Yue Yufeng sat on the dragon throne, looking down at the kneeling ministers below.
Although he already knew who Yue Zhixiao's confidants were when he went to court every day, there were still quite a few of them when he put them all together now.
"When you entered the court, you claimed to be wholeheartedly devoted to the people, but now you want my life! You are quite something!"
All the ministers trembled uncontrollably. Several of them went blank, turned pale, and fainted after being yelled at by Yue Yufeng.
The two leaders, Prime Minister Chen and Liu Youlin, wiped their sweat with their sleeves, swallowed hard, and dared not make any move, for fear that if they did, they would be made an example of.
"Prime Minister Chen, please tell us first, how long have you been planning this treason, and when did you begin?"
Yue Yufeng and his team were well aware of how long the plan would last and when it would begin, because Yue Xiyuan had already thoroughly investigated the matter.
Only Yue Zhixiao was kept in the dark, still believing that she had a chance to rise to the top.
When Prime Minister Chen heard his name called, his eyes widened instantly, and he was stunned, completely losing the ability to think.
"Hmm? Prime Minister Chen hasn't even successfully usurped the throne yet, and he already doesn't take me seriously?"
Prime Minister Chen immediately knelt down and crawled forward, trembling as he said, "Your Majesty, I dare not. I simply do not know how to answer you."
"Oh? What do you mean by that?"
"Because I don't know when Prince Xiao and Consort Chen were planning the rebellion. I was involved because Consort Chen said that even if I hadn't participated, I would still be guilty. Consort Chen wanted to drag me down with her. From beginning to end, I knew nothing."
Prime Minister Chen naturally knew that he could not escape death, but if he placed all the blame on Consort Chen and Yue Zhixiao, the Emperor might spare his family because of his long service in two dynasties.
This can be considered as leaving a lineage for the Chen family, so that they can face their ancestors in the future.
Yue Yufeng snorted and slammed his hand on the dragon throne. "You still dare to say you know nothing?"
Yue Yufeng threw all the memorials in Wang Gonggong's hands onto the ground.
"Take a good look at what you have done all these years, right under my nose and the noses of my millions of subjects!"
The ministers, led by Chancellor Chen and Liu Youlin, were reviewing the memorials. Some contained evidence of their own crimes, while others contained evidence of others' crimes.
Because Prime Minister Chen and Liu Youlin had a lot of memorials to submit, they could easily pick up any one of them as evidence of their crimes.
After reviewing them one by one, from brothels and theaters to plots of rebellion and usurpation, everything was listed clearly.
Many people fainted before they even finished watching it.
They're finished, they're finished...
Prime Minister Chen slumped to the ground. For a moment, he truly hoped that the Emperor would believe his story and spare his entire family.
But fate had other plans...
"Now that the evidence is conclusive, take them all away!"
I really don't want to see them for even a second longer. They're always nagging and complaining. When something happens, they're cowards, and when there's nothing to do, they're always arguing.
Yue Yufeng looked at Yue Zhixiao on the ground. He had already given him too many chances because they were brothers.
"From this day forward, there will be no more Consort Chen or Prince Xiao in the Moon Kingdom. Take them away."
Yue Zhixiao was dragged away by the guards, struggling all the way, "Yue Yufeng, you can't do this to me, you can't kill me! You can't kill me!"
When Consort Chen saw her son being dragged away, she panicked.
"Yue Yufeng, you can't kill Xiao'er."
Consort Chen took out a piece of fine silk brocade from her sleeve, which was decorated with auspicious clouds and cranes.
"Upon seeing the late emperor's edict, you all should kneel down immediately."
Yue Xiyuan gave An Si a look, and An Si was about to step forward to take the imperial edict from Consort Chen's hand.
"This is the late emperor's edict! How dare you, a mere servant, steal it? Get out of here!"
Consort Chen was powerless, so the imperial edict naturally fell into the hands of An Si.
An Si examined it repeatedly. The edict had flying silver dragons at both ends, and was made of fine silk brocade, with auspicious cloud patterns printed on the silk fabric.
"Your Highness, it's real. The handwriting is flawless, and it has the imperial seal. It's genuine."
"Hahaha, take it all you want. I've memorized the contents of this edict. With these ministers as witnesses, I'm not afraid you won't believe it!"
Consort Chen's gaze was no longer as lost as before; it suddenly brightened, though her voice was still trembling.
Yue Zhixiao, who was about to be dragged out, was also stunned. He didn't know when his mother had received this edict, or even when his father had given it to him.
"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Today, Chen Jingshu saved my life. If in the future Chen Jingshu and the Third Prince Yue Zhixiao commit any wrongdoing, they shall be spared death but imprisoned in the Prince Xiao's residence, and shall not be allowed to leave."
Fearing that Yue Xiyuan would snatch the imperial edict and invalidate it, Consort Chen recited its contents from memory.
Now it was Yue Zhixiao's turn to be stunned. He never expected that his mother had such a backup plan. It turned out that the reason his mother told him that she would protect him was because of this imperial edict.
His mother was no ordinary person; with this imperial edict, they would no longer have to die.
But it was a tragedy for the ministers who rebelled with them. They had agreed to rebel together, and Yue Zhixiao and Consort Chen were able to remain unscathed, while the ministers would never see the sun again.
They're all terrible teammates!
Yue Xiyuan handed the edict to Yue Yufeng, who, after reading it, confirmed that it was indeed an edict left by the late emperor.
Yue Yufeng pointed the imperial edict at Consort Chen and asked, "When was this edict issued?"
Consort Chen did not hide anything and told her everything.
“That wretch, your father, was assassinated by an assassin. I saved him. In order not to owe your mother, he actually said he would grant me a request. He would do anything, except for his heart.”
Consort Chen seemed to have gone mad at this moment. "Hehe, heart? What use is a heart? In this harem where people are devoured without spitting out the bones, the heart is the most useless thing. If you want to survive in this harem, only a death-exempt token is useful, so I asked him for this imperial edict."
Actually, Consort Chen had other reasons for wanting this imperial edict, but she never expected that it would be used until the late emperor passed away. Now, however, it has come in handy.
"That's true. It was a hunting competition held every four years, with envoys from various countries participating. Several assassins infiltrated the hunting grounds, and she took an arrow for my father."
Yue Yufeng nodded. He still remembered this matter. It was the first major task his father had given him: to find out the origins of the assassin.
But the assassins seemed to appear out of thin air, and nothing could be found out. Although his father did not blame him, it was always a small knot in his heart.
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