Chapter 145
The Seventh Prince’s Mansion.
Qu Watanabe came back from the dinner.
Someone he didn't expect came to the mansion.
Wen Xiaochun, dressed in a scarlet Dongchang Fenglan uniform, was standing in the courtyard.
Wen Xiaochun's eyes curved: "Your Highness."
Qu Watanabe said in surprise: "Koharu?!"
He quickly ran two steps and hugged Wen Xiaochun, "I missed you so much. We haven't seen each other for a long time."
Wen Xiaochun staggered after being hit and subconsciously protected him. After hesitating for a few seconds, he gently placed his palm on Qu Duanbian's back and patted him twice.
"Your Highness, I miss you too."
Ye Xiaoyuan: "Okay, isn't it cold outside? Let's talk inside."
Xiaochun is really something. She has to wait in the yard. She is not a stranger.
Qu Duanbian grabbed his wrist and said, "Come on, go inside."
The coldness on Wen Xiaochun's body was dissipated by the warmth in the room. He was forced to sit down and a cup of hot water was forced into his hand.
He looked at his own prince who was helping Ye Xiaoyuan get things for him.
It was so small when it was young, but it has grown into what it is now.
Wen Xiaochun did have some regrets for not being able to witness his growth, but he chose to take another path, so he couldn't stay by his side like Xiaoyuan did.
He also wanted to come over occasionally, but he was always injured from carrying out missions, so it was inconvenient for him to come over.
Qu Duanbian said: "Xiaochun, it's so late, are you missing me, or do you have something to do here?"
"I missed you," Wen Xiaochun came back to his senses, "but there is something else. It should be something that Your Highness is concerned about, something that His Majesty said at the dinner just now."
The Shu family's affairs were handled by people from the East Factory. Although the main investigator was Chen Jian, Wen Xiaochun also had a way to get first-hand information.
Qu Watanabe: "Actually, I'm also quite curious, is the Shu family really greedy?"
Wen Xiaochun pondered: "The witnesses and material evidence are complete, and they are all true. But... Minister Shu should really not know." But the investigation of a case is not about whether it should be done or not, but the chain of evidence.
Qu Dubian remembered what his fifth brother had said to him before he went to suppress the bandits.
He said that the second brother was going to take action against the eldest brother, a plan that had been prepared for two years. Was this what he was referring to?
If they really had been lying dormant patiently for two years and struck a fatal blow today, the possibility of the Shu family overturning the verdict would be almost zero, unless someone who knew the inside story blew himself up.
"What will happen to the Shu family if they are convicted?"
Wen Xiaochun: "Minister Shu originally ordered the death by slicing, but later changed it to beheading. In addition, the entire family was tattooed and exiled to Lingbei, where the women became prostitutes and the men became slaves. Shu Wenxin was deposed from the position of the eldest prince's consort and became a concubine."
Qu Dubian couldn't help but frown.
"Your Highness, I came here today to ask you something."
"What?"
"What was His Majesty's attitude towards the eldest prince at the banquet?"
Qu Watanabe: "Father gave my eldest brother two chances."
The imperial edict was kept from being issued, and under such great pressure, they were called to dinner with the purpose of reaching a reconciliation. For Lao Deng, this was probably the limit of the limit.
Maybe it's for checks and balances, or maybe there's always a different feeling towards the first child.
"Why ask that?"
Wen Xiaochun said frankly: "I want to compete with Chen Jian for the position of factory manager, and your highness's information will be useful to me."
"Good Xiaochun, you are amazing," Qu Duan thought for a while, "Who does Chen Jian belong to? Can you tell?"
Wen Xiaochun: "This... he seems to have contacts with the Second Prince and the Sixth Prince. The people he is friends with are too mixed, so it is hard to tell. This person has both ability and skills. If he were not ugly and the factory owner did not like him, he would have a better chance of becoming the next factory owner than me."
Qu Dubian came closer and touched his chin: "Our Xiaochun is indeed good-looking." He also made a living by his looks in his previous life.
Wen Xiaochun: "..."
Ye Xiaoyuan rolled his eyes silently. He was so old and had been working in the Eastern Depot for so many years, but he couldn't even handle a compliment from His Highness and his ears turned red like this.
Wen Xiaochun coughed twice and said, "But Your Highness, I still want to tell you, don't interfere in the affairs of the eldest prince. His Majesty has a plan in mind. Otherwise, you may get into trouble."
Qu Watanabe: "I know."
He wondered why one after another came to tell him not to interfere, as if they were telling a child.
Does he seem like the kind of person who likes to meddle in other people's affairs? He has a scale in his heart, right?
Only then did Wen Xiaochun say goodbye.
He came and left in a hurry, and he was not wearing his regular clothes. He must have needed to go back to the East Factory to do his work.
Ye Xiaoyuan: "If the eldest prince is going to make any move, we have to do it as soon as possible."
Qu Watanabe: “Yes.”
Once the imperial edict is issued, everything will be settled and there will be no room for maneuver.
-
The second day.
The eldest prince did not come to court.
The Shu family was imprisoned, and the specific punishment measures have not yet been announced, but everyone has been locked up.
The eldest prince's wife went to the harem and went straight to the second prince's mother, Concubine Ruan, and the sixth prince's mother, Concubine Lan.
He stayed there for the whole morning before leaving the harem.
Not long after the eldest prince's wife left, Concubine Ruan called the second prince to Weiyang Palace.
In Concubine Ruan's Weiyang Palace, in addition to some flowers and plants, there was also a cat and a dog.
The palace is exquisite and full of vitality.
The kitten jumped down from a great height, crossed the stone steps, coiled its tail, sat at the door of the main hall, and meowed.
The second prince stood outside the main hall and did not go in directly.
After a while, the maid came out and said, "Second Prince, the Queen is calling you."
The second prince then entered the main hall. The kitten meowed sharply and ran away quickly.
The second prince glanced indifferently and looked away.
Inside the palace.
There was only Concubine Ruan.
Concubine Ruan sat behind the tea table with a futon placed opposite her.
She was not beautiful, but her eyes and eyebrows exuded a gentle temperament, like a solitary orchid in a valley.
The second prince's face completely inherited her non-aggressive appearance.
"Sit down."
The second prince sat opposite her and said with a smile, "Mother, you don't see me very often. You called me here today and even let me into the main hall. Is there anything you want me to do?"
Ruanpin: "There are only you and me in the palace."
After she said this, the Second Prince still had a smile on his face, but his expression changed slightly, and the gentle outer skin on his body slowly peeled off.
The Second Prince: "I have practiced smiling in front of the mirror thousands of times. However, mother doesn't seem to like it very much."
Concubine Ruan poured herself a cup of tea.
"You were the one who did what happened to the Shu family."
The Second Prince: "Mother, you are joking. I have always been friendly and respectful to my elder brother. These are all taught to me by you and father." He also took a teacup for himself. "Except for the inevitable factional struggles in the court, I think I have achieved all these points: gentleness, humility, and benevolence."
"When the Shu family got into trouble, Sixth Brother and Lanpin's group, as well as my followers, attacked Big Brother. Isn't that normal? Father didn't care much, so do you want to care, Mother?"
The second prince shook his head and smiled.
"Mother, the eldest princess begged you to let them go."
He kept talking about this and that, but he didn't give a direct answer to Concubine Ruan's questions.
The eldest prince's wife did come to ask Concubine Ruan for help.
But she didn't know who was behind the framing of the Shu family, so she not only asked Concubine Ruan to plead for them, but also went to Concubine Lan.
Ruanpin stared at him closely: "If you are really brothers, you can plead for the Shu family, and the fate of the rest of the Shu family will be much better."
The Second Prince: "Really?"
He raised his eyes, "What does it have to do with me?"
Concubine Ruan frowned: "What does human life mean to you?"
The second prince said patiently, "Mother, this is not a matter of life or death, it's a matter of who wins and who loses." He wondered, "Why do you always blame me because of others? Are they your children, or am I your child?"
"What did I do wrong?"
Ruanpin stared at the smile on his face and turned away: "If you do bad things, you will be punished one day. Don't get deeper and deeper."
The way they get along is totally unlike that of an ordinary mother and son.
The Second Prince: "Bad things? Retribution? No."
He pondered for a moment, "Oh, when I was five years old, I thought your personal maid was too noisy, so I pushed her into the river. Mother, you helped me deal with her body. If I did something bad, did you do something bad too?"
The second prince smiled gently and uttered two words: "Accomplice."
Concubine Ruan slapped him in the face.
There was a crisp sound.
She instantly returned to the autumn pond a few years ago. The maid was already dead when she was fished out. She hugged her son who seemed to be frightened and tried to comfort him, but her son smiled and said: Mother, after I pushed her down, she stopped bothering me.
At that second, all the blood in her body froze, and she felt as if what she was holding was not a child, but...
"A cold-blooded monster."
Later on, the older she got, the more she realized that the child she gave birth to had no empathy, as if something was missing from birth.
The second prince raised his hand and touched his face. "No matter what, you are not satisfied. When you find someone guilty, everything he does is wrong."
He stood up slowly and straightened his back.
"Mother, you think I'm a monster and hate me, but you only hate me. Even if you try to stop me, it's just words. You promised the eldest prince's wife to come to me to ask for mercy and pressure me with kindness. If I don't agree, it's evil. Then where is your 'kindness'?"
"When I first wanted to gain a foothold in the court and asked my grandfather for help, mother, you did not refuse. I have come this far with your help."
With every word he spoke, Concubine Ruan clenched her fingers a little tighter.
The Second Prince: "Mother, you are nothing but a hypocrite. We are mother and son, connected by blood and cannot be severed."
Ruanpin closed her eyes and said, "You really can't feel how much I care about you."
The Second Prince: "I can feel it, but mother, can you really not devote all your heart to your son?"
Ruanpin: "I have tried to bring your temper back countless times over the years!"
"I don't think there's anything wrong with me."
The second prince sighed and said, "In that case, next time I come to visit you, I should greet you from across the main hall." As usual, he maintained the appearance of a loving mother and a filial son.
"You can stay in the palace to take care of the animals and read some books," he said with his hands down, "and say hello to mother. I will take my leave now."
Concubine Ruan sat alone in the palace.
A kitten quietly landed on the ground, meowed, and lay on her legs.
Concubine Ruan finally came back to her senses and gently stroked the kitten's back with her fingers.
The maid came in and asked: "Madam, are you going out to see the plum blossoms today?"
Ruanpin said tiredly: "No, close the palace gate."
-
The eldest prince's palace.
The eldest prince locked himself in his study for the entire night and morning.
His hair was slightly disheveled, his eyes were bloodshot, he held a book in his hand, and sat in front of the bookshelf with his knees bent. The ground was scattered with volumes of "Zhou Laws".
After writing down what Xiaoqi said yesterday, he went back to his study and started reading it.
It's easy to find.
The Great Zhou Code, Chapter 6, "Officials", Article 134: [Officials who are related to the royal family by marriage, and whose main lineage can be called royal relatives, can be punished if found guilty, and the emperor may, at his discretion, punish their relatives.]
The eldest prince didn't understand what it meant for a while, so he flipped through the previous ones and finally found it.
Guandang means that if an official commits a crime, the crime can be reduced or offset by demotion, except for treason and other special crimes.
But the crime of corruption is not included in this list.
The original term applied to all officials, but the law was changed in this dynasty to only apply to officials who were directly related to the royal family.
But this rule is also very intriguing. It requires the consent of relatives and the emperor before the official can use this law to reduce the crime.
If you disagree with one of the two, this one is nonsense.
The eldest prince thought for a long time. He was wondering if there was anyone in the Shu family who had the status and position to be able to take up an official position with such a serious crime.
The servant outside knocked on the study door: "Your Highness, the eunuch from the palace is here."
The eldest prince then stood up and opened the door.
Bao Gongzheng was in the courtyard and bowed: "Your Highness."
The eldest prince said in a hoarse voice: "Why are you here? Is there something wrong with my father?"
Eunuch Bao came closer and whispered, "I came to check on you. His Majesty asked me to tell you that the imperial edict to deal with the Shu family will arrive at the East Factory in half an hour. His Majesty also said that since you have made your choice, don't back down."
The eldest prince: "When did I make a choice?"
Eunuch Bao was stunned for a moment: "Didn't you miss the morning court today..."
Moreover, the eldest prince's wife went to the palace to plead for mercy today. Anyone who saw this would think that the eldest prince had completely given up on the Shu family.
The eldest prince gritted his teeth and said, "I'm looking up information!"
Eunuch Bao stamped his feet and said, "Oh, you...if the imperial edict leaves the palace, it can't be changed!"
The eldest prince turned suddenly and rushed towards the door, but after a few steps, he stopped abruptly, with a look of painful struggle in his eyes.
Shu Wenxin came over. She didn't know how long she had been looking in the corridor. She politely said to Bao Gonggong, "You go back first."
After Eunuch Bao left, she walked up to the eldest prince.
The two were silent for a long time.
Shu Wenxin said with red eyes: "There's no way, right? You don't have it, and I don't have it either." She looked for everyone she could.
The Shu family is no longer valuable.
Now giving up the Shu family is the best option for the eldest prince.
"I……"
The eldest prince wanted to say that he had a way that might save Minister Shu, but when the words came to his lips, he didn't know how to say it.
Shu Wenxin lowered her head and shed tears. This was the first time she cried so desperately after getting married.
The eldest prince bit his tongue hard, and a bloody smell came out of his mouth. His slightly rough thumb brushed across Shu Wenxin's face.
Perhaps because there has to be one person who can keep the balance between husband and wife, the eldest prince calmed down in an instant: "Wen Xin, don't be afraid, wait for me to come back."
After saying this, he rushed out of the eldest prince's palace without looking back and galloped towards the imperial city on his horse.
The whip left an afterimage and the horse ran forward with all its might.
After getting off the horse, he ran towards the Purple Palace without stopping. The cold February wind blew on his face and his lungs felt like they were on fire. This was probably the fastest speed he had ever run in his life.
He ran past the towering palaces and the palace roads. The palace servants looked at him in surprise, and after several seconds they quickly lowered their heads and stood by the wall to make way for him.
The eldest prince thought that the expression on his face must be very ferocious.
He thought of the years when he competed with the third brother. After the third brother got into trouble, he was not happy, but confused. He thought of the moments when he was full of vigor and pride, and he was also so heroic.
He thought of his home which was gradually becoming warm and lively, his wife, and his children.
The eldest prince stopped outside the Zichen Palace, panting, and looked up at the circle of cold golden light surrounding the plaque above.
The sky was overcast and the golden light was somewhat dim.
He lifted his clothes and knelt down: "Your son Qu Ducang, begs to see the emperor——"
Choose power or choose friendship.
He kowtowed heavily, his voice breaking into a hoarse voice: "The Great Zhou Law, Chapter 6, Article 134, I am willing to be an official of the Shu family!!"
"I am willing to serve the Shu family!"
"I am willing to serve the Shu family!"
He shouted several times before Emperor Chongzhao came out of the Purple Palace.
Eunuch Yu felt that his face did not look good, and quickly cleared out all the people around the Zichen Hall, leaving only the guards.
Emperor Chongzhao said coldly: "Who are you to be an official of the Shu family?"
The eldest prince said: "The Shu family is married to the royal family. I am the son-in-law of the Shu family, so I am half a member of the Shu family."
Emperor Chongzhao: "Even if I agree, your position in the court cannot make up for his death penalty."
The eldest prince slowly stood up, and the blood from his forehead flowed down the bridge of his nose, seemingly splitting his face in two.
He said: "The king and his subjects, the father and his son, I am your son and also your subject. Among officials, the title is equivalent to the official rank——"
Emperor Chongzhao said angrily: "Shut up!"
The eldest prince spoke faster: "Prince is a title, Marquis is a title, and Prince is also a title. I am willing to use my title as Prince to atone for the Shu family's crimes!"
Emperor Chongzhao kicked him on the shoulder.
"You disloyal and unfilial person, for whom did you betray your father?"
The eldest prince climbed up and knelt again, "Please grant my permission, father!"
Emperor Chongzhao: "Get lost!"
He turned and left, but the eldest prince grabbed his clothes and begged bitterly: "Father... please..."
Emperor Chongzhao: "Let me go, you useless thing."
The eldest prince: "Father, I have never been ambitious since I was young. Why do you still use me to maintain balance?" He remembered what the third prince once said to him.
The third brother said that his father only treated him as a whetstone.
Emperor Chongzhao lowered his head suddenly: "What do you mean?"
The eldest prince said: "When I was in school, I always made the most mistakes and was the one that disappointed you the most. I tried hard, and I wanted you to praise me, but you always praised the second and third children. I was never the smartest. Father, why don't you give up on me?"
Emperor Chongzhao: "You are saying this to me for the sake of the Shu family?"
He said: "This is the time I am most disappointed in you."
He broke free from the eldest prince's wrist and returned to the Purple Palace.
Looking at his back, the eldest prince said, "Father, have you ever truly loved me and looked forward to me, like...like you love my seventh brother, truly and sincerely, treating me as your son, not a pawn to balance the court."
Emperor Chongzhao paused for a second and did not turn back.
Returned to the temple.
Emperor Chongzhao felt a continuous pain in his heart.
He poured out the pill given by the imperial physician and took one.
Eunuch Yu quickly poured him some water.
After a short pause, the stinging pain wore off, and from outside one could still hear the eldest prince begging for mercy and kowtowing.
Emperor Chongzhao opened the window a crack and saw blood on the ground.
-
The eldest prince kowtowed sincerely.
When he was about to faint, Eunuch Yu passed by him holding an imperial edict and whispered, "Your Highness, stop kowtowing. His Majesty has agreed."
The eldest prince was stunned.
Eunuch Yu: "Here, this is the imperial edict that was retrieved. It was a close call. If we were a step slower, the imperial edict would have left the palace."
Alas, the punishment was reduced, not pardoned. The eldest prince lost all the titles he had worked so hard for. It was really... Eunuch Yu was unable to comment on this in his heart.
The eldest prince endured the dizziness, knelt a few steps, and finally kowtowed: "Thank you, father, for your help!"
A cup flew out from the window and shattered in front of the eldest prince with a bang.
Emperor Chongzhao's cold voice came from inside.
"You are not qualified to call me father."
The eldest prince's lips trembled slightly, and two hot tears fell to the ground. He kowtowed again and said, "My son is gone."
He staggered to his feet.
Run fast when you come and walk slowly when you leave.
He walked down the high steps in front of the Zichen Palace step by step. Halfway down, he raised his hands to cover his face, and a string of laughter came out of his throat, which sounded like laughing and crying, sad and happy.
Tears and blood mixed together, looking messy and terrifying.
The sun was high above the world behind the dark clouds, and the faces of the beasts on the eaves of the palace of power could not be seen clearly.
The eldest prince returned to the palace and stood at the door wiping the blood and dirt off his face.
Shu Wenxin came out after hearing the news. Seeing him like this, she felt very sad. She grabbed the eldest prince's wrist and said, "Go home first. I'll wipe it for you. It's not nice to be out there."
She thought it was useless for the eldest prince to come to the palace to plead for mercy.
The eldest prince was silent for a long time, "Wen Xin, we may have to live a hard life in the future. We may not be able to stay in the capital."
Shu Wenxin was stunned. "You...you just entered the palace and said something wrong?"
The eldest prince lowered his head: "I changed some things."
After waiting for a while, Shu Wenxin knew what he had changed.
Eunuch Yu was holding a freshly-made imperial edict.
"The eldest prince pleaded for mercy, and His Majesty granted his request. He stripped Qu Ducang of his title as a death sentence for Minister Shu. Minister Shu was sentenced to life imprisonment, and the Shu family was exiled to Lingbei, with the exception of women who were not allowed to become prostitutes and men who were not allowed to become slaves.
The eldest prince is the centurion of the Lingbei Chuanfeng. He must set out for Lingbei on a chosen day and there must be no mistakes. "
From prince to centurion, from the capital to Lingbei.
There is a world of difference.
But at least I saved my life.
The eldest prince: "I accept your order."
Eunuch Yu sighed slightly. Watching these children grow up and become what they are now in the past twenty years, he felt sad in his heart.
"Take care on your journey, Your Highness."
The eldest prince said, "I am not His Highness, so don't call me the wrong person from now on." After a pause, he continued, "If I go to Lingbei, we may not even have the chance to meet."
Eunuch Yu: "Your Majesty is just angry, but you are still his son after all. Besides, fate is unpredictable, and you may come back in the future."
The Shu family was exiled to Lingbei, and the eldest prince went there to be a centurion, so the Shu family would be better off.
The eldest prince: "Eunuch, take care."
After Eunuch Yu and his men left, the eldest prince looked at Shu Wenxin, who was holding the imperial edict.
"I changed it without consulting you."
Shu Wenxin: "After so many years of planning and accumulation, the position of prince, power and status... you just say you don't want it?"
The eldest prince said: "It hurts like cutting my flesh. But if I don't cut it, my family will be gone. But I'm afraid I can't avenge my eldest brother-in-law for a while."
Shu Wenxin hugged him and cried bitterly.
"Why are you still so stupid?"
-
Qu Watanabe was washing the dog when he learned the result.
He was not surprised by the eldest prince's choice.
"When will big brother and his family leave?"
Ye Xiaoyuan: "Soon, in the next few days."
Qu Watanabe: "When the time comes, I'll go see them off."
Leaving and leaving the capital is a good thing.
After he finished bathing his second dog, Sunsun, a pigeon flew in from outside the courtyard wall. Ye Xiaoyuan whistled and the pigeon landed on his arm.
Ye Xiaoyuan unfolded a note with the highest level of encryption.
Qu Watanabe had taught Ye Xiaoyuan how to translate the most highly encrypted note, but he was not proficient in it and only recognized the first two words: "Your Highness, from the north."
He unfolded the note in front of Qu Watanabe.
Qu Dubian looked over and his fingers that were washing the dog paused slightly.
Then he shook his hands and looked to the north.
"The Second Royal Court will be destroyed, and there will be chaos over there."
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