Chapter 1919: Winning People Over with Virtue

At this moment, Liu Guang and Liu Yao, the brothers from the Liu family, as well as others close to the Meng family, all spoke up for Meng Yi and King Dai. After all, he had handled the matter so flawlessly that these people naturally found an opening to assist.

In contrast, the officials from the Crown Prince's faction were filled with righteous indignation, but they were no match for those wily old foxes, who gave them no room to argue.

Ye Ping and the others, however, turned pale. This was bad, very bad. King Dai and Meng Yi had turned the tables this time, and they would surely seek revenge afterward.

Seeing the situation reverse, King Dai instantly brightened and looked provocatively at Zu An: "Lord Zu, everything must be based on evidence; you can't just defame someone's innocence with baseless accusations."

"Even if, for argument's sake, I truly had those things done, what's the big deal? My imperial father was murdered in Purple Mountain because Murong Tong failed in his duty as a guard, and the Qin brothers secretly supported that traitorous rebel. It is only right and proper for me to seek revenge on them."

"Even King Jin knew to avenge his father. As a fellow son of the imperial father, how could I lag behind?"

"Our Great Zhou Dynasty governs the world with filial piety. Filial piety is the most crucial national policy. What we did should not only go unpunished but should also be greatly commended by the imperial court. Ultimately, it should be compiled into the Classic of Filial Piety for distribution throughout the land, so that all commoners may read and learn from our spirit of filial piety."

"Of course, everything I've said above is merely hypothetical and shouldn't be taken seriously."

Meng Yi secretly nodded upon hearing this. His son-in-law wasn't utterly foolish, after all. What was the purpose of all they had done? Wasn't it to provoke Zu An, make him commit a mistake, so they could seize the opportunity to eliminate him, severing an arm of the Crown Prince's faction? Ideally, they could even trace the connections and implicate a large number of people associated with the Crown Prince.

Adding fuel to the fire at such a moment couldn't be better. Given Zu An's fiery temper, as seen when he killed King Jin, he would most likely be unable to resist making a move.

At that point, they could gather the strength of all civil and military officials, along with the imperial palace guards, to execute this scoundrel on the spot.

Even if the Crown Princess wanted to protect him then, she wouldn't be able to.

However, to his surprise, Zu An, who he expected to erupt in anger, remained perfectly calm, without any discernible emotional fluctuations.

This was because everything had long been within his expectations. He simply didn't want to dampen Qin Zheng's fervent loyalty and Jiang Luofu's idealism, so he decided to give it a try for their sake.

When it came to playing with rules, how could he be a match for these old foxes who had been entrenched in politics for decades?

The Crown Princess instructed her officials to attempt a counterattack, but she hadn't anticipated that the Meng family had already dealt with all the informed parties beforehand, rendering their counterattacks ultimately futile.

After a series of exchanges, the general situation was finally settled.

The Empress, seated at the head, cast a worried glance at Zu An, and finally spoke: "This matter is extremely peculiar. The Qin family and Murong family are, after all, important ministers of the state; they cannot be subjected to such private actions without clear reason. This matter shall be thoroughly investigated by the Embroidered Uniform Guards;"

"Furthermore, special imperial physicians shall be dispatched to the Heavenly Prison to care for the injured. A detachment of Imperial Forest Guards shall also be stationed at the Heavenly Prison. Henceforth, no one, regardless of who they are, shall be permitted to enter the Heavenly Prison privately."

She knew Zu An was very angry now, but as the Empress, she couldn't go against the wishes of the assembled officials. She could only try her best to appease him in this manner.

"Your Majesty is wise!" The officials, however, were perfectly clear in their minds: the Meng family and King Dai had already erased all evidence; the Embroidered Uniform Guards weren't gods, what could they possibly investigate?

At this point, Meng Yi looked at Ye Ping and the others: "These few, as officials of the Ministry of Punishment, knowingly broke the law by bringing people into the Heavenly Prison to torture important ministers of the state. This is truly an aggravated offense, and their crime warrants execution. I hope Your Majesty will deal with them."

The Empress nodded: "Guards, take the principal offender Ye Ping out to the palace gates for beheading. The rest shall be stripped of their posts and investigated!"

This Ye Ping was indeed outrageous. Moreover, he was the one who tortured the Qin family. Dealing with him could be considered an explanation to the Qin family and to Ah Zu.

Ye Ping was instantly dumbfounded: "Your Majesty, I'm innocent!"

Seeing the Empress's icy expression remain unmoved, he truly panicked. Soon, palace guards entered and dragged them out.

"Your Majesty, I'm innocent!"

"Minister Meng, I was wrong. Please be magnanimous and overlook my transgression."

"Crown Princess, save me!"

"Lord Zu, Lord Zu, save me!"

He was desperate, clutching at straws, and shouted out to everyone he could think of, but unfortunately, no one paid him any heed.

Zu An's expression remained calm. Given Ye Ping's behavior in the Heavenly Prison earlier, especially the evil gaze he had cast upon Qin Wanru and Jiang Luofu, it was clear he had done many vile things in his life. He deserved to die.

Anyway, he wouldn't be needed anymore.

Meng Yi stroked his beard, and both he and King Dai wore triumphant expressions. This Ye Ping had been audacious enough to testify for Zu An, but now that fellow Zu couldn't protect him. Let's see who dares to help him and oppose us in court from now on.

The two scanned the room. Most of the ministers nervously lowered their heads, avoiding eye contact.

Finally, the matter was settled, and the officials dispersed.

As Zu An exited the Golden Luan Hall, King Dai deliberately waited by the entrance for him: "Lord Zu, I'm truly sorry for making you so angry today."

Zu An calmly looked at him: "Spit it out quickly, you might not get another chance."

King Dai's expression changed. Thinking of King Jin's fate, he quickly took a step back. However, remembering that they were in the Golden Luan Hall, surrounded by civil and military officials, and with his father-in-law standing by, his confidence instantly returned: "Is Lord Zu so furious he's losing control? Actually, I only came here to tell you one thing."

"Many common people in this world believe that justice may be delayed, but never absent, and that all grievances will be redressed. Unfortunately, reality isn't like that."

"Lord Zu, you are from a small place after all, and climbed up as a commoner. Unlike us, from top families, who are taught by our elders through word and deed, you naturally don't understand these things. So I, your King, am specifically giving you a few pointers, lest you remain so naive and suffer great losses in the future."

He was acting on Meng Yi's instruction, deliberately provoking Zu An. The goal was to provoke him into making a move on the spot, which would provide the perfect opportunity to eliminate him.

Unfortunately, he didn't get to see Zu An's helpless fury. Instead, there was a loud smack, and his entire head buzzed.

"I was hit?"

"And slapped in public?"

King Dai didn't immediately recover. He had actually prepared defensive measures when he was provoking Zu An, yet he hadn't even seen how the other party made his move.

Meng Yi was also both shocked and furious: "You, Zu, how dare you commit violence in the imperial palace!"

He had also been on guard for Zu An's move, but similarly hadn't been able to stop it in time.

The commotion quickly attracted the attention of the surrounding court officials, who thought, *This fellow Zu is indeed a fierce one; he actually slapped King Dai?*

Zu An spread his hands at this moment: "Did I? How would I know? Don't you go slandering people."

"This old man saw it with his own eyes! The handprint on King Dai's face is still there. How dare you deny it!" Meng Yi's voice was sharp and stern.(Rage value from Meng Yi: +400, +400, +400...)

King Dai finally came to his senses: "You, Zu, how dare you assault an imperial prince in open court? This is a serious crime! Guards, seize this unfilial and disloyal scoundrel!"(Rage value from Zhao Ping: +555, +555, +555...)

"Just because you say so, it is?" Zu An said with a smile. "I just said you murdered the two Qin dukes, do you admit that?"

"Wielding your tongue here is useless," Meng Yi sneered. "There are so many ministers here, so many pairs of eyes, all of whom saw you slap King Dai!"

King Dai's face was burning, he wasn't sure if it was from Zu An's slap or from shame. He thought to himself, *Father-in-law, can you not be so loud? It's not glorious that I was slapped in the face. It's all that Zu fellow's fault!*(Rage value from Zhao Ping: +444, +444, +444...)

"Is that so? Who among you saw it?" Zu An's gaze swept around.

Many ministers averted their gazes, thinking that this involved a conflict between King Dai, supported by the Meng family, and the Crown Prince, supported by the Bi family. Who would dare to get involved?

Meng Yi's eyes narrowed. *This kid also wants to play my game, but unfortunately, he's too green.*

Sure enough, a few ministers quickly spoke up: "I saw it!"

"I saw it too!"

"You were the one who hit King Dai."

These few were all from the Meng family and King Dai's faction, so they naturally spoke in their favor.

As if he had expected it, Zu An said: "You are all King Dai's and Meng Yi's lackeys, of course you'll speak for him. According to Great Zhou law, you are interested parties, and your testimony shall not be accepted. Lord Jiang, am I right?"

Jiang Boyang, who was passing by, suppressed a smile and said sternly: "Indeed."

*That Meng fellow has crossed the line repeatedly. Does he really think I, Jiang, have no temper?*

Zu An thought to himself, *As expected of Principal Jiang's father, he's truly one of us.*

"Jiang Boyang, you..." Meng Yi was furious.

Just then, a eunuch's chilling voice echoed nearby: "Lord Zu, Her Majesty summons you to Kunning Palace; she has something to ask you."

This person carried an aura of chilling coldness, and the surrounding ministers involuntarily distanced themselves from him.

The Empress's chief eunuch, Eunuch Lü.

Since Eunuch Wen's death in Purple Mountain, he had become the de facto Chief Eunuch of the Inner Palace.

"Eunuch Lü, that fellow Zu just hit King Dai," Meng Yi quickly said.

Eunuch Lü said expressionlessly: "Justice Commissioner Jiang is right here. If there's anything, you can report it to him for filing. Now that Her Majesty wishes to see Lord Zu, I dare not delay."

He then bowed to Zu An: "Lord Zu, please proceed."

Zu An frowned, but ultimately not wanting to put the Empress in a difficult position, he followed along first.

Watching their retreating figures, King Dai's expression became somewhat distorted: "What does the Empress mean by this?"

Meng Yi's brows also furrowed together. The Empress seemed to be treating this fellow Zu somewhat unusually.

Zu An soon met with the Empress in Kunning Palace.

Liu Ning glanced at him and sighed softly: "Are you blaming me for my decision just now?"

Zu An shook his head: "No, everything was within my expectations before entering the palace."

Liu Ning's heart tightened: "Don't be impulsive. I've already handed this case over to the Embroidered Uniform Guards. You can investigate it however you want then, and no one will be able to say anything."

"Furthermore, strictly speaking, this matter might not be a bad thing. The Qin and Murong families have suffered such great grievances, and most officials sympathize with them. Moreover, the Meng family and King Dai were in the wrong this time, so it will likely be difficult for them to continue pursuing the Qin and Murong families. At that point, the Qin and Murong families' culpability can be minimized, and they can ultimately be released from the Heavenly Prison."

Zu An nodded: "Your Majesty has considered everything thoroughly."

Liu Ning, however, was somewhat suspicious because he seemed too calm: "Please, don't do anything foolish. Leave the rest to me. I promise I can get the Qin and Murong families out as quickly as possible."

Zu An asked: "Will they be acquitted and restored to their official positions?"

Liu Ning looked troubled: "That might be somewhat impossible. What happened in Purple Mountain was simply too significant; there must be someone to take responsibility. However, I can assure you, their lives are not in danger. At most, their titles will be slightly downgraded, their official positions reduced, and a few unimportant family members banished or something similar."

Zu An nodded.

"This is the greatest concession I can fight for. Otherwise, according to custom, the Murong family would likely be executed to the last member, and the Qin family would most likely be exiled entirely." Seeing his silence, Liu Ning felt a growing unease.

"I know your efforts." Zu An smiled.

"Are you truly not going to do anything impulsive or foolish?" Liu Ning couldn't help but ask again.

"Don't worry, I'm not foolish. Why would I want to become the public enemy of the entire capital then?" Zu An reassured her a few times, then stood up to take his leave.

As he was about to leave the palace, Bi Linglong also changed into casual clothes and came to find him: "Ah Zu, I'm very sorry about what happened in court just now. That old fox Meng Yi is too cunning. But please, don't do anything foolish. If I'm not mistaken, they are doing all this to provoke you into making a move, so they can naturally eliminate you, and then, after weakening the Crown Prince's faction, their next target will be me and the Crown Prince."

"Don't worry, I won't let them have their way," Zu An said calmly.

Bi Linglong rolled her eyes at him: "You directly killed King Jin before. How can I feel at ease?"

"I'll be rational this time," Zu An chuckled, patting her hand. "People always grow, you know. Now I'll convince people with virtue."

"Really?"

"Really."

Ultimately, it was not appropriate for Bi Linglong, given her status, to spend too much private time alone with him. Eunuchs and palace maids were approaching in the distance. Although she still had some doubts, she could only hurry away.

Originally on his way to King Dai's residence, Zu An suddenly had a thought. He took out the Embroidered Uniform Guard's waist token from his bosom, feeling the qi fluctuations on it. *Someone is looking for me?*

So he changed into the Grand Commander's attire and went to the Embroidered Tower.

He found a delicate figure dressed in plain clothes anxiously pacing inside. With curved brows and small lips, she looked exceptionally delicate and pitiful.

"Why is Princess Consort Jin here?" Zu An was somewhat curious.

"Ah, Grand Commander." Seeing the tall and imposing figure, Princess Consort Jin's pretty face involuntarily flushed. For days, fragments from her dreams had kept appearing in her mind, and now seeing the actual person, she naturally felt flustered.

"Is there something?"

Princess Consort Jin then remembered her purpose and quickly grabbed his hands: "Grand Commander, please save my father and the others."

"What happened to them?"

"Last time, because I testified for you, identifying King Dai and Meng Yi, they retaliated against the He family by finding people to accuse us. They claimed my father embezzled funds, illegally acquired fertile land, and oppressed the common people. He was imprisoned, and many members of the He family were arrested. Many of the female relatives were also said to be sold into the Imperial Music Bureau."

"King Dai sent someone to deliver a message to me, saying this was just a small lesson for me. What happens next depends on my choice, and he wants me to go to his residence today to apologize."

"Grand Commander, please help me. I really don't know what to do."

Zu An's eyes narrowed. This King Dai was truly audacious and lustful. He still hadn't given up on that idea. He was indeed walking further and further down the path of courting death.

He helped Princess Consort Jin up: "Princess Consort, rest assured. I will immediately send people to rescue your father. Furthermore, King Dai will soon be unable to threaten you."

Princess Consort Jin was startled, completely misunderstanding the meaning of his words. The other party was, after all, a powerful prince, not like her husband, whose poor health meant people only outwardly respected him but didn't take him seriously. *How could he possibly not be able to threaten me?*

Zu An didn't say much more to her. He summoned a few Embroidered Uniform Guards to escort her back to her residence. He then changed out of his Embroidered Uniform Guard attire, and after leaving the palace, went straight to King Dai's residence.

Looking at the vermilion gates before him, he walked straight up and kicked both doors flying off their hinges: "Zhao Ping, get out here and face me!"

Soon, a surging wave of sound echoed throughout King Dai's residence.

Since the methods of Qin Zheng and Jiang Luofu didn't work before, then it was time for him to use his own methods to convince people with virtue.