Chapter 152: Chapter 122: Parting in Death

In Minghe Pavilion, Yao Shi Moke sat on the steps drinking in melancholy, one cup after another, as if he had suddenly aged a lot.

"Duke, Duke, someone has come from the palace!" The butler ran in to inform him, seeing Yao Shi Moke sitting in the empty banquet hall looking haggard, he asked, "Shall I send them away?"

"No need."

Before long, Yao Shi Moke regained his invigorated appearance and went to the reception hall to find a familiar eunuch. He clasped his hands and smiled, saying, "Eunuch Li, what brings you here late at night? Is there a decree from Your Majesty?"

"The Duke speaks too seriously," Eunuch Li quickly replied, "It’s not a decree, but the announcement from the Divine Marquis Mansion just woke the Empress Dowager, and the Emperor is also frightened. He hopes the Duke can enter the palace to calm the people’s hearts."

"Oh?" Yao Shi Moke gently stroked his beard.

Eunuch Li leaned closer and whispered, "The young Emperor has been getting more timid lately, hearing the announcement from the Divine Marquis Mansion startled him awake, fearing that thieves might come to kill him. He hopes you can enter the palace to protect him."

Yao Shi Moke found it amusing because his daughter really was a thief.

"Nothing unusual lately?"

"No, the young Emperor has been studying and practicing martial arts as usual."

He nodded and went out to find Feng Qian, the Chief Historian of Duke Jin’s Mansion, to inquire, ensuring that there was indeed no anomaly in the Imperial Palace before agreeing to follow Eunuch Li into the palace. Nevertheless, he still had a team of guards accompany him into the palace.

"Brother!"

As soon as Yao Shi Moke entered the palace, the young Emperor Yao Shijie Luo had already proactively come to the front hall to greet him, treating him with the courtesy of an elder brother. Although there was a significant age difference, Yao Shi Moke and the Emperor were indeed related, and Yao Shi Moke accepted this treatment calmly. After exchanging courtesies, he said, "I, the old minister, arrived late to rescue Your Majesty, and Your Majesty coming to greet me is truly overwhelming."

"Brother, please come with me to Hanren Hall," the Emperor said as he walked. "The Empress Dowager is getting on in years, and after being startled by the announcement from the Divine Marquis Mansion, she first scolded the palace attendants and then drank ceaselessly, her mood unpredictable. Past attempts at advice have been futile. Tonight, I summoned Brother, hoping you could advise the Empress Dowager."

Yao Shi Moke initially declined: "This is a family matter of the Imperial Family, not suitable for the old minister to interfere."

"Brother is of the Great Zhou royal clan, how could the family affairs of the Imperial Family be unrelated to Brother?" As the Emperor spoke, he took out the "Wine Decree" from his robes and handed it to Yao Shi Moke, "If anyone under heaven can read the ’Wine Decree’ to advise the Empress Dowager, it would be none other than Brother."

Yao Shi Moke gently stroked his beard, smiling as he accepted the "Wine Decree," quite pleased with the Emperor’s attitude.

Inside Hanren Hall, upon hearing of Duke Jin’s arrival, the Empress Dowager already sat behind the curtain, and the palace attendants had also tidied up the palace. Yet, as soon as Yao Shi Moke entered, he could still smell a strong odor of alcohol, leaving no doubt about the Emperor’s request. A visit to the Empress Dowager naturally required no guards, so Yao Shi Moke entered alone, with the hall already prepared with seating.

As Yao Shi Moke sat reading the "Wine Decree," the Emperor attended to him from a side and behind, his demeanor respectful, his expression peaceful. But as Yao Shi Moke read, the Emperor gradually became expressionless, the palace lamp illuminating half of his face in shadow and light.

"Your Majesty, Duke Yan, Duke Wu, and Duke Tang are already waiting outside." 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Yao Shi Moke was taken aback; three of the Six Pillars of the Nation had arrived? He immediately stopped reading the "Wine Decree" and asked, "Your Majesty—"

With the sound of a mechanism, the ground under Yao Shi Moke’s seat transformed into a trapdoor that opened. Just as he was about to fall through, Yao Shi Moke, being a Third-Turn Messenger with no shortage of valuables, struck the ground forcefully, just about to escape this trap!

"Down you go."

The curtain suddenly lifted, but behind it was not the Empress Dowager, but an unusually looking middle-aged man, indeed the last of the Six Pillars, Duke Wei, Chu Luoyan!

As he extended his hand to push, a wall of air formed above Yao Shi Moke, which, although harmless, directly eliminated Yao Shi Moke’s last chance to escape, forcing him into the trap!

Thud!

The trap was only four zhang deep, and combined with defensive artifacts, Yao Shi Moke naturally remained unscathed. However, as he fell, he heard the sound of countless bottles and jars shattering, and reaching out to touch the soil, he immediately felt a thick, viscous liquid; the narrow trap smelled strongly of pungent fragrance—kerosene!

"Empress Dowager, you see this, the shameless rebellious traitor dares to plot against the old minister!" Yao Shi Moke shouted loudly, "If the ancestors of Changqiu were to find out, even you, elevated as Emperor, would have no path but death! Empress Dowager, now is not too late to stop this traitor!"

The other Pillar Dukes and Marquis who entered the hall were also shocked beyond measure; they had simply been summoned by the Emperor, unaware that such an event would unfold.

Seeing the once arrogant Duke Jin fall into the trap, the Emperor stood silently by the trap’s edge, and they all realized tonight the Zhou Kingdom would encounter a great upheaval.

"The ancestor of Changqiu is already dead," the Emperor said indifferently.

Yao Shi Moke was stunned.

"Just yesterday, news came from the Immortal Crane Secret Realm that the ancestor of Changqiu had demised, the realm once again teeming with countless demons," Duke Wei, Chu Luoyan, walked to the Emperor’s side, speaking to Yao Shi Moke in the trap, "While you are the real traitor."

The Yao Family had two Foundation Establishments; Yao Shi Moke managed to depose the Emperor and control the court for years because he had won the trust of Foundation Establishment Messenger Yao Changqiu. As long as Yao Changqiu did not fall, no one dared to touch him, even daring to murder Zhao Yuanbao—who’s ancestry also boasted Foundation Establishment, deeply rooted.

As for the Yao Family’s other Foundation Establishment, she was a collateral niece of Zhou Taizu a century ago, with sparse blood relations to the current royal family, and paid no mind to the court’s outside disputes.

At this point, palace attendants presented two items before the Dukes: gloves soaked in black oil, an unlit torch, and candle.

They immediately understood the Emperor’s intent. Duke Yan, Yu Jin, first put on the black oil gloves, lighting his palm with the candle, then using the self-combusting flame to ignite the torch—adding this step, the torch transformed into a flame capable of burning others.

"Duke Yan, Yu Jin, willing to slay the traitor for Great Zhou!"

"Duke Wu, Helan Shang Le, willing to slay the traitor for Great Zhou!"

"Duke Tang, Li Fu, willing to slay the traitor for Great Zhou!"

"Duke Wei, Chu Luoyan, willing to slay the traitor for Great Zhou!"

Apart from the murdered Zhao Yuanbao and Yao Shi Moke in the trap, all members of the Six Pillars expressed their stance. They raised the blazing torches high, waiting for the Emperor’s order.

The Emperor summoned palace attendants, and under the complex gaze of others, he dipped his fist into the black oil, lighting it with the candle to ignite the torch.

Though the flesh seared in the flames, his face showed no pain, no hatred, nor joy, as if he had prepared for this day for a long, long time, his emotions consumed in the process, leaving only firmness and resolve.

"I am willing, with everyone here, to revive Great Zhou," Yao Shijie Luo said, "With Yao Shi Moke as the sacrifice!"

"With Yao Shi Moke as the sacrifice!"

Five torches simultaneously crashed down, and no matter how Yao Shi Moke struggled, what needed to burn, still burned.

Thick smoke rolled in the trap, the heat so intense that those outside dared not approach, yet Yao Shi Moke within laughed heartily: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty! Changqiu ancestor died, not only did you not conceal it, but instead seized the moment to execute the old minister, how misguided! The foundation of the Yao Family does not lie with me, nor with you, but with Foundation Establishment! You and I together might still suppress them; now, with my death, without the recognition of the ancestor, how can you suppress these deceitful wolves? The demise of the Yao Family’s venture is not caused by me, but by you!"

"But I haven’t lost, I still have hope, still have..."

Yao Shi Moke’s voice, like a curse from purgatory, echoed endlessly within the hall.

Once there was no more sound from the flames, the Emperor ordered: "Send the order to seal Duke Jin’s Mansion, arrest the remnants of Yao Shi Moke’s faction, Yao Shixun, Yao Shishen, Feng Qian, Yu Yi, and..."

"Yao Shi Moke’s daughter, Yao Shi Yuan."