Chapter 705 - 706: Self-Destruct
Chapter 705: Chapter 706: Self-Destruct
Xie Anjun was caught completely off guard. By the time he realized what was happening, Zheng Baosu had already lunged at him!
The menacing, murderous aura radiating from the man terrified Xie Anjun. He retreated almost instinctively, but his movements were sluggish from kneeling on the ground for so long.
Zheng Baosu, however, was burning with rage. At the peak of his fury, he dragged his battered body forward and seized Xie Anjun’s arm!
His strength was astonishing. A sharp pain shot through Xie Anjun, and his face instantly changed.
"Let go of me!"
Xie Anjun was both shocked and furious, immediately struggling to shake Zheng Baosu off. But how could someone like him, who had lived a life of pampered luxury, ever be a match for Zheng Baosu?
He felt like his arm was about to break!
Catching sight of the guards rushing over, a panicked Xie Anjun cried out for help, "Quick! Pull him away!"
The guards hadn’t expected Zheng Baosu to move so quickly despite his injuries. After a brief moment of shock, they hurried forward. They didn’t care about Xie Anjun, but this was happening right in front of His Majesty!
The next moment, two guards were the first to reach them, clamping down on Zheng Baosu’s shoulders and trying to pull him away.
But he was outnumbered.
Xie Anjun finally breathed a sigh of relief internally.
He stared at Zheng Baosu, hatred welling in his eyes. ’If it weren’t for this bastard and all his outrageous deeds, how could I have been implicated?!’
’And after I went through all that trouble to get him a good post! Instead of staying put, all he could think about was scheming and climbing the ladder!’
’Falsifying military intelligence, fabricating battle merits... This Zheng Baosu is insane!’
Zheng Baosu also noticed the disdainful and resentful look in Xie Anjun’s eyes.
He was so angry he almost laughed.
’Xie Anjun dares to look down on me?!’
’An incompetent, sickly weakling! He only got to where he is today because he has a good father. If he were actually on a battlefield, he’d have died long ago without even knowing how!’
Fueled by his resentment, Zheng Baosu went berserk, twisting his head and biting down hard on Xie Anjun’s hand!
"AHH!"
Xie Anjun let out a bloodcurdling scream.
The next instant, Zheng Baosu actually bit clean through one of his fingers!
Blood splattered everywhere!
Xie Anjun trembled in agony, collapsing to the ground and wailing in pain. He cradled his hand, staring at the mangled, bloody wound, his mind about to explode.
"You’re insane! You’re insane!"
Xie Anjun murmured, his heart filled with a mixture of hatred and fear. His whole body trembled uncontrollably.
Eunuch Li frowned and immediately stepped forward to reprimand them. "How dare you act so madly before the Holy Emperor! Such insolence!"
Zheng Baosu was now fully restrained, forced to his knees on the ground, unable to move.
Yet, he laughed with grim satisfaction, his face twisting into a savage, delighted grin.
"You want me dead? You’ll have to ask if I agree to it first!"
’Since I’m not going to make it out of this alive, Xie Anjun can forget about having an easy time!’
Losing a finger... when word of this gets out, Xie Anjun will become the laughingstock of the entire Capital City!
How could Xie Anjun not know this?
He was filled with extreme rage! Extreme hatred! He wanted to subject Zheng Baosu to death by a thousand cuts!
But he couldn’t move. He couldn’t take a single step.
’He was terrified.’
’Zheng Baosu has gone mad!’
’And who wouldn’t be afraid of a madman?’
’I have to end this quickly!’
With this thought, Xie Anjun’s mind raced. He forced himself to calm down, then turned, kowtowed heavily before Emperor Muwu, and cried out with tears streaming down his face—
"Your Majesty! This man is outrageously audacious! To be so insolent in Your Majesty’s presence is a capital crime! Your Majesty, you must not let him off easily!"
Emperor Muwu slightly raised his eyelids.
That detached, emotionless gaze sent a chill through Xie Anjun’s heart. The accusations caught in his throat, and his hoarse voice gradually faded.
"Your... Your Majesty..."
Emperor Muwu said coolly, "The interrogation is not yet over. How can we deal with him so rashly?"
Xie Anjun froze, his blood turning to ice.
’How could I have forgotten the most crucial point!’
He endured the excruciating pain in his hand but dared not say another word. Only a single thought remained in his mind.
’I absolutely cannot let Zheng Baosu spout nonsense!’
However, just as this thought crossed his mind, Zheng Baosu’s dry, resentful voice came from behind him.
He spat out a mouthful of blood with a vicious smile and said, word by word.
"What are you pretending for? Xie Anjun, you must be wishing I’d drop dead right now so you can finally be at ease, right?"
Xie Anjun spun around, his expression fierce but his voice betraying his fear. "I don’t know what you’re talking about! We have no grievance between us, yet you—"
"No grievance?"
Zheng Baosu burst out laughing as if he had just heard the world’s greatest joke.
His strange, sarcastic laughter echoed through the great hall, making it even more unsettling.
Zheng Baosu cursed through gritted teeth—
"If you really want to sever all ties with me, then first you can spit out the three hundred seventy thousand silver taels I sent to the Duke Zhongyong Mansion!"
Xie Anjun felt his scalp crawl!
He retorted reflexively, shouting, "Don’t you dare slander me! When have I ever taken a single coin from you?! Zheng Baosu, your crimes are numerous and death is at your door! It’s all because of your own insatiable greed! Don’t think you can drag others down with you—"
"You deny it?"
Zheng Baosu sneered.
Suddenly, Xie Anjun’s heart skipped a beat.
He had dared to deny it so directly because he was confident he hadn’t left any evidence. But now, Zheng Baosu’s tone made him uneasy.
As expected, in the next moment, Zheng Baosu dropped another bombshell.
He slowly raised his head, looked at Emperor Muwu, and a strange smile appeared on his face.
"Doesn’t Your Majesty want to know where such a large amount of silver taels came from?"
Xie Anjun’s heart sank!
He looked at Zheng Baosu in disbelief, then quickly retracted his gaze as he realized he was losing his composure. But his forehead was already covered in cold sweat.
’Zheng Baosu is really determined to take everyone down with him!’
’Doesn’t he realize that once he starts talking, it won’t just be me, Xie Anjun, who’s implicated?’
’How many people in this court, from top to bottom, will be—’
But at this moment, Xie Anjun couldn’t say a single word.
He could no longer even feel the excruciating pain from his severed finger. He just trembled slightly, his inner clothes already soaked with sweat.
His heart pounded like a drum!
Emperor Muwu raised his eyelids, seemingly having found some interest at last.
"Oh?"
In truth, Zheng Baosu’s spirit had already shattered.
Ever since he was inexplicably arrested and escorted to the Capital City, he had endured endless hardship and torture, which was already agonizing. Then, after what happened last night, his psychological defenses completely collapsed.
He was never a resourceful person to begin with, only reaching his current position with someone’s support.
Normally, if he encountered an enemy force that was even slightly larger than his own, he would fear for his life and turn tail and run. How could he possibly withstand such a trial?
So, he stopped thinking about anything else. Right now, he only wanted revenge!
The corners of his mouth stretched into a grin as he spoke in a strange, mocking tone—
"This is all thanks to the Marquis Zhongyong, of course. Without his staunch support, how could a mere nobody like me have obtained so many supplies and troops to sell to the Wazhen in exchange for thousands upon thousands in silver?"