If Prince Heng Guang were to ascend to the throne, the world would surely be plunged into chaos.

He exchanged a look with Minister Wang Jin, both shaking their heads.

Prince Heng Guang had now directed every word towards Princess Si Ning, so everyone in the hall’s gaze fell on her.

She, however, appeared indifferent, showing no extra emotion, and simply said, “Search Prince Heng Guang’s residence.”

A trace of mockery flashed in Prince Heng Guang’s eyes.

Even if she searched the entire King Heng Guang’s residence today, there would be no so-called evidence of a crime.

But just as this thought passed, Wen Yue Sheng added, “Search all the private homes and properties under the names of Prince Heng Guang’s wives and concubines, as well as their land holdings.”

Prince Heng Guang’s expression froze instantly.

He furiously shouted, “Si Ning—”

“Especially the side consort, Madam Cao, whom Prince Heng Guang favors the most, and all her family’s property,” Wen Yuesheng said.

At once, Prince Heng Guang’s face changed drastically.

But the words were already out, and with the Emperor right there, he couldn’t refute them.

As soon as Wen Yuesheng finished speaking, the guards outside quickly responded and left the palace.

For over an hour, Prince Heng Guang was uneasy, unable to sit still.

Duke Xu watched this and his expression darkened.

They wouldn’t get involved in Prince Heng Guang’s personal wealth, but they had often heard people mention how he greatly favored Madam Cao.

So, the things that Sun Mingyuan had sent, were they really in Madam Cao’s hands?

Duke Xu’s heart tightened, but he had already started thinking about how to shift the blame onto Madam Cao.

After all, no matter how much Prince Heng Guang favored her, she was still just a woman.

Now, if they used her, it would be her family’s honor.

Wen Yuesheng’s scope of investigation was large, but since she had specifically mentioned Madam Cao, the guards immediately began searching Madam Cao’s family.

By the time they returned to the Taihe Hall, it was already near noon.

The weather was still gloomy, and the morning court had lasted longer than usual.

The hall was as quiet as ever, with the ministers exchanging glances, all waiting for the return of the guard captain.

The guard captain returned after just over an hour and immediately bowed to the Emperor. “Your Majesty, I have searched Madam Cao’s family as ordered and discovered that her maternal family is quite wealthy.”

“They had two boxes of gold in their private vault, along with some rare antiques, all of top quality.”

Duke Xu had been holding his breath, but upon hearing the captain’s report, his heart sank.

Without thinking, he replied, “Your Majesty, Madam Cao once gave birth to a daughter for Prince Heng Guang. Although the child passed away before reaching three years old, she did bear the royal bloodline.”

“Prince Hengguang dotes on Lady Cao and treats her maternal family very well, but it still doesn’t reach the level of greed and corruption as mentioned by Princess Sinning.”

As the eldest son of the emperor, Prince Hengguang could afford to give two boxes of gold to Lady Cao’s family.

However, Duke Xu did not expect that, just after he finished speaking, the head of the guards hesitated, seemingly wanting to say something.

Wen Yuesheng lightly stroked the golden lotus pattern on her sleeve and calmly said, “Although we haven’t found any gold or silver, did you find anything else?”

The head of the guards couldn’t help but glance at Prince Hengguang.

He saw that Prince Hengguang’s expression was terrifying, staring at him with cold eyes.

The head of the guards’ face darkened.

Now, even if Prince Hengguang was trying to intimidate him, it was of no use. When they searched Lady Cao’s house, all the guards had been present.

He could silence his own mouth, but he couldn’t silence everyone else.

After a brief pause, the head of the guards spoke in a deep voice: “Your Majesty, the Cao family has many private estates, one of which is a manor located on the outskirts of the capital.”

Under the gaze of numerous officials, the head of the guards took a deep breath and continued, “On the surface, the manor appears to be a farm, but in reality…”

“There is a dry well on the estate, and from the bottom of the well, one can access a hidden underground room.”

“In that underground room, which occupies almost half the manor, there are many weapons stored.”

Silence.

The officials in the hall changed their expressions instantly upon hearing this.

Even Duke Xu, who had been quite proud before, had his face freeze in shock.

What did he just hear?

Private weapons!

Duke Xu felt as if struck by a thunderclap.

He looked at Prince Hengguang in disbelief, but Prince Hengguang’s expression was already as ugly as it could get. His hand, which had been resting by his side, was now clenched into a fist, with veins bulging on his hand.

The entire hall was dead silent.

The officials had thought Prince Hengguang to be bold, but none had imagined that he would be so reckless.

Owning private weapons was an extremely serious crime in any dynasty and under any emperor.

Even if he were just a prince, let alone a king, this was a capital crime punishable by extermination of his entire family.

Had he lost his mind?

The emperor in the hall remained silent for a moment.

Gao Quan, who stood by his side, dared not raise his head, fearing he would anger the emperor.

Suddenly, the emperor stood up and walked towards Prince Hengguang.

At that moment, Prince Hengguang had lowered his head. He no longer exuded the previous arrogance but was now silent.

At this point, what bothered him wasn’t the gravity of his own crime.

Rather, it was how Wen Yuesheng had discovered this place.

He had thought the location was extremely secretive, even though it was within the capital, the dry well was so remote that no one would suspect anything beneath it.

But it seemed he had forgotten that the private estate he had given to Fu Rui was actually registered under the name of Lady Cao’s brothers.

If there was any mistake he had made, it was using Fu Rui to try and eliminate Wen Yuesheng.

The assassins sent to kill Wen Yuesheng had used knives, and Wen Yuesheng immediately realized that those knives were different from the official weapons.

The difference was very subtle, just a slight weight discrepancy.

But Wen Yuesheng wasn’t an ordinary person.

She didn’t even need weapons to kill, but she found them dirty.

In the apocalypse, she had mastered all advanced weapons and cold weapons, which allowed her to spot the difference immediately.

And all those who came to kill her used this kind of knife.

Almost that same day, she knew King Hengguang was secretly making weapons.

What she didn’t know was where he had hidden them.

It wasn’t until Jiang Lu mentioned that Prince Hengguang deeply favored his concubine Lady Cao, sending Sun Mingyuan to deliver items to her family every three months.

Prince Hengguang was cruel and ruthless.

Favor?

It was nothing but a joke.

Prince Hengguang had yet to recover from his shock when he heard the emperor speak: “Forming factions, corrupting officials, accepting bribes, and secretly hoarding weapons.”

“You insist that these things were not your doing, but the work of people around you using your name. Then tell me, what are these people around you hiding weapons for?”

“Father…,” Prince Hengguang’s face completely changed. He tried to speak, but the emperor interrupted him directly.

“Are you planning to rebel?” The emperor glared at him coldly.

“I dare not! Father, this matter has nothing to do with me! It is that Cao family plotting to frame me! Father, I’m innocent!”

When the emperor heard this, it was as if he was seeing his son for the first time.

He looked him up and down, examining him.

After a long while, he finally smiled.

“Your usual actions are chaotic and reckless, which I thought was just a sign of immaturity. But now, you’ve actually done something like this.”

The emperor, towering over him, coldly said, “In a few more days, will you set yourself up as emperor with mercenaries?”

Prince Hengguang’s face darkened.

He didn’t realize that while corruption, bribery, and factionalism might still fall within the emperor’s tolerance, hoarding weapons was a matter of seeking death!

The emperor fixed his gaze on him and mocked, “Didn’t you just say you wanted to cut off an arm?”

“I’ll grant you that.”

In the midst of the officials’ shocked and fearful gazes, the emperor’s voice remained cold as he commanded, “Someone!”

“Cut off his right arm.”

The hall fell into a complete silence.

Boom!

After brewing all morning, the heavy rain finally poured down.

The sound of the rain was fierce, with raindrops as large as beans crashing onto the eaves and rooftops, their noise echoing in everyone’s ears.

However, none of this was as jarring as King Heng Guang’s voice.

The rain poured heavily, but the Emperor’s voice was devoid of any emotion, coldly saying, “Xiao Rui has formed factions and stockpiled weapons. His crime is unforgivable!”

“Effective immediately, his title will be revoked, and he will be imprisoned in the Prince’s residence. No orders will allow him to leave.”

These words almost caused Empress Duan to faint when she hurriedly entered.

She didn’t react in time. Only when she heard the court being dismissed did she force herself to enter.

The first thing she saw was her brother, Duke Xu.

She immediately grabbed his hand and cried out, “Brother! Brother! Where is Rui’er?”

On her way here, she had heard palace servants saying that the Emperor had ordered Xiao Rui’s arm to be cut off.

But Empress Duan didn’t believe it.

Her son was the Emperor’s eldest son.

No matter what mistakes Xiao Rui had made before, the Emperor had never harshly punished him.

Why would he suddenly order someone to sever his arm?

It wasn’t just his right arm—it would mean the loss of his throne as well!

According to the laws of Da Hui, anyone with a disability could not inherit the throne.

If Xiao Rui really lost his arm, how could he compete with Xiao Jin for the throne in the future?

There was no sign of Xiao Rui in the hall.

Empress Duan looked around, but she couldn’t find him.

A glimmer of hope arose in her heart—this must have been a mistake by the palace servants.

The Emperor wouldn’t be so cruel as to sever Xiao Rui’s chance entirely.

However, the pale face of Duke Xu seemed to tell her something.

“Where is Rui’er? Speak! Where is my Rui’er?” she cried out, her voice sharp and piercing.

The ministers around them, hearing her, grew somber in expression.

After today, no matter how favored Xiao Rui had been in the past, he was now just a dethroned prince, his arm severed.

The throne was no longer within his reach.

And the political situation in the court was about to undergo a drastic change.

Of course, the most significant change was the rise of a person none of them had ever considered before.

Outside the Taihe Hall, people came and went. However, most of the officials passing by wore scarlet official robes, while Wen Yue Sheng, alone, wore a dark black gown, completely out of place with the others.

But from this day on, no one would look down on the Princess of Si Ning.

After all, in the entire Da Hui, no one had ever made such a thunderous move on their first day in court, even directly changing the current political landscape.

The eldest prince Xiao Rui was completely out of the picture, and all of this started because of the assassination attempt on Wen Yue Sheng at the training grounds.

A small incident had caused a massive upheaval.

When Minister Lü left the Taihe Hall, he sighed with Wang Jin, “Looking at the stormy weather, it seems the heavens of Da Hui are about to change.”

Wang Jin didn’t respond.

If the eldest prince wasn’t suitable, did that mean Prince Jingkang or Prince Weiyang were?

If anyone among the remaining princes was most likely to ascend the throne, it would have to be Prince Yong’an.

After all, he was the Emperor’s legitimate son and had the backing of the Duke of Zhen Guo’s family.

However, after seeing Princess Si Ning’s letter rejecting the marriage, he couldn’t help but feel uneasy about Prince Yong’an—perhaps he wasn’t such a good candidate after all.

Then, if none of them were suitable, where would Da Hui’s future go?

In recent days, the emissary from Hao Zhou had been staying in the capital, and every time Wang Jin saw the crown prince of Hao Zhou, his anxiety grew.

Compared to them, Da Hui’s military strength was already weak.

Who among the future heirs could rival Hao Zhou?

What would happen to Da Hui after the Emperor passed?

Could a fragile peace treaty really stop the iron cavalry of Hao Zhou?

Wang Jin shook his head lightly, but as he looked up, he saw Princess Si Ning standing against the wind.

The cool breeze of September lifted her cloak.

Her slender figure swayed in the wind.

In stark contrast to her was a pair of exceptionally indifferent eyes that looked down on the world from the high platform.

Looked down on the world?

Wang Jin’s heart skipped a beat.

Behind them, Wen Xun called out to Wen Yuesheng.

It felt like it had been a long time, but in reality, it was only a few months.

Wen Xun looked at the person in front of him, his emotions especially complex.

After hesitating for a while, he finally said, “What you did today was too reckless.”

The faction of the eldest prince Xiao Rui wasn’t just about Xiao Rui himself; it also involved Duke Xu’s family, Empress Duan, and most importantly, the Empress Dowager.

By acting this way today, you’ve effectively made an enemy of the entire Duke Xu’s family.

Wen Xun sighed deeply. “Why didn’t you discuss this with me before you did these things?”

When the palace doors opened today and she walked in so confidently, Wen Xun was still shocked.

“Discuss?” Wen Yuesheng glanced at him coldly. “Did you discuss it with me when you remarried?”

Wen Xun’s face changed slightly.