Chapter 716: Opening Ceremony of the Academy

“Say it— who the hell told you?!”

Han Mo, furious beyond control, stood up immediately and grabbed Lu Xun by the collar.

At this point, where was the dignity of a second-rank official?

Seeing him in such a state, Li Yan was finally certain.

The steam engine must have made major progress.

It’s not surprising—this world has countless skilled craftsmen in the Mo School, and with his subtle hints at the time, they didn’t dismiss the steam engine as mere frivolous trickery.

Now that steam-powered carts exist, what else could be far behind?

While Li Yan was lost in thought, Lu Xun below trembled like a leaf in the wind.

“Speak!”

“You’re not protecting yourself now—you’re protecting your entire clan’s life!”

Under Han Mo’s furious scolding, Lu Xun no longer dared to hide the truth and confessed everything.

After Han Mo took office, Lu Xun knew he was unwelcome, so he devoted himself entirely to finding a way to be promoted, at least to preserve his authority.

But as a former subordinate of the ex-Minister of Public Works, and one who managed rivers and water conservancy, no one knew what hidden dangers lay beneath him, so no one would touch him.

Meanwhile, Yuan Feng, an elder of the Mo School and Director of the Yu Heng Qingli Si, traveled to Liangzi Lake, discovered the steam engine with Li Yan, hurriedly transported it back to the capital, and went with Han Mo to the palace to explain its value; since then, he was ordered to secretly study it within the palace, and his duties were handed over to his deputy, the Assistant Director, who reported directly to Han Mo.

Originally, this matter was top secret, but due to others’ ignorance, things went awry.

The documents sent by Yuan Feng from the palace were meant for Han Mo, but in the chaos, a clerk mistakenly routed them back to the Yu Heng Qingli Si.

The “Yu Heng Qingli Si” not only oversaw military equipment manufacturing but also managed mining and forestry, including mineral extraction and timber harvesting.

Lu Xun had just been asked by someone to plead on behalf of a wealthy merchant involved in illegal copper mining.

By chance, he saw the report and immediately realized this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The report mentioned that the “iron ox carts” were extremely fast, but that future mass production would require rebuilding the imperial roads.

Lu Xun didn’t know what these “iron ox carts” were, but he knew road reconstruction would involve massive sums of money—so he hatched a plan, invited Abbot Zhou, and enlisted the Jin Yan Gate to bring in representatives from the Yan Prince’s court and Luo Gongsheng to strategize how to position themselves early and profit from this opportunity.

His goal was naturally to use this information to secure the Yan Prince as a powerful patron.

But unexpectedly, the secret of the divine device leaked, causing a city-wide uproar, and with the emperor’s attitude, the old fool finally grew terrified.

When he heard Abbot Zhou had vanished and Luo Mingzi came looking for him, he immediately hanged himself.

“Hmph!”

After hearing this, Luo Mingzi’s face darkened. “So the leak originated from you?”

Lu Xun shuddered and lowered his head.

What he feared most was precisely this.

Had he known how vital that device was, he’d never have touched it.

Han Mo was also furious, turning to Luo Mingzi: “I shall immediately enter the palace to beg for punishment.”

Luo Mingzi paused, then said: “This matter implicates the Yan Prince’s chief steward and Luo Gongsheng, head of the Iron Anchor Society—it’s no trivial affair. The heretic Zhao Qingxu is lurking nearby, and with this chain of connections, his agents may well be hiding within the Yan Prince’s palace.”

“Minister Han, I shall accompany you to the palace to petition His Majesty for a search of the Yan Prince’s residence!”

Given the scale of this affair, Li Yan could not possibly decide anything himself, and since the Yan Prince was involved, he had no desire to get entangled in the princes’ murky power struggles—he politely took his leave and returned to the Rouyuan Inn.

Yet the situation developed in a way no one had anticipated.

Shortly after Luo Mingzi and the others entered the palace, the Yan Prince’s grand sedan chair had already arrived steadily at the palace gates.

Prince Yan, Xiao Jinglie, fully dressed and composed, his face flushed with rage, voluntarily entered the palace to “surrender and beg punishment.”

Meanwhile, another unit of elite troops from the Capital Security Bureau moved even faster.

Based on Lu Xun’s key testimony and prior clues, they descended like tigers upon the Iron Anchor Society’s headquarters, using firearms to intimidate and chains to bind, publicly arresting Luo Gongsheng—the long-reigning, immensely powerful kingpin who had dominated Beijing’s underworld and officialdom for years.

This man, once so powerful that his footsteps shook the city’s foundations, now lay helpless, bound tightly, dragged all the way to the palace steps, collapsed like a pile of boneless flesh, trembling uncontrollably as he was forced to kneel.

Inside the Yangxin Hall, sandalwood incense curled through the air, yet failed to dispel the chilling dread.

“Your Majesty! Your servant failed to discipline his subordinates, allowing such short-sighted fools to entangle themselves with heretical remnants, nearly causing catastrophe! Upon hearing that the rebel Lu Xun confessed the Prince’s chief steward conspired with the villain Luo Gongsheng, my heart is shattered—I come here to beg punishment! The steward has taken his own life in the study!”

Prince Yan, Xiao Jinglie, knelt and bowed his head to the ground, his voice earnest and filled with anguish, lowering himself completely.

Outside in the courtyard, Luo Gongsheng screamed hoarsely: “Unjust! It was all my greed! The Yan Prince had nothing to do with this! I was deceived by the villain! I knew nothing! Your Majesty, please investigate!”

Emperor Xiao Qixuan sat upon the throne, expressionless as Luo Mingzi reported, his gaze chillingly cold.

Crash!

He suddenly hurled the teacup in his hand to the ground, shards flying everywhere!

The sharp shattering silenced every attendant in the hall.

“Fine! Fine, ‘I knew nothing!’”

“Fine, ‘he committed suicide in his study!’”

The emperor’s voice was low, yet thunderous with rage: “My edicts haven’t even left this inner study, yet they’ve already reached your Yan Prince’s palace?!”

“Jinglie, you’ve done quite a job managing my Forbidden City!”

“Your servant begs death!”

Prince Yan’s heart turned cold; he slammed his forehead hard against the golden bricks, daring not utter a word in defense.

He was impulsive—he rushed here immediately upon hearing the news, without consulting anyone.

Only now, hearing the emperor’s words, did he realize he had committed a fatal blunder.

“Hmph!”

The prince was foolish, but Emperor Xiao Qixuan was sharp—he snapped: “You fool, you’ve been manipulated without realizing it! Tell me—who told you this?”

In the hall, Han Mo and Luo Mingzi both kept their heads bowed in silence.

Anyone could sense something was deeply wrong.

If Prince Yan had guilt in his heart and spies planted in the capital, his best move upon hearing this news would have been to destroy all evidence and remain silent in his palace.

To rush here so recklessly suggests he was tricked.

“This…”

Prince Yan Xiao Jinglie, sweat beading on his brow, trembled as he knelt: “The chief steward committed suicide, leaving behind a final letter claiming he was bewitched by heretics and brought disaster upon us—he could not bear the shame. Only then did I learn of this.”

Xiao Qixuan said coldly: “Return to your palace! Under no circumstances, without my direct order, shall any member of your household leave! Await investigation by the Imperial Clan Court and the Capital Security Bureau!”

He had already prepared a response to the premature leak of the divine device.

His anger stemmed more from a leak within the palace—likely tied to the heretics.

“As for this wretched slave…”

He glanced out the window at the crumpled Luo Gongsheng below: “Throw him into the death cell! Interrogate him thoroughly! Tear his skin, break his bones—find me Zhao Qingxu’s tail! Leave not a single foreign merchant, secret agent, or corrupt official connected to him unpunished!”

Having dealt with the Yan Prince, the emperor’s icy gaze turned to the standing Grand Master Huo Yin: “Master Huo, you’ve been stationed in Beijing to hunt down heretics—yet for all these years, under your very nose, you noticed nothing about Luo Gongsheng?”

Huo Yin’s face was stone; he knelt on one knee: “Your servant failed in vigilance—please punish me, Your Majesty!”

“Punishment? First earn redemption!”

Xiao Qixuan’s anger still burned: “The Capital Security Bureau shall cooperate with the Xuan Ji Si’s Enforcement Hall—interrogate and arrest anyone involved, regardless of noble rank, official status, merchant wealth, or power! Any further negligence will be punished doubly! Dismissed!”

With the imperial decree issued, the Yan Prince’s household naturally suffered.

From top to bottom, every member was individually interrogated by the Capital Security Bureau and the Enforcement Hall.

Even the immortal who had recently fled into the palace for protection was surrounded by several Imperial Masters, questioned thoroughly, and only allowed to leave Beijing after presenting a decree from the Xuan Ji Si.

In the Great Xuan Dynasty, imperial authority outweighed divine power—when the Son of Heaven raged, even immortals fled in disgrace.

Yet despite the massive uproar, nothing substantial was uncovered.

All clues pointed to the Yan Prince’s chief steward.

Originally, Wang She had been planted by the steward in the Iron Anchor Society; afterward, the prince shielded him under the excuse of ignorance.

Jiulianluogongsheng ， Yeshigebeilianleidedaomeigui ， Beizongguanmengbi ， Yiweishiyanwangshouyi 。

Moreover, the officers who arrested the chief steward learned that Abbot Zhou had been arranged by the steward himself—lured out via secret letters and then murdered, buried outside the city.

With the steward’s death, all leads were severed again.

Luo Mingzi judged that this incident erupted suddenly, so Zhao Qingxu sacrificed the chief steward as a pawn and set up a trap to lure the impulsive Yan Prince to the palace.

Had Emperor Xiao Qixuan been less astute, the Yan Prince would have been doomed.

Within the palace, another round of investigations followed; the Grand Eunuch Zhao Wujiu, head of the Office of Ceremonial, also went on a purge, uncovering several culprits—but all were guilty of stealing palace property or embezzlement, unrelated to the Jianmu.