Chapter 315 The country is broken
After several days of clear skies, the weather suddenly turned gloomy today.
A cold wind swept through the corridor, lifting the beaded curtain in front of the Hall of Diligent Governance, creating a series of tinkling sounds.
These beaded curtains are made of expensive natural sea pearls, lapis lazuli, agate and other materials. Every time the wind blows, the emperor would close his eyes in ecstasy at the sound of the magnificent curtains.
To him, this was a luxurious and exquisite melody that only a king was worthy to hear.
But today was just too irritating, and as soon as the sound rang out, the emperor frowned impatiently.
"Eunuch Chu, remove all these disturbing things from my peace and quiet. Remove them all."
"Yes." Eunuch Chu responded and immediately summoned two eunuchs, who stepped onto stools and removed the exquisite and translucent beaded curtains one by one.
Perhaps it was because the Emperor was behind them and his gaze was too sharp, but the little eunuch standing on the bench swayed and fell to the ground, pulling at the beaded curtain, causing a series of crisp, tinkling sounds.
The bronze crane incense burner in the corner of the beaded curtain was also trampled over by the little eunuch's foot, and cold ashes spilled all over the ground. The last wisp of smoke slowly dissipated in the little eunuch's frightened eyes.
Ignoring his injured leg, he quickly straightened the incense burner, scooped up the ashes from the ground with both hands and put them into the burner, not forgetting to kowtow in the direction of the emperor.
"Your Majesty, spare my life! Your Majesty, spare my life!"
Not only him, but also the other eunuch working with him, including Eunuch Chu, turned pale instantly.
They all knelt down, begging the emperor for forgiveness.
Since the Northern King stormed into the capital and surrounded the palace, the Emperor's temperament has become increasingly eccentric and violent, and he makes no attempt to conceal it. If any eunuch or palace maid does something that displeases him, he will order them to be beaten to death.
Three people have been killed in one day.
Moreover, with the imperial city surrounded, the corpses could not be thrown out, and in the end, they were all burned in front of everyone.
Within the imperial city, especially near the Hall of Diligent Governance, the atmosphere was particularly heavy, with the servants all feeling insecure and extremely cautious.
Even if they hadn't done anything wrong, they could be executed at will if the emperor was displeased. Now that the little eunuch had knocked over the emperor's most treasured bronze crane incense burner, they could imagine how angry the emperor would be. They were immediately terrified and completely lost their composure.
Those who served in the Hall of Diligent Governance all knew that the blue smoke from the bronze crane incense burner had never stopped since the emperor ascended the throne, and they all secretly called this smoke "dragon smoke".
If the smoke of war ceases, the nation will fall.
Just thinking about the implication is enough to make him die ten times over.
Even the usually composed Eunuch Chu panicked. Seeing the Emperor approach with a stern face, he hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, this servant will immediately order someone to refill the incense burner. If it burns within half an incense stick's time, there will be no problem. Your Majesty will surely live a long and prosperous life!"
The emperor's face was as cold as ice, his eyes never leaving the incense burner on the ground.
The two eunuchs were trembling and unable to work, so Eunuch Chu quickly summoned an older and more composed palace maid. When the maid saw this scene, she was also terrified and her face changed drastically. She mustered her courage and found some incense, but she couldn't light it no matter what she did.
The Emperor's expression grew increasingly grim, and his last bit of patience ran out. He looked at Eunuch Chu and coldly gave the order.
“Clumsy and incompetent, none of them can get anything done. Take these three idiots away and beat them to death.”
The two eunuchs and the palace maid were trembling like leaves, constantly begging for mercy.
The Emperor's eyes grew increasingly cold and cruel. Eunuch Chu wanted to speak up to advise him, but he was intimidated by the coldness in the Emperor's eyes and could only lower his head and agree.
Seeing the guards approaching with knives drawn, the two eunuchs and the palace maid knew that they had no chance of survival today.
Perhaps knowing that the capital was besieged and the emperor could not retaliate against their families, or perhaps because three people were punished and they shared hardships together, they had the courage to fight to the death.
After exchanging glances, the three people, driven to desperation, fought back. They had no weapons, so one grabbed an incense burner on the ground, while the other two grabbed a handful of incense ash and threw it at the emperor.
The change happened too fast. Although everyone else reacted quickly, the guards rushed over immediately, Eunuch Chu shielded the Emperor with his body, and the secret guards also subdued the three in time.
However, the incense ash still splashed onto the emperor's face. The incense burner was originally aimed at the emperor's forehead, but Eunuch Chu blocked this fatal blow. Eunuch Chu took two steps back and fell to the ground, half of his face covered in blood.
The eunuch who smashed the incense burner, determined to die with the emperor, used all his strength. The eunuch was hit in a vital spot and was barely breathing.
The Emperor brushed the incense ash from his face, struggled to open his eyes, and seeing this scene, rushed over to help Eunuch Chu up, crying out in grief, "Chu Mu, I will not allow you to die! My empire still stands, and my dynasty will never be able to survive without you!"
With trembling hands, Eunuch Chu pointed to the two eunuchs and palace maids who had been captured by the secret guards.
The Emperor said hatefully, "Don't worry, if I don't beat these three good-for-nothings to death, I will tear them to pieces and exterminate their entire families!"
"No..." Eunuch Chu shook his head with difficulty, "Your Majesty, this old servant can no longer serve you. I have no regrets in this life, having risked my old life to protect you one last time... Please listen to this old servant's words, please do not kill anyone again, otherwise, if people's hearts are thrown into chaos, they will surely suffer... surely suffer the consequences..."
Eunuch Chu actually knew the Emperor's thoughts.
Ever since the Celestial Master revealed the signs of divine punishment, suspicion has been rampant in the palace. The Emperor is in a state of panic and can only mask his unease by indulging in tyrannical killings and satisfying his desire for control. But the more he does this, the more panic there is in the palace. If this continues, before the King of the Northern Frontier even enters the palace, chaos will break out and people will startle each other.
The emperor's defeat was inevitable; it was actually fortunate that he was able to get ahead of the emperor.
Having served as a servant, this was his final piece of advice to the Emperor. Whether the Emperor listened or not was neither his concern nor his concern.
After saying the last sentence, Chu Mu loosened his grip on the Emperor's hand, which then drooped down abruptly.
With the death of Eunuch Chu, the Emperor appeared even more dejected.
The dying words of Eunuch Chu also put him in a dilemma.
After a long while, the Emperor finally released Eunuch Chu.
"Preserve Eunuch Chu's body well. When the King of Northern Frontier retreats from the city, I will give him a grand funeral."
"As for these three, since Eunuch Chu's dying wish today was for me not to kill anyone, then take them away and give them a good beating, but don't kill them. Leave them with a breath of life, and I'll have time to slowly torment them..."
Eunuch Chu only knew one side of the story, not the other.
The current situation is very unfavorable to him. There are many people in the palace who want to defect to the King of the Northern Frontier. If he doesn't have ruthless methods, he won't be able to suppress them at all.
Since his reputation is already ruined, and the detention of civil and military officials is a fact, no matter how much he tries to appear benevolent and loving towards the people, no one will believe him. It's better to show his true colors and instill fear in those with ulterior motives, deterring them from acting rashly.
The bronze crane incense burner was located not far from the emperor.
The incense burner was stained with Eunuch Chu's blood. The emperor knelt down and used his dragon robe to wipe the blood clean little by little.
Then, the incense burner was set up, the incense that the palace maid had placed aside was picked up, and a piece of the torn dragon robe was used to light it, and wisps of green smoke swirled upwards.
The emperor looked at the green smoke with an extremely cold smile.
"Whether the country falls or not is up to me."
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