When did anyone ever talk about evidence!

Dorgon had been staying temporarily in the capital for half a year. Though ostensibly summoned for an imperial audience, he was practically under house arrest. The Emperor refused to summon him, and the civil and military officials did not dare to visit. Every time he lay down on his bed, he felt as though his life was utterly ruined.

To his surprise, his once-deserted residence suddenly became bustling. From cabinet scholars to regional prefects and magistrates, an endless stream of visitors came and went every day.

They seemed completely unfazed by the Chongzhen Emperor, whose majestic presence was as unapproachable as a heavenly deity!

The Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, a high-ranking official of the third rank, visited him in person, bluntly telling him to assemble his troops in Jianzhou and, under the guise of tribute and trade, breach the passes from Juyongguan.

The path all the way to the capital would be entirely unobstructed. Three Manchu Banner Lords had already met with him and were on standby, awaiting the order.

Civil officials had communicated with him privately, declaring that this fellow Chongzhen was incompetent, and as long as the Great Prince raised his arms in a call to action, they would support him.

Subsequently, details were confirmed: the Six Ministers of the Great Qing had already been assigned, and all five military governor positions in the Five Chief Military Commissions had been fully appointed.

The plan was to capture the capital first, then march south to take Jinan, using Jinan as a barrier for a divided rule, at which point the Great Prince could ascend the throne.

Dorgon verified time and again that there were fifty firearms and that the capital garrison had indeed been dispatched to various regions without returning. Having perused *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, he concluded with absolute certainty that the Chongzhen Emperor was staging an Empty City Strategy.

He sneered inwardly: "Pity that you, Chongzhen, are no Marquis of Wu, nor am I Sima Yi."

At that moment, a eunuch was escorted in and announced loudly, "Summon Dorgon, leader of the Jianzhou Jurchens, to enter the palace for an imperial audience!"

"Please accompany this servant, Chieftain."

Chieftain?

They used to call him the Ninth Prince, but now they addressed him as a tribal leader, straight up calling him a chieftain!

Flesh and blood could only take so much!

Dorgon's body trembled as he took a few deep breaths to suppress his displeasure. In a respectful tone, he said, "Please lead the way, Eunuch, and this subject will follow shortly."

The eunuch's expression froze for a fraction of a second before his hand smoothly slipped a jade lion into his sleeve. His expression softened considerably as he instructed, "Make it quick. This servant can wait, but His Majesty cannot!"

With that, he turned and left.

A Banner man stepped closer and whispered, "Your Highness?"

"Pay him no mind."

Dorgon waved his hand with a gloomy expression and ordered word to be sent to various households, instructing their private troops and guards to stir up trouble first to provide cover for the Banner men.

The time to raise the banner had come!

Yet, after the news spread and half a day passed, the capital remained bustling without the slightest ripple of disturbance, and even the Banner men failed to respond.

What was going on?

Right at that moment, the imperial decree-bearing eunuch returned, escorted by a group of guards from the Western Depot. With a cold expression, he said, "Since the Chieftain refuses to go with dignity, this servant shall help you maintain it. Take him away."

Dorgon's heart quivered, and he collapsed limply into the master chair, his entire body freezing cold.

***

Worse, he had been scammed!

These cunning, treacherous bastards—not a single one of them was playing for real!

...

Inside the magnificent and brightly lit grand hall, civil and military officials stood in rows on both sides, lowering their heads respectfully in silence.

In the center, dozens of figures performed the ritual of three kneelings and nine kowtows, pressing their foreheads to the floor and loudly praising: "Envoys of a minor state pay homage to the Great Emperor!"

"Kneel there."

Zhu Youjian sat upright upon the dragon throne, radiating the absolute majesty of a sovereign ruler that pressed down so heavily the Jurchen envoys from Shenjing dared not raise their heads.

"Thank you, Great Emperor, for your grace!" The three Banner Lords knelt in precise alignment, harboring not the slightest dissent, their faces instead beaming with joy.

Zhu Youjian asked with a hint of amusement, "Did the three of you slaughter Jianzhou?"

The Banner Lord of the Tonggiya clan replied respectfully, "Reporting to Your Majesty, there were many rebellious and disloyal alien tribes in Shenjing. Representing the Tonggiya, Gualgiya, and Niohuru clans, we three subjects have eliminated the traitors for Your Majesty of the Great Ming. Aside from subjects of our Great Ming, no other tribes remain in Shenjing."

Ruthless enough.

A trace of appreciation flickered in Zhu Youjian's eyes, devoid of any pity. He nodded and said, "Your surnames are rather cumbersome. I hereby bestow upon you the three surnames of Tong, Guo, and Ning. I shall re-establish the Nurgan Regional Military Commission in the Jianzhou Jurchen territory, and grant you imperial seals, official caps, belts, and ceremonial robes."

"Why haven't you thanked His Majesty for the grace?" Wang Chengen prompted.

"Your subject Tong Mu, your subject Guo Feng'a, and your subject Ning Kedun thank the Great Emperor for his boundless grace. Long live the Emperor, long live, long live, long, long live!" Recovering from their shock, the three Banner men were instantly wild with joy.

Originally, they had only hoped to secure the mercy of the divine Great Emperor, never expecting to recover the Nurgan Regional Military Commission. They felt that bribing the civil officials all the way to the capital was worth every coin.

Though the civil officials had inexplicably asked them to put on a show with Dorgon, claiming it was for the Emperor's own good and would greatly help in ingratiating themselves with him...

Indeed!

The civil officials were truly men of their word and did not deceive them!

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Dorgon has been brought here," a eunuch reported trot-wise, bowing respectfully.

Hearing this, the civil and military officials trembled slightly, lowering their heads even further.

"Proclaim him!"

"Proclaim Dorgon, leader of the Jurchen tribe, to enter the hall!"

Along the way, Dorgon clenched his teeth tightly, determined that even if he were to die, he would do so cleanly and decisively, refusing to bow to the Chongzhen Emperor to his dying breath!

Upon entering the hall and seeing the three Banner Lords holding imperial seals, official caps, belts, and ceremonial robes, his eyes nearly popped out of his head. By now, how could he not understand that these turncoats had stabbed him in the back?

"Audacious! How dare you see the Emperor and not kneel?!" Wang Chengen bellowed.

His shrill and piercing voice echoed throughout the grand hall, lending an ethereal and imposing gravity to the atmosphere.

Dorgon's legs trembled uncontrollably. Fixing his gaze squarely upon the figure on the dragon throne, he stubbornly forced himself not to kneel!

Immediately following, a scene unfolded that he would never forget in this lifetime. From behind that dragon-robed figure, countless ferocious blue electric arcs spread outward like a spiderweb, terrifying beyond measure!

Thud!

The lightning was swift, but ultimately not as fast as Dorgon's knees hitting the ground. Following his deepest instincts, his shiny bald forehead smacked against the golden-brick-paved floor, his voice laced with a shiver:

"Your subject Dorgon pays homage to the Great Emperor!"

Zhu Youjian looked at him closely and suddenly asked, "I heard you wanted to rebel against me?"

"This subject dares not!" Dorgon shook his head frantically, gripped by terror.

At that moment, a commotion broke out among the civil officials acting as a backdrop.

Zhang Shuo, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, cupped his hands and spoke in a booming voice, "Your Majesty, this subject has a memorial to present!"

Zhu Youjian raised an eyebrow. "Speak."

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this villain Dorgon secretly established the Five Chief Military Commissions in the capital and covertly set up a puppet court, appointing the Six Ministers within it. The evidence is conclusive, and this subject earnestly petitions for his immediate and severe execution!" Zhang Shuo's voice was loud and clear, holding his hallowed court tablet as he bowed deeply.

In truth, before Dorgon even knew he was going to rebel, the entire capital already knew he was going to rebel. He was the very last to know he was going to rebel.

The whole affair was merely a tactic to force the Emperor into submission. Who could have imagined that the Emperor wouldn't buy into this routine at all and didn't even pay it any mind.

Just as a mighty dragon never cares how an ant plots its demise.

Once this chess piece lost its utility, keeping it around might even lead to it snapping back at its master, so it was better to simply silence him and avoid the trouble.

Dorgon abruptly raised his head, staring at him in disbelief. Pointing at himself, he blurted out in shock, "The one who established the Five Chief Military Commissions was... me?"

Without hesitation, he shouted, "Great Emperor, this subject confesses to treason, and the mastermind behind the scenes is none other than Zhang Shuo, Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War!"

Zhu Youjian glanced sideways at the unperturbed Zhang Shuo and asked with a nod, "Is there evidence? Let me remind you, just a moment ago, the residence you were previously staying in was completely burned down in a fire, with no survivors."

Ev—evidence?

When has this prince ever bothered with evidence?!

Dorgon was suddenly seized by a profound terror. The methods of these civil officials were simply too horrifying.