Chapter 627: I Am Clear of Conscience

"Minister Chen is truly hardworking; even at home, he is still concerned about the hardships of the people. It truly puts others to shame!"

The voice that suddenly arrived made Chen Wenyue's hand tremble, and the official document he was holding nearly fell to the ground.

He clearly had not heard the sound of the room door being opened; how could someone suddenly appear before him? Could it be those experts from the jianghu?

However, facing the suddenly appearing Shen Yu, after a brief moment of panic, Chen Wenyue immediately straightened his body. Although his head remained lowered, one could seemingly feel the aura of fearlessness about him.

"May I ask who you are, and why you have trespassed into my study?"

Compared to the extravagant and debauched Changguan Marquis, the home of Minister of Rites Chen Wenyue appeared much more frugal—though, of course, this frugality was only relative.

Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that Chen Wenyue had a very good reputation; he was a renowned and eloquent upright official, seemingly without any stains on his character.

In his daily work, he always appeared to be acting for the country and the people. Whether within the imperial court or outside in the jianghu, he held no small amount of prestige.

Yet, who would have known that such a person was a vanguard for slandering others, stopping at nothing to climb the ladder of power.

On the surface, he was an upright gentleman, but in reality, he was a treacherous villain who would stab people in the back and grovel before powerful superiors without the slightest hesitation.

Back then, he was the deputy to Yan Ruyi, and by reporting Yan Ruyi, he successfully latched onto the coattails of those corrupt officials, thereby climbing to his current position step by step.

It is no exaggeration to say that this fellow climbed up step by step by treading on the corpses of the Yan Family.

Although he was not greedy, he spared no effort in whitewashing those corrupt officials, subtly speaking for them from various angles to curry their favor.

Otherwise, how could someone from such a minor family background have attained the position of Minister of Rites?

Therefore, among the corrupt officials, he played a significant role while managing to keep his own hands clean. Among the upright officials, he neither took bribes nor occupied property, appearing to be full of integrity.

When it comes to being on good terms with everyone, I fear no one could surpass him.

"I have come this time to kill you!"

"Kill me?" If an ordinary person had suddenly heard such words, they would have been dumbfounded, but Chen Wenyue showed not the slightest sign of panic.

As a Chen Wenyue who aspired to be a man of iron-willed integrity, remaining fearless in the face of danger was the bare minimum.

"May I ask who you are, and why you wish to take this official's life? Over these years, I have always asked myself if my conduct and work were clear of conscience; I do not know where I have offended you?"

While speaking, Chen Wenyue prepared to raise his head, wanting to meet Shen Yu's gaze.

For so many years, Chen Wenyue had constantly hypnotized himself, telling himself that he was an upright official, a good official who took the honorable Chen Xing as his role model.

Gradually, he even came to believe such things himself; deep in his heart, he truly accepted that he was an absolutely upright and incorruptible person.

Therefore, his eyes revealed nothing but a clear conscience, revealing only calmness and fearlessness.

However, when he saw the person who had appeared before him, his entire being froze instantly.

"Shen Yu, Minister Shen?" As the Minister of Rites, he had naturally seen Shen Yu before; he had never imagined that the one who wanted to kill him would be Shen Yu.

He had heard that he only targeted corrupt officials and wicked underlings; how could he have aimed his blade at him?

"Minister Shen, is there some misunderstanding? Could it be that someone has slandered me in front of you?"

Upon seeing Shen Yu, Chen Wenyue hurriedly stood up. "This official's actions have always been clear of conscience!"

"Clear of conscience? Is whitewashing corrupt officials also considered clear of conscience? And what about the Yan Family affair from over thirty years ago—do you also feel clear of conscience about that?"

Looking at the other's eyes, they were clear and bright, without the slightest hint of turbidity. Yet, when Shen Yu mentioned the Yan Family affair from thirty years ago, he still trembled slightly.

The old business of thirty years ago was a stain he could not erase, and a matter he desperately wanted to forget. Now that it was mentioned by Shen Yu, the past seemed to be right before his eyes again.

He seemed to see the members of the Yan Family dying tragically before him, and heard the unwilling roar of that old master of the Yan Family before his death.

He knew very well what kind of family the Yan Family was: generations of famous ministers, every one of them possessing iron-willed integrity.

Yet he had to personally push such a family into the abyss. But he had no choice; back then, he was merely a small character, so what could he have done?

If he hadn't framed Yan Ruyi, it would have just added one more soul to the list of the unjustly dead. The power of those people was too great—so great that even without him, they could have easily crushed the Yan Family.

He still had his ambitions; he had to preserve his useful life, and he still had to display the aspirations in his heart. Therefore, he could not die; he had to live.

If he lived, he could seek welfare for more commoners and uphold justice for more people. Only by living could he make more contributions and become renowned throughout the world like the honorable Chen Xing.

Therefore, he could only do that. In fact, even now, he did not think he had done anything wrong. Since the Yan Family was destined to perish, why should he drag himself down with them? He could clearly save more people.

Over these years, he had been conscientious and diligent, not knowing how many people he had helped or how many commoners he had saved. Therefore, he was clear of conscience; he even sometimes felt smug about the events of that year.

Sometimes he would even think that perhaps if the members of the Yan Family knew of his choice, they would choose to forgive him.

But when Shen Yu brought up the old affair, his heart still could not help but tremble, though he quickly suppressed it.

"Minister Shen, I am clear of conscience regarding the events of thirty years ago. Yan Ruyi was a corrupt official and a wicked underling; you are free to investigate this, Minister!"

"Yan Ruyi was indeed a corrupt official, but you were one of the primary culprits who caused him to become one."

"The Black-Clad Guard's intelligence investigation is crystal clear: it was you who reported Yan Ruyi back then, and it was you who provided the evidence!"

While speaking, Shen Yu pulled out a piece of intelligence and placed it before Chen Wenyue, looking at him coldly.

"And precisely because of your report, those corrupt officials and wicked underlings exerted their power together, and without even a trial, they took Yan Ruyi down, and along with him, uprooted the entire Yan Family!"

"Now that the primary culprit, Changguan Marquis Mou Qing, is dead, I ask Minister Chen to also head on your way!"

"I do not accept this!" Upon seeing the Black-Clad Guard's intelligence, he knew there was nothing left to hide.

"On what grounds? On what grounds do you act on behalf of a corrupt official, and on what grounds can you decide the Life and Death of others with a single word?"

"There are not so many 'whys'; just because I am Shen Yu, that is enough!"

"People like you will never understand the mettle of the Yan Family. Many years ago, they were already prepared to sacrifice their entire family to fight for a glimmer of hope for the world."

"Yet, they did not fall before those old monsters, but instead fell at the hands of a group of corrupt officials. Their hot-blooded passion was actually washed away just like that!"

"It is no wonder Yan Ruyi became like this; anyone might have ended up the same. The Yan Family was obsessed with dying for the people of the world, yet they fell at the hands of the very people they intended to protect. After such extreme disappointment, I suppose Yan Ruyi became this self-abandoned shell of a man!"

While speaking, Shen Yu shook his head. He did not even know why he was saying so much nonsense to such a person. Perhaps it was the Yan Family affair that made him feel somewhat indignant as well.

"Forget it, even if I told you, you wouldn't understand. Someone like you, who only knows how to survive by cowering and only knows how to find various excuses to deceive yourself, will never understand!"

"To be honest, you are even more disgusting than Mou Qing. He was a true villain, while you are a hypocrite; you two are birds of a feather!"

"I am clear of conscience, I am not guilty!"

"Obstinate and unyielding!" After taking a deep look at the other, Shen Yu turned and left. Chen Wenyue, who remained in place, instantly lost all signs of life.

In the end, he did not even know how he had died before his consciousness blurred and vanished.

"It's time for the next one; these people are truly more disgusting than the last..."