Although the previous incident had been settled, the moment Emperor Zhou brought it up again, Su Wen had a bad feeling.
He hurriedly said, âYour Majesty, I have already said previously that Guo Bin insulted my father and ignored Your Majesty. As a son, I will definitely make a move! Even if Your Majesty wants to punish me, I will still make a move!â
âSo youâre still trying to reason?â Emperor Zhou stood up angrily and pointed at Su Wen. âYou brat, you donât even place the rules in your eyes. Today, I will fulfill Elder Jiâs wishes and punish you properly. Men, suppress this brat and give him 20 strokes of the paddle!â
Fu An immediately came in and led Su Wen out.
At this moment, Ji Yuchen was still immersed in the shock that Su Wen might be the one who spoke. He suddenly reacted.
He shouted, âWait!â
As he spoke, he went to pull Fu An.
But at this time, Emperor Zhou stood up and walked to his side. He grabbed his hand and said, âElder Ji, donât worry. Since youâve asked me to punish this brat, I will definitely not show mercy!â
âNo⦠Your Majesty, I thinkâ¦â Before Ji Yuchen could finish, Emperor Zhou looked at Wan Hu and shouted,â Tell me, did you go to Bright Moon Lodge? â
At this moment, Su Wen was already dragged outâ¦
He was pressed to the ground and Fu An personally held the rod!
Fu An raised his rod high and slammed it down!
There was a muffled sound!
Su Wen looked at Fu An in surprise. This muffled sound was caused by Fu Anâs Qi compressing the air, letting out a sonic boom. The rod didnât even touch his butt!
âScream!â Fu An whispered.
Su Wen immediately reacted and wailed loudly.
âAh! It hurts!â
Peng!
âFu An, you dog b*stard. How dare you be so ruthless?â
Veins popped out on Fu Anâs forehead. He couldnât help but want to hit him.
âAh! Fu An, youâre deadâ¦â
Su Wen shouted exaggeratedly as he stared at the palace hall doors.
He started calculating in his heart.
What was going on?
The Old Fogey wanted the emperor to punish me. The emperor was unable to save his face, but at the same time didnât really want to punish me, so he did this?
Indeed, it was this damned Old Fogey Jiâs fault!
Su Wen already gave Ji Yuchen a death mark.
In the hall, Emperor Zhou interrupted Ji Yuchen.
Wan Hu broke out in a cold sweat when he heard Emperor Zhouâs stern tone!
He was not as ruthless as Su Wen, and he was still extremely fearful of Emperor Zhou.
He immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed. âThis subject is guilty as well!â
Emperor Zhou was very surprised. I only asked if you went to Bright Moon Lodge, and youâre saying that you were guilty? He subconsciously shouted, âTell me, what crime did you commit!â
âI⦠I shouldnât have touched Her Highness Qingyue!â This honest child could not help but blurt out the truth in fright
Zhou Emperor: â!!???â
Ji Yuchen :ââ¦â
The atmosphere in the hall became even weirder at this moment.
âHeheâ¦â The corners of Emperor Zhouâs mouth twitched as he sneered. He looked at Wan Hu as he kept rubbing the side of his index finger with his thumb.
At this moment, Su Wen finished his twenty strokes of the paddle and âlimpedâ into the hall.
Emperor Zhou took a deep breath and ignored Wan Hu. He pointed and scolded, âSu Wen, do you know your mistake?â
âThis subject is helpless! Even if you beat me to death, I am not wrong!â Su Wen spoke righteously!
Emperor Zhou stood up angrily and berated, âElder Ji is in front, and you still donât know how to repent. Men, drag him out and give him 20 more paddles! Iâll beat you to death today, you stinking brat!â
Then, he calmly continued, âWan Hu, 80!â
Fu An came in and looked at Wan Hu. He could clearly tell that Emperor Zhou wanted him to beat this guy for real!
Ji Yuchen however did not want Su Wen to be beaten up again. He hurriedly said, âYour Majesty! Your Majesty! Thereâs no need to beat this Su Wen any more! Twenty paddles is enough!â
âNo! This bratâs mouth is too tough! I must make him give in!â
Ji Yuchen hurriedly said, âYour Majesty, who doesnât make mistakes? Itâs fine if a young man makes mistakes. Itâs good to have some backbone! Letâs just forget about it!â
âJust like that?â Emperor Zhou asked again.
âThatâs it!â Ji Yuchen was certain.
When Wan Hu saw the scene, he also became unyielding and kowtowed. âYour Majesty, I have done nothing wrong! I am in love with Princess Qingyue!â
âHehehehe⦠Fu An, bring him down. 80 paddles, not one less! Also, slap his mouth 20 times. Let him know what he can and cannot say!â
Wan Hu was pulled down.
Soon, screams came from outside. This time, the screams were sadly real.
Only Su Wen, Emperor Zhou, and Ji Yuchen were left in the hall.
Emperor Zhou looked at Ji Yuchen with interest and said, âElder Ji, Su Wen has already been punished. Can you let him go now?â
Ji Yuchen looked at Su Wen and asked, âYoung Master Su, did you go to Bright Moon Lodge for a meal six days ago?â
Su Wen rolled his eyes and turned his head to the side without saying a word.
Ji Yuchen cupped his hands and said, âYoung Master Su, please tell me the truth!â
Su Wen sneered. âTell you the truth? Do I need to even remember where I ate? Whatâs wrong? Did I spend your money?â
Ji Yuchen was speechless.
After muttering for a while, he said, âYoung Master Su, may I ask if you were the one who mentioned the tiered tax system?â
Su Wen was alarmed!
Good fellow, why are you bringing such a thing up here?
âWhat tax system? What nonsense are you talking about?â Su Wen pretended to be confused.
After saying that, he turned to look at Emperor Zhou and cupped his hands. âYour Majesty, Iâve already been beaten. If thereâs nothing else, can I leave now?â
Emperor Zhou nodded and waved his hand. âYou may leave!â
Ji Yuchen did not stop him. After Su Wen left, Ji Yuchen said to Emperor Zhou, âYour Majesty, according to what I see, the person who said those words about the tax system is probably Su Wen! Wan Huâs voice is completely different from that personâs. On the contrary, Su Wenâs voice is extremely similar!â
Emperor Zhou slapped his forehead and grumbled, âElder Ji, why didnât you say so earlier? This Su Wen is extremely petty. I just punished him, so how would he tell the truth? Look at you, arenât you delaying the important matter now?â
Ji Yuchen said with a bitter smile, âThis old one also did not expect that Su Wen, who is known as a playboy in the capital city, would have such brilliant opinions! Just now, this old one wanted to stop Your Majesty, but it was too late!â
Emperor Zhou was unhappy. âElder Ji, your words are not right. Youâre the one who wants to punish Su Wen, so why are you talking about me now? I donât care. Anyway, youâve caused me to be in the wrong. Iâll leave this matter of persuading Su Wen to you!â
Ji Yuchen said seriously, âRest assured, Your Majesty. I will definitely persuade Young Master Su to plan this well!â
Ji Yuchen immediately excused himself. After he left, Emperor Zhou roared out in laughter!
âThis old thing, Su Wen will hate him this time. If he goes to persuade Su Wen, he will be in trouble!â
The old eunuch replied, âYour Majesty, Iâve heard that the tiered tax system is quite good. If thatâs the case, wonât it affect us if itâs delayed?â
Emperor Zhou sighed and shook his head. âRight now in the northern borders, Yan Country is eyeing us covetously. Furthermore, the tax system is not perfect as of yet. If I were to rashly implement it, Iâm afraid there will be huge changes! I have to find an opportunity! So thereâs no hurry, let Su Wen play with that old fellow first.â
As Su Wen walked out of the palace and saw Wan Hu getting beaten up.
This time, Fu An did not hold back. He beat Wan Hu until his skin and flesh were lacerated. Wan Huâs mouth was also slapped until it was incomparably red and swollen. Fresh blood flowed out from his mouth, making him look extremely miserable.
Su Wen walked to Wan Huâs side and smiled at Fu An. âCommander Fu, please let me speak to him.â
Fu An stopped his rod and Su Wen squatted down. He looked at the miserable Wan Hu and patted him on the shoulder. âBrother, you have to remember this beating. When you get home, quickly ask your father to ask His Majesty for a marriage proposal! Say, how can you touch the princess? Even if you touch her, you canât say it. Look at me⦠I never say anythingâ¦â