I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 514: What's there to fear? Zhang Rang and He Jin enter the palace together

Zhang Rang and others who were trapped outside the palace knew that they were doomed to die, but how could they fight back?

First of all, he would certainly not do anything in the city of Luoyang.

That would be tantamount to committing suicide. Only by returning to the palace would they have a chance of winning.

Coincidentally, although Zhang Rang was trapped outside the palace, he happened to know a way to communicate with the palace.

After quietly seeing off the eunuchs, Zhang Rang came to the back house, went straight to his daughter-in-law's room, and knelt down.

"Father, why is this?"

Zhang Rang's daughter-in-law was horrified and hurriedly pulled Zhang Rang up.

However, Zhang Rang continued to kowtow:
"Daughter-in-law, I'm sorry for you."

"I have offended the general, and he wants to punish me and send me back to my hometown. I am really sorry that you and my son have to suffer together."

"Father, you are too kind."

Zhang Rang's daughter-in-law shook her head and said:
"I know you celebrate the festival. They say that if you marry a chicken, you follow the chicken; if you marry a dog, you follow the dog. Since I'm married into the Zhang family, how can I only know how to enjoy happiness and not suffer?"

"Please get up quickly. I don't deserve such a great gift."

However, Zhang Rang was not moved by his daughter-in-law's generosity, and he did not come to see his daughter-in-law to truly repent.

Zhang Rang's purpose was simple, to use his daughter-in-law's identity to allow him to return to the palace.

It has to be said that Zhang Rang was indeed a very shrewd man, as he had long ago arranged to tie his family together with the He family.

The daughter-in-law in front of him was He Jin's other sister!
"My daughter-in-law, I don't ask you to intercede with the general, I just ask you to let me see the queen mother again."

"I, Zhang Rang, have received the emperor's grace for so many years. Now I can no longer serve my master. I feel extremely uncomfortable. I would not be willing to die."

"Please, let me see the Queen Mother and His Majesty one last time, serve them for two days, comb their hair and wash their faces, so that I can go on my journey with peace of mind."

Zhang Rang was indeed a great eunuch. His words were full of tears and moved people greatly. After hearing them, He immediately agreed and went out to ask her mother, Lady Wuyang, for help.

Then, as expected, after Wuyang Jun entered the palace to explain the situation to her daughter, the empress dowager ignored He Jin's ban and directly summoned Zhang Rang and other attendants and the eunuchs into the palace in the form of the empress dowager's decree.

This guy, the eunuchs' arbitrary behavior completely angered He Jin.

He had originally wanted to take it easy, but now seeing that these eunuchs were so dishonest, he was worried that things would get more serious.

So, early the next morning, He Jin rushed into the palace in a rage, argued with his sister, and bluntly asked for an imperial decree to execute the eunuch.

Ah? Is He Jin really stupid? He knew that eunuchs had entered the palace, but he still went to the Queen Mother? Wasn't he afraid that the eunuchs would do something desperate?
However, this is not actually the case.

As I said before, He Jin may be less intelligent, but he is not stupid.

In addition to Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, there were also knowledgeable people such as Chen Lin, Liu Biao, Feng Ji, and Wu Qiong in the General's Mansion.

None of these people expressed any objection, and they all watched the general enter the palace.

Why?

Because after the eunuchs surrendered and left the palace, they immediately took control of the palace and even moved the empress dowager to the South Palace, avoiding the North Palace, which had been the eunuchs' lair for a long time.

That’s right, the Luoyang Imperial Palace is divided into two palaces, the north and south palaces.

This is a special feature of the Later Han court.

The South Palace Jiade Hall and the North Palace Chongde Hall are connected by a long and narrow corridor in the middle, with palace gates on both sides. The corridor is stilted and two or three stories high. Usually, people can travel between the north and south palaces through the corridor. If there is any abnormality, they can cut off the corridor and stay in one of the palaces.

For example, after Emperor Lingdi passed away, the eunuchs made trouble and resisted the general, not because they controlled the entire palace, but because they and the empress dowager lived in the North Palace, so they could easily block the passage and resist the outer court.

However, the uses of the North and South Palaces are not fixed.

The functions of the two palaces would often change depending on the emperor's personality and habits.

For example, during the reign of Emperor Huan of Han, the emperor governed the country in the North Palace. After Emperor Ling ascended the throne, in order to avoid the influence of the previous dynasty, although the concubines and eunuchs still lived in the North Palace, his mother, Empress Dowager Dong, insisted on holding court in the Jiade Hall of the South Palace with the little emperor in her arms.

After Emperor Ling ascended the throne, Nangong naturally became the palace where he ruled the country, and he even died of illness in the Jiade Hall.

In order to facilitate his work, the central agency of the imperial court, the Secretariat, was set up in a side room of the Jiade Hall. People like General He Jin, Grand Tutor Yuan Wei, and Shangshu Ling Lu Zhi all worked here every day.

It can be said that Nangong is the core of the outer court's control, and Cao Cao's Tiger Guards also guard this place very tightly.

As soon as the eunuchs surrendered, He Jin drove them out of the palace and moved his sister and nephew to Nan Palace.

Now, when he went to reason with his sister, he went to the Nangong instead of the Beigong, the eunuchs' lair.

He walks this road every day on his way to work and can walk it with his eyes closed.

What's so scary?
Sure enough, He Jin had a smooth journey and met Empress Dowager He in a side hall without any trouble.

However, the two siblings parted ways unhappily again this time.

Perhaps Empress Dowager He had not seen Zhang Rang and others for a long time and was not used to being served by others. She was so pleased with the service this time that she recalled the old times.

Or maybe after many twists and turns, she was finally willing to give up her power in order to keep the eunuchs and give herself a chance to rule the country.

In short, Empress Dowager He's determination to protect the person this time is more determined than ever before.

The two argued for the entire morning, ranging from national affairs to family matters, from morality to human relationships.

This made He Jin very angry.

Seeing that Empress Dowager He was so stubborn, He Jin got really angry. For the first time in his life, he scolded his own sister for being ignorant.

"Now that foreign troops have entered the royal capital, the situation could get out of control at any time. The scholars and officials are eager to ask us to give an explanation."

"If we protect the eunuch at this moment, I'm afraid our He family will be in an irreparable situation where we will become enemies with the whole country."

"If you continue to be so ignorant, I will solve it myself."

"Don't blame me for not telling you in advance!"

After saying this, He Jin no longer cared about the etiquette of respect and hierarchy. He just walked away and went straight to the Shangshutai next door to complain to the officials.

The quarrel was so intense that even the eunuch who was waiting outside the door after being chased out could hear what they were arguing.

This quarrel completely shattered the eunuchs' last fantasy of peace. Even Guo Sheng, who was closest to the He family, no longer spoke out against it.

No one is willing to die willingly, especially the eunuchs who have enjoyed countless wealth and glory.

So, at this moment, even though they had just entered the palace and had no time to make any preparations, and were in such a disadvantageous condition, they still decided to give it a try.

In contrast to He Jin's indecisiveness, once the eunuchs decided to take action, they acted very quickly.

On that afternoon, near dusk, He Jin had just finished get off work, walked out of the Shangshutai, said goodbye to the officials, and was about to go home.
Suddenly, several eunuchs came running over and announced the Queen Mother's order, inviting the general to enter the palace.

(End of this chapter)