Chapter 116 No one can take her position away
"Does Prince Shun have anything else to say?" the Emperor's voice rang out once more.
Prince Shun was startled, and his gaze began to wander.
They originally came intending to force the emperor to back down by appealing to etiquette and righteousness, but who knew that Bai Xiuming would kick away all their plans with a single move.
All principles of etiquette, patriarchal clan rules, and righteousness must yield in the face of absolute strength and talent.
It's a good thing they even had someone stop the Ming King yesterday so he couldn't attend court. Now that I think about it, the Ming King wasn't afraid of anyone targeting his adopted son at all.
He had advanced to the fourth realm before he was even thirty years old. As a member of the royal family, he knew exactly what that meant.
The Bai clan has hundreds of young members, so why did this unparalleled talent fall to Bai Xiuming?
But no matter how much hatred one feels, it's all in vain.
"Prince Shun, His Majesty is asking you a question."
Seeing that Prince Shun was stunned and didn't speak, the chief eunuch reminded him.
Prince Shun was already considering retreating, but he could not back down directly, otherwise it would be seen as him being afraid of a junior, and how would he maintain his position in the capital in the future?
After much thought, he finally spoke, but his tone was no longer as aggressive as before: "Your Majesty, there is one more thing I hope Lord Bai can enlighten me on."
"explain."
"Yesterday, after Lord Bai returned to the capital, he dispatched the Mingjing Guards to arrest the Marquis of Zhenbei and the Marquis of Jinyang. It is understandable that the Marquis of Zhenbei was involved in the theft of the forbidden treasury, but why arrest the Marquis of Jinyang's entire family?"
Halfway through his sentence, he turned to look at Bai Xiuming. Seeing that the other party showed no intention of making a move, he continued, "I have heard that Bai Xiuming has some personal grudges with the Marquis of Jinyang. Is this behavior... is it suspected of being a way to settle personal scores?"
"Oh? Bai Xiuming, what personal grudge do you have with the Marquis of Jinyang?" The emperor seemed to have become somewhat interested in this topic.
"I have no personal grudge against the Marquis of Jinyang. The reason I brought him back to the Mingjing Bureau is because the Marquis of Jinyang recently married his stepdaughter into the Shen family. I am truly curious, since they are not related, why is the Marquis of Jinyang in such a hurry to marry his daughter into a family far away in Xiling?"
Upon hearing this, the emperor's face darkened: "Is that so?"
"Indeed, once I have investigated thoroughly, if the Marquis of Jinyang is truly innocent, he will naturally be released. If it is found that he has colluded with the Shen family, then you cannot blame me for wrongly accusing him."
"This matter must be thoroughly investigated. Everyone who has any connection with the Shen family must be investigated thoroughly, and no one should be let off the hook."
"Your subject obeys the decree."
"Prince Shun?" The emperor's gaze swept over Prince Shun.
Prince Shun immediately replied respectfully, "Your Majesty, Lord Bai has explained it very clearly, and I have no further questions."
"Um."
The emperor was fairly satisfied with Prince Shun's tact. His gaze swept across the hall, and seeing that no one else dared to object to the execution of the Prince of Xiling, he spoke: "The Prince of Xiling colluded with the demon race, instigated the Marquis of Zhenbei and others to steal from the forbidden treasury, murdered his first wife, and allowed the Shen clan to commit evil deeds for several years. His actions were perverse and heinous, and he deserves to be executed."
"Your Majesty is wise," the court officials exclaimed in unison.
"The dismemberment proposed by the Minister of Justice is too cruel and should not be shown in public. You may handle it privately."
"Your Majesty, I obey." The Minister of Justice had thought the Emperor would reject his proposal, but to his surprise, he adopted it. It seemed that the actions of the Prince of Xiling had indeed angered His Majesty.
"Let the court adjourn." The emperor rose and left the hall, and the court officials respectfully saw him off.
After the court session, the members of the royal family returned home and no longer spoke privately about how the emperor suppressed his relatives, favored Bai Xiuming, or disrespected ancestral rites.
As for the relationship between Bai Xiuming and the King of Xiling, no one has mentioned it.
As soon as the court assembly ended today, the crimes of the Prince of Xiling were made public, and news of them soon spread throughout the entire capital. This was the first prince in the dynasty to be executed by imperial decree; how could this not be shocking?
The matter is now being discussed everywhere in the city. In just a few hours, the Prince of Xiling has become famous throughout the capital, but unfortunately, he himself will never know about it.
The emperor forbade the Mingjing Division from getting involved in the matter. After the court session, the Minister of Justice sent someone to the Mingjing Division to meet with Bai Xiuming and order him to take the Prince of Xiling back to the Ministry of Justice prison and execute him on a chosen day.
This time, Qin Heng did not stop Bai Xiuming from meeting the King of Xiling.
After being escorted back to the capital from Xiling, the King of Xiling has been unable to eat or sleep well these days, and he, who had already lost his cultivation, appears to have aged even more.
As he walked out of the town prison, he squinted and looked up at the sun in the sky. The sun was so dazzling, yet it did not bring him any warmth.
Seeing that he didn't move, the jailer behind him gave him a push, and he staggered, the chains on his shackles rattling.
The Prince of Xiling took a few steps forward and saw a group of Ministry of Justice officers appear there. A hint of joy flashed in his eyes, but he deliberately said to Qin Heng, "What, has your Mingjing Division transferred my case to someone else?"
Qin Heng stood to the side with his arms crossed, saying nothing.
Bai Xiuming, who had come with officers from the Ministry of Justice, said calmly, "The King of Xiling doesn't seem surprised by this."
"I am not surprised at all. No matter how your Mingjing Division tries to frame me, there will be people who will seek justice for me from His Majesty."
He was not alone in the royal family.
Bai Xiuming said sarcastically, "This morning, several princes did indeed go to court to plead for the Prince of Xiling."
The King of Xiling's eyes lit up, but the next moment Bai Xiuming's words plunged him into despair: "It's a pity that Prince Kang was too weak and couldn't finish speaking before being carried away. As for Prince Shun and the others, they chose to abandon the darkness and embrace the light."
You're lying!
Bai Xiuming watched as the King of Xiling went from smugness to disbelief, then to dejection, and finally to despair.
How could I have ever thought that this person was so powerful that he was invincible?
Bai Xiuming suddenly felt a bit bored. He waved to the Ministry of Justice officers standing behind him, indicating that they could hand over the duties.
As the Ministry of Justice officers escorted the Prince of Xiling out, they passed by Bai Xiuming. Suddenly, the officer turned around and said to Bai Xiuming with a ferocious expression, "Bai Xiuming, you killed your own father. Do you think you'll have a good end? The emperor is just using you. Does the Prince of Ming really not care that you murdered your father? You'll die a horrible death sooner or later!"
Bai Xiuming listened to his screams, but his heart remained completely unmoved.
He suddenly remembered that many years ago, he had questioned the Ming King about why the emperor had spared the King of Xiling.
At that time, the King of Light did not give him any reason, but simply told him that he should just become stronger and that someone would bring justice to him in the future.
He got what he wanted.
The King of Xiling was eventually gagged and dragged out of the Mingjing Division.
Having finally gotten rid of the hot potato, Qin Heng didn't want to look at Bai Xiuming anymore. He casually waved his hand at him and strode out of the yamen: "Alright, you finish this case. Don't bother me unless it's important."
Bai Xiuming was already used to him being a hands-off manager, so he ignored him and walked straight towards the prison.
The case has been dealt with by the Prince of Xiling, but it is not yet closed. There are not many officials in the court who corresponded with the Prince of Xiling, but there are a few who need to be investigated.
However, only the Marquis of Zhenbei and the Marquis of Jinyang have been temporarily brought back to the Mingjing Division, and they are still in prison awaiting questioning.
Bai Xiuming went to see the Marquis of Jinyang first.
The once illustrious marquis, now forgotten by the crowd, still wore an angry expression upon seeing him.
"Bai Xiuming, what exactly do you want! I've already said that I have nothing to do with the Shen family." Marquis Jinyang stared intently at Bai Xiuming as he walked towards him through the prison door.
"It seems that the Marquis of Jinyang is unwilling to cooperate with me."
Marquis Jinyang was filled with anger and a deep sense of powerlessness. Yesterday, he suddenly learned that the family Xue Ying had married had been ordered by the emperor to be executed along with nine generations of their family. The execution was carried out on the spot without even going through the review process of the Three Judicial Offices.
His daughter was among them.
No one even notified them to collect his Yingying's body.
Within a year, he lost both his son and daughter, and he was overwhelmed with grief. Xue Shi even fainted. To make matters worse, the Mingjing Division arrested him and imprisoned him in Zhenyu on the grounds that he was colluding with the Shen family.
"Bai Xiuming, I have never offended you, so why are you targeting me?"
"Lord Jinyang, please be careful with your words. I treat everyone equally. You should think carefully about what you need to explain."
"I have nothing to be ashamed of before Heaven and Earth, and I have nothing to explain." Suddenly, the Marquis of Jinyang seemed to realize something, and his eyes widened sharply. "It's Ji Chan, isn't it? You framed me because of Ji Chan! You actually framed a marquis for a woman."
Bai Xiuming stared at him silently for a long while as he talked to himself before finally speaking softly, "Jiang Kai."
"My lord." Jiang Kai, who had been hiding in the shadows, walked over.
“Teach the Marquis of Jinyang how to speak to me.”
Jiang Kai glanced at Marquis Jinyang and grinned, "Don't worry, sir."
While the Marquis of Jinyang was suffering greatly in prison, his residence was also in chaos.
Marquis Jinyang was arrested yesterday by the Mingjing Guards. Lady Xue was so shocked that she vomited blood and fainted, thus escaping death.
Fortunately, the steward was able to barely keep the situation under control, preventing the Marquis's residence from falling into complete chaos.
At this moment, the steward was anxiously waiting outside the main room, thinking about what the Marquis's mansion had gone through this past year, and couldn't help but whisper, "What kind of trouble is this?"
Since the Lady of the Marquis passed away and the Marquis drove his eldest daughter out of the house, the Marquis's mansion seems to be cursed. Two young masters died suddenly, and now the Marquis has been arrested. The mansion is showing signs of impending collapse.
Inside the main room, Madam Xue lay on the bed with the bed curtains drawn, and a maidservant waited in the outer room, not daring to make a sound.
Her head ached and she felt weak all over, but even so, she still couldn't close her eyes.
When she closed her eyes, she could almost see the daughter she had forced to marry Shen Yingxiao that day.
For her own sake, she forced her daughter to marry into the Shen family. At that time, she could still deceive herself into thinking that, given her daughter's background, marrying into the Shen family, which was backed by the Prince of Xiling, was not a bad choice.
But in less than two months, the King of Xiling fell, the Shen family was destroyed, and her daughter died.
Yingying is most afraid of pain. Beheading is so painful, she must have been terrified.
When she died, did she resent her mother?
Whenever she thought of this, Madam Xue felt a sharp pain in her heart. First it was Zhao'er, and now it was Yingying's turn, and her unborn child too. How could she not keep any of them? What sins did she commit in her past life?
Tears streamed silently down Xue's face.
After a long while, she forced herself to sit up and said in a hoarse voice, "Someone come here."
"Madam, you're awake?" The maid waiting outside the door rushed forward with delight.
Madam Xue glanced at the maidservant before looking away and asked, "Where is the Marquis? Why isn't he here?"
In the past, when she was sick, the Marquis would stay by her side.
The maidservant stole a glance at Madam Xue's expression before cautiously replying, "After you fainted, the Marquis was arrested by the Mingjing Guards. They said the Marquis might be colluding with the Shen family and needs to be taken back for investigation."
Xue swayed, feeling a complete darkness before her eyes. They didn't even spare the Marquis?
"Madam, the butler is still waiting outside."
"Let him in."
Soon, the steward was led into the main room by a maid. He stood properly behind the screen, looking down at his nose.
"How is the situation at your residence?" Madam Xue asked.
"When the Marquis was taken away, the servants in the mansion were a little flustered, but they had already been reprimanded by this old servant, so they should be fine."
"Did the Marquis give any orders when he was arrested?"
"The Marquis was taken away before he could even speak." The steward lowered his head even further.
Those Mingjing Guards were extremely vicious; they simply gagged and arrested people, giving the Marquis no chance to speak.
"Has any news come from outside?"
The steward hesitated for a moment before saying, "This old servant has heard that His Majesty has sentenced the Prince of Xiling to death, one of the charges being that he allowed the Shen clan to commit evil deeds."
Xue felt a chill in her heart. Although they were really not familiar with the Shen family, could others believe them?
With the Marquis absent, how could those nobles who were on good terms with the Marquis possibly help her, a mere woman?
The more she thought about it, the more desperate she became, but in her despair, a rebellious spirit arose.
She had worked her way up from being the daughter of a minor local official to becoming the wife of a marquis. Now that she had reached this point, how could she be easily defeated? No one could take away her position.
She couldn't just wait around; she had to come up with a plan, at least to rescue the Marquis.
Suddenly, Xue's eyes lit up.
She thought of someone.
She recognized an old friend she had met in Jiaozhou, but she kept the matter to herself and never thought of bothering her. But now, she was desperate.
"Come here and do my hair," she said, then instructed the butler, "prepare the carriage; I'm going out."
"Madam, you are still ill, how can you go out?" The maid asked with a worried expression.
"Shut up!" Madam Xue's eyes sharpened. "Go now!"
Soon, the maid finished washing and dressing Xue Shi. Then, an old woman brought a bowl of ginseng tea, which Xue Shi drank, and she felt a little stronger.
She was helped into the carriage by four maids. Despite her headache, she instructed the driver, "Go to Minister Xu's residence."
The coachman was momentarily confused as to who Madam Xue was referring to, and couldn't help but ask, "Which vice minister is Madam referring to?"
"Xu Zecheng, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel."
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