Volume One, Chapter 20: The Emperor's Endorsement

The entire courtyard fell into a deathly silence.

Li Xuan’s gaze, sharp as a blade, swept slowly over every terrified face.

"I know that many of you here have hearts that lie elsewhere," his voice was not loud, yet it rang clearly in everyone’s ears. "Your masters might be the First Prince, the Second Prince, or perhaps someone else entirely. You eat the food of my Eastern Palace, yet behind my back, you engage in the business of betraying your master!"

Among the crowd, several people turned deathly pale, their legs beginning to tremble uncontrollably.

"In the past, I couldn't be bothered to manage this. But from today on, the heavens in my Eastern Palace are going to change!"

Li Xuan waved his hand abruptly and commanded sternly, "Jing Yun!"

Jing Yun stepped forward, drew a scroll from his robes, and read aloud:

"Sweeping eunuch, Xiao Linzi! A man of the Second Prince’s household!"

Hearing this, the young eunuch who had been eavesdropping outside the study earlier collapsed onto his knees with a thud, his face drained of all color.

Tie Niu let out a sinister laugh, his massive, fan-like hand reaching out to grab the boy like a chick and tossing him onto the ground.

Jing Yun did not pause, continuing to read:

"Laundry maid, Chun Tao! A woman of the First Prince’s household!"

"Stableman, Zhang San! A man of the Third Prince’s household!"

"Kitchen helper, Li Si! A man of the Fourth Prince’s household!"

...

Name after name fell from Jing Yun's lips. With each name called, a commotion erupted in the crowd, and another ashen-faced individual was ruthlessly dragged out by Tie Niu.

Within the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, twenty or thirty people were kneeling on the ground, their wails and pleas for mercy filling the air.

The servants whose names had not been called were terrified out of their wits. Seeing their former companions—with whom they had been laughing and chatting only moments ago—revealed as spies for other factions, they felt a mixture of lingering fear and relief.

Xiao Ningshuang stood in the distance, watching Li Xuan’s cold and majestic back, a brilliant light flickering in her beautiful eyes.

This move was ruthless!

He was conducting a public purge before everyone's eyes! Killing the chicken to warn the monkeys—no, this was more like killing the monkeys to show all the chickens!

Once the list was finished, Li Xuan spoke slowly, his voice as cold as ice: "According to the laws of our Great Zhou, what is the punishment for these turncoats who bite the hand that feeds them?"

Wang Fugui immediately stepped forward and declared loudly, "Reporting to Your Highness! All spies are to be executed, and their family assets confiscated!"

"Good!" Li Xuan nodded. "In consideration of the fact that they once served in the Eastern Palace, leave them an intact corpse. Drag them all away and beat them to death with clubs! Confiscate their assets and deposit them into the Eastern Palace treasury!"

"Your Highness, have mercy! Your Highness, spare us!"

The pleas for mercy were cut short as Tie Niu and a squad of guards dragged the howling spies away like wolves and tigers. Soon, muffled thuds and shrill screams echoed from the backyard, making the hair of everyone present stand on end.

Li Xuan looked at the remaining ashen-faced servants, his tone softening slightly: "From today on, the Eastern Palace has new rules. Those who are loyal and diligent will be rewarded! Those who neglect their duties will be punished! And those who dare to harbor ulterior motives again..."

He pointed toward the backyard and said coldly, "That will be their fate!"

"Yes! We swear to serve Your Highness with our lives!"

The remaining hundreds of people knelt in unison, their voices filled with genuine fear and awe.

After that thunderous night, the atmosphere of the entire Eastern Palace was completely renewed. No one dared to be double-faced anymore; everyone became cautious and diligent.

With the most ruthless and effective means, Li Xuan had completely transformed the Eastern Palace into his own iron-clad stronghold.

The storm subsided, and Li Xuan returned to his bedchamber.

Xiao Ningshuang was standing in the courtyard, waiting for him quietly. In the moonlight, her figure appeared somewhat delicate, yet exceptionally resolute.

"You... did well tonight," she said to him sincerely.

"I was merely cleaning up my own courtyard," Li Xuan walked up to her, the ruthlessness on his face gone, replaced by a trace of exhaustion.

He pulled the white jade porcelain bottle containing the "Tendon-Mending Ointment" from his robes and handed it over.

The bottle was empty.

"The medicine worked very well. Thank you," he said earnestly, looking into her eyes.

Xiao Ningshuang took the empty bottle, her fingertips brushing against the residual warmth of his touch, and her heart trembled for no reason.

She did not speak, only nodded slightly. On her frozen, beautiful face, it was as if a sliver of ice and snow had quietly melted under the moonlight.

At that moment, Jing Yun’s figure appeared again like a phantom.

"Your Highness, Liu'er has sent back the first message."

He handed over a small slip of paper.

Li Xuan unfolded it, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

"Interesting. My second brother actually wants to prepare a 'grand gift' for me at the Emperor’s autumn hunt." He crushed the note into powder, a cold sneer forming at the corners of his mouth. "Coincidentally, I also wish to send him a return gift."

A greater storm was already brewing in the shadows.

...

The hour of the Rat had passed, and the noise and smell of blood in the Eastern Palace were finally swallowed by the deep night.

The next morning, as the light of day broke, the entire Eastern Palace seemed to have been thoroughly cleansed by an invisible hand. All the servants kept their heads down, their eyes averted, walking with hurried steps. The air was filled with a stern and efficient atmosphere. The scenes of whispering and dawdling from the past had vanished without a trace.

In the dining hall, Li Xuan and Xiao Ningshuang sat opposite each other, enjoying their morning meal.

The atmosphere was subtle. The cold detachment of the past seemed to have been diluted by the thunderous storm of the previous night, replaced by a sense of inquiry and scrutiny. Xiao Ningshuang’s movements remained elegant, but her cool, clear eyes would inadvertently fall upon the man opposite her, who was calmly eating his porridge.

He ate at a measured pace, as if the iron-fisted ruler who had decided fates and purged the palace the night before was not the same man as the clear-eyed, composed gentleman before her.

"Thank you for last night," Li Xuan suddenly spoke, placing a peeled shrimp dumpling into her bowl.

Xiao Ningshuang’s hand holding the spoon paused slightly, and she looked up at him.

"I am talking about that bottle of Tendon-Mending Ointment," Li Xuan added with a playful smile. "The efficacy was excellent; it kept me feeling full of vigor while I was putting on my act."

He spoke of the breathtaking entrapment from the night before with such casual indifference. Xiao Ningshuang’s heart stirred, and for some reason, she found it somewhat amusing. She did not speak, simply eating the shrimp dumpling in silence.

Just then, Wang Fugui hurried in, his face filled with irrepressible joy: "Your Highness, someone has come from the palace. His Majesty has summoned you to enter the palace for an audience immediately."

Li Xuan raised an eyebrow and set down his chopsticks: "Oh? Do you know what it is about?"

"The eunuch who delivered the decree said it is regarding the autumn hunt in three days," Wang Fugui said, his face crinkling with smiles. "His Majesty even specially rewarded you with a Ferghana horse, named 'Jade Lion that Lights the Night,' and a Dragon-Tongue Bow! This is a tremendous favor!"

Xiao Ningshuang’s eyes flickered.

The Emperor's reward had come at a very opportune time. This was no mere reward; it was a public declaration of support for the Crown Prince following the purge of the previous night.

This was a slap in the face to both the First and Second Princes, and it stung.

Li Xuan stood up and smoothed his robes, saying to Xiao Ningshuang, "It seems my two 'good' brothers are going to have trouble sleeping again. Crown Princess, rest well in the palace; I shall return shortly."

He turned and left with a steady gait, carrying the composure of one who holds everything in his grasp.