The Imperial Guards hurriedly withdrew. Two or three minutes later, a middle-aged man in a crimson official robe stepped over the threshold and strode in.
He was around fifty, with a fine long beard, a lean face, and a stern, unsmiling expression. His eyes were deep and solemn, as though they concealed an ocean's worth of calculation and authority.
Zheng Wenhan, courtesy name Jinglun, was Empress Dowager Zheng's younger brother and Zhao Shun's maternal uncle.
A first-rank official, he served as Grand Scholar of Grand Vision Hall, controlled the central government, and was the Southern Dynasty's most powerful minister.
The imposing yet restrained middle-aged minister swept his gaze over the dancing courtesans in the hall, frowned slightly, and said coldly:
"Leave!"
His voice was not loud, yet the dancers in the hall scattered like startled birds. Heads lowered and backs bent, they retreated to either side, so frightened that they scarcely dared breathe.
Maintaining his lazy posture, Zhang Yuanqing called out, "Prime Minister Zheng, you're here? Someone, set out a table and wine for the prime minister."
Zheng Wenhan's face darkened as he said coldly, "Your Majesty, you were just attacked by assassins. Longtu died in the line of duty to ensure your safety, and his body is not yet cold. Yet you are here in the hall with music, dancing, drinking, and merrymaking. Will that not chill the hearts of your subjects?"
Zhang Yuanqing raised his cup and drained it, saying displeasedly, "Under all heaven, is there any land that is not the king's? Within the borders of the realm, is there any man who is not the king's subject? The Zheng Family is loyal to the imperial house and loyal to the Southern Dynasty. Zheng Longtu died for me; he died where he should have."
He wore the