Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Historically, after the breach of the Yi River, chaos ensued throughout the land, and Ying Changchuan's methods became increasingly harsh each day.

Eventually, it even led to him executing a high-ranking official each day, culminating in the execution of half of the 'Nine Ministers'.

...He truly deserved the label "ruthless."

But now, history has already taken a different course.

Objectively speaking, apart from still favoring torture, Ying Changchuan's methods are less extreme than those in later generations.

Jiang Yuxun seriously pondered this question, then suddenly snapped back to reality.

...What a huge mistake!

How did I indirectly admit to his brutality?

At the same time, the hands of the Xuan Yin Jailers trembled involuntarily, almost dropping the unconscious Chancellor to the ground.

The gaze they cast towards the young man was filled with both fear and a hint of admiration.

Lord Jiang is indeed extraordinary!

Not only does he boldly criticize the Emperor, he even dares to openly comment on His Majesty's methods.

Thinking this, the Xuan Yin Jailers unanimously turned their eyes to Ying Changchuan, while simultaneously worrying for Jiang Yuxun.

But to their surprise, there wasn’t a trace of displeasure on the Emperor's face.

He looked down at the Chancellor and asked in a calm voice, "Would my dear official like to join?"

To join him in supervising the Chancellor?

Jiang Yuxun hesitated for less than a second before instinctively nodding: "Of course."

Before his words even fell, he had already followed.

—Any hesitation for even half a second would be a disrespect to history, wouldn't it?

The drizzle had stopped unnoticed, leaving a clear sky outside the hall.

The moment he stepped out of Liuyun Hall, Jiang Yuxun’s pace suddenly halted.

The young man couldn't help but recall the day he arrived, when he had called Ying Changchuan a tyrant to his face.

At that time, Ying Changchuan had readily agreed, and then... he had sent Jiang Yuxun to the imperial prison.

Wait a minute.

Thinking back to the Emperor’s gaze just now.

A terrifying suspicion suddenly arose in Jiang Yuxun’s mind:

When Ying Changchuan said "together," did he mean that I and the Prime Minister would be dealt with together?

！！！

With this thought, Jiang Yuxun couldn't help but stealthily glance at the Emperor.

Unexpectedly, he met those slightly amused, smoky gray eyes.

Jiang Yuxun: "……"

Ying Changchuan was just scaring me on purpose!

This man is wickedly cunning.

-

The case of private purchase of sacrificial animals had both witnesses and evidence.

The Chancellor, already deemed guilty, was directly carried into the Xiangtai Hall by the Xuan Yin Jailers.

This was Jiang Yuxun's first visit here.

Contrary to the dark and gloomy torture chambers he had imagined, the Xiangtai Hall, except for its sealed doors and windows, was not much different from other palaces.

"Cough cough cough... Where, where is this..."

The Chancellor, afflicted only by a fit of rage, soon regained consciousness not long after being brought into the Xiangtai Hall.

Before he could look up and take in the scene, the Xuan Yin Jailers pressed him down to kneel on the floor once again.

It was a position of great humiliation.

Born into nobility and having lived a life of glory, the Chancellor had never experienced such a state.

"Xiangtai Hall," stated a Xuan Yin Jailer in a cold voice.

The Chancellor's body trembled at once, as the events that had just transpired flooded back into his mind.

A look of resentment quickly surfaced on his face.

The appearance of those involved in human trafficking was too sudden and unexpected.

It was rare for the Chancellor to show a state of panic in the Liuyun Hall.

Now, having regained his composure, his demeanor returned to its usual calm.

A hoarse voice echoed through the hall, the Chancellor spoke almost word by word, "Since His Majesty is already aware of my private purchase of a slave, then let me be sentenced to death according to Zhou law."

His tone was resolute, carrying an air of resigned acceptance towards his fate.

Ying Changchuan unexpectedly burst into laughter: "The Chancellor truly knows how to evade the important and dwell on the trivial."

"Your Majesty... cough cough, what do you mean by this?"

The floor tiles of the Xiangtai Hall were carved from a single large stone, radiating a chill even in the height of summer.

It wasn't long before the pain in his bones began to ache from kneeling.

Ying Changchuan remained silent, instead focusing his gaze on Jiang Yuxun, who was sitting aside.

The young man looked down sharply, bluntly piercing through the Chancellor's thoughts: "Although you have purchased a slave, you have not yet had the chance to kill him. According to Zhou law, you should not be executed yet. Moreover, the practice of sacrificial burial has not yet ceased. If we hastily execute you for this alone, the people might even sympathize with you."

The former dynasty was already a mess of internal strife and external threats, on the verge of collapse.

As the Chancellor, he originally had little prestige or ability.

Yet, it was he who led the officials to welcome Ying Changchuan into the palace, inadvertently averting a battle for the city.

Therefore, the people of Zhao Du still held some respect for the Chancellor.

Jiang Yuxun's tone was ice cold: "Chancellor, you know that His Majesty will not kill you now, so you deliberately say so."

Having his inner thoughts exposed, the Chancellor's face immediately darkened.

The chief of the Xuan Yin Jailers stepped forward slowly, asking sternly: "What about the matter of the Yi River dike funds? Have you nothing to say?"

He then turned his head towards Ying Changchuan, as if waiting for an order to punish.

The Chancellor kept his mouth tightly shut, displaying a defiant, unyielding attitude.

Seeing this, a Xuan Yin Jailer by Jiang Yuxun's side cursed under his breath: "Still playing dead? Where did he hide all that money..."

Now that the Chancellor was a convicted criminal, it was natural to search his household.

But the problem is that his mansion and estates are vast, searching them would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

Hearing this, Jiang Yuxun suddenly clenched his fists.

The word "hidden" pierced his mind like a needle.

A flood of chaotic information surged forward.

After a moment, Jiang Yuxun's eyes suddenly widened.

He remembered!

Jiang Yuxun's breathing became erratic in an instant.

Millennia later, archaeologists unexpectedly discovered a cache of buried artifacts.

Besides a few scattered pieces of gold, silver, and jade, there were countless silver coins and gold ingots.

——The common feature of these items was that each bore the inscription "Devout Believer Gong Maotong."

"Devout Believer" refers to the faithful followers of the Lingtian Platform, and "Gong Maotong" was the full name of the Chancellor.

Archaeologists thus speculated that these buried treasures were meant to be secretly offered to the Lingtian Platform by Chancellor Gong Maotong of the Great Zhou.

As for the origin of this money, modern archaeology had various theories, but no consensus.

……Until this moment, Jiang Yuxun finally understood: this money was actually the embezzled funds from the river project by Gong Maotong!

Just as the chief Xuan Yin Jailer was about to step forward, Jiang Yuxun suddenly stood up from his seat: "Wait—"

In the Xiangtai Hall, all eyes turned to him.

Jiang Yuxun took a deep breath and looked intently at Gong Maotong: "I presume the Chancellor would rather die than confess."

Ying Changchuan slowly raised his hand, signaling the Xuan Yin Jailer to pause: "Why do you say that, my dear official?"

"The Chancellor must have intended to give that money to the Lingtian Platform," Jiang Yuxun's gaze deepened in that instant, "If he confesses, the whole world would be shaken." The young man's tone was decisive and indisputable.

"The corruption of the Kyoto Prefect in the dike repair funds almost led to countless lives being lost in the Yi River."

Upon investigation, this money actually ended up in the hands of the Lingtian Platform!

What would they think then?

If the Chancellor confesses this, the Lingtian Platform, with its thousand-year foundation, will face an unprecedented crisis.

The world would be greatly altered.

Hearing these words, the Chancellor's body trembled, looking up at Jiang Yuxun in utter fear.

...How does he know?

-

Meanwhile, inside the main hall of the Lingtian Platform.

The fierce gods carved from black stone, with angry eyes, loomed over the hall.

Dressed in lead-white ceremonial robes, Shang You, standing with his back to the deities, asked in a low voice to another, "Did the master take Gong Maotong's money?"

The Chief Diviner, deep in meditation, barely lifted an eyelid: "What, haven't you taken some too?"

His tone was indifferent.

Shang You slowly turned around, scattering jasmine petals towards the deity: "Gong Maotong has been taken by the Emperor for questioning. Have you ever considered the disaster it would bring us if he exposes the Lingtian Platform?"

"What is there to fear?" said the Chief Diviner arrogantly, having been unchallenged for decades, "He has the resolve to keep silent."

Shang You clenched his fists bit by bit.

The juice of the jasmine seeped through his fingers.

During the conversation, the Chief Diviner finally slowly opened his eyes and looked at Shang You: "Besides, even if he exposes the Lingtian Platform, it's no big deal. Just blame a sorcerer, claim all the items were collected by him, and we knew nothing about it, right?"

Over the years, the Chief Diviner had been constantly thwarted by Shang You.

Now, seeing the latter seemingly fearful, he felt a certain satisfaction in overpowering him.

"You, after all, are still too young," the Chief Diviner stood up, leaning on his knee. He walked slowly towards Shang You, chuckled, and said, "Gong Maotong can't stir up much trouble," and then he walked out.

"As for that Jiang Yuxun, he's just good at verbal sparring," he stopped at the doorway of the hall, as if suddenly remembering something, and said through gritted teeth, "…There might be a first and a second time, but certainly not a third or fourth."

Shang You slowly closed his eyes, threw away the crushed jasmine in his hand, and said ambiguously, "Then, I leave this matter to you."

"Of course," the Chief Diviner scoffed disdainfully and finally left the hall.

-

"You—" A sharp voice pierced through everyone's ears.

Gong Maotong's body trembled violently.

Since the Chancellor had prepared human sacrifices for himself, it was expected that he would give the money to the Lingtian Platform.

Gong Maotong's reaction further confirmed to everyone: Jiang Yuxun was right!

But what good is it to know all this?

As long as Gong Maotong keeps silent and the whereabouts of the funds remain undiscovered, knowing more is futile.

"Your Majesty," Jiang Yuxun suddenly rose from his seat and bowed towards the Emperor, "I wish to lead a team to search, until the river funds are found."

The people of the Lingtian Platform frowned at this.

Has Jiang Yuxun lost his mind! Is he really going to attempt such a needle-in-a-haystack search?

Ying Changchuan looked down at the young man: "Do you know how many estates the Chancellor owns? And how vast these lands are?"

"I am aware."

Jiang Yuxun's tone was exceptionally firm.

Without the unearthed cache, finding the river funds would indeed be as difficult as reaching the heavens.

…But in the archaeological reports of the future, its approximate location has already been documented.

If not now, then when?

Why is Lord Jiang so stubborn!

Hearing Jiang Yuxun's words, the Xuan Yin Jailers became anxious.

—If he leads a large force to the Chancellor's mansion and fails to find anything, it would be a matter of boosting others' morale while diminishing his own prestige.

This is no laughing matter!

The candlelight illuminated the determination in the young man's eyes.

Jiang Yuxun gazed deeply at Ying Changchuan.

In his eyes, at this moment, there was only the figure of the Emperor.

"Even if it's like finding a needle in a haystack, there is still a glimmer of hope. Just waiting will only lead us to the day when the Yi River overflows again," the young man's gaze was more serious than ever, "Moreover, I am not without clues."

The eyes of everyone in the Xuan Yin Jailers simultaneously fell on Ying Changchuan.

It's one thing for Lord Jiang to be crazy, but the Emperor certainly won't let him be so reckless!

The young man spoke again at this moment: "Finding the river funds will not only help build the dyke but also severely weaken the Lingtian Platform."

The lights flickered inside the Xiangtai Hall.

At this moment, Ying Changchuan saw in Jiang Yuxun not just hope and focus, but also an undeniable ambition.

He asked, "Your Majesty, are you truly not moved at all?"

Jiang Yuxun's voice echoed repeatedly in the Xiangtai Hall.

The cup in Ying Changchuan's hand trembled.

A fleeting emotion appeared, resting on his fingertips.

The next second, the Emperor's voice resonated through the Xiangtai Hall—

"By my decree, the three divisions of the Xuan Yin Jailers and the Northern Imperial Army shall accompany the Imperial Attendant to search for the river funds in Zhao Du, depart immediately."