Jiang Bo pursed his lips nervously, his hand holding the sword trembling uncontrollably.
Having lived in Beijing for a long time, he had never seen such a bloody scene, let alone the pistol Chen Zhennan used. He felt as if his whole world had collapsed.
His eyes were filled with fear and endless confusion, like a believer who had been stripped of his faith and was at a loss.
Seeing this, Xiang Hao frowned slightly, his eyes filled with worry.
Having witnessed the methods of Chen Zhennan's special forces team at the palace gate, I felt somewhat intimidated.
But he knew that now was not the time to back down; if he did, he would only face certain death.
Gritting his teeth, Xiang Hao said in a deep voice, "Your Highness, don't be afraid. We still have tens of thousands of Imperial Guards. Chen Zhennan and his men are nothing but turtles in a jar. There are only three of them. No matter how powerful they are, it's useless!"
Hearing this, Jiang Bo felt a little more at ease and forced out a smug smile.
"That's right, Chen Zhennan, you're dead! There are still tens of thousands of my Imperial Guards outside. Your special forces have probably been wiped out. Lay down your weapons and surrender, or you'll be torn apart by five horses!"
Jiang Bo's voice echoed in the hall, and his expression gradually became arrogant.
Chen Zhennan turned around and sat back down on the dragon throne, pointing in the direction of the palace gate with a calm expression.
"Jiang Bo, listen, it seems very quiet outside."
Jiang Bo thought back for a moment and realized there was indeed no sound of fighting outside. He shook his head, somewhat puzzled, but still looked confident.
"So what if there's no sound? Do you think two hundred men can defeat my tens of thousands of Imperial Guards? Chen Zhennan, your special forces team is completely surrounded by my men. You have nowhere to run!"
Chen Zhennan couldn't help but chuckle upon hearing this. "Back then, I scattered the 300,000-strong army of the Great Zhou with only 300 men. What can your 10,000 Imperial Guards do? Besides, there was no sound outside. How did you know my special forces were wiped out? Jiang Bo, you're too naive."
Chen Zhennan's face was full of mockery and disdain, but his eyes were full of confidence.
Just as Chen Zhennan finished speaking, the gate of Yanming Palace was slowly pushed open, and outside the gate stood a dense array of imperial guards.
Upon seeing this, Jiang Bo burst into laughter and turned to ask Chen Zhennan.
"What do you have to say now? My Imperial Guards are all here, you're cornered! Chen Zhennan, look carefully, today is your end!"
"Oh? Is that so?" Chen Zhennan's voice was calm, but every word carried an undeniable confidence.
At this moment, the Imperial Guards outside the door suddenly parted to make way, and Chen Zhennan's special forces team stood outside unharmed.
Their figures appeared exceptionally resolute and courageous under the sunlight.
Jiang Bo turned his head and was filled with curiosity and shock. He didn't understand why the Imperial Guards hadn't killed Chen Zhennan's men.
"What's going on? Wang Xiao, why didn't you wipe them out?"
Outside the gate, a general stood before the Imperial Guards. He was none other than General Wang Xiao of the Imperial Guards, his face full of sneers, standing motionless in place.
Chen Zhennan curled the corners of his mouth and slowly said, "Before I was framed by Wu Yunyin, all the surrounding countries had been infiltrated, including the Imperial Guard of Da Yan. Jiang Bo, do you think this Beirong City is your territory? You are nothing more than a pawn on the chessboard."
Jiang Bo refused to believe Chen Zhennan's words and gritted his teeth as he looked at Wang Xiao.
"Wang Xiao, kill them! Wipe out Chen Zhennan's special forces!"
Jiang Bo seemed to have gone mad, but Wang Xiao stood there with a cold smile, as if she hadn't heard him.
"I've heard enough of what you have to say."
Wang Xiao's voice was icy, and his eyes were devoid of any warmth, directly crushing Jiang Bo's last glimmer of hope into hell.
Seeing this, even if Jiang Bo couldn't believe it, he had to admit that he had failed.
His face turned pale instantly, his body trembled slightly, and he was overwhelmed by despair.
"This is impossible...this is impossible!"
Jiang Bo roared in frustration, but in Chen Zhennan's eyes he was nothing more than a clown, desperately crying out in his struggle.
Chen Zhennan sat firmly on the dragon throne, his eyes sweeping across the entire court, and he couldn't help but shake his head.
"If I hadn't made arrangements beforehand, the entire court would have been in chaos long ago after Jiang Wenyu's death. Did you think I could have escaped disaster by not coming? Let me tell you, in my eyes, Chen Zhennan, there is only one kind of person who can survive in the court!"
As he spoke, Chen Zhennan suddenly stood up and pointed to the group of officials below.
"Those who care about the people will be rewarded with high positions and generous salaries; those who embezzle, accept bribes, and exploit the people for their own selfish gain will be executed without mercy!"
The officials in the court looked at each other, and all began to feel uneasy.
They had long known that Chen Zhennan was a benevolent ruler who cared deeply for the people, and that the officials in the capital had already been purged in Dawu.
Seeing everyone bowing their heads in silence, Chen Zhennan slowly walked down the steps.
"I'll have Shiyu tell you what to do later. My word is law. As long as you follow orders, you'll be fine."
Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials knelt down and shouted, "We humbly obey Your Majesty's command!"
However, there were still two people in Yanming Hall who did not kneel down: Xiang Hao and Jiang Bo.
The two men knew very well that even if they knelt down and begged for mercy now, Chen Zhennan would never let them live; their fate was sealed.
Chen Zhennan walked up to Jiang Bo and looked him up and down.
“Jiang Bo, if I’m not mistaken, you definitely know Fang Qian’s plan, and you are the one who most wants Fang Qian dead, and Xiang Hao is your accomplice.”
Upon hearing Chen Zhennan's words, Jiang Bo was startled and stared at Chen Zhennan with wide eyes in surprise.
"You...how could you know? Could it be that I have a spy among my people?"
Xiang Hao's expression was almost identical to Jiang Bo's; he was equally shocked, never expecting that Chen Zhennan would be right about his and Jiang Bo's plan.
Chen Zhennan shook his head slightly, denying Jiang Bo's guess.
"None of you have any of my undercover agents around you. I don't take you seriously at all; it's just a guess."
Chen Zhennan's words once again made Jiang Bo feel extremely ashamed. He never expected that Chen Zhennan would disregard him so much.
"Your attack on me must have been an impulsive act. All your intelligence and information must have been given to you by someone else. Let me think, it must have been Xiang Hao who told you, right?"
Jiang Bo nodded slightly, then couldn't help but ask, "That's right, but what exactly do you mean? Kill me or do whatever you want, but don't insult me with your words."
Chen Zhennan shook his head again: "No, no, no, I didn't mean that. And even if you wanted to kill me today, I wouldn't kill you. I just want to know who's playing chess."
Upon hearing that Chen Zhennan wouldn't kill him, Jiang Bo breathed a sigh of relief, but Xiang Hao became nervous because of Chen Zhennan's words.
Turning around, Chen Zhennan looked at Xiang Hao.
"Minister Xiang, am I right? Someone is playing chess, and I've become a chess piece, haven't I?"
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