As the smoke cleared from the battle for the Capital, the glorious moment for rewarding merit finally arrived. The once-arrogant armies of the vassal kings had been swept away like autumn leaves, and the two princes themselves had vanished without a trace, as if they had evaporated into thin air.
Within the Capital, the political landscape remained volatile. The noble families who had been swept into the vortex of rebellion by a moment of poor judgment were now imprisoned. In the grim depths of the Imperial Prison, they awaited the descent of Zhao Zheng’s imperial wrath to seal their fates.
Inside the opulent Yuanheng Hall, Zhao Zheng sat upon the Nine-Dragon Throne, clad in a majestic golden dragon robe. His expression was solemn and grave. His gaze, sharp as a torch, cut through the layers of the hall to land upon the ministers standing respectfully below the steps of the Nine-Dragon dais. Having witnessed the downfall of Zhang Juyang and other renowned scholars of the court, the ministers were filled with fear, well aware that in this court, a single misstep could lead to eternal ruin. Thus, they were more cautious than ever, fearing that any slight provocation of the imperial countenance might lead them to follow in the footsteps of the rebels.
Chapter 76