Chapter 204: Chapter 204: At Your Disposal
"Your Majesty, when the forest is large, it’s bound to have all kinds of birds. The Iron Blood Guard controls the punishments in the Royal City and wields great power. It’s inevitable that a few bad apples will emerge. Besides, with Commander Fan looking out for me at the constabulary, I didn’t really suffer much."
"However, I must say, this time I was saved by Your Majesty simply because I was lucky. But who can guarantee that I am the only one in this Royal City who has had a case of self-defense twisted into one of murder?"
"Furthermore, Chen Ming and Qin Tian just said that not only did they want my life, but they also wanted to sell my friends to another kingdom and completely annihilate my family. And Commander Long from the constabulary and the men of the Iron Blood Guard, far from refuting this, were cheering them on. I would very much like to ask: are these City Guards and Iron Blood Guards enforcers of the kingdom’s laws, or are they a band of thugs and bandits?"
"The Iron Blood Guard is an extremely important part of the Imperial Guard, and as such, they represent Your Majesty’s honor. Their words and actions reflect the image of the entire kingdom. A moment ago, they didn’t just lose their own face, their own image—they lost face for you, Your Majesty. They damaged your image, and the image of the entire Liuyun Kingdom."
"As the kingdom’s law enforcers, the harm caused by a few bad apples within their ranks is far greater than anywhere else. It is a tremendous blow to the reputation of both Your Majesty and the kingdom. If this is not severely punished, I fear that in the long run, our nation will cease to be a nation."
Ye Xuan’s final words were incredibly weighty, stunning everyone into a state of dumbfounded, horrified silence.
Even Hua Luoxuan, Elder Kuchen, and the others had not expected Ye Xuan to say such a thing in front of the Monarch.
Zhao Jing was slightly taken aback, and his expression turned a little unnatural.
Ye Xuan’s words had struck a deep chord within him.
But seeing Zhao Jing’s expression, everyone around him broke out in a cold sweat, assuming that Ye Xuan’s words had offended His Majesty and incurred his wrath.
The First Prince and his followers were secretly overjoyed. ’This Ye Xuan really doesn’t know his own limits. He thinks that just because Royal Father came to save him personally, he can be arrogant and complacent. He fails to see that Royal Father only did this for the sake of Master Kuchen and Master Hua Luoxuan. What does he, Ye Xuan, amount to? Daring to say the nation will cease to be a nation... he’s simply courting death.’
Just as everyone was thinking this, Zhao Jing, in full view of all, did something that shocked them all.
Zhao Jing was seen giving Ye Xuan a deep bow. "What this Master says is absolutely right. We... have been negligent!"
A mighty Monarch apologizing to Ye Xuan time and again... This made Chu Yunfei and the others wonder, ’What’s wrong with His Majesty today?’
"By the way, Your Majesty, how should we deal with these people?"
Below, the kneeling Marquis Tianqi and the others felt their hearts jump and their minds waver.
Zhao Jing was heard giving a cold laugh. "Now that the truth is out, since these people dared to frame Master Ye Xuan, let’s leave their fate to Master Ye Xuan. No matter how the Master chooses to deal with them, We will have no objections. What do you think, Master Ye Xuan?"
King’s Dao and the others felt their hearts plunge into an icy abyss. Letting Ye Xuan decide their fate was worse than being sentenced to death directly.
Ye Xuan nodded and walked straight up to Chen Ming and Qin Tian. "When you two were clamoring at me earlier, I said that as soon as I got out, I would personally finish you."
"Spare us! Spare us!"
Hearing this, Chen Ming and Qin Tian were scared out of their wits and cried out repeatedly.
PSHH!
The next moment, their screams stopped abruptly. Ye Xuan lashed out with a palm, shattering both of their heads to pieces. The decisive action made everyone’s heart pound wildly.
Immediately after, Ye Xuan walked over to King’s Dao, a cold smile playing on his lips.
"No, you can’t kill me." King’s Dao panicked and scrambled toward the First Prince. "First Prince, save me! Save me! I was only following your orders! I’ve been completely loyal to you, First Prince..."
A cold glint flashed in Zhao Feng’s eyes. He suddenly struck out, shattering King’s Dao’s heart meridian, and said coldly, "This man mobilized the Iron Blood Guard without authorization and framed an innocent person. He deserves to die a thousand deaths. This Prince was deceived by him and allowed him to join the Iron Blood Guard. Today, I will personally eliminate him as a warning to others."
Ye Xuan gave a cold smile and didn’t argue. He turned to Zhao Jing and said, "Your Majesty, I will leave the rest of these people to your judgment."
"Good. Men, take all of them to the great prison to await sentencing."
"Yes!"
A large group of palace guards swarmed forward and led away the pale, grief-stricken, and furious Marquis Tianqi and the others.
"Master Ye Xuan, you have been through so much today. We imagine you must be tired, so We will not disturb you further. In a few days, We would like to invite you to the royal palace. We have important matters to discuss."
"Thank you for upholding justice, Your Majesty." Ye Xuan nodded and turned to leave.
"Then I shall take my leave as well."
"Your Majesty, this old man will take his leave now."
Hua Luoxuan, Elder Kuchen, Luo Zhan, Yun Aoxue, and the others all took their leave.
"Feng’Er, Wei’Er, you two may go back as well." Zhao Jing glanced at the First Prince and the Eighth Prince and spoke.
"Your son takes his leave."
The two princes exchanged a cool glance and went their separate ways.
As the First Prince, Zhao Feng, was leaving, he heard Zhao Jing’s calm voice. "Feng’Er, the Iron Blood Guard is a mess right now and needs to be properly managed. Starting today, your position as Commander of the Iron Blood Guard’s Southern Guard is temporarily suspended. We will make a final decision after Chu Yunfei reorganizes the Iron Blood Guard in the coming days."
"Royal Father, I..." Zhao Feng stopped in his tracks and turned, his voice urgent.
"Enough. Say no more. Leave." Zhao Jing’s gaze was indifferent as he shot him a cold look.
"Yes." Zhao Feng swallowed the words he was about to say and left.
Inside the prison, only Zhao Jing, Chu Yunfei, and a few others remained.
"Your Majesty, what should be done with Marquis Tianqi, Marquis Zhenjun, Commander Xuu, and Commander Long, who were just taken away?"
"Immediately send a few squads of the Imperial Guard to seize their estates. As for the men themselves, they are to be publicly executed at the Royal City’s execution grounds tomorrow at noon."
"Your Majesty, this..."
Chu Yunfei froze, then suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with shock.
"Do you think We are making a mountain out of a molehill?" A hint of ruthlessness appeared in Zhao Jing’s eyes. "I am doing this not just to purge the City Guard and the Iron Blood Guard, and not just to give face to Master Hua Luoxuan and Master Kuchen. More importantly, it is to win over that Ye Xuan, to repay him this favor."
"Win him over? Repay him a favor?" Chu Yunfei looked completely bewildered.
"Do you know who refined the Fourth Grade Spirit Suppressing Pill that has been suppressing My illness recently?"
"Wasn’t it Hua Luoxuan? Your Majesty even held a banquet specifically for this today."
"That’s right, it was Hua Luoxuan. However, behind Hua Luoxuan, there is another person. That person is the one who truly developed the Spirit Suppressing Pill."
"Another person... could it be that Ye Xuan? How is that possible?" Chu Yunfei understood the implication in Zhao Jing’s words, his eyes widening.
"Frankly, We also find it incredible. But this is what Hua Luoxuan told Us himself, and We trust that he would not dare to deceive Us on this matter. Besides, don’t you find it strange? Never mind Master Kuchen and Master Hua Luoxuan—just look at Luo Zhan and Yun Aoxue. What kind of people are they? Why would they go to such lengths to save a young man? We refuse to believe there isn’t a reason. We have a feeling that this boy will give Us a pleasant surprise."
"I see." Chu Yunfei finally understood Zhao Jing’s intentions. "In that case, your subject will see to it at once."
"Mm. In addition, We hope you can regain full control of the Iron Blood Guard as soon as possible. In the future, We do not wish for a repeat of today’s events."
"Your Majesty, what about the First Prince’s confidants in the Southern Guard..."
"Remove them all. We gave them power over various matters to temper them, not for them to use it against their own brothers. They have disappointed Us greatly. And Gang’er... We hear he has been stirring up trouble everywhere lately. Take back the power he controls as well. We hope he will learn to behave himself after this."
As the Monarch, Zhao Jing’s perception was sharp as a torch; he saw the power struggles woven throughout the entire incident with perfect clarity.
The First Prince, Zhao Feng, would never have imagined that because of the incident with Ye Xuan, his standing in Zhao Jing’s eyes had plummeted.
After Zhao Jing left, two Imperial Guards suddenly came before Chu Yunfei, their expressions excited. "Sir, that Ye Xuan from before... he’s the same student that Yun Aoxue brought to the Profound Spirit Academy for the assessment."
The Monarch had been present earlier, so they hadn’t found a chance to tell Chu Yunfei. As soon as Zhao Jing left, they came to report.
"What? It was him?" Chu Yunfei’s gaze sharpened. "Could it be that the Flowing Water Sword Intent Diagram was drawn by this Ye Xuan? Is that possible?"
Thinking of Yun Aoxue’s attitude toward Ye Xuan, Chu Yunfei felt a jolt. Although he hadn’t confirmed it, for some reason, he already believed it in his heart—that student was indeed Ye Xuan.
’He drew the Flowing Water Sword Intent Diagram and developed the Spirit Suppressing Pill for His Majesty... Just who is this Ye Xuan? He’s simply too incredible.’
A deep curiosity arose in the heart of the Liuyun Kingdom’s number one expert.
After all the turmoil, the matter concerning Ye Xuan had finally come to a close.
The Iron Blood Guard’s prison gradually returned to tranquility.
However, the storm this incident had kicked up was far from over.
That night, those who had been qualified to attend the banquet were all craning their necks in anticipation, trying to find out what had happened. Many of them didn’t sleep a wink.
But not a single piece of news came from the royal palace.
The next morning, when news broke that the kingdom’s Marquis Tianqi and Marquis Zhenjun, along with Commander Xuu and Commander Long of the constabulary, were to have their entire clans executed at noon, the entire Royal City was thrown into an uproar.
In an instant, the entire Royal City was like a pot of boiling water—seething, churning, and utterly frenzied.
