Daily life in the academy

After Yan Jing's rebellious remarks, no soldiers came to support him. Everyone in the hall looked at Prince Jing, as if they were all waiting for his so-called back-up plan. But as time passed, his face became more and more panicked. Yan Yunrui, who was at the top of the table, looked at him with neither sadness nor joy, as if after experiencing a series of twists and turns, this little storm could no longer affect his emotions.

He turned his head and looked behind him. Yan Tai was also standing outside the hall fearlessly, blocking him in the center of the hall from above and below. Only then did he finally understand that this was a trap set by them from the beginning.

Prince Jing laughed wildly until he ran out of breath, then he took a sharp breath, "I have endured for more than ten years, but I still can't beat you... and you." The veins in his neck were bulging with emotion. He looked at Yan Yunrui with bloodshot eyes, and his eyes were full of madness and confusion. "Yan Yunrui, look at your own sons. Are they the same as you and your eldest brother? I tell you, even if I die today, your end will be just as miserable. Hahahahaha..."

Yan Tai could no longer bear Prince Jing's manic laughter. He slowly walked into the palace, bowed to Yan Yunrui, and said, "Prince Jing has publicly admitted to treason and disregarded the etiquette between monarch and subject. He has insulted Your Majesty in public, offending the majesty of heaven and defying the laws of the land. Your Majesty, please send someone to arrest him immediately and await your punishment."

Yan Jing burst into laughter again. "Fifth brother, do you think he trusts you? He's just using you. And you, Yan Yunrui, isn't it because of your fear that Fifth Brother has only one son, and this child has been raised to be extremely spoiled? No one in Sheng'an City keeps saying... The Ning Wang Mansion might one day be extinct. All this is because of you, because you are the root of all misfortune."

"How dare you!" Yan Yunrui was finally enraged. His eyes widened, his voice thunderous, and he suddenly stood up. "Come here, where is Yan Yi? Quickly drag this traitor away to me, imprison him in the Heavenly Prison, and execute him in three days. After he is executed, hang his head high above the city gate for one month. I want to show the world the consequences of treason."

The commander of the imperial guards, Yan Yi, rushed to the palace and ordered the imperial guards to drag the already mad Prince Jing away. His laughter still echoed in the palace, and the sound of curses pierced the hearts of every minister. They knelt trembling beside the table, not daring to disturb the emperor who was in a state of rage, for fear that they would be the next person to be beheaded and have their heads hung on the city wall.

Yan Yunrui's previous roar had exhausted all his strength. When Prince Jing's figure finally disappeared from everyone's sight, he sat down heavily, leaned back in his chair, and stared blankly at the beam surrounded by dragon-shaped wooden carvings.

In the hall, all the ministers were waiting for Yan Yunrui's order so that they could leave this place of trouble. However, things did not go as planned and Yan Minghe's hoarse voice was heard.

"Then... Father, what should we do with our fourth brother?"

Yan Yunrui seemed to be immersed in his own world and did not hear Yan Minghe's question. An invisible sense of oppression spread out, as if the two were confronting each other.

Yan Tai was standing right behind Yan Minghe, gazing at his eldest nephew with a complicated expression. He had a bad premonition and slowly took out the bone flute from his chest, holding it tightly in his hand, to prevent any disturbance from happening so that he could immediately call for the secret guards to protect the safety of His Majesty and himself.

After a long pause without a response, Yan Minghe continued, "Father, you're thinking of it like we were children again. Whenever I made a mistake, you'd scold me harshly, but when my fourth brother made a mistake, you'd just smile and say, 'It's okay...' Lang'er has a lively personality, so let him be. But this time, he's teamed up with my third uncle to murder me, crippling one of my legs, and even wants to take your place. Are you still going to ignore him?"

After a long moment, the ministers' legs growing numb, and they thought their response to His Majesty was still coming to an end, Yan Yunrui spoke slowly, "You know, I named you 'Ming He', which comes from the verse 'Ming Ming is below, He He is above' from the Book of Songs. I hope you will possess both virtue and prestige, becoming a sage ruler and surpassing me, so I have always placed high hopes on you. As for your brother, he doesn't need to be a wise ruler; he can simply be a harmless prince. Therefore, I have indulged him a lot, but I didn't expect you to see this as partiality."

He sighed and said helplessly, "It seems that I am neither a wise ruler nor an incompetent father."

"Yan Yi, the King of Qi is now detained in the Heavenly Prison. We will discuss this matter another day." Yan Yunrui felt exhausted and had no energy to deal with anyone else. He waved his hand and said, "I am exhausted. You all may leave."

The ministers cheered and prepared to stand up and leave quickly, and then the situation changed.

"Since you are so foolish, then... let me take this seat." Yan Minghe's hoarse voice was not loud, and even the noise made by the ministers standing up was louder than his voice, but the strange thing was that everyone in the hall heard it clearly.

"As for my dear fourth brother, since you crippled one of my legs, I will cripple one of yours as well." Yan Minghe glanced at the imperial guards who were holding up Yan Lang. The imperial guard on the right drew his sword and cut the tendon of Yan Lang's right foot before anyone could react.

"Ah..." The miserable screams echoed inside and outside the hall.

"What are you doing?" Yan Yunrui looked at his most beloved son in disbelief. He never thought that the most fatal blow would come from him.

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of the imperial guards' armor clashing and their orderly footsteps rang out in the hall. A few ministers who were nimble and had walked to the door of the hall saw that the Taiji Palace had been surrounded by the imperial guards. In an instant, they were filled with panic, staggering back in confusion, and no longer had the courage to move forward.

Yan Yunrui was so angry that he started coughing violently. Wang Changqing hurried to calm him down, "Your Majesty, take care of yourself."

Yan Minghe pushed the roller with both hands, slowly approaching Yan Yunrui and raising his voice: "I say, it's time for you to abdicate."

"Your Highness, what you are doing now is going against the will of the world. There is still room for you to turn back." Yan Tai couldn't bear it after all and reminded him.

"Fifth Uncle, there's no need to persuade me anymore. I've made up my mind." As Yan Minghe spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Yan Yunrui, who was sitting at the top. He said word by word, "Yan Yi, capture him."

These five words seemed to rise from hell. The chilling air instantly froze Yan Yunrui's slowly beating heart. The biting cold from the inside out made his entire body stiff and unable to move. With a tight throat, he spoke with difficulty: "You...you...Yan Yi, I...understand, it turns out that all this is because of you...my good son, the good prince of Yan State..."

With a "Puff" sound, a mouthful of blood spurted out.

Yan Yi laughed grimly, as if he had avenged a great vengeance, drew his knife, rushed forward and chopped hard, Yan Tai picked up the bone flute, put it to his lips and blew hard, but in an instant, with a "puff", the knife cut through the flesh and blood spurted out.