Call of the Heroes of Chaos in Another World

Chapter 2672 Inside and Outside the Palace, Power Sharing Among Three Parties

Chapter 2672 Inside and Outside the Palace: A Three-Way Division of Power

After giving instructions to Empress Zhangsun, Wang Yu leaned against the headboard, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Let the two of them in."

Empress Zhangsun understood, stood up, straightened her robes, walked to the palace gate, gently opened a crack, and announced, "His Majesty summons me."

A moment later, two figures entered the hall. Yin Luoxia and Ji Mohuaxue had already put on their female guard uniforms again, with short swords hanging at their waists and their hair tied up again, regaining their heroic appearance as female guards.

Upon closer inspection, however, the two walked with a slightly stiffer gait than usual, and a trace of lingering springtime warmth remained in their eyes.

They walked to the bedside, knelt down side by side, and said in unison, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Wang Yu's gaze swept across the two faces, and he slowly said, "You did a very good job last night. I am very satisfied."

The two women were slightly taken aback, then lowered their eyes, their cheeks slightly flushed.

“You have served me well and deserve a reward,” Wang Yu continued. “From this day forward, I hereby confer upon you the title of Baolin and place you among the imperial concubines.”

Baolin was only considered a low-ranking concubine in the imperial harem. However, among low-ranking concubines, she was already at the highest level. If she were to move up one rank, she would be considered a mid-ranking concubine in the palace.

Under normal circumstances, whether they were palace maids or female guards like them, without a special status, even if they were favored by the emperor, they would at most be at the rank of a concubine, and it was rare for them to become imperial concubines.

The fact that they were able to skip these two levels and directly become Baolin shows that Wang Yu's satisfaction with their performance was not just empty talk.

Yin Luoxia and Ji Mohuaxue exchanged a glance. Although they felt a mix of emotions, they immediately kowtowed and said, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty."

Wang Yu nodded and added, "Also, you two are permitted to enter the armory once."

The armory contains all kinds of martial arts techniques collected by the Han Dynasty from various places, including some top-level techniques.

Like Kunpeng, who contributed all the techniques he knew from the Yin-Yang School, which naturally became part of the armory.

Wang Yu did not impose any restrictions on them, which naturally meant that the entire armory was open to them for once, including the areas where top-level cultivation techniques or martial arts skills were stored.

Upon seeing the armory, a look of surprise flashed in the eyes of both women; they naturally knew what this place was.

In fact, this reward was far more attractive to them than being made concubines, since they had no real desire to enter the palace.

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!" This time, the two women's voices were noticeably more excited than before.

Wang Yu waved his hand: "Get up, come with me to the Empress's palace."

The palace doors opened, and Wang Yu stepped out, followed by Yin Luoxia and Ji Mo Huaxue.

Zhuo Qing, who had succeeded Zhao Gao, was already waiting outside the door. When he saw Wang Yu come out, he immediately bowed and paid his respects.

Wang Yu glanced at him, said nothing, and walked straight ahead. After taking a few steps, he suddenly remembered something, turned to Zhuo Qing who was following beside him, and said, "Zhuo Qing, go and convey the imperial decree that Consort Bai and Consort Helian should come to the Empress's palace immediately."

Zhuo Qing bowed and replied, "Yes."

He turned and walked away quickly, his figure disappearing at the end of the palace road.

Wang Yu continued walking forward, with Yin Luoxia and Ji Mo Huaxue following behind him on either side. The morning light shone on the three of them, casting long, thin shadows.

…………

Empress Huangfu Jingya's palace was located in the very center of the inner palace, and it was of the highest standard and the most solemn in terms of furnishings.

When Wang Yu entered the hall, Huangfu Jingya had already received the news and was waiting for him with palace servants inside the hall.

She was dressed in a bright red palace gown, her hair styled in a high bun, and she was dignified. Upon seeing Wang Yu, she gracefully bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I, your humble servant, respectfully welcome you."

Wang Yu reached out to help her up, gently patting the back of her hand. He didn't say anything, but simply led her into the hall. Not long after they were seated, an announcement came from outside the hall.

"Consort Bai has arrived..."

"Consort Helian has arrived..."

Two figures entered the hall one after the other. Bai Ruolan was dressed in a bright red begonia palace gown, radiant and beautiful; Helian Mingzhu wore a lake-blue long dress, her demeanor as serene and aloof as the moon. After bowing to Wang Yu and the Empress, the two took their seats in turn.

The hall fell silent for a moment, and the four women's eyes all fell on Wang Yu, waiting for him to speak.

Wang Yu didn't rush to speak, but simply glanced at Yin Luoxia and nodded slightly.

Yin Luoxia understood, stepped forward, and took out three items from her bosom: half a tiger tally and two tokens. She held these three items with both hands and respectfully presented them to Wang Yu.

Wang Yu took the items, his gaze slowly sweeping over the three objects before he looked up at the three women in the hall.

"I will be setting off on an expedition in a few days," Wang Yu said calmly. "This trip will take at least several months, or even a year and a half, before I can return. The affairs of Tianjing need someone to keep an eye on them."

As he spoke, Wang Yu picked up the half of the tiger tally and handed it to Empress Huangfu Jingya.

"This is half of the Tiger Tally for mobilizing troops. The other half is jointly held by the Prime Minister and officials of the Six Ministries. With the complete Tiger Tally, the 100,000 Imperial Guards guarding the capital can be mobilized," Wang Yu said solemnly, looking into Huangfu Jingya's eyes.

With the emperor absent and the crown prince young, the empress naturally had to take charge of the overall situation.

As a force capable of directly deciding everything, even if the army is not completely handed over to the Queen, it cannot be completely separated from her.

Huangfu Jingya accepted the tiger tally with both hands, lowered her eyes, and whispered, "Your Majesty, I understand."

Wang Yu nodded, then picked up the two tokens and handed them to Bai Ruolan and Helian Mingzhu respectively.

Bai Ruolan took the token and looked down. She saw that the token was completely black, with the character "内" (nei, meaning "inner") engraved on the front and complex cloud patterns on the back. The token in Helian Mingzhu's hand was exactly the same as hers.

"This is the order for the palace guards," Wang Yu's voice continued. "With this order, we can mobilize all the palace guards, including the Sunflower Guard, Phoenix Guard, and Shadow Guard."

"After I leave, the two of you will assist the Empress and jointly manage the affairs of the palace."

Wang Yu's words sounded nice, but in reality, he wanted the two of them to check and balance the Empress.

Although the Empress could mobilize 100,000 imperial guards, she could not do so alone; she needed the cooperation of the Prime Minister and high-ranking officials from the Six Ministries.

Furthermore, the Imperial Guards were not allowed to enter the palace without a valid reason unless they were on duty. Even though several thousand people were sent to the outer city of the palace on duty every now and then, these people were still subject to the restrictions of these two tokens.

In contrast, the palace guards are far inferior to the 100,000 imperial guards in terms of strength. The enemy simply outnumbers them, but the empress is in the palace.

After the emperor leaves, the empress and the two imperial concubines will be in a state of mutual restraint, with one in charge of the area outside the palace and the other in charge of the area inside the palace.

After all, whether considering his status or the fact that he was a prince, Wang Yu could not possibly entrust all power to just one of the Empress and the two Imperial Noble Consorts.

Furthermore, in order to ensure that the two sides check and balance each other, it is also necessary to arrange for Empress Zhangsun to keep an eye on them in secret so that Wang Yu can feel at ease.

It wasn't that he was worried these people would rebel while he was away; they had neither the intention nor the ability to do so.

It's just that I don't want anything to happen behind the scenes while he's away, which would destabilize the area.

Bai Ruolan and Helian Mingzhu exchanged a glance, then rose together and knelt to receive the order: "Your Majesty, we accept the decree."

(End of this chapter)