"General Meng, if my sources are to be right. You were the officer in charge when the incident that killed Xianying's brother happened, correct?"
"Y-your Majesty, I...I do not know what you mean", General Meng slowly stood up. He was also slowly backing away, but again, he was blocked by the Emperor's men as they forcefully pushed him back to his seat.
"Were you, or were you not the officer in charge then, General Meng?", the Emperor repeated his question, the tone of his voice becoming colder.
Viel, who was leisurely chewing his food, looked towards the shriveling General Meng beside him, and then towards the Emperor, back and forth. As if he was watching some kind of theatre play out.
"Y-yes, I was, your Majesty. I-it truly was a sad day when we lost private Xinping due to an… accident", General Meng closed his eyes, as if he was truly regretful of the events.
"Don't you dare say my brother's name!", Xianying's sudden shout reverberated throughout the dining hall, once again silencing the eavesdroppers and onlookers.
"You know damn well that it wasn't an accident! You killed him!", Xianying could no longer control her emotions as she rushed towards General Meng. However, she was stopped by Xing Cai.
"M-master Xing Cai!?"
"Not yet, Lieu- General", Xing Cai shook her head as she held Xianying's arms, "Let it play out".
Xianying was confused about the meaning of Xing Cai's words. But before she could retort, General Meng rebuked.
"W-what!? Nonsense! Each and every soldier is crucial to the army. Harming one of them is like harming his Majesty himself, I would never do such horrible acts!", General Meng's saliva was spewing all over the place as he tried to prove his innocence.
Viel was quickly rearranging the dishes and covering them so they will not be contaminated by the General's shower. It seems that he had prior experience to this due to Diao Mei's grandpa.
"Master Xing Cai, please. Get out of the way.", although Xianying treated Xing Cai with respect, her voice contained a cold tone as she stared at Xing Cai directly in the eyes. This was the moment for her to confirm all the suspicions that she had in her heart, and no one can stand in her way of finding the truth once and for all.
But Xing Cai did not let Xianying approach the General. Instead, she just repeated her words, asking Xianying to wait.
"Wait for wha-"
Before Xianying can finish her words, the Emperor spoke.
"You are right, General Meng. We agree on that matter", the Emperor smiled at the General.
"Y-you do, your Majesty?", General Meng had a jubilant expression on his face.
"Ofcourse", nodded the Emperor.
"S-see!? Stop with the stupid accusations, Xianying. Even the Emperor believes that I had nothing to do with the accident!"
"I said I agree with you, General, that harming one of my soldiers is like harming me", the smile on the Emperor's face disappeared.
After the Emperor finished his words, some of the other diners surrounding the Emperor's table suddenly stood up and started circling around General Meng.
"W-what is this!?", General Meng starting to get belligerent as he glared at people that suddenly surrounded him.
"General Meng, you are under arrest for the crimes of exploitation, blackmail, sexual assault, rape, bribery, murder, and treason", suddenly, one of the people that surrounded him presented a badge.
"!!!"
Xianying was shocked with the ridiculous turn of events. She wanted to get justice for what happened to her brother, and if justice was not an option, then revenge. But as soon as the person behind her brother's murder was confirmed, the perpetrator was instantly being placed under arrest in front of her.
Once again, she did not know what to feel. The only thing she knows was that this situation was ridiculous.
"W-what!? What are the basis for those crimes!?", the General then looked at the Emperor, "Y-your Majesty, please. All these allegations are crazy. I have served you for years!".
General Meng kneeled on spot as he begged the Emperor.
The Emperor, however, only looked at him with a stoic expression. And then, the raised two of his fingers in the air.
A group of men approached as soon as he did so. The men seemed to be carrying a huge bag.
The dropped the huge bag, and as soon as it hit the ground, it started to move. It squirmed on the floor like a worm until the straps were loosened, revealing a man.
Viel, who was still eating, had his eyes wide open as he continued to watch the events unfold.
The man was bleeding all over the place, trying to shout but could not, as his mouth was covered in cloth.
As soon as General Meng saw the face of the man, his expression started to twist as he slowly got up.
"Are you not going to say hello to your friend?", the Emperor chuckled as he signaled for his man to carry the tied up man and place him in front of General Meng.
The man struggled, but as soon as he saw General Meng, his squirming got worse as he tried his best to shout, slithering his way towards the General.
"I…I do not know this man", General Meng still tried to deny as he refused to look at the man. Hearing this, the tied-up man howled.
"Oh? But he seems to be excited to see you?", the Emperor's tone was beginning to sound impatient.
It was over. General Meng knew that there was no longer escaping his situation, and that any refute coming from him was just going to anger incite the anger of the Emperor much further. He was, in the best way to describe it, damned.
The Emperor sighed. He then looked at Xianying, who was currently in stupor, "General Xianying, what do you think is the suitable punishment for General Meng's crimes?".
Xianying, however, did not respond as her mind was still in jumbles. Seeing Xianying's uncertainty, Xing Cai could not help but lightly push Xianying towards the Emperor to clear out her mind and answer the Emperor.
However, it seems that she put too much force on her push, as Xianying tripped. Sending her straight to the arms of the Emperor.
Feeling the Emperor's arms wrapped around her definitely cleared Xianying's mind.
"Are you alright, General Xianying?", the Emperor gently helped Xianying to get up.
"Y-y-yes, your Majesty!", Xianying immediately stood straight as she saluted towards the Emperor. A red tint obviously covering her face.
The Emperor cleared his throat awkwardly as he nodded to Xianying. He then repeated his question, "What do you think is the suitable punishment for General Meng's crimes?"
Finally hearing the Emperor's question. Xianying closed her eyes as she took a deep breath.
She remained like this for a few seconds before finally opening her eyes and releasing her breath. She then looked at General Meng straight in the eye.
"Death", Xianying said as a single tear fell from her face.
"!!!", Viel, who was still eating, opened his eyes even wider as he let out a small gasp.
"N-no!", General Meng started to panic as he rushed towards the table, grabbing a steak knife. He looked all over the place for a way to escape. It was, however, futile, as the Emperor's men have blocked all the possible exit he could take.
He then heard a small gasp behind him. Turning to the direction of the sound, General Meng almost backed away in fright as he saw a little child, with all sorts of sauces on his face, staring at him while chewing.
"W-what the-", General Meng was perplexed, but he instantly calmed himself down as he finally found a path to escape.
General Meng hastily snatched Viel from his seat, grabbing him by the waist and pointing the knife to his neck.
"Nah ah ah! Come any closer and I'll slice this child's neck!", General Meng bellowed as he threatened the people that were approaching him.
"General Meng! Let go of Lord Viel right now!", the Emperor's voice started to contain a hint of worry.
General Meng noticed this. He could not help but smile, it seems that he was quite lucky that this stupid child had no idea of what was happening and kept on leisurely eating in place.
"T-that's right. I will let the child go, but only if you can ensure that I safely leave this place!"
Finally, a way to escape. General Meng was worried at first because of the presence of the female cultivator. But it seems that the woman and the child did not know each other that well, as the female cultivator was just looking at them, with her arms crossed and only an amused expression on her face.
"I am not going to ask again, let go of Lord Viel", the Emperor's tone was filled with authority. But there were still hints of worry in them. The Emperor could not help but fret. If this little child really was a celestial, the monster waves will be the least of their concerns. Gods forbid, if even a single strand of hair was harmed, tragedy will surely befall his country if the celestials ever find out.
"Tch, are you still on about that!? I said make a path or I will slice this child's neck!", General Meng slightly pushed the knife through Viel's neck to get his point across.
"General Meng, I think you are making a very grave mistake.", this time, it was Xianying who spoke up. There was a slight chuckle in her words, and the look on her eyes was as if she was already looking like a dead man.
"Tch. Shut up, you whore! If only you accepted my offer, none of this would have happened!", General Meng howled. The tone of his voice started to sound deranged. "Now, clear a path or I swear I really will cut this child's head off!"
"Cut my head off?"
The child, who was quiet the whole time, finally spoke up.
"T-that is right, kid. But don't worry, I am sure the Emperor won't let a child die in front of him", General Meng laughed maniacally as he looked at the Emperor, "Isn't that right, your Majesty!?"
"General Meng! This is my last warning, let go of th-", before Emperor can finish his words, a certain pressure filled the room, instantly making him pause.
The air in the room shifted, making it harder for the people to breathe. It was as if a certain malice started to loom in the air. And then, once again, the tiny child in General Meng's arms spoke.
"Cut my head off…
Cut my head off…
like Grandpa Ling?"