CHAPTER 286: CHAPTER 286: COUNTERATTACK (PART 2)

Outside the city, after the imperial edict was posted, every household replaced their door banners with mourning symbols. Inside and out, the crying was deafening. The citizens changed into mourning clothes and knelt on the streets to cry in mourning. They cried for about half an hour, and by the time it got dark, a group of unknown vagabonds suddenly emerged from somewhere, driving the people away from the streets. Perhaps due to the lessons learned from the last incident, the citizens fled back to their homes, closed their doors, and secretly left a crack to peek outside.

At the end of the evening, with still an hour and a half before the curfew, the sound of drums echoed through the city, announcing a citywide lockdown...

At this moment, the city gates were opened silently, and on the empty Long Street, a troop of about a thousand soldiers snuck in. Three-quarters of an hour later, a blaze suddenly rose into the sky from the direction of the Imperial City, followed by the deafening cries of battle and the pungent scent of blood quickly permeating the air.

Everyone in the Tong Mansion became tense. The First Master and Tong Shen Zhi had not returned, nor had the carriage sent to pick them up. Xiqiu, worried in her heart, asked the Chief Steward: "Which mansion did Father and Big Brother visit?" Manager Lai replied: "They mentioned they were going to Scholar Liu’s Mansion!"

Xiqiu did not fully understand the structure of court officials, but she knew that the Hanlin Academy was mostly involved in compiling and editing, and Scholar Liu was part of that, with duties including drafting imperial edicts. Could it be because of this that the First Master and Tong Shen Zhi had not yet returned?

She couldn’t be certain, but she silently prayed for the safety of the two of them!

The atmosphere in the Tong Mansion was tense, even the Second Lady from the second branch was constantly sending people to inquire about the situation. The Second Lady must be more anxious than anyone else; even if she wasn’t sure what was happening outside, the shouting and the flames were clear to see, and since the Second Master was indeed involved at the frontline, how could she not be nervous.

With the men of both houses absent, the First Lady was too ill to speak. Xiqiu went to Tong Xiyan to discuss, but she was so frightened in the First Lady’s room that she was clueless and in a daze. Madam Xia was also holding Tong Minzhi, her face white with tension.

Since Zhiqu Courtyard was too far, Xiqiu relocated Madam Xia and Tong Minzhi to the East Cross Courtyard. She stationed herself in the side room of Zhui Garden, where the First Lady usually worked, fearing the maids might flee or slack off. Every two hours during shift changes, she had people register and sign in before they collected their tokens to take their posts.

All night, the sounds of battle did not cease. Fortunately, the Tong Mansion, being north of the Imperial City and not in the core area, was not affected. The next day, Xiqiu heard that last night many people were killed near the Imperial City, several residences were looted, and even the Chen Family of Marquis Weibei, the current Imperial Uncle, was mistakenly attacked, with the front courtyard scorched by fire arrows, burning down seven or eight rooms... Despite all this, the lockdown did not relax. In the city, apart from guards with knives but without official positions, no civilians were out on the streets.

The First Master, Second Master, and Tong Shen Zhi still hadn’t returned. The Second Lady began to lose her composure, and Xiqiu felt a slight panic in her heart. According to reason, if the Third Prince had arranged everything, there should have been no oversight. Even if one or two princes rebelled, things should have been resolved after a night, but the lockdown in the city was even stricter than the previous night.

"Where did Father and Big Brother go?" Tong Xiyan wiped her tears, leaning against Xiqiu, while Tong Xiyu’s face was pale, her eyes red and swollen: "It’s been a whole day and night, and there’s not a word from them. Could it be...?"

"Shut up!" Her words were immediately cut off by the Second Lady in anger: "Don’t entertain such thoughts!" The Second Lady rarely displayed anger or scolded people. This was the first time Xiqiu had seen such a display.

Tong Xiyu murmured, wiping her tears, without saying another word. Madam Mei’s eyes flickered as she looked at Xiqiu and said, "Second Lady, do not be so angry. The Eighth Miss is just worried about the two masters and the young master, that’s why she said that."

The Second Lady knitted her brows, and as she seemed about to speak again, Xiqiu quickly interrupted with a smile at Madam Mei: "We don’t know what’s happening right now, so Aunt, please don’t worry. If you panic, we’ll all lose our direction."

The Second Lady wiped her tears, gave Xiqiu a deep look, and said nothing more.

"I’m going out to see!" Tong Quanzhi, who had been restrained by the Second Lady for a whole day and night, would typically have ventured out by now... But hearing this, the Second Lady’s face darkened, and she yelled angrily, "What nonsense! The outside is in such chaos. Why would you go out? Stay put at home!"

As Tong Quanzhi seemed restless, the Second Lady ordered the two servants by his side, "Guard him closely, do not leave his side. If he leaves the mansion, I’ll hold you responsible." The two servants, also young, were intimidated by the Second Lady and stuck close behind Tong Quanzhi, not leaving his side for a step.

Only then did the Second Lady slightly relax.

At this moment, everyone seemed like headless flies, and Xiqiu suddenly realized the importance of the First Master, Second Master, and Tong Shen Zhi to the entire Tong Mansion. When the First Master was not in the mansion, the Second Master lived in a separate area, and Tong Shen Zhi was not much of a talker, Xiqiu did not truly appreciate their roles. But now, facing such a situation, she suddenly understood what it would mean for this family if there were no men, no pillars of support!

However, whether she was worried or not, the battle situation in the city continued to intensify. This continued for two full days and nights until the morning of the third day when it finally subsided. The entire city was controlled by the Imperial Army, the city gates tightly closed, and Xiqiu seemed to hear many people crying, their cries reverberating above the Capital.

By noon, the lockdown in the city was lifted, but people were still not allowed to walk the streets freely. Manager Lai sent Fugui to sneaked out and gather information. Not until the afternoon did Fugui return, his face deathly pale. Under these dire circumstances, no one in the family could observe formalities. The Second Lady, Tong Xiyan, Xiqiu, and Tong Xiyu all disregarded many rules and asked Fugui, "Quickly, tell us what’s going on."

Fugui said, "The First Master, Second Master, and Young Master, along with Scholar Liu... were all detained by the Imperial Censorate in the Liu Mansion early this morning." Hearing that the First Master was imprisoned, how could the Second Master be spared? The Second Lady nearly fainted. Xiqiu quickly held her, helped her calm down, and asked Fugui, "Who locked them up and for what reason? What has happened in the city these past few days?"

Seeing Fugui’s pale face and parched lips, Chunyan took it upon herself to pour him a cup of tea. After drinking the tea, Fugui’s emotions stabilized significantly, and he slowly recounted the events of the past two days. It turned out that the Emperor had already passed away on the night of the sixteenth. The Third Prince kept it secret and strengthened the palace’s internal and external defenses, arranging everything for his ascension impeccably, before posting the imperial edict to announce it to the world on the evening of the eighteenth, with plans to hold the ascension ceremony the next day.

However, that night, the Five Cities Military Department, which was guarding the city, secretly opened the city gates and let in an unidentified troop. This troop split into two paths: one made its way expertly to the Third Prince Mansion and caught them off guard when the Third Prince was absent, taking control of the mansion. The other group reached the Imperial City gates, killed the guards, and entered the palace. Although the Third Prince had strengthened the defenses, the Imperial Army guarding the palace numbered only a thousand, and the intruders were skilled in martial arts from the martial world. The two sides fought for a whole day and night. In his desperation, the Third Prince issued an imperial order to mobilize the West Mountain Camp for reinforcements, but before the token could exit the palace, the palace was already under control. The Third Prince was captured alive, and in his shock and anger, he finally saw that leading this "rabble" troop was the Second Prince, who was supposed to be dead.