"Huh?" For a moment, Jin Li was dazed.
"Right now I'm in the Robe and Crown Forbidden Ground, and I've recruited a bunch of lackeys. Their strength should be decent enough—taking down Sima Ting shouldn't be much of a problem. Do you want me to send them over to help you?" Qi Yuan had kept Jin Li's predicament close to heart all this time.
Since he had brought the Robe Division Imperial Guard under his command, he ought to dispatch them immediately to assist Jin Li; a single day's delay could easily lead to irreversible regrets.
"Huh?" An immense surge of joy welled up in Jin Li's heart. Had Qi Yuan been standing before her, she could hardly imagine what rash or even brazen act she might have committed in this instant.
She was willing to devote herself to him entirely, yet she feared she was unworthy.
"Happy now?" Qi Yuan boasted smugly. "I'm hooking you up with cheats."
He suddenly felt like a pay-to-win whale tossing around millions, while Jin Li was an ordinary player. And ordinary players were, after all, part of a pay-to-win whale's gaming experience.
More than that, back when he had been gravely ill and living in isolation, Jin Li was the sole ray of light he had ever glimpsed.
"Still, if I march them over directly, it'll probably be pretty slow. Plus, they'd have to assault the capital from outside the walls. Without anyone by your side to protect you, Sima Ting might act like a cornered dog and do something desperate. How about this: erect a God-Worshiping Platform and hold a sacrificial rite. The Robe Division Imperial Guard will appear directly through it. It should take about three days!"
Qi Yuan took roughly half an hour to explain the method for summoning the Robe Division Imperial Guard to Jin Li in detail.
Utterly exhausted, he finally logged off.
Xiao Jia quietly held Qi Yuan, staying motionless, as if he were her entire world.
***
"Summon the Robe Division Imperial Guard!" A smile surfaced in Jin Li's eyes.
Within that smile lay both the joy of surviving a mortal crisis and the joy of soon being able to meet... Qi Yuan.
"Someone come! Summon Minister of Rites Kong Qi..." Jin Li began, then thought for a moment before adding out of respect, "Summon the Duke of Yu as well!"
About an hour later.
Inside the palace hall, Kong Qi and the Duke of Yu stood below the dais.
Aunt Qin, Hua Xian, and the others flanked the throne.
They looked at Empress Jin Li, a flicker of doubt in their eyes.
"Minister Kong, I intend to construct a God-Worshiping Platform. Here are the blueprints. How many days will it take to finish?" Empress Jin Li handed a schematic to Hua Xian, who passed it along to Kong Qi.
The blueprint had been drawn by Jin Li's own hand.
Kong Qi took the diagram and studied it closely.
After examining it for a while, a look of perplexity settled onto his face. "Your Majesty, this God-Worshiping Platform could be erected in four to five days. But this humble subject wonders... what purpose does Your Majesty have for building it?"
Kong Qi was thoroughly baffled.
Beside him, the Duke of Yu was equally puzzled.
Now that Sima Ting had laid bare his wolfish ambitions, shouldn't they be pondering how to confront him or how to flee? Why would she want to build this God-Worshiping Platform?
Jin Li's expression hardened, turning cold and imposing. "Simply carry it out. Ask no questions!"
"This..." Kong Qi's face twisted with difficulty. "Though I am the Minister of Rites, the Ministry of Rites is... in truth, already under that traitor Sima Ting's control. If this humble subject wishes to mobilize labor and resources to build the platform, I must have a fitting justification."
Hearing this, Aunt Qin frowned with displeasure. "Is Her Majesty's personal decree not justification enough?"
Even though she too failed to understand why the empress wanted to do this, she would unconditionally support whatever Her Majesty decided.
"A justification... Say that We wish to offer sacrifices to Heaven and the ancestral spirits. Is that reason enough?" Jin Li replied, though her heart ached as she spoke.
Indeed, she held no real control over the Six Ministries whatsoever.
She was treated like nothing more than an auspicious mascot.
Her life and death hinged entirely upon Sima Ting's whims.
"Your Majesty... I fear... it will not suffice." Kong Qi sank to his knees and prostrated himself, his face awash with shame. "This humble subject has failed the imperial favor!"
Though hailed as a great scholar of noble virtue and renowned throughout Southern Qian, he could not even exert authority over his own ministry.
Kong Qi lifted his head again. "Your Majesty, the most pressing matter at hand is to flee the imperial city! Constructing a God-Worshiping Platform is of no consequence. Please look at the broader situation, Your Majesty! Let us discuss a plan to escape the capital and head for Yanbei Pass, where you may command Senior General Tianqi to crusade against the traitor!"
In Kong Qi's eyes, what use could there be in building a God-Worshiping Platform?
The only urgent priority was for Her Majesty to leave the capital. So long as Senior General Tianqi remained loyal to Southern Qian, the empress was still the empress!
Jin Li remained silent.
Building the platform was of utmost importance. But the fact that it could summon the Robe Division Imperial Guard could not be breathed to anyone; otherwise, word might reach Sima Ting's ears. As outlandish and mythical as the tale sounded, what if Sima Ting grew wary and took precautions?
Standing to the side, the Duke of Yu spoke in a low voice. "Your Majesty, fleeing the capital at this hour is truly the wisest course. Only by leaving is there a sliver of hope!"
Granted, most people present understood that the odds of Her Majesty successfully slipping out of the capital were practically nonexistent.
Yet it remained their only conceivable path to survival.
Jin Li's face darkened. "Build the God-Worshiping Platform!"
At this moment, she had to dig in her heels and remain unyielding!
Seeing this, Kong Qi felt a pang of disappointment toward Empress Jin Li.
Though the late emperor had also been reduced to a figurehead, he had constantly sought ways to break free from his cage and conducted himself with the poise of a worthy sovereign. Empress Jin Li, on the other hand...
A bitter grief washed over Kong Qi. Seeing Jin Li's stubborn resolve, tears streamed down his aged face. "This humble subject is useless, incapable of easing Your Majesty's burdens. I am willing to donate three hundred and seventy taels of standard silver to help Your Majesty raise funds for the platform."
Three hundred and seventy taels of silver was a substantial sum to common folk, but far from enough to construct a God-Worshiping Platform.
Beside him, the Duke of Yu let out a long sigh upon hearing this. "It seems Your Majesty intends to sink alongside the realm!
"I am willing to contribute eighty thousand taels of silver and eight hundred artisans to construct the God-Worshiping Platform for Your Majesty. Consider it... the final deed this old man performs for Southern Qian."
Years ago, his daughter, Noble Consort Xi, had been pregnant, just as the empress had also been carrying a child. As the two enjoyed the flowers together, a palace maid had served a bowl of Apricot Blossom Snow and a bowl of ordinary soup.
Noble Consort Xi had always been fond of Apricot Blossom Snow, so the empress had shared a portion with her.
Who could have foreseen that the soup had been laced with poison? After drinking it, Noble Consort Xi miscarried, eventually dying of despair and grief.
In truth, had Noble Consort Xi not been there, the one to drink that soup would have been the empress, and Empress Jin Li would never have been born into the world.
Noble Consort Xi and the child in her womb had essentially traded their lives for Jin Li's.
Of course, rumors among the public claimed that the empress had poisoned Noble Consort Xi out of jealousy, but the Duke of Yu knew full well that Sima Ting had orchestrated it all.
That was why, when Empress Jin Li had visited the Duke of Yu's manor to borrow books in the past, the duke had defied protocol and demanded she kneel before his late daughter's spirit tablet.
His daughter, and the grandchild he had never had the chance to meet, had died in Empress Jin Li's stead.
At times, he even regarded Empress Jin Li as his own granddaughter.
Jin Li naturally knew nothing of this history. Hearing the Duke of Yu's pledge, her heart surged with relief.
"Our deepest thanks to the Duke of Yu!"
Silver was vital, but artisans were the true key. By providing eight hundred skilled craftsmen, the Duke of Yu had practically resolved all her obstacles.
How could Jin Li not rejoice?
The Duke of Yu looked at Empress Jin Li, rose to his feet, and said, "Your Majesty, this old man does not know what your purpose is in doing this. But I must say: your life was bought with the sacrifices of countless people! Your Majesty's survival bears directly on the fate of Southern Qian! Please hold the state and its altars foremost in your heart. This old man shall remain in the palace to oversee the construction of the God-Worshiping Platform!"
His unspoken meaning was clear: he would serve as a decoy by building the platform, buying time for Empress Jin Li to slip away in secret.
Hearing this, Jin Li was far from foolish and understood what the Duke of Yu was truly offering. She said softly, "We understand."
Chapter 50