Chapter 49 Imperial Edict: The news of Xie Yu's death could no longer be concealed.
The mud on her fingertips covered her fingerprints, which resembled tree rings; her hands had long since become rough and calloused, unlike those of a young woman.
Without cardamom, nails will lack luster.
Like eyes, they resembled dried-up, barren wells. In such deep wells, one could find not a trace of longing for life.
Beyond annihilation, she also felt liberation.
The day has finally come.
Ever since she killed Qiu Shiyan, her mind felt as if it were bound by heavy shackles. She had killed the son of a high-ranking official in Yongdu, and she didn't know when someone would come to demand retribution from her.
Her parents died unjustly, and she had nowhere to seek justice; her sisters were nowhere to be found; Zhao Mingqin was exiled to the desolate edge of the border, where barbed wire covered with sharp barbs formed a huge barrier, keeping out all thoughts that tried to cross it.
Those inside, unless granted a general amnesty, will not be allowed to leave unless they die.
It seems she and her surviving relatives will never see each other again.
The moment she fell into the hands of the soldiers, it felt as if the heavy burden of years had been lifted off her shoulders, and Bu Ping'er felt a long-lost sense of ease and relief.
If death can eliminate filth and cleanse the heart, then she is willing to give up her wandering life in exchange for a clear conscience.
Since we're already dead, let's die with more dignity.
She decided to confess to the murder case in Yongdu that seemed to have nothing to do with her.
Qiu Renshan was also in Chong'an, and she knew she wouldn't die a pleasant death. That was exactly what she wanted.
As the whip lashed her body, tearing her skin, she felt a strange sense of peace, even a touch of joy.
The sounds from the outside world became fainter and fainter in my ears.
The iron door of the cell was forced open, making a sharp and painful scraping sound, which to her ears was like the rustling of leaves in the wind.
"Ping'er".
It seems to be Zhao Mingqin.
Zhao Mingqin stood in the past, still standing under the pomegranate tree in the courtyard of his home, twisting the largest and reddest fruit off the branch, covering it with his robe, and beckoning, "Ping'er, come quickly."
Then she called out to Zhao Panzhi and Zhao Guzhi's room, "Eldest sister, second sister, come here too."
Zhao Mingqin drew his sword and gently cut a square notch at the end of the pomegranate calyx. He gripped it tightly, making the prominent blue veins stand out even more, and broke the red fruit into several pieces.
The group peeled and ate the pomegranates, then put the remaining pomegranates into a wooden bucket and hung it in the well water to chill.
Zhao Mingqin's voice is like a fresh fruit that has been soaked in cold water—sweet and refreshing.
Bu Ping'er leaned against the damp wall and slid down weakly, smoothing out part of the outline she had just drawn.
"Ping'er".
That familiar voice seemed to travel through the layers of time, across the vast ocean and the weak waters, reaching my ears.
She's almost deaf.
A pair of large hands pulled her into a strong chest, and then her feet were dangling in the air as she was lifted up.
The cell door was low, and when Zhao Mingqin bent down to go out, he held her lower and heard a faint murmur.
"...a handkerchief."
"A handkerchief?" Zhao Mingqin asked. "Ping'er, what kind of handkerchief do you need?"
"Give it back to me..."
A handkerchief? Chen Liangyu was slightly surprised. She was about to lose her life, and she was still thinking about a handkerchief. Could it be the handkerchief she had stamped with her seal?
Upon hearing this, the jailer shuddered. "The handkerchief, yes, yes, yes, this death row inmate..."
He blurted out the word "death row inmate," only to realize with a start that the two people who had arrived were important figures he couldn't afford to offend. The woman waiting outside the cell, in particular, possessed an extraordinary air; even Prefect Du had to walk behind her. Since they had personally come to such a sordid place as the dungeon to find the death row inmate, the inmate must be someone of great importance. So he changed his tone to more politely, enunciating each word clearly: "Young lady, this young lady did indeed have a brocade handkerchief and a few copper coins on her when she came. However, the handkerchief was made of high-quality material, something a common woodcutter couldn't afford, so I assumed she had stolen it. She denied it and couldn't explain its origin, so I handed it over and put it in the storeroom."
But later he saw that the handkerchief was valuable and had no owner, so he took advantage of the fact that no one was looking and put it in his pocket.
Chen Liangyu frowned.
The handkerchief had her name and military seal on it. Even if her name was not well-known, could it be that no one recognized that the seal was a military mark?
Zhao Mingqin carried the person towards the exit.
Du Peisun said, "Go find it."
The jailer agreed and ran off quickly to find it.
The jailer stopped the man, saying, "I'm the one who stored it. I'll go find it, I'll go find it."
He pretended to run around, rummaged through the storeroom, took the handkerchief out of his person, and presented it with both hands.
Only after receiving the handkerchief did Chen Liangyu understand why no one had brought it to her. The words she had written in blood were already faded and incomplete, and the color of the seal on the handkerchief was extremely faint. After being soaked with sweat, it was impossible to tell what it originally was.
The carriage drove back to the border post station.
The person who had been squatting by the wall was gone; Jiang Bojin's whereabouts were unknown.
The postmaster stretched out his arm and led Zhao Mingqin to a spacious post station room, then sent someone to fetch a doctor.
Two people stood in the courtyard: one was honest and robust, the other was dressed in a black robe with a wide hood covering his face.
The honest and burly man, upon seeing Chen Liangyu, rushed over excitedly as if meeting an old friend he hadn't seen for many years, calling out, "Commander!"
It turns out he has a high level of insight.
Gao Guan was promoted to the rank of General of the Left Golden Guard, a third-rank official, equivalent to Chen Liangyu. They were used to calling him that and never thought of changing it.
"Lord Gao," Chen Liangyu said, "why are you here in Chong'an instead of guarding His Majesty's safety in the Forbidden City?"
Gao glanced at the other person.
The man in black robes had turned around, holding an iron letter tube in his hand.
"Uncle Yan."
The man in the black robe was none other than Yan Baizhang.
Gao Guan said, “I was dismissed from my post and demoted to the garrison of Pancheng. It was Military Advisor Yan who, out of concern for my future, told me to come south to join His Highness Prince Shen. Yongdu is no longer the Yongdu of yesterday. Prime Minister Zhang was impeached, and many priceless antiques and paintings were found in his residence. He was dismissed and beheaded for corruption. Prime Minister Xun is also imprisoned in his residence, guarded by people.”
"Uncle Yan, where are my parents?"
Chen Liangyu gripped Lancang's hand tighter, her white knuckles betraying her nervousness.
She was like a fully drawn bow, taut and ready to snap or release an arrow to take someone's life.
Yan Baizhang avoided her gaze for a while before taking a letter from his bosom and handing it to Chen Liangyu. He then said with difficulty, "The Marquis and his wife have passed away. The palace has ordered that their deaths be kept secret."
It's perfectly clear who's behind "the palace." Emperor Xuanyuan and Chen Yuanqing have a deep friendship, and Emperor Xuanyuan would never allow Chen Yuanqing to be left without a proper burial. Therefore, it can only be that Prince Qi is issuing the edict under the guise of Emperor Xuanyuan. Prince Qi is wary of the northern border garrison and the troops under Chen Liangyu's command. If troops rise up in the north and south simultaneously to quell the rebellion and support the emperor, attacking from both sides, the situation will be extremely unfavorable for him.
Chen Liangyu's hands trembled so much that he could barely hold the letter.
The above is He Yunzhou's handwriting, mostly words of farewell to his children, expressing his deepest comfort upon realizing his impending death. However, the last sentence is written with particularly vigorous strokes: "My son, remember this well: never submit to treacherous and rebellious officials."
"Nowadays, the families of most civil and military officials in Yongdu are under the control of Prince Qi. The local aristocratic families have always had some complaints about the Agriculture and Sericulture Bureau. After Prince Qi abolished the Agriculture and Sericulture Bureau, the aristocratic families all wanted to support Prince Qi. Many of the sons of the aristocratic families hold important positions in the court. Lin Zhong, the commander of the Imperial Guards, is one of them. During this period, Prince Qi has suppressed the officials, held His Majesty hostage, and almost replaced all the generals of the Imperial Guards and the Yongdu Garrison."
How did my parents die?
"Prince Qi placed His Majesty under house arrest in the palace, intending to use the emperor to command the officials. That day, a young eunuch delivered a secret edict. The Marquis was about to obey the edict and mobilize troops to rescue the emperor, but he could not mobilize the Yongdu garrison and the Twelve Guards. Lin Zhong led the Imperial Guard and the garrison to surround the mansion, accusing the Marquis's mansion of treason and besieging it."
Siege is a strategy used when attacking a city. It involves cutting off all reinforcements from the city, exhausting its food and supplies, and waiting for the city to run out of ammunition and food before abandoning its armor and weapons.
The Marquis's mansion would naturally not sit idly by and wait for its demise.
"The Marquis and his wife led their personal guards to break through the siege and delivered the news of the Crown Prince's death and the news of Prince Qi's plot to rebel."
The news of Xie Yu's death could no longer be concealed.
When Prince Qi ordered Lin Zhong to kill Xie Yu, he overlooked one crucial detail. Originally, with the Crown Prince dead, he could control the officials, reassign military generals, and find an opportune moment to announce that the Crown Prince had contracted a sudden illness and died unexpectedly, thus forcing Emperor Xuanyuan to abdicate. This would have been a logical next step.
The only thing he hadn't expected was that Xie Wenjun had taken the Imperial Seal out of Yongdu. Without the seal, even if Emperor Xuanyuan drafted an abdication edict and passed the throne to him, it would be illegitimate.
That is why he delayed ascending to the throne and becoming emperor.
Several uneven water stains appeared on the letter paper, blurring the ink.
"Do your older brother and sister-in-law know?"
“I know. Fei Meng’s letter has already been sent to the Northern Border and Zhu Dong. The Northern Border has transferred some troops from Zhu Dong to fight against Dong Yin, and Bei Yong has gathered a large number of troops to garrison the border, which has greatly hampered your elder brother.”
When Jiang Bojin first created the Flying Spear, he intended to forge it into a military intelligence network that could be answered by a single call, so that generals from all over the country could immediately gather and respond after the emperor issued an order.
The idea was too ambitious, and such a complex military intelligence organization was very expensive and rarely put to use, so it was abolished by King Fengde. Later, flying flies were only used to collect and transmit information in the streets and towns of the people.
Jiang Bojin devised a plan for Prince Fengde to massacre the city and cut off the enemy's retreat. This act aroused the wrath of the people. Prince Fengde was forced by public opinion to punish Jiang Bojin. The Flying Bees were then taken over by Yan Baizhang and used only as a means for close relatives of the Marquis of Xuanping to communicate with each other in times of emergency.
Yan Baizhang patted her shoulder a few times, "Prince Qi intends to usurp the throne. We need to meet with Prince Shen as soon as possible to discuss countermeasures. There is also something we need to be wary of: Yongdu is trying to hunt down Prince Jiangning."
This was precisely what puzzled him: instead of prioritizing eliminating Prince Shen, who also held the title of crown prince, and preventing him from launching an uprising to seize the throne, he was instead quite concerned about a princess.
"I will remember this irreconcilable enmity!"
Chen Liangyu gazed in the direction of Yongdu, his eyes filled with a murderous intent capable of crushing everything.
This deep-seated hatred awaits her revenge!
Xie Wenjun walked out from under the antique eaves, and everyone greeted her.
The tear stains on Chen Liangyu's eyelashes had not yet dried, and the red blood vessels in her eyes were like streaks of crimson silk, spreading to her entire eye socket, wrapped in endless killing intent.
Seeing her approach, he concealed something in his eyes and bowed respectfully.
She must have heard it. She heard the word "hunt down".
Chen Liangyu said, "Your Highness, I'm here."
The first rumble of spring thunder sounded like the drums of an army marching into battle.
March 5th, the day of Jingzhe (Awakening of Insects).
Xie Wenjun issued an imperial edict, announcing the death of Crown Prince Xie Yu and proclaiming to the world the three crimes of Prince Qi, Xie Xuan, including murdering his brother, imprisoning the emperor, and usurping power.
Author's note: Thank you for reading this far!
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