Jiang Yuanjun looked at him expressionlessly, "...
Gao Jian's hands trembled uncontrollably.
Jiang Yuanjun looked at him expressionlessly. "Gao Jian, ten years is really too long. You've gotten used to a carefree life, are you going to forget the past?"
Gao Jian opened his mouth wide, his face instantly turning as pale as paper.
In the past, he and Qin Heng were like brothers, sharing a deep friendship. But at some point, he gradually began to distance himself from Qin Heng and avoid him.
Gao Jian reached up to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead and then the tears streaming down his face.
"Your subject... reports on him..."
"Who is it?" Jiang Yuanjun looked at him coldly.
"You alone, Li Mou, could never have done it. Are you my fourth great-uncle, Prince Jing? Or my sixth great-uncle, Prince Yan? Or have you colluded with other court officials, such as the Liang family? The Li family?"
"Is it to eliminate the Chu family or the Qin family? Whose path are you blocking? Speak!" Jiang Yuanjun's eyes were bloodshot, and her usually gentle gaze had become extremely sharp.
Gao Jian felt a chill run down his spine; he had never seen His Highness the Crown Prince like this before.
No, he had seen it once before, ten years ago in the imperial court, when the Crown Prince nearly suffered a disfigurement. It was the first time His Majesty had been angry with this eldest son on whom he had placed such high hopes.
He suddenly thought of his youngest daughter at home, and his throat tightened. After a long while, he said, "Your Highness, this humble subject... does not recognize Li Mou. The inappropriate remark I made fourteen years ago was because Li Yuanda often invited me to drink. He could not hold his liquor as well as I could, and when he drank too much, he would talk nonsense. One day, I was careful and got him quite drunk. It was just the two of us, and I asked him what he had been busy with lately?"
“That summer, during the sweltering heat, he said that he was always summoned by His Majesty, who was still the Crown Prince. You know that Li Yuanda was an excellent swordsman, and His Majesty liked to spar with him at that time. However, he often played chess with Xuzhi in the room and forgot the time. We close ministers all know that His Majesty dislikes being disturbed when playing chess, and as a minister, he dared not make a sound. So Sun Shaopu just left him waiting outside.”
"He complained to me that Xu Zhi's official rank was getting higher and higher, and he no longer respected his colleagues and friends. He spent his days chatting and drinking with Chu Lanzhe and Luo Songyue. What does it matter if the old Duke of Dingguo is dead? What does it matter if those meritorious officials who followed Emperor Taizu to conquer the country are passing away one after another?"
"Back then, Emperor Taizu wanted Xuzhi's youngest daughter to be the Crown Prince's wife first and then the Crown Princess. Once His Highness the Crown Prince ascends the throne, if he really wants Xuzhi's youngest daughter to have a place in the harem, you can see whether she will become the Empress, the mother of the nation, or a Consort who will be constrained by the Empress and always be inferior to her."
"Let's see what the Qin family will be like now that Xu Zhi is the emperor's father-in-law. They are becoming more and more prosperous." At this point, he lowered his head and his voice trembled slightly. "During that time, I listened to his whispers in my ear so much that I started to complain a bit."
Jiang Yuanjun glanced at him coldly, then disappeared into the darkness.
Gao Jian couldn't see his face clearly, but he knew that His Highness the Crown Prince must be harboring anger, suppressing it without letting it out.
After a long while, he finally heard Jiang Yuanjun say, "What do you think, Gao Jian?"
"If she were still alive, what choice should I make?"
Jiang Yuanjun stood in the shadows, and Gao Jian could not see his expression at that moment, only hearing a faint sigh from him.
Gao Jian hung his head, his face ashen.
Not long after, he heard Ah Xiao ask again, "You said you didn't know Li Mou, so what were you doing at Li Mou's grave after he died?"
"To pay respects to a stranger?"
As if struck by lightning, Gao Jian was jolted awake. He kowtowed repeatedly, each kowtow heavier than the last.
"Your Highness, I was confused for a moment! I was just curious about Li Mou."
In the darkness, Jiang Yuanjun gave a cold smile.
Gao Jian felt a chill run down his spine as he suddenly recalled the heavy snowfall ten years ago, which blanketed the palace city. The young man was rushing out of the city gate against the cold wind. The snow was so fierce that as he brushed past him, the sedan curtain was lifted high, and the young man smiled back at him with sharp eyes.
At that time, the case of Duke Dingguo had been settled, and he had to bite the bullet and go to court because he had been feigning illness at home for a long time.
Jiang Yuanjun looked at his blood-stained forehead, her eyes filled with coldness.
He said, “Gao Jian, you have a wife and daughters. After you are gone, I will arrange for someone to take care of them. Just tell me everything you know, and tell the world. Then you will have died a worthy death. Ten years ago, I was still a child, but I knew that Uncle Qin had treated you well. I also knew right from wrong. How could Uncle Qin kill his best friend of many years?”
Just like that year, he asked his father the same question.
With his back to him, the Emperor gently wiped a precious sword on the display shelf, a sword that his uncle from the Qin family had always carried with him. Then, in a hoarse voice, he said to him, "My son! This is the empire left by your grandfather. Your father must give the world an explanation! When your father returns one day, he will seek out Xuzhi to apologize. But why doesn't Xuzhi believe his father? If your father hadn't left that day, wouldn't he still be alive?"
Gao Jian, a man in his early forties, was already weeping bitterly, his lips pressed together, and he remained silent.
After a long while, he heard Jiang Yuanjun sigh softly again, and then saw him turn to leave.
He hurriedly called out, "Your Highness, would you mind present me with a cup of fine wine tomorrow?"
Gao Jian smiled sadly: "Your Highness, your appearance is very similar to the late emperor, but your temperament is different. You are more delicate than the late emperor."
But this sensitivity also caused him to lose all his childhood friends, close associates, and elders who had watched him grow up.
Gao Jian gripped the iron bars of the prison cell with both hands and slid down slowly and dejectedly.
"Some time before General Chu Lanzhe set off on his campaign, Li Mou suddenly approached me, saying that Xu Zhi had been arrogant and conceited for a long time. While the General was charging ahead to protect the country, Xu Zhi was enjoying himself in the capital. Back then, the old Marquis of Jingning died suddenly from illness, and the old Duke of Dingguo also died with his eyes wide open in discontent. The two of them argued so fiercely that no one knew what had happened. Li Mou asked me if I was willing to teach him a lesson. He said that I loved to drink, and as long as I found a way to subtly mention this to my colleagues while they were drunk, I didn't need to do anything else. Afterwards, no one could blame me." He sobbed, "Later, Xu Zhi died, and not a single member of the Qin family was spared. I really didn't expect that! I didn't want to kill Xu Zhi! I watched Ashu grow up too! I just wanted to teach him a lesson."
"Later, I realized why Li Mou specifically asked me to do this. Also, after the incident, I followed Li Mou and discovered that he had met with a lame opera singer at Woxue Pavilion. The two seemed to be exchanging something. The opera singer noticed me, but Li Mou probably didn't see me. However, I ran fast, and he didn't see my face, nor did I see his. I was terrified for a while, afraid that Li Mou would find out it was me. But less than two days later, Li Mou accidentally killed a poor scholar who had passed the imperial examination."
Jiang Yuanjun suddenly stopped.
"Then the Snow Pavilion caught fire, which unfortunately killed many people. After that, everything was calm."
"Your Highness, this is all I know." He then gave a bitter laugh. "But Your Highness, in the case of the Duke of Dingguo, all those who suffered in the case are now buried in the earth, their flesh and blood turned to bones. Moreover, it was His Majesty who personally concluded the case. What's done is done, how can it be reversed? To His Majesty, the Duke of Dingguo is undoubtedly his close friend and confidant. But he is also an emperor, and the authority of an emperor cannot be questioned or disregarded. Even if you are the Crown Prince, you were born into the royal family, and sometimes the difference between ruler and subject is just a thought away. Your Highness, if you do not have the courage to burn your bridges and have enough evidence to exonerate the Qin family, I advise you to stop here."
Gao Jian knelt and bowed again, saying, "Your humble servant respectfully sees off His Highness the Crown Prince!"
A mournful voice echoed from the cage behind him: "Xu Zhi! Da Cheng has no face to see you!"
In the dimly lit alley, Jiang Yuanjun abandoned the palace lantern she was carrying and walked towards the light without looking back.
The sky was a clear, blue expanse.
Last night, Luo Zhaoxing rested in the Bisha Pavilion on the second floor. This morning, when she got up, her eyes were completely dark. At this moment, Pu Niang was in front of the dressing mirror doing her makeup.
Pu Niang looked at her with pity: "You're always having nightmares, what are we going to do!"
A night of nightmares. The courtyard was unusually quiet today, and Feng Hua wasn't around. She was just thinking of asking Pu Niang when Feng Hua hurriedly entered the room, went around the screen, and looked somewhat solemn. She whispered in her ear, "Miss, Gao Jian committed suicide in the imperial prison. Before he died, he wrote a thousand-word letter in blood, and left sixteen characters on the wall of the prison cell—'A loyal and meritorious descendant.' and—'A loyal minister and general who sacrificed himself for the country.'"
Luo Zhaoxing raised his head and stood up abruptly.
Why, why these sixteen characters?
Feng Hua said, "The letter written in blood was discovered by the Embroidered Uniform Guard and swallowed. The commander, Liang Xu, had someone cut open his stomach to retrieve it, intending to crush it on the spot and then smear Gao Jian's blood on the sixteen characters to cover it up. After all, he was the Minister of Works in life! But there were too many people on duty in the imperial prison yesterday, and many people saw it. Seeing that he had no other choice, Liang Xu could only say in front of everyone that he would immediately present the letter to the Emperor. As for what crime was presented to the Emperor, no one knows."
Luo Zhaoxing was taken aback, then turned to look at Luo Yuan outside the small window, knowing that it was a message from his elder brother.
"Isn't the execution still some time away?"
Over the years, Luo Ling, Tao Qingyun, and Jiang Yuanjun have been secretly investigating Gao Jian, Li Yuanda, Li Mou, and the Liang family in the capital.
Because none of them believed that Duke Dingguo Qin Heng would murder his longtime friend, Marquis Jingning Chu Lanze.
But she never expected that Jiang Yuanjun would act one step ahead of her.
Feng Hua lowered her eyelids: "The message the young master sent said that His Highness had just been released from the imperial prison when the current emperor already knew and summoned him. However, His Highness refused to say anything. It is simply unacceptable for a high-ranking official to die in prison before his execution. Therefore, the current emperor concealed the Crown Prince's whereabouts and even transferred the guards who were on duty last night to another location. It is said to be Danzhou, which is thousands of miles away from the capital."
Luo Zhaoxing listened quietly.
Feng Hua continued, "Miss, the important thing is, guess what? Gao Jian had a backup plan. Our people said that after Liang Xu left, when the coroner examined the body, they took off his clothes and found two large, bloody characters carved on Gao Jian's chest, and they were very deep!" As she spoke, Feng Hua took her hand and lightly traced the two characters in her palm.
"Qin is innocent."
"When Liang Xu found out, he was desperate and asked where the dagger came from, but no one dared to answer. It wasn't until this morning, when the number of people in the prison was counted, that he discovered that two of the guards had been transferred from Danzhou overnight by a commander surnamed Yang, and a minor official had taken leave from work yesterday because he had a bad stomachache and was vomiting and having diarrhea. Liang Xu, on suspicion of harming an important official of our dynasty, had the minor official tied up and taken to the Jinyi Prison. He then sent someone to question this Commander Yang, but unexpectedly, Commander Yang said that there was an order from above, and the minor official also had his neighbors as witnesses."
"Until daybreak, Liang Xu learned the whole story and realized that the matter was probably related to the Crown Prince. His face turned ashen with rage. But with that petty official in the lead, there were plenty of people in the neighborhood who wanted to watch the spectacle. Gao Jian's wife and daughters heard the news and insisted on breaking into the government office. They stood in front of the office crying and refused to leave. Although Liang Xu sent people to cover up the news of Gao Jian's death, it was to no avail."
"A minor official?" Feng Hua was about to speak when Luo Zhaoxing suddenly interrupted her.
She asked Feng Hua, "Did you get any news from the Jingning Marquis's residence that I asked Luo Yuan to keep an eye on it last night?"
Upon hearing this, Feng Hua lowered her head, twisting the hem of her dress incessantly with her hands: "I almost forgot about that. Luo Yuan said that the young Marquis of Jingning got completely drunk at Shuiyun Tower today, and even rewarded the musicians who played the music with a large sum of money. In the end, he had to be carried back by Jiuqu and Songyang together. He had quite a good time!"
A note from the author:
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Thank you to the little angel from Flower Market for the nutrient solution.
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