Chapter 1313 - 1265: Reforging Faith (Part 2)
This is practically tearing off Great Jin’s face and trampling on it. Zhao Hanzhang suddenly stood up and said in a deep voice, "Zeng Yue!"
Zeng Yue stepped forward and bowed, saying, "I am here."
"You personally escort Imperial Censor Xun to fetch Grand Tutor Xun, and make sure to bring Imperial Censor Xun back safely!"
Zeng Yue responded loudly, "Yes!"
Zhao Hanzhang flicked her sleeve and left, no one dared to speak further, and the Little Emperor also stood up to watch her leave.
After she walked far, he then tremulously extended his hand, and his personal eunuch, Mr. Dong, carefully received his hand, only to find it trembling. He quickly and discreetly supported him and shouted to the courtiers, "Court adjourned—"
Only then did all the officials hurriedly kneel to bid farewell to the Emperor.
The Little Emperor, supported by Eunuch Dong’s hand, walked out of the grand hall, his face already pale. He anxiously asked Eunuch Dong, "Is the Great General angry?"
Eunuch Dong comforted him, "Even if the Great General is angry, it is not directed at Your Majesty. I see that the Great General is angry that Yu Hong injured the Grand Tutor."
The Little Emperor was still uneasy, repeatedly stating, "I truly did not know Third Uncle would say such words. I have never doubted that the Great General would harm Second Uncle."
At this point, the Little Emperor almost shed tears.
In his view, his power was hardly worth mentioning in front of Zhao Hanzhang. If Zhao Hanzhang wanted to kill him and his two uncles, there were plenty of opportunities and excuses; there was no need for such elaborate machinations.
He also didn’t know if Third Uncle truly suspected Zhao Hanzhang or if he made such speculations to achieve certain purposes.
And whether it was the former or the latter, the most harmed was actually him. The Little Emperor felt that he was now like a little pig being roasted over a fire, though it was not his wish to be placed there; he was entirely put there by others.
The more he thought about it, the sadder the Little Emperor became. He had only experienced good times for half a year, during which Zhao Hanzhang had not really managed him, relaxed her control over him significantly, and Xun Fan had gone out for disaster relief. His workload was directly halved, and apart from frequently being bothered about financial issues during court, he was very happy with his life.
And then, with a thunderous crash, were the good days gone just like that?
The Little Emperor was full of resentment towards Xun Zu, "What exactly is Third Uncle trying to do?"
He also worried about Xun Fan, "Second Uncle should be fine, right? I hope he can return safely."
Although Xun Fan was strict with him and often assigned him many tasks, he was also the relative who cherished him the most. Moreover, if something really happened to him, the Little Emperor would be unable to control Xun Zu. The old ministers in the court, under Xun Zu’s control, would likely lead to more trouble.
Just the thought of it made the Little Emperor feel a darkness before his eyes, and his entire life seemed dim and bleak.
Eunuch Dong didn’t know how to console him, so he could only support him back to the inner hall. After some thought, he secretly went to request an audience with Zhao Hanzhang, knelt on the ground, and relayed all of the Little Emperor’s words and actions to her, pleading, "His Majesty is pure-hearted and had no knowledge of Imperial Censor Xun’s actions, and he is now still very fearful."
Zhao Hanzhang lowered her head to look at him and after a moment said, "It is the minister’s failure to cause His Majesty anxiety."
Eunuch Dong was chilled, repeatedly kowtowing, "It was my slip of the tongue, begging the Great General for mercy, His Majesty, His Majesty knows in his heart that this is Imperial Censor Xun’s scheme to sow discord, but after all, that is his uncle. His Majesty, being so young, cannot command the old ministers left by the former emperor..."
Seeing his forehead was already bleeding from kowtowing, Zhao Hanzhang impatiently frowned, "Enough, I understand the situation, take good care of His Majesty."
Zhao Hanzhang paused for a moment before saying, "This matter does not concern him, you may leave."
Eunuch Dong sighed in relief, responded softly with a "Yes," and then rose to back away.
Once his figure disappeared, Zhao Yunxin, somewhat displeased, said, "Great General, should we replace him?"
"No, let him stay by the Emperor’s side."
Zhao Yunxin said, "Since he has already sided with the Great General, why did he plead for him?"
In truth, Zhao Hanzhang was somewhat pleased and said to Zhao Yunxin, "Isn’t it a good thing that a ten-year-old boy has compassion?"
"For someone like Eunuch Dong, who has seen the worst of human nature, to actually plead for a Little Emperor with such uncertain prospects shows that the Little Emperor is not a violent person, and at least has some redeeming qualities," Zhao Hanzhang said, "I am very pleased, as this means he won’t anger me over such matters in the future, forcing me to protect him against my own will."
If one day, the abdicated Little Emperor were to engage in something like cruel killings, should she kill him or not?
Killing him would violate her oath, while not killing him would betray her conscience and morals, and also undermine the law.
So isn’t it better this way?
Zhao Hanzhang is never afraid of someone being good; she despises dancing with villains more.