A grown man never strikes a smiling face—this is a rule every adult understands. No matter how much one resents or despises another, there's always a way to save face in public.
Leave room for maneuver, so paths may cross again in the future. No matter how vicious the conflicts are in the shadows, what appears on the surface in court is calm seas and composed minds.
We are not naïve children, nor rash brutes. Some words and actions, once seen through, don't need to be spoken aloud. Saying them would only embarrass oneself, wouldn't it?
But at this moment, everyone thought: sometimes, when faced with the blunt questions of children or brutes who lack reason, the embarrassed one may not only be the questioner but also the person being questioned.
Who would have expected the ever-refined Duke of Chengguo to blurt out such a question?
Refined?
It's just a facade. Look at how bluntly and bloodily the question was posed.
He's tearing off the mask now, isn't he?
After an eerie silence, Huang Cheng smiled.
"Duke, you must be joking," he said. "As much as I'd love to claim this as my doing, alas, I lack the means to make it happen."
He delivered this response with an air of nonchalance, yet his malice was entirely undisguised.
The two of them were dressed alike in the crimson robes of high-ranking officials, their faces warm and polite. But the words they exchanged clashed like swords, silencing onlookers who dared not even breathe audibly.
The Duke of Chengguo also smiled faintly.
"Indeed, you lack that kind of power," he said gently. "Lord Huang, at least you possess self-awareness."
Huang Cheng laughed heartily.
"Thank you for the compliment, Duke." He cupped his hands in mock humility.
The Duke returned the gesture, then extended his hand.
"After you, Lord Huang," he said.
Huang Cheng did not bother with false modesty.
"After you, Duke," he said as he strode forward, continuing to comment on the situation.
Under the watchful eyes of the assembled crowd, the two walked out side by side, smiling all the while.
The people left behind exchanged glances, their expressions complicated and their minds occupied with their own private scheming before they followed.
They had barely taken a few steps when the sounds of chaotic, disorderly footsteps reached their ears. Before long, several hundred commoners—men, women, the elderly, and children—appeared on the Imperial Street, visibly agitated.
Were these onlookers who had not yet dispersed, or was this...
The thought had just crossed the officials' minds when the mob erupted in shouts.
"Duke of Chengguo!"
"Duke of Chengguo, how dare you show your face here again!"
Again? This wasn't over?
How many people had been planted for this?
The officials exchanged looks. The emperor himself had already bestown praise and granted an audience; creating more trouble for the Duke now seemed inappropriate, didn't it? At least, it wasn't appropriate at this moment.
A flicker of surprise also flashed in Huang Cheng's eyes.
"We didn't arrange this," an official whispered in his ear, his face tinged with both suspicion and contemplation. "Maybe it's the merchants who are dissatisfied."
"Ah, I see." Huang Cheng let out a soft "oh," then turned to the disorderly crowd with a smile.
"Duke, look at this—such a bother," he said, turning to the Duke of Chengguo. "Public sentiment has its own fairness; it's not something anyone can so easily manipulate."
The Duke of Chengguo responded with a gentle smile.
"Lord Huang still believes in fairness?" he said. "How rare indeed."
Such brazen hypocrisy. Just listen to what he's saying—no wonder Zhu Zan turned out to be such a scoundrel!
The officials around Huang Cheng glared with fury.
"Duke, mind your words!" they snapped.
But naturally, the Duke of Chengguo had loyal followers as well.
"What's wrong with what the Duke said?" a few military officers responded with smirking expressions. "Or is Lord Huang admitting he doesn't believe in fairness?"
The two sides glared at each other, ready to clash, when they suddenly saw the Duke of Chengguo walking directly toward the commoners who were being blocked by the Imperial Guard.
"Hurry, protect him! Don't let the people hit him; that would be embarrassing," one official said smugly.
"The Duke is so mighty, maybe he'll end up hitting the people instead," another chimed in sarcastically.
This prompted laughter from the group.
"Whoever hits whom, it wouldn't look good either way."
The military officers ignored them, hurriedly catching up with the Duke, their own hearts filled with concern.
Sometimes, when commoners stir up trouble, it's truly difficult to handle.
"Duke…" they tried to dissuade him.
But the Duke of Chengguo had already stopped before the crowd.
"Why shouldn't I return?" he asked.
So blunt again.
Was the Duke still simmering with anger? Throwing a tantrum like a child?
Behind him, Huang Cheng and the others' smiles deepened.
"Because you didn't defeat the Jurchen people!"
"You shattered our hopes!"
"We are Northern People—we were uprooted from our homes because of you!"
"How dare you seek accolades and rewards!"
The crowd's furious shouts boiled over as they surged forward. The Imperial Guards were forced to brandish their waist knives in warning.
"You're mistaken," the Duke of Chengguo said softly, shaking his head at the crowd. "This isn't my fault."
The officials behind him chuckled disdainfully.
"Is the Duke expecting the people to believe that?" one muttered.
The crowd's clamor did not abate.
"Then whose fault is it?" they shouted chaotically.
"It's not that I didn't defeat the Jurchen people—it's that I was ordered not to fight," the Duke explained, meeting their gaze. "And you were uprooted because your homeland was ceded. None of this was my doing, so none of it is my fault."
Hearing this, Huang Cheng's expression shifted. Before he could respond, the Duke of Chengguo turned and pointed directly at him.
"It was him," the Duke declared. "It was Lord Huang Cheng who pushed for peace negotiations. It was him who forbade me from fighting the Jurchen people. It was him who ceded your land."
What in the world?
Is this still a human being? How could he say such a thing?
This—this was striking a smiling face head-on, with shocking precision and force!
All the officials were stunned, unable to react for a moment.
The crowd, however, reacted immediately.
"It was Huang Cheng who pushed for peace negotiations!"
"It was Grand Scholar Huang Cheng!"
"Yes, it was him!"
"He's the one who took away our homes! He's the one who left us adrift!"
"The Duke of Chengguo didn't betray us—it's Huang Cheng who abandoned us!"
"Huang Cheng is guilty!"
The shouts swelled like a storm, rolling in with ferocity.
The officials finally snapped out of their stupor, their expressions a mix of confusion and anger.
These commoners—how could they be so easily swayed by a single sentence? Do they even have any sense?
"You all…" A few officials were about to step forward to rebuke them.
But Huang Cheng raised a hand to stop them.
"Forget it," he said with a heavy expression. "Let's go."
Just like that? Leaving now?
The officials stared at him in bewilderment, glancing at the raucous, insult-hurling crowd.
"They're venting against the peace negotiations. If I don't let them curse me, would you have them curse the emperor instead?" Huang Cheng said gravely.
That really wouldn't do...
After all, the emperor was just hailed as a wise and benevolent ruler by the Northern People. The peace negotiations, therefore, had to appear as entirely Huang Cheng's idea, as though it was his scheming that influenced the emperor.
As for explaining the nuances and importance of peace negotiations to the commoners? They wouldn't listen. All they know is that negotiations cost them their homes.
This was truly…
They could only swallow their frustration.
The officials' expressions grew grim with anger.
Where had these people come from? What was going on? And how had the blame ended up squarely on Lord Huang?
Huang Cheng, his face somber, said nothing. As the crowd cursed him, he walked forward resolutely. When he reached the Duke of Chengguo, the Duke raised his hand to block him.
"Lord Huang," the Duke leaned in slightly, his tone warm, "all of this was orchestrated by my son."
What?
Huang Cheng's eyes went wide in shock.
No wonder! And to think he dared!
"How bold of you!" Unable to restrain himself, he shouted angrily.
The Duke of Chengguo had already stepped back, his expression calm as he looked at Huang Cheng.
"Lord Huang, what's wrong?" Several officials rushed to support Huang Cheng, anxiously asking.
Huang Cheng pointed an accusing finger at the Duke of Chengguo.
"He...this…" he exclaimed, then gestured toward the unruly crowd. "This was all orchestrated by him and his son!"
What?
The officials were instantly both alarmed and furious. Before they could say more, the Duke of Chengguo had already spoken.
"Lord Huang, you must be joking," he said gently. "Do you have any evidence?"
Huang Cheng let out a bitter laugh.
"Evidence? What you just told me!" he shouted.
The Duke of Chengguo also chuckled.
"Lord Huang, you must be joking," he said. "As much as I'd love to claim this as my doing, alas, I lack the means to make it happen."
Damn...
In that moment, Huang Cheng and the officials around him all silently cursed in unison.