Just as Zhu Zai suddenly rose and cursed at Li Miao.
Inside the Forbidden City.
Wang Zhi knelt at the entrance of Qianqing Palace, his upper body bare.
A eunuch, holding a whip, walked tremblingly behind Wang Zhi.
This whip was twisted from iron wire, as thick as a finger, and covered with countless barbs. A faint stench seeped from the gaps in the iron wire, and if one looked closely, one could even see hair and dried, shredded flesh mixed within.
Even the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) would shake their heads at this thing. If it were used for torture, the prisoner would die before even speaking.
The eunuch holding the whip knew this well.
But he dared not defy the imperial decree.
After hesitating for a long while, he suddenly raised his hand and lashed the whip across Wang Zhi's back.
Swish—
Instantly, a wound, open like a baby's small mouth, appeared on Wang Zhi's back.
Wang Zhi gritted his teeth, cold sweat dripping from his face, but he spoke with uncontrollable fury.
"Don't hold back!"
"Master, this!"
The eunuch holding the whip turned pale. Wang Zhi had already dispersed his Zhou Tian True Qi, and now he was only slightly more resilient than an ordinary person. If he didn't hold back, Wang Zhi would probably be whipped to death!
"Are you trying to kill me!?"
Wang Zhi said through gritted teeth.
"You've been by my side for so many years, why haven't you made any progress!"
"If you leave me a breath, I can still live! If you hold back, both you and I will be guilty of deceiving the emperor, and both of us will die!"
"Strike!"
"Yes!"
Upon hearing this, the eunuch closed his eyes and whipped Wang Zhi's back with full force.
Crash—
Flesh and blood were torn off, splattering on the ground. Wang Zhi's back instantly revealed stark white bones, and one could even see his internal organs wriggling within.
Wang Zhi's vision went black.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The whip let out a mournful howl, continuously tearing away Wang Zhi's flesh and blood.
Inside Qianqing Palace, the emperor took a pill from a box. With a gesture, a palace maid beside him offered a jade bowl containing half a bowl of clear water.
This bowl of clear water was brought from the "Dew-Collecting Terrace."
This Dew-Collecting Terrace had been built in the imperial palaces of successive emperors. It was usually a stone immortal holding a jade plate towards the sky, symbolizing the collection of dew from heaven.
But in the Jiajing Emperor's imperial garden, it was not stone but people who held the jade plates. They were dozens of young girls in the prime of their youth.
Every morning at dawn, these girls would stand on the terrace, holding jade plates, allowing the dew to gradually collect in the plates. After collection, it would be clarified and used for the emperor's medicine.
Furthermore, these girls were not allowed to wear seasonal clothing; they had to wear thin palace gowns to show sincerity to heaven in seeking sweet dew.
This morning, one froze to death.
But, what of it? As long as it didn't delay His Majesty's medicine, if they died, they died; no one cared.
The emperor took the bowl of dew and, upon looking into it, frowned.
He casually spilled the bowl of dew onto the ground.
Perhaps the bowl of dew was not clear enough, or perhaps it had the scent of menstrual blood from the palace maid. In any case, the emperor said faintly, "Get another bowl."
He was not an emperor unaware of the suffering of the common people. He knew that the girls collecting dew also had it difficult, but mistakes were inevitable, so he did not pursue the matter.
The palace maid hurriedly went out to relay the order, and a moment later, another bowl of dew was sent from the Dew-Collecting Terrace.
Only then did the emperor pick up the pill and put it into his mouth.
At this moment, the sound of the whip from outside the palace also stopped.
The eunuch came in to report: "Your Majesty, there are still seven lashes left, and Grand Companion Wang has fainted."
The emperor nodded: "In that case, let it be."
"Find a consecrator who can heal injuries and give him a rough treatment. When he wakes up, have him come see Us."
"Yes."
The eunuch took his leave.
The emperor closed his eyes and took a short nap.
After a while, Wang Zhi's stumbling footsteps were heard from outside the door.
He was not wearing clothes, revealing the wound on his back, only partially healed and still slowly seeping blood. His face pale, he slowly walked to the emperor's feet and knelt with a thud.
"Your Majesty, this subject is guilty."
"Forget it."
The emperor, with his eyes closed, waved his hand.
"Just be more vigilant in the future. We didn't intend to punish you severely; it's just that rewards and punishments must be clear. This was done according to the old rules, and We even spared you seven lashes, so don't blame Us."
Although matters in the inner court were decided by the emperor's word alone, a certain set of rules for rewarding and punishing eunuchs had been passed down by successive emperors. The emperor had not added extra lashes.
However, there was no rule before this to use a whip twisted from iron wire.
"This subject dares not..."
Wang Zhi dared not raise his head.
The emperor waved his hand, signaling that there was no need to mention this matter again. He continued.
"However, since the last 'cauldron' is lost, then, we can only take from 'that place.'"
As soon as these words were uttered, Wang Zhi's expression suddenly changed.
But he had just messed up his task last night, and his injuries from the punishment hadn't even healed. At this moment, he truly dared not advise further. His lips moved, emitting a faint sound.
"Your Majes..."
Then he dared not continue speaking.
The emperor, however, knew what he meant. He opened his eyes and swept his gaze coldly over him.
"Don't speak of stale clichés like 'shaking the foundation of the nation.'"
"We don't want to move them either, but those great sects, these past years, have been hiding and concealing themselves. There isn't even a single Celestial Being in the jianghu."
"If we don't use those people... are we supposed to use you?"
Wang Zhi broke out in a cold sweat, his mind racing.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, there are still! There are still Celestial Beings, right in Shuntian Prefecture, within and outside the capital!"
"The Ming Cult's Celestial Beings, use them."
The emperor snorted coldly.
"Easy for you to say. Do you think We haven't thought of that?"
"Now there are only two days left until New Year's Eve. The Ming Cult is accustomed to being caught. Can you catch them in two days?"
"Although that old fellow Zhu Zai is not of the same mind as Us, he is capable of handling tasks. If he couldn't catch them, can you?"
"No, Your Majesty, there's no need to catch them."
Wang Zhi quickly said.
"Last night, before Xue Jinxi suddenly attacked and injured people, this subject heard a strange sound. I was about to go investigate when Xue Jinxi interrupted me. Later, fearing further mishaps, this subject did not leave 'that place.'"
"But afterwards, I asked the guards. They intercepted four people outside the imperial mausoleum. Their faces were all disfigured; they were clearly dead warriors sent to investigate inside the mausoleum."
"Eunuch Huang stopped them, and they were almost surrounded, but a Celestial Being killed him with a Great Nine Heavens Palm, and the four were rescued. That person wore a unique bronze mask, and judging by his build, it was Ji Tianrui!"
The emperor had never heard this before. Wang Zhi had gone to receive punishment after reporting that the "cauldron" was lost and hadn't had time to mention this.
He pondered for a moment and said.
"Could someone be impersonating Ji Tianrui?"
"No, Your Majesty."
Wang Zhi lowered his voice.
"Only the Yang family family knows the secret of the imperial mausoleum."
"And only Ji Tianrui knows that method. Although we don't know who the current Ji Tianrui is, the two are clearly closely related."
"Therefore, the only people who would run to investigate the imperial mausoleum are from the Ming Cult. Coupled with that unique bronze mask, the person last night was definitely Ji Tianrui without a doubt!"
The emperor nodded.
"Then, what do you intend to do?"
Wang Zhi had already prepared his speech and blurted out.
"Lure the tiger out of its den!"
"Using the excuse of insufficient manpower in the capital on New Year's Eve, transfer the imperial mausoleum guards back to the capital, with a clear order to return after New Year's Eve."
Wang Zhi explained in detail.
"The Ming Cult's villains have burned their bridges this time, scattering all their disciples as pawns to create confusion, which is why Ji Tianrui's whereabouts have not been found. But no matter what, these pawns meant to create confusion, the Jinyi (Embroidered Clothing) should have rounded them all up within two months."
"Whatever schemes the Ming Cult villains have, they will occur within these two months. Their time is also running out."
"Even if they know it's a trap, they'll have to obediently walk into it."