12: White Lotus

Chapter 12 White Lotus Sect

"Noble Lady, Noble Lady… Did they just give me the rank of Noble Lady?"

In Chuxiu Palace, the charming Bi He was sitting in front of a bronze mirror doing her makeup, her cute face wearing a trace of worry.

"Saintess…"

A young eunuch suddenly popped out and whispered, "News has come from the sect asking you to find out the court's movements regarding Qingzhou as soon as possible. This is crucial for our sect's grand affair!"

Bi He frowned and said, "I was bestowed the title of Noble Lady by Your Majesty only a few days ago. How could I possibly find out about such important matters?"

"Besides, I am merely a plaything for Your Majesty. Every night we only do that… that thing, and I don't even have the qualification to stay overnight on Your Majesty's dragon bed!"

"This…" The young eunuch also said helplessly, "These past few days, there have been rumors inside and outside the palace that Your Majesty is a natural eunuch. However, you and I know that Your Majesty is vigorous and full of vitality, and it is definitely not as the outside world spreads."

"In this subordinate's view, the day for you, Saintess, to rise to prominence is not far away!"

"Really?"

Bi He put her hands together and said, "For the sake of the holy sect, Bi He will definitely serve Your Majesty well."

"Right, are there any other important matters in the sect?"

"There are."

The young eunuch said, "It concerns Consort Shu and Yang Xuansu. Yang Xuansu is a mortal enemy of our sect. The Sect Master hopes that you can secretly contact Consort Shu and befriend her…"

Just at this moment, the excited voice of a eunuch from the Jingshi Department suddenly came from outside the courtyard.

"Your Majesty favors Noble Lady Bi…"

Immediately, several eunuchs walked in file after file, smiling all over their faces as they said, "Congratulations, Noble Lady Bi, heartiest congratulations, Noble Lady Bi. Your Majesty will be here soon. Would you like to take a bath and wait first?"

Bi He hurriedly stood up and said pleasantly surprised, "Father-in-law, is it true?"

"Could that be false?"

"Quick, quick, serve Noble Lady Bi in her bath!"

The matter of Emperor Zhengyong favoring Bi He quickly spread throughout the entire imperial palace.

Almost all palace maids and eunuchs looked with envy at Chuxiu Palace where Bi He lived, but the rumors about Emperor Zhengyong being a natural eunuch still persisted.

The next day, Emperor Zhengyong issued an imperial edict conferring upon Bi He the title of concubine as 'Consort Bi', and her residence was changed to Yongchun Palace.

For a time, Bi He's prestige was unmatched in the palace. Many eunuchs and maids scrambled to work in Yongchun Palace to serve Consort Bi.

This matter also aroused discussions among many people in the imperial court.

"Aunt! What on earth is Emperor Brother thinking, actually going to favor a low-level palace maid and even conferring upon her the title of concubine!"

Inside Yongshou Palace, an extremely charming and beautiful woman supported the Empress Dowager's arm, acting coquettishly without stop.

"Alright Lin'er, stop shaking, this Empress Dowager's head is about to be shaken dizzy by you."

The Empress Dowager smiled and patted her niece the Empress's shoulder, saying, "You are the Empress of the current dynasty, you must mind the Empress's dignity. Making a fuss like this, what system of decorum is this?"

The Empress still pouted and said, "This is here with you, Aunt. In front of outsiders, I certainly wouldn't be like this."

"Emperor Brother hasn't come to my place in such a long time…"

The Empress Dowager suddenly said earnestly, "Lin'er, tell this Empress Dowager the truth. In the past, when the Emperor went to your place, did he ever consummate the marriage?"

The Empress shrank her head back and gritted her teeth, saying, "In the past, when Emperor Brother came to my place, he only discussed some family matters and poetry."

"Every night, he would leave on the grounds of urgent state affairs. Wasn't Tang King rebelling at that time…"

"Alright, this Empress Dowager knows."

The Empress Dowager patted the Empress's hand and said, "Lin'er, this Empress Dowager has other matters, you may withdraw first."

"Yes, Aunt, this niece takes her leave."

After the Empress left, the Empress Dowager muttered, "Zhucao."

"Empress Dowager, this old servant is here."

A plump, fifty-year-old matron walked in and said respectfully.

"Go investigate whether any famous doctor from Nanyue County has entered the palace these past few days."

"Yes, Empress Dowager."

Prime Minister's Estate.

Yang Xuansu said in surprise, "What? The Emperor actually favored a palace maid?"

"It is true, My Lord. This lowly servant bribed the eunuchs of the Jingshi Department, and indeed a palace maid was favored by Your Majesty, and dragon essence was left as a record."

"According to rumors in the palace, Your Majesty has already favored this palace maid for more than a month."

The subordinate said, "Many people know about this matter, and today Your Majesty even conferred upon this palace maid the title of Consort Bi!"

"Consort Bi, Consort Bi…"

Yang Xuansu muttered, then chuckled and said, "This is protesting too much. Who wouldn't it be better to favor, yet he insists on favoring a mere palace maid?"

"It seems Your Majesty… is truly no longer capable!"

"Father, shall we make our move then?"

Yang Xuansu's eldest son, Yang Guang, said excitedly nearby. As one of the Imperial Guard commanders, he controlled one-third of the Imperial Guard's military strength!

"Not yet…"

Yang Xuansu shook his head and said, "Contacting Fuyou House ran into some problems. Last time we killed one of their Protectors, it seems they don't want to take this job anymore."

"So what if it's Fuyou House?"

Yang Guang frowned and said, "With our current strength, we can completely occupy the imperial palace on the grounds of the Son of Heaven losing his virtue, control the Emperor, and force him to abdicate."

"Not urgent."

Yang Xuansu said, "The Longxiang Army forced back Wu Country, and Wu Country's Third Prince was killed. I imagine Wu Country will not let this rest."

"This old man wants to wait for Wu Country's massive army to press at the border, making Xu Mujun unable to spare a hand, and then force the Emperor to abdicate the throne to Prince Qing."

"By then, it will be a fait accompli, and no matter how strong Xu Mujun is, he will have no choice but to swallow it!"

"Father is still wise!"

Yang Xuansu added, "Continue spreading the rumors; I want these rumors to spread throughout the entire Great Yu!"

"The Son of Heaven cannot father children, and in his thirties he still does not have a single son or daughter. Let's see if he can keep sitting on this throne!"

"Right Dad, what about Bin Province?"

Yang Guang asked again, "That Xu Mujun is simply too strong. The moment he entered Bin Province, he suppressed the entire Bin Province so hard they couldn't catch their breath, and they won't last many days."

"Moreover, this child guesses that that old immortal's strength may have already stepped into the Innate Realm…"

"So what if it's the Innate Realm?"

Yang Xuansu said, "I have fought with him for the better part of my life, and I have long seen through this person."

"This person joined the army at age twelve, and for over fifty years he has fought north and south for Great Yu, remaining utterly loyal to the Great Yu Dynasty."

"And this is our opportunity!"

"What he is loyal to is the Great Yu Dynasty, not Emperor Zhengyong."

"As long as we take advantage of the time while he is still in Bin Province to coerce Emperor Zhengyong into abdicating to Prince Qing at the fastest speed, there will be nothing he can do!"

"Then we wait for Wu Country to launch a massive army, and we will work together from the inside and outside to wipe him out."

"By then, the entire Great Yu will be within this old man's grasp!"

Yang Guang said with great joy, "Father is wise! Then what should we do now…"

"I have already received a secret report that there are rioting commoners in Qingzhou, and behind them are the shadows of the White Lotus Sect."

"This old man will send you to Qingzhou to suppress the rebellion. At that time, you will do your best to recruit the rebel army, have them impact the surrounding areas like Jizhou and Qingzhou, and try your best to delay the Longxiang Army so they cannot be distracted."

"If there is an opportunity, secretly contact the White Lotus Sect; this old man has great use for them!"

"Once Wu Country surrounds Xu Mujun and the Longxiang Army, that will be our opportunity!"

"This child understands."

Yang Guang said, "But Dad, are you really going to contact the White Lotus Sect? Those fellows harbor wild ambitions…"

"So what if they harbor wild ambitions?"

Yang Xuansu said indifferently, "As long as I can ascend to the supreme throne, a mere White Lotus Sect can be wiped out by this old man with a flip of the hand!"