The Empress's First Running Dog

Chapter 15 Entering the Palace Again
The day.

Two interesting things happened in the capital city of Dayu.

First, the empress's lover Zhao Duan quietly visited the Ministry of Justice and left after about two quarters of an hour.

It is said that he looked unhappy when he left, and an official in a green robe smiled and apologized to him before seeing him off.

Second, at today's small court meeting, several censors, led by Lu Liang, the censor of the Censorate, jointly wrote a letter to impeach Zhao Duan, the envoy of the White Horse Supervisory Commissioner.

They said he was lawless, notorious, and suspected of colluding with the rebel leader.

He demanded that he be stripped of his official position and thrown into the imperial prison in order to restore order in the court.

Empress Xu Zhenguan did not comment, but only said that she would personally interrogate the suspect later, and if what he reported was true, he should be punished.

For a time, the gossip spread like wildfire. After all, it involved the emperor's "family affairs" and it always attracted attention.

Especially since the protagonist of the incident is a notorious gigolo, it has become a hot topic.

In just half a day, many versions of this story emerged.

The empress's ambiguous attitude and the support of many court officials were interpreted by many veteran officials as meaning that Zhao Duan might have fallen out of favor and was likely to fall.

For a time, countless people gloated over his misfortune.

It's like the satisfying feeling of a villain in a play about to be executed.

It feels so good to be tickled...

……

Baima Prison, in a duty room.

Zhang Changshuo confirmed again:

"So, the people from the Ministry of Justice neither agreed nor refused, but just said they would make arrangements?"

Confidant reported:

"Yes. I guess the Ministry of Justice has also heard the news, so they are delaying for a while, waiting for the dust to settle before making a decision based on the situation."

The implication is that if Zhao Duan still favors him, then give him face. If he falls... then just pretend nothing happened.

Zhang Changshuo sneered:
"A bunch of old foxes, whatever. Since that thief Zhao has intervened, that's enough. He accepted bribes and now interferes with the Ministry of Justice... With Ning'an County Master as a 'witness' and the overwhelming momentum in the court, how can we be afraid that he will not die?"

The confidant asked, "What are your plans, sir?"

Zhang Changshuo put away the scroll on the table, thought for a moment, and decided to play it safe.

The most taboo in official circles is to report to a higher level. Zhao Duan is arrogant and doesn't give face to the supervisor, but he won't do that.

What's more, Zhao Gou had offended Si Jian many times, and there had been a grudge between the two sides for a long time. This was just a way for him to return a favor.

Thinking of this, he took the evidence and went straight to the back court, found the old eunuch, and reported the matter to him.

"So, you reported Zhao Duan for accepting bribes and interfering with the judiciary?" The old supervisor looked strange.

"Yes," Zhang Changshuo said with a gentlemanly look, bowing:
"I beg your majesty to remove these termites!"

The old supervisor, with gray hair on his temples and deep eye sockets, was silent for a moment and said:

"I just received word from the palace that tomorrow morning, His Majesty will summon Zhao Duan, Ma Dugong, Lu Yushi and others for a face-to-face confrontation. Since you are determined to do so, take the evidence and go to the palace with him."

Zhang Changshuo was overjoyed and said goodbye and left.

After everyone left, the old eunuch was left alone sitting in the empty hall.

Looking at the banana leaves wet by the rain in the courtyard, he sighed deeply.

In his opinion, after tomorrow, even if Zhao Duan did not die, he would probably end up in a tragic situation.

"Friends in the officialdom may not help you, but enemies will definitely harm you...When the wall falls, everyone pushes it down."

……

evening.

Zhao Duan received a summons to enter the palace the next day. According to the clerks in the yamen, Envoy Zhao showed no expression at all the whole time.

……

That night.

The news that Zhao Duan had fallen out of favor and was about to fall spread like wildfire, from the official circles to the market.

According to rumors, the main force behind this impeachment, the censor "Lu Liang", was an official from the prime minister's faction.

It means the prime minister.

Rumors always spread in the form that best meets the expectations of the general public.

Too many people hated Zhao Duan, so the entire capital was only willing to believe the version of the story that he was about to fall. For a time, the rumors were rampant and the whole city was in turmoil.

Zhao Duan, who was in the center of the storm, just hid in the inn and slept quietly, preparing to face tomorrow's "disaster" in the best mental state.

……

The next day, early in the morning.

When Zhao Duan, handsome and incomparable in his official robes, walked out of the inn, he saw his lackey Zhu Kui waiting beside the carriage.

"Sir..." Zhu Kui opened his mouth.

Zhao Duan waved his hand and said with a smile:
"Thank you for sending me to the palace. What happens next has nothing to do with you."

Zhu Kui noticed that his envoy's tone was different from usual and his expression was complicated.

At this moment, he had already vaguely guessed that the empress might not have pardoned Zhao Duan, and what the other party had claimed before was probably mixed with a lot of water.

The running around and series of operations over the past two days are more like the struggle of a drowning person.

Maybe he had been deceived... He thought he would be angry, or gloat, or feel uneasy... but he wasn't.

What the experienced official saw and heard during the past two days with Zhao Duan had caused his impression of him to change drastically.

Although he felt a little ashamed, he actually developed some "admiration" for Zhao Duan!

It's a bit absurd! Ridiculous!
As an old official who had worked his way up from the bottom step by step, he should have hated and looked down on this pretty boy who looked all show and no substance but was rotten inside.

In the past year, he had cursed Zhao Duan countless times behind his back while being servile.

The afternoon before yesterday, I also thought about whether I should jump ship and join Zhang Changshuo before the Zhao ship sinks.

I am such a person, but I actually admire him!

But this emotion is real!
Zhu Kui was thinking, if he and Zhao Duan exchanged identities, when facing such a crisis, would he be able to remain calm like the other party and use the power of others to stabilize the people around him?
Can you plan step by step and try to turn the tide?

Can he remain calm in the face of the entire capital's gloating?
He thought he couldn't do it, so he admired it.

"Envoy..." Zhu Kui opened his mouth and finally asked:

"Are you sure?"

Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment, then he laughed, patted his shoulder, stepped into the car, and left only one sentence:
"Let's go."

The wheels of the carriage.

When we arrived outside the imperial city, we saw carriages and horses waiting in front.

"Zhao Duan, I thought you ran away and didn't dare to enter the palace."

Zhang Changshuo lifted the car curtain and stepped down.

He was still wearing his official robes today, with powder on his face, a neatly trimmed moustache, and a sachet of perfume hanging from his waist.

Zhao Duan got out of the car and frowned:

"Why are you here?"

Zhang Changshuo smiled with a proud look on his face:

"Why, you are the only one allowed to see His Majesty, but I am not allowed to see him?"

Zhao Duan looked at him like a clown, his face calm:

"Then let's go to the palace together."

...Zhang Changshuo was choked by the words he had prepared.

Zhao Duan's reaction was much calmer than expected, but he had already found out clearly that Zhao Gou was in danger today, so he just flicked his sleeves and snorted:
"Pretentious!"

Outside the palace gate, carriages from the Imperial Court and the Censorate were still parked, and the other two parties in the impeachment standoff seemed to have gone in a step ahead.

Zhao Duan asked the palace gate guard to report and waited patiently for two quarters of an hour. The guard left and came back:
"Your Majesty has granted the two envoys permission to see you."

Zhang Changshuo straightened his chest and raised his head, secretly grasping the scroll in his sleeve -

Empress Xu Zhenguan was a powerful woman with great spiritual attainments who was not afraid of assassination, so her ministers were not subjected to body searches when they came to see her.

Zhao Duan took a deep breath, looked up at the deep palace behind the city gate, and pursed his lips.

Success or failure depends on this.

……

Transition chapter, please vote on Monday

Thanks to Li Shipu for the 500-yuan reward!
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(End of this chapter)