Du Juan, though exposed, calmly explained, "Empress Dowager, when did you realize it? After all, the Imperial Advisor has been kind to me, and the death of the former emperor also had a significant impact on him."
The Empress Dowager pressed her head, wanting to bury herself in these past events that felt like a quagmire.
Just as Dujuan was about to speak, a surge of spiritual energy struck her vital point directly, causing her to collapse to the ground.
At the last moment, Du Juan said, "I will become an imperial concubine sooner or later, and I will never have to serve others with a humble attitude again..."
The Empress Dowager continued drinking her tea. "I think you and the Imperial Advisor have gone mad. Have I ever mistreated you? The tuberculosis you contracted last time was your doing. How could I, an Empress Dowager, who lives a life of luxury and rarely leaves the palace, possibly have tuberculosis?"
The fighting was still raging outside, with flames filling the sky. The Northern Wei Kingdom had not seen such flames in a long time. At this moment, Wu Hao rode his elite troops to chase after the emperor. Two hours later, Wu Hao finally captured the emperor. Without saying a word, Wu Hao was about to take his sword and cut him down when the emperor suddenly shouted.
"Wu Hao, you can't kill me. I have to tell you a secret. You can't kill me. The Imperial Advisor has set up a giant formation in the capital city. The time is almost up. As soon as I die, the formation will be activated. Everyone in the capital will be swallowed up by the giant formation. I know how to break it."
The emperor's words shocked Wu Hao. He stopped abruptly, his sword already poised to strike. "How could this be? How could you do such a thing? These are the people of the capital!"
Seeing Wu Hao's shocked expression, he felt a sense of relief. "That's right. In my eyes, the whole world belongs to me. What does sacrificing a few citizens matter? The Grand Preceptor has already sworn that as long as the former emperor's body is resurrected, this empire will be mine sooner or later."
Wu Hao was furious that such a deal could exist. These people were utterly heartless, daring to treat their own subjects like this.
The man sitting on the ground first gloated, but then looked at Wu Hao and became increasingly dejected. "Hahahaha, I've failed. Everything has failed. My empire is gone."
"Grand Preceptor, you're lying to me, aren't you?" With that, the Third Prince, with strength that seemed to come from nowhere, stood up and rammed into Wu Hao's sword. "As you wish, let the entire imperial city be buried with me! They're all lowly commoners, and lowly commoners deserve to die."
After saying that, he collapsed to the ground. The guards beside him watched but did not help him up. They all hurriedly fled outside. At this moment, the formation was activated, and the entire imperial city turned into a city filled with red blood mist. Wails and cries of pain could be heard. Drops of blood seeped from people's bodies and eventually evaporated into the air.
A massive crimson array appeared, coalescing in the sky. The Imperial Advisor, still standing atop the watchtower in the distance, couldn't help but feel gratified upon seeing this scene. "Ah, it's finally going to be completed."
In an instant, the entire imperial city turned into a blood-soaked city. Wu Hao's body was also constantly being soaked in blood. All the soldiers fell, and he had no choice but to fall as well. With a last breath, Wu Hao shouted, "Xin Yue, Xiao Xiao, run..."
Wu Hao collapsed completely. Inside the palace, the Empress Dowager sat in a chair, her body also beginning to be soaked in blood mist. The previously chaotic scene outside was now completely silent.
Time passed second by second, and after a whole night, Tuoba Rong's physical body was formed, and his soul was gradually returning to its place.
The Imperial Advisor descended from the watchtower and walked through the air towards Tuoba Rong's location, below which lay a royal city stained with blood.
He approached Tuoba Rong step by step, and seeing that his physical body had been formed and his soul had returned to its place, and that he was now fully conscious, he carried Tuoba Rong away.
This terrifying event reached outside the capital, and the people of the capital were saved because Wu Hao ordered them to leave the imperial city.
"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The Lin State Duke's Mansion, as the Third Prince's secret faction, has disrupted the proper order and its crimes are unforgivable. However, given His Majesty's early reign, a general amnesty is granted, pardoning its death sentence. Nevertheless, punishment is still imposed: three generations of its descendants are barred from holding official positions in the court, and all its property is confiscated as punishment. So be it!"
"Your Excellency, please accept the decree." The chief eunuch Chang Dehai smiled and held up the imperial edict, looking at the wailing crowd below without any reaction. He reminded the handsome man who was over forty years old, "Duke Lin, at least your life has been saved. Why don't you quickly accept the decree?"
Lin Chutian's mind went blank with a "boom." All his scheming and planning had come to nothing, and he had ended up like this. The huge family business he had painstakingly built had vanished in an instant. He was gone and forgotten. How tragic.
The vast courtyard of the Duke of Lin's mansion was filled with chests of gold, silver, jewels, and rare treasures. After the confiscation, the courtyard was doused with tung oil, and a raging fire reduced the once prosperous scene to ashes. The once magnificent mansion never existed again.
He was in a daze, jostled around by the rushing crowds. By dusk, the city gates were locked, and in the vast city of Chang'an, there was nowhere left for him to stay.
In the dimly lit, dilapidated temple, Lin Chutian lit a pile of firewood. He was already starving, but he just stared at the pile of firewood that was about to burn out, his face ashen. Suddenly, he went berserk and kicked the pile of firewood violently, sending up many sparks and blackening the hem of his gorgeous clothes.
He gritted his teeth, feeling quite resentful. He had been poor since childhood and had done many unscrupulous things for fame, fortune and power, finally reaching the highest position in the government. Unlike those young masters from noble families, he never had to fight for anything and only needed to inherit the family business. He was born into a poor family with nothing. He only got what he wanted through his own means. What did he do wrong?
Just as he was filled with grief and indignation, the door of the dilapidated temple was pushed open slightly, and the bright moonlight illuminated the scene inside. The Bodhisattva enshrined in the temple hall smiled kindly.
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
