Huangming

Chapter 126 Ice Abyss Dissects the Heart, Sang Hu Weeps Blood
Snowflakes fell heavily, and the winter wind howled.

The wailing sound was like the wailing of ghosts.

Outside the East Warm Pavilion, Wei Zhongxian was somewhat anxious.

The emperor, wearing only a single garment, was still reviewing memorials.

Wei Chao naturally admired his emperor's composure, but he also feared the emperor's wrath.

Therefore, palace maids Zhang Yun'er and Zhao Qingyue, who were in charge of the bedchamber, were sent to Qianqing Palace to serve him early on.

Seeing that all the women had arrived, Wei Chao stepped into the East Warm Pavilion, bowed to the emperor, and said, "Your Majesty, shall we summon Zhang Yun'er and Zhao Qingyue to serve us?"

Zhu Youxiao paused in his writing as he reviewed the memorials, shook his head, and said, "I am not in the mood for that."

While matters between men and women can indeed be captivating, Zhu Youxiao had greater ambitions and naturally would not be controlled by his lower body.

"Da Dang should pay more attention to the situation both at home and abroad, and spend less time on these kinds of things."

Wei Chao knelt down abruptly, realizing that she had come at the wrong time, and could only say, "This servant knows her crime."

Just then, the door to the East Warm Pavilion was opened, and an old eunuch with a happy face and sweat beading on his forehead rushed out from behind the thick curtain. It was Wei Zhongxian.

The cold wind blowing in from the doorway made Wei Chao, who was kneeling on the ground, shiver. When he turned his head to look again, he saw Wei Zhongxian's old face again, and Wei Chao felt even more disgusted than if he had eaten shit.

"This servant, Zhongxian, greets Your Majesty!"

Zhu Youxiao saw the old eunuch's barely suppressed smile and immediately knew that the old eunuch had made some progress in his raids on homes and arrests.

"Get up! Is there some good news?"

Wei Zhongxian hurriedly kowtowed and said with a fawning smile, "Your Majesty is wise and insightful! This servant has just received some great news: the mastermind behind the petition submitted by the students of the Imperial Academy and the Directorate of State Affairs has been found."

Those pedantic scholars were as spineless as maggots in a latrine. Xu Xianchun had only served two small dishes when that old scoundrel Wang Ji was so frightened he wet his pants and confessed everything about how Sun Wei and he had instigated the students of Shoushan Academy to cause trouble!

He crawled two steps on his knees, pulled out a confession from his sleeve, and held it high above his head: "This is a signed confession, written clearly in black and white. At first, Wang Ji was still stubborn, talking about 'upright character and integrity,' but before the branding iron even touched him, he cried and begged for mercy, even confessing to accepting 10,000 taels of silver from Shanxi merchants all these years ago!"

Zhu Youxiao took the confession, and after reading it, his eyes flashed with cold light.

"Humph!"

He first snorted coldly, then said, "Indeed, someone was stirring things up behind the scenes. Wang Ji and Sun Wei are despicable!"

Wei Zhongxian chimed in, "These two are eating the emperor's rice but doing treacherous things. They must be severely punished to serve as a warning to others!"

The bandit leader was aware of the situation, and the ringleader understood that Zhu Youxiao already knew how to quell the disturbance.

Do not!
It cannot even be said that this quelled the disturbance caused by the students of the Imperial Academy at the Office of Transmission.

He also wants to take advantage of the situation and turn what was originally a bad thing for him into a good thing that benefits him!
Things always change over time; whether something is good or bad depends on how you use it!

"These students from the Imperial Academy have come seeking fame, but I will not grant their wish, Wei Zhongxian!"

Zhu Youxiao looked at the old eunuch serving beside him.

"The old slave is here."

"Since this matter was caused by Wang Ji and Sun Wei, let them resolve it."

Wei Zhongxian was taken aback at first, but he immediately understood the emperor's meaning and couldn't help but praise him.

"Your Majesty is wise. This plan strikes at their hearts. In this way, the Embroidered Uniform Guard will collapse on their own without any action from them."

That's right, Zhu Youxiao wanted to use a strategy of destroying the mind.

He wanted to show those students of the Imperial Academy what kind of people were behind their instigation!
What kind of "pure stream" is this?
What great Confucian scholar?
They are all utterly hypocritical!

Your so-called willingness to risk your lives and futures for the sake of justice is nothing more than a power grab for these hypocrites.

Are you guys stupid?
Zhu Youxiao now wants to not only kill people, but also destroy their spirit!

"Go quickly!"

Wei Zhongxian immediately accepted the order and left. He quickly left the palace gate, and instead of taking a sedan chair, he rode a horse towards the Northern Garrison Command.

The wind was biting cold, and riding a horse on a winter night felt like torture, yet Wei Zhongxian showed no displeasure whatsoever.

He also wanted to see how the students of the Imperial Academy would react after being subjected to His Majesty's methods!
Soon, he and Xu Xianchun arrived at the 'Hall of Yama'.

Wang Ji and Sun Wei were still tied to the rack. When Sun Wei saw Wei Zhongxian, he still had the nerve to spit in Wei Zhongxian's face and cursed, "You eunuch dog!"

Wang Ji's face was ashen, his grief beyond death.

Wei Zhongxian dodged the glob of phlegm, gave a cold smile, and slowly stepped forward. His shrill voice was particularly jarring in the dimly lit torture chamber of the imperial prison:
“Censor Wang and Vice Minister Sun, you are both intelligent men. Why make things difficult for yourselves? As long as you go to the Office of Transmission and explain in front of those scholars how you instigated them to submit their petitions and how you used them to fight for power and profit, I can grant the Emperor leniency and spare your family from punishment.”

Upon hearing this, Sun Wei abruptly looked up, a mocking sneer curling at the corner of his mouth:

"Wei the eunuch! Do you take me for a three-year-old child? Even if I admit it, do you think you'll let my Sun family go? What a joke! Kill me or torture me, do as you please, but don't expect me to do this dirty work for you!"

He spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes like knives, staring intently at Wei Zhongxian.

Wang Ji, standing to the side, was trembling all over, covered in cold sweat, his lips quivering, as if he were struggling.

Seeing this, Xu Xianchun leaned closer with a sinister look and whispered:

“Imperial Censor Wang, have you thought this through? Your son just passed the imperial examination last year and has a bright future ahead of him. If, because of this one wrong decision of yours, your whole family is exiled to Liaodong and enslaved for generations, wouldn’t that be a pity?”

Wang Ji's pupils shrank suddenly, his face turned ashen, and he managed to utter a few sobs, but he still dared not speak.

Wei Zhongxian snorted coldly, turned away with a flick of his sleeve, and his tone suddenly turned icy:
"Since you two refuse our toast, then we won't waste any more words. His Majesty's patience is limited. If you refuse to cooperate, not only will your nine generations be exterminated, but ten generations will be! All your disciples, former associates, relatives, and friends will be spared!"

He turned around abruptly, his eyes flashing with a fierce light:

“Sun Wei, don’t you pride yourself on being a paragon of virtue? When the time comes, your students, classmates, and friends will all die because of your ‘integrity.’ How will history record it? ‘Sun Wei was stubborn and self-willed, causing the death of his entire family’? Or ‘A fool who brought about his own destruction’?”

Sun Wei's face was ashen, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, yet he remained silent, gritting his teeth.

Wang Ji finally broke down, tears streaming down his face, and begged for mercy.
"I...I'm willing to go! I beg Lord Wei to have mercy and spare my family's lives!"

Xu Xianchun grinned maliciously and grabbed Wang Ji by the collar:

"That's more like it! Someone, get Censor Wang a clean official robe, so those scholars don't think we're mistreating loyal officials!"

Upon seeing this, Sun Wei, enraged, laughed instead:

"Wang Weili! How can you be so afraid of death? You think they'll keep their promise? How laughable!"

Wei Zhongxian narrowed his eyes, slowly approached Sun Wei, and spoke in a voice as sharp as a viper's tongue:
"Minister Sun, if you're not afraid of death, are you afraid of a life worse than death?"

With a wave of his hand, two guards immediately carried over an iron yoke covered in spikes.

"This thing is called the 'Ten Thousand Ants Devouring the Heart Shackles'. Once you put it on, the sharp spikes will slowly pierce your flesh. It won't kill you, but it will make you wail in pain day and night, unable to live or die."

He leaned down and whispered in Sun Wei's ear:
"If you don't cooperate, we'll make you wear it and watch your family members be slowly sliced ​​to death one by one. How about that?"

Sun Wei trembled violently, and a hint of fear finally flashed in his eyes.

After a long silence, he slowly closed his eyes and squeezed out a sentence through clenched teeth:
"I'll cooperate."

Wei Zhongxian straightened up with satisfaction and said with a sinister smile:
"That's more like it! Don't worry, you two. As long as you behave, I can guarantee what I just said."

Of course, the following words only echoed in Wei Zhongxian's mind: "I guarantee your family members will die a quick and painless death."

"If you dare to cause trouble outside the Office of Transmission and displease His Majesty, all of you men will be executed by slow slicing, then skinned alive and stuffed with straw; the women will be humiliated by thousands and then drowned in pig cages. Your ancestral graves will be dug up by our family, your ancestors' skulls will be used as chamber pots, and your resting place will be used as a latrine. You'd better watch yourselves!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Ji was struck dumb and collapsed to the ground.

Sun Wei suddenly opened his eyes and roared:
"Wei Zhongxian! You will die a horrible death!!"

"Hahaha~"

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxian laughed heartily, dismissing it, and turned to stride away, leaving behind only a chilling statement that echoed through the prison:
"Take them to the Ministry of Justice! Let the whole world see what kind of people these 'pure gentlemen' really are!"

(End of this chapter)