Chapter 390: The Secret Revealed

Although there were still many eunuchs and palace servants in Nanjing, since Zhu Di had stayed in Beijing under the pretext of a northern inspection, a considerable number of eunuchs had gradually been retained there. Most of these numerous eunuchs were merely assigned to perform menial tasks, while only a few were assigned to specific palaces to serve the empresses and emperor. Thus, at that time, only those eunuchs with significant status in the palace could enter through the side gates in front of the Meridian Gate.

Therefore, when Qian Baihu stepped forward to ask the eunuch wearing a scarf to come out, the eunuchs blocked at the entrance grew dissatisfied, though most of them only whispered among themselves, with only a few raising their voices slightly.

“When did it become the duty of outside officials to manage us?”

Zhang Yue ignored these skeptical voices. Seeing Qian Baihu gesturing for him to come out, the young eunuch refused stubbornly. His initial confusion turned into wariness. Seeing Qian Yun about to use force out of impatience, the eunuch stepped back two steps and cried out in a high-pitched voice, “Lord Zhang, we are all under the command of the palace concubines. We’re not just ordinary attendants. If you want to assert your authority, please think twice!”

Although Zhang Yue entered the palace frequently, he had been to the Western Palace’s Renshou Palace the most, and only a couple of times to the Qianqing Palace. Each time, the eunuch guiding him took secluded routes, so he rarely encountered anyone. Now, raising an eyebrow, Zhang Yue pushed aside Qian Baihu and stepped forward, asking coldly, “You just said you’re under the command of the concubines. Yet I’ve never set foot inside the inner palace. How do you know me? And you others, do you know who I am?”

Seeing that none of the eunuchs recognized him, he became even more convinced of his thoughts. With a cold laugh, he asked, “Then let me ask you another question: Who knows this eunuch? Which concubine in the palace does he serve?”

Since these eunuchs were assigned to serve the concubines in specific palaces, they were undoubtedly intelligent. They all turned to look at that eunuch, but after a long time, no one spoke. At that moment, any slight dissatisfaction they had felt due to his words vanished completely. Those standing beside him instinctively stepped back, leaving him alone in the middle.

At first, he found this person suspicious, and then he realized that those threatening words were meant to sow discord. After such an exchange, Zhang Yue’s slight suspicion had turned into vigilance, and he was even less willing to let these doubts go unaddressed. At that moment, he ordered in a deep voice, “Qian Baihu, drag him out and search him!”
Thinking of the great power of the eunuch officials, Qian Baihu had initially hesitated. But upon hearing Zhang Yue’s firm command, he no longer hesitated at all and immediately led his men to pull the man over. He yanked off the young eunuch’s leather collar, and instantly, the idea of searching him vanished from his mind. He exclaimed in shock, “How can he have a Adam’s apple?”
This exclamation not only surprised Zhang Yue but also shocked all the other eunuchs. The palace was vast, with hundreds of eunuchs in the six eastern and western palaces alone, not to mention even more in the twenty-four government offices within the imperial palace. They had initially thought the eunuch belonged to some unknown office and that he had obtained a pass to do something suspicious in the palace. But now, hearing about the Adam’s apple, even the simplest-minded would realize the seriousness of the situation. At the very least, it was unauthorized entry into the palace; at the worst, it could be an attempt to commit treason!
Seeing his identity exposed and noticing several fierce officers and soldiers with their hands on their knives, as if ready to slaughter him at Zhang Yue’s command, the fake eunuch was terrified. He immediately begged for mercy, saying, “Sir, please have mercy! I am the adopted son of Lord Jiang, the deputy head of the Imperial Eunuch Bureau. I had an urgent matter but couldn’t find my father, so I resorted to this desperate measure. I didn’t intend to enter the palace illegally!”
A quick-thinking soldier snatched the fake eunuch’s pass and handed it back to Zhang Yue. Seeing the words “Imperial Eunuch Bureau” clearly written on it, Zhang Yue frowned. Due to Huang Yan’s actions, he already had little goodwill toward the Imperial Eunuch Bureau. Moreover, since this man hadn’t confessed from the start but had caused such a commotion, it would be unreasonable to show leniency. Without even looking at the pleading man, he uttered two words expressionlessly.
“Search him!”

It was already the first hour of the evening, and it had long been dark. The cold winds alone were painful on the face, not to mention having one’s clothes removed and body searched at such a time. Before long, the young fake eunuch was freezing so badly that tears and snot streamed down his face. Qian Baihu personally came over carrying the pile of items found during the search. Zhang Yue pushed aside some trivial objects and immediately picked up three pieces of paper. After reading the words on them, his heart skipped a beat, and his already gloomy expression turned even darker.

“Someone, take this man to the Jinyi… Inner Eastern Depot!”

Seeing the soldiers drag the man away like wolves and tigers, the eunuchs in front of the Meridian Gate fell silent as if struck by fear. Especially those who had complained and said strange things earlier. Yet, to their surprise, as soon as the man was taken away, Zhang Yue gave them a cold nod and said, “Today’s incident was made possible thanks to your identifications. If the Eastern Depot asks questions, just answer truthfully. Although there are so many people in the palace, you may not be able to recognize them all, but if such a thing happens again in the future, please keep your eyes open and don’t let others use you as a pawn. Otherwise, it will be too late to regret when disaster strikes!”

These words, combining firmness and persuasion, immediately relieved everyone but also instilled a sense of fear. Zhang Yue didn’t plan to go to the Inner Eastern Depot himself and was about to order someone to go there to give a warning when he suddenly saw a light approaching from the Duan Gate. He stopped in his tracks. Soon, the light reached him, and they realized it was a guard carrying a lantern. Zhang Yue recognized him as one of Zhou Bailing’s personal guards and hurried over to greet him.

“What happened?”

“Sir, someone came from the barracks, saying there’s an urgent matter that requires your attention! Lord Zhou naturally said you had gone to inspect the palace, so he told them to speak directly, but that person insisted it was extremely urgent and could only be discussed with you personally, claiming to be your cousin’s husband. With no other choice, he sent us to guard the four locations—Xuanwu Gate, Donghua Gate, Xihua Gate, and Meridian Gate—to wait for you! Oh, and Lord Zhou also said someone has already gone to check out the situation over there, so you needn’t worry.”

Hearing the term “cousin-in-law,” Zhang Yue immediately thought of Wang Yu, who valued contentment and happiness. Although the matters here hadn’t been fully resolved yet, he felt that Wang Yu wasn’t the kind to bring up trivial household issues, so he decided to make the trip. After taking those three extremely important papers, he instructed Hu Qi, who had previously met Lu Feng, to accompany him to the Inner Eastern Factory, and told Qian Baihu to guard the Wu Gate carefully. Then he hurriedly left with the others. Walking through the snow outside the Left Gate of Chang’an, he saw several horses waiting there, with straw wrapped around their hooves to prevent slipping. He couldn’t help but praise Zhou Bailing for his thoughtfulness and quickly mounted the horse.

He rushed back to the courtyard outside the North An Gate, which served as their temporary residence. He jumped off the horse, tossed the reins to a horse attendant, and headed straight inside. Pushing aside the thick cotton curtain to enter the main room, he immediately saw Wang Yu sitting by the fire pit, while Zhou Bailing was pacing around the room. Upon seeing him arrive, Wang Yu quickly stood up, while Zhou Bailing casually grabbed a leather hat from nearby and put it on his head.

“Lord Zhang, since you’re back, I’ll go out and do a round of inspections!”

Zhou Bailing was always sensible. Since Wang Yu refused to speak, he simply stayed by his side without asking any questions. Seeing Zhang Yue nod, he left the room. As he stepped out of the courtyard, he glanced back and noticed the two bodyguards who had been close to Zhang Yue standing at the door. He grew puzzled. That Wang Yu was just a low-ranking officer—how could such a status be suitable for Zhang Yue’s cousin? Still, it had to be said that this low-ranking officer seemed quite steady, otherwise he wouldn’t have been easily persuaded to rush and bring Zhang Yue back.

Inside the main room, when Zhang Yue gestured for him to sit down, Wang Yu couldn’t stay calm at all. Sitting by the warm fire pit, he felt stiff from head to toe. Taking a deep breath, he clenched his right hand tightly around his left fingers before finally managing to speak.

“Third cousin, my uncle… he’s plotting rebellion!”

Even Zhang Yue, who was usually composed, felt his heart pound violently. Though he knew Wang Yu wasn’t the kind to make sensational claims just to attract attention, he still stood up and snapped, “You should know your limits. Don’t talk nonsense like this! Didn’t you say your uncle treated you very well?”

“He’s been very kind to me and trusts me greatly. But today, after getting drunk, he showed me this!” Wang Yu suddenly pulled open her thick cotton robe and took out a tightly wrapped oil-paper packet from her undergarments. After unwrapping it, she handed the contents to Zhang Yue with both hands. “Third cousin, take a look. After seeing this, I was almost terrified!”
Zhang Yue took it and immediately recognized that the folded piece of paper was specially made imitating Chengxin Hall palace paper. Yet, more than this detail, it was when he saw the first line that he was truly shocked. Scanning through it quickly, he had to admit that although the writing wasn’t as exquisite as that of the talented clerks in the imperial court, the edict was still splendidly worded. The reasons given for deposing the crown prince and enthroning Prince Zhao included claims that the crown prince had neglected his duties and lacked kindness and filial piety over the past three years—more than enough to deceive the people.
“This can’t have been done by your uncle alone, right?”
“Indeed not.” Wang Yu pressed her fingernails hard into her palm, trying hard to stay clear-headed. “I only found out today, after my uncle got drunk, that he has always been an advisor to Lord Meng Xian. Other conspirators include military generals and eunuchs in the palace. They’ve already had someone prepare access passes through the Imperial Ceremonial Bureau. Once they seal it with the imperial seal, they can lead troops in and out of the imperial city and palace gates. As long as… as long as they get this edict in and use the imperial seal, once the emperor passes away, they can seize the imperial treasury, weapons, and seals, take control of government departments, and install Prince Zhao on the throne!”