Inside the great hall of the Imperial Palace, a battle of words without smoke briefly played out, then came to an end.
They watched Huangfu Hong leave with Zhang Yancheng and the other court ministers, their expressions grim.
Ouyang De, Huang Quan, and the others exchanged glances, surprise showing in their eyes.
As companions and allies of the Gu Lineage, they knew the character of this Third Young Master of the Gu Family quite well.
Even though Gu Chenfeng had won the title of Poetry Champion of the Imperial Capital with his astonishing poetic talent not long ago.
They had not thought this third young master would have changed much.
Not until today, when he returned to the Imperial Capital as the Northern Territory's "foremost contributor" and they met him in this great hall.
Only then did they discover that this Third Young Master of the Gu Family was actually modest, composed, and courteous in speech.
That alone had surprised them.
They had never expected that, when Zhang Yancheng and the others suddenly confronted him with accusations just now.
Gu Chenfeng would perform so brilliantly.
After all, Zhang Yancheng and the others were all senior court officials, old foxes who had weathered the ups and downs of officialdom for years.
What ordinary official could withstand the force of their combined questioning?
One careless moment, and he would give them ammunition, fall into the trap of having to prove his innocence, and only smear himself darker with every attempt to explain.
Yet Gu Chenfeng had faced such a scene for the first time without the slightest fear.
Not only had his reasoning been clear, but his words had been sharp; once he seized on their flaws, he unleashed a barrage of crushing blows.
His methods were both shameless and seasoned. How