Chapter 116 Setting the Scene (3) "With a husband like this, she is also your wife's..."

Colosseums, strange creatures, hyena hunts, the intestines torn from beneath a female slave's body... and Aunt Shang, whose heart she pierced with her tiger fangs... Bloody memories began to swirl wildly through Feng Tan's mind again. She looked at Tan Yinyin and smiled slightly, "It's me."

Li Xue rubbed her forehead, her gaze sharp, and walked up to Feng Tan, saying, "Who are you?"

She then looked impatiently at Xiao Liling, who had also been hit, and asked, "Who is she?"

Xiao Liling understood Li Xue's meaning; she was confirming Li Xue's identity to see if she could afford to offend her. So she advised, "Li Xue, forget it. Don't cause any trouble. Go back to Chuxiu Palace."

Tan Yinyin did answer Li Xue's question, his gaze fixed on Feng Tan, and he joked, "Her? A prisoner from the Huang Dynasty, isn't she?"

Feng Tan said, "That's true."

She lowered her eyes and looked at Xiao Liling again, saying, "Your Highness, why should we be afraid of her? She's just a bit prettier...that's why she's not in shackles."

As Li Xue spoke, half of her knocked-out front tooth filled her mouth with air. Tears welled up in her eyes and slowly fell. Her emotions reached their peak, and she said in a shrill voice, "An eye for an eye! Even if you take it to Gong Zhengsi, it's not my fault!"

Born into a family of military generals, she had also learned some martial arts. She walked towards Feng Tan with an imposing aura, her whole body exuding a murderous intent.

Feng Tan took two steps back, turned to face the courtyard gate, and said, "Xing Yi."

Arslan appeared upon hearing the sound. With bandages wrapped around his body, he swept to Feng Tan like the wind, grabbed Li Xue's arm as she swung down, and with a slight effort, made her fall to the snow.

Li Xue frowned, glaring at the tall figure blocking Feng Tan's path, and asked, "And who are you?"

Tan Yinyin narrowed his eyes with interest and said, "Him? He's a prisoner's guard."

Li Xue's eyes widened. A prisoner is a prisoner, so why is he being escorted by guards?! What a strange combination!

Tan Yinyin smiled and curled his lips. Sending the Rakshasa Army, whose soldiers are worth ten men, to guard the palace step by step, what is Xiao Yinshi playing at? This villain who married the woman who killed his own mother without batting an eye, could it be that he has fallen in love with the vengeful ghosts of the underworld?

“…the guards of the prisoners,” Li Xue chewed on these words. Although she was prone to having bad intentions, she was not reckless. She pushed herself up from the snow and said, “We’ll settle this score with you later!”

She stormed off in anger, and the remaining people, not wanting to make a fool of themselves, released their grip on Guan Zhizhang and hurriedly left the courtyard.

Xiao Liling and Feng Tan passed each other. Feng Tan looked at her back and said, "Is it not pleasant to hold your nose and blow a conch shell while swallowing your anger?"

Xiao Liling turned around and saw Feng Tan standing under the tall sycamore tree, casually playing with a slingshot, his eyes filled with malice towards her.

The blatant malice in those eyes made Xiao Liling's heart tighten. She slowly looked away and walked away.

The winter wind was biting cold. Tan Yinyin pulled his fox fur cloak tighter around himself, his breath coming out as he spoke. "Speaking of which, what right did you have to hit me?"

Feng Tan said, "Does bullying someone need a reason?"

"Ha," Tan Yinyin laughed angrily, "You hit me with a big bag for no reason, how come you don't need a reason? Don't even think about leaving until you explain yourself clearly."

Upon hearing this, Arslan made a gesture as if to draw his broadsword from his waist. His terrifying aura made Tan Yinyin shudder. He cleared his throat, his arrogance subsiding. "You've already forgotten your roots after just leaving Huan Yan Liu Guang City, haven't you?"

Feng Tan didn't want to waste time negotiating with Tan Yinyin. He had killed Shang Chunxiang, and she would settle the score with him sooner or later.

The palace path was quiet. Guan Zhizhang leaned against the vermilion wall, her brows and eyes showing exhaustion. When she saw Feng Tan come out, she leaned over and walked over.

As she bowed in thanks, she accidentally slipped and fell in the snow. Feng Tan rushed forward to support her as she was about to fall. In the midst of their exchange, a letter was handed to Feng Tan. Arislan's brown eyes flashed, and he gripped his broadsword tightly.

Guan Zhizhang leaned in and whispered, "If you still possessed the skill of lightness and agility, you could have escaped unscathed afterward, fleeing beyond the borders of Dahua. But now you..."

Arslan interrupted Guan Zhizhang, looking at Feng Tan's profile, his voice firm, "It will definitely succeed."

***

"The virtuous rule the world, but Your Majesty does not value the national system, does not cherish talent, and uses private interests to benefit the public, thus destroying the very foundation of the nation..." The eunuch reading aloud grew softer and softer, glancing up at the emperor above.

Xiao Yinshi, wearing a crown, sat on the throne. He had already composed himself. After getting out of the sedan chair, Sique knocked on the palace gate and brought an urgent report from the border eight hundred miles away. After reading it, he remained silent. Just then, the officials presented their memorials, so he opened the first one and handed it to the eunuch in charge of writing.

Seeing the emperor's displeasure, the eunuch holding the pens knelt down with a thud and kowtowed, saying, "This servant dares not read such treasonous and outrageous words again!"

Xiao Yinshi waved his hand, and Sun Cheng stepped forward to take the memorial and hand it to him.

The sounds of music and instruments from the banquet could be faintly heard in the high hall of the Golden Palace. The hall was brightly lit with candles. After watching, Xiao Yinshi had no expression on his face and commented, "Another civil official who is just trying to gain fame."

Sun Cheng observed his expression and said, "Your Majesty, the civil officials are in cahoots and not easy to govern."

Recently, Xiao Yinshi has been drastically reducing redundant officials and rectifying bureaucracy, causing many officials to feel uneasy. The relationships among the civil service group in the court are intricate and difficult to sever. Although Xiao Yinshi's methods are swift and decisive, unless all civil officials are dismissed, the intertwined situation will not change for the time being.

Among the personnel lists sent back by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, all the officials that Emperor Jingde, Xiao Songyun, had placed under the former Crown Prince's faction had been purged. They had either died violent deaths, been suspended from their duties pending trial for political mistakes, or had large sums of money found in the private residences of officials who had touted themselves as honest, prudent, and diligent...

Assassinations, frame-ups... The officials knew perfectly well that these schemes were orchestrated by the Emperor himself. They sighed, "The emperor commands the ministers to die, and the ministers have no choice but to die." At first, they dared not speak out in anger, until Guan Shao, the Vice Minister of Rites, publicly denounced the emperor in the imperial palace. Although he died, his name would be forever recorded in history. Such immense honor spurred fearless civil officials to submit one after another their dissenting opinions.

Their resistance was pointless. Xiao Yinshi casually tossed the memorial impeaching him back onto the imperial desk. Sun Cheng handed over the prepared herbal medicine and said, "There is no cure for the contraceptive pill, but the poison of the muscle-softening powder is quite potent. Drinking the medicine will help you recover faster."

Xiao Yinshi downed his drink in one gulp, stood up, and looked down at the luxurious golden palace, asking, "How is the interrogation of Jiang Tanglian going?"

Jiang Tanglian was Xiao Zhan's strategist. Xiao Zhan's success in escaping capture was entirely due to Jiang Tanglian's plan. The feint attack bought Xiao Zhan enough time to escape.

Sun Cheng said, "He still refuses to confess."

As the two were talking, Zhu Qi had already escorted the man into the hall. The heavy shackles on Jiang Tanglian's body rattled as he moved, and his entire body was covered in bruises and bloodstains.

Xiao Yinshi stepped down from the high platform, looking down at Jiang Tanglian's still arrogant eyes, and said, "You don't know where Xiao Zhan is hiding, but you should know who is protecting him as he escapes."

Jiang Tanglian scoffed coldly and ignored him.

Xiao Yinshi said, "Xiao Zhan is lucky to have such a loyal dog like you."

The chains trembled slightly, and Jiang Tanglian endured it without uttering a sound. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Go ahead and hit me. I'll admit defeat if you beg for mercy!"

Then the person at the head of the table spoke calmly, "I won't hit you."

Zhu Qi understood, and the Imperial Guards waiting outside the hall escorted a woman and an infant into the hall. The woman's legs were trembling violently, and her eyes reddened when she saw Jiang Tanglian, but she could not speak because her tongue was pressed down by iron stones.

Jiang Tanglian's eyes quickly filled with bloodlust, and he gritted his teeth as he said, "Xiao Er, how could you be so vicious? Using my wife and children as hostages?!"

The gleaming blade pressed against the woman's throat. Following her husband's words, she looked at the newly crowned emperor, who stood imposingly. Even after being scolded, the man remained expressionless, his dignified and imposing appearance inspiring extreme fear.

Xiao Yinshi sat back on his throne and said calmly, "So, will you confess or not?"

Jiang Tanglian gritted his teeth, "I won't confess! I won't be a treacherous villain. I can endure these punishments, and my wife can too!"

Xiao Yinshi waved his hand, "Having such a husband is a blessing for your wife."

"Swoosh." The sound of slitting the throat rang out again. A half-inch-deep gash was ripped open in the woman's throat, and blood gushed out, splattering all over Jiang Tanglian's face.

He stood there, stunned, staring at his wife lying on the ground. Her face was close to his, her eyes still open, as if she had died with her eyes wide open. He couldn't believe what had happened in the blink of an eye.

Zhu Qi's knife was stained with blood. He looked at Jiang Tanglian, who was completely unaware of what was happening, and sighed, thinking to himself, "Why did you provoke him?"

"Ah!!!" Jiang Tanglian's screams shook the entire hall. He was pinned to the ground by the Imperial Guards, his eyes wide with rage, and he shouted wildly, "Xiao Er! I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you!"

The baby cried loudly in fright, and Jiang Tanglian's cheek was pressed against the cold marble floor, his face stained red with blood.

Xiao Yinshi said indifferently, "I'll ask you one last time, will you confess or not?"

Men don't easily shed tears, and Jiang Tang had never cried in his life. But looking at the baby still in swaddling clothes, his eyes welled up with tears. He closed his eyes and said with a broken heart, "It's the third prince of Sotaha, Arslan."

As the bronze chime rang out, behind the twelve-colored crown, Xiao Yinshi subtly curled the corner of his lips.