Chapter 261
Zhang Cheng sighed and shook his head, as if he were truly feeling sorry for them.
Hearing this, Qiu Yanwen's eyes widened in fury, his face flushed red, and he was so angry that he could hardly breathe. He pointed at him and shouted, "You...you...you bunch of despicable and shameless bastards!"
"How could you say such an outrageous thing!"
"I will take full responsibility for my actions; you must not lay a hand on them!"
Zhang Cheng scoffed dismissively, pointed the tip of his sword at him with a contemptuous grin, and said, "You think you can just say no? Who do you think you are!"
"If you want your students to be well, then you'd better write it down honestly, Lord Qiu."
Leng Xu stood to the side with his arms crossed. Zhang Cheng placed paper, pen, and ink in front of Qiu Yanwen, stared at him, and said, "Write, Lord Qiu."
Qiu Yanwen looked at him, then looked down at the Xuan paper. His fingers, gripping the brush, turned white. He clenched his teeth tightly, his face was grim. He took a few deep breaths before he began to write.
As I wrote, I felt extremely humiliated.
As a renowned scholar with numerous students and the respect of countless people, even if he were to enter the political arena, he should not suffer such humiliation!
When he finished writing the last word, he slammed the pen down on the table.
After carefully reviewing the letter regarding the outcome of the proceedings and finding no issues, he gave Leng Xu a look.
Upon seeing this, Leng Xu stepped forward and twisted Qiu Yanwen's hands behind his back, causing Qiu Yanwen to scream wildly, "What are you doing?! Let go! Let go!"
"Shut up. You're a rebel now, so naturally we're going to send you to the capital."
Zhang Cheng looked at him irritably and folded the letter in his hand, putting it in his waist pocket. He then turned to look at Ding Yunxian, who was still on his last breath, and walked over.
"Ding Yunxian, Ding Yunxian, if you had just stayed hidden and stopped getting involved in these things, wouldn't you have been able to survive?"
"You've ended up like this because you didn't know what was good for you, and you followed the wrong person. By the way, haven't you been looking for your sister all this time?"
When his younger sister was mentioned, Ding Yunxian's eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope, but it shattered the next second.
He gave a wicked smile and said, "Your sister Ding Yunxiang died a long time ago. She was originally saved by our young lady, but unfortunately she brought it upon herself by trying to deceive everyone and take her place. She was pecked to death by Fourth Master's bird."
"That soft, thin neck had a hole the size of a fist; it was terrifying."
Upon hearing this, Ding Yunxian's eyes bulged, and he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, his face contorted in agony. "You! You will all suffer retribution!"
"This is the cycle of cause and effect, and it is your retribution. As for whether it will happen to us, you will not be able to see it."
After saying that, a fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and he raised the sword in his hand and thrust it fiercely into Ding Yunxian's throat.
Ding Yunxian let out a series of gasping sounds, and after a few breaths, he stopped breathing altogether.
A short while later, Leng Xu's calm voice came, "Let's go, it's time to go back."
"I'm so tired, I haven't slept for almost three days, and I still have to travel back. Once I get to the capital, I'm going to sleep like a log."
As Zhang Cheng walked, he complained, interspersed with occasional muffled sounds from Qiu Yanwen, whose mouth was gagged.
...
Two days later, Qi Heng, upon receiving the news, was not as happy as the others. She simply said calmly, "Chen Lin, Shen Yu, you two take my token and make arrangements for the people."
"Remember, you must not let anyone know."
Suddenly, the butler rushed over, his face grave, and whispered a few words in his ear.
Qi Heng looked up at him in surprise upon hearing this, and frowned as she said, "Let them in."
This timing is too sensitive. How could they come at this time? If others find out, they'll likely get into trouble.
Soon, three men wearing black hoods entered. Upon seeing him, they immediately knelt down and shouted, "Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince!"
Qi Heng recognized the three men as court officials and quickly stepped forward to help them up. He smiled wryly and said, "My lords, I am no longer the crown prince. There is no need for such a grand ceremony."
One of them said, "No, Your Highness, you have always been the Crown Prince in our hearts."
"Yes, Your Highness."
He smiled faintly and said, "Get up quickly. I know why you came here. Don't worry, I've already made up my mind."
Upon hearing this, the three ministers burst into tears, saying, "You have no idea how those people have been suppressing us while you were away from the court these past few days."
"Impeachment memorials are being sent to His Majesty one after another. We are almost on the verge of collapse. Recently, the Third Prince has been extremely arrogant. He is like the sun at its zenith. Everyone is saying that he will be the next Crown Prince."
"His Majesty's contempt and distrust, the people at the Third Prince's office are sycophantic and smug, and that treacherous minister Duan Gan has been bewitching His Majesty, so now His Majesty listens to everything he says."
"Moreover, His Majesty did not attend the morning court session today, claiming he was unwell. He issued an edict entrusting all affairs of the court to that traitor Duan Gan. More importantly, the Empress has been imprisoned."
"We cannot see the Empress, and the Qiu family has been raided. We, your humble servants, have no choice but to come seeking Your Highness."
Upon hearing the word "Empress," Qi Heng's expression visibly tensed up. "What exactly is going on?"
"Why was Mother imprisoned without any reason? Was it Father's order?"
He nodded and said, "The young prince was poisoned after eating pastries given to him by the Empress herself, and he is still unconscious."
“But we all believe that the Empress would never do such a thing at this critical juncture. This matter must have been framed. Perhaps the Third Prince and Duan Gan conspired together to kill the Emperor’s most beloved prince and get rid of the Empress in order to secure the position of Crown Prince, leaving Your Highness completely isolated and helpless.”
"Such a vicious scheme is simply killing two birds with one stone."
He spoke indignantly, and the others echoed his sentiments, but Qi Heng felt a deep sense of powerlessness.
The current situation is one where he can choose not to rebel; everything is forcing him to.
But the more he wanted to see Xiao Tao, the more he feared that if he didn't see her this time, he might not have the chance next time.
They spent the entire afternoon discussing countermeasures, and it wasn't until evening that they reached a decision.
"Your Highness, rest assured, we will do as Your Highness instructs and will not let you down."
The three bowed and clasped their hands in greeting, then turned and left.
Seeing this, Shen Lin and Shen Yu were about to go down when Qi Heng suddenly called out to stop them.
“Chen Yu, you…you go to the Prince’s residence and see what Princess Huaimin is doing now.”
Suddenly, the two exchanged a glance. Shen Lin frowned, about to belittle her again, but was stopped by him raising his hand.
Qi Heng looked up at them. "I know exactly what I'm doing. I just want to know how Xiao Tao is doing right now. Is she unhappy? Have Duan Gan and Murong Huai Shi made things difficult for her?"
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