Chapter 73 Sacrificing the Pawn to Save the King
Cui Shiliang and the Imperial Concubine are now in complete panic.
The two men initially held onto a sliver of hope, thinking that without solid evidence, the Emperor, considering their father-son relationship, would at most impose a period of confinement for self-reflection and a reduction in their salary, which was nothing to fear.
But now, for some reason, there have been sudden impeachments by court officials and widespread public discontent, which has almost reached the point of threatening the very foundation of the nation.
Even if the emperor wanted to favor his only son, as the Son of Heaven, he ultimately had to maintain an image of "fairness and impartiality".
In order to maintain the stability of imperial power and appease the court officials and the people, how could we let them off lightly?
In the past few days, His Majesty has summoned the two prime ministers besides himself and held secret discussions in the Yan Ying Hall until late at night.
Anyone with eyes can see that they are probably discussing how to deal with the second prince.
As expected, Prime Minister Su, who had previously been very close to Prime Minister Cui, changed his stance immediately upon seeing the Second Prince's incident and the unfavorable situation, and severed ties with the Cui family.
When Cui Shiliang sent someone to sound him out, the man returned and reported that Prime Minister Su simply said, "This matter is of great importance, and I do not know much about it," before dismissing the man.
Seeing this, Cui Shiliang cursed under his breath, "Old fox."
Zheng Xiang, on the other hand, has always been a "neutral" figure in the court.
This person is well-versed in the art of self-preservation.
For him, the final outcome of the succession battle, or who wins, is irrelevant.
As long as it doesn't affect him personally, he can live a peaceful and stable life as a prime minister.
However, he had always been on good terms with Liu Jinzhang, and the two could be considered friends despite their age difference.
Now that Liu Jinzhang has died tragically, it's hard to guarantee that he won't advocate for severe punishment.
Therefore, for a moment, Prime Minister Cui was unsure of the Emperor's intentions.
Was he truly enraged and wanted to severely punish the Second Prince to appease public anger?
Are they trying to find a way out of "insufficient evidence" and get a lighter sentence?
The Imperial Concubine has privately pleaded with the Emperor several times in recent days, hoping to intercede for Li Yuanyou, but each time the Emperor has turned her away on the grounds that "concubines are not allowed to interfere in politics."
She no longer has any affection for this old man.
The love and longing hidden in my heart all those years ago have long been worn away by the cold and desolate palace day after day.
She had long seen through this man's fickle heart. He claimed to be devoted to the late Empress for life, yet he continued to have children in the harem one after another. His "devotion" was nothing but a facade for the world to see.
Over the years, if she hadn't secretly manipulated things in the harem, Li Yuanyou would probably not have been his only prince long ago.
But now, the Emperor shows no favoritism whatsoever towards his own son, and she is powerless to do anything as she watches Li Yuanyou being placed under house arrest.
Last time, when I asked the eunuchs to send some snacks to Yuan You, the imperial guards stopped me, saying, "His Majesty has decreed that the Second Prince's meals are to be arranged by the Imperial Household Department, and no one else is allowed to send them privately."
She would often cry to Cui Shiliang, "It's all your fault! If you hadn't indulged Jiulang's reckless behavior, if we hadn't been six months late in learning about his sister's death, how would Qi Sheng have had the opportunity to betray us? How would we have ended up in such a passive situation!"
Cui Shiliang had no way to express his bitterness; his son was already dead, so what was the point of saying anything now?
He also wanted to go to the palace to see the emperor and tell him the whole story of how "Sister Qi Sheng was abused to death by Cui Jiulang and her body was fed to the dogs".
This shows that Qi Sheng had a grudge against the Cui family, and that someone must have instigated and deliberately framed him.
Unfortunately, the two still don't know who exactly instructed Qi Sheng.
Cui Shiliang did listen to the Third Princess and had suspected Li Yuanzhao, but unfortunately, he had no evidence to prove that she was involved in the matter.
Moreover, revealing this matter would not only fail to clear the Second Prince of suspicion, but would also intensify the Emperor's dislike of the Cui family for their disregard for human life.
This might lead to him losing even his own position.
After much thought, I realized that this path was ultimately a dead end.
Cui Shiliang closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, his eyes were filled with determination. "Your Majesty, now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to take the last resort."
The imperial concubine suddenly looked up. "A terrible strategy? What terrible strategy?"
"Sacrifice the pawn to save the king," Cui Shiliang said, emphasizing each word. "Someone must step forward and take full responsibility in order to protect His Highness."
The imperial concubine instantly understood his meaning, "You...who do you want to send?"
Cui Shiliang didn't say anything explicitly, but just stared at the deep twilight outside the window, his eyes unfathomable.
The "pawn" who could make the emperor "reasonably" punish the second prince leniently, quell the anger of the court officials and the people, and preserve the foundation of the Cui family must not be a simple person.
This person also needs to have a grudge against Liu Jinzhang, and also need to have a superficial rift with the Second Prince.
In this way, his act of "instructing Qi Sheng to kill Liu Jinzhang and framing the Second Prince" could be believed by the people.
After much deliberation, among all the civil and military officials in the court, the one who best fits the bill is Lu Yuandao, the Minister of Justice.
The Lu family is a family of meritorious officials for generations, with many sons in the court. If he were to take the blame, his actions would carry enough weight to quell public anger.
More importantly, his old grudge against Liu Jinzhang was no secret.
Back then, Lu Yuandao allowed his nephew to embezzle disaster relief funds. Liu Jinzhang, who worked in the Ministry of Revenue, noticed the suspicious activity and wrote a memorial to impeach him.
He stepped in and suppressed the matter, and Lu Yuandao owed him a favor from then on.
Over the years, he used Lu Yuandao's position as Minister of Justice to fabricate charges and eliminate many political enemies.
He was also the one who cleaned up the mess behind the scenes for the Lu family's corrupt and illegal activities.
The interests of the Cui and Lu families were already deeply intertwined. While they were said to be inseparable, in reality, he held the Lu family's life and death in his hands.
Two years ago, Lu Yuandao's youngest son was overheard by the Second Prince talking about Li Yuanzhao behind his back in a restaurant. The Second Prince happened to be passing by and had him dragged out and beaten thirty times.
Unfortunately, the Lu family's carriage was late that day, and the youngest son of the Lu family lay in the cold wind for half the night, his leg bones caught a chill, and he developed a limp.
Although Lu Yuandao never publicly expressed his displeasure over this matter, it is reasonable to say that he harbored resentment towards the Second Prince in private from that time onward.
If he obediently takes the blame, the worst that could happen is that his family property is confiscated and he is exiled. He can also promise to restore the Lu family's official positions and grant them a title after the Second Prince ascends the throne.
If they don't know what's good for them... the evidence he has is enough to wipe out the entire Lu family.
The only pity is that Lu Yuandao had served in the Ministry of Justice for many years. He was ruthless and knew how to hide his shortcomings. Over the years, he had eliminated many dissidents for him. He was the most handy knife in Lu Yuandao's hands.
Now, in order to protect the Second Prince, he has to break this sword with his own hands, ultimately losing a valuable ally.
But then I thought, compared to the Second Prince's reputation and future, what is Lu Yuandao?
As long as he can be cleared of suspicion, even if the Lu family suffers some injustice temporarily, they will be able to make up for it many times over in the future.
Lu Yuandao himself understood this situation clearly.
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