43: Do you want me to teach you how to behave?

Li Chengqian, in Chang'an City, was strategizing and ensuring victory from a thousand miles away.

Meanwhile, a thousand miles away, Jing Province had already been transformed into a bloody purgatory.

Within a single day, across Jing Province, the five great clans, spanning nine generations, saw a total of 108,000 heads roll, and blood flowed like rivers.

The once arrogant Jing Province gentry were uprooted, completely erased from the land.

In Chang'an City, beneath the calm surface, an undercurrent was already surging.

News of the massacre in Jing Province, which stained the winter snow red, grew wings and flew to the Empire's center of power at a speed that surpassed any official dispatch.

However, the first detailed and horrifying secret letter was not sent to the Imperial Palace, nor to the Central Secretariat, but was delivered by a dust-covered scout, whose clothes still bore traces of dried blood, to the residence of Censor-Adviser Wei Zheng.

Wei Zheng's residence was simple, just like its owner.

In his study, Wei Zheng was holding an ancient scroll, his brows tightly furrowed.

He had been upright his entire life, unable to tolerate any injustice.

At this moment, he was displeased by the Officials' whitewashing reports from a certain region, and his annotations carried a chilling Qi.

"Sir!"

The scout almost stumbled into the study, his knees buckling as he fell to the ground, his voice hoarse and trembling with the aftermath of survival.

He pulled out a bamboo tube tightly wrapped in oilcloth from his embrace, raising it high above his head with both hands.

"Urgent report from Jing Province!"

Seeing him in this state, Wei Zheng's heart sank, and he put down his scroll, his eyes becoming sharp.

He recognized this person; he was a secret piece he had placed in Jing Province, never to be used unless absolutely necessary.

He quickly stepped forward, took the bamboo tube, unwrapped the oilcloth, and poured out a scroll of silk as thin as a cicada's wing.

Unfolding the silk, Wei Zheng's usually unruffled face instantly froze after just one glance.

His breathing suddenly stopped, his eyes wide, as if he had seen the most terrifying sight in the world.

The handwriting on the silk was scrawled and hurried, clearly written in a state of extreme panic.

"...Qin Huaiyu, by order of the Crown Prince, on charges of rebellion, completely exterminated the five clans of Huang, Wang, Xie, Cui, and Lu in Jing Province, sparing no one, regardless of gender, age, or youth... Within a single day, blood flowed so much it floated pestles, and corpses piled up like mountains... According to incomplete statistics, over 108,000 perished..."

One hundred and eight thousand!

These four words were like four red-hot hammers, striking hard at Wei Zheng's heart.

His hands began to tremble uncontrollably; the thin silk felt heavier than a thousand catties in his hands.

He read it repeatedly, word by word; each word was a bloody wound, scorching his eyes.

Shock, disbelief, followed by a chill that rushed from his feet to the top of his head.

This was not warfare, this was not suppressing a rebellion, this was a massacre!

A naked massacre, targeting unarmed people!

How many of them were infants waiting to be fed?

How many were elderly people with faltering steps?

Crown Prince Your Highness... how could he dare?!

How could he do it?!

Wei Zheng's chest heaved violently, and for the first time, a look of mixed apprehension and vigilance appeared on his face, which was always known for its uprightness and severity.

What he was wary of was no longer political enemies in the court, nor threats from the borders, but the Crown Prince, whom he had once placed great hopes in, believing him to be flawed but still capable of being sculpted!

This was no longer ruthless tactics; this was madness!

It was tyranny!

If a future monarch were to establish his authority by slaughtering 100,000 lives, what kind of living hell would this land become after he ascended the throne?

"Outrageous! Outrageous!"

Wei Zheng finally let out a suppressed roar, slamming the silk onto the desk, his eyes burning with fury.

He couldn't wait another moment.

He didn't even have time to change out of his casual home clothes; he grabbed the silk from the table and rushed out, his steps so fast that the scout was stunned.

"Prepare the horses! To the Eastern Palace!"

...Eastern Palace, Lizheng Hall.

Inside the hall, it was warm like spring, with fragrant incense wafting.

Li Chengqian, dressed in a dark everyday robe, was sitting by the window, a Go board in front of him.

Black and white pieces were locked in a fierce battle on the board; he held a white piece, suspended in the air, not placing it for a long time.

His expression was calm and focused; the 100,000 souls of Jing Province were merely a few pieces captured on the board, insignificant.

The commotion outside the hall interrupted his thoughts.

"Censor Wei, you cannot enter! His Highness is in quiet contemplation and is not seeing visitors!"

"Get out of the way! This old man will risk his life today to question the Crown Prince!"

Accompanied by an angry shout, the hall door was violently pushed open from the outside.

Wei Zheng, disheveled and furious, burst in, his graying beard trembling slightly with anger, his eyes fixed on the composed Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian slowly raised his eyelids, glanced at the intruding Wei Zheng, showing no surprise, not even a twitch of his eyebrow.

He gently placed the white piece in his hand with a soft "pa" sound onto the Tianyuan position on the board.

With one piece placed, the entire board came alive.

"Censor Wei, instead of cultivating yourself at home, why are you rushing into my Eastern Palace? What is the matter?"

His tone was as calm as water, as if asking about the weather.

Wei Zheng rushed to the Go board in a few steps, slamming the blood-stained silk onto it; the black and white pieces were shaken, scattering across the floor.

"Your Highness!!!"

Wei Zheng's voice was hoarse with extreme anger, "Is the matter in Jing Province true?! Did you order... the slaughter of the five great clans, all nine generations, 108,000 people?!"

His eyes were bloodshot, staring intently at Li Chengqian, wanting to see even a hint of guilt or unease on his face, even if it was feigned.

However, he was disappointed.

"Indeed, it was my order."

He admitted it cleanly and without hesitation.

Wei Zheng staggered back a step, as if struck by lightning.

He had thought the Crown Prince might explain or evade, but he never expected him to admit it so frankly.

"You... how could you do this!"

Wei Zheng's voice trembled uncontrollably, "Those are 100,000 human lives! Not 100,000 pigs or sheep! Even if they were guilty, their crime did not warrant death! Let alone the extermination of nine generations! What difference is there between such atrocities and those of Jie and Zhou?! Your Highness, you are pushing the foundation of our Great Tang into an abyss of eternal damnation!"

His tone was severe, and his spit was almost spraying onto Li Chengqian's face.

Li Chengqian finally stood up; he was a head taller than Wei Zheng, looking down at the old Official whose hair stood on end, his eyes as cold as the Siberian permafrost.

"Jie and Zhou?"

He repeated it softly, then let out a sneer, full of disdain and arrogance.

"Wei Zheng, you've read the books of sages and worthies your entire life, have you read yourself into a fool?"

"Do I need you to teach me how to act?"

His voice suddenly rose, like a clap of thunder from a clear sky, making Wei Zheng's ears ring.