Chapter 262 Execution of King Cheng

Guan's suicide caused an uproar in the country, and the Lu family lost all face. However, the situation was suppressed a little because Lu Chongyuan suddenly returned to the court. Instead, the news that Princess Cheng divorced Prince Cheng and was named Lady of Rong State became more lively.

The clan members couldn't believe it and requested to see Emperor An, but they were turned away by Eunuch Feng before they even saw him. Some old-fashioned people in the court also said that Princess Cheng's behavior was too excessive. Not to mention that there were no divorces in the royal family, even if there was a divorce, it had nothing to do with the man and woman getting married, and the property of Prince Cheng's palace should be returned to the national treasury after being confiscated.

The Censorate received a lot of dissenting opinions, both openly and covertly, and some people also instigated impeachment. Cao Dejiang met with several old ministers in succession, but their doubts went in one ear and out the other.

"Lord Cao, are we really not going to care about Princess Cheng's affairs?"

"How do you want to manage it?"

"But she...is not in accordance with the rules..."

Cao Dejiang flipped through the documents in his hand and handed one to the person who had spoken: "Take a look."

The man was stunned for a moment, took it and looked at it, then his eyes widened in the next moment. He suddenly looked up and said, "How can the King of Cheng be executed directly when his case hasn't even been heard in court yet?"

That was drawn by the emperor himself, and Prince Cheng was beheaded at Caishikou five days later.

The man looked at Cao Dejiang: "Prince Cheng is a prince, his case is just a case of the Zongzheng Temple..." It was said to be treason, but in the end it was just collusion with the Ministry of War and privately storing military equipment.

In the past, if such a situation occurred, most people would just be stripped of their titles and imprisoned, or demoted to commoners. Why did King Cheng execute him directly?

Cao Dejiang lowered his eyes and sneered. The case of Prince Cheng had been delayed for so long and was related to the Lu family. Given the mind of their majesty, it would be strange if he didn't make a big fuss about it. But now that Lu Zhao has been transferred to the Ministry of Justice and Lu Chongyuan has been allowed to suddenly return to the court, Prince Cheng is hastily executed.

There was an inexplicable sense of guilt that made him unwilling to be investigated further.

Cao Dejiang found it ridiculous, but spoke coldly: "Since His Majesty has already convicted her, there is no room for further debate. The imperial edict conferring the title of Princess Cheng was issued by the palace. Are you suggesting that Princess Cheng shouldn't have accepted the edict, or that His Majesty shouldn't have issued it?"

The man's face changed.

Cao Dejiang said, "After all, the assets of Prince Cheng's Mansion are private property of the royal family. Even if someone really asks about it, it is the business of the Zongzheng Temple, not the Censorate. Instead of staring at an innocent woman who was deceived and finally freed, you should pay more attention to the Lu family."

"The eldest son of the Lu family is corrupt, and the eldest daughter-in-law has an affair. They have confused the royal bloodline for many years, and the family has been in turmoil. During this period, the Lu family has been plagued by scandals, and yet Lu Chongyuan still remains in the court. The Censorate is responsible for enforcing discipline and investigating impeachments. Now all eyes in the capital are on us."

"If you have the time to bother with Mrs. Rongguo's affairs, you might as well think about how to prevent the Censorate from becoming a mere decoration."

Cao Dejiang's words made the surrounding imperial censors look unhappy. Someone said, "Lord Cao, it's not that we haven't impeached the Lu family before, but you have seen the attitude of His Majesty."

It has been four days since Lu Chongyuan returned to the court. They have impeached the Lu family and Lu Chongyuan before, but His Majesty suddenly fell ill and suspended court for three days. When he finally returned to court, they started to mention the Lu family, but His Majesty said that they would bring up the matter again after the Ministry of Justice concluded its trial.

An imperial censor looked indignant and said, "Your Majesty, I don't know what's going on. He was obviously indifferent to the Lu family in the past, but this time he seems like a different person. The impeachment memorials are kept in the court, and those people in the court are changing their attitudes according to the situation. Now some people are even trying to please the Lu family..." It's really ridiculous!

Cao Dejiang's face was slightly cold. "Since it's being kept here, then go ahead. The Censor's duty is to advise His Majesty. As for the matter of Lady Rong, if anyone mentions it again, let them go to Prince Huan. Let the Zongzheng Temple handle the private affairs of the royal family. The Censorate has no business dealing with such trivial matters."

With just one sentence, he defined Prince Cheng's divorce as a private matter of the royal family.

The silence of the Censorate, Emperor An's indifference, and the fact that the clan members had repeatedly visited the palace without any results, and Princess Cheng still became the Lady of Rong, made many people who originally wanted to add fuel to the fire calm down.

The people in Jiyun Lane completely ignored the outside discussions and only sent people to start liquidating the property of Prince Cheng's Mansion. Seeing boxes of things being carried out of Prince Cheng's Mansion, the news of Prince Cheng's execution also spread. Those who had originally planned to wait and see knew that the matter of Mrs. Rongguo was a foregone conclusion.

Jiyun Lane became more and more lively, and more and more women from various mansions came to visit the mansion. Some came to give gifts and congratulate, and they almost broke down the threshold of the Tang Mansion.

Rong Yue only met a few people from the wife of Marquis Wenxin who were close to her in the past, and kept everyone else outside the door. Then, the news that Mrs. Rong would hold a banquet in Jiyun Lane to entertain the ladies of various mansions in a few days spread, and what was a startling coincidence was that the time when Mrs. Rong held the banquet was exactly the day after Prince Cheng was executed.

"Are you really going to hold a banquet on that day?" Marquis Wenxin's wife looked at Rong Yue hesitantly. "Prince Cheng was executed on the first day, and you're hosting a banquet the next day. I'm afraid some people will gossip about it. Besides, you haven't recovered yet. Otherwise, you should postpone the banquet..."

Rong Yue shook her head: "No, let's set that day."

"But…"

"It's fine."

Rong Yue's face was no longer as pale as before. Although she was a little thinner, she was in good spirits. She knew what the wife of Marquis Wenxin was worried about, and said to her:

"The time for the banquet was set long ago. At that time, the imperial decree to execute Xie Tianyu had not yet been issued. Besides, I have nothing to do with him anymore. Whether he lives or dies has nothing to do with me. Tang Ning had people send the invitations to various prefectures. Canceling it at this time would only give people something to talk about."

Madam Fu liked Rong Yue's personality and said, "Madam Rong is right. The affairs of Prince Cheng's Mansion were not her fault. They have already divorced and have a clear conscience. There is no need for her to deliberately avoid other people's affairs. It will only make people think she is overthinking it."

"There's already a lot of gossip going on outside, with all sorts of things being said. It would be better to hold a banquet early to shut them up and show everyone how much better off you are after leaving Prince Cheng's mansion."

Madam Qian also said in a gentle voice, "Gossipmongers will gossip anyway. If you don't care, there's no need to pay attention to them. I see that Madam's complexion has improved. After a few more days of rest, I think she can host a banquet without any problem. I'll have the servants take care of her. Madam Wenxin and I will also come over early to help out so that she won't be overworked."

When Lady Wenxinhou heard this, she saw that they all supported Rongyue and Rongyue had made up her mind and didn't want to change it, so she didn't say anything more.

"Then should I call a few maids from the mansion?" She pulled Rong Yue's hand.

Rong Yue smiled and said, "Then I won't be polite. It just so happens that I don't have many people under my command who need it."

The wife of Marquis Wenxin glanced at her angrily: "Why are you being so polite to me?"