Chapter 522: Chapter 285: Emperor: I Just Threw Them Into the River

Unable to bear the torture any longer, one of the assassins cried out for mercy.

The other assassins spat and cursed, "Coward!"

The sounds of fighting on the Dragon Ship on the Wangjing River had drawn a crowd of commoners to both banks, among them no shortage of spies from various influential families.

Seeing one of the assassins break, the Emperor simply raised a hand.

The Imperial Guard immediately pulled the daggers from his ankles.

The assassin caught his breath for several moments before speaking. "We are the trusted men of the Commander of the Mansion Guard, Lan Tai! His Majesty the Emperor’s judgment is unfair! He has imprisoned our general and brothers to this day, which is truly disheartening!"

The Emperor, Gu Yuanzhang, paced back and forth. "Lan Tai is merely your superior, but I am your Emperor! To defy me for a mere Assistant General, to rebel against your superiors! Who is the true master of this Empire?"

"Impossible, absolutely impossible!" The Emperor, Gu Yuanzhang, was so furious he kept repeating these words.

The Crown Prince, Gu Biao, stepped forward to console him. "Father, please calm your anger!"

A high-ranking minister took a few steps forward, cupped his hands, and said, "His Majesty the Emperor, this old servant has something to report!"

"Speak!" The Emperor was in a foul mood and snapped irritably.

"His Majesty the Emperor, this old servant has heard that this Commander of the Mansion Guard, Lan Tai, is the third adopted son of Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu. Though his post as an officer in the Government Army Guard is not high, he has immense prestige and is extremely well-liked. It seems what the assassin said is true!"

The Emperor looked coldly at the high-ranking minister. "As the Crown Prince’s Tutor, you should know that while you can eat whatever you want, you cannot speak whatever you want. Aren’t you afraid of losing your head?"

The Emperor’s words carried a hint of a threat. If this minister dared to continue speaking nonsense and disrupting the Court’s order, he would likely end up being flayed alive.

Everyone in the Imperial Court knew.

Not only was Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, highly valued by the Emperor, but he also had a familial connection to the Crown Prince, Gu Biao.

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, held military power, commanding the five divisions of the Government Army: the Government Army Guard, the Government Army Vanguard, the Government Army Rear Guard, the Government Army Left Guard, and the Government Army Right Guard.

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu’s various adopted sons held officer positions of all ranks within these five divisions. In other words, the stability of the five Government Army divisions determined the stability of the Empire.

To bring up Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, in front of the Crown Prince, the various Princes, and other ministers was a slap in His Majesty the Emperor’s face. More than that, it was holding the Empire over a fire.

Taking a huge step back, even if Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, were at fault, this was not the time to say it.

If Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, were to rebel, the Emperor, the Crown Prince, the Princes, and all the ministers would probably never even make it back to shore.

This high-ranking minister was an old man of unflinching integrity, but he was also pedantic, inflexible, and couldn’t read the room. To put it bluntly, he had no emotional intelligence!

The Crown Prince’s Tutor continued, "His Majesty the Emperor, this old servant has more to say..."

The Emperor, Gu Yuanzhang, was so enraged he slammed his hand on the Dragon Ship’s railing, shouting three times, "Silence! Silence! Silence!"

"This old servant..." The high-ranking minister knelt on the deck.

"Guards! Drag the Crown Prince’s Tutor to the stern! I don’t want to see him!" The Emperor turned his back.

Several members of the Imperial Guard pulled the Crown Prince’s Tutor to his feet and hauled him to the stern. "Your Majesty! Your Majesty..."

The Emperor looked at the assassins kneeling on the deck. "These soldiers of the Government Army Guard deserted their posts to try and assassinate me. Throw them all into the Wangjing River! As for their three closest kin groups, exile them all to the bitter cold of the Northeast!"

The Imperial Guard hauled up the kneeling Government Army Guard mutineers and, with a series of SPLASHES, threw them all into the river.

Everything that happened on the Dragon Ship was not only visible to the Princes and the high-ranking ministers, but also to all the civil and martial officials on the other four ships, who could see and hear it all with perfect clarity.

The civil and martial officials all avoided the topic of what had just occurred. Not a single one dared to discuss it.

On the riverbank, several people pushed their way out of the crowd and headed in the direction of Marquis Yongchang’s Mansion.

Inside Marquis Yongchang’s Mansion, one of Lan Yu’s adopted sons ran in. He rushed up to Lan Yu and yelled, "Father, something terrible has happened!"

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, turned around. "What happened? Why are you in such a panic?"

The adopted son said, "Father, someone from the Government Army Guard rebelled and tried to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor!"

"What? Who would be so bold? Go investigate at once! If you can’t find them, find a few officers to take the fall for this!" Lan Yu roared.

"Yes, Father!" The adopted son gripped the Treasure Sword at his waist, his Armor clattering as he ran out of Marquis Yongchang’s Mansion.

Lan Yu was puzzled. ’The Government Army Guard is under my control. How could someone from there rebel and attempt an assassination? This is going to cause me so much trouble!’

Another adopted son ran in, shouting, "Father, the assassin confessed! He said they were getting revenge for their superior—for Third Brother, Lan Tai!"

"Lan Tai? Isn’t he still in the Ministry of Justice Prison?"

"Father, Third Brother has been held in the Ministry of Justice Prison the whole time."

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, said, then immediately ordered, "Xiaoliu’Er, send someone to get rid of Lan Tai!"

This adopted son dropped to one knee, looking up at Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, with his chest puffed out. He cupped his hands and pleaded, "Father, Third Brother would never incite his men to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor!"

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, was unmoved. He stood there, an aura of killing intent emanating from him.

This adopted son had always been close with Lan Tai. For his adoptive father to be capable of such a thing was deeply chilling.

"Father!"

He was trying to awaken Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu’s conscience with his repeated cries of "Father."

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, took a few steps forward, grabbed the collar of his kneeling adopted son with one hand, and lifted him up. "Xiaoliu’Er, are you a pig-head?!

"He tried to assassinate the second son of King Yan. On that charge alone, he can’t survive! He’ll drag everyone else down with him!"

At this moment, Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu’s thoughts were in turmoil. He couldn’t figure out who had ordered the Government Army Guard to assassinate the Emperor.

The most urgent task now was to deal with Lan Tai and his Imperial Iron Cavalry cleanly, to avoid getting dragged into the mess.

Lan Yu’s sixth adopted son pried at Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu’s hand and said with difficulty, "Father, I’ll... I’ll go take care of it now!"

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, casually tossed his sixth adopted son to the floor.

The sixth adopted son quickly scurried away!

Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, had no intention of rebelling, yet he felt as if a pair of invisible hands were pushing him forward.

Of course, it wasn’t realistic to say that Lan Yu was completely loyal or selfless.

The assassination of Lu Yuan outside the Imperial City was because he couldn’t stand that Lu Yuan had won the martial contest for marriage against his eldest adopted son. Not only did it cause him to lose face, but he also lost the chance to form a closer bond with the Royal Family through marriage.

As for the Elephant Island incident, he had wanted to use the opportunity to win over the Japanese pirates and the Sixth Son of King Lu, especially since the Sixth Son of King Lu already held a grudge against Lu Yuan.

By using the Japanese pirates and the Sixth Son of King Lu, Gu Zhaolian, he would have a chance to deal with Lu Yuan jointly in the future.

The strange thing was, Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, felt that everything he did was always preempted by his opponent, leaving him constantly on the back foot.

The more passive he became, the more he wanted to defeat his opponent!

But today’s assassination attempt on the Emperor was completely outside of Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu’s control. Fortunately, the Emperor didn’t investigate too deeply, merely punishing the assassins and their three kin groups.

That night, in Empress Ma’s chambers within the Imperial Capital, Empress Ma was questioning Gu Yuanzhang. "Everything was fine. Why did you have to stage this whole show?"

The Emperor, Gu Yuanzhang, sat on the edge of the bed and said with a serious expression, "That Lan Yu is simply too arrogant and domineering. He actually condoned his subordinates ambushing and killing a relative of the Royal Family. Does he have any regard for the law?"

The Sixth Son of King Lu, Gu Zhaolian, collaborated with the Japanese pirates. Even if he was guilty, he should have been escorted to the Imperial City to await judgment and be handled by the Ministry of Justice.

The Emperor, Gu Yuanzhang, suspected that the person collaborating with the Japanese pirates was a respected figure in the Court—and that it was highly likely to be Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu.

Empress Ma continued, "But there was no need to sacrifice so many lives for it!"

The Emperor, Gu Yuanzhang, explained, "We didn’t kill them. We just threw them in the river."

...

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