Chapter 328 Did you do this?
In the Hanguang Hall of the Qing Imperial Palace.

Several old maids served the old man sitting on the bed quietly and gently, not daring to utter a word.

The lights in the room were dim. Although there was plenty of daylight outside, there was always a lingering chill in the elderly man's room.

There were countless wrinkles on the old empress dowager's face, and even the nasolabial folds on both sides of her nose looked more furrowed because of her frowning brows. The most powerful person in Qing Kingdom now showed an aging state that was beyond recovery.

"News came from the west that the soldiers have already set out to their positions and the imperial edict has also been delivered. Calculating the time, the battle will begin in less than ten days."

An old but sturdy general was in the hall at this time.

He was sitting on a small stool, looking extremely funny.

He bowed his hands towards the bed and said respectfully, "Don't worry about the Southern Zhao Kingdom. Its king is still young and can't cause any big trouble. On the other hand, the Northern Qi leader Shang Shanhu's offensive is getting more and more fierce. Although he suffered a small defeat a few days ago,..."

The Queen Mother nodded slowly, her eyes were somewhat empty, but more importantly, there was a hint of ruthlessness in them, as if that should not appear in the eyes of a woman of such age.

"General Qin, please feel free to speak."

Qin Ye nodded, and then analyzed: "The Northeast has a large army, but no great generals. After a long-term confrontation with Northern Qi, the quality of the soldiers is top-notch, but no one can check Shangshanhu. Should we let the eldest prince take charge of the army?"

The Queen Mother did not answer his question. She understood that this was just a test from the Qin family: "What about the direction of Dongyi City?"

"There is no unusual movement in Dongyi City."

Now the news of Emperor Qing's death has spread throughout the upper echelons of Kyoto, but no one dares to act rashly.

No one knows whether this news is true.

After all, His Majesty was far away in Mount Dadong, so even if the news of his death reached Kyoto, it shouldn't have come so quickly. I think it must be fake news deliberately released by the princess. But whether it is true or not, the court must confirm it. If His Majesty is really dead, this news will eventually spread throughout the world.

Especially at times like this, the Qing Kingdom must appear stronger.

No one knew whether there would be someone in the world who would seek some benefit or take advantage of the Qing Kingdom without a leader. The Queen Mother was in a very heavy mood. She guessed that even if her son was not dead, he was in a very troublesome situation. Otherwise, she should have used all the backup plans long ago.

Now, using military force to intimidate other countries and domestic villains is a manifestation of the Queen Mother's guilty conscience.

"Ten days? Too slow!" The Queen Mother looked coldly at the veteran who had fought for the country for decades and said, "To shorten the time, we must attack from three directions at the same time!"

"What is the limit?"

"Let's limit it to 100 miles, otherwise there might be some backlash."

"The Queen Mother is wise."

Qin Ye was an old general after all, so he naturally understood the purpose of sending troops at this time. He sighed, "I will kill more people and make other countries chaotic for a while."

The Queen Mother was full of thoughts, and perhaps because she was old, it took her a long time to come to her senses and nodded gently.

After a dead silence, she waved her hand and said, "Old General, please go down first."

"Yes."

Qin Ye stood up and saluted. Just as he was about to walk to the door, the Queen Mother's voice came again: "The old general is the pillar of Qing State. You only need to follow the example in everything."

Qin Ye was startled. He did not turn around, but just answered:
"Yes."

When he left Hanguang Hall and walked on the road out of the palace, he could vaguely hear cries coming from various places in the palace, and his expression became somewhat disdainful.
Among the 5,000 soldiers who surrounded Dadong Mountain were his soldiers. Now that they had lost contact, they were in great danger. But Qin Ye was not disappointed. On the contrary, he was very happy.

The scouts hiding in the distance observing the battlefield sent back the news that the explosion, which was like the wrath of the gods, could not be hidden. He believed that no one could survive the explosion.

Even if that person is a grandmaster!

Now there is no need to cooperate with the prince in launching an attack.

The Queen Mother had talked with the Crown Prince several times these days, and her satisfaction with him was growing. The words she said before leaving the palace were also a reassurance to herself.

What does it mean to follow an example?

Naturally, the son will inherit the father's throne, and the eldest son is the most important!
The world now belongs to the prince. And his Qin family has made the right bet once again!

He called a young eunuch, whispered a few words to him, and then quickened his pace and left the palace.

Not long after Qin Ye left the palace, the empress dowager's decree was heard from Hanguang Palace - Ning Cairen, Yi Guipin, and Shu Guifei were requested to return to their respective palaces and not to go out unless necessary!

What moment is this?
His Majesty is dead, and these three concubines have given birth to princes. If the Queen Mother wants to support the prince to ascend the throne, she must keep these people firmly under her control.
Suddenly, the eldest princess returned to Guangxin Palace where she had left for a long time.

"Did I do something wrong?"

The Queen Mother slowly closed her eyes. She had now confirmed the fact that her son was dead. This was the answer she got from the performance of Qin Ye and the eldest princess.

Besides, it’s been too long.
Thinking of the emperor's soul on Mount Dadong, the empress dowager's heart twitched suddenly. An uncontrollable palpitation surged into her heart and sweat wet her back. Only then did she realize that she was a woman after all. Without Emperor Qing, all her authority was just a castle in the air.

She was scared.

She was afraid that trouble would arise in the Kingdom of Qing, so how could she dare to go down and face the late emperor?

"Tell me, will His Majesty blame me?" The Queen Mother was anxious to find comfort and didn't care much about the frightened expressions of the maids.

Your Majesty went to Dadong Mountain to depose the Crown Prince, but now you have to support the Crown Prince to ascend the throne in order to stabilize the situation. Perhaps your son would be very angry if he knew about this?
Seeing that the old maids didn't answer and just knelt on the ground, she seemed to feel a little tired and said lightly: "It's me who lost my composure. Kill them all!"

As soon as he finished speaking, an old eunuch came in, knocked several people unconscious and dragged them out.

The old queen murmured, "Apart from people from other countries, who in the country harmed you?"

Until now, she is not sure whether it was really the prince who did it. She suspects it was her daughter, the eldest princess. After all, who would benefit the most from the death of His Majesty? So it is likely that she was the one who did it.

She has no evidence, she just thinks so subjectively.

But even though she was the Queen Mother, she could only bury her resentment in her heart and then put the blame on Fan Xian.
Outside the door, a eunuch said, "Queen Mother, the eldest princess has arrived."

The Queen Mother Muran opened her eyes and waved her hand gently. Li Yunrui, dressed in white palace clothes, slowly walked into the Hanguang Palace and bowed to the Queen Mother. He looked very sad and looked extremely pitiful.

He waved his hand again, and all the palace maids and eunuchs outside seemed to have sensed something, bowed and retreated, leaving only the mother and daughter in the hall.

Desolation is the unchanging portrayal of the palace.

The hall seemed even more deserted without people around.

"Did you do it?"

(End of this chapter)