The wind outside howled even more miserably, making people’s arms and backs break out in goosebumps involuntarily.

It wasn’t until the Imperial Guards in batches threw the trussed-up Academician Chen and another unfamiliar-looking middle-aged man onto the ice-cold floor like dead dogs that everyone jolted back to their senses with a shudder, staring at them in a daze, unable to recover.

Academician Chen’s lower abdomen had already been aching from fear while in the prison cart. Now, when he opened his eyes and actually saw the living, breathing Emperor Jianzhang, his breath immediately caught in his throat. He felt his lower abdomen inexplicably tighten and heat up, his bladder uncontrollable. His face turned corpse-white as he stared wide-eyed and let out a whimper.

From the moment he got into the prison cart, he knew something had gone wrong, but no matter how he thought about it, he never imagined that Emperor Jianzhang could still be alive—if Emperor Jianzhang was alive, then they truly had no way out at all.

Xu Da, who was closest, immediately smelled this pungent stench of urine. Instinctively wanting to cover his nose with his hand, he had barely raised it when Lai Chenglong, with quick eyes and fast hands, grabbed his arm and twisted it backward with a crack. His arm immediately went limp and hung at his waist. At the same time, a handkerchief was stuffed into his mouth. He couldn’t even cry out in pain.

The Imperial Guards’ methods of torturing people… Kong Shun watched as cold sweat the size of beans appeared on Xu Da’s forehead. His original fear almost immediately transformed into despair. Even Xu Da had been arrested—what else was there to say? This whole thing had been a trap from the start. They had probably deliberately set a snare waiting for them to crawl into it. How ridiculous that Academician Chen had come to report to him so seriously, saying the time had come, that if he stood up now, the Grand Prince would truly be utterly ruined. This time the Grand Prince wasn’t ruined—he himself was the one who was ruined.

Emperor Jianzhang snorted, the corners of his mouth curling up with a half-smile, pointing at the several people on the ground and looking toward the ministers with relative calm: “It’s these people who plotted to assassinate me.”

These very people, who wanted to assassinate Emperor Jianzhang, and who spread rumors throughout the city, attacking the Song family, the Cui family, and Zhou Weizhao—none of the assembled were fools. Earlier they had truly believed Emperor Jianzhang had been poisoned, but now being told this, they immediately understood the depths of Prince Gong’s scheming—first poison Emperor Jianzhang to death, then pin the crime on Zhou Weizhao, conveniently whitewashing himself in the process.

What was terrifying was that from far away in Jin territory, he could still manipulate court officials in the capital. No wonder Emperor Jianzhang said that if they didn’t turn the tables on this scheme, Prince Gong’s people would be like wildfire that couldn’t be completely burned out, sprouting again when the spring wind blew.

Liang Tong listened with his jaw hanging open. After a long moment, he finally reacted and knelt straight down before Emperor Jianzhang: “This subject is incompetent.” He looked at Zhou Weizhao with shame on his face, then turned his gaze to Emperor Jianzhang, prostrating on the ground without daring to raise his head again: “This subject almost became someone’s pawn…”

It wasn’t just almost—he had truly been used as someone’s pawn. These people clearly knew he was someone who hated evil and was upright and incorruptible, specifically choosing him to be the one who would stand out, righteously indignant in denouncing the Grand Prince and Grand Princess Consort. If His Majesty hadn’t been fine, if His Majesty had suffered even the slightest mishap, the Grand Prince and Grand Princess Consort would probably have really been forced by him to commit suicide, exactly as Prince Gong wished.

Emperor Jianzhang, however, was genial and pleasant toward him, waving his hand to have him rise: “What fault is that of yours? Your loyal heart is something I have always known. You were also standing up for my safety.” He sneered coldly: “Even if it’s a loyal heart being used by others, it’s still better than these ambitious villains with wolf-like hearts!”

Having finished this sentence, he looked down from his superior position at old Kong and the others huddled together in a row: “These people take the salary I give them, yet still plot with rebels to harm my life, and even attempt to frame my grandson. Simply unforgivable!”

Saying they were unforgivable, he truly had no intention of pardoning them. Without any hesitation, Emperor Jianzhang ordered Lai Chenglong to take them down for detailed interrogation. Only after the Imperial Guards had hauled them all away like lifting objects did he straighten his expression and look toward the civil and military officials: “Making all you dear ministers worry is truly my fault.”

Chief Minister Chang led everyone in kneeling and repeatedly calling out that they didn’t dare: “Prince Gong, such a disloyal and unfilial person—if Your Majesty hadn’t turned the tables on his scheme to draw out the spies he planted, who knows how many more unconscionable deeds they would have committed! How could Your Majesty’s actions be called a fault? Your Majesty’s sagely brilliance illuminates all. Now you have successfully drawn out the spies Prince Gong planted. Your Majesty is wise and mighty!”

Cen Biliang was obviously much more practical in comparison: “This Prince Gong is disloyal and unfilial. Han Zhengqing is even more unforgivable for leading the Tartars through the border pass. How laughable that some people actually believed those street rumors and almost committed foolish acts that would only please enemies and pain allies.”

Those who had previously clamored to first lock Zhou Weizhao in the Court of Imperial Clan all looked somewhat embarrassed. They wanted to retort but didn’t have the face to do so, since after all, Cen Biliang was the one who had desperately blocked the civil and military officials from harming Zhou Weizhao.

Still, Emperor Jianzhang smiled and shook his head: “People are not sages—who can be without fault? You dear ministers didn’t know the inside story, and it happened to be during troubled times. Making mistaken judgments was truly hard to avoid.” He reassured the rather uneasy ministers, then personally pointed out Zhou Weizhao: “The various ministers were not acting for private gain, but for the court’s stability. You must not hold it against them.”

Zhou Weizhao composed his expression solemnly and respectfully acknowledged: “Grandson understands it all. All the ministers were worried for Imperial Grandfather. Given the situation at that time, if they hadn’t quickly investigated the cause of Imperial Grandfather’s poisoning, the common people throughout the realm would have been in panic and anxiety. Those who were previously fence-sitting and watching would all have been influenced and started stirring restlessly. What the ministers did was truly beyond reproach.”

These four words “beyond reproach” really spoke to the hearts of Liang Tong and the others. Liang Tong was practically moved to tears by Zhou Weizhao’s words, deeply feeling that this Grand Prince’s benevolence and virtue was rare—when wrongly accused at the time, he had never been indignant or aggrieved, never used his power to oppress others. Now that Emperor Jianzhang had cleared his name and washed away the injustice, he still bore no resentment toward the ministers who had been aggressive before. Compared to that Prince Gong who had raised a rebel banner against his own father and was in close contact with Han Zhengqing who let the Tartar people through the border pass, the difference was truly as vast as that between clouds and mud.

Emperor Jianzhang nodded with satisfaction, raising his hand and coughing once: “The one who poisoned me initially was Daoist Master Ciyun. At that time I endured without revealing it, precisely to see what kind of tricks these people were plotting behind the scenes. Sure enough, I truly did draw them out. Since we’ve already cleaned out all the unclean things in our own nest, we should also turn our attention to the outside.”

That Xu Da had fallen into the net, along with old Kong who was hidden deepest beside Zhou Weizhao, and Daoist Master Ciyun beside Zhang Tianshi had all been drawn out. After the hands of Prince Gong and Han Zhengqing were completely cleared out with the removal of the Heir of Marquis Guangping, Vice Minister Wang, and Chamberlain Xie, this time would be an even more thorough purge. Not a single one would escape.