The atmosphere in Wenyuan Pavilion was oppressive.
Longqing sat high on his seat, his face dark. Before him, on one side stood Chen Hong, Feng Bao, and the other eunuchs of the Directorate of Ceremonial in crimson robes; on the other stood Gao Gong, Wang Yan, and the other Grand Secretariat ministers in the same crimson robes, along with officials such as Hu Zongxian from the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers.
Everyone present, to varying degrees, had their eyes on Wang Yan.
Wang Yan, meanwhile, stood there respectfully, his hands tucked into his sleeves, eyes on his nose and nose on his heart, boredly staring at the footprints on the floor tiles...
Chen Hong looked left and right, his eyes darting about. After exchanging a glance with Gao Gong, he suddenly spoke.
"Wang Yan! Are you plotting rebellion?"
"What do you mean by that, Eunuch Chen?" Wang Yan looked over in confusion, then cupped his hands toward Longqing. "Your Majesty, everyone in the realm says that I am a meritorious servant of Great Ming. I, too, believe that today's Great Ming contains much of my blood and sweat. I earned it by surviving more than fifty assassination attempts. No one is more loyal to Great Ming than I am. Eunuch Chen says I am plotting rebellion—Your Majesty, you must uphold justice for me."
"Wang Yan, you are still spouting nonsense. There are so many scholars and officials outside, especially the officials from the Shuntian Prefecture yamen and Great Prosperity County yamen. They have all joined in surrounding the imperial city. Wasn't that all at your instigation? And you still say you are not plotting rebellion?"
"That is truly an injustice. You cannot say that just because I once served as the Administrative Commissioner of Shuntian Prefecture and magistrate of Great