The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 1)

Chapter 182 - Destruction

Song Chengru stood there, watching with narrowed eyes as Lord Zhang and Lord Chen argued fiercely, almost to the point of fighting, while he was internally surprised by Xingfu's behavior.

It seemed that Xingfu had indeed prepared himself well in advance; despite the chaotic scene, he remained calm, kneeling on the ground with a submissive demeanor, as if he were a guilty party. From what Eunuch An and Eunuch Feng revealed, Xingfu had entered the palace early that morning, crying uncontrollably and claiming he was wronged. However, it seemed that Xingfu was not as powerful as he once was. In the past, when he held great authority and still had the Emperor's favor, Eunuch An and Eunuch Feng wouldn't have dared to divulge his embarrassing state before the Emperor.

In the midst of his thoughts, the situation on the ground changed. Cen Biliang knelt on the floor, holding his neck high as he knocked his head three times in front of Emperor Jianzhang, fervently denouncing Xingfu: "As a minister of our Great Zhou, you collude with the barbarian forces of the Tartars, engaging in financial transactions with them. During festivals, you even exchanged gifts, maintaining a relationship as if you were close kin. Your treasonous intentions are obvious! Moreover, you have allowed the Imperial Inspector Shi Tongzhou from Zijing Pass to disseminate the city defense map of Tongzhou to the Tartars, even specifically marking the locations of wealthy mansions... Under such internal and external collusion, how can our soldiers defend the city gates properly?! Your Majesty, please investigate this matter and give justice to the citizens of Tongzhou who lost their lives! Give justice to the fallen soldiers of Zijing Pass and those guarding the grain depot in Tongzhou!"

As he became more agitated, he couldn't control the emotions surging within him, spitting as he spoke, and by the end, tears and mucus were streaming down his face.

Lord Chen quickly knelt down as well. He looked at Emperor Jianzhang, who sat above them with an unreadable expression, and steadily knocked his head three times, even removing his headgear and placing it aside. "The incident in Tongzhou has shocked both the court and the populace, severely damaging our national prestige and disheartening the soldiers of the Great Zhou! Xingfu harbors wolfish ambitions; for his own selfish interests, he colludes with the enemy and betrays his country—this is intolerable!"

Everyone understood the reason for Lord Chen's agitation—if it weren't for Ye Jingchuan's later involvement, the Chen family estate might have faced total destruction, and even his grandson and granddaughter would have been in grave danger.

Emperor Jianzhang finally moved; he threw the memorial in his hand onto the table, ignoring the sea of kneeling figures on the floor, and turned to look at the Prime Minister Chang: "What does the Prime Minister think?"

Prime Minister Chang glanced at Xingfu, who was kneeling and had met his gaze, then also knelt down: "Since there are witnesses and physical evidence for this matter, I believe it deserves a thorough investigation. There may be no smoke without fire; if Chief Steward Xing is being slandered, this opportunity for detailed investigation can help clear his name."

Xingfu's gaze instantly turned fierce—this old fox, Prime Minister Chang!

"What witnesses and evidence do you have?" Emperor Jianzhang asked, a hint of confusion in his voice as he lightly tossed aside the testimony from Shi Tongzhou, presented by Cen Biliang. "Did you even take a look at what was written inside before presenting the evidence?"

Song Chengru instinctively tightened his hands at his side, knowing that Xingfu could not possibly be unprepared to surrender so easily; it turned out there was indeed something shady going on. The elder beside him, Lord Du, subtly inched closer, feigning ignorance.

Cen Biliang, kneeling in front, grabbed the testimony in a panic—only to find his face go pale with shock. This was clearly not the original testimony!

Just as he was about to speak, he heard Emperor Jianzhang laugh derisively, "As for the witness... I just heard Anyi say to me..."

Even Shi Tongzhou had become a problem; he had clearly handed over the person only after entering the palace... Cen Biliang's eyes widened suddenly, and he slumped his shoulders in resignation—how could he have forgotten that many of the eunuchs in this palace were Xingfu's disciples? No wonder there had been no major movements before; it turned out he had long been prepared!

This was the real trump card!

Sure enough, Emperor Jianzhang coughed lightly: "Shi Tongzhou said he was threatened by the Ye family using his family, which forced him to give false testimony, but he later had a change of heart and modified his testimony."

"He's lying!" Cen Biliang felt the throbbing of his temples, rage boiling over: "He clearly didn't say that before!"

Emperor Jianzhang's face was shrouded in shadow, making it impossible to discern his expression.

Prime Minister Chang, however, remained rigid, kneeling on the ground, still maintaining his fervent stance, unwilling to back down: "Shi Tongzhou's testimony is contradictory; someone must be manipulating things from behind the scenes! Your Majesty, please order a thorough investigation of this matter."

Xingfu banged his head against the ground, the sound echoing, his voice tinged with a sobbing tone, projecting a sense of helplessness as if he were being besieged: "Your Majesty, you see clearly; I came to report this matter to you early in the morning after hearing the news. I truly had no time or ability to engage in such things!"

Lord Chen let out a cold snort, squeezing out a mocking laugh through clenched teeth: "That may not be the case; who doesn't know that Chief Steward Xing is the head eunuch of the Imperial Secretariat? He has countless subordinate eunuchs beneath him..."

Such baseless speculation would only provoke Emperor Jianzhang's anger. Prime Minister Chang coughed to interrupt Lord Chen's words, weighing his options before finally making up his mind. He pulled out a stack of letters from his sleeve and held them over his head with both hands: "Your Majesty! This old minister has more evidence! Please take a look at this!"

Song Chengru's drooping head moved slightly, and a smile of relief appeared at the corner of his mouth. Finally, he had managed to hand off this hot potato at the highest cost, while maximizing his own benefit and remaining uninvolved from start to finish.

Emperor Jianzhang glanced at the letters in his hands, and Eunuch Feng quickly stepped down to take the stack, personally delivering it to the Emperor.

Prime Minister Chang remained as steady as a mountain, ignoring the puzzled expressions of Cen Biliang and Lord Chen, his gaze fixed straight ahead.

As soon as Emperor Jianzhang looked at just one letter, the atmosphere in the hall turned icy. By the time he finished reading all the letters, the hall felt like an ice cellar, sending shivers down everyone's spines.

"You cried to me for most of the morning, claiming that someone was trying to wrong you out of personal vengeance." Emperor Jianzhang, his expression calm, closed the last letter with a faint smile: "Is this what you meant by being wronged?"

After finishing this sentence, he tossed the stack of letters into the air, scattering them all over the ground.

Xingfu caught a glimpse of them and felt that his end was near; his eyes widened in terror as he began to tremble—these envelopes bore his exclusive wax seal and stamp, and the handwriting was unmistakably his own. There was no way to deny it.

But how could such crucial evidence have ended up in Prime Minister Chang's hands?!