Questioning the spirits

The first people to see the edict of self-reproach, filled with disbelief and shock, and the excitement of "I have firsthand information," spread the news wildly.

Then, countless people flocked to the city gates.

"Is it an edict of self-reproach?"

The illiterate people, and those who couldn't get to the front, shouted loudly.

"Yes, it's an edict of self-reproach! His Majesty has indeed issued an edict of self-reproach!" the person in front shouted in response.

"Quickly, read it!" the people behind urged impatiently.

"The Emperor then issued an edict, deeply regretting his past actions, saying: 'I, with my meager virtue, inherited the throne. I intended to renew the world and restore the old ways of our ancestors. Unexpectedly, I relied on the wrong people, which led to the destruction of Chuzhou City.' (Note 1)

"May 16th, the 37th year of the Yuanjing era."

The entire edict of self-reproach, nearly a thousand words long, was read aloud by an elderly Confucian scholar standing in front of the notice board, with measured intonation.

Among ordinary people, some understood, but most remained confused. They were only certain of one thing: Emperor Yuanjing had indeed issued an edict of self-reproach!

"Is it because of the massacre in Chuzhou?"

"Your Majesty has issued an edict of self-reproach, which means that everything Xu Yinluo said yesterday was true, isn't that right?"

"Those rumors circulating in the streets that smear Xu Yinluo are all false, right?"

The people are most concerned about this matter. Although they trust Xu Qi'an, there were also many rumors circulating yesterday that smeared Xu Yinluo, and they were made to sound very convincing.

They desperately needed definitive information to dispel the rumors.

Moreover, in the eyes of the common people, the status of the imperial court is deeply ingrained. If the imperial court acknowledges this matter, coupled with Xu Yinluo's prestige, then there will be no more doubts, and they will not believe anything anyone says in the future.

The old scholar gestured for the crowd to quiet down. He nodded in satisfaction, then shook his head and sighed, saying:

"His Majesty issued an edict of self-reproach, admitting to condoning the massacre of the city by the Prince of Zhenbei. Xu Yinluo, what he said yesterday was all true. If Xu Yinluo hadn't drawn his sword in anger, the injustice of the massacre in Chuzhou would have been difficult to redress. Lord Zheng, he would have died with his eyes wide open in disgrace."

Cheers and shouts erupted simultaneously, creating a great uproar.

"It's truly a blessing from heaven that the Great Feng could produce a Xu Yinluo."

"It's a pity that Xu Yinluo is no longer an official."

"So what if he's not an official? He's still a hero of the Great Feng."

As for the criticism

"A tyrannical ruler! This tyrannical ruler! Aren't the people of Chuzhou also subjects of our Great Feng Dynasty?"

"A ruler who cultivates Daoism for twenty years is a foolish one; one who condones the massacre of the city by the Prince of Zhenbei is a tyrant."

"The Great Feng will one day perish at his hands."

The cursing quickly subsided, suppressed by the surrounding soldiers, but the people continued to curse quietly or in their hearts.

The officers and soldiers did not actually intend to do anything to these civilians who had committed such a serious offense of disrespect.

When an emperor issues an edict of self-reproach, it is itself an admission of wrongdoing, and it also provides the people with a channel to vent their frustrations and express their anger.

Imperial Academy (Guozijian)

The Imperial Academy, once a sacred place for scholars where the sound of reading aloud echoed, was now filled with impassioned rebukes and angry curses.

When scholars start cursing, they use far more varied and creative methods than ordinary people.

"The death of the Prince of Zhenbei is not a pity, but I never expected that even His Majesty would be such a foolish ruler. This is a sign of the downfall of the country. How can we allow him to act so recklessly? Supervisor, did the Supervisor not know this beforehand?"

"Not a single man among the officials of this court is a true man. We have studied the classics diligently, only to be forced to associate with this bunch of spineless scholars?"

"Only if Xu Yinluo slays those two traitors and makes a huge scene will they dare to defy His Majesty. Bah! If it were me, I would have kowtowed to the ground on the spot."

"Although warriors break the law by force, only warriors can turn the tide when faced with such heinous acts."

"Alas, if this is recorded in history books in the future, scholars will lose all face. It's a pity that Xu Yinluo Non-Self a Confucian School scholar like us."

Just then, a young student ran in, excitedly saying, "Ladies and gentlemen, I just heard some good news!"

The students in the college looked over and frowned.

Although the emperor issued an edict of self-reproach, acknowledging the matter and preventing the loyal minister from suffering injustice, the incident itself remains a dark tragedy and is not something to be excited about.

The young student greeted the crowd excitedly, "I heard that today, Zhao Shou, the dean of the Cloud Deer Academy, appeared in the court and, in front of all the officials and His Majesty, said that Xu Yinluo is his disciple."

What?!

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the courtyard exploded with excitement as the students, their faces beaming with anticipation, strode forward to greet him.

"Is Xu Yinluo a student of the Cloud Deer Academy?"

"Dean Zhao's personal disciple, is this really true?"

Several students blushed, grabbed the man's sleeve, and loudly demanded an explanation.

At this point, if I said it was a joke, I'd probably get beaten up. The man muttered to himself, then nodded and said, "This matter is circulating in official circles; Non-Self something I made up."

"Haha, two happy events today! Let's have a big drink! Come on, let's go drink!"

"I'm not reading today, I'm indulging myself."

The Great Feng of Dafeng has always been a military man, a thorn in the side of all scholars. Every time this is mentioned, they feel both admiration and regret.

They believe that future generations will inevitably laugh at this generation of scholars when they look back on this history. After all, what do scholars care about after their deaths?

Now that they know Xu Qi'an is a student of the Cloud Deer Academy, they are overjoyed. Although Cloud Deer Academy and the Imperial Academy have a dispute over the lineage of doctrines, history books will not concern themselves with that.

They were both Confucian School scholars.

The students of the Imperial Academy went out drinking with their friends.

The supervisor reported this to the Chancellor, who angrily rebuked him. "Nearly half of the students in the Imperial Academy have gone out to fool around, and today is not a day off."

The elderly priest, his hair white as snow, leaned against the soft couch and said expressionlessly:

"Today's events in the court tell us that those who act justly gain abundant support, while those who act unjustly find themselves isolated; the sage has not deceived us."

The meaning of the chief priest is not to antagonize the masses, but to appropriately abandon rules and make concessions when faced with the general trend. The supervisor encountered a rebuff and frowned in thought.

Huaiqing Prefecture.

Dressed in a simple white gown, with her long, flowing black hair, Huaiqing sat at the table, her gaze fixed on Lin'an in a red dress, a faint smile on her face, "He has never disappointed, has he?"

He sighed again, "After this incident, Father's reputation and the prestige of the royal family will plummet."

With her oval face and peach-blossom eyes, the pretty girl smiled sweetly and said righteously, "If you do something wrong, you should forgive it. Although I don't like studying, the Grand Tutor taught us that it is of utmost importance to know your mistakes and correct them."

Being simple-minded isn't such a bad thing. Huaiqing inwardly scorned his sister, but he wouldn't say it out loud.

It wasn't out of consideration for Lin'an, but rather because she would definitely get angry and pounce on her, pecking at her face.

Huaiqing found it troublesome.

Smart people don't create trouble for themselves.

Seeing that Huaiqing remained silent, Lin'an raised her snow-white chin, her elaborate headdress swaying, and said in a sweet voice:

"Some people shout about righteousness and say that their father was wrong, but when it comes to helping out, they immediately fall silent."

As she spoke, she looked down at Huaiqing with a proud gaze, indicating that she had won this round and had finally beaten Huaiqing once.

"Biaobiao" refers to the act of bringing Li Miaozhen and Hengyuan into the imperial city and taking them in.

Huaiqing smiled.

After Xu Qi'an killed the two traitors, Lin'an felt relieved and regained her liveliness. In addition, because she had harbored the "traitor" the day before, her thoughts were cleared up.

Otherwise, one would definitely bottle it up inside, for a long time, not to the point of developing a deep-seated resentment, but this simple and pure heart would inevitably be clouded with gloom.

Huaiqing deliberately "gave" the credit to Lin'an for this reason.

However, Huaiqing was not the kind of tolerant sister who would stand idly by while Lin'an provoked her. She smiled approvingly and said, "Yes, she's much more responsible than your Crown Prince brother."

Lin'an's face immediately fell.

"I'm going back home." She stood up angrily.

The tinkling of jade pendants caught Huaiqing's eye; it was a pale yellow jade pendant with a smooth, lustrous texture.

The aloof princess paused slightly, then frowned. "What's that on your waist?"

Lin'an stretched out her small white hand, holding the jade pendant in her palm, and said with an "oh" as she explained:

"This jade pendant was a gift from that lackey. The quality and craftsmanship are mediocre, but he carved it himself. Look at all the flaws. If it were bought, it definitely wouldn't be like this."

Having said that, she raised her face in a showy manner, revealing her beautifully curved chin.

Perhaps without even realizing it, there was a subtle sweetness in her words.

Huaiqing's fair face momentarily flashed with a storm-like expression, but she quickly regained her composure and said calmly, "Get lost, don't get in my way."

"I was going to leave anyway, humph!"

Biao Biao was magnanimous, thinking that Huai Qing had stopped her just to say that last sentence in order to save face and put her down.

She turned away unhappily, her swaying waist and flowing skirt making her walk into the inner hall.

After the woman in the red dress left, Huaiqing angrily pulled a small seal from his pocket and threw it on the ground in frustration.

After a while, she got up again, lifted her skirt, and went to pick it up. Upon closer inspection, she found that a small chip was missing from one corner of the seal.

Her two beautiful eyebrows immediately furrowed, showing some concern.

In a secluded room in the Star-Gazing Tower.

Xu Qi'an removed his yin-yang robe, untied the red knot, and two wisps of green smoke emerged, transforming in mid-air into the shapes of Que Yongxiu and Duke Cao.

As the two spirits appeared, the indoor temperature dropped slightly.

This ghost was specially made by Li Miaozhen. It can summon the ghosts of the newly deceased without the need to inscribe any formations, because the ghost contains its own formation.

The Daoist School is also skilled at making Law Artifact, although compared to Warlock, one considers it a side job while the other is their profession.

The Duke of Cao and Que Yongxiu had recently died and were still in a daze, answering every question but showing no signs of thought.

Xu Qi'an first looked at Duke Cao: "How did you know about the massacre?"

Duke Cao said blankly, "After Que Yongxiu returned to the capital, he secretly met with His Majesty. Not long afterward, I was summoned by His Majesty and informed of this matter."

What did he ask you to do?

"Fully cooperating with him" includes acting as his "straight man" in court, helping him spread rumors, and so on.

Duke Cao only learned about the massacre afterward; well, the value of that ghost plummeted.

Xu Qi'an turned to Que Yongxiu and asked, "Do you know the whole story of the massacre?"

Que Yongxiu replied blankly, "I know."

Tell me the whole story.

"."

Ah, such low IQ, I really can't exploit loopholes like this. I have to ask one question at a time. Xu Qi'an thought to himself with disdain, and calmly asked:

"Are you aware that the Prince of Zhenbei is collaborating with the head of the Earth Sect and a high-ranking sorcerer of the Witch God Cult?"

"Know."

"Did Emperor Yuanjing already know about this?"

"The massacre of the city was entirely planned by His Majesty and the Prince of Huai."

Xu Qi'an was not surprised by this answer, because he had already realized from Duke Wei's hints that Emperor Yuanjing was very likely one of the masterminds behind all of this.

"Why massacre the city instead of starting a war?" Xu Qi'an asked.

"The required Essence Blood is too large and time-consuming. Moreover, the start of the war will introduce many uncontrollable factors into the plan, making it unreliable," Que Yongxiu replied.

"What was Emperor Yuanjing's true purpose in planning this?" Xu Qi'an asked again.

He always felt that Emperor Yuanjing was too indulgent towards the Prince of Zhenbei, and even impatient for the Prince of Zhenbei to be promoted, which was not in line with the mentality of an emperor, especially a suspicious one.

Can the words "martial arts fanatic" truly erase the suspicion and apprehension of a shrewd and calculating emperor?

"The Prince of Huai said that if he were promoted to the second rank, he could check and balance the Director of the Imperial Academy, giving the royal family a true pillar of the nation. There would be no need to be overly wary of the Director and Cloud Deer Academy. This is also His Majesty's wish."

That reason isn't enough, do you really believe it?

Que Yongxiu's next sentence caused Xu Qi'an's expression to change slightly.

"Your Majesty wishes to refine Soul Pills."

The Soul Pill... is it something Emperor Yuanjing wants to refine? That doesn't make sense. Daoist Jinlian wasn't very certain when he said that the leader of the Earth Sect wouldn't need a Soul Pill.

So, one brother wanted the Blood Pill, and the other wanted the Soul Pill, and thus they began to exploit the common people.

Master Jinlian once said that the Soul Pill is used to enhance the Primordial Spirit, serve as a material for alchemy, refine Law Treasure artifacts, repair incomplete souls, and cultivate artifact spirits. These alone do not seem to be enough to make Emperor Yuanjing defy the world and sacrifice the people of an entire city.

Of course, the Soul Pill is only one of the gains; the Blood Pill can help the King of Zhenbei reach the Great Perfection.

However, the beneficiary was the Prince of Zhenbei, and compared to that, Emperor Yuanjing's gains were not enough to make him take the risk and make this decision.

When a person's gains are disproportionate to the risks they take, things are definitely not as simple as they seem. Xu Qi'an pinched the bridge of his nose.

He didn't think for long before asking, "Where is the Soul Pill?"

Note 1: The first sentence is Emperor Wu of Han's edict of self-reproach, and the following sentence is the beginning of Emperor Chongzhen's edict of self-reproach.

P. S.: I'll collect the donations from the past few days tomorrow and express my gratitude. I don't have time today, so I'm updating just in time.