Chapter 236 The tide has turned.
Emperor Muzong was stunned and looked at Pei Siyan with a panic.
Pei Siyan raised his eyes, a mocking smile playing on his lips, and met his gaze directly.
He suddenly recalled that snowy night when his mother, Wen Wan, committed suicide. Emperor Muzong rushed from Consort Tan's bedside, embracing her body with immense grief and despair.
But then he turned around and slapped him hard across the face, shouting angrily, "Useless thing! You couldn't even keep your mother, what use are you?"
Pei Siyan's face swelled up instantly, blood seeped from the corner of his lips, and he looked at him pitifully, innocently, and confusedly, enduring the pain.
But that terrifyingly large hand immediately grabbed his neck. "Why don't you die with her?"
Just before he suffocated, the emperor finally released his grip.
That night, he lost his mother, and he lost his father forever.
At dawn, the emperor returned with bloodshot eyes: "Your mother requested to be sent to the Cold Palace, yet she dared to commit suicide—how audacious, disloyal, and unfilial! She has truly failed the Emperor's grace! She is unworthy to be Empress. Since she has not left me any dignity, why should I care about her posthumous reputation?"
"I will imprison her soul in the mortal world, so that she may open her eyes and see clearly whether I am worthy to be the ruler of this Great Zhou!"
He calmly said, "My father is the Son of Heaven... why do I need to prove it to others?"
As expected, after hearing this, Emperor Muzong never mentioned his death again. Instead, he ordered him to move out of the Cold Palace.
He is not suitable to be Wen Wan's husband, much less the emperor of the Great Zhou!
Pei Siyan hated his own weakness. Even though he knew that his mother had been forced to her death by him, he dared not show any resentment towards him. He had no choice but to fawn over him and live a life of ignominy, just like everyone else.
He can finally stand here with dignity and judge him!
Like countless other people in the world, he despised this foolish and hypocritical emperor.
He was never worthy to be a ruler.
Emperor Muzong was incredulous, finally seeing clearly the undisguised and naked contempt and disgust in Pei Siyan's eyes; he wanted to ruin his life as an emperor.
He snapped back to his senses and shouted in panic, "You wicked child, do you still want to rebel? Guards! Guards! Protect me!"
The royal voices echoed throughout the hall, but not a single imperial guard dared to step forward.
The emperor's blood boiled, and he pointed at the man's nose, continuing to roar, "You traitor! You disloyal and unfilial wretch, just like your mother, utterly ungrateful! Guards, Shen Yanzhou, summon the Imperial City Guard!"
Shen Yanzhou knelt on the ground, his voice strained, "Your Majesty, the Imperial City Guards have been completely surrounded by the Imperial Army in the North Garden. Without the Crown Prince's decree, they are not allowed to enter or leave even a step..."
"Where is the Xishan Camp?"
"General Yunhui and his Xuanjia Army had already intercepted them in the camp..."
Emperor Muzong's face grew increasingly grim, and not a single official present spoke up in his defense. They had all recognized the situation and felt that Pei Siyan should be the next emperor.
The eldest princess, as if she had seen enough of the joke, burst into laughter. "Royal brother, have you really come to believe that you are a diligent and brilliant ruler, a wise and capable monarch? You are as timid as a mouse, yet you expect to raise a group of strong and fierce soldiers?"
"Wen Wan clearly pitied you back then, so how did you treat her?"
"Back then, Marquis Zhongxin lobbied powerful figures for you and helped you shoulder so many burdens. After his death, you want to take back his title and bully his descendants like this. Doesn't your conscience hurt?"
"That's ridiculous! A heartless and ungrateful person like you deserves to be abandoned by everyone!"
"Kangping, shut your mouth! Do you think you can protect Fu'an by throwing all the mud at me?"
Emperor Muzong understood his situation, but he still hoped that someone would stand up and refute Pei Siyan.
He served for over twenty years, and his merits outweighed his demerits. We cannot erase all his achievements just because Pei Siyan's rebellion succeeded.
Pei Siyan calmly looked at the officials and asked, "Does anyone know what the Princess said?"
By this point in the grand drama, the court officials had come to understand the Crown Prince's intentions: he simply wanted the officials to accuse Emperor Muzong of his crimes.
But no one dared to be the first to speak out.
At this moment, Censor-in-Chief Lin stepped forward and said, "His Majesty is fond of carpentry, obsessed with Taoist practices, and also addicted to accumulating wealth."
"He never cares about the suffering of the common people, nor does he care about the court. Corruption is rampant in the Jianghuai officialdom. The Tianning City granary is empty, and a large number of officials are involved but remain unscathed, all because His Majesty turns a blind eye. To indulge them in harming the common people is truly disheartening!"
Upon hearing this, many court officials turned green. The salt inspector of Jianghuai was personally dispatched by the Crown Prince, who uncovered a great deal of evidence, but the matter was ultimately dropped.
Is Imperial Censor Lin trying to purge the entire court by bringing up this matter at this time?
Emperor Muzong's veins bulged on the back of his hand, his chest heaving with anger. "Imperial Censor Lin, I have always treated you well, yet you dare to spout nonsense and accuse me?"
Imperial Censor Lin remained unmoved. "Your humble servant dares not. I sent a copy of this evidence to the Ministry of Justice when I submitted my memorial. I believe Lord Shen can attest to the truth of my words."
The Minister of Rites bowed and said, “The national treasury is empty. His Majesty does not want to go to war with the Northern Barbarians. Even if the Great Zhou wins the battle, His Majesty still fantasizes about negotiating peace with the Northern Barbarians and paying them reparations. In history, there is no precedent for this. It is an utter disgrace!”
Upon hearing this, the court officials were extremely shocked, but even more so, disappointed.
When the Northern Barbarian envoys came to Tianning City for peace talks last time, they felt that the Ministry of Rites was too obsequious to the Northern Barbarians. They had heard some rumors, but since nothing was carried out, they thought it was just hearsay.
Fortunately, the Northern Di envoy offended the Crown Princess at the banquet. If the Crown Prince had not intervened forcefully, they might have signed those humiliating terms.
"This plague has struck fiercely, and His Majesty has shown no regard for the lives of the people. Those medicinal herbs were prepared by the Imperial Hospital on the orders of His Highness the Crown Prince two months ago, and the Crown Prince himself provided the funds..."
Emperor Muzong narrowed his eyes, "Pei Siyan, you ungrateful wretch, I truly regret it!"
"When Wen Wan died, I shouldn't have been soft-hearted. I should have strangled you... I shouldn't have kept this wicked child. The child she raised is here to avenge her!"
These words caused an uproar among the officials.
At that time, the emperor almost strangled the crown prince?
Empress Wen's death was indeed related to the emperor, and the more these secrets were uncovered, the more shocking scandals they might reveal.
Pei Siyan gave him a deep look, his smile chilling. "Back then, before the Empress Dowager committed suicide, you summoned her to the Funing Palace. You forced her to die!"
Emperor Muzong suspected that he was a descendant of the virtuous prince and asked Wenwan to prove her innocence.
That day, he happened to be hiding in the Funing Palace, and he heard their argument clearly... but he never expected that his mother would actually choose a dead end.
The emperor's crimes were too numerous to list, and he wanted him to be infamous for eternity!
Emperor Muzong's face turned pale and then red, his anger barely contained. "No, I didn't! I've always loved her! It's her own fault for not appreciating her blessings..."
Suddenly, Eunuch Feng knelt down, his voice choked with emotion, "This old servant is guilty. I was present at the time of Empress Wen's affair..."
The officials below him looked at him with increasingly complex and contemptuous eyes, and various whispers arose.
"...With such character, how can he be worthy of being the emperor?"
"This edict of self-reproach is indeed necessary."
"It's time to abdicate."
At this moment, Emperor Muzong fully understood that he had become Pei Siyan's stepping stone, that all the officials had abandoned him, and that they had made their choice.
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