Chapter 757 A Gentleman Aren't Mighty
Inside the bronze incense burner, there were two incense sticks that someone had memorized beforehand. One of them had already burned out, leaving only a small section of the red stick stuck in the ashes.
The remaining pillar has already burned three-fifths of its weight.
From a distance, this Mars appears to be slowly descending.
But no one paid attention; all eyes were now silently focused on the man in the blue scholar's robe on the high platform.
Behind it stands a majestic Buddha statue against the cliff of the North Peak, with one hand raised in a palm position, a golden Buddha head, kind eyes and gentle features, gazing directly at the continuous mountain range of Mount Lu in front of it, and the "small" city on the flat ground between the two mountains.
The location of this Donglin Buddha statue is quite significant; it is not on the cliff of the South Peak, but on the cliff of the North Peak, facing south.
It implies sitting facing south.
The face of the golden Buddha head is said to be modeled after the face of a sage, as if sitting here, in place of the sage emperor of the capital, with a pair of "benevolent eyes" surveying the entire southern land.
It implies having keen insight, keen observation, and a commanding presence.
At this moment, perhaps due to the angle, this benevolent Buddha statue gazing into the distance cannot see what is happening beneath its feet.
Today's celebration ceremony has actually been cancelled, as most of the guests did not attend, leaving only the high platform and the surrounding bright red festive decorations.
Aside from Rongzhen, Yi Qianqiu, Granny Song, Duan Quanwu, and some trusted female officials and White Tiger Guard generals waiting for instructions near the platform, they could clearly hear the sounds and noises from the high platform.
Those further away, such as most of the female officials and soldiers guarding the main grotto, could not hear it. They could only glimpse some scenes on the high platform from afar. Moreover, everyone was conscientious in their duties, and unless their guarding and patrol positions happened to be facing this direction, it was not convenient for them to peek.
The entire main grotto was strictly sealed off, and no unauthorized personnel were allowed to approach. Even Wang Caozhi and his group had faced great difficulties getting in before.
Even Ouyang Rong, the governor of this prefecture, was only allowed to enter without inspection thanks to the guidance of Rong Zhen and Yi Qianqiu.
But at this very moment, the coachman of Princess Anhui, a man named Wei Wu, walked in unimpeded and even brazenly climbed onto the high platform, where he slit the throat of a witness in front of Ouyang Rong and the crowd to silence him.
No one interfered with the entire process.
Rongzhen, representing the female officials of the Control Yuan, did not.
There was no Song, the nanny representing the Luoyang Astronomical Bureau.
Yi Qianqiu and Duan Quanwu, who represent the White Tiger and Black Tortoise Guards, were also absent.
Not to mention the disciplined female officials and generals waiting around.
Ouyang Rong did not stop him.
After Qian Chen collapsed to the ground with a white cloth stuffed in his mouth, his eyes wide and lifeless, clutching his throat.
Aside from tilting his head and asking a question to confirm Wei Wu's identity, Ouyang Rong reached into his robes with one long, slender hand, fumbled around, and pulled out a handkerchief.
This was prepared by Wei Lai for him every day before he went out. The girl smiled sweetly and told the young master to use it to wipe away the dirt outside. But these days he rarely encountered dirt, and since he was a clean person, he used it less often and left it idle in his bosom.
At this moment, Ouyang Rong ignored Wei Wu's polite and courteous inquiry from behind.
He held a white handkerchief in his hand, lowered his eyes, and carefully wiped away the few drops of bright red blood that had splattered from the hem of his scholar's robe. After cleaning it up, he put the handkerchief away, put his hands back in his sleeves, and calmly looked around at the crowd.
The entire venue was deathly silent.
The young man in the scholar's robe was slender, exuding a sense of solitary courage and valor.
Everyone was looking at him alone.
He observes everyone, even when he is alone.
Duan Quanwu was the first to move. He walked to Qian Chen's body, picked up his waist knife, and silently sheathed it. He stood behind Wei Wu, his hand on the waist knife, without saying a word, as if waiting for an order.
Granny Song's old face was wrinkled and expressionless. Her white eyes were hard to read, but they seemed to be staring intently at Ouyang Rong, observing his every move.
Yi Qianqiu's face was covered by a fierce tiger mask, with only his tiger eyes slightly closed. Standing in the sunlight, he was like a marble statue, oblivious to any disturbances from the outside world, as if he were a dead object.
Only Old Yang was a bit different. He looked surprised and glanced around. He had just seen Qian Chen being suddenly approached and had his throat slit by Wei Wu. He was also very surprised. This old cruel official was originally scheduled to wait for instructions outside the main cave today, but he was summoned by Rong Zhen because Ouyang Rong needed to handle the case and conduct interrogations.
Looking around, Old Yang didn't know whether he realized his own incongruity on the field, or that the junior scholar who had summoned him was in a precarious situation, or perhaps both.
The old man silently took two steps back, moving away from Qian Chen's tragically dead body and from the two sides of the field that were faintly separated. However, he still took a deep look at Ouyang Xiaoshi's calm and upright back.
Ouyang Rong's clear gaze swept over them one by one, finally landing on the face of the girl in purple palace attire standing beside him.
Rongzhen held the confession in both hands, her head slightly lowered, her eyes scanning the bloodstained confession without blinking, as if she were engrossed in reading it, completely absorbed in it, unaware of the changes happening around her.
The girl's delicate body remained completely still.
At this moment, Ouyang Rong had nothing to say to anyone else.
There is only one exception.
He gazed at Rongzhen and asked softly:
"When did it start?"
Rongzhen lowered her head, glancing at the statement, as if she hadn't heard anything.
Ouyang Rong then slowly asked:
"It started on the day Yi Qianqiu led his troops to arrive, when he falsely reported that he had confiscated the Yunmeng Token from the water bandits in Hukou County."
"It was you who so earnestly persuaded me and the Prince to jointly submit a petition for aid."
"Or perhaps you received a promise from the King of Wei or the King of Liang when you first came to Jiangzhou from the capital?"
"Yes, no wonder when you first arrived in Xunyang, Your Excellency, you insisted on thoroughly investigating the rebellion of Zhu Lingxu and his son under the guise of being the neutral envoy of the emperor, and later you wouldn't let go of the case of Zhao Rushi, the county magistrate of Jishui, who died suddenly, and you even pursued the owner of the Butterfly Love Flower from the very beginning..."
Rong Zhen's petite body trembled slightly.
Ouyang Rong nodded and said sincerely:
"Lady Historian, I truly believed that you were neutral and selfless, that you had no selfish motives when it came to the affairs of the country and the people, and that you were not trying to overturn the verdict on the two kings of the Wei family. I never thought there was anything wrong with your perseverance and pursuit of the truth, even if overturning the verdict would benefit the Wei family."
"Really, even though you detained me in the Jiangzhou Hall for three days and three nights for interrogating me because of the beheading of Zhu Lingxu at the city gate, I still think you are doing a great job. That's right, this is how it should be investigated. When you wield public power, you should be impartial and enforce the law, regardless of your official position, and not be an exception just because I have the Xunyang Prince's Mansion as a guarantor."
Ouyang Rong recalled the contradictory voice, both smiling and incredibly calm, echoing on the high platform.
Everyone saw the girl in purple palace attire beside them, her fingers gripping the bloodstained confession so tightly they turned blue and white, and a large patch of reddish blood had been drawn from her fingernails.
Seeing this, Duan Quanwu's face darkened, and he repeated his previous words:
"Prefect Ouyang is nothing more than a mentally unstable, fabricated, and falsely confessing villain who has died. Why are you so emotional? And why are you being so easily provoked into misunderstanding and slandering Lady Rongzhen, who relies on you? This behavior is rather immature."
He shook his head, a look of disbelief on his face, and said solemnly:
"What this scoundrel surnamed Qian said is absurd enough to be recognized even by a child's eyes. The two princes of the current dynasty are of the same lineage as the emperor, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that they are of royal lineage. They share the fate of the country and are related to the emperor. How could they possibly collude with the rebels in the southern rivers and lakes? And how could they be connected with these lowly river pirates? It is the most ridiculous thing in the world."
Granny Song nodded, and said in a somewhat stiff tone:
“Princess Anhui is kind-hearted, virtuous and gentle. I have a deep understanding of this. It is impossible for the princess to collude with the rebels of Tiannan Jianghu, let alone order her subordinates to impersonate river pirates. If anyone dares to talk nonsense about this, I will not let it go. Young scholar, don’t be bewitched by the words of these wicked people.”
“That’s right. Those who ruin the reputation of the King of Wei, the King of Liang, and the princess should be executed immediately.”
Duan Quanwu responded with a forced smile, his tone tinged with a sigh:
“Governor Ouyang, I’d like to say something you might not like to hear: you should really thank Steward Wu for his decisive killing of the slanderous scoundrel. It saved you a lot of trouble. Otherwise, if this false case and fabricated confession had reached the capital, things wouldn’t have been as simple as just losing that scoundrel’s head.”
Wei Wu stood with his hands behind his back, eyes downcast and silent, neither nodding nor uttering a word.
Upon hearing this, Ouyang Rong smiled.
Just then, a trusted female official returned. Perhaps noticing that something was amiss on stage, especially with Lady Rongzhen acting strangely, the trusted female official stopped and hesitated.
At this moment, Yi Qianqiu, who remained as still as a mountain, suddenly turned his head and gently waved to the audience. A trusted female official came up on stage, whispered a message in Yi Qianqiu's ear, and then stepped back.
Yi Qianqiu's expression was unreadable, but he spoke in a deep voice to the crowd who were staring at him:
"Following the orders just given by Governor Ouyang, Li Congshan and Lady Miaozhen have already led three hundred armored soldiers back to the city to provide support at the south bank ferry crossing, to block the Xunyang Ferry and protect the Xunyang Prince's Mansion."
She paused, then turned to Ouyang Rong and said softly:
"Prefect Ouyang, Wu Guanshi was specially left behind by Princess An Hui before she left to help protect the Donglin Buddha. There were also some skilled assassins left behind. This move can be regarded as a way of expressing the care of Princess An Hui and the two princes above."
"The Prince of Wei and the Prince of Liang were the advocates of the Great Zhou's Songde Tianshu and the Four Directions Buddha statues. Without them, there would be no Donglin Buddha today. They were too busy protecting the Buddha to collude with the rebels in the south. The two princes should hate those rebels the most. The governor's words were indeed a bit excessive. Let's not say any more. As colleagues, the governor has also contributed to the Buddha. So, let's pretend we didn't hear what he said before... Men, drag this rebel's corpse down and throw it into the river to feed the fish."
Yi Qianqiu turned his head and gave orders to his men in a deep voice. Immediately, White Tiger Guard soldiers came up to the stage to clear the area.
Duan Quanwu interjected:
"Commander Yi is right. Everyone should pretend they didn't hear it. Governor Ouyang, please be more careful with your words and actions and don't make any more mistakes."
Granny Song's usually stern and wrinkled face softened slightly, and she nodded gently, saying:
"Hmm, this old woman is forgetful and doesn't remember. Young scholar, you must do your best from now on. When the rebels from Tiannan Jianghu arrive later, let's work together to annihilate them all. Today, we'll send another report of victory to the Sage of Luoyang."
Ouyang Rong's smile grew even brighter as he raised a finger.
First, let's talk about Duan Quanwu:
"A domestic dog, wagging its tail at its master."
Then, referring to Granny Song:
"An old dog, wasting the people's hard-earned money, cultivating a purple aura in vain, not serving the people and the country, flattering the monarch all day long, and being full of selfish desires and personal feelings outside. The matter of Lin Cheng is one, and the matter of the princess is another. Whether Princess Anhui is good or not is still unknown. If she is really like this, she will surely feel ashamed and disgraced when she finds out that you have become a thief and an accomplice to evil because of her."
Finally, he pointed at Yi Qianqiu:
"You, Yi Qianqiu, Yuan Qianqiu, no, just call yourself Yi Qianqiu, you really should change your surname. I'm too lazy to go on and curse you. Choose one of the two above and see which one applies to you."
"Now I understand why Brother Huaimin avoids you like the plague. Regardless of whether you did it to secure the honor of having a painter present the gift for him, Brother Huaimin will not thank you. You are insulting him, and insulting all the men of the Northern Wei Tuoba Yuan clan, no matter how righteous your twisted logic may be."
Duan Quanwu's face changed drastically, turning pale and then red: "You! You..."
Granny Song's face turned ashen, her eyes flashing several times, filled with murderous intent: "You brat, how dare you!"
Beneath Yi Qianqiu's white tiger mask, a pair of tiger eyes glared fiercely at Ouyang Rong, as if he wanted to devour him.
Wei Wu turned his head and stared coldly at Ouyang Rong.
Ouyang Rong ignored him, slowly turned his head to look at the palace-dressed girl beside him with her head bowed, and instantly calmed down, asking:
"As for you, Lady Historian, may I ask, how are you different from Lin Cheng back then?"
The blood-stained confession that Rong Zhen held in both hands turned to ashes in an instant. Her slender, loli-like body was covered with a red glow that flowed like water. Her purple clothes were completely dyed red, so from a distance, it looked as if she was breathing. The palace-dressed girl was sometimes bright red and sometimes bright purple, a dazzling and extraordinarily noble sight.
Despite her current fame and fortune, she no longer has a confession in her hand. She still keeps her head down, seemingly staring intently at her empty hands, lost in thought, speechless.
"Boy, say that again! What about my beloved disciple? He sacrificed himself for the Great Zhou, dying a heroic death. He is a martyr, recognized by the Sage and the King of Wei and the King of Liang. How dare you slander him..."
Granny Song's eyes turned purple as she stepped forward, her imposing aura like dark clouds pressing down on a city. Ouyang Rong's robes fluttered and made a rustling sound, but he did not retreat a step, meeting her gaze directly without fear.
"Deputy Supervisor Song, please calm down!"
Yi Qianqiu stepped forward and stopped the old woman with the disdainful eyes, preventing her from taking any further action.
At this moment, the anger in Yi Qianqiu's eyes had disappeared. This White Tiger female general, who always gave outsiders the impression of being irritable and domineering, was actually the one who calmed down the fastest among them.
She glanced at Rong Zhen, then at Ouyang Rong, and said to him, word by word:
"Prefect Ouyang, please calm down. I understand your feelings. A scholar will die for one who understands him. You are loyal to the Prince of Xunyang and are worried about the Prince of Xunyang's situation in the current crisis. I understand."
"Concern can cloud judgment. You've wronged Lady Rongzhen. It's alright if you wrongly blame us, but don't wrongly blame important people. Don't wait until you've hurt them before you regret it..."
"Prefect Ouyang, think about it carefully. This morning you asked to transfer Li Congshan and Lady Miaozhen to Shuangfengjian for defense, and Lady Rongzhen cooperated in the arrangements. Now you want to transfer them back for rescue, and Lady Rongzhen has also made arrangements without saying a word, including transferring Old Yang to help you interrogate and investigate the case..."
"Has Lady Rongzhen ever wronged you in any way?"
No, no.
Yi Qianqiu shook his head. Despite being a rough and uncouth man, his words were logical and remarkably meticulous. He began to analyze the situation for Ouyang Rong:
“Li Congshan and Miaozhen have already returned. If there are any bandits attempting to attack, they can protect the Prince’s Mansion. Think about it, isn’t that right? The most important thing now is to protect the Buddha statue. Don’t worry, don’t go out…”
Ouyang Rong looked at her sincere expression and suddenly smiled.
(End of this chapter)
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