"I am a prince of the late emperor, born to a concubine, just like you. But why did he choose you as the crown prince, and I was abandoned by him, directly issuing a decree for me to garrison my fiefdom? Was it just because you had a few more battle merits that you treated me this way? I am very dissatisfied with his arrangements."
Jun Nansheng stared at the Emperor, his gaze as cold as his tone.
"Heh, Jun Nansheng, you assisted the First Prince in attempting to usurp the throne back then. Do you think the late emperor had no evidence? The reason he spared your life was because your mother, Consort Hui, pleaded with him. She swore to heaven to guarantee that you would not contend for the throne and voluntarily requested that you be sent to garrison your fiefdom. The late emperor, being old and sentimental, had a moment of softness and agreed to your mother's request, allowing you to garrison your fiefdom for life. However, you were ungrateful. After going to your fiefdom, you remained ambitious, secretly training ten thousand elite soldiers, and taking advantage of the border unrest to attack the capital. To put it bluntly, you are an ungrateful wretch."
The Emperor revealed all the inside stories of that year.
"Impossible, you dog emperor. Do you think by saying this, I will let go of my hatred for you? Absolutely not."
Jun Nansheng did not believe the Emperor's words.
"Whether you believe it or not, I don't care. Before the late emperor passed away, he told me that you are competitive, belligerent, and ruthless. He would absolutely not allow you to ascend the throne, otherwise, the people of Tianwu Kingdom would face devastation. But tonight, I just want to know from whom you took the Imperial Seal?"
The Emperor's eyes narrowed in anger, his dark pupils filled with suppressed rage. He looked at the half of Jun Nansheng's face that bore a slight resemblance to his own and asked sternly.
"Why should I tell you?" Jun Nansheng said with a smug expression.
"You were also a member of the Jun royal family. Do you really want to see the Jun family's empire fall into the hands of others?"
The Emperor rebuked him.
"Heh! Don't say such things to me. I'm going to die anyway. What does the Jun family's empire have to do with me? Jun Haochen, if you have the ability, find out yourself."
Jun Nansheng sneered.
"You..."
The Emperor was so enraged that he was speechless on the spot.
Then, the Emperor commanded, "Guards, bring Jun Nansheng for torture, apply the 'Tie Jia Guan'!"
As soon as the words fell, Eunuch Li hurried in from the entrance of the imperial study, crouching low and trotting, and responded.
In a short while, Eunuch Li entered with two young eunuchs carrying items. One young eunuch's tray held a small pile of mulberry paper, while the other young eunuch carried a golden basin filled with clear water. Following them were the commander of the Imperial Guards, Jian Feng, who directed two subordinates to bring in a reclining chair and place it inside the imperial study.
Leng Ruoli looked at what these people were carrying and understood what the Emperor meant by 'Tie Jia Guan' torture. It was to paste wet paper onto the face of the person being tortured. However, would this torture be effective on Jun Nansheng?
But just as Leng Ruoli was pondering, Jun Nansheng was already brought to the reclining chair by Jian Feng and was pressed down to lie on it.
Eunuch Li and the young eunuchs began to wet the mulberry paper and stick it onto Jun Nansheng's face. After Eunuch Li pasted the first piece of mulberry paper, he glanced at the Emperor. However, the Emperor did not speak. Eunuch Li then had a young eunuch wet another piece of mulberry paper and stick it onto Jun Nansheng's face. Jun Nansheng still did not beg for mercy. Everyone in the imperial study widened their eyes, watching the scene unfold, but remained silent. Eunuch Li and the others could only repeat the process... But when Eunuch Li was pasting the fifth piece of mulberry paper, the Emperor stopped him.
"Jun Nansheng, as long as you tell me from whom you took the Imperial Seal, I will have Eunuch Li stop this 'Tie Jia Guan'."
The Emperor tempted him.
"Hmph! Mmph..."
Jun Nansheng grunted, seemingly unwilling to speak.
The Emperor's expression turned even darker upon hearing this.
"Eunuch Li, continue. We will suffocate him to death tonight."
"Wait, Your Majesty, this humble subject has a method to make Jun Nansheng reveal the specific details of stealing the Imperial Seal. I only ask Your Majesty to spare his life for the time being, because this humble subject still has an irreconcilable hatred for Jun Nansheng, so I request Your Majesty to let him live a little longer." At this moment, Old Man Lu suddenly cupped his hands and said.
"Who are you?"
The Emperor had been curious about the identity of this dark, thin old man earlier, but he had been focusing his attention on Jun Nansheng and had temporarily overlooked him.
"Your Majesty, this humble subject is the true Valley Master of Ghost Valley on Baijieshan in Qizhou City, Lu Zongran."
The Emperor was slightly stunned upon hearing this.
"So you are the true Valley Master of Ghost Valley! But why have you become like this?"
"Your Majesty, this matter dates back twenty-two years ago..."
Lu Zongran slowly recounted the past to the Emperor.
The more the Emperor listened, the darker his expression became.
After Lu Zongran finished speaking, the Emperor could no longer suppress his anger. He stood up abruptly from his chair, walked to Jun Nansheng, and kicked him fiercely several times.
Eunuch Li, fearing that he would be suffocated, had already removed the mulberry paper, and Jun Nansheng could breathe smoothly again. The Emperor looked at him, raised his foot, and kicked him several times, shouting angrily:
"Jun Nansheng, you beast, you are not fit to be human! Why didn't that fire back then burn you to death?"
Jun Nansheng, half-lying on the chair and unable to move, grimaced in pain from the Emperor's kicks.
"Dog Emperor, are you mad? If you want to kill or torture me, do it swiftly."
Jun Nansheng knew that he would not survive until dawn tonight. He might as well provoke this dog emperor to end him quickly.
However, how could the people in the imperial study not see through Jun Nansheng's petty intentions?
"Valley Master, you said earlier that you have a way to make him reveal the truth about who he took the Imperial Seal from? Then try it. I don't believe he is the one who stole the Imperial Seal from the imperial study back then. Otherwise, the Imperial Seal has been lost for so many years, why only now is this news being spread? Given Jun Nansheng's temperament, if he had obtained the Imperial Seal earlier, he would have lost his patience and taken out the Imperial Seal to cause trouble long ago." The Emperor deduced thoughtfully.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Coincidentally, three years ago, this humble subject developed a pill that, when taken, makes people speak their true thoughts. I haven't used it on anyone yet, so I'll use him to test the medicine."
Having said that, Lu Zongran took down the walnut pendant hanging from his waist, gently pressed it open with his hand, took out a bright red pill, and fed it into Jun Nansheng's mouth. It melted instantly, and Jun Nansheng couldn't even spit it out.
In the blink of an eye, Jun Nansheng's head was no longer under his control. His eyes became dazed, and his expression turned vacant.
"Your Majesty, whatever questions you want to ask him now, he will tell the truth without holding anything back."
Lu Zongran said with certainty.