The eunuchs cried even louder, kowtowing repeatedly, "Your Majesty, we know we were wrong, please spare our lives..."
"It's all our fault for not recognizing the importance of things and abandoning our posts, which has caused such a huge mess. We beg Your Majesty's forgiveness."
A dozen or so eunuchs wept uncontrollably, their loud kowtows filling the hall. The shrill sounds of their voices mingled together, making everyone want to cover their ears.
There were few interesting places to visit in the palace, and these eunuchs had nothing to do all day except feed the Phoenix Golden-scaled Fish. They knew that not many people dared to enter Qingyuan Pond, so they hatched a plan to gamble together in secret.
If they had discovered that someone had broken into Qingyuan Pond immediately, the outcome would certainly have been different.
"My time is not for listening to your explanations." An Honghan stroked the little sable's fur, letting it lie on his lap.
A simple gesture, yet it brought Xi Xizhi a warm feeling. Peeking out, she saw the eunuchs below, their heads bleeding from kowtowing, their faces deathly pale.
The moment it made up its mind to eat the fish, it knew this would be the outcome. Initially, it planned to wait until the deed was done before persuading An Honghan to forgive the eunuchs and take full responsibility. Unexpectedly, An Honghan didn't mention its fault at all, but instead investigated the eunuchs' dereliction of duty.
But indeed...
When she entered Qingyuan Pool, she did not see any eunuchs guarding it.
"Take him away and execute him." An Honghan only had two ways of dealing with those who made mistakes. The first was death. The second was a fate worse than death.
To this day, the only pet that can anger An Honghan and still live unscathed is Fengyun Marten.
Lynn took two steps, then turned to Wu Jianfeng and said, "Guard Wu, I'm leaving this matter to you."
The eunuchs crawled on the ground like dogs, their faces blurred with tears, trying to reach An Honghan and beg for mercy.
An Honghan remained expressionless, coldly observing the eunuch's actions.
Xi Xizhi wasn't as cold-blooded as him; it felt somewhat responsible for this. Besides, it was just laziness and gambling, not a serious crime. It even thought An Honghan's method of punishing the servants was too harsh.
Life is only given to us once, and everyone has the right to live. To cruelly take their lives for a small mistake is far too cruel.
Wu Jianfeng summoned more than ten guards and captured the fleeing eunuchs. Although the eunuchs had done manual labor, their strength was still much weaker than that of those who had studied martial arts. They were all subdued before long.
Xi Xizhi tugged at An Honghan's clothes with her paws, but when she found that he wasn't looking at her, she had no choice but to jump in front of him and chirp.
"What? You want to persuade me to forgive these lackeys again?" An Honghan leaned back, adjusted his posture, and sat leisurely on the throne.
His eyes seemed oblivious to the wailing and shouting eunuchs, focusing only on Little Marten. "Do you remember what I said to you on the first night you entered the bathing pool? There is no need for excessive sympathy in the palace, otherwise it will ultimately harm you."
But……
Xi Xizhi still couldn't bear it.
An Honghan once again instructed his pet, "I am the ruler of a country. Showing too much leniency will only bring me trouble. What I need is the majesty of the royal family. If I spare them, then the people in the palace will become fearless and act recklessly."
He couldn't tolerate everyone the way he tolerated Little Mink.
To survive in such an environment, one must constantly make an example of someone to deter others, in order to establish one's authority. Only in this way can one instill fear in the subordinates and servants, preventing them from harboring rebellious thoughts.
Xi Xizhi only half understood, but knew that with An Honghan in power, many things had to be eliminated completely. However, she was just an ordinary weasel and didn't know how to play the game of court politics.
She tried to tug at An Honghan's sleeve and kept calling out, trying to persuade him to withdraw the punishment. But An Honghan was determined and there was no room for negotiation.
"What I'm teaching you today is how to be ruthless." An Honghan held the little ferret, not caring that it was all dirty and had soiled his dragon robe.
Having learned from her previous experiences, Xi Xizhi finally stopped trying to persuade him.
An Honghan rubbed its forehead. "If they hadn't made a mistake, I wouldn't have been able to find fault with them. So in the end, they killed themselves. It has nothing to do with you."
Knowing that this ferret liked to take responsibility, An Honghan was afraid that it wouldn't understand, so he tried to comfort it.
If those eunuchs hadn't been slacking off and had diligently guarded the gates of Qingyuan Pond, An Honghan wouldn't have made this decision. Because if Xiao Diao wanted to eat fish, it would have been a simple matter of him saying the word. The eunuchs also bear the majority of the responsibility for all the trouble they caused.
Xi Xizhi digested these words, slowly raised her fluffy head, and nodded twice to An Honghan, indicating that she understood.
Understanding one's environment is essential for self-preservation. She clearly understood this principle, but putting it into practice was far from easy. The concept of 'saving lives and healing the wounded' was deeply ingrained in her; suddenly overturning it was impossible. Everything takes time.
Xi Xizhi has been sullen these past few days, spending all her time lying on An Honghan's lap and not going anywhere.
Seeing the listless little ferret, An Honghan frowned deeply and instructed the imperial kitchen to prepare the ferret's favorite foods every day. When dealing with memorials, An Honghan would also often take the time to stroke the ferret's fur and observe its expression.
Having witnessed much of His Majesty's misfortune, Lynn naturally knew that the emperor was in a bad mood, and served him with trepidation every day. Holding an invitation, Lynn entered the Panlong Hall, "Your Majesty, this is an invitation from the Right Chancellor. Tomorrow is his grandson's full-month celebration."
An Honghan seemed to be lost in thought, and when he heard Lin En's question, he nodded casually.
Compared to An Honghan's reaction, Xi Xizhi seemed much more excited. She suddenly raised her head, staring at the invitation in Lin En's hand, her eyes blazing with a fire, as if she wanted to set the invitation ablaze.
It was rare to see the little ferret regain its spirits, so An Honghan looked down at it. He suddenly realized that besides its stunning scenery, the palace had nothing fun to do. The little ferret had explored almost every corner of the palace these past few days; there was probably nothing that could pique its interest anymore. Besides, the palace was vast and fraught with danger; whenever the ferret ventured out, it frequently caused a lot of trouble. It was probably scared and dared not wander off anymore.
It's good to take it out for a walk...
"Your Majesty, shall we, as usual, instruct the Imperial Household Department to send gifts to offer our congratulations?" Lin En asked respectfully as he presented the invitation to An Honghan.
In the past, no matter who sent the invitation, His Majesty never even glanced at it, instructing the Imperial Household Department to select and send gifts themselves.
Just as Lynn was about to hear that "hmm" again—An Honghan's icy voice slowly spoke: "Choose a jade ruyi, and I will personally deliver it to the Prime Minister's residence tomorrow."
Lynn looked up abruptly, her tone still filled with disbelief.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
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