But to everyone's surprise, Empress Zhou laughed even more bitterly upon hearing this. She flicked her sleeves, stood up, pointed at Emperor Cheng'an's nose, and cursed, "You still know how to have any shame? I thought you had no sense of decency when you were forcing me to borrow a seed from another man."
When Emperor Cheng'an heard her bring up that unbearable shameful affair again, he flew into a rage: "You slut, don't pretend to be innocent after getting what you deserve! Do you think I don't know that you, you shameless woman, are addicted to other men and have been seeing countless men behind my back!"
Emperor Cheng'an pointed at her, his face ashen: "Look at yourself, do you still have even a trace of the demeanor of an empress?"
Empress Zhou, who had long since given up on everything, burst into laughter upon hearing this: "I don't have the demeanor of an empress, but you have the demeanor of a ruler. Why don't you look in the mirror? Look at yourself now, so pathetic that you're worse than a dog."
"The reason the King of Qin kept you alive was to see you make a fool of yourself, wasn't it?"
Emperor Cheng'an was struck by her blunt and merciless words, which made him so angry that he almost couldn't breathe. He could only clutch his chest and fall to the ground, looking pained.
Empress Zhou, however, was not in a hurry at all. She sat down as if watching a show, enjoying his appearance of great pain: "Your Majesty, you must hold on for a few more days. I haven't had enough yet."
The farce of this couple shocked Xue Shen and his ministers, and the impact was no less than that of the emperor's death.
Perhaps in the hearts of some officials who were loyal to the emperor, they probably wished that Emperor Cheng'an were dead.
Even the minister who had been clamoring to pay his respects to Emperor Cheng'an fell silent, looking embarrassed.
Embarrassment filled everyone's face. They wanted to leave but dared not, and were forced to stay where they were, listening to Emperor Cheng'an and Empress Zhou cursing each other, and in the cursing, those filthy and shameful things that could not be seen in the light of day were brought up.
Instead, Xie Lianhong sighed deeply and said in a low voice, "The matter entrusted to me by Your Highness has been investigated thoroughly. What are Your Highness's plans?"
Xue Shen said calmly, "Since it was wrong from the beginning, it is only natural to correct the mistake. Those who have committed serious crimes should also admit their guilt and be dealt with according to the law."
Xie Lianhong glanced at the Emperor and Empress, who were still cursing each other in the hall, shook his head, and said, "Your Highness, I understand."
After saying this, he bowed deeply, and without glancing at the two people in the hall again, he left on his own.
Seeing this, the other ministers also took their leave and departed.
Wang Yuanguang, however, rolled his eyes and waited until everyone had left before turning back to Xue Shen and saying, "Emperor Cheng'an is unworthy of the throne. Why has Your Highness delayed in taking his place?"
Xue Shen glanced at him: "If I remember correctly, Wang Chengxiang used to be extremely loyal to His Majesty. How come he has now turned against him?"
Wang Yuanguang didn't even change his expression, and said confidently, "Since ancient times, loyalty to the emperor and love for one's country have been paramount. I am loyal to the emperor, but Emperor Cheng'an murdered his brother and usurped the country, and is not worthy of being called a monarch. The person I should be loyal to is His Highness Prince Qin."
Xue Shen had always known that Wang Yuanguang was an opportunist, but today he still felt like his eyes had been opened.
However, he was too lazy to argue with the other party now, and waved his hand to indicate that the other party could leave: "I have my own plans, Prime Minister Wang, you don't need to worry."
Seeing that he wouldn't listen to reason or threats, Wang Yuanguang had no choice but to leave temporarily.
After everyone had left, Xue Shen stepped into the hall.
Emperor Cheng'an was arguing fiercely with Empress Zhou when he saw him suddenly enter. He subconsciously stopped talking, straightened his clothes which had been torn and messy by Empress Zhou, and tried his best to regain his dignity as an emperor in front of Xue Shen.
Empress Zhou, who was watching from the side, laughed and made no attempt to hide her sneer.
Emperor Cheng'an knew how pathetic he looked. His face flushed red, and ignoring Empress Zhou, he turned to Xue Shen with a stern expression and asked, "What are you doing here? Are you here to laugh at me?"
To everyone's surprise, Xue Shen nodded seriously and said with a smile, "When the ministers of the court heard that His Majesty had been kidnapped and injured, they all came to the palace to see him, so I brought them to visit His Majesty."
Emperor Cheng'an was momentarily stunned, craning his neck to look outside, and asked with a glimmer of hope, "Then why don't I see anyone?"
Xue Shen replied with a smile, "I didn't want to disturb His Majesty's rest, so I only let them look out from outside the door, and they have already left."
Emperor Cheng'an's face turned deathly pale instantly, and he finally realized what was happening.
He recalled the ugly scene of him and Empress Zhou cursing and fighting, and even his stomach cramped: "You did it on purpose!"
He deliberately brought those ministers over quietly, so that all the civil and military officials could see his disgraceful behavior and completely destroy his dignity as the emperor.
Xue Shen did not deny it: "Since Your Majesty dares to do it, why are you afraid of being found out?"
Emperor Cheng'an stared at him without saying a word. If looks could kill, he would probably have already tortured Xue Shen to death.
Xue Shen snorted and said, "Today, Xie Xiang told me that the case of His Majesty's murder of his brother and usurpation of the throne has been clarified and the truth will soon be revealed to the public."
Emperor Cheng'an was terrified, but he still forced himself to say, "So what if the whole world knows the truth? I am the emperor, who dares to interrogate me?!"
Xue Shen's eyes darkened: "You really won't shed a tear until you see the coffin."
Xue Shen summoned the imperial guards and ordered, "Change the Empress's room, and let His Majesty stay in this bedchamber alone."
Emperor Cheng'an was delighted upon hearing this, but he quickly realized that Xue Shen could not possibly be so kind; he probably wished to see him and the Empress kill each other.
But now he has moved Empress Zhou to another place...
Emperor Cheng'an pondered Xue Shen's purpose, but could not figure it out no matter what.
But after two meals went unpaid, he finally understood why Xue Shen had separated him from Empress Zhou—Xue Shen intended to starve him to death, or rather, Xue Shen wanted to use this method to force him to commit a crime.
Emperor Cheng'an enjoyed wealth and honor throughout his life, and never suffered from hunger or cold.
He originally intended to endure it with dignity, refusing to believe that Xue Shen would actually starve him to death. If Xue Shen really wanted to kill him, he would have done so long ago, not waited until now.
But reason is one thing, hunger is another.
After three days without anyone bringing him food, Emperor Cheng'an ate everything edible and drank everything edible in the palace, but his stomach was still growling and his throat was still parched with thirst.
To conserve his energy, he could only lie limply on the soft couch, motionless.
But the burning thirst still tormented him. His dull and listless gaze fell on the teapot on the ground, and he licked his lips.
These past few days, not only has no one brought him food, but the chamber pot in his house has also been moved away. As a last resort, he used an empty teapot to urinate the day before yesterday.
Emperor Cheng'an thought of the foul water in the teapot, but couldn't help licking his chapped lips.
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