Chapter 53

That night, thanks to Liu Heng, Wei Luo slept very poorly, and when he woke up in the morning, his eyes were covered in dark circles.

During the meal, Liu Heng stood silently to the side, not daring to breathe too loudly. Wei Luo was still angry, so he had to be careful in serving him.

The hall was unusually quiet.

Soon, a young eunuch broke the silence, "Your Highness, a woman has come outside and says she is looking for you."

"Who is it?" Wei Luo didn't even look up.

"Chen Yao's maid."

Wei Luo looked over abruptly and hurriedly said, "Quickly, let her in."

After putting down his chopsticks, Wei Luo straightened his clothes. A maid had already entered, and she hurriedly knelt down, anxiously saying, "Your Highness, please save my young lady! She has been arrested and imprisoned in the Military Command Prison."

Wei Luo's eyes widened suddenly, and he asked incredulously, "What?"

The maid recounted the whole story, and Wei Luo grew increasingly alarmed as he listened, his gaze towards the maid becoming more and more hostile. "She's been locked up in prison. Why didn't you come last night?"

The maid stammered, "The palace gates are closed; we can't get in."

Wei Luo sighed helplessly, raised his hand to help her up, and said, "I already know, you can go back now."

He glanced coldly at Liu Heng and said, "Change your clothes."

Before leaving, he asked someone to wrap the hot pancakes in paper and take them with him.

*

The weather was freezing cold, with a layer of white frost on the ground. A simple carriage, surrounded by dozens of guards, sped away from Donghua Gate.

The guards recognized them as members of the Eastern Palace Guard. After they left, they gathered together and chattered amongst themselves, "Why are you in such a hurry to leave the palace so early in the morning?"

Someone said, "I heard that the Embroidered Uniform Guard has been laying off staff recently. Could this be the reason?"

"Possibly, but I'd guess he'll go to the Imperial Prison."

Why?

"The suspect in the demonic book is in the imperial prison. I heard he's a scholar named Han Yu."

...

The chirping gradually faded away, leaving only the howling north wind in my ears.

After the carriage left Donghua Gate, it continued south along the palace wall, exiting the Imperial City through Dong'an Gate. Outside the Imperial City, the number of carriages, horses, and pedestrians gradually increased, making the winter morning in the capital city bustling and lively.

Inside the carriage, Wei Luo tucked the cake into his bosom, warming it with his body heat, just as Shen Yao had done a few days earlier.

The thought of her spending the entire night alone in the cold prison, unable to even get a sip of water, broke Wei Luo's heart.

At this moment, he wished he could fly to the prison immediately, find her, hold her in his arms, and comfort her tenderly. And she, ideally, would burst into tears upon seeing him, clinging to him and refusing to let go.

Urged on by Wei Luo, the carriage traveled at a great speed, arriving at the Military Affairs Office at just past Chenshi (7-9 AM).

The yamen runners were still sweeping the ground when the guards saw Wei Luo and his party arrive and hurriedly asked, "Who comes here?"

"How dare you! His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived! Why isn't Commander Xiao coming out to greet him?" Liu Heng shouted.

Upon hearing that it was the Crown Prince, the yamen runner was greatly alarmed and even forgot to bow. He hurriedly turned back to the yamen, but after a few steps, he suddenly realized what was happening and turned back, bowing as he said, "Your Highness, please allow me to inform you that Commander Xiao has led his men to search for and confiscate forbidden books and is not in the yamen at the moment."

"Oh, it's alright, I'll go inside and wait."

The constable cautiously replied, "Yes, Your Highness, please."

Stepping through the gates of the military headquarters, Wei Luo stopped the yamen runners and asked, "I heard you arrested many people yesterday. Where are they being held?"

"It's in one of those rooms over there."

The constable pointed, and Wei Luo looked over and said, "I'm here to find someone, a woman. Just lead the way."

The yamen runners, though puzzled, dared not disobey the Crown Prince's order and took him directly to Guan Chenyao's cell.

The Eastern Palace guards had completely surrounded the prison cells. After the yamen runners went in to unlock the cells, they were driven out by Liu Heng.

"Your Highness, this servant is guarding outside. Please come in quickly."

Liu Heng's expression was complicated, and he sighed softly.

"Hold on tight."

After giving his instructions, Wei Luo strode in.

The air was filled with a damp, musty smell, and the ground was sticky; the environment was truly nauseating.

When they reached the last cell, Wei Luo finally saw Shen Yao.

The woman he had been longing for was squatting on the ground, curled up in a ball, her chin resting on her knees, as if she were asleep.

"Ah Yao~"

Wei Luo called her name and quickly approached.

In a daze, Shen Yao heard a voice, looked up, and saw Wei Luo smiling as he walked towards her.

Golden morning light streamed through the iron bars, casting a soft glow on him. At that moment, his gentle smile seemed capable of melting winter snow, and his handsome, delicate features would make even Nuwa blush. How much Heaven favored him, bestowing upon him not only a noble birth but also such a beautiful appearance.

Shen Yao's heart skipped a beat, and she murmured, "Your Highness?"

I pinched my palm; it hurt. It wasn't a dream.

A smile then appeared on her face, and she said sweetly, "Your Highness, you've arrived."

"Um."

Wei Luo spoke softly, quickly took her hand, looked her up and down, and only when he saw that she was unharmed did he feel a great weight lifted from his heart.

"Ah Yao, are you cold?"

After Wei Luo finished speaking, he took off his cloak and draped it over Shen Yaoyi's clothes. Then he embraced her and kissed her forehead.

His lips were soft but warm, and Shen Yao's skin trembled. Then her legs went weak and she could not stand up. She could only lean on the man.

But this was a prison, and they couldn't act freely. When Wei Luo tried to kiss her again, Shen Yao dodged him and pushed him away, saying, "Someone is watching."

Wei Luo followed her gaze and looked over. Liu Heng also happened to be looking over, and their eyes met. Liu Heng broke out in a cold sweat and quickly turned his eyes away.

"Now nobody's watching."

Wei Luo's eyes sparkled like stars in the sky, blinking at her, and Shen Yao's heart melted completely.

Surrounded by jade discs, their lips and teeth intertwined, even the damp air was imbued with a rich and enchanting atmosphere.

After they finished being intimate, Wei Luo pulled her to sit down, took out a piece of cake from his pocket, tore open the wrapper, and handed it to Shen Yao, saying, "It's still warm."

Shen Yao felt a surge of warmth in her heart, never expecting that the dignified Crown Prince could be so tender.

Now, she was indeed starving, so she took the bread and, under his watchful eye, ate it all, not even leaving a crumb.

Wei Luo asked with a smile, "How are the cakes from my Eastern Palace?"

Shen Yao raised her eyes, met his gaze, and smiled slyly, "Not as delicious as Your Highness."

"What?!"

Shen Yao chuckled. The two were playing around when Liu Heng suddenly coughed.

It turned out that someone from outside had come.

Wei Luo got up to leave, but Shen Yao quickly took off her cloak and returned it, saying, "It's inconvenient for me to carry it."

This cloak was specially provided for the Crown Prince's Palace. By wearing it, Shen Yao was essentially announcing their relationship directly.

So Wei Luo took it and held it in his hand, promising her before leaving, "Don't worry, Yao, I won't let anything happen to you."

“Hmm.” Shen Yao watched Wei Luo walk out.

*

The Military Command Office, which was originally an empty hall, was suddenly filled with people.

When Wei Luo brought Liu Heng in, the military commander Xiao Yang, the city patrol censor Yuan Ting, and the vice minister of the Ministry of Rites Guo Zheng were all present.

After the men bowed, Wei Luo asked, "I heard that Commander Xiao confiscated many forbidden books yesterday, is that true?"

Xiao Yang nodded and said, "Yesterday, a beggar reported that a shop was hiding forbidden books. I quickly led people to search and made a great discovery."

After he finished speaking, he presented the list. Wei Luo opened it and saw that it contained all the records of book purchases, and Shen Yao's Scholar's Study was clearly visible.

Wei Luo asked, "How many books were seized in total?"

"Fifteen shops, a total of nine thousand three hundred copies."

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone in the hall gasped. They hadn't expected that such a small place like Dazhalan would secretly harbor so many forbidden books. It showed how perfunctory the officials were in carrying out their duties.

Wei Luo lowered his eyes and remained silent.

Xiao Yang continued, "Fifteen bookstore owners have been arrested. I suggest that each of them be given fifty strokes of the cane, fined one hundred taels of silver, and have their illegal gains confiscated. What does Your Highness think?"

Wei Luo suddenly looked up, his fingers gripping the book turning slightly white.

According to the law, privately printing and selling banned books is punishable by caning, but how could her body withstand fifty strokes of the cane?

The people below were all looking at him, but Wei Luo remained silent for a long time.

Seeing this, Liu Heng gently nudged him. Wei Luo got up and walked down from the front of the hall, smiling, "The New Year is just around the corner, so it's not appropriate to use caning at this time. Let's just fine him more silver and skip the caning."

After Wei Luo finished speaking, he immediately looked at Guo Zheng, but this time Guo Zheng disagreed, saying, "Your Highness's words are inappropriate. If the shopkeeper of the bookstore is not severely punished and is let off lightly, they will definitely do it again in the future."

Yuan Ting nodded and added, "Merchants are driven by profit. In this situation, we should make an example of them to deter others. I think fifty strokes are too little; they should be given a hundred strokes."

All three agreed to the caning punishment, but Wei Luo just twitched his lips and gave an awkward smile. His gaze swept over Liu Heng, his meaning clear.

"My lords, His Highness is benevolent and cannot bear to see those people eating bamboo shoots and stir-fried pork before the New Year. Please be understanding."

After Liu Heng finished speaking, Wei Luo nodded in agreement. "There's still a little over a month until New Year's Eve. Every year at the end of the year, the Empress Dowager and the Empress in the palace pray for blessings and express their wishes. At this time, they can't stand the sight of bloodshed."

The two worked together, with Wei Luo even bringing up the Empress Dowager, hoping that the others would agree to exempt them from the caning punishment.

Everyone assumes that the emperor and crown prince are absolute rulers, able to make all decisions with a single decree. However, in reality, their exercise of power is often hampered by officials. For instance, Wei Luo wants to avoid being flogged, but if several ministers disagree, Wei Luo is powerless to do so.

If he were to seize power and forcefully coerce officials, they could refuse and submit a memorial to the emperor, ostensibly to offer advice, but in reality to reprimand the crown prince, reorganize the Eastern Palace, and replace his subordinates.

In this way, Wei Luo would not only be scolded by the emperor, but would also leave an impression of "not accepting advice" in the minds of his ministers.

More importantly, Guo Zheng, an official under the Crown Prince, also disagreed with Wei Luo this time.

Therefore, to avoid risks, we can only take a soft approach.

Wei Luo spoke gently, "This is my first time handling government affairs, and I really don't want to resort to violence. Let's just let it go this time."

Wei Luo's words were almost ingratiating. If a good-tempered civil official heard this, he would likely give the crown prince face. But unfortunately, everyone in this hall was stubborn as a mule.

Sure enough, Guo Zheng confronted Wei Luogang, clearly expressing his opposition: "The Empress Dowager and Empress praying for blessings in the palace are for His Majesty and for all the people of the world, not for unscrupulous merchants who knowingly break the law. The laws of the dynasty are such that if there are laws to follow, then the laws must be followed, the enforcement must be strict, and the violation must be investigated. Therefore, caning is necessary."

After he finished speaking, he glanced at his colleagues and asked, "What are your opinions?"

Yuan Ting and Xiao Yang both nodded in agreement.

Apart from Liu Heng, three of the four agreed with the caning punishment, rendering Wei Luo's opinion useless.

Therefore, the Yuan court said, "Your Highness's benevolence is a blessing to all people. However, if one is only benevolent and ignores the law, it is a contempt for and desecration of the law. I request that the caning be carried out immediately."

The other two followed suit.

Wei Luo's expression changed slightly, and his fist clenched tightly in his sleeve.

The air fell silent. After a long while, Wei Luo finally spoke, still insisting on his opinion, "I disagree!"