Chapter 41 Chapter 41 Beautiful and Strong Miserable Dad 11
Zhuozhuo had good eyesight. Across the flowers and the lake, she could see from afar an old man and several other men bullying Feng Pansheng. She yelled in anger and was about to urge the green-clad maid to hurry up when she saw her tumble to her knees, nearly throwing Zhuozhuo off with her.
Zhuozhuo hugged the green-clad palace maid tightly around her neck and said lovingly, "Sister Yuzhu, please be careful when you walk."
Yuzhu was on the verge of tears. She'd wanted to take this opportunity to leave the palace, but she hadn't expected Zhuozhuo to be so reckless. Yelling at the emperor in public would be punishable even for a three-year-old child. As for her, a little palace maid, she was probably dead.
Anxious, Zhuozhuo didn't notice Yuzhu's despairing expression. She said, "Sister, I'm going to protect Daddy!" and rushed out of Yuzhu's arms, dashing forward like a cannonball. Halfway through, a large hand pressed against Zhuozhu's forehead. She saw the familiar red hem of a dress. "Daddy!"
Zhuozhuo looked up, meeting Feng Pansheng's smiling eyes. She immediately smiled brightly, then remembered that Feng Pansheng had a sword pointed at his neck. Zhuozhuo wanted to see if Feng Pansheng's neck was injured, but he was too tall for her to see.
"Daddy, squat down." Zhuozhuo pulled Feng Pansheng's sleeve and said pleadingly.
Feng Pansheng sighed, bent down, and picked up Zhuozhuo. Zhuozhuo raised her hands, which had originally been intended to hug her neck, but instead pressed them against Feng Pansheng's shoulders. She leaned in closer and saw a piece of red fabric around Feng Pansheng's neck.
"The sun is a bit strong, I cover my neck to avoid getting tanned..." Feng Pansheng said seriously, but before he finished speaking, he noticed Zhuozhuo poking the fabric.
"Wet?" Zhuozhuo was surprised. Subconsciously pulling at the cloth, he saw a long, bleeding wound on Feng Pansheng's neck. Zhuozhuo's eyes instantly turned red. He looked at his red hands and realized that this was all Feng Pansheng's blood.
There is so much blood.
Zhuozhuo didn't even dare to touch Feng Pansheng. His little body was stiff and he cried silently.
"Don't cry, Zhuozhuo. Daddy is fine. He just looks scary. He will be fine after a good sleep."
Feng Pansheng soothed her tenderly, heartbroken. Zhuozhuo was always full of energy in everything she did, so when had she ever shed such silent tears? Feng Pansheng had been able to face the Zhengping Emperor's actions with equanimity over the years, but now, his heart was filled with rage once again.
This palace and everyone in it should be destroyed.
Feng Pansheng regretted bringing Zhuozhuo into the palace. He pressed Zhuozhuo's little head into his arms and was about to leave with a sullen face when he heard the voice of Emperor Zhengping from behind, "Prince Li, did this child follow you to Yongzhou as well?"
Yongzhou was the fiefdom of Prince Luo. That night, Feng Pansheng sent his secret guards, led by Gan Song and Huang Bai, disguised as bandits, to slaughter Prince Luo's mansion. Taking advantage of the chaos, Gan Song and Huang Bai slipped the dragon robe into the secret chamber of Prince Luo's study. When the provincial army arrived to rescue them, they revealed the robe and all the evidence.
Afterwards, King Li and his officials worked hard, gathering all sorts of witnesses and evidence, and within just ten days, they had the Prince of Luo executed for treason. However, the emperor had suppressed the charge, and the Prince of Luo, who had escaped death by attending the Tianshou Festival in Beijing, along with several of his favored wives, concubines, and children, remained imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, awaiting their fate.
Everyone in the former and harem knew that the reason why Prince Luo's conspiracy was exposed at this time was because he wrote a letter to accuse Feng Pansheng of three major crimes.
One of Feng Pansheng's crimes was that he embezzled a total of 120,000 taels of silver for disaster relief and flood control during the flood control in Dongling. He also forcibly conscripted more than 30,000 people for labor service and treated the laborers so harshly that more than a thousand of them died.
The second crime was that Feng Pansheng diverted the Zhuojiang River to Nantang, forcing 40,000 people along the river to relocate, resulting in the delay of the farming season and the people having almost no harvest.
The third crime was that Feng Pansheng had the intention of rebellion, and acted in the name of the emperor in Dongling and Nantang, with the ambition to replace him.
Feng Pansheng was known for his ruthlessness and vindictiveness, and since he was being targeted by Prince Luo, how could he not seek revenge? But he hadn't expected him to be so ruthless and bold this time, practically taunting the emperor and declaring war on him.
Everyone speculated whether Feng Pansheng would be eliminated by Emperor Zhengping when he returned to the capital. However, Feng Pansheng knew that Emperor Zhengping did not dare to touch him, nor was he willing to do so.
Throughout his life, the Zhengping Emperor had been indecisive and cautious, always seeking to play it safe. He only wanted to gradually clip his wings to prevent unrest in the court. He also wanted to use him as a whetstone, hoping to sharpen those useless princes and grandsons into sharp weapons.
Feng Pansheng didn't even bother to comment on his naive and selfish thoughts, he just gathered his strength to bring him down. But Feng Pansheng hadn't expected that Emperor Zhengping would even use a three-year-old child. He could hardly control his anger, his mind rapidly calculating the pros and cons of regicide at this moment.
He slowly looked at the chief eunuch who was bowing and serving beside Emperor Zhengping, and Eunuch Wang also looked at him at this time.
Feng Pansheng's hands moved, and the next second, Zhuozhuo in his arms suddenly popped her head out. He turned his hands to support her back to prevent her from falling down.
Zhuozhuo angrily looked at the Zhengping Emperor who was surrounded by people and said in a crisp voice, "Bad guy!"
Emperor Zhengping's face darkened. "Who taught you that?"
"Even without anyone teaching me, I know you're a bad person." Zhuozhuo was full of vigor, stretching his small body forward, as if he was ready to have a serious argument with Emperor Zhengping. "I also know you're Grandpa Huang, humph!"
"Who told you?" Emperor Zhengping glanced at Feng Pansheng, considering the possibility that Feng Pansheng deliberately taught the child to scold him.
Zhuozhuo said, "I guess. In the capital, only Grandpa Huang would bully my father. If you bully my father, you are the bad guy Grandpa Huang!"
Emperor Zhengping was so angry that he almost laughed. He looked at Feng Pansheng coldly and said, "Do you know that insulting the emperor is a capital crime?"
Feng Pansheng had no intention of stopping Zhuozhuo. He curled his lips and said, "Zhuozhuo only speaks the truth. Is telling the truth against the law?"
"Good, good! You are good at talking, but let's see if you can still be so stubborn even when you are in the Heavenly Prison. Come on! Take King Li away!" Emperor Zhengping shouted angrily, and the Imperial Guards immediately responded and came forward to capture Feng Pansheng.
Feng Pansheng sneered inwardly. He had brought Zhuozhuo into the palace today because he was sure he could escape unscathed. He had never expected it to turn out like this. This little guy was such a jerk. Feng Pansheng was just thinking about who to entrust Zhuozhuo to temporarily when he heard her nervously ask, "Bad guy, are you going to arrest my father?"
Feng Pansheng wanted to cover Zhuozhuo's mouth, worried that he would not be able to protect her during his time in the prison, and her chattering would bring him trouble.
Having been scolded several times, Emperor Zhengping took a deep breath and said nothing. He glanced to the side. Eunuch Wang, who had received the signal, said in a shrill voice, "Of course they will be arrested and imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison. Do you know what the Heavenly Prison is? It's cold and damp there, with no bed to sleep on and only a thin prison uniform that can't keep you warm."
Seeing Zhuozhuo still curious and unaware of the seriousness of the situation, Eunuch Wang continued, "You can only eat one meal a day, and it's rice soup as thin as water. The steamed buns and vegetables are either hard or rotten. There are also rats and bugs in the prison, secretly gnawing on your flesh after you fall asleep. If you sleep too deeply, you'll be bitten to death!"
"ah!"
Zhuozhuo showed a frightened...excited expression, and stretched his little body towards Eunuch Wang with bright eyes, as if he was a storyteller.
Eunuch Wang was helpless and said, "These are nothing. Those who enter the Heavenly Prison are tortured every day. They press red-hot irons on their bodies, burning their flesh, whipping them with barbed whips, tearing their flesh, and then pouring salt water on them. There's also the tiger bench..."
"Shut up!" Feng Pansheng covered Zhuozhuo's ears to prevent her from listening to such dirty things.
Zhuozhuo had never seen these things before, and she didn't realize how terrifying and cruel they were. She just thought they were novel and fun. But Feng Pansheng's reaction made her feel scared. She huddled in Feng Pansheng's arms and whispered, "Bad guy."
Eunuch Wang wiped the sweat from his forehead and continued to threaten Zhuo Zhuo with trembling courage: "If you offend your elders like this again, you will be imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison."
Zhuozhuo vaguely heard this and said in surprise, "I was going to be imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison anyway."
"Ah?" Eunuch Wang didn't react for a moment.
Zhuozhuo thought this white grandfather was a little silly, so he kindly said, "Wherever Daddy is, I'll be there. That bad guy, Grandpa Huang, was about to lock Daddy and me up just now."
Such childish words touched everyone present to varying degrees. Emperor Zhengping suddenly said, "You won't survive a single day in the Heavenly Prison. Without King Li, he can barely protect himself. I can ensure you have enough food and clothing."
Zhuozhuo looked at Emperor Zhengping in surprise and whispered to Feng Pansheng, "Daddy, is Prince Li really you?"
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
Zhuozhuo was even more puzzled. Why were there so many strange people here? "Then why did Grandpa Huang ask me to leave you? You are my father, how could I leave you?"
Feng Pansheng laughed softly, "Yes, Zhuozhuo doesn't want to leave Daddy. Even if it means starving or freezing, you still don't want to leave?"
"I won't leave." Zhuozhuo said in a baby voice, "Zhuozhuo isn't afraid of the cold. Daddy is like a big stove. I won't feel cold when Daddy holds me. Zhuozhuo isn't afraid of being hungry either. My mom said that if you eat a lot every day, you will eat more and more, while if you eat very little every day, you will eat less and less. I'll eat less so that Daddy can eat more!"
"Okay." Feng Pansheng rubbed Zhuozhuo's little face, "Daddy likes Zhuozhuo very much." Even though she had tricked him into the Sky Prison.
"Zhuozhuo likes daddy too!"
Amidst Zhuozhuo's carefree laughter, Emperor Zhengping ordered both father and daughter to be imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison. Feng Pansheng glanced at Emperor Zhengping's humiliated and angry face and felt better.
Although it was called the Sky Prison, the cells were underground. Zhuozhuo, carried by Feng Pansheng, walked down the stairs. In an instant, the warm sunlight was cut off from her. The cold air penetrated her bones from all directions. The air was filled with the stench of decay and blood, making her sneeze.
Feng Pansheng paused, wanting to send Zhuozhuo out, but the next second, a soft little hand covered his nose. Zhuozhuo covered his own nose with his other little hand and said muffledly, "Daddy, it stinks in here."
"Are you afraid?"
"I'm not afraid as long as my dad is here." Zhuozhuo shrank into Feng Pansheng's arms. The further they went down, the more unbearable the smell became. There were also faint moans and screams coming from them, which was quite scary.
After turning a corner, Zhuozhuo was covered by Feng Pansheng's sleeve and could not see anything. She asked in a low voice, "Daddy, is there anyone next to us?"
"Yes, Zhuozhuo, don't look." Feng Pansheng glanced at the tortured prisoner, his eyes unwavering. This was a common practice in the prison, locking the most miserable prisoners on the outermost edge to put psychological pressure on new inmates.
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