Not long after, the scouts sent to secretly return to the Zhao capital to gather information hurried back on horseback.
They relayed the events in the capital and the intelligence they had gathered to Du Kui, one by one.
Du Kui, after a moment of contemplation, wrote several secret letters and sent them off via carrier pigeon. Unfortunately, despite Ding Yun's sharp eyesight, she possessed no x-ray vision, so she truly had no idea what he had written or what instructions he had given.
It wasn't until a few days later, overhearing a private conversation between some of the deputy envoys, that Ding Yun learned of his actions.
He had ordered those hidden in Zhao to spread rumors.
For instance, that the officials of the Zhao court were incompetent, the emperor was a weakling, and they immediately prostrated themselves at the sight of the Wei envoys. The Duke Zhenguo was defeated and killed solely because the Left Chancellor had delayed the delivery of military rations. The Zhao Emperor, though aware, had never intervened.
Even worse, to seize control of the border army, he had deliberately colluded with the Left Chancellor, issuing a secret decree urging the Duke Zhenguo to advance.
Afterward, he had falsely accused the Duke Zhenguo of disobeying the decree and launching a reckless offensive. Using this as an excuse, he had stripped the Duke of his title, exiled his family, and even deposed the Empress, installing the Left Chancellor's daughter, who cooperated with him, as the new Empress.
Furthermore, Princess Anping, who possessed some of the Duke Zhenguo's bloodline, was to be married to Wei as a concubine.
The deposed Empress, in order to protect her daughter, committed suicide.
The Zhao Emperor, however, had kept it all hidden.
Of course, this was the content Du Kui had prepared to send out earlier. And most of it wasn't fabricated; it was largely true, only known by very few and kept under strict seal to prevent its dissemination.
Later, after receiving new intelligence from the capital, specifically that the Qianqing Palace had been struck by lightning, the Zhao Emperor had suffered several broken bones, and the Cold Condensation Palace, where the deposed Empress's body lay, had collapsed, forming a natural tomb.
He then added more to the spread of information.
For example, that Heaven, moved by the Empress Qi's maternal devotion and unable to bear her body remaining unburied, had personally intervened, using her palace as a grave.
Another example was that Zhao Jun's actions had angered Heaven, a shared outrage by both humanity and the divine, thus leading to the celestial lightning strike and punishment upon him.
That he was still alive at this moment was entirely due to the nation's destiny acting as a shield.
Henceforth, the nation's destiny would surely wane, and he would become a ruler whose kingdom would fall.
Within just a few days, the content Du Kui had concocted, largely true with a few minor embellishments, had spread throughout the land of Zhao and was rapidly disseminating to neighboring regions.
The reason for such rapid dissemination.
Ding Yun had played no small part.
How to describe it?
Rumors about an emperor's or chancellor's schemes didn't spread very fast. Many commoners didn't really care. But the matter of the emperor being struck by lightning? Forget about coordinated spreading; even without it, it would spread like wildfire.
Even unofficial histories would eagerly record it, and no matter how much official history tried to erase it, a multitude of unofficial accounts would remain.
With the rapid spread of the emperor being struck by lightning,
People naturally became curious about why he was struck. And then, the preceding content became easier to disseminate.
Suddenly, public resentment boiled over. Many regional lords even instigated whispers in private, suggesting that an emperor who had incurred divine retribution was unworthy to rule and must be deposed, with a capable successor chosen from the imperial clan.
An event like an emperor being struck by lightning would draw hushed whispers even in an enlightened, technological society, prompting speculation about how much karma one had accumulated in this life or the last. It was even more so in a feudal society.
Moreover, the one struck was an emperor.
They all claimed to be the Son of Heaven. Now that Heaven itself had struck him, it was clear that Heaven did not approve. Even as the Son of Heaven, he was undoubtedly an unfilial son. This was the so-called "success and failure depend on Xiao He." Since he used the guise of the Son of Heaven to claim divine mandate, he must inevitably suffer the consequences of that mandate.
It was said that even the court officials were murmuring amongst themselves.
However, Ding Yun knew nothing of what happened next, because when Du Kui discovered people discussing these matters privately, he flew into a rage and severely punished those who had spoken freely. Consequently, no one dared to discuss it anymore.
Naturally, she could no longer hear about it.
Fortunately, not long after, they left Zhao and entered Wei territory. Du Kui was not as strict then, finally allowing them to discuss matters privately again.
However, they no longer discussed Zhao's affairs.
Instead, they talked about their own families and the state affairs of Wei.
But regardless, it at least kept Ding Yun from being too bored on the journey and allowed her to learn some things about Wei. For instance, the Wei Emperor was likely not old, as the Crown Prince had only been married for three years. This information came from someone mentioning that despite being married for three years, the Crown Prince had not yet fathered an heir.
Another example was that the Wei Empress had passed away, but no new Empress had been appointed. Even the most favored consort was only promoted to Imperial Noble Consort.
The ministers suspected it was to prevent the legitimate heir status of the Second Prince, born to the Empress, from being challenged. After all, if the mothers of other princes were elevated to Empress, there would be more than one legitimate heir, which would not be conducive to succession stability.
In short, through the fragmented information gleaned from their casual conversations, Ding Yun had a general understanding of Wei's basic situation. Setting aside other aspects like overall national strength, at least their imperial harem didn't have so many messy affairs. The Wei Emperor's private life was difficult to ascertain, but on the surface, he appeared to be a wise ruler.
His Empress had been dead for many years, yet no new Empress had been appointed.
Indeed, people are prone to comparison.
Someone who might not have seemed particularly good initially, when compared to a much worse specimen, suddenly appears to be quite decent.
Although there were subtle hints of a succession struggle in the court, most still stood behind the Second Prince, far less chaotic than the Zhao court, where everyone wanted to interfere.
However, in Ding Yun's opinion, these situations.
Were merely so-so.
Wei's condition was better than Zhao's, but not so extraordinarily good as to be unbelievable. They were still a long way from their ambitious goal of unifying the world.
Pure wishful thinking.
A few more days passed like this before Ding Yun and her entourage officially entered the Wei imperial city. Ding Yun was then temporarily housed in the Honglu Temple's guesthouse in Wei.
She had to wait for Du Kui and the others to meet the Wei Emperor.
Then arrangements would be made.
Originally, as merely a concubine, there shouldn't have been any complex procedures; she should have just been inspected and brought into the palace. However, the Wei Emperor, whether out of a desire to show off or to humiliate, had specifically issued a decree for Ding Yun to attend court tomorrow.
The ceding of Zhao territory would be read out in the imperial court.
Under normal circumstances, without revealing her martial prowess, Ding Yun could not prevent this. Therefore, the next day, she had no choice but to accompany Du Kui and the others to court and endure the humiliation.
Looking at the disdainful, even hateful, gazes of the assembled officials, Ding Yun could still bear it. But then, an incident occurred that made it impossible for Ding Yun to restrain herself any longer.
That was when the Wei Emperor issued an edict for a physical examination.
And he explicitly forbade any covering, ordering the examination to be conducted on the spot.
In front of all the assembled officials.