Chapter 204: As If the Emperor Himself Had Arrived

The gold token was slightly smaller than a palm, its four corners intricately carved with dragon motifs. At its very center, four bold characters were deeply inscribed, their strokes a perfect blend of strength and grace—those words read: As If the Emperor Himself Had Arrived. Instinctively, Li Ce raised his hand to tuck it into his sleeve, thinking the token Ye Jiao had given him was lost. How could that be? To his knowledge, the Emperor's tokens numbered only nine—whether the tiger tally used to command troops or the imperial sword wielded to execute traitors, each existed solely as a singular emblem. Such a gold token was likewise unique.

Before he could react, Zhou Ci spoke aloud, "The Emperor's As If the Emperor Himself Had Arrived token is here! Why do you hesitate? Kneel at once!"

Both onstage and in the crowd below, people stared in stunned silence, bewildered by the unfolding scene. The first to kneel were the garrison troops led by Zheng Feng'an. They laid down their weapons and fell to their knees like withered crops flattened by the wind, pressed tightly to the earth, immobile. Witnessing this, though the common folk burned with indignation, they too trembled and reluctantly knelt, knowing full well that before the supreme imperial authority, grievances and injustice must be set aside.

Initially hesitant, the Puzhou soldiers soon succumbed to the overwhelming tide of kneeling masses and gradually dropped to their knees as well. On the elevated platform remained only Li Ce, Zhou Ci, and Zheng Feng'an, the military governor of Hedong Circuit. Zheng Feng'an stared at Zhou Ci, his face etched with shock and confusion. He could not fathom how Zhou Ci had obtained the Emperor's token, nor why the Crown Prince had not informed him beforehand. Zhou Ci was supposed to serve the Crown Prince, and with the matter of the arm crossbow already pinned on the Prince's scapegoat, the Crown Prince's use of the imperial token now—what could it mean? Was it merely to secure Zhou Ci's safety? Absolutely impossible!

Zheng Feng'an's heart wavered, adrift in uncertainty.

Zhou Ci reveled in the adulation, his goatee trembling with excitement as he surveyed the crowd.

"By decree of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince," he proclaimed sternly, "with this token, the Jinzhou situation shall be stabilized. From this day forth, all commoners shall return home to cultivate the land and shall not assemble; Colonel Peng Jinrui's unauthorized militia is hereby dismissed and investigated; the rebel troops in Puzhou shall be flogged one hundred strokes, imprisoned in the Puzhou jail, and await further judgment!"

A roar erupted from the crowd. Though this was the Emperor's token, the command came from the Crown Prince. What was he scheming? To conceal his crimes in Jinzhou? To shield Zhou Ci, a ruthless official who trampled on lives like dirt? An official wielding the imperial token to suppress this matter? The villain would walk free! Their kin would suffer injustice with no redress! Where was the justice of heaven? Where was fairness?

Amidst the tumult of suppressed rage and whispered dissent, a defiant voice rang out: "I refuse to accept this!"

The man shouted as he rose boldly, standing tall with resolute fury directed at the platform. Clad in armor, compact yet powerfully built, his thick black brows and sunken eyes betrayed a face of sorrow and indignation. It was Peng Jinrui, the Puzhou Colonel who sought justice for the dead, wielding arms in defiance.

"I refuse!" he bellowed. "Though I erred by raising a private militia and gathering people, I deserve death at the hands of the authorities, be it the Prince's execution or the Emperor's wrath. But I refuse! I shall never accept it! The Crown Prince secretly hoarded arm crossbows, the people wronged and poisoned in jail, yet the chief suspect, Governor Zhou Ci, brandishes this token to silence and punish us? Where is justice? Where is righteousness? I refuse! We refuse! Even if it costs our lives, we shall kill Zhou Ci first!"

"Kill Zhou Ci!" the crowd echoed thunderously. The Puzhou troops were the first to rally, followed by the families of the wrongfully slain, all rising with weapons raised, surging like a torrent of wild river water, blades gleaming as if charging into battle.

Terrified, Zhou Ci retreated several steps and commanded Zheng Feng'an, "Governor Zheng, seize them! Seize them at once! The Crown Prince's orders! Anyone who disobeys shall be deemed a traitor and executed on the spot!"

Zheng Feng'an froze as if struck by lightning. "Execute whom?"

"Execute Peng Jinrui! Execute these rebels!" Zhou Ci insisted. "This is the Crown Prince's will, the Emperor's decree!"

Whose will was it truly? Zheng Feng'an pressed his lips tightly, thunder rumbling in his heart. The unfolding chaos confounded him.

Thankfully, Li Ce remained clear-headed. The schemers had first tried to use Ye Chang Geng to prevent Li Ce from adjudicating the case. If Li Ce had fallen into their trap and left, bloodshed would have been inevitable. Now, by forcing Tibet's hand with the maps and personally arriving to preside, Li Ce's presence was crucial. They wanted this turmoil—to plunge Jinzhou into chaos, to have its people slaughtered, to make the scandal known across the realm.

The Crown Prince was framing his crimes by slaughtering innocents? Certainly not his or the Emperor's true intention. Li Chen must have forged a fake token to nail the Crown Prince, Li Zhang, to the pillar of tyranny, immorality, and treason, so there would be no redemption. But the Emperor had only given one token, to Ye Jiao. When the dust settled, whether it was the Crown Prince or Ye Jiao, no one could clarify the truth.

Jinzhou descended into chaos, the people died, and Li Chen would rest easy while the Crown Prince was executed, Ye Jiao suspected, and Li Ce punished for dereliction. Such was Li Chen's vile, terrifying, and murderous stratagem—three birds with one stone.

Despite the crisis, Li Ce did not lose his composure. He watched Zhou Ci rant like a buffoon, then turned to observe Zheng Feng'an.

What would he do? Whose orders would he obey?

Zheng Feng'an's face turned pale, veins bulging. After long hesitation, he seemed to reach a conclusion he could hardly believe. These were living, breathing citizens, after all. Even if their gathering hampered spring sowing, they did not deserve death.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Ci urged, "Governor Zheng, will you defy orders?"

Zheng's subordinates grew anxious. "Sir, this is the Emperor's token, the Crown Prince's command."

Zheng Feng'an glanced at the crowd being pushed from the platform by guards. Though the platform was barely over three meters high, falling could break limbs. Guards brandished swords to block, yet the people showed no fear of death. When the populace fears no death, how can one use death to threaten?

"Orders must be followed without fail," Zheng Feng'an often preached to his troops. Yet if those orders contravened conscience and law? If those giving the orders were unworthy of the title 'human'?

He hesitated. He knew well the consequences if he defied Zhou Ci today. He served Li Chen. The arm crossbows reached Hedong because of his pass. He conspired with Li Chen to frame the Crown Prince. If Li Chen lost, Zheng Feng'an too would face death. But was it right to pave the way for power with the blood of these people?

His mind drifted to memories of years past—studying by candlelight, training diligently under his master's stern gaze.

"Xianzhi, I see your perseverance and diligence. Should you pass the military exam, you must become a righteous official."

"Master," he had promised, "If fortunate to succeed, I will be a just officer, self-disciplined and devoted to the nation and people."

Later, Zheng Feng'an learned how arduous being a good official truly was. Born poor, with no patronage, shunned and attacked in the bureaucracy, even doing good was a steep climb. Marrying a Lu family wife brought ridicule—accusations of opportunism and elitism—but it also granted him the chance to fulfill his aspirations. He guarded Hedong Circuit, fought the Xiongnu and Tibetans, never sparing his life. Though working for Li Chen, he never forgot his true purpose: to be a good official, self-disciplined and devoted to country and people. If death or ruin came for this, his noble wife would understand.

"Zhou Ci," he said, removing his official hat and drawing his sword, "Today, consider me disobedient to imperial will, defiant of the Crown Prince's order. The troops of Hedong can kill Xiongnu, kill Tibetans, kill traitors—but never slay unarmed civilians of the Great Tang."

"You…" Zhou Ci brandished the token, glancing behind at Zheng Feng'an's men. "Governor Zheng does not want to live. And you? Will you defy the order and bring ruin upon your families?"

"We…" they hesitated, then resolved, shouting, "Rise! Form hundreds, disperse the crowd! Use force if resisted!"

"Stop!" a voice thundered, halting the farce.

Li Ce, having waited long enough to discern the enemy's malevolence and Zheng Feng'an's stance, finally spoke.

"Your Royal Highness the Prince of Chu," Zhou Ci sneered at Li Ce, "Do you not recognize this token?"

"I do," Li Ce replied calmly, drawing his own token with deliberate grace, "Because I possess

the As If the Emperor Himself Had Arrived token."

A hush fell.

"How?" Zhou Ci and Zheng Feng'an gasped.

The crowd gasped.

"This token is the true imperial token, passed to me by His Majesty the Emperor. The one you brandish is a counterfeit. Those who deceive with such tricks will be punished by the Emperor."

Zhou Ci's face paled. Zheng Feng'an trembled.

Li Ce stepped forward, sword in hand, voice firm and resolute.

"Peng Jinrui, your loyalty and courage are commendable. We shall investigate this thoroughly and restore justice."

The crowd erupted in cheers.

The true imperial power had arrived.