In the imperial palace, the emperor smashed dozens of porcelain pieces and swung his sword through countless curtains. His furious roars echoed through every corner of the palace.
"Outrageous! Outrageous!
Does the Luo Clan truly think I dare not act?
Does the Luo Clan truly think I fear them?"
All the attendants in the hall knelt prostrate, their heads bowed low. None dared step forward to dissuade the enraged emperor.
The emperor even wrote out an edict himself. He was confident he could kill Marquis Ying's entire clan within a short time.
Successive Marquises Ying had never taken concubines and had always had few children. Unlike other families, they had no sprawling lineage, making them very convenient to kill.
But then he recalled the Luo Clan behind Marquis Ying, with its influence spread throughout the states.
The emperor feared that the moment he issued the imperial edict, the states would come battering at his borders.
In his anger, the emperor smashed another treasure.
In the end, nothing happened.
The emperor could not possibly swallow such an affront. He left those who had fled into Marquis Ying's Marquisate alone.
But he imposed strict inspections around Marquis Ying's Marquisate. Anyone caught fleeing there was executed on the spot.
For a time, the commanderies and counties became killing grounds in a desperate flight for survival. The partisans fled everywhere from the court's pursuit; capture almost invariably meant death.
Even knowing that sheltering these partisans would bring destruction upon their entire households, countless people still took them in. This showed just how fiercely public anger seethed throughout the realm.
As the only man who had stood firm and retorted to the emperor, Marquis Ying saw his reputation throughout the realm soar once more. He had become the crowning glory of the houses of high-ranking