Chapter 37 No regrets, no shame; no fuss, no argument
Qingling also heard something strange and lifted the curtain to look outside.
Just then, a loud "clang" of a gong rang out.
From another fork in the road, officials cleared a path, separating the people, and then a prison cart slowly drove by.
Qing Ling squinted, trying to make out who was sitting inside the prison cart, when she heard the people outside the cart talking: "That's General Zhennan..."
General Zhennan?
As the prison van drew closer, Qingling could clearly see the man sitting inside.
The man was dressed fairly cleanly, with his head hanging down and his hair tied up. He didn't look down on his luck, but the angle made it difficult to see his face.
However, it is evident that he was tall and strong, which made the prison cart seem cramped, his legs unable to straighten, and his back forced to be hunched over.
Qingling felt that he had been given a prison van used by female prisoners.
As the saying goes, "One cannot be subdued by force."
It felt like they were deliberately making him adopt this subservient posture to undermine his backbone and dignity.
What crime did this dignified general commit to deserve such humiliating punishment?
Qingling stared at it curiously, her eyes fixed on it.
He was probably not a truly wicked person, so the people didn't throw stones at him; the officials who detained him didn't treat him badly or whip him.
The man in the prison van seemed to sense her gaze and suddenly looked up at her.
Qingling met his gaze directly.
Those were like the eyes of a wolf, sharp and fierce, yet calm, like a wolf king leisurely enjoying peace?
Qingling didn't know why she had such a thought.
She looked away, but her eyes inadvertently met Zhan Xingzhuo's.
Zhan Xingzhuo had noticed Yao Qingling's focused gaze on Lin Shiyuan earlier.
It reminded him of the day at the Spring Banquet, when she quietly watched a young maid on the stage perform with swords and spears.
He disliked her focused gaze, and even more so, he disliked how intently she looked at other men.
In that instant, Qingling saw Zhan Xingzhuo's displeasure; his face lengthened and his eyes darkened.
What was he unhappy about? Was the prison van blocking his way?
Qingling, on the other hand, wished the road would be even more congested, preferably until dark.
She pursed her lips and asked, "I just heard someone say that he is the General Who Guards the South. What crime did he commit?"
Zhan Xingzhuo had no idea what the Emperor was doing.
The court was in an uproar, debating for almost a month, but no decision had been reached.
However, he was not a close advisor to the emperor, so those people probably gave the emperor some advice to humiliate this General Zhennan.
However, Zhan Xingzhuo had no good feelings towards Lin Shiyuan. He said indifferently, "He killed those who surrendered."
It's as if they're talking about something insignificant, something that should be despised and scorned.
Yao Qingling was taken aback, as it stirred up distant memories.
The flames of war raged on the southwestern border. Yi people disguised themselves as Li people and infiltrated the country. They burned, killed, and looted everywhere, turning large towns into scorched earth. The sky was dark and gloomy, thick smoke from the still-burning flames. The air was filled with the smell of burnt flesh, which was not disgusting but painful.
The pain was so intense that I vomited, and I couldn't calm down for a long time; my heart became a desolate wasteland.
When my father reclaimed the lost territory, his eyes were red as he said that he would kill all the barbarians to avenge the people of this land!
He won the battle, recovered lost territory, and captured tens of thousands of Yi people.
He kept all the prisoners thirty miles outside the city, depriving them of food and water, but did not take their lives.
In the end, these prisoners were exchanged for a million taels of silver, hundreds of thousands of cattle and sheep, and tens of thousands of bolts of cloth during the peace talks between the two countries.
But less than three years later, the Yi people returned, and war broke out once again.
They were still the same Yi people.
That time, her father died on the battlefield and never returned with a smile. She could only support her father's and mother's coffins as she embarked on the road back to the capital...
Yao Qingling clenched her icy fingers, the chilling coldness alternating with the lingering heat of her blood, causing her knuckles to turn white.
What's wrong with killing surrendered soldiers?
Shouldn't those foreigners have died?
They killed the people of Li Kingdom. How tragically those people died, and how tragically the soldiers on the battlefield died.
Why is a general who defends the country being locked up in a prison van?
Her stiff hand slid down from her knee and inadvertently touched the hand warmer placed to the side. The warmth brought Qingling back to her senses.
She hugged the hand warmer and took a deep breath.
Zhan Xingzhuo noticed that Yao Qingling's expression was off, so he reached out and touched her face. Qingling slightly turned her body away from him.
The man's hand missed its mark, and he glanced at her. Unwilling to waste any more time, he lifted the curtain and instructed the coachman to take another route.
Just then, the prison cart arrived at the erected platform. Lin Shiyuan was not released and remained in the prison cart, but an official carried a chair to the platform, and an old man in official robes walked over.
He spread his hands to signal for quiet, then placed both hands on his jade belt and read out the charges against the General of Zhennan in a loud voice.
"Now there is Lin Shiyuan, who fought at Fenling in the first month of the eighth year of Jingyan. The enemy troops disarmed and surrendered. However, he brutally slaughtered them, and blood flowed like a river... He defied Heaven and abused the people, and his crimes were the same as those of Jie and Zhou."
"...Military law states, 'Those who surrender will not be killed, as a sign of great trust.' Now, Lin Shiyuan has broken his promise and treated the treaty as worthless. Since this incident, the people of Yingguo would rather fight to the death than surrender..."
"The vengeful spirits weep in the night, their resentment soaring to the heavens; wild dogs fight over the food, the stench spreading for miles. The sight is too gruesome to bear, and their actions incur the wrath of both heaven and man… Such immoral acts will surely be punished by heaven, bringing shame upon the soldiers of the three armies and tarnishing the benevolent policies of the court…"
The complaint was heard intermittently, and Qingling got the gist of it.
She glanced expressionlessly at the official, then looked at Lin Shiyuan.
He appeared calm and composed, without a trace of shame, as if he were listening to someone else's story.
His cool and aloof eyes held an air of arrogance, as if he regarded everything else as nothing.
No regrets, no shame; no fuss, no argument; I'll leave it to you.
The carriage swayed, slowly retreating from the bustling city, while the official's booming voice continued.
"...However, General Lin Shiyuan fought in countless battles, protecting the safety of our Li Kingdom and its people with his own flesh and blood, refusing to yield an inch of land...His military exploits were outstanding, especially in the Battle of Yinzhou..."
The sound gradually faded into the distance.
Yao Qingling looked at Zhan Xingzhuo: "Why don't you continue watching? Shouldn't you be more concerned about court affairs than praying for blessings?"
Zhan Xingzhuo glanced at her indifferently: "What's it to you?"
She was completely focused on a stranger, but cold towards her husband.
Zhan Xingzhuo's face was full of displeasure.
Yao Qingling was speechless after being rebuffed by him.
Yes, matters of the court were none of her concern; but she cared about the general's fate.
Those who survive the battlefield should not die at the hands of their own people.
"...Today, let all the people of the capital judge. If you believe Lin Shiyuan is guilty, place the bamboo sticks here..."
Qingling lifted the curtain and turned to look behind her.
Zhan Xingzhuo looked at her with a cold face.
Suddenly, Yao Qingling stood up, lifted the curtain, and stopped the carriage.
Taoye rushed over: "Miss?"
Yao Qingling spoke quickly: "Quick, go and get the horse stool!"
Tao Ye hurriedly told the servant to bring a stool, but before the stool was fully placed, Qing Ling got off the carriage.
She gripped Taoye's hand, and with her other hand, she lifted her silk skirt and ran towards the stands.
"Quick, let's go take a look."
Inside the carriage, Zhan Xingzhuo's face was ashen as he watched Yao Qingling blend into the crowd.
That agile figure showed no signs of dizziness or discomfort!
Minglu was also astonished. He looked at his master and asked, "Master, what's wrong with the young mistress—"
Didn't we say we were going to Yongning Temple?
They escaped?
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