The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 400 Promotion by Three Ranks
As the emperor finished speaking, Li Miao took a step forward.

This step is extremely long and far-reaching.

To officials who were not skilled in martial arts, the figure of this former commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who had almost never appeared in official circles, suddenly blurred, and when he reappeared, he was already on the steps outside the Fengtian Hall.

Li Miao shook the golden melon hammer in his hand at Yan Song, who was several feet away, and grinned.

At the same time, the emperor on the dragon throne spoke again.

"The second thing."

Zhu Zai continued the conversation without hesitation.

"Four days ago, Liu Chun, Shouxia, Shangqiu, and Cundong, the eunuchs in charge of Nanjing, colluded with the Flag Guard and the Right Cavalry Guard to plot a rebellion. After investigation by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, it was found that seven people, including Mu Yizhi, Minister of War, and Sheng Sinian, Deputy Commander of the Five Armies Protectorate, were involved in the plot."

As he spoke, he took out the documents that Li Miao had found in Nanjing from his pocket, and with a flick of his wrist, the documents flew out like arrows. They fell to the ground right in front of Yan Song and spread out on the ground in front of him.

Yan Song ignored him, his face expressionless.

The Imperial Guards rushed into the crowd, dragged several people out, and pinned them down in front of the crowd.

Some officials wanted to speak up, but seeing that Yan Song remained unmoved, and seeing Liu Zhe's headless corpse lying on the ground in front of them, they could only stand there in place, silent.

The emperor spoke slowly.

"In the Nanjing incident, Li Miao, the Vice Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, made outstanding contributions and quelled the rebellion. He was promoted to the rank of Assistant Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, a third-rank official."

As the emperor finished speaking, Li Miao took another step, reducing the distance between him and Yan Song by half.

Liu Zhe's headless corpse lay on one side, blood gushing from the severed neck, pooling at Li Miao's feet.

Li Miao shook the golden mace in his hand again, and the lowered mace head swept across the blood pool, creating a spray of tiny blood droplets that splattered onto the faces and bodies of the officials at the front.

Their faces turned pale, and they shuddered.

If they didn't understand each other's intentions when Li Miao first took his step, the malice in Li Miao's actions and expressions is now gradually becoming clear and explicit.

Three things, three steps.

The blood-stained golden mace, and the high-ranking officials at the forefront who were pressed down and knelt on the ground by the Imperial Guards.

What will Li Miao do after the third step? After the emperor finishes speaking about the third matter, how many more people's blood will be stained on that golden mace that was dipped in Liu Zhe's blood?

Just thinking about it sent a chill down their spines. Some were already regretting why they had forced the emperor to abdicate today, and why they had even appeared here, and they trembled even more as a result.

But the emperor did not give them a chance to catch their breath.

"The third thing."

"The assassination attempt on the emperor by the Ming Cult rebels, and the attack on Daxi."

Zhu Zai continued the conversation without hesitation.

"According to the investigation by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, this matter was committed by Grand Secretaries Miao Luoyu, Hou Feiyu, Jiao Lingyan, and Min Yu, Minister of Rites Gu Zhiyi, and others, in collusion with the Ming Cult traitors."

"First, they conspired with eunuchs to assassinate His Majesty in the Tianshou Mountain mausoleum. After their plot was foiled by the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Xiaoling Guard, they did not give up and attempted to assassinate His Majesty again when he returned to the capital!"

He suddenly waved his hand.

"Capture the thief!"

Then more Imperial Guards rushed into the crowd and dragged several people out.

This time, some people started to stir.

There's no other reason than that, while the previous two matters could be considered to have solid evidence and a legitimate basis, this third matter was entirely fabricated by Zhu Zai.

The truth about the imperial tombs is currently known only to a limited number of people. Zhu Zai almost completely purged the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Xiaoling Guard, and the Imperial Guard to completely seal off the matter, but some fragments still manage to leak out.

Officials would naturally try to guess the truth about the imperial tomb based on these fragments of information, although no consensus has been reached so far due to the incompleteness of the clues... But this matter could not possibly be as Zhu Zai said! Four Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, the Minister of Rites, eunuchs, and the Ming Cult!
How could these words possibly be combined?!

If these high-ranking officials wanted to rebel, how could they possibly collude with eunuchs? They certainly wouldn't associate with the Ming Cult, those troublemakers in the martial arts world whose minds are only set on rebellion. The power of civil officials lies not in swords and spears, but in reputation and literary talent. Getting involved with such scoundrels, even if they succeeded in their rebellion, would only benefit others!

But looking at it from another angle... these people are none other than the henchmen of Grand Secretary Yan Song!
The clamor of the crowd rose from low to high. The courage emboldened by the sheer number of people and the fear for their own lives finally stirred the lips of these hypocrites.

"Your Majesty! You must not!"

"How can we listen to the words of the Embroidered Uniform Guard alone? This matter is of great importance and should be investigated jointly by the Ministry of Justice, the Five Military Protectorates, the Court of State Ceremonies, and the Court of Judicial Review!"

"Your Majesty! Duke Min could never have been involved in this matter! I am willing to stake my life on it!"

Amidst the clamor of voices behind him, Yan Song slightly raised his head and looked at Li Miao. Their eyes met, and the two exchanged a silent conversation.

"You're in too much of a hurry."

"Oh, no rush."

Yan Song slightly extended his hand from within his robe sleeve, as if lifting the crowd behind him and presenting it to Li Miao. His lips moved, the extremely faint sound like the buzzing of a mosquito.

How can you control people's hearts?

Li Miao raised an eyebrow, a smile playing on her lips, and responded softly in return.

"I'll press it down for you to see."

Just then, the emperor's voice came again from the dragon throne.

"In the assassination attempt, Li Miao, the Deputy Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was commended for his meritorious service in protecting the emperor and in destroying the Ming Cult. He was promoted to Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and bestowed with a python robe, an embroidered spring knife, and a jade belt!"

"The criminals mentioned above are all guilty of heinous crimes... so let Minister Li carry out the executions."

Li Miao turned around and bowed.

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."

Then, he slowly turned around and took his third step of the day.

He stood at the very front of the crowd, in front of the row of people kneeling on the ground, and also in front of Yan Song.

At this distance, Li Miao no longer had to worry about Yan Song not being able to hear what he was saying.

"Lord Yan, last night you seemed to have said something... about a fourth-rank martial artist?"

Li Miao's lips curled up even more.

"You seem to look down on warriors. Is it because Liu Jin and An Qisheng were too polite to you before, causing you to misunderstand? You may not know what a warrior like me is capable of."

"I didn't see clearly last night, and no one died. It was my fault for not being hospitable enough."

"Let's take a good look today."

The moment the words left his mouth, a golden shadow flashed before Yan Song's eyes!
The wind, a fierce gust of wind that rose up within arm's reach, almost pushed him into the crowd!

Then came the piercing sound of wind, and the sounds of objects shattering and liquids splashing, all exploding in an instant!

scoff-

In an instant, only the handle remained of the golden melon hammer in Li Miao's hand.

The people kneeling in front of the crowd all disappeared.

Instead, there was a ravine several dozen feet long, almost bottomless, and a thick, scarlet liquid that exploded in the ravine, mixed with the shattered official hat, splashing at Yan Song's feet and in front of him.

(End of this chapter)