webnovelfull Chapter 386 His Majesty drives a minivan
Chapter 386 His Majesty drives a minivan
Eunuch Wei turned to look at Zhou Shixun, wondering what was going on. Why did His Majesty go there in person? Could it be that His Majesty had other plans?
"Come on, Lao Wei, what are you standing there for?"
Seeing that Eunuch Wei was stunned, Zhou Shixun immediately urged him on.
Eunuch Wei snapped out of his daze: "Hey, hey, coming! Your Majesty, please slow down!"
Immediately afterwards, the two left the royal study and headed towards Zhou Shixun's private garage.
Inside the van, Zhou Shixun snatched the keys from Wei Gonggong: "It's not far, let me have some fun."
"Your Majesty, this thing is dangerous. Let Old Wei handle it."
"Hmph, you old codger, don't think I don't know what you're up to. Let me finish my fun first."
Immediately afterward, Zhou Shixun inserted the key to start the engine, put it in first gear, released the handbrake, and the car shot forward.
As for traffic rules, Zhou Shixun's philosophy was simply to do whatever he wanted.
"Your Majesty, shift gears..."
"Your Majesty, this is amazing!"
"Haha, isn't that awesome? Old Wei, you rarely praise me."
"No, Your Majesty, there are cows ahead, keep an eye on them!"
The two chatted casually, somehow transforming their master-servant relationship into a brotherly one.
Meanwhile, far away in Yunbian City, Zhu Hongyi had already been dragged out by Chu Chen for four days of strolling through the streets.
Actually, Chu Chen only mentioned three days casually. At their speed, it would be good if they could reach the capital in three days.
But Chu Chen would wait; he wanted to hear Zhou Shixun's response.
Zhu Hongyi lay dying in the city lord's prison, his eyes vacant.
Four days felt longer to him than forty years.
The people of Yunbian City have had a great time these past few days, with all the orchid leaves in the fields being plucked.
On the seventh day, Chu Chen got up as usual, washed up, and then stayed in the city lord's mansion, chatting and joking with Yao Xiuming.
Around noon, the announcement of the Emperor's arrival startled Yao Xiuming so much that he fell off his chair.
Then, she turned to Chu Chen in a panic and said, "Young Master Chu, His Majesty is here! His Majesty is here! What should we do?!"
"It's alright, at worst you can join me and become an outlaw!"
Chu Chen didn't even blink, and said to Yao Xiuming with a smile.
"What?! Becoming an outlaw?! We're doomed...!"
Just then, Zhou Shixun, accompanied by Eunuch Wei, strode into the city lord's mansion.
Yao Xiuming quickly knelt on the ground: "Your humble servant Yao Xiuming greets Your Majesty!"
Zhou Shixun ignored Yao Xiuming and stepped forward to ask Chu Chen, "Chu boy, what happened? How did that idiot offend you?"
Chu Chen laughed and said, "Uncle Zhou is here. He didn't offend me, but he offended the people of Yunbian."
After speaking, Chu Chen walked out of the hall, pointed to the City Lord's Mansion at Zhou Shixun, and then pointed to the huge palace next to it.
Upon seeing this scene, Zhou Shixun immediately understood the gist of it, thinking to himself that the kid must be corrupt.
So he turned to Yao Xiuming and asked, "Stand up and tell me what happened."
Yao Xiuming shakily got up and walked hunched over to Zhou Shixun.
But his eyes kept looking at Chu Chen for help.
Chu Chen waved his hand: "It's alright, just tell His Majesty everything you know."
Seeing Chu Chen's calm demeanor, Yao Xiuming immediately cleared his throat and began to explain everything to Zhou Shixun.
She recounted how Zhu Hongyi had exploited the people of Yunbian over the years, how he had bullied men and women, increased taxes, and made life unbearable for the people. She even mentioned that her repeated petitions to the emperor had been blocked, which led to Zhu Hongyi's retaliation.
He abused and tortured his youngest daughter to death.
Chu Chen recounted in detail how he clashed with Zhu Hongyi, his arrest, his public humiliation, and everything else.
Zhou Shixun was increasingly alarmed as he listened, never expecting that such a thing could happen under his rule.
Using the title of Grand Historian, he did whatever he wanted on his own land, harming the people of Great Xia.
He instantly became furious: "Where is that beast? Such a ruthless and inhuman person deserves to be torn to pieces."
"Your Majesty, he has been detained in the city lord's prison."
After hearing this, Zhou Shixun roared at Yao Xiuming, "Bring this beast here right now!"
After calming herself down a bit, she turned to Chu Chen and said, "Chu boy, you've worked hard!"
"Oh, Uncle Zhou, I was surprised to hear that Zhu Hongyi had gotten into trouble and came in person."
Chu Chen said this casually.
But the unspoken meaning was clearly heard by Zhou Shixun and Eunuch Wei, who were present. It meant that Zhou Shixun still cared a lot about Zhu Hongyi.
Everyone knows that Chu Chen was the one who started the conflict, and he even came in person. Is he here to demand an explanation or to mediate?
"Chuwazi, you misunderstand. After all, General Zhu drove out the foreign enemies and protected Yunbian when I was in the most dangerous situation."
"I have heard about the conflict with you, Chuwazi. As the ruler of a country, it is only right that you come. If it is a private conflict, I believe Chuwazi will not be remembered for harming loyal and good people."
"But now that this boy has done such a despicable thing, he must be killed as a warning to others, in order to maintain the reputation of our dynasty among the people."
"There is one more thing. The battle report from the front lines shows that most of the cities of Luoduo have been captured. As the ruler of the Great Xia, I must also give a proper visit to the soldiers on the front lines."
Chu Chen laughed after hearing this: "Uncle Zhou is overthinking it."
Thinking to myself, you became so angry as soon as you heard Yao Xiuming's one-sided story, which shows that you are still a good ruler who cares about the people.
As for the rest, we'll see how you deal with Zhu Hongyi.
Before long, Zhu Hongyi was brought before Zhou Shixun by Yao Xiuming's men.
Upon seeing Zhou Shixun, Zhu Hongyi felt as if he had found a lifeline.
Overwhelmed with emotion, he knelt down before Zhou Shixun: "Your Majesty, save me! This man, with his immense power, has caused me endless suffering. I beg Your Majesty to send a large army to capture him. I want him to be torn to pieces."
When Zhou Shixun heard this, he thought, "This is ridiculous. Putting everything else aside, you've offended Chu Chen, and I can't protect you."
Moreover, you have done something that everyone should kill. If you don't die, how can I, Zhou Shixun, protect my reputation, and how can the Zhou family protect its reputation?
How will the people of Yunbian explain this?
Ignoring Zhu Hongyi completely, he turned to Eunuch Wei and said, "This man is incredibly audacious, abandoning the common people and indulging in pleasure. He shall be beheaded and his head displayed to the public at noon tomorrow!"
Upon hearing this, Chu Chen thought to himself, "Wow, Zhou Shixun is amazing, so fast?"
Upon hearing this, Zhu Hongyi was completely stunned and shouted loudly at Zhou Shixun, "Your Majesty, I am innocent... It was them, it was Yao Xiuming who framed me."
"Your Majesty, please spare my life for the sake of my father conquering Yunbian City for you!"
At this moment, Eunuch Wei also felt that Zhou Shixun was too hasty, and quickly said, "Your Majesty, shouldn't we investigate?"
"Investigate? Do you really think Chu Wazi would lie to me?"
Chu Chen chuckled upon hearing this. "Zhou Shixun, you're such a jerk. Even at a time like this, you still remember to send me a trust card."
An emperor is still just an emperor!