Lu Yan, who was bowing his head in deep thought, had no idea that earth - shattering changes had taken place in Li'ge City at this moment.
All these changes could be attributed to the handsome man kneeling among the officials. He was so thin that he seemed too weak to even truss a chicken.
Everyone in the world knew Shen Qingfeng as the famous Young Master Ruwei, but only on the surface. No one knew that this elegant scholar actually had an intelligence organization like the Listening - Wind Pavilion, which was notorious for its ruthless killings.
Shen Qingfeng knelt in front of King Xia Jie's bedroom. He slightly raised his head and stared intently at Xia Yonglin, who was struggling and screaming on the dozens of steps above. Xia Yonglin's hands were bound behind his back by Shan Chenghuai.
Xia Yonglin was acting like a madman, completely losing the aura and arrogance of a prince he had shown earlier. His crown had fallen off during his struggle, and his hair was in a mess. He shouted "I'm innocent" and "I've been framed" in vain.
He was dragged towards the Disciplinary Gate by Shan Chenghuai with one hand. After him, Qi Shuhuan, with his grey - white beard, also had his hands pinned. He was dragged out by two guards, one on each side. Of course, all he could shout was still the same words - "I'm innocent".
Innocent? What innocence was there?
It was him who made the python - embroidered robe, him who wanted to support Xia Yonglin as a puppet king, and him who wanted to monopolize power.
The evidence was irrefutable. So all Shen Qingfeng had to do was to expose the truth, and he could directly drag them into the abyss.
The two were dragged all the way to the Disciplinary Gate. Overnight, pleas for mercy and shouts filled the entire Bian Palace. In front of King Xia Jie's bedroom, the ground was full of kneeling officials. Inside the bedroom, Qi Yan was fainted from fright and carried away, while Xia Yanhe was driven out. Only Xia Chuli, who was kneeling beside the bed, and Shen Shiqiu, who was standing aside, remained.
The changes happened so fast. The officials of the Prince Cheng's faction came to the banquet full of self - satisfaction and arrogance. Just a few hours ago, they watched Xia Yonglin host the banquet and receive the envoys from the Western Rong as if he were the crown prince. Everyone thought they had taken the right side and followed the right person. But they never expected that Xia Yonglin was dragged out soon after he entered the bedroom.
Along with Xia Yonglin, there was also an imperial edict, tremblingly held by Chen Qi - an order of execution.
They watched him build his high - rise building, watched him entertain guests, and then watched his building collapse.
The Prince Cheng's faction instantly fell apart. Some of Prince Cheng's advisers suddenly lost his protection and had nowhere to go. Since they had offended the crown prince by following Prince Cheng, they didn't dare to join the crown - prince's faction. So they had to turn to Prince Yu, Xia Yanhe, hoping that King Xia Jie's favor towards Xia Yanhe could still allow them to survive. Of course, some others brazenly went to Shen Shiqiu and submitted their letters of allegiance, bending their already - crooked spines even more.
Of course, this was all in the future. That night, just like King Xia Jie's bedroom, the Disciplinary Gate on the west side of the Bian Palace also burned with lights all night long.
Rules and disciplines must be strictly measured.
The Disciplinary Gate had always been the place to interrogate the royal family and nobles. Once the royal family and nobles of the Li Xia Dynasty entered the Disciplinary Gate, it basically meant that their entire faction would be destroyed.
This situation was almost unthinkable just one day ago. Who could have imagined that overnight, Xia Chuli, who had been ignored by the king for a long time, would become the king's favorite, while Xia Yonglin, who was once so glorious, would be thrown into the death - cell along with the powerful Qi Fuyin.
Thanks to Shen Qingfeng's plan, Qi Shuhuan's ambition was exposed in front of King Xia Jie. Even though he had great power and the support of the Prime Minister's Mansion, he could never get away scot - free from this incident.
Qi Shuhuan had served King Xia Jie for many years. Although the imperial edict stated the death penalty, it was just a matter of King Xia Jie's words if he wanted Qi Shuhuan and Xia Yonglin to live. To root out the problem completely, Shen Qingfeng never intended to let Qi Shuhuan and Xia Yonglin come out of the death - cell alive.
On the other hand, with the turmoil in the court, many advisers in the intricate factions began to seek new ways out.
King Xia Jie had only three sons. The people behind Xia Yonglin and Xia Yanhe were all from the Qi family. Now that the head of the Qi family was about to fall, only the Queen Qi remained. And Xia Yanhe was a useless person. However, behind Xia Chuli, there was the support of the Prime Minister's Mansion, which had the most senior court officials. Most people began to defect to Xia Chuli. From the next morning, the Eastern Palace suddenly became bustling. Even the Shen Mansion received several letters of allegiance.
People were profit - seeking.
There were too few people who could truly be as noble as those who refused to bow to the powerful. Once upon a time, those scholars who recited "A gentleman is always poor" with their heads shaking would, after passing the imperial examination and entering the officialdom, mostly be unable to resist the temptation of power. They would forget the Confucian teachings, abandon their dignity and pride. They would even sneer at themselves, break their own spines, and then, in the quiet night, point at their dignity and numb themselves again and again: Look, in the officialdom, this is the most useless thing.
Yes, even if they couldn't follow the noble, they had to be obsequious enough. After all, as the saying goes, one should not hit a smiling face, right?
Xia Chuli's desk was piled high with memorials. King Xia Jie was seriously ill, Xia Yonglin was in prison, and Xia Yanhe was good for nothing. Now, he was the only one in the court who was capable of reviewing the memorials and handling political affairs.
Shen Qingfeng was busy in the Shen Mansion at this time. So Xia Chuli declined the visitors and closed the gate of the Eastern Palace. He returned to his room alone. Looking at the mountain of memorials on the table, he suddenly let out a cold laugh.
Then, he strode to the table. A glint of harshness flashed in his eyes. Then, just like a king who had reigned for many years, he stretched out his hand, picked up a golden memorial, and slowly opened it.
This was a memorial from Chu Jietian -
Your subject and the Marquis of Dingbei have led the troops to confront the Eastern Hu near Fengping for nearly a month. Fengping is easy to defend but hard to attack, so the Eastern Hu bandits dare not attack easily. However, they have recently shown signs of expanding their troops. It is speculated that they may attempt to attack the city soon. Your subject has sent people to reinforce the city walls. May the king rest assured.
Although Chu Jietian didn't fabricate the military situation in this memorial, he was covering for Lu Yan, because at this time, Lu Yan was already on his way to Li'ge City.
Xia Chuli skimmed through it at a glance. Just as he was about to put it down, a very soft sound suddenly came from above his head.
It was like a butterfly landing on a flower or a raindrop falling on a tender bud. Xia Chuli lifted his eyelids. After making sure there were no maids in the room, he said, "Speak."
From the beam, Sen Ya's deep voice suddenly came: "The shopkeeper said that the person you're looking for will arrive in two days."
"Oh?" Xia Chuli looked straight ahead without even raising his head. "How many people did he bring?"
Sen Ya was concise: "Enough."
"That's fine," Xia Chuli said.
Sen Ya paused for a moment and said, "The shopkeeper also said that she won't help you receive him."
"Humph," Xia Chuli snorted from his nose. "Whatever."
Another soft sound came from the beam. Sen Ya left.
He didn't even say goodbye, as if he, the crown prince, was just an ordinary person in Sen Ya's eyes.
Although Xia Chuli knew that the people from the Ten - Directions Pavilion didn't interfere in politics and only recognized Liu Mei, he still felt angry. He slammed his fist on the table with a "pop" and cursed secretly, "Damn it!"
Just then, there were two knocks on the door.
"A Li, are you in there?"