Chapter 206 - An Affair with the Empress Dowager (1/2)

Fortunately, the Qians were all skillful horse riders, so they didn’t need carriages. With each horse carrying one or two persons, their speed was greatly increased. But they still confronted a group of soldiers who wanted to arrest them. To be exact, these men were devoted killers. They had been lying in ambush since they had received the message. If Xiao Baoshan hadn’t been alert enough to stop, they might have stumbled on a rope stretched across the road in the front of them.

Drawing the swords, they began to fight. Weaker than these men as they were, the women worked together to handle the enemies. Their unbending spirit was more than impressive. Old Mrs. Qian brandished her sword and roared, “I haven’t fought for years! It’s your fortune to see my sword unsheathed!”

Her two daughters-in-law were also in high spirits. “We should let them know the women in the Qian family are not ones to be bullied!”

Their morale boosted, the women showed high combat effectiveness. The men were also inspired by their bravery. As a result, it took them under 15 minutes to kill most of the enemies. The others had all committed suicide by biting off their tongues. Therefore, it remained unknown who had sent the killers there.

The Qians felt fortunate that they had escaped rather than staying in the capital. The killers had shown them the gravity of the situation. Immediately, they mounted the horses again and hurried to the west. There would be more dangers waiting for them on the rest journey. However, the Qians felt proud that they wouldn’t remain a burden to Qian Qi.

The capital.

A great bell tolled a dozen times before dawn. This was to signal the emperor’s death. All the people poured out of houses and began a hot discussion.

“The emperor has pa.s.sed away, but he hasn’t decided who will succeed to the throne.”

“Anyway, it will be one of the princes in the capital.”

“Since the fourth prince died, the emperor hasn’t made anybody Crown Prince. So who will take the position?”

“It’s not our place to worry about this. The n.o.bles will select a new emperor in the end.”

The discussion went on for a long time. The emperor’s funeral was the first thing to be considered.

The young empress showed up to deal with the overall situation. She claimed that the emperor had decided his successor and asked her to announce it after he died. When all the ministers gathered in the imperial court, she announced that the third prince was the new emperor.

Some ministers were unsatisfied with the result, but they could only accept it. Anyway, the third prince was better than the drowsy old man who was too old to handle political affairs.

The new emperor showed his capability after coming to the throne. He arranged his father’s funeral well and immediately dealt with the backlog of work.

Since Xiao Baoshan had contributed greatly to protecting the country, Li Chengkun said he would restore his good name. He did so also to rea.s.sure and pacify the public. However, he commanded that the troops garrisoned in the south be dispatched by the imperial court.

As for Qian Qi, Li Chengkun directly sent him to help Li Chengyi in guarding the western borders. His generosity was highly praised by the public. People said he was benevolent and sympathetic, and that he cared for his brothers, though he grew up in a highly compet.i.tive environment. But they wouldn’t know he secretly sent soldiers to hunt down Xiao Baoshan and the Qians.

…

As Li Chengkun was enthroned, the previous empress became the current empress dowager.

One day, a eunuch went up to the state preceptor and handed him a slip of paper secretly. The state preceptor then left the front palace before he uncovered it stealthily. He then went another direction and entered the front palace again through a small door, eventually entering the empress dowager’s bedroom.

It was reasonable for the empress dowager to meet a minister. After all, she still had great authority when the new emperor had just ascended the throne. At first, the empress dowager pretended to discuss political affairs with him, but, after a while, she dismissed all the maids and eunuchs.

The state preceptor couldn’t wait to hold her in his arms and suck her tender neck. “I missed you so much.”

Still keeping herself looking good in her forties, the empress dowager was as attractive as a thirty-year-old woman. Her skin was still delicate and tender.

“Be gentle with me. There’s no hurry.”

“I can’t hold myself back. When did we last spend time together? It was half a year ago!”

“Don’t you have a wife waiting for you in your bedroom?”

“How can that ugly woman rival you? She is as old as a dried log. But you are different. You’re so soft, vivacious and sweet. I love your curvaceous body so much!”

She was delighted by his honeyed words, though she tried to push him away with the slightest strength. She pounded his chest lightly and said with a pout, “Humph! You terrible smooth-talker!”

The state preceptor ripped her dress as he asked, “Do you like the smooth-talker in front of you or that old guy?”