When Wen Sangu saw the girl in front of her again, her eyes were filled with ice...
Luo Zhaoxing stood there stunned for a long time before sitting back down in front of the dressing mirror.
She looked at herself in the mirror and watched as Pu Niang took a brush and applied makeup to her eyebrows and face.
Last night, her brother told her that Gao Jian had been sentenced to death by beheading, and that Marquis Li Yuanda of Wuding had been stripped of his title and his property confiscated. The rest of the male members of the Li family were exiled to Lingnan, and the female members were left to fend for themselves.
Her brother remained as calm as ever. He told her that everyone has their reasons for doing things, and no one can predict the future. But people can be good or evil, and events can be good or bad. Therefore, he believed that good deeds will be rewarded, and evil deeds will be punished.
The older brother gently wiped away the last tear from the corner of her eye with his fingertips, then smiled and comforted her.
"So you see, even God is helping us. The Star Gazing Tower collapsed, and Gao Jian is already in prison. Our original intention was to use him as bait to lure the fish to take the bait. Even without the Star Gazing Tower incident, what we know about him over the years—his falsification of construction materials and embezzlement of funds—is enough. It's just that with the collapse of the Star Gazing Tower, he will have to bear even more."
"As for Li Sheng, he has a murder case against him, and the truth will come out sooner or later."
"After Li Sheng was imprisoned, he was so frightened by the tortures that he was speechless. After a few days, he kept crying out that he was innocent and that he wanted to redeem himself by exposing his father."
"Gao Jian was careless and neglected to properly repair the pavilion, resulting in the ruin of the Observatory. The people from the Northern Garrison began to investigate Gao Jian's actions over the years on the Emperor's orders. His Majesty ordered A Jun to thoroughly investigate the matter. A Jun then followed up on Li Sheng's few words and truthfully revealed that Li Yuanda had been smuggling salt outside, and that Gao Jian had also been involved. Every single one of these things was a crime."
"At first, the people in the prison were quite polite to him. Marquis Wuding also greeted the families who went up the tower with Li Sheng. Li Sheng denied it, saying that he was just an onlooker. It was Zhao You, the son of the Earl of Qingping, and Lu Zhan, the son of the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, who had some disagreements in the past and got into a fight. The two of them pulled and tugged and fell down."
"Later, Li Sheng was tortured and then confessed that he was drunk that day and happened to meet Zhao You on Gulou Street. He knew that Zhao You's father was at odds with Qingping Bo, but he secretly admired him and wanted to befriend him so that they could go up the tower together for fun. Therefore, he bribed the tower guard and wanted to go up the tower to watch the stars. However, he was frightened by the fire at the East Market restaurant and tried to leave. He accidentally bumped into Zhao You and Lu Zhan who were standing in front of the railing."
"But the people of the Northern Garrison Command have known all these years that he has committed all sorts of evil deeds, and His Majesty has already ordered that this matter be severely punished. Once Li Sheng was imprisoned, when someone asked him if he had harmed any other innocent lives over the years, he would never admit to anything else."
"As for Li Yuanda, he probably never imagined that one day his beloved son would expose him."
She recalled how Jiang Yuanjun had nearly assassinated Li Sheng in the bustling city years ago, but failed to kill him due to her brother's intervention. As a result, he had been secretly keeping an eye on the Li family all these years.
On the eve of the day Gao Jian and Li Sheng were to be sentenced, Lu Yun, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, met with Emperor Kang Le and expressed his desire to resign and retire to his hometown. At dawn the next day, Emperor Kang Le finally decided that although Li Sheng had redeemed himself through meritorious service and showed remorse, he had innocently injured the families of two court officials. He was to be flogged forty times and then immediately exiled along with the male members of the Li family. The execution was to be carried out in prison.
The Imperial Prison was managed by the Northern Garrison Command, and its punishments were notoriously cruel.
Once this stern warning falls, whether it is too lenient or too severe depends entirely on the current emperor: one is the son of a former powerful court official, and the other is the eyes of all the people under heaven.
The Earl of Qingping lived a life of simplicity and indifference to fame and fortune. To appease him, the emperor bestowed upon him and his wife the title of First-Rank Imperial Lady. They were granted the privilege of being enshrined in the family ancestral hall after their deaths.
Those "innocent" scions of noble families who followed Li Sheng up the tower were also unintentionally implicated and subsequently released from the Zhao prison.
Luo Zhaoxing got up and walked to the small window, remaining silent for a long time.
Seeing that Luo Zhaoxing was just recovering from her cold, Pu Niang was still worried and took a cloak from behind her and draped it over her back. She noticed that Luo Zhaoxing seemed to be gazing into the distance at that ethereal, boundless world, with its magnificent palaces and pavilions.
Luo Zhaoxing then rested his head on Pu Niang's shoulder.
Pu Niang looked at her with affection, then at the hibiscus buds in the courtyard outside the window.
"What are you thinking about, young lady?"
Pu Niang grasped her cold hand. She was just like that soft and beautiful hibiscus flower, always growing and blooming tenaciously with resilience.
When she saw the girl before her again, her eyes filled with frost and snow, she said softly, "It's alright. The bloodshed and carnage are happening in the imperial court right now."
——
Just as Gao Jian's suicide in prison last night brought up the case of the Duke of Dingguo from ten years ago, the Marquis of Wuding's mansion was also thrown into turmoil.
The male members of the Li family were to be exiled to the Northwest, and their mansion and property had been completely confiscated a few days prior. This morning, the mentally unstable wife of the Marquis of Wuding, née Miao, suddenly sneaked into the mansion and dug up the dusty ground in front of the kitchen in what used to be their own residence, revealing three skeletons. The Li family's confiscation was sudden, and the Marquis of Wuding's mansion had not paid their monthly stipends on time. Furthermore, the noble families and officials in the capital, upon learning that they came from the Marquis of Wuding's mansion, all considered it bad luck and refused to employ them.
With nowhere else to go, the servants of the Li family followed Lady Miao, the wife of the Marquis of Wuding. Using the pretext that "how can the mistress of the Marquis's mansion be without money to protect herself," they brandished sticks and, with a show of bravado, injured the guards stationed outside the Li family residence, intending to rob her of her secretly hoarded gold and silver treasures. But then they suddenly saw three skeletons inside the house, and were immediately shocked, beginning to murmur amongst themselves.
Someone whispered among themselves, "Three skeletons. I seem to recall that when the Qin family's underage males were punished as government slaves, there were exactly three boys. Didn't they later come to this Li residence and escape because they were disobedient?"
When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter; the Li family is now like a pile of loose sand. Someone chimed in, "During that time, we often heard shouting and cursing coming from the young master's room. It seems he wasn't just doing too much work during the day, but was having wild dreams at night."
Some people exclaimed in surprise: "Could it be that Young Master Li accidentally killed someone? And those two, who were just innocent bystanders, are now also implicated? Poor things, they were just six or seven-year-old children. Good heavens, after the incident involving the young son of the Earl of Qingping, just how many lives has Young Master Li taken on his conscience?"
The wife of the Marquis of Wuding laughed maniacally and shouted, "I'll return your life to you! I'll return your life in place of my son! You wandering ghosts of the Qin family, don't try to take my son's life!"
The guards who remained at the Li family's residence immediately reported to the emperor, shocking the court and the public, and thus the case of the three bones came to light.
Emperor Kang Le immediately ordered Zhou Ming, the Vice Commander, to interrogate Li Sheng and Li Yuanda, who were still alive. This time, Emperor Kang Le bypassed Commander Liang Xu.
During the court assembly, Emperor Kang Le reprimanded several high-ranking officials who had previously been on good terms with Marquis Wuding. Zhou Quan, the Vice Minister of Revenue, stepped forward to advise: "Your Majesty, the adult male members of the Li family are to be exiled to the Northwest. Li Yuanda's wife, Miao, is now mentally unstable and not like a normal person. If this matter is really as Miao and the servants of the Li family say, then Li Sheng will have no way to make amends for his crimes."
Emperor Kang Le frowned and let out a long sigh.
After a moment's thought, Minister of Revenue Yan Bing stepped forward and said cautiously, "In that case, in this peaceful and prosperous era, Li Sheng's killing of five innocent lives may cause panic among the people."
Liang Shuwen stepped forward and said, “Minister Yan, I think this is a mistake. Back then, in the case of the Duke of Dingguo, His Majesty and the Empress Dowager had already pardoned the women of the Qin family and the underage male members of the Qin family as government slaves. This was already the best possible outcome.” After saying this, he bowed forward and said, “Just as Vice Minister Zhou said, Lady Miao has gone mad and does not recognize people. I believe that this matter cannot be judged in a general way and should be thoroughly investigated to determine who is right and who is wrong.”
"Since Qin Heng was capable of murdering his friend back then, what else is the Qin family incapable of doing? This will also give the Chu family an explanation. The young Marquis Jingning has just returned from the border, so we must not let the Chu family down."
Yan Bing stroked his white beard and glared at Liang Shuwen: "Lord Liang, you are putting His Majesty in an unjust position. Furthermore, how do you explain why these three children died in the Li family in such a way?"
Liang Shuwen was somewhat unconvinced, his chest heaving violently. But Yan Bing was a veteran of two dynasties, trusted by two emperors, and was a man of great integrity, so no one could find fault with him. Looking at Yan Bing, Liang Shuwen thought to himself and decided not to take it too seriously.
This man is practically half-buried; why is he getting worked up over an old man like him?
At this moment, Zheng Shi, the Left Censor-in-Chief who had been silent all along, suddenly let out a cold snort in his ear. The sound was neither loud nor soft, and the person next to him heard it clearly.
Liang Shuwen glanced at him sideways, only to see that Lu Yun, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, was staring at him with a blank face. He looked somewhat hesitant, coughed lightly, and was about to step forward to offer his advice when Zhou Quan spoke first: "Your Majesty, I believe that all these recent events are ultimately due to the name 'Qin,' as if someone is deliberately doing this. In my opinion, we should use the Wu Ding Marquis's family as a starting point, and follow the clues to thoroughly investigate and uncover those behind them. This would put your mind at ease."
Emperor Kang Le's eyes widened slightly, and all the ministers lowered their heads.
Emperor Kang Le raised his voice: "Minister Zhou!" Then he thought of the Crown Prince who was imprisoned in the Eastern Palace, and his heart couldn't help but surge.
Zhou Quan remained calm and composed, saying, “Your Majesty, the Dingguo case was solved ten years ago with irrefutable evidence. Now, someone is causing trouble, leading to fear and unease throughout the court, and even the Grand General is unable to sleep peacefully. It has also become fodder for gossip among the women of my colleagues and their families, which is truly inappropriate. If we can find the person behind this, His Highness the Crown Prince can work in peace and the world can be at peace. Your Majesty can also resolve this long-standing knot in your heart.”
The ministers looked at each other in bewilderment. Zhou Quan's blow had knocked down a whole group of people.
Emperor Kang Le's anger subsided slightly, and he fell into deep thought; this was indeed what he wanted to see.
His son was in his early twenties, an age when he should have been able to make great strides and start a family long ago. However, due to the Qin family case, it had been delayed until now, and the entire Eastern Palace was in chaos. The portraits of eligible young women from various noble families that he had ordered Chen Guiyi to send in box after box, and they all came out untouched.
He suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the assembled ministers below the throne and vaguely saw Xu Zhi, a young man in his early thirties, in the prime of his life, and Cheng Yi, a spirited and ambitious young man, smiling at him from among the ministers.
Why does Ke Chengyi look like a young boy? It turns out that he was at his most dignified and imposing when he was young.
In a daze, it seemed as if he had returned to his childhood, when his father repeatedly instructed him: "Sinian, you should know what you should do when your father grows old and passes away."
In a daze, he seemed to see Ye Ning again, clad in armor and wielding a long spear. But in an instant, the figure beneath the armor transformed into his old friend, the young Cheng Yi.
He was jolted, nearly slipping off his throne, but Chen Daban beside him immediately caught him. He steadied himself, blinked, and saw no trace of his old friends Xuzhi and Chengyi. Ten years had passed; their bones were buried in the earth, vanished without a trace.
He sighed deeply, then glanced at the assembled officials. Seeing these incompetent courtiers, their heads drooping, some silent, others with their eyes darting around, seemingly lost in thought, he nearly fainted.
Chen Guiyi whispered a reminder: "Your Majesty?"
After a long silence, he waved his hand, looked up and murmured to himself, his eyes filled with tears: "My friends of thirty-nine years are gone. Have my two old friends returned to see me?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Guiyi's gaze sharpened, and all the civil and military officials under the dragon desk trembled in shock.
Just as Chen Guiyi was about to speak up again, Emperor Kang Le straightened his expression and looked at Luo Ling, who had been silent among the court officials, and asked, "Nephew, what do you think of this matter?"
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