From cute to empress

Chapter 317 The Shadow Behind the Celebration

"Above the celebration, there is a hidden murderous intention..."

Those few words, like a bucket of ice, instantly extinguished the joy in my heart and chilled the summer night to the bone. I clutched the note tightly, my fingertips white, my mind racing. Who had sent this warning? A spy from an enemy nation, or a disgruntled rebel?

Zhen Youcai's face was solemn. He held the note close to the candlelight and examined it carefully, but he didn't find any unusual traces. "It seems that there is a problem within us," he said in a deep voice, with a subtle chill in his tone.

My heart sank, and a sense of foreboding washed over me. "You mean... there's a traitor?"

Zhen Youcai didn't answer directly, but simply patted my hand, reassuring me. "Don't worry, I'll get to the bottom of it. With the celebration coming up, we must be extremely vigilant and not allow any unscrupulous individuals to take advantage of the situation."

Over the next few days, while we calmly prepared for the celebration, we secretly began an intensive investigation. I strengthened the palace guards and carefully investigated every suspicious individual, while Zhen Youcai secretly investigated the military, trying to find the hidden traitor.

I flipped through recent memorials and secret reports, searching for any clues. Suddenly, a report on military supplies dispatch caught my eye. It showed that the number of weapons shipped to the border in recent batches did not match the actual number, with a significant shortfall.

"Weapons..." I muttered to myself, a vague answer forming in my mind. With the border war at a critical juncture, weapons are vital strategic supplies. If someone were smuggling them at this time, their purpose was self-evident.

I immediately called the officer in charge of military supplies and asked him about the situation. But he hesitated, gave irrelevant answers, and his eyes flickered, clearly hiding something.

"Tell me! Where did those weapons go?" I asked sternly, suppressing my anger.

The official was so frightened that he trembled all over and fell to his knees with a thud. "Your Majesty... Your Majesty, I didn't know! All the transfer procedures were carried out according to the rules. I would never dare to abuse my power for personal gain!"

"Really?" I sneered and threw the report in front of him. "Then how do you explain this report? The numbers in it can't be faked!"

He picked up the report tremblingly, his face turned pale in an instant, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.

At this moment, Zhen Youcai hurried over, his face extremely gloomy. Before I could ask, he said in a deep voice: "Mengmeng, I found the traitor..."

"Who is it?!" I stood up suddenly, grabbed Zhen Youcai's arm and asked anxiously.

Zhen Youcai took a deep breath and said word by word, "It's the commander of the imperial guards, Zhao Kuo."

Zhao Kuo! My heart sank. He's a veteran who's followed me for many years. How could he betray me?

"Why did he do this?" I fell weakly into the chair, my mind in a mess.

"He accepted bribes from the enemy country and agreed to cooperate with the enemy to create chaos on the day of the celebration and cooperate with the enemy to attack the city." Zhen Youcai's tone was cold, and he was obviously angry and disappointed with what Zhao Kuo had done.

"Damn it!" I slammed my fist on the table, seething with rage. "Pass the order down. Arrest Zhao Kuo immediately. Anyone who resists will be killed without mercy!"

"I've sent people to arrest them." Zhen Youcai patted my shoulder comfortingly. "Don't worry, I've strengthened the palace guards and won't let anyone disrupt the celebration."

However, the development of the matter far exceeded our expectations. The news of Zhao Kuo's arrest spread like wildfire and soon spread throughout the city. Some forces with ulterior motives took the opportunity to spread rumors, saying that I was incompetent and had promoted treacherous officials, causing unrest in the country and suffering for the people.

For a time, the people in the city were in panic. The originally joyous atmosphere of celebration disappeared, replaced by panic and anxiety.

"Your Majesty! Something bad has happened! The people have gathered outside the palace gate, demanding an explanation from you!" The guard ran in hurriedly to report.

I stood up suddenly, a glint of determination flashed in my eyes, "Let's go and take a look!"

Outside the palace gates, a large crowd of people knelt in a sea of ​​black. They were filled with excitement, raising their hands high and shouting loudly: "Tyrant emperor! Traitorous ministers! We want the truth!"

I took a deep breath, and under tremendous pressure, I walked down the stairs step by step and came to the people.

"My fellow villagers, I know you have doubts and dissatisfaction in your hearts. But please believe me, everything I do is for this country, so that the people can live a better life!" Although my voice was not loud, it was full of power and echoed in the silent square.

I looked around at the angry, doubtful, and confused faces before me, my heart filled with grief and helplessness. I knew that a few words alone wouldn't quell their anger. I had to take concrete action to regain their trust.

"Regarding Zhao Kuo's treason, I will investigate it thoroughly and show no mercy! At the same time, I will strengthen border defenses to prevent enemy invasions and protect the lives and property of the people!"

As soon as I finished speaking, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Words are not enough! We want to see evidence!"

Immediately, more people followed suit and started to jeer: "Yes! We want to see the evidence!"

My heart sank, knowing that someone was deliberately inciting the emotions of the masses.

I was about to speak when there was a sudden commotion in the crowd and a dark shadow suddenly pounced towards me...

"Protect His Majesty!" Zhen Youcai roared, dashing towards me like an arrow, kicking the shadow away. The guards also reacted and quickly surrounded me, swords drawn, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

I was escorted back to my chambers, still dazed, my chest heaving violently. Who was it? Who wanted me dead? One of Zhao Kuo's accomplices? Or someone else?

Zhen Youcai walked into the bedroom with a solemn expression and knelt on one knee in front of me: "I am late in protecting you, Your Majesty, please forgive me!"

"Hurry up and get up. I'm glad you're okay." I waved my hand weakly, motioning him to get up. "What's the situation now?"

"The assassin has been caught, but he's keeping his mouth shut and refuses to say anything. The people outside have also been pacified, but..." Zhen Youcai hesitated to speak.

"but what?"

"But the rumors in the city are still spreading, and they are getting more and more outrageous. Some people even say..." Zhen Youcai paused, seeming to find it difficult to speak.

"What are they saying about me? That I'm possessed by a demon and going to destroy the entire country?" I laughed at myself. I've heard too many absurd rumors these days.

Zhen Youcai remained silent, obviously he was right.

"Don't worry about these rumors. The clear will be clear, and the turbid will be turbid." I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself. "The most important thing now is the safety of the celebration. We absolutely cannot let anything go wrong."

"I've mobilized all our elite troops to strengthen the security of the palace and the celebration site. I've also deployed secret sentries to closely monitor every move in the city," Zhen Youcai said in a deep voice. "Your Majesty, rest assured. Unless they step over my corpse, they will never harm you in the slightest."

I nodded, feeling a little more at ease. Zhen Youcai always did things cautiously, and I believed he could handle everything.

"Thank you for your hard work, Youcai." I patted his shoulder and said gratefully.

Zhen Youcai looked up at me, his eyes full of worry and tenderness, but he said nothing in the end, just retreated silently.

It was late at night, but I couldn't sleep. My mind kept replaying the events of the day, and my heart was in turmoil. Zhao Kuo's betrayal, the assassin's attack, the people's doubts, everything was like an invisible net, tightly binding me and making me breathless.

Suddenly, a strong wind blew, the branches outside the window were rustling, and big raindrops hit the window frame with a crackling sound, as if foreshadowing that a bigger storm was about to come...

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The rapid knock on the door seemed particularly harsh in the quiet night.

"Your Majesty! It's bad! The storm..."