Chapter 602: Temporarily Assume the Office of Chief Clerk of Huazhou, Overseeing All Huazhou Affairs!

"Xu Chengyi?!"

Yao Hongnian, Du Duoyi, and Pei Min, the moment they saw that face, were as if struck by a bolt of thunder, and simultaneously let out a startled cry.

It was indeed the Huazhou clerk Xu Chengyi.

Their eyes widened, their pupils filled with incredulous horror.

The color drained from their faces in an instant, and they felt a chill surge from their feet straight to the top of their heads.

Their scalps tingled, and even their teeth began to tremble involuntarily.

Yao Hongnian struggled to lift his head, the veins on his neck bulging, his voice trembling with fear and confusion as he hoarsely roared, "How could it be you?!"

"How could it possibly be you?!"

Xu Chengyi straightened his spine, showing not a hint of remorse but a bold, righteous confidence; he lifted his head and chest, faced the three's shocked gazes, and declared loudly, "Of course it is this servant!"

"It could only be this servant!"

His tone shifted, and he abruptly raised his hand, pointing at Yao Hongnian and the others; his fingertips trembled with anger as he rebuked with lofty righteousness, "Had it not been this servant lurking among you, secretly gathering evidence, the three of you would not have been exposed for the heinous crimes of plotting against Court officials and framing loyal subjects!"

Yao Hongnian stared at Xu Chengyi's upright face and felt darkness gathering before his eyes.

He had always believed Xu Chengyi was the trusted confidant he had personally promoted, his right‑hand man, never imagining that this seemingly honest clerk was actually a hidden dagger at his side!

His defenses shattered instantly; he could no longer keep any composure, ignoring the searing pain as his arm twisted, he struggled frantically and hysterically roared, "Why?! Tell me why!"

"Xu, I have never treated you poorly!"

"Why did you betray me!"

"Why betray me!"

The howl echoed mournfully across the empty inn ruins.

Xu Chengyi, hearing this, let a sneer appear on his face, solemnly clasped his fists and bowed toward Chang'an, his voice clear and decisive, every word radiating sincere loyalty to Great Zhou: "This servant is an official of Great Zhou, receiving the Court's salary, loyal to Great Zhou's Your Majesty, and serving as Grand Preceptor to assist Your Majesty in stabilizing the realm!"

"All that this servant does is for Great Zhou's lands and state, to avenge the unjustly slain comrades; where does this talk of betrayal come from?!"

These words rang out like thunder; Chen, unable to restrain himself, gave a slight nod, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes.

That's exactly the effect he wanted!

Du Duoyi and Pei Min were already trembling with fury, staring fixedly at Xu Chengyi; their lips quivered, unable to form a full sentence for a long time, finally forcing a few words through clenched teeth, glaring angrily, "You… you shameless scoundrel!"

"Ungrateful traitor!"

"Shameless scoundrel?" Xu Chengyi sneered, retorting bluntly, his tone rising and falling as he scolded, "It is you three who hold high positions, drawing the ruler's salary, yet think not of serving the nation, instead acting perversely for personal gain, harming more than twenty Imperial Academy colleagues, attempting to disrupt the Court and plunge Great Zhou into peril!"

"Such rebellious deeds, you too can commit!"

"According to Great Zhou Law, you deserve to be torn apart by a thousand knives, your families confiscated and enslaved, never to rise again!"

"Well said!" Chen Yan could not help but praise loudly, looking at Xu Chengyi, admiration in his eyes, "Truly a loyal minister of Great Zhou!"

"Thank you for bearing the humiliation and heavy burden!"

In fact, this clerk Xu had long been under the control of the Mingjing Department…

Xu Chengyi quickly turned, bowed and clasped his fists toward Chen Yan, his posture exceedingly respectful, slightly lowering his head, and said modestly, "This servant cannot bear such high praise as that of the Minister of State!"

After a pause, raising his head with a resolute expression, he declared loudly, "All that this servant does is merely fulfilling the duty and loyalty owed by a Great Zhou subject!"

"Moreover, I refuse to collude with such treacherous scum, sullying the pure reputation of Great Zhou officials!"

Chen Yan exchanged a glance with Yuwen Ze beside him, a hint of satisfaction flashing in both their eyes.

Yuwen Ze raised an eyebrow slightly; Chen Yan cleared his throat, his gaze sweeping the hushed Huazhou officials, and called out loudly, "Clerk Xu!"

Xu Chengyi responded promptly, "This servant is here!"

"Huazhou cannot be without a ruler for even a day…" Chen Yan's voice bore undeniable authority as he looked at Xu Chengyi and slowly announced, "Your report was meritorious, and you are already renowned for virtue; from today, you shall temporarily assume the position of Chief Clerk of Huazhou, overseeing all Huazhou affairs!"

With those words, the surrounding officials erupted in a roar.

The gazes toward Xu Chengyi were filled with shock and envy.

Seeing this, Yuwen Ze stepped forward, placed a hand on Xu Chengyi's shoulder with a measured pat, and said with a tone of profound approval, "Chief Clerk Xu, I believe that with your ability and this achievement, the 'temporary' will not take long before it can be completely removed…"

Xu Chengyi's eyes suddenly brightened, a gleam of uncontainable exhilaration flashing within, his back becoming even more upright.

He forced down the surging joy in his heart, fearing a lapse, quickly bowed deeply toward Chen Yan and Yuwen Ze, his voice resonant and powerful, full of sincere devotion, "Thank you, Chen Zhuguo, for your support!"

"Thank you, Prince, for your appreciation!"

When his words ended, he straightened up, his chest rising slightly, his face set with determination, and declared resolutely, "This servant will devote myself entirely, until death, exerting all ability to govern Huazhou, to repay the Court and the two esteemed lords for their recognition!"

Xu Chengyi knew clearly that this was a meteoric rise…

At that moment, he felt immense gratitude for seizing the chance; otherwise he could never have ascended to such a high position in his lifetime!

Chen Yan, seeing his demeanor, nodded with satisfaction, a hint of approving smile at the corner of his mouth, and proclaimed loudly, "Very well! I, the Duke, believe that under your governance, Huazhou will surely clear its gloom and be reborn!"

Xu Chengyi's grateful words still echoed over the inn ruins, while Yao Hongnian beside him was already completely panicked.

He looked at Xu Chengyi's triumphant demeanor, then at Chen Yan's face, and felt a wave of desperate chill surge through his entire body.

His whole body began to shake uncontrollably.

Yao could no longer care about the dignity of a governor; he twisted his restrained body desperately, his voice filled with sobbing, pleading, "Minister! Prince! Spare me! Spare this servant!"

"This servant was momentarily clouded by lard, possessed by demons, and thus made such a grave mistake!"

"I beg the two lords for mercy, give this servant a way to live!"

Chen Yan, hearing the plea, seemed to hear a colossal joke, raised an eyebrow, and half‑smiled as he murmured repeatedly, "Spare your life?"

Those two words floated lightly, yet carried a bone‑chilling cold.

The next moment, the smile in his eyes vanished, replaced by a sharp, icy stare, and he thundered, "If I, the Duke, spared you, how could I answer to the more than twenty Great Zhou officials burned alive?"

"How could I repay their unjust souls?!"

Yao Hongnian, frightened by the rebuke, trembled, his survival instinct grabbing the last straw, and he suddenly pointed at Du Duoyi and Pei Min, screaming, "It was them! This servant was clouded by lard, should not have been deceived by those two!"

"They were fanning the flames in my ear every day; only then did I become confused and agree to their scheme!"

Du Duoyi and Pei Min, hearing this,'s faces changed dramatically; they exchanged a glance, eyes full of venom and panic, caring not for any conspiratorial camaraderie, and immediately began to shift blame.

Du Duoyi thrust his neck forward, shrieking, "Chen Zhuguo! Prince! It's an injustice!"

"All of this was orchestrated by Yao Hongnian!"

"He also forced the two of us to take part!"

Pei Min quickly understood, loudly echoing, his face contorted into extreme grievance: "Yes! Yes! When officials are a rank higher they crush people; we two had no way out, so we were forced to submit!"

"We were merely following orders; we were certainly not the masterminds!"

For a moment, the three bit at each other, displaying every ugly manner.

The earlier united front against a common enemy vanished completely, leaving only a heap of Jima in disarray.

Yao Hongnian, angered by their backbiting, felt his vision go black, stared hard at Du Duoyi and Pei Min, his lips trembling, and after a long moment forced out a clenched, angry curse: "You… you two!"

"Clearly it was the two of you who kept scheming against me day and night!"

He then abruptly turned his head toward Chen Yan, his face full of urgent pleading: "Chen Zhuguo! You must not believe their nonsense!"

"They are the real culprits!"

Chen Yan watched the dog‑versus‑dog farce with cold eyes, a faint calm smile ever on his face. After the three exhausted themselves with arguing, he spoke slowly, his voice low but bearing an unchallengeable authority: "Rest assured! None of you three can escape the judgment of the Great Zhou Law!"

Du Duoyi seemed to recall something, a glimmer of hope flashing in his eyes as he struggled to raise his head, his voice full of pleading: "Chen Zhuguo! Prince! I still hope you two will consider…"

"Consider the honor of the lady and the princess; raise your noble hand and mete out a lenient sentence!"

"State law cannot tolerate personal feelings!" Chen Yan raised an eyebrow, his tone decisive, leaving no room for compromise.

He turned his gaze to the Mingjing Embroidered Attire Envoy behind him and shouted, "Take these three back to Chang'an!"

"Furthermore, dispatch people at once to confiscate their property, record it, and deposit it into the state treasury!"

The Embroidered Attire Envoys' eyes lit up at the words, and in unison they replied, "As you command!"

When the words finished, they dragged the three, including the limp, mud‑like Yao Hongnian, and walked backward.

The three's cries and curses rose and fell, but no one paid any attention.

Yuwen Ze stepped forward, approached Chen Yan, lowered his voice, his gaze sweeping over the three being taken away, and asked gravely, "A Xiong, what should we do with those two next?"

Chen Yan placed his hands behind his back, stood with his arms crossed, glanced toward Chang'an, a deep glint flashing in his eyes, then smiled lightly and said with a weighty tone, "Take them back to Chang'an and leave their disposition to our father‑in‑law."

"Huazhou Inspector Yao Hongnian, inherently treacherous and murderous, covertly allied with Prefectural Historian Du Duoyi and Household Staff Officer Pei Min. The three, clinging to evil without remorse, were unmatched in ferocity; the Founding Emperor's policies of establishing examinations and promoting frugal scholars did not serve their private interests, so they harbored malicious intent."

"They secretly set fire to the Huazhou post station, slaughtering the officials of the Imperial Academy stationed there, hoping to block the path of the virtuous. When the plot failed, they shifted the blame onto the hidden Qi spy Gao Changjing in Chang'an, seeking to confuse and mislead, and to evade their own crimes."

"Yet the Founding Emperor, whose light shone for ten thousand li, saw through their treachery, unclouded by slander. He personally ordered the Mingjing Embroidered Attire Envoy and the Left Martial Guard troops to rush to Huazhou, capture the three villains, and bring them back for trial."

— "Wei History", Annals of the Founding Emperor Wen Emperor