QT: The Rescue Of The Miserable Bigshots-Chapter 315 - 10.16

"Jiamian!"

Finally seeing him, Xiao Jinan’s eyes lit up with unmistakable joy. He immediately rose from the throne and strode toward him.

"Where have you been? You disappeared not long after we entered the palace gates! I was so worried!"

Bang!

A dull, heavy sound echoed through the hall.

The old emperor, whom Jiang Jiamian had been carrying like a helpless chick, was unceremoniously slammed onto the cold stone floor of the palace.

"Go and watch him." Jiang Jiamian said casually. "You should thank me for this, Xiao Jinan. If I hadn’t intercepted him early, and you had waited until storming in to search, he probably would have escaped through the secret passage long ago."

As for how Jiang Jiamian knew about the secret passage... That was, of course, thanks to the plot.

The original storyline had mentioned this passage in detail. It was even an important turning point, highlighting the different choices made by the Fourth Prince and the Seventh Prince during the palace chaos, creating a stark contrast between their paths.

The passage’s origin, location, method of opening, and even where it led outside the palace were clearly written, black and white.

"A secret passage?" Xiao Jinan was momentarily stunned. His gaze fell on the emperor, whose fate was unclear, and a chill crept into his heart.

"There was actually a secret passage?"

So if not for Jiang Jiamian, this damned emperor might really have escaped?

This was indeed his oversight.

The overly smooth progress of the coup had made him complacent. He had subconsciously regarded the emperor as utterly useless.

Only now did he realize that no matter how tightly guarded a palace appeared, escape routes were never impossible. Leaving behind a secret passage was perfectly normal.

He had been too impatient, too confident, and nearly let success cloud his judgment.

"This was my mistake." Xiao Jinan said with genuine self-reproach. "It’s thanks to your meticulousness that he didn’t escape."

He had personally promised to stage the coup, capture the emperor, and avenge the Jiang family.

Yet in the end, Jiang Jiamian himself had seized the emperor, while he had nearly let the man slip away.

Xiao Jinan knew that even if the emperor had escaped, he wouldn’t have been able to reclaim the throne.

But Xiao Jinan’s ambitions were never limited to seizing power.

Helping Jiang Jiamian personally capture the treacherous emperor and exact revenge was what truly mattered.

"Anyway, I’ve already caught him." Jiang Jiamian said nonchalantly. "You don’t have the same foresight I do, so it’s not a big deal. But there’s one more person I absolutely won’t let go."

Xiao Jinan’s expression turned cold. "Prime Minister Liu Fu."

The treacherous minister who colluded with Tuojia and framed the Jiang family in court.

Jiang Jiamian sneered. "Exactly."

"I haven’t forgotten about him."

Xiao Jinan finally felt his guilt ease slightly.

"As soon as we entered the capital, I had people keep close watch on the Prime Minister’s residence. While we were forcing the emperor to abdicate, my men had already surrounded the place. Liu Fu has been taken into custody and is awaiting your disposal."

He paused briefly. "Or, if you don’t want to see him, I can have someone kill him immediately, so he doesn’t dirty your eyes."

Jiang Jiamian didn’t hesitate. "Then kill him. But don’t make it quick. Stab him a few more times before he dies, let him properly experience the consequences of colluding with the enemy, deceiving the emperor, and framing loyal ministers."

Xiao Jinan understood at once. "Then sentence him to lingchi."

Jiang Jiamian: "..."

He paused.

In front of so many people present, he felt it would be embarrassing to ask what exactly that meant. The name sounded familiar, yet he couldn’t recall it clearly.

After all, it had been quite some time since he had entered this ancient world. Even during his previous reign as emperor, he had never personally presided over such punishments.

Fortunately, before he could ask, Xiao Jinan, who always paid close attention to his queen’s every micro-expression, caught the fleeting blankness in his eyes.

Xiao Jinan chuckled inwardly but kept a serious face as he explained, "It’s the so-called ’death by a thousand cuts’. The prisoner isn’t allowed to die until the very last cut."

Jiang Jiamian’s lips twitched. "I know! Do you think I wouldn’t know that? Ridiculous."

Xiao Jinan seized the moment. "Of course my Queen Consort knows. Liu Fu is a treacherous minister, how he dies doesn’t matter. But this emperor..."

His gaze dropped to the old man lying face-down on the floor.

"He can’t die so easily. Great An has existed for hundreds of years. This palace, this court, this empire, they all hide countless secrets. We must pry everything out of him before sending him on his way."

For example, the existence of a secret passage was one such secret.

Perhaps as the emperor, he still held hidden power, lists of officials, court secrets, or other leverage.

Jiang Jiamian laughed softly. "Don’t worry. He’s still alive."

He then kicked the emperor, who lay motionless like a corpse, rolling him onto his back. Only then did Xiao Jinan see the two bloody holes in the old man’s face.

Jiang Jiamian shrugged. "His life is intact. Other things? Not so much. If you want information, his mouth still works. As for eyes, since he can’t tell right from wrong and only sees what benefits him, there’s no need to keep them."

Xiao Jinan felt no pity whatsoever. Seeing the bloody sockets only filled him with satisfaction.

"You’re right. Other than his mouth, he shouldn’t have been allowed to keep anything else."

For years, he had been suspicious of Xiao Jinan, and even more suspicious of the Jiang family, who had protected Great An with unwavering loyalty.

Despite the obvious flaws in Liu Fu’s framing and Tuojia’s manipulation, schemes that could have been exposed with minimal investigation, the emperor still forced the Jiang family into ruin.

If not for Jiang Jiamian’s own strength, and if the King of Huainan had truly sought revenge instead of cooperation, then by now, three generations of loyal Jiang generals would already be dead.

And not only them.

Tens of thousands of Jiang family soldiers might have met the same fate, suppressed, purged, or even executed, all because of this incompetent tyrant.