How was that for a ruling?

Ren Ye rested his feet on the footstool and gripped the icy armrests, forcibly suppressing the emotions that had nearly shattered his composure. He stopped thinking about all the idiotic things the original owner had done.

Stay calm.

The more desperate the situation, the more I need to stay calm.

First, Ren Ye knew neither the specific rules nor the detailed mechanics of this "large-scale narrative role-playing" Star Gate. But one thing was certain: he could not lose or remain too passive. Huang Wei had personally told him that four players had already died during the preceding sequence of missions...

One wrong step, and he would be beyond saving.

Second, his identity as the useless Prince Huai carried no weight with the officials present. Even the personal guards at the entrance might not obey him. In other words, to survive this attempt to force his hand, he had to find something he could control.

What could I control...?

Ren Ye slowly scanned the hall, finally resting his gaze on Wang Jingzhong. After considering for a moment, he imitated the tone of a deputy director from his former workplace. "You intended to rebel. Do you have anything to say?"

His emotionless voice echoed through the hall. Covered in wounds, Wang Jingzhong looked at Ren Ye with clouded eyes.

Their eyes met for a moment, and Ren Ye felt a little relieved.

He had questioned Wang Jingzhong to test the man's character and see whether he would betray him before everyone. The gaze he received in return held only resolve and guilt.

At that moment, Wang Jingzhong also formed his own interpretation of Ren Ye's question. Kneeling on the floor, his wounds still throbbing, he recalled the days when he had stood beside the late prince and fought bloody battles on the Southern Border...

His hair white and his limbs bound in shackles, Wang Jingzhong's aged, frail body was restrained. Even so, he struggled to straighten his back and turned his gaze toward the princess consort-Xu Qingzhao.

Regal and coldly beautiful, the princess consort wore a yin-yang Daoist robe and radiated an otherworldly air. When Wang Jingzhong looked at her, her eyes remained as calm as still water, as though none of this concerned her.

"I do have something to say." Wang Jingzhong's booming voice rang through the Conscientious Hall.

Ren Ye frowned slightly. "What is it?"

Kneeling with his neck straight, tears welled in Wang Jingzhong's clouded eyes. "I remember the fierce steeds of the Southern Border and the beauties of foreign lands. I remember drinking three cups of hot wine with the late prince, then leading our soldiers into the enemy ranks, vowing not to return without victory. Above all, I remember standing beside him on Qingliang Mountain, swearing to defend every inch of Great Qian's territory! Now the late prince is gone, and I too have grown old... I can no longer wield a blade or don armor. How could an old, muddleheaded man like me place my young lord in such a difficult position?!"

His thunderous cries carried throughout the Conscientious Hall.

Watching the white-haired old man kneeling there, Ren Ye felt an unexpected pang in his heart. He knew the man had misunderstood him.

"I shall go to my death! May my young lord one day wield the Nation-Guarding Sword again!!!" Wang Jingzhong cried with his eyes closed.

Liu Ji Shan reacted first, throwing up his hand like a ridiculous clown. "Stop him! The old bastard is trying to kill himself!"

Outside the hall, the two rows of personal guards remained still. Some understood what Wang Jingzhong meant, and their eyes reddened involuntarily.

"My lord enters the hall, and his old servant bows!"

Wang Jingzhong straightened once more and shouted, then reverently slammed his head toward the floor.

Whoosh, whoosh!

At least seven or eight officials reached out at once, trying to grab Wang Jingzhong.

Thud!

His head struck hard. The stone slabs cracked, and blood mixed with white matter instantly spread across the floor...

His aged body remained prostrate in a kneeling bow, but his head had shattered along with the floor. Only his hot blood continued to flow.

He had trained in martial arts since childhood and possessed tremendous strength. If he was determined to die, how could a few civil officials stop him?

Silence fell over the hall again. Every official was stunned. None had imagined Wang Jingzhong would break the deadlock this way. Did he no longer care about his family?

Ren Ye was equally stunned. He truly had not expected that a single question would make the old general smash his head against the floor and die.

How much courage and loyalty did that take?! What kind of bond had he shared with the previous Prince Huai?

Those few seconds, those few brief sentences...

They stirred an inexplicable, uncontrollable anger and sorrow in Ren Ye, who moments earlier had cared only about his own safety.

Was this really a game? Every blade of grass, every brick and tile, every person and event in this world felt utterly real.

The blood from the old general's shattered skull had stained the hall floor red, and it was still warm...

Liu Ji Shan stared at Wang Jingzhong's corpse, his eyes dark with hatred. Turning, he shouted, "Your Highness, though Wang Jingzhong is dead, rebellion is a grave matter. He must have accomplices. I request that you immediately arrest every member of his clan and interrogate them under torture."

Hearing the shout, Ren Ye slowly came back to himself.

He looked at Liu Ji Shan with an icy expression, unable to conceal the hatred in his eyes.

"Your Highness, please arrest Wang Jingzhong's clan and subject them to rigorous interrogation!"

More than forty officials bowed again and shouted in perfect unison.

United, they once again pressed him, as though they intended to strip Prince Huai of his princely robes today, trample them, and finally arrange a legitimate excuse to kill him.

"Investigating Wang Jingzhong's accomplices will surely take some time. We can discuss that later." Just then, the princess consort slowly set down her teacup, her voice clear and ethereal. "Since you gentlemen are so fond of judging cases, I too have a case for His Highness to judge."

The officials all turned toward the Princess Consort, surprise returning to their eyes.

Since marrying into the prince's household, she had always seemed detached from worldly affairs and had never spoken in the hall. Her intervention now struck them as unusual.

Seated upright, the Princess Consort swept her bright eyes across the officials. Her beautiful face was as calm as ever. "Xue’er, read it."

At her command, a maid in an emerald-green dress stepped out beside her seat and slowly approached Moral Adviser Liu.

Liu Ji Shan watched the maid with gloomy eyes, suddenly feeling uneasy for no apparent reason.

Xue'er stopped two paces in front of him. She drew a folded memorial from her left sleeve, unfolded it, and read without expression. "In the sixth month of Emperor Jing's first year, Moral Adviser Liu Quan accepted bribes from the merchant Qin Guangyuan in Qingliang Town, totaling fifteen thousand taels of silver, in exchange for facilitating his involvement in repairs to Qingliang Prefecture's city walls. In the seventh month of Emperor Jing's first year, Liu Quan secretly contacted commanders from the Southern Border and sold military intelligence, including the locations of the city granaries and the quantities of stored provisions, for forty thousand taels of silver. Liu Quan's attendants can testify to this. In Emperor Jing's second year, Liu Quan privately met with envoys from the Southern Border in the capital...!"

Like an emotionless reading machine, Xue’er recited the evidence of his crimes listed in the memorial, her words clear and precise, every charge detailed.

At first, Liu Ji Shan was dumbfounded. Then sweat drenched his back. Finally, he collapsed onto the floor and looked toward Chief Administrator Li Yan in terror, his face filled with pleading.

The surrounding officials also felt a chill. It seemed the princess consort had come armed with a blade today.

After a long while, Xue’er finished reading. Trembling all over, Liu Ji Shan knelt and shouted, "Princess Consort, I've been wronged! These are false accusations! Someone is trying to frame me! It must be Wang Jingzhong's accomplices. Your Highnesses, please...!"

"Every charge Xue’er read is supported by witnesses and physical evidence." The aloof princess consort slowly lifted a cup of tea, then turned toward Ren Ye. "Your Highness, how do you think this case should be judged?"

That single sentence made Ren Ye's heart lurch. Until then, he had merely been watching events unfold.

What did she mean by that?

When Wang Jingzhong smashed his head against the floor, she hadn't even blinked. Now that he was dead, she had her maid produce a list of charges and target Liu Ji Shan, the loudest of the lot?

What was she trying to do? Use me to kill someone for her, or stir up an even deeper conflict?

Ren Ye rubbed his right thumb and forefinger together out of habit, his mind racing...

"Your Highness, Moral Adviser Liu is an important court official. Even if he has committed crimes, he should be handed over to the capital's three judicial offices for trial."

"Your Highness, you absolutely must not do this!"

"...!"

After carefully weighing matters, more than a dozen officials stepped forward, one after another, using words to protect their ally.

Liu Ji Shan also looked at the princess consort in terror. "Your Highness, someone is framing me. This must be...!"

"Colluding with the enemy and betraying the country-if His Majesty hears of this, who can protect you?" The princess consort's voice was quiet but crystal clear. "Xue’er has over twenty more memorials in her sleeve. Shall I have her read them?"

At those words, the hall instantly fell silent.

"Your Highness, can you judge this case?" Xu Qingzhao asked softly, but the pressure in her words was unmistakable. She regarded Ren Ye with a slightly appraising gaze. "If not, we can do as they suggest and hand him over to the capital. What do you think?"

Ren Ye looked at her calmly.

Just then, the Qingliang Prefect exchanged another meaningful look with the other officials and gestured toward Ren Ye with his mouth.

Rustle, rustle...!

Another dozen or so officials stepped forward, directing their attacks at Ren Ye as they spoke in succession.

"Your Highness, Liu Quan was personally appointed moral adviser by His Majesty. Naturally, decisions concerning his life and death must be made before His Majesty in the capital."

"Your Highness, the situation in Qingliang Prefecture is complicated. We cannot rule out the possibility that villains have framed Liu Ji Shan. If this is mishandled and His Majesty decides to punish those responsible, I fear... I fear certain lives may be in danger!" An old man in his sixties delivered this vicious threat while staring straight at Ren Ye, as though he were a caged bird they could toy with at will.

"Your Highness, danger lurks everywhere in Qingliang Prefecture. We must prepare for peril even in peaceful times! The Qingzhou Guard has five thousand soldiers in the city. If word of today's events spreads and unrest breaks out among the officials, who knows where blood might spill or souls might be laid to rest?!" Another middle-aged man applied pressure even more blatantly and brazenly.

These officials were shrewder than monkeys. They could not understand why the princess consort had stepped forward to cause trouble today, nor did they know whether she possessed evidence against others. None wanted to challenge the chief minister's legitimate daughter.

But they dared to go after Prince Huai, to go after Zhu Zigui! His capable father was already dead. Across the entire Great Qian imperial family, not a single person dared claim kinship with him. Combined with his utter uselessness, that made pressuring him a sure bet.

As long as he yielded, Liu Ji Shan could be saved.

On the throne, Ren Ye looked at the men before him, at Wang Jingzhong's corpse still kneeling on the floor, and listened to those naked threats. Something suddenly came back to him.

When he had first entered the detention center, regulations required him, as a former law enforcement officer, to be interrogated and detained in another jurisdiction. He had therefore been confined in an unfamiliar city, without any colleagues he knew, while friends from his former workplace and his family were forbidden to visit.

During the six months of legal proceedings, he had spent three living in inhuman conditions. The jailhouse bullies had tormented him relentlessly for a simple reason: his family had not deposited money for him. You think working anti-fraud makes you hot shit? I'll make you scrub toilets. I'll send serious offenders to slap you in the middle of the night and stick you with endless night shifts...

At first, Ren Ye had only wanted to serve his sentence quietly and earn a reduction so he could get out sooner. Later, however, he realized that human malice was intolerable-and must not be tolerated. Unconditional kindness did not inspire repentance. It merely earned condescending favors...

If the bully was in a good mood that day, he might not beat you. If he thought of his mother, he might even give you an extra mouthful of food. But if he was in a bad mood tomorrow, those favors could be withdrawn in an instant.

After enduring three months, Ren Ye finally understood something. He fought inside the detention center for seven consecutive days, landed in solitary twice, visited the infirmary three times and the hospital once, then was transferred to another cell block. From then on, not a single person in the entire detention center dared mess with him.

When someone demands things from you without limit, you have to make them pay!!!

Never let them plunder or oppress you easily. Make them consider the consequences of everything they do.

Whoosh!

In an instant, Ren Ye abruptly stood.

"Your Highness, if Moral Adviser Liu is sent back to the capital for trial, we can reconsider Wang Jingzhong's case as well..." Seeing him rise, one official assumed he was giving in and began softening his stance.

Tap, tap...!

Ren Ye ignored him entirely. In just four strides, he descended the nine steps, then walked straight to the hall entrance, found a guard, and drew the gleaming steel saber from the man's waist.

The princess consort had not raised her head when he walked away, but when he drew the saber, a glint flashed in her eyes.

Every official in the hall was stunned to see Ren Ye draw a weapon.

Tap, tap...!

With hurried footsteps, Ren Ye approached Liu Ji Shan, saber in hand.

Collapsed at his feet, Liu Ji Shan looked up at Ren Ye, trembling all over. "Y-Your Highness...!"

Ren Ye looked down at him with an icy gaze. "Did you hear the charges Xue’er read? You were colluding with the Southern Border as early as Emperor Jing's first year. If we investigate further, we might drag quite a few others out along with you!"

Liu Ji Shan froze.

Ren Ye pointed the saber at him. "Listen carefully. When I cut you, you must not move. Move once, and I'll take those charges and raid your entire household first!"

"Your Highness...!" At this sight, Chief Administrator Li Yan could no longer restrain himself. He raised his head and shouted.

Slash!

Holding the guard's saber, Ren Ye slashed straight into Liu Ji Shan's face.

"Aah!!!"

His agonized scream rang through the hall. Clutching his face, Liu Ji Shan rolled about in pain.

Slash!

Ren Ye swung again, severing six fingers from the hands Moral Adviser Liu had pressed to his face.

"Did you hear my order? You must not move!"

His furious roar echoed as Ren Ye swung again, eyes wide.

Slash!

The blade caught Liu Ji Shan across the back as he rolled on the floor, leaving a wound half the length of the saber.

His body told him to dodge or die, but his still-rational mind insisted, The princess consort is backing him today. If I move, he really might raid my entire household.

Caught between those thoughts, he dared neither flee nor truly stay still, his movements utterly pathetic.

Slash!

Another blow came, opening a wound on his right wrist deep enough to expose bone. Flesh curled outward, and blood gushed.

"Your Highness, spare me... spare me...!" Liu Ji Shan gave in and began pleading loudly.

Slash!

"Did you think I sat in this position without making any preparations?! Did you really think I was just your plaything?!!" Ren Ye shouted, veins bulging on his forehead.

At those words, the officials who had been anxious, furious, and even considering physically intervening all turned toward the princess consort.

What did that useless fool mean? He hadn't come unprepared? Did that mean he and the princess consort had conspired to set this countertrap today?

The more they thought about it, the more terrifying it became!

Sweat streamed down the officials' foreheads as they looked at the princess consort, hearts pounding. They remembered her saying that Xue’er had over twenty more lists of charges...

Could it really be true?

The princess consort ignored them and did not contradict Ren Ye. She merely drank her tea in silence, as though she were an outsider.

On the floor, Liu Ji Shan's blood mingled with Wang Jingzhong's, spreading everywhere. His fingers and severed hand... were still warm.

Ren Ye had slashed him more than a dozen times. He could no longer remember exactly how many. Only when exhaustion set in did he wipe his sweat with his sleeve.

Whoosh!

He took a couple of panting breaths, turned toward the officials, and slowly approached the Qingliang Prefect. His question was brief. "Are you satisfied with my ruling?"

The Qingliang Prefect gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, glancing at Liu Ji Shan, who lay barely breathing in a pool of blood. "Y-Your Highness judges cases with divine wisdom!"

"Do you have any more cases for me?" Ren Ye asked.

"I am somewhat fatigued and would like to return home to rest."

Ren Ye looked away. Still holding the saber in his right hand, he prodded another official beside him. "What about you? Do you have any more cases for me?"

The tip pierced his skin, and blood trickled down from his shoulder blade. The official dared not move, answering in a trembling voice, "I... I have no cases for Your Highness."

"Then you may all leave."

Ren Ye dropped the saber with a clang and turned toward his seat.

Whoosh!

The princess consort, Xu Qingzhao, rose. Her lovely face abruptly chilled, and her sharp eyes swept across the officials as she spoke softly. "As long as Prince Huai's Residence remains, you all have your duties and important roles to play. But if it ceases to exist and you return to the capital, where formidable figures abound, where will you find another regional prince to monitor? How will you continue pleasing His Majesty so you can more conveniently take bribes and bend the law?"

Faced with this blunt warning, every official fell silent.

"I simply dislike speaking. I'm not dead." The princess consort turned toward the side door and left them with an icy remark. "Do not push him too far. He is, after all, my husband!"

With that, the Princess Consort left the Conscientious Hall with her maid.

Inside the hall, Ren Ye took the handkerchief a maid offered and wiped the blood from his hands. "Investigate Liu Ji Shan's entire family first. As you said, colluding with the enemy and betraying the country is a grave matter. He must have accomplices!"

Then Ren Ye gave his personal eunuch a meaningful look and eagerly hurried after Xu Qingzhao.