There are many Hidden Guards in He Lianfang’s residence. While they monitor He Lianfang, they also protect him.
The Hidden Guards don’t watch He Lianfang twelve hours a day, nor do they monitor him constantly. Their main purpose is to observe He Lianfang’s communication with his subordinates.
He Lianfang, once the Great General who followed Prince Yi Yong, naturally has many soldiers loyal to him, and many are devotedly loyal.
Most of them, like He Lianfang, believe that Prince Yi Yong’s death was the emperor’s conspiracy, thinking that the emperor deliberately plotted to kill Prince Yi Yong in order to become the Crown Prince.
At that time, the previous emperor and the ministers were preparing to establish the Great Zhou. As the legitimate eldest son, Prince Yi Yong was naturally to be enshrined as the Crown Prince. However, at this moment, Prince Yi Yong died in battle, which is undoubtedly suspicious.
The most suspicious point is that Prince Yi Yong was originally going to quell the chaos in Changxi Mountain, but changed his mind at the last moment to go to Baiyu Summit. At that time, it was the emperor who was to go to Baiyu Summit to suppress the rebellion.
Baiyu Summit is rather remote and the terrain is treacherous. Before the emperor decided to go to Baiyu Summit, many had failed there, such as Song Dekang and Shen Hu at the time.
Song Dekang and Shen Hu had been attacking Baiyu Summit for months without success. Any further delay would affect morale. Moreover, the strategic location of Baiyu Summit required that it be captured.
The emperor’s decision to quell the rebellion at Baiyu Summit was made on the spur of the moment. At the time, he had just quelled unrest in another place and had just returned to Chang’an, intending to rest a few days and catch his breath, given he’d been fighting for more than a year. Unexpectedly, the situation at Baiyu Summit was worsening. The previous emperor had no choice but to send the emperor to quell Baiyu Summit’s chaos.
Prince Yi Yong felt sorry for his younger brother who had just returned, especially since the emperor had just married, plus he was badly wounded in previous battles. If he were to handle Baiyu Summit, his old injuries might flare up again, possibly leading to his collapse.
In comparison, the rebellion in Changxi Mountain was much smaller. Prince Yi Yong believed that with the emperor’s ability, he could quickly quell the Changxi Mountain unrest, then return to Chang’an to rest. So, he exchanged locations with the emperor, and decided to tackle Baiyu Summit.
The emperor was strongly opposed, but Prince Yi Yong insisted on going to Baiyu Summit. In the end, he had to agree.
Prince Yi Yong volunteered to go to Baiyu Summit; it was not the emperor who suggested the exchange. However, He Lianfang and his people believed it was the emperor’s scheme.
As Prince Yi Yong predicted, it did not take the emperor long to settle the rebellion in Changxi Mountain. When he heard that the battle situation at Baiyu Summit was dire and that Prince Yi Yong was in danger, he did not hesitate and rushed to Baiyu Summit.
Changxi Mountain is far from Baiyu Summit, and to arrive quickly, the emperor rested nowhere along the way, exhausting one warhorse to death and injuring another.
Even though he hurriedly rushed to Baiyu Summit, he was still a step too late. When he arrived at Baiyu Summit, Prince Yi Yong had already perished in battle.
The emperor arrived at Baiyu Summit first, closely followed by He Lianfang. Both were too late.
Prince Yi Yong was struck by the enemy’s arrow, which was coated with a deadly poison. After being hit, he succumbed to the poison within two hours.
He Lianfang believed the emperor deliberately delayed his arrival at Baiyu Summit, intending to wait until Prince Yi Yong died.
The emperor did not explain to He Lianfang, nor did he blame He Lianfang for being late. He felt Prince Yi Yong’s death was indeed his responsibility; if he hadn’t agreed to the swap, Prince Yi Yong would not have died.
In fact, before Prince Yi Yong died, He Lianfang and his people already harbored hostility toward the emperor.
The previous emperor had several sons, but at that time, only Prince Yi Yong and the emperor survived, and others would naturally compare them.
Prince Yi Yong was somewhat inferior to the emperor in leading troops into battle, and his achievements in quelling unrest were fewer than the emperor’s.
The emperor almost always won battles, rarely losing. Except for He Lianfang, he was also titled War God.
Prince Yi Yong was not as skilled in commanding troops as he was in recognizing talents. He discovered He Lianfang. Not only that, but he was also good at employing people and had a great deal of trust in his subordinates. Furthermore, he had a mild temperament and was renowned for his benevolent rule, earning him broad support among the soldiers.