Gao Chongguang walked up from the shadows of the city wall stairs with his hands clasped behind his back, his steps wobbly. When he saw all eyes fixed on him, the triumphant, smug air about him was practically oozing out.
A hey presto, here I am making a grand entrance, the future Minister Gao is shining bright before you all!
You lot of the Du faction, just wait to meet your end under the might of Gao!
At the sight of the newcomer, Du Guanliu's eyelids twitched violently several times, and a growing unease crept over him.
How could it be this Gao Chongguang, the man of the lowest character and the foulest mouth, this blockhead dumber than a pig? What key use could he possibly serve?
Wait a minute, a fool of a son might have a wise father... Du Guanliu's expression drastically changed.
Sure enough, behind Gao Chongguang, another figure stepped out of the shadows of the stairs. It was none other than Gao Dexiang, whom he had sidelined for quite some time.
Gao Dexiang flicked the hem of his official robe, dropped to his knees, held a booklet high up with both hands, and shouted sharply, "Your subject Gao Dexiang, pays his respects to Your Majesty! This subject comes before you today to denounce the Minister of Personnel, Du Guanliu!"
The moment these words landed, all the officials present broke into an uproar.
Du Guanliu's eyes widened in fury, clearly unable to believe that this dog he had kept by his side for so long would betray him, and even turn around to bite him, trying to send him to his grave!
"Gao Dexiang, I personally promoted you to the position of Vice Minister, and bestowed such great honor upon the entire Gao family. How dare you frame this official! You ungrateful, treacherous little wretch..."
Gao Chongguang quickly stepped forward to defend his father: "Don't flatter yourself. You promoted my father because my father had the ability to work his fingers to the bone for you. All the glory the Gao family has is earned by our own efforts!"
"As for you, you old thing, you're in such a rush to retort, are you getting flustered? If you're guilty, you might as well just die. If your ears don't work, go get them treated. Don't stand here like a wild old dog belching after eating too much shit, interrupting my father's words for no good reason!"
Everyone knew Gao Chongguang was a master of sharp, crude speech, but no one expected him to be this skilled. His fierce verbal attack left Du Guanliu so enraged that he was standing there gasping for air.
Gao Dexiang quickly continued, "Du Guanliu has exploited his position as Minister of Personnel to form cliques for personal gain, selling official positions and titles, which has corrupted the court and thrown the official selection system into chaos, turning the imperial court into a one-man show run by the Du faction! He has also taken bribes, engaged in salt smuggling, and collected at least half a million taels of dirty silver through so-called 'elegant corruption'. These crimes are so heinous that he is a great scourge to the Yan Chi kingdom!"
"This subject has endured hardships and humiliation, lying low by Du Guanliu's side for years, and finally compiled all evidence of his crimes into this booklet. Your Majesty will see it all clearly once you flip through it!"
Xiao Wuzi quickly took the booklet and presented it to Yun Yaoyao.
The more Yun Yaoyao flipped through the pages, the darker her expression grew. Finally, she slammed the table hard, her gaze obscure and terrifying: "Du Guanliu, you are far too bold!"
The booklet slipped and fell to the ground. The officials beside her hurried to pick it up and read it. Even with some preparation in mind, they were still horrified by what they saw, and one after another, the sound of people gasping could be heard.
Seeing this scene, all the members of the Du faction went weak in the knees.
Du Guanliu still looked calm on the surface, but the flesh on his cheeks couldn't help trembling slightly.
Sticking to his principle of never admitting guilt, he knelt down and shouted sharply, "Your Majesty, please see clearly! This subject has always abided by his duties and been loyal to the crown. All the records in this book are forged by Gao Dexiang! This man is cunning and vicious. I beg Your Majesty to investigate this thoroughly and clear the Du family's name!"
Off to the side, Tu Shanjin spoke in a low, lazy tone: "Lord Du, there's no need to rush. There's a third charge coming. A friendly reminder for Lord Du to get your heart pills ready, so nothing unexpected happens to you."
Gao Chongguang snickered mischievously: "Someone, bring Lord Du his heart pills. Don't let him get so scared that his eyes roll back, his legs stiffen, and he drops dead on the spot~"
Du Guanliu glared at the two of them, his gaze as sharp as if dipped in poison, his teeth grinding so hard they creaked.
All eyes turned to the shadows of the distant stairs, curious to see who the next person would be to step forward and denounce the Du family.
Unexpectedly, the voice came from right beside Du Guanliu.
Du Luoling, meeting all the shocked, confused, or angry gazes around her, slowly walked over to Yun Yaoyao and bowed gracefully: "Your Majesty, just like Vice Minister Gao, this concubine has been lying low in the Du residence for years, and has finally uncovered more evidence of the Du family's crimes. Bring them in!"
From the shadows of the stairs, two imperial guards immediately escorted a woman over. The woman hung her head, her skin pale, with a noticeable bulge on her belly that showed she was at least six or seven months pregnant.
The moment the woman lifted her head, everyone present let out a cry of shock.
"This... this is the Yun family's second daughter, the side consort of the traitorous King Tushan Ze, Yun Yanyan! The baby in her belly is... wait, wasn't she supposed to have burned herself to death in a fire?"
Du Luoling smiled gently: "Since everyone recognizes her, I won't waste time introducing her. The self-immolation was all a hoax. The real truth is that Du Guanliu pulled a switcheroo and hid the bloodline of the rebel Tushan Ze in his own residence!"
"Anyone who's ever dabbled in rebellion knows that it's easy to stage a revolt, but hard to come up with a justifiable reason. A revolt launched with a legitimate cause is the only way to seize the throne smoothly! That's why Du Guanliu hid Tushan Ze's bloodline first, then spread rumors among the common people that Consort Miao was a disaster-bringing demon consort, trying to whitewash the reputation of the Yun family's second daughter Yun Yanyan, and then clear Tushan Ze's name. His final plan was to raise a rebellion, put the royal bloodline in Yun Yanyan's belly on the throne. Since the new emperor would be a young child, Du Guanliu would naturally take over the reins of power as regent, and the entire Yan Chi kingdom would eventually fall right into Du Guanliu's hands!"
"Such a sinister scheme is so outrageous that it can't be atoned for even by executing all nine generations of his family!"
Another bombshell dropped right on top of the officials' heads, and they all stared at Du Guanliu in utter horror.
These three charges, each more ruthless than the last—let alone executing his nine generations, digging up his great-grandfather and great-grandmother's corpses and whipping them would not even be enough to make up for his crimes!
The towering tree that was the Du family was about to topple completely now.
All the members of the Du faction collapsed to the ground in total despair.
Du Guanliu shed all his pretense at this moment. He knew the Du family was done for, the hundred years of glory his family had built was about to be reduced to ruins. But he still couldn't understand.
His face twisted with rage, his eyes bloodshot, he shouted angrily, "Why? Why would you betray the Du family!"
"Everything you have comes from the Du family, and I am your own biological father!!"
"Du Luoling died a long time ago. You are not my real father, and the Du residence was never my home," Du Luoling said calmly, her eyebrows and eyes relaxing as if she had gone through years of vicissitudes, leaving only detached composure. "That place was full of hidden knives, treacherous hearts, eating people's flesh and blood, devouring people's sincerity. I fought tooth and nail to survive, earned the title of princess to escape the Du residence, and wanted nothing more than to live a quiet, peaceful life. But you decided to drag me back into this mess by trying to use me to seize the position of empress. You should have expected that I would turn around and fight back."
Du Guanliu stepped closer, his face dark and terrifying: "Even so, all the honors you have were given by the Du family. If the Du family falls, do you really think you can walk away alive?!"
Du Luoling smiled coldly, tilting her head up as if looking through the sky above her to somewhere far away: "What's there to fear in death? The things I cared about were never here in the first place."
Wearing luxurious silk robes and a headdress heavy with pearls and jade, what good was being a princess? What good was being an imperial consort? Wealth and power were nothing to her, not half as precious as a warm, ordinary life, not half as precious as a plain, ordinary pair of parents who loved her and protected her with all their hearts.
Du Guanliu was so furious that he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. Eldest Young Master Du quickly supported him, his trembling hands and feet fully revealing his flustered panic. "Father, what do we do... Is the Du family... Is the Du family really doomed..."
The majestic, stern and sharp emperor on the high seat had already issued the order, "The Du family has committed heinous crimes. All relevant persons are to be imprisoned in the Imperial Prison, and their executions will be scheduled immediately!"
That sharp command pulled Du Guanliu's scattered thoughts back to reality. He stared fixedly at Yun Yaoyao and let out several cold, bitter laughs.
He laughed at his own arrogant recklessness, his own failure to see people for who they truly were, and his own utter stupidity!
All that had unfolded today was a trap the other side had carefully laid out long ago, and he had walked right into it step by step without ever noticing!
At the height of the Du family's glory and pride, when they had let their guard down completely, the other side had chosen to strike right in front of the entire city's common people, and in front of all civil and military officials, to wipe out the entire Du family in one go!
"Your Majesty, your scheming runs so deep, your plans stretch so far into the distance, I truly admire you for it, it truly makes my flesh crawl!" Du Guanliu laughed so hard his entire body shook.
Yun Yaoyao gave him an awkward yet polite smile in return.
She thought to herself silently, This old guy couldn't have taken the blow too hard and suddenly lost his mind right here on the spot, right?
