"Take them out and keep them under strict guard. Tomorrow, when the army sets off, you will be the one to perform the flag-raising ceremony."

Yin Jin'an's words instantly brought tears to Gu Bahuang's eyes.

He knew that following His Highness would allow him to take revenge, but he never expected to do so so quickly.

Moreover, Chu Jiang and Minister Cui are Your Highness's enemies, yet Your Highness has asked him to personally kill these villains. Who wouldn't follow Your Highness wholeheartedly?

Vice Minister Cui was beaten, and half of his face was so swollen that his vision was blurred, but his life was at stake.

He originally looked down on Yin Jin'an. Regardless of whether he was the real or fake Crown Prince, he was a high-ranking official in the court, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, and was definitely a superior in front of Yin Jin'an.

Now he doesn't think that way anymore. The person in front of him kills without hesitation, without any etiquette or formalities.

He crawled two steps on his knees and pleaded, "Your Highness, I know some secrets. If Your Highness spares my life, I am willing to tell you."

"Speak!"

"I did not harm Empress Wei; someone else did."

"Is it Chu Jiang?"

“He is only one of them.” Minister Cui seemed to have something difficult to say, and pleaded repeatedly, “Your Highness, you must believe me. I am really not the murderer who killed Empress Wei.”

"And Chu Hanhua?"

"Your Highness, please release me first."

Upon hearing this, Xiahou Yan slightly raised his eyes and glanced at Yin Jin'an. Huo Dao and Xue Jingfei also secretly glanced at Yin Jin'an.

Wearing a mask made it easier for Yin Jin'an to observe the facial expressions of these people, and he noticed the subtle movements of his three guards.

Unbeknownst to them, Yin Jin'an possessed three cultivation techniques in the manual given to her by Yu Chanzi. The first two were for body refinement, while the one she was currently practicing was the Tai Xuan True Scripture, a supreme and secret internal cultivation method of Taoism.

With each small step forward, the harmony between martial arts and the body improves dramatically.

His senses were sharper than before; he could even hear leaves falling onto the water and snowflakes rustling down from fifty meters away.

Now, in this small space, no one's every move can escape his eyes.

After Cui finished speaking, a smug look still appeared on his face. Yin Jin'an sneered and said to Cui, "Cui, you probably don't understand my temperament. I am never manipulated. I'll count down from three. If you want to speak, then speak now. If not, then never speak again."

After he finished speaking, he raised his hand and stood up with three fingers.

"Three~"

He slowly bent one of his fingers down.

"Two~"

Then slowly bend down one finger.

"One~"

Vice Minister Cui was a seasoned veteran. He knew that whether it was the last place or anything else, it was all psychological warfare, and it all came down to who had the tougher mentality.

His Highness must want to know who killed his mother. As long as he doesn't tell, he won't die.

If you say something, it loses its value and you'll definitely die.

So he knelt there, without saying a word.

Yin Jin'an bent down her last finger, but Vice Minister Cui remained unfazed.

“I gave you a chance! Gu Bahuang, tie him up too, and we’ll chop him up tomorrow along with Chu Jiang.” Yin Jin’an waved her hand. “Drag him out.”

Minister Cui did not struggle. He knew that Yin Jin'an was just giving himself a way out. He would not kill him. Tomorrow morning, it would be Chu Jiang who would sacrifice the flag, not him.

He was dragged out, and Xiahou Yan hesitated to speak.

Yin Jin'an said, "You guys, if you want to talk or ask something, just ask. If you don't want to ask, then leave."

Who the hell has the time to play guessing games with you people?

"Your Highness, why don't you ask him to reveal who killed the late Empress?" Huo Dao couldn't help but ask. "What if that person was one of Your Highness's closest relatives?"

Xiahou Yan shouted, "Huo Dao!"

Huo Dao retorted, unconvinced, "His Highness instructed me to ask directly."

Xue Jingfei also knelt down and said to Yin Jin'an, "Your Highness, Huo Dao is loyal to you. He is quite straightforward. He asked this question simply to confirm Your Highness's determination."

Yin Jin'an brazenly placed her legs on the table and said, "What if I refuse to tell you? What will you do then?"

Xiahou Yan knelt down and said decisively, "Whatever Your Highness says goes."

"And you?" Yin Jin'an asked, looking at Huo Dao and Xue Jingfei.

Huo Dao and Xue Jingfei hesitated for a moment before saying, "Master, your subordinates are willing to die for Your Highness. However, if Your Highness allows the person who murdered the Empress to go unpunished and insists on remaining loyal to him, your subordinates will be unwilling to do so."

"What if I'm unwilling to accept this?"

Yin Jin'an asked casually, but Xiahou Yan was already anxious. He shouted, "Huo Dao, Lao Xue, shut up. The master is the master. It is none of the servants' business how the master chooses."

Huo Dao and Xue Jingfei said sadly, "Even so, the late Empress had done us a great favor. We swear to never be loyal to the villain who killed her."

Yin Jin'an nodded and asked Huo Dao, "Huo Dao, I understand your thoughts, and I have no problem with them."

Then he said to Xiahou Yan, "You, Huo Dao, and Xue Jingfei will leave tomorrow and ask the three thousand Tiger and Leopard Cavalry who agrees with Huo Dao and Xue Jingfei to split into two groups."

Those who are willing to completely obey me, Xiahou Yan, bring them to see me. The rest, go back to where you came from. Those who have nowhere to go, may disband on their own.”

Xiahou Yan was utterly stunned and hurriedly asked, "Master, the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry is the Empress's trump card for you. How can you give it up?"

“I don’t want disloyal people,” Yin Jin’an said. “I am no longer the Xiao Jin’an I used to be, and I will never be manipulated by anyone.”

“They are not disloyal! They just don’t want to be used by anyone other than His Highness. Tomorrow the army will set off. With the 10,000 newly recruited soldiers, we cannot fight against Jiegan’s 100,000 troops, let alone the court’s hundreds of thousands of troops.”

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