Shangguan Xu's military power and then slowly resolve the Cui family. That's what the Empress Dowager did."

The imperial concubine smiled, "My previous thoughts were the same as you, but Master Luo said it was not possible. He taught in Cui's Mansion and understood how powerful the Cui family was. Cui Hong was leading troops outside. Once the capital changes occur, no one would expect what the Cui family would do in panic. We must take Cui Hong and Shangguan Xu at the same time to ensure stability afterwards, and your Majesty can be worry-free."

Han Ruzi didn't know much about the situation in the court and could not refute it. He could only ask: "Has the Empress Dowager been installing officials recommended by the Guan family? Has the power of the Cui family been weakened yet?"

The imperial concubine smiled and said, "Cui Hong leads troops to fight and does not give him any sweetness. How could he do his best? Every time the Shangguan family appoints an official, the Cui family must arrange at least one. Compared with the past, the Cui family's power has not been weakened, but has become stronger. If it weren't for this, Cui Hong would not agree to lead the army north. The current situation is that the two foreign relatives are both strong, and they jointly erode the minister's territory, and only move one, and the other will never sit idly by."

The imperial concubine fell into deep thought again, "The Empress Dowager didn't even tell me before making the decision. Could it be... no, it was impossible, she wouldn't doubt me. But her move was indeed brilliant. First, it disrupted Luo Shi's plan. Second, it delayed the reward for merit and prevented the Cui family from continuing to expand. Third, the war with the Huns cannot be completed in one or two days. Even if Cui Hong defeated, he would still keep the army temporarily on the border and return to Beijing alone."

Han Ruzi couldn't think of so much, but she felt that the Empress Dowager was a powerful opponent. "So, the Empress Dowager's support for Cui Hong is probably nothing to do with our plan, it's just a coincidence, and there is no need to tell the Empress Dowager about me."

"You can't be careless. The Queen Mother hasn't paid special attention to Your Majesty yet. This is a good thing, but even if she just glances, she will give her an answer. If I can't ask the truth, she will send someone else, and I'm afraid she will ask other secrets at that time."

"Do you think I can't keep your plans?"

The imperial concubine smiled and shook her head, "I believe in Your Majesty, but I believe in the Queen Mother's methods more. Your Majesty's mother is still in her hands. Moreover, it is not only His Majesty who made the sacrifice."

"Who else?"

"Your Majesty wrote four imperial edicts the day before yesterday."

"Um."

"There are two things that are the same, both of which are to remove Shangguan Xu from his post."

"Um."

The Imperial Concubine paused for a moment, "Master Luo wants to hand over one of them."

Han Ruzi was shocked, "What?"

"And there will be a name on it so that the Queen Mother can arrest anyone."

Han Ruzi was even more surprised, "Is this really necessary? The Queen Mother... should not know our plan."

"Your Majesty is in the palace and knows little about the outside world. By taking advantage of the momentum of the remnants of the King of Qi, the Empress Dowager spread his eyes and searched for news everywhere. Your Majesty may not know yet. Now the Qinzheng Hall is just a place to draw an order. The Empress Dowager summoned another group of ministers in Guanghua Pavilion every afternoon to discuss the arrest of the thieves. Those ministers were all famous cruel officials, known as the "Guanghua Tigers", and there were no secrets they could not find out."

Of course, Han Ruzi didn't know these things, and finally understood why the ministers in the Qinzheng Hall were nervous. "Who will hand over the imperial edict? Who will write the name on it?"

"Master Luo personally handed over the imperial edict in exchange for the trust of the empress dowager, and at the same time he had to bear the infamy of the world. As for the name above, Master Luo did not tell me. He said that this person was willing to be loyal to His Majesty and had no regrets in his death."

Han Ruzi had no refutation. The minister was ready to sacrifice. He had no reason to hide his own personal information. However, it was too difficult to betray the person who had helped him. He hesitated for a while but still couldn't make up his mind. Finally, he asked: "Will Luo Huanzhang betray me too? The Queen Mother knew at a glance that I wrote it."

"That's right, but Your Majesty can bear it for the time being. The Empress Dowager needs Your Majesty to stabilize the ministers. Except for taking Your Majesty closer together, he will not take strict measures for the time being."

"What about the seal above? How to explain it?"

"That imperial edict was originally reserved, and I did not use it to stamp the seal. What the Empress Dowager will know is this: Your Majesty wrote the imperial edict and handed it to Mr. Luo. After Mr. Luo hesitated, he did not hand it over to the minister, but to the Central Secretary Jingyao."

"Whoever has his name written in the imperial edict is the person who forwards the news of his mother's arrest to me. This should be very reasonable."

The Imperial Concubine thought for a moment, nodded her head and smiled, "It's reasonable, Your Majesty's words are so strict, we have nothing to worry about."

Han Ruzi breathed a little relieved. At least he didn't have to betray the King of Donghai and King of Huahu. Since the minister was voluntarily loyal, he would put all the blame on him alone. After the matter was accomplished, if this person was still alive, Han Ruzi hoped to reward him heavily.

"I will contact Mr. Luo as soon as possible and tell him about His Majesty's plan, and I think he will agree."

"How did you contact Luo Huanzhang? He only entered the palace once a few days, and only went to Lingyun Pavilion in the Imperial Garden." Han Ruzi asked curiously. He tried his best to get news about his mother, but the Imperial Concubine seemed to be able to contact Luo Huanzhang outside the palace at any time.

"My mouth is also very strict." The Imperial Concubine smiled and stood up to say goodbye. "It won't take long before Your Majesty will have the power to seize life and death. A few words will determine the life and death of millions of people. Please get used to the sacrifices of some people as they have to."

The imperial concubine left, and the palace maids went into the house to pack up their things, and didn't even look at the emperor.

Han Ruzi sat on the round stool, and didn't look at them. The more she thought about it, the more she felt nervous, the more she felt. An innocent minister wanted to sacrifice for him. The only purpose was to attract the attention of the queen mother and relieve her suspicion. Han Ruzi didn't know what it would be like to decide the life and death of millions of people, but he believed that it was completely different from the current situation.

Everyone else retreated, only Zhang Youcai and Tong Qing'e came to serve the emperor to bed. Han Ruzi stared at the two of them and asked, "Can I trust you?"

The eunuch and the palace maid looked at each other, with surprise and calmness in their eyes. It seemed that they had known that there would be such a moment. The two of them knelt down at the same time. Tong Qing'e said: "I am willing to go through fire and water for Your Majesty." Zhang Youcai said hurriedly: "The little slave has been waiting for Your Majesty's words for a long time. Your Majesty says, "Your Majesty dares to do anything."

Han Ruzi was surprised and smiled and said, "What's wrong with you?"

Tong Qing'e lowered her head, with tears in her eyes. Zhang Youcai looked up and said angrily: "Zuo Ji hates us. I sent someone to warn us in the past two days, saying that he will settle the score when he is injured. Liang An has been forced by Zuo Ji to commit suicide by hanging Liang. Anyway, it is a death, and we are willing to die for Your Majesty."

Strictly speaking, when Liang An committed suicide, the emperor had to be responsible. He went to "catch the offender", which led to Zuo Ji's fear and forced Liang An to death in order to erase the evidence of the crime. Thinking of this, Han Ruzi felt calm. The emperor was like a giant walking in a downtown area. Every foot he fell may trample on someone to death, or cause the crowd to panic and trampling on each other. Even so, the crowd will still actively rush to the giant.

Sacrifice is inevitable, the key is to make sacrifice valuable.

"I want you to do one thing."

Zhang Youcai and Tong Qing'e crawled on the ground. Han Ruzi thought for a while and felt that it was too important and too dangerous to give the two people a task. Their loyalty has not yet been tested. And they finally won over the two people and could not be wasted casually. "Things are very simple, don't worry. You can inquire slowly and don't attract other people's attention."

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, we have all entered the palace since we were young and know the rules here." Zhang Youcai's face turned a little red with excitement. Tong Qing'e was much more calm, stopped her tears and looked at the emperor seriously.

"Someone around the Imperial Concubine, or someone the Imperial Concubine often contacts, can contact outside the palace at any time. I want to know who it is."

"It is a great skill to be able to contact people outside the palace at any time." Zhang Youcai seemed confused and immediately kowtowed: "In three days, Xiaonu and Sister Qing'e will definitely find this person."

Tong Qing'e is older and more cautious. "This person is probably not an ordinary palace slave, but may be a general of the Guard. We should go there more to inquire."

"Don't take risks, no time limit, just think about this."

Zhang Youcai smiled and said, "Your Majesty, you don't need to worry. The slaves in the palace have their own channels, and they will never be discovered by the imperial concubine or the queen mother."

Han Ruzi was very interested in this "channel", but she did not ask questions. She had to take each other step by step to win each other's trust and should not be too hasty.

That night, he slept very soundly. When he woke up the next morning, the first thing he thought of was the minister who voluntarily sacrificed. Suddenly, a thought popped up in his mind: Is that man really voluntarily?
Chapter completed!