It's all ruined, who cares about the chastity arch

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please spare my life, Your Majesty!"

Zheng Chengyan's eyes were fixed on his tortured little finger. Sweat poured down his forehead and slid down his pale cheeks. Every cry for help was accompanied by violent trembling of his body, as if every breath was challenging his limit. His strength was gradually dissipating, and only his remaining willpower supported him to maintain the delicate balance on trembling toes. But everyone knew in his heart that this was nothing more than a desperate delay.

The emperor looked gloomy, and was obviously in a very irritable mood. He turned around and paced to the side, sat down on a carved rosewood chair far away, picked up an exquisite celadon teacup, took a sip of the tea, and locked his eyes on Zheng Chengyan like a hawk, saying in a cold voice: "Second Young Master of the Zheng Family, you can slowly savor this suffering. Don't worry, I won't let you escape this purgatory easily."

The moment he finished speaking, he casually picked up the memorial beside him, gently unfolded it, and leisurely read through the pages. Behind his seemingly calm demeanor, a complex and unpredictable mind was hidden.

Zheng Chengyan was struggling to support himself under the beam, his feet shaking constantly, his fingertips swollen and purple due to long-term blood flow problems, and his bones seemed to be slowly dislocated from this chronic torture.

Time seemed to stand still, and the hanging lasted for a whole day and night.

Every time he tried to shout for mercy, the guards would force objects into his mouth, blocking out all his cries for life.

In order to further prolong Zheng Chengyan's suffering, the emperor also specifically ordered the guards to drip a few drops of cold water into his mouth every once in a while. The torture that was worse than death was enough to make people shudder.

When the dawn of the next day struggled to penetrate the window, Zheng Chengyan's little finger was finally completely disabled due to being unable to bear the weight.

However, this did not satisfy the emperor. He coldly ordered the rope to be replaced. This time the target was Zheng Chengyan's middle finger, and all the torture started again.

Day after day, the emperor came here after the morning court session, reviewing memorials while "accompanying" Zheng Chengyan in a twisted way, and would not leave until late at night.

In this private punishment, it seemed that only by witnessing with his own eyes the endless physical and mental suffering that Zheng Chengyan endured could he slightly soothe the indescribable irritability and anxiety deep in his heart.

Five days seemed longer than a lifetime to Zheng Chengyan. His left hand was almost disabled, but this cruel test showed no signs of stopping.

As time went by, this cruel punishment seemed to be increasingly unable to calm the emperor's inner anxiety, and finally, in the depths of a night, he left the palace alone and quietly went to the legendary military training ground that Su Wanyu had mentioned.

The training ground is located in the back mountain of the Tan family. It is the place for soldiers’ daily training, and it is also a treasure land for the three brothers of the Tan family to hone their riding and archery skills.

Tan Xinyue was a girl who was unwilling to stay in the boudoir. She often dressed in riding clothes and mingled with men. Although Mr. Su did not approve of her hobby in the past, everything changed quietly after Su Wanyu personally delivered the scroll.

Since then, Master Su rarely showed leniency and allowed Tan Xinyue to enter and leave the mansion freely.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, she immersed herself in the training ground almost day and night. She practiced spearmanship and archery during the day, and buried herself in military books at night, eagerly absorbing the nutrients of knowledge.

That night, the emperor, slightly tipsy, staggered toward the entrance of the training ground.

There were soldiers standing guard at the gate. He casually dropped the wine jug in his hand, and under the cover of drunkenness, he staggered to an unnoticed corner. With a light leap, he silently climbed over the fence and entered this holy land belonging to warriors.

That same night, Tan Xinyue's heart was in turmoil and she could not calm down, so she walked into the courtyard corridor with a spear in hand and practiced martial arts to calm her mind.

Faced with the tense war in Huzhou, her three brothers have led their troops to the battlefield. Except for a few soldiers standing guard at night, she is the only lonely figure left on the training ground.

She tightly grasped the dark red spear in her hand. The moonlight shone on her riding clothes, making her look even more heroic.

As the spear danced, the silver-white light drew graceful trajectories in the air. The tip of the spear was extremely sharp, and every strike was refined to defeat the enemy on the battlefield. A light sweep was enough to kill the enemy.

At this moment, the emperor staggered into the training ground, his eyes fell on the woman dancing with the spear, and his hand holding the wine bottle suddenly froze.

Sensing the movement behind him, Tan Xinyue quickly turned around with the gun in hand, and pointed the spear like a dragon directly at the uninvited guest.

The branches and leaves trembled slightly in the night wind. A strong chill was approaching. The wine bottle in the emperor's hand fell to the ground, and the fragments flew everywhere, leaving a series of crisp echoes in the silent night sky.

Tan Xinyue tightly grasped the spear, with a serious expression, and shouted at the blurry figure in front of him: "Who is here?"

At this moment, the emperor's cheeks were slightly flushed and his eyes were blurred. He stared straight at the tip of the gun with a cold and flashing light. A strange urge surged in his heart. He wanted the sharp tip of the gun to pierce his chest. It seemed that only through this kind of self-sacrifice could he fill the emptiness and guilt deep in his heart.

In the dim moonlight, the emperor hiding in the shadows appeared blurry. Tan Xinyue squinted her eyes to identify him carefully. When she recognized the other party's true identity, she was shocked and instinctively wanted to retract her spear.

However, the emperor seemed to have grasped the last straw in his life, holding the gun handle tightly and unwilling to let go.

"Let go!"

Tan Xinyue ordered sternly, trying to grab her weapon back by force.

The emperor seemed to wake up from the fog. He slowly raised his eyes to look at the woman in front of him. Her beautiful face came into his sight, and his hand holding the gun unconsciously relaxed a little.

Seeing that the opportunity was fleeting, Tan Xinyue quickly retracted the spear in her hand and put it behind her back. Her expression was mixed with surprise and confusion, and her voice was trembling slightly as she asked, "Your Majesty, why are you here?"

Her eyes seemed particularly bright in the moonlight, revealing an unusual determination.

The emperor's eyes, which were bloodshot due to alcohol, revealed a bit of confusion and dullness, as if his thoughts had been turned into a turbid whirlpool by the strong influence of alcohol.

His heart was filled with indescribable guilt and deep pain. These complex emotions mixed together, making the usually majestic emperor look somewhat helpless at this moment.

But in a moment, the emperor's eyes closed heavily, his body went limp, and he fell into a coma.

"His Majesty!"

Tan Xinyue moved, stepped forward quickly, and struggled to support his gradually sinking body.

Although the emperor usually gave people a slightly immature impression, his body was unusually sturdy. His sudden fall at this moment almost made Tan Xinyue feel like he was carrying a towering mountain on his back.

The emperor's body leaned on her shoulders, his hands hanging limply, completely unconscious.

"Your Majesty, wake up, Your Majesty."

Tan Xinyue frowned and whispered anxiously.

She could feel the strong smell of alcohol surrounding the emperor. His eyes were closed and his whole body felt heavy as lead. He was obviously drunk and unconscious.