No one knew what Emperor Yun felt when he first received the letter that day. At first, he thought that not attending the wedding and only sending his head eunuch would be enough. But who would have thought that Qu Xing Xu would feel that it was best for him to humiliate the Emperor.
'Are you happy sitting on the throne created from the bones of that man you betrayed?'
These were the words written on it. If it were someone else, they wouldn't understand what Qu Xing Xu was talking about. But Emperor Yun was the one who read it, and as someone who has a clear understanding and memories of that day several years ago, these words were enough for him to know what exactly he was talking about.
Or, more specifically, who the Duke was talking about.
But before Emperor Yun could even try and interrogate Q Xing Xu or act as if nothing deterred him, Emperor Yun's reaction and body betrayed him after reading the tiny words below the first sentence in the letter.
'Do you know he had an offspring? That child is very close."
Emperor Yun weakly moved his hand. He imagined him moving his hand to the side, but in reality, it didn't move even for a bit. On the contrary, his little finger was the only one among his fingers that twitched.
What offspring? That was impossible!
The more Emperor Yun remembered the events that day he received that letter, the more agitated he became. His weak body on the bed tremendously shook as if it was being shocked by lightning.
What was Qu Xing Xu was planning by telling him this? Did the Duke know what he and the other nobles did more than 20 years ago? And how did he know there was an offspring? And what did Qu Xing Xu mean by that child being close?
Countless questions swirled inside the Emperor's mind that he almost couldn't take all of it. This predicament that the Emperor was experiencing was all because of Qu Xing Xu and that cryptic letter he sent the day after his wedding.
While Emperor Yun was suffering physically and mentally from what Qu Xing Xu sent him that day, other nobles also had a hard time getting their letters.
Emperor Yun's letter he received that day was very descriptive and had enough information. But the nobles had it rough since the only thing they got was the first sentence in their letters. So despite knowing what he meant by his words and wanting to keep their secrets deeply buried, the nobles had no way of silencing Qu Xing Xu.
'Bam!'
A palm struck the smooth surface of the long table. On either side of the table were men dressed in clean and exquisite robes and even indicated their ranks in the Imperial Court.
"With the Head Hunter prancing around our heads while killing our friends, that damned Duke can't even spend his remaining years fooling around his bride! He even sent this letter to all of us! So what is he thinking by doing this?" An older man threw the tiny piece of parchment with anger.
The other nobles who sat on each side looked at the parchment uncomfortably as if that letter was a plague they wanted to escape from. Then, looking up, some understood that some of them threw away or burned this piece of parchment when they received it in fear of having others see it. However, seeing that the commandant of guards still had his copy, they were annoyed by this.
But even if they were annoyed, they can't do anything since Zhang Ze Yan was as fearless and rough as a Great General like Lin Xiaomeng.
"Qu Xing Xu has been silent since his grandfather's death and hasn't attended any court matters. He didn't even attend when the Emperor tried to persuade him to go to war with the Xin'an's. So what does he plan by telling this to all of us?" One of the minor ministers said, stroking his white beard.
"There's no need to ask what he was thinking after doing this. He wants us to relive the memories of the past and be reminded of what we did. However, the most important question is how did he know? Qu Xing Xu wasn't even born that year when we all conspired and banded together to betray that man. Even the former Duke had no idea until he got some clues in his later years." Zhang Ze Yan became skeptical and asked without aiming at anyone.
That year, more than 20 years ago. The road they took was filled with spikes and swords aimed at their vitals. The ground was red with the spilled blood of their brothers, innocent, and soldiers who fought that year. With the current Emperor sitting at the top as the mastermind, the nobles did what they wanted to get their goal.
And at the cost of that was their dear friend's life which they proudly and gladly took after betraying him.
With the splatters of blood, neighs of horses, and screams of agony, the nobles and the Emperor circled a lone man on the battlefield. That man was crying and looking at them in hatred. He hated them for what they have done and what they did to them.
However, instead of feeling guilty, the men surrounding that man slowly stabbed him with their swords one by one. They did not spare even an inch from his body.
A sudden chill broke to the noble's bodies as if they were standing before that man. But, nevertheless, no one in that group felt it was wrong to do that to that man.
Within the silence, one of the nobles who still had darker hair finally asked, "So, what are we going to do with Qu Xing Xu now that he knows our secret?"
Zhang Ze Yan and the other nobles looked up at him. Song Lan laughed, "Why? Are you perhaps afraid that you won't be able to take down a single man because we grew old?"
"It's will not be easy for us to take Qu Xing Xu down. You know that, right?" Zhang Ze Yan reminded him. "The strength of the Duke of Xin is something we cannot underestimate."
Song Lan shook his head as if he had heard some joke and said, "You're overestimating him. He's only one man. We have the emperor and twenty-two people who were there that day."
"You don't mean to say…."
Song Lan slowly smiled maliciously, "A repeat of the past won't hurt anyone."
...
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