Chapter 62: Empress: I Cannot Bear to Listen to This Politics for Even One More Day

Inside the Golden Throne Hall, the air pressure was heavy.

Factional strife was like fire and water; the imperial court was the primary battlefield for slaughter.

The officials who could still stand here today had all crawled out of "mountains of corpses and seas of blood," yet even having seen great scenes, they were still shocked by this sight.

Too fast, too ruthless!

Not a single moment to catch one's breath!

From the moment that image-recording stone was handed to Eunuch Jin, everything had been a foregone conclusion.

Making the images public was meant to force the Empress to take a stance, leaving her no room for maneuver!

Immediately after, Yun He brought out further evidence of crimes, implicating a large number of officials; with a two-pronged attack, he directly riddled the Six Ministries with holes!

Especially the Ministry of Revenue, which had always been like an iron barrel, was about to face a major reshuffle!

With a large number of officials stepping down and positions left vacant, the Imperial Consort’s faction was bound to take a fierce bite out of this cake!

This was a naked, overt conspiracy!

And all of this started because of one small Battalion Commander—

He solved the Savage Slave case, he discovered the Red Sand Mine, and he was the one who killed the demon race...

The Imperial Consort’s faction used this move to strike a fatal blow, and Chen Mo was that sharp blade!

A long time later.

The Empress’s voice came from behind the bamboo curtain: "Where is the culprit now?"

Chen Zhuo replied: "This case was only solved last night. The culprit is Zhou Li, the commander of the Zhou family guards. He has been taken to the imperial prison and can be interrogated at any time."

"And the Red Sand Mine?"

"The Heavenly Qilin Guards have already rushed to West Desolate Mountain and completely sealed off the mine."

"Good."

The Empress’s tone paused slightly; even through the bamboo curtain, one could feel that sharp gaze fixed upon Zhou Chuanbing.

"Vice Minister Zhou, do you have anything else to say?"

Her tone was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.

"Your humble servant..."

Zhou Chuanbing’s lips trembled, but the words choked in his throat.

How could he explain?

That he was unaware?

Since he could command Zhou Li, Zhou Jing'an was inevitably involved.

Treason was a crime punishable by the extermination of one's clan; with the evidence conclusive, he could not escape death. At this moment, any words seemed pale and powerless.

After a long silence, Zhou Chuanbing took off his official hat and slowly knelt to the ground.

"Your humble servant awaits the imperial verdict!"

Bang—

He kowtowed heavily.

When he raised his head, his forehead was already bruised and black.

The Empress said indifferently: "Guards."

The sound of armor clashing rang out as a group of golden-armored guards surged in from the main entrance.

"Cast Zhou Chuanbing into the celestial prison. All members of the Zhou family are to be imprisoned. Order the Three Judicial Offices to conduct a joint trial; you must get to the bottom of this!"

"Officials implicated in the Savage Slave case are to be detained immediately. If the evidence is true, punish them according to the law; show no leniency!"

"Yes!"

The guards stepped forward and took the implicated officials into custody.

Several officials had legs so weak they couldn't even stand, and they had to be half-carried and half-dragged out of the hall by the guards.

Zhou Chuanbing, by contrast, had calmed down. He straightened his official robes and walked toward the main entrance with a steady gait. The sunlight spilled onto him, making the gray at his temples look particularly striking.

Just as he was about to step out of the Golden Throne Hall, he stopped and looked back at Chen Zhuo.

Looking at that back, straight as a pine, his eyes were somewhat dazed. He hadn't expected that their conversation on the Golden Water Bridge would turn out to be a prophecy.

A thousand thoughts surged, finally turning into a heavy sigh:

"It is not that you, Chen Zhuo, are capable, but that you have a good son..."

Inside the magnificent hall, there was a deathly silence.

From beginning to end, not a single person spoke up for Zhou Chuanbing.

The two factions fought openly and secretly, tearing each other down, but no matter how hard they fought, it was an "internal conflict."

One's position determines one's perspective; colluding with the demon race, privately mining red ore, and attempting to subvert the imperial order—that made one the common enemy of all!

The Zhou family had to die!

Eunuch Jin walked down the steps and took the image-recording stone from Yun He’s hand.

Having learned from the previous experience, he didn't check it immediately, but carefully tucked it into his sleeve, fearing that some other image might pop out...

From behind the bamboo curtain, the Empress’s cold voice rang out:

"Official Chen, you have certainly given this Empress a massive surprise. Is there anything else to report?"

Colluding with the demon race was certainly a capital offense, but Chen Zhuo’s actions just now also displeased her.

Playing the images in public was clearly forcing her to take a stance—the subtext was nothing more than the belief that she would protect Zhou Chuanbing for the sake of profit.

What does he take this Empress for?

Chen Zhuo naturally heard the displeasure in the Empress’s tone. If it were any other official, they might feel terrified and tremble, but he was a Censor, and a third-rank Censor at that!

"There is!"

Your Majesty, you asked for it... Chen Zhuo’s voice was like a booming bell:

"Your humble servant wishes to impeach the Governor of the Capital, Cui Hao!"

"As the Governor of the Capital, he has the duty to maintain the stability of the capital. His subordinates were out there risking their lives, yet he knew nothing about the situation of the case!"

"The tunnels were almost dug through the entire capital, yet he didn't notice a thing!"

"This shows he is a parasite in his position, severely derelict in his duty. He should be stripped of his official status and never employed again!"

The Empress: "..."

Cui Hao’s scalp went numb. He had only borrowed the momentum to step on someone earlier; he didn't expect the retaliation to come so quickly!

This man surnamed Chen was truly vindictive; he never let a grudge last overnight!

The Censors of the Six Sections came to their senses. Suddenly, like sharks smelling blood, their cheeks flushed slightly, and their eyes were full of excitement.

Finally, it was their home field!

If they couldn't win against the wind, how could they not play well with the wind at their backs?

One after another, they all jumped out:

"Reporting to Your Majesty, your humble servant wishes to impeach the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Xu Lin! This man is despicable and filthy, forming cliques for personal gain..."

"Your servant wishes to impeach the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Yan Peizhi. He is two-faced and certainly no good person..."

"Director of the Ministry of Rites, Zhang Jinlan, never spends a cent when he goes to the Music Conservatory. This scoundrel abuses his power and is a pure freeloader..."

"..."

Impeach, impeach, impeach—they impeached everyone!

The Censors, who had been holding back a belly full of fire, had gone completely mad.

The officials of the Six Ministries who had just been belittling and speaking sarcastically were named and impeached one by one.

The pen of the official recording the Daily Records was smoking; because they had to record the court proceedings and ensure fairness and objectivity, the content had to be authentic—they even recorded that "Yan Peizhi peeked at a palace maid's backside when entering the palace"...

The entire court was as noisy as a vegetable market.

Behind the bamboo curtain, the Empress rubbed her temples, a trace of helplessness flashing in her watery almond eyes.

"This Empress is truly exhausted; I cannot bear to listen to this politics for even one more day..."

Huaizhen Ward.

Chen Mo walked into the office, his mind still pondering whether the Empress wore undergarments or not, when he bumped into Shen Shuchou.

Seeing his excited appearance, Chen Mo asked curiously: "Where is Official Shen going?"

Shen Shuchou smiled and said: "Executing official business."

Chen Mo immediately lost interest and waved his hand: "Alright then, you go ahead and get busy. This subordinate will go catch up on some sleep."

After battling the demoness all night, his true qi was drained to the last drop, and having experienced such ups and downs at the Cold Heaven Palace, he was truly physically and mentally exhausted.

Shen Shuchou nodded: "Fine, then you go sleep. I’ll take some men to raid the Zhou residence first..."

Raid a residence?

I’m good at that!

Chen Mo immediately perked up, cleared his throat, and said: "Since it is official office business, this subordinate is duty-bound and naturally must go with you."

"Commander Chen isn't sleeping anymore?" Shen Shuchou’s expression was playful.

"Why sleep so much while alive? One will surely sleep long after death. At my age, how could I possibly sleep?"

Chen Mo said with a straight face.

It was called raiding a residence, but in reality, it was about arresting people and searching for evidence of crimes.

But as for what exactly constitutes evidence of a crime, that is for the Heavenly Qilin Guard to decide...

He recalled that night when his spiritual sense scouted the Zhou residence and marked several locations, feeling that there would be good things there...