June 19th, at noon, the Emperor summoned the Minister of War, Yang Yansi, and the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, Xu Hong.
At 1:00 p.m., Xu Hong was arrested by Golden Sword Cultivators and immediately escorted from the hunting grounds back to the Imperial City. It seemed they were about to hand him over to the Black Banner Battalion from Fengri City, which was conducting searches on the Xu Family. However, there was no sign of Yang Yansi, the Minister of War.
It wasn't until early 3:00 p.m. that Yang Yansi finally emerged from the Emperor's grand tent, expressionless. The more observant could see a trace of pale color on his face and worry tightly knotted in his brow.
Many people breathed a collective sigh of relief, though others grumbled inwardly in frustration.
