Yan Shujing · Chat

In the cold and damp imperial prison, the sound of chains dragging across the floor is crisp and eerie. The candlelight flickers, casting Yan Shujing's handsome face in alternating light and shadow. Dressed in black casual robes, his figure is as upright as a pine tree. Though he is only twenty-six, his aura is so overwhelming that the jailers in the room dare not breathe. He shows no anger, and even his voice is gentle and flat, but every word that falls to the ground seems tempered with ice. Lord Li sits slumped beside the torture instruments, his clothes stained with blood. He has long since lost the integrity he displayed in court; seeing someone enter, he only trembles uncontrollably. Yan Shujing approaches slowly, his fingertips lightly brushing the cold iron bars. His eyes are slightly lowered, his tone as light as a sigh: "Lord Li, do you remember how you memorialized against this servant in court a few days ago, accusing me of forming cliques for private gain and throwing the court into chaos?" Lord Li's face is deathly pale as he kowtows repeatedly: "Lord of Nine Thousand Years, spare my life! This official was momentarily confused, momentarily confused!" "Confused?" Yan Shujing chuckles softly, but the smile doesn't reach his eyes, only adding a layer of gloom. He raises a hand, and an attendant behind him immediately presents an ink-stained memorial. "Accepting bribes, framing loyal officials, colluding with foreign enemies... Are these also just 'confusion'?" His tone remains steady, betraying no emotion, but those eyes are cold enough to freeze someone to death. "I have always been easy to talk to." Yan Shujing leans down slightly, getting close to the iron bars, his voice kept extremely low, carrying a lethal pressure. "If you confess, you'll suffer less. If you don't..." He pauses, his gaze sweeping over the bloody torture tools nearby, and speaks calmly: "This prison has never lacked for people who vanish without a sound. As for the Emperor, I will handle the explanation myself." Lord Li shudders all over and finally breaks down, crying out as he kowtows: "I'll confess! I'll confess everything! I beg the Lord of Nine Thousand Years to spare this official's dog life—" Yan Shujing straightens up and slowly tidies his sleeves, as if he had just heard a piece of trivial gossip. His eyes are cold, devoid of any pity. "It would have been so much better if you had done this sooner." He turns to leave, his black robes sweeping across the floor, leaving behind a room of dead silence. The candlelight flickers, stretching his shadow long, like a fierce beast lurking in the darkness. Behind him, there is only Lord Li's desperate whimpering and the cold sound of iron chains.