Chapter 557 Demoted to Commoner
With the marriage between the Third Prince of our dynasty and the Seventh Princess of Anguo settled, the envoys from Anguo did not linger in Zhao and set off to return to Anguo to prepare for the Seventh Princess's wedding.
Not long after the Anguo envoy left, something happened in the Zhao state that shocked the court and the public.
The Xiao family was sentenced to be executed along with their entire family for plotting to murder Crown Prince Huizhao, embezzling public funds, forming cliques and engaging in corrupt practices. Ministers who were close to the Xiao family were punished to varying degrees according to the severity of their crimes. For example, the Xiao family was dismissed from their posts and exiled to Lingnan for serious corruption, and their descendants were barred from participating in the imperial examinations.
As for the second prince, Emperor Jingwen spared his life out of consideration for his father-son relationship. He was given eighty strokes of the cane, demoted to a commoner, and imprisoned in the Imperial Clan Court, never to step out of it again. His birth mother, Consort Xiao, was stripped of her title and banished to the Cold Palace.
After Crown Prince Huizhao was assassinated, many ministers believed that the rising Second Prince was likely to become the next emperor. Who would have thought that he was the mastermind behind the murder of Crown Prince Huizhao?
The Xiao family faction was either exiled after their property was confiscated, or demoted, and the Second Prince's power collapsed in an instant.
Those ministers who originally supported Crown Prince Huizhao but joined the Second Prince's camp after his death, yet were not caught red-handed and punished, were terrified. At the same time, they were secretly relieved that the Second Prince was deposed now, rather than after they made a move, otherwise they would have certainly suffered.
The imperial court was always turbulent and unpredictable, and the ministers who had been in officialdom for a long time were already used to it, but today's events still stirred up a storm in their hearts.
The second prince, who was originally considered by many ministers to be the one to succeed in the succession, was demoted to a commoner. People then began to speculate about which of the remaining princes had a better chance.
The third prince wanted to marry Princess Anguo, but given his mediocre talent and the weakness of his maternal clan, he could be excluded.
The fourth prince was intelligent, but he was sickly and weak, often falling ill. Once he fell ill, he would be bedridden for at least ten days to half a month. The future ruler of the country could not be a sickly person, so he could be excluded.
As for the fifth prince, the sixth prince, and the seventh prince, they are all young, especially the seventh prince, who is only three years old.
Therefore, many people speculate that the Sixth Prince will be the next Crown Prince. After all, the Sixth Prince is the legitimate son of the Empress. Those who originally supported Crown Prince Huizhao, but supported the Second Prince after Crown Prince Huizhao's death, are now starting to have their own ideas again.
After the court session, everyone had their own thoughts as they left the Golden Palace.
Minister of Revenue Yu walked with Gu Jingxi. He wiped the thin layer of sweat from his forehead and said in a low voice, "Minister Gu, this case is finally completely closed. The days of being on tenterhooks are finally over."
Gu Jingxi nodded slightly: "Yes, but I don't know which kind person provided the evidence."
Lord Yu replied, "It doesn't matter who it is, what matters is that the case is closed." He hadn't been able to eat properly these past few days because of the case of Crown Prince Huizhao, but now that the case is closed, he can finally get a good night's sleep.
Gu Jingxi wholeheartedly agreed: "That's true."
Lord Yu continued, "Lord Gu's earlier guess was correct. The Emperor did not punish the Second Prince back then to save face. Now that the Anguo envoy has left, he has dealt with the Second Prince and those associated with him."
Gu Jingxi said calmly, "Lord Yu, let's not bring this up again. The case is closed, and the matter is over."
Lord Yu nodded, changed the subject and chatted with him for a few words, before they parted ways and returned to their respective offices.
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The next day.
News spread from the Cold Palace that Lady Xiao, who had been stripped of her title as Imperial Concubine, had hanged herself there last night. She was only discovered this morning when palace servants went to deliver her food. However, this incident did not cause much of a stir, since the Xiao family had fallen from power and the Second Prince had been demoted to a commoner. Whether Lady Xiao was alive or dead was no longer important.
However, Emperor Jingwen has been in a bad mood since yesterday, probably because of the matter of Crown Prince Huizhao. The palace servants are all serving him carefully, and the ministers are even more cautious in their actions, for fear of accidentally offending Emperor Jingwen. At best, they will be fined or at worst demoted. Everyone has worked hard to climb up the ranks, and if they are demoted, it will take a lot of luck to get promoted again.
Dark clouds loomed over the imperial court, but this did not affect those outside.
The Changxing Marquis's Residence.
Ning Dong came in with a card and presented it to Meng Jinyao: "Madam, this is a visiting card from the Yongchang Marquis's residence."
Her family?
Meng Jinyao was slightly taken aback, then reached out and took the visiting card and glanced at its contents. It was a card sent by her stepmother, Zhao Shi, asking if she would be free tomorrow. If she was free, she would pay a visit tomorrow.
Meng Jinyao was curious as to why her stepmother would suddenly come to visit. Zhao Shi had only met her once on her wedding day after marrying into the Meng family, and she had never returned to her parents' home since. Zhao Shi had also never come to the Gu family to look for her.
Ningdong asked softly, "Madam, would you like to see her? The maid who delivered the visiting card is still waiting."
Meng Jinyao nodded and said, "Go and tell her that I am free all day tomorrow, and Mother can visit at any time."
Ningdong acknowledged and withdrew to report to Zhao's maid.
Not long after, Ningdong returned and asked curiously, "Madam, why do you think she suddenly wanted to see you? According to what we knew before, she wasn't bullied in the Meng family, and the old lady was on her side. The only one who was wronged was the Earl."
Meng Jinyao said, "Perhaps they just came to see me."
Ningdong shook her head slightly: "This servant doesn't think it's that simple. She wouldn't come to the temple without a reason. She must have something to say."
Meng Jinyao said indifferently, "What does it have to do with her? Just deal with it as it comes. But if she's going to cause trouble for my father and grandmother, then I'll have to intervene."
Ning Dong saw the sly smile on her face and chuckled, "Madam, if the Earl and the Old Madam knew what you were thinking, they would probably be furious."
Meng Jinyao chuckled softly: "What I'm thinking, didn't they already know? After all, I've never let them have their way."
Upon hearing this, Ning Dong fell silent, her smile fading, and said, "They don't deserve to have a time when they want things to go their way."
Meng Jinyao's smile faltered. When she looked up at Ning Dong, she saw the heartache and anger in Ning Dong's eyes. She softened her tone and said, "Ning Dong, those days of being controlled by others are over. They won't be able to cause any trouble in the future."
Ning Dong remained silent. The matter was over, but the damage had already been done. Their mistress had gone to great lengths to survive until she could get married and leave the Meng family. Many times, they had almost succeeded.
Meng Jinyao added, "Alright, let's not think about unhappy things anymore."
Ningdong nodded and obediently changed the subject: "Madam, I learned a new dessert from Chunliu, and I'll go make it for you right away."
Meng Jinyao asked with a smile, "Little glutton, are you making it for me or for yourself?"
Ningdong smiled and said, "Of course it's made for you, Madam. If you can't finish it, I'll help you with the rest."
Meng Jinyao gave her a reproachful look: "Fine, then go ahead and do it."
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