Outside the city walls!
There were soldiers in sharp armor guarding, and when they saw Li Wenzhong's carriage, two men stepped forward.
"Please get out of the carriage. Carriages are not allowed inside!"
Li Wenzhong was the first to alight, with Xia Chen following behind him.
"Lord Li!"
Upon seeing Li Wenzhong, the soldiers immediately saluted.
They were members of the Dragon Martial Guard, and news had already spread throughout the Dragon Martial Guard in the past two days: their Dragon Martial Guard General might be overthrown, and the one to replace him was precisely Li Wenzhong, who stood before them.
"Mm! Go ahead and search. I need to enter the palace!"
Li Wenzhong nodded, then spread his arms. Before entering the palace, even the Chief Grand Secretary of the Cabinet had to be inspected first.
This was a rule that did not change for anyone.
"My Lord, His Majesty's decree has already arrived. You may enter directly!"
The soldier casually inspected Li Wenzhong, then quickly said.
Li Wenzhong nodded, while Xia Chen followed silently behind him, observing in quiet contemplation.
If he hadn't misidentified the three large characters 'White Tiger Gate' on the city wall, then five years later, the palace coup would indeed originate from the White Tiger Gate.
The Third Prince would lead a large army to open the White Tiger Gate, slaughtering his way into the imperial palace, turning the entire palace into a river of blood...
"This section of the city wall is incredibly tall, and there are also some magical formations set up by sorcerers on the wall. The soldiers standing on the wall are armored crossbowmen, so unless tens of thousands of troops are sacrificed, it's impossible to force an attack."
Xia Chen took in the entire terrain of the White Tiger Gate. Outside the capital city, there were three major camps, totaling 50,000 soldiers, who guarded the capital along with the Imperial Guards.
These three major camps could not be mobilized by anyone except by imperial decree.
And these 50,000 troops, no matter what happened, were not allowed to enter the capital. Therefore, it was destined that to open the White Tiger Gate, it could only be breached from within, by someone opening it from the inside.
"The Third Prince must have bribed the general guarding the White Tiger Gate, or this person was already one of the Third Prince's people!"
Xia Chen mused, some members of the Dragon Martial Guard had sided with the Third Prince, which was an important piece of information.
While Xia Chen was pondering, Li Wenzhong followed a leading eunuch, passing through numerous palace gates.
Xia Chen stopped thinking and began to observe the Imperial Palace.
The glazed tiles shimmered under the sunlight, like stars fallen upon the palace roofs.
Carved beams and painted rafters depicted ancient splendor and legends.
Palace lanterns swayed, light and shadow danced through the corridors, dreamlike and ethereal.
Auspicious birds and mythical beasts crouched on the ridges and corners of the halls, as if guarding this grand place, fully displaying royal majesty and extravagance.
Eight hundred years of history, every brick and tile contained the traces of time, making one dare not show the slightest disrespect.
"General Li, you may enter with the Consort!"
The old eunuch leading the way, with a face full of smiles, showed no arrogance towards outsiders, as if he were truly just an ordinary servant.
"Mm!"
Li Wenzhong nodded, but did not show excessive politeness. He was just an ordinary eunuch, and he was about to become the Dragon Martial Guard General. Unless it was one of the few eunuchs who controlled the Twelve Bureaus, he didn't need to pay too much attention to the others.
"Thank you for your trouble, Eunuch Ma!"
Xia Chen took out a piece of silver from his sleeve and slipped it into Eunuch Ma's hand.
Eunuch Ma's eyes lit up, but he quickly came to his senses and waved his hand repeatedly.
"It's what this servant should do. How dare this servant accept silver from the Consort!"
Any eunuch who could run errands for the Emperor was a shrewd person. Eunuch Ma knew the background of this Young Master.
If he were an ordinary Consort, it would be one thing, and he wouldn't need to be so polite. But this one came from the Xia Residence, and more importantly, His Majesty had personally summoned him. For so many years, besides a few Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet and a few high-ranking officials in the imperial court, he had never seen His Majesty summon anyone alone.
Therefore, how could he dare to accept Xia Chen's silver?
"Although it's for His Majesty, you've waited for so long, Eunuch. It's just a little silver, buy a pot of wine to drink!"
Xia Chen smiled and said no more, directly flipping his hand to tuck the silver into Eunuch Ma's waistband, then waved his hand and walked towards the palace.
Eunuch Ma felt the heavy piece of silver in his waistband, looking at Xia Chen's retreating figure somewhat lost in thought.
Although he ran errands for His Majesty, he had no real power. None of the high-ranking officials he encountered had ever shown him such respect, nor had anyone cared how long he had waited, or personally given him silver.
Eunuch Ma felt the lingering warmth of Xia Chen on the silver, took a deep breath, put the silver into his pocket, and his gaze returned to calm.
...
...
"This subject kowtows to Your Majesty!"
Upon entering the palace, they passed through a long corridor and entered a grand hall.
Before Xia Chen could observe the surroundings of the palace, Li Wenzhong pulled Xia Chen down to kneel!
"Rise!"
A somewhat ethereal voice, whose source could not be immediately discerned, echoed through the palace!
Only then did Xia Chen clearly see the environment of the palace.
In the very center of the hall, an elderly man sat cross-legged on the floor, dressed in a Taoist robe but with Buddhist beads around his neck.
His hair was somewhat gray, and his back was turned to the two, preventing them from seeing his true face.
This was the controller of the entire Great Wu Empire - Emperor Wen!
"This is the Dragon Martial Guard token. Take the token. You will assume your post at the Dragon Martial Guard tomorrow!"
Emperor Wen had his back to the two, as if he was cultivating Taoism, or perhaps comprehending Zen.
A mysterious Aura flowed around him, and vaguely, Xia Chen seemed to see a golden dragon several tens of meters long flash across Emperor Wen's body.
This golden dragon was somewhat ethereal, as if it had not yet come into being.
"Is it the Golden Dragon of Fortune? Is it because the time is not yet ripe, or because the Great Wu's national strength is not yet sufficient, or is it due to Emperor Wen's personal reasons?"
While Xia Chen was pondering, Li Wenzhong knelt on the ground with a thud, his voice somewhat excited as he spoke.
"This subject thanks Your Majesty; I will not fail Your Majesty's heavy trust!"
"You may withdraw first!"
Emperor Wen waved his hand, like an Immortal from the Nine Heavens.
Li Wenzhong rose and, as he passed Xia Chen, gave him an encouraging look, as if telling him not to be nervous.
After Li Wenzhong left, only Xia Chen and Emperor Wen remained in the room.
Incense smoke curled, and the room was so quiet that one could hear their own breathing.
Xia Chen waited patiently, not speaking first.
"Sit!"
After an unknown amount of time, Emperor Wen's voice sounded again.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Xia Chen immediately knelt down, kowtowing in gratitude for the imperial favor, then found a seat nearby and sat down.
"Your temperament is quite unlike Lord Antong!"
Emperor Wen still had his back to Xia Chen, with no intention of turning around, yet he seemed to be able to see everything behind him.
"I was separated from my father when I was young, so I don't have many memories of him.
These past years, I've had very little correspondence with my father, so I don't truly know what kind of person he is.
And Your Majesty's presence is as profound as a mountain, and as majestic and unapproachable as a god or Buddha from the Nine Heavens, yet for some reason, I always feel a sense of closeness to Your Majesty, which lessens my nervousness and makes me a bit bolder!"
Xia Chen replied respectfully, yet his words were quite bold.
Upon hearing Xia Chen's reply, Emperor Wen fell silent for a moment, light flickering in his eyes, as if pondering something.