Chapter 156: “The Show Begins (3)”
Ever since the founding of Qi, no other army besides the Yu Lin Army had overt access to the Imperial Palace.
But today, things are about to change.
Mo Qian Yuan led an army of five thousand Rui Lin Army soldiers right through the gates of the Imperial Palace, and the citizens in the city lined the sides of the streets in cheer, in a strong show of support for the “intruding” army.
Within the main hall of the Imperial Palace, the Emperor sat in his throne, his face dark with worry and all the palace guards stood anxiously outside, ants in their pants.
“This is all your fault!” The Emperor stared at Mo Xuan Fei through gritted teeth. He had not known of the actions taken by Mo Xuan Fei and Bai Yun Xian in retaliation of Jun Wu Xie. If he had known, he would have stopped them from carrying out such an insidious deed.
Poisoning the people of the Imperial City! That was atrocious!
The common people were like water. Water can push a ship, water can also sink a ship. The people had already leaned towards the Jun Family and Mo Qian Yuan in support and had unbridled praise for them, leaving the Emperor and the Second Prince in a state of house arrest within the Imperial Palace and losing control over the Imperial City. At a time of crisis like this, Mo Xuan Fei chose to go along with Bai Yun Xian with a half baked idea like this.
If they had succeeded, he would have had nothing to say. But, the Rui Lin Army came out of it without losing a single man, and they managed to push the blame for the poison onto the Yu Lin Army, giving Jun Wu Xie the perfect excuse to legitimately bring the Rui Lin Army into the Imperial Palace!
Mo Xuan Fei was pale with fear and despair.
Bai Yun Xian might have been a little too vicious with her scheme, but if it had succeeded, it would have gotten them out of the crisis.
He never would have imagined that the poison that had just started to spread, would be doused and neutralised so soon. The scheme did not help their situation at all, and it had instead backfired and fused the peoples’ anger against the Imperial Palace.
“I have realised my mistake! Father, please save me!” Mo Xuan Fei knelt in front of the Emperor, shivering in fright.
“Save? How? Mo Qian Yuan, that lowly offspring, has jumped on the opportunity and led the Rui Lin Army to the Imperial Palace and will arrive at this very hall soon. What can I do? I had thought you were one with surpassing intelligence, but you have shown yourself to be worthless thrash! You placed your trust in a woman like Bai Yun Xian!? She is a disciple of Qing Yun Clan, even if the Kingdom of Qi was to be swallowed up, she still has Qing Yun Clan behind her. The Jun Family will have their misgivings in getting into a confrontation with the Qing Yun Clan and leave Bai Yun Xian alone. But what about you and me?” The Emperor leaned back in his throne, never ever this exhausted.
It’s over, it’s all over.
They could have bided their time and waited for the Qing Yun Clan to arrive, and recover their advantage. But Bai Yun Xian was too naive to think she could defeat Jun Wu Xie herself. What a joke!
“Where is Bai Yun Xian?” The Emperor asked in anger.
“In the Imperial Palace.” Mo Xuan Fei said, still shivering. He only found out what was happening out beyond the walls when he came to the main hall. Bai Yun Xian was still oblivious that her scheme had flopped miserably.
“Get her here. She started this mess, and with her being a disciple of the Qing Yun Clan, she can stop the Rui Lin Army from doing anything rash. No matter what, we have to drag this out till the Qing Yun Clan gets here.” The Emperor ordered, rubbing his temple. Things are spiralling out of control, Bai Yun Xian might have a strong backing, but that has also brought about her arrogance. If she had released the news to the nearby garrison and not to Qing Yun Clan, they will not be in such a quagmire now. If she had not planned something so malicious, the Rui Lin Army would not have any excuse to enter the Imperial Palace!