Echoes of My Heart Throughout the Court

“Di Wu’ang, in the fifth year of Tian Tong, passed the provincial examination in the first tier. In the thirty-second year of Tian Tong, at the age of seventy-four, he retired from office. He served as a Censorate Deputy Imperial Inspector and concurrently as a Hanlin Academy Scholar.”

As soon as the old emperor finished reading in a cold tone, he heard Xu Yanmiao exclaim:

[Eh! He actually retired just half a month before I arrived. That’s quite a coincidence, isn’t it?]

The old emperor: “……”

That was indeed quite the coincidence.

When Di Wu’ang straightened his posture and walked out with vigor, he was utterly dumbfounded upon sensing the sympathetic gazes from his former colleagues.

—Although being named by His Majesty was certainly risky, it wasn’t as if he was bound to meet a terrible fate. Why the need for such immediate sympathy?

Of course, Di Wu’ang would never know that what these capital officials pitied him for was something else entirely.

Something that—had he delayed his retirement by even half a month—would have changed the course of his life after retirement.

Lian Hang silently gave a thumbs-up.

Xiao Bai Ze’s words were getting sharper and sharper. Did he not see that the emperor closed his eyes slightly after hearing the phrases “still quite vigorous” and “drafted numerous imperial edicts”?

Meanwhile, at the main seat, the old emperor glanced at Di Wu’ang with bloodshot eyes. “Barely three years into retirement, and you’ve already committed the act of seizing public land. I truly couldn’t have seen you as someone with such nerve.”

The moment he spoke, his eyelid twitched.

Why did it feel like… the wording of this mockery carried a hint of Xu Yanmiao’s tone?

The person in question was completely unaware, instead speaking with enthusiasm:

[The Jinyiwei is truly something. I wonder just how much information they’ve uncovered in that report—at first, I thought it only contained the crimes of that Su fellow.]

The Jinyiwei Commander wore a smug smile, as if he were an omnipotent figure capable of seeing thousands of miles away and hearing whispers on the wind—always able to produce a wealth of intelligence whenever the emperor needed it.

—In reality, he desperately wanted to know just where Xu Yanmiao’s wildly unrealistic expectations of the Jinyiwei had come from.

The old emperor: I’m in the middle of dealing with a traitor—don’t make me laugh!

That said, the Jinyiwei did, in fact, have more dirt on Di Wu’ang.

“Shortly after retirement, he claimed an entire mountain as his family burial ground, forcing the original graves to be relocated. Those who refused had their graves dug up and their remains thrown off the cliffs—Di Wu’ang, your audacity is truly astounding.”

Had this been the only offense, the emperor wouldn’t necessarily have sought to exterminate his entire clan—he was aiming for a grand purge, not indulging in some bloodthirsty slaughter. ȒАℕȏ฿ЁȘ

But coupled with the public land seizure, his fury only grew.

“Di Wu’ang! I truly regret it. When I first discovered your forceful relocation of graves, I should not have let our past relationship soften my response to just a light reprimand. Had I been harsher, you wouldn’t have dared to act so recklessly and seize public land!”

His voice suddenly rose: “I pitied you for your old age! I respected you and trusted you! I thought you had merely lost your way for a moment and would change. But you—you took me for a fool!”

With those words, the officials in the hall dropped to their knees in waves.

Di Wu’ang’s wrinkled eyelids trembled as he knelt, his eyes glistening with tears, making him look utterly pitiful.

Yet, through those tears, as he glimpsed the emperor’s expression, he knew there wasn’t a shred of sympathy in His Majesty’s heart.

—After all, laying hands on public land was a clear-cut red line.

What was public land? It was the court’s method of preventing excessive private land ownership, suppressing the powerful, and ensuring that landless or land-poor farmers had fields to cultivate.

It was a form of government relief!

Even the taxes were referred to as “contracted rent,” with only one-thirtieth of the harvest collected as tax!

Of course, once powerful landlords seized public land and sublet it to farmers, that tax rate no longer applied. The rent they charged typically reached a high rate of “five-tenths of the harvest.”

The public land that Di Wu’ang sublet was taxed at exactly that rate—five-tenths of the harvest.

In other words, if a farmer grew rice and earned an annual yield equivalent to 2,800 to 3,300 copper coins, renting public land directly from the imperial court meant paying only around 100 copper coins worth of grain in tax. But if they rented land from a powerful landlord, they would have to pay a staggering 1,400 or more copper coins in rent.

Xu Yanmiao mentally calculated the numbers:

[So the average peasant household only has about 1,400 to 1,600 copper coins a year, and they still have to cover the expenses of an entire family…]

Xu Lang’s pupils dilated.

[If they encounter a natural disaster or catastrophe, how could they possibly survive?!]

Survive? Of course, they could survive.

The old emperor nearly laughed. But if he did, it would have been a cold, mocking laugh —because the way to survive was simple: sell themselves and their families into slavery.

“PAH—”

A crisp slap echoed through the hall.

Back when Di Wu’ang was still in office, he had the kind of determination that wouldn’t back down until he hit a brick wall—and even then, he’d still refuse to turn around. His colleagues used to joke that he was the “reincarnation of a stubborn mule.”

But at this moment, the “stubborn mule” had lost all his defiance in front of the emperor. He slapped himself forcefully across the left cheek.

The slap was so loud that everyone who knew him sucked in a sharp breath. Even those kneeling couldn’t help but glance up, looking back and forth in disbelief.

Was this really the same Fifth Stubborn Mule who once had the audacity to stand up to the emperor himself?

The same man who once took an axe to the palace gates, hacked off the locks, and bellowed “His Majesty is abusing his authority!” more than a dozen times—now kneeling, slapping himself over and over until his face was swollen?!

Xu Yanmiao: [Wow—]

[I have to say, even when hitting himself, he does it with extra force!]

The capital officials: “……”

Hiss—

Now that they thought about it… that actually made sense?

“PAH—”

After slapping his right cheek, Di Wu’ang immediately switched hands and struck his left cheek again. His fingernails scraped across his skin, leaving a shallow cut that slowly seeped blood.

“I deserve death! I was blinded by greed—I dared to touch the people’s lifeline, their public farmland! I was utterly foolish! His Majesty has shown me great favor, and yet I have brought shame upon him! My crimes are unforgivable!”

“PAH—”

Another slap to the right cheek. This time, the corner of his mouth split open, and a mixture of saliva and blood dribbled down his face.

“I am guilty! I have failed the Empress Dowager, who once praised me, who commended my assistance in governing the empire. How could I forget when Her Highness once called me a ‘pillar of the nation’? And yet, upon returning home, I indulged in wealth and filth, devouring the people’s blood and tears. I have betrayed His Majesty’s and Her Highness’s expectations, betrayed their trust!

“Had I known I would bring disgrace to their judgment, I should have simply died in prison after I hacked off the palace gate lock! At least then, I wouldn’t have lived to bring this shame upon them!”

“PAH—”

This slap was even fiercer. It sent Di Wu’ang staggering, dizzy and disoriented. He swayed for a moment before shaking his head and crawling back to his knees.

“Your Majesty, my will was weak. One mistake led to another. When I saw local officials corrupt, the people suffering injustices, and former colleagues reaching for public land upon their retirement, I hesitated between speaking out and going along with them. In the end, I lost my mind, consumed by greed, and allowed myself to be swept away—Your Majesty, I regret it! Even if I were to break my legs kneeling, shatter my teeth, gouge out my eyes, and carve out my own heart, I could never atone for my sins!”

“PAH—”

Di Wu’ang’s face was now swollen beyond recognition, his tears and snot flowing freely. Then, with a violent motion, he slammed his head onto the ground, wailing in anguish:

“My life is worthless, but when I think of the countless commoners still suffering, I cannot bear the shame of having received Your Majesty’s trust!”

“PAH—”

“PAH! PAH! PAH! PAH!—”

He kept slapping himself, each blow harsher than the last, as if he were punishing someone else’s flesh.

“I am already worthless! I only beg Your Majesty for mercy—to give me a chance to redeem myself before I die! Allow me to use my final breath to root out those scoundrels!”

“PAH! PAH! PAH! PAH! PAH! PAH!—”

Even Xu Yanmiao was stunned, let alone the veteran officials who had spent years navigating the treacherous waters of the imperial court.

“This is…”

[A textbook-perfect response…]

It was the kind of performance worth analyzing late at night, lying in bed and replaying every detail. If this were a television drama, this sequence of self-inflicted slaps would absolutely be the climax of the episode.

Even Liang Rui, who despised Di Wu’ang for seizing public land, had to admit—these slaps were something else. He lowered his voice and said to his son, Liang Youwen, who was sitting at the same table:

“Watch carefully. Learn well.”

First, Di Wu’ang played the emotional card, lamenting how he had failed the emperor and—more importantly—the empress dowager. That part was a stroke of genius.

He was practically calling out for the empress dowager to save him.

“Your Majesty! Look at how much the empress dowager valued me! She even called me a ‘pillar of the nation.’ Now, I deeply regret my actions. I have let down her expectations and trust! While the empress dowager may not be my direct patron, she definitely remembers me.”

“I am fiercely loyal to Your Majesty, and I am grateful to the empress dowager as well. When the crown prince ascends the throne in the future, I will undoubtedly be a staunch supporter of the imperial family.”

—This not only proved his loyalty but also increased his chances of receiving mercy.

Then, he admitted guilt with absolute sincerity—his slaps were real, his repentance dramatic, no half-measures.@@novelbin@@

At the same time, he subtly excused himself. He claimed his downfall was due to weakness of will, that he had simply been too easily swayed by temptation rather than intentionally committing a crime. The environment was too corrupt, and he had failed to resist it.

“Your Majesty! Surely, this is understandable!”

Next, he dragged others down with him. He made it clear that many retired officials had done the same—that he had merely followed the tide.

And finally, he pledged full allegiance to the emperor, making it clear that he was willing to betray his former allies to save himself.

—A true battle royale in the imperial court, where only the most cunning survived.

If not for the current atmosphere, he might have actually gotten away with it.

But now…

The old emperor watched Di Wu’ang coldly, his expression unreadable. Dozens of slaps later, the man’s teeth had fallen out, and his vision was unfocused. Seeing how he was practically beating himself to death, the emperor finally spoke—his tone unhurried:

“Since you claim you wish to make amends before you die—”

“Tell me, then—among those present in this chamber, who else has taken public land?”

A subtle shift passed through the room. Many of the kneeling officials visibly tensed.

Di Wu’ang immediately slammed his forehead onto the ground again. Blood trickled down from the fresh wound on his brow as he eagerly blurted out:

“Your Majesty, I know! It was—”

But before he could finish, someone suddenly tumbled forward from the crowd.

He literally rolled.

The man tumbled straight to the emperor’s feet and shouted at the top of his lungs:

“Your Majesty! I also know who has taken public land!”

The new official and Di Wu’ang locked eyes, burning with mutual hatred so intense it was as if they wished to incinerate each other on the spot.