How will people judge us a hundred years from now?

Most people would say that Emperor Ganwu was incompetent in his later years and killed ministers at will, while Qin Tai and the other man retained their reputation as loyal ministers!

They appeared to be loyal ministers who were killed by a tyrannical ruler for speaking out and pleading for the court, but in reality, they were all treacherous officials and villains!

This newly emerged official is even more hateful and infuriating than Qin Tai!

After all, he made it very clear that he supports His Majesty, but he disagreed with Qin Tai's words because he didn't want His Majesty to indiscriminately kill innocent people...

These two, singing in unison, are practically roasting His Majesty over a fire!

Sun Jian found this scene amusing.

Anyone in a high-ranking position could see that these two brainless idiots were Lin Xuanfu's men.

Although no one has any concrete evidence, all of this can be understood through simple logical reasoning.

It seems Lin Xuanfu is planning to turn against His Majesty starting today...

But they still underestimated this current emperor!

Do you think this little thing can stump Emperor Ganwu?

This predicament is nothing to the emperor!

The emperor's methods and shrewdness in handling matters are unmatched by any other emperor.

They're all playing the good cop/bad cop game here; who can't see through such an obvious tactic?

Emperor Ganwu finally spoke, neither commenting on the right or wrong of the two men nor offering any rebuttal.

Instead, they did the opposite.

Instead of getting bogged down in these issues, you'll only fall into Lin Xuanfu's trap.

It would be better to deal with it directly and decisively!

"Excellent! I never expected that such capable people would emerge in my great undertaking."

"You two ministers deserve a reward!"

Emperor Ganwu smiled as he spoke, and everyone was taken aback.

Everyone looked at Emperor Ganwu with puzzled expressions, their faces filled with astonishment.

What's going on here?

For two treacherous officials to criticize His Majesty so openly in the court is a disgrace to the Emperor, who has lost all face.

These words would be unbearable even for ordinary people, let alone for an emperor who reigns supreme.

His Majesty not only didn't punish them, but even rewarded them. What exactly is going on here?

Even the ministers, led by Lin Xuanfu, were dumbfounded, their eyes wide open, speechless.

Not only the Second Prince, but also Crown Prince Li Gancheng, Sun Jian, and many ministers including Yao Tianzheng, all wore the same expression.

But they never imagined that the smile on Emperor Ganwu's lips was actually a veiled threat, full of murderous intent.

The next sentence was another blow to everyone.

Emperor Ganwu still wore that sinister smile, uttering the most ruthless words in an extremely amiable tone.

"I'm thinking about what I should reward them with..."

"Let them be rewarded, both of them, with promotions and titles, and may the immortals offer them fruit!"

Promotion and rank? A gift from a celestial being?

These simple eight words startled the assembled officials, leaving them stunned and sweating profusely.

Even Sun Jian was no exception; he was shocked by the eight characters "Emperor Ganwu".

The so-called promotion to higher official rank and the offering of fruit by immortals actually refer to two extremely cruel and perverse forms of punishment.

In simple terms, "promotion to higher rank" involved soaking prepared mulberry paper in water and then covering the faces of prisoners one by one.

The executioner had a mouthful of liquor in his mouth, which he forcefully sprayed out, releasing a fine mist. The mulberry paper became damp and soft, and at this moment, the prisoner would feel difficulty breathing.

Then they continued to repeat this process, adding more paper as they went, with someone shouting "Promotion to a higher rank" for each new sheet added, which was the same as the idea of ​​getting a promotion.

Until the prisoner's psychological defenses collapse, he suffers extreme pain, and suffocates to death.

As for the "Immortal Offering Fruit," it involves making prisoners lift heavy objects high and kneel on broken bricks and tiles. The pressure from their own bodies causes the fragments to slowly pierce their flesh and bones. The prisoners kneeling there eventually have blood streaming down their legs and can only wail in agony until they die.

Of course, if the prisoner becomes too exhausted to move, the jailer will get up and whip him with a barbed whip.

Each time it was struck, the whip would dig deep into the prisoner's flesh, then be pulled hard, "Sizzle!"

The flesh and blood would splatter everywhere, making the scene as bloody as it could possibly be.

That wasn't the end of it. If the prisoner was too immobile to move and knelt down, the jailer on the other side of the chopping block would tie the prisoner up with a rope, then sprinkle more broken nails and debris on top, and then keep adding heavy objects until the prisoner died from the pain...

While promotions and titles may seem to eliminate physical suffering, the resulting psychological breakdown, fear, and suffocation can be extremely painful.

The two tortures were absolutely the most cruel punishments imaginable!

This is only the second time since the founding of the People's Republic of China that such inhumane punishments have been used.

Unexpectedly, before Lin Xuanfu could even play the villain, Emperor Ganwu gave his response and the result.

That result, those methods were ruthless!

Emperor Ganwu didn't care whether Lin Xuanfu had a third scapegoat. As soon as he finished speaking, while everyone was still in shock, he had already given a meaningful look to the general beside him.

"Here you go!"

Standing behind Emperor Ganwu was Lin Demou, the General of the Palace Guard.

Upon receiving His Majesty's decree, he immediately cupped his hands in greeting and ordered two imperial guards to capture the two men and drag them to the Imperial Prison in the palace.

At that moment, everyone was terrified and unconsciously swallowed.

This overwhelming imperial power and ruthless actions were chilling.

Even Lin Xuanfu's face changed color in shock. They had previously thought that no matter what, Emperor Ganwu would take into account that this was the imperial court and that there were officials present.

Even if he were to kill someone in a fit of rage, he would still have to consider public opinion and the consequences.

Qin Tai can be killed, but the second person will definitely not be killed.

After all, they were only pleading for mercy; they didn't deny the emperor's authority...

The second scapegoat is a cause that leads to the emergence of the third scapegoat.

Lin Xuanfu had anticipated this situation when he made these arrangements.

They had previously thought that when the second scapegoat stepped forward, Emperor Ganwu would at most be angry, then kill Qin Tai and imprison the official.

Considering many factors, the second official should not be in any danger to his life.

Then, at this point, a third scapegoat appeared, pleading with the two men to end the matter and enrage Emperor Ganwu.

At this point, Lin Xuanfu stepped forward again, playing the good guy, criticizing the three people, and then choosing to side with Emperor Ganwu.

Regardless of the emperor's final choice, he will certainly lose face and his prestige among the officials will diminish.

Most importantly, regardless of whether he kills the three scapegoats or not, the punishment he receives after getting angry will provoke dissatisfaction from most officials.

Because a third scapegoat would definitely anger the emperor.