Chapter 1520: In a Single Night

"Yes!" Fan Zhuan accepted the order and left. Once outside the study, he could see many unfamiliar faces around the residence, all cultivators dispatched here as protection.

The entire Gao residence was unusually quiet. Apart from servants whose work was absolutely necessary, everyone had been strictly forbidden to leave their rooms. Some had even been gathered together under guard.

Everyone throughout the Gao household could vaguely sense it: something major was about to happen...

The Grand Minister of Works had summoned them in the middle of the night. The court officials did not dare delay and arrived one after another.

Before coming, none had known so many others had been summoned as well. Only after arriving did they discover that the Gao residence had effectively become the imperial court, with what looked like an entire court session gathered under one roof.

More than a few people muttered inwardly: Was this really appropriate? Wasn't Lord Gao afraid His Majesty would be displeased if he learned of it?

Still, if the sky fell, the taller men would hold it up. Since they were already here, they might as well listen and see what this was about.

Once everyone had arrived, the officials crowded into the hall waited for a while before Gao Jiancheng finally appeared. Everyone rose and cupped their hands in greeting.

Gao Jiancheng took the principal seat and gestured for everyone to sit. Then, imposing and dignified, he said, "Presumably many of you heard what happened a few days ago, when the sect leaders of the Three Great Sects entered the palace and His Majesty went to call on them, only to be refused an audience."

The officials looked at one another. No one spoke. Shang Yongzhong, seated beside Gao Jiancheng, had his eyes darting around even more than the others, wondering what this old fox was playing at.

Gao Jiancheng continued, "Presumably you have also heard that after Prince Yong annihilated Xiaoyue Pavilion, he openly accused His Majesty of being one of the men responsible for murdering Prince Ning all those years ago."

At that, the officials became even less willing to speak. They sat silently. Some lowered their eyes to their noses and their noses to their hearts, pretending they had heard nothing at all.

Gao Jiancheng swept his gaze across them. This time, the words he spoke truly shocked the room. "The Three Great Sects have already made their decision. They intend to depose His Majesty and install Prince Yong!"

"Ah!" Cries of shock broke out everywhere. Some men even sprang to their feet.

Shang Yongzhong was among them. His heart pounding, he asked, "Grand Minister, how could this happen?"

Gao Jiancheng pressed one hand downward, signaling for those standing to sit. Then he continued, "The change begins tonight. At this very moment, the inner palace has already been placed under the control of the Three Great Sects."

Fan Zhuan entered leading a servant. The servant carried a tray bearing something hidden beneath a red cloth.

Once the tray had been brought forward, Fan Zhuan whipped off the cloth, revealing a severed head and exposing the face for everyone to see.

Someone cried out, "Director Ga!"

Gao Jiancheng waved a hand. Fan Zhuan withdrew again with the tray. "Correct. Director Ga. Before all of you arrived, Director Ga risked leaving the palace and came here. The moment he went back out, someone cut him down. The intention of the Three Great Sects could not be clearer. If His Majesty refuses to submit, then neither His Majesty nor the imperial princes will be safe. His Majesty's position, naturally, is resolute. But we who serve as his ministers cannot simply sit and watch His Majesty lose his life. We should do everything in our power to preserve him. The only question is what all of you think."

Eyes flickered throughout the hall as the officials rapidly weighed the situation. At last, someone cautiously asked, "How are we to preserve him?"

Gao Jiancheng gave a simple answer. "If we order all levels throughout Yan to obey, the Three Great Sects will naturally have no need to make things difficult for His Majesty."

Again, the officials looked at one another.

Gao Jiancheng understood that unless he openly declared his own position, no one else would dare do so first. He therefore said, "The Three Great Sects have already given this old man their word. If we can guarantee the smooth handover of Yan's military and civil authority, they will guarantee His Majesty's safety!"

What did he mean, the Three Great Sects had already given him their word? None of these men were fools. Lord Gao had already reached an agreement with them!

Shang Yongzhong said heavily, "Lord Gao, men like us have old grudges with Prince Yong. Once Prince Yong takes power, how could there be any road left for us to live?"

He was the most frightened man present. Back when the court had moved to suppress Wu Gongling's rebellion, it had been Shang Yongzhong himself who personally seized Shang Chaozong and escorted him to the capital, putting Shang Chaozong through no small amount of suffering and nearly getting him killed.

Gao Jiancheng said, "Your Highness worries too much. If we're speaking of offending Prince Yong, my offenses surpass yours rather than fall short. Prince Yong has already promised me that all past matters will be forgiven. Your Highness, if even I am not afraid, what do you have to fear?"

Good heavens! the officials cried inwardly. So this man had already entered into league with Shang Chaozong.

From there, the matter came down to one thing. Gao Jiancheng guaranteed to everyone present that Shang Chaozong would not carry out purges against them and that everything would remain as before. The court would merely be changing masters.

He was now the leader of the pro-imperial faction, but he had also spent years quietly cultivating influence here on behalf of Nanzhou. Many of the important men at court had been promoted by his own hand. All those years of excluding rivals had not been wasted. With Gao Jiancheng himself standing guarantee, the men belonging to his faction naturally had little objection.

Once Gao Jiancheng had explained his meaning clearly and made his own position plain, he waited until the others voiced agreement and then immediately began making arrangements.

What everyone needed to do now was guard against the palace somehow sending orders out to the various regions. Each official was to return immediately and send word to his own people throughout the country, stabilizing the situation.

In other words, without authorization from this group, their people in the provinces were not to obey orders from the imperial court. They had to ensure nothing went wrong in the regions and guarantee the smooth transfer of imperial power.

After the officials dispersed, Shang Yongzhong remained sitting there blankly.

He understood. The men who had just been in this room controlled large and small powers throughout the State of Yan. If all of them rebelled, and the Three Great Sects added the pressure of their cultivator strength, Shang Jianxiong had no chance of stirring up anything substantial.

He sat there dazed, so lost in thought that he did not even notice when Gao Jiancheng came to stand beside him.

"Why is Your Highness sitting here in a stupor?" Gao Jiancheng asked.

Shang Yongzhong came back to himself, looked up at him, and sighed. "Lord Gao, His Majesty has valued and trusted you so deeply, yet you've taken His Majesty's entire court in one sweep. How is His Majesty supposed to bear this?"

Gao Jiancheng said, "Your Highness, the Three Great Sects have all gone over to Prince Yong. How long could we possibly resist? If His Majesty insists on fighting Prince Yong to mutual ruin, fish dead and net torn, are we supposed to be buried with him as well? Your Highness, you said nothing all evening. Now I want only one answer from you. Do you choose His Majesty, or do you choose Prince Yong?"

Shang Yongzhong turned to look at the night beyond the doorway and smiled bitterly. "If I refuse, I'm afraid the moment I walk through this door I'll become the next Eunuch Ga. Do I still have a choice?"

Gao Jiancheng said, "It's good that Your Highness understands. You are Grand Marshal of Yan. Everyone in the capital garrisons knows you are one of His Majesty's trusted men. If you appear in person, the garrisons will not suspect anything. The commanders of the capital forces are all His Majesty's confidants. We need you to take control of the situation now, so the capital does not fall into chaos."

Shang Yongzhong shook his head. "My title of Grand Marshal is just decoration. The military authority over the capital garrisons is in His Majesty's hands. The moment anything happens to His Majesty, the armies will inevitably mobilize to rescue the sovereign. How could I possibly control them? I could shout myself hoarse and it still wouldn't matter."

Gao Jiancheng said, "That is exactly why you need to step forward. Carry His Majesty's edict and, on fabricated charges, use thunderous methods to arrest and replace the principal commanders of the capital garrisons as quickly as possible. Your Highness has handled military affairs for many years. Surely you know which men can replace them and stabilize the situation."

Shang Yongzhong stared at him. "You want me to issue a false imperial edict?"

Gao Jiancheng nodded. "The imperial seal will be sent out from the palace. As for how the edict is written, that will be for us to decide. Your Highness, this must be done quickly. If we delay and word leaks out, things may turn dangerous! Earn this merit, and Prince Yong will certainly forgive the past. Your Highness, Prince Yong is waiting and watching from Nanzhou. This is your final chance. Do not let it slip away!"

Shang Yongzhong truly did not want to do this. How much better it would be if things could simply remain as they were. But the situation before him was unmistakable. Having lost the support of the Three Great Sects, His Majesty could at most thrash about like a cornered dog leaping the wall. He could not change the final outcome.

At last Shang Yongzhong stood and silently nodded.

Gao Jiancheng immediately summoned a group of cultivators to accompany Shang Yongzhong and help him carry out the work.

That night, Shang Yongzhong became the busiest man among everyone who had attended the meeting.

Carrying the Emperor's "edict," he first seized control of the central military command. Afterward, he rushed from one capital garrison to another through the night without rest, proclaiming "imperial orders" and arresting group after group of commanders on fabricated charges. More reliable men were installed in their places. He then passed down orders commanding the garrisons to march away from the capital to suppress rebellion. Whatever else happened, the first task was to move those troops away from Yanjing.

Once Shang Yongzhong had made his choice, he acted ruthlessly. After taking away the commanders arrested on fabricated charges, he dispensed with imprisonment and interrogation altogether. They were led directly to deserted places and beheaded to prevent any future change.

In a single night, several hundred heads fell among the officers commanding the capital garrisons.

Before Shang Yongzhong's side even began acting, Zijin Cave had already mobilized troops from within the nearest parts of its sphere of influence and ordered them to rush toward the capital at full speed.

The abnormal movements of various forces were reported by military-intelligence personnel to the central military command. Officers of the Intelligence Directorate also secretly submitted reports.

But the central military command was already under Shang Yongzhong's control. Every report of unusual movement was suppressed by him. Reporting it to the Emperor would have done no good anyway. The Emperor had already been secretly placed under house arrest by the Three Great Sects.

On the Intelligence Directorate side, Chief Steward of the Inner Palace Tian Yu had likewise been secretly seized and confined together with the Emperor.

Put plainly, this was a large-scale coup stretching from the innermost palace to the forces outside the capital.

After dealing with affairs outside, the palace gates opened. Under the banner of rescuing the sovereign, Shang Yongzhong led a force under his command into the palace. Holding the Emperor's own edict, he seized control of the Imperial Guard.

With troops moving back and forth all night, the various government offices in the capital were not blind. They noticed something unusual. But the heads of each yamen suppressed any reaction, ordering everyone not to move rashly and simply to continue handling their normal duties.

That night, even some ordinary people in the capital sensed something strange in the air.

Once control over the situation both inside and outside the capital had been confirmed, the Three Great Sects finally relaxed.

And some people finally bared their fangs.

Near dawn, inside the sealed Imperial Study, Shang Jianxiong sat behind the imperial desk. He had been awake all night. His eyes were bloodshot, and shattered objects littered the floor.

Chief Steward of the Inner Palace Tian Yu paced anxiously around the Imperial Study, waiting for news.

Footsteps sounded outside. Elder Shen Baochun of Zijin Cave entered at the head of a group of men. Facing Shang Jianxiong, he said indifferently, "Your Majesty, issue the edict."

Bang! Shang Jianxiong slapped the desk and surged to his feet. "If you have the ability, then kill me!"

They wanted him to issue an edict surrendering power and appointing Shang Chaozong Regent? Dream on!

Shen Baochun gave a cold laugh and ignored him. If Shang Jianxiong would not issue the edict himself, someone else would naturally issue it for him.

He turned and walked up to Tian Yu, fixing him with a stare. "Chief Steward Tian, hand over the Intelligence Directorate's secret rosters." There were certain important lists known only to Tian Yu.

Tian Yu smiled and bowed. "Elder Shen, for something like this, we would need His Majesty's authorization."

"Is that so? You think it still matters whether you hand them over?" Shen Baochun said disdainfully.

And indeed, it did not matter much. Having access to a few fewer secret agents would not affect the larger situation. What mattered more was that this man, even while under confinement, had still managed to send someone out to carry messages. He was not simple at all. Leaving him beside Shang Jianxiong only made him more dangerous.

Shing!

A sword was suddenly drawn. Cold light flashed and plunged into Tian Yu's heart.

Shing!

The sword returned to its sheath.

Shang Jianxiong's eyes widened as he watched Tian Yu's face twist with pain and saw him slowly collapse to the floor.

[End of Chapter 1520]