Jiang Pengju looked closely at Lu Ye's face, his breathing suddenly becoming rapid. This young man before him bore a striking resemblance to the men of the Baili family. "You... why aren't you dead?"
Lu Ye let out a few hearty laughs. "If we were dead, who would seek revenge for us?"
Jiang Pengju slumped down as if he were a puddle of mud.
Lu Ye leaned back against the chair, loosening the muscles in his arms, and chuckled, "You refuse to confess because you're still harboring illusions, clinging to the hope that your grandson, the Crown Prince, will ascend the throne and rescue you from this predicament."
Jiang Pengju's gaze flickered, and he averted his eyes.
"Then, as the sect leader, I can tell you clearly that you can give up that notion. You probably don't know yet that today, your grandson, in the Eastern Palace, had a breakfast of fifteen dishes including braised sea cucumber with shredded duck, shredded chicken with five slivers, bird's nest and lotus seed soup, and golden cakes. At the hour of Si, he visited the latrine three times, received Minister Zhou and Lord Huang from the Ministry of Justice, and simultaneously visited the Empress's Xiangyun Palace. He drank three cups of tribute tea in Xiangyun Palace and, by the way, favored a young palace maid..."
Jiang Pengju's face turned ashen, his eyes widened to their limit, filled with uncontrollable terror.
Lu Ye observed his expression with satisfaction and continued, "Today, the Empress ate 28 dishes and wore a phoenix-patterned, gilded purple robe..."
"You... what do you want!" Jiang Pengju asked, his voice trembling. Goosebumps rose all over his body, and a bone-chilling cold spread to every corner.
"What do I want?" Lu Ye smiled. "I'm severing all your illusions and hopes. I'm telling you that if I wish it, the Empress and the Crown Prince can meet their demise tonight, silently. Oh, and by the way, your family left in the Northern Territory, they are living in extreme poverty, yet each still harbors unrealistic fantasies, being lazy and waiting for charity. These are the children you, Jiang Pengju, raised. They are far inferior to my maternal grandfather. Yesterday, your eldest and second daughters-in-law had a huge fight over a steamed bun. They all believe you were carried away by wild wolves and have given up looking for you."
Jiang Pengju's upper and lower teeth chattered uncontrollably, his body shaking like a sieve.
Lu Ye's smile faded, his eyes shooting out a chilling coldness. He spoke in a voice devoid of warmth, "As long as you honestly confess how you framed my maternal grandfather back then, I will spare the lives of your family in the Northern Territory and ensure your Jiang family does not become extinct. But if you stubbornly refuse, if you say nothing about the Baili case, I will send you a severed head every three days. Shall we start with your wife's head, then your eldest son, followed by the second, third, fourth sons, the illegitimate son, and then your eldest grandson... finally the Crown Prince and the Empress... dozens of bloody heads to accompany you, you shouldn't be lonely, right?"
Jiang Pengju stared at Lu Ye in terror, as if he were looking at a demon. "You... you are simply too cruel!"
Lu Ye burst into laughter. "Indeed, I am very cruel, especially to my enemies. I never show mercy. Back then, when you framed my maternal grandfather and had the nine clans of Baili exterminated, did you think you were cruel? Did you ever imagine that you too would become extinct?"
"You... if you kill the Crown Prince and the Empress, the Emperor will definitely send people to investigate thoroughly. How can you, one person, confront an entire nation?" Jiang Pengju said, his voice laced with false bravado.
"Who says I am alone? Whether I can confront a nation depends on my strength," Lu Ye said with a smile. "I can easily cut off your ears, and you can do nothing about it. You've been searching for my whereabouts, but to no avail. Oh, and there's one more thing I forgot to tell you. The Empress's Xiangyun Palace and the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace were completely looted. Not a single piece of paper was left in either palace. It is said that the Empress is so poor she has no shoes to wear, and the Crown Prince has nothing left but a pair of underpants."
"What? You... what did you say? The imperial palace is heavily guarded. How could bandits possibly get in?" Jiang Pengju's eyes were wide with shock.
Lu Ye's face was filled with mockery. "The fact is, not only did the bandits get in, they looted the mother and son so badly that they can't even afford underpants. If you don't believe me, isn't the money the Empress sends you every month much less?"
Jiang Pengju suddenly understood. So that was the reason for the sharp decrease in the money sent to the Northern Territory by the Empress each month!
"The Emperor has had people investigating for half a year without any leads. Tell me, can an individual confront a nation?" Lu Ye smiled gently at him. "Minister Jiang, Master Jiang, I, the sect leader, keep my word. We will meet again in three days. Within these three days, if you have anything you wish to say, tell it to these two." Lu Ye raised his finger and indicated Qing Yu and Wei Han.
Qing Yu and Wei Han cast looks of admiration at their sect leader. Killing with a poisoned dagger, the sect leader had completely crushed Jiang Pengju. Since he had no other way out, he could only choose the only remaining path – to trust the sect leader.
Lu Ye walked out of the underground secret chamber. Three days later, Jiang Pengju did not confess. Lu Ye, right on time, threw Jiang夫人's bloody head in front of Jiang Pengju.
Jiang Pengju screamed in terror, "Demon, you... you are a demon!"
Lu Ye lifted the hem of his robe and smiled sinisterly. "You are correct, I am a demon. Jiang Pengju, will you confess or not? If you refuse, in three days, your eldest son's head will come to meet you. Please look forward to it."
Qing Yu sighed. "Jiang Pengju, if you don't want to see your eldest son's head, then speak truthfully. Don't wait until our sect leader brings his head to you before you confess. Why bother? Don't be foolish."
Wei Han snorted coldly. "Our sect leader always keeps his word. Jiang Pengju, just wait for your eldest son's head!"
The next day, Qing Yu reported that Jiang Pengju had confessed everything the previous night and had written a confession of guilt, signed and sealed. It turned out that the Dong, Zhou, Jiang, and Wu families who had impeached General Baili back then were indeed the masterminds behind the framing of General Baili. However, to prevent each other from betraying the others, the four families had divided the tasks, with each responsible for a part. General Wu was responsible for the letters between General Baili and the Northern Qi; the Jiang and Zhou families were responsible for collecting the silver and gold used to bribe General Baili by the Northern Qi; and the Dong family was responsible for arranging the testimony of the Northern Qi captives.
Lu Ye sneered. To bring down the Baili family, they had truly colluded in wickedness.
Since Jiang Pengju had to stay alive as a witness, after confessing, he began to live a "happy" life. Besides being confined in the underground secret prison, he no longer suffered beatings and was fed enough. To prevent him from feeling lonely, Qing Yu and Wei Han also found him some handicraft work. They brought many bamboo strips and books on weaving baskets and carrying poles, forcing Jiang Pengju to learn weaving within five days. After five days, he had to weave a certain number of finished products daily to get enough to eat. Their sect never kept idle people, and even prisoners had to work. Moreover, the sect leader's wife advocated for rehabilitation through labor, and they deeply agreed with this principle. Jiang Pengju, alone in the secret prison with nothing to do, felt lonely and bored. He could only pick up the bamboo strips and learn to weave, becoming a dexterous and virtuous prisoner.