Rise of a Lonely City: From Exiled Prince to Ruler of the Nine Provinces

The next morning, before dawn.

The square in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony was bitterly cold.

The civil and military officials had already lined up in order of rank and stood silently, each holding their breath. The clamor of last night's victory banquet and the somber atmosphere of this morning formed an eerie contrast.

No one whispered to each other, and even coughing was done cautiously.

Last night, the emperor smashed a cup as a signal; he was truly enraged.

When Xiao Chen, dressed in bright yellow casual clothes and expressionless, stepped onto the steps and sat on the cold, golden dragon throne, the entire hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

There was no usual "Your Majesty, may you live in peace" greeting, nor any ceremonial music or chanting.

Xiao Chen's gaze slowly swept over the assembled officials below the steps.

Chancellor Han Yu stood with his head bowed, his expression dark and unreadable; Privy Councilor Gao Su stood at the head of the military officers with his hand on his sword, his eyes fixed straight ahead; Minister of Revenue Zheng Huaijin was pale and had swollen eyelids, clearly having not slept all night; Minister of War Wei Xiao stared intently at the ground, as if the golden bricks were engraved with life-saving scriptures.

"Minister Han," Xiao Chen said, his voice not loud, but clearly carrying to every corner.

"Your subject is here." Han Yu stepped forward and bowed.

"How are the two tasks I assigned you last night progressing?"

Han Yu's heart tightened, and he forced a smile, saying, "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Revenue is urgently raising funds for the relief funds, but the accounts are complex and involve a wide range of people, so it may be difficult to raise them within three days..."

"I didn't ask you whether it was difficult or not."

Xiao Chen interrupted him, his tone as calm as if discussing the weather, "What I'm asking is, why is it that the compensation for fallen soldiers, which should be paid from the national treasury, is recorded in the books, but only half has actually been disbursed? What happened to the rest?"

The entire court was completely silent.

Everyone's eyes unconsciously drifted toward Zheng Huaijin, who was standing in the ranks of civil officials.

Zheng Huaijin's legs trembled, and he almost knelt down on the spot. He barely managed to support himself on his ceremonial tablet and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, please understand! It was not that I intentionally withheld funds, but rather... it was simply that the national treasury was empty, and I had no choice but to do this! The Northern Expedition has been extremely costly, and I..."

"Shut up." Xiao Chen coldly uttered two words.

Zheng Huaijin was struck dumb, his face turning deathly pale.

Xiao Chen slowly stood up, stepped down from the throne, and walked step by step to the edge of the steps, looking down at the group of officials who were usually so dignified.

"And then there's the matter of winter clothing."

He looked at Wei Xiao, the Minister of War, and said, "Minister Wei, tell me, the garrison in Jiuyuan County numbers 30,000, and according to regulations, they should have been issued 30,000 sets of cotton armor and 30,000 cotton-padded jackets. Why is it that the urgent report from the front lines says the cotton armor they received was stuffed with cattail fluff? Why are there still 10,000 cotton-padded jackets missing?"

Cold sweat poured down Wei Xiao's forehead as he stammered, "Your Majesty! This...this must be due to embezzlement and corruption by the officials in charge! I will investigate this thoroughly immediately and punish them severely!"

"The people below?"

Xiao Chen sneered, pulled a blood-stained military report from his sleeve, and casually tossed it at Wei Xiao's feet. "This urgent report was sent by fast horse from Jiuyuan County. It bears the urgent seal of your Ministry of War and your own handwritten approval, Wei Xiao—'Received, urge immediate action.' What, are you now telling me it was your subordinates who did it?"

Wei Xiao looked down at the military report as if it were a death warrant, his lips trembling, unable to utter a single word.

"His Majesty!"

At this moment, an elderly official with white hair and beard, who was ranked first among the civil officials, stepped forward tremblingly. He was one of the regents, the Minister of Rites and the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, named Zhou Xianzong.

"Your old minister, Zhou Xianzong, has something to report."

Emperor Zhou Xianzong's voice, though aged, carried an undeniable authority: "While there was indeed oversight regarding the distribution of relief funds and winter clothing, I believe this was an extraordinary measure during wartime. Although the officials in charge made mistakes, they were forgivable. Now that the Northern Expedition has been a great success, and the hearts of the people are with you, this is the time for Your Majesty to reward meritorious officials and appease the people. It is not appropriate to let minor matters offend the loyalty of the entire court!"

As soon as he said this, many veteran officials nodded in agreement, and even several noblemen from aristocratic families stepped forward to echo his sentiments.

"Lord Zhou is absolutely right!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, the great battle has just ended; it is the perfect time to reward those who have distinguished themselves and boost morale!"

"Severe punishment at this time might discourage the soldiers!"

For a time, voices of advice and remonstrance rose and fell.

The implication is clear: prioritize the overall situation, and don't let a few dollars ruin unity and spoil everyone's fun.

Xiao Chen listened quietly until the voices of advice gradually subsided before speaking calmly: "Master Zhou is a respected veteran minister, highly esteemed and virtuous. Since you mentioned 'loyalty and righteousness,' then let me ask you: is withholding the pensions of martyrs and forcing frontline soldiers to wear cotton-padded jackets with reeds to keep warm an insult to loyalty and righteousness?"

Zhou Xianzong's face stiffened: "This..."

"Someone come here."

Xiao Chen stopped looking at Zhou Xianzong and instead shouted loudly towards the outside of the hall.

"exist!"

Two rows of guards in black armor, their faces expressionless, silently filed into the hall.

What they were holding were not swords and knives, but chests and ledgers overflowing with contents.

"Show this to the gentlemen."

Commander Mo Qi waved his hand.

The cage was opened.

In the left box were gruesome pieces of cotton armor, filled not with cotton, but with clumps of damp, moldy reeds, and even some withered grass; in the right box were several bolts of obviously inferior cotton cloth, mottled in color and tearing easily.

In the middle, stacks of account books were piled high.

Mo Qi read on expressionlessly: "Your Majesty, last night the Imperial Guards, acting on imperial orders, searched the archives of the Ministry of War's Armory and found 27 account books. They also searched the treasury of the Ministry of Revenue's Department of Finance and found 15 forged account books and 3,400 taels of silver notes, all of which had not yet been transferred."

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the room, and continued, "An investigation revealed that Qian Tong, a secretary in the Arsenal Department of the Ministry of War, falsified prices and used inferior materials in the winter clothing procurement case, accepting kickbacks, involving 87,000 taels of silver. Sun Youde, a secretary in the Revenue Department of the Ministry of Revenue, colluded with others to embezzle half of the pension funds in the distribution case, transferring the money to underground banks, involving 160,000 taels of silver."

wow——

The imperial court was in an uproar.

No one expected that the emperor would take action overnight and produce irrefutable evidence!

"Your Majesty! I'm innocent! I'm innocent!"

Qian Tong and Sun Youde, these two usually arrogant and powerful officials, were now ashen-faced, collapsing to the ground and crying out as they kowtowed repeatedly, "It was Minister Zheng! It was Minister Wei who ordered it! We were just following orders!"

"Shut up! You're spouting nonsense!"

Zheng Huaijin and Wei Xiao were so angry that they trembled and pointed at the two men, about to pounce on them.

That's enough.

Xiao Chen's voice was like ice shattering.

He looked at the ministers in disarray below the steps, his gaze finally settling on the two doctors who were slumped on the ground.

"The evidence is conclusive, and you still dare to argue?"

Xiao Chen slowly drew the Emperor's Sword, its blade reflecting a dazzling cold light in the morning light.

"Qian Tong, a secretary in the Ministry of War, and Sun Youde, a secretary in the Ministry of Revenue, colluded with unscrupulous merchants to sell inferior goods, causing soldiers at the front to suffer from the cold and disrupting our military operations! They embezzled national treasury funds and deducted pensions for martyrs; their crimes are heinous and they have deceived the emperor!"

"According to the law—he should be executed!"

"No! Your Majesty, spare me! Ah—!"

Xiao Chen didn't even give them a chance to beg for mercy, and swung the Emperor's Sword down fiercely!

"Pfft! Pfft!"

Two streaks of blood-red light shot into the sky!

Two heads rolled onto the smooth, mirror-like gold bricks, and bright red blood splattered like ink, staining Zhou Xianzong's brand-new official boots and the magnificent robes of countless high-ranking officials.

The stench of blood instantly filled the entire Fengtian Hall.

The entire court was deathly silent. Even the sound of breathing seemed to have vanished.

Those old ministers who were just advising for the "big picture" were now all pale and trembling.

Xiao Chen, carrying the blood-dripping Emperor's Sword, his gaze sharp as a knife, slowly swept across each terrified face.

"This is my answer to you."

"The compensation money must be fully distributed to the families of the fallen soldiers by noon tomorrow. I don't care if you sell your houses or borrow money, anyone who dares to be short even a tael of silver—"

He glanced at the headless corpse still twitching on the ground.

"This is what happens."

"Court adjourned!"

Xiao Chen sheathed the Emperor's Sword, turned around, and walked back to the inner palace without looking back.

The entire court was left behind, trembling in fear amidst the bloodshed and death.

The first blow of the emperor's regent not only severed two heads, but also shattered the illusions of those noble families and senior officials who were tasked with "minimizing the seriousness of the matter."

The Emperor is serious this time.

The court of Great Xia will be turned upside down from today.