"You are already a Duke, a Great General, holding the highest office under the Emperor, what more are you worried about?"
His old wife, who was beside him, draped a robe over Xu Da and said softly.
She was an extremely intelligent woman and had already guessed some things: "Why couldn't you have taken a step back earlier? Must you always cling to this position, making others resent you?"
...
"What does a mere woman like you understand!"
"Actually, His Majesty has always been suspicious of the Huai Xi faction. At first, he used them more than he guarded against them, and later, it was guarding more than using!"
"Although I have high prestige among the Huai Xi faction, I cannot control the progress or retreat of this faction..."
Xu Da shook his head, and suddenly saw a servant carrying a pigeon towards him, a bad premonition struck him.
"Master, something bad has happened..."
This servant was a former veteran soldier, loyal to Xu Da. After receiving a piece of intelligence that would determine the fate of the entire Xu mansion, he rushed over immediately.
Xu Da took the intelligence and read it carefully, his expression changing drastically: "Beiqiao, I must go to the palace to see His Majesty!!!"
On the main road of the capital, a speeding carriage flew towards the palace.
Outside the Imperial Palace.
Xu Da dismounted, rushed in, and came to the gate, shouting loudly: "It's Xu Da! Quickly open the gate, I must see the Emperor immediately!"
At this critical juncture, he had to see the Emperor quickly to have any chance of reversing the situation and minimizing the impact.
"Duke Xu..."
After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the gate opened, but several soldiers surrounded him.
"What do you want..."
Xu Da suddenly felt something was wrong, a veteran soldier's intuition that had never failed him.
"You trespassed into the Imperial Palace! Arrest him!"
A soldier shouted.
"Are you blind? This is Duke Xu, a brother to His Majesty!"
The old servant accompanying Xu Da shouted back angrily.
But these soldiers were unmoved. Another troop of Embroidered Uniform Guards arrived and surrounded Xu Da and the old servants.
Xu Da had been in such situations countless times himself, he just never expected it to happen to him today.
Now that it was his turn, Xu Da could only smile bitterly and say to his servants: "Everyone, raise your hands. Do not resist, lest you lose your lives!"
Then, Xu Da said: "I need to see His Majesty. Although we have made mistakes, the country cannot be thrown into chaos because of this!"
"We do not know these things. We only know that Duke Xu trespassed into the Imperial Palace. You will be detained first, and interrogated later!"
A captain of the Embroidered Uniform Guard replied expressionlessly. Da Feng Novel Network
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."
Xu Da collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down his face. He knew that since the Emperor had made such a decision, his life and the lives of his old brothers were likely in peril!
The next day, as the sun began to rise, but before it was fully light.
Most ordinary citizens were still asleep in their homes.
However, Empress Ma, due to her intention to visit a Taoist temple to fulfill a vow, had already woken up early. She was then attended by palace maids to change her clothes, bathe, tidy her appearance, and eat breakfast, preparing for her upcoming journey.
After all preparations were completed, more time had passed.
Although the Imperial Palace was vast, Empress Ma was seated in a phoenix carriage pulled by six fine horses, which moved at a great speed.
Before long, the gate of the Imperial Palace appeared before Empress Ma.
However, as they were about to pass through the Imperial Palace gate, the driver of the phoenix carriage suddenly frowned.
At this time of day, the Imperial Guards usually stationed at the palace gate should have been waiting there to see the Empress off.
But now, not a single Imperial Guard soldier was in sight.
Furthermore, although they were still some distance away, the driver could clearly hear sounds of heated arguments and commotion coming from outside the Imperial Palace gate.
Connecting these two observations, the driver thought to himself, "Could something have happened outside the palace? How is this possible?"
At the same time, Empress Ma also sensed something was amiss. She knitted her phoenix brows and asked, "What's going on? It sounds like there's an argument outside the palace gate, and I don't see any Imperial Guards waiting..."
"Could it be that someone dares to cause trouble in front of our palace? Unless someone intends to rebel?"
Empress Ma shook her head and said, "We'll know when we go out and see."
As she spoke, the carriage had already reached the Imperial Palace gate.
However, upon arriving outside the Imperial Palace, the scene before them caused Empress Ma and her retinue to pause in surprise.
...
Outside the Imperial Palace, hundreds of women, elegantly dressed and of considerable status, were gathered, seemingly protesting something.
Empress Ma recognized some of her old acquaintances among these women, such as Madam Xu and Madam Liang.
The numerous Imperial Guards, on the other hand, appeared to be enduring their scolding and insults with strained patience.
Seeing this scene, even Empress Ma, known for her good temper, could not help but let out a soft huff.
Although she didn't know the reason for the disturbance, encountering such a scene before going to fulfill her vow left her feeling displeased.
Meanwhile.
The female official, Cui Xueli, said angrily, "How are the Imperial Guards handling this? They're allowing these women to cause a commotion at the palace gate?"
"If this gets out, won't it disgrace the royal family? Won't it embarrass His Majesty and the Empress?"
At the same time, the appearance of Empress Ma and her retinue was also noticed by the Imperial Guards.
The leading commander of the Imperial Guards' expression changed, and he quickly trotted to Empress Ma's phoenix carriage.
With a hint of timidity, this commander knelt before Empress Ma and said, "Your humble servant greets Her Majesty the Empress. There has been some disturbance here, but please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will handle it immediately."
Empress Ma did not look reassured at all. She simply asked with a frown, "What exactly is going on?"
Seeing Empress Ma's displeasure, the commander's face paled further, and he quickly explained, "Reporting... Reporting to Her Majesty the Empress, these women are the wives and daughters of high-ranking officials of the Huai Xi faction. They are shameless and difficult to deal with..."
"However, their status is very high; they are all first, second, and third-rank official ladies. We truly dare not use force..."
"Moreover, I had already persuaded them to leave yesterday, but when we opened the gate this morning, we found they had returned..."
"I was just about to drive them away again to prevent them from lingering here and being an eyesore, but before I could speak, Your Majesty arrived."
Empress Ma was stunned for a moment, her expression changing drastically, and then she pressed further, "You mean to say, these ladies and their daughters are the wives and daughters of the major officials of the Huai Xi faction?"
As she questioned, the words Zhu Yuanzhang had spoken to her earlier flashed through Empress Ma's mind: "Tell her to get plenty of rest, and it's best not to go out for the next month."
Empress Ma's brow furrowed even deeper.
The commander of the Imperial Guards nodded repeatedly and continued to explain, "A few days ago, after an imperial court session, dozens of major officials of the Huai Xi faction were arrested and imprisoned."
"It is precisely because of this that the wives and daughters of these high-ranking officials of the Huai Xi faction have all come here to cause trouble."
Upon hearing the commander's explanation, Empress Ma finally understood why Zhu Yuanzhang had told her not to go out for the next month.
As for why someone dared to cause trouble at the palace gate, and why the Imperial Guards had not dispersed them promptly, the reasons were clear.
Even a starving camel is larger than a horse. Although the officials of the Huai Xi faction had been dealt with a few days ago, it was not impossible that they might be released at any time.
These wives and daughters, for the sake of their husbands and fathers, naturally dared to cause a scene at the gate.
As for these Imperial Guards, fearing that the Huai Xi faction might make a comeback, they were reluctant to offend them easily, lest they face retribution in the future.
Thus, the farce at the palace gate had been at a stalemate until now, a stalemate that had not even been resolved by her arrival.
However, no matter what, Zhu Chongba's actions were somewhat excessive.
Thinking of this, Empress Ma sneered, "His Majesty has always been ruthless, and he acts decisively. Even brothers who have shared life and death for so many years are now to be killed!"
Meanwhile.
The palace maids and eunuchs accompanying Empress Ma turned pale upon hearing words that could cost them their lives.
After this commotion, Empress Ma completely lost the desire to go to the temple to fulfill her vow.
Ignoring the palace maids and eunuchs, Empress Ma looked up towards the area of conflict and then strode out.
...
"Empress Ma, it's Sister Yu! Please, please save Li Shanchang!"
"Sister Lian, we've been friends for so many years! I've never asked you for anything, but today, Sister is begging you! Please let my Xu Da go!"
"Sister Lian, we are like sisters. I've always called you sister. Today, your sister is begging you! I'll kowtow to you! Please, let my Tang He go!"
As soon as these wives and daughters of the Huai Xi faction saw Empress Ma, they not only cried even more fiercely but also rushed directly towards her.
The next moment, they had surrounded Empress Ma, forming a circle, and were crying as if the heavens and earth had collapsed.
After listening to their pleas, Empress Ma offered them words of comfort. This process lasted for two to three hours.
After seeing off the wives and daughters of the Huai Xi faction officials, Empress Ma turned around and saw that the palace maids and eunuchs were still waiting for her.
She frowned again, looked up at the sky, saw that the time was drawing near, and then instructed the female official, "We will not be going to the temple today. I am going to see His Majesty!"
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