The slap made stars burst before Lin Yan's eyes. Half her face swelled visibly, and blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.
Never in her life had she suffered such humiliation. The blow stunned her. She stood rooted to the spot, clutching her face, even forgetting to cry.
She finally realized that these people were not her father's household servants or guards, much less slaves she could beat and berate at will.
They were the emperor's own soldiers, killing machines that obeyed only imperial commands.
Standing before the crowd, Lin Hong, too, seemed to have been drained of all vitality.
He looked at his children being led away, at his wailing wife and concubines, and at the residence that was about to be searched and seized. The light in his eyes went out completely, leaving them ashen and lifeless.
"Lu Ying, how ruthless your methods are..." Lin Hong murmured.
Lu Ying looked at him without expression, not a trace of pity in his eyes.
"Take them all away!"
Before dawn, news had spread throughout the capital that the Lin Family's residence had been searched and seized overnight by the Imperial Guard, and that everyone in the household had been thrown into the imperial prison.
Many powerful families and nobles broke out in a cold sweat at once.
When the rabbit died, the fox grieved; creatures mourned their own kind.
Many of them had harbored the same thoughts as the Lin Family, but had simply not yet had time to put them into action.
After a brief spell of fright, they swiftly cut ties.
They all knew that since the emperor had acted so decisively, even deploying the Imperial Guard, he was truly furious. No one could protect the Lin Family now, and no one dared try.
So when the morning court convened, those who might only yesterday have called Lin Hong their brother scrambled to step forward and denounce the Lin Family.
By their accounts, the Lin Family had colluded with the enemy and betrayed the nation. Their monstrous crimes were too numerous to record on all the bamboo slips in the world; even sentencing the whole family, young and old, to death by a thousand cuts would not quell the hatred in their hearts.
On the dragon throne, Emperor Yang Zhao sat expressionless, watching the officials' performance coldly without a word.
Only when the hall gradually fell quiet and no one spoke again did Yang Zhao slowly open his mouth.
"The Lin Family has betrayed the nation's grace, and death would not suffice to atone for their crimes. But in consideration of their ancestors' contributions to the founding of the dynasty, death by a thousand cuts would be contrary to propriety."
Hearing this, quite a few people stirred, thinking that the emperor had ultimately remembered old ties and intended to deal with them leniently.
But Yang Zhao's next words shocked them.
"Yet the law of the land shows no mercy. Anything less than a severe punishment will not appease the people's anger. Convey my decree: the entire Lin clan, men and women, old and young, shall be taken to Caishikou and beheaded in public!"
The whole family would be executed!
After a moment of dead silence, the officials dropped to their knees as one and thundered, "Long live the emperor!" Yet some of their voices trembled.
In the dark, damp imperial prison, Lin Hong lay curled up in a heap of straw. The former dignity of a great family's patriarch had vanished, and his face was drawn with anxiety.
He still clung to one last illusion.
He pinned his hopes on the great families friendly with the Lin Family coming to his rescue. Even if he lost his entire fortune, as long as he kept his life, there was still a chance he could rise again.
Just then, the heavy cell door opened, and a piercing light shone in.
Lin Hong narrowed his eyes. When he made out who had come, the last trace of color drained from his face.
The newcomer wore a crimson official's robe and a solemn expression. It was Lu Ying, vice minister of personnel.
It was over.
The moment Lin Hong saw Lu Ying, he knew it was all over.
If it were only a matter of confiscating the family's property, the emperor would never have sent Lu Ying, his bitter enemy, with whom he had a grudge.
"By the mandate of Heaven, the emperor decrees..."
Expressionless, Lu Ying unrolled the imperial edict and began to read.
When Lin Hong heard that they were to be taken to Caishikou and beheaded in public, the strength was instantly sucked from his body. He collapsed to the ground like a puddle of mud, his eyes vacant and utterly lifeless.
Having finished reading, Lu Ying put away the edict and looked down at him, his voice cold.
"Patriarch Lin, for sins of one's own making, there is no deliverance. You chose this path yourself. You can't blame anyone else."
"Heh heh... heh heh heh..."
Lin Hong suddenly let out a string of unintelligible, bitter laughs from the ground. Then he slowly raised his head and stared coldly at Lu Ying.
"Don't get smug, Lu Ying. Before long, the iron hooves of the grassland barbarians will trample the capital flat. Then none of you will survive. I'll be waiting for you on the road to the Yellow Springs!"
Lu Ying only smiled. "The nation has supported its scholars for a hundred years. Now that its survival hangs in the balance, it is our duty as scholars to serve our country with loyalty and die for the realm. It is also an honor."
He bent forward slightly and said coldly, "You, on the other hand, Patriarch Lin-you schemed all your life and were clever all your days, but you never imagined you would end up with your line wiped out and your name stinking for ten thousand years, did you?"
With that, Lu Ying spared the dying man no further glance. He turned at once and swept away, flicking his sleeves.
News that the Lin Family would be executed at noon the next day seemed to sprout wings, flying swiftly through every street and alley in the capital.
The common people rushed to tell one another, spreading the joyful news everywhere.
Before dawn the next day, the area around Caishikou was already a sea of people. Every rooftop, wall, and tree branch with a view of the execution ground was packed, while latecomers could only stand at the back on tiptoe, fretting helplessly.
As noon approached, dozens of prison carts entered the execution ground under the escort of soldiers.
In the leading cart was Lin Hong, his face ashen.
When he saw the dense mass of people around him and the looks of contempt they cast his way, an unprecedented sense of humiliation surged in his heart. He was so ashamed and furious he wanted to die, and could only bow his head deeply, not daring to meet anyone's eyes.
In the cart behind him, his precious son Lin Rui was so frightened that tears and snot streamed down his face. His crotch was wet and warm, and the stench of urine spread, drawing a burst of laughter from the surrounding crowd.
The third young lady, Lin Yan, was also weeping, like pear blossoms drenched in rain.
Her once-lovely face was covered in mud and tears as she cried out and begged for mercy, her heart seemingly torn apart.
Unfortunately, no one paid any attention to their wails.
Lu Ying was the official overseeing the executions that day.
Dressed in his official robes, he wore a grave expression and turned a deaf ear to the Lin Family's cries and pleas for mercy.
Once all the condemned had knelt on the execution platform, he looked up at the sky, then drew a red-tipped command tally from the holder and threw it to the ground without hesitation.
"Execute them!"
At the command, the executioners, who had long been waiting, took mouthfuls of strong liquor and sprayed it over their broadswords.
Then their arms rose, and the blades fell!
Splurt! Splurt! Splurt!
Blood sprayed, and one once-noble head after another rolled into the dust.
The tens of thousands of people at the execution ground fell silent for a moment, then erupted in thunderous cheers.
Meanwhile, in a private room on the second floor of a teahouse not far from Caishikou,
Chen Ye sat by the window, taking in everything that happened in the distance.
When he saw every member of the Lin Family beheaded, his expression did not change in the slightest. He simply picked up the cup of tea on the table and drained it in one gulp.
The tea was slightly bitter, then left a sweet aftertaste.
Just like this vendetta.