Settled
As night fell, a group of people emerged from the darkness. Wang Juesong, dressed in black, was surrounded by them.
"Where is Lord Wang headed?" Chang Yi rode up and blocked Wang Juesong's path. Wang Juesong was startled but quickly calmed down.
"Lord Chang, I came to investigate after receiving reports of an incident outside the city. We both serve in the court and have some connection, and besides, I am His Majesty's loyal subject and you are His Majesty's son-in-law; we are all family." Wang Juesong was surrounded by guards, only his voice audible.
"Lord Wang is truly arrogant!" Wei Shu casually led the Imperial Guards to appear behind Wang Juesong and his entourage, surrounding them completely.
"You are not a loyal subject to His Majesty; you are merely a cunning opportunist." Jiang Jin stood beside Wei Shu, holding a bow and arrow.
"Wei Shu, you!" Wang Juesong suddenly remembered that all the changes began when Wei Shu entered Jiufang City.
"His Majesty has never favored me from the very beginning. You've been lying to me. You've made me lose three powerful backers. Wei Shu, you're even more ruthless than I thought!"
"But you managed to get the Wang family to abandon you with just a little trick. It seems the Wang family head doesn't trust you that much after all!" Wei Shu smiled coldly, like a ghost from hell, watching Wang Juesong, who was like a trapped beast.
"Do you have any other way out now? The Wang family wants to get rid of you as soon as possible, so surely your in-laws won't protect you?" Wei Shu approached Wang Juesong step by step under the moonlight. "Surrender now, stop resisting!"
A rapid hoofbeat shattered the tense atmosphere. "Report! A considerable amount of armor and crossbows have been found in Wang Juesong's residence. Princess Zhaoyang has ordered that Wang Juesong be arrested on his own, regardless of his life or death, as he is accused of plotting a rebellion!"
A group of men in black rushed out and broke through Wang Juesong's guards. A glint of light flashed in Jiang Jin's eyes, and she quickly rushed into the crowd. Seizing the opportunity, she fired a fatal arrow at Wang Juesong. The arrow pierced his brain, a fate that mirrored that of his son.
The events unfolded so rapidly that Wei Shu didn't even have time to intervene before Wang Juesong died right before his eyes.
"General Wei, these were found in Governor Wang's residence." The leader of the men in black placed boxes of crossbows in front of Wei Shu. "Her Highness the Princess was afraid that it would be inconvenient for you all, so she specifically instructed us to come and clean up the mess for you."
Wei Shu looked at the brand-new crossbows inside, his anger turning into a cruel laugh. "Is this Her Highness the Princess's idea?"
"Plundering the people's wealth might not be enough to take the lives of the Wang Juesong clan, but rebellion is different." Lou Xuan, wearing a black round-necked robe, stepped forward.
"The Wang family has already relocated their clan. Giving them a fatal blow now is a way of seeking justice for the people of Bianzhou. Besides, this bloodline can't be scattered so easily." Lou Xuan completely ignored Wei Shu's expression.
"Wang Juesong, who plotted a rebellion, has been executed. His body will be transported to the capital to await the Emperor's orders. The rest of the clan will await their fate in Jiufang City." Lou Xuan walked to Wei Shu's side under the moonlight.
"General Wei, you need to think this through carefully. With such a huge handle in Father Emperor's hands, won't he be too happy to sleep tonight?" Lou Xuan said with a smile as he walked into the city.
"Jiang Jin, do you know?" Wei Shu looked at Jiang Jin with red eyes. He desperately wanted to know if Jiang Jin had conspired with Lou Xuan to scheme against him.
"Of course I don't know, but things seemed a bit too relaxed today. Didn't Wang Juesong have more skilled martial artists around him?" Jiang Jin poked Wang Juesong's face with an arrow to make sure there were no problems before she felt relieved.
"Gentlemen, would you like to come with me to the governor's mansion to see what's going on?" Although Chang Yi was on the same side as Lou Xuan, it didn't mean he knew all of Lou Xuan's plans. Therefore, today's events had taken him by surprise.
"Jiang Jin, mount your horse!" Wei Shu, after mounting his horse, extended his hand to Jiang Jin, his hand gleaming brightly in the firelight. Jiang Jin, without a word, grasped Wei Shu's hand and mounted his horse.
The two horses galloped through the night and soon arrived at the governor's mansion, which was brightly lit inside. Lou Xuan rode slowly behind the three of them.
"What happened!" Jiang Jin jumped off his horse and saw many people kneeling in front of the governor's mansion, with men in black holding them back so they couldn't move.
"Wang Juesong intended to rebel, so I simply had someone watch over his family and await their fate." Lou Xuan walked to Jiang Jin's side. "Doesn't that person kneeling on the ground look familiar?"
Following Lou Xuan's gaze, Jiang Jin saw the woman kneeling behind the richly dressed woman. The woman, of course, also saw her but dared not raise her head, trembling as she hid behind the woman, trying to disappear into the darkness.
"What are you hiding for?" Lou Xuan's single glance brought Xueya to the forefront.
"Your Highness, my father's crime is not yet determined; you cannot resort to torture!" A young man dressed in his nightgown, looking as if he had just been thrown out of his room, blocked the woman's path.
"Is that so?" Lou Xuan sat down on the wooden chair Chang Yi had brought, tilting his head as he quietly looked at the noble families kneeling at his feet. Those families, usually so haughty and proud of their surnames, burst into laughter.
"Interesting, naive!" Lou Xuan gently tapped the woman's face with his finger, and Xue Ya pulled her to kneel before Lou Xuan.
"I heard you said that Lady Wei was of low social status and that your brother still bought her, and that there was no one in the Wang family that they couldn't have, whether they were of good or low social status?"
Lou Xuan pinched the woman's chin with her slender hand, looked at her with a gloomy gaze, and whispered in her ear, "You said you would demote your wife to a concubine. Lady Wei is kind and let you go, but I will not."
Lou Xuan released her, but the woman, unable to forget Lou Xuan's cold gaze, trembled uncontrollably. She moved aside and grabbed Jiang Jin's skirt, pleading, "Madam Wei, I was blind to your greatness! Please, spare me!"
Jiang Jin looked at the girl kneeling on the ground and sneered, "Haven't you and your brother committed enough sins? How many women in Jiufang City have died unjustly because of your jealousy and your brother's lust? I told you to watch your actions!"
Lou Xuan raised her hand and placed a sharp dagger in Xue Ya's palm. "You either cut off your own tongue or commit suicide."
"Your Highness, spare me!" The woman who had been kneeling to the side tried to rush to Lou Xuan to beg for mercy, but was firmly stopped by the man in black.
"My time is not for you to waste." Lou Xuan impatiently threw the dagger in front of Lady Wang.
"Either die or be crippled, you choose!" Lou Xuan urged impatiently. A sinister glint flashed in Wang's wife's eyes, and the next second she drew her dagger and lunged at Lou Xuan.
"Your Highness!" Lou Xuan reacted quickly, using the dagger at her waist to kill her. "Princess, are you alright?" Jiang Jin looked at Lou Xuan anxiously, fearing she was injured.
"Madam Wei, there's no need to worry, I'm fine." Lou Xuan laughed heartily as she looked at Lady Wang lying on the ground, her eyes wide open.
"Your Wang family has produced such a resolute person; you truly live up to Governor Wang's teachings!" Lou Xuan crouched down and drew the dagger from Wang's wife's hand.
"Assassinating a princess is an even greater crime. Do you think your Wang family will ever recover?" Lou Xuan looked into the eyes of those resentful young men and said, "There's no need to look at me like that. It's all about the victor and the vanquished. One day when I lose, you can do the same to me. But I suppose you'll never see that in your lifetime." Lou Xuan's voice sounded even colder and more ruthless in the darkness.
"Alright, the show's over. We need to give Commandant Chang and General Wei a little room to maneuver, otherwise it won't look good!" Lou Xuan got into the carriage Xue Ya had prepared.
"I must say, the Wang family's carriage is quite impressive. Even I, the Empress, don't need such a luxurious carriage when I travel." Lou Xuan lowered the curtain, and as the two horses departed, silence returned to the area in front of the Prefectural Governor's residence.
"Lock the entire Wang family in jail to await their fate." Chang Yi issued the order before Wei Shu could act, and Jiang Jin grabbed Wei Shu's sleeve to prevent him from arguing.
“Prefect Wang has been extorting money from the people, neglecting his duties and embezzling funds. These things should warrant the extermination of his entire family, but His Majesty will not actually execute his entire clan.”
Jiang Jin understood Lou Xuan's plan but had no way to stop it. "Then check those crossbows that suddenly appeared. If they appeared in large numbers, they might leave traces."
"Do you think His Highness would leave such a huge weakness for you to exploit?" Jiang Jin shrugged helplessly. "If you're willing to come back empty-handed, then go ahead and investigate."
“I know this method is indeed not honorable, but if Wang Juesong were a person who devoted himself to the country and its people, not only I but the common people would not allow it. He has amassed so much wealth from the people, either to bribe the two parties or to pay tribute to His Majesty. Even a little bit of it would be enough for the people to live on for a year.” Jiang Jin pulled Wei Shu aside and watched Chang Yi arrange the affairs of the Wang family in an orderly manner.
“Treason is a serious crime. If His Majesty is angered, it won't just be a matter of three or five generations of your family.” Wei Shu frowned, looking at Jiang Jin with great concern.
"Isn't this exactly what His Majesty wanted? With such a legitimate reason to eliminate the power of the aristocratic families, His Majesty will surely be happy tomorrow." Jiang Jin patted Wei Shu on the shoulder.
“I know you’re afraid of implicating innocent people, but there are no innocent people in the aristocratic families. Unless they secretly pledge allegiance to His Majesty, they are all supporters of the aristocratic families. We are only seeking a way out for the common people, and the methods we use are a bit dirty, but the aristocratic families are even more corrupt.” Jiang Jin sighed helplessly.
"Jiang Jin, don't you find this terrifying?" Wei Shu stared into Jiang Jin's eyes, not wanting to miss a single expression on her face.
"Isn't this just speculating on the emperor's will? 'When the emperor commands death, the subject has no choice but to die.'" Jiang Jin's words seemed to dispel the fog that had been obscuring Wei Shu's thoughts.
"We can guess what His Majesty wants to do, and Princess Zhaoyang certainly can too." Wei Shu knew that everyone, including himself, was merely a pawn in His Majesty's game.
“I was captivated.” Wei Shu breathed a sigh of relief. “There are countless factional struggles in the court, and framing and false accusations are commonplace, but none of them are as audacious as Princess Zhaoyang.”
“We always have to be ruthless when dealing with the malignant tumors of powerful families.” Jiang Jin glanced at the governor’s mansion, which shone brightly in the darkness, and said, “Should we investigate the governor’s mansion again?”
"What do you suspect?" Wei Shu stood beside Jiang Jin, looking at her furrowed brows.
"I want to know exactly how much tribute Wang Juesong gave to the capital. His Majesty has no way of finding out, but the two factions must know. I'm just afraid he'll destroy the account books."
"No, he'll leave himself a way out. I'll have Zhou Cong lead a search of his villa, and you and I will lead a search of the governor's mansion."
Jiang Jin nodded, selected a few Imperial Guards to enter the governor's mansion, while Wei Shu led the remaining Imperial Guards in the opposite direction from Jiang Jin.
Under the cover of night, the two searched diligently, afraid of missing even the slightest clue. Jiang Jin even sent a message to Lou Xuan, asking her to send some people to search as well. Unfortunately, they found nothing after three whole hours.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com