Joy of Life

The red wall of the Palace felt nothing and knew neither cold nor warmth. It only silently and indifferently welcomed the wash of the rainwater. Rain wet the majestic Royal Palace and made the bright cinnabar walls grow darker and dimmer. It was as if it was about to squeeze out traces of blood.

The deep palace gates opened and were accompanied by squeaks. The newly repaired bronze nails on the large wooden gates gleamed brightly. Hundreds of officials with complicated expressions filed out. Led by an honor guard, they went along the path until the depths of the square. They then lined up in two rows on either side. These were the officials of the Qing court, responsible for all of the affairs and people of this kingdom. In the current atmosphere, they could only be a silent observer.

The eunuch"s whip cracked three times. Drums hidden in a corner building of the Royal Palace rang out with a buzzing sound, sticking against the hearts of all the people in the Royal Palace.

The court conference was over. Only one matter was dealt with in the court conference, which was to decide the crimes of the previous Director of the Overwatch Council, Chen Pingping.

Many commoners of the Qing Kingdom gradually came from the streets and alleys all around the Royal Palace. These commoners wore different colored clothing and carried different auras. They were summoned by the drums ringing out in the Royal Palace and slowly came to the square in front of the Palace. More and more people gathered, gradually filling the entire expansive square. Everyone was packed in densely like ants.

From before dawn had risen, the Jingdou government and yamens at each level began to bang drums and gongs in various places and plastered announcements to inform all of the people of Jingdou as to what would happen.

As long as the blade of the knife did not land on them, these commoners were always interested in watching a show, particularly as everyone knew that the official being punished by the Emperor was the very mysterious and unfathomable director of the Overwatch Council, Director Chen Pingping. All of the common people felt a strong interest.

The reputation of the Overwatch Council among the Qing people was too bright. Its image was overly sinister and terrifying. Not many people had personally seen the wheelchair-bound old Director. Everyone gathered around the square. They wanted to see whether this figure really had three heads and six arms and was covered all over in a black fog like a demon, as it was rumored.

They knew this demon of the Overwatch Council had not been satisfied with the Emperor"s punishment and had tried to a.s.sa.s.sinate their heroic and loving Emperor in a frenzy. A deep anger rose in the hearts of all of the people. They wanted to see how this evil renegade burned into black smoke under the brilliance of imperial authority.

During these few decades, the Overwatch Council had always been famous for being mysterious and sinister. Although it always targeted the Qing Kingdom"s officialdom, it acted ruthlessly with terrifying methods. Through this, it offended civil officials, the scholars of the world, and expressions of ideas under heaven. Thus, the Overwatch Council"s name among the people had always been bad.

In the legends among the people, the Overwatch Council was a ruthless and sinister yamen specializing in exhorting confessions through torture and were numbed to killing. If the Overwatch Council really did have shady methods, how much could the people of Jingdou, the Qing Kingdom, or the world know? It was nothing more than a spreading of falsehoods.

During these years, a dazzling Sir Fan junior had appeared in the Overwatch Council and slightly lightened the Overwatch Council"s dark aura. He had not been in charge of Council affairs for very long. It was not enough to change the people"s deep-rooted impressions of the Overwatch Council.

There were not many things Fan Xian, the Duke of Danbo, could change. The Qing people"s worship and reverence toward Fan Xian were more centered on his lofty image. It did not much change their perception of the Overwatch Council. For the commoners of Jingdou, the Overwatch Council perhaps had a touch more humanity, but they still did not have any positive feelings toward the square and sinister building. On the contrary, they unconsciously felt a fear. The continuation of this fear became unknown anger.

The legendary terrifying leader of the darkness, Chen Pingping, was about to die in front of them. All of the Jingdou people felt a glimmer of faint excitement. Perhaps this was a natural emotion as commoners. To be able to have the chance in their lives to see a figure who only existed in legends die wretchedly in front of them and give them some bragging rights in their boring futures, had perhaps always been a form of leisure activity.

Just like the spring examination incident a few years ago, at the entrance to the salt market, the heads of the officials of the Board of Rites had been chopped down and rolled around on the execution field. They had also almost been picked up by wild dogs. This one scene had filled countless boring moments among the Jingdou workers and helped them down countless cups of liquor.

Another example was the Jingdou rebellion three years ago. It was also at the entrance of the salt market where countless generals who had partic.i.p.ated in the rebellion had their heads chopped off. Blood dyed half the street red. Even after a number of days, the stench of blood still seeped out. And, there was the Commander of the 13 gate guards, Zhang Deqing. When he had died by a thousand cuts, his cries had been incredibly wretched.

During these three years, Zhang Deqing"s death had enriched the lives of the Jingdou people accompanied by immeasurable amounts of spittle. However, nothing that had happened in Jingdou in recent years could compare to what was going to happen now. The person was Director Chen, who everyone knew was the Emperor"s most loyal dog. However, this dog had gone rabid and was about to be put down.

The place of the execution was not in front of the salt market and or execution field in front of the Ministry of Justice. Instead, it was in front of the Royal Palace on the square. Excitedly, the people thought to themselves that ever since the inception of the Qing Kingdom, the only official to have been openly executed in front of the Royal Palace was probably the person now. Anger rose involuntarily in their hearts. They wondered what great and treasonous crime the official named Chen Pingping must have committed for him to die in such a place.

It was not that no one thought of Sir Fan junior. Everyone watching the execution unconsciously forgot about him. They never thought Sir Fan junior had any connection to this old dog. They were only common people of the marketplace. They had no idea of the connections between the people who governed this land. Even if there were some clever people, they probably thought in the other direction. The Emperor had just given the Overwatch Council to Sir Fan junior and was about to kill the previous Director. It was probably to help Sir Fan junior clean out the opposition and evil in the Overwatch Council?

Countless commoners surged into the square in front of the palace. The tiny execution field was enveloped by countless complicated emotions like nervousness, indifference, excitement, and unrooted sorrow. The imperial soldiers and bailiffs from the Jingdou Government responsible for maintaining order forcefully kept these millions of people outside the boundaries in all directions to ensure quiet on the execution field.

The people of the Qing Kingdom could not be blamed because they were used to it. They were used to knowing what they could know, giving up what they could not know, enjoying what they could enjoy, and angry about what they were allowed to be angry over. The Emperor wanted to kill an official. Regardless of whether this official deserved such punishment, they had been taught the logic that if the Emperor wanted an official to die, the official had to die.

The densely packed crowds were like an ocean, undulating on the square in front of the Royal Palace. Near the palace gates, s.p.a.ce had been cleared out. A very simple wooden stage had been built. It was the so-called execution field. Enveloped by the majestic ocean of people and the grand Royal Palace, the execution field looked like a pitiful lone shop. It was as if it could be submerged at any moment under the human tide or crash into the immobile sh.o.r.es of the Royal Palace and be smashed into smithereens.

Along the empty s.p.a.ce beneath the Royal Palace, a group of people walked out silently and sternly. They pa.s.sed the hundred or so silent Qing officials with their heads bowed on their side of the path. They came to stand below the small wooden stage in front of the curious and anxious gazes of the Jingdou people.

A stretcher was carried out of the prison carriage. On the stretcher was an old man who was unconscious. It was uncertain if he was still alive. He Zongwei raised his head and glanced at the top of the palace walls. The corners of his eyes twitched slightly. He then gently waved his hand. The stretcher was lifted onto the stage.

Finally seeing the official who was to be punished, the front row of commoners let out a satisfied sigh. After seeing the legendary renegade of the darkness, they immediately fell silent. They looked at the unmoving old man and wondered if he was already dead.

Three eunuchs walked out of the black tunnel of the palace gates. On the tray held by the eunuch to the left were the crimes as decided during the court conference. On the right, the eunuch held up high an incense table. On it was the Emperor"s edict sentencing Chen Pingping to death.

The eunuch with an indifferent expression in the center was Eunuch Yao. He was also not empty-handed. He carried a small vase.

Everything was prepared on the wooden stage. Chen Pingping"s seemingly lifeless and weak body was placed on the rain-wet wooden boards. Eunuch Yao crouched down by his side. With the help of the imperial doctor, he fed him a pill and carefully poured the soup in the vase between the old man"s dry lips.

After an indeterminable amount of time, Chen Pingping slowly came to. He had lost a lot of blood. His life force was at an end. His face was very pale, and his eyes were distant and without spirit. He gazed at Eunuch Yao by his side and closed his dry lips. In a raspy voice, he slowly said, "A thousand-year-old ginseng wasted."

Eunuch Yao"s body trembled, but he did not say anything and or do anything. He only glanced at the old man with a weak smile and retreated to the side with a bow.

At the moment Chen Pingping opened his murky eyes, Yan Bingyun, standing on the execution field to the left of He Zongwei, also trembled. He immediately calmed again and lowered his head helplessly. Earlier, he had swept his eyes across to know that the execution field was tightly guarded. Putting aside the densely packed imperial soldiers on all sides or the internal aces scattered about, those aces wearing hemp clothing and straw hats already told Yan Bingyun that no one could change anything.

Last night in the prison of the Overwatch Council, there were four aces wearing straw hats. Both Yan Bingyun and He Zongwei found it a little strange, but they knew where these mysterious aces had come from. Earlier, when the autumn rain had fallen and everything was bathed in a clear light, Yan Bingyun"s sharp eyes had noticed that under the straw hats, these aces did not have any hair.

It looked like they were Ascetic Monks of the Qing Temple, who were scattered throughout the world. Not long after the Great Priest of the Qing Temple returned from preaching on the Southern border, he had died mysteriously within the Qing Temple. The Second Priest, Great Master San Shi, had turned to the Junshang Conference. In the end, he had died wretchedly in a rain of arrows outside Jingdou after being silenced by the Eldest Princess.

The Emperor had always held Tianyi Dao and the Ascetic Monks of the Qing Temple in disdain. Furthermore, the royal family never had much connection with the Qing Temple. So, why did these Ascetic Monks of the Qing Temple suddenly appear en ma.s.se in Jingdou in front of all these people by the execution field where Chen Pingping was about to die?

Yan Bingyun lowered his head in thought. It was not until now that he knew the Emperor had not only reached the pinnacle in imperial authority and strength, but he also the Qing Temple had become a weapon in his hands. Thinking of this, he couldn"t help but sigh faintly in his heart. Suddenly, a mountain-like cry made him immediately raise his head.

A wooden scaffold stood on the execution field. Chen Pingping"s thin body was firmly tied to it. The old man"s clothing had already been completely removed, revealing his pale body. Because of long years of paralysis, his body below his abdomen appeared particularly skinny. In the cold autumn rain, he appeared particularly bleak and pitiful.

Ran struck the thin and lifeless body before slowly rolling down and returning to the earth.

The cry on the square earlier had come when the Jingdou people watching the execution finally saw the scaffolding rising up and criminal official tied to the scaffolding. The mountain-like roar they let out rang out in all directions like a wave.

However, this roar quickly changed into silence. The first to fall silent were those closest to the execution field. The whispers moved from the front to the back. Before long, it became a thunderous shocked discussion.

Perhaps some G.o.d let out an order in heaven as all of the people beneath the palace walls fell silent at the same time. Countless thousands of people were all gathered, yet there was a death-like silence. It seemed so quiet that the people at the very back could even hear the rustling sound of the rope around Chen Pingping"s body rubbing against the wooden stake.

Not only were the people shocked, everyone, including the imperial soldiers, officials supervising the execution, eunuchs of the palace, and a few officials of the Overwatch Council all looked at the old man"s body on the scaffold with shock. Thousands upon thousands of eyes looked at the s.p.a.ce between the old man"s thighs where there was nothing.

The Director of the Overwatch Council, Director Chen Pingping, whose dark name was spread throughout the world was a eunuch

Silence. Tens of thousands of gazes filled with countless emotions, pity, shame, shock, or rejection.

Yan Bingyun"s body finally began to tremble unstoppably. He lowered his head firmly. His eyes were bloodshot. He did not know of the old Director"s unmentionable illness. He only felt that those gazes were not only on the s.p.a.ce between the legs of the old man on the execution field but were also on him and all of the Overwatch Council officials. It was humiliation.

He tightly clenched his hands. The nails pressed deeply into his palms. He finally understood why the Emperor on the palace walls was so set on having the punishment carried out before a crowd. It turned out that the torment of the flesh had to be paired with humiliation of the mind.

The Emperor wanted to announce to the world that this person, who dared to betray him, was just a servant in his eyes, just a dog. The Emperor could humiliate him as he wished. He was going to crush Chen Pingping"s dignity and the Overwatch Council"s dignity beneath his feet and the gazes of the people.

Thinking through all this, Yan Bingyun"s mind buzzed. He raised his head with unusual strength. He met the murky and weak gaze of the old man on the execution field. He didn"t say anything and didn"t do anything. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the court officials below the execution field were stunned. They would probably never have guessed that the Director of the Overwatch Council that they so respected was actually a eunuch that people like them held in contempt.

This was Chen Pingping"s heartache and secret. There were not many who knew of his eunuch ident.i.ty. Most of them had died. later, with the Emperor"s boundless favor and under the Overwatch Council"s powerful suppression, no one knew about this truth.

That was why there was such shock on the officials" faces. In addition to shock, a glimmer of contempt appeared on their faces. Human emotions were strange. When they set his crimes earlier in the court conference and came out of the Palace to witness the execution, these officials" faces were still severe and maintained a glimmer of respect and fear toward the about to die Chen Pingping. Now, these emotions were nowhere to be seen.

…

…

Eunuch Yao accepted the scroll from the eunuch beside him and forced himself to not look at the old man beside him on the scaffold. In a trembling voice, he began to read the 13 great crimes the court conference had pinned on Chen Pingping. The autumn rain struck the execution field. Eunuch Yao"s heart was incomparably cold. A sorrow began to rise in his heart, but he had to continue his job.

"One, on April 12th in the seventh year of the Qing calendar, the traitor secretly brought in depraved medicines into the Palace and caused chaos in the palace…"

"Two, the traitor repeatedly instigated, encouraged, and tempted various princes turn to against me. This is a great crime…"

"Three, the traitor ordered the head of the Sixth Bureau to a.s.sa.s.sinate me at the Hanging Temple and later a.s.sa.s.sinate Commissioner Fan in Jingdou…"

"Four, the traitor colluded with the rebel Qin Ye and privately removed military crossbows from the palace treasury and attempted to kill an imperial envoy in a valley outside Jingdou…"

"Five, the traitor let a.s.sa.s.sins into the Palace to a.s.sa.s.sinate the Third Prince…"

The 13 crimes had been decided by a few major ministries, but these first seven had been personally written by the Emperor. It was because their reading during the court conference that the officials knew that Director Chen had done such treasonous and evil things. Even the scholars Shu and Hu, who were going to use their lives to beg for mercy, paled and did not speak.

The later six crimes had been decided by the six ministries. They were just crimes like taking property and acting tyrannically. Compared to the seven crimes previously, they appeared very common. However, any one of the 13 crimes was a death sentence with 13 crimes combined.

Following Eunuch Yao"s reading of the crimes that he had forced himself to complete, the buzz of discussion and angry scolding rang out in the square in front of the Royal Palace. It broke the strange silence that had fallen.

Perhaps there had been many people who came to watch the execution nervously and with complicated emotions. Following the ringing out of these crimes in front of the palace, the gazes directed toward Chen Pingping became indifferent. Such an insane criminal. Of course, the Emperor should give him death by a thousand cuts.

"Kill him!" Someone in the crowd took the lead and yelled out loud. Immediately, the crowd grew excited and the cries for death reached the heavens.

On the execution field, Chen Pingping"s expression remained indifferent. The thousand-year ginseng could wake him up but could not rescue his life. He seemed to have seen through everything. There was only calm in his indifferent and lifeless eyes. The autumn wind and rain froze. His face was deathly pale. His lips were black. But, it was as if he could not hear the deafening cries for his death. He only turned his head with difficulty. It was as if he wanted one look at the person on top of the palace walls who was always victorious.

Seemingly to sense his intentions, the wooden scaffold turned slightly, allowing his murky gaze the chance to see the palace walls.

On top of the lofty palace walls, the Qing Emperor in a black dragon robe with a golden belt was standing alone under the eaves in the most central position. There wasn"t a single person by his side. The eunuchs and serving girls had been sent far away. The Third Prince, who had been forced to watch by an edict, was standing to the side with a pale face as he looked at this father"s expression from a distance.

The Emperor stood very tall and very far away. His figure was very small. In Chen Pingping"s murky eyes, he was still very clear.

The lonely Emperor looked indifferently at his old friend on the execution field surrounded by a sea of people. There was not a sliver of emotion in his eyes. This indifference was far more terrifying and hair-raising than any hatred.

Most of the pieces of metal had been removed from his body, but the cuts still bled blood and pain. The blood stained the black dragon robe and golden belt, but it was not noticeable. The Emperor"s face was only slightly pale. There was no sign of pain. As he looked at the wretched old friend beneath his feet, he had the desire for him to feel more pain.

The Emperor gently nodded his head. The pale-faced Third Prince unconsciously tightened his hold on the palace wall. After a long time, the Third Prince called down in a trembling voice, "Carry out the execution."

With this shout, it almost forced the once sinister and ruthless Li Chengze to tears. He knew why his father had made him call it out. With the shout from the palace walls, Eunuch Yao began to read the last edict. This was one the Emperor had personally written.

"I have known you for decades and entrusted great things to you, but you betrayed me deeply. It hurts. With all your crimes, the three departments reviewed it jointly and have sentenced you to death by a thousand cuts. I do not pity you. According to the law, those above 16 in your home are to be beheaded. Those below 15 are to be sold as slaves. Today, the punishment falls only on you. The others are pardoned without question."

The edict traveled clearly over each inch of ground in the Royal Palace, through each raindrop, each breath of wind. Indifferent and absolute, the Emperor did not speak of a crime, only that he had been betrayed and was hurt but felt no pity. However, he showed mercy outside of the law and did not implicate the eunuch"s family and servants. The pain in this made one"s heart palpitate and dim.

These false words landed in Chen Pingping"s ears. He only smiled slightly and allowed the rainwater to seep into his dry lips. He lowered his head, no longer looking at the Emperor on the palace wall.

…

…

The execution began.

The fishnet wrapped tightly around Chen Pingping"s thin figure. With great difficulty, the gaps in the net pushed up the skin and flesh on the body. A specially made and sharp knife came trembling down and cut slowly, separating this piece of flesh from the old man"s body.

This was the first cut. A mountainous roar came from below the execution field.

The blade of the knife left the opening of the net. A piece of flesh fell to the ground. It was immediately thrown by an official of the Ministry of Justice into a basin. Strangely, the wound at the opening of the net was white and dry. Not much blood flowed out. It was as if the blood in this thin traitor"s body had already emptied.

The executioner who held the knife was an old veteran of the Ministry of Justice. Although he had already had two jugs of liquor, he could still not stop his hands shaking. He felt that this old and skinny man beneath his knife today was not like any other official he had experienced. His body had no blood or flesh. It seemed that his body did not have a glimmer of spirit. It was so cold that he couldn"t stop himself from shaking.

The second stroke came down. Blood and flesh parted. A few thin trickles of blood flowed across the net. There was another cheer. How many hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of cuts were there?

Chen Pingping closed his eyes tightly. His face was deathly pale. His lips were tightly closed, and his entire body trembled as if he were experiencing a pain that humankind could not endure. He suddenly opened his eyes slowly and looked at the executioner in front of him. Panting, he said, "Your skills… are… lacking."

The executioner had never before met such a person. This superseded stubbornness. There was only indifference to his own life and pain. Perhaps there was something in this old man"s body that already surpa.s.sed pain? His hand began to tremble again. He almost dropped the knife onto the rain-splattered wooden stage.

Another cut, and another cut, and another cut. Wave after wave of cheers rose and fell. The cheers gradually lessened until they returned to silence at the end. All of the officials and commoners watching the execution closed their eyes and looked at the old man receiving the execution with a complicated emotion.

There were no wretched cries, no sorrowful keening, no begging for mercy, no begging for death, no wild cursing. The old man suffering a thousand cuts in the autumn rain on the execution field was only silent, a death-like silence.

Thus, everyone above and below the palace walls was also silent, an involuntary death-like silence.