Not long after, Prince An brought Ju Jianxing before Lin Zhenfan.
Ju Jianxing, who had been imprisoned for some time, looked more disheveled than when he lived alone in the Purple Eye Tribe village, with a foul odor, messy hair, and a visibly thinner frame.
The Emperor stared intently at Lin Zhenfan and asked, "Lin Zhenfan, do you not recognize this person?"
"Are you truly so muddled as emperor that you drag anyone out of prison and ask if I know them?"
Lin Zhenfan glanced at Ju Jianxing kneeling on the ground and replied with a hint of amusement.
The Emperor, unperturbed by his words, began to cough again.
Leng Ruo Li helped the Emperor to catch his breath and spoke with a chilling tone, "This person's name is Ju Jianxing. He was the one who assisted you in leading people to invade the Purple Eye Tribe and have them all massacred."
Upon hearing this, Lin Zhenfan immediately retorted, "This matter has nothing to do with me, Lin Zhenfan." Lin Zhenfan shamelessly argued.
After all, killing people and massacring a tribe was not a glorious deed. Even if he had done it back then, if he denied it, these people couldn't do anything to him.
Once he admitted it, these actions would affect his ability to stabilize the populace and establish his authority after unifying the three kingdoms.
However, he was unaware that the moment he had cruelly killed a fourth-rank official in front of the Tianwu officials, he had already severely damaged his so-called prestige, leaving only ruthlessness.
Lin Zhenfan's current considerations were merely his own wishful thinking.
At this moment, Ju Jianxing, kneeling on the ground, suddenly looked up at Lin Zhenfan and interjected, "My lord, I recognize you. You are the one who repaid my gambling debts back then. At that time, to get me to lead you into the Purple Eye Tribe, you even had your subordinates give me two gold leaves and a rabbit carved from white jade as a deposit."
"Because this item was too precious, after you helped me repay my gambling debt, you had me guide you into the Purple Eye Tribe... Afterwards, before I could even spend them, I was imprisoned in the Purple Eye Tribe's secret garden, so I still kept them on me."
As Ju Jianxing spoke, he took out the two gold leaves and the white jade rabbit that Lin Zhenfan had given him years ago from his chest, displaying them to everyone.
Leng Ruo Li, after obtaining Ju Jianxing's consent, examined the items he produced. She found that besides a character "Lin" carved on one of the gold leaves, there was nothing special about them compared to other gold leaves.
"Lin Zhenfan, what else do you have to say?"
Lin Zhenfan shrugged his shoulders indifferently, glancing at the officials in the hall.
"This was something from many years ago. How could I remember so much?"
"If you intend to make a move against me today, I will order the slaughter of everyone present."
Lin Zhenfan threatened the Emperor, pointing at the officials in the hall.
His words almost made the Emperor spit out a mouthful of blood from anger.
"You..."
In truth, the Emperor and the others did not need Lin Zhenfan to admit to the crimes he committed back then. They could not let him go; they merely wished to hear him confess to bring some solace to their hearts.
But amidst this stalemate, a short arrow was suddenly shot into Lin Zhenfan's back when he was not paying attention.
"Oh no, Prince Ning, you cannot kill him!" shouted Concubine Chang, who had been observing from the shadows.
This sudden turn of events stunned everyone present.
"Hmph! Lin Zhenfan has ruined my plan today. I hate him to the bone. If I cannot control the imperial palace today and become the Emperor of Tianwu, then no one else will either,"
Prince Ning said fiercely, emerging from the rear hall.
However, to everyone's surprise, Lin Zhenfan remained unharmed despite receiving Prince Ning's arrow. He raised his hand, pulled out the short arrow from his back, and sneered, twirling it in his hand.
"Oh, it's Prince Ning, who ran away earlier. Why have you come back? Are you planning to die with your father and your brothers?"
Lin Zhenfan said this, mockingly addressing Prince Ning with a seemingly harmless expression.
Concubine Chang was instantly relieved to see Lin Zhenfan unharmed.
Prince Ning, on the other hand, stared at Lin Zhenfan with wide eyes, filled with disbelief.
"Impossible, you took an arrow from me and are still unharmed."
"What's so difficult about that? Because I'm wearing a suit of armor that is impervious to swords and blades! Hahaha..." Lin Zhenfan was quite pleased with himself as he said this.
Concubine Chang was heartbroken seeing the confrontation between Prince Ning and Lin Zhenfan.
When Consort Jing passed away, she had wanted to arrange for them, the father and son, to reconcile. She wanted Lin Zhenfan to assist Prince Ning in the succession, but how did it turn out like this?
"Your Highness Prince Ning, General Lin, this old servant begs you to stop confronting each other. Can't you get along and plot great achievements together?"
Concubine Chang pleaded with them desperately.
"Your Highness Prince Ning, how can you still say that? Lin Zhenfan barged into the palace today without heeding my signal. This matter must be related to you."
"Your Highness Prince Ning, this old servant has only done it for your own good. I didn't expect the letter I sent out last night to cause you trouble."
"Look at the current situation. Are you truly doing this for my good?"
Prince Ning looked at Concubine Chang with a sinister gaze.
"Haha, do you two, master and servant, really take me, Lin Zhenfan, for a fool? You still want to play me for your own amusement."
With that, Lin Zhenfan suddenly used his Qinggong (lightness skill) and swiftly moved towards Prince Ning, launching a surprise attack.
Among the Emperor's sons, besides Prince Qing, this Prince Ning was the most cunning, calculating, and ruthless prince. He would kill this Prince Ning first, and then deal with the old Emperor.
Due to Lin Zhenfan's surprise attack, the two began to fight immediately. However, Prince Ning's martial arts could only contend with Lin Zhenfan for a while, even though Lin Zhenfan had been injured earlier.
After less than ten rounds, Prince Ning was sent flying by a slap from Lin Zhenfan, crashing heavily into a pillar in the main hall, and then falling to the ground with a thud.
This caused the Imperial Seal of State, which Prince Ning had hidden in his chest, to fall out. The mouthful of blood that Prince Ning spat out also splattered onto the Imperial Seal.
Upon contact with the blood, the Imperial Seal instantly shot out a golden conical beam of light, followed by a cloud of white smoke. Subsequently, this white smoke gradually transformed into the figure of an old man with white hair.
The Emperor and Prince Leng had both seen this white-haired old man before. He was the ancestor of the Jun family and the founding emperor of the Tianwu Dynasty – Jun Can'ao!
"Hmm, this is not the blood of the old Jun family descendants!" The figure's first words stunned everyone present.
Following this, the Emperor's face suddenly darkened.
He immediately led Prince Leng and his consort, along with others, to kneel before Jun Can'ao's spirit. The ministers loyal to the Emperor in the hall also knelt down when they saw the Emperor kneeling. Only Prime Minister Qin, the Minister of Rites, and the Minister of Justice remained standing straight. These individuals were all noted by the Emperor and Prince Leng.
"The eleventh generation Emperor of Tianwu, Jun Haochen, greets the Ancestor!"
"Indeed! You may all rise!"
With that, Jun Can'ao's phantom waved his hand at everyone.