After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

Chen Futu and Liu Longyue gracefully entered the venue.

One exudes the aura of a king, the other is as beautiful as a fairy; they are like a divine couple, inspiring envy in all who behold them.

"Greetings, Prince."

Civil and military officials cheered.

Chen Futu smiled slightly, gesturing for everyone to sit down, and then he looked at Yemo.

Yemo forced a smile and said, "Your Highness, I've heard so much about you."

"So you are Ye Mo, the son of the Crown Prince of Beiwu? I have heard of you before."

Chen Futu's words were somewhat sarcastic, and anyone who knew Yemo's past could tell that he was mocking Yemo's bad reputation.

Ye Mo's face stiffened, and he said awkwardly, "We envoys were ordered to come and observe the ceremony. Tonight is just a coincidence. Please don't take offense, Your Highness."

"It's alright. I just heard that the delegation had a bit of a disagreement with my generals. I hope they didn't hurt the envoy?"

"No, no..."

"Young Master Yemo, do you think my Dragon City soldiers are valiant?"

"General Guan and General An are both heroes of our time, and we admire them greatly."

What could Yemo say? Chen Futu was embarrassing him in public to retaliate for his arrogance when he first entered Longcheng.

One scholar complained, “Your Highness, guests are guests. Your aggressive manner is not the way of a gentleman.”

As soon as the man finished speaking, Zhuge Liang, who had been wiping his feather fan, suddenly spoke up, "Brother, how should I address you?"

"My name is Sun Hao from Jiangzhou."

"So you are Sun Erlang from Jiangzhou. My apologies for not recognizing you."

Zhuge Liang suppressed a laugh as he stepped down from his seat and gestured for Chen Futu to follow him. Chen Futu nodded and led Liu Longyue to the main seat.

Looking at Sun Hao again, he was so embarrassed by Zhuge Liang's words that his face turned red. He said angrily, "What did you call me!"

Zhuge Liang feigned a bewildered expression, "Sun Erlang, is there any reason why it's not possible?"

"you!"

Sun Hao angrily pointed at Zhuge Liang's nose, trembling with rage.

Everyone was confused, except for the scholars from Jiangzhou who knew the inside story, and they all lowered their heads in embarrassment.

Zhuge Liang smiled and looked at Ji Wendao, the Gentleman Sword, and said sarcastically, "Since we are talking about gentlemen, haven't you heard that there are differences among gentlemen?"

"What does Mr. Zhuge mean!" Ji Wendao couldn't sit still any longer. Zhuge Liang's move to target Jiangzhou was too obvious.

"A gentleman is magnanimous, while a petty person is always anxious. I once heard that the Second Son of Jiangzhou seized his family's property through clever schemes, which became a popular story in Jiangzhou."

"So what?"

"However, in the end, the elder brother and sister-in-law committed suicide by jumping into the river. To preserve their reputation, Erlang buried them in Nanling and wrote a poem called 'Ode to Brothers.' They were truly brothers with deep affection, a model for us all."

After those exaggerated words, Sun Hao immediately became so anxious that his face turned red and his neck bulged, and everyone in Jiangzhou was indignant.

Zhuge Liang said sternly, "These people dare to talk about the way of the gentleman; aren't they just asking to be ridiculed?"

"Zhuge, you—"

Sun Hao's face turned purplish-blue, and a commotion erupted in the hall.

Ma Chao and the others laughed heartily, completely losing their composure. Huo Qubing and the others stared at Gan Ning, laughing until tears streamed down their faces. Gan Ning remained silent, his face dark, because he was all too familiar with this scene.

Chen Futu sat high in the hall, watching Zhuge Liang's performance, and he was amazed. As expected of the old Zhuge Liang, he started with personal attacks right away.

When he was sent as an envoy to Jiangdong, he debated with a group of scholars and made them all grimace in disbelief.

"Zhuge Kongming, you've gone too far!"

Another person stepped forward. He had his hands in his pockets and looked like a weasel, not a good person.

Zhuge Liang casually gestured with his feather fan, "So it's Brother Chen Nian. May I ask what brings you here?"

"What abilities does Mr. Kongming, who holds the position of Prime Minister, possess?"

"How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan? I can't explain it to you."

Zhuge Liang responded coldly, and the latter chuckled three times, "Sir, you know that the Prime Minister is the most important person in the country. Are you planning to rebel with the Crown Prince?"

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent.

The soldiers' eyes flashed with killing intent, and they were eager to make their move.

An Jingsi, who stood beside Chen Futu like a puppet, also revealed a murderous intent in his tiger-like eyes.

Yemo stared at Chen Nian in surprise. He suddenly admired this man. How could he say that Chen Futu was going to rebel in front of Chen Futu? Wasn't he afraid of being beheaded?

Zhuge Liang frowned and said to Chen Nian, "In the past, our old lord devoted himself to the northern frontier, fighting to the last man. Instead of rewarding him, the empire framed him for treason, intending to execute him on trumped-up charges. What is the reason for this?"

"I……"

Chen Nian became mute.

Zhuge Liang stepped forward and pressed further: "The soldiers' bravery in battle should be a legendary tale, yet not a single one of the many officials in the court spoke up for our lord. Is this not shameful?"

"I……"

Chen Nian retreated, looking flustered. Zhuge Liang questioned again: "The soldiers of the North defend the borders, enduring wind and dew. Which one of them hasn't achieved outstanding military exploits and merits? How many soldiers' hearts have been chilled by the word 'traitor'? From the emperor to the people, the Great Qian Dynasty has no gratitude. Instead, they've colluded with each other to kick someone when they're down. What use is such a heartless, ungrateful, and unvirtuous ruler?"

Zhuge Liang's voices were deafening, and Chen Nian was eventually forced to sit down on the ground in a panic, unable to utter a single word.

What Zhuge Liang said was true; it was the emperor who first failed the northern frontier, not the northern frontier that first failed the emperor.

"Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful..."

Chen Futu was overjoyed. Zhuge Liang's series of questions was so satisfying, it was practically a stand-up comedy routine.

Liu Longyue, who was standing to the side, exclaimed in astonishment, "This person's eloquence is amazing."

She now understood why Chen Futu had personally gone to meet this Mr. Wolong. This man was sharp-tongued, his words sharper than knives, and his interrogation was particularly forceful and oppressive, making him difficult for most people to handle.

During the meal, Zhang Liang and Liu Bowen nodded in satisfaction.

Old Zhu is indeed Old Zhu; his mouth is too sharp. They were stunned by his barrage of questions, let alone a mere Confucian scholar.

"Zhuge Liang, stop talking nonsense!"

One of them spoke up; it was Cui Shanwu, a great Confucian scholar from Guangyuan.

Zhuge Liang raised an eyebrow and scrutinized him, then chuckled and said, "Does Mr. Cui also have something to say?"

“Master Zhuge, have you not heard that when the ruler commands the subject to die, the subject has no choice but to die? The Prince of Zhenbei’s achievements are too great, and the ruler is wary of him. What is so difficult to understand?”

"So he went on a rampage, slaughtering meritorious officials, first killing the Prince of Donghai, then eliminating the Prince of Zhenbei?"

“Back then, the King of Donghai harbored rebellious intentions, so it was justified to kill him.”

"The so-called rebellion was nothing more than a sorcerer saying that there was an auspicious sign of a rising dragon in the East Sea, which aroused the emperor's suspicion. Under the pretense of an angel delivering a decree, the emperor killed the King of the East Sea. After the King's death, the emperor still wanted to eliminate any potential threats, which led to a mutiny and the sensational East Sea turmoil. And who was that King of the East Sea? On the day of the incident, his subordinates sensed impending doom and urged him to raise an army, but he refused and went alone to meet the angel, only to be beheaded on the spot. You're telling Liang that such a person was plotting a rebellion?"

Zhuge Liang's words reached everyone's ears, and they fell into deep thought.

The case of the Donghai King's rebellion is still unresolved. Anyone with a little knowledge knows that if it weren't for the Emperor of Daqian's subsequent questionable actions, the Donghai soldiers wouldn't have rebelled, and so many people wouldn't have died. Ultimately, it was a problem of the monarch not trusting his subordinates.

Cui Shanwu hesitated for a moment after hearing Zhuge Liang's answer, and then said in a deep voice, "In fact, the Crown Prince can relinquish his military power and return to the capital, and then the world will be at peace."

Just as Zhuge Liang was about to answer, Chen Futu suddenly spoke up, "I will answer this question for you."