Dengwen Drum
Jie Xiangsi didn't even glance at him, but stared at the new emperor: "This subject only wants to understand. If loyalty and bravery only result in suspicion and exploitation after the rabbit is killed, then what is the point of loyalty and bravery?!"
Before Zhou Shouji could speak, the old minister clutched his chest, his finger trembling as he pointed at Xie Xiangsi: "How dare you utter such arrogant words before His Majesty! Your Xiao family..."
"Grand Secretary Li."
Interrupt his speech.
Jie Xiangsi still did not turn to look at him, her gaze still fixed on the throne: "In the winter of the seventeenth year of Zhaohua, the Northern Barbarians invaded the border. My grandfather led 30,000 remnants of his army to defend the northern city to the death. He was hit by several arrows and fought to the last man. His body did not fall down, which frightened the enemy army away for three days. The northern city then received my father's aid."
"That year, the territory of the Great Zhao was preserved, but my Xiao family lost its head. My father was forced to take on the responsibility of the entire Xiao family at the age of 12."
After speaking, she paused slightly, her gaze sweeping over the nobles in their purple robes, over the pale-faced Grand Secretary Li, and finally settling on Zhou Shouji, who was dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, his expression unreadable.
"In the spring of the twenty-eighth year of Zhaohua, Longxi was attacked. My father and my two uncles led troops to its aid, but in the end, only my father returned."
"The two aunts were deeply grieved; one died from a miscarriage and postpartum hemorrhage, and the other committed suicide for love."
"In the early summer of the year before last, my father and brother were stationed in the north when they were attacked and their lives were hanging by a thread. The news from the front was that I was to go and help carry their coffins!"
At this point, she finally turned her head slowly to look at Grand Secretary Li, her words eloquent: "Grand Secretary Li, over the years, most of the men of my Xiao family have died on the battlefield, but we have no complaints."
"Because they died for the Great Zhao, for the millions of ordinary people!"
"but!"
Xie Xiangsi couldn't help but look towards the throne, and said in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty and the Emperor Emeritus used them as bait, letting them die in a power struggle..."
"Today Your Majesty exonerated the Xiao family, but only punished the superficial culprits. What about the real culprit? Your Majesty, I dare to ask, is the case you exonerated today truly a grievance against the Xiao family, or the resentment in my heart, or perhaps... it is merely the guilt in your heart that you have exonerated?!"
Instantly, the hall fell silent; even breathing was barely audible. A deathly stillness filled the room; everyone hung their heads, eyes downcast, seemingly wishing they could faint immediately.
Unfortunately, no matter how much they wanted to faint, they couldn't.
At that moment, Zhou Yanzhi made a move.
He stepped forward steadily, walked to Xie Xiangsi's side, lifted his robe, and knelt down, his movements as steady as a mountain.
"Your Majesty, I dare to say," his voice booming through the hall, "that Miss Xiao's words are heart-wrenching and perfectly reasonable. If loyal and courageous ministers do not meet a good end, how can the people's hearts be at peace? How can the army's morale be maintained?"
The new emperor, Zhou Shouji, remained silent, his gaze beneath his crown unfathomable. After a long while, he chuckled softly, his expression revealing neither joy nor anger.
"Well done, Xiao Yan." He slowly rose and descended the imperial steps, stopping in front of Jie Xiangsi. "So, what does Miss Xiao want me to do today? Does she want me to issue an edict of self-reproach?"
In an instant, the pressure felt real and crashed down.
Jie Xiangsi met his gaze, her lips slightly pale, but her back ramrod straight: "This humble woman dares not. This humble woman is merely representing the 132 souls of the Xiao family, begging for an inviolable justice from the heavens and the law."
Zhou Shouji's eyes darkened, and he was about to speak—
Suddenly, a faint, surging sound, like a tidal wave, came from outside the hall. A eunuch practically tumbled in, collapsing to the ground, his voice filled with terror:
"Your Majesty! Outside the palace gates... outside the palace gates, people and retired soldiers are kneeling, they... are begging to see Miss Xiao! They beg Your Majesty to severely punish the criminals, uphold the law, and reassure... reassure the army!"
As soon as the eunuch finished speaking, the air in the entire Zichen Palace froze completely.
Zhou Yanzhi's words, "With the morale of the army and the people so low, how can we be at ease?" still resonate in our ears, yet they have now become reality, echoing like a resounding slap across the palace.
Zhou Shouji's gaze lingered on Xie Xiangsi's face for a moment, then slowly swept over Zhou Yanzhi, and finally looked out of the hall.
At that very moment—
"Thump—!"
A deep yet penetrating drumbeat, like a sudden clap of thunder in summer, came from outside the palace and exploded violently inside the Zichen Palace!
"Thump—!"
Before everyone could recover from the first drumbeat, the second drumbeat followed immediately, striking their hearts!
"Thump—!"
Soon, almost without pause, the third drumbeat sounded, shaking the dust off the pillars of the main hall.
As the echoes of the three drumbeats faded, Jie Xiangsi slowly loosened her clenched hands, her heart pounding with excitement—her brother had arrived!
A dark glint flashed in their eyes. Today, the brother and sister were determined to seek justice for the Xiao family!
Zhou Shouji's expression flickered in and out of focus under the shadow of his crown. With each beat of the drums of petition, the surging cries of "Seeking an audience with Miss Xiao" and "Upholding the law and pacifying the army" seemed to grow clearer.
Public opinion, military morale, petitioning drum...
He remained silent for the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, a silence that was more suffocating to the courtiers than any thunderous rage.
After a long silence, he finally spoke slowly, his voice devoid of any emotion, yet inexplicably heavy.
"Leave the palace."
Two words: resolute and decisive.
He stopped looking at Xie Xiangsi and Zhou Yanzhi, and took the lead, his bright yellow dragon robe brushing against the black bricks as he walked out of the hall.
A eunuch's shrill voice rang out: "Your Majesty is departing!"
The officials seemed to awaken from a dream, hurriedly bowing and making way for Zhou Shouji as they walked out of the Zichen Palace.
Zhou Yanzhi reached out and gently helped Jie Xiangsi, who was still kneeling, to her feet.
He whispered, "Let's go."
Jie Xiangsi took a deep breath, used his strength to stand up, took another deep breath, and followed behind the bright yellow figure.
The palace road was still long, but this time, the atmosphere was completely different from when they arrived.
The Imperial Guards stood solemnly on both sides, but their eyes involuntarily drifted towards the palace gate. The increasingly clear sound waves seemed to relentlessly assault the heavily guarded palace.
Step by step, the vermilion palace gates drew ever closer.
When Zhou Shouji appeared on the high platform inside the palace gate, the scene outside caused all the ministers who had followed him to gasp in shock.
Outside the palace gates, a dense crowd of people knelt. There were wounded soldiers with bandages wrapped around their bodies, their eyes still sharp, and ordinary people dressed in plain clothes and shoes. Men, women, young and old, were packed together, kneeling on the long street, stretching as far as the eye could see.
At the very front of the crowd, in front of the Dengwen Drum next to the palace gate, Xiao Jiangsheng, dressed in a black outfit, under the watchful eyes of the people of the capital, held drumsticks in both hands and pounded the large cowhide drum without stopping!
"Thump—!"
"Thump thump—!"
"Thump thump thump—!"
Looking at the scene before him, Zhou Shouji gripped the vermilion railing so tightly his hands turned white, and the conversation he had with Emperor Zhaowen that day in the Linde Hall flooded his mind—
"The Xiao family is a weapon, but also a hidden danger. It must be used with caution. Maintaining the balance of power is the way of an emperor..."
"But the Xiao family is currently very powerful, and Father's intention is..."
"kill."
"..."
As if sensing something, Xiao Jiangsheng, who was below the stage, put down his drumsticks and looked towards the high platform.
His gaze lingered on Jie Xiangsi for a moment before shifting to meet Zhou Shouji's eyes. As their eyes met, Xiao Jiangsheng clasped his hands in a salute: "Xiao Jiangsheng, son of Marquis Jin'an Xiao Yunyan, pays his respects to Your Majesty!"
After a moment of silence, Zhou Shouji slowly spoke: "Xiao Jiangsheng, why did you beat the Dengwen Drum?"
"What is it for?"
Xiao Jiangsheng repeated his words in the same tone, then suddenly shouted, "Of course, it's to seek justice for the 132 wronged souls of my Xiao family!"
As soon as the words were spoken, several people carrying square objects walked slowly out from all directions. As they walked step by step to the foot of the platform, whispers broke out from the crowd.
"This... isn't this the ancestral tablet of the Xiao family?!"
Upon hearing this, the people on the platform were also startled. Looking closely, what else could that square object be but a memorial tablet?!
At the same time, Xiao Jiangsheng solemnly accepted the memorial tablet handed to him by a porter and raised his voice to the people on the high platform: "Your Majesty, now all of my Xiao family members are here. I beg Your Majesty to severely punish the culprit who caused the tragic death of my entire Xiao family in front of my Xiao family, the people, and the ministers!"
Zhou Shouji frowned almost imperceptibly and said calmly, "Zhou Yu'an has been imprisoned. According to the laws of the Great Zhao Dynasty, he will be executed soon."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jiangsheng lowered his eyes and chuckled softly, then raised his head again, his lips curled in mockery: "A death sentence? May I ask Your Majesty, will you grant him poison or a white silk noose?"
"What's the difference?" Zhou Shouji asked instead of answering.
“Of course…” After a pause, Xiao said sarcastically, “There is no difference.”
"However, doesn't Your Majesty think this method is too dignified? Since he has committed such a grave mistake, why not execute him publicly?"
"What do you mean?" Zhou Shouji asked, his tone tinged with a hint of anger.
Jie Xiangsi's heart skipped a beat—no matter how much Zhou Yu'an deserved to die, he was still a prince. To publicly execute him would be to trample on the dignity of the entire royal family. Her brother's words were undoubtedly a challenge to the authority of the emperor.
But……
"Does that mean the lives of my Xiao family members can be trampled on by others?!"
Holding Xiao Yunyan's memorial tablet, Xiao Jiangsheng said sternly, "Are the lives of my entire Xiao family less important than those of a traitor who plotted to usurp the throne?!"
By the end, his voice trembled slightly, his eyes reddened, and tears welled up in them.
Seeing this, Xie Xiangsi took advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention, darted down from the platform, and quickly ran to stand beside Xiao Jiangsheng. Together they held the memorial tablet, each word dripping with blood: "Moreover, Your Majesty, please ask yourself, was the downfall of the Xiao family not aided by your and the Emperor Emeritus's tacit approval?!"
Instantly, a gasp of surprise rose from the crowd, and their gazes toward the high platform became ambiguous, as a high wall slowly rose in their hearts.
Looking at the expressions on the faces of the people, a faint killing intent flickered in Zhou Shouji's eyes.
"Do you siblings know that you must provide evidence before you speak?"
When faced with Zhou Shouji's question, Xiao Jiangsheng did not answer directly, but instead nodded slightly toward a certain spot in the crowd.
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