"So, are you suggesting that I've joined hands with the Prince of Ruixian to deceive you?" The Prince of Yu stared coldly at the supervisor of the surveillance department, his narrow eyes blazing with fury.
Everyone in the court knew about the feud between the Prince of Yu and Gu Ruobai. The Prince of Yu had been eager to cause trouble for Gu Ruobai, only to end up clearing the name of the Prince of Ruixian instead. You can imagine how angry he was!
And here the supervisor of the surveillance department dared to provoke him. Wasn't he just asking for trouble?
The supervisor quickly lowered his head. "Your Highness, that's not what I meant. I was just thinking that maybe the Prince of Ruixian knew in advance that His Majesty would send someone... so..."
"How dare you, supervisor! Are you implying that His Majesty or someone close to him is in cahoots with the Prince of Yu, and that's why the raid failed?" As the Emperor spoke, everyone present gasped in shock.
Su Mingyu watched from afar, her heart tightening.
The supervisor fell to his knees, not daring to make a sound. Just as everyone fell silent, Gu Ruobai spoke up calmly. "Father, I think this might just be a misunderstanding. The supervisor's deputy is a new official and may not have heard about me."
As soon as Gu Ruobai said this, the supervisor quickly seized the opportunity. "Yes, yes, now that I think about it, it might just be a misunderstanding. It's my fault for not having enough surveillance ability. Please punish me, Your Majesty!"
The Emperor looked down at the supervisor with a dark expression. "Supervisor! Supervisor! Look at what you've been overseeing! Someone, prepare the imperial edict for me."
"The supervisor, Chen Xiyuan, and his deputy have failed in their duties, neglected their responsibilities, and are unfit for their positions. They shall be demoted to commoners, and their families shall be prohibited from holding any official positions for generations!"
"Your Majesty..." Chen Xiyuan kowtowed loudly, his head hitting the ground.
He had just made a wrong judgment, but the Emperor had not only dismissed him but also banned his entire family from officialdom. This was completely beyond his expectations!
Chen Xiyuan's face fell. "Your Majesty... Your Majesty... I was just momentarily confused..."
The Emperor closed his eyes wearily and waved his hand. "Someone, take him away!"
Chen Xiyuan wanted to say something else, but no one was willing to listen.
The main hall fell silent. The Emperor's gaze flashed across Gu Ruobai for a moment. Just as he was about to say something, Kang Zeyan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly stepped forward and knelt in front of the Emperor.
"Your Majesty! I have a grievance and need Your Majesty to seek justice for me!"
His words immediately stirred up the once-calm main hall.
The Emperor frowned and looked at Kang Zeyan. "Who are you? I've never seen you before."
Kang Zeyan continued to kneel on the ground. "Your Majesty, I want to impeach the Prince of Ruixian. He massacred more than twenty members of my entire family without reason! The Prince of Ruixian is cruel, bloodthirsty, and a complete brute!"
"Do you... know that you're impeaching a general who leads troops into battle?" The Emperor's frown deepened.
What he meant was that Gu Ruobai was a man who lived on the edge of the blade. In war, sometimes in order to keep secrets, he might have to do some things that weren't very honorable. Although it wasn't something to be proud of, it was understandable.
Compared to a dozen or so people and the well - being of the whole world, a dozen people were indeed a small number. To the Emperor's surprise, he could understand Gu Ruobai on this point.
Hearing the Emperor say this, Kang Zeyan's heart sank. The person was right. Now was indeed not the best time to bring down Gu Ruobai. But he couldn't wait any longer. If he didn't speak up in front of the Emperor now, who knew if he would ever have such an opportunity to see the Emperor again!
Kang Zeyan bit his lip secretly. "Your Majesty! I'd like to ask, if a soldier suddenly encounters a fierce beast on the mountain and is rescued by a young man. The young man takes the soldier to his mansion, treats him well, and even helps him send a message for someone to come and pick him up."
"But who would have thought that as soon as the soldier left, a large group of people rushed in and massacred all the relatives of the young man's family! Your Majesty, do you think such an ungrateful person is qualified to inherit the throne in the future?"
When Kang Zeyan said this, his voice was extremely hoarse, as if wrapped in sand and filled with great pain.
Su Mingyu frowned as she listened to Kang Zeyan's words.
She knew that the person Kang Zeyan was talking about was Gu Ruobai, but she absolutely didn't believe that Gu Ruobai was an ungrateful person.
Moreover, if it was really Gu Ruobai who did it, he would never have deliberately left a survivor.
Not making a clean break would cause a lot of trouble later on. Su Mingyu understood this, and Gu Ruobai, who had experienced battles, understood it even better. So Su Mingyu thought there was something fishy going on.
Just as she was thinking, Gu Ruobai wheeled himself up in disbelief and sized Kang Zeyan up and down. "Are you Tang Yan?"
Kang Zeyan sneered and nodded. "Yes, didn't you expect that one day I would appear in front of you like this?"
Saying that, Kang Zeyan took off the mask on his face, revealing his stunningly beautiful face.
The others present were all a little amazed by such a beautiful face, but Gu Ruobai remained calm. "The people who killed your clan members were not sent by me."
"Not you?" Kang Zeyan sneered. "Then who else could it be? As soon as you left, someone immediately came to kill. And they were wearing your soldiers' uniforms and using your weapons. How dare you lie with your eyes open, right in front of His Majesty?"
Kang Zeyan's words became more and more intense, and his beautiful face was distorted with anger.
Gu Ruobai looked at the Emperor with a calm expression. "Father, Tang Yan's words are true. It was indeed he who saved me. But after the people who came to pick me up left, I immediately returned to the barracks. I didn't send anyone to kill them."
Then Gu Ruobai looked at Kang Zeyan again. "Tang Yan, the reason I was in trouble in the mountains was that at that time, we were at war with a neighboring country. I was scouting the terrain and was chased and killed, so I got lost. Did I tell you this?"
Staring at Gu Ruobai with hatred, Kang Zeyan didn't distort the facts. He nodded. "You did say that. You said you suspected that spies from the neighboring country had infiltrated our side, or else you wouldn't have been in trouble. Do you mean to say that someone in my family was a spy? When you were in our mansion, how we treated you, don't you feel even a sliver of gratitude in your heart?"
By the end, Kang Zeyan's words were almost a roar, but of course, Gu Ruobai wasn't intimidated by his anger.