bullyxtreme Chapter 362 Killing the chicken to scare the monkey
Chapter 362 Killing the chicken to scare the monkey
Countless gazes fell upon Zheng Xun like snowflakes.
It was very light, but its coolness felt like needle pricks.
Zheng Xun kept his head down, his eyelids not even twitching.
It wasn't that she didn't hear the person's accusation, but rather that the matter concerned the system, and even if she heard, saw, and knew, she could only pretend to be deaf, blind, or stupid.
At this moment, her fate seemed to hang in the balance with the emperor's every move.
But she wasn't actually that scared; in fact, she was so calm that she almost wanted to laugh.
Her powers have recovered to almost full strength. To kill her, at least a dozen grandmasters would need to sacrifice their lives.
Before these experts arrive, she can immediately take the emperor's head.
Of course, this is only the most pessimistic outcome; things are far from that bad.
The ministers below bowed their heads lower than the next, wishing they could sprout roots and burrow into the ground.
To be honest, it's not that no one has had this suspicion.
After all, while the system and His Highness's wishes may not always meet their expectations, they can always solve the problems they want to solve.
But this is the first time someone has openly raised doubts.
If His Highness knew, those who had been cursed in his heart or whose secrets had been exposed would definitely feel resentful.
Even the truths she once revealed to herself would become tainted with deliberate artifice and falsehood.
Everyone had different thoughts, but at this moment, they were more concerned about the emperor's thoughts.
If the emperor is displeased, they will settle scores even if they shouldn't; if the emperor doesn't mind, they can pretend to be oblivious.
The emperor, resting his chin on his hand, looked down at the nervously clenching official below: "I remember, your surname is Hu?"
"Your humble servant is speaking nonsense!"
"The person who named you was quite prescient," the emperor pondered for a moment, then asked hesitantly, "Do you think the rumors are true or false?"
Hu Yan swallowed a mouthful of saliva: "Your Majesty, I believe that rumors may have some basis in fact."
"Bullshit! Bullshit!"
Before the emperor could speak, the sixth prince jumped out.
With his frail body and the speed of a rabbit, he rushed to Hu Yan, jumped up, and slapped him hard across the face.
Hu Yan was stunned by the slap. He took a few steps back and stammered, "Sixth Prince! This is Fengqin Hall! You are showing far too little respect for the Emperor!"
His provocation was not clever, nor could it frighten the Sixth Prince.
"Whether it's that I, the prince, don't take you seriously, or that you have ulterior motives, you know the answer yourself."
The sixth prince wanted to make a move, but was stopped by the second prince who rushed over.
"Xiao Liu, don't be impulsive."
"Does Second Brother agree with him?"
"No. You're not feeling well and don't have much strength. Let me do it."
After the second prince finished speaking, he kicked Hu Yan.
He was also a martial artist, and this kick made Hu Yan spit out a mouthful of blood.
The eunuch behind Li Xiaojun was very perceptive and quickly took out a handkerchief to silently clean up the bloodstains on the ground.
Hu Yan knew that there was only one person here who could save him.
His hopeful gaze shifted to the emperor.
"Minister Hu is rambling incoherently and talking nonsense; he's probably gone mad," the emperor said, then, as if losing interest, waved his hand. "Li Zhuo."
"Chen is here!"
“He spoke nonsense, defied his superiors, disrespected the emperor’s authority, and framed others for crimes… He was to be flogged seventy times.”
seventy……
This is practically a death wish for talking nonsense!
Hu Yan felt a sharp pain in his chest from the kick, which made him dizzy.
If he still didn't understand the emperor's attitude at this point, he would be a fool.
He quickly corrected himself: "Your Majesty! I was wrong, I was wrong! What I just said was nonsense, yes, yes! I was confused! Your Majesty, please spare me..."
He knelt on the ground, banging his head against the ground again and again.
The emperor watched coldly as he finished explaining the first half of his sentence, and then gave Li Zhuo a wink as he began to beg for mercy.
Li Zhuo felt a chill run down his spine and quickly walked up to Hu Yan, dislocating his jaw.
He was babbling incoherently, trying to express something, but he couldn't make out a single word.
Li Zhuo intended to drag him away, but the emperor raised his hand to stop him: "Execute him here."
Li Zhuo lowered his head and respectfully agreed.
Soon, he led a few people into the Fengqin Hall, set up a wooden plank, and dragged Hu Yan up there.
Hu Yan struggled desperately, but he was no match for the strength of the Azure Dragon Guards.
He could only lie there, staring at the floor of Fengqin Hall, feeling the pain coming from his lower back.
With the emperor's attitude clear, the Azure Dragon Guards dared not hold back at all.
After a few blows, the dull thud of the stick hitting flesh mingled with a crisp snapping sound.
Hu Yan fainted from the pain.
The emperor said in a deep voice, "Wake him up and continue."
The executioner paused, and Li Zhuo stepped forward and pressed an acupoint on Hu Yan's body.
And so, Hu Yan fainted and was woken up again, until her lumbar spine was completely broken, leaving her a bloody mess...
His piercing screams echoed through the Fengqin Hall, inexplicably reminding one of the crows in a mass grave.
Qin Yue was somewhat dazed.
How long has it been since he's seen an emperor like this?
Although the emperor was not a very good-natured person, he was by no means cruel. His desire to be a wise ruler overshadowed the violentness in his temper, which made him usually show a kind side.
However, he did not forget the emperor's iron-fisted methods, nor did many others in the court.
This is why, despite their usual bickering and commotion, everyone always obeys the emperor's every word.
Hu Yan died, but the beating did not end.
The Qinglong Guards carrying out the executions did not dare to be perfunctory; they delivered the seventy strokes of the cane solidly, and the force of the recoil from the cane made their arms numb.
Hu Yan was no longer human; he was carried out, but the pieces of flesh and blood on the ground were swept away.
The Fengqin Hall fell silent again, the faint smell of blood lingering in the air.
The eldest prince sighed, looked away, and didn't look at the bloodstains on the ground.
Tao Heng lowered his head and looked meek, but a cold smile appeared on his lips.
Hu Yan doesn't understand. In the Emperor's eyes, nothing is more important than the Great Yong. Your Highness can make the Great Yong better, and for that reason alone, the Emperor's heart will always lean towards Your Highness.
Moreover, Your Highness's unfathomable abilities are genuine, as is the father-daughter relationship between the Emperor and Your Highness. The Emperor certainly does not wish to pursue the matter against Your Highness.
The Eighth Prince's eyes widened in astonishment: If the Crown Princess knew everything all along, then she is too clever!
Cen Wan's gaze swept over her colleagues, as if trying to remember who had ever considered climbing over the Crown Princess to get ahead.
The Emperor looked at the various expressions on the faces below: "You all have eyes; you should be able to see the changes in the Great Yong Dynasty. And you, my dear ministers, surely know who these changes are from. In life, the worst thing is to be ungrateful..."
Who doesn't understand the emperor's attitude now?
His harshness towards the Crown Princess was merely an attempt to provoke Hu Yan into saying things detrimental to her, and then... to make an example of her.
The emperor glanced at Zheng Xun and said calmly, "From now on, anyone who makes any remarks that are detrimental to the Crown Princess will be executed without mercy once the allegations are verified."
With such a vivid example right in front of them, what could the ministers say?
They didn't want to follow in Hu Yan's footsteps, so all they could do was say they would keep it in mind.