"Is it slander? I have three questions for you to answer!"
Xiao Zhixing fired off a barrage of questions: "First, in the Battle of Jianan Pass in the spring, my father led the right flank, so why did the left flank fail to arrive on time as agreed?"
"Second question: Is Luo Gui, the commander of the left flank, a direct descendant of your Feng family?"
"Three questions: After my Xiao family army withdrew, 100,000 Lingnan troops appeared out of nowhere. Why was this so timely and coincidental? Was it premeditated by your Feng family, or even a conspiracy with the Southern Barbarians to plot against my father?"
The echoes of Xiao Zhixing's questioning reverberated in the main hall, causing Feng Liyan's face to tighten.
At that time, the situation at Guixiong Pass was critical, and the emperor also wanted to take down Xiao's army, so these matters were deliberately ignored.
Xiao Zhixing hadn't forgotten that the people from Eagle University were still investigating the truth, and gradually they had some clues.
The first one is Luo Gui. On the surface, he was promoted by Xiao Yuanshan, but in secret, he had already started dealings with the Feng family.
The second is the 100,000-strong Lingnan army. They couldn't have appeared out of thin air; it can be said that the Feng family had long harbored this ambition.
The facts show that the 100,000-strong army was secretly supported and cultivated by the Feng family—the Feng family's ancestral home was in Suzhou, bordering the Southern Barbarians.
Silence fell over the hall as everyone awaited Feng Liyan's rebuttal.
Feng Liyan had a slight sweat on his forehead, but he was not flustered. "The first question is that the left flank was attacked halfway through the march, which delayed the time. It was not a deliberate delay to miss the opportunity."
"Second question: Luo Gui and my brother were both in the Xiao family army and were indeed acquainted, but he was not a direct descendant of my Feng family. The two were just ordinary comrades."
"The third question is that the 100,000 border troops in Lingnan had long planned to move forward to Jianan Pass to prevent a surprise attack from the southern barbarians. All the generals of the Lingnan border troops knew about this plan, and there are countless witnesses."
Feng Liyan calmed down and asked, "Is my answer satisfactory, Prince Yuansheng?"
Xiao Zhixing raised an eyebrow. "Not satisfied!"
Feng Liyan's face darkened slightly. "Prince Yuansheng, this is the imperial court. The facts are right in front of you. Isn't it inappropriate for you to act like a child throwing a tantrum?"
Xiao Zhixing curled his lip, "I don't bother to throw a tantrum with you. Since you say Luo Gui is not a direct descendant of the Feng family, then why did his second son marry a girl from a collateral branch of the Feng family who is not even three degrees of kinship with you? And why did that girl hide the fact that she is an illegitimate daughter of the Feng family?"
"And why does the Feng family give this second daughter-in-law of the Luo family 50,000 taels of silver every year? You're being too generous with a mere illegitimate daughter, aren't you?"
"If they are related by marriage, why are they pretending to be strangers? Would my father really stand in the way of you becoming in-laws?"
“My household has investigated thoroughly. If you need witnesses, I can immediately send someone to Suzhou to bring all the parties involved for questioning. Oh, don’t try to cover it up with murder, otherwise it will be like trying to hide something obvious.”
Xiao Zhixing pressed on, "This shows that you deliberately concealed this matter because you were guilty and had ulterior motives!"
Feng Liyan's breathing tightened slightly. "This is a normal marriage between juniors. How can you imply ulterior motives?"
Xiao Zhixing chuckled, "Lord Feng, you said earlier that they weren't familiar with each other, but secretly they've arranged for them to become in-laws."
"With your mouth full of lies, can anyone still believe your words and actions?"
Feng Liyan knelt before the emperor and said, “Your Majesty, we did indeed conceal this matter because we were worried that Marshal Xiao would be concerned about us seizing power through marriage. However, the younger generation is in love with each other and asked their elders for permission. We could not bear to see lovers separated, so we had no choice but to secretly agree to the marriage.”
Xiao Zhixing laughed in exasperation, “Lord Feng is truly a good manager. He is so concerned about and knows everything about the marriage of a distant illegitimate child from a collateral branch in the south. Tsk tsk, gentlemen, you should all learn from him.”
"Sitting at home, he can win battles from afar, his strategies are flawless. I admire him greatly."
Xiao Zhixing clapped and mocked, "My father is simply too foolish. He has no suspicion or vigilance towards his subordinates, but instead trusts them wholeheartedly. Little does he know that his two generals have been secretly communicating with him behind his back, and that they are wary of him."
She turned coldly and cupped her hands to Zhao Yunqi, saying, "The second question is already questionable, and Lord Feng is a master of lies, so the first and third questions must be unreliable."
"Your Majesty, I implore you not to appoint such treacherous and cunning individuals with rebellious intentions as your trusted advisors, and be especially careful that they do not harbor any rebellious thoughts in the future."
Alright, everyone understood Xiao Zhixing's intention: he wanted to prevent the emperor from bestowing rewards upon the Feng family and Feng Lizhen.
What a treacherous person! This is precisely what makes the Feng family so despicable.
She was reminding the emperor that if the Feng family and Feng Lizhen dared to betray their former master, Xiao Yuanshan, they would dare to betray their new master, the emperor, in the future.
The hall was completely silent.
Feng Liyan kowtowed and cried out, "Your Majesty, this is alarmist talk! My Feng family is loyal to the Great Sheng Dynasty and to Your Majesty. Heaven and earth bear witness to this. Please, Your Majesty, see the truth!"
The implication is that the Feng family was promoted by the emperor to suppress the Xiao family army, and now that they are loyal to the emperor, the emperor must protect them.
As expected, Zhao Yunqi spoke up, "Alright, Yuan Sheng has gone too far. Feng Qing, you may rise as well. I trust you both."
They never mentioned the matter of bestowing rewards again.
Xiao Zhixing retreated nimbly, glanced at Feng Liyan whose eyes were red with anger, and gave him a fake smile.
You're not getting the Leopard Symbol.
If Zhao Yunqi dared to bestow the talisman, she would dare to snatch it away and destroy it right in front of them.
How dare a traitor command an army?
That's just how vengeful and domineering she is.
The Emperor System was muttering again, "Arrogant, domineering, petty, domineering, and reckless..."
Thank you. She always felt that these words were a compliment to her, and reading them made her very happy.
To be continued next time.
News of the grand court meeting spread quickly.
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