usatvline Chapter 447 The Emperor's Edict Arrives, Han Zhong is Utterly Despairing!
Chapter 447 The Emperor's Edict Arrives, Han Zhong is Utterly Despairing!
Han Zhong's expression changed instantly.
That already pale face turned deathly white, like an old sheet of rice paper soaked in water, wrinkled and devoid of any color.
His pupils contracted slightly, as if pricked by a needle, then suddenly dilated to their maximum size.
His lips trembled violently, and he had only one thought in his mind.
The day has finally arrived.
Han Zhong smiled inwardly, a smile more painful than tears.
He turned his head and looked at his wife. His bloodshot eyes were filled with an overwhelming, deep-seated reluctance and guilt.
His voice was hoarse, and every word was filled with despair.
"My lady, His Majesty has summoned me to the palace. Once I go, I may not be able to return. My lady, you must remember what I just said: do nothing, think nothing, and just obey His Majesty's arrangements."
I will try my best to win His Majesty's forgiveness. If you get through this, there's a sum of money buried under the old family house. Go retrieve it and leave. Remember this!
He spoke very quickly, like a drowning person giving their last words, desperately trying to cram all their thoughts into those final few minutes.
Liu Ruolan's tears flowed like a burst dam, unstoppable.
She shook her head frantically, so frantically, her hair came undone, her hairpin fell off, but she didn't care.
Her lips trembled violently as she tried to say something, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn't utter a single word.
She lunged forward, grabbed Han Zhong's arm, and gripped his sleeve tightly with her fingers, her nails digging into the fabric until her knuckles turned white.
don't want!don't want!
Her heart was screaming wildly, but she couldn't utter a sound; only tears flowed silently and frantically.
Han Zhong looked at her, at his wife's heartbroken state, at her swollen, bloodshot eyes, at her face streaked with tears, and finally his own eyes couldn't hold back any longer.
Tears welled up in his tiger-like eyes, swirling in his sockets. He gritted his teeth, desperately trying to hold them back.
He couldn't cry in front of his wife; he couldn't make her even more upset.
He reached out and gently wiped away the tears on his wife's face. The movement was very light and gentle, like caressing a fragile piece of porcelain.
"Madam, please don't cry. This is a debt I owe, and it's time for me to repay it."
After saying that,
Han Zhongsong released his wife, turned around, and walked towards the study door.
Liu Ruolan followed behind him, her steps unsteady, as if she were walking on cotton.
Her tears blurred her vision, making it difficult to see the path beneath her feet, and she nearly fell several times.
She held onto the wall and the door frame, gritted her teeth, and desperately followed.
In the courtyard, a guard dressed in golden armor stood there.
His golden armor gleamed in the sunlight, a long sword hung at his waist with jewels inlaid in its scabbard, and he held a bright yellow imperial edict in his hands.
His face was stern, his gaze sharp as knives, and his back straight, like a sword stuck in the ground.
Han Zhong felt a chill run down his spine.
The Golden Armor Guards are the elite Imperial Guards responsible for the security of the palace. They are directly under the command of His Majesty, and each of them is a martial artist of the second rank or above. They are not easily deployed.
His Majesty sent the Golden Armor Guards to deliver the imperial decree, which was clearly not an ordinary summons.
The courtyard was already filled with people kneeling on the ground.
The servants, maids, house servants, cooks, and grooms, a dark mass, all bowed their heads, their foreheads touching the cold stone slabs, not daring to breathe.
The butler knelt at the front, his gray hair gleaming silver in the sunlight. His body trembled slightly, whether from old age or fear, it was hard to tell.
Han Zhong strode forward, walked to the center of the courtyard, and stopped three steps in front of the golden-armored guard.
His knees buckled, and with a thud, he knelt heavily on the bluestone slab.
The sound was deep and clear, like a stone thrown into a deep pool.
He braced himself with his hands on the ground, his forehead touching the cold stone slab, his voice hoarse yet respectful.
"Your subject, Han Zhong, respectfully receives Your Majesty's imperial edict."
The golden-armored guard unfurled the imperial edict, his voice booming like a bell, each word like a nail driven into the ears of everyone present.
"His Majesty's imperial edict: The disgraced subject Han Zhong failed in his campaign against the Moon Goddess Cult and deserves death. However, considering the merits of his ancestors to the state, he is pardoned from the execution of his entire clan, and his punishment is reduced to his personal life. He shall be interrogated immediately before the Golden Palace, then imprisoned in the Imperial Prison, and executed at the Meridian Gate three days later. This is the imperial decree!"
Han Zhong's mind went blank.
He was sentenced to death, but three days later he was to be executed at the Meridian Gate.
Every word was like a knife, cutting into his heart again and again, but his heart was already numb and he could no longer feel the pain.
He had known this day would come from the moment His Majesty lifted the curtain and walked in.
He just didn't know that this day would come so quickly, so quickly that he didn't even have time to take another look at his wife, so quickly that he didn't even have time to hug his children.
His forehead touched the cold stone slab, his voice hoarse yet calm.
"Your Majesty, I obey your decree. I thank you for your great kindness."
He was thanking them for sparing his entire family and for allowing him to die with his body intact.
This kindness is as heavy as Mount Tai, yet as light as a feather.
He stood up, his knees were a little weak, and he staggered for a moment before he could steady himself by holding onto the stone pillar beside him.
He turned around and looked at the lady kneeling not far away.
Liu Ruolan collapsed to her knees, her hands bracing against the ground, her whole body trembling violently, like a fallen leaf swaying in a storm.
Her face was as white as paper, her lips were bloodless, her pupils were unfocused, and tears streamed down her face.
She opened her mouth, wanting to shout, to yell, to rush forward, but she could do nothing; only tears flowed silently and frantically.
Her lips trembled violently as she finally managed to squeeze out a few words, hoarse and broken, as if they had been dug out from the depths of her throat.
"My husband—"
That cry of "Husband" was heart-wrenching, so heart-wrenching that everyone present lowered their heads, unable to bear to watch any longer.
Han Zhong's tears finally fell.
Tears welled up in his tiger-like eyes, streaming down his resolute, weathered face, dripping onto the bluestone slab and spreading into a small, dark stain.
He gritted his teeth, his cheeks puffed out, and his teeth made a grinding sound.
Han Zhong did not turn around.
He dared not turn around.
He was afraid that if he turned around, he wouldn't be able to walk anymore.
He strode towards the gate of the mansion.
His steps were heavy as mountains, but his back stood as straight as an unyielding mountain.
Behind me, there was a chorus of weeping.
The lady collapsed to the ground, weeping uncontrollably.
The servants bowed their heads, their shoulders trembling slightly.
The butler was in tears, his white hair gleaming silver in the sunlight.
At the gate of the mansion, two young girls squeezed in the crowd, staring wide-eyed at their father's back.
Han Xin'er covered her younger sister's eyes, while tears streamed down her own face.
The younger sister, completely unaware of what was happening, asked in bewilderment, "Sister, what's wrong? Where is Father going?"
No one answered her.
Han Zhong stopped at the gate of the mansion.
He didn't turn around.
He simply stood there, his back to the mansion where he had lived for half his life, his back to the family he loved and who loved him, and his back to the warm home he could never return to.
Sunlight shone from the east, casting a pale golden glow on his dark silhouette.
He took a deep breath, stepped forward, and crossed the threshold.
Behind him, the mansion gate slowly closed with a soft "bang".
It separated him from the home he could never return to, and from the people he could never see again.