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"Rebellious officials and treacherous scoundrels, spouting nonsense!"

A piercing roar suddenly came from behind the curtain, though it was the voice of a person, it carried a wail not even an evil ghost possessed, chilling the entire hall to the bone.

All the civil officials present turned pale and knelt on the ground; had there been outsiders there, they would have found it incredibly eerie, for the color of the entire hall had turned to ash, including the people within. ..

All the military generals bowed their heads, confusion in their eyes, while the nine high ministers stared ahead, each flashing a hint of insight!

"Your Majesty... how could Your Majesty possibly..." Behind the curtain, the shadow slowly rose, though the curtain wasn’t that tall, the shadow loomed like a giant, one that could block out the entire world with a glance!

"Only with me does Your Majesty share bloodline; all the rest are flawed products!!"

In an instant, the pupils of the child on the dragon throne dilated, and his body became more and more blurred in the ashen haze, like a heap of shadows!

"The Empress!" The nine high ministers knelt in succession, "The Empress, quell your anger, not even the market women and children would believe such absurd words from a rebellious official and treacherous scoundrel!"

The voices of the nine high ministers were immensely heavy, also carrying humility and sincerity, which finally stopped the chilling aura from spreading further and kept the terrifying shadow from parting the curtain, instead settling back into its seat slowly.

The next moment, the Empress’s voice emerged from behind the curtain again, this time not as piercing and dreadful but as gentle as before.

"The ministers are right, that Chen Qing is a rebellious official and treacherous scoundrel. The words he speaks... who would believe them?"

With the voice carrying through, the temperature in the hall began to rise, and the ashen colors started to slowly regain their hues.

"The Empress is wise!" The nine high ministers bowed once more, and the rest of the civil and military officials, still in a daze, followed the ministers in bowing and then stood up, bewildered.

"Enough... now tell me, what else did Chen Qing say?"

"To the Empress..." The newly appointed Minister of War, Minister Pang, wiped the sweat from his forehead and spoke in a low voice, "This time, General Weichi suffered a defeat, but fortunately, he was only captured. Chen Qing’s letter suggests no intention to be the enemy of the Imperial Court and is willing to return the captives. "

"That one from the Weichi Clan..." The Empress’s voice trailed off, "Truly a face-saver, aren’t they?"

"Your servant... is guilty!" A tall figure knelt down, speaking with shame, "My son has brought such disgrace to the Imperial Court, indeed failing the trust placed in us by the court. I request that my son’s dukedom be stripped away!"

"It’s not that severe..." The Empress intoned, "The Weichi Clan has made great contributions; His Majesty will not lose trust over such a matter.

Weichi Peng is young and impetuous, fallen victim to the scheming of wily people.

Suffering a little loss might not be a bad thing, a setback could lead to a greater leap forward.

If he can learn from this lesson, he still can be entrusted with major responsibilities in the future. "

"The Empress speaks the truth. Your servant is ashamed..."

"Hmm, so Chen Qing is willing to release Weichi Peng that readily? Is there any other condition?"

The Minister of War hesitated for a moment before responding, "Chen Qing’s letter said that Your Majesty sent him to Jiangnan years ago precisely to defend the ancient secrets of Jiangnan.

Now, as the ancient secrets of Jiangnan are about to be unveiled, he alone cannot fulfill Your Majesty’s sacred trust. In order to prevent a calamity for all under heaven, he hopes that the Central Plains will temporarily cease hostilities and various powers will go to Nanming Prefecture to consult on how to deal with this impending disaster.

Therefore... he hopes that the court will temporarily halt the northern campaign and send a powerful representative to Jiangnan to discuss the matter! "

Upon these words, the entire Imperial Court fell deathly silent; the atmosphere, though not as grim and dreadful as before, was terrifyingly cold nonetheless.

Finally, after a long pause, the Empress slowly spoke, "So... Chen Qing is dictating how the Imperial Court should conduct itself?"

Sensing the mood was off, the Minister of Rites quickly stepped forward, "Your Excellency, the traitor is delusional and indeed deserves death, but the current situation is chaotic. The Court has suffered in several respects, and losing General Weichi Peng would be a loss greater than the gain. That vile Chen Qing’s smug offer, daring to invite powers from all sides to gather in Jiangnan, truly shows he knows not life from death.

Your servant suggests we go with the flow, send someone to Jiangnan, retrieve General Weichi Peng first, and then take advantage of this invitation to probe the realities in Nanming Prefecture. "

"Your suggestion... is to agree to Chen Qing’s proposal?"

"The Empress, quell your anger..." The Minister of Rites hurriedly knelt to pay respects, "That arrogant and ignorant Chen Qing tastes a bit of victory and presumes to act like the hegemon of spring and autumn without weighing his own capabilities.

That Siao Mingyue, Old Ancestor Shen of the West Sea, the northern Wei Kingdom.

.. cough... the treacherous Wang Family, they are all like jackals and wolves, not something he can handle? "

"A move that courts self-destruction. Your servant means to say, let’s take this opportunity to probe the stances and realities of the other powers, and also see what exactly this ancient Jiangnan is all about."

Upon mentioning the ancient Jiangnan, a glint of light passed through the eyes of the nine high ministers and the magician ministers, while the bloodline military generals remained just as bewildered in their gaze...

"The minister makes some points; indeed, the court should probe the true conditions of those rebels, and the ancient Jiangnan... Yes, it cannot be ignored. In that case, which of my dear ministers wish to represent the Imperial Court in going to Jiangnan?"

For a moment, the scions of noble families volunteered eagerly, "Your servant is willing to go!"

The nine high ministers also knelt down, "Your servant, too, is willing to go!"

"Oh?" The Empress’s voice took on a teasing tone, "If you all go, what will become of the court affairs?"

Everyone: "...."

"My beloved ministers, discuss it amongst yourselves. Once you have reached a conclusion, have the ceremonial supervisor send a message to my palace. I am tired and must accompany His Majesty..."

"We respectfully see off the Empress!"

As the ministers knelt to send her off, the figure behind the curtain, supported by a eunuch who looked as withered as an old tree, exited the curtain. Everyone, including the nine high ministers, buried their heads deeply, not daring to catch even a glimpse!

It’s not that no one had ever tried, but they all disappeared without a trace, including the once highest-ranking minister of the Ministry of Personnel....Minister Mei.

Until this day, no one knew what he had seen when he looked up, nor did anyone know... what had become of Minister Mei....

After the Empress left the great hall, the temperature abruptly warmed, and everyone’s complexion quickly returned to normal. The Prince on the dragon throne then regained his composure and began to sob loudly, with the eunuchs beside him hastening to comfort him.

But none of the civil and military officials on the floor even glanced at the Prince.

"The rest of you may step down," said the nine high ministers as they turned to look at the civil officials.

All the civil officials immediately understood that ’the rest of you’ referred to them.

Although their faces showed reluctance, they all respectfully bowed and said, "Then we shall take our leave."

"Minister Yang, stay behind," the nine high ministers said coldly, looking towards one figure.

Among those who were leaving, an elegant elderly man suddenly broke into a profuse sweat. He was the one who had vehemently advocated attacking Chen Qing earlier.

The other civil officials wanted to speak up, but upon seeing the gaze of the group of magician officials, they lost their courage.

Usually in the Imperial Court, everyone is part of one camp. When they’re not taking you seriously, they respect you as a Great Confucian and give you a little recognition, but this doesn’t mean you can truly sit on an equal footing with them!

After all, if the people of the distinguished families can be considered half demon, then the magicians... are demons with human skins and bones...

All the civil officials knew that in reality... the nine high ministers and those bloodline monsters... were of the same kind!

Minister Yang...." the Minister of Rites looked at Minister Yang and asked, "Where did those inexplicable pieces of intelligence come from?"

Under the gaze of the nine high ministers, no ordinary man past his sixties could resist. His legs went weak, and he knelt to the ground: "It’s.

.. from distant relatives in Jiangnan. They claimed.

.. they had thoroughly investigated Chen Qing’s background, and that his subordinates are just local militias, a rabble! "

"A rabble?" Minister Pang sneered. "Although the troops Weichi Peng led were not elite, they were legitimate scions of distinguished families. A rabble? Could such a group destroy Weichi Peng’s entire army of fifty thousand in a single day?"

"I...." Minister Yang trembled and bowed his head. He knew nothing of military affairs and could not produce a convincing argument, simply stammering, "It was my negligence."

"Your single act of negligence has caused great trouble!" Minister Pang’s eyes were icy cold. By now, the prestige of the Imperial Court after the battle in Jiangnan had probably plummeted to rock bottom!

"I shall personally go to Jiangnan to discuss matters this time. Hand over your so-called distant relative informant to me, I have to see what this is all about!"

"Yes...." Where could Minister Yang dare to resist: "In the wine shop to the east of the city, there’s a person called Ah Sheng; he has been bribed by my distant nephew to relay messages."

"Oh?" Minister Pang nodded, then without giving the other party another look, he turned to the rest of the magician officials and scions of the noble families: "I will be going this time. Any objections?"

All the magician officials glanced at each other and finally said, "We will send an outstanding scion from our families to accompany you."

Minister Pang nodded: "That’s acceptable..."

The Martial Families frowned, wondering why they should be so eager to get involved, but they nodded and said, "We’ll have to trouble Minister Pang, then."

Minister Pang nodded coolly and exchanged glances with the other nine high ministers before saying, "After I leave, I’ll leave the matters here to you."

"Don’t worry, we can still hold the fort for now...." the Minister of Personnel murmured in a low voice: "But not for much longer. Only an ancient power can resist another ancient power. It’s imperative that we thoroughly investigate Jiangnan!"

Minister Pang turned his head and sighed upon seeing the puzzled looks of the military generals: "It seems there is no other choice...."