Chapter 985: Chapter 985: The Fourth Will and Testament_1 Chapter 985: Chapter 985: The Fourth Will and Testament_1 The Empress upon hearing this, showed an inscrutable smile, then like a magician, she produced the third will.

This will demanded that the childless concubines accompany the Emperor in his mausoleum.

In plain words, all concubines who had not born offspring would have to be buried with the Emperor.

No one knew the number of women in the harem better than Jiang Ning.

She had been idling in these past two years just killing time in the harem. She got to know many low-ranking concubines whom even the Emperor had never met. Including the Empress, there were 357 known concubines in the harem.

As far as Jiang Ning could estimate, out of these 357 women, there were only around seven or eight high-ranking concubines who had given birth to children. After subtracting the twenties who were favorites, those who had simply grown old and no longer served the Emperor, and the hundred-or-so who were forgotten after serving the Emperor once or twice.

There were a couple of hundred who had never seen the Emperor since entering the palace, and were content with having food to eat in the harem.

The truth is, most women, after entering the palace, only wanted to live a peaceful life without being involved in any cunning plots.

Apart from a few who had family backgrounds, beauty, ambition, and offspring, who could still vie for power, the others didn’t find any meaning in such power struggles.

Many concubines haven’t even seen the Emperor’s shadow throughout their years in the palace, and now that the Emperor has passed away, they were expected to accompany him in the grave?

This was preposterous.

Jiang Ning believed that, no matter how muddled the Emperor was before his death, he wouldn’t have made such a decision.

He only wanted Concubine Zhu, Concubine Ya, and Concubine Ye. The reason these three were chosen is because they all shared similarities with Concubine Jin.

Quite clearly, this third will in the Empress’s hand was utter nonsense.

The Empress’s audacious actions, and her brutal ruthlessness, after the Emperor’s death, with the Prince of Zhao as her legitimate son, had taken many by surprise.

Faint cries could be heard from Crystal Frost Hall.

Those who had been allowed into Crystal Frost Hall were high-ranking concubines. The Empress had them all under house arrest there.

The Brocade Guards in Chang’an numbered five to six thousand, all proficient in martial arts. The Crown Prince’s Imperial Guards, however, numbered no more than a thousand, most of whom were outside the palace. A confrontation with the Brocade Guards was practically impossible.

The nobles and ministers who had gathered were becoming more numerous.

When they heard about the three wills the Emperor had supposedly left, apart from a few who had pledged allegiance to the Prince of Zhao and couldn’t hide their elation, the rest showed looks of disbelief and shock.

Li Hongyuan turned a glance back only to find that Jiang Ning had sneakily slipped away amidst the chaos.

Jiang Ruobai sighed and addressed both the Empress and the assembly, saying, “Since the founding of Great Sheng, there has never been a precedent of concubines being buried with the Emperor! I am afraid this will in Your Highness’s hand might be hard to justify.”

As the Senior Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, his words carried heavy weight within the court. Once he had voiced this opinion, the ministers all nodded in agreement.

The Empress sneered and declared imperiously, “If you are not willing to follow the Emperor’s will, then I have no choice but to accuse you all of treason. Guards–”
The Brocade Guards answered resoundingly.

The Empress lifted her chin, confidence radiating from her eyes, “Arrest the deposed Crown Prince Li Hongyuan, the deposed Princess Consort Jiang Ning, and Jiang Ruobai’s faction. Imprison them all in the Imperial Prison at the Central Prefecture.”

All who agreed with Jiang Ruobai were now labeled members of his faction.

“Who dares to do that?”

Li Hongyuan spoke up calmly, raising a pale-yellow scroll in his hand, “I, too, have an Imperial will. Perhaps, ministers, you’d like to determine which one is authentic first.”