Liu Bian at the start, so you're called Dong Zhuo, right?

—Once the door to the Court of Justice's separate office was closed, the sound of wind and snow seemed to be separated into another world.

Lu Zhi sat in the cage and was escorted into a cramped corridor.

There was no charcoal fire in the room, only a bean lamp in the corner.

The escorting officer hung the chains on the beam and whispered:

"Lord Lu... Lord Lu, I'm sorry to have wronged you. Zuo Feng has been captured by the Imperial Guard, and the Court of Justice wants to interrogate him again. Let's rest for the night."

Lu Zhi glanced at him, his eyes neither angry nor resentful, but so quiet it was unsettling.

"How is it in the army?" he asked.

The subordinate official hesitated for a moment, then didn't dare to answer.

Lu Zhi stopped asking questions and simply draped the thick fur coat over his shoulders; the coat still had snowflakes from the post station on its surface.

He gently rubbed the seal of the medicine packet with his fingertips—the tiny characters "Tian Shang" were engraved on it, jingling steadily.

"The imperial court hasn't gone mad yet."

-

At daybreak, the Minister of Justice and the Censorate arrived.

The questioning was very clever; instead of asking "Why didn't you fight?", they asked "Did you accept bribes?", "Did you miss out on military supplies?", and "Did you arbitrarily transfer troops?"

Lu Zhi answered crisply and clearly, each sentence as steady as a prisoner's:

"Never."

"Never."

"Never."

The Imperial Censor, flipping through his documents, suddenly stopped, looked up, and asked, "When Zuo Feng demanded gifts from the army, did you refuse?"

Lu Zhi did not answer immediately.

He looked at the black smoke rising from the lamp and said in a calm voice, "Military law comes first, etiquette second. I will not exchange words for money on the front lines."

The Imperial Censor paused.

This statement sounds like a self-defense, but it's not quite a self-defense—it's more like someone laying their back on the table for you to see.

-

At the same moment, in another main room, Zuo Feng could no longer hold on.

He was detained in the Zhijinwu prison last night and frozen all night. At dawn, he was dragged to the Court of Justice.

The folded silk and the fire seal, the receipt document, and the city gate inspection register were laid out before him one by one.

The court official didn't yell at him, but slowly said:

"You are here to supervise the army by imperial decree. If you take military supplies, it is embezzlement. If you accuse Lu Zhi of neglecting his duties, it is tantamount to using the imperial decree to harm a loyal subject."

Zuo Feng's lips turned purple, his eyes darted around, and he finally broke down.

"I...I just wanted a gift! He wouldn't give it to me! He embarrassed me in front of everyone!"

He hissed, "I was so angry... so I... so I wrote an urgent report!"

"Who taught you to write?" the Imperial Censor pressed.

Zuo Feng shuddered violently.

But the next moment, he suddenly kowtowed repeatedly, as if grasping at a straw:

"My lord! My lord! I was wrong! I confess! I'm willing—I'm willing to confess to the clerks in the army who served me! I'm willing to confess to the bribes I took! I only beg… I only beg to be spared!"

He dared not say "who taught him," because if he uttered that sentence, he would not be considered greedy, but rather a member of the Party.

In the afternoon, at Zhangde Hall.

After Emperor Ling of Han finished reading the memorial presented by the Court of Justice, he tapped his knuckles on the table very slowly.

No one dared to breathe loudly inside the hall.

Zhao Fengxu betrayed the court, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out again, and now there is an internal enemy.

The series of chaotic events made him increasingly angry.

Emperor Ling of Han slammed the memorial onto the table.

"Zuo Feng—behead him."

Two words: crisp and clean.

Zhang Rang stood to the side with his head down, not even lifting his eyelids.

Emperor Ling of Han paused for a moment, then asked, "Where is Lu Zhi?"

The Minister of Justice prostrated himself on the ground: "Lu Zhi has no guilty embezzlement or misrepresentation of military evidence. However, the decree has already been issued, and I dare not release him without authorization. I beg Your Majesty to make the final decision."

Emperor Ling of Han closed his eyes.

What bothers him most is not making mistakes, but having others see that he is wrong.

But the battle report was waiting for him outside—the fire in Jizhou gave him no time for politeness.

"Dismiss him from office for now," his voice was a little hoarse, "but keep him in another office. We'll discuss it again once the military situation improves."

This decree, seemingly not to release Lu Zhi, is actually to remove him from the list of "crimes" and place him on the list of "pending discussion."

-

Three days later, a court assembly was held in Deyang Palace.

Another military report was delivered.

"Dong Zhuo attacked Guangzong, launching a relentless assault for days. His weapons were all destroyed, and he suffered heavy casualties. The rebels refused to come out of the city, and the morale of the army was low. Dong Zhuo requested reinforcements and supplies. Please make a swift decision."

Someone in the hall gasped.

Liu Bian stood beside the throne, and upon hearing the words "rapid attack," his heart tightened to its limit—

Dong Zhuo was indeed Dong Zhuo.

When faced with a field battle where he can charge recklessly, he is like a fierce dog; when faced with a city that requires patient siege, he will only bite, biting until his mouth is full of blood and he will not stop.

For such people, the earlier they achieve fame and fortune, the earlier the seeds of their downfall will sprout.

After the court session ended, Liu Bian walked out almost without stopping, his clothes being lifted by the wind, as if he were suppressing a fire.

He was going to Zhangde Hall.

He must personally tell his father: Release Lu Zhi to lead the army.

Xun Yu stopped him in the corridor outside Chengde Hall.

Xun Yu did not stand in the center, but in the shadow of the pillars, as if he had expected that Xun Yu would pass by here.

"Your Highness," he said in a very soft voice.

Liu Bian paused, suppressing his anger: "Sir, Dong Zhuo's rapid attack has failed; if this drags on any longer—"

"Does Your Highness know who I encountered in the palace today?"

Liu Bian's brow furrowed: "Who?"

"Guo Sheng".

Liu Bian was stunned for a moment:

"What did he say?"

"How did the Crown Prince find out?"

Liu Bian's pupils contracted slightly.

Xun Yu looked at him and spoke slowly and deliberately:

"The Crown Prince is only eleven years old, yet he already possesses such abilities."

"What was I doing when I was eleven years old?"

He paused:

"Your Majesty wasn't asking me, but yourself. After asking, there was no answer. Without an answer, only one thing remains—"

"fear."

The word fell into the corridor like a stone thrown into a deep well.

Liu Bian stood there, motionless for a long time.

He suddenly recalled the day he was released from the Party Prohibitions, and the overwhelming excitement he felt when he came out of the Zhangde Hall.

At that time, he only had one thought in mind: if it succeeds, the party ban will be lifted, and Lu Zhi will be saved.

He never imagined that his father's gaze held anything other than satisfaction.

"So..." Liu Bian's throat was a little dry, "I can't go?"

Xun Yu shook his head:

"You can't go. Not only can you not go, but the Crown Prince should do absolutely nothing for the next two weeks."

Liu Bian frowned: "What about Lu Zhi? Just leave him like this? If Dong Zhuo can't be defeated, Father will have to replace him sooner or later. If the replacement is also the wrong person, when will the siege of Guangzong be lifted?"

Xun Yu looked at him, a faint hint of something in his eyes—a mixture of relief and a sigh.

"Your Highness, Lu Zhi will succeed in his training."

"But it wasn't recommended by His Highness."

He stood up, walked up to Liu Bian, and lowered his voice:

"Let those who should speak speak for His Highness."

Liu Bian's eyes flickered: "Who?"

"General He Jin," Xun Yu said.

"When Lu Zhi was falsely accused, He Jin remained silent. Now that Dong Zhuo is in trouble, if He Jin continues to remain silent, His Majesty will wonder—what is the Grand General's job?"

He paused, then said:

"And then there's Yang Biao. The Yang family just joined forces with the Crown Prince to lift the ban on the partisans, so it's not advisable to make any moves now. But Yang Biao's uncle, Yang Qi, is an advisor who respects Lu Zhi the most. Having him submit a memorial would be perfectly legitimate."

"And then there's Huangfu Song. He served as a general in the same court as Lu Zhi and knows Lu Zhi's abilities well. His battle report just came from Changshe, and His Majesty trusts him. If, in his report of victory, he were to casually mention, 'The siege of Guangzong could not have been accomplished without Lu Zhi,'"

Liu Bian's eyes gradually brightened.

"So, I don't have to do anything?"

Xun Yu shook his head:

"Your Highness still needs to do the same thing as that day."

"What?"

"wait."

Liu Bian was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed.

The smile was complex—it contained relief, bitterness, and a hint of something else that was hard to describe.

"Wenruo, you're right."

"I was too hasty."