Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 104 The traitor is Tao Zhongwen!
"???"

Huang Jin's heart tightened, and his back was drenched in cold sweat.

I know about these things too!
After all, some of the Emperor's edicts were sent to me, and Yan Maoqing's sweeping generalization included me as well!

Yan Maoqing, you're emitting blue smoke!

Even if I'm not an ally, I'm still neutral, and you're not even letting neutrals go...

"!!!"

Lu Bing kept his head down cautiously, but at this moment he was already in awe of the amazing thing!

Even... why do I still feel a bit of my blood churning?
This is the kind of palace intrigue that men should have!

We won't resort to petty tricks or underhanded tactics. In front of the Emperor, every word is sharp and cutting, with no bottom line and no compromise. The winner lives and the loser dies!

He had never witnessed Yan Maoqing's "battle of wits" with Tao Zhongwen in the West Garden, so he looked at Yan Maoqing with even greater admiration.

Hey, this young man!

I never noticed before; he's even more upright and stubborn than Shen Lian.

I've inexplicably started to like him...

"???"

"!!!"

Tao Zhongwen turned pale and trembled as Yan Maoqing pointed his finger at him.

He never expected that just one sentence he uttered in an attempt to bewitch Zhu Houcong, and before he even finished speaking, would immediately provoke such a powerful counterattack from Yan Maoqing!

This thing emitting blue smoke is clearly plotting revenge, and in order to get revenge on him alone, it's willing to drag everyone involved into it and die together...

The intensity increased so rapidly that even he found it hard to keep up, and he felt a chill run down his spine.

After all, Yan Maoqing was talking about a group of people, but his index finger, which had been bitten down to its nail, was pointing at his nose!
Who understands the feeling of having a guilty conscience and being openly targeted?

Tao Zhongwen couldn't help but steal a glance at Zhu Houcong, but Zhu Houcong's icy expression at that moment made his heart tremble.

His heart tightened, and he had no choice but to push away Yan Maoqing's hand that was pointing at him, and use all his skills to retaliate verbally:

"Yan Maoqing, how dare you spout such nonsense and spread rumors? Does the Emperor have no loyal ministers around him, and only traitors?!"

You make sweeping generalizations, so I'll make sweeping generalizations too!
My sweeping attacks will have a wider impact, and you will make more enemies. Even Huang Jin and Lu Bing will be affected. How will you deal with that?

From here on, we've fallen into the trap of self-justification!

Your cultivation is still far inferior to mine, young man!
However, before Tao Zhongwen could even feel confident for a second, Yan Maoqing's index finger, which had been bitten down to its nail, pointed back again, his lips twitching slightly.

"It's hard to tell!"

"???"

Upon hearing this, Lu Bing was shocked and broke out in a cold sweat.

This bastard dares to say anything. This time he's dragged me into it too. What does it have to do with me?

"You, you, I, I..."

Tao Zhongwen was momentarily flustered and stammered, unable to utter a word.

He never expected that Yan Maoqing would be so reckless, doing the opposite of what he was supposed to do in the face of his counterattack that forced him into a self-proving trap.
Does this thing emitting blue smoke even know the rules? Is this how political struggles are conducted?

Is there really nothing or no one in the world that he cares about anymore?

at last.

"Noisy!"

Zhu Houcong's icy voice finally rang out, causing everyone to stiffen, either bowing even lower or slightly prostrating themselves.

The only difference was that while Yan Maoqing bowed slightly, his index finger, with its nails worn down, was still pointing at Tao Zhongwen, showing no intention of letting go, which annoyed Tao Zhongwen.

Zhu Houcong glared at Yan Maoqing, but did not correct the question. After a moment of silence, he spoke again:
"Except for Yan Maoqing, they are all loyal ministers, there are no treacherous ministers!"

"..."

Although Huang Jin and Lu Bing's foreheads were already pressed tightly against the ground, they still repeated the kowtowing motion.

Tao Zhongwen finally abandoned the carefully maintained air of a superior person and knelt down.

They could tell that Zhu Houcong's words had a double meaning, punishing both sides equally: he was both reprimanding Yan Maoqing for saying things he shouldn't have, and criticizing Tao Zhongwen for further expanding the scope of the struggle.

Only Yan Maoqing remained standing, his finger moving down a foot as Tao Zhongwen knelt down, whether he didn't understand or was pretending not to.

Seeing Yan Maoqing's lack of tact and discretion, Zhu Houcong frowned slightly, then said:
"Lu Bing, I have never condoned anyone cutting off the skins of palace maids to use as a raw material for alchemy. Some people are slandering me based on mere conjecture. What should be their punishment for spreading such fallacies?"

Lu Bing dared not refuse to answer:

"This is a grave offense of disrespect, as well as the offense of slander and seditious speech. The punishment ranges from exile to the frontier to beheading and public execution."

Good job!
Tao Zhongwen was overjoyed upon hearing this! This was truly a case of "the tree you plant with care may not grow, but the willow you plant carelessly may thrive." Yan Maoqing had brought this upon himself; it was as if the heavens were helping him!
Who knows what will happen in the next second.

"Father, spare my life!"

Yan Maoqing suddenly let out a wail and collapsed to his knees with a thud, his pitiful cries echoing throughout the hall.

"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. I will never dare to do it again. I am a loyal subject. Although I was a bit noisy just now, I was trying my best to investigate the case for you!"

"..."

Huang Jin, Lu Bing, and Tao Zhongwen couldn't help but feel contempt. Who can tell me what this thing is?
And what about your finger?
Even now, why don't you put it down quickly? Why are you pointing at Tao Zhongwen (me)? You even say you know you're wrong?
"Humph!"

Zhu Houcong snorted coldly and flicked his sleeve, saying...
"Considering this is your first offense, I will give you another chance. Please repeat your deduction from earlier."

"Thank you, Father, for your mercy!"

How could Yan Maoqing not understand the true meaning of Zhu Houcong's words? He immediately wiped away his tears and changed his tone,

"Since the sovereign was unaware that palace maids were being used as ingredients in alchemy, then those alchemists and sorcerers involved deserve to die even more. These traitors are acting as henchmen for the emperor, deceiving the sovereign and ruining his reputation and moral character. They even dare to use this matter to commit treason. It is better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free; they must not be allowed to live!"

"..."

Huang Jin and Lu Bing had mixed feelings. Was this guy really going after Tao Zhongwen today?
We can't afford to offend him, we really can't afford to offend him. Tao Zhongwen only said half a sentence that was unfavorable to him, does he have to walk out here today?
"..."

Tao Zhongwen now felt a pang of regret and wanted to tear his own mouth apart.

Is this person some kind of persistent pest? It was just half a sentence, why are they so relentless and unwilling to give any leeway?
If all officials in the imperial court acted this way...

I'm afraid it's hard to know how harmonious it can be. After all, if we don't fight, we're fine, but once we fight, it's a fight to the death. Who would dare to fight so easily?
"Say it again!"

Zhu Houcong's brows furrowed even more.

He wanted to resolve the conflict between the two and bring the matter back to the important task of investigating the traitors, instead of watching Yan Maoqing and Tao Zhongwen fight endlessly over the matter of using palace maids as ingredients for alchemy.

After all, all this arguing about will inevitably involve him!
Of course, he did not ignore Yan Maoqing's words, and he had already narrowed down the scope of the traitors to these sorcerers and shamans.

However, even if he thought so, he couldn't admit it, much less do he could do what Yan Maoqing said: "better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free."

Otherwise, the more people die, the greater the impact will be, especially when the scope of criminals is limited. This will point the way for the outside world and make it easier to cause controversy and spread rumors. This is a situation he absolutely does not want to see!
Also.

Zhu Houcong was also aware that Tao Zhongwen was not primarily engaged in alchemy, and that he was merely an insider who knew about the practice of using palace women as medicinal ingredients.

Moreover, Tao Zhongwen had other uses for him...

"..."

Tao Zhongwen felt relieved upon seeing this, realizing that he had understood Zhu Houcong's intentions.

Or perhaps Zhu Houcong's thoughts at this moment were exactly what he had anticipated, which is one of the reasons why he dared to plan this assassination.

then.

Then he heard Yan Maoqing suddenly repeat himself with unwavering conviction:
"Your humble servant is convinced that this traitor is Tao Zhongwen!"

"As I said before, in my heart, only Your Majesty can glimpse the secrets of heaven and find the path to immortality. All others are just ordinary people, including Tao Zhongwen!"

"However, I have heard that when Your Majesty made your southern tour in the eighteenth year, you asked Tao Zhongwen about unusual omens, and Tao Zhongwen replied that they were related to fire."

"The palace did indeed catch fire that night, killing many palace staff and nearly causing the emperor's death."

"I am but a mortal, yet I have glimpsed secrets of heaven that even my sovereign and father are unaware of. In my humble opinion, this is not a natural disaster, but rather a man-made one!"

"And the only beneficiary of this matter, besides Commander Lu who risked his life to save the emperor, is Tao Zhongwen. This can be his motive!"

"Your Majesty, I have also heard that last year Duan Chao used seditious words to deceive the Emperor, and the Emperor almost believed the slander and retired to the deep palace."

"Forgive my bluntness, but imperial power is no child's play. It is easy for a sovereign to retire, but it is probably as difficult as ascending to heaven to return. Have you not heard of the ordeal of King Wuling of Zhao?"

"Tao Zhongwen knew about this matter but did not object. On the contrary, he expressed his support when his father asked him about it. His treacherous intentions were obvious, and this could also be his motive!"

"besides!"

"Your Majesty, I suspect that ever since I went to the Western Garden to meet Your Majesty and spoke my mind frankly, Tao Zhongwen has been worried about losing favor and has probably said a lot of bad things about me to Your Majesty."

"Please recall carefully, Father. If Tao Zhongwen truly did such a thing, then this is yet another irrefutable piece of evidence!"

"Tao Zhongwen was worried about losing favor, and how could he be willing to sit and wait for death? There was a great possibility that he would take a risk like those palace maids."

"If the emperor or father were to meet with misfortune as a result, he could take advantage of the change of dynasty to retire, rather than suffer a tragic end after falling out of favor!"

"That's why I said just now that the traitor has already jumped out on his own!"

"Your Majesty, these words come from the depths of my loyalty. I humbly beseech Your Majesty to consider them carefully and make a wise decision!"

Plant scallions!

Planting scallions like crazy!

Regardless of whether Tao Zhongwen was actually responsible, he already deserved to die. Yan Maoqing only insisted on one thing:

To be merciful to an enemy who clearly wants your life is to be cruel to yourself!
(End of this chapter)