Two days later, Taihe Hall.
Inside the hall, smoke curled up from the incense burners, spreading a faint, tranquil fragrance. The surrounding walls were draped with splendid silks and hung with precious calligraphy and paintings, displaying the dignity and extravagance of the royal family.
The civil and military officials wore solemn court robes and stood in orderly ranks according to their status. They wore black gauze hats, brocade robes embroidered with exquisite patterns, jade belts at their waists, and held ivory tablets in their hands, their expressions grave yet full of anticipation.
On this crucial day, a tense and solemn atmosphere hung over both the Imperial Palace and its surroundings.
Accompanied by a deep, resonant toll of a bell, the adoption ceremony officially began. Chu Lu entered wearing a Dragon Robe and took his seat upon the throne.
The Minister of Rites held a golden-yellow adoption decree and began to read, "By the Grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees..."
After the reading ended, the Empress led the cold and aloof nun inside.
There should originally have been a ritual here involving the lighting of incense and candles and offerings to Heaven, Earth, and the ancestors, but the Empress could not wait any longer, so much of the ceremonial process had been simplified.
The Empress presented an adoption document before Chu Lu.
"Press your fingerprint, Your Majesty." The Empress smiled with utmost mockery. "Once you have done that, have her kowtow to you a few times. From now on, you will have a daughter."
Chu Lu looked at the adoption document. Its contents were nothing more than saying that Xu Liniang could not bear children, so for the peace of Great Yan, a child would be adopted from the clan. Though not blood-related, she would enjoy every right.
He then looked at the civil and military officials below.
Perhaps believing that Chu Lu had no chance of turning things around, they no longer cared about decorum. They all raised their heads to look at Chu Lu, their ridicule, mockery, and eagerness completely undisguised.
"Your Majesty, hurry up and press it. What are you dawdling for?" the Empress said.
Chu Lu then looked at the Empress. Her expression was much the same, carrying both the lofty air of a victor and a trace of impatience.
He next looked at the adopted daughter. She lowered her head obediently, appearing exceptionally innocent and pure.
"Stop looking around, Your Majesty. You are not still hoping someone will come save you, are you?" the Empress said in a low voice. "Give up that thought and press it obediently! Cooperate honestly, and I can still spare your life."
Chu Lu withdrew his gaze and accepted the adoption document.
"That's more like it," the Empress said. "Press your fingerprint."
At that moment, under the gazes of the Empress, the adopted daughter, and the civil and military officials, Chu Lu looked at the adoption document, smiled faintly, and exerted force with both hands.
With a tearing sound.
He ripped the adoption document in half!
The sound echoed through the silent hall.
The Empress's eyes widened abruptly, while the adopted daughter instinctively raised her head.
The civil and military officials were all stunned.
"What are you doing?" In the next moment, the Empress's shrill voice rang out. Pointing at Chu Lu, she shouted, "Xu Liniang, what are you doing?!"
Chu Lu rose from the throne and said expressionlessly, "The adoption matter ends here. The Empress conspired to frame the Imperial Consort, poisoned me, and seized control of the court. Her crimes warrant execution of her entire clan. Today, I shall uphold justice on Heaven's behalf and execute this calamitous Empress!"
The civil and military officials immediately erupted in an uproar. No one had expected Chu Lu to turn hostile at a time like this.
The Empress laughed coldly in anger. "Ha! So you're done pretending, are you? I knew you would not give up so easily!"
She retreated two steps and drew the Imperial Sword. "Fortunately, I brought the sword with me as well."
"Xu Liniang!" the Empress called her by name. "Do you see this? This is the Imperial Sword bestowed by the late Emperor. It may strike down foolish rulers above and treacherous ministers below. Why are you not kneeling before me?!"
Chu Lu looked at her stance and laughed, walking straight toward her.
The Empress's heart jumped. Intimidated by Chu Lu's bearing, she shouted furiously, "Stop right there! I had many concerns before, so I did not act against you, but this time is different!"
"Oh? Then do it," Chu Lu said.
"I'll really chop you down!" the Empress roared.
The officials and the adopted daughter all watched the scene nervously.
That was the Imperial Sword!
Chu Lu could not possibly be unafraid!
Yet contrary to their expectations, Chu Lu did not retreat in the slightest. Instead, he suddenly roared, "Then chop!"
"Ahhhhhh!" the Empress screamed as she swung the sword down.
Everyone jolted in alarm and hurriedly widened their eyes.
What happened next left them utterly dumbfounded.
Chu Lu stretched out both hands and actually caught the Imperial Sword with Empty Hand Catches White Blade. Then, with a twist and pull of his hands, he wrenched the sword away.
Next, Chu Lu's hands, like eagle talons, suddenly exerted force. Several crisp cracks rang out as the Imperial Sword was snapped in two by sheer strength.
At the sight, the Empress's legs went weak, and she collapsed onto the floor. She raised a trembling right hand to point at Chu Lu. "Th-that was the Imperial Sword bestowed by the late Emperor! You actually... you actually... Aren't you afraid the late Emperor will die with unclosed eyes?!"
"There's something I've wanted to complain about for a long time!" Chu Lu shouted as if venting everything at once. "Wasn't the late Emperor my mother? If my mother saw you holding her sword and trying to chop her daughter to death, that would be what made her die with unclosed eyes, alright?! How dare you use her name to threaten me?!"
"Eh?" The Empress froze, her face filled with the bewilderment of a failing student staring at advanced calculus.
But she quickly came back to herself and said, "Enough! Don't think you have won just because the Imperial Sword is gone! I am determined to carry out this adoption ceremony today. I have the civil and military officials, I have the adop—"
With a wet stab.
The cold and aloof nun widened her eyes, clutched her throat, and fell dead to the ground.
The Empress stared at the scene in terrified shock, even forgetting the rest of her words.
"I understand what you mean," Chu Lu said unhurriedly. "You have the support of the civil and military officials and a suitable adopted-daughter candidate, so you think victory is already in your grasp, right? But it does not matter. I had already thought of a countermeasure."
He turned sideways and looked at the officials before him. "Wouldn't killing them all solve the problem?"
The civil and military officials went pale.
"Heh, hehe, hahahaha!" The Empress stared blankly at the cold nun's corpse at first, then gradually burst into wild laughter.
"Mad! Mad! I think you have gone mad!" the Empress shouted. "You are all alone, and you think you can kill all of us? What beautiful dream are you having? Imperial Guards! Where are the Imperial Guards?! Get in here!"
A burst of orderly footsteps immediately sounded, and a black tide surged in from outside the palace. They were clearly a group of fully armed soldiers.
"Do you see that?!" The Empress stood up. The rage of losing her new favorite twisted her face into something savage. "The Imperial Guards are in my hands! How many people can you kill by yourself with a sword? You are nothing more than a clown!"
By then, the Imperial Guards had already split apart. Some blocked the exits, while others passed through the civil and military officials and arrived before the two of them.
"Watch carefully!" The Empress smiled smugly, then shouted at the soldiers, "Hear my command, troops! The Emperor has fallen into madness and is completely deranged. You need not show restraint. On my behalf, chop her... into! Pieces! With! Ten! Thousand! Blades!"
She ground out the final four words through clenched teeth.
The leading general approached Chu Lu, then suddenly dropped to one knee.
The Empress froze, then shouted furiously, "Why are you kneeling before her?! Kill her already!"
The general did not react. He merely removed his helmet.
Su Muyun said in a deep voice, "This general has not failed Your Majesty's trust and has completed Your Majesty's command. The Imperial Guards are now entirely within Your Majesty's grasp!"
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