The Great Hall grew deathly silent; even the sound of breathing seemed to stagnate in the air.
Gu Huaiyu did not need the Emperor’s permission. His resignation was an announcement, not a request. Whether it was granted or not, he was finished with this office.
His gaze swept slowly across the crowd before finally landing on Pei Jingyi. With a tilt of his chin that bordered on insolent laziness, he gave a slight nod.
Pei Jingyi’s brows arched. Without a moment’s hesitation, he strode forward to follow.
In that heartbeat, the officials in the hall snapped out of their stupor as if waking from a dream.
Clack.
Someone’s grip failed first; an ivory tablet hit the floor with a crisp, sharp sound.
“Lord Chancellor!”
“Chancellor Gu, please stay!”
“The state cannot function without its Chancellor!”
A massive swarm of people scrambled to give chase.
The officials of the Gu Faction went without saying, but even the members of the Pure Stream were panicking. Those who usually prided themselves on their lofty detachment forgot all about their dignity, hitching up their robes and rushing toward the exit.
Most absurd were the “fence-sitters” who belonged to no party; at this moment, they displayed an unprecedented level of unity.
The clever ones understood better than anyone—if Gu Huaiyu truly left and Great Chen fell into chaos, the first to suffer would be those who had tried to play it safe.
In the blink of an eye, the hall was half empty.
Yuan Zhuo’s face was ashen. The jade tassels of his imperial crown swayed violently before his eyes, making his head swim. Casting aside all royal decorum, he ripped the crown from his head and slammed it onto the imperial desk with a heavy thud.
“Huaiyu Gege!”
The young Emperor’s cry tore through the final shred of formality.
He rushed down the vermilion steps and chased toward the doors, only to be blocked by Qin Zijin and several censors.
“Your Majesty, please be cautious!”
“This concerns the very foundation of the court! You must not let an impulsive moment ruin everything!”
Qin Zijin’s tone was exceptionally gentle. “Your Majesty, now that Chancellor Gu has resigned, the most pressing matter is—”
“Get out of the way!”
Yuan Zhuo swung his arm, shoving the man aside. The officials who had intended to offer counsel froze in place, having never seen the Son of Heaven lose his composure so completely.
Qin Zijin staggered, losing his balance and falling backward. Just as he was about to tumble down the stone stairs, a pair of thick, powerful arms reached out from the side, catching him with brute force.
Still trembling, Qin Zijin looked up and met Yan Zheng’s murderous face. He hesitated for a moment before forcing a thin smile. “Thank… thank you, Commander Yan.”
The next instant.
“To hell with your thanks!”
A muffled bang echoed!
Yan Zheng slammed a heavy fist into Qin Zijin’s face, causing blood to spray across the very visage the scholar used to pride himself on for its elegance.
“You damn bastard, you actually dared to impeach Chancellor Gu?!”
Qin Zijin was sent flying, landing heavily on the stone steps in front of the hall. Blood gushed from his nose. His vision went black and his ears rang; he lay there in a daze, unable to believe he had just been punched in public.
The hall fell into an uproar!
Several Pure Stream officials moved to help him up, but they were blocked by three or four towering military officers and were forced to back down.
Gu Huaiyu’s sedan chair sat quietly in the center of the palace plaza, its gold-embroidered cloud patterns shimmering softly in the sunlight.
“Lord Chancellor—!”
Xie Shaoling led a group of young officials in a frantic sprint, dropping to their knees in a wave before the sedan. When Xie Shaoling looked up, his eyes were bloodshot and his lips trembled uncontrollably. “Where is the Lord Chancellor going? Please, take me with you!”
The officials who caught up followed suit, kneeling one after another behind Gu Huaiyu.
“Lord Chancellor, please reconsider!”
The crowd grew larger and larger, surrounding Gu Huaiyu’s path like a rising tide.
Shen Jun was among them. He prostrated himself deeply, his forehead pressed against the bluestone floor for a long time. When he finally looked up, his eyes—usually as calm as an ancient well—shone with a ghostly light, yet he did not say a single word.
Wei Qingya wore a miserable expression, ignoring the dust staining the hem of his official robes. “Lord Chancellor, when you tricked me into cleaning up the Ministry of Revenue’s disaster, that wasn’t what you said! We’ve only just started to make sense of the mess, and now you’re washing your hands of it?”
Pei Jingyi narrowed his eyes as he scanned the people kneeling all over the ground. Even the sedan-bearers were kneeling; in the vast plaza, only he and Gu Huaiyu remained standing.
He moved inconspicuously to Gu Huaiyu’s side until their shoulders were almost touching. “The Chancellor’s ‘fish pond’ is certainly well-stocked,” he whispered.
Gu Huaiyu shot him a sidelong glance and took his time straightening his sleeves. He leaned into the sedan but raised a hand to stop the bearer from dropping the curtain. In the shadows of the carriage, his silhouette was half-obscured, making him look mysterious and unpredictable.
He looked at the crowd kneeling before him. His voice wasn’t loud, yet it made everyone hold their breath. “Since you all still call me Lord Chancellor, then listen to my advice.”
“Go back, all of you.”
Gu Huaiyu shed his usual lazy air, his tone turning solemn. “It doesn’t matter who serves as Chancellor, but the court cannot be without you.”
“You are the foundation that supports the government; you are the backbone of this state.”
![Conquering the Psycho Villain [Quick Transmigration]](https://i3.wp.com/dobynovels.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/ins.jpg?resize=151,215 "Conquering the Psycho Villain [Quick Transmigration]")
![Strange God [Infinite Flow]](https://i2.wp.com/dobynovels.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/gd.jpeg?resize=151,215 "Strange God [Infinite Flow]")
