SMOKE AND MIRRORS

             Han Touzhou in his study Lin Xue walked up to him while he happened to be reading one of his books.

            "Your Excellency, something urgent has happened." He said to him.

            "What could it be at this time?" He asked.

            "Peng Zishou has been demoted to the position of Magistrate of the Yu prefecture." He replied.

            "How come?" Han Touzhou inquired.

            "I only heard that he petitioned to His Majesty admonishing you of course and his Majesty furious it seemed that he was rather defending Master Zhu Xi and the Neo-confucianists." Lin Xue replied.

            "He's one person that wouldn't do a thing that is too stupid." He mention.

            "It's true Your Excellency but you know his personality well enough as he is very much a direct man that finds it rather hard to hide what he is thinking." Lin Xue replied.

             "He must have said something very bad to His Majesty to have him lash out this severely at him." Han Touzhou pointed out.

             "I heard that he claimed that During the Yuanfu reign period [1098-1100], because Xiang Zongliang and his brothers colluded with foreign emissaries and leaked the state secrets, Chen Guan memorialized the emperor and impeached them, saying, 'Ever since the ancient times, signs of a declining dynasty start to manifest when state power begins to be encroached upon by imperial relatives as it was for the Empress Xiang, and the reason for a failing empire is rooted in the fact that court policies are interfered with by the emperors' kin. Policy-making at the level of prefectures and counties is also the same. All in all the power must be firmly controlled by the governors and If a kin or relative is allowed to conspire with government officials, then wicked persons will be encouraged and good officials will start to complain.' These words truly cannot be unheeded. Now what Your Excellency is doing is even worse than that of Xiang Zongliang, but there is no Chen Guan in the court who dares to come out and remorse you. During the reign of His Majesty's father, when Jiang Teli was first promoted, the ministers at court were still capable of driving him out of office. Later when Yuan Zuo was used, the censors could still make him fear their words. But to my surprise, as bright and perceptive as His Majesty was at the beginning, he could still allow a person as wicked as you to stay in your court, and no one dared to criticize him. Thus your power over the court is indeed notable." Lin Xue said.

            "I see." Han Touzhou said.

            "What is it?" Lin Xue inquired.

            "The Emperor is angry not because it is me that he trusts but rather that Peng Zishou made him seem incompetent a monarch, compared him to the previous Emperor and if he wouldn't punish him serious perhaps the others would say that he very much agrees with his perception of the Courtiers." Han Touzhou replied.

             "Now that you say it, Yu prefecture isn't so distant from the capital." Lin Xue muttered, "is this His Majesty's way of protecting Peng Zishou?" He asked.

             "His Majesty studied with him and he is close, as it may so seem he would have lost his head and if he stayed in the Imperial Court long enough there would have been so much turmoil." Han Touzhou replied.

             "It was best to force him to lay low for a moment." Lin Xue concluded.

             "It was safest to see it at that." Han Touzhou confirmed.

              Empress Li in her Chambers Liu Zhan announced the Imperial Prince Zhao Jun and permitting him to enter the young boy made his way up to her.

              "Your Highness." He offered his respects to the old woman who smiled at him.

              "I see that you look as dignified." She remarked.

               "I heard that you had done well my dear in your classes and I wanted to inform you beforehand." She said.

              "What is it Your Highness?" He inquired.

              "His Majesty consented to your investiture as the Crown Prince of the Great Song and I was hoping to tell you first that the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial observatory concluded that the most auspicious day to hold the ceremony is tomorrow." Empress Li muttered.

              "Yes." The young boy replied but wearing a sombre expression on his face she noticed it immediately that she expressed her concern.

              "You don't look happy." She said while he took a deep breath and sighed for a moment she guessed what he was thinking at the moment.

              "Are you worried about your mother?" She asked.

              "Yes Your Highness." The young boy replied, "it's already been months but I wonder how she is doing." He said and the Empress Mother smiling at him she pulled from beneath her sleeve an envelope which she set on the table.

             "What is this Your Highness?" He inquired.

             "I was worried that you might feel uneasy and I decided to secretly get your mother to write to you in advance and I trust that you'll hear her out." She replied that the young boy excited he immediately tore the envelope open and pulled out the paper that was inside and he studied it.

             My dear Jun'er, I know that you must be missing me, I know that you must be hurting from all the weeks you have gone with hardly any glimpse of me your heart breaks everyday and no one can feel your pain they tread on you every hour and think you to be supernatural to fulfil the greatest of expectations above any man or beast or woman that roams this vast expanse of land under the blue firmament.

              How often have you broken, how hard have you cried, how much have you sighed and sought comfort in this cruel world where a brother is equally an enemy and all you have to confide in and you're certain will never forsake you is a shoulder?

              I am a sinner in the Dynasty they say, I am cruel and jealous they claim every now and then it's that plea they raise and degrade me, adorn me with a crown of thorns and laugh at me because when it comes to being beautiful I was less and not once in your father's heart did he look at me as a wife I was an obligation to get wealth, power and fame, I your humble, caring and loving mother are a price for power that was paid, an oppressor, aggressor, enemy and darkness that hovers above their heads.

             I miss that I can't hold you and I miss that I can't shield you from the world, I miss that there's hardly a memory within the picture of your face the dark and small room in which I am confined makes me worry that sooner or later I might even forget your name.

               You might not be the greatest of Princes in the world and neither could you be the bravest, but even as the Empress Mother that I trust keeps you safe from all the storms of the world I want you to remember that you were luckier than any other child in the world because even in death as it has been and it shall always be, you're more than special because you have a mother that loves you so much more than anything else, I wish that for my sake unlike your father, you become a good Emperor, that you become a good husband and above all, a good father." She concluded and with her name in the lower right corner of the paper, the letter ended at that the Young Man touched he burst into tears.

               "I will be Good Mother, I shall be great." He said and the Empress Li ceasing him she pulled her closer to her chest.

               "All will be well Your Highness, trust me." She whispered into the young man who broken and already convinced she smiled at herself.

              Emperor Ningzong walking out of his study Yang Jieyu approached him.

             "Your Majesty." She greeted him with a smile on her face.

             "I was coming to you just now." He informed her.

             "You needn't have bothered." She replied as he ceased her hand and slowly they started strolling through the gardens.

             "I heard that the Imperial Prince shall be invested tomorrow." She said to him.

             "The Palace seems to have become very busy." He mentioned.

              "Her Highness the Empress Mother was very pleased she's overseeing all preparations carefully, and the mere fact that Your Majesty shall consolidate your position on the throne for a while it's only good enough to silence those good for nothing Courtiers." She said.

              "How is the Prince Zhao Xun?" He asked.

              "Lively and excited as always, just yesterday he was thinking of a perfect gift to give the Imperial Prince when he is designated as heir apparent, now that I think about it, I can't help but be happy that those two shall treat each other like brothers and love each other as much as well." She said.

             "Do you think I am a bad Emperor?" He suddenly asked.

             "Why would Your Majesty think so?" She asked.

             "My ancestors were all great men, from Zhao Kuangyin who founded the Dynasty to the Emperor Taizong, Zhezong, they were all great men who wielded bows and arrows, Gaozong charged like the wind on the battlefield and reclaimed the southern lands from falling to the Jurchens." He said.

             She kept quiet for a while.

             "They were each men that knew best the art of the sword but my hands are unable I always dreamt that once I would conquer that battlefield as a young boy and reclaim the Northern lands." He said.

             "Your Majesty feeling this low, surely someone claimed you were unworthy?" She inquired.

             "Peng Zishou was demoted to the Magistrate of Yu prefecture at the very least the one thing that he could control is it's small force, he appealed to me in a memorial and cautioned that I have personally allowed my kin to interfere in the affairs of State and that has brought the decline in our Dynasty." He Said.

            "What do the people get from war?" She asked while he remained silent.

            "We'd only bury our brothers and our sisters if we are ill prepared, we could lose out much more than we could gain, Your Majesty ascended the throne the Era became known as Qingyuan, trade prospers at the sea and across the Northern border your people have what to it and a roof above their heads except that those loyal and corrupt Officials exploit their way to manipulate them a majority love and worship you they call you a sage amongst men even when the likes of Yang Guang inherited glorious Empires that ultimately fell yours still stands today a most peaceful domain." She muttered.

            "Is there anyone that sees me in a better way than you do?" He asked as he stopped and ceasing her hands he looked into her eyes.

            "Because in you I see a husband and a father that is good Your Majesty, because there isn't a woman on earth and in heaven that could love you as much as I do, because my whole life whether it'd be long or short I want to be by your side to give you counsel and comfort, to tell you to strike and aim high even when the others ask you to lay low, to support you all the way and to make you yet a Great, a wise and a Sage Emperor that this Great Country needs to survive." She said to him.

            "Thank you." He said.

            "Thank you Your Majesty." She said to him instead, "once you told me that you wanted me to have children of my own to call great citizens but at this moment I want to give you beautiful sons and daughters to protect and fight for you." She added as she embraced him into a hug while Eunuch Deng and Lan He watching from a distance they felt at ease.

             Darkness had fallen and was lingering above the Palace and in the dead of night Cao Zhaoyi seated in her Chambers the doors were slid open and through them, Linxiang walked in.

             "Ma'am." She said.

             "I need to talk to my father." She said.

             "You couldn't possibly tell him.....?" She asked.

             "Yes." She replied.

             "But even if you called I doubt that he'd risk and come to you." Linxiang said.

             "There won't be a need for that." Cao Zhaoyi muttered.

             "Ma'am...?" Linxiang speaking in protest she was silenced by her glance.

             "If I remain seated father's actions could end us at this rate it is best that I see him and I stop him myself." She said.

            "Yes Ma'am." Linxiang agreed unwillingly.

            Minister Cao having stepped out of his study was descending the stairs when She appeared through the gates of the inner Courtyard and she stood in front of him.

            "Ma'am?" He said quite surprised.

            "Your Excellency." She greeted him while bowing her head.

             "What are you doing here at this hour?" He asked.

             "I should be the one asking where you are going father." She replied.

             "An Imperial Concubine outside the Palace at this late hour could bring about too many rumours among other dire consequences and as it is I am very busy." He said.

             "And it's because Your Excellency is busy that I decide to come to you personally, you might not realise that I am more burdened than you at the moment it's been months since I returned to the palace and your grand daughter was born and yet at this point you haven't even paid a visit are you in the very least not worried?" She inquired.

            "I am not Ma'am." He replied, "you became my daughter for purposes of convenience as we each wanted something special Ma'am perhaps I should remind you where my loyalties stand?" He muttered as he bowed his head to her and prepared to go away.

            "With the Empress Mother?" She asked, "or perhaps should I call her the Grand Empress Dowager?" She inquired and the latter hearing this he turned around and looked at her.

             "What did you say?" He asked.

             "You think that I didn't know of your little ruse?" She asked.

             "What are you talking about?" He said.

             "The private Soldiers within the capital and the Yu prefecture, the Ministers that are involved all of them including Minister Xue and the rest of the gang that have been meeting at the Marigold teahouse in the dead of night, that have been to the outskirts." She said to him as she walked up to him and halted in front.

             "I'd be wise if I were you to keep everything that I saw to myself." He said.

             "You could as well kill me as not a single person in the Palace is aware that I came here but that would only intensify things and make His Majesty more cautious and what's worse is that you aren't even sure if I didn't leave behind any proof of the Empress' rebellion." She muttered.

             "I could as well do that." He Said.

             "I don't care about the Empress' revolt but should anything go wrong Yang Jieyu and her supporters shall first demand for my head and it seems that the Empress could be good at keeping her tracks covered but not the people she's working with have you not realized how much of a liability you are to her?" He asked.

             "Everything I have it was because of her Highness' grace, as Empress and formerly a Crown Princess would you understand what that loyalty is like the the extent of me laying my life for her and even if you knew where these troops are I am sure that by now you must have known even if you turned the Yu prefecture upside down you won't find them." He said.

             "What?" Cao Zhaoyi said.

             "For an event as big as the Crown Prince's investiture you do not expect Her Highness to march through the he gates of the capital with an army rallying behind her." He said.

             "Impossible." Cao Zhaoyi said.

             "I assure you well enough Ma'am, you know too many things but they are all useless and before you humiliate yourself I shall ask you smartly to keep it to yourself otherwise, better than anyone you should know the consequences of lying to the Emperor and charging a member of the Imperial family especially without any evidence." He said as he smiled at her.

             "Father?" She called him.

             "This is no place for a Lady of the Palace." He muttered to her.

             "You shall regret this father." She said, "and when you do you will grovel to beg me to take you in." She added but the latter not paying much attention to her words he decided to continue his way.

            Yang Jieyu lying in her bed and asleep she was feeling strangely cold and the wind howling it blew her windows open that at that very instant she woke up when Manyin rushed in crying out her name.

            "Ma'am?" She said desperately.

            "What is it?" Yang Jieyu asked as she sat upright.

            "We are in big trouble." She replied and immediately getting out of her bed, Yang Jieyu being escorted secretly by both her and Xiaoyang they made their way out of the Palace into the Lanling Court where Bo An, Beiyuan, Bao Langya, Master Bao and a couple of other Ministers were waiting.

            "What's this I am here?" She demanded.

            "Peng Zishou got to the Yu Prefecture but we received word that the there's nothing at all and the Private Soldiers that were supposed to be there vanished without a trace." Bao Langya said.

             "How is that even possible?" Yang Jieyu inquired.

             "I don't know Ma'am, but we watched everyone closely as per your orders, the Empress Mother's men didn't act up in any manner and also it couldn't be that Minister Xue betrayed us." Bo An replied.

             "That's impossible." Yang Jieyu said as she seemed to be thinking deeply about it.

             "Maybe, the Empress learnt that she was being watched or perhaps it was a false alarm." Master Bao said.

              "You don't know the Empress Mother the way  I do, people with ambitions can not be trusted she'd do anything at this stage and now that we know nothing it makes her even more dangerous." Yang Jieyu remarked.

              "Then if she has nearly twenty thousand soldiers in total where could she hide those men that we can not see?" Bo An asked.

              "If they aren't in Yu Prefecture then they must already be in the Capital." She said.

              "We checked all the places we were sure they were after monitoring them for so long and since we heard from Minister Xue we could swear that they were there before but all of a sudden they vanished without a trace we are just as puzzled Ma'am." Bao Langya muttered.

              "If the Empress Mother's coup de tat succeeds then all of us in this room can expect to lose our heads sooner or later and the Crown Prince's investiture is tomorrow if we can not find the troops and either annihilate them or gain control of them then by the time dusk falls we shall be too late." Yang Jieyu said.

              "Ma'am?" Bao Langya said.

              "I don't care what you have to do but surely, one way or another before the inauguration it's important that we know the whereabouts of the army." She muttered.

              "But it's certain though, if someone were to harm the Emperor and the Empress needed to carry out a coup de tat without the knowledge of the Courtiers, she'd need to orchestrate it within the Palace." Master Bao said.

             "Do what you can I'll shall monitor the preparations for the ceremonies." Yang Jieyu concluded.

             "Ma'am?" Linxiang said.

             "I shouldn't have confronted him." Cao Zhaoyi remarked.

             "Calm down." She muttered.

             "For a moment I would have forsaken him and everyone in that wretched family but they must be watching me closely a single moment like this that I make a wrong step then His Majesty shall surely suffer and much worse and the most bitter part of it all is that I must watch and do nothing as His Majesty won't believe me if I told him." She muttered.

             "But Ma'am, if the troops aren't in Yu Prefecture and the other outskirts of the capital where could they all be?" Linxiang asked.

             "I wish I knew." Cao Zhaoyi remarked.

             Yang Jieyu having returned to her residence residence she was thinking about everything that they had told her in Lanling Court and it was approaching dawn as Xiaoyang walked into the room.

             "Ma'am, Minister Liu from the Ministry of Rites is here to see you." She announced.

             "Let him in." She replied and the old man walked in holding a couple of charts in his hands dressed as a commoner.

             "You wished to see me Ma'am?" He asked.

             "Did you bring what I asked you to?" Yang Jieyu inquired.

             "Yes Ma'am." He replied as he got closer and placed the charts on the table and picking them she closely looked through.

             "Her Highness the Empress has organised a big celebration for the Crown Prince's investiture and I only wish to know the details for the event this year." She said.

             "The Imperial Prince will need to travel to the Grand Hall while being accompanied by the Eunuchs bearing the fans, the Imperial guards shall be stationed right outside the wall and His Majesty would deliver the Edict to him, after that there shall be a very Grand feast and even some of the people will be allowed into the Palace for the celebration." The Minister said.

             After the Crown Prince is invested then you mean to say that the best time that strangers would infiltrate the palace is during the feast?" She asked.

            "Yes Ma'am." The Minister replied and the young woman thinking about it she looked back at him.

            "I have a favour to ask you." She said.

            "What could I do for you Ma'am?" Minister Liu replied.

            "Can I trust you to keep this secret between us?" She inquired.

            "Yes, you don't have to worry about me Ma'am." He assured her and packing everything, he stood up and bowed his head to her as he withdrew from the room.

             Descending the stairs and negotiating a corner, while he secretly walked through the forbidden Palace a couple of Eunuchs ceased him at once and covering his eyes they dragged him away while he resisted.

            Being carried into a room he was tied to a chair in the middle and the Eunuchs bowing their heads to someone in the darkness, they opened the old man's eyes and mouth.

            "Where am I?" He asked when the person that was seated in the darkness stood up and walked into the light he immediately recognized her face.

             "Your Highness?" He said as it turned out to be the Empress Mother.

             "I shall ask you the questions and I hope you are going to be truthful to me and perhaps I could spare both you and your family." She said.

             "What is this Your Highness, I have done nothing." He said.

             "I trust that you have been in Yang Jieyu's Chambers a short while ago." She mentioned while the man falling silent he looked down.

             "What does Your Highness wish to know?" He asked.

             "I want to know everything that the both of you talked about."

             Yang Jieyu returning before all the other Ministers she sat down in her usual seat.

             "I have accessed the plan for the Imperial Prince Zhao Jun's investiture and I learnt that after the Edict is announced to the world and he is designated an honorary feast shall be held in his honour where even some commons from outside the Palace shall be allowed in on the orders of His Majesty, at the very least I ask your cooperation at that time because both the Emperor and the Crown Prince along with the Empress Mother shall be present it's likely that the rebels shall infiltrate the Palace at the time." Yang Jieyu said.

             "Yes Ma'am." They all agreed in unison as the young woman smiled at herself and while they were walking out of the room she ceased Bo An by his hand.

             "Ma'am?" He said concerned while she raised her finger and signalled for him to be silent.

             "There's something that you must do for me with Bao Langya." She muttered.

             "It's only a couple of hours to the investiture Ma'am, what can we do for you?" He asked while she stood up and whispered something to him.

             Empress Han seated in her Chambers and waiting, she smiled at herself ghastly as Liu Zhan walked in.

             "Your Highness, it's nearly time." She said.

             "Yang Jieyu has made her move I am sure by now she trusts that she understands us well enough but I was right in the beginning, she is pretty much nothing compared to us." She remarked.

             "Your Highness......" She was saying when the Empress interfered.

             "Tell the others that we shall proceed according to the plan." She said.

             "Yes Your Highness." Liu Zhan replied.

             The musicians gathering outside the Palace, the drums were sounded and the trumpets blown out loud while the gates to the Courtyard of the Grand Palace were opened and through them a couple of Imperial guards rushed bearing banners in they hands as they positioned themselves on either side of the walkway.

             Shortly the Imperial Prince Zhao Jun dressed in yellow and white robes walked through being accompanied by a retinue of Eunuchs that were bearing fans in their hands on masts nearly ten feet high the lesser ministers gathered outside the young man ascended the stairs that led to the Imperial Hall where the High Officials in their Imperial Robes were gathered while the Emperor Ningzong was seated on his throne in his Coronation robes.

           "Read out the Edict." He said to Eunuch Deng who smiled at the young Prince.

            "HIS HIGHNESS THE IMPERIAL PRINCE ZHAO JUN IS FILIAL AND UPRIGHT, BEGOTTEN OF ME AS THE FIRST BORN SON OF BOTH THE EMPRESS HAN AND MYSELF, HE IS KIND AND GENTLE, VERY HARDWORKING AND STUDIOUS AND EVEN THEN HE HAS NEVER DISAPPOINTED ME THAT AS SOVEREIGN OF THE LAND AND AS MY DUTY DEMANDS ME TO DESIGNATE A SUCCESSOR FOR THE DRAGON THRONE THERE'S NOT A PERSON IN THE WORLD I DEEM MORE FITTING FOR THE RESPONSIBILITY OF SUSTAINING THE DYNASTY IN FUTURE I HEREBY ANNOUNCE BEFORE THE WORLD TODAY THAT MY SUCCESSOR BEFORE MY COFFIN AND THE NEW CROWN PRINCE OF THE GREAT SOUTHERN SONG DYNASTY IS HIM." He read.

            "The Imperial Prince Zhao Jun receives the Imperial order and thanks His Majesty." The young boy said as he bowed his head and the Emperor Ningzong looking at him he smiled while the young boy being handed the Edict by Eunuch Deng, the rest of the officials went onto their knees and bowed their heads to the Emperor.

             Long Live His Majesty the Emperor, Long Live his Highness the Crown Prince, Long Live His Majesty the Emperor." They said in unison.

             Yang Jieyu and Cao Zhaoyi anxiously waiting in their own personal Chambers, Manyin rushed in to the former.

             "Ma'am, the investiture has been concluded." She alerted her.

             "It's time to stand guard." Yang Jieyu replied as she stood up from where she was seated and she walked out of the room.

             In a short while later the Ministers and the members of the Imperial family gathered in the Courtyard of the Eastern Palace, the celebrations commenced, first the dancers graced the floor and they showcased their talents while the musicians played their instruments, the Emperor as usual was seated in the middle and at the highest point of the scene and below him were the Crown Prince and the two Empresses Xie and Li, lined on their left were the Imperial Concubines which included Cao Zhaoyi and Yang Jieyu and across them, the Emperor's ministers while they appeared to enjoy the spectacle.

            More than once Yang Jieyu would look at the Empress Mother who seemed carefree and cheerful while Cao Zhaoyi couldn't help but keep her eyes pinned on the Emperor, the Minister Cao watched his foster daughter closely while the Crown Prince Zhao Jun was still comfortable in his seat and cheerful.

            After the dancers were done the fire eaters came in while dusk was starting to fall and Yang Jieyu turning and looking behind herself she looked at the Imperial Prince Zhao Xun and signalled for him to go closer to her which he did.

             Arriving by her side she handed over something to him and whispered into his ear attracting the attention of the Empress Mother that the young boy moving around he finally approached the old woman.

             "Your Highness." He whispered to her.

             "What is it my dear?" She asked as the Emperor noticed the young boy particularly close with his mother he turned to look at Yang Jieyu who smiled reassuringly at him, he put in the Empress' hand a small Jade stone.   

             "How sweet!" The Empress exclaimed.

             "Ma'am is wishing you a nice day and a long life." He muttered.

              "Tell her that I wish her the same." The Empress Mother replied and sending the boy away he rushed to his mother and spoke to him what she had said Yang Jieyu looking at the Empress Li she smiled and bowed her head to show her respects.

              The celebrations peaked the day and soon enough as dusk fell, Yang Jieyu looked at Bao Langya who was standing on a small tower that was nearby but he nodded to inform her that there was nothing.

              The celebrations came to an end just like that everyone retiring to their rooms Yang Jieyu walked into hers and she sat down while Manyin and Xiaoyang followed her in.

              "Ma'am, how come nothing happened?" Xiaoyang asked.

             "Could it have been a false alarm?" Manyin supplemented while the latter quietly sat down for a moment she waited until Beiyuan flung the doors open and he walked in before her bowing his head.

             "How did it go?" She asked him.

             "Nothing." He replied, "but we have rounded up the Eunuchs and all that's left Ma'am is your signal." He said.

             "They were relying on a music chord you said?" She asked him while the other two were rather surprised by the ongoing conversation between them that they couldn't seem to understand a thing.

             "What is it Ma'am?" Xiaoyang inquired.

             "The Empress Mother didn't act at the feast that could only mean there's one more opportunity that she has and it could ultimately be the only one she'll have." Yang Jieyu replied.

             "Would it be in the dead of night?" Manyin asked.

            "No." She replied.

            "Then when would be the best time?" Xiaoyang asked.

           "Anytime that the security in the Palace falls short." Yang Jieyu replied.

            "What?" Manyin said.

            "Not a single one of the Empress Mother's people had an idea except that it was bound to be after the Crown Prince's investiture, it would have been today or tomorrow but when the celebration in the palace is Grand some of the servants return to their families for a while I realised that the Empress secretly sent out others from the Palace and brought in others under those same identities only to buy time to be close enough to the Eastern Palace, the Grand Palace and the harem." Yang Jieyu replied.

            "How did you know Ma'am?" Xiaoyang inquired.

            "I didn't." Yang Jieyu replied, "Master Bao told me." She added.

            "How come?" Manyin muttered.

            "We were all looking for men dressed as assassins and we forgot temporarily that if someone were to harm the Emperor and the Empress needed to carry out a coup de tat without the knowledge of the Courtiers, she'd need to orchestrate it within the Palace, something he knew." She replied.

           "Where are the men now?" Manyin asked.

           "They'll have their fill before they watch the tower at night, hardly will they know, no, they won't even see it coming." Yang Jieyu replied as she smiled at herself ghastly.

            Bao Langya and Bo An disguised as Palace guards they carried two barrels of water and climbing the stairs that led to the small Eastern pavilion where a couple of guards were situated, they placed them down.

             "It's time for your fill, the guard shall be changed in fifteen minutes." They announced and in order they each lined up as they took a gourd of water each and they all sipped while they moved to the eating area as the two watched them earnestly and nodded at each other after the last one had gone.

             Eunuch Deng walking into the Eunuchs eating hall a couple of plates borne by ladies in waiting were carried over to the tables where they were all gathered together.

             "This is His Majesty's gift to all of you to celebrate the investiture of His Highness the Crown Prince." He said and when the dishes were revealed to them while the incense was burned, he withdrew from the room and turning to face the Eastern gate of the place where Yang Cishan was waiting, he nodded to him which sign he welcomed he posted a couple of guards and stationed them around the building.

             Emperor Ningzong in his sleep and Yang Zhaoyi uneasy in her room after a while Bo An and Bao Langya looked back at the guards that had fainted before then a number of other fellows hurried over to the place and started to carry them away while Yang Cishan opening the doors of Eunuch's hall he found them all laying their heads on their tables unconscious while the incense had finished burning down.

             Empress Li in her quarters Liu Zhan was seated in front of her while she watched the candle at her table melting until it reached halfway and she sighed.

            "Send someone to bring the Crown Prince to me." She said.

            "Yes Your Highness." Liu Zhan replied as she stood up and bowing her head she immediately withdrew from the room while the Empress was left smiling at herself.

            Yang Jieyu in her own room, the doors were open yet again and Manyin and Xiaoyang still waiting outside, Beiyuan laid something on the table that was drenched in blood.

            "As you had suspected Ma'am, the main force has surrendered and disbanded they that survive are under our control." He said.

            "Well done." She muttered.

            "With this Ma'am, we could incriminate Her Highn....." He was saying when she interrupted him by taking them into her hands and standing up, she tucked them under her sleeves as she walked out of the room with a rather strange expression on her face that worried he followed her.

           "Open up." She said and Manyin and Xiaoyang complying she stood out in the open and raised her head to look at the moon.

            "The moon is full tonight." She muttered.

            "Ma'am, it's cold, please go back inside." Xiaoyang said.

            "Take me to the Empress Mother's Palace." Yang Jieyu replied.

            "What?" Manyin said in surprise while Beiyuan's eyes widened.

             "Ma'am, what are you saying?" He asked.

             "We're going to Her Highness' Palace." She replied and turning to the ladies in waiting that were bearing the lanterns they moved up from the sides of the room and going on before her they illuminated her path while she descended the stairs and headed into the direction of the South Palace while the others reluctantly followed her.

            A lady in waiting for the Empress Mother approaching the gates of the Eastern Palace the two guards standing there they blocked her way.

            "I have been sent by Her Highness the Empress Mother." She said and Bao Langya and Bo An looking at each other, a couple of other guards turned up behind her and ceased her as they covered her mouth and dragged her away.

             Liu Zhan still waiting for the woman she was surprised when through the gates of the Palace Yang Jieyu and her train of attendants walked in that she rushed in front of her.     

             "What are you doing here?" She asked.

             "Announce me to Her Highness." Yang Jieyu replied and the latter rolling her eyes instead the young woman stepping closer to her she raised her hand and slapped her across the cheek.

             "Is that a way to look at your superiors?" She inquired.

             "No." Liu Zhan replied and the doors of the room being flung open the Empress appeared at the top of the staircase and Yang Jieyu along with everyone in her retinue they bowed their heads to her.

             "Your Highness." They greeted in unison.

             "What's with all this commotion?" The Empress Li asked.

             "Pardon me Your Highness, we were merely requesting an audience at this hour." Yang Jieyu replied.

             "It's already late, you can as well return tomorrow." The Empress said.

             "It's a very urgent issue and I think it would be best if Your Highness heard me out." She mentioned.

             "Shall you act so impudent in front of me?" The Empress asked.

             "I dare not Your Highness of course, however it concerns me as much as it concerns you or perhaps Your Highness insists that you'd prefer me to let the world know." She said and looking at her for a while the old woman smirked.

             "Come in." She said.

             "Thank you Your Majesty." Yang Jieyu said as she bowed her head and the Empress returning inside, she looked at Liu Zhan who was still watching her quietly that she bowed her head while she ascended the stairs that led into the Empress' Chambers.

             "Your Highness." She said as she sat down right in front of her.

             "What are you doing here?" The Empress inquired from her.

             "I came to see you." Yang Jieyu replied.

             "You can return to your Chambers as it shall be a very long night for the both of us." She assured her.

             "Because Your Highness intends to revolt?" She asked and all of a sudden she froze and stopped sipping at the cup of tea in her hands.

             "I know nothing of what you are talking about." She denied.

            "I understand you do as it is you must be expecting your private army they won't turn up here or anywhere close into the capital." Yang Jieyu said.

             "You should listen to yourself my dear." She muttered when Yang Jieyu stretching her hand into her sleeve she pulled out a small handkerchief that was partially wet which she placed onto the table before the Empress.

             "Perhaps Your Highness shall realize sooner or later after you see this." She said and the Empress reluctantly she opened it slowly until she saw the name tags that were bloodstained for a moment it became automatic to her.

             "What did you do?" She asked.

             "Your Private army reserves within the capital and around it's outskirts can either die by my hand as it is that some are disbanded or they can come under my control." Yang Jieyu replied and the Empress furious and trying to restrain herself she looked at her.

            "You bitch." She asserted in a lowly tone.

            "Yes Your Highness, I am a bitch." She replied, "I am a fool for having been lenient on you enough to allow you keep your worthless and pathetic life however I have questions of my own that I want you to answer before then and perhaps if you showed be your resolve yet again I might for the sake of His Majesty turn a blind eye and walk out of this room and pretend that nothing happened at all." She said.

             "How?" She asked.

             "I couldn't guarantee the safety of the Minister Liu but at the very least I was sure you were watching me and I had two thoughts initially the first being that you would launch your coup during the feast but had that failed surely it would be after either way I had to force you to reveal to me one of the two." She replied.

             "No." The Empress muttered.

             "Yes Ma'am, we had a clue that your troops were supposed to be stationed in Yu Prefecture and the outskirts of the capital but the very moment we learnt it wasn't so, one thing remained certain that for your coup to be successful yet quiet you needed them close enough to the palace I eventually had to learn of the secret adjustments to the Imperial guards and the increased registrations I couldn't solely look to them I checked the Palace staff which was maintained only at the primary levels buy a large number of the Eunuchs were secretly sent to enjoy time with their families and replaced to get into the harem and the Inner Court but the major force to safeguard your claim had to be close to the Palace and it was the Capital Police." She said.

             "You know all this and you could as well expose me, why then did you come here?" Empress Li asked.

             "I came here to ask you Your Highness as there is something that I want to understand, I came here to know why." She replied, "for heaven's sake it could be any other person in the world I wouldn't have blamed them, but you attempted to revolt against your own son?" She replied.

             "Do you really want to know?" She asked.

             "Yes Your Highness." Yang Jieyu replied.

             "In the year 683CE, the Gaozong Emperor of the Tang Dynasty passed and the throne went to his son and nearly a month in the reign of the Emperor Zhongzong, his mother the Empress Wu with no great reason had him dethroned and replaced him with his brother and her other son who became the Emperor Ruizong, ultimately she was the same woman that forced her fourth son to yield the throne to her and she made herself an Emperor the only female Dasheng in our history." Empress Li replied.

            "You wish to become the Empress Wu if this Dynasty?" Yang Jieyu asked.

            "I was merely out of sons Ma'am, I really loved my son so much with all my heart but do you know the one thing that I loved in the world more than him?" She asked while Yang Jieyu kept quiet.

            "I loved power more than anything  Ma'am, I loved power so much more than my any own son to the extent that I would give up the son that I bore from between my legs to attain it and even if I had to become the second female Dasheng to reign in our history I would go all the way." Empress Li said.

            "Ma'am, refrain now." She pleaded.

            "For a son that betrayed me, what do you know, those years in the cold Palace where officials and all those fake allies sought me out in secret I hoped every day that once, just once my own son and flesh and blood would seek me out, that he would inquire about my well being but all that has happened over the years he only remembered me to restore order to his tattered harem." She said.

            "Even if he couldn't I am sure that His Majesty loved you Your Highness and what you would do would break him and leave him scarred for life." She muttered.

            "Perhaps it should I don't really mind." Empress Li Said.

            "Your Highness..." She pleaded but the latter smacked the table furiously and silenced him.

            "What do you know as well you are not so different from me, your eyes burn like fire and like me you hate, like me you'll grow greedy and like me you'll become another of those flames that shall burn everything but consume yourself as well." She said.

             "No Your Highness, I'll never be like you." She refuted.

             "It's the reality of power my dear, the day you choose it, you get drunk on it, when your drunk enough, you won't share it, and when you won't share it, you shall cherish it more than anything else." The Empress Li remarked.

             "Until now I wondered why like the Empress Wu we wouldn't be friends, I wondered why with you we had to be at odds every time that our relationship was flawed." Yang Jieyu said.

             "I suppose you now have the answer." Empress Li muttered.

             "Like Your Highness I am not one to bow my head to anyone, I can not bow to any human being that is under the sky and I take pride to seek prudence in my own sight and actions." She replied.

             "And like you we'd fight to the grave, it's either we win the battle or we die fighting it." Empress Li said.

              "So this is the resolve Your Highness wishes to show me?" She asked.

              "We are unfortunate in life but we don't regret, today I am seated here tomorrow it shall be you sharing this fate, you shall look back on this day, remember my commitment, such is the fate of us women in this world, we Empresses only find peace in death." Empress Li replied.

              "You live me no choice Your Highness." Yang Jieyu said as she stood up from where she was seated and bowed her head to her.

             "I wish you all the best that is." The Empress said to her as she withdrew from the room while the Empress ceasing the name tags on the table she drew them closer to herself and clenched them in her fist for the first time in years she started to shed tears.

             Yang Jieyu appearing outside the doors Liu Zhan looked at her and rushed over.

             "Let's go." She told Manyin and Xiaoyang who immediately followed her down the staircase until she strolled through the gates of the Palace while Liu Zhan entered her mistress' Chambers.

             "Your Highness?" She said.

             "We lost." The Empress Li muttered under her breath.

             "What?" Liu Zhan inquired as the Empress raised her head and looked at her.

             "Leave me." She demanded.

             "No." Liu Zhan replied.

             "If you consider me Your Master then you shall heed what I tell you." She said.

             "Yes Ma'am." Liu Zhan reluctantly replied as she withdrew from the room as well.

             Yang Jieyu arriving in her Chambers she was joined by Beiyuan, Bao Langya, Bo An and Yang Cishan along with Manyin and Xiaoyang.

             "Ma'am.....?" They called to her but she halted them with her hand.

             "None of this happened." She said.

             "How can you say that Ma'am?" Beiyuan asked.

             "Do you still not understand my intentions?" She asked and for a moment falling silent, Yang Cishan spoke up.

             "Maybe we don't but the Empress Mother rebelled." He muttered.

             "We stopped it silently and that's good enough, the Empress is our political prisoner in the harem, she won't act up." Yang Jieyu replied.

             "And what's the guarantee that she'll remain silent?" Beiyuan asked, "she was defeated by the Grand Empress Dowager and was exiled to the Cold Palace but even then she didn't learn Ma'am, how certainly can you be that because we survived today we shall survive tomorrow?" He added.

            "Do you think I wish to protect the Empress?" She asked.

            "If you aren't protecting her then what are you doing Ma'am?" Yang Cishan asked.

             "I want the Empress dead more than anyone in the world, seeing her my heart swells and it's on the Verge of explosion but if we reveal her sins and expose her as a traitor to the world, I worry for His Majesty, how he shall feel, the Courtiers would demand her death and the moment the Empress Mother is struck there shall be no sin for His Majesty greater than that." She replied while they all fell silent.

            "But she's betrayed the Dynasty?" Beiyuan muttered.

            "As a desperate woman yes, she's gotten so greedy I accept that too but if there's something that I know His Majesty won't take it and what matters is the private Soldiers were equally sons, brothers and fathers a chance at life given will make them thankful but all those traitors being executed today how many enemies would we along with the throne have tomorrow?" She asked.

           "You are right Ma'am and we are wrong." Bo An said.

           "Whatever questions there may be we shall prepare to answer but you that are within this room my most faithful men if I call you that shall mention no word of this until the day that we are sent to our graves." She demanded.

            "Yes Ma'am." They replied in unison as they bowed their heads to her.

            By the time it dawned Liu Zhan still standing outside was in the company of other ladies in waiting when the Empress Mother's breakfast was brought in by the Imperial kitchen.

             "Your Highness it is time for your meal." She announced but there wasn't a response.

             "Your Highness it is time for your meal." She announced a second time but to no avail for a while she seemed suspicious that she chose to open the doors of the room and walking in she caught sight of the Empress Mother who had collapsed on the table.

             "Your Highness." She cried and dropping everything down she rushed over to her side ceasing her and shaking her violently as her skin was turning pale that she turned to the rest that had accompanied her.

            "Someone summon the Imperial physician." She demanded and immediately a couple of them ran out of the room when she noticed that out of the Empress Mother's mouth, blood was flowing.