As the relevant news returned to the capital, the Ministers of Personnel and Revenue immediately reported it. Upon receiving the report, Ding Yun hurriedly summoned all officials for a meeting.
It was truly past midnight when people were sent to the residences of various officials, knocking on their doors forcefully to summon them to the imperial court.
Simultaneously, to demonstrate that she was ruling from behind a screen, not acting as regent, Ding Yun specifically carried her sleeping son out and placed him on the dragon throne.
Then, discussions commenced on how to respond.
This time, the civil and military officials, along with the nobility, were somewhat more harmonious. After all, the actions of the Duke of An had been definitively classified, and there was no longer room for debate. Those military officers and nobles who had previously spoken in favor of the Duke of An now expressed their profound regret, stating they had been mistaken and that the Duke of An was indeed deserving of death.
Following this, they discussed whether to inform the common people, whether to conscript able-bodied men from the populace to guard the capital, whether to urgently mobilize the capital's guard to begin pre-emptive defenses, and whether to quickly issue a decree to summon nearby garrisons to reinforce the capital.
Everyone actively engaged in earnest discussion.
A specific defense plan was formulated.
However, as the meeting concluded and everyone dispersed, some preparing themselves, others returning home, those with ulterior motives secretly reconvened for private meetings.
Some discussed whether they should side with the current regime of a widowed mother and orphaned son to resist the Duke of An, or if they should simply surrender. Perhaps by offering small favors, they might even seize an opportunity for merit in supporting the new ruler.
Others debated whether they were truly no match for the Duke of An's forces. If the Duke of An could rebel, why couldn't they? If they quickly brought in their private troops, they might just catch the opportune moment of the snipe and the clam fighting, allowing them to benefit as the fisherman.
Still others pondered whether they should exert minimal effort or no effort at all in the upcoming tasks, and if a real conflict were to erupt, whether they should first find a place to hide.
In short, everyone had their own thoughts and calculations. They were far from the united front against a common enemy that they had presented in the imperial court.
Of course, there were also those who were genuinely working, diligently coordinating personnel, and preparing logistics and defensive forces.
Meanwhile, Ding Yun, of course, couldn't afford to sleep. She quickly entered the group chat to seek help, asking if any members had good suggestions for how to cope.
[Young Empress Dowager]: The specific situation I know is what I've just described, so what do you all think we should do next? Also, are there any other uses for the "Bewitching Heart Technique"? Besides making others fall madly in love with oneself, does this technique have no other applications? Can it not directly make the target obey one's commands?
[Empress of the Cold Palace]: Your previous plan was to send people with money and appointments from the Ministry of Revenue to sow discord among those 30,000 troops. If that plan had been executed successfully, then the Duke of An on your side should not have been able to gather 30,000 soldiers. With bad luck, he might not even have half that number. So, in reality, it shouldn't be that dangerous. As long as you can unite all the forces in the capital, I think it should be easy to resist the Duke of An.
[Empress Ci'an]: Your most important problem now is that you cannot be certain that all civil and military officials will work with you wholeheartedly. You're not even sure which people are truly willing to help you, and which might have already developed other ideas, or are even preparing to defect, right? The Empress of the Cold Palace above is too naive. If it were that easy to unite all the civil and military officials, there wouldn't be so many orphaned mothers and children being bullied. I truly cannot think of any good ideas. If there were time for preparation, perhaps a breakthrough could be made. However, your time is too pressing, with no time for anything. The only strategy I can think of at present is for you to see if you can somehow negotiate with the Duke of An, and then use the Bewitching Heart Technique to make him fall in love with you. At that point, the situation might have room for maneuver. However, I am not certain. If it fails, do not blame me; I am only offering a small suggestion.
[Nine-tailed Demon Empress]: Humans are truly pitifully weak. I have a spiritual medicine called "Reverse Blood Rotting Bone Powder." Those poisoned will have their vital energy flow in reverse, and will die within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Three days after death, their bones will decay and become the finest fertilizer for cultivation. Young Empress Dowager, do you want some? If you do, I can give you dozens of catties. The only drawback is that I have no antidote, so you must be careful not to get any on yourself. You can add it to water, or sprinkle it directly into the wind towards the army. As long as one is dusted with this powder, accidentally ingests some, or inhales it through the nose, it will take effect rapidly. Theoretically, dozens of catties are enough to poison millions of troops.
[Chang'e in the Moon]: This is simply too cruel. And how many innocent people would die accidentally? Also, how do you have such a poison?
[Nine-tailed Demon Empress]: Hehehehehe. As demons, is it unreasonable for us to catch thousands or hundreds of thousands of people to use as fertilizer? Burying them alive creates resentment, and grinding them into a paste directly is not effective, so we specially researched this wonderful medicine for making fertilizer.
[Bewitching Heart Charming Lady]: Ah, I'm going crazy. Why is there a demon in the group? Can't we kick this demon out? It's really making me have nightmares in the middle of the night. Isn't anyone going to uphold justice? [Bewitching Heart Charming Lady]: Sigh, Young Empress Dowager, in theory, my Bewitching Heart Technique can achieve the effects you just mentioned. Making others fall in love with oneself is merely the most basic function of the Bewitching Heart Technique. Normal people's souls are relatively weak. Out of concern that someone might desperately try to bewitch those they absolutely cannot control, I have added some restrictions to the Bewitching Heart Technique to prevent people from overestimating their abilities and damaging their souls, or even perishing into dust. Unlocking the restrictions is very simple; one only needs to feed the Bewitching Heart Technique skill with spiritual power. If the spiritual power is strong enough, it can even bewitch an entire nation. Unfortunately, I myself have only used the Bewitching Heart Technique to control a few loyal maids and eunuchs who can help me with tasks. Your spiritual power might be slightly stronger than ordinary people, but still, act within your means. If it's truly impossible, perhaps you could try following Empress Ci'an's suggestion first and see if it works.
[Empress of the Cold Palace]: The Bewitching Heart Technique actually has this effect? Why didn't you tell me earlier?
[Bewitching Heart Charming Lady]: You're someone with no skills; how could your spiritual power possibly meet the requirements? Even if I told you, you wouldn't have the spiritual power to feed the skill.
[Nine-tailed Demon Empress]: Are you really not considering my poison? This poison of mine is very effective and acts very quickly. As long as you send those corpses to me in red envelopes later, I can also give you a spiritual fruit that can extend your life by sixty years and keep you looking young forever. Uh... if others want it too, I can provide it. Thirty to forty thousand corpses will suffice. Such an opportunity is rare.
[Chang'e in the Moon]: Everyone, please do not be swayed by her. If I am not mistaken, the spiritual fruit she mentioned is likely cultivated from the corpses of us humans. Nine-tailed Demon Empress, you are going too far.