“The Emperor sang and danced with the singing girls in the palace, celebrating until dawn, and was greatly intoxicated. In the daytime, nine singing girls, disheveled, covered their faces and left.”

What kind of dishevelment is that? I hate the writing style of the ancients. The narrative is just a few strokes, and they don't know how to fill in the details. This fatuous ruler, so young, already throwing orgies... Zhang Yuanqing clicked his tongue as he read.

“The Emperor sailed on the lake with the singing girls, ordering them to remove their clothes and perform, ordering the palace servants to remove their clothes and serve tea and water. When the Emperor was in high spirits, he would seize naked women and molest them, returning at sunset, with all the palace maids on the boat being favored.”

"All of them favored... Zhao Shun's kidneys are good, isn't he a Night Wanderer too?" Zhang Yuanqing sighed and turned the page:

“The Emperor wished to favor the Empress, but encountered Consort Rou on the way. Consort Rou said: Your Majesty is burdened with state affairs, do you still remember where the door of the Apricot Blossom Palace opens? The Emperor refused, and Consort Rou wept: Does Your Majesty remember that year, when apricot blossoms bloomed in a light rain, you said that among the three thousand beauties in the harem, three thousand favors were bestowed upon me alone."

"The Emperor felt ashamed, so he took Consort Rou to see the Empress, wanting to share the same bed. The Empress was furious, rebuking him for his muddleheadedness. The Emperor shouted: Although you are the mother of the world, your honor and disgrace lie with me. How do you know that I dare not depose you?"

"That's too much, wanting the Empress and the Consort to share the same bed? Can the legal wife and concubine be the same? Shouldn't ancient people have a strong sense of this?" Zhang Yuanqing had a new understanding of Zhao Shun's absurdity.

“The Emperor was touring the garden, and arrived at the West Garden. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a zither. Following the sound, he encountered a woman playing the zither in a pavilion, saying: Her face is like peach blossoms, graceful and charming. Such a beauty is wasted in the palace, what a waste of talent, it is a pity and a sigh."

“The woman said: I am a concubine of the late Emperor. Since the late Emperor's death, I have lived in the West Garden, living a hard life, withering my beauty."

“The Emperor said: Flesh can be enchanting, and bones are pitiful. In life, one only fears not being in the present. Having this perfect match, one would be willing to die, willing to be a pair of mandarin ducks envied by no immortals."

“He embraced the woman and left, that night, residing in the West Garden.”

"Not even letting go of his father's woman..." Zhang Yuanqing realized that he had underestimated Zhao Shun. Thinking about it, after the Emperor's death, the palace concubines seemed to have only a few choices:

First, to be buried alive; second, to guard the spirit; third, to be forced to become a nun; fourth, to be thrown into the cold palace; and fifth, to be favored by the new Emperor and brought back into the harem.

Zhang Yuanqing flipped through the pages quickly. Since meeting the late Emperor's favorite concubine, Zhao Shun seemed to have opened a new world, lingering in the West Garden for two months in a row.

To sum it up: the eleven ladies, twenty beauties, and thirty-six palace maids in the West Garden were all favored by him.

The late Emperor's favorite concubine had become his shape, and the charming palace maids who served the late Emperor's favorite concubine had also become his shape.

“Swish, swish, swish…”

The pages turned quickly, the daily records became thinner and thinner, and Zhang Yuanqing read more and more carefully. Zhao Shun was poisoned three days ago, but that doesn't mean the spy contacted him on that day.

If it was a slow-acting poison, it might have started affecting the body a few days ago.

Therefore, the concubines that Zhao Shun had been in contact with in the past half month were all Zhang Yuanqing's key targets.

The reason for the spy to poison the Emperor was simple. When the two countries were at war, if the Emperor suddenly died, it would inevitably cause political turmoil in the Southern Dynasty, especially since this fatuous ruler, though licentious, had no children.

Once the Southern Dynasty started fighting for the throne, the Central Government would likely call back the troops from the front line to fight for power. In short, as long as the current stable regime in the Southern Dynasty was disrupted, it would definitely affect the army.

At that time, the Northern Dynasty's southern expedition would be twice as effective with half the effort.

Therefore, the spy either infiltrated the palace recently, or had been in the palace for a long time, but had been lying dormant until the war started, and then approached the Emperor.

He diligently read from the beginning, not out of morbid curiosity, but hoping to learn as much as possible about the number, personality, style, and family background of the concubines in the harem from the daily records.

The Empress and Consort Rou, these old-timers in the harem, were unlikely to be spies. Because the review system for palace maids and the review system for concubines were different.

To become the Emperor's concubine, the eighteen generations of ancestors had to be thoroughly investigated, but the review of palace maids was not so strict.

Therefore, spies would most likely enter the palace as palace maids, and then seduce the Emperor with their beauty and poison him at the right time. Anyway, Zhao Shun was an old pervert, he wouldn't let go of young and beautiful women, nor would he let go of old and beautiful women.

Unlike Zhang Yuanqing, who only likes old and beautiful women.

Back to the topic, as long as the spy had outstanding beauty, they wouldn't have to worry about not being able to approach the Emperor.

Half an hour later, Zhang Yuanqing finally finished reading the daily records, and then had someone bring the harem roster. After reading the backgrounds of the concubines, he locked on to five targets.

Target One: Wan Beauty!

The daily record records: The Emperor was wandering in the Imperial Garden at night, admiring the flowers and the moon, when he suddenly heard a warbling song from the flowers. Opening it, he saw a girl sitting in the bushes, her eyebrows newly painted like the moon, her bun loosely cloudlike, her neck raised in a light song, astonishingly beautiful. He used the flowerbed as a mattress, lightly parted her silken belt, and made love. The fallen petals were like bright red flowers, and when he returned to the palace, the bloodstains on his dragon robe were still wet. The next day, he named her Wan Beauty.

Zhang Yuanqing locked her as a suspect because she was wailing in the Imperial Garden in the middle of the night, obviously knowing that Zhao Shun had the habit of nocturnal wandering, and was waiting for him to be caught.

Normally it wouldn't matter, but seducing the Emperor at such a sensitive time node made her very suspicious.

Target Two: Chu Beauty.

The daily record records: The Emperor took the concubines to tour the Three Divine Mountains, riding and hunting. Suddenly, a hunter woman broke in, not pulling the reins, riding like the wind. The Emperor was very pleased and ordered his subordinates to capture her. Seeing that she was a young girl of about thirteen years old, he was overjoyed and named her Chu Beauty, bringing her into the harem.

Target Three: Consort De.

Consort De was actually an old-timer in the palace. Her father was an official in the Ministry of Revenue. A few years ago, he was executed by the Emperor, and his whole family was exterminated. Since then, her temperament had changed drastically, and she was full of resentment. However, because of her excessive beauty, Zhao Shun would still favor her from time to time.

Consort De had a motive to harm the Emperor, after all, it was a vendetta for the extermination of her family.

Target Four: Lady Ya.

Lady Ya was a concubine that Zhao Shun snatched back during his tour. She was an older, beautiful woman, originally married. After entrusting herself to Zhao Shun, her husband refused to accept it and presented a blood letter to the magistrate, accusing the current Emperor of forcibly abducting a woman. He was beaten eighty times with a stick and beaten to death.

Lady Ya also had a motive to become a spy and harm the Emperor. To take a step back, what if the drama of forcibly abducting a woman was a trap set by the Northern Dynasty?

Entering the palace as a captive could to some extent dispel the suspicions and vigilance of the Southern Dynasty. After all, she was snatched by the Emperor, not actively entering the palace.

Target Five: Wang Singing Girl!

The reason for suspecting Wang Singing Girl was that Zhao Shun had been in contact with this woman in the days before the accident. Whether it was a slow-acting poison or a potent poison, she was a suspect.

"24 hours is a bit tight, it's a bit difficult to find the spy with just me alone." Zhang Yuanqing's heart moved, and he had the palace maid call the guards outside the hall, and said in a deep voice:

"I was poisoned by a traitor a few days ago, have you caught the culprit in the Imperial City Division?"

The information given by the copy was too little, and the time was too tight, so it was impossible to rely on himself alone, but he could rely on the NPCs in the copy.

The guard hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, this matter is the responsibility of Commander Zheng and Eunuch Li, I don't know."

Commander Zheng? Is the Zheng family related to the imperial family? Zhang Yuanqing was overjoyed and immediately said: "Go and invite them quickly."

Although the Zheng family controlled the government, leading to rampant corruption, the Zheng family was after all related to the imperial family, and was "one of their own" with Zhao Shun. They would definitely not want Zhao Shun to die young.

After all, Zhao Shun had no children. If he died, the new Emperor would fall into the hands of the imperial clan, and the imperial clan would not recognize the Zheng family.

Therefore, they would spare no effort in protecting Zhao Shun and finding the spy.

Soon, a young man with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, wearing armor, strode into the palace, clasped his fists and bowed: "Zheng Longtu, greets Your Majesty!"

Zhang Yuanqing asked: "Have you found the traitor who harmed me?"

Zheng Longtu shook his head: "Not yet."

Zhang Yuanqing was furious, slammed the table and cursed: "Useless waste, what do I raise you for? It's better to raise a group of pigs. I'll give you six hours. If you can't find the murderer, I'll kill you."

These words were very much in line with Zhao Shun's style.

Zheng Longtu's face changed, and he lowered his head sharply: "Yes!"

He left the palace with a sense of urgency.

Alas, the Emperor is a waste, and the ministers are also wastes! Zhang Yuanqing suddenly felt a little hungry, and had the palace maid bring some pastries. He first had the palace maid test the poison, and after confirming that it was harmless, he ate a few pieces hastily, and then came to the imperial study.

The imperial table was filled with thick memorials. These memorials had been screened and did not need to be approved by the Emperor, just marked in red.

In the past, Zhao Shun had always marked them in red, no matter what, because memorials that did not need to be marked in red would not be sent here.

Zhang Yuanqing flipped through the memorials and found that half of them were impeaching the Yang family, and the other half were impeaching Yang Ce.

After reading patiently for a while, he learned that Yang Ce was the General of the Cavalry, the commander of the three armies who was resisting the invasion of the Northern Dynasty army, and also the Empress's younger brother.

The two great imperial families of the Southern Dynasty, the Yang family and the Zheng family, were political enemies, fighting like fire and water.

And because the Empress had not given birth to any children, the Yang family was at a disadvantage, and the veteran imperial family, the Zheng family, had been suppressing the Yang family.

"This copy should have two maps, one is the capital, and the other is Linxia. I am in the capital, and the boss should be in Linxia. This is in line with his Craftsman profession. Yang Ce is likely to be the boss..."

Zhang Yuanqing quickly made a judgment.

Fu Qingyang was an eighth-level Craftsman, he couldn't be a shrimp soldier or a crab general. Only Yang Ce, the commander of the three armies, was reasonable. Yang Ce was the Marshal, and defeat meant death. The difficulty level was also consistent.

"Since it's Little Fu, then you can forget about impeaching him..."

Zhang Yuanqing sat at the imperial table, picked up a writing brush, and refuted all the memorials of impeachment, then put down the brush with satisfaction, and left the palace with two guards.

Next, he would review Zhao Shun's harem with a critical eye.

Speaking of the harem, the first thing Zhao Shun did after the death of Empress Zheng was to expand the harem. He not only renovated the old buildings, but also selected a high and open place on the east side of the palace garden, and ordered craftsmen to build new palaces day and night.

He emptied a treasury completely, scraping the marrow of the world again and again, and only completed the construction after a full year of labor.

Zhang Yuanqing rode in a deer cart, slowly traveling on the wide road paved with bluestone. Lifting the curtain, he saw that the pavilions were high and low, the painted beams and flying eaves were faintly connected, either revealing a few winding vermilion railings, or peeking at a strip of embroidered curtain. The light of pearls and jade reflected the sunlight, turning into colorful colors, like a fairyland.

"It's really extravagant, even I want to kill Zhao Shun." Zhang Yuanqing put down the curtain, slandering his character.

The first target of this trip was the hunter woman he met during the hunt. There was no other reason, this woman was the most recent.

After a quarter of an hour, the deer cart stopped in front of a three-story pavilion, where the eaves were upturned and the golden tiles reflected the sunlight, and the beams were painted with colorful paintings.

The courtyard was lush with greenery, planted with exotic flowers and plants.

Zhang Yuanqing jumped out of the deer cart, and with the guards' protection, he strode arrogantly into the courtyard. Then he saw palace maids and eunuchs carrying delicious food and empty plates, hurrying between the main building and the kitchen.

Zhang Yuanqing stopped a palace maid and frowned:

"Is there a banquet in the building?"

The palace maid was stunned, and then responded: "Chu Beauty is having a meal."

"What?" Zhang Yuanqing was shocked, and looked at the palace maids and eunuchs coming and going a few more times, asking in a confirming tone: "You said Chu Beauty is having a meal?"

Was there something wrong with the daily record, or was there something wrong with his eyes?

Is my Chu Beauty Godzilla, with such an exaggerated appetite?

Zhang Yuanqing hesitated, worried that "Godzilla" would ask to be favored, and also worried that "Godzilla" would eat enough and slap the weak and unable Emperor to death.

So he turned to look at the two guards: "Go forward and clear the way!"

The two guards strode forward, pushed away the palace maids and eunuchs, and stepped over the threshold.

Zhang Yuanqing then entered the main building. The interior was even more luxurious, with gold as pillars, jasper as railings, pearl curtains and embroidered screens. The building was filled with exotic fragrances, and secluded rooms and deep chambers could be seen everywhere, hidden by exotic flowers and plants.

Passing through the winding corridors, he entered the outer hall, where he saw a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl standing at the table with a round belly, a roast chicken in one hand and a handful of mutton in the other, eating with oil all over her mouth.

Although the girl had a large appetite, she was very beautiful.

You can question the depravity of the fatuous ruler, but you can't question his aesthetics. Zhang Yuanqing breathed a sigh of relief and coughed heavily.

"Your Majesty!"

The palace maids and eunuchs in the hall knelt down and saluted.

The girl, with her cheeks puffed out, looked over, her eyes sharply examining Zhang Yuanqing.

(End of this chapter)