143: Your failure is nothing but my rebirth.

"Don't bother saying that everything was within your expectations, Grand Chancellor."

Mo Yingqi said as he slowly stood up, glancing at the shackles on the ground. "Don't act like you've failed but it's just bad timing, or that you let me win and it's not that you couldn't beat me. It's disgusting."

"You are indeed willing to admit defeat, but unfortunately, you've mistaken one thing: from the very beginning of this gamble, you never had any chips. No matter how arrogant you are about your talent or how much you boast about your great achievements, the truth is simply that you bet on the right person and followed the Late Emperor step by step to where you are today."

"Ultimately, your ability was your qualification to sit at the gambling table, but the stakes... were gifted to you by the Late Emperor. Don't say things like how it would have been without you; since you chose to bet on the Late Emperor, don't complain. Later, you wanted to be the dealer yourself, but no matter how good your card skills were, the dealer was always the Late Emperor, or rather... The Emperor, the monarch, but never you."

Hearing Mo Yingqi's words, Zhou Chutian laughed in extreme anger. "Marquis Mo, do not forget that if it weren't for my strategies back then, the Late Emperor..."

"Then have you ever wondered why Emperor Chengzhong allowed you to associate with the Late Emperor, and even permitted or tacitly allowed you to stay by his side?" Mo Yingqi blinked. "Our dynasty established the Pacification Bureau to oversee all officials. Every slight movement of the officials in the capital is crystal clear to The Emperor."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing much. You know the logic behind what I'm saying better than anyone, but you just don't believe it yourself. Grand Chancellor, swift steeds are common, but a A legendary judge of horses; metaphor for a keen judge of talent is rare. The Late Emperor and Emperor Chengzhong were both A legendary judge of horses; metaphor for a keen judge of talents who recognized you as a swift steed. Moreover, even if the Late Emperor lived in fear and trepidation, if Emperor Chengzhong truly didn't care about the Crown Prince he had established for so many years, even if Grand Duke Jiang himself were reincarnated, you would have been powerless to change anything."

Mo Yingqi finished speaking and looked up at Zhou Chutian's elegantly decorated study, then at the collection of books on the shelves and the Four Treasures of the Study on the desk.

"Ha, Grand Chancellor, most of the books here are rare editions, and the Four Treasures of the Study you use—even the paper is worth a hundred taels. You reached the pinnacle of officialdom and enjoyed wealth and glory, and you feel you deserve it all. Indeed, if I were you, I would think the same looking at these things. But Grand Chancellor, in truth, as I said before, everything you think you achieved was only because there was a discerning judge of talent."

Zhou Chutian suddenly slammed the table hard, so hard that a corner of it was even broken off by his palm. He stood up indignantly and said with a cold sneer, "I didn't know Marquis Mo had such thoughts? Truly worthy of coming from the Pacification Bureau; you really are a fine hound of the imperial court!"

"Grand Chancellor, you're getting agitated." Mo Yingqi was not only unafraid but seemed completely indifferent. "I'm merely analyzing the problem from your perspective. In fact, the logic is obvious. I've never denied your talent, but you are the one denying it—denying that you were appreciated by the Late Emperor and Emperor Chengzhong. Anyone with eyes can see it."

"Enough!" Zhou Chutian clearly didn't want to discuss this. "Arrest me if you must, kill me if you must, why say all these meaningless things?"

"They are meaningful, very meaningful." Mo Yingqi's red pupils seemed to deepen in color. "I want to make sure you're clear on the things you've forgotten. From the moment you entered officialdom, your success was earned through a single eight-legged essay. You were fortunate to be born in a dynasty with wise monarchs who knew how to select the virtuous and capable; your hard work, your talent, and even your ambition could be seen."

"Grand Chancellor, you are well-versed in history; surely you know why the previous dynasty collapsed? Corruption in the imperial examinations, cronyism, and the virtuous had no place to display their talents. Grand Chancellor, tell me, if you had been born in that era, even if you were Master Kongming reincarnated, what would you have done without a Lord Xuande to appreciate your worth?"

"You understand and know all this, yet you've always felt everything was your due. The Late Emperor trusted you, not only relying on your talent but also treating you like a brother. The Late Emperor was honest, yet you felt you were superior to him. This is your first sin."

"Outdated thinking and a lack of progress. You knew your proposals were making the Daxing Dynasty regress, yet under the guise of loyalty to the Late Emperor, you were actually expanding your own power and seeking the empty fame of a legacy. This is your second sin."

"Since the Great Ancestor, The Emperors of this dynasty have hated corruption most. Yet you not only secretly cultivated your own forces but also used your so-called officialdom theories to place your Disciples in key positions to constrain the Late Emperor and the current Emperor, and even condoned their bribery and corruption. This is your third sin."

"Corruption brings suffering to the common people, yet you didn't care and turned a blind eye. You even viewed the people as livestock, to be killed or fed at will. You embezzled disaster relief funds, and your people—including my biological father—caused countless innocent people to suffer for it. This is your fourth sin."

"As the Grand Secretary of the current dynasty, you didn't think of assisting the monarch or restraining officials. You were solely focused on seeking power, making all sorts of excuses to outsiders to cover up the fact that you were actually consumed by greed. This is your fifth sin."

"Raising assassins and failing to seize military power, seeing that your momentum was gone, you even plotted rebellion and regicide. This is your sixth sin."

Having said that, Mo Yingqi stopped. With a flick of the japanese sword in his left hand, the shackles fell directly into his hand. Then he threw the shackles onto the table, knocking over the bowl of noodles that Zhou Chutian had not yet eaten.

"Finally and most importantly, ingratitude. No matter how much you say, it won't change the fact that you never acted for the Late Emperor, the state, or the people, but only for yourself. Someone like you, who has no regard for father or ruler, who speaks of great ambitions but has narrow thoughts and is stuck in his ways, who is greedy yet feigns nobility, who loves power yet uses the Late Emperor's name, betraying the monarch, betraying close friends, and even betraying your own relatives and Disciples. This is your final sin. Grand Chancellor, tell me, when everything is stripped away, what lies beneath all your glamour?"

"Grand Chancellor, dog shit is dog shit; even if it's wrapped in gold, it's still dog shit. No matter how brilliant you are, how exalted your status is, or how much you are 'above all but one,' when everything is stripped bare, you are just that lump of dog shit wrapped in gold."

"Not only is it unpleasant to look at, it's also useless."

After Mo Yingqi finished speaking, he turned and walked toward the door. Behind him, Zhou Chutian flew into a rage and raised his hand to strike, but unexpectedly, his chest surged with blood, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Oh, right, I forgot to remind you, Grand Chancellor, I put something in the wine you drank." Mo Yingqi said without looking back. "My wives are skilled at making poisons, and I added a little something to the wine. I know your internal power isn't bad, but it hasn't reached the pinnacle yet."

Mo Yingqi pushed the door open and finally looked back at Zhou Chutian. "If you get angry and use your internal energy, the toxin will be triggered, and naturally, you'll spit blood. Don't worry, it won't kill you, but for the rest of your life, I'm afraid things won't be very easy for you..."

"Oh, and one more thing, Grand Chancellor, I still have to thank you. After all, when everything is settled, seeing your miserable failure now makes me very happy."

"After all, for me, this day is your doomsday, but it is my new life."