novellaaa Chapter 18 But at least I don't pretend.
Chapter 18 But at least I don't pretend.
Dead silence.
A deathly silence so profound you could hear a pin drop.
Many of the Imperial Guards looked up and stared at Xu Ming with the eyes of someone looking at a monster.
In that look, there was shock, anger, humiliation, and a hint of fear.
Let them slap themselves in the face?
Scholars can be killed, but not humiliated!
The Embroidered Uniform Guards were not actors, performers, or people of low social status who could be humiliated at will.
They were the emperor's personal guards.
It was a nightmare for all the officials.
It is the sharpest knife in the capital.
A knife can be broken, but it cannot be humiliated.
No one moved.
No one moved.
Xu Ming wasn't angry.
He raised the gold medal in his hand again, pointing the four words—"As if the Emperor were here in person"—at the crowd.
"What's wrong?"
His voice was very soft, as if he were asking, "How's the weather today?"
"You want to defy the imperial decree?"
The three words were like three mountains, pressing down on us.
They would never dare to disobey the imperial decree!
Ultimately, they were just the emperor's henchmen; if they disobeyed the emperor, he could replace them at any time.
Some people are trembling. Some are swallowing hard. Some are secretly glancing at the people around them.
Lu Zhen's pupils contracted, and after a struggle with his thoughts, he made a decision.
"Snapped!"
A resounding slap landed on his own face.
The armored man was knocked askew by the slap, making a crisp sound.
Once there was a first one, there was a second one.
"Snapped!"
"Snapped!"
"Clap clap clap clap—"
The sound of slaps echoed repeatedly, like firecrackers going off.
Some people hit very lightly, like swatting a mosquito.
Someone was hit very hard; half of their face was swollen.
Some people were crying as they were being hit—not because of the pain, but because of the humiliation.
The Embroidered Uniform Guards are slapping themselves in the face.
If word gets out, they'll never be able to hold their heads up high again.
Xu Ming stood in the center of the crowd, hands behind his back, quietly watching everything.
His face was expressionless.
It wasn't anger, it wasn't pride, it wasn't pity.
"Alright."
After about half a cup of tea's time, Xu Ming waved his hand.
The sound wasn't loud, but the slapping stopped instantly.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked up at him.
Some people had half their face swollen, some had blood seeping from the corners of their mouths, some had their left cheek redder than their right, and some had both cheeks so red they looked like a monkey's bottom.
Xu Ming glanced at it, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.
"Now--"
He sat back in the armchair, leaned back, and crossed his legs. His left foot rested on his right knee, his toes swaying back and forth.
"Can you listen to my orders now? Have you started ransacking the house?"
Lu Zhen knelt on the ground with his head down.
His metal mask had tilted to one side, revealing half of his face.
On one half of his face, there was a swollen, red handprint and an old knife scar.
His voice was hoarse, as if there was sand stuck in his throat.
"Please... give your orders, young master."
He spoke those few words with difficulty, as if he were swallowing a knife.
Xu Ming nodded in satisfaction.
He leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and began issuing commands.
"Be rough with your movements, don't act like a woman embroidering."
"When confiscating property, be firm and show no mercy. Smash what needs to be smashed, take action when necessary. As His Majesty's dogs, you must bite fiercely. If you dare not bite, there is no need to keep you alive!"
He paused.
"Don't bother me, I need to rest. Tell me when you're done copying."
Then he closed his eyes and began to sleep.
Lu Zhen and a group of Imperial Guards slowly stood up from the ground.
They looked at the young man in the chair, their expressions indescribably complex.
There was no longer a trace of contempt.
"Do as Lord Xu instructs!"
Lu Zhen addressed his men.
No one raised any objections.
"yes!"
"Bang!"
A blue-and-white porcelain vase from a previous dynasty was smashed to the ground and shattered into pieces.
Porcelain shards flew and cut a maid's face; she covered her face and screamed.
"Splash!"
An entire wall of bookshelves was violently knocked down, scattering countless rare and ancient books all over the floor.
Yellowed pages were trampled underfoot, the scent of ink mingling with the dust, filling the air.
"Snap!"
A sandalwood screen was kicked over, and the jade inlays on it crumbled and fell to the ground.
Cries, screams, and the sounds of breaking objects mingled together to create a tragic elegy for the end of the world.
These Imperial Guards were ten times more rude than before.
It was as if they wanted to vent all the humiliation they had just suffered on these inanimate objects.
......
Several hours later.
Lu Zhen walked up to Xu Ming, who was still fast asleep.
His steps were so light they were almost inaudible. His boots pattered on the flagstones like a cat's walk.
He stopped in front of the armchair and bowed deeply.
His waist was bent very deeply, and his head was bowed very low.
His posture was extremely respectful.
It's like a defeated general paying tribute and submitting to the victor.
"grown ups."
"The residences of the two traitors, Huang and Qi, have been completely searched and confiscated."
He pulled a thick ledger from his pocket, held it with both hands, and raised it above his head.
"A complete list of all properties is here."
He paused, turned slightly to the side, and pointed behind him.
"The two households, totaling 374 people—whether masters or servants—are all here, awaiting your orders, sir."
Xu Ming's snoring stopped.
He slowly opened his eyes.
The sunlight was a bit too bright, so he squinted and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.
Then, he looked at Lu Zhen, who was bowing deeply in front of him, at the Imperial Guards standing behind him waiting for orders, and at the Huang and Qi families, their elderly members and children, kneeling on the ground and strung together with ropes.
I stretched.
"ha--"
He yawned.
Then, he slowly stood up.
He patted the wrinkles on his robe.
He took the account book from Lu Zhen and flipped through it casually.
The paper rustled.
"Um."
He closed the ledger and nodded.
"Well done."
Four words.
Lu Zhen said, "Thank you for your kind words, sir."
Xu Ming casually picked up a jade ruyi from the scattered treasures and weighed it in his hand.
It is of excellent quality, warm to the touch, and is a top-grade Hetian mutton fat jade. It would cost several hundred taels of silver.
"Huang Cheng, all complete."
"What a great reputation!"
He turned around and looked at the descendants of the Huang and Qi families kneeling on the ground.
"He claimed to be a virtuous minister and a leader of the upright officials, and he was always full of talk about benevolence and morality. In his articles, he seemed to want to have the word 'integrity' engraved on his forehead."
He paused, walked to an open box, and kicked it with his toe.
The golden light emanated from it, so bright it hurt the eyes.
"But these gold, silver, jade artifacts, antiques, calligraphy and paintings, fertile fields and beautiful houses—"
He casually tossed the jade ruyi into the box, making a crisp "clang" sound.
"Where did it come from?"
He crouched down and looked at a middle-aged man kneeling on the ground, trembling.
The man was Qi Quan's eldest son, and at that moment his face was deathly pale, and his lips trembled so much that he could not speak.
"Tell me, how much is your father's annual salary?"
The middle-aged man lowered his head, not daring to utter a sound.
"Let me speak for you," Xu Ming stood up. "Your father's annual salary isn't high. Even if he didn't eat or drink and worked for a hundred years, he still wouldn't be able to save up the money in this box that's in this room."
"This is the virtuous minister you speak of? This is the so-called leader of the 'pure stream'?"
He shook his head.
"I, Xu Ming, am a spoiled brat, an ignorant and incompetent man, and a lecherous and greedy man—"
He patted the Qilin badge on his chest.
"But at least I don't pretend."