My Antique Mirror Is A Portal To Another World-Chapter 600: Bleak Future

After one night of fermentation, the rumors about Yu Zhao’s assassination had spread like wildfire across the imperial capital city of the Yu Empire and its surroundings.

Inside the most luxurious and famous teahouse in the imperial capital city, a group of high-ranking ministers gathered around a large round wooden table.

Although the table was filled with delicious food and high-quality wine, nobody moved their chopsticks.

The atmosphere was gloomy, and everyone’s expression was tense.

When the dishes had turned cold, one of them finally spoke.

Looking at his colleagues, the Director of the Hanlin Academy said, "Everyone, now that the Prince Regent has died in an assassination, what is your plan for the future?"

When asked by him, the Minister of Rites frowned deeply.

"Besides the Prince Regent, the only one who has the right to sit on the throne is the current emperor. However, we all know that His Majesty is only a puppet of the Wen Clan. We can’t let him sit on the throne any longer."

Hearing this, the other ministers nodded in agreement.

After another long silence, the Director of the Hanlin Academy suddenly said with determination in his voice, "Since that is the case, then I will leave the imperial court for the Western Region."

The second his words fell, everyone present understood the hidden meaning behind them. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Looking at the Director of the Hanlin Academy, the Minister of Works asked, "What about your family? Can you leave without them?"

When asked this question, the Director of the Hanlin Academy’s jaw tensed. He took a deep breath, then shook his head.

"When His Majesty imprisoned Prime Minister Wen yesterday, I took the opportunity to get my family out of the Wen Clan’s imprisonment."

Pausing for a moment, he clenched his hands and added with a choked voice, "Unfortunately, I found that they had already ended their lives a long time ago."

The moment he said this, the other ministers took a sharp breath in shock.

"What?! Your family has already passed away?! Then—then why did Prime Minister Wen—!"

Although the Vice Minister of Personnel didn’t finish his sentence, everyone knew what he wanted to say.

Looking at his agitated expression, the Minister of Rites shook his head and explained, "Prime Minister Wen won’t let the news out. He needs our families to control us."

After saying that, he looked at the others and added, "Since the family members of the Director of the Hanlin Academy had already passed away, there is no guarantee that our family members are still alive."

Hearing this, the others turned to look at him.

Seeing that they were all waiting for him to continue, the Minister of Rites added, "This old minister plans to contact the Hong Sha Pavilion to find out whether my family members are still alive. Everyone, if you want to join me, you can prepare the money. This old minister will contact one of their agents tonight."

Exchanging glances, the others nodded at each other, then turned to look at the Minister of Rites.

"Understood," they all replied with determination in their eyes.

Now that they had made their decision, the Minister of Rites stood up from his seat. "This old minister will take my leave first. Everyone, please take care."

Clasping his hands, he bowed slightly to the others, then left the private room.

Seeing this, the others also stood up. Clasping their hands, they bowed slightly and said in unison, "Please walk slowly, Minister of Rites."

Unlike the gloomy and depressed mood of the high-ranking ministers, the common people were discussing the Prince Regent’s assassination in fear and sadness.

Sitting at the corner table of the roadside teahouse, Yu Zhao calmly took a sip of the cheap tea while listening to the teahouse customers’ hushed discussions.

"Have you heard what happened last night?" asked a young man in a low voice. He was wearing coarse clothes and sitting at the next table.

When his three companions heard this, one of them hurriedly covered his mouth, then looked around anxiously. Seeing that nobody had heard what his friend said, the man let out a sigh of relief.

Glaring at his friend, he asked in a low voice, "Have you grown tired of living? How dare you discuss imperial court matters in public?"

Pulling his hand away, the young man replied, "I still want to live for a long, long time. However, now that the Prince Regent has died, do you think we can still have a future?"

When asked by him, the other three fell into silence.

Looking at their worried expressions, the young man motioned for them to get closer.

Seeing how secretively he was, the other three leaned forward curiously.

With their heads almost touching each other, the young man whispered, "Have you guys heard the recent rumors regarding that one in the Western Border?"

Knowing who he was talking about, the other three nodded in unison.

Feeling even more curious, one of them replied, "Of course, we know. He is very famous."

Pausing for a second, he asked, "But... Why do you suddenly talk about that person? Don’t you know that his name is taboo here? Even talking about him will be punished with nine generations extermination."

Scanning his friends’ faces, the young man explained, "I don’t have any family members left now, so I don’t care much. Besides, rather than waiting to die here, I’m planning to leave this place today."

Hearing this, his friend asked worriedly, "Where do you want to go? Do you have any destination in mind?"

The young man nodded. "Mhm. My destination is Xiqiang City or Xiquan City."

The second his words fell, the other three were stunned.

After a brief moment of shock, one of them came to his senses and asked, "How do you plan to leave? Can I go with you?"

The young man looked at him and explained, "The city gate will be closed before sunset. I plan to leave before that. Just in case something happens, if you guys want to go with me, make sure to gather at my place in one sichen. The sooner we leave this city, the better."

The other three exchanged looks, then turned to the young man and nodded determinedly. "Alright."

After making their plan, the four young men finished their tea at once. Placing a few copper coins on the table, they left the teahouse in a hurry.