kingnovel Chapter 2295 Killed!
Chapter 2295 Killed!
"Mr. Su! Su Tingmei!"
Chu Xuan's voice suddenly became shrill and urgent, filled with unprecedented pleading and panic, completely different from his previous arrogance.
"Sir! Sir, save me!"
"For the sake of our past relationship, for the sake of the courtesy I once showed you! Please plead with His Majesty on my behalf... on behalf of this sinful subject!"
"Your Majesty, please have mercy! Spare my life! I am willing... I am willing to renounce the throne, shave my head and become a monk, never to leave this world again! I only ask to live!"
"Sir! Say something! Say something for me!"
He was almost incoherent, struggling to lunge towards Su Tingmei, but was held down firmly by the armored soldiers behind him.
His humble, pleading demeanor was an incredibly ironic contrast to the arrogant "tough guy" who had just moments before declared, "Kill me if you want."
All eyes immediately turned to Su Tingmei.
This renowned scholar from Jianghuai, who had endured countless hardships and had just escaped danger, became Chu Xuan's only hope in his despair.
Su Tingmei slowly turned around, facing Chu Xuan's eyes, which were filled with pleading, fear, and last hope.
His face was expressionless, devoid of joy or pity, only displaying a calm and detached demeanor as if he had seen through the ways of the world.
He stared at Chu Xuan for a moment, his gaze seemingly piercing through time, returning to the days and nights of his imprisonment, to the moments when his earnest advice was ignored or even rebuked.
Finally, Su Tingmei spoke. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was clear enough for everyone on the city wall to hear, carrying a calm and resolute tone that came after everything had settled:
"Your Highness!"
He reverted to his former honorifics, but sounded unusually distant: "When you imprisoned me in a dark room, threatened me with weapons, and ordered me to forge letters and frame loyal officials."
"When you turn a deaf ear to Tingmei's earnest advice not to believe slander and not to invite foreign troops, and instead accuse Tingmei of being pedantic and cowardly."
"When you decide to raise the banner of rebellion, bring the flames of war to the Jianghuai region, and are willing to gamble with the lives of countless people."
"Did you ever imagine that this day would come? Did you ever imagine that you would need Mei to plead for you?"
He shook his head slightly, his tone devoid of resentment, only filled with deep regret and a cold indifference that seemed to draw a clear line between them:
"Those who walk different paths cannot make plans together. Although Tingmei is foolish, he knows the importance of loyalty and righteousness, and that he is a vital asset to the nation."
"The path you have chosen is the path to the downfall of the nation, the path to severing ties with your family."
"Having embarked on this path, one should bear the responsibility. Now, defeat and destruction are the result of one's own actions, and the justice of Heaven is evident."
"Tingmei... has nothing to say, nor is she ashamed to plead for the prince."
"you……!"
Chu Xuan was struck dumb, his face turning deathly pale. The last glimmer of hope in his eyes was extinguished, replaced by overwhelming rage at being betrayed and utter despair.
He suddenly struggled to his feet, his eyes bloodshot, and roared at Su Tingmei in a shrill voice that was almost inhuman:
"Su Tingmei! You hypocrite! You ungrateful scoundrel!"
"I have treated you well! How dare you... how dare you stand by and watch me die! I will haunt you even as a ghost!!"
His angry outbursts were vicious and chaotic, filled with the madness of someone at their wit's end.
However, to everyone else, this final curse was nothing more than the lament of a defeated dog, making it all the more pathetic and laughable.
Chu Ning coldly watched Chu Xuan's final loss of composure, her eyes showing no emotion whatsoever.
He was too lazy to listen to any more of his traitorous brother's nonsense.
Su Tingmei's resolute statement completely cut off any possible room for maneuver, making his final execution decision seem more reasonable, and even carrying a hint of "popular will".
"enough."
Chu Ning uttered two words indifferently, interrupting Chu Xuan's meaningless insults.
He stopped looking at Chu Xuan and instead turned his gaze to Xue Huaide, who was standing solemnly to the side, as well as the military judge and executioner waiting below the city wall.
"General Xue."
"The minister is here."
"Imprisonment."
"According to the order!"
Chu Ning's gaze swept over Chu Xuan's face, contorted with fear and rage, and his voice calmly announced the final execution: "The traitor Chu Xuan, his crimes are irrefutable, and he remains unrepentant. He shall be executed on the spot immediately! To uphold the law, to comfort the loyal soul, and to serve as a warning to others!"
"His Majesty has decreed! The traitor Chu Xuan shall be executed on the spot!!"
The messenger's loud voice was relayed down the ranks.
Two executioners, as tall as iron towers, stepped forward in response. They were shirtless, their muscles bulging, and their faces solemn.
One man took the document proving his identity from the military judge, while the other man drew a heavy, sheathless, ghost-headed broadsword from his waist, its blade gleaming coldly in the torchlight.
Chu Xuan's angry curses stopped abruptly. He stared wide-eyed at the approaching executioner and the large knife that symbolized death.
His blood seemed to freeze instantly. The extreme fear made him open his mouth wide, but he could only let out a series of gasping sounds and could no longer utter a complete sentence.
He tried to struggle, but his arms were tightly bound behind his back by the armored soldiers.
He tried to back away, but his feet felt like lead and he couldn't move.
The shadow of death had never loomed over him so vividly.
There were no unnecessary ceremonies, no long waits.
Under Xue Huaide's calm command, "Verify identity, no mistake, carry out the execution," an executioner kicked Chu Xuan hard in the back of the knee, forcing him to kneel on the cold city bricks, facing outwards.
Another executioner stepped forward, grabbed his disheveled, dirty hair with his left hand, and pulled him back, forcing his neck to be fully exposed.
Chu Xuan's pupils dilated to their limit, reflecting the boundless darkness outside the city and the faint starlight in the distance, as well as the deadly cold glint of the executioner's raised hand.
"cut!"
With a short, powerful command, the ghost-headed broadsword drew a shrill yet perfect arc across the night sky—
"puff!"
The dull thud of a sharp blade slicing through flesh and bone sounded particularly chilling on the silent city wall.
Blood gushed out like a fountain, splashing out in a shocking fan shape under the torchlight.
The head, which had once borne endless ambition, scheming, arrogance, and final fear, was completely separated from the body, rolling to the ground, its face still frozen in an expression of disbelief and horror.
The headless corpse stood frozen in place for a moment before collapsing forward with a thud, its blood quickly spreading beneath it and soaking the ancient city bricks.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye.
The executioner, expressionless, lifted the head, displayed it for a moment, and then placed it into a wooden box prepared to the side.
Other soldiers quickly stepped forward, used the prepared straw mats to roll up the headless corpse, and carried it away.
The entire process was swift and efficient, demonstrating extremely high efficiency.
On the city wall, apart from the crackling of torches and the sound of the night wind, there was no other sound.
The stench of blood permeated the air, so strong it was almost impossible to dissolve.
Feng Mulan slightly shifted her gaze, but her expression remained cold and stern.
Zhao Yu, Ma Chao, and the others breathed a long sigh of relief, as if a huge weight had been lifted from their hearts.
Xue Huaide bowed to Chu Ning to indicate that the punishment was over.