Chapter 165: Old Zhu, Why Wasn’t Your Son The One Who Died? Please Vote Monthly
‘Dismissal of Confucianism’ – these four words indeed became the fuse that ignited the anger of scholars across the land!
And the mastermind behind it all, with extreme ruthlessness and precision, exploited this very point!
The immense anger, like molten lava, instantly overwhelmed all of Old Zhu’s reason!
His forbearance for the sake of the overall situation, his pursuit of the truth, all his planning and pacing, at this moment, were completely disrupted and trampled by this scene of ‘ten thousand people petitioning’!
His eyes turned blood red, veins bulging on his forehead, he pointed towards the direction outside the hall and, facing the trembling officials inside the hall, let out a thunderous roar:
“Look! All of you, look at this!”
“These are the scholars of our Great Ming! These are the pure stream of scholars we placed our highest hopes on!”
“They don’t care about the suffering of the people! They don’t impeach corrupt officials! Instead, they’ve learned to gather and force their way into the palace! They’ve learned to coerce us!”
“For a madman’s wild words, they can abandon the books of the Sages and come to our Imperial Palace to cause trouble!”
“You tell us! Who is directing this from behind the scenes?! Who gave them the courage?! Huh?!”
His gaze, like a sharp sword spitting fire, swept over every official below, especially those who were about to be dragged out of the Meridian Gate to be beheaded, as if he wanted to devour them alive.
“Was it you?! Did you collude?! First, you clamored inside the hall, and then you put on this big show for us outside the hall?! Trying to force us to comply?!”
“Your Highness, please calm your anger! Your ministers would never dare!”
Those officials, about to be dragged out of the Meridian Gate for execution, were terrified out of their wits and all knelt down simultaneously, kowtowing like pounding garlic.
They had no idea about the ‘ten thousand people petitioning’ incident, although they had indeed been instructed.
And seeing their appearance, Old Zhu’s eyes flashed with a light that saw through everything.
Who was he? He was Zhu Yuanzhang!
The founding emperor who fought his way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood! He hated being coerced the most!
If it were his usual nature, he would have long ago ordered the Imperial Guard to mobilize, arresting those who dared to challenge him and killing those who were too arrogant, to see who else would dare to force their way into the palace!
But… just before that enormous rage was about to erupt, a thought flashed through his mind, a thought that was even colder and more in line with his current state of mind.
Second Prince? Third Prince? Or Fifth Prince? Or perhaps they were all in it together? Or even those more deeply hidden in the court?
Have you all jumped off the wall in desperation? Are you afraid that Zhang Biao will keep digging and expose all your secrets?
So, you didn’t hesitate to incite scholars from all over the land and create such a huge scene, just to force us to make a swift decision, kill Zhang Biao, and close this case?
Do you want us to follow the path you’ve laid out?
Upon thinking of this, Old Zhu’s surging rage miraculously began to cool, transforming into a terrifying, icy calmness and a mocking insight into everything.
You want to force us? We’ll do the opposite!
The more you want Zhang Biao to die, the more we will keep him alive!
The sooner you want to close the case, the more thoroughly we will investigate it!
Let’s see who can’t hold on first in the end!
Thus, under the terrified gaze of the civil and military officials in the hall, Old Zhu’s terrifying fury slowly receded from his face, replaced by an almost indifferent calmness.
He merely narrowed his eyes slightly, as if listening to the increasingly loud pleas coming from outside the hall, and a faint, extremely cold curve even appeared at the corner of his mouth.
He slowly leaned back on the dragon throne, his voice as calm as still water, yet it sent a chill through Jiang Huan and all the ministers who heard it:
“Jiang Huan!”
“Your servant is here!”
Jiang Huan immediately stepped forward with a bow.
Then, Old Zhu said calmly and indifferently:
“Imprison all the officials who just offered admonishment in the Imperial Prison, and conduct a strict investigation. I want to know who is stirring up trouble behind this?!”
“After the truth is revealed, drag them out to the city gates, kill them one by one! Kill them slowly! And read out their crimes as they are killed!”
“Also, convey my decree.”
“Tell those people kneeling outside.”
“We know their ‘loyalty’.”
“But the nation has its laws, and cases have its procedures. As for Zhang Biao and his accomplices’ guilt, I will make the final judgment; they don’t need to worry about it.”
“If they like kneeling…”
Old Zhu’s voice stretched out here, carrying an extremely cruel meaning:
“Then let them kneel.”
“Let them kneel until they understand, or until they can’t kneel anymore.”
“No one is to drive them away, suppress them, or pay them any mind.”
“Court adjourned.”
Having said that, Old Zhu no longer glanced outside the hall, nor did he pay attention to the dumbfounded officials, and simply stood up and left with a flick of his sleeve, leaving behind a cold and resolute figure.
Jiang Huan was stunned for a moment, then immediately accepted the decree: “Your servant obeys!”
He felt a thrill in his heart, knowing that the Emperor intended to respond to this seemingly grand but actually seen-through palace coercion in the most brutal way.
And the officials in the hall were completely bewildered.
Neither the thunderous rage nor the compromise they had expected occurred; the Emperor dealt with this scene of ten thousand people petitioning with an attitude of near-indifference, extremely cold.
This was more terrifying and unsettling than a bloodbath.
What does the Emperor… really want to do?
On the other side.
The thick walls of the Imperial Prison could not completely block out the faint, surging clamor from outside.
The shouts of “Execute the traitor! Correct the public opinion!” though muffled, carried an unyielding persistence, coming intermittently.
Zhang Biao was using a small wooden stick to draw indecipherable symbols on the wall. Hearing the noise, his movements paused slightly. He listened attentively, and a playful expression appeared on his face.
“Tsk, it’s quite lively outside, isn’t it?”
He muttered to himself, then raised his voice and shouted towards the outside of the prison door:
“Hey! Brother outside the door! Yes, don’t hide, it’s you! Come have a chat!”
Standing in the distant shadows was the same Imperial Guard Officer who had interrogated Sun Gui and was thoroughly scared by Zhang Biao.
Hearing Zhang Biao’s call, his body instinctively stiffened, and a look of extreme reluctance appeared on his face, yet he didn’t dare to not go over.
After all, who knew what shocking and deadly words this lunatic might utter next?
He shuffled to the door of the prison cell, trying to stay as far away as possible, and said with a stern face:
“Zhang Biao, what do you want now?”
“Nothing much, just chatting. It’s quite boring in prison.”
Zhang Biao said with a smile, pointing outside with his wooden stick: “What’s all this commotion outside? Sounds like a play, shouting about killing and striking, who are they executing as a traitor?”
The Imperial Guard Officer’s mouth twitched, and he replied stiffly:
“Students from the Imperial Academy, Hanlin academicians and censors, as well as scholars from various regions, are kneeling inside and outside the Imperial Palace, requesting an imperial decree… requesting your execution.”
By the end of his sentence, his voice had unconsciously lowered, and he cautiously observed Zhang Biao’s reaction.
A normal person would probably have turned pale upon hearing this news.
However, Zhang Biao’s reaction was completely beyond his expectations.
Zhang Biao first froze for a moment, then, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, he suddenly threw his head back and burst into hearty, even somewhat frenzied laughter:
“Hah! Hahaha! Good! Very good! Ten thousand people petitioning for my death?”
“Hahahaha! What virtue and ability do I, Zhang Biao, have to warrant such a grand mobilization of scholars from all over the land?! It’s worth dying for this life!”
He laughed so hard that he almost cried.
It was as if the people outside were not trying to kill him, but were bestowing upon him some supreme honor medal.
This reaction completely stunned the Imperial Guard Officer, who looked at Zhang Biao as if he were a complete lunatic.
Even Shen Lang and Sun Gui, who were locked in the adjacent cell and had been listening intently, exchanged glances, their faces showing extremely strange expressions.
“Brother Biao… are… are you alright?”
Shen Lang couldn’t help but ask in a low voice through the wall, his voice filled with worry and confusion.
He was about to die, how could he still laugh?
Zhang Biao finally stopped laughing, wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, and playfully said in the direction of the next cell:
“What’s wrong? What’s wrong? I’m perfectly fine!”
“Brothers, did you hear that? We’re dead this time for sure! And it’s a death that will go down in history! Executed by a petition from scholars all over the land!”
“Is this grand enough? Exciting enough?”
“…”
Shen Lang and the other four were speechless.
They only felt that Brother Biao had truly gone mad.
Zhang Biao then turned back to the dumbfounded Imperial Guard Officer, as if chatting casually, and continued to inquire:
“Hey, brother, Old Zhu… oh, no, His Majesty, besides being besieged by scholars, has there been any other movement? For example… did he get angry and faint again? Or… has he announced any decrees recently?”
The Imperial Guard Officer had become somewhat numb from Zhang Biao’s madness and subconsciously replied:
“His Majesty… did issue a decree a few days ago, summoning Prince Qin, Prince Jin, and Prince Zhou to the capital immediately… saying it was for ‘attending to his illness’ and ‘reviewing manuscripts’.”
This piece of news caused the smile on Zhang Biao’s face to instantly recede somewhat, and a genuine surprise flashed in his eyes.
“Oh?”
He raised his eyebrows and stroked his chin:
“Prince Qin, Prince Jin, Prince Zhou… all called back? Attending to illness? Reading manuscripts? Heh, Old Zhu’s excuses… are truly filial and fraternal!”
He savored the meaning behind these words, his expression becoming inscrutable, and then the signature, fear-mongering smile reappeared.
He turned back to the adjacent prison cell again, his voice filled with excitement and a near-cruel teasing:
“Hey! Brothers! Did you hear? The big one is coming! This is a father-son game! Old Zhu is going to close the door and catch the dog… no, it’s ‘close the door and discipline the children’!”
He lowered his voice, but ensured it could be heard by those next door and the Imperial Guard Officer, saying in a joking tone:
“Come on, come on, place your bets! How about we make a wager? Let’s bet on how determined our Hongwu Great Emperor is this time?”
“What do you say, this time… how many sons will he ruthlessly kill? One? Two? Or… all three?”
“Pfft – cough cough cough!”
Hearing this, Shen Lang and the other five in the adjacent cell collectively choked, almost drowning in their own saliva, their faces instantly turned pale, and they were terrified out of their souls.
Kill… kill his sons?! And three princes?!
How dare Brother Biao say such a thing?!
This isn’t madness anymore, this is exterminating nine generations of a family… no, he has no nine generations left to exterminate, this is dragging everyone down to hell!
The Imperial Guard Officer was even more terrified, his scalp tingling, and he retreated several steps, as if Zhang Biao were a source of plague. He dared not stay another moment and turned and fled from the area, scrambling as if his life depended on it, fearing that he too would be implicated if he heard any more.
In the prison cell, only Zhang Biao’s carefree laughter and the suppressed, fearful gasps of Shen Lang and the other five in the adjacent cell remained.
Seeing that no one was paying him any mind anymore, Zhang Biao found it uninteresting and once again looked at the small ventilation opening, a cold calculation and anticipation flashing in the depths of his eyes.
Ten thousand people petitioning? Coercing the palace?
It seems Old Zhu has found the crucial clue. Otherwise, those scumbags behind the scenes wouldn’t be so desperate.
Old Zhu, oh Old Zhu, the next step is for you to reveal your hand.
Let me see… what is the extent of what you can achieve.
Since ancient times, all change requires bloodshed. Why can’t it start with your beastly sons?
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