I was to be executed by Zhu Yuanzhang, and Empress Ma smashed Zhu Yuanzhang's jade seal.

Li Shanchang subconsciously glanced at the sandalwood box in Empress Ma's hand.

At that moment, the box was more terrifying to him than the death warrant from the King of Hell.

He glanced again at Empress Ma, whose face was as cold as ice, his lips trembling as he almost whispered the question.

"Mother...Your Majesty...Do you...do you still want to recite?"

He asked the question in a very soft voice, but it was clearly heard by everyone on the deathly silent Chengtianmen city tower.

Do we still need to read it?

Everyone was stunned.

The civil officials had just recovered a little from the shocking revelation that "the emperor framed his son," and thought that with the King of England proving his innocence and the emperor admitting his mistake, the huge storm was over.

But who could have imagined that Empress Ma would not give up!

From what she said, there's something in this box...

There was something else?

"Does the Empress intend to exterminate them all?"

One of the officials whispered to his colleague, his voice trembling, "What...what is going on? Is Her Majesty trying to...make His Majesty go down in history?"

"Shut up! Are you out of your mind?!"

The official next to him turned pale with fright and quickly covered his mouth, saying, "Look at the Empress's expression! Are you kidding me? This isn't over! No one is leaving here unscathed today!"

Fear, once again, overwhelmed these civil servants.

They originally thought that Zhu Muying's coup was only to protect himself and to clear his name.

But now it seems that things have taken a completely unexpected turn.

This is no longer just a family conflict between a son and his father.

This is the Empress, who is going to join forces with the military general Xun Gui to publicly settle scores with the Emperor!

They looked at Zhu Yuanzhang, who was slumped on the ground, completely devoid of energy, their eyes filled with complex emotions.

pity?

Pitiful?

No, it was more of a feeling of lingering fear and relief.

Fortunately, it was the emperor who was being purged today; if it had been any of them, there probably wouldn't even be any bones left.

Zhu Yuanzhang also heard Li Shanchang's question.

He slowly raised his head, staring intently at Empress Ma with his bloodshot eyes.

His last hope was completely shattered.

He originally thought that no matter how heartbroken or disappointed Ma Xiuying was, she was still his wife, and would consider their marital bond and preserve the last bit of his imperial dignity for him.

As long as he's willing to humble himself and admit his mistake, this matter can be resolved.

But he was wrong.

He looked at his wife's familiar yet unfamiliar face, and saw that her eyes, once full of tenderness and love, now held only cold disappointment and resolute indifference.

He got it.

She wasn't throwing a tantrum at him, nor was she trying to force him to admit his mistake.

She was...

He was put on trial.

He was tried in the most public and brutal way, as the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Muying stood aside, quietly watching all of this.

To be honest, he was also taken aback by his mother's sudden toughness.

According to his original plan, he would produce this "fabricated" edict, force Zhu Yuanzhang to admit his mistake in public and clear his name, and then take over a portion of the military power to pave the way for the future, and that would be the end of the matter.

He never intended to kill Zhu Yuanzhang.

After all, blood ties and family bonds are undeniable.

No matter what, he was his biological father in this life.

But now, his mother's actions made him realize that he might have been oversimplifying things.

Looking at Empress Ma's slightly trembling shoulders, and at the grief and pain suppressed for countless years deep in her eyes, he suddenly understood.

The mother's outburst was not a momentary impulse.

This is the pent-up disappointment of many years, which has finally found an outlet today.

Over the years, Zhu Yuanzhang's suspicion and massacres not only harmed those meritorious officials and generals, but also deeply wounded his wife who had shared joys and sorrows with him.

She grieved for the loyal and virtuous who died unjustly, felt indignant for the brothers who were suspected, and was heartbroken for her husband who was becoming increasingly unfamiliar to her.

At this moment, the last bit of so-called father-son affection in Zhu Muying's heart quietly faded away.

He thought that since his mother wanted to do this, he would accompany her.

This is no longer a battle he fought alone.

This was their most thorough counterattack against this cold-blooded emperor.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Empress Ma ignored Zhu Yuanzhang's murderous gaze. She simply looked coldly at Li Shanchang and said, word by word, "Read it!"

"Read it aloud clearly, word for word!"

"I want to see what kind of shady things Zhu Chongba has been up to behind the scenes!"

"Let everyone present, let the 500,000 troops below the city walls, hear this! How our wise and benevolent Emperor has fabricated charges and persecuted loyal and virtuous officials!"

Empress Ma's voice had lost all warmth; every word seemed to have been pulled from an ice cellar, striking everyone's hearts.

Li Shanchang's body went limp, and he almost collapsed.

He knew he had no way out.

Today, he is the mouth that pronounces the emperor's crimes.

Thoughts are death.

Not reciting is also a form of death.

With trembling hands, he took out a second sheet of neatly folded Xuan paper from the sandalwood box.

The paper was even more yellowed than the previous one, and the edges were even a bit torn, clearly indicating that it was quite old.

Li Shanchang used all his strength to slowly unfold it.

Everyone held their breath at that moment.

With just one glance, Li Shanchang's cloudy old eyes widened instantly, becoming as big as copper bells!

The color drained from his face in an instant, leaving him whiter than a dead person!

"This...this...this is impossible..."

He saw what was the most terrifying thing in the world, muttering unconsciously as his body shook violently, on the verge of fainting.

"Li Xiang!"

Xu Da strode forward, steadied him again, and commanded in a deep voice, "Read it!"

"shut up!"

Like a wild beast whose tail has been stepped on, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly struggled to his feet and let out a hysterical roar.

"Li Shanchang! How dare you slander me! How dare you forge an imperial edict!"

He pointed at Li Shanchang, trembling with rage, his face contorted in a ferocious expression.

Now, his only lifeline is to deny everything!

As long as he insists that the secret edict is a forgery, he still has a sliver of hope!

However, his roar seemed so pale and powerless at this moment.

Nobody believed him.

The handwriting on that secret edict, and the unique imperial seal mark, silently testify to its authenticity.

Moreover, the person who produced this evidence was Zhu Muying.

Why would a prince who can mobilize an army of 500,000 need to resort to such a low-level tactic as forging imperial edicts to deal with an emperor who has already been abandoned by all?

"Forgery?"

A cold voice rang out.

Empress Ma slowly stepped forward and walked up to Zhu Yuanzhang.

She looked at the man who seemed to have gone mad, her eyes filled not with anger, but with a bottomless sorrow and despair.

"Zhu Chongba, how long are you going to keep deceiving yourself?"

"Do you think Mu Ying is the only one standing here today?"

Empress Ma suddenly turned around, her sharp gaze sweeping over everyone present.

The gaze swept over the civil and military officials, filled with grief and indignation; over the imperial relatives, their expressions complex; and over her two sons beside her, one with a resolute expression, the other with a sorrowful one.

Finally, her gaze fell back on Zhu Yuanzhang.

Her voice suddenly rose to a high pitch, like a phoenix crying in the heavens, resounding throughout the entire Chengtian Gate!

You're wrong!

"Today, standing here is all of us!"

"It's all of us—those you deceived, those you used, those you slaughtered!"

Empress Ma pointed her finger directly at Zhu Yuanzhang's nose, and declared in an unprecedentedly resolute and domineering voice, enunciating each word clearly: "Today, right here in front of the Fengtian Hall!"

"Under the witness of 500,000 soldiers of the Ming Dynasty!"

"I, the Empress, will act on behalf of Heaven, for the unjustly killed souls, for the disheartened soldiers, and for all the people of the world!"

"A Joint Trial by Three Courts—Zhu Yuanzhang!"

"A joint trial of Zhu Yuanzhang by three judges!"

These eight words, like divine punishment from the heavens, crashed down with irresistible majesty!

The whole world stood still at that moment.

Everyone was stunned by Empress Ma's words!

A joint trial by three courts?

Who will be tried?

The current emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty?!

crazy!

The Empress must have gone mad!

Throughout history, it has always been the emperor who judges his subjects; there has never been a case of a subject judging the emperor.

This……

This is simply unheard of and unseen!

This is going to cause a huge uproar!

Zhu Muying was also shocked by her mother's earth-shattering declaration.

Looking at his mother's back, which wasn't particularly tall but was now incredibly upright, he felt an indescribable surge of emotion.

Zhu Yuanzhang was tried by three judges...

What a grand three-way trial!

He had assumed that his mother's outburst stemmed from a wife's disappointment in her husband.

Now he realized that his mother's perspective was much higher than he had imagined!

She is more than just a wife and a mother.

She is still the same Empress Ming who accompanied Zhu Yuanzhang through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and single-handedly built this vast empire!

This empire belongs to Zhu Yuanzhang (the founder of the Ming Dynasty) and also to Ma Xiuying (the founder of the Ming Dynasty)!

She has the right, and the responsibility, to correct the monstrous mistakes made by this emperor who has gone mad!

Zhu Muying took a deep breath, and the last bit of hesitation in her eyes completely disappeared.

He knew that from this moment on, there was no longer a father-son relationship between him and Zhu Yuanzhang.

Only the plaintiff and the defendant.

After Empress Ma's earth-shattering announcement, she gave no one time to react.

Her phoenix eyes sharpened, and she pointed at the completely dumbfounded Zhu Yuanzhang, shouting sternly, "Guards!"

Empress Ma's voice, like a cold, sharp sword, pierced the frozen air on the city tower.

However, all she received in response was deathly silence.

The dozens of Imperial Guards on the city wall, dressed in flying fish robes and with their hands on embroidered spring knives, along with the Imperial Guards responsible for guarding the city, were all frozen in place as if under a spell, not daring to move.

Cold sweat poured down their foreheads.

Are you kidding me?

On one side was the Empress, a paragon of virtue, holding evidence of her crimes, with two princes and a court full of nobles standing behind her.

On the other side was the founding emperor, who, despite being deserted by his followers, still held considerable influence and was nominally the supreme ruler.

This……

Whom do you expect them to listen to?

This is practically a death trap!

Helping one side will offend the other, and the outcome will definitely not be good.

In an instant, everyone's gaze instinctively turned to Zhu Yuanzhang, who, despite his disheveled appearance, still exuded a fierce aura as he carried a golden knife.

Seeing that no one dared to make a move, Zhu Yuanzhang felt somewhat relieved.

After all, he had been emperor for more than a decade. With his accumulated power, who would dare to really lay a hand on him?

He grinned maliciously, and with all his might, roared again, "Let's see who dares!"

He brandished the golden sword in his hand, the precious sword that symbolized his supreme imperial power and had beheaded countless meritorious officials and fierce generals, its surface gleaming with a bloodthirsty light in the sunlight.

"Ma Xiuying! Are you trying to rebel?!"

"Anyone who dares to lay a finger on me, I will exterminate their entire family!"

The final threat, delivered with a fierce tone and expression.

The already hesitant guards trembled even more in fear and lowered their heads even further.

Empress Ma looked at Zhu Yuanzhang's desperate struggle, but her face remained unmoved.

She didn't even glance at the guards again.

Her gaze slowly fell on her eldest son.

Zhu Biao.

Zhu Biao knew what he had to do.

From the moment he chose to stand by his mother and brother, there was no turning back.

He looked at his father, the man who had once been like a god in his heart, but now resembled a lone wolf driven to the brink of despair, howling madly.

His heart was filled with pain and struggle.

That's his father!

But then he glanced at his mother beside him, her eyes resolute, her whole being radiating an aura of sorrow.

He then thought of the 500,000 soldiers standing beneath the city walls, a dark mass representing the morale of the Ming army.

He recalled again the heinous, bloody pieces of evidence that had just been read aloud.

On one side is the bond between father and son.

On one hand, there is the greater good of the nation and its people, and the principles of heaven and the will of humanity.

He has to make a choice.

Zhu Biao slowly closed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, all the hesitation and pain in them had been replaced by something heavy called "responsibility".

He placed his hand on the hilt of the Chengji sword and walked steadily, step by step, to Zhu Yuanzhang.

The armor plates on his body made a crisp, rhythmic clanging sound as he walked, tolling the death knell of the old era.

"Father, I apologize."

"Your Majesty has given the decree, and I dare not disobey."

He raised his head, meeting Zhu Yuanzhang's fiery gaze, and said, word by word, "You...you'd better bear with it for now."

"You! You unfilial son!"

Zhu Yuanzhang was furious, "Are you going to rebel too?! Get out of my way!"

Zhu Yuanzhang's golden sword never struck Zhu Biao.

He can kill Zhu Muying at will.

But he couldn't bear to lay a hand on Zhu Biao.

He was afraid of Zhu Biao, but he didn't hide!

Zhu Biao made a move!

As the crown prince, he received a well-rounded education in both literature and martial arts from a young age. He was proficient in riding, archery, and military strategy. His martial arts were personally taught by top generals such as Xu Da and Chang Yuchun. Although he did not have the experience of honing his skills on the battlefield like Zhu Muying, his foundation was far more solid than ordinary people could imagine.

He suddenly lowered his body, advancing instead of retreating, and crept in like a cat. His left hand shot out like lightning, not parrying or blocking, but directly grabbing Zhu Yuanzhang's wrist holding the knife!

Zhu Yuanzhang, having fought his way out of countless bloody battles, reacted extremely quickly, his wrist tightening as he prepared to change tactics.

But Zhu Biao was even faster!

His left hand, with its five fingers like iron clamps, gripped Zhu Yuanzhang's pulse point tightly, while his right elbow suddenly thrust forward, striking Zhu Yuanzhang's soft ribs!

"Hmm!"

Zhu Yuanzhang winced in pain, let out a muffled groan, and the force in his hand dissipated.

It was that fleeting moment!

Zhu Biao exerted force with his wrist, twisting and snatching it away with a swift motion!

"Snap!"

A crisp sound.

Clang!

The golden knife that had accompanied Zhu Yuanzhang for half his life and symbolized supreme imperial power was easily snatched away by Zhu Biao and fell to the cold ground with a clear, mournful sound.

The whole process was incredibly fast!

Everyone present, including top generals like Xu Da and Lan Yu, was completely stunned!

They knew that Crown Prince Zhu Biao was a man of refined taste and gentle nature, but they never expected that his martial arts skills would be so high!

That series of movements was fluid, precise, and ruthless, without any unnecessary frills; they were all the most practical grappling and fighting techniques!

Zhu Yuanzhang himself was stunned.

He looked down at his empty right hand, then looked up at his son, who was holding the golden knife that was rightfully his, standing straight with a sorrowful expression.

The raging anger in his heart miraculously dissipated at that moment.

Instead, there were extremely complex and bizarre emotions.

There was the humiliation of being disarmed by his own son, the desolation of being abandoned by everyone, but even more so, there was...

Genuine appreciation and pride?

He watched Zhu Biao's composed stance, his precise grappling techniques, and his decisive strike...

This……

This is Zhu Yuanzhang's son!

This is the successor of the Ming Dynasty that he has been carefully cultivating for more than 20 years!

A man of letters can bring peace to the country, and a man of military prowess can secure its stability!

"Haha...hahahaha!"

Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly looked up and laughed loudly. His laughter was filled with madness and sorrow, but even more so with indescribable joy.

He pointed at Zhu Biao and, addressing the assembled civil and military officials, loudly, almost boastfully, exclaimed, "Excellent! Excellent indeed!"

"Biao'er, your kung fu hasn't declined! You've taught it better than all your uncles and elders!"

"Our son is truly capable!"

He paused, looked at Zhu Biao's astonished face, and said, word by word, in a tone that was both an exclamation and an approval, "In this world, only you can control your father!"

"Biao'er...brave!"