129 129

"Eighteen years after I founded the country, today is the most disappointing day for me."

Ever since the day he guessed that his father wanted to change the crown prince, Qin Hong has been waiting for his father to speak.

This waiting tormented him day and night, making him increasingly afraid to look his father in the face. He hoped for an imperial decree soon, yet he dreaded the disappointment in his father's eyes. Several times, when his headaches struck, Qin Hong impulsively considered approaching his father and offering to resign. Ultimately, he gave up the idea, lacking the courage to confront his father. Qin Hong then despised himself even more, lacking the courage to shoulder the responsibility or to let it go.

But this is all his fault, and he shouldn't have implicated a founding hero like Yang Zhimin.

Kneeling on the ground, Qin Hong couldn't hold back his tears, but after he confessed his guilt, his heart calmed down because he could finally let go of the guilt that had arisen over the years from helping his elder sister get promoted to an official and had continued to this day. He finally had a legitimate reason to resign without having to let his father bear the stigma of having abolished the crown prince without reason.

The prince calmed down, but Fang Ji, a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue who ranked at the bottom among the civil officials, was shocked when the prince said his name. It turned out that the corrupt and treacherous official who had made the emperor furious and even the founding hero Yang Zhimin was in danger of being demoted was actually him?

After his heart sank, his legs became weak. Francis knelt on the ground and crawled out of the group of civil servants. He stopped in the middle of the hall, his entire upper body prostrated on the ground, trembling. He wanted to explain himself but was afraid of making more mistakes if he said too much, because he was indeed greedy and had given silver to Princess Yongkang. Maybe Princess Yongkang also shared the silver with the prince, so the prince would plead guilty?

Even if the Censorate didn't find out anything and the prince had pleaded guilty, how could he argue?

The more he thought about it, the more he trembled, and Francis didn't even have the strength to confess.

The ministers understood immediately that Francis was truly greedy. Then the Crown Prince...

All the civil and military officials looked at the prince and Yang Zhimin who were kneeling in the front.

In the dead silence, Emperor Xingwu sat on the dragon throne, staring at Fang Ji, who looked like mud, and said in a cold voice: "Fang Ji, let's not talk about how much money you have embezzled over the years. I just want to ask you, how did you become a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue?"

Fang Ji was still trying to find a way out of his desperate situation and didn't dare to answer immediately. Qin Hong said anxiously, "Father, it's your son..."

Emperor Xingwu angrily shouted, "Shut up, I didn't ask you!"

Qin Hong's stagnant heart suddenly became confused again. He had already prepared himself to be deposed. He was going to be deposed anyway, so he would rather take all the blame on himself than involve his elder sister!

"father……"

"Francis, are you deaf?"

The father and son spoke almost at the same time, and Emperor Xingwu's powerful and angry voice completely suppressed Qin Hong's weak voice.

No minister could withstand the interrogation of this founding emperor. The struggling Francis felt as if struck by lightning. His mind went blank, and he confessed instinctively, "Your Majesty, I heard that the eldest princess and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince were very close, so I tried to give the eldest princess three thousand taels of silver. Later..."

Qin Hong was so worried about his elder sister that he cried.

Emperor Xingwu's tone calmed down considerably. He continued with Fang Ji's question, "How much filial respect did you pay to the eldest princess later?"

Fang Ji had no way out and could only answer the emperor's questions. He kept his head down and said, "At the end of every year, I give the eldest princess a gift of one thousand taels. I have been doing this for seven years."

The ministers whispered a few words, and then one of them noticed the emperor Xingwu's ugly expression first, and then they quieted down.

How could Emperor Xingwu’s expression not be ugly?

Whether the crown prince or the eldest princess, they were both his flesh and blood. Even though the siblings weren't as beloved as his youngest daughter, Emperor Xingwu only cared for the younger daughter more and never deliberately treated his eldest son or daughter harshly or neglected her. From the very beginning, Emperor Xingwu had high hopes for his eldest son. Even after his son developed a headache, he stopped speaking harshly. Even after his son failed to establish himself, he was still willing to give him another chance, specifically arranging for him to serve as regent. Only when he was certain that his son truly wasn't capable of being the crown prince of the Qi Dynasty did he completely give up hope.

As for his eldest daughter, who loved gold, silver, and jewelry, Emperor Xingwu gave her the same mansions and titles as his sons. True, because his eldest daughter lacked talent, Emperor Xingwu scolded her for attempting to enter the court. She must have felt deeply wronged, but he had long known that she had been accepting bribes to secure positions at court, and that she had even done foolish things like holding land for the common people, and he had turned a blind eye to all of this. If it weren't for the Crown Prince being incompetent, Emperor Xingwu wouldn't have openly punished his eldest daughter, but would have simply called the siblings in before him and lectured them before they left...

Emperor Xingwu raised his head and gazed at the carved beams and painted buildings above the hall for a moment before maintaining this posture and saying, "Come, summon Princess Yongkang into the palace."

"Father!" Qin Hong cried and begged, "Father, if you want to punish me, punish me. This is all my fault. I was not able to explain the truth to my elder sister. I made the same mistake again and again, and pushed my elder sister down the wrong path! I have wasted more than twenty years studying the sages' books. I have neither been able to share your worries nor fulfill my responsibility to teach my brothers and sisters. All my mistakes are my fault. Please forgive my elder sister. I am willing to resign the position of crown prince!"

When these words were spoken, all the civil and military officials were shocked, and they all knelt down, begging the emperor to calm down and not to talk about deposing or enthroning the emperor lightly.

Qin Ren had been worried for a long time because his elder brother and elder sister were successively involved in this corruption case. Just now, when his elder brother pleaded for his elder sister, Qin Ren also knelt beside him, ready to help plead after his elder brother finished speaking. But his elder brother's last words were to resign as the crown prince. Qin Ren immediately remembered his wife's previous worries, worried that his elder brother would suspect that the emperor would replace him because of his sister's talent and reputation!

Qin Ren didn't want to be the crown prince at all, and he didn't have the ability to do so. In order to prove that he had no ambitions, his eldest brother wanted to resign from the position of crown prince, and Qin Ren was the first one to disagree!

"Father, my elder brother is so afraid that you will punish me that he is concerned and speaks without thinking. Father, please do not take it seriously. I beg you to show mercy and forgive me this time!"

Corruption is wrong, but that is their eldest sister. Yuan Zhaoxiong also embezzled money back then, and the emperor had said in advance that as long as Yuan Zhaoxiong handed over the embezzled money, he would be forgiven. Fu Daonian was guilty of collaborating with the enemy and deceiving the emperor, but because he had not committed a serious crime, the emperor only confiscated his property and stripped him of his title, and later restored Fu Kui's official position. The emperor is so loyal and righteous, there is no reason for him to punish the eldest sister severely.

It has been almost three years since His Royal Highness Prince Xian came to the court. Today was the day when Prince Xian spoke the loudest and the most.

Yan Xizheng and others followed suit and pleaded for the crown prince and the eldest princess.

Only Qin Hong was determined to resign, but every time he opened his mouth, Qin Ren clamped his mouth shut. A few years ago, Qin Hong would have been able to push his brother away, but his health had deteriorated over the past few years, and now Qin Ren was determined to keep him firmly in the position of Crown Prince. He couldn't push his brother away, perhaps because he couldn't bring himself to do something so disrespectful as to jostle and shove with his third brother in the main hall.

Emperor Xingwu watched his third son's antics with an expressionless face. After a long moment, he looked at his eldest son and asked, "Are you threatening me with the crown prince's position?"

This threat frightened Qin Hong and Qin Ren's blood. Qin Hong was shocked and anxious, and shouted, "Your Majesty, I have no such intention. Please understand!"

Emperor Xingwu said: "Then don't mention resigning. Today I will only investigate you and your brother for the crime of selling official positions and titles."

Qin Hong suddenly didn't dare to mention the matter of resigning from the position of crown prince again.

Emperor Xingwu exempted all civil and military officials who had nothing to do with the case from the formalities, and the third brother could kneel down if he wanted to.

Emperor Xingwu continued to preside over the court meeting. He waited until Yongkang appeared outside the hall and dealt with a state affair he was discussing before allowing Yongkang to enter the hall.

Yongkang was "invited" here by the guards of the Imperial Guards Department. No matter how she asked the guards on the way, they would not reveal any information. When she walked into the hall, the first person Yongkang recognized was her younger brother who was kneeling in the front, followed by her third brother Qin Ren and Minister of Personnel Yang Zhimin. As for the official who had already passed by and was kneeling on the ground with his face unclear, Yongkang did not spend much time to identify him.

"Father, what's going on? Why are you punishing the Crown Prince and my third brother to kneel?"

Stopping, Yongkang first asked his father who was sitting on the dragon throne.

Emperor Xingwu ordered the Imperial Censor Nie Ao to take the memorial from Yang Zhimin and read it to his eldest daughter and all the civil and military officials in the court.

Nie Aonian was thinking about Francis's corruption over the years.

Yongkang's expression changed again and again, and his hands hidden in his wide sleeves trembled slightly uncontrollably.

Emperor Xingwu looked directly at his eldest daughter and said, "Before you came here, Fang Ji had already confessed to bribing you with ten thousand taels of silver. The Crown Prince also admitted that it was he who helped Fang Ji get promoted by arguing with the Ministry of Personnel on your behalf. Yongkang, do you plead guilty?"

After hearing this, Yongkang really wanted to kick her silly brother on the back. Why was she so honest? Even if she accepted the money, her brother's hint to Yang Zhimin that he recommended Fang Ji was not written down. As long as her brother denied it and Yang Zhimin cooperated, she could say that she accepted Fang Ji's money. But she just accepted the money and did nothing. She never mentioned Fang Ji in front of her brother. Yang Zhimin recommended him based on Fang Ji's qualifications. From beginning to end, it was only Fang Ji who committed the subsequent crimes of corruption. As for why Fang Ji kept giving her money in the following years, that was Fang Ji's own stupidity!

Yongkang tried to argue, claiming that she had never asked the prince to help Francis, and that the prince had falsely accused her of the crime out of a desire to protect his sister.

Emperor Xingwu was so angry that he laughed at his eldest daughter's self-righteous attitude. He only singled out Fang Ji out of consideration for the father-daughter relationship, but his eldest daughter was still stubborn here.

"Prince, I'm going to ask you one last time. Did Yongkang ask you for help in bribing the Ministry of Personnel? Did he share the spoils with you?"

Qin Hong is more familiar with his father's temper than his elder sister, and knows the consequences of lying to his father.

He grabbed his eldest sister's hand and asked her to kneel down, kowtow and confess her sins, and asked Yang Zhimin to testify.

Yang Zhimin would naturally not deceive the emperor.

Yongkang finally panicked, but she knew the severity of the situation. She could be punished, but her brother must not get into trouble!

So, Yongkang told her brother how she had used their sibling relationship to force her brother to do things for her. She had even kept the money Fang Ji had given her a gift a secret from her brother, and she didn't dare let her brother, a gentleman, know even a penny. So how could she share the spoils with her brother?

"Your Majesty, I was blinded by money and violated the imperial law. The Crown Prince was completely coerced by me. He couldn't even refuse his uncle when he asked for a horse, so how could he be so cruel as to refuse me, his own sister? You and all the ministers know this. Please understand, Your Majesty. If you want to punish someone, punish me alone, and don't vent your anger on the Crown Prince!"

Yongkang crawled to his brother on his knees, knelt straight, and protected his brother with one hand behind his back. He looked at his father resolutely with tears in his eyes.

Qin Hong's vision blurred again.

Emperor Xingwu looked at the brother and sister, and at Yang Zhimin, who was kneeling beside them, for a long while before he said, "My eldest princess is greedy for money, my crown prince is partial to his own interests, and the Minister of Personnel, whom I have relied on for half my life, has also become confused."

"I have been founding this country for eighteen years, and today is the most disappointing day."

【Author’s words】

Here they come, 100 little red envelopes, see you at the second update tonight [Three-color cat head]