The blood on the saber had dried.
The hilt of Cloud Mud transformed from snowy white back to pitch black.
But everyone still had not reacted.
Chen Chao slowly sheathed his saber.
Hearing the sound of the saber entering its sheath, everyone finally regained their senses.
Looking at the corpse lying in a pool of blood, everyone remained in shock.
Tonight's story was truly bizarre, but nothing was as bizarre as this outcome.
The Xie Family's ancestor looked at this young man with a calm face, then glanced at the girl who had remained silent throughout. Her face showed no signs of shock, as if she had known from the very beginning that this would be the conclusion.
Looking at the Deposed Emperor lying in the blood, the Xie Family's ancestor thought of many things. In tonight's story, the Deposed Emperor had righteousness on his side, no matter what he did, His Majesty could not kill him. Unlike the self-immolation from years ago, if he were to die at the hands of His Majesty now, how would the world view the Great Liang Emperor?
The Deposed Emperor clearly understood this, which was why he had come here alone. Even though everyone knew he was surely backed by certain people from the foreign lands, there was no evidence.
Therefore, no one could kill him.
If His Majesty the Emperor killed him, then the spirit accumulated over the years would dissipate, and the entire Great Liang would no longer be a whole. People's hearts would scatter, and those neutral court officials might become disappointed in His Majesty the Emperor.
Yet he had to die.
If he did not die, then who would sit in that chair?
The Great Liang Emperor could not yield, because the Deposed Emperor had the support of the foreign lands, and he must have reached some sort of agreement with them.
It could be said that the Deposed Emperor's appearance here tonight, regardless of life or death, was precisely what the foreign lands wanted to see.
This was not something that could be chosen, no matter how one chose, there would be a great cost.
Everyone was caught in the game.
How could those within the game break it?
The Xie Family's ancestor looked deeply at Chen Chao.
Yes, only Chen Chao.
Only he could break the game.
The Deposed Emperor had righteousness on his side and the support of the foreign lands, as long as he was alive, all stories remained possible.
But he could not live forever.
Just because the Great Liang Emperor could not kill him did not mean that others could not.
But to want to kill him required immense courage, anyone else in this moment would likely lack such courage.
Only Chen Chao taking action to kill would make everything vanish into thin air.
Those who wanted His Majesty the Emperor to return power had lost their candidate, and those who sought to pressure His Majesty had lost their reason.
Just as Chen Chao said, they could only choose him now.
But no one would choose him.
Who would choose someone who killed his own brother right in front of them?
“What else do you all want to say?”
Chen Chao looked at the crowd and smiled.
He spat out a turbid breath.
It was as if he had shed a lot of burden.
The game no longer existed.
He no longer had to be anyone's pawn.
“Your Majesty, this man has the audacity to kill the emperor! He's insane and cannot be tolerated by heaven!”
An official reacted and immediately spoke up.
The Great Liang Emperor glanced at that person and asked, “Where's the emperor?”
The official was taken aback, and his expression immediately turned ugly. Realizing his slip of the tongue, he knelt heavily, “This subject misspoke...”
“This nephew of Ours was ultimately deceived by the foreign lands. Someone, collect the body and bury it somewhere."
Searching for that true culprit.
But soon, people realized he had already disappeared.
The princes also slowly left. The Second Prince had a hint of unwillingness in his eyes, but at this point, no one would remember him.
The First Prince and the Second Prince met at the palace gates. The First Prince took one look at his younger brother, coughed a few times, and sighed, "If you had known it would come to this, why do it in the first place?"
The Second Prince had a cold expression, saying nothing as he boarded his carriage.
The carriages of the two princes headed off in different directions.
......
......
The Divine Capital was filled with noise, implicating many people.
The Three Judicial Chief Ministries, Six Ministries, Left and Right Guards, Heavenly Imperial Institution, Patrol Camp...
Nearly every office in the Divine Capital was affected.
The events of this night would likely surpass the commotion that took place the night before His Majesty ascended the throne.
Many strange sights occurred, such as officials from the Court of Judicial Review arresting officials from the Ministry of Penalty, while officials from the Ministry of Penalty arrested those from the Court of Judicial Review.
Absurd stories like these kept unfolding.
It was a sleepless night.
On this dark night, many remnants of the previous dynasty, who had long since infiltrated the Divine Capital, were apprehended and taken away, with numerous hideouts cleared out.
Many powerhouses who seldom appeared, were now all involved in the arrests.
People had never imagined there were so many hidden powerhouses lurking in the Divine Capital, though it somehow seemed reasonable.
Yet, among all of this, there was no trace of Chen Chao.
He had vanished once again.
No one cared about where he had gone.
No one had time to care.
......
......
At the Second Prince's manor, the Second Prince had just returned with a sullen expression. As he entered the courtyard, he was accidentally bumped by a maidservant carrying a basin of water, who stumbled in her haste.
Frightened, the maidservant immediately knelt, pleading, “Your Highness, please spare my life, this servant knows her mistake.”
The Second Prince gave her a cold look, took the basin, and struck the maidservant on the head with it.
With just one blow, her head was bloodied, but the Second Prince did not stop, hitting her on the head again and again with the basin.
At first, the maidservant tried to hold back her cries, but eventually, she could no longer make a sound.
The servants behind the Second Prince lowered their heads when they saw this scene.
No one spoke.
No one knew how much time had passed, but the maidservant had already become a corpse.
Yet, the Second Prince continued hitting her.
For a very long time.
The maidservant's head no longer resembled a head. Only then, did the Second Prince stop, going to a nearby pond to wash his hands.
The blood on his hands slowly washed away.
Absorbed by the fishes in the pond.
The water reflected the Second Prince's somewhat savage face.
Knock, knock, knock...
At that moment, there was a knock at the main gate of the Second Prince's manor.
A young man dressed entirely in black was currently standing at the door, knocking very seriously.
He was carrying a saber.