I, Kangxi, am here to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming!

"The Taizu Emperor... that was only a nominal connection with the Ming court!"

Zhekuner, his neck stiff, shouted, "Control! Do you understand? That's diplomatic language!"

"Okay, let's just say it's diplomatic language."

Miao Tong took a step forward, her eyes like knives, piercing straight into Zhekune's heart: "Then let's talk about 'revenge.' Since the Qing Dynasty's banner upon entering the pass was 'avenging the emperor and father, and establishing a Ming successor,' then I would like to ask you, sir, after the Qing army entered Beijing in the first year of the Shunzhi reign, the former Ming crown prince Zhu Cilang appeared. How did the Qing Dynasty 'establish a Ming successor'?"

The entire audience held their breath.

Everyone knows that Dorgon said the crown prince was an imposter and then executed him.

"besides."

Miao Tong's voice grew louder and louder, echoing in the hall: "In recent years, the Green Standard Army and the Eight Banners Army of the imperial court have been conducting large-scale searches for the Zhu family in the south. Anyone with the surname Zhu, regardless of age, has been killed."

"My lord, is this what you call 'revenge'? This method of revenge is quite unique. You dig up someone's ancestral graves, wipe out their descendants, and then sit on their dragon throne and say, 'Brother, no need to thank me, this is what I should do.'"

"Outrageous! Miao Tong, are you trying to overthrow the Qing dynasty and restore the Ming dynasty?!"

Zhekune, feeling his tail had been stepped on, jumped up abruptly, pointing at Miao Tong with a trembling finger: "How dare you question the imperial edict of the Qing Dynasty! You are challenging the laws of our ancestors!"

"Ancestral laws and regulations?"

Miao Tong sneered: "I only know that facts speak louder than words. Since the Qing Dynasty wants to claim the throne, it should openly admit that it won a war and seized the country. To seize someone else's house while erecting a memorial arch for chastity is too ugly. As a scholar of the Hanlin Academy, I will speak the truth and will not allow anyone to arbitrarily distort the history books!"

Dzeko was furious.

He was a Manchu who was used to being fawned over and worshipped. He had never suffered such humiliation.

"I'll kill you, you Han dog!"

Zhekun let out a strange cry and rushed down the steps without regard for his image.

He may have lost in a war of words, but when it comes to fighting, with the physique of a Manchu warrior, how could he not handle a pretty boy?

Zhekuner stretched out his large, hairy hand and grabbed at Miao Tong.

The surrounding Han officials scattered in terror, crying out, "Lord Zhe, you mustn't! Let's talk this out!"

Miao Tong stood still.

Just as Zhekune's claws were only three inches from his cheek, Miao Tong slightly shifted his body, his movements as agile as a fish swimming in a rapid current.

Although he was a civil official during the suppression of the Three Feudatories, he spent his days with those killing gods and learned some martial arts skills.

To paraphrase Hong Xiguan, "If scholars don't have some martial prowess, how will they reason with those thugs?"

"Bang!"

Miao Tong delivered a clean and powerful knee strike, landing precisely on Zhekune's stomach.

Zhekune's two-hundred-pound frame trembled like waves, his eyes bulged, and he let out a strange cry that sounded like a hen being choked.

"Snapped!"

Miao Tong then delivered a resounding slap, sending Zhekune spinning three times on the spot.

"This slap is on behalf of all scholars in the world!"

As she spoke, Miao Tong used both hands simultaneously, her movements swift and decisive, devoid of any hint of frivolity.

"Slap! Slap! Slap!"

"This slap is for General Longhu. You unfilial descendant, you don't even dare to acknowledge the official titles your ancestors held!"

"This slap was delivered on behalf of Emperor Chongzhen. You've gone so far as to avenge him until his lineage is wiped out. You're truly dedicated!"

Zhekune was beaten so badly he was knocking his teeth out, and his gorgeous robes were torn to shreds, making him look exactly like a young wife who had been ravaged by a burly man.

As he dodged, he wailed, "Help! Rebellion! The Hanlin Academy is killing people!"

......

Half an hour later, the matter was reported to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Hong Xiguan leaned back on the soft couch, listening to Liang Jiugong's vivid report, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"That Miao Tong, she's really ruthless!"

Hong Xiguan flipped through the record about the "debate between Chinese and barbarians," his eyes becoming somewhat amused.

"These Manchu nobles are truly brain-dead! Don't they have any sense of right or wrong in acquiring their country? In this era of the law of the jungle, the winner takes all, and they insist on this hypocritical marketing, only to be thoroughly outmaneuvered by the logic and actions of the top scholar. They've utterly disgraced themselves!"

Before Hong Xiguan could finish his cup of tea, he heard a ghostly wail coming from outside the palace.

"Your Majesty...you must do justice for this servant! That Miao Tong, he's not a scholar, he's a thug! He's a traitor!"

Zhekune knelt outside the palace, weeping bitterly.

His once decent court robes were torn like a curtain, his left eye socket was bruised and swollen as if a peeled braised egg was stuck in it, and he was speaking with a lisp, because Miao Tong had punched him and loosened his back molars.

"Let him in and scream!"

Hong Xiguan waved with great interest.

Zhekune knelt all the way to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Hong Xiguan sat on the dragon throne, propping his chin up, and looked at the second-rank Hanlin Academy Chancellor with great interest.

Miao Tong also arrived, standing straight. Although her cuffs were a little wrinkled, she had a calm expression and even had the leisure to pat the dust off the corner of her clothes.

"Lord Zhe, did I hear that right?"

Hong Xiguan spoke up, his tone laced with mockery: "You just said you were discussing 'scholarship' at the Hanlin Academy, and it turns out you've become like this?"

"He...he's spouting fallacies and heresies! I couldn't argue with him, so I tried to teach him a lesson, and he resorted to violence..."

"Tsk!"

Hong Xiguan chuckled lightly, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and glanced sideways at the other person:

"Zhekune, you're also of Manchu descent, aren't you? Since we're discussing scholarship, if you can't win an argument, it's because you're not smart enough; if you can't win a fight, it's because you're not skilled enough. If you're bad at both, how dare you come here to cry to me? What, is 'extortion' now fashionable in the Qing Dynasty's officialdom?"

Zhekune was stunned, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, unsure whether to let them fall or hold them back.

This isn't right!

According to the unspoken rules of the Qing Dynasty, when Manchu and Han officials had a conflict, shouldn't the emperor have taken sides, reprimanded the Han officials first, and then given face to the Manchu officials?

"emperor!"

Zhekune grew anxious, gritted his teeth, and unleashed his trump card: "This isn't just a fight, it's a matter of nature! Miao Tong openly proclaimed in the Hanlin Academy that the Qing Dynasty's rule was illegitimate; he's uprooting the Qing! He's opposing the Qing and seeking to restore the Ming!"

"Oh?"

Upon triggering the keyword, Hong Xiguan raised an eyebrow and looked at Miao Tong: "Scholar Miao, are you really that bold? Trying to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming right under my nose?"

Miao Tong stepped forward, cupped his hands in greeting, and said in a clear and firm voice, "Your Majesty, I dare not rebel. I am merely teaching Lord Zhe what 'seeking truth from facts' means."

"He said that the Qing Dynasty's acquisition of the country was the most legitimate because it entered the pass to avenge Emperor Chongzhen. I then asked him, if it was for revenge, and if the banner read 'Re-establishing the Ming heir,' then why isn't it a Ming prince or grandson sitting on the dragon throne now?"

"presumptuous!"

"That's a stopgap measure! It's a deception... no, it's a strategy!" Zhekuner shrieked.