On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

"Cry, cry, cry! What are you crying for!" Nangong Xiong was very annoyed and kicked Zhao Shuyu away.

Zhao Shuyu fell to the ground, her expression slightly stunned.

The two had been married for many years, and while they weren't exactly deeply in love, they were always very respectful to each other. She had never yelled at him before, and he immediately forgot all about crying.

"What a woman! All she knows is to cry! Do you think crying will kill Lin Yi?" Nangong Xiong didn't have time to get angry with his wife. He ordered Sun Fu behind him, "Sun Fu, immediately issue an imperial edict summoning Liu Wentao and the top officials of the three provinces to the Ninth Prince's residence for an audience!"

"Yes!" Sun Fu turned and left.

Nangong Xiong, worried that he might end up like Cai Ming, quickly called out to his retreating figure, "Please don't call him Wang Tienan!"

Sun Fu's lips twitched, thinking to himself, "I'm not an idiot."

"This old servant understands."

Nangong Xiong, still furious, put his hands on his hips and looked at Nangong Ao.

This is the most meritorious prince of my Great Zhou Dynasty...

"Lin Yi, since you've gone too far, don't blame me for being ruthless too!"

"Even if it costs the entire foundation of the Great Zhou Dynasty, I will still fight you today!"

......

Nangong Ao's study.

Nangong Xiong dismissed all the servants, leaving himself alone in the main seat with a gloomy expression.

The situation we are facing now is very bad.

With the capital city sealed off by the Divine Machine Battalion, Lin Yi held absolute power. The emperor, however, was trapped in the palace, forced to rely on Lin Yi's whims for everything.

He had originally hoped that Nangong Ao could cause some trouble outside, since his eldest son had prestige in the military and it shouldn't be difficult for him to do something underhanded.

But now things have turned out differently; Nangong Ao has been crippled by Lin Yi.

This shows that Lin Yi is not afraid of him at all, and is even actively provoking him.

The more Nangong Xiong thought about it, the angrier he became, and the more frightened he felt.

Lin Yi used to feign madness and fool them all, but now he's suddenly sober and his ruthless methods are chilling.

From snatching the betrothal gifts and tearing up the imperial edict, to forcing the prime minister to kneel and sealing off the palace, and then deposing two princes, every step Lin Yi took trampled on the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty and the dignity of the royal family.

"I can't back out any further..." Nangong Xiong told himself silently.

If he backs down, Lin Yi will take ten steps forward. If he swallows his anger today, Lin Yi will dare to storm into the palace tomorrow and drag him off the dragon throne.

Imperial power must never be desecrated!

Nangong Xiong stood up and walked to the door, looking at the eunuchs and palace maids waiting outside, and said coldly.

"Anyone who dares to leak even a whisper of tonight's events will have their entire family executed!"

"Your servant obeys! Your servant dares not!" A group of people quickly kowtowed.

This operation against Lin Yi is a top secret, and must not be known to outsiders.

However, secrets don't stay hidden forever, and Nangong Xiong naturally understood this principle. Therefore, he wasn't worried about his meeting with the officials being exposed; he only hoped that Lin Yi wouldn't find out about the meeting's contents.

Nangong Xiong snorted coldly and closed the door himself.

As the night deepened, the sound of horses' hooves echoed incessantly outside the Ninth Prince's residence.

Liu Wentao's carriage arrived first, followed by several iron poles.

Qian Deguang hurriedly got off the carriage and walked up to Liu Wentao.

"Prime Minister, what's going on? His Majesty summoned us to the Ninth Prince's residence in the middle of the night. Has something happened again?"

Liu Wentao looked at them and noticed that carriages were continuously arriving at the rear of the procession, and some officials had already jumped off the carriages in a hurry.

They are all staunch supporters of the monarchist faction.

Strange... what exactly is His Majesty trying to do...?

Liu Wentao stroked his beard, his brows furrowed.

"I can't figure it out either, but I heard that the First Prince had a conflict with Lin Yi at the Xinfeng Tea House today... It's likely that something happened to the First Prince, right?"

Zhang Zenan caught up and, upon hearing Liu Wentao's words, added.

"Don't you gentlemen know? The First Prince has been crippled by Lin Yi!"

"What? It's useless?"

"That's right, it was the news that came from the waiter at the teahouse. The First Prince was entertaining the Luo sisters at the Xinfeng Teahouse. Lin Yi went there, killed twenty heavily armored guards, and even... trampled the First Prince into a eunuch."

The moment the word "eunuch" was uttered, Sun Fu, who had accompanied them, looked somewhat uneasy.

So what if someone's a cripple? What do you mean by turning someone into a eunuch?

Are we eunuchs just destined to be trampled on by you?

Upon hearing this, Liu Wentao shook his head, his expression somewhat grave.

"This matter is probably not that simple. If it were just a matter of someone dying, His Majesty wouldn't have summoned us in such a hurry. I have a bad feeling that what happens tonight is definitely not a small matter."

Upon hearing Liu Wentao's words, Qian Deguang shrank back in fright.

"Prime Minister, please don't scare me! My face hasn't fully recovered yet. If I offend Lin Yi again, I'll lose my life."

Liu Wentao rolled his eyes at him and cursed him inwardly as a good-for-nothing.

"What's the panic! Even if the sky falls, His Majesty will hold it up!"

Although he said that, Liu Wentao himself wasn't sure. He was a smart man and knew that the current situation in Beijing was a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment.

Lin Yi is a crazy man who doesn't follow the rules and is capable of anything.

If the eldest prince really offends Lin Yi, the consequences will be unimaginable.

At this moment, the gate of the Ninth Prince's Mansion was filled with Imperial Guards, all of them clad in armor and fully armed.

Liu Wentao took a deep breath and followed Sun Fu, leading the officials inside, heading straight for the study.

As soon as I entered, I saw Nangong Xiong sitting there with a gloomy expression.

The assembled officials paid their respects.

"Your Majesty, we, your humble servants, pay our respects."

"Get up, all of you," Nangong Xiong said calmly.

Sun Fu closed the gate and instructed the people outside to keep a close watch on it.

indoor

Liu Wentao and more than a dozen other important officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty stood up.

Nangong Xiong looked at them and said, "My beloved ministers, the Great Zhou Dynasty has reached a critical juncture of life and death."

Liu Wentao, as the head of all officials, responded immediately.

"Your Majesty's words are quite true. However, we wonder what has happened that led Your Majesty to summon us here so late at night?"

"Ao'er was crippled by Lin Yi... his right hand is disabled and his reproductive organs are severed."

Hearing Nangong Xiong confirm it himself, the courtiers were still greatly surprised, even though they were mentally prepared.

Lin Yi is too ruthless!

It wasn't enough to depose the fourth prince; now they've deposed the first prince too!

Is he trying to turn all the princes of the Nangong family into eunuchs?

Most importantly, he even crippled princes without any fear, so what are we officials' children supposed to do?

Wouldn't that make it even harder to guarantee safety?

Liu Wentao cupped his hands in greeting.

"Your Majesty, Lin Yi's actions are utterly outrageous and utterly disrespectful to the emperor! He is openly challenging imperial authority and trampling on the laws of the Great Zhou!"

At times like this, one must agree with the emperor and state one's position.

Who knew that Nangong Xiong, who usually loved flattery, would slam his fist on the table on the spot.

"Bang!"

"I summoned you here today not to hear your slogans! My mind is made up; I cannot allow Lin Yi, that traitor, to live any longer! I will immediately organize the existing forces to launch a full-scale attack on the capital and raze the Regent's Palace to the ground!"

"what?"

The courtiers were dumbfounded.

A full-scale assault on the capital?

Has His Majesty gone mad...?

The Divine Machine Battalion is the most elite force in the Great Zhou Dynasty, well-equipped and extremely powerful. With them around, even a hundred thousand troops wouldn't be able to break through.

Moreover, all twelve city gates of the capital are now in Lin Yi's hands, the city is well-defended, logistically supported, and morale is high.

To launch a direct attack with only the pitiful local forces would be like throwing an egg against a rock.

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!" Liu Wentao quickly knelt down. "Although Lin Yi deserves to die, the Shenji Battalion is a formidable force and holds the advantage of terrain. A hasty attack would likely result in heavy casualties, and we may not be able to capture the city in one fell swoop. If the battle drags on, the capital will be devastated!"

Qian Deguang also knelt down and echoed him.

"Yes, Your Majesty, this matter requires careful consideration. That traitor Lin Yi is ruthless; if we push him too far, the consequences will be unimaginable."

"We second that proposal."