The emperor set the porcelain vase down expressionlessly.
If he weren't worried about alerting the enemy, he would have had Eunuch Wang throw the thing away long ago.
Upon seeing this, Zeng Xingchang asked, "Does Your Majesty find anything wrong with this medicine?"
The emperor shook his head. "No, it's just that I don't know the origin of this medicine."
He lowered his eyes to look at Zeng Xingchang, subtly concealing the probing in his eyes.
So that's how it is.
Zeng Xingchang revealed everything. "This medicine was specially bestowed upon me by an immortal who pitied my old age and my loyalty."
[What immortal being? This is clearly something you made by killing people and taking their blood... You lie without even thinking, it's chilling.]
This thing was actually made from human blood?
That's terrifying.
The court officials below couldn't help but distance themselves from Zeng Xingchang.
The emperor watched coldly. They could hide, but he had to face this porcelain vase.
" Zeng Xingchang, how dare you!"
The emperor roared, Zeng Xingchang knelt down. Looking at the emperor on the high platform, he said neither servilely nor arrogantly, "Your Majesty, what wrong have I done?"
The Emperor said, "Your mistake was deceiving me. If there truly are immortals in this world, why didn't they come to me, but instead came to you?"
Zeng Xingchang calmly replied, "Seeking me is no different from seeking His Majesty."
The emperor's brow twitched. "What do you mean by that?"
Is this old scoundrel planning a rebellion?
Zeng Xingchang kowtowed, his head pressed against his clasped hands. "Because I am utterly loyal to Your Majesty, if I were to obtain the elixir of immortality, I would certainly offer it to Your Majesty. As for others, they have no such awareness."
[Just say what you want to say, why are you dragging others down with you?]
The courtiers: That's right, that's right.
Tong Aobai retorted, " Lord Zeng, I disagree with what you're saying. I've served His Majesty for over ten years, and my loyalty is as clear as day. In what way am I inferior to you?"
Zeng Xingchang retorted, his neck stiff, "When I was serving His Majesty, you were still stuck in the Ministry of Personnel, let alone holding your current position."
What about me?
Lou Ming frowned at Zeng Xingchang, "You old scoundrel, you're sweeping generalization to elevate your own status. I've been with His Majesty since the time when he was the Crown Prince."
Lou Ming couldn't refute him, Zeng Xingchang muttered, "I'm not going to argue with you people."
"Yes, yes, yes," Deng Jiantong said sarcastically, "You can find the elixir of immortality for His Majesty, but we can't. Lord Zeng is truly the most capable."
That hits the nail on the head.
Zeng Xingchang unconsciously straightened his back even more.
Seeing these people singing in unison, the emperor stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, Lord Zeng's mistake was unintentional. Please rise."
Zeng Xingchang stood up, looking down at everyone, and snorted heavily.
"Your Majesty, I have urgent business to attend to."
Zeng Xingchang turned around and found that it was Xue Lin who was speaking.
He looked down on all the officials in the court, and even more so on Xue Lin, the heir apparent of the Heir of Prince Yong.
Despite being just a prince, he repeatedly exploited His Majesty's grief for Prince Yong, making His Majesty want to give him everything. In His Majesty's eyes, he was almost more favored than the Crown Prince.
There's plenty of time; he'll let His Majesty see Xue Lin's true colors.
The emperor summoned Xue Lin and asked, " Lord Xue, what urgent matter do you have to discuss?"
Xue Lin said, "It concerns that heinous murder case; I have just obtained a lead."
"Oh?"
The two uncles and nephews deliberately glanced at Zeng Xingchang, and seeing his calm expression, the emperor said, "Tell me."
Xue Lin pointed at Zeng Xingchang and said, " Lord Zeng is the murderer."
[ Heir Xue really that capable?]
The courtiers:...
Is it possible that you, Miss Tong, are the truly capable one?
Startled by the sudden accusation, Zeng Xingchang sneered, "Ignorant brat, unable to catch the murderer, you resort to making baseless accusations in the court. Do you think His Majesty will be fooled by you?"
Xue Lin said calmly, "I have evidence."
"Bring it here."
Sichen entered together with one of the emperor's personal guards.
Sichen presented what he was holding, saying, "This was found in Lord Zeng's residence."
Zeng Xingchang looked at Xue Lin, "You ordered your men to search my residence?"
Xue Lin readily admitted, "Yes."
[Ah, so Father and the other adults were just coordinating to buy time? That's amazing... But I must say, Lord Zeng's mental fortitude is truly remarkable.]
It is very strong.
With the facts laid bare, he still had time to reprimand Xue Lin.
" Xue Lin, you're just the heir apparent of Heir of Prince Yong. What right do you have to search my residence? Do you really think you're the crown prince?"
As if Xue Lin had committed a heinous crime, Zeng Xingchang berated him relentlessly.
Xue Lin didn't respond; such words were irrelevant. He only cared about the truth.
Zeng Xingchang, however, thought Xue Lin was afraid, and his words became even more excessive.
"Your Majesty, I have something to say."
The emperor looked at Tong Aning; this was the first time Tong Aning had spoken in court.
The emperor readily agreed and said, "Go ahead."
Tong Aning said, " Lord Zeng keeps calling me an ignorant child. He said that Heir Xue is not qualified to investigate him, so he has the right to insult Heir Xue?"
Xue Lin, who had been listening intently, paused. So Tong Aning was standing up for him?
The emperor nodded. "That makes sense."
The emperor had long been dissatisfied; he glanced at Zeng Xingchang.
Zeng Xingchang quickly replied, "What I said came from the bottom of my heart."
"As an official of the imperial court, and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, how could you repeatedly commit murder? Was it also out of your own volition?" the emperor asked coldly.
"Yes."
This statement was so powerful that even the emperor was somewhat bewildered. Could it be that he had been wronged?
Zeng Xingchang said loudly, "Your Majesty, I did all this for the sake of the country and its people."
The emperor slammed his fist on the table. "Insolence! Zeng Xingchang, do you know what you're saying?"
"Your Majesty, I know that I passed the imperial examination at the age of twenty and spent decades in the officialdom, until Your Majesty ascended the throne, when my talents were finally recognized. But by then, I was already over sixty and no longer young. Now, I am practically half-buried in the earth. But I know that the Great Xia cannot do without me, nor can it do without Your Majesty."
Zeng Xingchang's eyes burned with a fierce fire.
[So this was Zeng Xingchang's real intention in concocting the elixir of immortality? How foolish!]
Even someone as naive as Tong Aning knew that such a thing was incredibly foolish, but Zeng Xingchang seemed determined not to turn back.
He was stubborn, crazy, and still talking about his ambitions.
"Having received Your Majesty's promotion to the position of Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, I have come to realize my exceptional talent in investigating cases. Many have praised me as a genius in crime-solving, for the injustices of the world cannot be solved without me. Similarly, for the people of Great Xia to continue to live in peace and prosperity, and for the land to remain secure forever, Your Majesty is indispensable. For such a great cause, those who died deserved their fate."
[He's gone mad, completely mad.]
The emperor was also very disappointed in Zeng Xingchang.
He's right.
He was indeed a rare genius in solving cases. During his more than ten years as the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, he was able to clear the names of many old cases.
But the emperor never expected that this would lead Zeng Xingchang down the path of murder and bloodletting.
Before Zeng Xingchang was taken away, the emperor said, "All the people of the world are my subjects. If I were to slaughter them indiscriminately just because they could grant me eternal life, how could the people of the world still trust me?"
A look of bewilderment crossed Zeng Xingchang's face. His unwavering belief began to waver. Had he really made a mistake?
No, he did nothing wrong, he did nothing wrong!
*
"Such a thing actually happened?"
"Yes," Tong Aning echoed Su Zhouyue as she drank her porridge, "It's terrifying."
Su Zhouyue asked curiously, "How did he know that human blood could be used to make an elixir of immortality?"
Tong Aning said, " Zeng Xingchang said he saw it by chance in a storybook."
Tong Siyan asked, "What storybook?"
Tong Aning thought carefully but couldn't remember. Tong Yibin said, " Record of Shared Hearts."
Tong Aning nodded. "Yes, yes, that's the name."
Tong Siyan said blankly, " A Yao and I are also watching ' Record of Shared Hearts,' but we didn't see this part."
Mu Yao: "I don't remember either."
Tong Aning: "... He wouldn't be watching a pirated copy, would he?"
Everyone stared at Tong Aning, Tong Aobai asked, "What is piracy?"
Tong Aning explained, "It means taking someone else's storybook and printing it, but there might be printing errors, resulting in a significant difference from the original."
"Oh, I see," Tong Siyan with some relief, "Luckily, I read the official version."
Tong Aning asked with amusement, "Second Sister, why have you and Sister Mu Yao become so obsessed with storybooks lately?"
"It's beautiful."
Their eyes were sparkling.
Their behavior piqued Tong Aning's interest, Tong Aning said, "What have you been watching lately? Let me see too."
Tong Siyan: "I heard that 'High Mountains and Distant Waters' has been very popular lately, and it seems to have been written by one of the court officials."
Tong Aning: "Huh?"
*
Tong Siyan bought three copies of High Mountains and Distant Waters," giving one to Mu Yao, one to Tong Aning, and keeping the last one for herself.
With nothing else to do, Tong Aning flipped through a few pages.
She sat up from the recliner.
[Isn't this just like dating your mortal enemy?]
It's all over, even this place has been invaded by our arch-rival, Literature, but Tong Aning is hooked.
When she attended court, her dark circles were even more pronounced, making her look even more like a panda than Lin Yu did at the time.
Tong Yibin said, "Stop reading storybooks without restraint."
Tong Aning nodded. "I understand, I already regret it."
Seeing how heartbroken she was, Tong Yibin didn't say anything more.
[But who wrote " High Mountains and Distant Waters"? I really want to read the next book!]
Tong Yibin: "..."
It turns out it wasn't that they planned to stop watching, but rather that there was nothing left to watch.
A commotion arose ahead.
Tong Aning lifted the curtain. [Today, there were people arguing right at the palace gate. If they really went to court, they'd probably fight.]
Tong Aobai asked, "Who's arguing?"
Tong Aning said, "I don't know either of the two people arguing."
Although Tong Aning had been introduced to many people by Tong Aobai and Tong Yibin during this time, Tong Aning's memory was limited.
[Host, didn't you want to see High Mountains and Distant Waters? The author is right there between those two.]